I took my daughter to see this recently. I don’t think I’m blowing any major plot points when I say that the movie is wholly predictable within the first 20 minutes and doesn’t demand that you have seen the previous Kung Fu Panda to understand the sequel. No, kids entertainment designed to vacuum money out of parents’ wallets.
Suffice to say, Little Girl loved it.
Looking for a book that won’t make you think but will keep you turning the pages? Look no further.
This is a classic for good reason. The writing is not overly florid given when and where it was written (late 19th Century Britain). The plot is absolutely ridiculous, but the pace of action will keep you on board with it. The entire story revolves around a plot to dethrone the king of Ruritania (forerunner of Latveria, Elbonia and Kerplakistan) and a lookalike. I’ll say no more as the whole plot hinges on your ignorance of it.
That’s right: the turn from bad to so bad it’s good. Why? Joan Baez (henceforward known to me as “the old-lady-in-church singer”) started singing and a bird of prey alit on Bruce Dern’s arm. It really doesn’t get any worse than that.
501 Must See Movies? Yeah, only if they meant must see it make the turn.
Please tell me this isn’t representative of Ayn Rand’s writing.
I can ignore the bits of her philosophy that I don’t care for, but the much of the rest is tough. She’s got a story that is compelling and fast moving. I can appreciate that as well done, but the prose itself is tough. It almost felt that she didn’t have an ear for the music of English, which is strange considering she made her living with words both as a screenwriter and novelist. (Yes, I know English isn’t her first language, but this goes beyond that.)
Of course I can forgive that, since the story is different enough to be memorable.
It’s not scholarly or in-depth, but this little book presents a breezy explanation about how one of the most influential books in Western civilization came to be. It was not a straightforward process.
This book is not sectarian, nor is it particularly religious. It does what it claims to in the title. This book sticks to the facts. If you’re ever mildly curious about the topic and don’t want to read der wiki, this is for you.
But better than nothing. I’ve gotten a massive project from my former employer. Since I can do the project at home, it’s all the better.
Oddly, between this freelance project and the new home-school consortium I’m adding to my roster this fall, I think (maybe, just maybe) I may have accomplished this task.
But I’m not marking it as done just yet.
