BOOKER CRITICS

MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL movie review by Nick M.

bookerhs — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 12:54:25 +0000

“Click clack, click clack, click clack, click clack” is the noise you hear, after two minutes of opening credits, as king Arthur and his porter “ride” (trotting while banging coconuts together) through Brittan. They come to a castle taken over by the French and it fuels a conversation about how coconuts got to Britain, being of tropical origin they come to the conclusion that an African swallow carried them there while it was migrating. This movie is of course Monty pythons holy grail, a low budget film spoofing king author and the Holy Grail. Monty python’s Holy Grail is directed by terry Gilliam and terry Jones and released in the United States May 10^th 1975. the film was mostly shot in on location in Scotland near various castles, Since the movies budget was pretty low (229,575$) most of the castles that appear in the movie are “Doune castle” shot from different angles or with cardboard models propped up on the side to make it look like a different castle. Monty python and the Holy Grail had a great mocking humor, and various other ridiculous things that made it one of my favorite movies of all time.

The movie starts off with the credits in the beginning, a bit different and at the bottom of the screen you’ll notice random sub titles popping directed towards the audience this is known as breaking the 4^th wall. (This 4^th wall is known as the imaginary wall between the audience and a stage, in this case the credits and the people sitting on there couches munching on MSG filled chips). Another great running gag in the movie is the coconuts, being a low budget film they couldn’t afford horses so they had to think of something to fill in. So they use the sound of coconuts being banged together to intimidate the sounds of horses hooves and this is how the conversation I was talking about in the paragraph above gets started. The only time in the Whole movie that a horse does appear is when an unidentified knight rides by and kills a famous historian, once again breaking the 4^th wall.

On there quest to find the Holy Grail the knights run into various obstacles and set backs, one of the most notable would be the killer rabbit that guards the cave that has the location of the Holy Grail. The seemingly harmless fuzz ball turns out to be a viscous flesh craving monster. There is a scene in the movie I really like the idea of, A stubborn black knight that one of king Arthurs knights fights, After severing all of the black knights limbs the artery gushing knight mutters “its just a minor flesh wound, get back here ill gnaw your legs off!”. Monty python spoofed a lot of things, some that even weren’t in the right time period, like the Trojan bunny scene. In this bit the knights build a Trojan bunny to invade a French castle, after building the bunny they wheel it up to the castle and leave..Whats wrong with this scene? They forgot to get in the bunny!

Monty Pythons Holy Grail really is a joy to watch, filled with great little gags, and timeless quotes that could make even the ill-humored major in the army pee themselves from laughter. After a good 81 minutes off my friends and I laughing and gagging on chips and soda I had determined this was one of the best movies made. Normally people bash low budget movies for being un-realistic and a waste of time but at the end, and while writing this review, I have to say I’m glad they didn’t have butt loads of money to spend on the Holy Grail. I mean all in all if they did use real horses and different castles every time , people wouldn’t be galloping around banging coconuts together in the grocery stores or saying “its just a minor flesh wound” every time they got hurt. Also you can’t forget the “I fart in your general direction” when they have to let one go!

The Giver book review by Graison J

bookerhs — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 12:43:30 +0000

The Giver says, “the world didn’t fit how people wanted it so they changed it” this is relevant to the book because the whole book is about the boy trying to figure out why they changed the world. The Giver by Lois Lowry is about a boy named Jonas who lives in a world where people have everything controlled for them. Jonas is put into a situation where he can feel the emotions and memories that others can’t. The main characters are Jonas and The Giver and there are some other smaller characters like Jonas’ mother, father and sister plus some of his friends. The strengths of the book are: it definitely entertains, shows true emotion, and portrays a good message.

The first thing I liked about this book is that is entertains the reader. An example of this is when Jonas is first experiencing happiness, pain, and sadness. This is entertaining because it is funny that Jonas doesn’t know what snow is or has never felt the warmth of the sun, as he does he feels this great incredibleness of all the simple things we bypass daily. Jonas goes into a memory of love and doesn’t know what it is so he asks The Giver what it is and he says, “It is my favorite emotion, Love.”. Another example of how it entertains is wondering how our life would be in his world. Jonas says, “I think our life should be filled with colors and memories and emotion“.

Another thing I liked about this book is that it shows true emotion. An example of this is when Jonas finds out that his father, who is a doctor, kills small children that don’t fit in with the rest of the community. Jonas says with tears in his eyes “that he does not wish to go home to his father for he is a killer”. Another example of true emotion is when Jonas begins to have feelings for his friend Fiona. In a dream Jonas has, Jonas pictures Fiona naked.

