Just Finished Reading: Hell and Back

I'm in the middle of reading Geek Love by Katherine Dunn, and while I find the story interesting, I'm having trouble getting into the book. I haven't even really been reading it at all. So, I decided to read one of the books I got for Christmas, and I decided on the one that would take me no time at all. I've read all of the other Sin City books, and now I'm all done with the series. Hell and Back is probably my least favorite of the series, but I still really liked it. It doesn't really have any of the major characters from the other books, but is instead about this guy named Wallace who is looking for a kidnapped woman named Esther, who in classic Sin City fashion, he falls for and plans to rescue even though he barely knows her. On the way he meets a few femme fatales, gets shot a few times, and also gets drugged.
The part where he gets drugged is probably my favorite. He starts out in a world full of dinosaurs, then a world with big-titted naked fairies where the dead little girl in his trunk is replaced by a Raggedy Ann doll. He sees other things like a Dr. Seuss world, Rambo, Clint Eastwood, Hellboy, and Santa Claus. Every panel of the whole drug trip was really cool. If I were to recommend just one Sin City book to you it would be A Dame To Kill For, but if you plan to read them all you won't be disappointed with this one either...

My Christmas Gifts

Yesterday was Christmas, and this year I got some pretty neat gifts...Here is a list of what I got in chronological order...

From my roommate: I came home on the 20th after my last final, and a day or two before I got a gift from one of my roommates.

I was really excited about this gift because, for one, I had no idea that he was going to buy me something, and two, it was really thoughtful. He knew that I had 101 Horror Movies You Must See Before You Die, and the Sci Fi one as well, so it was really cool that he thought to get this for me. I counted, and I've only seen a little over 1/5 of the titles in this book, so I've got a long way to go.

From my Grandma Rose: We always have Christmas Eve with my dad's side of the family, and my Grandma usually gets me a Wal Mart gift card, but this year she gave me $30 in cash. Money is always an awesome gift.

From my parents: I got a set of purple mittens and a winter hat, plus two books and two DVDs...

The above three were on my Christmas list, and they also got me this (probably because it was really cheap...)

I already have the first Austin Powers DVD, but I do not have the second two, so I'll definitely watch this...

From my great aunt: a pajama set...looks really comfy...

From younger sister: a black shirt from The Buckle. A little flashy for my style, but I'm not one to pass up free clothes, and its actually pretty cute.

From twins: A bathroom kit with loofa, body wash, shaving stuff

From older sister: Gift card to Borders....awesome!

From my cousin: Instead of getting gifts for everyone, we have drawing to get someone a gift. My cousin Justin got my name, so that means that my Grandma Frenchi picked it out....

So, overall I got some pretty good gifts this year. I finally have the entire Sin City series now. I've been avoiding buying the last book because it costs so much more than all the rest of them. Plus, I got Psycho and The Shining, two of my favorite movies, and I've really been curious about Guillermo Del Toro's book The Strain. It should be really good.

Spotlight On: Quentin Tarantino

For my first Spotlight feature, I have decided to write about one of my favorite directors, Quentin Tarantino. He has not done a single movie that I have not liked. Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill Vol 1&2, Death Proof and Inglourious Basterds are all movies that I love and have seen many times. The only movie of his that I have not seen is Jackie Brown. I personally can not choose a favorite of his films because I love them all so much. All of his movies have excellent dialogue, really cool and interesting story lines and characters, awesome gore effects, and really great music.



I have only seen two of his movies in the theater. The first was Kill Bill Vol 1. I was 13 years old when it came out, and I convinced my older sister to take me by telling her that it was like Charlie's Angels. Well Charlie's Angels it was not, which my sister soon found out. She actually wanted to leave in the middle, but I refused. In my 13 years of life, I had never seen a cooler movie. I loved the Nancy Sinatra song at the beginning, the anime sequence, how it went black and white for the fight sequence, the 5.6.7.8s, and the fact that the protagonist was a kick ass action heroine.

The second movie of his that I saw in theaters was his newest film Inglourious Basterds. I was beyond excited for this movie to come out. This movie was to me in 2009 what Sucker Punch is to me right now. And unlike other movies that I have gotten really excited for (Nightmare on Elm Street Remake, Alice in Wonderland) this one did not disappoint. I went by myself one day, when I was still living in Seattle. I love every second of this movie. The opening sequence is suspenseful and wonderfully written, Brad Pitt has some of the best dialogue I have ever heard, and I loved Melanie Laurent as Shoshanna. The scene of her and Hans Landa in the cafe is just frightening. Also, Col. Hans Landa is such a great character. He is a perfect example of a charasmatic villian. He is a Nazi murderer and yet I loved it every time he was on screen.

I am so excited for Kill Bill Vol. 3 to come out. It sucks that I have to wait four whole years, since it's not supposed to come out until 2014. Well, it's almost 2011, so it'll be more like three years I guess. Anyways, I will leave you with the scene that he directed in the movie Sin City, which is one of the best scenes in the whole movie. "Those hookers let you down!!!"

Character of the Week: Deadly Little Miho

Miho is one of my favorite characters in both the Sin City movie and in the graphic novels. She never says a word, and is still one of the most badass characters ever. One of my favorite Miho moments comes from the Sin City novel Family Values. She is sleeping in the back seat while the guy in the front seat is plotting to kill her and Dwight. The guy looks back and sees her sleeping, but the next time he looks back she is awake and CHIK....has her sword ready.

Just this one panel shows the extent of her badassery...Anyways, I think that they did great casting with Devon Aoki as Miho. She is really cute and pixie-ish, but still looks like she could destroy you in a heartbeat.

There is not a single moment when Miho is onscreen that I do not like. She is probably the greatest thing about the movie, and I love the shot of her jumping off of the roof with her swords in the air. I really hope that they make more Sin City movies. The next one is supposed to be based on A Dame to Kill For, so I hope that the one after that can be based on Family Values so that we can see more Miho.