Beautiful Creatures

Beautiful Creatures
Written by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
Directed by Richard LaGravenese
124 minutes
Warner Home Video (2013)
Ratings:  PG-13
Genre:  Movie

Annotation/Teaser:  When Ethan meets the girl of his dreams, he doesn't realize the power she has. He has dreamt of this girl and knows they are meant to be together but he gets more than he bargained for.

Plot Summary:  Lena just moved to the Southern town of Gatlin, South Carolina and the only person she feels understands her is a cute boy named Ethan Wate.  Ethan, like Lena, has bigger dreams and wants to get out of Gatlin.  Lena is an orphan and has moved to Gatlin to stay with her uncle, Macon Ravenwood.  Ravenwood is very powerful because their whole clan are Casters, born with special powers that most normal mortals don't possess.  The special powers include the ability to move objects, control the elements, and step out of space and time to communicate with each other.  Ethan falls for Lena the first time he sees her and recognizes her from his vivid dreams.  As their relationship grows, Lena feels she might be ready to open up to Ethan about her secret, but she find out that they are in danger of losing each other.  When Caster girls turn 16 their destiny is revealed.  She will either be destined for good or evil.  Lena wants the decision to be in her control.  So she and Ethan set out on a journey to discover Lena's past that dates back to Civil War times.  But most of all, to find a way for Lena to be able to choose her own destiny.

About the Author:  Kami Garcia   Kami Garcia is the #1 New York Times & international bestselling coauthor of the Beautiful Creatures Series and DANGEROUS CREATURES (May 2014) & the author of UNBREAKABLE, the first book in the Legion Series, releasing on October 1, 2013.
BEAUTIFUL CREATURES has been published in 50 countries and translated in 39 languages. The film adaptation of Beautiful Creatures released in theaters on February 14, 2013, from Warner Brothers, starring: Viola Davis, Jeremy Irons, Emma Thompson, Emmy Rossum, Alice Englert, and Alden Ehrenreich.
Kami is fascinated by the paranormal, and she’s very superstitious. When she isn’t writing, Kami can usually be found watching disaster movies, listening to Soundgarden, or drinking Diet Coke. She lives in Maryland with her family, and their dogs Spike and Oz (named after characters from the TV show Buffy the Vampire Slayer).

Kami Garcia Bio (n.d.)  Retrieved form www.kamigarcia.com

Critical Evaluation:   This movie has all the elements of a movie that teenagers would love.  There is fantasy and paranormal and romance.  This combination seems to work well to get teens hooked these days.  One problem I had with the movie was the characters' romance.  Ethan and Lena's love at first sight was completely unbelievable to me.  Form the beginning they seemed to fall for each other and things got seriou really fast.  Lena's crying in the beginning of the movie over her uncle telling her she shouldn't have him as a friend was a little over-dramatic for me. Lena and Ethan went from the getting to know you stage to serious relationship stage in a matter of 2 days which confirmed my unbelievability.  One thing that I liked was the action-packed scenes which started early on with Lena breaking all the windows in the classroom.  Another thing that kept me interested were the witty, intelligent lines of the characters.  For example, when Ethan tells Emma, "I'm a junior, Emma. If I dress like I care I lose credibility."  The end of this movie left enough to make me watch a sequel if it is made but it did resolve some of the up front issues.  While I would still recommend the book, the movie does a fairly good job at following the story line and keeping the watcher interested.

Curriculum Ties: English, History, Geography

Book Talk ideas:  I would play the movie trailer.

Controversial Issues:    Violence, sexual content, and paranormal characters

Defense: 

*I will keep the library's selection policy on hand and memorized with a good understanding  of the standards and policies to show that the selection meets the standards. 

*I will keep good and bad reviews (both electronic and print) and make sure they are from reliable and respected sources such as School of Library Journal, Booklist, and YALSA. I will have copies of these reviews to give away. 

*I will confirm the library's position to provide intellectual freedom as stated in the Library Bill of Rights and keep a copy of this.

*I will keep a written rationale to justify the reasons this material is included in the collection, such as educational significance and curriculum ties.

*I will be respectful and calm and practice "active listening".

*I will make sure I read the material and are very familiar with it.

   

* I will keep a reconsideration form on file in the event that my other strategies don't work. 

Why I Chose This Movie:  Paranormal is very popular with teenagers.  This is a great movie in the genre.