F/SF

I wanted to like this book; I love Connie Willis and have adored pretty much all of her other works. Maybe it's that I'm not a movie buff, or maybe it's the pacing (Willis is usually at her finest in her novellas, but this reads slowly for such a short book) or something else entirely. Whatever it was, I failed to love this book despite my best efforts. ( )

Remake is captivating. Imagine moviemaking of the future where technology allows you to alter endings to your favorite movies. Don't like Johnny Depp starring in What's Eating Gilbert Grape? Want to see Ryan Reynolds as the lead instead? With just a keystroke, you can change any detail you want. Live-action filming is a thing of the past. Every little detail can be turned upside-down with a little techno-photoshopping. Nothing is real anymore. Which is unfortunate for one naïve young woman named Alis. All she desires is a dance with Fred Astaire up on the silver screen. She knows all of Ginger's moves and like Alice in Wonderland, believes the right combination of eat-me and drink-me drugs will get her there. Caught up in love with Alis, Tom muddles his way through fixing bad alterations, all the while offering Alis her face on all the great dancers who danced with Fred. Alis doesn't want a photoshopped image of herself on Ginger's body. She wants the real deal.
As an aside, I loved how Willis thought. Here's a twist: when bona fide actors are maliciously altered into snuff films, litigation ensues. Either that, or the wronged actor becomes a popular porn star. ( )

Bleh. How could my favorite author take my favorite subject and destroy it? I don't know. But it happened. SO sad. :( ( )

Here's looking at you, kid. ( )