RiffTrax Live: The Room Review
The storyline (if you can call it that) centers around a man and his fiancé who is cheating on him with his best friend. And it doesn’t take place in just one room. (The best part was the random shots of San Francisco.)
There was also nudity. Believe me, the lead had no business being nude. And they were long scenes. Despite the gratuitous boob shots, I longed for those scenes to end.
Considering this was a film about human behavior and interaction, none of that rang true. Characters flip-flopped radically. Scenes were random and made no sense. It was the rough draft of a poorly written story. And all of it made worse by a lead who couldn’t act his way out of a wet paper bag. Which just gives Mike, Bill, and Kevin lots of fodder!
Don't go into The Room unless you're armed with RiffTrax!
And of course, a few pre-movie screen shots for you!
Another solid entry in the Kung Fu Panda series.
Villain Kai breaks free from the spirit world, Po’s panda father appears, and Po must learn the art of Chi to save China.
The story doesn’t break much new ground. It still manages to be an enjoyable and very funny ride though.
The animation is stunning. The spirit world scenes are amazing.
Just good family entertainment. Recommended.
When Speculative Becomes Mundane
Please welcome author Ethan Fox! Last week, I watched the movie Kingsman for the first time (yes, yes, I'm late to the party, fine). If you haven't seen it, suffice to say it's a spy movie, with most of the usual themes you tend to associate with spy films.
Anyway, there's a scene in the middle where the spy's mentor shows him their “armoury”, a bit like the part in every Bond film when JB goes to visit Q, and gets his exploding jock-strap.
The mentor shows the spy a poisonous pen, a shoe with a hidden knife, a lighter which is also a grenade... Then they get to the shelf with a bunch of tablets and phones.
“What's special about them?” asks the spy.
“Nothing,” says the mentor.
It's an elegant turn-of-phrase; funny in context, but also quite poignant. I guess it's a very human reaction that something we use every day becomes mundane, even though the capabilities of a smartphone would've had you burned as a witch just over a century ago, and would've probably made you a super-spy in the 1950s.
For those of us towards the fantasy end of fiction, this isn't too big a concern. The stuff that we write about, largely, can never exist by definition. For speculative fiction authors, though, I'm curious – have you ever written something fictional that turned out later to be real? Do you ever think about this as part of your writing?
Ethan Fox is an author of urban fantasy fiction, and has recently published his debut work, The Scissors and the Sword. It's available HERE from Amazon, in both Kindle and Paperback formats.
Also, BUY NOW at a special introductory price! This offer expires very soon, so check it out quickly if you want to take advantage of it.
The IWSG Anthology!
Here’s the cover and details:
Print ISBN 9781939844200
eBook ISBN 9781939844118
Science Fiction/Alternate History
Enter the realm of parallel universes!
What if the government tried to create the perfect utopia? Could a society linked to a supercomputer survive on its own? Do our reflections control secret lives on the other side of the mirror? Can one moment split a person’s world forever?
Exploring the fantastic, ten authors offer incredible visions and captivating tales of diverse reality. Featuring the talents of L. G. Keltner, Crystal Collier, Hart Johnson, Cherie Reich, Sandra Cox, Yolanda Renee, Melanie Schulz, Sylvia Ney, Michael Abayomi, and Tamara Narayan.
Hand-picked by a panel of agents and authors, these ten tales will expand your imagination and twist the tropes of science fiction. Step through the portal and enter another dimension!
Our very own Annalisa Crawford gathered third place in this year's Costa Short Story Award. She won for her story Watching the Storms Roll In. Visit her site for pictures of the awards ceremony. Way to go, Annalisa!
Assassin’s Heart by Sarah Ahiers
Multiple versions available at Amazon and find it on Goodreads
Hosted by Xmas Dolly. Forgive me if I screw up the theme this week.
I’m hooked on several albums right now – new Megadeth, Dream Theater, Serenity… But since I reviewed Baroness-Purple last week, I decided to post one of their songs. Again, just good, solid rock. Nothing scary – promise!
Lost and Found: The Valentine's Edition/Question of the Month
Tell your story about love lost or found in our special Valentine's blogfest. Your post can be a short fiction, an essay, poetry, or even a song--let your imagination run free.
What love did I lose and find again? Not the love of a woman. (No sir, I suckered her into marrying me before she came to her senses.)
My love of playing music.
I’ve played an instrument since I was young and even minored in music in college. But once I graduated and moved on with my life, I forgot about it.
Then, several years ago, my wife purchased a guitar for me. I’d always wanted to play one and after a few months of trial and error and one month of lessons, I became proficient enough to play a whole song. After years of being away from music, it was awesome.
Now I play in a Christian band, and it’s the most amazing thing ever. That I can create something that will inspire and move people – what more can an artist ask for?
Writing is fun and I’ve enjoyed where that path has led me. But music is my true passion. And I’ll not let it go again.
What about you?
Yes, one very full post!
Have you seen The Room? (The bad RiffTrax one, not the Oscar contender.) Catch Kung Fu Panda 3? Ever written anything that became real? Excited about the anthology? Ready to give Baroness a listen? And what love have you lost or found…?