The good message is something that really made me enjoy this book. For example in the book it has references that war is bad so Lois Lawry was probably a hippie. In the book Jonas sees his friends playing war and freaks out because he saw memories of actual war. Another good message that it portrays is that burdening one person with many problems is a bad thing to do. The Giver who had to deal with all the bad memories and emotions of the community was in pain most of the time.

The critic Teresa Knight says this book is “ ambiguous and left open for interpretation by the reader”. I have to agree because when I finished the book I also thought that you could think of this book in many different ways depending on the way you looked at it. If you like books that have real emotions and a good message then this is the book for you. It will appeal to all readers and I recommend for anyone who enjoys a good book.

The Dark Knight movie review by Graison J

bookerhs — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 12:41:34 +0000

Alfred says,” some men aren’t looking for anything logical, like money. They can’t be bought, bullied, reasoned or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn. The Dark Knight by Christopher Nolan is about Batman’s fight to stay on the good side even though tempted by his rivalry with the joker. The main characters are Batman/Bruce Wayne, The Joker, Alfred Pennyworth, Rachel Dawes, and Harvey Dent/Two-Face. The strengths of this movie are that it was humorous yet serious, shows how The Batman has to make important decisions like everyday people, and the way the actors played the characters.

The first thing I liked about the movie was that it was humorous yet serious. An example of this is when the joker says “he is going to kill one person for every day the Batman doesn’t turn himself in“. An example of when it was funny is when The Joker was with the Mob Boss who was threatening to kill him and the joker opens up his jacket and says, “ lets not blow this out of proportion”.

Another thing I liked about this movie is that it showed The Batman having to make deep and serious decisions like we do everyday. An example of this is when The Batman had to decide whether or not to save Rachel, the woman he loves, or Harvey Dent the slightly more important politician. After the batman thinks he is doing the right thing Harvey says, “ No!, why did you save me? You should have saved Rachel”. Another example is when The Batman decided to spy on every cell phone in the city to find The Joker. Lucius Fox said,“ You took my sonar concept and applied it to every phone in the city. With half the city feeding you sonar, you can image all of Gotham. This is wrong.” The Batman said, “I’ve gotta find this man, Lucius.”

The way the actors played the characters is something that really made me enjoy this movie. For example Heath Ledger played an amazing Joker because he was a little loco like The Joker. It was probably one of the best movies I’ve ever seen him in. He also played in “Brokeback Mountain” and his performance in “The Dark Knight” was a lot better. Another example is how Christian Bale played The Batman. Bale is a great actor I’ve seen many of his movie and always impressed. You could see from his facial expressions and emotions that Batman was very troubled by the things he had to do.

The critic Manohla Dargis says this movie is” a masterpiece” I have to agree because the characters were played so well and it was so entertaining I didn’t even want to leave my seat for a second. If you like movies that have action and thrilling scenes this is the movie for you. It will appeal to all movie fans and I recommend it for anyone who likes a great movie.

Melanie Martin Goes Dutch- Book Reveiw by Alyssa Van Wagner

bookerhs — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 13:12:35 +0000

This cute story is narrated by the main character and is in the form of a personal diary. This is just a fun read kind of book. Melanie Martin of course is the main character whose family travels to Amsterdam on a study of art.

Melanie’s mother is an artist, and has been chosen to make the trip. She invites her whole family and they end up on a journey that takes them all around and sh0ws them incredible things that Amsterdam has to offer.

Melanie’s best friend Cecily is invited to go on the trip with Melanie’s family. This whole trip is to take place over the summer.

Through the duration of the vacation, Cecily’s mother is getting surgery done because she has cancer. This causes Cecily to feel somewhat sad during a lot of the trip. Cecily and Melanie go on an adventure of a lifetime. Many things happen, including their luggage being lost. This causes them to have to wear the same thing pretty much everyday until they get their luggage back. They do go out and buy a few clean outfits for them to wear while their luggage is being located. They have a good first few days none the less.

The story line of this book is creative. It’s something I have never read before. I like the thought of a book coming directly from the main character’s point of view through a diary. Like I said before, it’s a good story line, however I think it can be improved. I think the book would be much more enjoyable for me if the main character were a teenager. Simply the thought of a teenager being forcibly stuck with their family for a long time over the summer in a foreign country, is more relatable for me. I’m certain many younger children will love this book. On that note, this is not a perfect read for a youth of my age.

