hitfan
Cellar Dweller
Posts: 19
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Post by hitfan on Apr 21, 2010 12:50:54 GMT -5
I'm currently reading "The Complete Tales & Poems of Edgar Allan Poe".
I read "The Tell-Tale Heart" when I was in high school, which is why I decided to read all of Poe's works. I think that schools and parents should introduce Poe to young boys in order to get them interested in reading again.
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Post by zombieguy1988 on Apr 22, 2010 13:36:19 GMT -5
Been reading The Stand, finally got done with the character set up and now the horror is in full swing. So far definitely King's strongest narrative.
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Post by Stuart on Apr 23, 2010 2:35:47 GMT -5
A question for those of you who read Stephen King's IT. I thought of this the other day when Tony and Ted were discussing Stephen King novels. Was there a part of the book when the 5 teenagers were lost in sewers after their first encounter with Pennywise and the girl had sex with them all so they could find their way out? There's no way I'm remembering that correctly because it makes no sense. You’re right. In the novel Beverley has sex with all the boys to reinforce the magic or something like that. I don’t recall that happening in the TV miniseries (although it might have been hinted at??). In The Mist, the lead male character (forget his name) had sex with the lead female in the supermarket; this was not recreated in the movie because it was felt that his infidelity would make the audience less sympathetic to him. In both cases the sex scenes in the novels were rather out of step with the rest of the story.
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Post by mudoogul on Apr 24, 2010 19:27:48 GMT -5
Just finished reading "Five Greatest Warriors" by Matthew Reilly
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Post by Demon Sprocket on May 10, 2010 10:20:49 GMT -5
Currently reading and almost done with The New Dead:A Zombie Anthology by Christopher Golden. I somewhat knew it was going to be a different kind of read. The zombies are not classic zombies (as stated in the foreward) of which I prefer. Only a few stories captivated me so far(In the Dust by Tim Lebbon , Family Business by Jonathan Maberry) and one story I trudged to get through (Copper by Stephen Bissette). So far it has been a pretty quick read and the variety of stories/characters makes it an interesting book. If you have an open mind to non-shambling zombies I recommend this book.
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Post by Demon Sprocket on May 10, 2010 10:24:23 GMT -5
A question for those of you who read Stephen King's IT. I thought of this the other day when Tony and Ted were discussing Stephen King novels. Was there a part of the book when the 5 teenagers were lost in sewers after their first encounter with Pennywise and the girl had sex with them all so they could find their way out? There's no way I'm remembering that correctly because it makes no sense. You’re right. In the novel Beverley has sex with all the boys to reinforce the magic or something like that. I don’t recall that happening in the TV miniseries (although it might have been hinted at??). In The Mist, the lead male character (forget his name) had sex with the lead female in the supermarket; this was not recreated in the movie because it was felt that his infidelity would make the audience less sympathetic to him. In both cases the sex scenes in the novels were rather out of step with the rest of the story. I read the book and then bought the movie. I remember watching the mini series as a kid and thought it a good show. What a disappointment to revisit the movie after reading the book. Definately does not hold up to my childhood movie watching memories. Excellent book though!!
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misterd
Frightful Fiend
Posts: 1,220
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Post by misterd on May 10, 2010 20:22:52 GMT -5
Currently reading Rod Serling's Planet of the Apes screenplay. Just up to the lab scene - a bit hard trying to visualize Serling's modern world instead of the final film.
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Post by saltychuck on May 10, 2010 20:26:14 GMT -5
Read the excellent "How I became a famous novelist" by Steve Hely. He injects a lot of great humor into this work, he pretty much becomes a writer to humiliate he ex-girlfriend at her wedding! Also points out the obvious flaws in writes like Preston Brooks and Pamela McLaughlin.
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maarow
Ghost in the Graveyard
Posts: 509
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Post by maarow on Jun 3, 2010 0:40:27 GMT -5
Currently reading a book called The Somnambulist, about a washed-up magician named Edward Moon who moonlights as a detective in Victorian London. The title character is a mute, milk-loving giant whom Moon uses in his act. There's a series of murders that Moon is called upon to solve, and as he descends deeper into the mystery, which involves a corpulent villain on death row, a beautiful medium, an apparent time traveler, an albino who works for the government, and a malignant circus freak known as the Human Fly for his ability to scale buildings, he begins to realize that the city itself may be a living entity ushering its citizens to a vague, oft-predicted doom.
I'm really enjoying it so far. It's an interesting mix of German expressionism, Sherlock Holmes, Edgar Allan Poe, and Gothic horror. I am worried, though, because more than one review on Amazon indicate that the ending is less than satisfying.
I also recently read Vampyres of Hollywood, by Adrienne Barbeau (yes, that Adrienne Barbeau) and Michael Collins. It's got an interesting premise--Hollywood is actually run by a secret society of vampires which includes the likes of Orson Welles, Charlie Chaplin, and Douglas Fairbanks, headed by fictitious starlet Osvanna Moore. A private investigator is thrown into the mix when a potential Hunter starts killing people close to Moore, with her being the next target.
I wanted to like this book, but unfortunately it's just a collection of decent ideas bound together by mediocre prose. It's way too cutesy and proud of its own cleverness, going out of its way to reinterpret seemingly every major historical event in vampiric terms and name-dropping to an irritating degree. The book was published in 2008 and thanks to its unnecessary up-to-the-minute pop culture references it already feels dated. Overall it's a nice concept that is undermined at every turn by smug self-indulgence. It would make a neat movie, though, that would definitely make for good Oscar bait in the Best Makeup category. Recreating Orson Welles, Rudolph Valentino, Mary Pickford, James Whale, and Tod Browning? I think Rick Baker just had an orgasm.
