Product placement in the National Parks
It’s been said by more than Ken Burns that the national parks are America’s best idea. In “National Parks Adventure,” opening at the Museum of Science’s Mugar Omni Theater on Friday, narrator Robert Redford makes the same claim. But after this hokey and commercialized IMAX road trip, you’ll be thinking the best idea might have been to stay at home. Read the rest of my Boston Globe review.
Geek out in the Galapagos
Sometimes, we watch a documentary to be sucker-punched by its investigative uppercut. Other times, it’s to be awed by nerdy info and eye-candy. The IMAX science museum/aquarium movie “Galapagos 3D: Nature’s Wonderland" may not be subtle or particularly brilliant. But this science-y doc sates that second desire just fine. Read the rest of my review of “Galapagos 3D: Nature’s Wonderland" for the Boston Globe.
What is it like to run the Iditarod?
What it's like to run the Iditarod? In my story “1 woman, 16 dogs, and 1,000 miles of snow” for the Boston Globe, I interview Debbie Clarke Moderow about her dogsledding quest to finish the 1,000 mile race --- and write a book about it, called “Fast Into the Night: A Woman, Her Dogs, and Their Journey North on the Iditarod Trail."
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, and the state of the mash-up movie
How to make a mash-up: Into a cauldron, toss some historical or fictional character, dusty novel, or ancient fairy tale. The more staid or stale or out of fashion, the better. Then, stir in creatures or villains from some different genre: zombies, witches, dinosaurs, even Nazis. Pour this mixture into a script, and bake for about 120 minutes at 75 million dollars, give or take a few million. Serve with a reliable dressing — blood and gore, perhaps — that most focus groups will find to their tastes. Prepared correctly, your Hollywood masterpiece will serve the masses.
On Friday, the mash-up rises again with “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.” The movie version of Seth Grahame-Smith’s 2009 novel of the same name retells Jane Austen’s 1813 tale of manners, morality, social standing, and romance, but sets it in a reimagined Regency Era beset by the undead.
Will this new concoction, equal parts Austen and zombie pandemic, deliver a much-needed shot in the arm or another box office blow to the genre? Read the rest of my story over at the Boston Globe
My first foray into online teaching
Let's get virtual... virtual ...
In which I try out a virtual reality exercise bike, become a pegasus, lasso some bandits, and come in second as a dog driving a Formula One racing car. Plus, I burn some calories. My story for the Boston Globe.
Star Wars -- Shakespeare Mashup: A Review of Ian Doescher’s ‘William Shakespeare’s Tragedy of the Sith’s Revenge’
In “The Empire Strikes Back,” Yoda admonishes his apprentice, Luke Skywalker, saying, “Wars not make one great.” Later, in “Return of the Jedi,” he quips, “When 900 years old you reach, look as good you will not.”
In case you didn’t catch on, Yoda inverts his syntax. In other words, Yoda practically speaks Shakespearean.
And in Ian Doescher’s best-selling “Star Wars” / Shakespeare mash-ups, so does every character in George Lucas’s science-fictional universe of Wookiees, droids and the Force.
My Failure Is Complete: I Fell for Star Wars Hype. Now, Can We Just Watch the Damned Movie?
The hype-train has hit hyperdrive. The entertainment-industrial complex has devoured us all like that sarlacc from “Return of the Jedi” lurking in the Great Pit of Carkoon. This “Star Wars” fan is worn out: The nonstop marketing machine has turned fandom into a grind. Dear Lucasfilm and shareholders of the Walt Disney Co.: I just want to watch your damned movie. I wrote this rant for Salon.com. Enjoy!‘Star Wars,’ And The Force It Awakened In Me
“Star Wars” and its sequels were touchstones, mind-bending fantasy movie experiences into which I poured my longings for escape, creativity and adventure. Read the rest of the essay here.
