Mists of Avalon: (B+)

The Mists of Avalon is a beautiful, mesmerizing tale. The story which is a retelling of the King Arthur legend from the point of the view of the women involved, specifically the pagan priestesses of Avalon as they conspire to bring Arthur to the throne and unite Britain against the raiding Saxons.

The story told is one of love, lust, hatred. Arthur’s love for Lancelet (Lancelot). Gwenhwyfar’s (Guinevere) hatred of Morgaine (Morgan le Fay), and Lancelet’s lust for Gwenhwyfar. The stories backdrop is a time in history when the Saxon’s are raiding and sacking the disjointed kingdoms of Briton and Christianity is relentlessly purging the Pagan beliefs of the British.

The priestesses of Avalon conspire to unite Briton under a prophesied King who can rule over both the new Christian’s of Briton and the people of the old faith. The people of the old faith desire a King who will fly the dragon banner of old and wield the Druid sword of power Excalibur, and the Christians desire a man who honor’s their one God and holds true to their virtues of faith, honor and justice. Viviane the Lady of the Lake and the Merlin of Briton use their considerable power and influence to bring Arthur to the throne as the King of all Briton when he swears to be true and deal fairly with the Pagans and carry only the banner of the dragon into battle.

The book is wonderful, almost poetic is areas and a real sadness and gloom overshadows the entire book as Avalon fades further into the mists. The story asks, at what price do we pursue what we love above all else? To what depths will we sink to protect what we love? Who can one trust? What can one believe when everything you fought for is lost?

The book will leave the reader with many questions and many unresolved emotions. The book while long is worth every moment spent delving into the mists.

Quotes

I have no faith nor any fear. Both are illusions
I have no path nor any direction. Both will lead you astray.
I have no will nor any desires. Both will distract you.
Free yourself from all that is not, and all that will be left is what is.

Jim Lapine

Zombieland: B

If you are looking for a fun story that doesn’t take itself too seriously, then Zombieland might be right of your alley.

Zombieland is a story about reclaiming family, friends and humanity after a Zombie apocalypse. The movie stars Woody Harrelson, who is just having way too much fun in playing the role and pretty much carries the movie by himself.

While the is movie bloody and violent it is a surprisingly light hearted comedy. This is because the violence is perpetrated against the zombies and is played for mostly laughs.

See the movie, do yourself a favor. You will love it!

Pandorum: F

I’m not sure what to say about this movie, other than it stunk. I will not say that Pandorum is Van Helsing bad, but mistake it not, this movie stinks. The story is a basic rip off of a hundred other better movies and I honesty couldn’t have cared where the story went. This movie will have you squiring in your seat and looking at your watch within 30 minutes flat. Richard and I walked out about an hour into the movie, when we just couldn’t watch the train wreck any longer.

500 Days of Summer: (C)

I love Zooey Deschanel! She’s not a superstar yet, but she will be, mark my words.

500 Days of Summer, is not your typical love story and as the voiceover will tell you at the start of the movie, it’s not a love story at all.

I wanted to love this move, I tried to love this movie, and ultimately I failed. The movie is worth seeing as it is enjoyable, just not fantastic. I would not consider it a date movie either, unless you’re in a dysfunctional relationship, which may or may not be a bad thing.

500 days of Summer follows Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) as he falls in and out of love with Summer (Zooey). The story is told in retrospect and skips from one point in Tom’s and Summer’s relationship to another in a willy-nilly fashion.

The movie is best when it stops trying to be serious and gets silly. The movie is wonderful and enjoyable when it gets silly, it just didn’t get silly enough to make the movie thoroughly enjoyable.