I first read Tim and Pete by James Robert Baker shortly after it was first published in 1992. I liked it very much then and I like it perhaps more now on second reading. I was inspired to reread it because I am rereading all of Jody's novels as I scan them to safeguard from any possible loss (we had a wildfire evacuation here last September and it was scary to think that the bulk of her writing could have been lost forever), and prep manuscripts for upcoming publication. One of Jody's novels reminded me of Tim and Pete, and in another amusing coincidence, the servo-robots in her soon-to-be published SF satire Devil May Care are Nancy Reagans (see below). Like much good satirical writing, Tim and Pete is fueled by a righteous anger at the hatred and discrimination experienced by gay men in the aftermath of AIDS, and skewers the hypocrisies of American society in a riproaring 24 hour odyssey through LA's gay underbelly. 'Not all fags are nelly pacifists' warn the PWA anarchists intent on blowing up Ronald and Nancy Reagan. They're damn mad and they aren't gonna take it anymore! But lest you think this is a heavy read, it most decidedly is not! Tim and Pete are likable well-drawn protagonists, Baker is a superb writer, and the novel is funny as hell! Provided you dig black humor of course. Through the art and music scene of the day; through swanky Santa Monica and the riot-ravaged South Central; hidden backroads off Mulholland Drive and memory-haunted crumbling bath houses, Tim And Pete is an iconoclast's tour-guide love letter to the city and the times that I happily let seduce me. I recommend you do the same. -Mary Whealen http://amzn.to/2bncTQU
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Star Trek Beyond directed by Justin Lin from a screenplay by Simon Pegg and Doug Jung.PLOT Nine hundred and sixty six days into its five year mission, the USS Enterprise arrives at Starbase Yorktown, a massive snowglobe-like station with its own internal atmosphere and cityscape, to replenish dwindling supplies while the crew takes shore leave. An escape pod drifts out of a nearby nebula and the Enterprise is dispatched on a rescue mission. The rescue turns into an ambush when the Enterprise is overwhelmed by a massive swarm of ships. The swarm's commander, Krall, boards the ship searching for the Abronath, an alien artifact that Kirk had obtained on a recent mission. The swarm rips apart the Enterprise, and the saucer section crashes to the planet as the crew abandons ship in escape pods. REVIEW The action is excellent, Hollywood at its best!, and the menace of the swarming enemy ambush as it rips apart The Enterprise is frightening and moving; we long-time Star Trek fans have also, like the crew, come to regard the ship as almost one of the characters and to see her ravished in cinematic detail is a set-up that promises an enemy as daunting as the Borg and a conflict resolution complex, difficult and satisfying! Who are these aliens? Why are they doing this? What do they want? What motivates them? How will our band of intrepid heroes overcome this devastating weaponry and neutralize such a threat? Sadly this great set-up fizzles like a bottle of champagne gone flat. Yes the action sequences live up to what one expects in a big-budget Hollywood production, I have no bone to pick there, but the resolution fails to reward the visceral investment the set-up inspired. Antagonist Krall, played by Idris Elba, is no Khan (played by Ricardo Montalbán in Wrath of Khan and Benedict Cumberbatch in Into Darkness), and his motivation when we learn it is underwhelming, petty and very hard to be interested in. And while wearing the prosthetic, Elba's delivery of dialogue is almost unintelligible. It doesn't get all that much better when the prosthetic is removed late in the film. One of the writers claimed, "We really want to get back to the sense of exploration and wonder. The kind of optimistic sense of the future that Star Trek has always kind of had at its core." Starbase Yorktown could have been an excellent vehicle to explore this theme. To spend a little film time experiencing it as an embodiment of Roddenberry's "wonder... (and) optimistic sense of the future" would have not only elevated the film to a worthy and memorable entry in the franchise, but made one care a whole lot more about the fate of its inhabitants. Which might have gone a long way toward overcoming the villain's unimaginative motivation. Instead it is just a prop for action stunts. -Mary Whealen Some films achieve a magical movie alchemy wherein the whole is greater than the sums of its parts. Ghostbusters 2016 is not one of those movies. Paranormal researcher Abby Yates (Melissa McCarthy) and physicist Erin Gilbert are trying to prove that ghosts exist in modern society. When strange apparitions appear in Manhattan, Gilbert and Yates turn to engineer Jillian Holtzmann for help. Also joining the team is Patty Tolan, a lifelong New Yorker who knows the city inside and out. The audience laughed out loud only occasionally, yet bafflingly at the end applauded. (Did they see a different movie than I saw, or having been so inculcated by ads and the media were they a little brainwashed and, as people seem to be now in this age of "reality programming," complicit in the pretense, as if they too have a stake in the outcome?) Critics have rightly singled out the performance of Kate McKinnon for particular notice and praise as she is outstanding in the role of gonzo inventor/engineer Holtzmann and is the beating heart of this cast, who otherwise seem inexplicably muted, despite the undeniable talent they all possess. Not that there weren't laughs (though not as many as you'd expect) but if their performances were circus tigers you'd never worry they might turn and eat the tamers. McKinnon's performance on the other hand was inspired madness and you better not turn your back on it! And who made Melissa McCarthy nice? Sanded down her hostile edges? It was a mistake; this movie needed that. Director Feig and writer Dippold also teamed up with McCarthy and Sandra Bullock in The Heat, but GB2016 lacks any Ya-Ha rollicking buddy movie quality. In this film Feig is also a co-writer, perhaps that wasn't a great idea. It feels like their performances are being reined in. Even during an appearance of the four of them on 'Ellen' they seemed ill at ease with their (obviously) tightly-scripted promo personas. What is the studio afraid of?
