SPOILER ALERT: CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR THE 2024 MOTION PICTURE, IT ENDS WITH US. ALSO SPOIL-SPORT COMMENTARY ABOUT SPOILED HOLLYWOOD STARS. AND CANADIAN STARS. OH AND AUSTRALIAN STARS. ALSO THE SPOILS OF WEALTH. OH, AND SPOILED CHEESE; AS IN GOOD OLD FASHIONED HOLLYWOOD CHEESINESS. AND I SUPPOSE, SPOILED BRATS.
I'm sorry; but I can't NOT write about this. Generally, I wouldn't; that is to say, jump on the bandwagon of negativity that is currently swirling around the movie It Ends With Us. But really, is this not part and parcel of it? Was it Neely O'Hara who said: "They say even bad publicity is good publicity; and boy am I getting the bad publicity!" Are the little PR machines out there not churning dross into even more gold for this movie and everyone involved? It's made, as of this writing, some 100 million against a 25 million dollar budget. That's whatcha call and InstaHit! (TM/Reg./Pat-Pend).
No, the reason I'm writing this is because I actually sought out the work of Ms. Colleen Hoover earlier this year. Why? Well, because she sort of flew directly into my radar like one of the Wallendas. I'm a writer you see. I've written two novels thus far. One self-published, like Ms. Hoover's first; although I did not know this. Let me back up to the beginning and tell you the story...
It starts with this:
No, the reason I'm writing this is because I actually sought out the work of Ms. Colleen Hoover earlier this year. Why? Well, because she sort of flew directly into my radar like one of the Wallendas. I'm a writer you see. I've written two novels thus far. One self-published, like Ms. Hoover's first; although I did not know this. Let me back up to the beginning and tell you the story...
It starts with this:
Well, actually it doesn't start with this. It didn't start with an Instagram post; but here is Ms. Hoover displaying a display of one her novels that was in the window of Barnes and Noble. I'm thinking these giant "books" were made for the chain to tout her mega-selling tomes. In any event, they were also in the window of my local Barnes and Noble (Nobel?). Like, for a long time. They may still be there. They were there so long, I stopped noticing them; not that I really had noticed them to the point I was interested in her work. It just didn't speak to me. Or "market" to me. Not to judge; but the covers (like most recent book covers) were so generic, it was impossible to make any kind of...read...on them. That being said...
One fine day, after my 300th rejection from a literary agent, I thought: "Hmmm, Chris. What are we doing wrong?" (I often use the Royal "We"; as I'm a Biq Queen when I'm in the mood. I'm also a Big King when I'm in the mood; but that's a blog for another day. Or night, wink-wink). Then I thought: "Maybe you should sachet down to the local book store chain and see what's on the best-seller list, buy one, read it and see what they're doing that you're not doing and what the Reading Public is buying and reading and I suppose, loving?" So, I ambled down to the Barnes and Nobell at the Valley View Mall and my eyes fell on the Colleen Hoover display, which was still in the window. "Hmmmm," I said to myself, "How about her? The New York Times assures me she's a best-selling authoress of 8 million copies that listed her for 140 weels. She must be doing something right..."
So, I went in and looked at her books. On the first perusal I thought: "Oh, okay...well, maybe I'll just check and see if her stuff is at the library..." I felt the $16.99 would be better spent on printer ink. The next day I went to the Vinton Library and checked out Verity.
One fine day, after my 300th rejection from a literary agent, I thought: "Hmmm, Chris. What are we doing wrong?" (I often use the Royal "We"; as I'm a Biq Queen when I'm in the mood. I'm also a Big King when I'm in the mood; but that's a blog for another day. Or night, wink-wink). Then I thought: "Maybe you should sachet down to the local book store chain and see what's on the best-seller list, buy one, read it and see what they're doing that you're not doing and what the Reading Public is buying and reading and I suppose, loving?" So, I ambled down to the Barnes and Nobell at the Valley View Mall and my eyes fell on the Colleen Hoover display, which was still in the window. "Hmmmm," I said to myself, "How about her? The New York Times assures me she's a best-selling authoress of 8 million copies that listed her for 140 weels. She must be doing something right..."
