The Vampire Diaries Season Three - A Review

It's no secret that The Vampire Diaries is my favourite show. The first two seasons of this show gripped me, leaving me wanting more. The writers of this series know how to fill a 41 minute episode with explosive detail, and they sure know how to pack a punch.

At the end of season two things had shifted. Stefan, in order to save his brother Damon drank a whole lot of human blood. When off human blood Stefan is a kind albeit brooding vampire. On the blood he's a ripper. He also became Klaus' puppet. Elena, who thought Damon was dying, kissed him. And he finally (although not for the first time) told her he loved her. Then Katherine walked in with the cure, thanks to Stefan's sacrifice, and things got a little awkward.

We started season three with Elena's 18th birthday. Stefan is gone, Elena is heartbroken, and Damon's there to pick up the pieces. Season three dedicates a lot of time bringing Elena and Damon closer, much to the joy of delena shippers. We get to learn about a friendship Stefan and Klaus enjoyed during the 1920s. We also learn a lot about the originals, their intentions, and the reason why killing them is not such a good idea.

This season felt as though there were more characters than usual, perhaps too many. Tyler was dealing with his hybrid issues and love for Caroline. Thanks to her father he was able to find a way to be around her without being under Klaus' control. Bonnie had to deal with her break up from Jeremy (cos he cheated on her with a ghost...), she then met her mother who left her as a child, and also a new potential love interest. We met a whole bunch of originals including their mother who, realising the monsters she'd created, decided to find a way to kill them all. There was an episode (arguably the worst in the series) that had dead characters return in the form of ghosts. We met Sage, an old friend of Damon's and a lover of one of the originals. It is through her that we find out that if you kill an original you kill the line of Vampires they created. Unfortunately for our favourites they were sired by Klaus. Therefore the two season long epic battle of killing him sort of lost its charm. We also got to meet Meredith, a doctor and new love interest for Alaric. Yes there were plenty of characters in this season.

We lost some too. Most notably the beloved Alaric. Turns out our sweet Alaric had a darker vampire killing alter ego. He killed Caroline's father along with many more. When he himself was turned into a vampire he made the noble choice of letting himself die. Unfortunately the witches wouldn't allow it and they used Bonnie to feed him human blood. For the last few episodes Alaric became a deadly vampire hunter (played magnificently by Matt Davis) . His life was also linked to Elena. As long as she stayed alive there was no way to kill him.

The main storyline was of course Elena's decision between Damon and Stefan. Once Stefan returned from Klaus' grasp and got back to being the kind albeit brooding vampire we love, he was back in the running for Elena's heart. By this point however she and Damon had gotten close. I found that this aspect of the plot dragged out a little too much for my liking. I'd hoped to see a relationship form between Elena and Damon, but it was obvious that she'd eventually pick Stefan even though Damon, according to Elena, consumed her. Up until the finale I had almost stopped caring about her choice altogether.

But then there was the finale. I had seen the promo, and having read the novels, when I saw Elena and Matt crash  into the river I knew exactly what that meant. Her days as a human were numbered. This series has hardly had any similarities to the novels but I'm glad they chose to play homage by having this be the way she turned. Having collapsed the previous episode Elena ended up in hospital with a brain hemorrhage. Meredith gave her vampire blood to save her life. Elena's drowning therefore was not the end, just the beginning. It also spelled the end of Alaric. By definition of the word Elena is now dead and so their tie is broken.

Just before they crashed Elena told Damon that she had finally made a decision, to turn back and go to Stefan. She had to let Damon go. He asked her if it could have been different. She said that Stefan had saved her that day in the river, he had in many ways brought her back to life. She added however that if perhaps she'd met him first it would have been different. We then see a scene of Damon lying on the road, it's the night of that first crash and Elena has had a fight with Matt. Her parents are on their way to pick her up. She and Damon have a brief conversation, she's questioning the whole concept of love. Damon tells her that she should have a love that consumes her. He then compels her to forget the conversation because he doesn't want anyone to know he's in town. We now know that she did meet Damon first. Stefan would see her moments later when he saves her from the river, but it was Damon who crossed her path first.

With Elena turning she will have to make the choice of whether or not she completes the transformation. Knowing her character this will take some soul searching When she does (because of course she will) she will then remember everything that happened to her that she was compelled to forget. This means that she'll remember that first time Damon told he loved her but that his brother deserved her. She'll also remember that she met him first. Who knows what it means for them but it's nice to know that the Damon and Elena card is not off the table.

