Review of The Babadook

So, as promised, here's my first review of a horror movie. Lets jump right in.

The Babadook tries to make some emotional ties right away in the beginning, as we're immediately introduced to the two main characters; a single mother and her child. The mother, who is clearly worn out and tired, works a nine to five job which involves taking care of dementia and Alzheimer patients, only to get home and take care of her feisty seven year old son. Although he's not just a normal sassy little boy, he has a strange obsession with monsters, which is where our story begins. One night, after a long day, the mother takes her son to bed where she begins to read him a book that he chooses. Unsurprisingly, he picks a book she's never seen before; The Babadook.

She begins reading it to him, and although it appears childish in nature, in begins having terrifying images and ideas; talking about a monster that seems nice at first but then kills you.

Of course, that's where things start to turn sour in a classic horror movie fashion, except it it strangely isn't. The boy in the movie slowly begins to get more and more rowdy, claiming that the Babadook is real and that he's seen it before. In the beginning, it could honestly just pass as a child having an over active imagination and the mother getting irritated by it. The one of the scariest parts I think, that it is so perfectly normal and understandable in the beginning. However, about two thirds of the way through the movie, we see the characters roles begin to switch. The mother, normally calm and cool, begins to break down under the stress and pressure. She keeps her son out of school, becomes isolationist, and finds herself unable to sleep almost all the time. Her son, in the meantime, keeps assuring his mother that the Babadook is real, and that he's in the house, however is very calm and collected in his methods.

Up to this point, the whole thing has been mostly expository information, however the tension it builds up as we finally see our characters alone in the house with this thing is extremely incredible. We never actually see anything besides small shadows and sounds until this point, making us even wonder, is the Babadook real? Or is this just a spawn of the child's creativity and the mothers insanity? Once you get to this point in the movie though, things become real real quick.

The Babadook IS real. It even predicts the outcome of the movie during one scene, when the original book reappears on her doorstep. The mother, scared as hell, reads it with horror. The book, using only its childish tone, talks about a mother who's possessed, snaps her dog's neck, strangles her son, and then kills herself. Talk about foreshadowing, eh?

In the climax of the movie, we watch in horror as the mother is seemingly possessed, then, with a strange calmness, snaps her dogs neck like it's nothing. Then she chases after her son, trying to kill him the whole time.

The amazing thing about this whole movie though, it has zero jump scares. I don't really know how they did it, but they made a movie that's scary and suspenseful as hell without a single jump out of your skin moment. All in all, there really wasn't anything I could point out as being wrong with this movie. And, since we're getting into the movie mindset, I'll rate it a solid eight out of ten pens. You know, because my names ink? Ha... Ya I cringed right there too. But really, a solid horror movie. Anyone who's feeling ready for some nightmares should definitely give this a watch. Until next time guys, peace.

-Ink

Review of The Uninvited

You ever watch those movies where the whole time you're sitting there thinking, 'ya, ya, this is so predictable,' only to reach the end and have your mind blown? Because this is basically that movie in a nutshell. If you haven't seen it yet, go watch it. Then come back and read this, cause selfless advertising, and also spoilers.

So this movie starts off pretty odd. It's our main character describing one of her frequent nightmares to her therapist/doctor. It's about her going into the woods and finding a dead little girl in a trash bag, and every time the little girl says, "don't go home." So what does our dream character do? Runs straight to her house. She finds her mother, who at the time was bedridden, laying down and ringing her bell for help. So, she has to leave her mothers little personal cottage (This is a very rich family by the way, and makes sense if you watch it.) to go up the hill to where her father is. But right as she's about to find him, her mothers cottage blows up and she wakes up from the dream.

Now, I'm not just restating this for the sake of summary. This is a pretty damn smart strategy used by the film maker. Us, as the unknowing audience, watch this and think, "alright, backstory, that's cool. But really they're already laying the background for a twist. Not only that, but they follow it up with a few key phrases. The first is her roommate, who has two important lines; "Who am I going to tell my stories to?" and "You'll never be fixed. They could never fix me." Which again, us as readers are just thinking whatever, it's just a crazy girl spewing nonsense.

But damn. This ending. I got to the part where our main characters sister murdered the stepmother, who's cliche role also aided in the twist, and thought, "oh, now they're gonna explain how the step mom was actually good and how the sister was evil or demented," or some shit like that. But no. No, no, no, no. They pulled out all the stops on us, going straight back to the beginning. The main character, who's point of view we trusted and relied on as reality, was completely twisted the whole time. There never even was a sister, she died the night of the explosion that killed her mother. The whole time the main character had been playing innocent, confused by her own delusions and visions, when really she just wanted to kill the step mom for getting her dad to sleep with her.

Then, to put a bow on it, she gets back to the asylum only for the doctor to ask nicely, "did you finish what you started?"

Of course, our character now being as demented as she is, replies, "Yes, I finished what I started."

Pretty twisted story, eh? With that in mind, I think I'd give it a seven out of ten pens. Until next time, peace.

-Ink

My Favorite Genre

So before I get into my review streak, I thought I'd first begin by talking a little about my favorite genre and what I'll be talking about and reviewing the most; horror.

