tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-52309929853173649592024-02-02T04:16:35.576-05:00Between the Seatsedgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.comBlogger512125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-72825607237916711872014-02-16T10:48:00.002-05:002014-02-16T10:58:28.142-05:00Between the Seats 2.0<div class="MsoNormal">
New life, new purpose.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The old Between the Seats is probably never coming back.
Random reviews of older films or new theatrical releases, marathons, those were
very fun to write and publish but there’s a reason why they came to an end in
early January of 2013. Other obligations have eaten far too much of my time to
update this blog with the traditional content readers have come to expect on a
movie blog. I already do that kind of stuff elsewhere, so I won’t be doing it here as well, notwithstanding some pretty exceptional circumstances.</div>
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The blog will now be used as a repertoire for podcast tests
I perform at home on Audacity, little 2, 3, maybe 10 minute episodes in which I
test sounds, mix some tracks and so on and so forth. Some of you know that
since October od 2011 I’ve been a co-host of the Sordid Cinema podcast at Sound
on Sight, in addition to guest hosting a series of other shows in the interim.
Podcasting is a ton of fun, a completely different, far more interactive way of
discussing movies. There’s no guarantee that people will comment an article you
publish, but when co-hosting a show, interaction is the name of the game.
Related to this is the fact that I’ve taken a certain interest in the producing
and editing side of podcasting. In early January I downloaded Audacity and
began toying with the many audio and recording options and have found myself
enjoying it a great deal. Rather than simply have those tests lie dead on my
hard drive, I figured I could publish them here and if anyone wants to share
feedback (about their content or their quality), they’re more than welcome.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Its second purpose will be as an online depository for a
memoir of sorts that I’ve begun writing a couple of weeks ago. It consists of a
series of random chapters on various movie related topics that strike me as
worthy to jot down thoughts and feelings about. I’m not certain where exactly this
project will take me, but recently I’ve found myself thinking back on a plethora
of movie topics that I guess I’ve never really taken the time to ponder on
seriously for an extended period of time. I enjoy writing, have been told I
write well and have therefore taken it upon myself to articulate said thoughts into
words that, a few weeks later, have taken on the form of a small book. <o:p></o:p></div>
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As can be assessed, this new Between the Seats will be all
the more personal than it’s ever been. I’m not expecting it re regain the (very)
relative popularity it once had. Frankly, if there are only 5 people who click
the articles it won’t make a lick of difference to me. In recent months my mind
had kept thinking back to the time I spent updating this blog and figured that
maybe I should put it to use once more. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I guess Between the Seats can be considered a
personal film-themed diary of sorts from now on. If you want to read reviews of
mine, you all know to head over the soundonsight.org, I have material published
literally every week. If you want to stick around here to see how this
experiment might evolve, I’m happy to oblige.<o:p></o:p><br />
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-Edgar Chaput<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-45450282629467915692013-01-01T12:20:00.000-05:002013-01-01T12:27:05.291-05:00The Final Chapter<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Some
of you who occasionally visit the blog may be wondering why is it
that no updates have been provided since last summer. That is indeed
a very long stretch of time without any news and worthy information.
For that I humbly apologize. Work, social life as well as the energy
invested to be the best movie commenter I can possibly be for <a href="http://www.soundonsight.org/author/edgar-chaput/">Sound on Sight</a> have taken up the majority of my time, much of which used to
be for writing fun articles for this little blog here. Between the
Seats operated on a consistent basis for four years, from September
2008 to September 2012, delivering the best content feasible given my
capacity for heading out to the multiplex, attending festivals and
delving into an extensive DVD and Blu-Ray shelf to explore the gems
of cinema's past. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Some
months were ripe with a great many articles, others saw a dip in
quantity. In my real life (not reel life! Ha!), there was a job
change, new friends made, new challenges met, but through it all I
tried my best to deliver a sizable amount of content that was worthy
of the readers' time. I wanted the analysis to be comprehensive,
remotely intelligent, but also fun to a degree. Pomposity was not in
the cards for Between the Seats but nor did I ever want the articles
to be too colloquial either. I hope to have achieved that and,
judging by the warm comments some of you left me over the course of
the four years, I believe I succeeded, which makes me very proud.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">However,
the time has come to move on to bigger and better things. Yes, as
much as it was fun to sarcastically pretend sometimes that Between
the Seats was the be-all and end-all of online film criticism, the
reality of the matter is that there are other venues out there which
can and hopefully will offer even better intellectual and, who knows,
monetary rewards at one point down the road. I cannot and certainly
will not hide that fact that joining the Sound on Sight team in
December of 2011 was the start of a lot of changes with regards to my
movie habits. Two columns to call my own for which the
editor-in-chief has given me <i>carte blanche, </i><span style="font-style: normal;">coverage
of three different Montreal based film festivals in 2012 as an
accredited member of the press (unlike in 2011 when I paid to see
every Fantasia, World Film Festival and Festival du Nouveau Cinema
film you all read reviews for) and now, as of last October, <a href="http://www.soundonsight.org/radio/sordid-cinema-podcast/">co-host of their Sordid Cinema podcast</a>. </span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUtqTJ0sNeRZhhDa3HRPmw8etlZ9KwhyphenhyphenkVfZWK-bbH5hvDIwY2DxpEotOQFE4ADHxFWuTCt2qA3e36wfxfUpErVh3JLrrTy-k6oU6HkqFSAZLp-GIcajySPpgUZSVrS8K_J7IJtxzh2i0/s1600/Blog-crowd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUtqTJ0sNeRZhhDa3HRPmw8etlZ9KwhyphenhyphenkVfZWK-bbH5hvDIwY2DxpEotOQFE4ADHxFWuTCt2qA3e36wfxfUpErVh3JLrrTy-k6oU6HkqFSAZLp-GIcajySPpgUZSVrS8K_J7IJtxzh2i0/s400/Blog-crowd.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;">Needless
to say, Sound on Sight is where I shall be concentrating all of my
movie reviewing habits for the foreseeable future. In other words,
with this article here, published on the 1</span><sup><span style="font-style: normal;">st</span></sup><span style="font-style: normal;">
of January 2013, the Between the Seats project is complete. I never
knew what exactly would come of it, but in the back of my mind, if
other, more stimulating opportunities arose, I knew that the blog
would take a back seat. I would be remiss not to mention some people
who, either because they actively helped me with my blogging, left
comments in the designated section or simply inspired me to strive
for more with their own top quality work, played a part in making
Between the Seats happen and last as long as it did.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><a href="http://billsmovieemporium.wordpress.com/">-Bill Thompson from Bill's Movie Emporium</a>. Those joint marathons were a
thing of beauty. I don't know which one I enjoyed the most, but each
was a fantastic experiment in its own right and helped me really
appreciate the notion of not just writing in a vacuum, but
interacting with others. Actually, I can choose one. The </span><i>Star
Wars</i><span style="font-style: normal;"> marathon, and more
specifically the </span><i>A New Hope</i><span style="font-style: normal;">
debacle. It was infuriating in the best possibly way. Of all the
bloggers out there, you are the one the really made this damn thing
the most fun. Buddy, keep on hating </span><i>Episode IV</i><span style="font-style: normal;">.
It shakes things up a bit, you know?</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="http://www.thematinee.ca/">-Ryan McNeil from The Matinee</a>. This man writes like mad. I don't know how
exactly he finds the time to write as much and as well as he does,
but kudos to him for pulling off the trick. He went from common
blogger to a legitimate .com in a couple years and his podcast is one
of the best around. A really slick website that consistently provides
wonderful content. If you love the Toronto International Film
Festival, then you must check out his website and podcast in the
month of September. For a one-man show, this guy provides stupendous
coverage.</span></span></div>
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<div style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="http://justatad.wordpress.com/">-Corey Atad from Just Atad</a>. Here is a guy who has strong opinions on just
about everything film related. You might not agree with him, but he
always takes the time and makes the effort to fully explain why he
stands where he stands, and that's a quality not enough movie fans on
the internet possess. There was a time, some years ago (time flies)
when I actually wrote some articles for a website Corey hosted, The
Reelists. While I wasn't part of the team for too long, maybe a few
months at most, that small period genuinely helped me, in some
capacity, to become a better writer. I wasn't writing for myself. I
had to impress other people too, otherwise the material would not see
the light of day. That was a lot of fun, and although I don't write
for him anymore and have not for some time, I still strongly support
his work.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="http://cinemasights.com/">-JamesBlake Ewing from Cinema Sights</a> .Here's another smart, talented writer
who went from running a simple blog to getting his own .com. His take
on film is a little different from most. For than once he'll have a
startlingly different take on a film than the majority. His article
on what Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy lacks is a fine
example of that. Some of you might know that he and I are working on
a project right now, <a href="http://batcavedebriefs.wordpress.com/">Batcave Debriefs</a>, which might not have too much
to do with film, but certainly reading his movie articles over the
years was an inspiration for Between the Seats.</span></span></div>
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<div style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">-Courtney
Small and his team of writers at <a href="http://www.bigthoughtsfromasmallmind.com/">Big Thoughts From a Small Mind</a>. Yet
another .com which began rather modestly. True enough, this is not
one I have visited on as regular a basis as the aforementioned sites,
but every time I check in there is something of note, especially the
articles which encourage active participation from the readers, like
the recurring 'Which is Better' segment. </span></span>
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<a href="http://cinemaontheroad.com/"><br /></a>
</div>
<a href="http://cinemaontheroad.com/">
</a>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="http://cinemaontheroad.com/">-Cinema on the Road, hosted by Seema and Jhon</a>. Two well spoken, extremely
articulate film connoisseurs who explore cinema from all corners of
the planet. Half the time I have never heard of the movies they
choose to discuss on their show, but that is part of the pleasure:
the discovery. Why remain content with what one is already familiar
with? The tag line is 'A Journey Through the World of Cinema' and
Seema and Jhon are mighty good companions for the trip.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">-Finally,
I don't think I would be doing what I am doing now without the
<a href="http://www.filmspotting.net/forum/index.php">Filmspotting message boards</a>. I haven't been there in some time for a
variety of reasons, but the eclectic bunch of participants over there
are really what got me going. In 2007 when I became a member, I
certainly watched a healthy amount of films, but not always of the
quality and, more crucially, of the variety that some Filmspotting
forum members were exchanging ideas about. My interest in film
festivals, which play a lot of stuff one just does not see at the
local multiplex, is greatly of their doing, as is my love for films
of the 40s and 50s (hence, my Friday Film Noir column at Sound on
Sight). Without them, there is no Between the Seats, and by
extension, I am not writing for and co-hosting a podcast at Sound on
Sight. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">And
there you have it. I encourage everyone to keep on blogging and
writing online for as long as they can. One can never predict with
certainty what might come of it. There are undoubtedly times when it
<i>feels</i> like it is not worth the effort, but every now and then, be it
because someone had the generosity to email you, leave you a comment
or offer you an opportunity elsewhere, one is reminded why it is fun
to engage in this terrific blogging experiment. </span></span>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Thank
you all.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Regards,</span></span></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Edgar
Chaput</span></span></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-35056584359324395402012-09-02T19:45:00.001-04:002012-09-02T19:45:16.660-04:00Sam Raimi marathon: The Evil Dead
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidkIq6qPuvPUCBz96TqUMCTUxPrA-513VvObgSNBd276I4jWochru1tP0YE2dEG6xsXb0zgspKjCaZ8PYjojJP4Zql05TZKTJWXWUDoM2pKswGRv1nBQyaWw_Q7NUeTeTydwJl9bofWCs/s1600/ED_Cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidkIq6qPuvPUCBz96TqUMCTUxPrA-513VvObgSNBd276I4jWochru1tP0YE2dEG6xsXb0zgspKjCaZ8PYjojJP4Zql05TZKTJWXWUDoM2pKswGRv1nBQyaWw_Q7NUeTeTydwJl9bofWCs/s400/ED_Cover.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>The
Evil Dead</i> (1982)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
story of how director Sam Raimi got his start in the filmmaking
business is, understandably, well known amongst his own fan base, and
is common knowledge even with the more casual fans. With less 400,000
dollars, himself, some friends and close colleagues, one of which was
Bruce Campbell, who has been a consistent collaborator ever since
even with regards to the Raimi films in which he has not starred, the
upstart director headed down from Detroit to Tennessee to create what
became known as <i>The Evil Dead</i>. Mixing classic horror tropes
with some unexpected ingenuity, the film impressed many. Raimi's
journey as a filmmaker experienced a tremendous upswing from that
point onwards and things have never been the same.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
plot to <i>The Evil Dead</i> is mundane to say the least. The film
opens with 5 friends (Bruce Campbell, Ellen Sandweiss, Hal Delrich,
Betsy Baker and Sarah York), who look to be no older than in their
early 20s, driving a narrow road in a hilly, forest region in
direction towards a cottage one of them rented for the weekend. The
group is getting along just gaily, although one dramatic
interruption, which nearly has them crash head on into on oncoming
truck riding the other way, suggests something nefarious is trying to
spoil their plans. Raimi hints that the explanation behind the
near-fatalistic event may not be due to the driver's imprudence, but
something far more ominous, a spirit in the woods following them
around like a breeze, spying on them, as established by the camera
POV shots of 'something' moving from tree to tree, never too far from
their car. Once at the cottage, the quintet discovers the basement
where lies an old, dusty book replete with spells to wake evil
spirits as well as tape recordings of a previous tenant who studied
the book, its spells...and may have suffered the dire consequences as
well. Before the protagonists have the chance to escape or even brace
themselves for the horror show that is to follow, the evil spirits
assault them.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
odd thing about watching <i>The Evil Dead</i> for the first time ever
(yes, that might surprise a few, but so be it) is the knowledge in
the back of one's mind of all the praise it has earned over the past
few decades. Its supporters genuinely hold it in high esteem, with
some quite effusive with their warm words, the naysayers being far
and few between. In fact, it seems safe to guess the naysayers might
just hide their heads in the sand because I have never spoken to,
listened to a podcast host, or read a review online or in print which
explicitly made the claim as to why Sam Raimi directorial debut is
awful. Hence, going into the movie with that notion lingering over
one's head, it is understandable if one's expectations are coloured.
Honesty being the best policy, the first half of Raimi's rookie
effort was, in some respects, cause for concern. There is nothing
poor about it, only that, after seeing so many other pictures of the
horror genre follow a familiar pattern and employ similar camera
techniques, both in their cinematography and editing, a slight
feeling of boredom crept up. The cast is doing what it can given,
first, the material they are working with and, second, their raw
talents, of which there is not plenty, as non-professional actors. It
is probably no small coincidence that Bruce Campbell was the one
chosen to be the longest lasting hero (and became the most famous
after this film's release) of the bunch while his friends all suffer
hideous fates. While not a stunning thespian, he is the one amongst
the five possessing the best charisma. The general pacing and the
number of small mishaps in the first forty minutes or so simply did
not captivate in the way one would have hoped. The aforementioned
camera point of view angle, which evidently enough is intended to
represent what the evil spirits see, makes its presence in the film
per say quite consistent, and even though it does add an element of
suspense, it is a trick which has been played out a ton in other
movies and one could even make the case it is a little overused here
in particular, just a little. Apart from the infamous, forgive the
blunt name, the 'tree rape' (?) scene, Raimi seems to be buying his
time more than anything else during this portion of the film. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">And
then his friends begin transforming into monsters, at which point Sam
Raimi rips through the remainder of the picture for a final 45
minutes or so which absolutely never let up. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">To
say that <i>The Evil Dead</i>'s second half is superior to its first
is a gross understatement. It bests almost everything which came
before by a country mile. Of course, certain questions might spring
to the minds of certain viewers who demand some clarity. The victims
of the horrible metamorphoses and the order in which they occur is
not elaborated on. Why not Bruce Campbell's Ash character? Perhaps
for no better reason than that he is supposed to be the last man
standing. Small details in logic aside (and, truthfully, logic is not
what one should expect what viewing these movies), director Raimi
offers, for lack of a better term, 'balls to the walls' thrills until
the very final few frames, literally. Even some of the finer elements
of what happens to characters results in providing the picture with a
wonderfully vile attitude. Given that Ash's friends experience their
transformations in sequential order, only one is giving a grotesque
facelift at first. Distraught and freaked out at how one of their own
is trying to demolish them, the four remaining heroes succeed in
overcoming her and lock her in the basement. The great little twist
is that the basement door does not close shut, hence a portion of the
monster's head can pop open at any time, and frequently does,
taunting Ash endlessly. It makes not only for some dark humour, but
adds to the protagonist's psychological turmoil. An even more
horrific loss is when Ash's girlfriend suffers the same fate,
increasing the emotional aspect to his struggle even further. The
movie pulls no punches in thrusting Ash through a terrifying,
unforgettably nightmarish experience, not just for the physical
struggle to survive, but the mental and emotional battles as well
since he, and the audience, know that he is forced to fend off and
ultimately kill a lover and friends. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
flipping of allegiances is already recipe for great fun which pays
off handsomely, yet Raimi is not content to merely press all the
juice he can out of that lone plot point. The deeper into the night
the story takes Ash, the more psychedelic the experience. At one
point, the hero seems to have found himself in a twilight zone type
space where the camera flips over, nor can Ash fully trust what he
sees or hears. More than anything, this portion of the adventure
arrives totally unexpected and works on two fronts. First, it works
as a final, crucial set piece that heightens the experience even more
so, and second, it is a glowing example of how artistically creative
Sam Raimi was as a director, even back in 1979, when the film was
actually shot. It is bravura filmmaking from a young director with a
strong voice without calling an unwarranted amount of attention to
itself given that it works magnificently for the purposes of the
story. It is like noticing the flair but not caring that one notices
it because it fits so perfectly. </span></span>
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</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Ultimately,
<i>The Evil Dead</i> proves to be quite an experience for a first
time viewer. True enough, some time is required before the meat of
the story picks up, and, to hammer home a point, that first portion
does not hold the promise the legion of admirers allude to. That
being said, Raimi proves that he knew what he was doing all along,
and any languid pacing during the first half is easily forgiven after
discovering just what he had in store for the rest of the movie. </span></span>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-68411155084223693112012-08-25T12:05:00.003-04:002012-08-25T12:05:57.392-04:00Sam Raimi marathon: Darkman<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i> Darkman</i>
(1990, Sam Raimi)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">American
director Sam Raimi, having made a solid name for himself for the
better part of 30 years, is really something of an entrepreneur, a
go-getter who makes his films happen despite either scepticism or
lack of genuine funds. Despite his numerous successes, it seems as
though his name shall never resonate among the wider movie going
public or cinefile circles as strongly as, say, Steven Soderberg or
Steven Spielberg. No, it unfortunately safe to assume that apart from
his fanbase and well versed film buffs, his name is not one that
shall be remembered vividly in cinema history. Yet considering his
exploits as a filmmaker, it is mighty tempting to believe it should
be otherwise. One need only look to his 1990 action movie <i>Darkman</i>,
an endeavour resulting from his failed attempt at bringing a
recognizable comic book property to the big screen (a feat he would
accomplish some 12 years later). What would a creative mind opt for
in the aftermath after such a bump in the road? Why, create his own
super hero of course.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Peytan
Westlake (Liam Neeson) is a brilliant medical researcher working
tirelessly in his private loft laboratory to create a sustainable
artificial skin out of liquid materials. He and his partner have
reached the stage of merely building the synthetic coating, but its
life span is but of 99 minutes. The answer to the mystery is both a
blessing and a curse. The discovery coincides with the startling
arrival of the city's major mob organization, headed by the ruthless
Robert G. Durant (Larry Drake). Their interest with Westlake lies not
with the man's scientific endeavour but rather a document left behind
by his girlfriend, Julia (Frances McDormand). It appears that Julia
may have unearthed the truth behind her employer's (Colin Friels)
powerful friends in the real estate and construction business,
namely, Durant's gang. To cover their tracks, the villains assault
Westlake's home, but before leaving the premise with the sought after
document, they bring the research lab down in flames, along with poor
Westlake himself, horribly scarring his body with burns and bruises.
Left for dead, his body is found by a medical team, who make use of
him as part of their own experiment in re-wiring the brain insofar
that it no longer receives signals of physical pain. Now, heavily
bandaged and awarded extra stamina, Westlake prowls the city for
vengeance against Durant, all the while making use of his synthetic
liquid skin to get back together with Julia. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Seeing
Sam Raimi's <i>Darkman</i> for a second viewing in a matter of just a
few weeks meant some peculiar thoughts sprung to mind, some of which
relate to some of the movies which may have inspired Raimi in
bringing the story of <i>Darkman</i> to realization. There is a lot
about his film that recalls a Paul Verheoven action and
science-fiction movie released only three years prior, <i>Robocop</i>.
For one, the protagonist is a decent human being who invests a great
deal of energy in a cause he believes to be for the good of society,
only for forces beyond his control destroy him physically and
mentally, taking him away from his female companion. Ironically, in
both cases, it is in part the field of work they attached themselves
to which serves to being them back into the thick of things and
strike against the aforementioned evil forces. Additionally, among
said antagonists is a powerful individual in the high stakes real
estate business whose lucrative associations involve a city's
criminal underworld leader. In both cases, the real estate
entrepreneur is using as a front for his scheming ways a new,
sophisticated, state of the art plan involving the redevelopment of a
run down sector of the metropolis. Both films revel in their
violence, albeit one does so far more than the other (Raimi can
direct all the <i>Evil Dead</i> films he so desires, Verheoven still
wins in the 'so senselessly violent it's actually fun' department).
None of this either hampers or improves Raimi's picture in any
significant way, for the purpose of highlighting some interesting
tidbits about the movie under review, they felt worthy of mention.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Darkman</i>
is a strange little movie, replete with quirks that differentiate it
from the legion of other superhero films created since, as well as
some more obvious characteristics with also help provide it with a
unique sense of identity. It seems pertinent to understand that this
movie was made in the few years following the two films which brought
Raimi to the attention of the American film industry at large, the
two <i>Evil Dead</i> pictures, whereas his <i>Spider-Man</i> trilogy,
which the marathon shall evaluate later on, was made in the years
after Raimi's attitudinal approach to storytelling had softened in
some important ways. Show <i>Darkman</i> and <i>Spider-Man</i> to
someone who has seen neither but is familiar with the rest of the
director's efforts, and it should be plain as daylight which one was
made earlier in his career and which one came later on. There is a
mean streak to <i>Darkman</i> which seeps into its story straight
from the opening scene when Durant, played with a mixture of quirk
and menace by Larry Cark, overtakes the city docks from a rival gang
leader and makes the latter suffer for his futile challenge attempt
by hacking off his fingers. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Even
the titular action star is much less a hero than one is accustomed to
witnessing in superhero epics. Typically, the protagonist will engage
in acts and sport a behaviour which enables the viewer to believe
that the individual in question is in fact a man worthy of empathy
and emotional investment. Such is not the case here, as Payton
Westlake, horrifically disfigured (which is already a clear giveaway
that Raimi wishes to differentiate his creation from the norm), is
released from the shackles of the normal behavioural regulations
dictated by the mind. As explained in the film, the experiment the
charred Westlake is unwillingly a part of has resulted in his brain
no longer capable of detecting or receiving certain visceral signals
from the body, such as physical pain. The counterbalance to this is
heightened emotional responses to stimuli. Anger, frustration,
sadness. The mild mannered Westlake from the start of the picture is
buried by a near-maniacal freak hellbent on revenge. All this
detailing of Sam Raimi's vision may lead a reader to believe the film
left a poor impression on the author. That is absolutely not the
case. A perfect movie this is not, with some wooden performances in
some cases, embarrassingly poor composition shots during involving
back projection during larger action set pieces (not even decent by
1990 standards, sadly), but through it all the film's unhinged
quality, its willingness to forgo convention in the realm of comic
book type stories is refreshing. Rarely has Liam Neeson let loose has
he does here. Some may claim <i>Taken</i> to be another example, and
why it is tempting to agree, the Irishman still comes off as more
calculating in his brutality in the 2008 film. Darkman, the
character,is like <i>Phantom of the Opera</i>, with extra emphasis on
the operatic angle. It is also intriguing to note that, as silly as
the explanation behind Westlake's fever pitched emotional swings may
be, it does, in the end, help explain why someone in his condition
would actually go about plotting a violent revenge scheme against
those who wronged him. This is not a case of a figuratively 'broken'
man going mad, nay, this is man literally going mad. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Darkman</i>
possesses no fighting skills, nor does the picture ever even hint at
the character trying to acquire any. This adds a slight sense of
thrill to his more physical encounters with Durant's gang,
particularly near the end. Rather than opt to engage his enemies in
contests of fighting prowess, Westlake's preferred attack method is
by infiltrating the gang under the guise of its fellow members, a
feat accomplished by making use of the liquid skin seen at the start
of the film. The idea is a lot of fun, and for the most part plays
out effectively, although there are some frightfully easy criticisms
that may be aimed at some of the details as to how Raimi uses the
plot device, such as why Westlake can never seem to accomplish his
individual missions before the full 99 minutes of the synthetic
skin's life cycle run out ('Oh god! I only have a few minutes left
before my face melts away...for the third time').</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">This
by no means is a film that has a lot to say, thematically speaking.
