The Hate You Give Review

     

Starr Carter - Movie Adaptation

    There are times that after reading a book, its characters and their struggles will stay with you for a long time. The Hate You Give is one of those books for me since it opened my eyes to a reality that was plainly in front of me, but clearly, I was too distracted to notice it. As I started reading this book I couldn't help but remember how back in 1992 I spent numerous hours in front of a television watching the events that the world came to know as the Los Angeles Race Riots. Since then, I have always claimed to be familiar with the trigger of the terrible events that took over Los Angeles. My explanation was always very simple. A group of policemen beats up Rodney King, and they were acquitted, and the public took over the streets in protest of the injustice that had taken place. Well, it took me thirty years and finding my way to this book to understand how naïve and incorrect I was back then, and in my assessment of every similar protest that has taken place since then. 

Cop checking Khalil scene

    The Hate U Give tells the story of a sixteen-year-old, Starr Carter, who one day after leaving a party, witnesses the killing of her friend Khalil at the hands of a cop. Unfortunately, this is a story we have heard way too many times in the news. Two Afro-American kids, get pulled over by a cop, and things escalate without reason, and the end result is that the cop pulls the gun and kills the kid. What makes this story different and extremely compelling is that the author grabs the reader by the hand, and invites us into the neighborhood where Starr and Khalil grew up. Instead of shielding the reader from the crude and brutal world that our protagonist has to deal with every day, Angie Thomas takes the path of showing us that although these kids have grown up in that environment, they were not tainted by it and that they certainly didn't deserve the faith they encounter at the hands of that cop on that night. 

    We don't only experience Starr and Khalil's struggles, but we also get to see their parent's dedication and persistence to try to provide a better life for them. In some cases, they succeeded, like Maverick and Lisa (Starr's parents), but in others, they succumbed to the same evils that condemned the neighborhood, like Khalil's mother. The author also shows us how even after all the frustration our characters feel with the government agencies that have let them down multiple times, they still care for their neighborhood and are willing to fight for it and defend it. We see this at multiple levels during the story like when Mr. Lewis condemns King's actions on the live news, or when it is discovered that Khalil refused to join King's gang. 

    In 2013 a group of women formed the Black Lives Matter Movement after the acquittal of George Zimmerman for Trayvon. The movement gained momentum in 2014 after the death of Michael Brown and Eric Garner. With additional cases of police abuse, public unrest was growing. The Hate U Give was published on February 28, 2017. Followers of the movement as well as the public that was unrest with the continuous incidents of police abuse found that the book and its characters gave a voice to their frustrations. 

    The one thing I really enjoyed about this book that I would like to be able to mimic in my work is how Thomas was able to make the neighborhood into a character in the story. The neighborhood ends up playing a very important part in the story since for the reader to understand the struggle the main characters are going through, they need to understand how is the neighborhood they grew up in. How different is that neighborhood from the one that her uncle Carlos lives in, and most importantly, how different is that neighborhood from the one our readers live in? That contrast with the reader's neighborhood is critical because it does challenge them to trade places with the characters and try to feel their experiences. 

    The only thing I didn't feel comfortable about the work was how the whole situation between Khalil and the cop transpired. I'm not blaming Khalil, but I can't help going back to Maverick's own teachings to his kids on how to deal with cops when they pull you over. Khalil challenged the cop from the start, and although that doesn't justify him getting killed, I wonder if it could have helped the situation. On top of it all, why didn't Starr mention Khalil's attitude in any of her testimonies? Not a justification for Khali getting killed, but it did feel as if Starr was trying to hide it. 

    As per the marketability of the book, as a YA selection, it touches on very modern topics with a lot of interest to the younger generations. Also, the relationships and teen struggles are very well represented within the novel in a way that teenagers and even older generations can relate to.             

Legally Blond - Movie Review

 

Movie Poster

    With this review, I slowly continue to crawl out my way from under the pile of rocks I apparently have been living in. I have been aware of the existence of this movie for years but never paid attention to it because...it looked too much of a Rom-Com for my taste. Well, I finally was forced to sit down and watch it and I have to admit, I enjoyed the movie. If you read my review for The Bromance Book Club already, you will notice this seems to be a common theme in my reviews, and I have to admit that the reading and watching of these Blockbuster books and movies have become a personal learning experience for me. But for now, let's just focus on the Legally Blonde review.