So, I went in and looked at her books. On the first perusal I thought: "Oh, okay...well, maybe I'll just check and see if her stuff is at the library..." I felt the $16.99 would be better spent on printer ink. The next day I went to the Vinton Library and checked out Verity.
With Verity firmly ensconced on my night-table, I looked forward to reading it. Judging the book by it's cover, I assumed I was cracking open a horror story. I was right, kind of.
The book opens with a woman on her way to a job interview in New York City. Somehow, she's in close enough vicinity to get spattered in blood when a man gets hit by a bus. Well, more like his head run over. And she still goes to her interview! Well, that is, after she meets this guy who gives her his shirt in the bathroom of a donut shop or something. It's the least cute, meet-cute you'd ever wanna read. And then, of course, he's there when she goes to her interview. It was here that I put the book down and DNF, as they say over at Goodreads. Why did I DNF? Ah, I'm not here to trounce Ms. Hoover or even review her work; but I will say her prose (what little I read of it) I found to be on a par with the venerable E.L. James, authoress of the 50 Shades series. I will say her work does not make my inner goddess dance and leave it at that. Over at Goodreads, Verity has a 4.3 star rating. Goodreads member Ana Lopes Miura said in her 1 star review of Verity that it should've been titled, Horny Headboard Biter. Giving equal time to 5 star reviewer of Verity, Lisa of Troy, she proclaims: "I will never look at Steak and Shake the same way!" I'm not sure what that means; but I think it's a rave.
The book opens with a woman on her way to a job interview in New York City. Somehow, she's in close enough vicinity to get spattered in blood when a man gets hit by a bus. Well, more like his head run over. And she still goes to her interview! Well, that is, after she meets this guy who gives her his shirt in the bathroom of a donut shop or something. It's the least cute, meet-cute you'd ever wanna read. And then, of course, he's there when she goes to her interview. It was here that I put the book down and DNF, as they say over at Goodreads. Why did I DNF? Ah, I'm not here to trounce Ms. Hoover or even review her work; but I will say her prose (what little I read of it) I found to be on a par with the venerable E.L. James, authoress of the 50 Shades series. I will say her work does not make my inner goddess dance and leave it at that. Over at Goodreads, Verity has a 4.3 star rating. Goodreads member Ana Lopes Miura said in her 1 star review of Verity that it should've been titled, Horny Headboard Biter. Giving equal time to 5 star reviewer of Verity, Lisa of Troy, she proclaims: "I will never look at Steak and Shake the same way!" I'm not sure what that means; but I think it's a rave.
Being rather stunned at my reaction to Verity, I did a little research into Ms. Hoover and quickly fell down that rabbit hole. And it's a pretty deep one that seems to keep getting deeper. And I'm not going to get into all of that either.
In any event, seeing the writing on the wall (so to speak); that is, assuming someone who sold that many books would have one made into a movie--I was not surprised when I saw the first trailer for It Ends With Us about a month ago. I was surprise but I wasn't. Surprised at how quickly I was seeing this book to film event and then not being surprised, realizing that for me, the movie was coming out on the very heels of my having "discovered", shall we call it: Hooverville. I was a bit surprised that the movie was coming out, learning what I had about the Hooverville controversies; and knowing what I did about the quality of writing in Hooverville. I perked up seeing that the movie was going to star Blake Lively, an actress I discovered kind of late in the game but had come to very much like in recent years. To me, she possessed a certain Old Hollywood Glamour. Her fashion choices, of course. Some critic said she was the most costumed actress since Kay Francis, a reference I didn't immediately get; but inferred that he meant Ms. Lively was perhaps more concerned with her outfits than her role choices. This had become rather apparent to me when I saw A Simple Favor. I thought a white tuxedo was a bit beyond the pale for a day look for a suburban housewife.
