David’s Ramblings

A Stephen King classic, The Shining has become one of my new favorites. I just finished reading it and I must say that King is in danger of becoming my favorite author.

The story centers around a young boy named Danny, who’s rather bright, and his family. We quickly learn that Danny’s not the average 5 year old boy. He knows and understands at a level many adults couldn’t grasp. This is not because he’s some super genius, though he is rather smart, but it’s because he has “the shining.” Psychic ability, shining, intuition, call it what you will, but Danny has it.

Alone, that makes for an interesting story, but that’s just the beginning. The boy’s family is going to be living in a hotel called the Overlook over the winter, since his father has been hired as its caretaker and the hotel gets completely snowed-in during the winter. Unfortunately, there’s something sinister to the Overlook, and that’s where King’s horror story skills come in.

I don’t want to give too much away, because my description couldn’t hold a candle to King’s literary talent. The book makes for a riveting read, and is worth looking into if you don’t mind the fact that you may have to sleep with the light on for a night or two after you finish it. I’ll give it 4.5π.

“The Prestige” is, without a doubt, the movie of 2006. Awesome acting, tremedous plot, and a last second twist all add up to make for an awesome movie. It just came out on DVD. I recommend buying yourself a copy. It’s one of those movies worth owning.

With Christopher Nolan writing and directing, one couldn’t really expect any less. He’s the same guy who made me actually care for the Batman story again with “Batman Begins,” and freaked out my brain with the backwards story telling of “Memento.”

The movie stars Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman, or, if you prefer: “batman” and “wolverine.” The two aspiring magicians are working as assistants to an aging illusionist, but after a horrible accident occurs during one of their perfomances the two become bitter rivals bent on outdoing each other. They quickly escalate to sabotage and other dirty acts of one-upmanship, right up to the conclusion.

“The Prestige” follows Nolan’s preference for non-linear storylines. We switch scenes from present to flashbacks, to further back flashbacks and back again, so one needs to pay a bit of attention to keep track, but the end result is that you’re left with an awesome story that keeps you guessing. This movie gets 4.8π/900º.