Writer T. James' Exploration of Words, on the Internet.

Seriously Cute Blogger Award

Ah, my first award :) No money, illicit favours or other nefarious activities were undertaken to secure this honour, honestly ;). Instead it was in a rare, and wonderfully heady state of giddy girlish delusion that Angela Addams did consider me worthy to receive this accolade (if you know Angela you will know that neither giddy nor girlish are her usual state-of-mind). Still once given, this award cannot be revoked. It is mine, Mine, MINE I SAY…. HahahahahHAHAHAHA!!!!

Now, on with the Puppy Club rules:

1st RULE: You do not talk about Puppy Club.

2nd RULE: You DO NOT talk about Puppy Club.

3rd RULE: You talk about 5 books/films/TV shows you’ve read or watched in the last 12 months.

So, for what it’s worth, here are five of the many I could have chosen…

 

1)      FILM: Burke and Hare: When a film that starts out with the quote,

“This is a true story

Except for the bits that aren’t,”

you know it’s going to be good. It was… A dark, grim, slick, sick, and hilariously funny story of two na’er-do-wells in Glasgow who take up body snatching and murder to make a quick buck. Lots of cringingly good laugh out loud moments (really out loud, not in the LOL sense). Good cast, great acting, smart plot. A Winner!

 

2)      BOOKS: Almost anything by Robin Hobb: The Farseer, Liveship Traders, and Tawny Man Trilogies, and the Dragon Keeper and Dragon Haven sequels. All take place in a richly detailed fantasy world; the story arcs of the fourteen books are populated with developed and interesting characters whose lives intertwine against the backdrop of an epic world-changing plot. Even more impressive is that although the books are fantasy, they are uniquely imagined… there are no dwarves or elves here, just living ships with hulls made from dragon cocoons…

Some may find the pacing to slow, but I loved the depth. (Aside: I didn’t get on so well with her Soldier Son trilogy. It’s set in a different world, and although interesting is not as compelling as her other setting).

 

3)      FILM: Shadowlands. The one with Anthony Hopkins and Debra Winger, not the other version. The story of the emotional isolation C.S. Lewis’ deliberately maintained , that was eventually broken down by an outspoken American. The ending of the film is a celebration of faith, love and courage, as he supports her through her battle with, and eventual death from, cancer. Not for the emotionally cold; remember the chocolate and tissues.

 

4)      TV: Included for its gritty docu-drama approach, including interviews with the vets it has to be Band of Brothers, and The Pacific. These series give a realistic portrayal of the heroism, tragedy, and occasional humours lunacy that is part of war. No one is bullet proof; all are scarred. A fitting tribute to those who fought an unfortunately necessary war. Most memorable moments: It shouldn’t be, but when a soldier throws a stone into the puddle of water in the skull of a Japanese soldier; or the Allied solider sprinting straight across a German camp… and the German soldiers were so amazed at his audacity no one managed to shoot him. Then he ran all the way back again, still unscathed. Life really can be stranger than fiction. Put that in a novel and your readers would be going, ‘Yeah… right…’.

 

5)      YET TO BE: I’m going to cheat here, because it’s not been released yet, but I’m looking forward to these films so much it’s obscene. Yes, it’s The Hobbit Bilogy(?). Short Hairy Dudes manipulated by a Large Hairy Dude into stealing gold from a Dragon. Most Short Hairy Dudes are obsessed with gold. The Large Hairy Dude is supposed to be wise, yet he didn’t foresee this was going to be a problem? Anyway, I can’t wait – should be awesome.

Is it me, or did anyone else notice that at least 50% of films shot after the Lord of the Rings stole those film’s colour palettes? They all seemed to become green, goldish or blue-grey… The Hobbit will inevitabley stifle other film maker’s initiative and innovation for a further 5 years…

 

Well. That was the easy part. The not so easy part is nominating bloggers who’ve not already received this award. So here’s my list, of some of the fun and special people I’ve met on Twitter:

N.B: If you think I should have nominated you, and I haven’t, it’s because I assumed you already had the award… ;)

Magda M. Olchawska – Blogs on film making, and things to with kids: Her son is her inspiration.

