Fangirl | Catching Fire Trailer Reactions

Dear Blue:

Happy Hump Day! I hope that you are well, my friend.

You're probably wondering: The Catching Fire trailers released some months ago...where are Britta's rants? Even though I'm years late with my reactions to the three monolithic trailers, don't think I haven't rolled around the floor in sweet agony like you probably have! I think they may have released the trailers backwards,  but each have fully exceeded my expectations. I can barely talk about it without becoming excited and swallowing down tears!  Instead of going over each one, I figured why not smush them together and head to town. 

Let's talk about acting for a second: 

Did we not luck out with this beautiful all star cast? I'm not sure I've ever experienced a cast in a young adult adaptation that are so well suited to their roles. Oh my gosh. Every single emotion that can be gathered from Catching Fire is portrayed in these three trailers by every actor so beautifully that I almost forget Jennifer, Josh, Liam, etc., and only see the story. How many YA films do we get like this, guys? I can't tell you how much I appreciate a YA adaptation that is thoughtful, serious, and not dumbed down by sappy romance (I love a good romance, but too many times producers turn something beautiful into a joke. That bothers me.), merchandise on every street corner, Team arguments. Could a finer actor than Donald Sutherland have played President Snow? I think not. "Her entire species must be eradicated..." gives me chills, and makes me more than a little ticked off. Seeing the emotion in the arena from the final trailer, released last Sunday, had me shaking my head long after I'd finished my tenth viewing of it. The scene with the Jabberjays, and Katniss and Peeta...my gosh. After watching THG, I thought that Josh played Peeta wonderfully, but I wondered if he would be able to pull off the full transformation that Peeta endures over the series. The Jabberjay scene removed any reservation I had. I'll be in tears, and hugging you wherever you are.

On Effects/Settings/Costumes: 

I thought that they did a phenomenal job translating this aspect of the series in the last film, but boy have they upped the ante in Catching Fire. I remember when the photos first released of Effie, Katniss, and Peeta...they looked so beautiful. Cinna's Mockingjay gown...I literally cried during the scene where her wings unfurl (lots of tears in this letter, I know). And Peeta's suit though...his suit!! Freaking, yes! The Capitol seems all the more overwhelming in this film, and seeing as Catching Fire takes us a bit deeper into Capitol politics, it seems very well portrayed in the trailers. I believe it was one of my favorite booktubers Polandbananasbooks who noted that Victor's Village looks a bit like a cemetary...great comparison. Victor's Village is, in someways, paved with the blood of the other tributes-- it's cold, and I'm looking forward to experiencing it on film. Especially the little snippet we have of Peeta and Katniss having to act for the camera's that seem to pop out of the ground in Victor's Village. How creepy is that? They don't even need to pay paparazzi anymore. (*rolls eyes, gesturing to the Capitol*).

On the Soundtrack

This is the only aspect of the film that's disappointing me a little. I was all on board when Coldplay released Atlas. It's a gorgeous song, but it also made me a little worried. A lot of people expressed disdain for THG soundtrack because of its somber undertones, but that's part of the reason I loved it so much. It was quiet, folky, acoustic, and more importantly accomplished capturing the undertones of the book. I'm not sure that Catching Fire's soundtrack does the same, or it's possible that I'm just a sad sack in need of another tearful album. That being said, there are a lot of bands on the soundtrack that I haven't heard of, so I'll have to give it another listen (But, I'm almost sure its not as vinyl worthy as the last film. Yep, I've got that vinyl).

Are you pumped for the movie yet? I am. I've gotten my cousins Mockingjay pins, I've figured out my glamazon Catching Fire themed eyeshadow, and I'm primed to don this uber awesome tee from Hot Topic. I'm set and ready to fly. 

What do you think of the trailers? 

P.S.- Happy early holidays. The red cups are back at Starbucks...run for a Caramel Brulee latte!

Hugs and love,

Lit Rants | Overcoming the Default: Why More Multicultural Lit Needs Showcasing.

Over the past year I noticed two occurrences where authors were questioned or applauded on their decision to make main characters multicultural. Zoraida Cordova was thanked by one of her fans for making the love interest in her series The Vicious Deep, half Ecuadorian, half Greek, and she also discusses what it is to be an Ecuadorian woman writing fantasy in her guest post for Diversity in YA. While Rainbow Rowell, author of what could be the most loved young adult novel in 2013, Eleanor and Park, addressed a question that some wondered regarding why Park is Korean, to which she delivers the best answer: "Because Park is Korean." I don't believe that these questions are even asked in a malicious way, but they are a clue that we see so little Multi-Cultured characters in our novels that it makes us wonder what made the author deviate from the norm. Then there are occurrences where showcasing characters as a different ethnicity meets challenge, e.g. the unbelievable controversy over young Rue in The Hunger Games being cast as a young black girl, when Suzanne Collins herself describes her as having dark brown skin. I admit that whilst reading The Hunger Games before the film, I wasn't even paying attention to many of the different descriptions of characters because it's ingrained in my mind that most will be Caucasian. Upon discovering Amandla Steinberg was cast, I thought she was the most adorable girl! But seeing the challenges this met with, plus rediscovering that the character was painted as having a different ethnic background, it made me question what exactly the problem is.

