Beyond the Trailer: Beauty and the Beast (2017)

Disney's Beauty and the Beast (2017)

If you read my Cinderella review, I grew up watching Disney movies and had been one of those little girls who lived on fairy tales.  I still do in a way.

There had been two Disney movies in my childhood I would say really shaped me.  One is the Little Mermaid (1988), which I will probably talk about in more detail when the live action drops.  The other was Beauty and the Beast (1991).

Belle was particularly special to me in my later teens as it was the time when I really began noticing how different I was.  Instead of going out with other people my age, I preferred to stay in the library during recess and after school before the school bus took us home.

Belle is very important to me for more than just her beauty, she helped me remember that being the way I am is alright.  My love for books, my pursuit of cleverness and wit and simply being different.  That is why out of all the adaptations Disney has done lately, I knew I would be especially passionate about this one.  

Writing the Pages: Character Designs

Raven by Sukizuki Izuna

For a long time, I had been thinking about writing my own book.  Well, I have decided to stop dreaming and actually begin working on writing it.

At first, I had really no idea where to start.  There were so many factors that worried me.  What genre it should it be?  What would be my target audience?  Where the setting should be?  Am I really good enough?  The list goes on.

Fortunately, I am not alone.  I have a lot of friends willing to help me.

For a long time, I have been collaborating with a friend of mine who is also an incredible and creative artist.  She goes by the name Sukizuki, and if you think her art is familiar you might have seen that she did the winning art piece for a small contest I had a while ago.

We worked so well together that I asked if she would like to collaborate on my writing project, and to my pleasure, she agreed!

We began with character designs

Write A Dream: Create Your Fairy Tale Contest Results!

Welcome Home, Ivy
Art by: Sukizuki Izuna

This is certainly late, but you can't rush perfection.

A few months ago, I announced that I was having a small short story competition with a fairytale/fantasy motif.  It wasn't very hard to choose a winner.

The winner is Chiima Takui's Ivy's Home.

There was a short debate between Izuna and I about the two stories we had tied for first place.  In the end, it was Ivy who takes the prize home.

I loved the second place for the main character but we enjoyed Ivy for its well-thought storytelling.  The style of writing is also very fluid, which I envy a lot.

Due to her needing it for her dissertation, I can't post it just yet but I will once she gives me the green light.

Without further ado,  I present to you, Ivy of Ivy's Home...  

For more information about the author, Chiima Takui, see the links below:-

Facebook:    https://www.facebook.com/chiima.musume
Blogspot:     http://okaymusumetime.blogspot.com/
Twitter:        https://twitter.com/ChiimaMusume


For more information about the artist, Sukizuki Izuna, see the links below:-

Facebook:   https://www.facebook.com/eiaakarasama?fref=ts
Deviantart:  http://sukizukiizuna.deviantart.com/

COMMISSION HER!!! 

Beyond the Trailer: Through the Looking Glass (2016)

Alice in Through the Looking Glass (2016)

Disney is really taking advantage of the success of most of their live action movies.

While I admit that I wasn't the biggest fan of Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland, I would be lying if I said I hadn't been looking forward to this movie since they first announced it.

How could I miss watching anything resembling one of my all-time favorite stories? Even now, I still call the times I seem to daydream and disappear inside my head "My Wonderland."

Alice in Wonderland had always been a part of my childhood. Much like how the animated Cinderella influenced me as a child, Alice had done the same and probably in some ways maybe even more.

I knew it would be ridiculous to expect a faithful adaptation. It would be ridiculous to expect that, but I wanted something that I would at least enjoy. I didn't hate the first movie though and I don't think it was a bad movie, but it was not without flaws. The world building not being my type was probably another contributing factor of this.

Another reason for my curiosity of this film is the change of directors. Tim Burton didn't return to direct this movie. Instead, it is being directed by James Bobin. I haven't seen any of his other works, so I honestly didn't know what changes to expect but I was certainly expecting it.

Between the Pages: School of Good and Evil #2 by Soman Chainani

The School for Good and Evil:
A World Without Princes

After reading the first book, I felt obligated at first to read the second book of this series. It became less of an obligation the deeper I got into the story.

As usual, the art is beautiful. Not surprising since it was done by Iacopo Bruno, the same artist from the first book. The plot is also a lot more thrilling for me than the last book. In this book, Chainani is really tearing down the stereotypes.

