Films I Love That Everybody Else Hates

Any film geek worth anything will occasionally find themselves alone in a sea of vitriolic criticism. The one voice of reason who dares to defend that film no one else seems to get. Should you find yourself in that predicament it's good to remember that every geek has at least one of those films on their conscience. Often more.

This is a list of the ten worst offenders from my list. At least, I think these are the worst. I've tried ordering them based on how much hate I get when I defend them, number 1 being the one I feel most alone on.

So, without further ado... Here's the list.

THE LIST

10) Knight and Day (2010)

This feels like the kind of movie Cary Grant would have made 50 years ago, probably with a lot less shooting and killing, though. It's an absolutely hilarious and charming romantic-spy-action-thriller.  The main selling point is the irresistible chemistry between Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz. They are just magical together! Diaz is not the usual ditzy blond, Cruise is not the usual faultless hero (it's clear that he's more than a little nuts), and together they elevate the film far beyond its station.

Just ignore the MacGuffinistic (is that a word?) new energy source plot and the dubious depiction of the inner workings of CIA, don't expect a Bourne movie, focus on the love story, and you will succumb to its charm.

9) The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003)

I never read the comic book this was based on, so I had no preconceived notions of what it should look like or how the characters should behave. Perhaps that's why I instantly fell in love with the film version of this universe.

The film is visually dynamic (no one wold disagree with that, surely), and even though the casting is terribly uneven - either Sean Connery is out of place, or everyone else is - I still enjoy this rip-roaring, old-fashioned adventure story in a modern packaging. And they did Jekyll & Hyde as a practical effect! Brilliant!

8) Hard Rain (1998)

Renowned cinematographer Mikael Salomon decided to hang up his light-meter and turn to directing. This, only his second feature film, was such a massive failure that he would spend the next 15 years (and counting) languishing in TV hell, directing random episodes of random shows, and a couple of high-profile miniseries - the kind you always forget to watch. Consequently this is Salomon's finest hour in the director's chair.

Hard Rain is a decent enough B-movie, with plenty of OTT performances, a suitably ridiculous plot, and some quite striking visuals. It looks and feels like a massive undertaking. These days disaster movies are always about destroying the entire world, and you never believe anything they put up on the screen anymore. Perhaps that's why I keep returning to Hard Rain. It pre-dates today's heavy CGI use, so the scenes comes across as very real. You walk away from the this feeling soaked to the bone, and with a big smile on your face. If you're me, anyway.

7) Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001)

I'll be the first to admit that the "photo-real computer animation" looks about as real as South Park, and that the whole pseudo-religious-new-age-nonsense about gathering spirits is so utterly stupid that I wouldn't wipe my rear with it, if it was printed out on paper, but never mind that.

Aki (voiced by the beautiful Ming-Na) is a likably heroine (even if she doesn't look real), whose mission is a pleasure to follow (even if it is a bit nutty), and I love the sense of doom for mankind that lurks around every corner.

The visuals here are nothing short of stunning. The hardware and the environments are perfectly animated, so it's only the characters' stiff faces you have to get over. Combined with Elliot Goldenthal's brilliant score, this is one pretty damn epic science fiction movie.

6) Crossroads (2002)

Yes, yes, yes, I know. It's a Britney Spears movie, but remember, it's from her good period. Back when she couldn't be stopped, no matter how many times you punched her, and before she turned into a white trash cliché. It also features Zoe Saldana, before she turned blue, and Justin Long, before he was everywhere.

Crossroads is essentially a road movie, where we follow three girls - Spears, Zladana and Taryn Manning - childhood friends who reconnect on the brink of adulthood. They take a cross-country trip to find themselves and do girlie things, like singing into a hairbrush. No-no, I promise you it's quite irresistible.

5) WiseGirls (2002)

Unsurprisingly billed as "a Mariah Carey movie", this is actually Mira Sorvino's movie, and to some extend Melora Walters'. It's a fairly gritty gangster story, where we follow a woman who gets a job at an Italian restaurant in New York, which turns out to be owned by the mob. And then she gets into some serious trouble.

It's not a chick flick, and although it's not Goodfellas either, it's closer to that style than the casting of Carey would have you believe. Actually it's got a few quite gruesome and intense moments.

