This is a fast-moving read, but the characters are regrettably flat. Alex Rider is defined in terms of his physical capabilities, rather than by how he relates to his friends and enemies. Herod Sayle and his henchmen are little more than caricatures of Bond villains, and the mechanisms of their villainy are stereotypically over-the-top and implausible. The groundwork is clearly present for a series of thrilling adventure stories, but I’d hope that in the further volumes, Horowitz provides more of a reason to care about Alex Rider.
Author Archives: Martin
Joe Clark – Building Accessible Websites
If you’re building web sites, and you have any interest at all in making them accessible to people with vision, mobility, or other impairments, you need to read this book. Clark’s style is emphatic and sometimes haughty, but also caring and filled with pointed humour and dry sarcasm. The book covers the full spectrum of web accessibliliy techniques in exhaustive detail. Not only does Clark tell you what you should do, but also why you should do it–that’s what makes this such a valuable reference. Even a little accessibility can go a long way; this book tells you exactly what you need to know to implement it.
Val McDermid – The Mermaids Singing
I found this a bit hard to get into at first–that main characters of Tony Hill and Carol Jordan took a while to come together for me–but after the half-way mark, things really started moving. By present-day standards The Mermaids Singing is a fairly predictable psych profiling/serial killer thriller, but the way McDermid interweaves the strands of the investigation together with the characters’ personal lives is entertaining. It’s very clearly the beginning of a series, and based on this first episode I’ll certainly be reading more McDermid in the future.
The Chronicles of Riddick
You’re not going to see better sci-fi CGI this year, period. The film just looks glorious. (My favourite bit was the coronal loops around the sun on Crematoria.) The plot is also well structured, with a solid introduction, and a classic three-act arc beyond that. The character of Riddick is built up into more than just a hero: he is the archetype incarnate. And the ending has a delicious little twist that promises more and even better to come.
And yet…throughout the whole film I was wondering, “what the hell is actually going on here?” Much is shown, but very little is explained. Riddick’s background is only hinted at. The socio-politics of the future environment are essentially a blank slate. Who or what are the elementals? Even the Necromongers, whose quest for the Underverse provides the central conflict for the film, remain shadowy and underexplained. It might seem like a triumph of style over substance, but it always gave the impression that the substance was there–the filmmakers just chose not to make much of it.
What this adds up to is a very pure sci-fi action flick that satisfied all my cravings for heroic escapism, and left me wanting more of the characters and universe, but not disappointed by their absence here. It’s a good trick.
Dodgeball
Simple plot, great script, and solid performances from comic actors who know how to deliver a funny line. Ben Stiller is fabulous as White Goodman (“Here at Globo Gym we’re better than you–and we know it!”), Gary Cole brings just the right amount of absurd professionalism as the sportscaster, and Rip Torn is hilarious as the crusty former dodgeball champ Patches O’Houlihan. Vince Vaughn keeps a cheeky but straight face throughout, and provides forward momentum to keep the to keep the whole thing from sliding into farce. Dodgeball doesn’t try to be fancy, or deep, only funny, and at that it succeeds admirably. Go see it now. (And stick around for the credits.)
Boogie Nights
The rise and fall of porn star Dirk Diggler. It’s a funny, sad, and sympathetic look at the fragile lives and egos of an group of hopeful, sad, and ambitious characters. The plot might be on the predictable side, but it is well executed. The way the early 1980s setting is played for laughs softens the harsh emotional roller coaster the characters find themselves on, and the overall effect is one of amused compassion. A well-rounded, and interesting film.
The Jungle Book 2
Occasionally amusing retread of the original. That’s all.
The Searchers
It’s hard to comment on such a seminal work, so I’m not going to try too hard. Instead, I’ll just stick to whether I liked it or not: mostly, I didn’t. The film’s racism bothered me. It can be argued that John Ford is peaking out against racism, but personally, I didn’t see it. The film belongs very much to its own time, the 1950s, and the world has moved on since then.
Also, its highly variable emotional tone (it swings from deep emotional anguish, to near-slapstick romantic farce, and back again) made it feel unbalanced and clumsy in comparison to modern, more tighly structured films. It certainly has some outstanding sequences, and the cinematography is undoubtedly beautiful, but overall, I think it’s now a movie to watch for its place in the history of cinema rather than for pleasure.
Battle Royale
Being outside of my context, some of the social commentary obviously passed me by. What’s left is a stark, violent film about the violence and anger teenagers inflict upon each other–taken to extremes. Plus a lot of flirtation, crushes, and romantic angst under deadly pressure. Interesting, but not as good as it had been made out to me.
Matchstick Men
Funny, clever, twisty, and touching story about a con man (“con artist“) who is reunited with a teenage daughter he has never met. Nicolas Cage’s tics and quirks skirt dangerously close to being annoying, but they turn out to be integral to the plot, and their presence (and absence) also act as background barometer for tension levels throughout the film. Sam Rockwell is amusingly glib, and Alison Lohman balances vulnerability and sullen edginess for a believable and lovable teenager. Snappy script, and some lovely cinematography, too. I apreciated this as a con film, but also as parent/child relationship movie. (I think I’m developing a weak spot for those. Must watch out for soppy tendencies.)