This book, I think is not only a satire of fairy tales but also the feminism that takes things to the extremes. I never thought it would be something tackled in a book about fairy tales.

While I consider myself a feminist, I do understand that there are some that takes it to the extreme.

I still like pretty dresses, make up and high heels but most people believe that being a feminist is about doing without embracing one's femininity. I believe feminism is about being free to express themselves however they want whether it is in their masculinity or femininity. It is about equality and believing we can be heroes ourselves.

I love this book because it somehow managed to give a silhouette of real life issues without being obvious and deviating from the story. It made made things relatable to females and interesting to guys. I have a younger brother who enjoyed this series about as much as I do.

Write A Dream: Create Your Fairy Tale

Hello, beautiful people! To celebrate the 13 years I spent as a blogger, I decided to hold my first ever competition. If you have read my any of my blogs, you'd know how much I love fairy tales, myths, legends and the fantasy genre. I read books, watch movies and write about them. This time, I would like to read from YOU.

A lot of us probably grew up reading fairy tales. Maybe you read them in school, or fell in love with a Disney movie, or watched a play or performance as a child. And as adults fall in love with them all over again because of movies such as Maleficent, television series such as Once Upon a Time or books such as Gaiman's Coraline. These inspiration still lives on today.

Now, it is your turn. The contest is easy. You create your own original character and story. It can be inspired by a fairy tale, a re-telling or a sequel. If you go with a sequel, I warn you that I am not very fond of sequels though, so you have to make it really good.

The contest starts June 20, 2016, Monday and it ends August 22, 2016, Monday. This means that you have two months to write your entries.

Between the Pages: Keep on Believing by Marie Higgins

"Have you ever wondered what would have happened to Cinderella if she had ran away from her evil stepmother before meeting the Fairy Godmother and before the prince’s ball? Well… In this story, you’ll find out what might have happened. "

Book Summary

Taking some of the family’s jewels, Ella Spencer and her brother left the kingdom in the dead of night, escaping the clutches of their evil stepmother. Ella realized they need a different life than one of a servant. Now living in a new kingdom, Ella believes this is where they can start over again. So far, it’s working…until her brother’s school teacher starts poking his nose into their business. She cannot tell him the truth, yet deep down inside, she feels that he might be her Prince Charming after all, and be the one who’ll save her from danger.

Christopher Morgan is hiding secrets that he never plans to divulge. The sister of one of his students intrigues him, and he can’t keep from wanting to know more about her. When a man comes around asking questions, Chris fears Ella is not safe and he needs to protect her. But he finds that he is the one in need of a dream-come-true. Can he hope that Ella will be the one to rescue him out of his life before these secrets destroy him?

Between the Pages: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Cover of "Fangirl."

I initially had no plans on reading this since it didn't seem like my cup of tea. But while shopping for a book that I could read at the airport while waiting for my friend to arrive, he saw the title and jokingly told me, "You should totally read this. This is so you."

While I don't often advertise it, I admit that I am to some degree a fangirl. My brother has suffered many hours listening to me talk about my favorite characters from movies, shows and books. I say "suffered" because majority of the time I am either screaming or squealing.  He's even locked me out of his room a few times and only my tears could get him to open it again.

Though it probably isn't as bad as I am making it sound. According to my brother even that in a scale of 1-10, I only rate as a 4 or 5. That is not so bad, right?

Between the Pages: School of Good and Evil #1 by Soman Chainani

Cover of "The School of Good and Evil."

If you guessed that I bought this book because of the pretty cover, you are definitely not wrong. The deceptively innocent cover actually fits its overall theme of not judging a book by its cover. I was lucky this time though, since I did end up enjoying the book.

I grew up watching fairy tales and happily-ever-afters, and have always noticed what is famously known as the Disney formula.

The formula basically goes with a story's characters composed of a beautiful princess, an ugly villain and a rescue by a handsome prince or hero. Basically, the princess is pretty useless. A Disney movie usually has two or all three of these elements in their movies.

This book is a satire of that formula. But not the satire Shrek is. In this story, the most beautiful girl in the village is not the princess and the outcast is not the witch. It is a book that teaches the lesson that good and evil is beyond what is skin deep.