I got an unexpected day off this past Friday! Plans on how to spend the day quickly unfolded and that included a movie with my co-conspirator and BFF. I chose Beautiful Creatures because I’m a sucker for teen romance stories based on books (I mean who isn’t) and the trailer looked good.
My familiarity with Beautiful Creatures on Friday morning was along the lines of:
- It’s a YA book series that’s supposed to be good and I maybe picked up a copy and looked at the cover art at Barnes and Noble once. Maybe. Probably not.
- I read the plot on Wikipedia.
I don’t often pick good movies on a whim, but I had a good feeling about this. It ended up a thoroughly enjoyed movie. Pure fantasy escapism at it’s finest with superb veteran actors to carry things along – a striking Jeremy Irons (who, to me, seemed to be channeling Gary Oldman), a sexy Emma Thompson and a film grounding Viola Davis. Spicing things up were some young newcomers – Alden Ehrenreich (who I’ve never heard of in my life) was SO stinking cute and southern quirky that he stole the movie even though Alice Englert held her own. Emmy Rossum was under-utilized but she did her thang and that’s all that mattered in the end.
The movie is about a young witch (thought they like to be called Casters) who is new to town and facing down her 16th birthday. This is significant not because she gets a lavish party (which she does) but because she must be claimed for either the dark or the light. There are family curses, a siren cousin and a mother inhabiting someone else’s body, but then there’s also a boy. Isn’t it always a boy? A cute nerdy boy who is all over the Bukowski book that you mention. The one who flirts with you by going toe-to-toe with you when you make fun of him. You know what I’m talking about. That boy! He complicates things.
The love story is wonderfully done and the strange characters that make up the town of Gatlin, SC are all great. Even having read the synopsis on Wikipedia, I had no idea what to expect and truly was just along for the ride. Sequel or no, I loved it and have recommended it to everyone. So you, go see it.
Final thoughts:
- If this film accomplishes nothing else, maybe more people will read Bukowski.
- Witch libraries are cool.
- Some spirits like shrimp and grits.
- The last :15 seconds of the movie gave me the biggest chill and all over goosebumps!
- According to my co-conspirator, the move was better than the book.
- According to everybody, the movie fixes the flaws of the book or is just a better version of the story. I will probably still read the book(s) at some point, but I’m in no hurry.
Capturing Average 