Greetings Shakespeare enthusiasts and fellow actors, as well as writers, since it is November!
I've never recorded myself doing acting before or even acted in front of a green screen until recently, but it was very fun to do and I am going to do more videos like this in the future. (Hint: the next one will involve two of my own characters.)
As for the soliloquy, I've used it for one live performance and two auditions before I actually went ahead and recorded it. The interesting thing about this soliloquy is how many ways one can perform it. It can be done in an angry way, a sad way, a questioning way or an insane way. I've found that when I have done it, it changes and is improvised, but still the things I put into place are there: whether or not I actually think Hamlet is insane, what the inner meaning of "To be or not to be" is in my mind, and my character development of him. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What's your favorite Shakespeare or non-Shakespeare play? And what characters would you like to play? (Whether they be male or female)
Usually when I do drawing posts I post digital drawings, but for this one, I thought I would post
some complex Halloween scenes. It is often easier to draw something complex on paper (for me) than it is to draw it on a screen. (Some of these scenes don't appear to be spooky at first, but if you look at them you will see spooky elements.)
Drawing the flowers and the tunnels in this scene was enjoyable.
The trees were fun to draw.
Drawing the fireplace was fun to do. It was also fun to draw the flowers and wood on the wall.
I hope your having a happy October. As a quick reminder I will be needing questions for my next Character Interview, so you can ask questions to Riona and Celtierehere. But meanwhile in recent editing updates for my book, which now has a title Eyes in the Night, it has turned quite gothic while still retaining Fantasy elements... In my previous posts however I forgot to mention, what made me think Eyes in the Night (previously known as Tess Short {Book One}) was a children's book. It was because when I looked back at it the writing seemed like one of my stories that I wrote directed at children. However the real audience of this story is people who like Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit and want to read a book like it (but one that isn't a copy of it). I don't have an exact age range for this book yet. (I can't always give a direct age range for all my books). But, however old the people are who like Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit is what it is aimed at. If anything I do not think it is a very young children's book though... I hope that cleared everything up and now on to my editing updates...
Tess somehow revealed to me that she wanted to have black hair or brown hair, both of which she doesn't have. (I double checked, by asking the other characters who said she has red hair not brown or black hair.) She doesn't like her natural red hair, unfortunately for her. At least knowing the information of Tess's dislike for her red hair was useful in rewriting her introduction to the readers. Partly because in the first draft I made it seem as if she liked her hair color, when really she doesn't. Also since Tess is suddenly talking to me, she gave me information regarding actors...
(Image from IMDB, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3629668/mediaviewer/rm3418773760)
Dalia Bella, who has acted in Netflix's Anne with An E, I think could do an amazing job playing Tess. (Though it would be Dalia Bela with red hair instead of brown.) So now since Tess gave me the actor that she looks like, I can draw Tess more easily now since she has a consistent face:
And another character has also sprung slightly into talking into me, that is Robin. I'll say this: he went from a seemingly normal elf to an elf on the edge of insanity. Or at least he appears to be insane. And interestingly he reminds me strongly of the narrator from The Tell-Tale Heart. Though he isn't a murderer, because it would be a little weird for a murderer to be helping Tess.
But because of Robin's newfound "insanity" I do need to figure out how he will get Tess (and Inny) to come with him to figure out what is going on with the elves and fairies. No one would join a slightly insane person on a "quest." And Tess is smart enough not to trust someone who appears to be far from sane. It could be that he fails multiple times to get her to come, and then something happens that causes her to join him. The "something" could be that he rescues her in some way, or scares her enough to get her to join him. Whatever the reason is (I haven't figured it out completely), but I think it would be interesting if it was a little like a scene from Shakespeare's lesser known play, Pericles where Pericles's daughter Marina gets kidnapped by pirates (after she is almost murdered). But, I'm still trying to figure out what causes Tess to trust Robin enough that she willingly joins him on a quest.
