My Take on Barbenheimer

I wasn't into Barbies or most dolls when I was a girl; I preferred books and stuffed animals. I'm also not into military history the way my husband and son are. Nevertheless, I knew we would be seeing Oppenheimer as a family (especially since I'm the one with the AMC app and account). Once I became aware of the Barbenheimer phenomenon, I decided I wanted to be a part of it. Since my husband works on Saturdays, we normally go to the movies Saturday night. I wound up watching Barbie by myself Saturday morning and seeing Oppenheimer with my family that evening. I even wore pink-and-black to mark the occasion, and my manicure was pale pink with black crow nail stickers.

The two movies are so wildly different in tone I don't need to point it out. Barbie was fun to watch, with plenty of pop culture references even I caught. I appreciated the feminism and diversity in it, though you can't fully discuss gender roles without considering non-binary and transgender viewpoints too. I was a little disappointed in the ending, since it didn't commit to gender equality and prioritized body parts over other aspects of being human.

As for Oppenheimer, it's a much longer, more complicated movie, jumping between three storylines (Oppenheimer's life and work, the kangaroo hearing to discredit him, and Strauss's failed Cabinet confirmation hearing.) Of the three, I preferred the main one focusing on Oppenheimer's career and thought the Strauss subplot least relevant, even if it was part of the book the movie is based on. Since the movie is rated R, I expected violence but not the frontal nudity and simulated sex. I'm not sure what my 16-year-old son thought about that. After the movie, my son asked to get the audio version of the book, so he's interested in other parts of the story, at least. We have the paperback too, but I have so many other books to read that I won't be getting to it for a long time, if ever. However, if you want to learn more about women's contributions to the Manhattan Project, I recommend The Girls of Atomic City.

While Barbie is my favorite of the two movies, I'm glad I was able to watch both of them. If you saw either or both movies, what did you think? Feel free to comment below.

Evolution in Science Fiction

My family and I saw Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 3, last weekend. While the scenes with animal experimentation were disturbing, overall it was better than I expected. I liked the storyline, and I always enjoy seeing Mantis and Drax interact. However, the main villain's project in evolution is not scientifically accurate for several reasons. I'll try to state them in a non-spoiler way:

1. Natural selection may work on individuals of a species, but that doesn't mean individuals evolve. Individuals have traits that make them more or less suited to their environment, which in turn affects their ability to pass those traits down to the next generation. Natural selection needs a context in which to work.

2. Mutations can appear in individuals that affect their ability to survive, but most of these either have no effect or a harmful one. Radiation or chemicals can increase the mutation rate, but an affected individual doesn't keep popping out random changes in body type. It's very unlikely that you could take an adult individual and make it change its body plan or develop new traits by mutating it. If you really wanted to create a new species, you'd have to change the genetic material in a fertilized egg and let it develop and mature.

3. Evolution doesn't happen with an end goal in mind. Humans are a twig on a bush, not the top of a tree. There are millions of other species that are extremely well-adapted to their niches, have traits that we would envy (better senses than ours, flight, ability to breathe underwater, etc.), and have been around much longer than us.

4. Genetics may set the potential for an individual, but the environment plays an important role in an individual's development. If you want to develop intelligent individuals, you need to meet their biological needs and also give them a stimulating environment.

I'm not just picking on this movie; I have long felt that the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Genesis," which features the crew "de-evolving," was bad biological science. It's possible that the writers portrayed evolution acting on adult individuals for visual effects and emotional involvement in the story. However, the writers might not have been familiar with the principles of evolution to begin with. Given that evolution is being dropped from some science textbooks in India, that trend may only get worse.

How well do you think evolution is portrayed in science fiction? Can you think of examples where it's done accurately? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.

My Thoughts on The Rise of Skywalker (Spoilers)

Happy Christmas Eve, everyone! Since Christmas is tomorrow, I figured I'd post a day early. And what better to post about than The Rise of Skywalker? My family and I saw it Friday night and will see it again tonight. I'll summarize what I liked and didn't like about the movie after my first viewing. There may be some spoilers, but I'll try to keep them brief.

Things I Liked

Leia--This was supposed to be her movie, so I'm glad they were able to find a way to incorporate her and give her a heartfelt sendoff.

Seeing Favorite Aliens--It might be fan service, but I still enjoyed seeing Porgs and Jawas, even if for an instant.

The Climax--I can't talk about this without giving away a lot of the movie, but there were quite a few moments of awesome there.

Kylo's/Ben's Arc--Maybe it wasn't a complete redemption, but we did get to see how he and Rey are two sides of a single coin.

Things I Didn't Like

Pacing--Especially in the first half of the movie, I felt like we jumped from place to place without enough time to process everything. It wasn't always clear who was going where--characters would be onscreen without explanation.

No Explanation for Palpatine's Reappearance--This should have been foreshadowed earlier in the trilogy, IMO. How did he survive, and why did he wait so long to return?

