Seen Any Good Movies Lately?

It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a movie trailer that gave me a legitimate desire to see a new movie. Those that I have viewed? I was disappointed in most of them.

You might wonder why a writer would blog about movies. The reason is quite simple. I’d like to see a good old-fashioned mystery movie – one where “they” don’t concentrate on gore, sex or foul language. I’ve read so many good mysteries lately and thought, “Wow! That would make a great movie.”

An Old-Fashioned Movie

 Call me a prude – and you might – but I’m tired of hearing the “F-bomb” and some of the other offensive words. I understand they’re not offensive to everyone, but come on – do they really add to the story? Are they an integral part of the dialogue? Okay, sometimes it gives flavor to a bad guy’s character, but it’s not necessary in every other sentence.

If I want to see gore, I’ll drive to the site of an accident next time I hear sirens. Personally, and this is just me, I’ve seen enough blood and guts on television. It’s often worse in the movies. I hate to see kids, and adults, getting used to seeing this stuff. At the scene of an accident, are you going to say, “Oh. I’ve seen this kind of thing a hundred times on TV. Big deal.”

And then there’s sex. I don’t need to see the details of someone else’s sex life. (It’s actually sexier when ”they” leave what happens to the viewer’s/reader’s imagination.)

If I spend the money to go to the theater and watch a mystery, I want to see a mystery. And I want it to be a good one. Yeah, I know. Who cares what one person wants? Well, it’s not just me who would like to see a good movie, a classic mystery. It would be even better if it didn’t involve a serial killer. That storyline is becoming a bit old. Oops! I wrote a book that involved a serial killer. Bad me!

Oh, and to make the mystery movie even better, I’d love to see one that makes me laugh. Of course, in some mysteries there’s no room for humor. That’s okay, too.

I’ve read plenty of entertaining mysteries lately. When you finish a book do you close it and sigh, thinking, “Ahhh, that would make a great movie.” Instead of coming up with some good new material, it seems to be the in thing to remake old movies (and TV shows), and honestly? I’d like to see something new and fresh.

A screenwriter made a presentation at a conference I once attended. He made the comment that if your book is picked up for a movie, don’t hold your breath while you wait to see your story on the Big Screen. Just about everyone involved in making a movie has the right to ask for changes. The movie may end up not even resembling your story.

As an author, am I spouting sour grapes? No, I’ve never had anyone offer to make a movie out of one of my books. However, as someone who enjoys a good movie, a mystery in particular, for the time-being I’ll stick with the old black and whites.

Well, I guess I have to laugh a little. When someone got shot in the old movies there was no bullet hole and no blood. Someone just fell down. Period. But at least the bullet hole didn’t spurt something red and there wasn’t any brain matter flying across the room.

Okay, I’m stepping down from my soapbox now (again). All I’m really saying is there are a lot of good books out there that would make great movies, and I’d go to see them in a heartbeat.

I know some of you don’t have a problem with language, sex and gore. If that doesn’t bother you, what does? What are some of the issues with today’s movies that would prevent you from spending your hard-earned money on a theater ticket? I’m honestly curious.

Until next time, read a book this week that you’ve been meaning to read but haven’t gotten around to, and decide if it would make a good movie nor not.

Marja McGraw’s website is in the process of being updated.

CLICK HERE for a quick trip to Amazon.com

Old Murders Never Die – A Sandi Webster Mystery takes places in a deserted ghost town and this is the one that included a serial killer – dating back to the late 1800s.

The Drama of It All

My tagline is, A little humor, a little romance, a little Murder!

There's absolutely nothing funny about murder, but the same can't be said for solving a crime.  Sandi, Pete, Pamela and Chris will take you places and introduce you to people and situations you'll remember for a long time, and they'll do their best to offer you a smile along the way. (A quote from my website.)

While my stories offer a little humor, there’s also drama. As stated above, there’s nothing humorous about murder. I’ve read a number of books that are funny from beginning to end, even though they involve violence of all kinds. While I enjoy them, that’s not what I want to present to the reader – to each his (or her) own.

Sometimes we need a little comedy relief in the middle of suspense and drama. It’s the same way in real life. When something traumatic happens in my life, I often look for a way to lighten the way I feel. Maybe it’s as simple as a funny memory from the life of someone who passed away. Maybe it’s finding something unexpected when you’re sorting through that person’s belongings. Sometimes even something touching can bring a smile to your face.

I realize that not everyone looks at things the way I do, but humor has gotten me through some rough times. I also understand that finding humor isn’t always possible, but more often than not I’ll find something humorous about almost every situation.

The other morning I woke up in a really, really bad mood. I don’t know why. During the morning I was in the kitchen and there was a sudden loud thud somewhere in the house. Of course, I just knew there was something wrong and I ran all over the house looking for tipped over furniture, an intruder, whatever.

Since moving to a different house, one of my dogs, Sugar, has taken to napping on my bed. When I checked my room, she was sitting on the floor looking like, “What the heck just happened?” Um, she fell off the bed. She’s a large dog. It made a very loud thud. And she made me laugh. Yes, she was fine. My bad mood disappeared in a flash.

I spoke to a woman who’d recently read Old Murders Never Die. She said she’d now read all of the Sandi Webster mysteries. I asked if any of them at least brought a smile to her face. She said that, yes, they made her laugh aloud. And she said Old Murders Never Die also made her cry, and that she appreciated the comedy relief in the story. She made my day.

This is also what made me think about the drama in the books. Real life is made up of drama, humor, sadness and joy. Shouldn’t books depict real life to some extent?

I look at it this way. There’s drama in life, however, when I read a book the drama is someone else’s problem. In a story, I get to see that drama resolved, and that gives me hope for life away from a book. If there’s a little humor in the story, too, that’s frosting on the cake.

When my time comes, I hope that rather than cry, people will remember funny stories about me. Easy to do because I’m such a clumsy person, and usually when I say something funny, it’s purely accidental. I’m not all that quick-witted. I do manage to make people laugh from time to time, and their laughter make me feel good.

Hmm. Maybe this is my subconscious telling me I need to start adding more humor to my blogs.

How do you feel? Would you rather read a book and laugh or cry, or both? Just curious.

Until next time, my heart goes out to the families and friends of the victims in Florida. I hope that at some point a sudden memory will bring a smile to them – maybe not laughter, but a smile.

CLICK HERE to visit Marja McGraw’s website (still in need of updating)

CLICK HERE for a quick trip to Amazon.com

COMING SOON: A preview of the new book cover for Gin Mill Grill – A Sandi Webster Mystery, and hopefully the book won’t be too far behind.