Book Review: The Film Club

I have to say I was quite surprised when I read this book. At first I had this expectation that the book was going to be about life's greatest lessons from a father to a son through the movies they watched together. In a sense I was right, but at the same time, I couldn't be farther from the truth.  The book is more about the inbetween exchanges and experiences away from the Film Club. I have never read anything prior this book of David Gilmour's work. So when I started reading his words, he first struck me as a snob...a movie snob. One of those people that knows it all about movies and could debate you under the table about things most common movie goers would say..,"huh?".

Anyway, the story starts out with Gilmour's son Jesse struggling in school and the problem he faced with his son not wanting to be in school. So Gilmour decided that he would make Jesse an offer. An offer that probably none of us has ever gotten from a parent-quit school and watch three movies a week with their parent. Of course there was restrictions to letting his son quit school and start The Film Club. Gilmour allowed his son to live rent free, allows him to sleep in as late as he wants and gives him spending money as long as he didn't catch his son doing drugs and then the deal was off. He even let him go without having a job. To me that has to be the strangest thing of them all. However, Jesse later on in the book has some odd jobs.

Jesse isn't your normal teenage boy either, he knows his wines and is allow to smoke in front of his parents. A side note is that Gilmour moves back in with his ex-wife (the mother of Jesse) at her request and even Gilmours current wife agrees to it. Now his ex-wife doesn't end up living in the house she moves above what Gilmour calls the "candy factory".  Since I am not familar with his previous work I didn't get the reference.

There are many ups and downs in the book regarding the circumstances that Jesse finds himself in and yet his father remains there for his son and all the movies they watch over a three year span. Some movies are watched multiple times.  However, it is the narrative of the events between the films that Gilmour and Jesse experience that makes the book so readable. Jesse gets involved with several girls and two throughout the book that he has problems getting over which leads him into drinking and doing drugs. Gilmour confronts Jesse the first time drugs are involved and was about the end the agreement he made; however, Jesse admits that his father never caught him doing it. He only knew because Jesse told him.

At the beginning of chapter nine, Gilmour discusses going past Jesse's now vacant room and sensing the loss of his presense. I was very upset at Gilmour for making such a comment in the book about halfway through. I had this impression that Jesse ended up dying and this was a book about him remembering that limited time he had with his son. Thankfully, it was not the case and it was just a father experiencing empty nest pains from a son who only now visits him.

As a movie fan myself, I have to say Gilmour puts me to shame. Not in a bad way, but as he being a certified film critic in Canada he has experienced a lot more film genres from all over and draws upon those films in educating his son. (The back of the book actually lists every single film they watched.) I admit, sadly, that only a few of the movies on their list I actually watched. I don't know if that is a good thing or bad thing, but everyone does have their own particular tastes.

I think that is a big difference that I see with people when it comes to the movies. The general audience are going to go to the "popcorn" movies-an escape for two hours without having to think about their problems or want to think about what they are seeing. It is that escape. There are times, in the book, that Gilmour appears to be just speaking to the reader about why he loves a certain movie then goes back into the narrative of the story of Jesse. I think those were the times, I didn't enjoy the book. It came across, to me anyway, as him being a movie snob. When I catch those movie review shows and they tend to give their opinion about it the movies for the general audience tend to get reviewed poorly and yet are the movies (for the most part) that do big at the box office. Similar to our government officials, movie reviewers, are out of touch with their public. I am a huge "popcorn" movie person and I am not afraid to admit it.

There were a lot of great exchanges between father and son in this book and one of the best quotes came from Gilmour early on regarding seeing a movie for the first time. He stated that a person doesn't see a movie the first time until it is viewed the second time. His reasoning is that when you go back to the movie knowing how it ends you start to look for how the story is woven to get to the ending and it makes you appericate what was put into the film.

I have to say even though I felt that Gilmour at times was tooting his own movie knowledge horn, that "The Film Club" is a great read and I hated when I had to put it down when I couldn't sit for long periods to read the book. Even if you are not a movie buff or someone that has seen a lot of the movies listed (me included), I think this book is a definate recommended book for anyone who remembers sitting at home watching movies as a kid or teenager with their parents. Good memories.

The Lowdown:

Title: The Film Club

Author: David Gilmour

Released: 2008

Price: $21.95 (hardback) I found this at a local used book store for much less.

Publisher: Twelve Books http://www.twelvebooks.com/

Again, if anyone has media related books or anything you want me to review please contact me or comment on the website. Until next time!

Book Review: Night of the Living Trekkies

Let me begin by saying I am not a Zombie movie/fiction fan. I never got into the horror genre, thanks to a few family members that enjoyed watching horror movies and made me watch them, late at night, when I would spend the night as a child. That being said I will start this book review.

Even though I don't enjoy or "get" the zombie fandom, I didn't have that bias when I started this book. I actually happened to stumble across this book at a local book store that is going out of business and purchased the book at a lower discounted price than retail. I found it in the Sci-Fi book area along with licenced Star Trek books. Granted, I don't know what I was even doing in that section. I haven't read a Star Trek novel in years. Yet, fate brought me to this book. The saying, 'you can't just a book by its cover' is very true, but who could pass up seeing a zombified nerd dressed as Spock?  It certainly grabbed my attention.

I'll try to keep this as spoiler free as possible. The book opens up with an event of the zombies getting loose in a top secret location and then they run amok at a Star Trek convention in Houston, Texas. The main character is Jim Pike, a nice play on the names by combining the names of Captains James 'Jim' T. Kirk and Christopher Pike from the original Trek. He is a young guy that is trying to escape the world of responsibilites after serving two tours in Afghanistan by becoming a bellhop at the Botnay Bay Hotel and Convention Center (that is not even the beginning of all the Trek references in the book).