This enjoyable little tale is a good time passer and is quite funny in some parts. On a scale from one to ten, I would rate this book, written by Carol Weston, as an eight. It is cute and pleasing, but it may be under level for anyone under, say, 7th grade. It is though for kids who can read thick books. This book is 233 pages full of foreign adventure (in a country other than the United States of America.)

This book definitely an easy read and I feel it was a bit under my level. However, it is interesting enough to get you into the story and not want to put it down. Honestly, this book can be a good way for adults to see the world the way a child does.

If I had to rate this book on a scale from one to ten, I would give it a seven. It’s interesting enough and very creative while also teaching a bit of history and art, and even art history.

SUPERSIZE ME movie review by Alyssa V.W.

bookerhs — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 12:56:26 +0000

Supersize Me is a crazy comedic documentary of a man who tries to show the nation how bad fast food is for you by eating nothing but McDonald’s for a month straight. This Documentary can teach us alot of what we ignore until the weight ends up on our shoulders, and more literally, our hips!

To show how dangerous this task is for him, in the beginning, he has to visit many different types of doctors, and almost every single one thinks what he is doing is pointless, dangerous, and for even attempting it, he’s out of his mind. This also shows how much hard work and determination is put into what he is about to do which, in turn, shows how much he cares about this growing problem as well.

This documentary is not like many other documentaries because this documentary is about a growing problem in the U.S.A. It also takes place in the U.S.A.

What this man says about America’s problem is all true. We are a growing nation that advances day by day with new technologies and what not. We are so self absorbed and too busy with our fast paced lives to do things for ourselves anymore, including cook for ourselves. Likewise, we turn to the option of “fast food.” Pretty much any food that is considered “fast food” is so bad for our bodies and in turn makes us slower, lazier, and unfortunatly fatter.

Luckily, though, it is “in” now to be fit or in shape; to be skinny. Skinny, though it makes us feel good about ourselves, doesn’t necessarily mean healthy. Healthy, strong and skinny are a good combination. A combination that will not be cracked unless we drop this act of being too busy, which is American code for “I’m too lazy.” In other words, get up out of that chair or couch that you ate sitting in and get outside. If you excersise enough, you can be fortunate enough to aford that “value” meal in the drive through once or twice aonth while maintaining your brilliant design and figure you have acheived by exercising after watching this moving, truthful, and motivating documentary. You will enjoy it. I did and I got something amazing out of it.

On a scale from one to ten, I would rate it as a ten! It’s a brilliant demonstration of what can happen to you id tou get too consumed by your food!
If I were to set an age group to this documentary, I’d say I recomend this film to anyone from ages 12 and up! This highly enjoyable picture is worth your time! You won’t be disappointed, but you will feel enlightened.

The Lorax book review

bookerhs — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 22:33:00 +0000

As I did with previous texts like The Runaway Bunny and The Giving Tree, I am taking a stab at one of the most revered children’s book heroes of all time, Theodor Seuss Geisel, otherwise known as Dr. Seuss. I would almost venture to say that he may be the most revered author anywhere, as Jack London and William Shakespeare don’t get nearly as much love and repeated readings as the verse master Seuss. That said, Dr. Seuss, as respected and venerated as he may be, has courted controversy with the assertion of his social and political ideals into his children’s books. No book of his is more divisive and notorious than 1971 environmental chronicle of The Lorax.

For many of you the mere mention of The Lorax will elicit a warm wash of nostalgia and affection for the cautionary environmental tale, but for select few, the name is synonymous with tree hugging and a generalized knee jerk reaction to anything that involves cutting down a tree.

To provide a brief synopsis: The Lorax is a fable involving the Once-ler (the greedy and loutish capitalist set on cutting down truffula trees), The Lorax (the environmental Cassandra and representative) and an array of flora and fauna that are impudently destroyed in favor of the all mighty dollar. It is a fable about the destructive human imprint on the natural world, and the long-term cost of our nearsighted actions and unyielding greed. Effectively, it is an explicit incitement of market-driven environmental exploitation; a system aimed at short-term profits over long-term consequences.

The Lorax, as much as it was a critical success, very effectively annoyed those who support, or are supported by, the logging industry, leading to numerous proposed bans and boycotts of the book due to its anti-industry message. Many parents, who work in the logging industry, were alienated and vilified by their own children who saw them as destructive”Once-lers” bent on environmental ruin whatever the cost. The outrage among industrialist as well as the logging community was so acute, that a few people came together to create a playful rebuttal to The Lorax titled the Truax: A sort of inverse tale of a reactionary Lorax-type character who learns about the benign intent of the logging industry.