Why does horror appeal to me so much? Well, I just love the thrill of it, really. I find it really exciting and interesting as well as blood pumping. No other type of movie really gets you on the edge of your seat with your adrenaline pumping quite like a good horror movie does. Plus, if they're ever bad, you can just chill out laugh at all the cheesy jump scares!

What the definition of a good horror movie? In my opinion I'd say a good horror movie has to have a couple characteristics.

First, it has to at least try to pertain to the normal qualifications of normal movies, which I've talked about before. To recap, that'd be stuff like having a good plot, good characters and character development, etc. Although I do have to recognize that the point of horror movies isn't always to provide these things. That's something I know, which is why I may not always say a good horror flick is a good movie.

That, however, is the second main point, and something that pertains to only horror movies, is how good the scares are. This can be separated into two qualities however, suspense and jump scares.

Suspense, considered a more classical way of achieving a good horror movie, is the build up leading to a major reveal or event. Suspense is the stuff that'll make your hair stand up on your neck and have you cuddled up under a blanket wondering, or better yet, fearing what will happen next. This is personally what I love about horror movies and what effects me the most, as compared to jump scares.

Jump scares have become more popular is more modern horror movies. These are the types of things that make you pee your pants in fear and jump under the covers. These can be super fun to have in horror movies, but at the same time are often frowned upon merely because they are more often then not abused in today's movies. They have a tendency to throw them in all over the place, hoping to scare the watcher silly with no actual plot, relation, or suspense. Granted, these movies can be fun as hell if your just watching them casually and not actually paying attention to the plot anyway.

I know horror movies aren't everyone's cup of tea, and I don't plan to focus on them exclusively by any means, however I do plan on talking about at least a few of them sometime in the future, so I thought it'd be nice to establish some things about it first. Until next time guys, peace.

-Ink

New or Old?

Time for the most heated argument of all time, la piece de la resistance of modern film disputes, the classic fight to end all fights; which is better, the new Star Wars prequels or the classic Star Wars?

Well, in order to discuss this I'm going to look at each trilogy separately before comparing so I can talk about the pros and cons of both.

So, first, the classics. The strongest point, which I think is pretty obvious, is the plot and the characters of Luke and Vader. It's strong, emotional, and is built up quite nicely through the series as the two characters are built up through the plot which was interesting, logical, -for scifi at least- and fun to watch. Not to mention it's pretty damn original for it's time, which I think is especially appreciated in today's art. The only downsides I would say for this series is that the time it was made obviously didn't have much for special effects, although for it's time they were pretty great. The acting was good for the most part, but could definitely get kind of cheesy or fake at some parts.

Now, the prequels. What are they're strengths? The plot is surprisingly quite good I think, although many complain that its much to political and boring. This is because it focuses a lot on building up the backstory and world of Star Wars, which I can actually really appreciate. I really love getting to know more about this huge, expansive world that they put us in. Although you may not get this from the movies, I do really love the characters that are in these movies. That moves on to the next part though; the acting is generally pretty bad in these. Same with the script at times too, it definitely has its moments that you sit there wondering why the hell they would actually write that. *cough* Jar-Jar *cough* but ya.

So which do I think is better? The classics, of course. In my opinion, I still enjoy the prequels because of the back story and sweet light saber duels, but that's what it is; backstory. Backstory for the originals that captured everyone's hearts. The story is just so iconic and interesting and creating such an amazing world that how could you not favor the classics over the new ones?

But I mean hey, this new trilogy is off to a good start, so maybe that'll take the cake soon! Until next time though guys, peace.

-Ink

Review of "ST-TFA"

Alright, so first, before I say anything else, spoilers man. Like big, big spoilers. I'm also gonna be assuming you've already seen the movie, so know that.

So Star Wars; the Force Awakened. Probably one of the most reviewed movies in the meta right now. I'm going to give it a real critiquing before I personal with all this.

The story is very, very character based. Although it has an interesting plot line as Ray and Finn chase down the map to Luke, racing Kylo and the First Order, they don't focus on it, and more than anything use it as a means to get the movie moving when a certain part is done. Ray and Finn both go through a sort of metamorphosis as the movie goes on, each in their own ways.

Ray, who begins as a humble and secretive scavenger, is swooped into the story by Finn. Her main goal at this stage is to find the family who left her on the desolate planet. However, as it continues, we the audience can see that is clearly extremely talented, both in combat and in the force. Through the eyes of Ray though, she's still too worried and insecure to take responsibility of her powers and dedicating herself to the rebellion, which she clearly supports. It's at one rather pivotal moment though that we see her begin to change, and that's when she begins testing her might with the force, allowing her to escape and meet up with Finn and Han. The wrap up her transformation at the end when we see her take up a lightsaber and meet Kylo in battle who, up to this point, as been portrayed as this very powerful and naturally talented sith. Upon accepting her strength and the responsibility that comes with that, she is able to beat Kylo and escape the base before its destruction.

