Movie Review: Call of Cthulhu

Simply put, if you don't know Lovecraft or Cthulhu, you ain't a geek. That being said - I would give this particular movie 4 stars.  3 for how well the story was told (it was alright - which is not their fault - Lovecraft stories are notorously hard to translate to film) and a 5 for how well they technically put it together, through a process they call Mythoscope, which blends old style black and white silent movie techniques with new style com-positing techniques. The effect is wonderful.

I really enjoyed this movie though I had to explain parts of it to my husband, who, bless him for trying, isn't all that geeky. I love him dearly anyway.

The stop motion of Cthulhu was great as was really all the scenes in R'leyh. The best part of this DVD was watching the extra features afterwards. It is amazing how they put this thing together and made it look so good.  Yes, parts of it are cheesily put together, but that adds to the charm of the Mythoscope technique. There are clips of Young Wilcox in color orating his story (because it's silent and there is no script he was improvising), clips of what the actual sets looked like (yes, the ocean is done with fabric and glitter), and how they com-posited the cult in the forest scenes together.  All in all an enjoyable movie to watch. Hope the HPL Historical Society makes a few more.

Movie Review: Lobsterman From Mars

Got this on a whim from Netflix. LOVED IT!  Low budget, intentionally. It's really a movie within a movie. The only annoying bit is that they keep breaking out of the movie to remind you of that, but that's ok, because you get to enjoy a performance by Tony Curtis.

It was too scary for my son, but my husband and I still enjoyed it. The dialogue is hysterical in places. There is a gumshoe who is in the movie for no good reason and whose monologues keep getting interrupted and he doesn't even have the best lines.

Lobster Man From Mars is high on camp. The monsters are wonderful. You have flying furry bat lobsters (and of course you can see the wires). A gorilla lobster helmeted thing and of course, Lobsterman himself. If you enjoyed The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra, and let's face it, who didn't? You will enjoy this movie.

Book Review: The Happy Humanist

 I was given the book, The Happy Humanist, to read and review by it's author.  It's a nice short book, less than 100 pages, and I agree with everything in it. But then, that's because I'm a Humanist myself.

This book isn't about the Humanist philosophy, which isn't mentioned or defined at all.  It is a book about how a Humanist views the self. How we view our place in the universe.  How we view ourselves in relationship to other people and why we view ourselves this way.  Of course, since the word Humanist isn't mentioned in the book at all, it is only referenced in it's title, you have to constantly remind yourself that he is in fact writing from a Humanist perspective.

That being said, his advice is good. Same advice I give in my book (see link on the right) I kept thinking as I read the book that it was all rather Buddhist in it's approach, like the part about being detached, but not too detached.  There is a reason why it sounds Buddhist and that is because the teachings of Siddhartha were Humanistic in nature.

Do I recommend this book?  Yes. It's a bit academic and dry, but all the important bits about how we Humanists view life, the universe and everything are in there. The only downside is that it isn't always clear what his recommendations are for living life. They are sometimes hidden in the larger discussion. It's also  not easily quotable. I kept wanting to share some of the insights, but they won't fit in a twitter post. I realize that might be a selling point for some people actually.

The real question is whether this100 page book is worth its $16,95 US list price. That, I can't answer for you. As the Happy Humanist points out repeatedly, you are the only one who can determine what is best for you.