Obliviate!

I will only admit it once: I am not really a fan of Harry Potter Series.

I know it is a modern classic already, but I am not really into it like any other people. I will not say sorry if it offended you that I am not as attached to it like any of you are. I have a read-and-forget attitude on books. Harry Potter is one of those books. I am not a fan, but I have read the whole series more than once (so let's make that twice.)

I have read (and watched!) it for one social reason--to relate to humanity. For one, reading/watching the whole series is like being updated to current events and not reading/watching it is equivalent to social suicide. That's common sense, I guess. It is a fad just like The Beatles during the 60s. It is a mania, and everybody and every single soul of this generation knows it. And not knowing will receive a reaction equivalent to "What era did you come from, dumb ass?"

I read it back when I was in high school. I remember that I still have to borrow the books from my friends in order for me to read it, because I had no intention of keeping them on my book shelves for the rest of my life (the dumbest excuse I could muster for being so broke) and because I really do not know who is Harry Potter (just like how I do not know 3D stereogram or Venus Raj.) So you see, I was not really updated with a lot of things back then (well, up until now I guess.) Most of the time, I was clueless of what my high school batch mates were gushing about. They were often saying unintelligible words that only they could understand. It was like they were speaking a different language from mine. I could not understand them. I could not relate. I always come home asking myself, "What is expelliarmus? Is it even included in the dictionary?" because my classmates often said that when they did not want to stand up and get their things. Only when I have read the books that I came to know the language they were playing. Then, I started to get in touch with the world they were living.

It must have been social pressure that led me to read and to watch the series, but for most part of it I was willing to. I am not a fan for the reason that I haven't memorized all the spells and characters and details in the series. I am not a fan, because I do not have the whole series of books. I am not a fan, because I can sleep at night without dreaming about my life in Hogwarts. I am not fan just because. I could list a lot of (petty) reasons as to why I am not a fan of Harry Potter, but doing so will just overkill and later on defeat the purpose. I am not a fan, but I do not dislike it. Actually, I enjoyed reading it. And maybe I will read the series again three or four years from now just to get a different perspective on why many people love it like I love Pride and Prejudice. Maybe then I will become a fan.

But for now, I will just stare at this set of Harry Potter series and drool. They are lovely. This picture is encouraging me to buy a copy of each book. A complete set will look good on my (future mini-) library of classics. Hmm. What do you think?

I am getting inconsistent with my previous statements. This picture is just pure awesomeness. Or maybe it has something to do with that Beatle figurine (or is it a Beatle?)

On Percy Jackson and The Lightning Thief

I am not the type of person to write a decent review on something I have watched or read. I am not articulate enough to do so, but I have my own judgments and comments on a lot of things which I keep only for myself. However, I will deviate tonight because I will "try" to give some decent comments on the book-turned-movie Percy Jackson and The Lightning Thief.

I must admit that I put Percy Jackson series on hold for quite a long period of time. I stalled some months before finally reading the first book. Actually, I watched the film first before deciding whether to touch the pages of its original form or not. So you see, I have joined the bandwagon of people who watch the movie first before being able to read the book (which is very unusual for me). Do I regret it? No. In all honestly, I am thankful that I did. Why? Because the movie is upsetting. Even for me who has no idea about the content of the book, it is an epic fail. I don't know why they make film out of books when they can't even give justice to the original piece. It is like they bastardized the book. No offense, but the film was a major failure for me.

Movies should take the audience to a new kind of world. They should have an effect on the audience's reality. Movies should make the audience feel. And that what lacked in Percy Jackson and The Lightning Thief (movie). I felt nothing while I was watching the film. I felt NOTHING! That rarely happens to me. I was detached from the movie that I was more aware of the reaction of the kid on my right side to every scene. I felt nothing. This might be due to the cinematography.

First, the color and texture (my knowledge on film jargon is limited, so bear with the layman's term) are somewhat more apt for a romantic comedy film. I wished that the film was darker than it was because the "mythology mood", as I would coin it, was not felt in the duration of the movie. I did not feel the angst of what mythology should be. Second, the camera movement did not involve the perspective of the audience (which I value so much, btw). Third, lighting was not used to the advantage of the film. There were not much mood setters in the film. And lastly, the effects were crude (though the water effect was okay). I did not feel like Medusa head was real. It was more like a painting, IDK.

There are a lot of things I could say about the actors, but I will just have to say 'so-so' and leave it like that. There is a room for improvement, as they say. I just really hope that the next Percy Jackson will be directed by Steven Spielberg. No offense to Chris Columbus.