    This movie is simply an underdog story, and who doesn't like a good tale of someone who fights against the odds to come out on top?  But Legally Blonde takes a different approach to this common Hollywood cliché. Instead of having the main character fighting to overcome society's prejudice toward class welfare, race, or physique, this movie deals front and center with the theme of women having to deal with extra barriers because they are not considered as smart or capable as men. The movie, which is based on the book by the same name by Amanda Brown, takes on this chauvinistic preconception by selecting the most targeted victim of all "dumb people's" jokes, a blond teenager.   

Prof. Callahan shows his true intentions

    The fact that our main character, Elle Woods, is represented as rich, young, and beautiful is critical since the movie wants us to focus on one main thing, Elle's wit and her desire to show the world she has what it takes to become a Harvard Graduate. Now, her ambition to become a lawyer starts as a way to show her idiot boyfriend, Warner, that she can also be the Future Senator Trophy Wife material, but eventually, Elle realizes that her boyfriend is just an idiot. Unfortunately for Elle, Warner is not even close to the greatest chauvinist she will have to face, that honor comes to the wolf in sheep's clothing in the movie, Professor Callahan. 

Elle watching the football game

    Comedies like Legally Blonde, which I would compare to the movie Clueless in multiple ways, usually have good reception with young audiences. But when combined with a good underdog story, a vibrant and rising up cast, and a relatable plot (How many people went through the stress of being accepted by the college of their choosing? Even then, wondering if they are good enough to stay? etc), this movie had a good recipe for mass appeal. I wonder if the fact that the source material was based on the author's real-life story also contributed to its success, I imagine it did.

The Trial

    The one thing I learned about this work is to not be afraid of working on a topic or theme that is considered a cliché.  Almost every these in this movie has already been done multiple times before, but the author and director gave each of these themes their own spice and turns and therefore making them entertaining and putting them in a whole new light. All of them except for one cliché, Professor Callahan being an opportunist pig. Although it is a real issue in our society and one that we constantly still see in the news, I feel at one point in the movie it started to become predictable that Callahan would do something to undermine Elle as a rising star. I think they could have tried other angles that didn't have to involve sexual harassment, and I'm not saying that doesn't happen today, I'm actually saying it happens too much but other issues could have been tackled as easily. Professional jealousy for instance, where Callahan could have noticed that Elle was taking away the spotlight from him and he wasn't going to allow that. And believe me, this is way more common in Corporate America these days. 

    As per the marketability of the movie, it came out on the wave of a book that was successful at the time. The prevailing themes are critical to every generation, the underdog story, am I good enough, will I prevail, will I make it to college, will I graduate college, etc. This certainly was a movie that the whole family could enjoy and that they did since it spun a successful sequel, fans are still clamoring for another sequel, and it has been a musical on Broadway for years.        

Promotion for Legally Blonde, The Musical

Jurassic Park - Movie Review

 

Land That Time Forgot - The T-Rexes

    I was about three or four years old when my sister sat me in front of the television so she could work on her homework. A movie called "The Land that Time Forgot" was playing on the TV, and that was the first time I was introduced to dinosaurs. I remember that at that age, I was hooked. I couldn't stop babbling about those ugly giant lizards, and boy were they weird looking. Just look at the T-Rex in the picture still on the left. That same weekend, my sister got me a T-Rex dinosaur toy that I immediately named Bruno, and he was my companion for a couple years. Yes, I was absolutely amazed by dinosaurs the moment I set eyes on them in that movie. 

  Fast forward until the summer of 1993. That summer, Steven Spielberg breaks the box office records one more time with the movie Jurassic Park. But people were extremely hyped about this movie before it even got to theaters. An amazing and very proactive advertising campaign preceded the release of the movie in theaters. Prior to the preview release, the studio had required that theaters met certain sound specification upgrades in their sound systems. Basically, the studios wanted to make sure that the dinosaur roars in the previews were as "realistic" as possible. Giant promotional displays were set in movie theaters months in advance of the release. Promotional movie tie-ins were set with major brands and retailers such as McDonald's, Mercedes Benz, Jello, Hasbro, etc. In summary, the studio made sure the movie was a promotional success before it was released. We also should factor in that the decision to make a movie out of the novel was made before the novel was even published. His author, Michael Crichton was friends with Spielberg and having discussed the plot of the novel, Spielberg had already expressed an interest to Crichton and Universal Studios in acquiring the right and directing the movie. 