Season three was the weakest of the three but still managed to bring in unique perspective, shocking revelations and hope for an exciting fourth season. The truth is that a weak season for this series is still a strong season for most. I hope that season four is more intimate. There were too many characters in this season, too many plots all over the place. I think it would be nice to go back to the characters we came to know and love in season one: Elena, Stefan, Damon, Bonnie, Jeremy, Caroline and Tyler. I look forward to seeing Elena's transition into a vampire, it will be interesting to see whose feeding habits she takes on, Damon's or Stefan's. Then there's the case of Klaus now being in Tyler's body. What does this mean for Tyler? Will Klaus get a new body and will Tyler return? We'll have to wait till September to find out.

I don't know about you but I'll be counting down the days.

The Avengers Assemble

This post will be full of spoilers, because this post is written by an Avengers fan, for Avengers fans. And if you're an Avengers fan then you've seen this movie at least once by now. So for the rest of you, you need to stop what you're doing and go to your local cinema and watch this movie...now!

I have been a complete nerd in anticipation of this film. I have spent countless hours reading up all about the Avengers, trying to gain what knowledge I could. I have never read the comics before but came to know of them, like many, through film and TV. I've watched and re-watched all the films leading up to this one. If you haven't seen the others films before The Avengers then you need to do two things. 1. stop reading this because as I mentioned it's going to be full of spoilers. 2. Go and watch the others first. Trust me, it's better to know Bruce Banner before you know the Hulk. It's important to know why Captain America seems a little out of time, why Thor would risk all that he did to get back to Earth, why Iron Man ...dammit just watch the other films.

This is probably as good a time as any for me to say to Joss Whedon, I salute you! Thank you for breathing life and heart into this film, which could have gone any number of ways really. Not only is it highly enjoyable and full of wonderful fight scenes and stunning visual effects, it's also got a soul. I like how the film takes its time. Every character gets their own entrance, and so they should. This is an ensemble piece after all.

So who are our Avengers? Well first there's Captain America, aka Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), the brave, kind super soldier who has been asleep for 70+ years. He missed a date with the lovely Penny Carter. Then there's Iron Man, aka Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), the genius billionaire playboy philanthropist (his words, not mine), he's back with his arrogance, his charm and his wicked suit. Thor (Chris Hemsworth) arrives with a bang, literally, in search of his brother who he wishes to take back to Asgard for sentencing. I had been wondering how he would return considering how Thor ended. Loki (Tom Hiddleston) mentions that the all father must have conjured up dark power to get him to Earth. It's obvious that Thor has one mission, get Loki, get the tesseract and go back to Asgard. His presence on Earth is costing Asgard something, and that's the reason he can't just run off in search of Jane. We will have to wait till Thor 2 for that reunion. The Hulk, aka Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo), is the muscle of the group. He's a green, mean fighting machine. Hawkeye, aka Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner), brings his excellent archery skills to the mix. Black Widow, aka Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) brings exceptional spy skills and some kick ass moves, as well as a little touch of femininity to the group.

They are quite the ensemble. To say they don't get along at the start is an understatement. Rogers can barely stand Stark. Rogers, a soldier who would jump on a grenade to save those around him can't really handle the arrogance that Stark exudes. He accuses Stark of working only for himself, never being capable of sacrificing himself for others. You can't really blame the guy for feeling this way. However there's a depth to Stark that we've come to know and love in the Iron Man films. I really loved the scene when Stark took the nuke and risked his own life for everyone else. He can be cocky as hell but he's a hero. There's also a great fight scene between Iron Man and Thor, who are arguably the two most arrogant members of the team.

However there is a friendship that comes out of this film which is really moving. Stark is not known for his subtlety and when he meets Bruce Banner he's eager to see him become the Hulk. However it becomes apparent that Stark wants Banner to embrace his true self. There's a similarity between them, an understanding even. They both became something they didn't really ask for. Where Stark has turned this into his advantage Banner has continually struggled. As the film progresses we get to see Banner embrace his whole true glorious self. After Stark has seemingly sacrificed himself for the others it's only fitting that it's Hulk who catches him falling from the sky.

I have to mention of course the wonderful Tom Hiddleston in his performance of Loki. I'm not always a fan of comic book villains, I find they can be overdone and lose all sense of reality. Loki however is a villain I truly love. I hope they never get rid of him. The character is deliciously villainous whilst also maintaing some sense of humanity (if you could call it that). He can play both menacing mastermind and spoilt obnoxious child at the same time. Every minute of him on screen is captivating.