Raimi merely set out to make his own variation on the superhero
genre, following his own rules and staying true to his inclinations
as a filmmaker. At this stage in his career, that essentially
amounted to being as intense and hard core as possible. It makes for
a different movie, quite a delightful one at that. </span></span>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-12599169404867571712012-07-05T00:50:00.002-04:002012-07-05T00:50:15.841-04:00Definitive Alien marathon: 'Prometheus' , an appreciation<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">With
the general review for the film currently under the microscope having
the received sufficient praise for the efforts of the production
designers and visual artists, it seems fitting that this supplemental
article should concentrate more closely on the plot as well as the
general ideas, thematic and character driven, which drive the film's
core.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Needless
to say, I have seen <i>Prometheus</i> multiple times at this point.
It would only be fair given that each of the previous films reviewed
and appreciated (or not) were viewed far too many times than I'd like
to admit. The most recent visit to the cinema to re-watch Ridley
Scott's ambitious sci-fi opus was the third in about three weeks.
There are two facets about the overall story for which my own
appreciation has grown significantly since the initial screening some
weeks ago. Walking out of that midnight showing on opening day (early
morning, really), my overall impression was favourable, but I did not
love the movie. There was a sense of a missed opportunity despite
that the film was mostly satisfactory in my mind and heart. Missed
opportunity in the sense that during interviews prior to the
picture's release, both the director and the screenwriter had focused
the story in a different direction than the original version, Damon
Lindelof, mentioned that <i>Prometheus</i> would touch on some grand
ideas about the origin of human life and Man's place in the universe.
Being a somewhat gullible moviegoer in this very instance, I somehow
ventured into the film expecting something a little more grand in its
thematic resonance, somehow letting the notion that <i>Prometheus</i>
is, at its heart, a sci-fi adventure epic with some horror sprinkled
about slip away into the background. In such a picture, grand ideas
may initially drive the protagonists, as is the case with Elizabeth
Shaw (Noomi Rapace) and Charlie Halloway (Logan Marshall-Green), but
at some stage in the plot the adventure and horror will have to take
over. That is the sort of movie <i>Prometheus</i> wants to be and is
going to be, no more and no less.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Is
that a problem? Absolutely not. <i>Alien</i>, <i>Aliens</i>, <i>Alien
3</i> and <i>Alien Resurrection</i> all offer, to varying degrees,
hints at bigger ideas, be they political, social or more emotionally
based. It is either the validity of androids or clones as perfect
duplicates of real people, how the big corporations will often leave
those from whom it no longer requires service in the dust, or even
motherhood and loves lost. Those ideas exist, but the series jumps
from pure horror to action in one film to the next. That is what
people remember most fondly about them, the action and the horror,
not the intellectual side of the scripts, and it is precisely because
the more intellectual sides only play so small a part in each
chapter. They are there if one looks hard enough, but they are not
the focus of the pictures, far from it in fact. For some inexplicable
reason, many people, myself included, deluded themselves into
believing that <i>Prometheus</i> would be different. Why would it
exactly, no explanation can be provided that could leave me off the
hook. Nevertheless, those big ideas that kick start the plot are very
cool and fit nicely into the mould of old school sci-fi adventures.
Shaw and Halloway believe they just may have uncovered a significant
clue as to where mankind came from and set out to discover just that
with the financial and technical help from a large corporation. As
the earlier entries in the franchise painfully demonstrated, putting
one's trust in Weyland Corp is not the brightest idea, which should
provide a sufficiently clear idea to the audience that those
representing the company more directly, mostly Vickers (Charlize
Theron) and the android David (Michael Fassbender), must undoubtedly
hold to ulterior motives unrelated to the love of scientific research
Shaw and Halloway hold so dearly. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Hence,
the kickstarter in <i>Prometheus</i> is indeed way larger than in any
of the other episodes. This is the origins of our species we are
talking about here, not some mysterious eggs found in a derelict
spacecraft. The fact that the picture continues to tantalize the
audience, in particular by revealing that the fondly baptized 'space
jockeys' are direct ancestors to humans is a very neat trick, tying
in how the story of this film began with the original series. Even
the opening scene of the film, wherein one of the soon to be called
'engineers' (by Elizabeth Shaw) stands alone atop a waterfall, sips a
black gelatinous substance, only to die a horrifyingly painful death
by falling to pieces, with the tiny remains of its blood and flesh
falling into the water below and therefore creating new life on
whatever planet it is one, is a wonderful way to shake up the
audience. Beginning the film without that single scene would have
made the audience too comfortable with the proceedings given how the
next half our is rather similar to the original <i>Alien</i> film,
with explorations of unknown locations. Scott opts to give the
viewers something completely different and unexpected compared to
anything that happened before in the series and later on ties it all
together nicely. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">In
that respect, wishing that the director and screenwriters planned
something absolutely out of this world is setting expectations
ridiculously high. The film certainly provides its share of slick
moments, some horrifying moments and wraps it all in a story about
scientists who venture deep into space to place they never should
have gone to in the first place, messing with things and beings they
never should have encountered at all. It's classic sci-fi horror. The
so-called engineers are never explained to the fullest extent. It is
made clear that humans and these towering titans share incredibly
similar DNA (a DNA test is taken with the bloody remains of an
engineers head found in what at this stage in the film the characters
and audience believe is a cave), hence Shaw's conclusion that our
kind must certainly. The beings even share similar physical semblance
with our kind. Taller, more stocky, with a different skin colour than
anything known on earth, but the bipedal, two eyes, two ears, one
nose and simple mouth look indicate the unmistakable biological
relationship. The fact, or supposition, remains that we came from
them, which makes the realization that they were , at one point (and
still are, as is revealed later on) united in desiring to wipe out
the human race all the more puzzling and exciting. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It
is with this plot point, more than any other, from which many of the
complaints aimed at the story stem from. Why do they want to destroy
mankind? My response, and any reader may call it a paltry defence
from a fanboy if they see fit, is as follows: what sort of
directorial or screenwriting decision could have been made that
honestly would have satisfied the majority of audiences. How often is
it that people whine when films are too on the nose these days,
<i>especially</i> films created within the Hollywood system. Now we
are to complain that a film is being too opaque? Let's be consistent
with what we want here... For that matter, why not come up with some
of our own reasons. Even after the initial screening, some relatively
decent ideas already began to formulate and gestate in my mind.
Assuming that, as our space travelling and life giving ancestors,
these engineers were far more sophisticated than ourselves, it would
seem plausible that they should feel disappointed in the resulting
behaviour of the human race, one always in the midst of conflict for
what, in the eyes of our aforementioned parent race, are petty
reasons. If humans can not get along as the engineers had hoped,
especially on a beautiful planet with bountiful resources as Earth,
then to hell with them. Squash these insects and hit the restart
button. Clearly, as evidence by the first scene and their subsequent plan to
dispatch the vile, bio-chemical weapon that is the mysterious black
goop, they have such capabilities. For lack of a better term, the
engineers are disowning their children, wanting to establish a more
competent species for Earth. Is that so hard to digest? It's a sci-fi
adventure film, people!</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdpKG-mD0Ll-HuzA9LqyqCRLMnVxreMpUO2z375WNizf3XmQzS77rdbBJdH40HVMU9mPaft_trvr2iKKYDkDUGwf-F2PaiavTIGVumNHGE_mrwuN9gNgA0MEkJ5WsLg4pkDUNhcsDBg68/s1600/trilobite_defeating_engineer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdpKG-mD0Ll-HuzA9LqyqCRLMnVxreMpUO2z375WNizf3XmQzS77rdbBJdH40HVMU9mPaft_trvr2iKKYDkDUGwf-F2PaiavTIGVumNHGE_mrwuN9gNgA0MEkJ5WsLg4pkDUNhcsDBg68/s400/trilobite_defeating_engineer.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Some
last few lines should delve into the nature of the black goop. Once
again, <i>Prometheus</i> has received its share of criticisms for not
fully explaining what the goop is or how it operates. It is a
biological weapon, that much should be obvious. How it operates is,
admittedly, more nebulous and Scott is not terribly clear about the
matter to the point where it can, in fact, be a bit confusing, but
therein lies some of the fun about it. One thing should be obvious
enough: it drastically modifies one's biological makeup in ways that
vary depending on the quantity one is infected with. Charlie Halloway
is given a tiny dose through a ruse played by David and slowly, over
the course of about a day, sees his body deteriorate. Fifield (Sean
Harris), who received a whole bucket full in the face, turns into a
ravaging zombie a few hours later. The infected Halloway makes love
to Shaw, who is then pregnant ten hours later with what looks to be
the original facehugger. Is the film playing a bit fast and loose
with the rules? Yes, perhaps. That being said, it can be concluded
that maybe this biological weapon is still in development stages, or
maybe it simply has many properties, all of which negatively effect
creatures on the lower end of the evolutionary scale than the
engineers are. It can modify or destroy life in the most shocking,
provocative ways, it just depends on how much one consumes, be it
intentionally or not. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">As
for the final reveal, that being the original baby xenomorph erupting
from the chest of the deceased engineer (which did battle with the
full grown monster Elizabeth Shaw ejected from her body via a painful
abortion), it does feel a wee bit too much like fan service. Some
guesses have claimed that it is the original queen, which in some
ways makes sense given that the humungous, octopus type facehugger
was created within Shaw, a woman. My qualm is how did that start
from the black goop, which David transferred to Halloway, who
infected Shaw through his seed, who then aborted the
pseudo-facehugger, which then impregnated the last remaining engineer
on that specific planet? Maybe that question is pointless. Maybe the
baby exenomorph, the existence of which will result in the horrors in
the previous four films, was the ultimate weapon the engineers hope
to contact through usage of the goop all along. </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUWnuHF9L-x_jUFFBBK7FsFSNL3EDAEl6ZvvW7yzIhweNFEc-DpdnuT7AkPatizSEywZgvyqI3-GQNQZhsT7UZtoDkhXTxgvVtwlDZKijRofHeiCKZ5LrqEYpnuoSCyxb49APIzn7-COo/s1600/ProtoAlien.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUWnuHF9L-x_jUFFBBK7FsFSNL3EDAEl6ZvvW7yzIhweNFEc-DpdnuT7AkPatizSEywZgvyqI3-GQNQZhsT7UZtoDkhXTxgvVtwlDZKijRofHeiCKZ5LrqEYpnuoSCyxb49APIzn7-COo/s400/ProtoAlien.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span>
</div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">And
that brings this long <i>Alien</i> marathon to a close. Thanks to all
those who read the reviews! They were a lot of fun to write. </span></span>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-83923339586900072132012-06-30T23:20:00.003-04:002012-06-30T23:20:53.825-04:00Definitive Alien marathon: 'Prometheus', general review<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8rHShzb55Z7ZOCEKzB3WTqVddZedJvD5CNXIp3Wv1VLV6OrqdI5msi_Y3cQAA1iYQd9B54EXJTz2-DeUMCuEHfHc_VGj314ZGYUF0TXf8QftUts0SxvPk18gymrOvxhp77MkD9AVM2sA/s1600/Prometheus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8rHShzb55Z7ZOCEKzB3WTqVddZedJvD5CNXIp3Wv1VLV6OrqdI5msi_Y3cQAA1iYQd9B54EXJTz2-DeUMCuEHfHc_VGj314ZGYUF0TXf8QftUts0SxvPk18gymrOvxhp77MkD9AVM2sA/s400/Prometheus.jpg" width="268" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Prometheus</i>
(2012, Ridley Scott)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Significant
stretches of absence between instalments in a franchise can be a
curse or a blessing. It may provide writers, directors, studios
executives and all others involved in the creative process to sit
back and digest what they have accomplished as well as what they
still set out to do. Sometimes the decisions, despite plenty of time
for a meditative process, dot not evolve into what audiences were
hoping for. Ask the many embittered movies goers who waited anxiously
for <i>Kingdom of the Crystal Skull</i> and <i>Live Free or Die Hard</i>.
Science-fiction is a little bit different given that its very nature
allows for some slightly loopier logic than in most other genres,
therefore allowing the creators a wider canvas to take a series in
different directions. The <i>Alien</i> franchise, as of the mid 00s,
had devolved into a stale, pitiless shell of its former self. The <i>AVP</i>
spinoffs virtually spelled doom and gloom for the once revered series
which gave both sci-fi and horror a serious boost. Along came Ridley
Scott and screenwriters Damon Lindelof and Jon Spaihts in an attempt
to revitalize it in ways fans were least expecting.</span></span></div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Very
late in the 21<sup>st</sup> century, anthropologists Elizabeth Shaw
(Noomi Rapace) and Charlie Halloway (Logan Marshall-Green) make a
most satisfying discover on the Isle of Skye, Scotland. A cave wall
sports the markings of a 35 thousand year old civilization, and among
the markings on the wall is a pictogram very familiar to their eyes:
mortal men staring and pointing at a star far away in the sky, a
familiarity stemming from the fact that Shaw and Halloway have
discovered the same picture in various other regions across the globe
where entirely different civilizations made their homes. For them,
the answer is obvious: these different cultures which spanned
separate centuries somehow worshipped an identical, intergalactic
deity of some sort., one that may have created life on Earth,
although that is but a hypothesis. The advancements in scientific
technology permit expert astrologists to locate where this far off
planet is situated in the vastness of space, and with the financial
help of brilliant entrepreneur Peter Weyland (Guy Pearce), a team of
17 board the space ship Prometheus, among them the aforementioned
anthropologists, Weyland enterprise representative Meredith Vickers
(Charlize Theron) and the ultra sophisticated android named David
(Michael Fassbender). After over a year with the crew a state of
hibernation, the Prometheus at long last lands on the mysterious
world. The crew venture on foot in the caves of an alien civilization
in the hopes of discovering where Man came from...</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">A
commonality between Ridley Scott films, and more specifically those
which are more epic in scale, is that he has a marvellous eye for
details which bring the worlds of said films to brilliant life. Even
his lesser acclaimed epics, such as <i>Robin Hood</i>, are lauded for
the stunning set design (often courtesy of long time production
designer collaborator Arthur Max), costume design and cinematography.
Say what one will about the script, a movie goer is going to enjoy a
feast for the eyes when director Scott serves up a large scale movie.
That attention to detail which lends his worlds their own identities
is one of the more startling elements about <i>Prometheus</i><span style="font-style: normal;">,
a film whose lavish visuals will allure just about anybody. To be
honest, it is no coincidence that both this review and that which was
published for </span><i>Alien</i><span style="font-style: normal;">
begin with praise for the artistry involved in the creation of these
two movies. Whereas the earlier film was brilliant in how the
filmmakers made what was in reality a modestly budgeted picture look
stunning, this 2012 adventure has no qualms about announcing that
plenty of money was spent, both in the minutia and for the
awe-inspiring moments. Scott is a filmmaker whose strength, among
other things, is in understanding the scale of objects. A trivial
matter this is not. When producing a space, or science-fiction
adventure which is supposed to feel grand, scale is of the utmost
importance. There are moments when the Prometheus ship, prior to
arrival at its destination, is set against either the largess of
neighbouring stars and planets or simple the vastness of space. They
are not meant to convey anything concrete so far as the plot is
concerned, but they serve a existential purpose, that is, to
emphasize that as sophisticated as the humans have become, they still
are virtually nothing when compared to, well, literally everything
that is 'out there.'</span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivfHk8LzRd1ta8nMK5P0UZo3JxeApnk_C0uxn5adyu7mPkLkFlBigxDTHCeq4bPmkEiFZiZbpGctzTplwhgQmCbh3jIU-MVaVmByY5f5c6xVXEzCxKMDUthbR3CJiRIO0fG4qYxMTFFqU/s1600/Prometheus-prometheus-2012-film-31067617-600-400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivfHk8LzRd1ta8nMK5P0UZo3JxeApnk_C0uxn5adyu7mPkLkFlBigxDTHCeq4bPmkEiFZiZbpGctzTplwhgQmCbh3jIU-MVaVmByY5f5c6xVXEzCxKMDUthbR3CJiRIO0fG4qYxMTFFqU/s400/Prometheus-prometheus-2012-film-31067617-600-400.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;">Scott
is also a great proponent of keeping things as real as possible.
Evidently enough, various aspects of the world building process
demand computer generated enhancement, of which </span><i>Prometheus</i><span style="font-style: normal;">
feature plenty (the digital artists do a fine job. Poor CGI is
nowhere to be found here), yet a surprising amount is hand crafted,
thus keeping many critical visual cues as tangible as possible. The
inner dwellings of the extra-terrestrial beings the crew encounter
look aged, look like their is a sense of history about them. Set
construction of this size feels like a lost art, and therefore seeing
some of the best in the business given a chance to flex their muscles
is welcomed.</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;">But
this is a movie meant to thrill in part by its visuals, true, but
also with its story and, one hopes, with its characters. In this
regard </span><i>Prometheus</i><span style="font-style: normal;"> is
thankfully a departure from the general pace and tone of the earlier
entries. Up until this point the series has alternated between more
horror centric stories and action centric stories. </span><i>Prometheus,</i><span style="font-style: normal;">
while clearly dependant on those two ingredient to a certain extent,
is the first in the series to feel very much like a science-fiction
picture. It involves a scientific expedition on a newly discovered
planet where anything can happen. To top it off, the purpose of said
expedition is to unravel the mysteries behind the creation of life as
it is known on our home planet. The springboard for the entirety of
the film is discovery, investigation, and maybe even understanding,
provided what the team finds is pertinent in the least. In that
sense, as state of the art of Ridley Scott's film is, it does have an
old school sci-fi feeling to it. It is not much of a spoiler to write
that the mission does not proceed swimmingly, with various hurdles
preventing the protagonists from not only finding the answers they
came looking for, but surviving at all. It is a story arc which has
been used many times over, although in the hands of a capable
storyteller like Scott, it feels right, it flows well and when
ambition turns to fear for one's survival, the movie is very fun
overall. </span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6aYOv4Kx4Doz17LRTf7tRjYz0yRRU0o9YiPZxygkEF6DqiMhi8z6w8oTOIEgLytZ-lCtQrcQ-vuzJxcqUin-lsttozmtm8wN3fcZczGTqiDeN4TMdRwUVDlkkIjT002gpvQOibi6Snnk/s1600/Prometheus-prometheus-2012-film-30865806-800-533.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6aYOv4Kx4Doz17LRTf7tRjYz0yRRU0o9YiPZxygkEF6DqiMhi8z6w8oTOIEgLytZ-lCtQrcQ-vuzJxcqUin-lsttozmtm8wN3fcZczGTqiDeN4TMdRwUVDlkkIjT002gpvQOibi6Snnk/s400/Prometheus-prometheus-2012-film-30865806-800-533.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;"> </span></span></span>
</div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;">What
many people noticed when the production process commenced was the
stunning cast assembled. Michael Fassbender is unquestionably one of
the most in demand actors on the planet at the moment, and for good
reason. It seems as though he can do no wrong, even in movies which
fail to garner universal acclaim. David is possibly his most complex
role to date, following in the footsteps of Ian Holm, Lance Henriksen
and Winona Ryder. He is not even a real 'he' at all. David is all
machine, albeit a remarkably accomplished, capable of emulating
nearly all of a human's reactions at the most logical moments. He is
as close to being a person without actually being a real person,
which makes his character arc all the more fascinating when it begins
to seem as though he is, in fact, trying to best his mortal
counterparts in conniving fashion. Fassbender, marvellously talented
as he is, understands the complexities and the nuances that the role
demands of him, pulling off an exquisitely off putting performance.
He is at times fun to have around, at times just a shade too
mechanical for comfort, and at other times eerily lifelike. With such
a fantastic performance from Fassbender, it seems like Noomi Rapace,
who plays the actual heroine of the film, might get lost in the
shuffle. While not equipped with the same credentials has her Irish
colleague, she is a talent in her own right, having demonstrated her
capabilities in the original </span><i>Girl with the Dragon Tattoo</i><span style="font-style: normal;">
series. Her Elizabeth Shaw is quite an emotionally and spiritually
driven individual. She is revealed early on to be a devoutly
religious person, which is curious given her willingness to accept
the possibility that aliens, not an almighty deity, created humanity.
Those two battling philosophies, rather then tear her apart, end up
making her the most steadfast member in wanting to understand the
secrets of life on Earth. Rapace is very, very good in the role,
giving the picture an emotional, three-dimensional weight that none
of the other other cast members do. Admittedly, the script itself
does not allow the other actors to tap into anything very emotional,
including Rapace's lover in the film, Logan Marshall-Green, who is
serviceable as the gun-ho explorer, but nothing more. Charlize Theron
is quite capable of playing an icy corporate representative, and she
does just that here, but again, the script asks nothing more of her.
Idris Elba, as Janek, is Prometheus' captain, although appears to
exist more for some comedic touches than anything else. Like Theron
playing a stone cold businesswoman, Elba can adeptly play his part,
the frustrating thing being we know he can do more. </span></span></span>
</div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;">Some
will call foul about the fact that, in the end, </span><i>Prometheus</i><span style="font-style: normal;">
refrains from legitimate and conceited efforts in trying to get to
the center of what Shaw and her colleagues desire. The response to
that complaint is twofold. First, what sort of explanation would have
sent thousand of abating movie goers completely satisfied and,
second, what sort of film would that have left </span><i>Prometheus</i><span style="font-style: normal;">
as. It is, first and foremost, a sci-fi adventure picture, not a
philosophical or scientific thesis on the genesis of mankind. There
are wonderful documentaries about that already and more will surely
be made in the years to come. The chances that </span><i>Prometheus</i><span style="font-style: normal;">
will shock and awe people as much as </span><i>Alien </i><span style="font-style: normal;">or
even </span><i>Aliens</i><span style="font-style: normal;"> did are
slim, but it is nevertheless a great piece of entertainment.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirc9tOCMZSBuCs24_O4jr2rQZTOe9Ik_wItYVEvuzCPjG42Cs_27vquUEc1FRPz8USbnFQCRJ0iaNYQY3wFn0FShSKz5pejUlEwFx4rwScV10jBQ6bKrATb0BL0LrvdfSBLPuIjGDRaV8/s1600/prometheus-5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirc9tOCMZSBuCs24_O4jr2rQZTOe9Ik_wItYVEvuzCPjG42Cs_27vquUEc1FRPz8USbnFQCRJ0iaNYQY3wFn0FShSKz5pejUlEwFx4rwScV10jBQ6bKrATb0BL0LrvdfSBLPuIjGDRaV8/s400/prometheus-5.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br /></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-35327353398372127412012-06-25T19:30:00.002-04:002012-06-25T19:30:24.831-04:00Definitive Alien marathon: 'Alien Resurrection' , further reflection<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKU8IXhfNJ0W5QuHADSLTOu6Ur_HJAUSoEW80Rt6OfoNKHF7csHYudBqtBV25sxtBrK06jsckIZ6n-Zm7SsFZ091khrWsq5VIaPsyGi72dc0AwC4ffRr4VJE9Luoz3EI5C0VYBOc0WsI0/s1600/Alien-Resurrection-movie-spoiler-summary-title-placard.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="165" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKU8IXhfNJ0W5QuHADSLTOu6Ur_HJAUSoEW80Rt6OfoNKHF7csHYudBqtBV25sxtBrK06jsckIZ6n-Zm7SsFZ091khrWsq5VIaPsyGi72dc0AwC4ffRr4VJE9Luoz3EI5C0VYBOc0WsI0/s400/Alien-Resurrection-movie-spoiler-summary-title-placard.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It
was written in the general review for the film how disappointing it
was for the character of Ripley to return not as her true self, but
as some of sort clone variation. It always seemed to me that 20<sup>th</sup>
Century Fox, in wanting desperately to make another <i>Alien</i>
film, were caught between a rock and a hard place.</span></span></div>
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Ripley commits
suicide at the end of Fincher's third episode by jumping into a pool
of molten lava. Among the questions posed during the writing
processing, one imagines, were: 'How do we bring Ripley back or do we
need Ripley at all?' Controversial material for anyone involved with
the franchise and most certainly a touchy subject among the fans. At
the point where a fourth one was to be made, was it feasible to go
ahead without Ripley? A good writer arguably could have pulled the
job off well enough. After all, it is known among fans of the series
that as far back as the pre-production of <i>Aliens</i><span style="font-style: normal;">,
only the second film,</span> there were discussions of continuing the
story without the involvement of Ellen Ripley. By the fourth however,
it might have seemed a little strange to suddenly have a film without
Ripley, but on the flip side people at Fox wanted another <i>Alien</i>
picture. See what we mean by a rock and a hard place? </span></span>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
result is, forgive the atypical vulgarity, a half-assed one. Ripley
is 'sort of back', yet in a way that does not take advantage of
Sigourney Weaver's capabilities to inject rich emotion into her
performance. That is what disappoints the most about <i>Alien
Resurrection</i>, the fact that even though a familiar face has
returned, it never at one point throughout the entire film feels as
though the viewer is tagging along with the same character they did
for three entire episodes. It is as the script dictates: a hollow
reproduction of Ripley, not Ripley herself. By default, Weaver gives
her less inspired performance in the series. Not that much blame can
be laid at her feet, she is but doing as the script (written by non
other than Joss Whedon. I doubt his staunchest supporters would
approve of this script) and director Jean-Pierre Jeunet are asking of
her. The problem is, what they are asking for is not terribly
interesting. It feels as though the film is trying, whether
intentionally or not, to pass the torch from Weaver to Ryder, who
plays an android. It is not a bad move per say, although not many
would be convinced that Ryder carries more or even as much screen
gravitas than Weaver, hence even that story-driven objective,
provided that it is what the filmmakers want to accomplish, is a
letdown in of itself. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">For
all of the film's script related weaknesses, there are tiny moments
which, short as they may be, that help make the plot somewhat
bearable. Acknowledging that we have but complained ad infinite about
the Ripley clone subplot, it does, admittedly, lead to a very cool
scene when, as Ripley and the surviving smugglers make their way
through the complicated passageway of the scientific space craft,
they discover the laboratory in which the Ripley clone was
artificially given birth. In this room are all of the previous,
unsuccessful attempts at cloning Ripley, one of which are in fact
still alive. Visually, the scene is arresting for its bleak,
science-gone-haywire mood, as well as provides one of the film's
precious few emotionally driven scenes. In this one instant the
Ripley clone feels something. Up until this moment she has behaved
with less character than any android seen in the entire series, nut
now, standing face to face with her relatively short history and what
it has meant to her less than fortunate predecessors, her emotions,
begin to slip in. It is a genuinely good moment and Weaver gives it
her best shot. It's just too bad the rest of the film is nearly void
of any other such moments. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I
like Ron Perlman. He is a far better actor than I think studios have
ever given him credit for. He is rarely the lead in a film, often
relegated to playing either a supporting role or a villain, and
oftentimes when he is a protagonist, he is a protagonist with some
serious issues. In fact, two of the few films which spring to mind in
which he is the one true hero of the piece are the <i>Hellboy</i>
films. Ah, that's right, he is covered in prosthetic makeup in those
films... Ron Perlman is another example why <i>Alien Resurrection</i>
is mostly a failure in virtually any department where script is
concerned. Here is an actor who can lend a role a surprising amount
of charm, wit and gravitas, yet he is relegated to playing some
vulgar slouch without any sense of character. Even his role in <i>Drive,
</i><span style="font-style: normal;">in which he plays another grade
A jerk, h</span>ad a sense of character to it. As much as the
treatment of Ripley and by consequence Sigourney Weaver feels like a
crime, much of the same can be argued about Ron Perlman's useless,
thankless role. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">There
are some positives, almost all of them derived from the visual side
of the production. Jean-Pierre Jeunet, not one to make movies with
ordinary stories or ordinary aesthetics, has an eye for some fun
visual cues. There are plenty of moments in <i>Resurrection</i> when
one cannot determine if they are meant to be funny, gross, amazing or
horrific. Familiarity with Jeunet's style as a filmmaker leads one to
believe it is probably a healthy mixture of all four possibilities.