As for Inny's character, I feel as if I didn't give her a scene where she uses magic ever in the book, which I found disappointing. She is half hag half human after all, which will be interesting to explore and I am sure there is a dark reason for why she is half human other than the explanation in draft one (as told by Robin):
Of course Inny, knowing that Robin may or may not be sane, could have taken the opportunity to tell him a story (above) where her father fell in love with her mother (because he thought she was a damsel under a curse) and married her (somehow) without a protest from her mother. But somehow knowing that Inny's mother is a hag, she could have easily put him under a love spell and made him marry her. Or perhaps she pretended to be a beautiful maiden and then got him to marry her, and then after the wedding transformed into her real form. Anyway, there are explanations for why her mother could have wanted to marry him,
(Image from wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baba_Yaga#/media/File:Bilibin._Baba_Yaga.jpg)
It could even be a reason a little like the Russian Fairytale character, Baba Yaga, who at one point threatened to kill the main heroine, Vasilisa, if she didn't complete the chores that she requested. Her mother could have wanted to marry a mere mortal for reasons like Baba Yaga, or perhaps her mother wanted to do something with her father, or she even thought of eating him...
Double Trouble from (The Scottish Play) and Harry Potter
As for Inny's magic, I for some reason imagine something like the witches from the Scottish play (aka, the play whose name you should never shout or say in a theatre) happening. Though it would be good magic and not black magic. But even so the way the spells would be cast with potions would be the same. But there would not be overly disgusting ingredients like the Scottish Play's potion. And instead be ingredients from nature, so perhaps more Druid like magic than witch like. But even so, I think it would be neat if the spell casting had a Double Trouble rhythm to it. Or it could have the Double Trouble rhythm to it be more intense than a ordinary witch's spell:
And I think perhaps one of her spells would be as intense as this. This song to me, is almost like a call and response, in which you sing out a spell, and then you get a response that isn't your own.
Speaking of spells...
I've been also trying to figure out different kinds of ways people cast spells, other than the way Inny does. I know that Inny's magic is definitely going to have a mix of chanting and singing in it (and herbs). And I imagine that not every spell, but some spells that elves and fairies cast require some singing. There must be some separation between spells and songs, since if not then why don't lullabies or entertaining music cause something magical to happen? So that is why not all magic in the world requires song to work, but, a (somewhat) large amount does, and it will require knowing the right words to the spell, that will be done in a slightly different way than Inny does,
Some of the ingredients Inny may use for her spells.
Another difference is that her spells might require certain ingredients where as an elves' or a fairies' do not and can be done without. And then there will be more differences between the two. I know that fairies can at least shape shift into one animal and this doesn't require any chanting of any sort, though I haven't figured out all the non-witch spell's yet.
I am also trying to figure out what Tess's powers are. Since she is half elf, she does have magical abilities but the question is how strong they are compared to the other elves'. This will be more thoroughly discussed in part three. (This post was meant to focus more on Inny and Robin rather than Tess.)
Who is your favorite witch character? (From Shakespeare or some Folktales) And have you read Edgar Allan Poe's Tell-tale heart?
-Quinley
P. S. An upcoming post is an acting post. That is all I will say, but it will be the first time I've ever posted something acting related on this blog, so that will be fun! (It will probably be posted before or after Halloween (All Hallows Eve), depending how long it takes me to edit it and upload it.)
You might know Oak from my older posts, she is a half dryad ranger:
(An old drawing of Oak)
Her story was one of my first novels...that didn't end up working. But since I eventually plan to rewrite it (not now, but later), I decided I would get to know Oak. She will remain a character in the story (along with Delphi and Emily Stella), who will be the three female leads. (There will possibly be a fourth, but I don't know for sure right now).
So, it is time for another character interview! *A neon sign lights up*
*Audience applauds, and Oak walks in*
Me: It's wonderful to see you again, Oak. It's been a long time...and you look very different. Oak: *Nods* Indeed, *sits down on the seat and remains very alert* Indeed, it has been... Me: So...to start, I'll just simply ask, how are you? Oak: I'm fine, I just to need to make sure no one followed me here...*looks around the room* Me: Why would someone be following you? Oak: *Brings out bow and arrow* I don't know, but it would be better to be safe than sorry-- Me: *Looks over at the people who let Oak in* Weren't you supposed to take her weapons away from her? That's one of the rules. Security Officer Two: *Popping out from behind the curtain* It's been a long time since we have had one of these interviews, why do you expect us to remember these things? Me: Because you're security!
*A shrieking noise comes out from the left side of the stage, Oak aims her bow at it and shoots it* Security Officer one: Uhh... Me: So you let a creature in too? Oak: Don't blame them...these beings are very good at hiding. Anyway, you were going to interview me? Security officer one & two: If you want to fire us, because she is better-- Me: Shh...not now, we have an interview to do....