Directed by David Anspaugh - of Rudy (1993) and Hoosiers (1986) fame - WiseGirls is a descent little drama that gives a solid lead role to Sorvino, whom I've always loved, and she takes full advantage of this, delivering an effective, heartfelt performance.

4) 2010: The Year We Make Contact (1984)

Everyone seems to agree that Peter Hyams' follow-up is inferior to 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) and everyone is wrong.

2001 is a film about space exploration and mankind's first encounter with an alien intelligence, directed by Stanley Kubrick who has no interest in either space exploration, mankind or alien intelligence. 2010 is a better film on almost every level, except when it comes to pretentiousness and boring pointless scenes. Kubrick still wins in those categories.

2010 is full of lovely designs, magnificent visual effects and a fascinating plot! Unlike Kubrick Hyams actually wants to tell us a story, with characters we can relate to, which makes all the difference. And if you love the books, the film is the only one that captures the spirit of Arthur C. Clark's stories.

3) Legion (2010)

The basic plot "we're up shit creek on a diner in the middle of nowhere" feels very familiar, but when you add angels and demons fighting a bloody battle for mankind, then you've really got something! A mercurial mix old and new, thematically similar to The Prophecy (1995) (and - full disclosure, my own film), but much more elaborate. Turning the dim-witted idea of religion into something usable - the basis for an action oriented horror apocalypse movie - is an honorable mission, and the only way to make a satisfying film about heaven and hell.

Legion features some gruesome demonic moments, and scores extra points for committing fearlessly to its core concept, even as it is taken to an almost ridiculous extreme. Plus any film that gives a job to both Paul Bettany and Dennis Quaid is alright in my book.

2) Red Planet (2000)

Another space movie! Another space exploration movie even. Those are the best kind, aren't they? Okay so the basic concept "let's make breathable air on Mars and move there" is slightly wonky, but no matter. Red Planet is hardcore, unapologetic science fiction. It's got a dangerous, almost suicidal mission, survival on a foreign planet, and the whole thing is topped off with just a hint of a love story. Val Kilmer is surprisingly likable and low-key as the robot-wrangler and heroic lead, while Carrie-Anne Moss giver her character just the right mix of sexy bossiness and maternal instincts.

I'm sure that other Mars film - Brian De Palma's awful Mission to Mars - is to blame for the giant crosshairs on this film's back. If De Palma hadn't ruined everything, Red Planet would undoubtedly have been a blockbuster of extraterrestrial proportions.

1) Surviving Christmas (2004)

This is the perfect Christmas film, there I said it. The look on James Gandolfini's face is ME for the entire duration of December. The absurd dynamic that develops, when Ben Affleck's overeager executive buys a family to relive his childhood Christmas, is completely in sync with the absurd nature of the real-life Christmas rituals we're all forced to got through.

It makes fun of the hypocrisy of Christmas, ridicules the pitiful fools who take it too serious, and yet somehow brings it all around and manages to leave you with a nice dose of Christmas mood, free of the yokes of materialism and forced gift-giving. What's not to love?

WRAP-UP

This list was inspired by my friend Alexander's admission that he loves The Village! Yes, the M. Night Schamalama abomination - the one with the Shed That Shall Not Be Named! Can you believe it?! Well, as he pointed out, we've all got a list of titles we love that everyone else hates. Before I can make fun of other people's lists, it seems only fair that I should publish my own. So here it is, for all to see.

Feel free to trash me in the comments below, but know this: Only comments from those who volunteer a title from their own list will be published.

Podcast Review: Starburst Radio Podcast

Geek heaven or the most infuriating show ever? Or both?

Every week Starburst editor Mike (Jordan) Royce and co-editor Kris Heys sit down for three hours to talk about sci-fi, horror, and fantasy on Manchester Radio Online. The program is a tie-in with the recently revived printed Starburst Magazine, and though it's available as a podcast, it's produced as a live broadcast Sunday night, complete with music interludes.

So far so good.

The content of the show is a satisfying mix of geek news, Dr. Who discussions, pointless (but awesome) nerdy discussions, comic book talk, movie news, so-called reviews and so-called listener feedback.

But be warned, this is a very nerdy show, and it has MANY problems.

STRUCTURE

The laid-back discussions are simultaneously the show's strength and its biggest weakness. There is NO structure or sense of order. That might work in a brief show, but THREE HOURS of aimless nerd bickering is a little rough. They'll often announce a segment - news or a review - only to get instantly distracted and talk about something completely different for an hour.