The extended cut of the film opens in a completely different manner
than the 1997 theatrical release, wherein the picture frame is
overtaken by a monstrous set of teeth. As the camera pulls back, the
teeth are revealed to the that of some kind of beast. Pulling back
further still, the beast is nothing more than an insect standing by
the window in the cockpit of a space craft. The pilot, having now
detected the insects presence, squashes it, puts it in his straw and
spits it out , splashing onto the window. What in heaven's name is
this doing in an <i>Alien</i> film is anyone's guess, but it is very
funny and tremendously playful. Another moment which may be aiming
for laughs or earn them unintentionally is when Dominique Pinon's
wheelchair condemned character notices an alien crawling above,
visible through the gated shafts. Mixture of terror and courage, he
pumps up his shotgun and takes fire upon his would be attacker. The
bullets tear some of the creature's thick skin, thus releasing a
droplet of acid, which slowly oozes through the shaft and onto
Pinon's ear. Again, it is unclear whether this is supposed to be
funny or not (yet another one's of the film's problems. It either a-
is unsure or b-has intentions of being funny but realizing this is an
<i>Alien </i>film wants to pull it back but not all the way).
Nevertheless, amidst the dreck, little moments like these are more
than welcomed. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Obviously
the two most talked about elements of the film, perhaps the only
talked about elements of the film, is the underwater sequence and the
alien/human hybrid. One of these is very cool and the other less so.
I've never tried to take the pulse of Alien fans in the hopes of
understanding which of these two ideas they more readily accept. One
suspects it is the underwater sequence. Considering that the beasts
can evolve with the characteristics of whichever animal they sprout
out of, one can safely assume they are also equipped, by instinct
most likely, with the skills to survive most environments, including
wet ones. That being said, after tree films, because the only time an
alien has been seen dealing with water was the iconic <i>Aliens</i>
moment when one such warrior emerges out of the sewage water behind
Newt, it never really dawned on me at least that these things could
swim. Therefore, when Ron Perlman turns back as the gang is swimming
from one end of a room to the next and notices not one but two alien
hunters rapidly catching up with them, it comes as a genuine
surprise. The fact that the sequence transpire under water adds
another layer of tension given that the character must reach the
other side before running out of air. The fear of being caught up
with the aliens means they dispense even more energy, in all
likelihood releasing some air in the process...it's all handled
rather nicely I must admit. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
human-alien hybrid is executed with less skill unfortunately.
Interesting enough, reading up on the history of the franchise, one
learns that the idea of the human-alien hybrid was in the minds of
screenwriters during some of the many failed draft attempts for <i>Alien
3</i>, not Alien 4, hence the idea originated a long way back, even
by the time <i>Resurrection</i> was made. As a visual effect it works
decently enough, even though it pales in comparison to anything we
have seen up until then. It seems like the filmmakers are hoping that
because the creature exhibits even greater semblance to humans it
will comes across as scarier than the typical franchise foes, but
that doesn't work. The titular aliens are scary (less by the fourth
film, mind you) because they are somewhat difficult to make out, to
understand physically and biologically. What we do not know instills
fear into us, hence the human-alien baby fails to creep us out
enough. As part of the plot, well, its purpose is not clear. A
bastardized monster which originated from the fact that Ripley's DNA
gave birth to a queen alien, therefore said queen possessing the
ability to somehow give birth to this defect? Fair enough. In some
ways it also mirrors the existence of the Ripley clone. Just as she
is but an imitation of her real human counterparts who cannot fit in,
the newborn is a terrible imitation of its peers and thus no more
fits in than its grandmother can. An interesting idea, but the film
does not really do anything with it. Like the other nuggets of
potential, it gets lost in the sea of mediocrity. </span></span>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-25985519296847259102012-06-21T00:34:00.001-04:002012-06-21T00:34:21.305-04:00Definitive Alien marathon: 'Alien Resurrection' , general review<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIYWvdHqTXiPEm76uxduASUR_9QxE87-BA4YMF3RBt8zcgVfs8qSPBlAbLcsdI2KzfkZ6OoPN4KO3eL0xuBn5hGrpNnPXOSHox0fI2vdI05i35oq719j5Vq-YJCK0KPGHdD1Ne5xHyguQ/s1600/MPW-53376.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIYWvdHqTXiPEm76uxduASUR_9QxE87-BA4YMF3RBt8zcgVfs8qSPBlAbLcsdI2KzfkZ6OoPN4KO3eL0xuBn5hGrpNnPXOSHox0fI2vdI05i35oq719j5Vq-YJCK0KPGHdD1Ne5xHyguQ/s400/MPW-53376.jpeg" width="267" /></a></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Alien
Resurrection</i> (1997, Jean-Pierre Jeunet)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">There
is a threshold for everything, even plausibility. When discussing
science-fiction and horror, it goes without saying that those two
genres are far more permissive of out of the ordinary happenings.
The sense of disbelief amongst the audience will sway towards
acceptability and embrace the typically implausible, even logically
impossible events that unfold. Even in those realms, some things are
difficult to digest, especially when their purpose reeks of nefarious
studio interference. The practice of implausibly making things happen
for the sake of script and possible increase in profit at the box
office can and is felt most particularly in franchises. The main
thrust of a story, the smoking gun for the overall plot, can easily
lose credibility in the eyes of many it it poorly masks a studio's
attempt to cash in on a widely recognized property. While unique
French director Jean-Pierre Jeunet brings some unexpected flavours to
the fold in the fourth instalment of the series currently under
review, <i>Alien Resurrection</i>, there are some egregious
missteps.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Set
yet further still into the future, several hundreds of years after
the events of <i>Alien 3, Resurrection</i><span style="font-style: normal;">
has the titular beasts at long last under the control of the large
corporations. How might that be possible, given they most were wiped
out in the three previous entries? Genetics of course. Scientific
technological advancement has reached such a sophisticated point by
now that the tiniest samples of DNA are sufficient in recreating
life. Somehow, someway, scientists founds strands of Ellen Ripley's
(Sigourney Weaver) DNA back on Fiorina (the intensive labour planet
from the third film). Given that Ripley had been pregnant with an
alien, the queen no less, science has not only artificially created a
queen, but said female monster has dutifully given birth to an army
of alien warriors which can be studied at length by a team of very peculiar looking scientists (one of them played by the always unique Brad Dourif!). If that was not
enough, Ripley herself has been genetically re-engineered. She is not
quite her old self, seeing as she is gifted with greater than
ordinary strength and agility. </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;">However, once the aliens escape captivity on
a large military-scientific vessel,</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;"> she may be the only chance for
survival for a team of smugglers, among them another android
(Winona Ryder), a little man in a gizmo-adorned wheelchair (Dominique
Pinon), an abrasive, trigger happy goon (Ron Pearlman) and their
pseudo leader (Michael Wincott).</span></span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;">15
years onwards since its theatrical release and the plot device about
bringing Ripley back via genetics, but only in capacity that she
re-emerge as some sorry clone of herself, lacking the recognizably
human traits which made her such a rich character to cherish, is
still irksome. There is undoubtedly an argument to be made that the
decision was a brave one, a bold one, one which adequately followed
in the footsteps of the three preceding episodes in that it makes
</span><i>Alien Resurrection</i><span style="font-style: normal;"> its
own unique experience, but it always felt as though the negatives of
the decision far outweighed the positives. If Ripley, the sole
recognizable face of the franchise to return (and, given her nature
in this fourth film, her face is indeed all that is recognizable),
then other individuals will have to step up to the plate in order to
fill the awkward void. On paper, there are numerous human characters
who follow Ripley and each and every dark, treacherous corridors, the
downtrodden clinic centres and even underwater, but saying that they
are human 'at least on paper' is pretty much as far as one can go.
Virtually none of the side characters bring anything notable to the
picture, either in terms of charisma or as genuine supporters of the
story arc. Having a cold, emotionally vapid Ripley clone is one
thing. Having the majority of the supposed supporting players supply
little in terms of desperately needed identity, save gross
stereotypes, does help one iota. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
only two exceptions to this admittedly grand accusation are Dominique
Pinon and Winona Ryder. It most definitely is not because either of
their roles is written with much cleverness or inventiveness, but
rather because the actors themselves, through their own strengths and
the aura, the presence within scenes that each can bring, help keep
their heads afloat, if only slightly, above the sea of, well, no need
to be that <i>too</i> explicit. Pinon, clearly a Frenchman trying to
play some variation of what Europeans probably think Americans are
like, is at times capable of supplying some decent chuckles, although
that may just be because he is, after all, a Frenchman seemingly
playing what Europeans might think typical Americans are like, not
because the performance is technically brilliant. Ryder, on the other
hand, sees her handle the most complex character in the film, an
android who really is attempting to be like a human. It is a nice
effort, with Ryder being quite good ate playing childish innocence
with a sense of quirk that can work in certain scenes. An incredibly
powerful individual she is not, although anything remotely superior
to the rest of the lame brains the viewer is stuck with sounds rather
promising. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Another
disappointment with the picture is the plot itself. First and
foremost, the film is all plot and no story, which does not help to
begin with. In fairness, the same criticism could be aimed at the
original, <i>Alien. </i><span style="font-style: normal;">Then again, how many
films are like </span><i>Alien</i><span style="font-style: normal;"> ,
films that can pull off being not merely a good movie, but an excellent
movie with mostly just plot?... Right. We rest our case, moving on. So
</span><i>Resurrection</i><span style="font-style: normal;"> is
hampered by a mundane plot, which is bitingly ironic seeing as how
the film features, as the starting point for its plot, the
circumstances the military industrial complex has desired for
literally decades : complete control over a hive of aliens. Given that
this is part of the horror and science-fiction genre, what possible
outcome could there be when corporations and the military, each
driven by the dark clouds of greed and power, lay claim to vile, nearly
indestructible and impressively hostile such as these? They escape
and tear everything and everyone in their sight to shreds. So,
naturally the film does just that. That is, unfortunately, a problem
rather than a strength. There is no 'ironic fun' to be had when
watching the inevitable disaster unfold and subsequently snowball. The
unoriginality of the concept is already a sufficiently critical
handicap. Had the film dealt with the material in any inventive
manner, then things might have turned out differently, yet the proof
is in the pudding. The first half hour is as bland as can be,
therefore when the aliens make their escape from captivity, it is
frustratingly difficult to feel involved with what is happening and,
more importantly, to whom it is happening. As improbable as this
might sound to </span><i>Alien 3</i><span style="font-style: normal;">
haters, there are sections in </span><i>Resurrection</i><span style="font-style: normal;">
that have this movie fan wanting to return to the labour camps of
Fiorina. At least Charles S. Dutton was there... not to mention the
real Ellen Ripley. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;">The
production values are strong, as are a lot of the visual effects
shots which make the antagonistic beasts more dynamic than they ever
have been, which obviously means that some people working on this
project did a splendid job (production designers, the people handling
the computer effects, make up effects people), but when all that
effort is in service to such a paltry story about such
inconsequential characters, even the technical wizardry feels like it
is wasted. A pretty to look at film which has nothing interesting to
say remains a pretty to look at film with nothing interesting to say.
Being an addict of behind-the-scenes material on DVDs and Blurays,
more than once have I heard visual effects people quoted as saying
'Our job is to help the director tell the story. The visuals always
have to be in service of the story.' Very true, which has one wonder
what the effects crew must have been thinking when they worked on
this movie.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;">At
this point, is does not feel as though much can be written about the
creatures and the special effects of the series. Jean-Pierre Jeunet
however, to his credit, reserves a few surprises for the viewer, a
couple of which are genuinely freaky, the others much less so, but
more on that in the supplemental review. Suffice to say that </span><i>Alien
Resurrection</i><span style="font-style: normal;"> is the bottom of
the barrel so far as this franchise is concerned. Is it all bad? No,
a couple of nice performances and some new manipulations of the
aliens, while not saving graces, might be enough to earn the film the
lightest of recommendations, although this is a far, far cry from
where the series began.</span></span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br />
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-34840778185165525622012-06-14T13:20:00.001-04:002012-06-14T13:20:29.746-04:00Definitive Alien marathon: 'Alien 3', an appreciation<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7g-Tp008__1IzjLFqfB0vXIOJtg5ddf5GaVTEpOqSiG9Lg39Cu3oIfSmdsDYVJzNdqTLbLlOUs0LkchSdRxl0tBi7Yr1dcIG8pZDniydh5QvIKokyl0fbXgppM0CIp-UMMF1p7lT2-7w/s1600/alien3-baby's-first-steps.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="163" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7g-Tp008__1IzjLFqfB0vXIOJtg5ddf5GaVTEpOqSiG9Lg39Cu3oIfSmdsDYVJzNdqTLbLlOUs0LkchSdRxl0tBi7Yr1dcIG8pZDniydh5QvIKokyl0fbXgppM0CIp-UMMF1p7lT2-7w/s400/alien3-baby's-first-steps.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">In the documentary
about the making of <i>Alien 3</i> in the blu-ray set (also available
on the second disc of the <i>Alien 3</i> special edition DVD for
those interested), many cast and crew members who, while they cannot
speak entirely for David Fincher, expressed the feeling that the up
and coming director did his best to provide the picture with his own
unique stamp, his own signature, much like his two predecessors had
done with their respective efforts. This is, in all likelihood and
with the benefit of hindsight provided by the man’s career since
then, probably true. Fincher is not one to make movies quite like
anybody else operating within the traditional Hollywood system. His
films do not necessarily make bags upon bags money, even though most
turn in modest profits, but the studios, big studios at that,
continuously provide him the funds necessary to make the best movie
he can. The man is a filmmaker in the artistic sense of the term, not
merely in the commercial sense. For that reason, some of the
decisions made with regards to the <i>Alien 3</i> script may be
better understood. That being said, it should also be noted that the
script, or what can be described as a script, lived in a constant
state of flux before and even during the film’s production. </span></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The diehard fans may
already be aware of this, but for the other readers, imagine what it
would be like to watch a teaser trailer for a hotly anticipated film,
one that could, potentially, blow one’s mind wide open. Imagine
that teaser trailer promising one tantalizing plot, something you
would be dying to see on the big screen...only for the film to
deliver a completely different storyline. By this it is not meant how
a trailer can be misleading in how the tone may differ in the final
product, or how some moments played in the trailer fail to make it
into the final cut. No, the infamous teaser trailer for <i>Alien 3</i>
had as its tagline ‘On Earth, everyone can hear you scream!’ My
goodness, the aliens come home! Of course, that never panned out
quite the way many hope, with Ripley, rather than returning to Earth
and facing off against her constant pursuers on home soil, was
ditched on a grisly, prison camp planet. This is but one aspect of
the movie’s bizarre and deeply troubled production history. The
studio was already promising certain things without a finished
script, without any genuine, well defined artistic vision! Enter
David Fincher, who even though was hassled ad infinitum, did his best
to give the seemingly damned movie a voice, however bleak and bitter
said voice might be.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">This must have
been difficult given that certain plot points were modified,
re-arranged and dropped altogether on a daily basis. There are other
comments on the making-of documentary about entire sets being 80%-90%
ready for shooting, with the production designers then being told
that the script had been altered yet again, hence their set was
suddenly unwanted. The end result is a difficult film to watch for
some obvious reasons, some of which were touched upon in the general
review, most notably the killing off of Hicks of Newt in rather
vulgar fashion. Nevertheless, there are some very neat aspects
about it. The most popular complaint about <i>Alien 3</i> is how the
cast of supporting characters is either too weak or not simply
unworthy of emotional investment on the part of the audience. To a
large degree, that complaint is not uncalled for. In a nutshell,
Ripley is forced to cohabit with sadists, rapists and murders, some
of which are a probably pleasant mixture of all three. From that
undesirable conundrum can emerge compelling conflicts and
unexpectedly rewarding connections. Consider the character Charles
Dance plays. He is a doctor, expelled from his profession and
expulsed from Earth for some terrible crimes committed while on duty.
That is a frightening proposition, having to depend on a killer for
medical assistance. Where the tables are turned is how Charles Dance
the actor portrays the role. There is a sense of remorse in his eyes,
and a hint that he cannot go back to the way things were, hence his
tendency to be the best he can be under the dire circumstances. Found
guilty? Yes. Still the same person? Absolutely not. This helps
explain why he so readily comes to the aid of Ripley, not only in
bringing her back to life, but in helping her piece the clues as to
why she is on this planet what may have happened to her. <i>Alien 3</i>,
with this character and others, offers a push and pull battle between
rays of light and hope on one side, with death and despair on the
other. Dance himself is good in the role, giving his character some
sense of humanity in spite of what he has done in the past that led
him to where he currently is. Should he be supported by the audience
or has he still not fully paid for his previous actions? Of course,
that is for the audience to decide for itself, but the fact that that
struggle exists, both within the character and within the viewers,
adds some additional layers of depth the film. Definitely not the
sort of depth people would expect from a science-fiction film from
this franchise, but one that can be appreciated. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">A similar assessment
can be made Charles S. Dutton’s character, Dillon. He openly admits
to Ripley, during a breakfast scene, that back home he raped and
killed women. Yet, much like with the doctor, he too has
changed to an extent, from a despicable misogynist to the pseudo
spiritual leader of the compound. That trajectory is an uneasy one,
paved with a lot of gravel and pot holes to leave blood and bruises
across the body, but he is, so far as the film reveals, accepting the
challenge. Once more the audience is challenged just as is the
character. Does he merit emotional support or should does he deserve
to be wasted by the invading alien along with the rest of the
convicted? A pertinent question, to be sure. The fact that there are
no clear answers is partly what makes the film compelling in its own
right. True enough, in a film of this nature, the answers would
normally either be more clearly hinted at or provided outright by the
script and director. The fact that they are posed to the audience
without any answers might be what frustrated some people. The easy
answer is ‘I shall not root for them. They are bad.’ But then the
film has Charles Dance and S. Dutton give really good performances as
individuals who, despite appearances, at least give the illusion that
they have willingly embarked on the path to redemption, however long
and unrewarding such a path may ultimately be. Ripley herself is
confronted with the chance to help these sorry saps. Some will be
quick to argue that it would be best if she did not, but it speaks to
her humanity that she does.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Speaking of Dillan
acting as the resident priest during sermons, another aspect to the
film I personally find provocative is the tightrope walk the story
performs between salvation and death among the characters. Whether
they are on this forsaken place merely to rot away as they perform
slave labour for the rest of humanity back on Earth or if there is
hope for their redemption (for example, their labour serving as a
form of rehabilitation) is yet another question to ponder on, but the
fact of the matter is that Ripley can save them, and save them she
does try, to, let’s just say, varying degrees of success. The alien
has arrived and by now everybody following the series knows full well
the nature of its sole purpose in the universe: to destroy anything
in its path which isn’t another alien (a rule that <i>Alien
Resurrection</i> curiously breaks. More on that in the next review).
The monster serves as the electric chair, the gas room, the poisonous
injection, in other words, the prisoners’ death sentence. However
nefarious some of these inmates are, the alien is ten times worse. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I
think one thing that helps build this sense of struggle between light
and dark is Elliot Goldenthal’s score. It’s very operatic (minus
the chanting though), and its bombast is emotionally driven rather
than specifically action-oriented. There is, in fact, a spiritual
tinge to the score, hence echoing the psychological and emotional
many of these inmates are in: acknowledgement of their past crimes
while coming to terms that the unstoppable beast is on the prowl to
finish them off. Who would dare argue that Goldenthal’s work
overtakes that of Goldsmith or Horner as the best in the series?
Between the Seats will not attempt it either, but I do genuinely
think the score is among the best things about the film and even as
standalone music, there are some cues that effortlessly resonate for
their emotional punch. </span></span>
<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-56278997591105067942012-06-10T14:21:00.000-04:002012-06-10T16:43:16.206-04:00Definitive Alien marathon: 'Alien 3', general review<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8S-2cIcL0anvL-pojOGFjcZ5_hFy7wQ2GSmMYzILcsh0wS8eA-1aXRufbeQ0xkeJe1KOwdTKKKXCjdmWWmxoZrz4kB6ixxXZRkI_sWF0ikN2gKLXK6-wHhXczuE-vdQFIERm4FFaj3lo/s1600/alien+3+title+card.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8S-2cIcL0anvL-pojOGFjcZ5_hFy7wQ2GSmMYzILcsh0wS8eA-1aXRufbeQ0xkeJe1KOwdTKKKXCjdmWWmxoZrz4kB6ixxXZRkI_sWF0ikN2gKLXK6-wHhXczuE-vdQFIERm4FFaj3lo/s400/alien+3+title+card.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Alien
3 </i>(1992, David Fincher)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Excellence
can continue for only so long. A new government is elected into
office having made lofty promises during a brilliant campaign, only
to lose the very next election. A sports team wins a few consecutive
championships before finally meeting its match. A business will show
profit during multiple quarters before forces either from within or
without and beyond its control negatively affect output and revenue.