Too Many New Characters--While I liked Janna, I felt like she was used to replace Rose, who should have had more screen time. I would have preferred more time and character development for established characters.

Rey's Backstory--Honestly, I would have been happy leaving it with what we saw in The Last Jedi. I like the idea of the Force being accessible by "nobodies" instead of just those from a special bloodline.

I went into this movie not knowing what to expect. I liked it, but my favorite movie in the saga is still The Empire Strikes Back.

If you've seen The Rise of Skywalker, what did you think of it? What's your favorite Star Wars movie? Feel free to share in the comments.

An Ending Like Endgame (No Spoilers)

It already feels like it's been a while since I saw Avengers: Endgame with my family. We were able to find tickets for the Friday of opening weekend. I made my son this scaled-down version of the Infinity Gauntlet to take to the theater. We enjoyed the movie and plan to see it again this weekend.

We're fairly recent fans of the MCU. I was able to see Black Panther and Infinity War in the theaters, but my son didn't get into the movies until last fall. We're mostly caught up (we own most of the movies), although there are a few movies that I need to rewatch because I missed sections while I was doing other things.

Finishing a story arc that spans eleven years and twenty-two films is no easy task. I like that the directors threw some twists in at the beginning and that we got to see the characters react to what happened in Infinity War. What really made the movie work for me was how it revisited key places and events from earlier, as they worked well to show how much the characters have changed over the series. I've read series-ending books that have also revisited key people and places, but the character development wasn't so noticeable in them.

Since seeing the movie, I've read some of the articles about it, both in praise of it and some that are more critical. I think they make some good points (my biggest complaint is that characters' combat abilities feel inconsistent with what we've seen in earlier movies, as if the plot was manipulated a bit to force how it would end), but I really need to see Endgame again so I can pick up more details.

If you saw Endgame, what did you think of it? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.

Video: A Hard Day's Night

Since it's been a hard day's night at work the last couple of days, I'm having trouble coming up with something to blog about for today. So here's the opening to the Beatles' movie A Hard Day's Night. Enjoy!

https://youtu.be/PeWS5HtCpU4

The Golden Age of Fandom

My son did something on Friday night that almost had me ask him what he'd done with the real Alex. He's always been indifferent to antipathetic about superhero movies, but on Friday night, he wanted to see Black Panther. We ended up getting the digital version on Amazon. Now we're discussing whether to go straight to Infinity War or start at the beginning with Iron Man. (We're going to skip to Infinity War.) You may remember that earlier this year I had to see those movies by myself in the theater because my son didn't want to go, so while I'm not a big Marvel fan myself, I am glad that he's expanding his fandoms. Hopefully this doesn't lead to him abandoning Star Wars; it's become a big part of our family by now.

When I Google "The Golden Age of Fandom," the top hits are all about comics or movies, not about stages in a person's life. I'm not sure if it's still true that the preteen years are the peak season for fandom. If anything, adulthood and a steady income allow one to buy collectibles on a whim and attend conventions. Parenthood certainly leads to a decline in disposable income, but if a child becomes interested in superheroes, Disney, Star Wars, Harry Potter, or any other fantasy world, they may rekindle a parent's interest or develop something new.

As a girl, I read all sorts of books, but I particularly remember reading Andre Norton's work along with the Oz series and other fantasy books. I didn't become heavily invested into science fiction/fantasy until my late teens/early twenties. As a middle-aged mom, I don't have the time or energy to feel intensely about a particular fandom, but I still care about the field. I think too that as a reader who follows her own interests, not just the best-sellers, I find less of a fandom for some of my favorite series. I can enjoy them even if I don't always find fellow fans to share them with.

Anyway, when did you enter fandom, and what brought you into it? Feel free to share in the comments.

Jurassic World: Fallen Kindom--Review by Stan, Rex, and Oscar

Stan: Hi, I'm Stan, the T-Rex. I was named after an actual T-Rex fossil.

Rex: I'm Rex the brachiosaurus. Don't confuse me with Stan. I was actually named after Captain Rex from The Clone Wars.

Oscar: And I'm Oscar the Orca. I'm the oldest, and I wasn't named after anybody.

Stan: So, last week, our family took us to see Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. It was awesome! There were T-rexes and raptors and...

Rex: ...and not enough sauropods. (sniffs) How could they leave the sauropods behind? So tragic....

Oscar: They didn't have enough room on the boats for such big creatures, Rex. And Stan, you know the people only wanted the carnivores to make money from them.

Stan: Well, you know what I want from humans, Oscar? Lunch!

Oscar: Yeah, there was a whole lot of lunching going on, though I think it would be more accurate to say midnight snacking.

Stan: There were people running everywhere, afraid of us!

Rex: And there were a whole lot of dinos and other animals on the island...

Oscar: But really, it was just like all the other movies in this franchise. Sure, they threw in a couple of twists at the end, but they didn't discuss them in detail.