Still the book remains ever popular and just as relevant today as it was back in the early 1970s, despite the lasting controversy. The obvious message to take away from this cautionary tale is one of environmental stewardship, and the necessary balance between human need and the conservation of the natural world. On a socio-economic level, the Lorax parable could be seen as a simple need for an economic long view. The Once-ler, a creature so obsessed with greed and profit, is wholly unable to see the folly of his business plan and refuses to open his eyes to his own economic ruin as he hastens the decline of his own economic base and resource–the truffula trees. The Once-ler, like his customers (and the rest of us) is utterly blind to his developing or lasting impact because this is a culture obsessed with fervent materialism without ever clearly viewing the roots, and subsequent results, of our actions. The character of the Lorax is reminiscent of the drowned out Native-American voice of warning, speaking for the indigenous creatures of the land. Neither accommodating nor outright hostile, the Lorax is seemingly unaware of the concept of property rights, so by speaking for the trees, he is essentially asserting his claim to the land, at least as de-facto steward.

The story ends with a small glimmer of hope, in which a final remaining seed of the desecrated truffula trees is saved and passed to the open hands of a young boy who is saddled with the responsibility of repopulating this environmental dystopia, and undoing the blatant neglect with a purposeful stewardship of the land.

As for the intended audience for this cautionary fable, children will no doubt immediately glean the highly essential message of conservation and responsibility. However, I couldn’t help but wondering if this tale would hold its weight if it were not a story based in degradation and spoil, but one centered on the attainable benefits of preservation and nurture?

Eric Steinman is a freelance writer based in Rhinebeck, N.Y. He regularly writes about food, music, art, architecture and culture and is a regular contributor to Bon Appétit among other publications.

THE JOY LUCK CLUB – Film Review by: Breanna B.

bookerhs — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 22:03:28 +0000

“In America, I will have a daughter just like me. But over there, nobody will say her worth is measured by the loudness of her husbands belch. Over there, nobody will look down on her because I will make her speak only perfect American English. And over there, she will always be too full to swallow any sorrow.” The Joy Luck Club is based on the book, The Joy Luck Club, written by Amy Tan. It is a story of four Asian women and their daughters. These women met in feudal China through their church. Each week, they came together to play mah-jong, hoping that they would become lucky and win. This wish for luck was their only joy. The women all move to America and have a daughter. This movie tells of the struggles that the mothers had while living in China and how their lives affect those of their daughters.

The actresses and actors played their roles really well. Jing-mei “June” Woo, is the newest member of the Joy Luck club. She took her mother’s, Suyuan Woo, place after her death. While I was reading the book, I always thought of June as to be a rebel. But while watching the movie, she seemed sweet and merely a misunderstood child. After June’s mother’s death, she plans to go to China to find her long lost sisters. Suyuan Woo is June’s mother. Her daughter and sisters have never forgiven her for one thing she did, and that was leaving twin babies on the side of the road. Waverly Jong, played by Tamlyn Tomita, seems as a sort of attention seeker to me. She has a sort of rivalry with June. When she was younger, she had incredible talents which led her to be a national chess champion. She soon quit chess, for attention as it seems to m. When she decides to play again, she realizes she has lost this natural talent.

This movie is constructed by showing a torrent of flashbacks from each of the four women. I think that they could have lead to each person’s story in a different in a more interesting way. I also believe that the movie should have explained in more detail how the four mothers were connected to each other, as in what led them to meet each other. I did enjoy, though, how the story began with June’s story, and also ended with her story. That was a nice way to conclude everything.

In conclusion, I would rate The Joy Luck Club a 7 out of 10. This is probably not a movie that I would just watch for mere entertainment. I only viewed this since I enjoyed the book. It contains great morals. All these mothers come to America hoping that their children will have the best life, and be whatever they wish to be. Upon living here, though, they realize that their America daughters have lost their Chinese roots. It’s one of those movies where you either hate it, or love it. I would recommend this movie for men and women ages 15 and older. This movie is more on the dramatic side, so if you’re looking for an adventure or comedy, I wouldn’t advise you to watch this.

The Member of the Wedding Book Review by Amanda Yoder

bookerhs — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 13:15:43 +0000

“Yesterday, and all twelve years of her life, she had only been Frankie. She was an I person who had to walk around and do things by herself. All other people had a we to claim, all other except her…”

Carson McCullea wrote many novels, essays, short stories and plays. Numerous of her works were fiction or nonfiction. One of her works. The Member of the Wedding, turned out to be a prize-winning Broadway play. She also wrote many other great novels such as Reflections in a Golden Eye, Clock without Hands and The Ballad of the Sad Cafe.