    All that certainly contributed to the tremendous appeal the movie had to fans, but that wasn't all. Crichton developed a story that technology and scientifically wise, gave a lot of credence to how the company Ingen and its owner John Hammond were able to use DNA to bring back dinosaurs to life. Even at the start of the movie, while the main characters take a ride through the park, they are treated to a presentation that movie viewers also watch which explains DNA technology in basic layman's terms, and from that point on, the whole science behind the movie is made plausible for the audience. But all that would have failed if ultimately the dinosaurs in the movie didn't seem realistic, and this is where Jurassic Park captivated audiences during the summer of 1993. Just like that infamous scene where Dr. Alan Grant has to bend over to catch his breath while he observes the dinosaurs in their habitat, movie audiences around the world watch as Spielberg brought back to life dinosaurs on the big screen.  

    Just like Dr. Grant, I remember that I also had to catch my breath while I took in that view. The dinosaurs I had read so much about since I was a kid and seen so many bad movies, were actually right there in front of me, on the screen. And at that moment, I had no idea what was ahead, the infamous T-Rex scenes, the velociraptor scenes, this simply was a delightful movie. And yes, there were other messages and topics in the movie that we might not want to forget. Most of these messages come from Dr. Ian Malcom such as "Life will find a way." and "...your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should." The latter one is referenced by many as a warning and criticism of the creation of nuclear weapons. 

    I feel we have discussed plenty about the marketability of this movie. And what I can learn about this movie is also something I really liked about it. The fact that they were able to take a topic that was so complicated to explain back in 1993, and found a way to break it down into layman's terms so the audience could understand it and from that point on get immersed in the plot, I think it was brilliantly done. As writers, we should invest the time and effort to explain the concepts that drive our story as simple to the reader as possible. Doing so will not only help us in providing a better experience for the reader but also in expanding the audience that we can reach with our material. 

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Book Review

 

    A question that will linger in my mind from this day forward is, "Why did I never read this book earlier in my life?" Most of my friends had read the series, and many of my co-workers too. I heard their jokes multiple times, and therefore I was already aware that "42" was the answer to the ultimate question in the universe. And still, for some reason, I was never compelled to grab a copy of the novel and read through it. All of that changed this past summer when this classic became required reading for this course. As with some of the other required books for this course, I was dreading the time to start reading it, and that was a feeling that dissipated immediately within the first couple of chapters. 

    The story starts with Arthur Dent, a man that wakes up at his home to discover that the local government is about to demolish his home due to a bureaucratic mishap. In his calamity, he is convinced by his neighbor, Ford Prefect, to go on a walk to a local bar to have a beer where he reveals to Arthur that he is an alien and that planet Earth is about to be destroyed. Interestingly enough, and when the reader thinks things can't get any weirder, we learned that Earth is about to be destroyed by the alien race the Vogons due to an intergalactic government bureaucratic mishap. 

    Right before the Earth is destroyed, Arthur and Ford are rescued and from that moment on, our main characters travel through the galaxy from one incident to the next, and each one is more hilarious than the last. From Vogon's poetry as their preferred method of torture, to their miraculous rescue by Zaphod in his stolen vessel, and Arthur encounter with Zaphod and Trillian when he remembers their previous encounter, each stop they make is full of surprises and fun anecdotes.  

BBC Radio Show of HGTG

    After the success of Star Wars in 1977, we were flooded with Sci-Fi movies like Star Trek, Alien, Battlestar Galactica, Buck Rogers, etc. And a little series called The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy was enjoying success and gaining a fanbase on BBC Radio.  The radio series was so successful, that when it was adapted to novels, it sold 250,000 copies by its second week of publication. Its cult following has allowed its continued success where sales have reached up to 15 million copies as of today of the first novel in the series alone.  

    What I learned from this book is to not be afraid to break away from breaking away from the established molds. At various times within the novel, the author breaks away from the main story to share these random tales that seem to go nowhere. A clear example is the entire story of the mice that build the most powerful computer Deep Thought so they could ask the answer to the most difficult question in the universe. After waiting 7.5 billion years for the answer they get their response, "42". and they realize that they never asked what was the question. These stories aside from being hilarious, do end up adding to the uniqueness of the novel and its appeal. 