If you were to pick a song, what song do you think would describe you the most?
I do know some ballads, but they are mostly romantic ones, which hardly describes myself, but...
I do think this song sort of describes the energy I feel when fighting in battle: Underground by Lindsey Stirling
I suppose this is now three songs instead of one song.
But this song reminds me of the feeling I have when I go hunting in the forest.
What, do you think of romance, yes or no?
I'm not particularly interested in romance at the moment. Other girls may be interested in talking about what they think of romance on stage *makes a disgusted face* but I don't think it is something really worth talking about. I would rather be friends with boys than being in love with them. Can we please talk about something like weapons as opposed to romance? Me: Sure...here is a question you might like instead: Sword or bow?
Oh good! I've used bows and arrows more often, but I am not limited to only that.
I do use daggers and swords if my opponent sneaks up on me and I am unprepared...
So to answer your question, I like both. If you were going to a party, what would you wear?
Even if it was a festive party, I can't let my guard down. And wearing a dress would limit my abilities to protect myself. Yes people would expect me to wear one...
but for safety...I would wear something else...
My first option would be this toga:
(Image from wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_William_Waterhouse#/media/File:Circe_Offering_the_Cup_to_Odysseus.jpg (if you are uncomfortable with nudity, there is some nudity in a few of John William Waterhouse's paintings. I just wanted to warn you, if you decide to put the link into your search-bar.) )
Though it would be comfortable, it wouldn't provide much protection from possible attackers. Especially since it is easy to tell if one is hiding weapons in it.
And then I would consider this one:
(Image from wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tauriel)
It would protect me, but everyone would wonder why I was not wearing something fancy for the party and why I was being on guard.
So in the end to fulfill my need for comfort during a party, and my need for safety I would wear this:
(Image from wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_William_Waterhouse#/media/File:Miranda_-_John_William_Waterhouse.jpg (if you are uncomfortable with nudity, there is some nudity in a few of John William Waterhouse's paintings. I just wanted to warn you, if you decide to put the link into your search-bar.) )
This isn't a see-through dress so I can hide daggers around my legs,
(Image from Pixabay, https://pixabay.com/photos/knife-weapon-middle-ages-blade-1730010/)
because carrying around a bow and arrow wouldn't exactly make everyone in the party feel comfortable.
A man out of nowhere. Asks you to marry him. What do you do? (Note that he happens to be a prince from a kingdom, and is looking for someone to marry and be his queen).
I would decline, though ruling a kingdom might be an interesting thing, its not for me.
I know many girls would gladly give anything to marry a prince out of nowhere, so that they could rule a kingdom. But ruling a kingdom wouldn't be of much use to me, for it wouldn't help the world, because I would be helping but a single kingdom, and not the whole world itself.
(Last question) Who is your favorite Greek goddess? And why?
This is probably very obvious.
(Image from wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artemis#/media/File:Diane_de_Versailles_Leochares.jpg (warning: if you are uncomfortable with nudity, there are a few nude paintings of Greek gods in the article, so be warned.))
But Artemis the goddess of the hunt, childbirth, and the wild is my favorite. I've always looked up to her archery abilities, and especially the fact that she loves nature.
Me: Well...that is all the time we have for now. But the next two characters who are going to be interviewed are Riona "Fire" and Celtiere*points to the audience* and I need your questions for them! I am going to make Character Interviews something that the audience (readers) can participate in. So it would be very helpful if you could leave comments asking questions for Riona and Celtiere.
See you next time! *Curtain closes and fades to black*
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Who is your favorite Greek goddess? How would your own characters react to the questions I asked Oak?
-Quinley
Hello everyone, I thought I should do a drawing post, because I thought it would be fun to post my most recent drawings:
I thought I should start the post with a drawing of one of my own heroines, Annabelle.
Since I don't believe I posted a drawing of Annabelle in this style before.
It took a long time to figure out how to draw Captain Marvel, because her facial shape was one that I don't usually draw.
A drawing of Dr. Crusher, my favorite character from Star Trek: The Next Generation.
I really like how this turned out.
Speaking of doctors (the non-medical and time travelling sort),
here is a drawing of the 13th doctor. I haven't seen much of her yet, but want to.
I thought it would be neat to draw her, because she is the first woman Doctor Who doctor ever.
