Once Upon a Twilight!: James Franco

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Audiobook Review: The Dead Zone by Stephen King

THE DEAD ZONE
Author: Stephen King
Narrator: James Franco
Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Thriller
Released: April 25, 2017
Review Source: Simon Schuster Audio

Never before on audio! A #1 national bestseller about a man who wakes up from a five-year coma able to see people’s futures and the terrible fate awaiting mankind in The Dead Zone—a “compulsive page-turner” (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution).

Johnny Smith awakens from a five-year coma after his car accident and discovers that he can see people’s futures and pasts when he touches them. Many consider his talent a gift; Johnny feels cursed. His fiancé married another man during his coma and people clamor for him to solve their problems.

When Johnny has a disturbing vision after he shakes the hand of an ambitious and amoral politician, he must decide if he should take drastic action to change the future. The Dead Zone is a “faultlessly paced…continuously engrossing” (Los Angeles Times) novel of second sight.

The Dead Zone is such a unique story. Well, all of Stephen King books are amazing and unique. He is one of my all time favorite authors. Definitely my favorite author in his genre. I've been reading his books since I was a teenager, which I won't mention how long ago that was, I'll just say for a LONG TIME. Every single book I have loved for different reasons. He is an effin genius. How one man can come up with so many different interesting bizarre concepts for books I'll never understand.

This story is about a hero, Johnny Smith, that really gets dealt a pretty crappy hand. I actually really love his character. Through everything he goes through he still perseveres. It's really painful to listen to sometimes because I was routing for him the whole time and hoping things would work out for him.

James Franco was the narrator of this book. I thought he did a pretty good job of narrating. His voice was kind of nasally as some points but other than that I really was enthralled listening to him tell me the story. He kept my attention the whole time.

I am rating this book 4 stars because I loved the story when I read it but listening to it brought the story to life on a whole different level. I highly recommend all of Stephen King's books!

Movie Review: 20th Century Fox's Why Him? - #WhyHim

Why Him?
Director: John Hamburg
Writers: Jonah Hill, John Hamburg
Starring: Zoey Deutch, James Franco, Bryan Cranston
Official Socials: Site | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | IMDb
Hashtag: #WhyHim

Over the holidays, Ned (Bryan Cranston), an overprotective but loving dad and his family visit his daughter at Stanford, where he meets his biggest nightmare: her well-meaning but socially awkward Silicon Valley billionaire boyfriend, Laird (James Franco). The straight-laced Ned thinks Laird, who has absolutely no filter, is a wildly inappropriate match for his daughter. The one-sided rivalry—and Ned’s panic level—escalate when he finds himself increasingly out of step in the glamorous high-tech hub, and learns that Laird is about to pop the question.

There are a ton of movie choices this holiday season. Some are very good. Others are not so bad. And, then, there is Why Him? It stands on its own level, its own level of not watchable. I make it a point to work-in something positive about every film I review. But, this one has zero redeeming qualities. The whole thing is crude and outdated.

It’s 2016! The premise of the film is that a ne’er-do-well in personality (but app mogul in finances) is trying to win the hand of the woman he loves over the objection of her father. The app mogul is played by James Franco, the dad is Bryan Cranston and the daughter is Zoey Deutch. If you see the theatrical poster, you will notice that Franco, Cranston and Deutch are all on it. However, only Cranston and Franco are credited on the poster. Deutch’s name doesn’t appear anywhere, not even in tiny letters. Take that sentiment and extrapolate it to the movie. Both of these men are combating over the future of a woman, and the woman is relegated to a second class role. No one seems to care what she thinks. My frustration was exacerbated because the plot makes the woman (Deutch) a college student at prestigious university, indicating that the character has a brain. The only other woman in the movie is relegated to an even lower class of role. I love Megan Mullally’s comedic abilities. They were wasted on Why Him? with Mallully playing a stereo-typical mom role.

The supposed humor isn’t funny, it is just crass. I am all for pushing the envelope, but submerging a moose in urine isn’t humorous. It isn’t novel. It’s just gross. And that is only one example. Same goes for inserting expletives into the dialogue for every third word. It isn’t creative. It’s lazy writing. The movie is figuratively full of moose in urine. The entire story is a series of ridiculously outrageous set-ups for jokes that fail to land. I didn’t laugh a single time.

The last ten minutes of the movie are sort of charming. There is a good cameo then. I won’t ruin that part, in case some of you still want to see this. But that is it. Ten good minutes. And those ten minutes are not funny, either. They are, at best, cute. I recommend you see anything else this holiday season. If, despite my best efforts, you still want to see Why Him?, it opens on December 23.

#Miami Grab Passes to #WhyHimMovie @ AMC Sunset 12/20

Why Him?
Director: John Hamburg
Writers: Jonah Hill, John Hamburg
Starring: Zoey Deutch, James Franco, Bryan Cranston
Official Socials: Site | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | IMDb
Hashtag: #WhyHimMovie

A dad forms a bitter rivalry with his daughter's young rich boyfriend.