Movie Review: Khalil Gibran's The Prophet

Just wow.

I think I sat through most of the film with my mouth hanging open in wonder and awe.

On the surface The Prophet is a children's film about a little girl who befriends a political prisoner who teaches her how to live life to the fullest, no matter where you are.

When you dig deeper it is really a philosophical essay on the meaning of life disguised as the Fantasia sequel Disney was afraid to touch.

The movie is a series of poems and essays by Khalil Gibran set to beautiful animation, like paintings that come to life and dance, with narration by Liam Neeson or songs. They are strung together by a simple animated story of a little girl, her mother, a poet/artist arrested for his "radical" writings and the townspeople who love him. To them his words make their lives more meaningful. They would do anything for him. Of course, the military see this as dangerous.

This is something everyone should see. Parents should take their children.

Then afterwards you can discuss philosophy and rush out to buy the book.

Here is some of the art from the movie. Imagine it on the big screen and dancing to music. Gorgeous!

Le Grand Danois, chapter 8

Read Le Grand Danois, chapter 7 here.

Several more weeks had gone by and there were still two puppies left, one girl and one tiny boy. Momma hoped he wasn't sickly. He still walked on shaky legs and was so skinny. Maybe he was just a late bloomer.

They walked through the alleys as they always did at sunset, trying to avoid crowds and cars. Her little girl was proudly strutting in front of her, fearless as always, while her little boy stayed close to her back legs, often walking between them and getting knocked down.

A familiar sinister laugh came out of a nearby building. It was their old warehouse. How had she brought them back here again? She nosed her daughter to the side. "We need to get away from here, children!"

"Aw, puddin', look at the doggies!" a shrill female voice called out.

"Do you want one, cupcake? I'll get it for you!" The evil man was coming toward them!

Momma snarled at him, keeping her puppies behind her. He just snickered at her, while reaching out his blood-covered white gloved hands. She tried to usher her babies away, but the man was too fast. He threw his arms around her, throwing her to the ground. Her pups barked loudly, trying to scare the man away.

Suddenly, a big black shape swooped down and knocked the bad man away.

The tiny male puppy stared in awe, while his sister kept barking at everyone. A large man in a black cape loomed up out of the darkness. The villain ran off with his girlfriend, laughing maniacally all the way.

"Are you alright, beauty?" He pet Momma, who was standing up and shaking herself off. She nuzzled the strange man's black gloved hand. "We need to get you and your family off the street." 

Sirens blared in the distance, coming closer. Soon police cars surrounded them. One plain clothes officer came up to the caped man. "What happened?"

"You're a little late. Would you do me a favor and see that these dogs get taken to a kennel?" 

The caped man looked down and caught the eyes of the tiniest one. The puppy was still captivated, but managed to whimper softly. "Don't worry, ace. You'll be safe now." Then the man left and the dogs were ushered into the back of a police van.
--

Read Le Grand Danois, chapter 9.

More About Romance Novels

I just read this great article by one of my favorite authors, Sarah MacLean. She mentioned that for career day project way back in high school she jokingly wrote down "romance novelist" as her dream job. I guess it was a self-fulfilling prophecy. Now that she is one, she loves being part of such a wonderful community (romance fans).

I used to be embarrassed about reading romance novels. Most people think of them as trashy and of little substance. But like Sarah mentioned in her article, people who love romance novels just "get it". At the core, these are stories about people, who they are, what they want and how they go about getting it. Most of the time the hero and heroine are not setting out to fall in love and most are trying to avoid it, but fate always intervenes.

Like I mentioned in my previous post about romance novels, there are so many different types. No matter what genre you prefer, there is a romance novel for you: historical, contemporary, futuristic, fantasy, paranormal, spiritual, erotic, etc..

Here is a list of some fun plots I've read over the years...
Boys become blood brothers and unknowingly release a demon on a small town.
Shy young woman in nineteenth century England secretly writes an infamous gossip column.
Group of people with paranormal talents are called upon to protect the world from darkness.
Quiet professor in eighteenth century England is secretly a masked vigilante.
Family restores an old hotel together and in the process find peace for the ghost who haunts it.
Female scientist in nineteenth century England uses her male friend to masquerade as the man behind her work.

A good romance novel is about more than just romance.

Le Grand Danois, chapter 7

Read Le Grand Danois, chapter 6 here.

