Movie Companion Time

After I watched The Host the first time, I was tempted to go into Barnes & Noble and buy the movie companion on the spot, even though it would be almost double the price in store versus online--but I wasn't that tempted considering that my local store didn't even have it in stock. Compared with all the books and merch that I would stare at every time I visited after The Hobbit came out, this was disappointing.

But I had been planning, for months now, a big online book purchase of all the random things I've been wanting. Now that the shipment has arrived, I keep thinking of more books that I want, but I am gleeful of the fact that I do now own so many coveted ones. As I look over them, I find that many are movie books, including Mark Cotta Vaz's The Host: The Official Illustrated Movie Companion.

Mark Cotta Vaz also wrote the four Twilight movie companions, and I do feel that his writing approach has improved over the course of these five books (which are nowhere near all he has written, of course). I really enjoy movie companions, provided they do more than show pictures and re-explain plot elements. So I am happy to say that this book does much more than that.

There are just the right amount of quotes from the cast and crew, whether major or minor actors, producers, stunt performers, location scouts, or anyone else involved in the project. The balance was perfect between getting words from people we'd love to hear from (like Saoirse Ronan and Stephenie Meyer) and also people whose voices don't always get heard in as much detail but were still important parts of the venture. The format of the book takes us smoothly through from preproduction to post, highlighting what it was like being on set and how certain aspects of the movie were achieved. The only thing that I noticed missing was the score, particularly considering that this was one part of the movie I really enjoyed. But I would imagine this was just an area where Vaz didn't have the opportunity to conduct interviews; after all, he's writing at everyone's mercy.

Despite the fact that I don't like to just have visuals, there are some beautiful pictures in here. I'm a particular fan of Ian and Wanderer sitting on the desert mountaintop on page 107; am I so very strange that I think that's such a romantic and gorgeous picture? Seeing all of these images in still, picture form reminds me of how perfect the colors in the movie were. I loved learning about how Andrew Niccol purposefully chose a plain, barren landscape in order to give the film a unique look. Since I missed all the vegetation I'm used to associating with Arizona, hearing this helped me understand why he chose these particular New Mexico locations.

Some other bits I enjoyed reading about included the crazy contact lenses, the amazing cave set, all the stunt people, and the ethereal and mythological Shiprock location. I definitely recommend this movie companion.

The Lovely, Lonely Host

Click here to read my initial thoughts on The Host.

My blog background seems to have disappeared, leaving behind the forest image that was beneath it--the weird thing is that the link to the website where I got the background is still up there in the corner. Will it come back on its own, then? I can't seem to figure out what went wrong, or how to put up a new background. I feel at such a loss.

Anyway, guess what movie I went to see again yesterday? The Host, that's right. (And I'm probably going to see it again in the next week or two whenever another friend or two that I'm taking to see it can make it.) Because of my weird movie-watching habits, I'm used to sometimes seeing a movie in a fairly empty theatre. But this time, I was watching with less than ten other people and in (I think) this particular theatre's second largest space. So that did make me feel rather isolated.

But when you watch a movie without a surrounding audience, you can tell what it is you like or don't or what makes you laugh and such like. The responses are all yours, not responses based on the general audience reaction.

I have a couple of follow-up comments on this movie. The costumes and overall style of the souls really did start to bother me this time. It made it feel less like the souls try to imitate humans. The attitude of the Seekers comes up most often, and so it seemed to most define the souls--but the Seekers are only a select group of souls. So the souls, in the movie, feel like a threatening institution rather than the friendly, honest, and truly-believing-their-way-is-right group that they are. The movie makes it seem like it's specifically Wanda who is this way.

I also stared at the landscape some more. Okay, New Mexico was never going to look exactly like Arizona to an Arizonan. But still. And I know that I don't spend much time south of Phoenix (where Picacho Peak is), but when I look at pictures of the area, there's one thing in particular that I see: saguaros! And other vegetation, including gorgeous wildflowers if the season's right. But the movie portrayed this area as rather lifeless--and sandy, as I mentioned before. Considering that saguaros don't grow everywhere, I missed them. But, I say with a sigh, this isn't actually a big deal.

Why, though, does Jamie not have an accent if his sister does? Melanie has an accent to distinguish her from Wanderer, but the accent seemed to bypass Jamie.