    What I didn't like about the novel is that it ended on a cliffhanger. Personally, I'm not a big fan of series that end and leave the reader guessing. I like to see a completed novel and characters with an ending. There can be sequels but finish the story. I feel cliffhangers are a cheap way to cheat your readers. 

    As per the marketability of the work, this one really stands out since before it was adapted to a novel, It already was a successful radio series. Aside from it being successful on radio, it had been repeated multiple times, and famous personalities had volunteered to read it like Stephen Hawkins who was a huge fan. By the time the idea of converting the series to a novel started to come to fruition, the radio series had been reproduced in multiple countries, a TV series was already in production, and there were already discussions for movie production. So with such a large cult following and fan base, a novelization was a sure winner. 

         

The Bromance Book Club Review

 

    If anyone would have told me four months ago that I was going to read a romance novel during the summer my unequivocal response would have been, "Not a chance in hell." And if anyone would have added that I was even going to enjoy reading that book, I would have simply laughed out loud. You have to understand that I'm a Latin male, and as stereotypes go, we don't do the reading Romance novel thing.

    Well, the joke is clearly on me because reading the novel I did, and saying that I enjoyed it would be a major understatement. This novel made me laugh, care for the main characters, question my reading selections, and I will have to admit that I even got teary-eyed during that scene near the end where Gavin decides to walk off the plane to go after his wife and his friends go with him because is a special mission.   

    Let me be very clear, I highly recommend this book. To say the novel is a love story between the main characters Thea and Gavin would be accurate, but it is so much more. At the center of the plot is a story about friendship and how far will go for those who you care for. That is reflected in the actual Book Club which doesn't get its name till the very end, at the steps of the church during Gavin's and Thea's impromptu wedding. The story also deals with the complex topic of family issues, and how they impact the younger ones.  

    As a person that had never read a romance novel, and this one was my first, I can say that the appeal for me was that I immediately identified with the main character and his club. I could picture myself having a similar reaction to Gavin's when his friends suggested that he read romance novels to improve his relationship with his wife and to better understand women. Then the author added the secrecy to which the club operated, from something as silly as buying their pumpkin spice lattes to hiding their novels, all to maintain that macho image and to avoid judgment. It made the story funny, but it also made light of a long-debated issue in our society where supposedly men are not supposed to show emotions. As we saw through the book, not only did their marriage and relationship improve as Gavin became more open with his feelings, but he also felt better about himself.  

    I learned two main lessons while reading this novel. The first one is to not be afraid to tackle and expose my view on social issues or dilemmas that have been debated for a long time. In the case of The Bromance Book Club, the author dealt with the long-debated issue of men openly sharing their feelings. She did it in a refreshing way where our main character learned from making a connection to the main character in an old romance novel. By identifying with the main character, Gavin learns to deal away with his masculine toxicity, and focus more on his wife and kids. 

    The second lesson I learned while reading this book is that I will never again disregard a book due to its genre. This book happens to be the second one on the list of required readings for this course that I was completely surprised. The other book I had also avoided due to some preconceptions I had before reading. I may also add to the list the movie Legally Blond which I recently watched and which I had avoided for years, being one of my wife's favorites. I had simply denied myself hours of entertainment due to my made-up preconceptions. Never again!

    One of the things I enjoyed the most about reading this novel was the voice used by the author for the characters. Each character seemed very realistic and even well grounded on real-life examples. It is clear that she did her research on the background of each character to make sure they came across the page with as many flaws as possible, and that also included their voice, their mannerism, and the way they interacted with others. I especially enjoyed the scenes where she had the club members interact with each other.      

    This is a book that should appeal to such a broad audience. To start with, most romance genre fans would be pleased with this book. Interestingly enough, this is the one book they can also turn around and tell they're significant other, who has always refused to read a romance, oh but you will love this one. And if that significant other is a baseball fan, they can even sell it as: "Is about a baseball player with family issues," and they will read it. The appeal and marketability of this novel should be off the charts, which is why I wasn't surprised when I read that Netflix is producing a movie version that will come out in Summer 2023.