However, The Member of the Wedding is a fiction book about a girl who tried to grow up to fast. Frankie Addams was twelve years old . She was a stubborn young lady who was not in a club or not a member of any group. She hated her life and did not have to many friends. Berenice Brown, the Addams house-keeper, was one of the only friends Frankie had. When she heard her bother was getting married, Frankie was determined that she was going to runaway with them. Telling everyone she know her plans, Frankie meet this soldier who took advantage of her and kissed her. After that she started to realize there is more to being an adult than falling in love. McCullea writes “This was the summer when for a long time [Frankie] had not been a member.”

How was my reaction to the book? From my view point, I did not enjoy reading this book . It was a really good book to understand and to read, but it was just very plain. I recommend this book to people who like to read books that they can understand, but from a personal choose, I believe there are better books out there

Dreamer Movie Review by Amanda Yoder

bookerhs — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 13:07:57 +0000

“You are a great champion. When you run, the ground shook, the sky opened and mere mortals parted. Part of the way to victory, where you’ll meet me in the winners circle. Where I’ll put a blanket of flowers on your back.”

However,Dreamer is a inspired by a true story. Taking bits and pieces from the real story of Mariah Storm, a horse who broke her leg, then had recovered, made her way back to the races with success. Dreamer was not based solidly on the real story of Mariah Storm, the rest was known to be called “pure imagination.” Director of Dreamer, John Gatins, was known to take real life stories and filming them into “Hollywood hogwash.” Other films such as Coach Crater and Hardball. Dreamer today is known as of an example of “true fiction.”Staring in the film, Kurt Russell playing as Ben Crane, a horse trainer who had financial problems. Also staring Dakota Fanning, playing Ben Cranes daughter, Cale Crane. Ben begins to realize that he is losing his job and sees his family falling apart. Cale always wanted to be like her dad. When he messed with his hat, she would do the same. Ben did not realize how much he was ignoring his own daughter. He spend more time at his job then he did with his daughter. Then after taking in a wounded horse, things began to change for the Crane family.

How was my reaction to this movie? From a view point of a teenager, I really enjoyed this film. It was very lad back, but also entertaining film. I highly recommend this film to anyone who loves horses and to a family with young girls. By the reconnecting between a father and his daughter is heartwarming.

PLAIN TRUTH book review written by Cassandra L.

bookerhs — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:46:14 +0000

In Jodi Picoult’s seventh novel we dive into a world where individuality is frowned upon. Into a world where community and family is everything. When a high powered defense attorney is thrown into the middle of Amish Lancaster County you’ll be shocked and riveted by a murder mystery unheard of. Katie Fischer is an Amish girl working on her parents dairy farm and is the prime suspect for the birth and murder of a newborn child. It’s her lawyer’s and far off cousin, Ellie’s, job to prove she’s innocent. With the state’s prosecuting attorney constantly nipping at their heels and more layers are peeled away from Katie Fischer’s very private lifestyle it’s very hard to continue to believe her innocence of the charges made against her.

In this book Picoult expresses her very evident love for the legal system. In this, as in many of her novels, we examine and investigate a murder suspect even when it’s a person we would never perceive capable of murder. Delving deep into this novel you find that she is exploring not just one system of justice but two. The system of justice we know and recognize as ‘’Englischers’’ and the system of’ accept and repent or be banished’ practiced by the strict Amish community of Lancaster County. You’d think that a ‘fair and speedy trial’ would be fair and honest. In her community Katie is forced to both endure a ‘fair and speedy trial’ and a trial by her peers which can be much more daunting then any courtroom. She is asked to admit to her sin and repent so as to ‘make her things right’ in her community. In a courtroom she is asked to admit to her charges by the prosecuting attorney then asked to deny them by her defense and is caught in a whirlwind of confusion and memory loss.

This book causes to think of the legal system in a perspective of the Amish of Lancaster county and to look at Amish life in a new and investigative way. From drama in the courtroom to drama on the farm, to building new friendships and losing old ones, from discovering new loves and uncovering old ones, this book, one of Picoult’s finest, forces you to delve deep in the life of a high powered attorney forced to babysit a murder suspect on an Amish dairy farm and forces you to take into account your own experiences and your own life as it relates and is not related to those character’s so beautifully represented in this novel. Picoult’s love for new and strange murder mystery’s is evident and greatly appreciated as is her unique writing style and representation of different cultures. This novel makes for a great read for anyone interested in murder mystery’s, love stories, cultural examinations, and self reflections.