thewingedword

Saw Order of the Phoenix. I'm not going to bother reviewing a lot, because it's been done! I'm sure you've heard everything I had to say from ten thousand people, and anyways I am quite tired. Suffice to say that there were some things which bothered me, mainly having to do with shortened scenes and a lack of depth to the secondary characters. However, more intangible things like scene transitions and tension maintained throughout dialogue and the superb editing of the various mind-reading collages more than made up for the flaws. As a movie, it was both good and enjoyable, which are not always the same thing.

Books don't last long enough. I've finished all of the books I got from the library except Les Mis, and I read Fire from Heaven twice. It was very good, although I think I've read too much fanfiction, because Mary Renault's approach to the gay sex was so subtle that I missed it. Seriously. It was spring, and Aristotle sent everyone out to look at the animals mating, and Alexander and Hephaestion were watching a pregnant fox. There was a reference to some people having lost a bet, and then Alexander said "We need to have less sex, it's making me depressed," and Hephaestion said "What?" and I said What?! and had to re-read it two or three times to pin it down.

I wish I could make every fanfic author read that scene. I read too many fics with explicit references to body fluids and parts and noises and I just, I don't need to know. Realism can go too far.

Back to books; Brave New World was mildly disturbing. Then I read A Clockwork Orange and, god, that book is HIDEOUS. It's not badly written; in fact, it's interesting, and the author's use of an imagined future slang is fascinating. But the truths of the book, if I can phrase it that way, are ugly. It is a book written about an ugly character doing unimaginably disgusting deeds in a horrific world. The movie version was rated X and I am not surprised; there is thievery and murder and torture and a woman gang-raped to death, ten year old girls drugged and raped. The lead character's thoughts are filthy enough that I want to wash out my head after reading them. I'm kind of sickly fascinated with it, with the conclusions it draws and illustrates for the reader. I'm glad I read it once, but I don't think I shall again.

This is too disturbing. Clockwork Orange My Chem picspam time!

Gerard and his droogs! They are here to beat you up and steal your shit and rape your women. Except for Mikey, who is contemplating his little dangling feet, and Bob, who has become a French mime. Gerard looks a little threatening, but maybe he's just going to break out into a vaudeville song-and-dance number. Frank is tiny and cute. Only Ray has the attitude, I'm afraid.

Fake eyelashes! Only on his right eye. I don't know why that's so cool, it just is. I like to think that Alex actually looked like this, handsome and too angelic to be capable of evil.

So this is the part of the book where Alex is laying on his bed, listening to Beethoven and thinking about slitting throats? That makes me feel like I shouldn't find this picture attractive, and yet I do. Obviously I am horribly immoral, big news there.

I feel much better now. This is why I ♥ my bands, they cheer me up by being ridiculously good-looking. Also with music. Yay!