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Post by mudoogul on Jun 4, 2010 8:08:19 GMT -5
"Monster" by A. Lee Martinez
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Post by deckard on Jun 4, 2010 12:27:06 GMT -5
After checking out the Japanese film Battle Royale, I sat down and went through the whole 15 book manga. I'm not typically one for japanese art style, but Battle Royale has intrigued me for quite some time. All told, it was 120 chapters. I read it in two days, which just goes to show that I have a lot going on in my life! Battle Royale is the story of 42 9th-Grade students who must compete in a TV show set on a deserted island where they fight to the death. The show was created to quell youth rebellion in the socialist Eastern Asian Collective. The main Horror aspect is, simply put, the duhumanization of these teenagers. A slasher villain of sorts is also present in Kiriyama, a wunderkind stripped of the ability to feel emotion by a car accident The characterization in the manga is much more detailed than in the film version, but, due to Film's medium, it is impossible to flesh out that many characters in a 2 hour timespan. I really feel as if this would work in a Television format, and have high hopes for the (supposed) American remake. I also would like to check out the novel. After seeing the film I picked up the novel and I have to say, while it is, as Stephen King describes on the cover, an "endlessly entertaining pulp riff", it is certainly better to have seen the film first. I am finding it difficult to keep track of who the fourty-odd school kids are when they all have different names to what you are used to, as they are naturally all Japanese. Having not read the Manga, I obviously unaware of any differences in character development and I'm not sure which came first.
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bigmac
Revolting Revenant
You mean the movie lied!?!?!?
Posts: 1,508
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Post by bigmac on Jun 5, 2010 13:10:40 GMT -5
Just finished The Island of Dr. Moreau, by Wells. Much more chilling than the recent adaptations, as Moreau uses surgical techniques to mold his animals into humans without the use of anesthesia. Moreau also talks of grafting parts of other animals onto his subjects. Ouch! Much more horrifific than a simple injection that changes the animal into a person.
Also, the lack of a romantic interest (present in all three movie adaptations) works better for the story, though there are female Beast-People in the novel. Wells describes most of the Beast-People as repulsive in appearance, and the presence of a beautiful Beast-Woman always feels wrong in the adaptations.
As with War of the Worlds (another recent read), Wells' novels are more horrific than any of the movies made from his works (though the Spielberg's adaptation is pretty close) and he delivers political satire that works even today. Worth a look, if you haven't read it yet.
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Post by bishop746 on Jun 6, 2010 17:53:06 GMT -5
Just finished The Island of Dr. Moreau, by Wells. Much more chilling than the recent adaptations, as Moreau uses surgical techniques to mold his animals into humans without the use of anesthesia. Moreau also talks of grafting parts of other animals onto his subjects. Ouch! Much more horrifific than a simple injection that changes the animal into a person. Also, the lack of a romantic interest (present in all three movie adaptations) works better for the story, though there are female Beast-People in the novel. Wells describes most of the Beast-People as repulsive in appearance, and the presence of a beautiful Beast-Woman always feels wrong in the adaptations. As with War of the Worlds (another recent read), Wells' novels are more horrific than any of the movies made from his works (though the Spielberg's adaptation is pretty close) and he delivers political satire that works even today. Worth a look, if you haven't read it yet. I too read War of the Worlds recently and I really loved it. Growing up I was a huge fan of the Godzilla movies and in a strange way; War of the Worlds was the first Godzilla-type story. My favorite parts were the battle between the ironclad ship and one of the Martian walker and when scene in the basement. More people should give this story a look. Reading the Relic right now by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child and its a great read. Does anyone know the mechanics of two people writing a work of fiction. I know in non-fiction one author may actually write while the other does the research but how does this work in the fiction world.
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misterd
Frightful Fiend
Posts: 1,220
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Post by misterd on Jun 6, 2010 23:33:01 GMT -5
Just finished The Island of Dr. Moreau, by Wells. Much more chilling than the recent adaptations, as Moreau uses surgical techniques to mold his animals into humans without the use of anesthesia. Moreau also talks of grafting parts of other animals onto his subjects. Ouch! Much more horrifific than a simple injection that changes the animal into a person.. This is why I think a real Island adaptation has to remain a period piece. Sure, modern genetic engineering technology makes the concept more plausible, but also less visceral. The House of Pain loses all of its teeth in a modern setting, but when you talk about 19th century vivisection and organ grafting... *shudder*
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bigmac
Revolting Revenant
You mean the movie lied!?!?!?
Posts: 1,508
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Post by bigmac on Jun 7, 2010 13:49:20 GMT -5
Just finished The Island of Dr. Moreau, by Wells. Much more chilling than the recent adaptations, as Moreau uses surgical techniques to mold his animals into humans without the use of anesthesia. Moreau also talks of grafting parts of other animals onto his subjects. Ouch! Much more horrifific than a simple injection that changes the animal into a person.. This is why I think a real Island adaptation has to remain a period piece. Sure, modern genetic engineering technology makes the concept more plausible, but also less visceral. The House of Pain loses all of its teeth in a modern setting, but when you talk about 19th century vivisection and organ grafting... *shudder* Exactly what I did while reading the chapter where Moreau describes the techniques he uses on the animals. Just letting my mind visualize the procedure caused me to cringe. I'd love to see a period version with the House of Pain intact, but I just don't think the market would support it. Such scenes would be too disturbing for most of the average film goers, IMO.
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