Much to his dismay he is promoted to assistant manager and is getting the hotel ready for a big weekend of Star Trek fans, Trekkies or Trekkers, (they discuss the differences in the book) for a Trek only convention. There has to be purity somewhere in the universe right? There is a very humorous introduction to one of the other main characters who happens to be a Star Wars fan, but I won't give it away. However, hotel staff and convention goers start encountering strange people and are getting bitten and falling ill. The typical zombie calling card from what I understand of the genre. Pike's sister is in attendence and is stranded in one of the upper levels of the hotel and it is up to him and the other non-zombified people he encounters to save her and themselves from the on-slaught of the zombies.

The story tends to be very predictable in a horror movie kind-of way throughout until over half-way into the book. The explaination for how the zombies came to be, to me, was very well thought out by the authors. All that is missing is the corny horror movie soundtrack playing in the background while I was reading. It could be how the authors intended to make it along with their love of Star Trek and sci-fi.

I knew this book would be a different read and I couldn't resist a book written by Star Trek fans that used episode titles from the various series as their chapter titles.  As mentioned before there is a lot of Trek references and quotes throughout that would make it enjoyable for the Trek fans.

'Living Trekkies' is worthwhile for a one time read. There is nothing that would make me want to re-read the book or want to keep it on my bookshelf.  Since the absence of new Star Trek episodes weekly on television for almost six years escaping into the world of these Star Trek fans fighting for their lives from the evil zombies made me apperciate being a fan and makes me want to go another convention minus the zombies!

The Lowdown:

Title: Night of the Living Trekkies
Authors: Kevin David Anderson and Sam Stall
Released: 2010
Publisher: Quirk Fiction
Price: $14.95

Overall: If you happen to find this book on the shelf of your local book store it might be worth picking up if you have a coupon or if the store is having a sale or look for it on your local library shelves. Since I am not a zombie fan, I don't know how this stacks up to what fans in that genre consider to be their "Wrath of Khan" or "First Contact", but it is definately worth a one time read. Enjoy!

My next review will be over the true story of how a father allowed his son to not go to school as long as he watched a few movies a week. The book is called, "The Film Club". I can't wait to start reading it.

Also, if you have any ideas of books you would want me to read and review please let me know. Now that grad school is coming to a close, I have more time to read things other than scholary journal articles and text books.

Death by DVR and other things technological

After a long absence, I have returned to blogging... I have been thinking lately that I don't know if the DVR has been a blessing or a curse for my wife and I. As much as I love all things media, I still have some reservations over going completely tech or letting it consume us. Of course I say this as I am typing on my laptop after watching a movie on the Blu-ray player on a HDTV. However, I don't have a smart phone and I haven't given up wearing a watch although from what the people on the radio say the watch is obsolete. The Ipod, I own is over 4 years old and my wife has used it more than I have and the only reason we got it was because I signed up for new services at my bank and got it free.

However, lets get back to the DVR. I had been previously exposed to DVRs a few years ago a person I knew had and it swore by it.  I was shown the features and their library of recorded shows. I wasn't too sure about it. Call me old fashioned, but I enjoyed going through my non-labeled VHS tapes to find one I could use to record or 'tape' a show that I was going to miss. Thankfully, I did have somewhat of system that I separated the non-labeled tapes for causal programs from the collection of non-labeled Star Trek episodes so I wouldn't erase the important stuff. A geek has to have priorities. I still couldn't imagine why people would want to lose the VHS tapes. That changed in November 2009.

When we moved into our house and got local cable we went with the package that included a DVR. After using it for the first time and being able to set series recordings and two shows at the same time on two different channels. It was mind-blowing. How could have we gone without it for so long. There were a few times that we had to use the VCR in another room to record a third program. I still found a use for the old girl!

The downside as probably many DVR users know is that you start recording shows and other crap, that you probably would never have even thought of recording before having the DVR. More than likely shows that you would never have recorded before if you would have just stuck to the VCR. The end result of this DVR bliss is having 40% or more of used space for movies, tv shows missed from the past few weeks and whatever else you felt like recording; for example "Must Love Cats" on Animal Planet or one of the many Hitler 'specials' on History.

Then you get side-tracked with all of the other "new" shows that you now like watching and all the previous shows you have recorded just sit in their little digital waiting room in the DVR memory hoping you have the memory to sit down and finally watch them. With the VCR if you only had one or two tapes you had to watch what you recorded in a more timely manner before you had to tape something else.We still have some of the 'Freaks and Geeks' episodes recorded from late December when IFC ran an all day marathon that haven't been touched yet. You get my point.

Perhaps it is a sign of me not wanting to completely change; although the DVR has gotten us to move away from using and buying VHS tapes (if that is even possible in 2011) and it is a green thing to do-which I like. There is just something about pushing the buttons on that VCR remote to set your recording and give those extra minutes, before and after the show, because for some reason the time on the VCR would slow down or speed up without it being touched.

I say all this with tongue firmly planted in cheek. I did enjoy using the VCR and the last time I used it was almost a year ago and now it is sitting in a box in our crawl space hoping that someday it will be called upon again. Sadly, though its days are numbered...literally. The last time I was going through the options of setting a recording I noticed that the VCR will only go up to December 31, 2013. So take that Mayan Calendar! So even the machine or the company that made it gave it a specific end date of when it will stop being useful. I only thought food and milk had an expiration date. Thank goodness that the programs on the DVR don't have an expiration date because, I know we won't get to everything until this summer...or so I hope.