Finn, on the other hand, is almost the opposite. He's a stormtrooper, and everything that seems to come with it. Weak, basic, not nearly as important, in general. He, himself, thinks that at first. Although he follows his wishes to become part of the Rebellion, he is still not very confident in his own abilities and even tries leaving the quest at one point and just escaping to somewhere else in the galaxy where he can live quietly. He also goes through a turning point, becoming more confident and responsible when he sees Ray get captured, and then again at the end when he decides to defend Ray from Kylo, despite how clearly outmatched he is. Although it isn't the most original idea ever, I really love how this idea is applied to Star Wars. Here we have a little guy, an average person who's never had anything given to him and could easily be replaced, standing up to evil and one of it's most powerful wielders. The point is that even the average person can stand up to injustice, I just found that awesome to watch.

Anyway guys, I'll have to finish my review in the next one. Until next time guys, peace.

-Ink

Playing With Emotions

So what do all amazing books have in common? All classic, award winning, time defying books all share one major point together. And that point, unsurprisingly, is that they all play with the heart strings. They make us FEEL and think in ways we've never thought or thought we would ever think. (Heh, that was a fun balanced sentence, wasn't it?)

This is something we, as readers, have to keep in mind. A plot, in a way, sets the hook in the reader. It pulls them in and gets them close, waving them around and getting them ready for capture. However, it's the emotional appeal that puts the sinker in hook, line, and sinker. That's what puts a readers thoughts from, "wow, this book is pretty interesting," to, "this book is seriously amazing."

Emotional appeal is the greatest tool for a writer. It's the bow on the present, the icing on the cake, the cherry on top. And the greatest tools for achieving this emotional connection is through character development and the climax of the plot. The more the readers get attached to the readers, the more effected they are by the climax, in which, more often then not, the main characters face some sort of emotional obstacle in which, by this point of the story, the reader can relate well. The more the readers relate to said character, the more emotional appeal they can have at the climax of the book.

Talking to Myself...?

This post is, well, interesting. I'd like to make it sort of like an inflection upon some of my story ideas so that I can get a better understanding for the two and decide which I want to pursue more. Input would, of course, always be nice. But that's completely optional, and to be honest just talking to myself will help me I think.

So, story idea one! It's finished already, but still pretty rough at the moment. It's called the Grave Robber, and to give you a quick synapses of the plot, its about two men, Alec and Dave, driving to a job. They've been set up together by a mutual friend (hes only briefly mentioned) and are just about to arrive at the graveyard. Dave, outgoing and friendly, tries getting to know Alec, who despite some contradictory features acts like a ball of nerves. Alec is quiet and conserved on the way there, but upon arriving they share some playful banter before getting out to find where the grave their planning on robbing is. They talk on the way there, as we get some backstory of Dave and just a disturbing bit of Alec's history. Bothered, Dave shuts up and they walk in silence until they find the grave. Quickly they dig down, however, upon reaching the coffin, Dave is knocked out. He wakes up later to find himself strapped into the coffin with Alec standing over him. With little argument, Alec shuts the lid and buries Dave alive, making a small note in his book as he walks away, telling the audience that he's a regular serial killer.

The plot is pretty simple, but has a small amount of suspense and a lot of dialogue, which I would consider one of my strong points. Theme I have yet to play with, but I think it demonstrates ideas of insanity and the truth that you can never truly know someone, despite what you think. I try to demonstrate that throughout the story by providing the contradictory descriptions, like his strong, intelligent eyes, and his strong frame and muscular body.

Anyway, this ended up a bit longer than I thought it would, so I'll just talk about my other big idea next blog. Until then, peace.

-Ink

Where to start?

A lot of authors are very, VERY, stylistic. They can differ from their tone, their dialogue, their character development, etc. However, I think one thing most people tend to overlook is the variety of how authors go about beginning new pieces. I thought maybe I could go over some of the major ways that authors go about doing this.

There are typically three things authors keep in mind when starting new stories; a character, a plot, or a theme.

When starting with a character, authors will put their focus in them. They want to develop this person and show the inner workings of them, showing us readers why we should take concern with this character. That's what the writer has in mind the most when writing, nothing more. Then, upon finishing, they'll go back and begin inspecting the plot, making sure there's no holes or confusion, and then lastly go through for theme, trying to give their character a point.

When starting with a plot, it works pretty similarly. It's just about getting the story on paper, and doing it in a way that makes readers think and is entertaining above anything else. They'll plow through it, not considering the depth of the characters or even putting a single thought into the theme. Again though, the writer will then go back through and check for the other two things afterwards, trying to correct them and make sure everything fits together.

The last popular way, which is probably the least popular way of the three, is starting with a theme. If you've ever tried this, then you should know that it is pretty hard to pull off, although if done successfully, it can pull off some pretty great stuff. You'll end up with pieces much more thoughtful and interesting then you've ever created, and, if you're good at subtlety, you'll find that you can create some great ambiguity, but that's for a later post.

I think you'll also find, if you ever try to create a story based almost purely off theme, that it's much more technical and probably provides the best first drafts, considering everything is very thought out and more organized.

I think 99% of writers can relate to one of those three styles, and hopefully now you have a better understanding of it and can use these styles more effectively. Until next time, peace.

-Ink