Frankenstein

All he ever wanted was to be loved by his creator...
I picked up a copy of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, unabridged. It's really refreshing to read something that's not writen in modern english. The word they use are sometimes foreign. I put that down to my limited vocabulary, I can understand the meaning in the context easily enough. I guess in the 19C you can't do much else in your spare time but talk, read or write or out door activity. So the use of language in the everyday would have been greater than today. If you have a list of books to read ad Frankenstein if it's not already there.

I keep thinking of the old black and white images of the Frankenstein monster when I'm reading it. From the books description though if a new adaptation was to happen he could be done much differently.  Even a mini series would go really well.

The above quick sketch is just something I did with the monster in mind. It's not very good, I might do another one later.

Tomorrow

A great job was done by Writer/Director Stuart Beattie in bringing to life the Critically acclaimed teen novel Tomorrow When the War Began!

This film helps to illustrate that Australia is making a long needed change in its cinema. Beattie clearly shows that he was paying attention when he was part of some of those great films he penned in Hollywood; Collateral, 30 Days of Night and another lesser known trilogy, soon to become a quartet, Pirates of the Caribbean.

There were some really great scenes with some superb acting by the young stars, especially Melbourne's own Caitlin Stasey who does a brilliant job as Ellie Linton. As a fan, as are many, of the books, though not having read them when I was younger but only shortly after the announcement of the film, I thoroughly enjoyed the adaptation. It provided some humour, some tension, some great action and refreshing moral take for an action film. Where the characters struggle with the idea of killing another human being, which of course is a very prevalent theme in the books and so retained well. Although I don't feel that this film tried to be more than what it really was, an action film, aimed at a teen audience. The film hit that mark and stayed there.

One of the great things about the books is that the "enemy" is never identified. The origin of the invaders is never brought to light. I wondered how, in a visual medium such as film, the film makers would pull this off. They've taken from the idea that, whichever country they did come from, it had to be over populated and close, as there had to be a need or a want of space, because if anything that's what there is her in oz.

All in all an entertaining Australian film, which I hope is the start of many good genre films to come.