When they do get around to the subject at hand, their discussions are often so unfocused that they simply go around in circles and repeat the same point over and over again, or they just get lost in their own arguments, resulting in some quite preposterous and erroneous statements, or sometimes just plain nonsense.

These folks can spend 30 minutes discussing if Indiana Jones and Star Wars are part of the same universe, because there's an extra in The Phantom Menace who sort of looks like Indy. I don't think it's because they don't know what an inside joke is, it's just that they get SO caught up in details that they completely miss the big picture.

Also, here's a free programming tip for you: One person screaming "no one cares", while the other constantly hammers on a ridiculous point, does not constitute content. Get those things sorted out before the mikes go live.

Another part of the show is feedback. The listeners are encouraged to call in, e-mail or tweet live, but more often than not this part of the show deteriorates into reading random tweets and spam e-mails, and getting all giddy when one of their friends mention them online. Having listened to some 15 shows, I have yet to experience a proper, focused film review, a descent feedback section or anything resembling a structured show.

ATTITUDE

The biggest problem with the show is the attitude and style of the hosts. In this respect the Starburst Radio podcast is the audio equivalent of internet comments. This goes triple for the lead host Mike Royce.

These guys are just not radio savvy. They talk like you would talk to an old friend, when you know no one is listening, NOT when you're speaking to a whole bloody radio audience. They often display a stunning lack of decency and common sense. They're brash, incredibly rude, and quite petty, especially if they talk about something they don't like, or if anyone disagrees with them.

In fact it's quite unbelievable how nasty and brutally offensive they get when a tweet or mail arrives with a critique. No, I mean NASTY. Vicious derogatory comments, insinuating perverted sexual behavior, and even encouraging murder on at least one occasion. Just to be clear: This vitriol is often directed at similar geeks, who just happen to disagree with the hosts. It's not even uncommon for them to trash friends or acquaintances in that dishonest "we're-joking-but-we-kinda-mean-it-a-little-bit" attitude, revealing alcohol consumption and other private matters. Meanwhile celebrities and movies are frequently labeled as "sh*t" or "rubbish", and don't get Mr. Royce started on any of Starburst Magazine's competitors! Those discussions will reduce him to a 2 year old who has discovered that excrement will stick to the wall if you throw it hard enough - as an example, he refers to Total Film as Scrotal film.

You think I'm joking, right? Well, listen to this clip from the show, a fair representation of what it sounds like when they really lay into someone:

A clip from the show

Even more disturbing is their shockingly cavalier attitude towards illegal downloading. They will simply flat out recommend that people get certain TV shows and films illegally, even bragging about not paying for this or that.

AUDIO QUALITY

Finally we need to address the audio quality.

Every show sounds like it's the first one they've ever done. They've managed to do an ENTIRE three hour show, where one of the hosts is completely unintelligible, because he's too far away from the microphone, while the other host's sound constantly crackles because he's too loud.

When you're doing an AUDIO podcast, the very least you can do is make sure the audio actually works! Don't they know any better, or don't they take any pride in their work? I can't tell. I've had to give up on one or two shows, simply because of audio issues.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Wait - that's it? Only "bad and ugly", no "good"? 

It's hard to point to something in the show that just plain works. Yet, in spite of these issues, I find myself tuning in every week. For all their MANY flaws, these guys are still my peeps, and they do get some nice coherent conversations going every now and then, and I want to support an endeavor like this.

Still, I'm not sure what Starburst Magazine hopes to accomplish with this show. If the aim is to support the content of the magazine and extend its reach, the guys need to rethink their approach. This will do nothing more than alienate the fan boys who constitute their bread and butter.

There's great potential in the show, but in order to achieve greatness, the Starburst Podcast will have to solve a few key issues:

1. They need make a proper plan for each show.
2. Their attitude needs to improve.
3. And they need a tech guy.

Fix this, and you'll have a winner on your hands. I'll keep listening for the time being, but not because of what the show is, but because of what it can become.

How To Be a Pretentious Film Geek on Facebook

INT. FRENCH CAFE - AFTERNOON

Spend any amount of time discussing movies on the interwebs - Facebook in particular - you'll notice a certain pattern emerging, especially when you're dealing with self-important film geeks. For someone like myself, who actually enjoy movies and love Hollywood escapism, it can be a little difficult to keep up, so with help from a few friends I've put together this guide.