This is a drawing of Hoshi Sato, a lesser known character from Star Trek. I thought Hoshi was a really interesting character, so I decided to include her in this post.
I decided to draw Etta, since was a great comedic character in Wonder Woman. However I wish the audience had seen more of her, than just the few scenes that she had. One of the most fun things to draw was her curled hair and her hat.
This drawing was really fun to draw considering the fact that Brie Larson posted a picture of herself lifting Thor's hammer. I thought why not draw Carol Danvers (Captain Marvel) holding it? So
that's how I ended up with this drawing, which I am really happy with.
This portrait was interesting to draw, though I was glad that Carol didn't wear a fancy dress in the movie (particularly since there was no reason for her to wear one, and I don't think Carol is the sort of person to wear fancy dresses). But I thought it would be interesting to see what she would look like
in a dress that looks somewhat like her suit.
This is a drawing of Queenie. Drawing the different shadings of this was really fun, and also conveying her emotions.
(You may want to read this blog post before continuing reading this one.)
Hello everyone,
Since I recently finished writing Tess Short (Book one) which is the book's title for now, until I come up with a better title. I thought I should make a blog post about it so that I can keep track of my editing process...
World building within editing
Since Tess Short (book one) was one of my first novels, first fantasy ones to be exact. I didn't know that much about world building or what religions fantasy worlds have and stuff like that.
When I looked back at it I realized I didn't know much about the way the world worked. (Other than it being a world that was inspired by J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle Earth.) So I decided I would focus a little on the bits of religion that were left out of it...
Like how a (religious) wedding for an elf would go, and how a (religious) wedding for a hobbit would go. And even how weird it would be if a hobbit did a wedding the elf way or even how weird it would be if an elf did a wedding the hobbit way.
The reason I bring this up, is because one of the controversies in Tess's world is why on earth would a hobbit and an elf get married? And are they really able to have children? (The answer is yes, since Tess was born, but it is still a hot topic in her world.)
I thought that I should focus slightly on the way of which Mr. Short and Princess Gletta got married, and how the elves and hobbits reacted to it. (But mostly the hobbits since they are the ones who show up in the prologue.) And why it is so outlandish to have happen in that world. And also how people react to it socially. Some of the questions I am turning around in my head because of this are... Are they treated like an lower class because of the marriage? How well are Tess (and her siblings) treated because of it? Is there any possibility that other elves and hobbits could have married before Gletta and Mr. Short? (If so, are theirs undocumented, and are Mr. Short's and Gletta's marriage the only case of a documented marriage between an elf and a hobbit?)
One thing I am also trying to do is make the world seem a little less like Middle Earth. Though I do want the readers now and then to think that is somewhat like it in ways. But I don't want them to be thinking "oh wow, that sounds exactly like how things work in Middle Earth." This is why through the editing I am going to be expanding both the religion, the magic system, and the world in the rewrite. I also slightly want to use magic more in the story than I did in the first draft.
And one somewhat magical element I have been trying to explore is why names have power.It is something that has shown up in the story that I didn't exactly know the answer to. But I hope to figure out the answer when I rewrite. It seems to be along the lines of why Hades's name (from Greek mythology) was not talked about among the ancient Greeks. In fear that he would take them to the underworld early. But other than that I am not exactly sure what the reason is for elves' names having power, yet.
Fixing the dialogue
One problem (which is also going to be fixed through rewriting) is having the character spout words like...
This I found to be a problem, since it sounded way to similar to the way we speak in our world. And not in the slightest old fashioned (as I intended it to feel.) I feel as if when I was writing the first draft I forgot that I didn't want the characters to sound like how a child or an adult from our world would talk. I also want to fix the dialogue and pacing in general.
When looking back at this dialogue, it felt a little flat...
And it just happened so quickly in the first draft. Out of nowhere Tess is asked to go on an adventure, and I didn't even give the readers enough time to get to know her before the adventure began. There were little weird things here and there like Tess not knowing her own age and somehow thinking one hundred years had past when so little had (I think it was because I didn't know Tess's age when I was first writing it, but, I found a way to fix it within the storyline now.)
More character development
Tess was a developed character, but everyone else in the story I felt as if I didn't take that much time to develop...
