You Turn by Marion Croslydon

After being dumped by her fiancé, Eleanor Carrington flees to Paris to help her self-medicated mother. While keeping her mom from popping pills like gummy bears, Eleanor launches a new, no-strings-attached life plan with absolutely NO falling in love whatsoever. On her part at least, because her self-esteem could do with one or two Frenchmen going un peu crazy for her.

What she doesn’t need is for her first Grand Amour, Zachary Murdoch, to burst back into her life. Whatever shit-show she’s just been through was a stroll. What Zach put her though was a climb up Mount Everest. Barefoot. In a bikini.

Now a club-owner in Paris, Zach is intrigued by the troubled woman who was once the sweet girl he had to give up. Offering a shoulder for her to cry on is what he owes her. Loving her is what he lost the right to. Because there’s a reason he broke up with Lenor and that reason is why she’s in Paris.

But Paris is known as the City of Love…

Will he be her turn at love? 

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Movie Monday #4: Trash

Technician Online 

Alumnus solicits treasure to create 'Trash'

Posted: Sunday, October 19, 2014 11:57 pm | Updated: 12:06 am, Mon Oct 20, 2014.

Kevin Schaefer, Associate Features Editor

For NC State alumnus Darius Dawson, filmmaking is all about telling stories that come from the soul. A Fayetteville native and 2012 graduate, Dawson will return to Raleigh in February to direct his new short film Trash, his first major production since leaving the university.

Having always been interested in the arts, Dawson said he began looking into film as a career while attending NC State. At the time, however, he was a civil engineering major.

“I went to a math and science high school where they convinced everyone you had to go into math or science,” Dawson said. “Then I took a film theory class at State and started researching it. I’ve been interested in it since my freshman year at NC State.”

Dawson said he quickly made the switch to film studies and made shorts all throughout his years as an undergraduate student. Out of the 10 or so films he made during that time, he directed four of them.

“I’m a cinematographer and don’t direct that often,” Dawson said. “When you start out, you don’t really know what to do, so you’re shooting and directing.”

Dawson said he got the idea for Trash about five years ago. The film tells the story of a teenage runaway when her abusive stepfather discovers where she’s hiding. At the same time, she is struggling with the decision of whether or not to keep her baby, the product of an ill-begotten relationship.

“Trash is the story of what we throw away and what we decide to keep,” Dawson said on the film’s Indiegogo profile. “At its core, the story is about forgiveness and growing up too fast.”

Dawson said personal experiences and the things he saw growing up influenced him heavily as he wrote Trash.

“The film is not so much focusing on sensational things, but on the minor things,” Dawson said.

According to Dawson, his upbringing in Fayetteville played a huge role as well.

“There’s rural life and not having a lot of money,” Dawson said. “I just look at how much I was influenced by Fayetteville and by life in the country in general.”

Upon graduating from NC State, Dawson attended New York University’s graduate film program in Singapore and later did cinematography for films in and around Southeast Asia. Dawson is now back in the United States finishing his MFA at DePaul University in Chicago.

Dawson’s trips abroad provided him with insight regarding the best places for filmmakers to pursue their careers.

“If you’re an aspiring filmmaker, right now China is on the rise,” Dawson said. “Hollywood films are doing better in China. In Europe, there’s a new independent wave.”

However, Dawson also said the U.S. has plenty of opportunities as well.

“The easiest place to make a film is America,” Dawson said. “If you’re interested, get yourself a camera and just go. If you don’t have a lot of resources, find the stories around you and tell those stories.”

Dawson said he plans to remain an indie filmmaker. He and Trash’s producer Whitney Howard formed a film team called Nuance Films.

“I want to explore something outside of the studio,” Dawson said.

Despite his extensive education, Dawson said filmmakers do not necessarily have to go to an arts school such as NYU because stories come from within.

“When you go to an arts school, they don’t give you the stories to tell,” Dawson said. “They provide you with the equipment and people to critique your films once you’re done. It’s about you having a story and being in touch with where that story comes from. I know plenty of people making films who never went to film school.”

Sarah Stein, an associate professor in the communication department and one of Dawson’s former teachers, praised his work and said she is excited to see where he’ll go from here.

“He was sort of a much more sophisticated filmmaker,” Stein said. “He had a very unusual capacity to think cinematically, meaning he got the way that film can use voice, color or black and white and the way to frame images. I have excellent students, but Darius came really already formed by the time he got to me.”

