insaneneko

I watched the 1996 TV adaptation of Emma starring Kate Beckinsale as Emma and Mark Strong as Mr. Knightly this weekend. I now feel a lot more positive about the book. I found Emma (the character) hard to stomach in the beginning, but Kate Bekinsale does a great job (her expressions are priceless) and I quickly softened towards Emma. By the end I really enjoyed the story...Though seeing Frank Churchill in action made me really wish something bad happened to him in the future. Ugh, what a slimy, icky ass. I'm a bit curious as to what was cut out and what was changed, so I might someday pick up the book and try to read it again. ^^;

Could Mansfield Park be made palatable when turned into a film? I'm a bit tempted to find out....

Seeing Mark Strong makes me want to rewatch Stardust, in which he is an awesome villian. Now that was a really good adaptation of a book.

I am terribly disappointed that Jane Eyre is currently limited release. I have a perverse desire to see the movie, perhaps because I don't care for the book.

I was eating lunch at a local udon restaurant today when the Korean actor who was in Lost and is now in Hawaii 5-0 came in to eat. I had to snort at my attempts to NOT stare at the guy even though I'm not that into celebrities in general and didn't watch either show. The girls at the next table were adorable, though, whispering about trying to get autographs and/or pictures. I wish I could've seen them do it, but I left before they did. :P

I've been rereading old BL novels and manga the last month or so. I had initially been looking for a particular book, but I couldn't find it*. Instead I started reading stuff I hadn't read in a while. Talk about a mixed bag. I own some truly crappy books as well as some really good books I don't reread enough.

I reread a book about best friends in high school in which one has loved the other since forever and finally confesses, turning his friend's world upside down. Sadly, the best part of the book was the art. I was trying to remember books about best friends with sekrit unrequited love on one side because I'm sure I've read tons of them. I could only think of two involving working adults and one with students off the top of my head, which isn't that many...Any recs? I like the premise a lot if done well. I can rec the two working adults books: Slow Rhythm by Sugihara Rio and illustrated by Kinoshita Keiko (♥ her!) and Tadashii koi no nayami kata by Watarumi Naho and illustrated by Sasaki Kumiko. I can't find the student one, but that one wasn't that great anyway. :P

Two books I truly enjoyed rereading: Sono otoko, toriatsukai chuui! and Sono otoko, shinyuu kinshi! by Narumiya Yuri and illustrated by Sakuragi Yaya. They are about a young road construction worker Saeki Keisuke and the guy who becomes his boyfriend in the first book. The blurb for the first book says that Keisuke is a loose guy who will sleep with any guy or gal. He becomes friendly with a government worker who moves in next door, Ogata Mizuki. When Ogata confides that he's in love with some other guy, Keisuke offers to teach him how to sleep with a guy. He's always been the one doing the fucking with guys, but he ends up being fucked by Ogata. The book also has some yazuka (and random criminal) action, but the main point of it is the disgustingly sweet yet adorable relationship between Keisuke and Ogata. Keisuke is tall and decently built, looks a bit intimidating, and is good in fights, but is like butter in Ogata's hands. He's a bit embarrassed, but isn't too full of pride/tsundereness/whatever to hide it constantly. The second book has the insecurities and misunderstandings that seem to show up a lot in second books with established relationships (go cliches!), but in the end the sweetness makes it all okay to me. It helps that I love the art. XD;

*Has anyone read a BL novel about a salaryman with an actor boyfriend whom he supports financially? The boyfriend is on the verge of getting his big break and their relationship becomes destabilized. I hope I find it one day... ;_;

Random news:

Ugh, I hope the rumor that Robert Pattison may play Tetsuo from Akira is wrong. Putting aside the "why is a white guy playing a character who is sooo NOT WHITE" thing (which is neither here nor there as it doesn't apply in this case as per the article the location will be "New Manhattan" instead of "New Tokyo"), I have an aversion to the actor (thanks to how awful he looked in the Twilight promo material).

For people in the US: Costco has a printer cartridge refill service!

Odd, possibly bad: Brooklyn Rundfunk Orkestrata rearranges the entire score of The Sound of Music on their newest album.

I kinda want to see the Priscilla Queen of the Desert musical just for the cupcake scene.

Amazon is shutting down ebook lending sites.