One character I have been exploring is Gletta Short (formerly known as Princess Gletta.) Since she in the first draft was a (somewhat) peaceful character. And now since I know her it turns out that she is in on a daily lookout for monsters (since this is what she is used to doing.) Though she is calm sometimes especially when around her husband or children, but is much more used to being on the lookout at all times. Due to learning this information, I figured out what her day job was.
Which turned out to be a blacksmith, the particular kind of blacksmith that she is, is one that specializes in making weapons. Which is appropriate to her character since she is a fighter.
But yet, I can imagine despite all her active fighting and everything that she is used to doing, I can imagine her singing a lullaby that sounds like this to her children:
(Though the term "angels" that is used in the song would be replaced with a spirit-like figure that is protective in the elven religion.)
Because of how useful this development was, I think I need to focus more on each member of Tess's group...
(an old drawing I found of each the members from left to right, Silena, Thistle, Tess, Robin, Inny)
And figure out what their motivations are, since I haven't fully figured that out.
I know what Tess's motivation is, but I don't know what everyone else's fully is.
I also want to know why Robin wanted Tess to go on the adventure in the first place, why did he choose her? Also, did he think the adventure was going to turn out of the way that it did? These are questions right now, that I haven't figured out the answer to. But I assume I will once I start developing each of their characters.
So I hoped you enjoyed the look at my editing process so far...
I saw Coraline a little while ago and felt that I should make a review for it. This is not the movie I said I would review in this post, and I do hope to post a review for those two movies soon (because I did enjoy those two movies.)
Anyway I felt I needed to warn Coraline book fans that the movie is nothing like the book:
Coraline (2009)
(image from Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coraline_(film)#/media/File:Coraline_poster.jpg)
Rated: PG
Spoiler free review: Be Careful What You Wish For, since this movie is sadly disappointing.
If you like the book Coraline, you may not like the movie Coraline. The movie does not follow the scenes in the book accurately, changed the pacing and puts events out of order. A lot was cut out and they even brought in a character that really wasn't needed at all, named Wyborn (nicknamed by Coraline "Why Were You Born?" and "Wybie" by his grandmother). I felt like he was an unnecessary part of the plot. The directors justified this character addition that created a back and forth dialogue rather internal monologue by saying that having Coraline talk to herself wouldn't have been as interesting.
I disagree, because in the book she doesn't always talk to herself, she talks to the cat and the neighbors. Plus I would have loved to see what the screen writers could come up with to create a vision of what was going on inside her head and see her internal monologue. Also, near the end of the movie, Wybie did something that Coraline was supposed to do, for some weird reason. To me it felt as if the directors were saying Coraline wasn't strong enough to do it on her own, which to me felt a little sexist.
By cutting a lot out of the book, unfortunately the movie became more like a folk tale as opposed to what I felt it had been before, which was more of a gothic story with little elements of horror in it. By explaining things that were left unexplained in the book, they remove the story from the gothic genre.
In addition Coraline's character felt a little off and not completely like herself to me, because the movie character was sarcastically bored and unimaginative. As for the other characters–Miss Spink, Miss Forcible, and Mr. Bobo (renamed Mr. Bobinsky in the movie)–they all felt a little off to me, sadly. They didn't seem as if they could be real people as they had been portrayed in the book. It felt as if the directors had made them cartoonish for the movie, which wasn't necessary. Also, in my opinion they made the character of the Other Mother too powerful.
Also If you are an sensitive parent or child. I should warn you that there is a nude scene, but the scene is portraying the two paintings The Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelliand Ulysses and The Sirens by Herbert James Draper. However, you could argue that the directors could have chosen paintings with no nudity in them. I was okay with it, because they were portraying paintings of scenes from Greek Mythology.
Even if you don't like the movie, the soundtrack is really good, and I would recommend listening to it.
My rating:
The movie was not as scary as the book. The directors did not portray the book well. I also felt they didn't need to add in a boy character. I gave the movie two stars for the music and the animation, but in itself Coraline (the movie version) is a bad portrayal of a good story. I added 1/2 star for the Shakespearian and Greek Mythology elements of the movie.
Spoiler-full review:
My thoughts on things that were edited out of the movie and things that were added in:
Sadly, they cut the rats' song in Coraline's dream out of the movie. I had been listening to the beautifully eerie end-credits music, I assumed that the rats' song would in the movie. Unfortunately, I was very wrong. Thankfully I did find the Coraline broadway musical recording, which had a version of the song in it, which sounded suitably eerie:
The movie also replaced the evil rats, which were running around Coraline's house in both worlds in the book, with cute mice. The mice later turned out to be rats in disguise, but this confuses the story. The rats in the book were the initial clue that something was off with the other world, since the Other Mother treated them like pets.
