Remote Control: Catfish: The TV Show.

"You're basic."

TV Show: Catfish: The TV Show.

Hosts: Nev Shulman & Max Joseph. 

Genre: Reality. 

Original Channel: MTV. 

Season: 4.

Episode: 1. 

Nev Schulman and Max Joseph are back for a whole new season of Catfish: The TV Show. Except this time, Max handed over his place to Charlamagne, a TV host. While I missed Max, watching Charlamagne was quite entertaining. 

Review: Schulman embarks on a new season with an e-mail from a girl, Miracle, having an internet relationship with a boy, Jiovanni, she met in instagram. The first thirty minutes are redundant. There is nothing new from this season opener that we haven't already seen on Catfish: The TV Show. Google image search, reverse number lookup and a phone call to the catfish to arrange a meeting. 

Schulman is always a really likable and charming host, adding some quality to this episode. Charlamagne was somewhat of an asset as the fresh meat of the week. The concept of different co-hosts replacing Joseph for a few weeks is incredibly interesting. It'll bring different point of views and reactions to the reality show.

The outcome of the episode was intended to surprise the viewers, although I was sort of excepting a big twist because it seemed too easy when they found who was behind the Jiovanni profile so quickly. Therefore, expecting a twist, when it happened, I was not that surprised.

Overall, it was a weak first episode for Catfish: The TV Show. I was entertained at times, but I definitely was expecting more from it. Based on the teaser trailer for the second episode, I have a feeling that next week's episode will be better. I'll be watching for sure!

Book Review: Siren.

"It was as if Simon had become my nightlight; even when he wasn't with me, he was illuminating the world so I no longer feared it."

Author: Tricia Rayburn.
Release Date: July 13th, 2010.
Description: 352 pages, Hardcover.
Availability: Amazon, $18,64.
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Mystery.
Rating: 4 stars.

Resume: Vanessa Sands and her family spend the summer, every year, in the small town of Winter Harbor, Maine. If Vanessa is easily frighten by everything from the dark to the water, Justine, her older sister, is fearless. The girls usually hang out all summer with the boys next door, Simon and Caleb. After Justine's death, Vanessa starts to uncover some shocking secrets about her sister. She soon realize that nothing is what it seems in Winter Harbor and that she might be in danger.

Review: This novel is written in Vanessa's point of view. Siren is a not an action packed novel. The author took her time to develop and build the mystery that is Justine's death. Still, there is mysteries and thrills waiting for you if you chose to read that book.

The Sands sisters are polar opposites.We get to know Justine mostly by Vanessa and her parents' memories of her. Typically, Justine is build like a YA lead and Vanessa like a sidekick. She is headstrong, ambitious and determined, while Vanessa is more of a pushover, reserved girl. However, Vanessa grows a lot during that first installment of the series.The character of Vanessa Sands is incredibly likable. She is sweet and vulnerable and, although she seems unable to fend for herself at the beginning of the book, she overcomes her deepest fears throughout the story. 

Simon, the male lead of Siren, is an intellectual, curious and shy college student. If Vanessa is attracted very early on to Simon, she restrains herself from acting on it. Their romance doesn't blossom until the end of the novel. Siren is setting itself apart from the other YA books by not having a love-at-first-sight kind of romance. Simon and Vanessa have known each other all their lives, they are good friends and, therefore, know what they are getting into by choosing to be together. Their romance feels more genuine than most of the other YA novels I've read.

Siren is a very predictable. Rayburn's mystery novel is a slow digger. Vanessa's investigation is, at times, redundant and heavy. The book just doesn't provides the thrills it promised. However, the characters are easy to like and relate to. The premise is very interesting and unusual. Diverted are the opinions on the ending, but I liked it. We were left on a twist-ending and a good sequel opener.

Sequels: Undercurrent & Dark Water. 

E's List: The Underrated Teen Movie Edition.

Interestingly enough, I realized recently that some of my favorite teen movies were excruciatingly underrated. I, naively, thought that everybody watched and loved the same films as I did, but apparently the movies listed below aren't well-known. I highly recommend them to anybody who loves teenage movies, or you know, just movies in general. 