Momma had been wandering the streets with her pups for a week. Each night they huddled in doorways or cardboard boxes or under cars. So far only one of the babies had been adopted, but Momma kept searching for likely candidates.

A commotion brought one of the puppies to the edge of their alleyway in front of her. She tried to hold her little girl back, but she was too curious.

A young woman with red hair covered with flowers was running--or rather stumbling--toward them. She tripped and fell into a puddle, crying out. The woman glanced back over her shoulder in fear, but there was nobody following her. Was she crazy?

The puppy whimpered, obviously wanting to go help. The woman heard the sound and gasped, looking up at them.

"Who are you? What do you want? Stay away!"

The little black pup ventured forward and whined.

"Oh! You're just a baby! You wouldn't hurt me, would you? But I might hurt you. I'm dangerous, you see. My skin is toxic to most people." She held out her pale shaky hand, staring at it sadly. The puppy sniffed at it, tilted her head and then licked her fingers. Both the woman and Momma held their breath, but nothing happened. They sighed in relief.

"You're not allergic to me!" She picked up the tiny dog and cuddled her close. She looked into Momma's eyes and with an unspoken agreement she took the baby with her.

This adoption was just as hard as the last one, but she was happy her little girl would have a home. She turned back to her four remaining puppies and led them down the alley to find a comfortable place to bed down for the night.
--

Read Le Grand Danois, chapter 8 here.

Movie Review: TRAINWRECK

What can I say? I'm a Judd Apatow fan. My favorite comedy of all time is The 40-Year-Old Virgin, so it's no wonder I loved TRAINWRECK. It's almost the exact opposite story. Instead of a shy male virgin we have a totally promiscuous commitment phobic woman
(played by the hilarious but raunchy Amy Schumer). When she falls in love for the first time with a kind young doctor (played by the adorable Bill Hader) she gets so freaked out she keeps waiting for any excuse to break up. At first she is not a very likable character, but as we get to know her better, it's obvious she is in pain. She drowns herself in alcohol, drugs and meaningless sex due to her fear that she will never have the fairytale ending she secretly longs for.

I don't recommend this movie for people on a first date. It could be awkward. There is a lot of nudity (male butts) and sexual situations. I have no problem with that. Couples will enjoy this. Women will identify with Amy, while men will love all the sport cameos. LeBron James is very funny as Hader's best friend and fellow Downton Abbey fan. Tilda Swinton as Amy's boss is brilliant (but she's brilliant in everything).

On the surface Apatow films seem like immature comedies, but they really aren't. The characters might be immature, but the writing is quick and smart and very honest.

Cat and Dog Haiku

A haiku for the cat family that just adopted the puppy.

feline eyes glaring
as canine nose comes too close
a new dynamic

Le Grand Danois, chapter 6

Read Le Grand Danois, chapter 5, here

The sun was just setting over the city. It was the best time to venture through the alleys. Momma kept glancing back to make sure her pups were following. They were still too young to survive on their own.

A loud hiss made her turn back around and stop short. Her puppies bumped into her and stumbled back like a row of dominoes. 

"We don't want any trouble with you, cat," Momma stated calmly.

"Don't worry about my little goddess," a female voice crooned. "She's just very protective of me." A woman in a tight black outfit stepped forward out of the dark doorway. She smiled at Momma and her pups. "I'm not much of a dog person, but you have the most adorable little ones. You should be very proud."

Momma breathed a sigh of relief, realizing this woman was not going to cause them harm. Suddenly one of her babies trotted forward to sniff at the skinny Siamese, who looked shocked. And when the puppy licked her she shrieked and jumped behind the woman in black. She chuckled and picked up her cat. With her other hand she scooped up the tiny dog. "You are a brave one, aren't you." She held the pup out to check its gender. "I think you and my precious will get along just fine. She likes men."

Momma whimpered.

"If that's alright with your mother." She lifted an eyebrow. 

Momma nodded. It was what she had wanted--homes for her babies--and the woman seemed nice enough. She wasn't sure about the evil-looking cat, though. Her boy reached out to the feline and when she licked the puppy's paw, Momma knew all would be well. She gave the woman a grateful nuzzle then continued on down the alley with her brood. When she turned back for a final look they had disappeared.

Well, that was one less to worry about. She just hadn't expected the feeling of deep loss that overcame her. Hopefully it would get easier to let the rest of her children go. 
--

Read Le Grand Danois, chapter 7 here.