Follow these simple rules, and you too can pretend to be a pretentious film geek on Facebook.

CUT TO:

The first rule

Only post about "important" and obscure film. We all need to kick back with a good Steven Segal film every now and then, just to stay sane, but be careful not to mention that kind of film on Facebook.

The tantalizing title rule

When mentioning non-English films - meaning more or less all the time - be sure to use the original title. Pick the most obscure if there's more than one.

The knowingly namedrop rule

Always describe a film as "director-name's "title" (year)". This will make the film sound more important. It makes it sound as if you subscribe to the auteur theory (that sounds French, which is good), and gives the impression that you know the director and his work, I mean, you KNOW him.

The less-than-obvious link rule

Always provide a link when you post about a film, but never just use the IMDb link. Find a poster, preferably a French one. Or link to a subtitled YouTube video.

The critical critique rule

Say bad things about good films, say good things about obscure film, say obscure things about bad films.

The ferocious frequency rule

People notice when you post something. They don't notice when you don't post something, so compress a few days of film watching and post them all on the same day, with two hour intervals, to make it appears as if you have a very important film marathon.

Make sure no automatic Xbox achievements are posted on your wall in the interim.

The always have alternatives rule

Cover the fact that you haven't been watching movies, because Discovery is running an American Chopper marathon by posting links to obscure bootleg soundtracks and claim you're "dreaming yourself away to Venice in the 15th century".

The overzealous sentence rule

Use many words. Like so: "The themes are quite nihilistic, in a post-modern, cathartic sense. The overt anthropomorphism notwithstanding." No I don't know what that means either, but no one will challenge you if you make your posts complicated enough.

Use phrases like , "mise-en-scène", "Cinéma vérité", "enfant terrible" and "je ne sais quoi." Anything French really. Also throw in terms like: "Narrative structure", "neo-realism", "new wave", or "pre-Code." Talk about themes as often as possible.

Don't just write "I'm watching Die Hard for the 20th time." Instead, make it seem as if the fact that you're watching this film is the single most important event happening in the world right now. For example: "I'm watching incarcerated director John McTiernan's brilliantly subversive ode to modern action movies Le Die Hard (1988) for the umpteenth time, while pondering if things had turned out differently had a stockbroker really thrown himself out of that window."

The short rule

Or go for the minimalistic approach.

"Dramatic. Introspective. Trains. Cooking." (This obviously refers to Under Siege 2).

The top 10 films rule

These are the top pretentious titles you must mention at some point:

• Blow-Up (1966)
• Boudu Saved from Drowning (1932)
• The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972)
• I am Cuba (1964)
• Jules and Jim (1962)
• M (1931)
• Man with a Movie Camera (1929)
• Nanook of the North (1922)
• The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928)
• That Obscure Object of Desire (1977)

I use the English titles here, which obviously you must never do.

The top 10 directors rule

Basically, as long as you claim to watch anything by these guys, you'll be fine. Got nuts, you can't go wrong (except if you confuse John Cassavetes with his son Nick).

• Michelangelo Antonioni
• Ingmar Bergman
• John Cassavetes
• Sergei Eisenstein
• Rainer Werner Fassbinder
• Federico Fellini
• Jean-Luc Godard
• Akira Kurosawa
• Yasujirō Ozu
• Jean Renoir

Also...

Anything Swedish from before 1980 is fine, as well as anything silent (No, not Mel Brooks' Silent Movie).

Avoid anything popular, like Star Wars, Batman movies, Spielberg movies, any box-office hit, or Citizen Kane (it's just too damn popular).

And finally...

Whenever possible mention your own unseen art-film project.

CUT TO:

FINAL THOUGHTS

Being a pretentious film geek on Facebook is hard work. Never just sit back and enjoy a film, there's no time for that. Always find an angle in what you're watching. And remember: If you're having fun, you're not doing it right.

The Coolest Movie Hardware Ever

- The Emergency Destruct System of The Nostromo

So I was watching Alien (1979) the other day to prepare for my weekly podcast, when a certain special scene came up. Every time this scene comes up, I always tune out a little bit. It's the one where Ripley must activate the Nostromo's self-destruct.