Apart from Hiddleston, honorable mention has to go to Ruffolo who breathed new life into the Hulk. To be honest he's been my least favorite Avenger, until now. The scene where he kicks Loki's ass was so great, the whole cinema applauded. Before when there was talk about him having his own reboot I was skeptical, after seeing this film however I am all in.

And of course I have to mention the wonderful Agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg). He's been our guide through the films leading to this one. Every time we saw him we were reminded that S.H.I.E.L.D has eyes everywhere. We got to know a little more about Coulson in this film. For instance he recently broke up with a gal, and he's a huge fan of Captain America. He also finally got to know what that gun does. So thanks Agent Coulson for your dedication and hard work.

The film ends with the Avengers going their separate ways but we know they will return when Earth needs them (or when The Avengers 2 starts filming). We also have Iron Man 3, Thor 2 and Captain America 2 to keep us happy until then.

Obviously reading this means you've watched the movie, which means I'm not telling you anything you don't already know. So let's just agree that this film was awesome, Joss Whedon is a legend and Loki was adopted.

The Lucky One

Before I begin this review I need to clarify a few things. Firstly, this is a review of a chick flick, and by that I mean a film that is made specifically for women aged 18-35. Secondly, I am a woman in that age bracket. Thirdly, this is a review of a chick flick.

I felt that I just needed to get that out there because so often films of this style are swept under the rug, deemed insignificant or just too 'girly'. One of the first things we're taught when creating films is to know our audience. This is a film that knows its audience.

The Lucky One centers around 25 year old Marine Logan (Zac Efron) who finds a photo of a girl whilst serving in Iraq. He then survives things that many of his fellow soldiers do not, things he believes he shouldn't have survived. He decides that if he ever makes it through he would find the woman in the photo and thank her. When he returns home he finds that he can't put the war behind him. So he and his dog Zeus make the walk to Louisiana where he's tracked the woman in the photo to.

When he arrives there he is able to find the woman, Beth (Taylor Schilling) a single mom. He takes a job at her family's dog kennel. At first Beth is suspicious of this man who's just walked from Colorado, but eventually she finds herself falling for him. However as they get closer the presence of her ex-husband, the local sheriff, and the secret Logan's hiding threatens their relationship.

I have read a few reviews of this film and most of them are not positive. I can understand why certain people wouldn't enjoy this film. It does not have a lot of depth, it's an obvious plot, the cast is your typical Nicholas Sparks creation, i.e white, heterosexual and American. If you are searching for something original then this is not the film for you.

I however found the film charming. Both Efron and Schilling created realistic characters that were true to the characters in the novel. They have great chemistry, which arguably is the most important apsect of any chick flick. There are no surprises in the plot but the film is entertaining and if you go in with 'chick flick' expectations then you'll be satisfied, and if you're a fan of Zac Efron shirtless then you won't be disappointed.

Happy Avengers Eve Everyone

May the 4th be with you

Fandom and the Kingdom of Confusion

For today's post I'd like to light the lights, cue the sound and flip the camera around to show a different side of film and TV, a side dominated by you: the fans.

Fans can be a powerful force, we have seen time and time again what potential they have, particularly in large numbers. Shows like Community are back on the air because the fans fought for them. Films like Twilight, regardless of quality, will thrive because of their dedicated fan base. Fans create communities, come up with teams, slogans and spend hours debating with each other on the internet. There's a wonderful side of fandom, where people can find others who love the same film or TV shows as them.

However, there's a dark side of fandom too, and today I'd like to address that side.

When I was a teenager there was no such thing as facebook or twitter. The most I did on the internet was chat with friends on msn or send emails. The complex online world of today did not exist when I was 16. My favorite shows were Dawson's Creek, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Roswell. I had the posters on my wall, dreamt of marrying one of the many good looking male leads, and wished I could look like one of the many beautiful female leads. The stars of these shows felt like a million miles away from me, and growing up in New Zealand, they pretty much were. I, like many young fans, got wrapped up in the world of these shows. Fell in love with the characters as they fell in love with each other, and fantasized about living in their fictional worlds. There were no blurred lines however, I knew that I was firmly on the ground of reality while these stars appeared to fly. I loved that they seemed that way to me. Unreachable but something to aspire to.

Today the lines have blurred. The stars no longer fly but instead walk among us in reality. Thanks to online social networks like twitter and facebook we can now know more about celebrities than we'd ever hoped to know. I follow a bunch of different celebrities on twitter, each of them tweeting about random aspects of their day. Every now and then they'll say something Hollywood regarding a premiere or expensive vacation, but for the most part they tweet just like the rest of us. And why shouldn't they? I mean they are just like the rest of us. The only difference is that their job is in the spotlight, doing something so many of us wish we could do, and they get paid a pretty penny to do it.