Lively's style. Her bearing. Her carriage. It was all so very, very. The deliberate diction. The untouchable quality; or at least unapproachable. The unobtainability factor that so many Old School Hollywood actresses had or tried to have. Katherine Hepburn, for example. But there is a down side to that veneer. What was the line from The Women? "There's a name for you ladies; and it isn't used in high society outside of a kennel." Yep. This seems to be coming to bite little Blake on the butt. She first registered on my radar with The Age of Adaline, a movie my husband dragged me to see. It was a total throwback. Could've been a Bette Davis movie. It happened to be a Lakeshore Entertainment joint; a company I worked for in the 90's and one whose output my spouse always seemed to choose. Oh, you remember this, I'm sure:
I think one of the better of those "coming on" logos, which now glut the screen at the multiplex. I remember when they were confabbing about this concept. Good times!
But back to Blake.
But back to Blake.
I could not, not care less, nay care more about the private world of Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds. But, apparently a lot of people could. Certainly US Magazine. They sure do make some rush to judgments about celebrity relationships over at that mag. They're constantly declaring LOVE amongst the stars before the Stars have even used the word themselves. "How Leo Won Blake's Heart!" they proclaimed in 2011. Apparently he didn't win it for long. Does anyone even remember that they dated? And does the "US" in "Us Magazine" stand for The United States; or does it refer to the collective. Like all of us. Us humans. Because in that case, they should've called the magazine Them because most of us don't have "private worlds" or Leo DiCaprio attempting to win our hearts.
So now, all this stuff about Ms. Lively is surfacing in a backlashish attempt to label her a "mean girl." Tina Fey, are you listening? "Mean Girl" is just a new way to say the kennel line from The Women. If Blake Lively is emulating people like Ava Gardner and Lana Turner and other cool blondes from back in the day, then she really can't not have a certain "bitchy" quality. Femme Fatales don't get fatale by being sweet and nice. I think it's hilarious that people expect these pampered, entitled princesses to be Ovaltine swiging, Khol's shopping, let's hang out with the little people kind of people. And of course if you're gorgeous, blonde and have nice boobs it makes it all the less likely.
Lively is being criticized for not taking domestic abuse seriously enough. But really, did Ms. Hoover take it seriously enough? Did her readers take it seriously enough? Did the filmmakers take it seriously enough--this source material that wants to have its' cake and eat it too. Or it's crushed flowers and flower shop too?
So now, all this stuff about Ms. Lively is surfacing in a backlashish attempt to label her a "mean girl." Tina Fey, are you listening? "Mean Girl" is just a new way to say the kennel line from The Women. If Blake Lively is emulating people like Ava Gardner and Lana Turner and other cool blondes from back in the day, then she really can't not have a certain "bitchy" quality. Femme Fatales don't get fatale by being sweet and nice. I think it's hilarious that people expect these pampered, entitled princesses to be Ovaltine swiging, Khol's shopping, let's hang out with the little people kind of people. And of course if you're gorgeous, blonde and have nice boobs it makes it all the less likely.
Lively is being criticized for not taking domestic abuse seriously enough. But really, did Ms. Hoover take it seriously enough? Did her readers take it seriously enough? Did the filmmakers take it seriously enough--this source material that wants to have its' cake and eat it too. Or it's crushed flowers and flower shop too?
And yes, I've seen it. Oh boy have I seen it.
I guess that's the end of our 15 minute read. Do I have more to say about any of this? Actually, I do, so please see: It Trends With Us Part 2 for the next installment.
Ciao!
Chris
CFR 8/18/24
I guess that's the end of our 15 minute read. Do I have more to say about any of this? Actually, I do, so please see: It Trends With Us Part 2 for the next installment.
Ciao!
Chris
CFR 8/18/24
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