I recently had occasion to finish Ray Bradbury’s sci-fi classic Fahrenheit 451. Bradbury’s haunting vision of a dystopian society has aged remarkably well over the past 50 years. There’s already a wealth of literary analysis concerning his work, but I’m not seeking to repeat such efforts here.
One thing I did find very interesting, however, was the coda added to the 50th Anniversary printing of Fahrenheit 451. The coda contains comments from Bradbury following the revelation that his most famous work had been, amazingly enough, edited for expletives in earlier, school-bound printings. He also responds to the mass of individuals over the years that have sought revisions of his works more favorable to particular aesthetics (gender, ethnic, etc.). Bradbury’s remarks really put the absurdity of such requests in perspective for me.
Lest we forget, “There is more than one way to burn a book.”
I had an opportunity while on holiday in Auburn to see the latest Harry Potter film: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. First, let me start by saying that I think all of the H.P. films have done a pretty good job of adapting the books to feature-length films. The Sorcerer’s Stone and The Chamber of Secrets were particularly faithful, but I also felt like these were the easiest books to adapt because they are the simplest. With The Prisoner of Azkaban, I felt like Rowling started to imbue the books with a wealth of subplots and character development that was largely lost upon transition to film. For example, the book establishes a complex relationship and history between James Potter, Sirius Black, Lupin, Wormtail, and Severus Snape. In the movie, their ties are vastly simplified and, unfortunately, depersonalized.
The Goblet of Fire seems even more ungainly in motion picture form. My biggest gripe is that the film feels rushed; and I don’t mean in production values. The pacing feels off, particularly through the beginning of the movie. The viewer is sped through scenes leading up to and following the Quidditch World Cup and the beginning of the new year at Hogwarts. My other complaint follows from the Prisoner of Azkaban examples (i.e., what was left out). There are some important plot threads like the Ministry of Magic cover-up and Dumbledore’s subsequent call to arms that are only lightly touched. Some less significant subplots like the house elves and Hermione’s S.P.E.W. are removed entirely.
Still, I understand and accept that only a certain amount of material can be fit into a 2.5 hour movie. I consider the material that did make it into The Goblet of Fire pretty essential, so I think that the production crew succeeded in making another faithfully adapted Harry Potter film given their constraints.
I returned to Dothan this weekend to have some work done on my car. I usually also take advantage of the opportunity to visit with friends and family whenever I’m in town, and this was no exception.
I met my old lunch group from the Plant Farley IT department at the Broadway Cafe in downtown Ashford for a hearty meal and pleasantries with former co-workers. Everyone seemed to be in good spirits and I enjoyed the brief reunion immensely.
My Aunt Kathy and Uncle Tinker joined us on Saturday for another excellent lunch at the local Red Lobster and afternoon Cribbage sessions. I’m happy to report that "Team Aunt Kathy and I" carried the day. Yay!
My parents and I enjoyed a private showing of Quentin Tarantino’s remarkable Kill Bill, Vol. 1 and Vol. 2. The films contain a lot of Asian cultural references that I found interesting. I don’t think Mom and Dad enjoyed the show as much as I did, but I guess you can’t win ‘em all.
I, Robot proved to be a fast-paced sci-fi thriller with a few good twists to keep you on your toes. I haven’t read any of Asimov’s works so I can’t comment on the film’s translation. Vance apparently wasn’t impressed because he fell asleep again during the movie. Aunt Kathy and I split a couple games of two-hand Cribbage to round out an enjoyable evening.
Uncle Tinker made his famous sausage biscuits for breakfast; Mom rarely cooks sausage, so this is always a treat. I got some more Kingdom Hearts in after breakfast. The game makes me want to buy a PS2 again. Aunt Kathy treated me to an excellent lunch at the Mellow Mushroom. It was just the two of us so we each got individual slices and on-tap root beer.
I got into Atlanta after a late start, due mostly to Kingdom Hearts. Titus and I started our apartment search at ProMove. Unfortunately, our first choice, Post Valley, was completely booked. I can only blame myself for waiting this long. ProMove seemed to be pushing us East of the Cobb Parkway area, while I wanted to stay close to South Atlanta Road. By the time we were finished at ProMove, it was too late to do any serious looking. Titus and I drove by The River, The Harbor, and The Landing before heading back west to hit Oak Park at Vinings. We decided to check out Oak Park first in the morning since it was located closest to where I wanted to be.
Titus insisted that I see Bowling for Columbine at least once. Moore hits on some interesting points, and they’re worth thinking about. The most important think is to try to set aside your personal biases when viewing the film.
We finished up the evening with DDR and pool at the Georgia Tech Student Center; I quickly learned that I need practice at both. The game center has been rearranged such that the DDR machine is now located in the back corner by the bowling lanes; the price has also been hiked up to $0.60, with no Joint Premium.
