What I've seen/read recently

The Invention of Lying (Ricky Gervais/Matthew Robinson)

Horrible film. Horrible. Really just devoid of any artistic merit- nothing special about the direction, all the acting was monotone, the story and dialogue was bad too, there was nothing in terms of editing, art direction, etc. It had the most abhorrant message ever- that it's fine to lie, about everything, so long as its not to the person you love? If you're pretty, you can be a bitch, and it's fine? It's fine to laugh at depressed people and alchoholics, because they know their lives are bad? Since when did always telling the truth mean that you burst out with random nasty stuff, like every character in this film does? Even when I don't like something, and don't want to lie, I shut up. Why couldn't they?  Every character in this film was an idiot; Gervais was a moocher, who couldn't be bothered working for anything, Garner was a vain, vaccous, superficial bitch, that other guy was a smarmy idiot, who no one would want to go out with. Useless film. D

District 9 (Neill Blomkamp)

My thoughts on this aren't nearly as long as they were on The Invention of Lying, but anyway. I thought it was great to start with (I really liked the way that the people they interviewed actually sounded as though they were being interviewed), and the cinematography was amazing, and the story was a good one, and Sharlto Copley was quite good, I thought that the end was poor, and there wasn't enough character development. My three favourite scenes were Wikus talking to his wife on the phone, when Christopher talks to his son(?) about going home, and the last scene, where Wikus' wife talks about the flower he made her. Not all the exploding people. But it was still a nice film, I thought, despite the weak end. B2

The Virgin Suicides (Jefferey Eugenides)

I hate talking about books as I do films, because I never feel what I say about them is right. I loved the prose in this book, because it felt really dreamy, and quite teenaged, I thought, and made you feel like you were part of the book. I loved the way the story was told, because I think I prefer when the narrarator isn't omniscient. Basically, I loved the book, and I think it made me appreciate the film more (I already liked it) because Sofia Coppola did a great job capturing the mood of the book.

What I hope to see/read in the next 10 days
Up (Pete Doctor/Bob Peterson)
Life is Elsewhere (Milan Kundera)
The Fantastic Mr. Fox (Wes Anderson)
An Education (Lone Scherfig)

Also, it's going to be the Corona Cork Film Festival (EVERYTHING in Ireland that has to do with the arts is sponsered by alchohol) soon, and I hope to see Samson and Delilah, The White Ribbon, Unmade Beds and The Road, but I don't know how realisitc that is. If I see one, I'll be lucky.