July 2011 in Films, Books and Music

July 2011 has been a funny one -- it's absolutely whizzed past once again, what with two holidays, my school-leavers Prom, the end of Harry Potter and (resultantly) my childhood and the aftermath of my birthday -- meaning much film-watching and book-reading was to be done. Think I gave it a fair old go.

Films
I don't think, apart from Harry Potter (*cough* twice), I've been to the cinema this month, which is - to me - slightly tragic. That said, I've still managed to sneak in the occasional film, one old and three new.
Transformers - I know the sequel was pants, and I wasn't even bothered about watching the threequel (I'm claiming credit for that word), but you can't deny that the original was great. Funny, exciting, action-packed and pacey. Alright, so Megan Fox isn't exactly Meryl Streep and when the robot-aliens start fighting it's impossible (unless you're an obsessive teenage boy) to tell which metal limb belongs to the goodie and which to the baddie. Still. A cracking action-adventure film.
Due Date - I was expecting a Hangover-esque, cringey boy-comedy. This pretty much is a Hangover-esque, cringey boy-comedy. That said, it's also really quite funny, though there were a couple of avert-eyes-and-sigh moments.
Eskimo Day - This was a small, BBC film made at some point in the mid-nineties, featuring several different families handling of Cambridge interview day, with particular focus on a dysfunctional, privileged family from Cheltenham and a working-class family from Blackburn. Very, very funny, perceptive and generally lovely film.
Cold Enough For Snow - the sequel to Eskimo Day. Yet more ammo for the 'Sequels Are Always Shit' argument.

Music
Not a stand-out month music-wise...
Jack's Mannequin 'Dear Jack' EP - only a four-song EP, but a nice one. I always like a bit of Jack's Mannequin; they're very easy to listen to and hard to dislike. Favourite songs: 'There, There Katie' and 'Dear Jack'.
Michael Buble 'Crazy Love: Hollywood Edition' - I resent an artist releasing the same album twice, when the second one has ONE new song, and a bunch of live versions. I love Michael Buble, but I was annoyed that he made me pay twice as much money for what's essentially the same album I bought last year. Favourite song: 'Hollywood'.
Dire Straits 'Money For Nothing' - I dug this out of my Dad's CD collection and have to say that, whilst I enjoyed it, it didn't grab my attention. I didn't DISLIKE this album, I just didn't find anything particularly fantastic about it. Still a pretty good one though. Favourite songs: 'Walk Of Life', 'Romeo and Juliet' and 'Twisting By The Pool'.

Books
I've read a LOT this month, but I think we can all agree that the reading material hasn't exactly been James Joyce. That said, in terms of nostalgia and old-school pageturners, it's been awesome.
When God Was A Rabbit by Sarah Winman - read this on holiday, and whilst finding it somewhat OTT in places (that much crap could not happen to one family), the first half especially was poignant, clever and a fascinating read.
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by JK Rowling - the beginning of my nostalgia kick. Loved it when I was six, still love it now I'm eighteen. Makes you realise how much the series progressed, whilst still retaining it's childlike appeal.
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by JK Rowling - after Order of The Phoenix, my least favourite Harry Potter story. Still love it though.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by JK Rowling - my favourite. Have always, and will always treasure this book.
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - it took me about seven hours to finish this book, and I adored it. I'd heard loads of hype and finally succumbed when I saw the trilogy in a 3 for 2 sale - hell, am I glad I did. Proper, action-packed, fast-moving, pageturning adventure books are not as common as I would like, and this was a superb example of what young adult books should be.
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins - not quite as gripping as the first in the series, but still excellent.
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins - unfortunately I was quite disappointed in this one. After the joy of reading that was the first two, I think I expected too much of this, and didn't find it anywhere near as addictive. I also started to find the main character's incessant moaning slightly annoying, and couldn't help but role my eyes at the 'everyone is in love with the heroine' cliche. That said, still a great read.