Sandy Westendorf – Doesn’t have a blog yet, but I’m giving her the award so she doesn’t have to struggle to find a subject for her first post when she sets one up… ;)

J. C. Fiske – Author of the Renegade series. Check out his dreams and visions here.

Fran Terminiello – New to blogging, so be neighbourly and pay her a visit.

Jann England – Her blog is pink, and is still very much worth a visit.

 

30 Comments

  1. Fran Terminiello

    Thanks for the mention/nomination T!

    • T. James

      That’s OK Fran, let me know when you post your five choices…

  2. Angela Addams

    Well done TJ!
    All great offerings…Many I’ve never heard of before and will be checking out.

    Great insight into your “character” ;-)

    • T. James

      Hmmm… I look forward to your analysis. You can tell me which medication and social skills training I should be taking… ;)

  3. Magda M. Olchawska

    James thanks so much. This is so cool. Never been nominated :)

    • T. James

      Well, you are in the film industry, and I wanted to know what you would recommend :)

  4. SLWestendorf

    TJ you made my WEEK LOL. I bow down to you in all your splendid awesomeness! You brought tears to my eyes (laughter).
    :D

    • T. James

      Making someone cry wasn’t the original intent… but as long as it was in a good way…

  5. SLWestendorf

    By the way… damn cute puppy!

    • T. James

      I completely agree. It was probably a genetically crossed Mogwai and poodle…

  6. Krista Walsh (@krista_walsh)

    *Squee* The Hobbit. V excited for them. Tolkein brings out my absolutely, normally (not very well) hidden geekiness.

    • T. James

      You are in welcome in your geekiness. More will be revealed in a future blog post, but my geek credentials are unimpeachable. *Live long, and proper, Imaginative One.* ;)

  7. Pat Hollett

    Some interesting choice TJames. Shadowlands was very good. Excellent choice! And a very nicely done review of all. Thanks for sharing. :)

    • T. James

      Hi Pat, thanks for dropping by, and I’m glad you enjoyed the reviews. Shadowlands has to be one of the most involving, if harrowing, dramas I’ve seen.

  8. Gareth

    LOL, nicely answered although I suppose the Hobbit is Bilbology. LOL

    • T. James

      Hi Gareth. I stand corrected by your superior Hobbit Lore :)

  9. Lisa Forget

    Congratulations on your award!
    Burke and Hare sounds like my kind of film.
    You’re so sweet helping out your friends Sandy and Fran. I’ll stop by and say hello over the weekend!

    • T. James

      Hi Lisa, thanks for saying you’ll pop over and visit their blogs, well Sandy’s when she starts it. Burke and Hare, absolutely hilarious… recommended.

  10. Anne Michaud

    Congrats, Terrible James! Very cute puppy indeed:)

    • T. James

      Hi Anne, thanks for dropping by. The cute puppy, me or the picture? ;) It is a very nice picture…

  11. j d waye

    TJ – thanks for the insight. A fellow Hobbiteer – but do you have the Warhammer Action Figure set? Looking forward to comparing notes on the Bilbology.
    Must see Shadowlands, now that you’ve recommended it.
    PS – isn’t listing a 14 book series kinda cheating as listing “one book”?

    • T. James

      Hi, I’m @tjameswriter on Twitter. Feel free to check out the pictures of my monitor’s ornamentation.

      Warhammer figures… I used to have a full dwarf army, around 300 figures. I didn’t have the time to paint or battle with them so I gave them to charity… The warm glow that gesture left does not completely compensate for the loss of that amount of reassuringly heavy lead. :( More details will follow in my next award posting.

      Shadowlands is really worth the effort to track down…

      14 books? Well really it’s the just one story. That’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it :).