Dawson said he hopes to come back to the university in the next couple months and speak to students who are interested in working on Trash before shooting begins in February. He also hopes to raise $7,000 via Indiegogo in the next 50 days to further Trash’s production. As of press time, Trash had raised $270.  

“I want to come back to where it all started and help some who are starting out,” Dawson said.

http://www.technicianonline.com/features/article_48bec8e4-580d-11e4-b7ea-001a4bcf6878.html?mode=image&photo=0

For more information about Dawson or Trash, visit the film’s Indiegogo page at www.indiegogo.com/projects/trash-the-movie.

Movie Monday #3: The Notebook/Le Grand Cahier

The Notebook (Le Grand Cahier), not to be confused with Ryan Gosling's movie, is a rendition of the affects of WWII in a remote Hungarian town told through the eyes of 13-year-old twin boys (Laszlo Gyemant and Andras Gyemant).

As an overall feeling I thought the movie was OK. I won't be telling anyone to watch this movie if you're a fan of other movies in this genre like Lore which definitely had a harder more direct style. I found this movie very reminiscent of Wes Anderson. For instance when the boys' mother dies. She is blown up in a cartoonish style that happens off screen. In fact all of the explosions happen this way (and there are a lot). 

The movie was very over the top with a contrived plot. The boys are shipped off to their grandmother's house, who they have never met, upon arrival they are abused (rather lightly if you ask me) and forced to do chores for food. (Sn: I've done chores all my life not necessarily for food, but they were definitely expected of me, so this "abuse" seems tame. If we're going to do it (put child abuse in a story) then I think we should actually DO IT.) The boys do however up the ante on the abuse by abusing themselves. They whip, punch, and starve themselves all in an effort to prepare for the adversities of war, which is unnecessary and ineffectual. 

The movie does have some stylistic points that are worth mentioning. We begin our journey with the understanding that certain characters are good and others are bad. For instance, the mother, the father, the Germans (both officers and civilians) are good and the grandmother, the Jews and the neighbor girl with the cleft palate are bad. But as the story concludes it is clear all the characters have evolved. For example the grandmother, who they called “the witch” becomes a mother to them in the wake of their real mother’s absence. She loves them in her own way and eventually tells them where the families treasure is buried and actually calls them something other than “bastards” on her impending death bed.

I don’t think there is a real way to improve this movie because it is based on the book written by Agota Kristof.

Oh, I should also mention that the theme of “the notebook” has absolutely no importance to the movie. The boys are told by their father to write down everything that they do and to keep up their lessons but once the boys are reunited with their father he doesn’t even so much as mention the book. It literally serves no purpose in the movie and seems like a forgotten plot.

Review: Halfway to the Grave

"You're not a woman," he said finally. "You're the Grim Reaper with red hair!" 
Halfway to the Grave is definitely not the book I expected it to be. Jeaniene Frost has basically written Buffy the Vampire Slayer fan fiction. Which isn't that bad if Spike is your favorite character. But that's not the case when it comes to me. I think I would've preferred Angel fan fiction. You know, the television show starring David Boreanaz.

David "Angel" Boreanaz

James "Spike" Marsters

So as you can see Angel is waaay hotter than Spike, but I guess that's beside the point.

Anyway back to the book. Catherine "Cat" Crawfield (I can't stress enough how stupid/terrible this nickname is) is a half vampire, half human, 20-ish, woman who lives in Ohio. She lives in freaking Ohio. I cannot emphasize enough how irrelevant the setting being in Ohio is. The entire time we never learn anything special about Ohio. I don't even know what city she lives in. I really hate the nickname Cat. It's like every teenaged girls way of trying to be covertly sexy. And right on par with Frost's disastrous attempt at making Catherine sexy she has Bones, aka Spike, nickname her kitten. That's right her nickname has a nickname. And even more catastrophic is later on we learn that she also goes by "Cathy" and then Bones give her yet another nickname "Red Reaper". As far as nicknames go Frost should never be allowed to give them out. 

Aside from the terrible nicknames everyone in this book has the plot is not as horrendous. Catherine has devoted her life to killing vampires because her mother was raped and impregnated by a vampire. Yes, that is how Catherine became a half-breed. So Catherine's mother has been guilt tripping her for her entire life and has convinced her all vampires are evil. Catherine believes this until her encounter with the infamous Bones.

Bones turns Catherine's world upside down. He gives her the opportunity to kill powerful vampires and promises her he will help her find her father. (I think she finds her dad in the second book.) Catherince eventually falls in love with Bones but doesn't admit it until she's slept with him at least twice. Honestly, Catherine's character is completely predictable and boring. She's pretty much a bigot and a prude (none of which makes a relatable character).