A movie franchise can certainly deliver a few good entries but at
some point, the law of diminishing returns will establish itself. All
good things have an expiration date. Having not been a serious movie
fan 20 years ago in 1992, it is difficult to fully comprehend how
meaningfully that notion resonated in May of that year when <i>Alien
3</i> (or<i> Alien</i> 'cubed' as some call it) was released to fans
worldwide...to incredulous disappointment. Suffice to say, the
reception was a cold one. Much time has elapsed since then, and while
Fincher's effort has not become a favourite, many take a kinder look
to it now then upon its initial theatrical release.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Taking
a cue from James Cameron, who began his own instalment with events
which immediately followed up the original, Fincher offers critical
information about what happened to the vessel carrying Ripley, Newt
and Hicks interspersed within the opening credits sequence. A face
hugger is revealed, acid spills, the ship's computer systems are
fried, subsequently forcing the transport module to crash land on a
yet unknown planet. It is a windy, wet, industrial looking and grisly
place inhabited by only precious few humans. To top that off, said
humans are convicts, individuals found guilty of the most heinous
crimes and sent there for intensive labour in order to pay for their
sins. It is a prison planet. Ripley's ship is discovered by the local
doctor, Clemens (Charles Dance), who retrieves and brings he back to
life. For Newt and Hicks...all hope is lost. Ripley would gladly
leave this hell hole, especially after learning of the deaths of her
former friends, but a familiar foe has somehow found a way to plant
the seed of destruction into an ox (or a dog, if one is watching the
original theatrical cut). Soon enough, the inmates are being picked
off one by one, and Ripley is the only one who can save them, a
awkward position if there ever was one, given how nasty some of these
folks are, including the self appointed spiritual leader of the
group, Dillon (Charles S. Dutton), a convicted rapist and killer of
women. The enemy of my enemy is my friend?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Stories
of the long, arduous, frustrating, tiresome, convoluted, aimless,
uncooperative production period will wait for another day. Today's
article shall concern itself solely with the film proper. <i>Alien 3</i>
is not an instalment which gets a tremendous amount of play in the
Between the Seats headquarters, yet it can safely be said that the
most recent viewing session for the purpose of the current marathon
was at least the fourth. In a sense, David Fincher's picture is one
filled with interesting ideas, ideas that carry some potential
(although how much exactly is another debate), that strives to be
provocative, which itself is worthy of attention and offers a few
visually arresting moments. The presence of series star Sigourney
Weaver provides the film with some backbone, and Charles S. Dutton,
regardless how how despicable his character's history may be, is a
compelling presence. It really is not all that bad in <i>Alien 3</i>.
In fact, this review can go one further can argue that Fincher's film
is not bad at all, yet confidently saying it is really good, that is
indeed a bit difficult. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">For
one, the movie is not scary, not the least little bit. At this stage,
there is nothing new to learn about the enemy. At first we had no
idea what it was, then audiences discovered what it is capable of in
groups and where it came from (queen). By this third episode, what
else can the filmmakers deliver in terms of groundbreaking content
that will rock viewers' worlds? The answer, at least as much as can
be assessed from <i>Alien 3</i>, is 'not much.' It is still a
fantastic looking beast. Its mere design is enough to inspire some
unease, but it has been seen so much at this point that there is
little that the script can do to shock and awe. That being said, true
to David Fincher's imaginative eye as a director, there are some
inventive shots, while others are not as groundbreaking but just as
intense. The one in which the alien crawls up to a Ripley who is
lying against a wall was the hallmark of all the trailers. Ripley is
absolutely petrified, convinced her time is up as the creature opens
its first and second mouths, emitting a disrupting hiss. A great
moment, to be sure. The other excellent moment arrives when Ripley
and the inmates lead the enemy on a chase through the tunnels near
the refineries. Fincher cuts to the alien's point of view as it
gallops after the terrified inmates on the ground and upside down on
the ceilings. Once again, a cleverly devised visual cue in a film
very desperate for some inspiration. That entire sequence, the chase
in the tunnels, is incredibly well shot and executed, despite that
probably most viewers will not give one iota when a few of the
characters are caught up and shredded to bits by the monster. The
entire location is appropriately damp and eerie, and with Dillon's
mighty sermons, one gets the feeling the place is like a twisted
cathedral, an idea that was explored much more fully in one of the
script's earlier incarnations. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">One
of the most difficult things to accept about the picture is how bleak
it is. More specifically, it treats two of the second film's most
cherished characters, Hicks and Newt, like absolute garbage. One
problem which is never brought up in arguments for or against the
film is how the actress playing Newt, Carries Henn, would have been
about 6 years older by the time of filmming, which would not have
made any sense at all in the world of the film since the bodies of
individuals preserved in space hibernation presumably do not age,
meaning that either a very ridiculous explanation or, riskier still,
a re-casting of the character would have been in order. Challenges
not to be taken lightly, but either proposition could have found a
wider audience than the one opted for, that is, actually taking the
character of Newt lightly and dispatching her, for one, with total
disregard for her fans and, second, during the credit sequence even
before the proper story begins! Fincher's career as a filmmaker since
<i>Alien 3</i>, which he refuses to talk much about, has been filled
with marvellous films concerning dark subject matter not always
suited for the faint of heart, with <i>Seven</i>, <i>Zodiac</i> and
<i>Girl with the Dragon Tattoo</i> being perfect examples. His
decisions to embrace tonally gloomy stories has paid handsome
dividends seeing as how highly regarded he is in 2012. Nevertheless,
till this day fans of the franchise still find the deaths of Hicks
and Newt difficult to swallow, as does this reviewer. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Be
that as it may, there is close to two hours of film with different
characters left after the aforementioned duo perish. So what of them?
One would be hard pressed to argue that the actors hired, among them
Charles S. Dutton, Charles Dance and Paul McGann, are incapable of
doing well. Dutton and Dance are wrestling with extremely tricky
material. They need to function as supporting characters, ones that
can, in their own particular ways, assist Ripley both in terms of
survival skills but also emotionally. Ripley cannot go through the
entire picture as the soul redeemable character, that would make the
story even more depressing than it already is. The presence of the
alien brings out decent qualities from them, not too many perhaps,
but enough for them to serve as capable allies to the movie's
heartfelt protagonist. Tension and unease exist at first, but once a
greater, more nefarious common enemy makes its presence known, the
time comes to band together as best they can regardless of the
significant moral and philosophical differences which set them apart
initially. In that respect, Charles S. Dutton and Charles Dance are
rather strong. It is amazing therefore that the picture commits
practically the same mistake twice when, barely halfway into the
plot, the alien coldly dispatches Dance's character. It seems as if
the film's <i>raison d'être</i> is to set certain things up, install
specific expectations into the viewer's mind, only to squash them
without remorse later on. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Alien
3</i> is a mixed bag, with the good being quite good and the bad
being rather infuriating. It functions as an early display for some
of Fincher's sensibilities as a filmmaker. Some of them work wonders,
other do not. </span></span>
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<br /></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-60116205817177861692012-06-09T22:45:00.000-04:002012-06-09T23:33:48.995-04:00Definitive Alien marathon: 'Aliens', an appreciation<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">In
the general review for <i>Aliens</i>, much was written about how
solid James Cameron's script was for how it expanded the Ripley
character. As good as her performance was at the end of the first
film, viewers would be hard pressed to explain very much about her.
At the end of <i>Aliens</i>, there is a much greater sense about what
motivates her and how compassionate she can be in the face of life
threatening events, specifically via her pseudo adoption of Newt.
There are plenty of other little details about the script which
enhance her character and the interactions between other characters
at large. The most interesting one is her relationship with Hicks,
played by the now forgotten Michael Biehn. It could not even be
argued that what they experience is on the cusp of romance. 'Close
but no cigar' is not applicable in their case. Nay, they are much
further than that from a romantic link. Is there a scene, a moment in
the movie when Ripley and Hicks could have locked themselves in each
others' arms for a good wet kiss? I really don't think so. And yet,
and yet... There is <i>something</i> going on there. One of the
strongest images of the film, one that includes no aliens whatsoever,
is when, after Ripley and Newt are attacked by not one but two face
huggers in the infirmary room, the few remaining soldiers come in to
dispatch the vile, spider like creatures and Hicks dashes over and
metaphorically 'protects' Ripley and Newt, crouching behind both of
them, almost hugging Ripley as the latter hugs the little girl. They
nearly come across as a family in that single moment. Naturally, some
credit should go to the actors as well, with Weaver and Biehn living
their respective roles unabashedly, giving them some depth and
believability. Weaver's performance was so good that the Academy,
which handles the Oscars ceremony, gave her a nomination in 1986,
which was something no actor or actress had ever received for playing
in a science-fiction movie, a genre that, if it earned nominations at
all, was recognized mostly for sound and visual effects. Weaver
really is quite a powerful presence in <i>Aliens</i>, not in any
literal sense, but in character, in personality. When she leads, the
side characters and by extension the audience is willing to follow.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Not
far behind the Ripley-Hicks duo is that involving the protagonist and
the story's android character, Bishop, played by Lance Henricksen.
Her previous experience with Ash from the first film has made her
incredibly sceptical towards machines of his ilk. He attempts to
quell her unease by explaining that the model which Ash belonged to
was known for critical malfunctions, but Ripley will have none of it.
Hence , it is up to Bishop to prove himself to her, which is a really
neat thing for the movie to make a robot to go through. After all,
that's a journey a human character would normally go through. What it
adds to the Ripley character is a little less clear. In a sense, it
opens her eyes to a new reality: that allies can come in all forms.
Whereas Carter (Paul Reiser) is a human who at first offers a
friendly face, Bishop is, due to his nature, a little bit colder in
his pragmatism and logic (computer ordained pragmatism, that is).
Eventually, the tables are turned, revealing that the android Bishop,
not the human Carter, is to be safely trusted. It isn't very very
difficult to understand why actor Lance Henriksen is so fondly
remembered for this performance, practically taking over as the
quintessential cyborg of the series, supplanting one of the greats in
the process (Ian Holm). Certainly his competition afterwards did not
carry the same gravitas, as good an actress Winona Ryder (<i>Alien
Resurrection</i>) can be provided the material she is given. With the
addition of mister dependable, Michael Fassbender, to the franchise's
cyborg characters, time will tell where Henricksen ultimately stands,
but whatever the consensus, he is stellar in the picture. It is not
as though he has to do that much, his mere voice is awesome, whether
he is playing a human or a robot. As many cool movies he may have
partaken in, this is one movie fan who believes he still was not in
enough films.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">These
two articles have reviewed tons aspects about Cameron's picture but
not too much about the antagonists. Having so many of them in a
single picture obviously makes for a very different atmosphere. What
makes each picture so neat are those very differences which the
monsters bring to the fold. In <i>Alien</i>, the crew of the Nostromo
is hiding and hunting a mystery. Here, the aliens are like pests. The
audience knows what they are at this point, knows what they are
capable of, so knowing that so many are on the prowl is a powerful
tool in adding tension. They act like an unwavering, unstoppable
infestation, first, by infiltrating and wiping out 99% of the human
colony, and then by slowly closing in on an increasingly shrinking
group of marines. Try as they might, the tactics of the latter are
futile against the unshakable force of the former. There simply does
not seem to be an antidote. One of the movie's most fun and
intelligently constructed sequences is when, in order to protect
themselves from their attackers, Ripley, Newt and the surviving
marines barricade themselves in a particular room accessible via only
one corridor. In said corridor the soldiers have set up two automated
machine chain guns which fire upon detecting movement up ahead. The
aliens, demonstrating that maybe they aren't <i>that</i> intelligent,
send in hoards of troops down that corridor. The neat aspect of the
scene is that instead of cutting to the hallway (in fairness, Cameron
does cut to it, but very infrequently and only for split seconds),
the viewer remains in the barricaded room as Ripley and company look
at the video screen as the number of bullets diminishes with each
round, and yet more and more aliens push their way, and the number of
bullets lowers some more...It's a fabulous way to create unease, then
ramp it up while hardly needing to show off tons of aliens getting
blown to smithereens. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Something
which is not discussed very often, excluding talks among fans, is
that the aliens do sport of different look in this sequel. They are
pretty much the same beasts as the original monster, but rather than
look sleek around the head, the bone structure is much more visible,
as if their heads had so little skin that the skull can be seen
through it. It's an arresting aesthetic, and one imagines that, just
as in any sequel, simply doing the same thing over again is not a
winning strategy. The audience wants something a little different,
and of course the artists involved, from the director to the costume
designers, and the effects people, want to put their own stamp on the
visual cues of the picture. Again, it looks swell, although if I were
to really make a choice, the original, more sleek lizard-like design
sends more shivers down my spine. The fact that one cannot tell much
at all from what might be under that dome is deeply unsettling.
Suddenly seeing the skeleton blueprint is unique, although spoils a
bit of the fun. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Cameron
and creatures effects specialist Stan Winston blow the taco stand in
the picture's final third by revealing one of the all time great
movie monsters, the alien queen. She looks like her offspring, but
far, far more sprawling, with her extended skinny bones almost giving
her the shape of a spider. It is incredibly creepy while also very
powerful. Fitting then, that Ripley lands in her hive during her
mission to rescue Newt. As she holds the girl tight in her arms, the
queen is laying her eggs. Adoptive mother versus actual mother (and
bitch). A great moment in a film replete with great moments. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Watching
to the bonus material on the blu-ray, it is amazing to learn under
how much pressure composer James Howard Newton was. The time he had
to create a score was no where near as much time most composers will
normally get when working on a major film. Writes, re-writes and last
second changes to various scenes had Newton continuously scramble in
order to present musical pieces that that made any sense whatsoever.
Now we listen to the results, in the film as it accompanies the
action or on our mp3 players and admire how riveting it is. Some of
those cues are brilliant in conveying the sense of danger and
thrills. It may be one of the all time great adventure scores. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-17245642088324406982012-06-06T13:23:00.000-04:002012-06-06T13:38:20.054-04:00Definitive Alien marathon: 'Aliens' general review<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Aliens</i>
(1986, James Cameron)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Arguably
one of the most notable, quotable lines lines from James Cameron's
high-octance sequel to Ridley Scott's quiet, brooding and
claustrophobic horror film is not even a line spoken by a character
in the film itself. Rather, it is <i>Aliens</i>' tag line which has
since been remembered fondly by fans of the film and the franchise.
'This time it's war.' Not one phrase could possibly describe the
nature of this incredibly popular sequel more accurately nor more
succinctly. Whereas Cameron's predecessor preferred to construct and
augment tension slowly and carefully, rarely, if ever, resorting to
flamboyant outbursts, the Canadian-born director opted for something
a little different. Who are we kidding, he blew the roof off of the
Nostromo and the Sulaco is what he did.</span></span></div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Aliens</i>
commences in the exact same location <i>Alien</i> closed: the small
transport space module Ripley used to escape the doomed Nostromo and
send herself into hibernation. The locale is covered in dust and ice
however, hinting that Ripley has probably been drifting through space
for some time already when the film opens. By happenstance, a private
corporate shuttle, the Sulaco, picks up the signal emitted from
Ripley's craft, and thus she is awoken by the Weyland Yutani company
to discover that 57 years have passed. Everyone she knows is dead,
save her cat Jonesy who was in hibernation with her. When it comes to
her knowledge that Weyland Yutani has not only put up settlements on
the alien planet (now known as LV-426) from whence the creature from
her nightmarish past came , but also a colony of a few hundred
people, the alarms go off in her head. Murphy's law kicks into to
high gear shortly after, as the company loses mysteriously loses
contact with the migrated citizens. The marines are called in to
investigate, among them colourful characters such as Corporal Hicks
(Michael Biehn), privates Vasquez (Jenette Goldstein) and the
rambunctious Hudson (Bill Paxton). Weyland representative Carter
Burke (Paul Reiser) tags along, as does Ripley herself. What they
find is a desolate, broken down place, with not a living soul around
except for one little, terrified girl, Newt( Carrie Henn). That won't
be the only thing the marines discover, for the creatures responsible
for wiping out the colony eventual make their presence known...and in
greater numbers than ever before!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">To
sum things up in a nutshell, <i>Aliens</i> is a completely different
ball game from the original film. Tension abounds, as do gory scenes,
as do antagonistic creatures hell bent on destroying every human in
sight, all things that appeared in one way or another in Ridley
Scott's picture, but handled very differently here and, some would
argue, handled batter, although that is another debate altogether.
<i>Aliens</i> is louder, meaner, more action packed and, in the best
possible way, a more breathtaking affair. In all honesty, if one has
a propensity for this sort of ride, one may literally be left without
air for a moment by the film end. James Cameron, who by at this point
in his career had already made a name for himself with the first
<i>Terminator</i> film, took the reigns running and never let go. His
attitude on set is semi-legendary at this point: demanding, often
impatient, perfectionist to the point of being irritant, yet who can
argue when the results are up on the screen, especially in the case
of <i>Aliens</i>?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">What
is curious to note about this sequel is how, so far as the 1991
director's cut is concerned, the titular beasts are absent for the
better part of the first hour. Yes, approximately 60 minutes go by
without a peep from the slimy extra-terrestrial hunters. Remarkably
enough, this in no way hurts the story's pacing because, and here is
where many big budget action films unfortunately commit their errors,
<i>there is</i> a story, a real story. The movie's title may refer to the
special effects laden monsters, but the film is really about the last
survivor of the Nostromo. What's more, the protagonist is a woman.
Such a comment is not meant to refer to any notions of woman
typically being incapable of filling the shoes of the hero (heroine,
in this case), only that, first, such a thing is a rarity, and
second, Ripley's emotional arc is particularly well handled. Cameron,
who wrote the script, keeps what little we knew of Ripley from the
first film and expands the character in such a way that she is
naturally compelling and very much a woman all at the same time,
something precious few movies attempt or succeed at. Waking from her
fifty-seven year slumber in space, she must come to terms with the
fact that her only daughter has already passed away even though
physically Ripley has not aged a minute. As the saying goes, no
parent should ever have to bury their children and this case she did
not even get the chance to perform that gesture for her deceased
progeny. Smartly, the film inserts a new character about a quarter of
the way into the plot, that being the orphaned Newt. Suddenly,
Ripley, all the while giving the aliens hell for how they warped her
life, she earns the privilege, in a small way, of motherhood for the
second time in her life . The character of Ripley, as depicted in
Aliens, is probably one of the most compelling action heroes ever put
to screen for her genuine three dimensionality. She has the guts to
go head to head with her foes, she shows emotion (when played by an
actress as accomplished as Sigourney Weaver, that will give any
character a lift) and is given a compelling emotional arc. <i>Aliens</i>
is a prime example of an action film which can boast a strong leading
character for more reasons than just gadgets and muscles, even though
those are fun as well. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">While
the remainder of the characters are not nearly as developed as
Ripley, the cast at the very least brings some gravitas to their
respective roles, thus avoiding <i>Aliens</i> from becoming a one
woman show. While no romance ever blossoms between the protagonist
and the male lead, Corporal Hicks played by Michael Biehn, the latter
is comfortable in the role as the gutsy marine soldier who possesses
a slightly softer edge than his more 'shoot first, ask questions
later' driven colleagues. It is a similar role that of <i>The
Terminator</i>, wherein his character is both strong in the
traditional action-man sense of the term all the while willing to
give into emotion when the moment is appropriate. He may not be the
best actor, but Biehn is often quite dependable and obviously rather
good at playing variations of this character. The two loudest
individuals of the bunch are Jenette Goldstein, who plays a very
macho woman, and Bill Paxton, who is overconfident when preparing for
battle, but psychologically weak when the tide turns against them
('Game over, man!'). Both are constricted by limited
characterizations, yet both are endlessly amusing to watch behave
among each other and in the face of danger. Paul Reiser does not do
very much and is quickly dispatched when the script deems his
importance in the story has evaporated. Known mostly as a comedic
actor, he brings a certain sliminess masked by innocent looking
smiles to the corporate representative Carter should exude anyhow.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
aliens, ah yes, the aliens. The movie builds the anticipation has
long as it can before revealing even just one. Cameron, a bit like
Scott, is in no rush. Launching headstrong into the thick of things
is not a requirement after all. That being said, when the first alien
pops out of a wall to snatch an unsuspecting marine, Cameron tosses
the viewer into a blender of suspense and action. A horror film
<i>Aliens</i> is not, but replete with tension it most definitely is.
Our review for the previous film praised that movie for not revealing
much of the creature design. At this stage, Cameron opts for a
different strategy, one that involves showing much more of the
animals, by leaps and bounds in fact. Yet does not, however, fall
into the trap of giving away everything about them. Their is a very
interesting cinematography and editing style at work in <i>Aliens</i>,
by which plenty of aliens are scene time and time again, but the
lighting and the cutting is just right to give the audience a good
enough idea of what they are without them even once looking like an
incredibly cheap man in a costume. Quite a brilliant little coup,
when one thinks about it. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Alien
</i>and <i>Aliens</i> form a formidable duo. They represent one of
the most unique 'original-sequel' combinations ever. They are clearly
from the same franchise yet simultaneously represent the very clear
visions, the results of vastly different directorial styles. There is
no shame in loving both, which I do. Picking one over the other, now
that's a touchy subject...</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Come
back soon for an 'appreciation of <i>Aliens</i>' article. </span></span>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-75591340625550980422012-05-25T23:08:00.001-04:002012-05-25T23:09:58.620-04:00Definitive Alien marathon: 'Alien', an appreciation<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">This
is but a supplement to the <i>Alien</i> review posted earlier this
week. Whereas the previous article offered an overview of the film
and highlighted its strengths and weaknesses, today's article will
dig into the finite details of Ridley Scott's horror masterpiece. We
hope you enjoy reading and find the same giddy pleasure in the film's
details as we did.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Much
was written about how the alien creature, by its design and
presentation in the film, haunts me till this very day. It has often
been said that the more is left to the imagination, the greater the
fear instilled into the minds of the viewers. Rarely has this been
truer than in <i>Alien</i>, wherein director Scott, his
cinematographer and editor refuse to ever leave the extraterrestrial
beast complete drenched in light from head to foot. To begin with,
there are only a precious few moments when the alien is depicted on
screen: its first attack on Brett, for a tiny glimpse when Dallas
shines light on it in the shafts (blink and you'll miss it though),
when it dispatches Parker and Lambert in quick succession and finally
in the small shuttle during the climax when the only human passenger
left is the unexpected true protagonist of the picture, Ripley. In
each of these four scenes, the alien is given incrementally increased
screen presence, but the full body is never revealed, therefore
taunting the viewer about what it may look like. In the first three
death scenes, the creature is often given only brief screen time,
save for when it sneaks up behind Brett, during which time the camera
rests on its bizarre head structure for a few seconds.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Birth is indeed painful </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">What
<i>is </i>revealed is frightening and, quite frankly, discomforting.
Consider, for example , the first ever revelation, aka Brett's death.
Our hopeless character, completely unaware of the impending doom
which seeks to destroy him, has walked into a storage room were
condensation has accumulated to the point where water falls from the
roofs. Unbeknownst to him, the alien has in fact been hiding among
the dangling chains where the shower flows from. Therefore, once the
predator carefully, silently lands onto the ground in attacking range
of his prey, his is completely wet, which is a great effect. However,
the most impressive shot of the sequence is when the camera closes in
on its head from a side angle. First and foremost, the viewer can
immediately recognize the phallic shape. In interviews, both Ridley
Scott and the creature's progenitor H.R. Giger expressed an interest
in lending the villain a sense of sexuality, one that would clearly
be uncomfortable for the audience. The results are exquisite, if such
a word may be borrowed in singing the praises of such a vile thing.
So, there is the structure of its head, but the sexual undertones do
not cease there. Nay, if one looks closely at its mouth in that same
side angle shot, apart from the drips of water which sprinkle down
its face and mouth, one can see another substance emanating from its
lips, a thicker, more consistent one noticeable by its pale colour.
Yes, ladies and gentleman, it looks as though sperm is spewing out of
the alien's foul mouth as it breaths rhythmically, aroused by the
potential for a kill (and as if it were having, what else, sexual
intercourse). The third and final sexual undertone in the scene,
although at this point one questions if we are still discussing mere
undertones, is of course when the second, smaller mouth emerges from
the alien's principle vocal orifice. It is straight as an arrow and,
as evidenced by how it easily crashes through its victims' head,
very, very hard. It is the substitute for, well, I'm sure the readers
have clued in on what's going on...</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Ian
Holm, as Ash, is doing something very subtle in this film,
notwithstanding the scene in which it is revealed he happens to be a
company hired cyborg hellbent on eliminating any of the Nostromo's
passengers who so desire to vanquish the 'pure' beast they have
unwilling brought along with them. Naturally, it is not the
filmmakers' interest to reveal Ash's true nature too early, otherwise
one of the picture's insidious subplots is spoiled even before the
story kicks into high gear. The actor does more than enough to fool
the audience, behaving mostly like a real human being, but there are
subtle ticks about him that just may hint at something more sinister.
One such instant, one found in the 2003 cut of the film, has Ash
perform a little jog in one place just prior to his fellow members
suiting up and exploring the alien planetoid. He does it a very
strange way, as though his robot limbs need a warmup before engaging
in the expedition, but he is not venturing on the journey, so why
would he be doing that? It goes without saying that the little ticks
are noticeable only on repeat viewings. It does not seem possible
that anybody would guess Ash is a robot when seeing the film for the
first time. What is more discernible is his keen interest in the
creature, from its very first incarnation, that being the facehugger,
to its very last, that being the adult hunter, although that
curiosity can easily be explained by the fact that he is a scientist.
