Bleak House
Before I get started: a) I am, in many ways, behind the times, b) given the Jersey Shore angst here (which is completely justified), we need to watch stuff that's, you know, good. Or with this one, you can read it. Or both.
So, Bleak House. First, it was a Charles Dickens novel, then in 2005 the BBC made it into a mini-series, featuring Gillian Anderson of X-Files fame. And on that subject, Gillian shows her skills in this, trust me. Anyway, for some reason, I decided it would be neat to read the book (which is just shy of 900 pages long) & watch the series at the same time. It's going well, aside from being a pretty long process so far. But it's been worth it, because it's classic literature, great storytelling, & especially in video form, very compelling & engaging.
Death, betrayal, romance, scandal, lies, shame, guilt, secrets, murder, blackmail, dickhead lawyers, the failures of the legal system in general, human experience, violence, sickness, financial ruin, the rich, the poor. It's all here, & that's not even everything. It's tough to concisely explain the plot in a way that makes it sound interesting but also doesn't give anything away. That's what the IMDB page is for. Oh, I forgot to mention the spontaneous combustion. Yep. Dickens got in a little bit of trouble for that one.
The book is worth trying if you have the time & patience for 19th century writing. And if not, the mini-series is one of the closest adaptations of a novel I've ever seen. The only real changes condense the story & move things along faster because really, how much time would it take to get every detail of a book this long perfect? Which is also why mini-series format works really well.
Showing posts with label classic literature. Show all posts
Showing posts with label classic literature. Show all posts
Monday, January 25, 2010
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Sad Day for Poe Fans
Sad Day for Poe Fans
Today (or rather yesterday, since I'm doing this at 3 AM...) marked the 201st birthday of Edgar Allan Poe & the anniversary of a long-standing tradition at Poe's grave - the laying of three roses and a bottle of cognac. Except this year, the mystery person who lays them every year didn't show.
The possibilities as to why the "Poe toaster" didn't come this year are endless - sickness, death, or the possibility that since last year was his 200th birthday, the toaster decided it was a good year to stop. Not willing to let Poe rest on his birthday without his roses and cognac, someone did put them out later in the day, but people who'd been waiting at the site to see the real toaster in action early this morning were disappointed.
And some am I.
Ever since my dad told me about this when I was in high school, it's stuck with me & I've been fascinated by it. In my mind, is the coolest & yet most bizarre of traditions. It's a great way to honor Poe's memory & yet no one knows who actually does this or how it got started. It's been done every year since at least 1949. Frankly, I hope that when I die - especially if I end up being a successful writer - people love me enough to leave nice things at my grave some 160 years after I've died. With press coverage.
Kind of dark and macabre with just a hint of romance. Poe, I'm sure, would love it.
You can't be a self-respecting horror fan without reading a little Poe. The stories are old so the writing's kind of dated & tough, but worth working on. Especially for classics like "The Tell-Tale Heart," "The Fall of the House of Usher," & one of my personal favorites, "The Masque of the Red Death." Not to mention "The Raven" is probably one of my favorite poems ever. And the Halloween episode of Castle where he dressed as Poe & carried around that raven was one of the funniest things I've ever seen.
Nevermore!
Today (or rather yesterday, since I'm doing this at 3 AM...) marked the 201st birthday of Edgar Allan Poe & the anniversary of a long-standing tradition at Poe's grave - the laying of three roses and a bottle of cognac. Except this year, the mystery person who lays them every year didn't show.
The possibilities as to why the "Poe toaster" didn't come this year are endless - sickness, death, or the possibility that since last year was his 200th birthday, the toaster decided it was a good year to stop. Not willing to let Poe rest on his birthday without his roses and cognac, someone did put them out later in the day, but people who'd been waiting at the site to see the real toaster in action early this morning were disappointed.
And some am I.
Ever since my dad told me about this when I was in high school, it's stuck with me & I've been fascinated by it. In my mind, is the coolest & yet most bizarre of traditions. It's a great way to honor Poe's memory & yet no one knows who actually does this or how it got started. It's been done every year since at least 1949. Frankly, I hope that when I die - especially if I end up being a successful writer - people love me enough to leave nice things at my grave some 160 years after I've died. With press coverage.
Kind of dark and macabre with just a hint of romance. Poe, I'm sure, would love it.
You can't be a self-respecting horror fan without reading a little Poe. The stories are old so the writing's kind of dated & tough, but worth working on. Especially for classics like "The Tell-Tale Heart," "The Fall of the House of Usher," & one of my personal favorites, "The Masque of the Red Death." Not to mention "The Raven" is probably one of my favorite poems ever. And the Halloween episode of Castle where he dressed as Poe & carried around that raven was one of the funniest things I've ever seen.
Nevermore!
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