#5: Election, 1999.

Tracy Flick is one of my favorite villain. She is smart, witty, savvy and, oh so cruel. Reese Whiterspoon leads this movie as Flick, an overachieving, perfectionist and ambitious high school student. When Jim (Matthew Broderick), a high school teacher, starts working with the candidates for school president, he gets tangled in Tracy Flick's web, as she is determined to win the title. Election is a satire of the high school life. It's a black comedy with solid performances from its actors.

#4: The Spectacular Now, 2013.

Starring Miles Teller as Sutter, an outgoing, popular high school senior with a budding drinking problem. When his girlfriend Cassidy breaks up with him, Sutter sunk into depression. After some excessive drinking to cope with the break up, Sutter wakes up on a stranger's lawn. There he meets Aimee (Shailene Woodley), a girl who's his polar opposite. Upon meeting, the two become friends, and eventually embark into a romantic relationship. Eventually, Sutter's drinking spinals out of control, shattering his and Aimee's relationship. This one is a drama/comedy with an effective plot and great acting.

#3: Drive Me Crazy, 1999.

Sprinkled by Britney Spears' hit Drive Me Crazy, Melissa Joan Hart and Adrian Grenier star together as neighbors who were once best friends, but who drifted apart. Now seniors in high school, Nicole and Chase are estranged to each other. When Chase's girlfriend breaks up with him and Nicole's crush rejects her, find themselves with something in common. They join forces to make their significant other's jealous by faking a relationship. This is a very personal choice for me. I've always love that movie and think that more people should watch it.

#2: Wish Upon A Star, 1996.

Wish Upon A Star is television movie, so that could explain why it went under the radar. The Wheaton sisters couldn't be more different. Alexia (Katherine Heigl), who's about to graduate from high school, is a preppy girl with a popular jock boyfriend. Hayley (Danielle Harris), her younger sister, is a shy fifteen year-old with a talent for sciences and mathematics. After a lonely night, Hayley sees a shooting star and wishes she could be her sister. The next morning, Alexia and Hayley had magically swap bodies. You know what they say; be careful what you wish for. 

#1: Sugar And Spice, 2001.

This crime/comedy is the most underrated teen movie in my opinion. Sugar and Spice is all around funny, quirky and delicious. Marley Shelton is Diane Weston, the captain of the head cheerleader. When she gets pregnant by her quarterback boyfriend, Jack (James Marsden), the pair decides to keep the baby. After moving out of their parents' houses, the couple struggle financially. With the help of her cheerleader squad friends, Cleo (Melissa George), Lucy (Sara Marsh), Kansas (Mena Suvari) and Hannah (Rachel Blanchard), Diane plans to rob a supermarket.

So those are my choices for The Underrated Teen Movie Edition. I would definitely recommend all the movies on that list if you are looking for a light, fun watch. If you have some recommendations for me, make sure to leave them for me in the comments. 

Book Review: Beautiful Creatures.

"Teenagers. Everything is so apocalyptic."

Author: Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl.
Release Date: December 1st, 2009.
Description: 563 pages, Paperback.
Availability: Amazon, $9,89.
Genre: YA, Romance, Fantasy.
Rating: 4 stars.

Resume: Ehtan Wates is a teenager, living a typical life in the small town of Gatlin. After his mother's passing, Ethan is cared for by his housekeeper, Amma, while his father seems disconnected from reality. Soon, his daily day-dreaming about leaving Gatlin for College is disrupted by the arrival of a new girl in town, Lena Duchannes. When he meets Lena, Ethan realized that she's the girl he's been dreaming about for months.

Review: The co-writing of Garcia and Stohl flows really well. The chapters are sharp, short and effective. The book is written from Ethan's point of view, which is interesting since, personally, I haven't read a lot of fantasy books written by women from a boy's point of view. 

The character of Ethan is funny and adorable. The authors made is really easy for the readers to relate to their main character. Lena, while being more of an outcast and an introvert, is just as relatable. Amma and Ridley, are the two characters that were the most interesting and well-written to me. Ridley is the perfect mix between a temptress and a angst teenager, while Amma, is the most interesting character of the book. She's mysterious, intuitive and intriguing. Link, Ethan's best friend, is mostly used for a comical relief and he is doing his job very well. 

The world of magic, Beautiful Creatures created is full of beauty. I won't get too much into it, because of spoilers, but this aspect of the book is really well done by Garcia and Stohl. There is some plot-twists every few chapters that help maintain the reader's interest.

There is also a movie, which hit the theaters in 2013, that I've watched recently. I most say that, if you are hoping the movie to be a faithful adaptation of the book, you will be disappointed. I will say, however, that I really liked Alden Ehrenreigh (Ethan Wates) and Emmy Rossum (Ridley)'s acting.

Recommendations: Born Wicked by Jessica Spotswood, Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling, Siren by Tricia Rayburn.

Be Kind Rewind: Kissing Jessica Stein.

"Stop saying you told me, you're a terrible liar, it's one of your best qualities."

Cast: Jennifer Westfeldt, Heather Juergensen and Scott Cohen. 

Release Date: April 21st, 2001. 

Rating on Rotten Tomatoes: 85% fresh rating. 

My Rating: 4.5 stars. 

Resume: Kissing Jessica Stein is an independent romantic comedy about a twenty-something New Yorker who's overwhelmed by her inability to find her perfect man. Spontaneously, she responds to a lesbian ad in a newspaper in an attempt to expand her horizons. 

Review: When it comes to romantic comedies, I think that I've pretty much seen it all. Kissing Jessica Stein is different because it's a same-sex romance, not only that but, the main character is a straight girl embarking in a lesbian relationship. It breaks all the rules of romantic comedies. The leads, Westfeldt and Juergensen, wrote the movie together. The writing is almost as good as the acting.

Jessica Stein is a neurotic, perfectionist, charming girl who is fed up with the men that are thrown her way. Stein is a typically lost twenty-something who's trying to find her way in the busiest city of the world. She's one of the most relatable romantic comedy character I've encountered. Mainly because she is trying to find her way in life, like many of us. She is trying new things and allowing herself to make mistakes. 

 

Helen Cooper, Jessica's love interest, is her polar opposite. She is a messy, cool, thirty-something art gallery worker. While Helen has multiple affairs with men, she is eager for a relationship with a woman. If Jessica is nervous and uncomfortable with dating a woman, Helen is more laid back about the situation. Their relationship might be a little cringe-worthy at times, but if you open your mind to the blurriness that can be friendship and love, as well as gay and straight, then you can really enjoy this movie.

Kissing Jessica Stein is a charming, savvy, humorous flick that I would recommend to any romantic comedy lover. 

E's List: The John Hughes Edition.

When it comes to the 80's and teen romance, John Hughes is a god. For those of you who are a little to no familiar with John Hughes and his work, he is a movie director, a producer and a screenwriter. He masterly scripted and produced a dozen of comedies in the 80's and early 90's. He is mostly known for his work on teen movies. 

I've always been a big John Hugues fan. After watching 16 Candles a few days ago, I was tempted to re-watch all of my favorite Hugues movies. Then, I realized that there was quite a few and decided a should make a list out of it. 

#10: Dennis The Menace.

Released in 1993 to theaters, Dennis The Menace is the live-action movie based on the comic of the same name. Written and Directed by John Hugues, the comedy tells the story of Dennis Mitchell (Mason Gamble), a six-year-old boy who lives next door to an elderly couple, the Wilsons. Dennis is well known around the neighborhood for being a troublemaker, and therefore, his parents, Alice (Lea Thompson) and Henry (Robert Stanton), are struggling to find a babysitter for their son. When both of his parents are forced to leave for a few days on business trips, they desperately seek the help of Martha (Joan Plowright) and George (Walter Matthau) Wilson. In a series of unfortunate events, George becomes the latest victim of Dennis The Menace.  

#9: 101 Dalmatians.

The family comedy, based on the animated film, hit the theaters in 1996. When Pongo and Perdy, two dalmatians, meet in a park, it's love at first sight. Forcing their owners, Roger (Jeff Daniels) and Anita (Joely Richardson), to meet as well. After falling in love as well, both couples get married. Anita, a fashion designer, is terrorized by her boss, Cruella De Vil (Glenn Close). Based on one of Anita's sketches, Cruella entertains the idea of making a coat with dalmatian's fur. After hearing the news that both Anita and Perdy are pregnant, Cruella offers the couple a lot of money for the dalmatians' puppies. Rejected by Roger and Anita, Cruella decides to kidnap the puppies. 

#8: Curly Sue.

Written, produced and directed by John Hugues, Curly Sue is a 1991 romantic comedy. One night, after being set-up by homeless Bill Dancer (James Belushi) and Curly Sue (Alisan Porter), divorce lawyer Grey Ellison (Kelly Lynch) believes she has backed into Bill with her Mercedes. Upon learning that the man and little girl are homeless, Ellison insists on giving them shelter for the night. As Ellison spends time with Dancer and the young Curly Sue, she gets attached to them and is reluctant to let them go back to the streets. 

#7: Ferris Bueller's Day Off.

1986's Ferris Bueller's Day Off follows a high school senior, Ferris Bueller (Matthew Broderick), as he plans to skip a school day. After successfully convincing his parents of being sick, Ferris escapes the house and enrolls his best friend, Cameron (Alan Ruck), and his girlfriend, Sloane (Mia Sara), to his journey. Meanwhile, Ferris' sister, Jeanie (Jennifer Grey), is highly suspicious of her brother's plans and tried to out him to their parents.

#6: Home Alone.

The Christmas family comedy released in 1990, written and produced by John Hugues, will be the first of a successful series. The McCallisters are a big family. The night before they are to fly to Paris for the holidays, Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin), gets in a fight with his older brother and somewhat bully, Buzz (Devin Ratray). As a result, dinner is ruined and Kevin is sent to spend the night alone in the third floor of the house. During the night, the power is cut off momentarily, deactivating all the alarms in the family's home. When the family finally wake up, they rush to the airport. Having miscalculated the kids, the MacCallisters realized they left Kevin home alone. As they try to get back as quickly as possible, Kevin has to deal with burglars (Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern) trying to rob the house.

#5: Weird Science. 

Also written and directed by Hugues, Weird Science is a 1985 teen sci-fi comedy. After failing to attract the attention of the girls at their school, outcasts Gary (Anthony Micheal Hall) and Wyatt (IIan Mitchell-Smith) decides to create their perfect girl on Wyatt's new computer. Alone at Wyatt's for the weekend, the teenagers spend their night molding their perfect girl before hooking the computer to a Barbie doll. Miraculously, the doll materialized as a real flesh and blood young woman. The boys name her Lisa (Kelly LeBrock). Little did they know, Lisa has her own agenda.

#4: Sixteen Candles.
 
The coming-out-of-age romance film released in 1984 tells the story of Samantha Baker (Molly Ringwald) on the day of her sixteenth birthday. Because her sister Ginny (Blanche Baker) is getting married the next day, her family forgot Sam's birthday. At school, Sam is constantly hit on by a  nerdy freshman (Anthony Micheal Hall) who is infatuated with her, while being ignored by her own crush, Jake (Micheal Schoeffling), an attractive and popular senior. With the arrival of both sets of her grandparents, Sam escapes to a school dance where she is determined to capture Jake's attention.

#3: The Breakfast Club.

The Breakfast Club is a 1985 teen comedy/drama and the second John Hugues movie staring both Molly Ringwald and Anthony Micheal Hall. On a Saturday morning at Shermer High School, five teens arrive to detention. Claire Standish (Molly Ringwald) is a popular girl, Andrew Clark (Emilio Estevez) is a jock, Brian Johnson is a nerd, John Bender (Judd Nelson) is a criminal and Allison Reynolds (Ally Sheddy) is an outcast. While the group seems to have nothing in common, as the day progress, they bond and confident into each other.

#2: Some Kind of Wonderful.

Released to the theaters in 1987, Some Kind of Wonderful is a romance film written by Hugues. Keith is a high school student who comes from a working class family. Keith (Eric Stoltz) and his best friend, Watts (Mary Stuart Masterson), are outcasts at their school. After his crush, Amanda (Lea Thompson), breaks up with her rich boyfriend (Craig Sheffer) when he cheats on her, Keith asks her out. Much to everyone's surprise, Amanda agrees to go out with Keith, infuriating Watts who's secretly in love with her best friend.

#1: Pretty In Pink.

The 1986 teen film is the third one for Molly Ringwald as a leading lady for a John Hugues movie. Hugues wrote the film with Ringwald in mind. Andy Walsh, a working class girl, has fallen for popular and rich Blane McDonough (Andrew McCarthy). Luckily for her, the feeling is mutual and the two embark on a relationship. However, Andy's disapproving best friend, Duckie (Jon Cryer) and Blane's rich and snobbish friends make it hard for them to stay together.

Those are my personal favorites. However, I think that all of John Hugues movies are worth watching at least once. You might also like, Mr. Mom, Uncle Buck or Planes, Trains and Automobiles.  

Book Review: Paper Towns.

"What a treacherous thing to believe that a person is more than a person."

Author: John Green.
Release Date: October 18th, 2008.
Description: 305, Paperback.
Availability: Amazon, $9,89.
Genre: YA, Mystery, Romance.
Rating: 4 stars.

Resume: Quentin has a thing for the girl next door, Margo Roth Spiegelman. When they were kids, Quentin and Margo were good friends and even went through a traumatic event together, but since then drifted apart. A few days before their high school graduation, Margo shows up at Quentin's window in the middle of the night, seeking his help for a mission.

Review: As far as I am concerned, every novel penned by John Green is really well-written and Paper Towns is no exception. The novel is divided in three parts. The first part relates the midnight trip Quentin took with Margo, the night before she ran away. Interesting and intriguing, by far the best part of the book. The second part follows Quentin as he looks for clues to find Margo. Unfortunately that part is redundant and fails to capture to reader's interest. The last part is divided by short, effective chapters.

While it is easy to relate to Quentin for his sensitive socially outcast persona, it is a little harder to connect with Margo. Portrayed as a self-absorb dream girl, Margo is only present for the first few chapters of the novel. We get a sense of who she is by the clues she left being and the dialogues between Quentin and her best friend, Lacey. This part was masterly maneuvered by John Green. Quentin's friends; Ben and Marcus aka Radar are pretty stereotyped characters. They are the kind of sidekicks every YA novels have. Ben is the token goofy, and sometimes a little dumb, friend. Radar, is more grounded and Quentin's voice of reason. If the Ben character is, at times, annoying and Radar's irrelevant, both are still charming and provide a good comical relief.

Romance is very much present in Paper Towns. The relationship between Quentin and Margo is one-sided on Quentin's part for the majority of the novel. In the beginning, Quentin's infatuation for Margo is as cute as any other High School's crush. However, as the novel progress, Quentin loses some of his charm due to his over-the-top behavior in the desperate search for a girl he wasn't even friends with. Ben and Lacey's relationship feels pushed down our throat, however Radar and Angela's more relatable.

Perception is everything in Paper Towns. Perception is why Quentin fell for Margo. He liked her because of the perception he had of her, not for who she really was. It teaches a valuable message; the picture we painted in our heads of a person isn't the reflect of reality.

Overall, Paper Towns is a fun, coming-out-of-age mystery. John Green doesn't disappoint with his witty, quirky characters.

Recommendations: Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, FanGirl by Rainbow Rowell, I'll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson.  

Book Review: Gone Girl.

"Go ahead, shit on me, I don't mind, I'm the cool girl."

Author: Gillian Flynn.
Release Date: June, 2012.
Description: 432 pages, Paperback.
Availability: Amazon, $12, 27.
Genre: Adult, Thriller.
Rating: 3½ stars. 

Resume: Amy and Nick Dunne are the perfect couple, or so it seems. When Amy goes missing on the couple's fifth wedding anniversary, the small town of North Carthage is rocked by the possibility of having a kidnapper or killer among them. As the search for Amy deepens, all signs seem to point towards Nick. But what really happened to all-american-girl Amy?

Review: If Gone Girl is overwhelming and surrealist at times, its an undeniable page-turner and an effective thriller. The book is divided in three parts; the first part is the investigation around Amy's disappearance. Every other chapter of the first part is extracts of Amy's personal diary. We see through her eyes, her relationship with Nick from the moment they met up until a few days before disappearing. Gillian Flynn is a good writer, if you read Sharp Objects or Dark Places, you already know that, but I feel like she definitely stepped up her game with Gone Girl. 

The main characters of the book are flawed, as they should be, but are lacking likability. Nick is portrayed as a dead-beat husband and his level is immaturity is going through the roof as the book progress. Flynn fed us the usual back story to explain his lack of commitment, which is a terrible childhood at the hands of an abusive father. His sharp tongued twin sister is irritably nicknamed Go (from Margo). So little details are given about her that Flynn makes it impossible for the readers to care for her. Amy, his gone-wife, is a goody-two-shoes with a chip on her shoulder. Neither of them could extract one once of sympathy from me, which made it hard for me to connect to the story. The thrill the book brings although, kept me from putting down Gone Girl. 

The second part of the book is unraveling what really happened to Amy. This is where you will really get into the story. There is new twists and turns waiting for you at the end of almost every chapters. Part two is brilliant and ingenious. Flynn really shows are skills as an author.

However, the third part of the novel is so unrealistic and over-the-top that it makes it hard for the readers to take the book seriously. The whole story fell apart for me at this point. 

I have mixed feelings about the ending. It felt rushed, like Flynn was in a hurry to wrap up her story. I won't get too much into it because it would involve spoilers. 

Overall, Gone Girl is a good thriller. It doesn't fail to entertain, provoke and sometimes shock its readers. It keeps your brain going from the moment you put the book down to when you pick it up again. 

Recommendations: The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty, The Killer Next Door by Alex Marwood and/or The Good Girl by Mary Kubica. 

Book Review: Dash & Lily's Book of Dares.

 "The universe doesn't decide what's right or not right. You do."

Author: Rachel Cohn and David Levithan.
Release date: October 26th, 2010.
Description: 260 pages, paperback.
Availability: Amazon, $9,92 (Paperback).
Genre: Young Adult (YA), Romance.
Rating: 3½ stars. 

Resume: 16 year-old Lily is a bookworm, quirky teenage girl who left a red notebook filled with dares tucked between some books in her favorite bookstore. Eventually, the book is found by Dash when he tries to avoid the festivities of Christmas. As he decides to take on Lily's challenges, a romance soon sparks between the teenagers. Their journey makes them swirl all around the busiest city of the world, but will they eventually find each other?

Review: With only 260 pages, Dash & Lily's Book of Dares is fast read. The chapters alternate between the two main characters, Lily and Dash which is interesting since the Dash's parts are written by Levithan and the Lily's parts by Cohn. The styles of writing, while different, mesh very well.

As characters, Lily and Dash each stand their own ground.While the characters share some interests; such as books and movies, they are polar opposites. Lily is somewhat mold after the manic pixie dream girl model, while also being quite shy and sensitive. Dash is an outgoing and popular boy, but he is also bookish, sarcastic and witty. The characters are charming and, to a certain extend, relatable.

 The story itself was intended to challenge its characters, to make them grow and expand their horizons, which the authors achieve quite well. The concept of the book is really interesting, while at times underdeveloped. I think that the authors let slip some opportunities to go deeper into the characters by the possible dares they could have make them do. For me, Levithan and Cohn stayed on the surface and did not scratched their characters enough. The dialogue was sometimes overly mature for a bunch of sixteen y.o. That being said, Dash & Lily's Book of Dares is well-written, light-heated and witty. With touches of humor, the novel delivers the endearing story of a different kind of romance. A lot of tension had build up around the ending and the meeting of Dash and Lily. Levithan and Cohn delivered and wrapped up the story perfectly.

 I would recommend Dash & Lily's Book of Dares to fans of YA and romance novels as a light, Christmas-y read to take a breather between two books.

Recommendations: If you fancied Dash & Lily's Book of Dares, you might enjoy 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson, Paper Towns by John Green or/and Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist by Levithan and Cohn.