- The top ten fantasy novels that haven’t been made into movies, but should be. Weetzie Bat is an interesting choice (although I confess the whimsy was a little too much for me).
- I don’t know which is more shocking to me: that Daniel Radcliffe wasn’t smoking pot, but that he does smoke cigarettes (self-rolled, no less!).
- A mixed review of Dragon Age: Origins. I don’t care — I still can’t wait.
- New Moon has already set a record, becoming Fandango’s top-selling “advance” ticket. Right now, the movie accounts for 86% of the company’s advance tickets.
I love it! Garden Jawas!
- Terry Gilliam gives his twenty-three “golden rules” of filmmaking. They’re all great. Examples: #1: “Never work for money,” #17: “Try to convince yourself the audience is not stupid,” and #21: “Filmmaking is not a basic human right.”
- Not surprisingly, almost all the 20 films up for the Best Animated Movie Oscar are sci-fi or fantasy. I haven’t seen all the movies on the list, but while I see a lot of “pretty good” movies there, I don’t see anything really great. And yes, that includes Up. In related news, the Golden Globes is increasing the number of its Best Animated Movie nominees from three to five.
- A sequel to Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog is definitely in the works.
- Cory Doctorow discovers something I (as an author of teen books) could have told him: some parents get really, really upset over the idea of books for teens where teens have sex or drink alcohol. According to these parents, books for teens should not be realistically written or involve issues that kids might relate to or be struggling with.
- Frank Beddor talks The Looking Glass Wars, his bestselling series about the “true” origins of Alice in Wonderland. The third book was released last month. “It’s amazing how many directions it’s been taken in,” Beddor says about Lewis Carroll’s original story which is suddenly seeing lots of different adaptations and reimaginings. At the same time, he admits he’s not a fan of the original. Sacrilege!
- Disney mothballs the Nautilus (the latest 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea adaptation), at least for now.
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I’m with you, Brent, Weetzie Bat had too much whimsy for me! And what’s wrong with hand-rolled cigs? I can’t wait for DHS-aB.
And Brent, as a writer of fantasy, too, my parents hate that my antagonist says the F-word. I said, “Mom, do you think it would be more realistic if he asks her to lay down on the bed before he rapes her?” My mom just gave me a dirty look. I guess it’s not just teens!
I think I was at just the perfect age - 16 - for Weetzie Bat to really speak to me, and now I have such a huge fondness for all of the Weetzie Bat books. I always thought it would make a better stage musical than a movie, though, or maybe a movie musical a la “Were the World Mine.” Still, I would love to see it transformed into a new medium.
I find Zach confirming that there will be a sequel interesting considering that in the latest issue of Wizard Magazine is an interview in which Zach says (and I quote) \”We all very much want to do a sequel. The cast is eager to, the writers are eager to but nothing is concrete yet. There are hopes and dreams, and now that I\’ve responded so vaguely there are angry fans.\”
So either something changed between that quote and Zach\’s interview or…
Also Good Omens? I love that book. And would love to see it made into a movie but at the same time am not sure I want it to in case it should get messed up.