Stan: This is an action movie, Oscar, not a thinking movie!

Oscar: Well, next time, can we see a thinking movie?

Rex: I think it's usually what the kid wants to see, Oscar. So we'll probably go see this again and again while it's in the theater.

Oscar: Sigh.

Stan: T-Rex wins! T-Rex always wins! Rrrrarrrhhhrrr!

Some Thoughts on Solo:: A Star Wars Story

I have to admit Han Solo never appealed to me much, so my expectations for Solo: A Star Wars Story weren't high. It turned out to be an OK movie, though I liked The Last Jedi better.

Solo starts with Han already a teenager/young adult, part of a street gang and in love with another member, Qi'ra. When Han manages to steal a small amount of a precious fuel, he uses the opportunity to get off planet. Unfortunately, Qi'ra is forced to remain behind at the last moment, leaving Han determined both to become the best pilot in the galaxy and to go back for her. To meet these goals, he first joins Imperial forces (we don't get to see much of that part of the story, even though he's enlisted for three years), he deserts to pull off caper after caper.

The pacing of the movie was pretty good. Some of the opening shots were quite dark, but otherwise the visuals and effects were also good. I particularly liked the droid L3, who is female, quite opinionated, and has a too-brief appearance in the movie. Lando was also well-done, matching what we see of him in The Empire Strikes Back.

 Han gets the surname "Solo" when he enlists in the Imperial forces. (It's odd that he mentions his father later on in the movie but doesn't want to acknowledge belonging to anyone.) Although belonging and betrayal are themes in the movie, I may have missed some of the dialogue developing those themes. I'm sure I'll get a chance to listen to the dialogue when we return to the theater for multiple viewings.

If you saw the movie this weekend, what did you think of it? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.

Thanos' Motives and Actions (Infinity War Spoilers)

 I'm very much a newcomer to the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe), so I've only seen two of the previous movies (the first Guardians of the Galaxy and Black Panther) and a highlight video before watching Infinity War on Sunday. While I have enough background to follow the story, I'm sure there are a lot of nuances I missed. In particular, since this movie focused on Thanos, I feel like I need to learn more about his motivations to understand some of the actions he took (or didn't take).

For starters, it seemed to me that once Thanos obtained the Reality Stone, he could have eliminated his opponents anytime he liked. If he could turn their weapons into bubble guns, there are definitely plenty of other ways he could have made his path to the rest of the stones much smoother. Maybe I don't know enough about the stones' power to understand what, if any, limits they have. It does seem to me that their power increases exponentially as you acquire more of them.

Another question I have about Thanos' actions was inspired by a discussion I saw on someone else's Facebook feed. If Thanos wants to kill off half of the universe's population so everyone else has enough resources, why not double the amount of resources instead? Or why not set a cap on the sentient population of the universe to be below the total carrying capacity? There are plenty of other, more compassionate ways you can solve this problem without causing such a massive amount of genocide--though then you wouldn't have a cinematic-worthy conflict. I think I heard a line in the movie about a similar mass murder on Titan, so perhaps Thanos is just repeating something from his personal experience.

For me, part of the reason I'm obsessed with analyzing Thanos is because he's such a powerful antagonist. As a writer, it's important for me to develop the villain's motivations and actions as much as the hero's. The line between hero and villain can be very narrow at times. Just as the hero gets funneled down a particular pathway during the course of a story, the same must happen to a villain. Sometimes the only difference between a hero and a villain is what the character learns over the course of a story and how that influences her final choice.

If you saw the movie, what did you think about it? Did you feel Thanos made a good villain? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.

Wakanda Worldbuilding

This weekend was super busy, as I participated in three Star Wars troops. Here are a couple of pictures from the troop on Sunday. (I'm the kneeling Jawa in the top picture and the shortest officer in the bottom one--yes, I switched costumes mid-troop.) However, I managed to find time Sunday morning to see Black Panther. 

Before I share my thoughts on the movie, I'd like to mention that I don't see many superhero movies these days (still haven't had a chance to watch Wonder Woman or Guardians of the Galaxy 2), and although I've read a little about Black Panther and Wakanda online prior to seeing the movie, I'm very much a newcomer to this world.

My favorite character (and favorite part of the movie) was Shuri. How can you not love a female scientific genius with an attitude? I'd love to see her be the protagonist of her own stories. In comparison, T'Challa, though noble and admirable, seemed almost too perfect to me.

To me, Wakanda was the key part of the movie. I was definitely intrigued by the mix of green trees, traditional items and customs, and advanced technology in the cities. However, I wanted more background on this country. What other factors beside vibranium shaped Wakandan history? How much influence did tribal customs, Bast, and other factors have in making Wakanda so advanced while the country hid its true nature from the rest of the world? I'll probably have to track down comics collections or graphic novels to find these answers. Hopefully C2E2 will be a good place to learn more about Wakanda--and enjoy Black Panther cosplay.