(Image from wiki, https://coraline.fandom.com/wiki/Wyborn_Lovat?file=Wybie_Lovat.png)
The addition of Wybie created problems, because he added information which introduced gaping plot holes into the movie. For example, he said that his grandmother didn't rent out the Pink Castle to couples with children. So then why did she allow Coraline and her parents to live there?
Also I was annoyed about the whole Wybie "stalker" plot, which wasn't even part of the original story. Unlike the addition of Tauriel in The Hobbit, I felt that Wybie's addition to the story was unnecessary and annoying since he, as opposed to Coraline, defeated the Other Mother in the end (even if Coraline helped a little). It felt like the directors were saying the lead female character couldn't defeat the Other Mother on her own andneeded a male character's help to do so. In the book Coraline set up a doll tea party around the well, and caught the Other Mother's hand in the well. In the movie this scene was replaced with an action packed fight scene between Coraline, Wybie and the Other Mother's hand where Wybie does most of the work. Also, I did not like that the stalking narrative thread with Wybie was romanticizing stalking. In the movie Coraline said, "thank you for stalking me" after Wybie rescued her. This felt wrong to me for the directors to do that, since I don't want anyone to think stalking is a good thing, or that a stalker can rescue them from something dangerous, because a stalker is themselves dangerous.
(Image from Rotten Tomatoes, https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/coraline#&gid=1&pid=h-32137)
I was not particularly fond of Coraline's attitude in the movie or her blue hair. In the book she felt less like a rebelling teenager or troubled child, and more like a child who wanted her parents attention and was sad that she had lost it, because her parents were busy. The scene where Coraline walks around the new house is both in the book and the movie. I was annoyed and thought it could have portrayed a little better in the movie, though I did like when she accidentally pressed a light switch that said "don't push."
The directors also modified the scene where the ghost children got there souls back. They called them "eyes" for some reason in the movie, which doesn't make sense because if they are eyes why is there only one of them?
(Image from wiki, https://coraline.fandom.com/wiki/Wyborn_Lovat?file=EE024AAC-E8AF-4AFD-934D-67A177DAC44E.jpeg)
Despite this change, all of the ghost children are shown to be wearing halos and wings, instead of the picnic scene in the book where Coraline is eating with them. The book does not tell where exactly the ghost children are going, however, in the movie they make it clear that it is Heaven. I believe the book left this purposefully ambiguous, but you are supposed to assume it is the Afterlife (without specifying a religion). The book version, I feel is nicer for readers in general.
Creating doll spies in the movie, I felt was really unnecessary. In the book and the movie the Other Mother had the rats to spy on Coraline, so why does she need dolls? The"evil dolls" were never a part of the original. This is a significant change, because in the book Coraline used dolls to defeat the Other Mother with her doll tea party.
(Image from Rotten Tomatoes, https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/coraline#&gid=1&pid=h-25517)
In the movie Miss Spink and Miss Forcible are creepily flat. They felt like sweet old ladies in the book, and in the movie they didn't have much that was human about them. For example, adding the taxidermy dogs dressed in angel costumes was depressing and didn't have to happen in the movie. This change was taken a step further when one of the movie characters' still living dogs almost dies and they sew an angel costume for him in preparation. In the book the dog was simply injured by the Other Mother's hand and went to the vet for it. Miss Forcible and Miss Spink were worried about their dog, but were not saying "oh well, he might die" and planning to stuff him. To let readers and movie watchers know, the dogs in both versions survive.
(Image from Rotten Tomatoes, https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/coraline#&gid=1&pid=h-30699)
The movie also made "the old man upstairs" a little too cartoony in character. He was very flat and didn't feel as if he could be a real human. He was eccentric in the book, but in the movie they take it way too far, after all he was doing acrobats on the roof! And I don't think his cartoonish feel had to do with the animation, an animated character can be realistic, even if they are hand-drawn or made out of clay.
In the book Coraline crosses into the other world despite the warnings. In the movie Coraline is given the warnings way too late, since she had already gone through the door. Why warn her about not going through the door when she already had?