Overall, I wouldn't recommend this book unless you are an avid Spike fan. 

Teen Tuesday #2

This week's Teen Tuesday comes from a list compiled by Goodreads. This list is the "best" Young Adult books for the month of September. (I put best in quotations because preference is subjective.) These books are listed in no particular order. 

Illusions of Fate

by Kiersten White (Goodreads Author)

Downton Abbey plus magic? It’s an enchanting combo in this romantic fantasy that follows islander Jessamin as she discovers the dangerous, alluring secret world of the Albion nobility and gets to know a young lord, Finn. Goodreads member Jillian Heise said, “I totally loved reading this book…. It has a historical feel, with elements of class and acceptance woven throughout a story of doing good by standing up to bad, entwined with fate and romance.”

Made for You

by Melissa Marr (Goodreads Author)

Eva was hit by a car. When she wakes up, she finds that she now has a sixth sense: She knows how people will die. Eva and her friend Nate try to prevent their friends’ deaths while eluding a mysterious killer in this dark and twisty Southern Gothic tale. Sue said, “[A] thrilling book that will…make you turn on the lights in the middle of the night because you don’t want to face the darkness. This story is engrossing, vivid, and creepy.”

Lies We Tell Ourselves

by Robin Talley (Goodreads Author)

Virginia, 1959. As part of the battle for civil rights, schools are being integrated, and tempers are running high. This brave and emotional dual POV novel follows the relationship between Sarah, one of the first black students at the all-white Jefferson High, and Linda, whose white father wants to keep things “separate but equal.” Leanne Bell said, “Words cannot describe how amazing this book is. Not only does it deal with racism, it also deals with attitudes toward gay/lesbian relationships in the 1950s…such a beautiful and inspiring story.”

Rites of Passage

by Joy N. Hensley (Goodreads Author)

When Sam joins the first-ever class of girls at Denmark Military Academy, she faces punishing physical trials and meets a sexy drill sergeant—nothing she can’t handle. But soon she is the target of brutal hazing at the hands of a secret society. Will they drive her out? Joshua Bellin said, “Hensley, who attended military school herself, gets all the details right…. A book about courage, loyalty, and daring to be different, Rites of Passage marks the emergence of a major new talent in the world of YA.”

Jackaby

by William Ritter (Goodreads Author)

Investigator R.F. Jackaby can see supernatural beings. When young Abigail Rook becomes his assistant, she is thrust into the hunt for a serial killer who may not be at all human in this detective thriller set in turn-of-the-century New England. Emily May said, “This book is so many things, and all of them are good. It has all the atmosphere of a creepy Victorian mystery, all the humorous banter of BBC Sherlock; it has complex characters and wonderful writing. And most of all: It is just so damn charming.”

Just from reading the synopses for each book here's my must-read order: 

1. Lies We Tell Ourselves 

This book sounds too good to be true. I have my fingers crossed that it hasn't written a check that it can't cash. Racism, integration, and homosexuality are not light topics and I'm hoping that being in the YA category isn't going to make the author breeze over these subjects.

2. Rites Of Passage

The synopsis reminds me of Vampire Academy. That's not to say this book is going to be anything like that, but the main characters seem similar. Considering that this is a YA book I don't expect for the love plot to be sophisticated, but I hope it's a lot better than shallow, mindless obsessions. 

3. Illusions Of Fate

This book might be amazing, but the synopsis doesn't tell you anything. It's so vague and that makes me feel like there isn't actually a story here, rather an interesting subject. Subjects don't make stories. Stories come from their subjects actively doing something. I have a feeling this might be a pauper to a princess story, so maybe I should have moved this lower on my list.      

4. Made For You

I'm really not too interested in this book. I think if I ever get around to actually reading it I'll have exhausted all my other "to read" books. This book sounds like the YA version of Final Destination. What strikes me as odd right away is that her friends don't start dying until she develops the sixth sense, which makes the plot seem contrived. Also why is it titled "Made For You"? I'm sure the answer to my question lies within the book, but I don't think the title of a book should be baffling to someone looking to read it. The name should concur with the synopsis; I shouldn't have to reach for the meaning.

5. Jackaby

Jackaby ends my list because I have absolutely zero interest in reading this book. I'm not too fond of British settings. Also I'm confused about how this book fits into the YA category. I'm guessing the main character is under 18, but it doesn't seem like it. He's apparently an investigator with an assistant. In my world this is an adult job unless of course he's kin (my NC roots are showing) to Judy Bloom.