Perhaps with different lead actors and a different director, this could have been on par with Mystic River, another Dennis Lehane novel adaptation. Casey Affleck was almost believable as the hardboiled, youngster PI. My wife kept asking why Michele Monaghan’s character was even around. Amy Ryan’s Oscar-nominated performance was the standout of this otherwise mediocre melodrama.

I enjoyed the Eddie Izzard/Being For The Benefit of Mr. Kite sequence (especially after the Bono/Dr. Robert freak out). Over all, some of the musical performances and visuals were interesting, but this movie needed to lighten up by the end. I think Across the Universe shows there’s a big difference between writing songs to serve the story and writing the story to fit around the songs, as was the case here. We turned it off before it was over.

The premise is rather juvenile (it’s based on a cartoon, after all), but watching alien robots fight-it-out is pure gear pr0n.

Mieville’s first novel is a sequel of sorts to the Pied Piper of Hamelin tale from folklore—with numerous modern twists. Set in London’s Drum and Bass underground music scene, it’s told from the perspective of the half-rat, half-human son of the Rat King.
Mieville combines elements of noir crime fiction, urban fantasy, graphic horror and slipstream street culture. New Weird, indeed.
Not terrible, but not great either. I’d recommend it for completists who want to follow Mieville’s progression as a writer. If you’re just getting into his work, I’d recommend the award winning and awesome Perdido Street Station or Looking for Jake, his collection of short stories.

I suspect the book is much better than this movie adaptation. Numerous scenes (Augusten’s “I’m gay” revelation, the ‘Hamburger Helper’ epiphany, the dishes-in-the-backyard moment) fall flat on the screen. Annette Benning’s performance was excellent, but most of the other actors seemed miscast to me.

Johnson writes an interesting story about the squalor of Nineteenth Century London with its scavenger underclass and the necessary beginnings of epidemiology. I had heard the story of Dr. John Snow linking the cholera outbreak to the Broad Street water pump, but this book made clear the unfolding of events and the other players involved.
Perhaps it’s because I read it in a single weekend, but Ghost Map seemed to ramble a lot by repeatedly making the same points. Also, the epilogue seemed very dismal in applying these lessons and concerns to our current time. Overall, I recommend it.

Casino Royale reinvigorates the James Bond movie world, away from the smarmy camp of previous actors towards a dark and brutish portrayal by Daniel Craig. My wife’s favorite line, blurted by M: “You’ve got a bloody cheek!”

A convoluted heist, film noir stylings, directed by Stanley Kubrick: ‘nough said.

Combining sparking water and green tea sounds like a great idea for a beverage. Unfortunately, the added caffeine and artificial sweetener make the taste unbearable and not worth consuming.

The three parallel stories of conquistador, medical researcher and space traveler seemed to dilute the total narrative arc for me. I enjoyed the imagery and allegory.