Nice bit of screenwriting that. The revelation of his 'raison d'être'
never feels too intrusive either. One supposes that at this stage in
the future, weapons may be designed as otherworldly creatures. The
intrusion of a huge corporation for ulterior motives comes as a
shock, a genuine one as opposed to a head scratching one. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Tiny
detail that makes me laugh every time: When Parker attempts to rescue
Ripley from Ash's powerful arms as he chokes her with a magazine, the
cyborg suddenly clutches Parker on the chest. It's just one hand, but
apparently Ash's grip is so strong because Parker's face suddenly
contorts in surprise and pain. It is hard to explain why, but I
always get a kick out of that moment. Even the awesome Yaphet Kotto
is getting toasted by this cyborg!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Oh yeah, I'm feeling it!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> It
is interesting to note that the characters are not offed in the order
one might suspect. From the outset, it is made clear to the audience
that Dallas in in command, which makes his demise as third in line
all the more shocking. It is not as though Scott makes any conceited
effort into presenting Ripley as the central character of the story.
She is but a part of the team, no more and no less. That is the sort
of actress Sigourney Weaver is, after all, very unassuming, very
capable of holding her own while acting off of multiple other cast
members, never resorting to obnoxious tricks in order to overpower
the others. She nevertheless exudes great energy and confidence when
the script calls for it. Dallas, as played by Tom Skerritt, is, by
comparison, so calm and so subtle that it almost feels natural that
he does <i>not </i>last the entire film, certainly not when set toe
to toe against as ferocious an enemy as the titular invader. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Where
would <i>Alien</i> be without the Jerry Goldsmith score? There is a
fair bit of controversy surrounding the music in the film in reality.
Some scenes feature Goldsmith music from other films and in other
cases it is second or third kicks at the can which made it into the
picture. The most apparent example of music from another film is when
the facehugger's acid blood oozes through multiple floors of the
Nostromo. That is not original <i>Alien</i> music but rather a cue
from the <i>Freud: The Secret Passion</i> score. Probably what makes
this score one of my personal favourites is not merely its beauty but
how it is fearlessly juxtaposed against the oblique world of the
film. The score is nearly out of place with what transpires and the
overall tone of the visuals, but somehow, someway, it fits like a
glove instead. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-54254456692889786452012-05-22T00:31:00.001-04:002012-05-22T00:31:43.790-04:00Definitive Alien marathon: 'Alien' general review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl8G73C0aTUHwLjlhmncoyDLN5Pb6bIUy5A5vZ46SrL8AY54XebXvjygRX8tjdVqwRkmg_SlkMkQQCEYfJCxGTZPD8bfSqKrgJDj6m8rLjpENfpdgu1g0rwucNT8fRG9c_uczeIa3O8Ts/s1600/alien_1979_1024x768_181931.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl8G73C0aTUHwLjlhmncoyDLN5Pb6bIUy5A5vZ46SrL8AY54XebXvjygRX8tjdVqwRkmg_SlkMkQQCEYfJCxGTZPD8bfSqKrgJDj6m8rLjpENfpdgu1g0rwucNT8fRG9c_uczeIa3O8Ts/s400/alien_1979_1024x768_181931.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Alien</i>
(1979, Ridley Scott)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Ridley
Scott's career as a filmmaker has been filled with incredible
successes. Despite what proud accomplishments he can call his own,
there have been some bruises along the way. It seems that for every
Ridley Scott fan there is a Ridley Scott detractor, and for every
film used as an argument in support of the Englishmen, somebody can
present a solid case against him. One says <i>Gladiator</i>, another
says <i>Robin Hood</i>. One says <i>Thelma and Louise</i>, another
says <i>G.I. Jane</i>. People say <i>American Gangster</i> and both
the supporters and the detractors claim that as a case supporting
their respective opinions. <i>Alien</i>, the 1979 film, originally
from the mind of UCLA science-fiction fanatic Dan O'Bannon, is not
one such film to stir controversy. Granted, it may have its handful
of naysayers and those people may very well have their reasons, yet
for the most part the picture is considered a classic and a milestone
in science-fiction horror, principally because that meshing of the
two genres had never been done as effectively as when <i>Alien</i>
spooked the living daylights out of people back in the summer of '79.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
Nostromo space craft is a large sized transportation module heading
back to planet Earth after prolonged mission. It crew have just
awoken from several months of hibernation, one of the most effective,
safest and healthiest ways apparently to complete space travel
requiring an extended period of time. There is the captain of the
vessel, Dallas (Tom Skerritt), second in command Ripley (Sigourney
Weaver), scientist Ash (Ian Holm), crew members Lambert and Kane
(Veronica Cartwright and John Hurt respectively,) and finally the
engineers who work the tired, dirty motor systems down below, Brett
(Hary Dean Stanton) and Parker (Yaphet Kotto). They gather together
for some food, laugh, complain about wages in some cases, but overall
things are running as possibly as one would hope. What had the ship
awaken the crew however was a signal received by the Nostromo
emanating from a nearby planetoid. The decision is made to venture
onto the mysterious, uninviting looking surface to search for the
origin of the call. Their discovery is both awe inspiring and
worrisome: a decrepit, near-mummified alien of unknown origin, eerily
carved cavern walls, and a large pool of sizable eggs, all of which
appear to be totally made of living organism rather than the typical
hard shell. When one of the eggs hatches and its newborn immediately
attacks Kane, it marks the beginning of a horrifying adventure the
Nostromo's crew could not have concocted in their worst nightmares...</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Alien</i>
is the film which helped make Ridley Scott a household name for the
next few years in his career. He was younger back then, working with
a smaller budget than on many of the movies he is known for today and
those may just be some of the essentials reasons why <i>Alien</i> is
and always has been such a remarkably effective horror movie. A word
used every now and then on this blog to compliment the quality of
work that went into the production of an excellent film is
'craftsmanship.' That word exemplifies nearly everything about <i>Alien</i>.
From the production design, to the effects, to the score, and even
the editing, Scott's picture feels as though it was a labour of love
whereby the cast and crew really invested everything they could so
far as individual talent, time, energy and money is concerned, this
despite the fact that the funds awarded to Scott by 20<sup>th</sup>
Century Fox were more restrained than was the case on many other
large scale productions at the time. In fact, it was only after
Scott, now famous for his own storyboards (affectionately named
'Ridleygrams'), showed studio executives the entire film via a
collage of storyboard drawing that Fox agreed to increase the budget
from 4 to 8 million dollars. Needless to say at this point, 33 years
after its initial release, that <i>Alien</i> has had a massive
cultural impact on people both within and outside of the industry.
From the design of spacecrafts in movies and even the aesthetic
presentation of future creature from outer space, Scott and his crew
made a breakthrough in science-fiction horror. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">When
discussing the visual qualities of the picture, there are ostensibly
three critical elements which spring to mind. The first, and most
obvious is the alien antagonist itself. The second would be the
Nostromo and finally, even though the film does not spend much time
there, the planetoid from whence the alien came. The alien design,
courtesy of one H.R. Giger, a Swiss artist whose frightening drawings
of bio-mechanoid monstrosities were the inspiration for the titular
villain, is certainly one of the more unique, unexpected monsters in
film history. The cinematography smartly chooses to shyly reveal the
beast without overbearing visual cues so as to leave the audience
questioning (and fearing) what the devil the entire creature might
look like until the very end, yet constantly teasing us with iconic
peaks at either its head, its tails, and the second miniature head
with springs from its watery mouth and rams through its victims
skulls in a fraction of a second. Then there is the matter of how the
filmmakers choose to depict the creature from its birth all the way
to its death. Rarely before or even since then has a horror film
spent such care in elaborating the details about a monster's entire
life cycle. First the gooey egg, than a spidery-like face hugger
which inseminates a seed into a human victim through the mouth and
down the throat, followed by a baby monster which springs forth
directly through the host's chest and finally the tall, lanky beast
whose stealth abilities catch nearly everyone off guard, sending each
to a horrible death. Most people reading this article have more than
likely already seen the picture, and so the need to venture further
into explaining what it looks like is uncalled for. Writing on a very
personal level, the number of times I watch the film matters little
in the hopes that I shall ever feel totally comfortable in my seat
whenever it appears on screen in this movie. 5, 6, 7 times maybe, I
have lost count by now, yet that vision of death as designed by Giger
and brought to life by Scott continues to make me feel uneasy in the
1979 original. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
beast in its fullest form appears a good hour into the picture,
leaving only the final 50 minutes or so for it to judiciously pick
off its victims one by one, which itself is one of the aspects about
Scott's film that makes it stand apart, the fact that it never seems
to be in any hurry whatsoever. The film is perfectly content to
presenting everything it needs to present in due time, no faster and
no slower. By today's standards, <i>Alien</i> can appear as a 'slow
movie' but sometimes the horror genre is at its most effective when
taking its time in building the unnerving suspense. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
Nostromo is yet another wonder to behold, for its quirky
magnificence. Some corridor have their necessary blind spots (a
demand made by the scripts progenitor, Dan O'Banon while visiting the
set one day) and is a wonderful balance between light and dark. Where
the ship is dark, the audience quickly appreciates how 'real world'
and grimy the mechanics of the craft are. Regardless of however
fantastical the majority of the picture is, there is a level of
believability which inserts itself into this world. Suddenly, the
viewer can relate on some levels (of course the actors play a
significant part in allowing this to happen as well, lest that be
forgotten). Conversely, those brightly lit rooms have a
quintessential sci-fi flavour to them, what with the pale coloured
doors and walls, the plenty of lights and buttons to press,
characters talking to computer screens and the machine answering
back, etc. That balance of heightened science-fiction and down to
earth, nitty gritty detail pays off handsomely depending on where the
characters are and what they are doing at any given moment. </span></span>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Finally,
the is the alien planet, or what we assume is the alien planet (they
may have come from elsewhere, mind you). It is so cold and looks so
strange, so foreign. The coup de grâce which never fails to give
viewers the shivers is when, as Dallas, Lambert and Kane are
exploring the terrain and sending video feedback to Ash in the
Nostromo, a bizarre, otherworldly vessel comes into view. Its
proportions are epic as can be seen in the shots from a distance when
the trio of explorers approach an entryway and are absolutely dwarfed
by this craft of unknown origin, their tiny headlights barely visible
in the shot at all. It looks like an incomplete disc of some sort,
yet its more terrifying aspects lie within its hallways, which
resemble far more damp caves carved out of a bad dream than they do
ordinary spacecraft passages. But then again, there is little
ordinary happening in this film.</span></span></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Little
of the film's mesmerizing, unforgettable visual cues would matter as
much if the actors failed to inject any sense of characters into
their respective roles. What's so impressive about these performances
and, consequently, the characters, is that they are indeed more than
enough to present each of the unfortunate as real people. 'More than
enough' is the key idea here because the script, whether because it
deliberately tried to be different or completely forgot about some of
the basic screenplay tropes, does not even attempt to set up these
people in the slightest. Who is Ripley, where does she come from,
what has she left behind on Earth? So little information is provided
to the audience on those topics that it is only during the first act
of the <i>sequel</i> that some of those questions are answered.
Despite what the script avoids doing so far as character development
is concerned, the cast steps in and, through some of the subtle
choices, add a minimal level of depth to these individuals, at least
enough for the viewers to find them sufficiently interesting and,
above all else, worthy of empathy. If the viewer as shows any inkling
of wanting to see some of these people make it back home in one piece
as opposed to lying as decrepit corpses with their skulls bashed back
into their brains, most of that has to do with the performances and
much less with what is on the page. </span></span>
</div>
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</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">That
concludes the marathon's first article. Come back later this week for
some more in depth appreciation of Ridley Scott's <i>Alien</i>
wherein we'll get into some of the minutia that repeat viewings begin
to reveal, and some of the more obvious details that simply make the
film such a wonder from the get go.</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-44183260167816277922012-05-14T12:44:00.000-04:002012-05-14T12:47:38.626-04:00Fast Men, Faster Cars: Senna<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOdG4QCoXXWCIQ0gNOppncJzEWCRylwtufsDKlN4hWAGvp0UM1EOJ_ukNpxDxShiw_eWr8r-VotcW8rcqMTa18RLdT8BI8FGD9EV1A1esSlREN8I1lyBBl-wi9WsKb3kQwGRRFqzCzlVY/s1600/Senna-poster-650x963.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOdG4QCoXXWCIQ0gNOppncJzEWCRylwtufsDKlN4hWAGvp0UM1EOJ_ukNpxDxShiw_eWr8r-VotcW8rcqMTa18RLdT8BI8FGD9EV1A1esSlREN8I1lyBBl-wi9WsKb3kQwGRRFqzCzlVY/s400/Senna-poster-650x963.jpg" width="268" /></a></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Senna</i>
(2010, Asif Kapadia)</span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Anyone
familiar with the Formula 1 racing championship and its history is
aware of the name Ayrton Senna. Ayrton is today considered a legend,
fondly remembered by fans of sport and former drivers alike. During
his all too briefly illustrious career, Senna was quite the
controversial figure, with his detractors equally vocal as his
supporters, especially his closest rivals during the races
themselves. Documentary filmmaker Asif Kapadia offers a relatively
insightful glimpse into this unique figure, delivering a film
constructed exclusively out of archival footage and family home
videos, with the occasional voice over courtesy of past interviews.</span></span><br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Ayrton
Senna was born in 1960 in Brazil. His love for racing started at an
early age, and his chances at a professional career took flight in
the late 1970s as he piloted the equivalent of go-cart vehicles in a
much smaller league than what F1 had to offer. He was a phenomenal
driver, if a little too reckless at times. His success meant
graduation to Formula 1 by 1984 during which season he drove for
Toleman. After a brief spell with Lotus from 1985 to 1987, the crux
of his story, of his legend rather, began in earnest upon joining
McLaren in 1988, thus teaming up with one of the greats at the time,
Frenchman Alain Prost. Whereas Senna was driven by speed, courage and
what he deemed some sort of divine guidance, Prost was the consummate
professional and understood the ins and outs of the sport, both in
regards to what had to be done on the track purely for victories and
anything related to points standings and various other more
politically related details. Was the blazing up and comer to soften
his touch under the guidance of Prost? Not at all, which of course
meant a rift between the two was eventual. While in Prost's eyes
Senna was far too cocky and reckless, in the eyes of many others
Senna only grew greater as not only the individual wins piled up, but
so did the season championships...</span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It
felt nearly impossible to head into Asif Kapadia's <i>Senna</i>
without prior knowledge of how the film was put together, that being
by pulling together various archival footage, be it from sports casts
or from personal family footage, and gluing them in such a fashion,
without the assistance of recently recorded talking head interviews
to use as a spine, that a cohesive story can be told. Reading and
listening to the comments shared by several who chose to point that
out, it seemed as though that in of itself was worthy of the highest
of praise. One wonders if such people follow any kind of professional
sporting events throughout one or multiple seasons. For starters, any
big event or series of events will have literally countless cameras
recording video or taking snapshots of said event. The staggering
amount of visual documentation for merely one race would be enough to
fill en entire library. The absence talking heads is admittedly an
interesting directorial decision, but not one that will drop the jaws
of anybody who understands how detailed the recording a Formula 1
race is. There are interviews before races, after races, as well as
during the two weeks that separate the races, not only with the
drivers at the center of attention, but also the team owners, leaders
and even technicians if need be. In essence, there was certainly no
lack of material to build a reasonably cohesive story using only
archival footage. Having the Senna family give permission to allow
Kapadia to utilize personal home video footage is arguably the most
interesting coup the director accomplished, but it is not as though a
incredible amount is shown throughout the picture anyhow.
Additionally, while there are no talking head interviews, audio
archival interviews with Ayrton's sister and several people
associated with the profession accompany the movie and set certain
scenes into context.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">What
matters in the case of Senna is what Kapadia does with the
aforementioned footage. In that regard, <i>Senna</i> is a compelling
drama about a special individual who particular quirks were made
known to the entire world given the vast, faithful F1 fan base. The
portrait of Senna shown to the viewer is that of a man who was deeply
compelled to race despite the odds, despite the risks, and despite
the criticism frequently aimed at him. At the time that his stardom
rose with McLaren (and teammate/enemy Alain Prost), the head of the
federation was also a Frenchmen, thus suspiciously leading to certain
race day decisions that would favour Alain over Ayrton. The
Brazilian's racing style was also conducive to various stressful
moments given his propensity to drive with madman speed. Granted, his
control over the vehicle was often quite good, there were the
inevitable contacts with other cars, which, has chance it would have
it, left his opponents' cars rather than his own in bad shape. The
passion for the sport never swayed, nor did his calm yet powerful
conviction in his talents as a driver, some of which he attributed to
the intervention of God Himself. One of the film's most awe inspiring
moments is when he finally won the Brazilian Grand Prix. Arriving at
the finish line well ahead of everybody else, his exaltation at
capturing victory in his homeland where people saw him practically as
a demi-god was so powerful that he experienced muscular tensions and
could not exit his car without the help of teammates! When in
interviews he comes off as somewhat shy, unsure of how to behave in
front of the camera. Clearly, his place in life was behind the
driver's seat. Like so many of the greats, he was a complicated man,
yet overall a very likable one.</span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Perhaps
Kapadia's film is not as complete as one would like it be. It alludes
to Ayrton's love of his native Brazil, which is of course an
important story element to establish when fleshing out the subject,
yet really only offers a cursory examination of his relation to its
people. <i>Senna</i> briefly touches on the fact that Brazil,
especially in those days, was a surprisingly poor nation despite its
worldwide popularity. His success on the international stage meant
resulted in two things. First, that most Brazilians, but in
particular the lower class, looked up to Ayrton with tremendous
pride. Second, Ayrton did invest some time and energy in charity work
for the youth struggling to get by in the lower socio-economic
classes. A little bit more of those two aspects would have completed
the image of Ayrton for the purpose of the film. Knowing that a star
is involved in charity is one thing, but when presented the
opportunity to explore it in film in the case of such a curious man
as Artyon Senna, it feels as though director Kapadia limits himself.
It is not that the viewer's understanding of the subject by the end
of the film is insufficient, only that some pertinent and directly
related topics are not explored as fully as otherwise could have been
the case and, in contrast, would have provided a more detailed, complete understanding.</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Fans
of Formula 1 would do well to seek this one out. The documentary
provides a goldmine of both wonderful footage from races past and and
some interesting interviews with Senna himself. The centerpiece of
the film, the Senna-Prost rivalry, is definitely the most gripping
sequence, one that has a bittersweet payoff in the final scenes
following Ayrton's fatal crash at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix,
which terrifyingly enough had also taken the life of another driver
during Saturday's pole positioning runs. The perfect documentary? Not
by a stretch, but a very solid one. </span></span>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-48044375722791130212012-05-09T01:04:00.000-04:002012-05-09T01:07:01.793-04:00Fast Men, Faster Cars: Grand Prix<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguzIImDyfRjg0eO55nM3C168FDj7knpEog3g4qV4wDlkpjcrFDJQowtIKPfmTUqTtEV2rqDee_JGwl-2AcIFEFGBW7pd2McuX-5p-YCoX8c6537AjfcDBq4bG9PQb7Tyx9ypBPcYzjbcg/s1600/Grand-Prix-Movie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguzIImDyfRjg0eO55nM3C168FDj7knpEog3g4qV4wDlkpjcrFDJQowtIKPfmTUqTtEV2rqDee_JGwl-2AcIFEFGBW7pd2McuX-5p-YCoX8c6537AjfcDBq4bG9PQb7Tyx9ypBPcYzjbcg/s400/Grand-Prix-Movie.jpg" width="346" /></a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Grand
Prix</i> (1966, John Frankenheimer)</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Director
John Frankenheimer is one of those people working within Hollywood
one could always trust in producing solid, well made, engaging pieces
of entertainment. This talented director was very much along the
lines of Robert Wise or today's Steven Soderbegh, in that he could
tackle a great many genres and one could practically guarantee the
results were to be positive. Earlier in the marathon was published a
review for the Steve McQueen picture <i>Le Mans</i>, which impressed
for its technical skills, all of which brought the thrill of the race
to life for audiences. The downside was everything else (story,
characters and all), which fell terribly flat. Frankenheimer's <i>Grand
Prix</i> is, interestingly enough, a film McQueen could have starred
in, were it not for creative differences. </span></span></div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
story sprawls over the course of a Formula 1 season, the first race
depicted being that of Monaco, in southern France. After some
whimsical editing and cinematography techniques which show off,
first, the director's skills when wanting to aim for visual flair
and, depicting the intensity of the races, the viewer is provided
with some info about who the principle racers are. Pete Aron (James
Garner) is an American, teamed up with Brit Scott Stoddard (Brian
Bedford). While the latter is currently one of the true great drivers
on the circuit, the former, once great, is now deemed to be past his
prime. An incident at Monaco born of out Pete's insolence results in
Scott's car crashing, leaving the driver in dire physical condition
in bed for several weeks. Other drivers and characters the picture
follows are Frenchman Ferrari driver Jean-Pierre Sarti (Yves
Montand), the American journalist who follows and falls in love with
him over the course of the season, Louise (Eva Marie Saint), Scott's
wife Pat (Jessica Walter) who finds herself attracted to Pete, Izo
Yamura (Toshiro Mifune), the newcomer industrialist on the circuit
whom Pete joins after losing his job on his former team, and
Jean-Pierre's young hotshot Ferrari partner, Nino Barlini (Antiono
Sabato).</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It
may come as a surprise to some that Frankenheimer's film clocks in at
a staggering 176 minutes. Not exactly record breaking time for speed.
To put it bluntly (and in pun-like terms), <i>Grand Prix</i> is not a
sprint, but rather a marathon. The irony of the situation is that the
elongated running time helps the story find its groove. The story per
say is light enough, essentially boiling down to 'who will win this
season's championship?' In truth, it is the multiple character
journeys directly attached to said plot about championship
competition which deliver the goods in <i>Grand Prix</i>, a film that
strikes the balance between compelling drama where the personalities
involved are very three dimensional and the action, that being
whatever transpires on the racing tracks, is top notch quality. </span></span><br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM_JMkK3I8peXaqQB16j_dORpXyxamABRHbZrF7a4Zw3WQ9HjbRnXnnYxFJAKiKCzkXQGjydc44xholBm5Gc7riykkF1EDsKU6xxuEJq-ZClPO4es06Oc05tNvx01eZ8nqWa18NqHBfRc/s1600/grand-prix-1966-02-g.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM_JMkK3I8peXaqQB16j_dORpXyxamABRHbZrF7a4Zw3WQ9HjbRnXnnYxFJAKiKCzkXQGjydc44xholBm5Gc7riykkF1EDsKU6xxuEJq-ZClPO4es06Oc05tNvx01eZ8nqWa18NqHBfRc/s400/grand-prix-1966-02-g.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
most obvious comparison is <i>Le Mans</i>, but in reality they are
two very different pictures with far fewer things in common than one
may imagine. <i>Le Mans</i> is very much dedicated to the action,
offering scant little in the way of story, and when it does the
results are underwhelming. <i>Grand Prix</i> aims to strike for a
much more satisfying, well calculated balance between scenes of
thrills and the character arcs. What's more, the character arcs
themselves are not only compelling in their own right, but tie into
the racing season itself. It would have been one thing for the film
to deliver the goods during the races and then offer supplemental
plot lines for fans of good drama. Frankenheimer and company goes the
extra distance and tie it all in together. Pete Aron is looking for a
chance to redeem himself, to prove to everyone that he can still not
only race, but win as well. His new employer, Yamura, is wishing to
prove that he can win, but in a different way since he has never
accomplished anything in this domain, having made his name in
appliances and electronics. Jean-Pierre is a situation similar yet
also vastly different than that of Aron, for the Frenchman is also
getting along in years, but unlike his American counterpart, he
continues to win on a consistent basis. Just how long can he be a
contender for the championship, especially with Nino right behind
him? Finally, there is Scott Stoddard, always a contender, a prideful
young man, whose injury at the hand of Aron's mistake leaves him
severely handicapped. Not only does his wife choose to leave him
(temporarily at least), but he can no longer race, or so say the
pundits. Scott's feverish passion for the sport means the fire inside
is never extinguished, and regardless of what some prefer to believe,
he will somehow, someway find himself in a Formula One vehicle at
some point later in the season and compete for the top prize. Sadly,
albeit maybe unsurprisingly, the three female characters featured in
<i>Grand Prix</i>, Louise, Pat and Lisa (Nino's current girlfriend,
played by Françoise Hardy) are not awarded the same treatment. First
and foremost, Lisa is not given much of a story at all. As for Pat,
as beautiful as Jessica Walter was back in the day (a real peach,
that's for sure), her screen time is predominantly used up as the
emotionally conflicted wife caught between two men, a predicament
which is essentially of her own doing. Finally, Louise, the reporter
whose current subject is Jean-Pierre, has the most interesting arc
given that her sense of freedom and strong independence is challenged
by her growing feelings for the professional driver. It makes for
dramatic conflict, although conflict emanating from the some of the
semi-stereotypical qualities a female lead character.</span></span><br />
<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Nay,
it is for certain the men who receive the meatiest parts in the
script, but be that as it may, the film is nevertheless quite good in
that regard. The story also shies away from delving too much into
cliches. It could have been incredibly easy for any one of these
characters to be more unlikable than the rest, thus filling the role
of the piece's villain. Search as long as they wish, viewers will not
find any true antagonists. In fact, if there is any antagonist at
all, it would have to be each contestant's insatiable hunger for
victory. Each has a second venue waiting for them. Jean-Pierre may
graciously retire. He is wealthy and has proven himself a winner more
than once in his career. Aron has also experienced a strong career
with a fair share of Grand Prix wins to call his own. Broadcasting
becomes a possibility for a short period, although once Mr. Yamura
calls him up, there is no second guessing what Aron will do. Scott
would do best to rest the remainder of the campaign out. It is all
played out rather smoothly, rarely feeling contrived at all. The fact
that the film is a little longer than most </span></span>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">And
what of the action? Not too long ago plenty of praise was showered
onto <i>Le Mans</i> for its spectacular camera set-ups,
cinematography and editing, and while it may seem implausible,
especially since Frankenheimer's picture is 5 years the former's
senior, the case can be made that <i>Grand Prix</i> looks and feels
even better. The only nitpicks occurs whenever the director chooses
to have the image multiply within the picture frame. The decision is
questionable from an aesthetic standpoint and from a thematic one.
