Reading/Watching Log #58

October means Halloween, so there is an excess of spooky films under the cut – surprisingly enough, the horror genre is often quite kind to women. Yes, a lot of it is based on fear of a certain kind of womanhood, but that underlying tension opens up all kinds of possibilities for subversive storytelling.

For instance, these days it’s outright impossible to deal with the subject of witches without including a feminist subtext (whether you meant to or not) and even movies like The Craft and Ginger Snaps, which are in many ways cautionary tales aimed at women, end up being so compelling in their depiction of said women seizing power and owning their sexuality that the intended moral of the story is completely obliterated. Let's face it, nothing about Nancy's fate in The Craft deterred nineties teenagers from dabbling in witchcraft...

Aside from that I finally read The Hunger Games prequel centred on Coriolanus Snow that I’ve had on reserve at the library since July, gotten through not one but two sequel series to books I read years ago, and enjoyed a smattering of graphic novels. But I’m still working through a ton of horror-based material that I won’t be able to discuss until the end of November, which is what happens when a themed holiday takes place on the last day of the month.

Review: Toy Story: Tale of Terror!

I’m not sure anyone was in a huge hurry to see more of Woody, Buzz, Jessie and the rest of the gang after their glorious send-off at the end of Toy Story 3 – not because we didn’t love them, but because… well, why mess with perfection? Why go back to the well and risk overexposure? Why compromise that utterly sublime ending?

I’ll get to Toy Story 4 in due course, in which many of these fears did in fact materialize, but the shorts and specials that were released between 2011 and 2014 were delectable little trifles that gave us more adventures of the toys without backtracking on any of the developments or characterizations of the movie trilogy. For now at least, I can continue raving about the continued success of the franchise.

This, plus the Christmas Special (Toy Story That Time Forgot) and three short films (Small Fry, Hawaiian Vacation and Partysaurus Rex) all work beautifully as a sort of coda to the trilogy, giving us glimpses into what is essentially the toys’ happy ending with Bonnie, the new owner who loves and cherishes them, and who they can protect and nurture in return. With that in mind, you can’t blame Pixar Studios for wanting to play a little longer in this particular sandpit.

I’ll get to the rest in good time, but for now, in honour of Halloween: Toy Story: Tale of Terror!

Angela Barrett: The Most Wonderful Thing in the World

 My last post in this series covered Angela Barrett’s earliest work (The Wild Swans) and this one examines her most recent: The Most Wonderful Thing in the World by Vivian French. It’s an original story, but one infused with a fairy tale ambiance in its illustrations of an Edwardian-era Venice. Though it has none of the symbolism or potency of our oldest tales, its sweet little love story manages to find a clever loophole in the familiar “most worthy suitor” clause.

Through dozens of little vignettes set alongside sweeping two-page vistas, Barrett creates an ornate Venetian city of villas, islands, canals and piazzas, where the Princess Lucia freely roams while her parents puzzle over the challenge they have set her potential suitors: to win their daughter’s hand, they must first be presented with the most wonderful thing in the world. Fittingly, the book is filled with possible answers to this riddle: automobiles and acrobats, gemstones and jewellery, exotic animals and optical illusions…

News: NZ Election

As I’m sure you’re aware, the New Zealand election is over, and it was a landslide. Though I wasn’t prepared to take anything for granted, the writing was pretty much on the wall when it came to a Labour victory – but the sheer extent of the red wave (and here, that means left) caught everyone by surprise. Not only is Labour a majority government – a thing unheard of since 1946 – but several electorates that have been held by National MPs for up to twenty years have flipped.

Standing Tall #29

This giraffe (called Giraffe Crossing) was based on a fairly straightforward concept by artist Mark Catley: its minimal black lines creating an illusion of both bandages and zebra crossings. Together they remind Christchurch residents of the rebuild in the wake of the earthquakes – not only the visible wounds, but also the need to carefully pick a safe path around the debris. Okay, it’s a bit of a stretch, but that’s what my guidebook said.

Of more interest to me was learning that this sculpture was in Hazeldean Business Park, a place I’d never visited before. What, pray tell, was a business park? Turns out it’s just a square of grass outside an office block and next to a carpark. Which turned out to be rather hazardous, as someone managed to drive straight into this sculpture, requiring it to be removed for repairs for a couple of weeks.

It was standing by the time I got to it, but it wasn’t one of the most memorable contributions, and not even the only one to utilize a zebra motif. But we’ll get to that one in time…

Links and Updates

 Not much to report: everyone and everything is stressed.

We’re in the middle of elections, which is good because it means they’ll be over soon, and whichever way it swings at least I can stop worrying about them (I don’t think I’ve been consciously worrying, but I feel like I’ve had a headache for the last four weeks, not helped by the perpetual smirking of Judith Collins. Ma’am, you haven’t done anything worth smirking about yet).

Fandom is… about the same. Dramas erupt and dissipate, people argue about the latest announcements and then wonder how long they’re going to have to wait before seeing new material, and no one seems to be enjoying anything. If Hollywood wants to start recuperating losses on their blockbusters, I’ve no idea why they don’t start releasing things in New Zealand (okay, I know why – they want to avoid pirating and spoilers). But I noticed that Disney+ plans to release Pixar’s Soul on its streaming service: I hope at least we get the chance to see it on the big screen down here.

Legend of the Seeker: Bounty

The one with the bounty hunters.

I have a long-held theory that the second episode of any multi-episode television show is always… kinda naff. The writers have thrown everything they’ve got into the premiere: the character introductions, the main premise, the threat the villain poses, the underlying themes and storylines, and enough explosions or swordfights or sex scenes to get the viewer’s attention…

And then the second episode rolls around and they’re in a bit of a slump. Most of the hard narrative work has already been done, but it’s still too early to delve into the deeper nitty-gritty of the plot or world-building.

The episode, almost by necessity, has to be mediocre.