The first part of the movie, you can say, starts slow. But I think what interests me less about it isn't the pace: it's that the "soul style" I talked about above is a primary part of these opening scenes. And while the book, because it is a book, is able to introduce Melanie's and Wanderer's characters early on as separate identities and then to form the bond between them in the desert, these developments of character happen differently in the movie.

But both times, as this movie has come forward towards its close, I have found myself in the most buoyant mood. The development happens softly, almost imperceptibly, naturally. That shot of Wanderer's face at the end, when she is saying goodbye to Melanie, that is what this story is all about. So to see Wanderer finding peace and then to see her reawaken and for her community to also find peace is powerful. It's the lingering power of success, emotion, and resolution. Wanderer has literally found herself and where she belongs.

That's why I'm loving this little, low budget movie that critics mostly criticize. That's why I'll even sit in an empty theatre to see if if I have to: because it's what I like, and like Wanderer, I don't need confirmation from someone else to choose where I give my attention.

The Host of the Southwest

Do you hear that sound? That's me jumping up and down at how happy The Host made me.

A very brief glance at reviews from critics and non-critics would show that not everyone agrees with me. But I say, all the more reason to quickly put down my thoughts on what I liked about this movie. The top section should be spoiler-free, but I'll go into a couple more details after the jump.

While the trailer emphasized the sci-fi action side of the movie and while that is one side of it, as a whole this isn't an action movie. (If you want action, go watch The Avengers again, enjoy yourself, and don't bash The Host: The Avengers practically put me to sleep.) It also isn't a romance, despite a few kisses. It's sci-fi, but it also takes place largely in a desert. You see what's emerging here? All the careful balances that I see in the book translated into the movie.

It's very much a psychological movie (not in the Black Swan way), asking questions about humanity and identity and human relationships. While perhaps not all of those relationships get developed in great detail during the movie, I think what matters is that they're there: this particular story is about how Wanderer and Melanie interact. Other characters are only in addition to their story.

Visually, I adored the desert of New Mexico standing in for Arizona. I just felt so at home; maybe that's why I enjoyed the movie so much. I was smiling broadly at all the landscape shots (except the sandy one: was that too sandy?).

Audio isn't always something I notice or focus on in a movie, but I noticed it here, perhaps because it had so many components. Melanie's voiceovers worked well; it was genuinely disturbing when she first spoke, and then later became rather natural. The score was great: I appreciated the choice in the type of instruments and the more organic, less pop approach. Just having the song by Imagine Dragons for the credits is enough. Sound editing also helped move emotion through the scenes in conjunction with the actors' performances--which were also good. Saoirse Ronan, I initially didn't think you looked quite right for the part, but you really did it.

If anyone is worried about just getting something more like Twilight, don't be. Just as the books are separate and different, so are the movies. They have certain traits within them that might make them appeal to the same people, but it's also entirely possible to not like one but like the other. So if that association happens to be holding you back, don't let it.

The Host Movie Poster Reaction

I just bought my movie ticket this morning to see Breaking Dawn Friday morning, but I think I'm actually more excited to see the trailer for The Host before the movie starts (note: I plan on doing a quick pre-Breaking Dawn post later this week). As a little teaser for that, the movie poster for The Host has been released--you can view it at the Twilight Lexicon.

Whew. Now I find myself fangirling over The Host. I'm just insanely curious how this movie will turn out, and the poster is a taste of the final product. Here are the things I noticed, hopefully in the order I noticed them in. While the cast is a bit younger than the novel pictures, they at least do have a bit of age ambiguity--they don't give out "high school drama," at least. There is a very sci-fi tone to the angles the three characters stand at, the colors (the contrast of the neon blue with the earthy, brown tones), and exoticness of the rocks in the background.

Which brings me to another point. Those rocks. They're not going to be the movie's version of Picachu Peak, are they? Because this is where my concern (well, part of it) about this movie is. New Mexico (where some of it was filmed) looks similar to Arizona, but very different to an Arizona native. And when you're dealing with a specific landmark like Picachu Peak, how do you deal with filming in a different state? Did they choose a different peak in New Mexico, or will they be superimposing Picachu Peak onto the New Mexico landscape?

But one of the exciting things about the poster is how remarkably Saoirse Ronan looks like Melanie/Wanderer. When she was cast, my reaction was, "she doesn't fit Melanie's physical description at all." But that's Melanie standing right there in the middle of the poster.