Film Addict's May Film Choice

I couldn't decide what film I wanted to review for this month because nothing of major significance happened that stuck out in my mind but recently, I saw my best friend who I've known since I was a kid.  As I missed her so much because we don't live right down the road from one another anymore, I asked her if there was a particular film she liked to watch with me so the Film Addict's May Film Choice is Brother Bear, a film we watched repeatedly over the years and absolutely adore.

Brother Bear was released in 2003 and was directed by Aaron Blaise and Robert A. Walker.  As with a number of Disney films which don't feature a princess, this is an animated adventure feature with comedic and dramatic elements, focussing on a young person going through a particular journey.  Joaquin Phoenix (Gladiator, Walk the Line) stars along with Jeremy Suarez (The Bernie Mac Show, Zambezia), Rick Moranis (Ghostbusters, Little Shop of Horrors), Dave Thomas (SCTV, The Adventures of Bob & Doug McKenzie: Strange Brew), and Joan Copeland (As the World Turns, The Peacemaker) to name a few.

As this was a request review, I've added another point to the review list which is something that reminds me of my best friend who requested Brother Bear.

Rating: 7

Recommended To: Disney fans; siblings

Favourite Characters: Tanana

Favourite Part: Koda: Thanks Sitka, if it weren't for you, I'd have never met Kenai.  I always wanted a brother.

Good Points: Sibling relationship - even if it's not blood/family; background artwork and animation is beautiful; very sweet film

Bad Points: Very predictable and uninspired; the symbolism behind some of the part of this film could be complicated for this film

Special Point: Mabel: This year, I lost my dear husband, Edgar.
Edgar: Quit telling everybody I'm dead!
Mabel: Sometimes I can still hear his voice.
[...]
Mabel: If only Edgar was still alive.
Edgar: I told you, woman! I'm right here!

X-Men: Days of Future Past

 At this point in time, you may have worked out that on top of my book and film obsession, I'm a (bit of a) nerd when it comes to comic books and the movies though I think I've hidden it well.  I love all the Marvel Cinematic Universe and X-Men films that have come out recently so I specifically asked my family to come with me to see X-Men: Days of Future Past as I wanted to see how the entire production team was going to combine the old cast with the new.

X-Men: Days of Future Past is the 2014 comic book action film from Bryan Singer, a X-Men veteran, having directed X-Men and X2 before going onto direct Superman Returns; this is the seventh X-Men film in the series, acting as a sequel to both X-Men: Last Stand and X-Men: First Class.  This film joins the two casts and sees the return of some old favourites, Hugh Jackman (Les Misérables), James McAvoy (Atonement), Michael Fassbender (Inglourious Basterds), Jennifer Lawrence (The Hunger Games series), Halle Berry (Cloud Atlas), Anna Paquin (True Blood), Ellen Page (Juno), Nicholas Hoult (Jack the Giant Slayer), Shawn Ashmore (The Following), Daniel Cudmore (The Twilight Saga), Sir Ian McKellen (Lord of the Rings series), and Sir Patrick Stewart (Star Trek: The Next Generation), while bringing in some new additions, Peter Dinklage (Game of Thrones), Omar Sy (The Untouchables), Booboo Stewart (The Twilight Saga), and Fan Bingbing (Princess Pearl).

Rating: 10

Recommended To: Marvel fans; anyone

Favourite Characters: Bobby "Iceman" Drake; Logan "Wolverine"

Favourite Part: Professor Xavier: Hello old friend

Good Points: Wolverine and Professor Xavier's relationship; story developed well - especially past; melding of the two casts; Quicksilver

Bad Points: Wolverine's claws

Janet Evanovich & Dorien Kelly - The Husband List

So recently there's been a book that took me a month to read which really annoyed me because I would not be defeated by a book as well as another book that brings a series to an end; luckily, I enjoyed the latter thoroughly which cheered me up before I moved on to another book.  While this blog is under the 'historical' genre, it's probably not an accurate historical piece as it's just a light read and is just made up in the mind of the two authors and is a romanticised version of how society works at the time this book is set in.