In the midst of Alien attacks and people dying left and right, I always pause for a moment here, fascinated by the hardware at the center of the scene: The Emergency Destruct System. The only thing more fascinating than the design of this device is how insanely complicated it is to activate! Really! It's a miracle anybody ever blows up a ship! Then again, perhaps that's the desired effect, these ships are rather expensive, you know.

As my good friend and fellow podcaster Dennis Rosenfeld points out, it's also rather disturbing that a spaceship would even need this function. If catastrophic disasters happen often enough to build such a device into every ships, I sure hope there's some decent hazard pay involved.

But I digress.

To help you in case you find yourself on an M-Class star-freighter and need to activate the self-destruct, and because I have no serious articles ready, let's look at how you operate this cool piece of hardware.

Emergency Destruct System Activation Procedure

1. First you have to punch the big red knob. A hatch will spring open. Pull the lever behind it.

2. Then you need to unscrew two screws that hold a cover in place. Remove the cover, and pull both levers you find there. They will give you resistance, put some muscle into it. This will make the primary activation panel pop up. For your convenience this has been located in the floor, in case you're bleeding so much you can't stand.

3. Read the instructions carefully before proceeding. I'm gonna say that again. Read. The. Instructions. Carefully.

At this point it's assumed that you've already warned your shipmates (the ones who aren't dead), who should be located in the ship's emergency escape shuttle. Also, any pets should be secured in a company approved carry-case and placed on the shuttle, but wait until the last moment to do this.

4. After reading the instructions, press a series of random buttons with odd symbols. (Avoid the one looking like an umbrella. It will activate the sprinkler system.) The four nuclear bolts will pop up.

5. Activate the nuclear heads. Take bolt 1, screw it into hole 1, and pull up nuclear head 1. Activate, by flipping the little switch, located behind the little hatch. Repeat this procedure with bolts 2 through 4.

Note that at this point a detached female voice will begin an annoying countdown. Also, flashing graphics will appear on every monitor in sight. Don't panic, this is normal.

The self-destruct is now activated. (Actually, the self-destruct will activate BEFORE you're finished with all four bolts. This is being worked on. Version 2.0 will not have this problem.)

6. That's it, you're all done. Now run.

THE FINE PRINT

The overload will take exactly 10 minutes. After 5 minutes you will no longer be able to stop the destruct mechanism. This is rather inconvenient since it will take you exactly 5 minutes and 3 seconds to run to the escape shuttle, realize you've made a mistake, run back and deactivate the self-destruct.

So once again, you REALLY have to be sure, before you turn it on.

Also, please note that screaming at the computer will not help anybody.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Is it just me, or does it seem rather silly to have to go through such an elaborate process to blow up a ship? I mean, if it comes to that, you must be in quite a hurry to get the hell out of there. I would also like to point out that the activation requires no codes or identification. Anybody can basically turn this thing on!

Also notice that even though this is obviously an English-speaking crew, the arming instructions are also presented in French!

In fact, Ripley appears to read off the French version when she attempts to deactivate the device. Could this be the reason she fails?

Anyway, the practical applications of this device notwithstanding, this is still the coolest piece of movie hardware ever, and now you know exactly how to operate it next time you need to blow up a spaceship.

You're welcome.

Gigantic Star Wars Related Movie Geek Books

INT. BOOKSTORE - STAR WARS ISLE - DAY

Take a big gulp of the nostalgia cup with me.

A few weeks back a book landed on my doorstep with a clunk. It was The Making of The Empire Strikes Back, by J. W. Rinzler. This could quite possibly be the best book ever made.

Flipping casually through the pages, I'm taken back to a more simple time. Back when I lived and breathed Star Wars every day. Back then I wanted nothing more than a speeder bike, so I could impress everyone at school, and I thought Princess Leia was the most beautiful woman in the world.

Sigh.

As I sit here and gush over this book, I can't help but look over at my bookshelf, which is struggling to carry the weight of a dozen similar, wonderful books. So I figured, why not write a blog about the best of them?

Now, full disclosure, I haven't read all of these, not cover to cover, I mean. I bring them out every now and then, to look at the pictures and read selected parts of the text, but people do that with the Bible as well, so I'm good, right?

CUT TO:

MY ALL TIME FAVORITE BIG A** FILM BOOKS

The Making of Star Wars

By J. W. Rinzler

This is the prequel (NO! Sorry, I used the bad word). Scratch that. This is the predecessor to the book that spawned this blog.