  12. T. Crosby

    totally want to check out Burke and Hare. I have never heard of it! Good fun stuff here as usual TJ. :)

    • T. James

      I think you’d enjoy it… Thanks for visiting Tammy…

  13. Jann England

    Hey TJ, Thanks for the nomination! I wasn’t sure which dailect to use to describe my gratitude, but eventually opted for something more legible. “Cheers gov!” Love your website as well. You will have to come over the Pennines for a spot of tiffin or just say hello. Take care friend, Jann xx

    • T. James

      “Dat’s al-reet Luv.” I look forward to reading your five choices. Please let me know when you’ve posted them. Tiffin is a highly civilised activity, and is therefore to be held in high esteem. :)

  14. Chrissey Harrison

    I watched Burke and Hare the other day too. There were a few bits I thought could be better, but it was a very enjoyable film. There were a couple of places where it felt like a parade of faces, and they relied on you recognising the actor so they didn’t have to give them much of a character in their own right. I’m not surprised it bombed in America.

    Plus I now want to build a barrel that rolls where you want it to :D

    Oh, and congrats on the award :)

    • T. James

      Thanks for your congratulations; it’s been fun, and given me something to write about. :)

      To be honest, I’m not surprised Burke and Hare bombed across the Atlantic, as in some ways the humour is very British, which doesn’t always travel well (I don’t know how many people in the U.K. never got Seinfeld).

      Your response to the celebs was interesting, and different than mine: The only ‘show-biz’ face that ‘snapped me out’ of the story was Christopher Lee. I think for the first time I actually saw him really act a character who wasn’t his bog standard ‘Lord of Doom’ – Dracula/Count Dooku/Saruman clone. I was pleasantly surprised…

  15. Magda M. Olchawska

    1. Movie “Drive” – “Drive” easily made to the list of top three films I’ve seen this year. First of all it is amazingly shot and lit. I’ve never seen Los Angeles depicted in such intoxicating way as I did in this movie. Acting is purely superb (Ryan Gosling as the Driver and Albert Brooks as Bernie Rose are my favourites). And last but not least, the soundtrack is mind-blowing. Long after I left the cinema it was still playing inside my head and I’ve been playing it ever since. The other thing is a perfect match between two main protagonists. I could physically feel the chemistry between Ryan Gosling & Carey Mulligan. In my opinion it is this year’s a must see entry for any cinema fan so if you haven’t watched it, you must.

    2. Movie “Another Earth” is a pretty small indie movie made under $100K I was lucky enough to watch at Sundance this year. One day people living on Earth find out that there is another Earth out there with exactly the same people living on it. They simply discover a parallel universe. I loved the movie because of the story. It was really simply made but still remained the true sci-fi movie. One of the best in this genre I have ever seen in my life.

    3. Movie “Harry Potter”. After the disappointing seventh instalment of Harry Potter saga I was relieved that they didn’t f… it up this time, either. I was sad to see Harry’s story ending but at the same time I’ll be able to watch all of them over & over again ha ha…

    4. TV – this is actually more a complain than it is a recommendation. For 3 seasons I was hooked on “True Blood”. However the 4th season was so disturbing that I could hardly make myself watch it till the end. They have introduced (or brought to the forefront) too many characters for the audience to follow. In fact my focus was so shredded that I didn’t really care for anyone at all. Ok, it’s a lie. I cared for Sookie & Eric to stop having sex because I couldn’t take it any more!!!!

    5. TV – “Game of Thrones” was a discovery of this season for me. I was hooked and pinned to my chair after the first 5 minutes. I loved the setting, set design, actors, script, hmmm, virtually everything. It was a great idea to hire good actors but not the stars so they actually could be the characters in eyes of the audience, not the celebrities playing the characters. I’m so looking forward to the next season(s). My hubby read all the books (within more or less two months ;))) ) so I know what is going to happen. However, a visual image can do wonders to a book.

    • T. James

      Some great choices Magda, and several interesting ones I’ve never heard of… I shall get to Googling and see what I can find. Thanks for sharing some ‘inside insights’ from the film world. :)

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