What is its purpose? Who knows... Other than that however, the races
look absolutely astonishing, and, if the bonus material on the disc
is to believed, represent a reasonably accurate depiction of what F1
was like back in the mid 1960s, a decade during which the safety
measures of the sport were improved by leaps and bounds. At the time
<i>Grand Prix</i> was made however, the criteria was still
surprisingly lax by today's standards, which makes the competitions
all that more exciting. </span></span>
</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">John
Frankenheimer's picture is, in all likelihood, the definitive
depiction of motor racing within a fictional story. The acting is
solid, as is the overall plot, and of course the action is top notch.
</span></span>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-37096671994981808852012-05-06T11:30:00.001-04:002012-05-06T11:47:32.733-04:00review: The Avengers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg70bI0C5tqwktvcIe0P7lIwFhiLCpudbQnReSpXnVopUeaVLAYPcVhRIow7X-cqmXsbM0L-rjNeiA82ZR1rBgbotCjuF3jM1RLw5bCTKLWMJXgX0NpDtvXgSGb_lpjETzQe4TLRHl25tA/s1600/the_avengers_logo-banner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg70bI0C5tqwktvcIe0P7lIwFhiLCpudbQnReSpXnVopUeaVLAYPcVhRIow7X-cqmXsbM0L-rjNeiA82ZR1rBgbotCjuF3jM1RLw5bCTKLWMJXgX0NpDtvXgSGb_lpjETzQe4TLRHl25tA/s400/the_avengers_logo-banner.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;"><i>The
Avengers</i></span><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;"> (2012, Joss Whedon)</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;">And
so it has come to this, the epic result of 3 summers worth of films
for individual </span><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;"><i>Avengers</i></span><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;">
characters, each a perfectly singular adventure, but also building
the links towards what is the first summer blockbuster of 2012. (the
first weekend of May seems a little early to call it 'summer', but
Hollywood claims it is now summer, so we'll go with that).
Writer-director Joss Whedon is a demi-god in the eyes of many a
television and film fan, having been the principle creative force
behind a list of phenomenally successful series, the most popular
being </span><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;"><i>Buffy the Vampire Slayer,</i></span><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;">
which is basically the only reason people know who Sarah Michelle
Gellar is. The comic book fan and Whedon fan communities erupted in
unified jubilation when, a couple of years ago, it was announced that
he would helm this massive undertaking. Now it has opened in theatres
pretty much everywhere on the planet. Is it any good?</span></span></div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
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<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;">At
the S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, somewhere in the United States,
director Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and his crack team of
scientists (among them Selvig, still played by Stellan Skarsgârd in
a minor role) are hard at work with their tests to harness the power
of a mystical cube which produces everlasting energy. Their work is
abruptly interrupted by the arrival of Loki (Tom Hiddleston), the
brother of Thor (Chris Hemsworth), who was last seen betraying his
adoptive family in order to rule Asgard and rule the Earth. He is
still very much interested in the latter project, and with the help
of a race of weird warrior aliens, plans to renew his efforts. With
planet Earth’s future now in peril, Fury and the top brass at
S.H.I.E.L.D conclude that the time has come to put into effect a now
defunct project idea: The Avengers Initiative. Thus agent Coulsen
(Clark Gregg) and super spy Natasha Romanova (Scarlett Johansson)
travel the world to gather up the most powerful, albeit barely
manageable, beings they know:</span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;">Tony
Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), aka Iron Man</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;">Doctor
Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo), aka The Hulk</span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;">Steve
Rodgers (Chris Evans), aka Captain America</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;">And
the mighty Thor, prince of Asgard, god of Thunder.</span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;">Their
personalities may not immediately be conducive to proper teamwork,
but when Loki gathers a frightening, ruthless army of otherworldly
invaders, thus stacking the odds firmly against Earth, these uniquely
gifted individuals will have to learn teamwork and combine their
strengths together to save humanity in its darkest hour. </span></span>
</div>
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<div align="CENTER" style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;">Avengers assemble!</span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3QBIqyCulU7L-6JXeqAtLr4hYcoECJxhumzQZq69geQwa6r0LQ7USnczjqxjTZ6wNq8AGqr6Y9nzik_tcnGkiQQ7R_7akSXF14Z6ElhmlUrVrSjgWQkN67KPjqAYAYuPzuLLU6hze5xM/s1600/The-Avengers-group-shot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3QBIqyCulU7L-6JXeqAtLr4hYcoECJxhumzQZq69geQwa6r0LQ7USnczjqxjTZ6wNq8AGqr6Y9nzik_tcnGkiQQ7R_7akSXF14Z6ElhmlUrVrSjgWQkN67KPjqAYAYuPzuLLU6hze5xM/s400/The-Avengers-group-shot.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
</div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;">One
can stop for a moment to wonder what it must be like for a person
such as Joss Whedon, despite his obvious talents, being asked to
write and helm an endeavour such as this one. The expectations
heading into this film were stratospheric for many, if not most
blockbuster and comic book movie fans. Compounding said expectations
was the fact that all of the previous films highlighting the
individual Avengers characters were massively successful, both from a
commercial and critical perspective. Now just imagine </span><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;"><i>The
Avengers</i></span><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;"> not rising for the
occasion! Well, just as superheroes serve up action in the worlds
they inhabit, so too does Joss Whedon serve up a walloping punch of
ride for the audience, a film replete with laughs, iconic moments,
solid (although not great) character plot lines, and a cast having a
blast all the while bringing the heroes we have come to love to life
once more with some shades of three-dimensionality. There are plenty
of critical elements to balance, nearly to many to list in fact. If
one of the Avengers is not given enough screen time or pathos, then
the end product feels incomplete. A film too dark would be in
contrast to the others film. To light and the sense of adventure is
lost. There are supporting players to handle, and of course, a film
this big, this huge even, requires massive action scenes. Not big,
but massive. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;">The
most difficult aspect of the entire project was surely the script.
Development a legion of epic heroes is one thing, but lending the
film a credible villain, one that can plausible pose a genuine threat
to the Avengers and the planet at large is a different ballgame. It
is in that respect that The Avengers hits one of its rare snags. The
problem is not Tom Hiddleston, who is just as good here as he was in
</span><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;"><i>Thor</i></span><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;">
(basically, very good, appropriately fiendish), but rather the end
game and how he aims to achieve it. For one, the origin or ‘raison
d’être’ of the alien army is barely explored. Just who, or what,
are these things is a mystery. It may very well be explained
perfectly in a back issue of an Avengers comic, but unlike virtually
all of the others major characters in the film, the audience has
never seen them before, nor or they provided if any satisfactory
explanations as to why they want to join Loki in his quest to rule
Earth. Loki, who was a perfect foil against Thor in the 2011 Kenneth
Branagh film, is serviceable, but not the most intimidating figure
when standing against four incredible heroes and their more than
capable supporting players. In Whedon's defence, the character of
Loki is used to some clever purpose in that, for the better part of
the movie's first half, he employs his intelligence and cunning to
get the better of the team and S.H.I.E.L.D. This section of the film
works well, and, again, Hiddleston fits the part like a glove, but
ultimately Loki is simply not as memorable as the heroes. There is a
moment in the movie when the script hints that Loki when be in over
his head, that an internal struggle may be confusing his decision
making, but the moment passes just as quickly as it came, never to to
explored again. </span></span>
</div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtic-fPMQ2MDkPKbEOTYcpJEIGtN6vsIF5twJ8ushzLio9Oa0yr5Q6qlylMklK4-O-LstLK1Yskt07RTucIgt-07GXAoqtq0zpHGhDxPsgXplj2KJ0o9nyFJvxGPeTRuD0Sra303jFU0M/s1600/The-Avengers-the-avengers-2012-movie-30722200-1440-900.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtic-fPMQ2MDkPKbEOTYcpJEIGtN6vsIF5twJ8ushzLio9Oa0yr5Q6qlylMklK4-O-LstLK1Yskt07RTucIgt-07GXAoqtq0zpHGhDxPsgXplj2KJ0o9nyFJvxGPeTRuD0Sra303jFU0M/s400/The-Avengers-the-avengers-2012-movie-30722200-1440-900.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;">That
is more of a nitpick in the grander scheme of things. Speaking of
things grand,that is, in a nutshell, how </span><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;">The
Avengers</span></i></span><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;"> may be
described. The worry heading in to the film was how smoothly the
major characters would be joined together and, once joined together,
how they would fair as co-stars. Any such fears are quickly laid to
rest, as nobody among the cast ever tries to outshine anybody else.
This is, ostensibly, an ensemble piece, with everyone pitching in
perfectly. Oddly enough, if there is anybody among the heroes whose
impact on the picture is less than the rest, it might be Samuel L.
Jackson, which is unexpected given how he frequently is the reason
why scenes in his films are so memorable. The main cast have superb
chemistry among them, Downey Jr., Hemsworth, Ruffalo and Evans all
playing off one another wonderfully when the going is tough and
eventually feeling very much like a team when the tough gets going.
The most surprising performance is courtesy of Ruffalo seeing as he
is the most important newcomer among the actors. Eric Bana and Edward
Norton had their own styles as does Ruffalo, but it is only the
latter who seems to truly comprehend how the character of Bruce
Banner should be played. The beast within is itching to come out,
releasing all the uneasy tension building up a storm inside. Banner,
for the time being, knows better than to unleash it onto the world,
therefore making him a ball of nerves. He is a brilliant scientist,
thus a valuable and critical asset to the team, but at the same time
would rather be as far removed from the action as possible. There
comes a time, however, when brains cannot carry the same weight as
brawn, meaning...well, I'm sure fans know that that means when it the
topic is Bruce Banner. He is, for intents and purposes, the most
complicated hero of the film and by extent the most interesting, with
Ruffalo's finding conviction in the nuance of emotions the character
is afflicted with. His work far surpasses what either of his
predecessors did. </span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfCXcofGgNQdLiJKjKCE7aoUF0E-lZrRD15x_xKbHyvM8mXD_CvgGQkfUxeHyUa19ieo3UddDZm02h3lfjbFlQzrriGnE8X8Yw1ZPN7rt-RKD5BGnEwdWiQDUhc5LVDA88ARN2IbG9qjc/s1600/The-Avengers-2012-upcoming-movies-29945616-1280-1024.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfCXcofGgNQdLiJKjKCE7aoUF0E-lZrRD15x_xKbHyvM8mXD_CvgGQkfUxeHyUa19ieo3UddDZm02h3lfjbFlQzrriGnE8X8Yw1ZPN7rt-RKD5BGnEwdWiQDUhc5LVDA88ARN2IbG9qjc/s400/The-Avengers-2012-upcoming-movies-29945616-1280-1024.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,serif;"> </span></span>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Smartly,
<i>The Avengers</i> attempts to accomplishes more with its story than
merely have a series of conflicting characters come together and
overcome some critical differences (as if that were a simple matter
in of itself). Nay, Whedon and company have each of the Avengers come
to terms with their own struggles. Much has been written about doctor
Bruce Banner already, yet Tony Stark, Thor and Steve Rodgers each of
their own personal journeys. Rodgers must adapt to new surroundings
and become the leader people hope and expect him to be. Tony Stark
must put his inflated ego aside, just as Thor is desperate to
convince his brother to abandon his dastardly plot and rejoin him
back home in Asgard. None of the players are ever boring, nor are any
of the actors uninspired, although perhaps Thor is not as
entertaining here as he was in his standalone film, if only because
at this point he is accustomed to Earth, meaning the comical 'fish
out of water' moments are no longer present. Are these stunningly
profound sub plots that take storytelling to soaring new heights? One
would be hard pressed to support such a notion. That does not mean
the stories are not fulfilling however. The blending of emotionally
satisfying character beats with stellar performances is exactly what
comic book movies need, much like the original comic book themselves.
Let that not produce any worries for nervous fans: every character
gets his or her share of big moments. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
film's action sequences are presented in very strategic manner, with
comparatively small scenes occurring early, followed by progressively
larger battles, which saying a lot given how the opening battle, in
virtually any other movie, would be deemed humungous. It has been
written elsewhere that the picture culminates with a large scale war
in downtown Manhattan, and it does not disappoint. The sequence,
lasting a solid 15-20 minutes, is what every fan has been waiting for
after all, the moments when The Avengers proper unite as one out of
the world fighting force to defend humanity from otherwise certain
doom.</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">There
are plenty of blockbusters to come from now until late August, and
nobody knows what exactly those movies have in store for audiences.
Only our collective dreams can fuel them until the dates of their
imminent releases. Suffice to say that <i>The Avengers</i> could not
possibly start the season in more emphatic fashion. It is funny, is
has wonderfully staged action, state of the art production design
very much in tune with the comic book world, and finally, at long
last, brings some of the medium's greatest heroes together for the
first time. </span></span>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-62331157094096830762012-05-01T12:34:00.005-04:002012-05-01T12:35:31.053-04:00Fast Men, Faster Cars: The Fast and the Furious<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1gdI1gWVHIdQ-Bzuj9McBpEjsEqRzXC7UokS8N2-NoK68lA9RCn4aj7-Fc7vuKzvzfxkcfSAaKWiOf8yrBPqGnR4BI6jRpPHFaZvdMmHwlABoCJF0rnRaSA6HUmClo_2TxdtxtPa0-0I/s1600/The-Fast-and-the-Furious-Poster-the-fast-and-the-furious-movies-4597876-1650-2560.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1gdI1gWVHIdQ-Bzuj9McBpEjsEqRzXC7UokS8N2-NoK68lA9RCn4aj7-Fc7vuKzvzfxkcfSAaKWiOf8yrBPqGnR4BI6jRpPHFaZvdMmHwlABoCJF0rnRaSA6HUmClo_2TxdtxtPa0-0I/s400/The-Fast-and-the-Furious-Poster-the-fast-and-the-furious-movies-4597876-1650-2560.jpg" width="257" /></a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>The
Fast and the Furious</i> (2001, Rob Cohen)</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Director
Rob Cohen and actors Vin Diesel and Paul Walker. How many people get
excited upon hearing those three names, or at the very least one of
them? The question is unfair given that most people who come visit
blogs such as this, people who, by the way, would for the most part
emphatically answer 'Not me, so sir!' to the question posed above,
have particular tastes and ways of appreciating the art of film. They
are in the minority, however badly they may wish it were the other
way around. The honest answer is 'An entire legion of movie goers',
the same legion that made 2001's <i>The Fast and the Furious</i> a
rousing box office success despite the film receiving, at best, a
lukewarm critical reception. The same people, in fact, who made the
second, third, fourth, and yes, last spring's fifth instalment
equally if not even more successful, commercially speaking. </span></span></div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Officer
Brian O'Conner (Paul Walker) is operating under cover in Miami,
seeking out the gang responsible for the frequent nighttime
highjacking of transport trucks. The clues point to several possible
criminals, all of which are connected to the world of illegal street
racing. Among the suspects is Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel), car
repair owner by day but organizer of the drag races by night...among
his other suspected activities. O'Conner, still unsure as to whether
or not Toretto is actually the culprit , believes that by at least
entering the man's circle of friends and contacts, the identity of
the mastermind behind the thefts shall be unveiled. Said circle
includes the tech wizard Jesse (Chad Lindberg), strong man Vince
(Matt Schulze), Toretto's gal Letty (Michelle Rodriguez) and the
woman who catches O'Conner's eye, Mia (Jordana Brewster), who happens
to be Toretto's sister. As the investigation moves further, the
protagonist's friendship with Dominic strengthens, as do his feelings
for Mia. Sooner or later, he will be forced to reveal the actual
purpose for his wanting to hang around, which may not go down so well
with the gang.</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz63Tmp0AHJ3gOEQA9YJcGXHtOI9sVx8YYedNzfl3inTrxjctF6r_zelk-vHq0MJiMdBC-sZlserlEMwmM-PmlMNLKNhIBdUqgzRWeyk0MbGkftw4-V6jzio09mBTYmX8z5OGuvLffHJw/s1600/fastand2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz63Tmp0AHJ3gOEQA9YJcGXHtOI9sVx8YYedNzfl3inTrxjctF6r_zelk-vHq0MJiMdBC-sZlserlEMwmM-PmlMNLKNhIBdUqgzRWeyk0MbGkftw4-V6jzio09mBTYmX8z5OGuvLffHJw/s400/fastand2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Before
venturing any further, readers should be aware that the author has,
first and foremost, not seen all of the instalments in the franchise
and, what's more, has not viewed them in chronological order. Truth
be told, it is the second, third and fifth episodes with which the
author was most familiar with prior to the recent viewing of <i>The
Fast and the Furious</i>, even those parts of the original had been
seen several years ago. This first film puts things somewhat into
perspective, as it does not feel as grandiose or even as intensely
axed on the racing aspect as the aforementioned sequels. The fifth
aims for a sense of the epic whereas the second and third are only
minimally concerned with any genuine story, preferring to show off
tons and tons of racing and chases in Japan and Miami, resulting in
scenes that stretch plausibility. The film under review today has an
altogether different vibe about it. Insofar as the intensity of the
action scenes and sort of plot the script produces are concerned,
Cohen's picture is a wee bit more intimate than the others. More to
the point, <i>The Fast and the Furious</i> feels as though it is
actually concerned with its story, that of a cop who is diving far
too deep into his undercover role, blurring the lines between his
emotional allegiances and his duties as an enforcer of the law, as
well as offering some sensible character development for the pseudo
villains of the piece, that being Dominic's gang. Is the story all
that memorable or emotionally gripping? No, not very, although the
attempts at creating at least something of interest are noble. This
sort of tale of troubled friendships, murky alliances and forbidden
loves within the world of law enforcement has been told before. It
has been the driving force behind superior scripts from more adept
writers (having now at long last actually heard star Vin Diesel say
the oft maligned 'I live my life a quarter of a mile at a time' line,
it can now be confirmed that it's indeed pretty corny) and visualized
better by more gifted directors. Nevertheless, as an admirer of
story, it is a relief to know that <i>The Fast and the Furious</i>'
purpose is not limited to showing off overly flashy cars and stunts.
It makes serious attempts at telling a story, albeit a terribly
familiar one. A script is one thing, but the cast is equally crucial
in making a story worthwhile, and here as well <i>The Fast and the
Furious</i> produces mixed results. Paul Walker as been mocked in the
past for his lack of charisma range, and while one does not
necessarily want to add more to already high mountain of criticisms,
he does not do much other than merely read his lines. It is a case of
producers wanting to cast a person they hope will be the next big
star, making their move based solely on appearance. Walker is
certainly a handsome man, but a actor he is not. There was a stretch,
though admittedly not a very long one, when Walker appeared in a
series of films as studios tried to capitalize on his popularity.
People quickly came to their senses and it is therefore ironic that
in the past three or four years, the only two films of any
significance he has been involved were...<i>Fast and Furious</i> 4
and 5. Vin Diesel, in comparison, fares much better. He is rough
around the edges, yet that rough exterior does not completely hide
the fact that he does have a certain screen presence. His lines have
delivered with more conviction, more verve. The two leading ladies,
Rodriguez and Brewster unfortunately do not get much to work with
Rodriguez in particular, honestly, does do much at all in this film.
Brewster is serviceable as the strong willed sister and hopeful lover
to Walker stoic (too stoic) cop. Good, but nothing to write home
about.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizPWN8LCDFfZguKmhI_kCMYM6y59cTiP1vz_rfncdcALVM1y9ZjmUsJ4qrM0HGoVeNBgYg4dkXlDhlhP5rE1qGzWHmPjVVqF0Fn_OOYeu9MzJf_cJNsiXI-yGhPemieIPgkB_J1Fq1CFM/s1600/The+Fast+And+The+Furious+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="171" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizPWN8LCDFfZguKmhI_kCMYM6y59cTiP1vz_rfncdcALVM1y9ZjmUsJ4qrM0HGoVeNBgYg4dkXlDhlhP5rE1qGzWHmPjVVqF0Fn_OOYeu9MzJf_cJNsiXI-yGhPemieIPgkB_J1Fq1CFM/s400/The+Fast+And+The+Furious+2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
familiarity with the general story line (unless there are people out
there who really have not seen films like this...) is juxtaposed with
the presentation of a world unseen by viewers up until now in film,
certainly not with the amount of detail and passion Rob Cohen brings
forth. Of course, the world of street racing, as it lives and
breathes in North America, what with its legions of flamboyant youth
expressing unhinged hyper bravado as they sport their clothes, their
jewels, their girls or their boys and of course their modified,
practically science-fiction film worthy automobiles, may not be a
world some people may care to discover in a movie. These teens and
young adults are definitely cut from a different cloth. They are not
mean in any sense, but their entire presentation is decidedly on the
aggressive side of the spectrum. Loud and flashy as can be seems to
be this culture's motto. Be that as it may, the filmmakers were
privileged with the possibility of using people who really go and
partake in street racing for many of the scenes in the film as
opposed to filling the screen with actors filling in as extras.
Arguably one of the more intriguing set pieces is that which occurs
at what the characters refer to as Race Wars, where hoards of people
arrive in their spiced up vehicles, line up and engage in a series of
one on one races all day long, with plenty of money placed on the
table for betting purposes. It speaks to the volume of individuals
who are hooked on this sort of sport. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
mention of racing naturally brings the review to the topic of the
action. Much like so much else in the film, the action itself is hit
or miss. When the high-octane stunts are not being manipulated by
cheap camera and computer generated effects, it should be written
that Cohen and his crew capture the speed and sense of danger quite
nicely. The finale, which has Toretto and O'Conner try to rescue
Vince as the latter hangs from the side of a speeding transportation
truck is pretty thrilling and looks great. There is a little chase
between some cars and motor bikes just afterwards which also works
well. Somehow, it is the actual street races which come across as
lackluster . For whatever reason, director Cohen decides to
'heighten' the simulation of speed by muddying the picture with some
terrible green screen effects in which everything around the cars
looks stretched (since they're going so fast!!!). In fact, the only
real street race the audience gets to see makes little sense at all.
It lasts about three minutes yet the drivers, before and after the
event, keep hampering on and on about quarter miles. If the viewer is
to believe they ride so incredibly fast, how is it takes three
minutes to arrive at the finish line? </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>The
Fast and the Furious</i> earned the admiration of young movie goers
everywhere. Great cinematic art it is not. Serviceable fun and a
decent enough way to kill a couple of hours it is, however. A better
cast, more consistency in the action and little bit more audacity in
the storytelling department would have been nice, but one doubts this
is the sort of film from which too much should be asked. </span></span>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-24131635909077052692012-04-26T11:56:00.000-04:002012-04-26T11:59:57.589-04:00Fast Men, Faster Cars: Le Mans<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtuEzJuMmmnfT2wkzHxoUPcH8SRYfsThkia9dceKbb-h1axbBWvYROyDDGYFEXVnkkM9Raxf3rcJkflaKlpC5I30-GwwzY-csdhZD6OlmkDVru9vVpuWDLxov88ivjJyxRnRFqLKsOHu4/s1600/le_mans.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtuEzJuMmmnfT2wkzHxoUPcH8SRYfsThkia9dceKbb-h1axbBWvYROyDDGYFEXVnkkM9Raxf3rcJkflaKlpC5I30-GwwzY-csdhZD6OlmkDVru9vVpuWDLxov88ivjJyxRnRFqLKsOHu4/s400/le_mans.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Le
Mans</i> (1971, Lee H. Katzin)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Steve
McQueen, one of the true great Hollywood screen legends, was known to
be an avid driver. Small wonder that in one of his most popular
films, <i>Bullitt,</i> the greatest action scene, perhaps the only
genuine action scene, is a phenomenal car chase through the streets
of San Francisco. A racing film per say would, therefore, feel like
the most perfect fit of all. The famous actor had in fact attempted
to create what he wanted to be viewed as the ultimate racing film,
but the rights to the material that had caught is eye went to someone
else, who then had John Frankenheimer direct said movie, titled <i>Grand
Prix </i>(another entry in this very marathon in fact). It was
therefore towards the legendary Le Mans 24 hour race that McQueen
turned his attention to. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Le
Mans 24 hour race, relatively unknown in North America where Nascar
and Formula 1 arrive 1<sup>st</sup> and 2<sup>nd</sup> in popularity
ranking, had occurred on an annual basis since the early 1920s. The
event is held just outside the town of Le Mans, in Northern France.