The Husband List is the second novel from Janet Evanovich and Dorien Kelly which is the sequel (or more of a prequel to their first collaboration, Love in a Nutshell).  Janet Evanovich is known for her Stephanie Plum series which has spun off into the Wicked series which is a more paranormal series; Dorien Kelly is known for writing romantic comedy novels such as The Last Bride of Ballymuir as well as a number of others.  I really enjoyed the first book in this series, Love in a Nutshell, which followed Kate Appleton as she gets a job in a brewery, working for Matt Culhane undercover to spy on his employees to find out who is sabotaging his company.  The link between this series is that the one of the main characters, the man, is a member of the Culhane family who falls for the main female character as she falls for the Culhane.

Rating: 5

Recommended To: Evanovich fans; romance fans

Favourite Characters: Jack - still love the Irish; Flora - loved her

Favourite Part: "Mr. Edward Maxwell and Mr. John William Anthony Patrick Xavier Culhane," the butler announced to the other guests, who were readying to take their seats.
"He got it out in one breath," Jack said to Eddie as they stepped into the room.  "Impressive."
"Better than most," Eddie replied. - Page 125

Good Points: Easy read; finding out more background on the Culhane family; Caroline and Jack together

Bad Points: Secondary characters are very two dimensional; setting feels forced; predictable

Matthew Fort - Sweet Honey, Bitter Lemons

I have never struggled with a book in my life apart from maybe when I was a kid and picked up a difficult book I didn't fully understand, which is normal when you're like 7 or something, but recently, I found myself struggling with this book, Sweet Honey, Bitter Lemons, a book I bought out of curiosity and desire to travel to Italy.

Sweet Honey, Bitter Lemons: Travels in Sicily on a Vespa is the sequel to Fort's Eating Up Italy: Voyages on a Vespa focussing Sicily, the largest island in the Mediterranean sea and off the coast of Italy.  Fort is a food writer and critic, having worked for The Guardian as well as writing for other media outlets.  As well as writing for newspapers and magazines, Fort has also written other book, one already mentioned, recounting Fort's travels from the south of Italy to the north, and another focussing on an English chef as well as English food and cooking.

Rating: 1

Recommended To: People interested in just the Italian food not the place

Favourite Part: 'We may take their food,' he went on, 'but all the foreigners who come to govern Sicily end up by becoming Sicilians - Greeks, Romans, Arabs, French, Germans, Spanish.  Even you English.  There is something about this island. - Page 21

Good Points: The concept and format; the descriptions of the food

Bad Points: Not enough photos; very Southern in his way of thinking; lack of details other than food; dude needs to learn his UK geography again

Kiera Cass - The One

Apart from film review posts, I haven't posted anything about any books because I've been busy with work and I've found a book I really have been struggling to get into, Sweet Honey, Bitter Lemons by Matthew Fort, which I'm really not connecting with.  However, I pre-ordered The One by Kiera Cass ages ago when I first heard it was coming out and it arrived on the 8th May so I ripped open the box and started reading it immediately.

The One is the third and final book in Kiera Cass's The Selection trilogy which is centred around America Singer, a young woman who is from an underprivileged area of the kingdom Maxon is the heir to.  When Maxon turned nineteen, his father decided that it was time for the prince to marry.  The traditional way of finding the prince's bride is to hold the Selection where thirty five eligible girls are selected from a pool and sometimes it can take months, even years, and the prince can get to know each girl and decide which one will be his wife but now the King is getting desperate to quell the rebellion that is sparking in his country.  America only put herself in the pool for the Selection because her boyfriend at the time, Aspen, told her to go for it because it would be her best chance at a better life rather than staying with him forever.  America is still reeling from her break up with Aspen when she enters the palace as part of the Selection and unintentionally insults Maxon on the first night but fortunately their relationship grows over the course of the series despite some bumps in the road, including America pissing off the King so much at the end of The Elite that she is nearly kicked out and has greatly upset Maxon to the point where she wants to prove that she does indeed love Maxon, however hard it will be.

Rating: 10

Recommended To: Those that liked The Hunger Games or Matched

Favourite Characters: America - strong female character; Maxon - still vulnerable but has potential

Favourite Part: He stared me down, determined.  "How did the girls find out about you taking my shirt off?"
I looked at the ground, hesitating.  "We were watching the guards work out.  I said you looked as good as any of them without your shirt on.  It slipped out."
Maxon threw back his head and laughed.  "I can't be mad about that." - Page 81

Good Points: America and Maxon; the plot of the series; links to previous books

Bad Points: Everything escalated very quickly at the end