Reading / watching / listening to...

Reading:

* Not From Around Here by Larry Hochwald. Inventiveness is definitely what sets Larry Hochwald's science fiction/horror anthology apart. I just wish the characters and the way they express themselves would have been more mature. Join The Club, a story about a boy who's dared to spend the night in a haunted house, was by far the best of the bundle.

* Master Of The Inn and Inn For The Holidays by Ella Jade. These were really sexy, kinky reads set against autumn and winter settings. A quaint inn, a picnic among the autumn leaves, laying tangled together by the huge picture window watching the snow fall... Ella Jade knows how to make things cozy for her readers... and then cleverly breaks that coziness to introduce you to her kinky games. Highly recommended.

* Cats Of Italy/Gatti d'Italia by Janet Wellington. Janet and I got into contact recently because we both share a passion for feline photography. Collecting all the cats of Italy in a photo essay and adding cat quotes to the whole is definitely an idea that speaks to me. Just a pity that Cats Of Italy/Gatti d'Italia is only available as an eBook.

* Santa Claws by Meg Mims. An evil cat that ruins its owner's Christmas. If this description sounds fun... it's not. Meg Mims never leaves her comfort zone and Santa Claws is seriously lacking surprises.

*A Dog Named Leaf by Allan Anderson. The true story of a man who undergoes brain surgery due to an aneurysm. Not a bad book at all. The author just shouldn't have forced his story around a dog whose impact on his personal changes isn't nearly as important as that of his wife, his past as a cop, and the fear surrounding the surgery.


Watching: 

* Masquerade. In this Korean historical film, set in the era of the Joseon Dynasty, the tyrannical king Gwanghae collapses from a poison, and his body double becomes the new king. Will the newcomer save the country, avoid assassination, and pull off the biggest masquerade in history? This film was recommended to me as a masterpiece. It's a little too long for that (over two hours) as my mind was wandering for the last half hour. The rest of the movie is excellent and extremely funny.

* The Punishment Of Anne / The Image. Holds the middle between a stylish porn film and a drama. It's completely kinky and weird and puts the viewer ill at ease. Loved it. From cult director Radley Metzger.

* All The Colors Of The Dark. In this giallo by Sergio Martino, a blue-eyed maniac with a knife follows a woman wherever she goes. Despite its cult status, All The Colors Of The Dark is rather repetitive and badly acted. The music makes up for a lot of its misses.

* Wrong Turn part 2 and Wrong Turn part 5. The second installment of this horror series about a group of mutated cannibals is highly stereotypical, but unlike many slasher movies, it's not easy to guess who will survive. Part five, on the other hand, was one of the better of the series, especially because the murders were so gruesome.

* Surviving Christmas. This is one of my favorite Christmas movies. Don't judge me.

* The Fury. It's been a good twenty years since I last saw this Brian De Palma movie. While not engaging for its entirety, I particularly liked its atmosphere, aesthetics, and "explosive" ending.

* Contracted. A lesbian girl sleeps with a man and gets infected with a disease that slowly turns her into a zombie. Amateurish acting and questionable cinematic technique made it hard to enjoy this film.

* Safe. Julianne Moore plays a woman who believes she suffers from multiple chemical sensitivity, even though her physician can't find anything wrong with her. She ends up in a new age community that challenges her weak personality even more. Director Todd Haynes succeeds in setting an uneasy mood for this film, but it's Julianne Moore's precise portrayal of the physically and mentally unstable Carol White that really makes us question what is safe in this world.

* The Twilight Zone: The Complete Definitive Collection. I recently received this 28-DVD set as a present and I'm hooked once more. Supernatural stories don't get much better than this.

* Homeland season three. The third season of Homeland builds up slow and ends in fireworks of brilliance and emotion.

* American Horror Story: Season 3 – Coven. I stopped in the middle of this season. So much silliness.


Listening to:

* Word Play by Kormac. I absolutely love the latest CD from this Irish DJ, especially the songs Another Screen and Rainstorm. In the vein of Chinese Man and Wax Tailor.

* Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas. This double CD belonged to my grandfather and we listened to it over and over again every Christmas during the last years of his life. It contains 38 Christmas classics such as Happy Holiday, Here Comes Santa Claus, It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year, and Do You Hear What I Hear? Whenever A Christmas Prayer by Bobby Vinton is on, I picture how he closed his eyes in order to savor this song and how he softly moved his hands through the air to accompany the tone. If there's one CD that brings back beautiful memories, then it's without a doubt Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas.

 * Ultra-Lounge: Christmas Cocktails vol. 1 and Ultra-Lounge: Christmas Cocktails vol. 4. An original big band arrangement of well-known Christmas songs. Even if you don't like Christmas music, you'll at least have to listen to Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer played in mambo-tempo.

What are your favorite eighties songs?
Do you have favorite Christmas books, movies, and music?