Apparently this is what I look like when I'm talking about Star Wars
I was on WGBH's Greater Boston to talk about The Force Awakens. Apparently this is what I look like when I'm talking about Star Wars. Watch the full video here.
Star Wars Means Different Things to Different Generation
In four decades and over six movies, “Star Wars” has infused our culture like a Force unto itself. Devotees view George Lucas’s universe of lightsaber duels, spaceship dogfights, and father-son conflicts as holy writ. Even casual fans are counting down to the release of the long-awaited Episode VII, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” on Friday.
But what “Star Wars” means to its admirers, and the expectations they bring to the new installment, depends not just on personal taste but on how old they were when they initially encountered the epic science-fiction saga — and on where, for them, the story began.
Read the rest of my story over at the Boston Globe.
Computer games can save your life
All part of the NYTBR's coverage of nerdy/comics/gaming books.
See the Sketches J.R.R. Tolkien Used to Build Middle-Earth
Tolkien wrote The Lord of the Rings but he also drew it:
The many maps and sketches he made while drafting The Lord of the Rings informed his storytelling, allowing him to test narrative ideas and illustrate scenes he needed to capture in words. For Tolkien, the art of writing and the art of drawing were inextricably intertwined.
In the book The Art of The Lord of the Rings, we see how, and why.
My sneak peek of his sketches for Wired.com
A Conversation about Conversation with Sherry Turkle
An interview I did with Sherry Turkle for the Boston Globe, about the demise of conversation in the digital age:
Turkle, 67, professor of the Social Studies of Science and Technology at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a prolific author, wants to have a conversation. About conversation — and why so few people seem interested in having, or are able to have, that face-to-face anymore.
The crisis of conversation is at the heart of Turkle’s new book, “Reclaiming Conversation: The Power of Talk in a Digital Age.” With it, she hopes to spark a discussion about what we lose when we settle for fleeting texts, sound bites, and status updates, instead of pursuing meaningful, nuanced human connection.
“I had a question. All these people were saying, I’d rather text than talk,” says Turkle. “What happens if in business, in education, in romance, and child-rearing, you text rather than talk?”
With Boda Borg, Reality Gaming Comes to Boston
Is Boston ready for the "Maze of Craziness"? I explore the reality-gaming center Boda Borg Boston for The Boston Globe.
Boda Borg Boston is a place where completing “quests” isn’t the only challenge.
One is explaining what goes on there. Recently, a reporter was given a sneak peek of the new facility, which opens its doors Saturday in the building that once housed Sparks department store, a downtown Malden landmark. To bring this “reality gaming” center to the Boston area, Ellis spent close to $4 million renovating the 30,000-square-foot space. Inside, there’s a sleek reception area, a taco restaurant that seats 150, and space upstairs for corporate retreats and birthday parties. But downstairs is the heart of Boda Borg, what Ellis calls “the maze of craziness”: a warren of black-painted hallways leading to 16 real-time,live-action puzzles, or what the company calls “quests.” They await teams of three to five players, who must figure each one out.
Boda Borg is no Dungeons & Dragons fantasy game, nor is it a haunted house with ghouls. Still, guests should bring a sense of adventure and be prepared for befuddlement. Being stumped by any quest on the first attempt — or 21st — is expected.
Why Facebook's Proposed "Dislike" Button Is a Bad Idea
Facebook may finally be getting a button that lets you quickly express something beyond a “like.” In this commentary for WBUR's Cognoscneti, I say "Thumbs Down On Facebook’s ‘Dislike’ Button," and propose something else entirely.
Follow my insane itinerary?
Hey Boston travel fans: I dare you to do all this in Boston in a mere 36 Hours. Here's my insane itinerary for the New York Times Travel section "36 Hours in ..." series.
The Day My Mother Became a Stranger
In the May issue of Boston Magazine, I write about my mother Sara Gilsdorf. After her sudden aneurysm, she was transformed. Almost 37 years later, I search for answers. Read the story here.