We don't, hopefully, go around asking our friends or associates, "Hey, why are you black, or Irish, or Puerto Rican...." so why should our literature only boast one race or cultural background? The peeve that I have with any form of questioning like this is the media's saturation of one look, one culture, or one place being the default. If the world comes in a variety of 'settings' why accept one default as normal? It shouldn't have to mean that an author is being 'gimmicky' by adding a character of a different race or background into their story. They are merely presenting the world that we live in. Every one is not white, blond, or blue/brown eyed, or comes from the Western World. We all range from the palest of creams, to the deepest of chocolate browns, and they all should be showcased in fiction, especially Young Adult.

While reading Ink by Amanda Sun, I realized that part of my overwhelmingly refreshed response to it was due to the fact that the setting is Japan, and the main love interest and most supporting characters are Japanese. Traditional tropes in any genre can become cliched if the same molds are used, but when intertwined in different cultures, countries, or ethnicities, can become startlingly fresh. 

As an African American writer, I wonder why some in the world think it strange for me, or any one who isn't Caucasian, to write fantasy, or off the beating path. My question is, why not? I am a black woman who's always loved reading fantastical tales, but have found it lacking in diversity. It can be so alienating to read books where no one looks like you, or has similar experiences to yours, and can often exacerbate stereotypes that may exist for some cultures and ethnicities. I remember being so excited whilst reading The Perfect Chemistry series by Simone Elkeles, to read about Hispanic main characters tackling stereotypes around them, and the similarities that, at the end of the day, bring us all together.

Why can't there be African American/Caribbean fairies, or Hispanic vampires, or Bi-Racial Hogwarts students? Why can't we discover what its like to be an Aboriginal Australian girl/guy in a YA adventure, or have an Icelandic heroine, or an old fashioned treasure hunt in Africa with a Nigerian protagonist? A Taiwanese prince? Who lives in Greenland...what happens there? As much as we adore Britain (my own novel is set in London), or Paris and Italy, I also want to discover something new.  Showcasing more novels where these differences are celebrated can make a world of difference in the minds of readers everywhere. It will give the world something new to discover about the people around them.

Lit Rants: Cover Changes

I'm horrendously late to showcase the new cover changes to the beautiful Anna and the French Kiss series, but I had to show off these beauties. Before I get to my rant, I just want to bask in the loveliness of these new covers. I love these covers about a million times more than the former. Not that I thought them horrible, but I did find that they had a kind of 'judge a book by its cover' quality. When I first came across Anna and the French Kiss, for instance, the title paired with its kind of cheesy cover lessened its intrigue at first. I feel like the new covers are simplistic and colorful. It's possible that these may draw some to the audience that may have once overlooked it upon first sight of the cover. 

And now for the rant: It's seems a growing trend with publishers that once, say, the second novel releases in a series, they feel the need for a facelift. Meanwhile, all of us who have populated our bookshelves with glowing, cohesive covers, either have to start over, or pair series' with mitchmatched counterparts. Thankfully, in terms of this series, I've never bought the print versions, so when I do, I'll be able to buy these fresh beauties. Now the dilemma seems to be whether they will re-release the books in hardcover. At the moment it seems that they will release the first two novels in paperback, while Isla releases with the new cover in hardcover. This whole business makes me mad. I'm finally about to put up my first bookshelf, and I really want this whole series in hardcover. 

What are your thoughts on new covers midway the series?

Lit Rants: Screen Adaptations

So, I'm reading a new novel (hypothetical), the beginning of a brand new series. After I finish, I brimming because I couldn't put it down. I log into GoodReads, and notice the acclaim it's getting. I'm so excited...but then I flinch. Popularity in Young Adult, usually means a series will be optioned for some kind of screen adaptation, and oh, is this bittersweet.

Don't get me wrong, I'm always excited for the author when their work gets optioned. This door opens a new level of acclaim for them. It's every writers dream, even my own. But the business has this way of turning something beautiful and exciting, into something overextended and sickening. Lets look at Twilight. I started reading this series in 2007, right before the madness hit. I remember being highly against turning it into a film, but willing to go along for the ride. Years pass, and not only has the market been steeped in sparkly vampires, and overheated werewolves, we also have Twilight stickers, t-shirts (which I love), toothbrushes, notebooks, and comparisons to other things that it has no business being compared to. I am a rabid Twilight fan, and have been first on line to see every film. I'm even looking forward to picking up my box set. But, the market doesn't seem to know that less is more. A series doesn't have to be plastered along every medium possible to get someone's attention.

The relationship between a series and its fandom (prior to the film) is alluring because you can connect with people who all love the same novel; But you, as an individual can maintain your own unique visioning of it in your imagination. It's commonly said that reading is a personal act, and I can't help but feeling like adapting it to screen causes some of its imaginative magic to fizzle. At once, the fandom stops talking about how awesome the books are. We're now concerned with how attractive the actors are, and the personal lives of said actors begin to intersect with a literary fantasy. Directors/Screenwriters say they want to adapt said novel, but then decide to change the story-line entirely (cue this proposed television adaption of Delirium by Lauren Oliver... appalled, Ladies and Gentlemen). And now arguments ensue between those who read the books, and those who've only watched the film, about things that did or did not occur in said medium. What???

I'm not so much against the adapting of books. There are some series' that are so epic that they, depending on the directors vision, could translate beautifully to film. I am against the commercialized gimmick it causes a book/series to become. I know I'm not alone in saying that I have an even better experience reading something that has not been widespread, nitpicked, and forced down everyone's throat because of a money hungry production company. I wonder if it is possible to turn a highly anticipated book series into a film, without diluting its awesomeness.

What do you guys think of screen adaptions?

P.S. I've just started the Legend series, and I'm thrilled. There's a film coming for this one as well. I think it could be awesome! Review to come....

Have a lovely weekend!