But here is where the confusion lies. These celebrities are walking among reality with us, but they are still as unreachable as they were when I was 16. Just because they are on twitter, confessing to things I didn't need to know does not mean that they are your new best friend. It does not mean that you have the right to publicly criticise them, judge them, hold them accountable for things their character does on a show, things the writer writes or the director directs. Feel free to send them a tweet telling them you like their work, you're a fan etc. If you're lucky they may pick yours amongst the millions of tweets they get a day and respond. Most of the time it will go unnoticed however. This is no different than when people used to write and mail fan letters to celebrities. Rarely did they respond back then. Social networks like twitter have made reaching out to celebrities so accessible that most do not understand the sheer volumes of messages celebrities receive each day.

Matt Davis who plays Alaric on The Vampire Diaries

I have been reading about a twitter war that's been going on in regards to a group of Vampire Diaries fans who reached out the the show's stars asking for a tweet from Paul Wesley for a fan who had recently passed away. Matt Davis who plays Alaric on the show did not appreciate the quantities of messages he got and dismissed them. Fans got mad, attacked and made him out to be the cruelest person. I have to ask a question here. What right do fans have to demand anything from celebrities? It's tragic that a young fan died, but people die every day, and celebrities can't get caught up in that because at the end of the day they are just doing a job. If they choose to respond then great, if not then let it be. It's your right to ask, it's theirs to refuse. To attack a celebrity because they didn't give you what you want only proves that today's fans don't quite get it. Celebrities that tweet are in the majority having a one-way conversation. They speak, you listen. You speak, they don't hear. That's how it's always been. The wall between reality and fiction still exists, it's just invisible now.

I think it's great when celebrities reach out to their fans. Social networks like twitter have made it possible for them to interact with their fans more, give a more personal appreciation for their support. But there will always be a divide between celebrity and fan. There has to be, for safety and also in order to keep the mystery. You are a fan because you aspire to be like them, which means you see them as something higher than yourself, something you can strive to be like. If we break down this wall then that disappears.

Stars belong in the sky where they can shine their brightest. I never want to live in a world where the wall breaks down and that sky goes dark.

Post Oscars Review

Yesterday was the 84th Annual Academy Awards. I love Oscar season. I throw parties, live vicariously through those present at the ceremony and act as though I am present at the ceremony, much to my loved ones dismay.

So how did they do?

Firstly, I am so happy Sacha Baron Cohen went to the Oscars as his character The Dictator. Throwing the 'ashes' of Kim jung Il on the pretentious Ryan Seacrest really made my night. Did you see his face? Classic!

Our host for the evening was the talented yet safe Billy Crystal. I really appreciate him as a comedian, his experience as an eight time Oscar host, and his long Hollywood career, however he brought nothing fresh, new or exciting to the event. I know people were upset after Hollywood tried to pump some fresh blood into the mix with hosts Anne Hathaway and James Franco, sure, it didn't go well. But did we need to revert back to times long gone? I think the Awards need younger hosts that connect to the younger audiences whilst also having the experience and talent to entertain all ages. This isn't an easy feat but surely in La La land they can pool together some potential.

Ok, let's talk about the winners. Now I really have to mention here how frustrating it is when people say that they can't understand how The Artist won considering it's a silent film. Those people should take a little walk down film history. Some of my favourite films are silent films and they emote as much as any film with sound can. I was very happy that Hugo picked up five awards (Cinematography, Art Direction, Sound Mixing, Sound Editing, and Visual Effects) I absolutely love this film. Check out my  Hugo Review.

There were no surprises for Octavia Spencer's win as best actress in a supporting role, Christopher Plummer as best actor in a supporting role, and Jean Dujardin as best actor. There was some surprise however when Meryl Streep won best actress. No one can deny Meryl's talent, she is untouchable and an inspiration to any actor. Viola Davis however blew people away with her performance in The Help. It's a tough call, two spectacular actresses up for one award. There's definitely going to be those for and against the final decision but I think we can all agree that they are both amazing.

My favourite win of the night was when Brett McKenzie took home an Oscar for his song "Man or Muppet" from The Muppets. Seeing a fellow kiwi on that stage only brings me joy and pride. He's a wonderful comedian and song writer and it's great to see him acknowledged by the Academy.