Drivers from all around the world arrive for, as the name of the
event suggests, a race twenty-four hours in duration. Naturally, for
safety purposes, teams are equipped with multiple drivers. At one
time the number was set to two but in the recent decades it was
augmented to 3. McQueen, sporting one of those very, very 1970s
hairdos, is American Michael Delany, who represents the Porsche team,
more precisely a Porsche 917. His closest rival, albeit on strictly
professional terms, is unsurprisingly the Ferrari team, which
operates a Ferrari 512. From 4pm to 4pm the next day, through
sunshine, rain, wind, light and dark, the teams race around the
deadly, treacherous track. Any mechanical damage too significant to
ensure safety means a car results a team's disqualification. With so
much on the line, teams push themselves to the limit, which in turn
increases the risks. At the start of the film, Michael is driving up
to the location of the event the day before. He stops at a particular
spot on the road and reminisces about the terrible accident that
befell him and a fellow driver the previous year. Michael was
fortunate to walk away with his life. His competitor did not benefit
from such luck. What will this year's race have in store?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Le
Mans</i> is a curious little movie. Actually, in fairness to the size
of the production and the impressive efforts of the crew, the more
just way to phrase that term is to write that <i>Le Mans</i> is a
curious <i>big</i> movie. It is evidently enough not a documentary
given how the film does have a script which inserts little narrative
threads and that Steven McQueen, who is the star, was never in the
1971 Le Mans race. Nevertheless, director Lee H. Katzin and his crew,
with the full backing of McQueen who was incredibly enthusiastic
about the project, went over to France in 1970 to shoot warm up laps
and parts of the race proper. Said footage, much of which is
absolutely exhilarating, is heavily featured in the picture, thus
making <i>Le Mans</i> a hybrid film in which documentary account
meshes with the fictional journeys of some of the most popular and
recognized racers involved, such as the fictional Michael Delany. The
result, albeit impressive for its technical and visual qualities, is
somewhat off putting at times, for reasons that will be explained in
this review. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It
is incredibly important to make clear that the first half hour or so
of the film is exquisitely made and, when weighed next to the
remaining 75 minutes, may just make up the most engaging portion of
the film. The opening scene, which sees Michael recollect the
nightmare from a year before, is suitably effective in setting a
specific mood, not to mention dropping a crucial hint to the audience
that anything can happen at Le Mans, so get ready. From there on and
for the next 25-30 minutes, there is absolutely no dialogue
whatsoever, save some introductory and explanatory narration provided
by an announcer via speaker at the event who, even though he is
speaking to the men and women in attendance, serves as the guide for
any viewers who may not know how exactly the 24 hour Le Mans works (a
neat trick, it must be said). So far as character dialogue is
concerned though, there is none of it. A series of images, clearly
documentary records from the 1970 race, depicts the early morning
hours and lead-up to 4pm sharp when the cars are off and running.
There are attendees waking up in their tents and in sleeping bags,
breakfast and lunch being served, racers preparing their gear,
mechanics checking the engines, salutes, crowd waving, some national
anthems, etc. It is, essentially, a window into this fascinating
world in which the driver and his car and king and prince, or vice
versa. There are typically two sorts of documentaries made. One is
very controlled, in which a director narrates and invites guests as
talking heads, engaging with the subjects. The other is what that
first half hour of <i>Le Mans</i> is like, where the director chooses
interesting things to shoot and takes a go at it, presuming that the
audience is capable of filling in the blanks. It is not as though the
footage is all that difficult to understand anyways. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
raw footage continues to appear later in the film as well, although
it is interspersed within some forced, confining drama which can
easily take the viewers out of the picture. In truth, such stories
probably really do occur. When men are risking their lives for
something that in the grander scheme of life appears so petty, their
women will understandably be concerned. Talk of this being 'the last
race before retirement', friendly and unfriendly rivalries, meeting
up with old acquaintances and even a former lover. Maybe these things
do happen at the race track. They do not necessarily make for a great
entertainment, least of all in a movie of this nature. Later this
week <i>Grand Prix</i> will be reviewed (unseen at the time this
article is being written), and that could very well end up being
fantastic. Then again, that film is known for being a genuine drama.
In <i>Le Mans</i>, director Katzin and star McQueen are are doing
double duty, using brilliant documentary material and then from time
to time inserting paper thin character development. Steve McQueen is
Steve McQueen. The man was the essence of cool in his time and if
compared to today's big screen icons, he would arguably still rank
highly among those surveyed. Seeing him suit up for action, revving
up his engine and participating in parts of the race (the actor did
much of his own driving) is fun, but his presence, as well as the
presence of various others actors, feels unnecessary when the film
desperately tries to have a 'story' to tell. The score, courtesy of
Michel Legrand, proves to be just as uneven as the overall picture.
It attempts to punctuate the drama of the story rather than the drama
of the race, therefore delving into very exaggeratedly romantic cues.
Perhaps it would have fit another film better, but not in <i>Le Mans</i>.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
film's greatest strength lies with the racing footage. In <i>Le Mans</i>,
no artificially created narrative can compare to the thrill a minute
speed and excitement of the actual race. There is nary a camera angle
that feels incorrect or hinders the immersion, with many of the shots
perfectly capturing not only the thrills involved, but the danger
too. The final sprint to the finish, in which multiple vehicles are
but separated by a hair, is quite a scene to behold. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">As
an opportunity to see what the actual event is all about, <i>Le Mans</i>
proves adequate. There are some fantastic moments to be seen during
the competition, not to mention that the buildup is, while less
thrilling, no less interesting. Ultimately, the picture suffers from
its own insistence on developing a plot, which is all the stranger given
that hardly any of it, save Michael's flashback, is explored during
the entire first third. Racing aficionados, if they have yet to
discover <i>Le Mans</i>, should love it. Those in search of a solid
drama will come away empty handed. </span></span>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-16210658188287957212012-04-23T12:33:00.000-04:002012-04-23T12:34:11.602-04:00Blog update: Milestone (!) and other trivialities<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Hello
readers,</span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">How
is it going? Well, I presume, I think, I hope. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">There is joyous news to announce! over the past weekend Between the Seats reached
something of a milestone, if a milestone it may be deemed (this is
movie blogging we're talking about, not saving lives). 200, 000 page
views all time, ladies and gentlemen! The blog has existed for only 3
and a half years and, if we are being honest, nobody save a select
few knew of its existence for a good year, so that's just under
<i>200,000 page views in 2 and a half years.</i><span style="font-style: normal;">
Time for a chest pump. If anybody gets in our way, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QyhbXrvBsvs">we'll take'em outRon Artest style</a>. You may now applaud. </span></span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;">We
can't hear any app-</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;">APPLAUD!!!</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;">Thank
you, thank you. How kind of you all. We didn't know how much you
loved us! </span></span></span>
</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Is absolutely everything rosy? Well, no. Some promises go unfulfilled, such as
that funny one we made a while back that tons of articles would
appear in the month of April. Heh, that was rather idealistic on our
part. The truth of the matter is, with work, social life and Sound on
Sight now a full part of our movie reviewing lives, it would appear
the days when about 15, 16 or even 17 articles were published inside
a single month are coming to an end. That number is probably going to
max out at 10. An average of about 1 articles every 3 days. Not <i>that
</i>bad, no? </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;">Now,
what is about to be said is no joke, although it may come off a
little strange considering that Between the Seats has had as its
driving force the same brain for the past 3 and a half years.
However, assuming that obligations elsewhere really do prevent us
from providing the same number of articles as was the case over the
past couple of years, would it be interesting to allow </span><i>other
writers</i><span style="font-style: normal;">, perhaps some with no
blogs to call their own (or otherwise, we do not discriminate here),
to publish material at Between the Seats to fill some of those gaps?
We shall tell no lie, it is an idea which has gestated in our minds
on and off for a few weeks already. This isn't some clever device we
came up with this morning just for kicks. In the spirit of the
democratic process, we throw the question to you, the faithful
readers. You'll notice a poll question in the upper left corner of
the site with the following question:</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;">Is
it a good idea for Between the Seats to hire other writers?</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-style: normal;">Happy
voting!</span></span></span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-77520785693592453352012-04-20T23:46:00.001-04:002012-04-20T23:46:18.124-04:00Fast Men, Faster Cars: Drive<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEL_t890p9ctirUPLQ3hLlc__H3oBTy4hut1_rdpIcN1XMgSf8MlNeM7u7tStgSIU6Ix0Oi24cmAcMPrWjH5Xn2IvJOQ_FPAvEI_1_0tdBzr0QYDgeqv6TSLvVTURzSDHft3V0h5B0LzE/s1600/drive-movie-poster-02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEL_t890p9ctirUPLQ3hLlc__H3oBTy4hut1_rdpIcN1XMgSf8MlNeM7u7tStgSIU6Ix0Oi24cmAcMPrWjH5Xn2IvJOQ_FPAvEI_1_0tdBzr0QYDgeqv6TSLvVTURzSDHft3V0h5B0LzE/s400/drive-movie-poster-02.jpg" width="268" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Drive</i>
(2011, Nicolas Winding Refn)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;">'Real
human being and a real hero.'</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Truer
words were never spoken. Well, to be more accurate, they are not
exactly spoken in Nicolas Winding Refn's most popular film, <i>Drive,
</i><span style="font-style: normal;">but rather sung</span>. Much has
already been written about the film under review today, with a host
of immensely articulate critics and reviewers espousing very
intelligent remarks, many of which far surpass what will be analyzed
at this blog. Everyone's tastes are subjective of course, and so is
how people read ideas into movies. The notion which has been brought
up time and time again in regards to Refn's picture is the power and
confidence in its style. Style is, in many ways, a tremendously
important part of film, depending on what sort of story one desires
to share. What of <i>Drive</i>'s style? What does it mean, how does
it make its presence known, and in what ways does it impact the
story's emotional core?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">In
<i>Drive</i>, current Hollywood hunk Ryan Gosling plays a man with no
name. Not only is he nameless, but in some respects his mannerisms
are not dissimilar to those of Clint Eastwood iconic Man with No
Name. He speaks little, but when words are uttered from his mouth,
those in the vicinity are sure to lend their ears. While his days are
spent either at a local auto repair shop in Los Angeles under the
employment of old, craggy Shannon (Bryan Cranston) or as a part-time
stunt driver for film crews, many of his nights are reserved for an
altogether different sort task: getaway driver for thieves. He keeps
things as simple as possible, with only a select few rules his
clients are obligated to respect, otherwise they are on their own in
the midst of their operations. Of course, the few people who are in
contact with him know nothing of his nocturnal habit, including the
kind woman, Irene (Carey Mulligan), a single mother awaiting the
return of her husband (Oscar Isaac) from prison, who lives in the
apartment next to his. As is often the case in films of this ilk, the
driver and Irene form a special bond, although one that is never
consummated. Things grow increasingly difficult once a longtime
associate of Shannon's, Bernie Rose (Albert Brooks), more mafia than
legitimate business, and his overly rambunctious and violent brother
(Ron Perlman) take an interest in the protagonist. Soon enough, his
life becomes a matter of saving those he loves, whatever the cost.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Nicolas
Winding Refn is the sort of director who can ease his way into a
script, injecting his own personal artistic vision to a project, and
finally release it to the world as a uniquely cinematic experience.
In short, he is an auteur in as much as the realities of filmmaking
permit. Support for the famous (or infamous, depending on who ones
asks) auteur theory should come with certain trepidation. Filmmaking
is, when boiled down to its essentials, a collaborative effort. Only
in the smallest, most independent of projects is the director the
true, sole auteur of his or her film. Nonetheless, there is a case to
be made that Refn close pretty darn close to being the auteur of his
films, with <i>Drive</i> being a critical example. There is without
question a style to <i>Drive</i> that few other supposed mainstream
films can match even if they tried their mightiest. <i>Drive</i> was,
for the most, sold to audiences and film buffs alike as a
predominantly mainstream picture. What unfolded in front of
everyone's eyes was anything but. Whether one enjoyed the film or not
was a fair debate, but few could argue that Refn had concocted a fun
romp for the typical weekend crowd. The film sports an altogether
different sort of attitude, one that is conveyed through pretty
pictures, finely tuned performances, some action, and a heartfelt
soundtrack, perhaps even one of the best soundtracks in recent
memory. </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1Bj4cK5QUd1mvjzRHU661uRWBthwfpw6koA2NuLmK0_uF4Iu2KcOKMJSvGxUWd9I1__WFTZWfs7Nprvs1JzVfEj8USFM24_OwZWnoymk0g9wUP4RTXF_gTuhajH8LOn5t7ZJlbqaTPaU/s1600/32f0b70d3fbf849b41b167d1b3810055.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1Bj4cK5QUd1mvjzRHU661uRWBthwfpw6koA2NuLmK0_uF4Iu2KcOKMJSvGxUWd9I1__WFTZWfs7Nprvs1JzVfEj8USFM24_OwZWnoymk0g9wUP4RTXF_gTuhajH8LOn5t7ZJlbqaTPaU/s400/32f0b70d3fbf849b41b167d1b3810055.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Mix
all those together and the results are such a complete experience
that movie fans, the real, hard core movie fans could do nothing
other than drool, mesmerized by the aural and visual beauty of the
picture, both aspects creating and solidifying the emotional beats.
Ryan Gosling is, for one, excellent in his role as the quiet,
unassuming driver who feels compelled to help out Irene, a single
mother after all, when he comes to notice her existence. Carey
Mulligan plays off of Gosling wonderfully, showing a strength of
character that would melt just about any man's heart, as is the case
with the driver, a true blue loner if there ever was one. Neither is
rich, neither is especially poor. Discounting the driver's unorthodox
night shifts, both earn a living ordinarily. The richness is in what
they feel for each other. It sounds ridiculous, dorky even, but when
acted out by Gosling and Mulligan, and when such a story is moulded
by the hands of a director the likes of Refn, everything falls into
place like a perfect work painting. The soundtrack, which was briefly
referred to earlier, compliments the story of driver and Irene
effortlessly. Are the words on the nose? Yes, yes they are, and
what's more it is done entirely on purpose. Subtlety has no purpose
here. <i>Drive</i> is the film in which the audience really is
supposed to feel something. In one of the film's numerous touching
scenes, Gosling offers Irene and her son a ride him after their car
breaks down. Rather than merely drop them off at the apartment
building, he suggests they take a ride in an old water aqueduct. The
setting sun shines brightly on the vehicle, through the windshield
and onto their faces. No words are spoken, or if they are, none can
be heard, as 'Real Hero' takes over the soundtrack. What more could
the characters ask for? Perhaps a whole lot more, but better
judgements tells them to enjoy the moment, and what a moment it is.
For that matter, what more can the audience ask for? </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
depiction of the hero is one thing, but how the story handles him the
more the pressure rises is another. He is strong but quiet. Helpful
yet demands little to nothing in return. Those are admirable
qualities and Gosling is great playing the part. That alone might not
have served the movie to greatest effect, nor the potentiality of him
and Irene giving in to their love unabashedly and, after some
considerable trials and errors, living happily every after. The movie
could still have been very, very good, but never the movie it ends up
being. At this stage, it is revealed that Irene's husband (played by
Oscar Isaac, who makes the most of his little screen time by giving a
surprisingly touching performance) is returning to the household.
The audience's worst fears are thrust to the forefront of their
minds. What will this brute of a man be like and how will he loath
the fact that the protagonist, our hero, has developed a bond with
Irene? It turns out that, although he has admittedly committed some
stupid mistakes in the past, the husband is not a bad person. The
truth happens to be quite the opposite: he is a perfectly swell being
who literally appreciates that the driver helped Irene and their son
out while he lived out the last few weeks of his prison sentence. The
plot twist is thus given its own twist, fancy that. There is to be no
rivalry between the husband and the driver. Rather, when it is
learned that the husband is being harassed for money owed due to the
protection he benefited from in jail, what else can the protagonist
do except be 'a real human being and a real hero?' Script, character,
music and direction have completely coalesced into a singular
element. Simply put, a great movie. Everybody has their favourite
scene, moment or stretch of the story. For me, it is these few scenes
in which the driver realizes, despite the husband being a threat to
his affections for Irene, the good thing, the right thing, the
virtuous thing, is to help the family. Benevolence trumps
selfishness. </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbY-csI9j9Y2B5lFgAX2kn43AeCECiAQZ561fL7xxSWgQ_f5wEkspFvUPLOK5k7enRWOLsO4XertIRUngWE2jYCqEANGl8-ClzaRb2p2BKbmWEy5wrSFYEzvBUKsdISuYygLoKXPqhLkY/s1600/drive+gosling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbY-csI9j9Y2B5lFgAX2kn43AeCECiAQZ561fL7xxSWgQ_f5wEkspFvUPLOK5k7enRWOLsO4XertIRUngWE2jYCqEANGl8-ClzaRb2p2BKbmWEy5wrSFYEzvBUKsdISuYygLoKXPqhLkY/s400/drive+gosling.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
pacing of the film is another critical element to the cinematic
experience. Too fast and some important story elements feel rushed,
which would be disastrous for a film like <i>Drive</i>. Too slow the
risk of audience boredom increases. Refn know exactly how to play his
cards. Virtually everything is given sufficient time to develop, with
scenes breathing all the life they have. The only plot point which is
mishandled is Bernie Rose's willingness to hire the hero as a race
car driver. That is, in essence, how the two are introduced to one
another, that is, when Shannon believes an association between his
repair man, formidable behind the wheel, and former business partner,
always willing to make an hopeful investment, will assuredly pay off
handsome dividends. Unfortunately for Shannon and his main man, those
ambitious do not play out as they had hoped, which puts a bitter end
to their own friendship. <i>Drive</i> is all about the bitter and the
sweet. There is no gain without any pain, and since the characters
cannot resist to gain (emotionally speaking), they feel great pain as
a consequence.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Lost
in the shuffle of fantastic performances, especially with so much
praise heaped on Albert Brooks (completely deserved praise, mind you)
is Bryan Cranston, a solid actor who can play a great variety of
roles. His Shannon is friendly, albeit a friendliness that shows a
bit of a rugged edge. There is definitely some wear and tear showing,
but he keeps ticking along, calling the shots at the shop and
appreciates the driver's presence. There relationship status is,
first and foremost, that of employer and employee, but clearly their
is a fondness for one another that goes beyond said professional
terms. Cranston is very assured in the role, giving a superbly three
dimensional performance delivering yet more emotional heft to the
film overall. </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIXHhd63_iJCTT6UN6d94vSKsXWkilLDZfTWy8Q0aonWoGrtTMu3eppTEY4yMIuW7jL8f62hxAkyBUGpqwxWgW0s98K88BV2o6RWPyHPEc3-oUZDgIeERoEQig0KjPYKhZzHoRBGeTuiY/s1600/Ryan-Gosling-and-Bryan-Cranston-in-Drive.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="348" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIXHhd63_iJCTT6UN6d94vSKsXWkilLDZfTWy8Q0aonWoGrtTMu3eppTEY4yMIuW7jL8f62hxAkyBUGpqwxWgW0s98K88BV2o6RWPyHPEc3-oUZDgIeERoEQig0KjPYKhZzHoRBGeTuiY/s400/Ryan-Gosling-and-Bryan-Cranston-in-Drive.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
style also influences the action, of which there is not an abundant
amount. Still, when it explodes, it roars. The adrenaline filled
sequence which has sparked the most admiration, and for good reason,
is the opening scene, wherein Gosling's driver performs a complete
getaway job from start to finish. The camera angles, the contagiously
catchy rhythmic music, the play of city street and police helicopter
lights with the shadows under which the hero hides his vehicle from
view of law enforcers, the sequence is beautifully constructed,
serving as a terrific sneak peek of things to come so far as the
style is concerned. The editing is not too quick either, providing
the viewer with a stunning view of the action, something way, way too
many directors are incapable of in the current Hollywood system. It
also introduces the hero perfectly, showing off how he himself
operates and what character he is. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Is
the inclusion of <i>Drive</i> in a <i>Fast Cars, Faster Men</i>
marathon a bit of a cheat? Yes, in some respects. There is not much
driving, even though when it does happen it looks and sounds amazing
(and is pretty fast too). The main character is a driver by
profession, just as he is driven to finally do some good for people
he loves instead of being merely self-serving. In a nutshell, the
hero is both fast and slow. He is fast when behind the wheel, when
action is required. On the flip side, he is admirably slow when
juggling emotions though, preferring to take a few baby steps instead
of rushing in to things. Okay, so the argument for its inclusion is
partly understood by reading 'between the lines' as opposed to being
clear cut, as will be the case with the remaining films. Its
unorthodox qualities, particularly when stacked against the more
unquestionably testosterone filled movies to come in the days ahead,
make for a great first entry. The driver in <i>Drive</i> is a real
human being after all, regardless of whatever incredible action-man
abilities the script and director Refn bestow upon him. Sometimes it
is nice to know that being the flash there is a a brain, that behind
the steadfastness and bravery there is genuine heart.</span></span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-78237840269454749482012-04-16T12:57:00.001-04:002012-04-16T12:59:03.388-04:00Capsule reviews: The Raid, Cabin in Woods<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>The
Raid: Redemption</i> (2011, Gareth Evans)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Lauded
for its mesmerizing action set pieces in the months following its
screening at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival, <i>The
Raid: Redemption</i> (note to readers: despite the subtitle, this is
not a sequel or a prequel) has finally received a moderately wide
North American theatrical release. Iko Uwais plays Rama, the film's
protagonist. On this special day, of all special days, he and his
fellow SWAT team members are called upon to infiltrate a seedy
apartment building complex in Jakarta and take out, once and for all,
a drug kingpin (Ray Sahetapy).</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">That's
about sums up the plot. Were this a review of regular length I very
much doubt the plot synopsis would be much longer than the one supplied in the paragraph above. <i>The Raid</i>
does what a lot of recent martial arts films refuse to, that is, get
straight to the action and offer the audience little to no respite
until the final frame. Granted, there is perhaps a tiny bit more to
the film than just that. The SWAT team is unaware of just how well
connected and protected the kingpin is, with most of the members
being wiped out before they even reach the halfway point of their
march up the stairs. There is also some mumbo jumbo about corruption
in the police department. In fact, a fellow writer at Sound on Sight,
Michael Ryan, felt the movie had far more to offer beyond the fight
sequences. <a href="http://www.soundonsight.org/the-raid-redemption-offers-a-rare-glimpse-on-the-indonesian-martial-art-style/">You can read the article here</a>. It's a well written piece
that makes for a good read, although I believe he is searching a
little too deep for thematic resonance. Yes, there are attempts at a
'story' but even what little plot writer-director Evans tries to
integrate is pretty muddled. The action, on the other hand, is
absolute top notch. There is creativity, physical prowess and speed
all meshed into one salad, and what a mean salad it is. Martial arts
junkies could not possibly leave the theatre disappointed. I would
argue that there are even a couple of scenes with genuine tension,
the sort of tension found in solid suspense thrillers. That was what
surprised me more than anything, that director Evans managed to
diversify the entertainment throughout as opposed to limiting
everything to just pure adrenaline-induced action. For the quality of
the featured fights and tension, <i>The Raid: Redemption</i> is
really, really good. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Cabin
in the Woods</i> (2011, Drew Goddard)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I
was taken by surprise upon learning that filming for this Drew
Goddard directed and Josh Whedon produced movie occurred about 3
years ago in 2009! It appears that MGM could not release it once that
studio fell on hard times, not to mention that at one time there was
discussion about up-converting the picture to 3D. After a long, long
wait (albeit a rather quiet one given that not many people talked
about the film) here is what many people are describing the best
horror film in recent years...and by a country mile at that.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">No
plot synopsis. If you have seen the film, you know why. If you have
not seen the movie, you'll be thankful afterwards. The marketing for
this movie is, in some ways, very much along the same lines as the
marketing for last year's <i>Hugo</i>, in that the trailers revealed
but one half of the movie's overall story. We all saw the <i>Hugo</i>
trailers and thought it was interesting that Scorsese a) chose to do a
family film about a homeless kid who works train station clocks and
b) chose to flex his directorial muscles with 3D only to learn while
watching the movie that c) it was really about the historical and
emotional value of film as an art form and as entertainment. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Cabin
in the Woods</i> is, of course, no family film, but the trailer
basically does the same thing: a group of young adults head to the
woods for a weekend of alcohol and sex, only to be hunted down by
mysterious creatures. That's 50% of the film with the other half
venturing into totally unexpected territory. It was a fun time,
seeing it on a Friday night with a packed theatre. <i>Cabin</i> earns
the laughs when it aims for them, although the gags seem to be more
for the sake of making the film even more fun than it already is,
which is different from the purpose gags in horror films usually
serve, which is to relieve the tension within the audience and let
them breath a little. Is that to say that <i>Cabin</i> has no scares?