And the Chris Hemsworth role is just plain stupid. I love me a good comedic "dumb blonde" as much as the next guy, but this ain't that. It's not that I hated the film, it was just disappointing. It could have been so much better, as McKinnon's performance hinted; it certainly had the talent to be. I place responsibility for the underwhelmingness of this film directly at the feet of director Paul Feig and co-writers Feig and Katie Dippold. -Mary Whealen Stephen King’s Welsh Corgi, Arfy, has done it again. His short story Bite ‘Em in the Butt, first published in The New Yorker, won the coveted Peeker Award; now his novel Bowwow Up the Yingyang is topping New York Times bestseller lists on its way to Hollywood and major money. “It’s no big deal,” Arfy told this reporter modestly as we lunched yesterday at Manhattan’s popular Four Seasons. “Both of Steve’s sons, Owen and Joe, had books published recently. Of course those boys don’t need to mess with agents or other pedestrian crap; Daddy’s name does the work for them. Both their books suck big time, oboy do they ever! But it doesn’t matter how rotten you are, only how well-connected.” “Where do you get your ideas, do you mind my asking?” “From the infinite greatness of my own mind,” Arfy chuckled, wolfing down a caviar-laced pop tart. “I thought I was at my peak brilliance in Bite, but Bowwow is really making those Hollywood moguls sit up and take notice.” “How long did it take you to write Bowwow, and did you use Steve’s computer?” “Yes to both questions,” nodded Arfy. “If I’d been a Rottweiler it wouldn’t have worked so give me some credit here for sleight-of-paw Darwinian adaptation as a solution to an environmental problem serving a functional purpose—much as long-necked giraffes began having more offspring because of phylogenetic inertia, know what I mean?” “Er,” I said. “Yes, more offspring would really do the trick. But tell me, when is Steve’s daughter Naomi coming out with her first novel?” “Don’t ask me, I don’t give a damn,” Arfy snarled. “We writers are a jealous lot and if she gets published it’s only because Steve is her Pop; aside from that she has no talent whatever. Now I, on the other hand—” A brush fire cut our interview short, but we hope to tap Arfy for the next installment as soon as his singed fur grows back out. -Agatha Runcible High Aztech by Ernest Hogan (on facebook and twitter)
The Universe Builders: Bernie and the Putty bySteve LeBel (on twitter)
The Beginner's Goodbye by Anne Tyler (on facebook)
Sterling O’Blivion has been a vampire for 900 years, and has spent her life observing the evolution of a human race - and now works at a dance studio. Thankfully, she is not an obsessive, sulky vampire like those found in some of the more famous fantasy novels! Scott crafts a dry, witty protagonist, whose voice and observations concerning society and humanity will keep you captivated and more often than not, make you laugh or keep you deep in thought. Then one day, after becoming content with her modern life, O’Blivion meets Virginia Woolf - also known as Benaroya, an enthusiastic, bubbly alien that soon becomes O’Blivion’s lover, while they work together to defeat a rival alien threat, and start a business selling Famous Men’s Sperm. The plot in this novel is unlike one we’ve ever encountered before - it’s wild and complex, but intriguing and one that definitely keeps the book on your mind, even days after you finish it. Scott also creates fantastic characters that carry the story, and even when the plot gets complicated, Benaroya’s enthusiastic quips or Sterling’s witty and cutting thoughts will carry you through the more technical side of the plot, which can lose you at times. Thankfully, if you do get a bit lost, it won’t impact your enjoyment of the book, as the sci-fi elements don’t ultimately carry that much importance to the story or it’s overall message. Scott crafts an intriguing, funny, and extremely clever story that entertains, while also offering enlightening observations on elements of society. While the outlandish plot and age of the book might put some readers off, we wouldn’t let it stop you. Reading it is an experience that you will want to have, if only to see a vampire and Virginia Woolf try to set up a business to sell sperm to housewives! That, and it’s an extremely well written, witty and thoughtful novel to boot. BY CHLOE SMITH I, VAMPIRE / AUTHOR: JODY SCOTT / PUBLISHER: DIGITAL PARCHMENT SERVICES / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW |
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