The Other Mother was given way too much power in the movie, since she could shape-shift into Coraline's mother without button eyes. In the book she could only turn into Coraline's mother with button eyes or mimic her voice. Because of this flaw, it would be hard to tell if Coraline on her own could have defeated the Other Mother in the movie version. Where as in the book, it's easy to tell that Coraline defeated her and due to the Other Mother's weaknesses, we, as the reader, have hope that Coraline can do it.
The movie also made the challenge of finding her parents much more complicated. Coraline's mantel (the real mantel, that is) in the book version did not have snow globes on it, only the Other Mother's house had a mantel with one single snow globe on it. By having many snow globes in the movie, it makes it less clear how Coraline would have been able to guess so easily where her parents were. And therefore, it adds to the difficulty for her to defeat the Other Mother on her own.
There's so much the movie got wrong, that it's really hard to include all of it in one single blog post. One significant detail that was changed, was the way in which Coraline's parents left the snow globe, which I think fundamentally changes the gothic feel of the story. In the book Coraline's parents suddenly reappear when she is asleep, there wasn't any snow on them and Coraline wakes up and begins to believe she had been dreaming. This leads the reader to suspect for a minute that Coraline's adventure could have all been a dream...but the Other Mother's hand showing up later in the book reveals that it was not. In the movie, her parents leave the snow globe immediately when Coraline is still awake, and she tells them there is still snow on them, which they don't seem to notice. This seemingly small plot change removes the mystery from the book.
My final comment on the movie's flaws, is about the ending "scene." It just didn't quite make sense. I thought at first the image was of the mice (aka rats) putting the Other Mother's hand back together implying that the directors would make a sequel or that the Other Mother was not fully defeated. As a reader of the book, who enjoyed the satisfying ending, that would make you feel rather depressed. But I wasn't really sure what the movie's intent was? Instead, I think it would have been nice to see the real mouse circus (that was in the book) as opposed to an ending scene that didn't make sense.
Things I liked:
One thing I liked was the soundtrack it was really beautifully eerie. I had listened to it before I watched the movie, which had made my expectations for it rather high. I was hoping that the movie story would match up with the soundtrack...but unfortunately it didn't.
I liked the animation. I was looking forward to watching it, but unfortunately they didn't use it to convey an eerie feeling of the book or the soundtrack.
I especially liked the animation and characteristics of the dogs. I wished they had focused on the dog characters (both the other world and real world dogs) more, without the whole "is the dog going to die?" portion of the movie that they made even more stressful than it was in the book. I wish they had made Miss Spink and Miss Forcible walk their dogs like they had in the book, and had Coraline talk to the dogs in the theatre in the other world more, as she did in the book. But I did like that the dog kept the angel costume in the end and was alright, it was kind of cute!
Another thing I liked was that there were a few Shakespearian elements to the movie, such as Miss Spink's and Miss Forcible's posters on their walls of the past plays they had done. There were also posters and other references to the local Shakespeare festival in Coraline's town. Even the boy in the uniform store shouted "...my kingdom for a horse!" (Quoted from a scene from Richard the Third.)
I actually liked the scene where reviewers warned there was nudity. I know there have been complaints about this scene. (I researched a little before watching the movie, you see.) But the reason I liked it was because they were mimicking two paintings the Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli and Ulysses and the Sirens by Herbert James Draper. The scenery they created for that scene reminded me a little of an opera in a way. However, I understand parents' concerns, since some parents don't want their children to see nude paintings or nude people.
I also liked the other world's garden scene actually. I felt that the animation in it was pretty cool (but perhaps a little too light hearted for the other world) and the fact that a portrait of Coraline showed up in the garden was pretty neat. And the real garden scene, where Coraline and her neighbors are planting flowers felt nice. It showed that her relationship changed with her parents and her neighbors. Coraline befriending her neighbors in the book happened in a more subtle way, but the movie's version was a good change.
And despite all the huge changes to the story, I felt as if the cat remained the same. Though some of the cat's lines were cut for some reason probably for time, I liked the cat's character.
*End of spoilers* I rate it:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Have you read the book Coraline, if so did you like the movie as well as the book? Do you think it portrayed the story well or not?
-Quinley P.S. Despite the fact that the fact that they didn't do Coraline accurately. There is one Neil Gaiman book that a different director did well:
