The Geek Fu Morning Show

18 Comments

• 1. Jp replies at 28th November 2005 um 1:23 pm :

  No Mur. You aren’t alone with hating the harry potter movies. They are so god awful that when the next mvie comes out im going to prebuy all the seats in all the showing just so noone will see it and waste their money!

• 2. Vanamonde replies at 28th November 2005 um 1:24 pm :

  Like the curate’s egg, the latest HP movie is good in parts.

• 3. Rodrigo replies at 28th November 2005 um 2:12 pm :

  First time listener, can’t wait for the next installment. I’ll make sure I come around here some more.
  I’d tell ya what I think about harry potter but I haven’t seen the movies or read the books.

  R.

• 4. John M. replies at 29th November 2005 um 12:39 pm :

  Mur, I think the Potter movies have the same disadvantage as the Rings movies, in that they had no choice but to alter the emphasis in certain scenes to fit the medium. In a book, when we read “The Enemy’s legions were arrayed in forms vast and dark and terrible”…” etc, Our imaginations immediately leap in and provide a picture. Conveying the same think visually just takes more time. For instance in The Two Towers, the battle at the Hornburg takes about 10 pages in the book but takes up nearly a third of the movie. In the book we have the whole weight of Middle-Earth’s history to explain that the battle was critical, so the only think left was to tell us who won and who died. But the movie had to generate that sense of urgency out of nowhere. Probably the same for Potter.

  Plus the whole premise of Potter is just goofy. It is a kid’s book after all.

• 5. John M. replies at 29th November 2005 um 12:42 pm :

  BTW also, Gingersnap the drunken belligerent elf is hilarious!

  What’s next, Cupcake the rabid pit bull?

• 6. Christiana replies at 29th November 2005 um 3:57 pm :

  Agreed that the dragon/snake scenes in the HP movies go on too long at the expense of smooth plot transitions, but I think you may be trying to enjoy the films in the exact same way as you did the books, which will never happen precisely because they are different mediums with different strengths. *shrug* Or maybe it’s just me that does that. ^_^

  Anyway, I’m going to Podcastercon too, so it’ll be great to see you there!

• 7. Mike replies at 29th November 2005 um 8:02 pm :

  To the comment stating… “It is a kid’s book after all”… the same thing was said about the LOTR books back in their day. American culture really has it out for fantasy and scifi and it still shows after all this time. LOTR was the TOP book of its time and critics were floored that people enjoyed as much as they did. Harry Potter suffers the same criticism. Heck, I think it was the Time Bestseller list that actually removed it from their listings (claiming it was a children’s book and therefore not applicable) because the Harry Potter books wouldn’t leave the top spot.

  Sorry, John. I realize I’m reading way too much into your simple comment. Its not directed at you. It just triggered a desire to make my own comments. I get a little defensive about the cultural “value” of scifi and fantasy being attacked so often. As such, I hate to turn around and do the same thing to another series classified as a childrens book.

  Off my soap box. I enjoy the HP books and find the movies entertaining (knowing they can’t be perfect). But Geek Fu Action Grip blows them all away. Loved part one of your story Mur.

• 8. jae jin pak replies at 30th November 2005 um 7:03 am :

  Hi Mur,
  I’m not a huge fan of the Potter movies too. I love the books like you and agree that they pay too much attention to the action scenes.

  I feel bad for your puppy. Hope she gets better fast. (I think she is a she. Sorry if I goofed).
  If you haven’t found it. There’s a podcast called “the katiemac show”. They have a dog that has been recovering from medical care too if you wanted to have someone to share puppy recovery with.
  thanks for both of your shows. love them.
  jae from chicago

• 9. Dan B. replies at 30th November 2005 um 7:48 am :

  This story has really got me hooked! I can’t wait for next week’s. I like the idea of podcasting short stories. Novels like Earthcore and stuff are too much work for me to listen to, but this one sounds really good so far! I love the idea of the Time Stone.

  And a random thought, instead of saying female podcaster, why not go with podcastress? Thought of that t work last night lol.

• 10. raequel replies at 30th November 2005 um 10:11 am :

  re: Dan B

  Podcastress…sounds sexay…but Podcastrix, that’s sexy with a bit of power…

  yeah the wired article was way off base. that magazine (at least in IHMO) isnt as relevant to cyberculture as it once was, what the hell would some overpaid tech journalist know anyhoo….no offense to techpress who may be reading…sorta.

  forgive me, i’m in a nasty mood as is.

• 11. John M. replies at 1st December 2005 um 11:14 am :

  Mike, re your post above, the Potter books were written specifically for a child audience, which is not the case for LOTR. That was, from the beginning, meant for an adult audience.

• 12. tim replies at 2nd December 2005 um 5:59 am :

  Two topics, two thoughts:

  1. The whole “female podcaster” comment reflects the unfortunate bias that assumes any given reader is white American male. Content is content. Shouldn’t matter if the podcastER has X or Y chromosomes. And I’ll second raequel’s comment - once Wired featured slick ads from Absolut Vodka, it was no longer in touch with its roots.

  2. I enjoyed Barry Koleman - but I’m loving Christmas From the Heartbreakers! The Time Stone is a neat take on how Santa can Get It All Done in one night. This story is a loving reworking of a cherished and time-honored myth that modernizes it, yet stays true to the heart of it. Great work.

  3. I’ll say this about the Potter books - they may be written for a child audience, but Rowling is writing to the level of the original group of fans. That is, Harry and Co. are getting older along with their readers, and concurrently the themes and plotlines are maturing too. As for the movies, they are diverting, but they aren’t must-see films: I’m quite content to let them show up as DVDs at the library. IMHO, the books and movies are almost at opposite ends of the spectrum - the films gloss over events and plot in favor of SFX, and the books are becoming overburdened with trivialities.

  Okay, so that was three things.

• 13. Ogma replies at 5th December 2005 um 4:08 pm :

  Personally, I have no interest in the Harry Potter books, but I have REALLY enjoyed the movies. To each his own.

• 14. ToV replies at 6th December 2005 um 6:20 am :

  This doesn’t relate to this episode, but BoingBoing has a link to Plush Polyhedral Dice! 4 to 20 sided plushy geek goodness!
  Thought of you and the little one when I read it.
  http://www.boingboing.net/2005/12/05/plush_rpg_polyhedral.html
  Have fun!

• 15. Rich Sigfrit replies at 7th December 2005 um 5:03 am :

  Everyone should always - always - treat a book and a movie different. Something I don’t understand is that if a novelization of a movie features different content or extra scenes, its forgiven and seen as a bonus, but a movie that leaves parts of the book out is seen as a travesty. We ened to treat them as interpretations unless the creator is specifically tied into the filmmaking process.

  I just hope they cast John Leguizamo as Barry Koleman in the movie, and make him into a girl like ChiChi in To Wong Fu.

• 16. Mur replies at 7th December 2005 um 5:08 am :

  Rich- You have a point, but I’m not upset at things removed. I understand that with a 700 page book stuff has to be taken out, (SPEW wasn’t missed, for example). But leading us through the long walk to the Quiddich World Cup, and the long walk up the stairs, and then… nothing… was a clumsy transition. Including things in the second task that were not in the first was inconsistent. The movies feel like a slide show that you should have in front of you while reading the book to hit on some high points but don’t fall together as a story themselves…

  And if Leguizamo is in drag, who will he play? Or is he supposed to be Barry, just as a transvestite?

• 17. Bill replies at 8th December 2005 um 6:53 am :

  You know what’s odd. I found the 4th (HP) movie to be my favorite.
  But you are right, they sacrifice some of what is endearing about the books (character interactions) to peddle to the “ADD” movie going America.

• 18. Bill replies at 8th December 2005 um 6:54 am :

  
  

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