I really love the Oscars. I do a countdown and read up everything I can in the days leading up to the ceremony. I have spent the last ten years dreaming of going there myself one day, and I still believe with unabashed certainty that I will. However I have to admit that the past couple of years the Oscars have lost a bit of their sparkle. I think I can reach out a little farther and say that in the past couple of years the film industry has lost some of its sparkle. What I would love to see is more films being nominated that speak to a wider audience. There were a few snubs this year that many weren't happy about (Ryan Gosling and We Need to Talk about Kevin for example). It's never going to be perfect, but there seems to have been a wider disconnect this year.

Perhaps because of the Anne Hathaway/James Franco debacle the Academy tried to stay away from doing anything "young". That's a mistake however. This may have been the 84th Annual Academy Awards but that doesn't mean the median age of viewers are in their 80s. I think they need to reach out more to the youth, get the youth excited about the film industry because they are the future of the industry. I love how diverse film is, there is room for everyone regardless of age, sex, race, religion, sexual orientation. I just want to see an Academy Awards show that represents that too.

Films You Should Be Watching On Pay Per View

Tonight my husband and I decided to make some pizza, pour some vodka sodas and watch pay per view. Two excellent films later I thought it was worth giving them a shout out on my blog.

Drive

I know there has been a lot of hype about this movie. It came out just as my husband and I made our big move across the Pacific so we didn't get to catch it at the cinema. I really loved this film and here's why.

1. Editing
I could go on and on about how spectacular the vision of this film was. The way they shot it and then arranged the shots was nothing short of brilliant in my eyes. The shots toyed with the timeline giving you moments that were conflicting in all the right ways. This film relies heavily on visual as it is very sparse on dialogue. The shots tell the story and they do so in a beautiful way. If you're interested in film editing then I recommend that you check this film out. You could turn the sound off and watch it and still catch all the emotion.

2. Soundtrack
The music in this film is so great, like a flashback to the '90s. I loved the mix of genre. In some scenes there was upbeat, fast-paced techno pop and in others there were slow, melodic, haunting tunes. This combined with editing and the use of slow motion married sound and image in a perfect and surprising combination.

3. The Dialogue
Or more importantly, the lack there of. At one point I turned to my husband and commented on how the sparse dialogue rendered the film more realistic. In life there are so many moments of silence where all the words are played out in our thoughts and eyes. In most films directors fear the silence and fill it with nonsense. This film did not. It not only allowed silence, it reveled in it. I felt myself captivated by the story because I was able to follow it without being force fed the constant thoughts of characters.

4. Ryan Gosling
This was a spectacular performance by Gosling. To be a truly great actor you have to be able to tell the story, the emotion through your eyes. If you can show me rather than tell me then I know you can act. It was about 20 minutes into the film that I realised he'd hardly spoken. I was able to get the essence of the film purely through the emotion he projected through his eyes. When he does speak however, you listen, his words are few but they hold a certain power.

I thoroughly enjoyed this film. It was refreshing to be able to watch a film and make sense of it on my own without all the words. There are some pretty epic car chase scenes too.

50/50

My husband and I saw this at the cinema and loved it so much we thought we'd re-watch it. It's a simply but beautifully told story of a 27 year old who has just found out he has a tumor with a name no one can pronounce and a 50% chance of survival.

There are a couple of scenes that I wanted to mention. The first is the one where Adam (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) finds out about the cancer from his detached doctor who seems more interested in his conversation with his tape recorder. When I was 18 I had a tumor removed and I will never forget what it was like sitting on the other side of that desk as the doctor explained things to me that were beyond my knowledge. All the words were lost on me except for when she mentioned that it could be cancer. That word hits you like a knife through the heart. Luckily for me my tumor was benign, but I really loved this scene because it was so true to what I remember of that traumatizing experience.

The other scene I have to mention is the one where Adam's best friend Kyle (Seth Rogen) confronts Adam's girlfriend Rachael (Bryce Dallas Howard). This was one of those scenes where you really want a character to do something and they follow through. I wont say anything in detail because I don't want to ruin it for you but when you see the film you'll know what I mean.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt did a wonderful job as Adam, carrying the weight of the burden he carries with grace and a dawning understanding. You would think that a film about such a serious and life altering topic would be heavy, but the film does a great job of showing humor in even the worst moments. The characters are lovable and the relationships between them authentic. I really enjoyed the connection between Adam and his sweet therapist Katherine (Anna Kendrick).

So that's how I spent my Sunday night. What about you? Seen any good films lately?