In this day and and age, with The Google and The Wiki only a click away, it's great to see that some people still value a hardcover brick tome such as this. Author J. W. Rinzler had unprecedented access to the Lucasfilm Archives, which seems to contain every single scrap of paper Lucas every wrote. He also had access to hours of interviews conducted in the late 70's, which has never been released before.

I would literally have killed for this book when I was a kid.

The Art of The Empire Strikes Back

Edited by Deborah Call, text by Vil Bulluck and Valerie Hoffman

This one has a special place in my heart. It was the first REAL movie geek book I ever got. I checked with my mum, and she said I was twelve. It was the first time I got an appreciation for the development of a design. It was the first time I realized that what ends up on the screen is developed through a process.

The book does contain some text, but otherwise it mostly consists of images and sketches. I could look at these for hours, and I have! I guess the new Empire book has made this redundant, but flipping through the pages still brings me back. (On an odd note, this book is far better than the ones for Star Wars and Return of the Jedi, which both include the screenplay for the films, at the expense of some explanatory text.)

The Star Wars Vault

by Stephen J. Sansweet and Peter Vilmur

This is a geeky as it gets. You have to see this book to believe it. You have to actually touch it. The cover claims it contains "thirty years of treasures from the Lucasfilm Archives, with removable memorabilia and two audio CDs"!

It's unbelievable. The book is stuffed with hundreds of unique photos celebrating the nerdiness that is Star Wars. We get reproductions of old programs, handwritten notes, stickers, cardboard model planes, and all kinds of glitter! You can flip through this book fifty times, and still discover new things. So epically cool!

Sculpting a Galaxy: Inside the Star Wars Model Shop

by Lorne Peterson

It's heartbreaking to flip through this book. Why? Because the shop that produced all these wonderful things doesn't exist anymore. The Industrial Light & Magic model shop closed in 2006, and ILM is now only a computer farm.

Anyway, back to the book.

All the famous star ships, vehicles, and creatures are covered here, with behind the scene photos of their creation, and text that explains the thinking that went into each design, but honestly, you'll be too fascinated by the pictures to care. Just look at those gorgeous images that lets us appreciate every inch of these beautiful models in close-up. The craftsmanship is mind-boggling.

Industrial Light & Magic: The Art of Special Effects

By Thomas G. Smith

I bought this book almost 20 years ago. As I have stated before on these pages I'm absolutely in love with old school, photo-chemical effects and this book is one of the reasons why.

Thomas G. Smith, who used to be general manager at Industrial Light & Magic, writes in a simple, fairly non-technical language. He carefully explains the complicated work that went into old school visual effects, taking each category of effects one by one. He gives the reader a great overview, but also goes into specific details about specific shots, which is really where you learn some interesting stuff.

Naturally every page is lavishly illustrated with tons of behind the scenes photos from ILM. Every film nerd should read this book, and fall in love with that old film magic too.

The Invisible Art: The Legends of Movie Matte Paintings

By Mark Cotta Vaz adn Craig Barron

And speaking of old school effects, here is the cream of the crop!

Focusing exclusively on "matte paintings" this book traces the history of this wonderful technique from the early days of film making to the modern digital age. It describes how the old masters worked under the studio system, how the technique became a mainstay in Hollywood, creating incredible images of places that didn't exist, or simply lending a helping hand to studios during the war, when they couldn't afford to build sets.

The book is full of large images, and plenty of "before and after" shots that really let's you appreciate the miracle of a good matte painting.

The Complete Making of Indiana Jones

By J. W. Rinzler

Finally we can't cover gigantic movie books without including this one, despite the fact that it's not Star Wars related at all.

J. W. Rinzler, who wrote both the Empire book and the Star Wars book, was once again given unlimited access to the Lucasfilm Archives (Gosh! That must be a wonderful place), resulting in an exhaustive book that covers all four Indy films in great detail, with interviews, behind the scene photos and plenty of trivia.

CUT TO:

FINAL THOUGHTS

When people talk about everything going digital, books disappearing, and everyone reading stuff on a .5 inch mobile phone screen I just shake my head. NOTHING can replace the experience of sitting with books like these, and I hope they NEVER stop making them.

And finally... Can I say it? No, I can't say it, it's too nerdy. Screw that, I'm gonna say it...

May The Force be with you!

FADE TO BLACK.