Bookish Fun: The Hunger Games and Snow White

You've probably seen The Hunger Games trailer a million times by now. I know I have (well, at least 11 times, anyway). How freaking awesome does it look?! Here's what I love about it:

• Jennifer Mother Loving Lawrence as Katniss Mother Effing Everdeen. Amazeballs. Perfect in every way. The moment when she volunteers... that is Katniss!
• Liam Hemsworth as Gale. He doesn't have to do much other than be spunky, and he does that pretty damn well.
• PRIM! She's adorable and perfect and breaks my heart.
• RUE! She's adorable and perfect and breaks my already broken heart even more.
• Lenny Kravitz is totally the Cinna I saw in my head.
• The costumes and scenery all look amazing and definitely bring to life the world built by Suzanne Collins.
• I'm still not totally behind Josh Hutcherson as Peeta, but the emotion on his face when his name is pulled out in the Reaping is spot on.
• Stanley Awesomesauce Tucci. I kinda wanna marry him.
• The glimpse of Peeta and Katniss talking on the roof. Squee! I love that scene.
• Katniss' salute and the response from the crowd.
• The way they set up the story without revealing the whole freaking movie. And the way they built up the tension and cut off the trailer just as the Games were starting. Talk about a teaser! The moment when Katniss is being lifted up and you can hear the countdown is totally gut-wrenching - as it should be.

Here's what I didn't like about it:

• Whatever the hell is on Haymitch's head. Did they use the same wig department as The Twilight Saga?
• Call me superficial, but Josh is still not hot enough to be my idea of Peeta... but hey, he might change my mind by the end of the movie.
• It's not out till March. I can't wait that long!

In other movie news, the trailer for Snow White and the Huntsman was released last week, and while it's sadly been trumped by The Hunger Games, it still got me pretty excited. The only criticism I have is that there is no way Kristen Stewart could ever surpass Charlize Theron in "fairness". But the movie looks really good!

What did you think of The Hunger Games trailer? Are you excited for Snow White and the Huntsman?

Bookish Fun: Young Adult, The Movie

I don't know how I feel about Diablo Cody. Sometimes I think I love her, other times I want her to crawl back to the stripper hole she bounced from. When she first hit the scene with Juno, I loved her - and the movie - in theory. The concept appealed to me, and some of the lines were hilarious - but the delivery was just so forced and it was so self-consciously clever that, after I got over not being one of the cool kids obsessing over it, I had to admit I didn't actually like it that much. Then along came Jennifer's Body, and I LOVED the concept and loved the stars (except Megan Fox - but she was playing a demon so that worked for me), and was disappointed to find that it, too, felt way too forced and self-conscious. On the other hand, I think The United States of Tara is nothing short of amazeballs.

So it's with some trepidation that I'm getting excited about Cody's next project: Young Adult, directed by Jason Reitman and starring Charlize Theron (who I love), Patrick Wilson (who is cute) and Patton Oswalt (who is hilarious). It's about a Young Adult author (natch) who gets divorced, has a breakdown, heads back to her hometown, tries to get back with her (now married) high school sweetheart and forms an "unusual" bond with another former classmate. It sounds kinda fun... and how cool is the poster?!

Here is what some real YA authors told MTV about the film (or, at least, about the first still that's been released):

"That is pretty much what I look like RIGHT NOW. Minus the dog." — Ally Carter

"I'd say that while a lot of the YA authors I know work at home in an outfit like Charlize is wearing there (sweatpants and a ratty shirt) most of us wouldn't go out in public like that, not even to fly! YA authors are a pretty stylish group—you have to be when you're always interacting with teens. However I really can't judge her for the Hello Kitty shirt. I have a Hello Kitty toaster. And I would definitely see this movie just because I can't think of another film or TV show where my profession is depicted at all!" — Cassandra Clare

"Interestingly enough, it would not be unusual to see me in an airport wearing sweats and looking generally disheveled. Though I don't carry a pocket dog and know few YA authors who do. I would also be more likely to have a bag from Mrs. Field's, not Victoria's Secret. I like the premise of the film and I love Charlize Theron, so it will be interesting to see how the filmmakers portray a 'YA novelist.' Hopefully, it will include inside track details, like the fact that most of us wear our pajamas all day." — Kami Garcia

Bookish Fun: Battle of the Snow Whites

It seems that the powers that be in Hollywood have decided vampires are, like, so 2010 and have moved on... to fairy tales. We've already seen new versions of Red Riding Hood and Beauty and the Beast (in the Vanessa Hudgens vehicle Beastly), but it looks as though Snow White is really where it's at. Because they're making not one but TWO versions of it at the moment - and they both look kind of awesome.

Sorry, Snowie, you're old news.

Film 1: The Brothers Grimm: Snow White (working title). According to the studio Relativity Media, it will be "a spectacular reimagining of the classic fairy tale - an evil queen steals control of a kingdom, and an exiled princess enlists the help of seven resourceful rebels to win back her birthright in a spirited adventure comedy filled with jealousy, romance, and betrayal that will capture the imagination of audiences the world over." There's even a love triangle - between the evil queen, the innocent princess and, of course, the handsome prince.
The date: Release is currently set at March 16, 2012.
The stars: Lily Collins (Phil's daughter) will play Snow White, while the prince who captures her heart will be played by none other than my Gatsby, Armie Hammer - who you might recognise as the Winklevii from The Social Network. Julia Roberts, meanwhile, will get to use her grin for the greater evil as the queen, and Sean Bean will be her king.
The sneak peek: So far, only a shot of Lily as Snow White has been released. She looks very pretty, and very much the fairy tale princess.

Film 2: Snow White and the Huntsman, which IMDb says is "a twist to the fairy tale - the huntsman ordered to take Snow White into the woods to be killed winds up becoming her protector and mentor in a quest to vanquish the evil queen."
The date: US release is set for June 1, 2012.
The stars: Kristen Stewart tackles this version of Snow White, while the titular huntsman will be played by Aussie spunk and Thor star Chris Hemsworth. Charlize Theron will play the evil queen, and Sam Clafin of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides fame will represent the prince - looking decidedly more creepy than handsome here.
The sneak peek: Here's a glimpse of all the key players, which suggests that despite being based on the same story, this will be a very different film to the Collins version.

I'm excited for both films - they both seem to have great casts and unique takes on the tale. The fact that I'm not a fan of Kristen's acting makes me lean towards the first version, but then I also dislike Julia Roberts. But judging from the tidbits of the stories that have been released, the latter film does intrigue me a little more. What do you think?