Well, it depends on what sort of movie goer one is. If one scares
easily, then it may be safe to assume that they will shriek a few
times, but it should mean something that on opening Friday night in
packed theatre room nobody, at least not to my recollection, released
any yells of horror. We all laughed or cheered all the way through.
The reason why there are not many scares does, in fact, have to do
with this mysterious other 50% I keep referring to. This review is
getting pretty complicated to write the more one tries to remain
secretive and cagey about the details, ugh. Suffice to say that while
the final third is a tad (just a <i>tad</i>) overwritten, the overall
film is barrels of fun, with plenty of <i>real</i> surprises that go
much further beyond any horror fanboy service. Because of the nature
of the plot, <i>Cabin</i> actually proves to be, dare it be said,
provocative. Provocative within the parameters of a mainstream horror
film, but there is something smart going on here nevertheless. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-87659137089136089282012-04-15T08:46:00.002-04:002012-04-15T09:35:53.949-04:00Comica Obscura: Lady Snowblood rebuttal<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvPt0juuT9pOJy1EeSZL84WJNg0tcbCAVt4NdsfT535iasHiDHVd0Zz-yVUcosCoPu4LFIwifFdEzyjyBLX3m-kPOl7pX_5a8HjEtMaAbqoc9WYoAcJjB8HVAeJiZRDziN63rKMSV8J1M/s1600/197980378_f22558221d.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvPt0juuT9pOJy1EeSZL84WJNg0tcbCAVt4NdsfT535iasHiDHVd0Zz-yVUcosCoPu4LFIwifFdEzyjyBLX3m-kPOl7pX_5a8HjEtMaAbqoc9WYoAcJjB8HVAeJiZRDziN63rKMSV8J1M/s400/197980378_f22558221d.jpg" width="286" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">To fully comprehend why an ass whooping is about to occur, please go and read Bill's <a href="http://billsmovieemporium.wordpress.com/2012/04/08/comica-obscura-marathon-review-shurayukihime-lady-snowblood-1973/">review of <i>Lady Snowblood</i> at his Movie Emporium.</a> </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Look, Bill, I like
you and all, I don't think that comes as a surprise or anything, but
I was...befuddled by the review you wrote for <i>Lady Snowblood </i>last
Sunday. </span></span>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I found it curious
that, following a few paragraphs during which you valiantly attempted
to argue for the film's strong feminist approach (and don't worry,
I'll get to that in a moment. I like starting small and building up
arguments before going in for the 'coup de grâce') you write 'With
my pretentious ramblings and all the feminist claptrap out of the
way,...'. I sat there thinking for a brief moment: 'Has Bill just
admitted that he was writing nonsense since the start of the review?'
It did not seem possible, for many times in the past you have fought
tooth an nail to support your opinions, both at your Movie Emporium
and on the movie message board we used to frequent. I immediately
squashed that possibility out of my mind, although your use of both
'pretentious', but more interestingly 'claptrap' hit me hard. I had a
strong indication of what claptrap meant, but I'm a nit picky type of
person when it comes to the written word, and so visited the
Merriam-Webster anyways.</span></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<h2 class="western">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Definition
of </span><i><span style="font-size: medium;">CLAPTRAP</span></i></span></h2>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<b><span style="font-size: medium;">:</span></b><span style="font-size: medium;">
pretentious nonsense </span><b><span style="font-size: medium;">:</span></b><span style="font-size: medium;"> trash </span>
</div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">We shan't dwindle on
'pretentious' because you had just used that word barely five words
ago, but 'nonsense' seems pretty powerful. That's kind of what I had
in mind when the sentence quoted above, but Merriam was there to
confirm my suspicions: what sort of nonsense are you talking about in
that review of yours?</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> I had a hunch you
would take the opportunity to bring Tarantino in your review. I chose
not to, albeit because more because I had totally forgotten about his
<i>Kill Bill</i> films being inspired by this movie than anything
else. I have no explanation as to how that slipped my mind, but so be
it. Your 'empty style' and 'misogyny' comments had little effect on
me. I, and I'm assuming most of your readers too, know you don't like
his movies. Whatever, moving onwards. It was when you got into the
whole 'Yuki remains a woman while Uma is a woman behaving like a man'
speech that my head was spinning. ' I'm not here to debate <i>Kill
Bill</i> so I'll let the Uma half of the comment slide, but I am
honestly, sincerely confused about the Yuki comment. She is no
different from a vast array, an army if you will, of like minded,
very similar female heroines in revenge tales. Now, it becomes
important to separate the qualities of a female character in a
revenge film with the overall quality of a film. I can point you
towards a movie that came out last year, <i>Colombiana</i>, that
starred Zoe Saldana. Saldana plays a strong willed woman, a beautiful
woman who at times behaves womanly while other times completely
destroys a bunch of buff men. But that movie is a bucket of shit, so
I won't force you to watch it. What I'm saying is that I found that
specific argument to be rather empty. How many freaking Luc Besson
projects have these same sort of female leads, only in his films
they're carrying guns instead of swords? We could make a laundry list
of such movies, which is why I was puzzled at how much you hampered
on how it meant so much for this particular movie. In most cases, I
don't see what how having the female makes said films any better than
when the protagonist out for vengeance is a male. Don't mistake me,
it doesn't make those films worse. Quite frankly whether they are men
or women matters little to me, unless the movie is doing something
really special (watch <i>Chocolate</i>, the 2008 Thai film, as a
fantastic example where the femininity, and something else I won't
reveal, about the protagonist mean a lot). The whole 'she's kicking
ass while displaying wonderful feminine qualities' thing was
provocative a 15 years ago. Oh look, I'm actually wrong. <i>Lady
Snowblood</i> was made in 1973, 39 years ago. Again, it's not at all
a bad thing to have in a film, but I don't see how that makes a movie
so incredible, including <i>Lady Snowblood</i>. I've never studied
martial arts but the girl in her mid twenties who works in HR at my
place of employment spent her entire teenage-hood taking lessons. She
can kick my ass and as far as I know I don't live in a movie.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">But that's surface
level stuff. That was foreplay. Peanuts. Things get even more
interesting when you go into how the filmmakers, in your opinion,
support this notion of Yuki's incredible femininity. You argue, and I
quote 'A key sequence in establishing this in my mind was when Yuki
is training as a young girl with her master, Priest Dôkai....' you
go on to elaborate on how her light, effortless jumping up and down
to avoid blows from her teacher is derived from the idea of
femininity. Well, if that's the case, then there is a platoon, a
hoard, a plethora of male heroes from Shaw Brothers films from the
1960s, 1970s and 1980s who are thus a bunch of 'girly men.' Cause
those boys are doing a fuck load of prancing around on their tip toes
and balancing one foot atop tree branches, barrels and wires like
ballerinas. Are those male heroes 'girly men?' No, of course they
aren't. First, that's a stupid term to use (my bad) and second, those
abilities, fantastical as they may be in these movies, are just as
appropriate for men as they are for women characters blessed with
fighting skills. Yuki's little jumps to out-manoeuvre her teacher
has little to do with her being a girl. This isn't me disagreeing
with you because I feel bloody like it, this is the 30, 40, maybe 50
martial arts movies I've watched, released over the past five decades
telling me so, be they from Shaw Brothers or from any other studio
(although Shaw is the most obvious example). Heh... I know I wrote
that I'm not here to argue about <i>Kill Bill</i>, but now that I
think of it, if you dislike Uma Thurma's character in those movies
because she 'is a woman acting like a man', then don't check out Shaw
Brothers flicks, you'd hate almost every one of them. Also, isn't
there a scene in the second <i>Kill Bill</i> film when her sensei
jumps as light as a feather onto her sword during one of her training
sessions we see in a flashback? I wonder what makes that guy?... Now,
if you tell me your exposure is martial arts films is limited, then I
can be more forgiving. You can't possibly argue what you literally
don't know about. That much is perfectly understandable. If you <i>do</i>
have decent experience with said movies, then I really haven't the
faintest idea where you are coming from with those arguments. </span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The paragraph
analyzing Yuki's birth makes a bit more sense. I mean, the idea that
as Yuki is born her mother wishes to make her daughter a killing
machine is interesting, even provocative to a certain extent. Other
than the fact this desire arrives as Yuki's mother gives birth,
which, again, is powerful, I'm not clear on how the film has moments
'that very quietly speak about the power of being a woman.' We got
the whole training session nonsense section out of the way, but what
is left after that? Her stone cold face. That's it. When the story
writer first accosts her halfway into the movie, not only does she
frown upon his nosiness, she even asks him if he wants to die. Is
this her asserting her femininity? The reason why revenge films can
be compelling (I intentionally write <i>can be</i> because I don't
think that all of them work) is because they afford viewers a
disturbing look into how someone can lose a part of their humanity as
they embrace the dark side, dispatching emotions as they massacre
people for a cause they believe to justify the means. That's <i>losing</i>
humanity, so I don't see how <i>Lady Snowblood</i>, in which the
character does just that, brilliantly offers any commentary on what
it means to be a woman. I would even wager that <i>Columbiana</i>,
that shit movie I referred to earlier, explores femininity more
deeply, and even saying that film 'explores' anything is a stretch.
Yuki is a woman and that, I imagine, makes the film interesting in
some ways, but great commentary? I really don't think so. Last week
I had some positive things to say about the character, but they
mostly concerned her physicality, her appearance. I mean, she looks
like a geisha but goes about killing a bunch of people. That's a neat
idea, but espousing deep notions about what it means to be a woman it
is not. It's fun for the irony of the context, it's even fun because
she looks like a pretty flower, but there's nothing profound going on
here. The whole femininity perspective feels very surface level to me
and awards the film with much more praise than it otherwise deserves.
</span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">There were elements
of your review, even beyond those concerning notions of femininity,
that I had trouble wrapping my head around. 'Shurayukihime doesn't
linger on moments, on character, on anything.' Then what in heaven's
name is that boring narration doing except just that: regurgitating
exactly what the viewer has most likely already deduced is going on
in Yuki's mind? The narration does not appear too often, I can give
you that much (and thank god for that), but its inclusion does
exactly the opposite of what you argue the film does (or does not).</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">You want to know the
worst part of this entire rebuttal? Our conclusions are the same!!!!
You liked the movie, thought it was good and I liked the movie and
thought it was good. I never in a million years thought I would be
tearing down someone's arguments despite having identical overall
feelings towards a film in question, least of all your arguments. The
only other time I can recall disagreeing so vehemently with you on a
film was our <i>A New Hope</i> reviews from two years ago, and,
what's more, I I think I can detect a similar pattern this time
around too. Let me put it this way: There is absolutely nothing wrong
with your overall opinion. There is nothing wrong with you liking the
movie even more because the heroine in a woman (even I had some
positives about that aspect). In perfectly in your right to have your
own reasons for first liking the film and, second, liking it even
more because the protagonist is a woman. But exactly as was the case
with <i>A New Hope</i>, I find there is this major disconnect between
the generalities of your review (what you like or dislike) and <i>why</i>
you like or dislike them. The more I ponder the matter, the more I
wonder if the fact that you compared <i>Lady Snowblood </i>to <i>Kill
Bill</i> skewered your review even more so than otherwise would have
been the case. After all, <i>Lady Snowblood</i> is a good movie, but
you loath Tarantino and his film with such a fever that I question
whether or not you started to see things that are not even
necessarily there just because in your eyes, <i>Kill Bill</i> is one
of the worst films ever made. Hey, the same thing would happen to me
too. If I write a review about <i>X-Men Origins: Wolverine</i> and
compare it the <i>Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen</i>, then
<i>Wolverine</i> is going to start looking pretty damn good in my
eyes (in truth, it's just a guilty pleasure of mine). Understandable,
but a pitfall nevertheless and I wonder if you fell in it...</span></span><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-22910326591744953402012-04-09T14:22:00.000-04:002012-04-09T14:30:33.191-04:00Capsule reviews: Wrath of Titans, Hunger Games<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Happy Easter Monday. If you're like us, you're benefiting nicely from a well deserved day off. If not...well, sorry about that. Didn't mean to make you feel bad or anything. Oh, I have an idea that might cheer you up. Here are a couple of capsule reviews!</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTFAxEUblXD05Mcxu4lAwwUywSEHqlpMdebc0kV69tkrfxmqR6OeNn6yAsuNMmsRz2g_8esdNhZV0eIpvnUfqCzxeJc1X-uJ_UA89e5iotF5QAIoFw-_4ouYFOM91b9N0rnOVoH33xzsI/s1600/home.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTFAxEUblXD05Mcxu4lAwwUywSEHqlpMdebc0kV69tkrfxmqR6OeNn6yAsuNMmsRz2g_8esdNhZV0eIpvnUfqCzxeJc1X-uJ_UA89e5iotF5QAIoFw-_4ouYFOM91b9N0rnOVoH33xzsI/s400/home.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Wrath
of the Titans</i> (2012, Jonathan Liebesman)</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Two
years ago, at around this time of year if memory serves me well,
Clash of the Titans opened in theatres across North America and was
decisively lambasted for a shoddy script, shoddy acting, shoddy
computer generated effects and, worst of all, egregious up-converted
3D effects. The criticisms were...mostly deserved, but because of my
interest in bastardized Greek Mythology, I still had a good time with
it. Call it a guilty pleasure and toss me in the jail cell.</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
sequel, Wrath of the Titans, shifts the action several years after
the original. Perseus (Sam Worthington), demi-god son to Zeus (Liam
Neeson) is now a single father trying to make an honest living as a
fisherman. It turns out Zeus's brother, Hades (Ralph Fiennes) has
called upon some help from another demi-god, Ares (Edgar Ramirez) to
awaken the father of all gods, a gigantic fire monster named Kronos
(no explanation as to where Kronos may have come from). Perseus thus
sees himself forced to save the day again, this time with Queen
Adromeda (Rosemund Pike) and Agenor (Toby Kebbell). Cyclops, Monitaur
and Kronos beware! May the odds be ever in you- no, wait, wrong movie.</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Movies
are made to be hated by most people. The story is, again, on the
shoddy side of things and by now it seems rather safe to conclude
that Sam Worthington, while he may continue to 'star' in movies, will
never be himself much of an actor in the proper sense of the term.
Despite these crucial shortcomings, the film ends up being not half
bad, all things considered. True enough, while the plot is tad
mechanical (often the case in these special effects orgies) at least
there is something going on here, that being the bonds that tie
family together and how they are strained in the land of men and gods
in this mythological Greece. There is a lot of brother-brother and
father-son material driving the characters' motivations, something
that lifts the quality of the script slightly. High class and artistic it is not, but I appreciated the attempt. Whereas <i>Clash</i> really was kind of vacuous in terms of characterizations, <i>Wrath</i> goes for something. Neeson and Fiennes
are once again having a ball playing the two powerful gods. Visually,
<i>Wrath</i> is starkly different from <i>Clash</i>. The latter was
quite lush whereas the former aims for a much grimier look. It's
different, not necessarily better, but different. The monsters are
very cool though, especially the cyclops and Kronos, who makes an awe
inspiring entrance in the late stages of the film. The minotaur is
wasted though.</span></span><br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieJTQgUGDLjJfpf9qWytxzxO5KAp0tYzYb-iecNU51_cfuQQKj3avnqXMBZ9pgvMvyYio9k5Y0VqgsbNe5N-i6mButVvEs4CI5i3WrcLJgp_qgbXIJ1kC4G1xTgKCvqPysEt1a2n3BWFk/s1600/o-FINAL-HUNGER-GAMES-POSTER-570.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieJTQgUGDLjJfpf9qWytxzxO5KAp0tYzYb-iecNU51_cfuQQKj3avnqXMBZ9pgvMvyYio9k5Y0VqgsbNe5N-i6mButVvEs4CI5i3WrcLJgp_qgbXIJ1kC4G1xTgKCvqPysEt1a2n3BWFk/s400/o-FINAL-HUNGER-GAMES-POSTER-570.jpg" width="270" /></a></div>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>The
Hunger Games</i> (2012, Gary Ross)</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Based
on the impressively popular young adult book of the same name, The
Hunger Games transports audiences to a unspecified future in the
United States where, in the years following a rebellion which failed
to overthrow the regime in place, an annual gladiatorial-like event
is held to commemorate the aforementioned battle. The catch is that
the contestants are only 12-18 years old and randomly selected from
each district. As the event's organizers love to yell into the mics
in anticipation of the oncoming bloodbath: May the odds be ever in
your favour! Contestants Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) and Peeta (Josh
Hutcherson) are the two fighters from their district, a poor,
desolate region where hunting squirrels appears to be an actual
source of food. Together they make their way through the forestland
where 22 others young ones are after them and each other. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Let
it be known that <i>The Hunger Games</i> is, by and large, a good
movie. It's cast ranges from competent to very solid. This in
includes the work done by the young stars themselves as well as that
of the older supporting players, like Woody Harrelson, Lenny Kravitz,
Stanley Tucci and Elizabeth Banks. The world building (this is a
dystopian future after all) is rather convincing and feels just
oppressive enough without resorting to any needlessly hard R
material. Perhaps the film's strongest element is its handling of the
love story between Katniss and Peeta. Katniss is a strong willed
character who does not, in truth, have any deep feelings for Peeta.
The same cannot be said for the young man, who is very much in love
with the girl he will have to kill if he is ever to survive the
Games. The trick to succeed in the Games however, especially
considering that they are televised to the world, is to earn to good
will of various sponsors, who will then supply you with helpful tools
in mid-match. Thus, in an effort to gain support from viewers,
Katniss and Peeta engage in a romantic fling. It is contrived, but it
is supposed to be contrived because that is what the public wants.
It's an intelligent decision on the part of the movie, playing on
today's pitiful love story standards in television and film. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
film's major weakness is in the fights themselves, which are neither
tension filled nor well filmed. This is shaky cam technique times
ten, where everything is extremely difficult to see. For a movie that
was built up as an action adventure film, the craftsmanship in this
department is sorely lacking. The movie is also a tad long. Clocking
in at nearly 2 1/2 hours, one wonders what the product would have
been like if limited to 90 or 105 minutes. I think a brisker pace
would have benefited the movie greatly. Nevertheless, <i>The Hunger
Games</i> is an interesting stab a young adult action movie with a
few more brains than most of the other stuff studios release these
days. </span></span>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230992985317364959.post-92009314390321610882012-04-09T11:26:00.001-04:002012-04-09T11:26:47.714-04:00BBS Productions Presents: The King of Marvin Gardens.<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>The
King of Marvin Gardens</i> (1972, Rob Rafelson)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
dysfunctional nature of human beings has been one of the core themes
to describe many of the BBS filmmography. From <i>Head</i>, <i>Five
Easy Pieces</i> to <i>A Safe Place</i>, a lot of the people who
inhabit these worlds have not been the most stable individuals,
sometimes incapable of keeping their own two feat on the ground,
other times experiencing significant turbulence when getting along
with others. Their quirks and personalities simply keep on digging
wedges between themselves and others. The concluding film in our
outlook on late 60s and early 70s American independent cinema, <i>The
King of Marvin Gardens</i>, is driven by much of the same ideas and,
fittingly enough, is directed by the same fellow who brought
audiences the first BBS film, Rob Rafelson. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>King
of Marvin Gardens </i>tells the story of two brothers. One, David
(Jack Nicholson), is a late night-early morning radio talk show host
currently undergoing an emotional lull in his life. Sad, depressed,
he shares semi-fictionalized stories about his childhood on the air
which straddle the line between the comedic and the horrific. David
currently lives with his father, who is quite old and sick. The
second half of the brotherly duo is Jason (Bruce Dern), a front man
for an African American mob, but now currently trying to make some
serious cash by raising the value of some major (or, apparently
major) property in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Jason is outgoing and
very energetic, the ying to David's yang, but said positives are
outweighed by the fact that he is, realistically, not the sharpest
business nor exempt from defying the law. Case in point, the two
brothers are reunited at the start of the film when Jason calls upon
David to help get out of jail. Somehow the latter gets tight up in
Jason's Atlantic City project, as are his brothers two female
companions: Sally (Ellen Burstun), an ageing beauty, and Jessica
(Julia Anne Robinson), who evidently enough is be Sally's Miss
America protégé. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Rob
Rafelson is definitely a director who enjoys pushing the limits of
conventional storytelling. He has a fondness for rich drama, but can
be unpredictable when the time comes to transpose the story and
character beats from the page to the screen. One need only consider
<i>Head</i> for an indication of how off kilter Rafelson's style can
be. The opposite of that style came with <i>Five Easy Pieces</i>, one
of the most grounded movies discussed in the current marathon. With
<i>Marvin Gardens</i>, the director keeps the film's tone and
aesthetic qualities planted more firmly on the ground, finding a
middle ground of sorts between the pacing and tone of <i>Head</i> and
<i>Pieces</i>. That being said, perhaps because it strives for the
best of both worlds, the end result is a film that is rarely as
engaging as it should be. Fighting to offer viewers both a little bit
of the quirky and cute all the while inserting some serious, dramatic
moments, the clarity of the director's vision is compromised. The
movie is never as real as it should be, making the moments of
zaniness feel misplaced. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">As
for what works, that is easy enough to pinpoint. The actors Jack
Nicholson, Bruce Dern and Julia Anne Robinson, even though the latter
has less screen time than the first two listed, are all excellent in
their respective roles. The casting is clever, using the actors,
especially Nicholson, against type. Both <i>Easy Rider</i> and <i>Pieces</i>
showed that the actor could excel when playing dramatic and highly
energized, charismatic roles. <i>Marvin Gardens</i> offers up a
different sort of challenge in that Nicholson is far more subdued
than he ever has been before and often has been since. This is a man
engulfed in emotional pain, a depressive state which nullifies any
possibilities of exuberance or witty charm many have come to expect
from the legendary actor. In contrast, Bruce Dern is the excitable
one, never one to shy away from proclaiming how bright his business
plans are. He is loud, brash and even though the audience slowly
begins to figure out that he is in over his head, the character keeps
marching along to the sound of his own. The dichotomy found in many
of their scenes together add a special comedic quality. The nature of
their respective roles features an even deeper sense of dichotomy,
one that supports the notion that they do in fact need one another
despite what David may prefer to believe. David, fighting through his
depression, is the realist of the two brothers. While Jason bounces
up and down about his smart he is and how they are on the verge of
making it big in Atlantic City, David occasionally questions the
feasibility of his brother's methods, as well as the latter's
competency level at pulling such a large operation off. On the flip
side, there is Jason, who is willing to take risks, to stick his neck
out for what his gut tells him should work. He dreams and is driven
by a hunger to take chances on said dreams. He is also fun to be
around with, provided one can handle his slightly obnoxious attitude
that creeps up whenever someone doubts his businessman capacities.
David needs Jason to rekindle some energy, just as Jason needs David
to put things into perspective. The strongest element about the
script and the performances is that each is already too deep into
their individual moods to ever truly consider or understand what the
other has to offer. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
specifics of where <i>Marvin Gardens</i> falters lies with the film's
stabs at trying to be too precious and cute in its quirkier moments.
A fake Miss American pageant involving only the four protagonists,
the bizarre scene when Sally greets David at the train station early
in the picture (a greeting which includes a small band playing music
no less), a conversation with Japanese investors which evolves around
the intelligence of dolphins, Sally's many, many outbursts which
relate to her slowly declining beauty (in large part why Burstyn's
performance is forgettable and one-note), the movie has plenty of
moments which at first glance seem too desperate for a reaction from
the viewer. As previously stated, there is a preciousness to many of
these scenes which is too much at odds with everything else. Humour
is arguably the most subjective element in film. What makes one laugh
may bore another viewer to death. None of the aforementioned moments,
or any of the others the article did not bother to reference,
produced even a chuckle. Quirk is a remarkably difficult tone to
juggle because it is not meant to everyone. It is supposed to be
clever and funny, but not in a mainstream way. The <i>Marvin Garden</i>'s
quirk simply did not jell well enough with the rest of the picture. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The
movie ends on an impressive note, with David learning, in the
harshest way possible, that his plaguing inaction became, in large
part at least, his brother's undoing. It is a powerful way to finish
a story about two brothers who, despite being very different people,
nearly came together while on a strange business venture, albeit one
doomed to failure. It is unfortunate that <i>The King of Marvin
Gardens</i> throws a lot of rubbish on screen between the opening and
closing scenes. By no means is the film all bad, but the BBS
Productions marathon unfortunately does not conclude with a bang.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Thanks
for reading!</span></span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Between the Seats.</div>edgarchaputhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03874108948902089501noreply@blogger.com0