tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-42096468006305618372024-03-18T21:46:52.883-06:00Red Brick ReviewsMovies - Películas - Киноrscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.comBlogger163125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-19482578895606742002013-10-30T20:26:00.002-06:002013-10-30T20:26:59.520-06:00There is Pleasure in the Pathless Woods<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> So, this is something new I'm going to be adding to my blog. I'm going to start posting some of my favorite poems. I have mixed feelings about poetry. Some of it I really like; other of it does not make any sense. As a whole, I'm not a big poem guy; there are just a few that catch my attention. Take this first poem for example: I really like the first 5 lines (and will italicize them) but the rest of the poem I could care less for.</span><div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> This poem is called "There is Pleasure in the Pathless Woods" and it is actually part of a longer, narrative poem called <i>Childe Harold's Pilgrimage</i>. I have not read anything from that. It was written by George Gordon Byron. Anyways, here it is:</span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>There is a pleasure in the pathless woods,</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>There is a rapture on the lonely shore,</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>There is society where none intrudes,</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>By the deep Sea, and music in its roar:</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>I love not Man the less, but Nature more,</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">From these our interviews, in which I steal</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">From all I may be, or have been before,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">To mingle with the Universe, and feel</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">What I can ne'er express, yet cannot all conceal.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Roll on, thou deep and dark blue Ocean--roll!</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ten thousand fleets sweep over thee in vain;</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Man marks the earth with ruin--his control</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Stops with the shore;--upon the watery plain</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The wrecks are all thy deed, nor doth remain</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">A shadow of man's ravage, save his own,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">When for a moment, like a drop of rain,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">He sinks into thy depths with bubbling groan,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Without a grave, unknelled, uncoffined, and unknown.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">His steps are not upon thy paths,--thy fields</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Are not a spoil for him,--thou dost arise</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And shake him from thee; the vile strength he wields</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">For earth's destruction thou dost all despise,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Spurning him from thy bosom to the skies,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And send'st him, shivering in thy playful spray</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And howling, to his gods, where haply lies</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">His petty hope in some near port or bay,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And dashest him again to earth: —there let him lay.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">By: George Gordon Byron</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I just really like nature, being in the outdoors. I like going out by myself, away from everyone and everything. It's great. And I stole this poem from <a href="http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/19894">HERE</a>.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-40910315922336546702013-10-18T23:32:00.000-06:002013-10-18T23:32:28.434-06:00Carrie (1976) and Carrie (2013)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi663FNZ0Tao9DH8-_CZtT9Q2wBn2j37TIKLSchD3JqETRUi7byX1ei4JlNAjZRRqS1KPUqEXjTgMooZeNnVzzuTlOaYjbuaJU-Tr4G610vdVAHmnW-yvZ801U1UN4BsUnTIEl4B2q-lyjd/s1600/tumblr_m8vwmlmm9p1re4uqoo1_1280.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi663FNZ0Tao9DH8-_CZtT9Q2wBn2j37TIKLSchD3JqETRUi7byX1ei4JlNAjZRRqS1KPUqEXjTgMooZeNnVzzuTlOaYjbuaJU-Tr4G610vdVAHmnW-yvZ801U1UN4BsUnTIEl4B2q-lyjd/s320/tumblr_m8vwmlmm9p1re4uqoo1_1280.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Essential plot rundown: Bullied high schooler Carrie discovers she has supernatural power and fights back. I've been waiting to see this movie for a long time because I'm a fan of Chloë Grace Moretz. And I barely watched the original with Sissy Spacek for the first time the other week.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I'm fairly open-minded when it comes to remakes, but I feel that the new <i>Carrie</i> is unnecessary. I like remakes that change and reinterpret</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> the original. However, the new one does not do that. It is essentially the same movie. It even has a lot of the same dialogue, which I assume came from the book. The only real difference is that the new one has less nudity and more special effects. I feel if you're going to remake something, make it your own, don't photocopy the original.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> With that said, I liked both movies. (But I would say that I liked the original better). I wasn't too impressed by them, but I can see why the original is a classic. My problem with the story is that there is no real character arcs in either film. The characters are the same at the end of the movie as they were in the beginning. While I was watching the '76 version, it reminded me of a joke and that we're just waiting for the punchline. There's no real change in story, character or anything. <i>Carrie</i> could just be the first act of a three act film.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> One of the reasons that I think the original is better is because of Sissy Spacek. She was perfect for the role. She's kind of creepy looking; she's also small and weak. She's totally the type of person that would be bullied in high school. And her being weak makes the climax that much better. Chloë, on the other hand, is not that. She's really pretty and doesn't look like an outcast. And she's a lot stronger person that Sissy. I've really only seen Chloë in <i>Kick-Ass</i> and <i>Let Me In</i> and she plays strong characters in both of these; so it was hard for me to imagine her taking crap from people. Don't get me wrong, she did a good job; she was just miscast.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And I felt that in the original, Carrie and Tommy had way better chemistry than they do in the remake. When they were at prom, I thought <i>Wow, he's really enjoying himself with Carrie. What a nice guy</i>. I didn't get that at all in the remake.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The climax starts off better in the original, but ends better in the 2013 remake. It was so creepy/terrifying to see Sissy Spacek wide-eyed, closing all the doors; the split screen was effective. But, fire hoses aren't that scary. The remake was better because of the advanced SFX; Carrie really was able to display her telekinetic powers.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> So, overall, both are decent films, but I think I liked the original a little better. The remake isn't bad, it just doesn't bring anything new to the table; so, to quote Col. Stars and Stripes: "What's the point?" Oh, I also liked the original ending better.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrf1ExMiDPQLnO0-yy5HDwFfFBJ8exlU13oz01WuQMRMStJcsX5xD-L6WxpKHJbWT1SQ3jOvcfvJVhafmqGPNhOT1MBQvtqNwz3gqvozzGkI8JSSMtK7y6537PaGGcjpOEv-ylimZ2XaH5/s1600/Carrie-poster-Chloe-Moretz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrf1ExMiDPQLnO0-yy5HDwFfFBJ8exlU13oz01WuQMRMStJcsX5xD-L6WxpKHJbWT1SQ3jOvcfvJVhafmqGPNhOT1MBQvtqNwz3gqvozzGkI8JSSMtK7y6537PaGGcjpOEv-ylimZ2XaH5/s320/Carrie-poster-Chloe-Moretz.jpg" width="221" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-73184019152922259132013-10-15T11:23:00.000-06:002013-10-15T11:23:25.262-06:00The Wolf and the Ewe (2011)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA0Iq0N2-CPPkMlk92oVXeS7hhG7EtSY8f1hZjrS6CQOOSzZnp2H84pi-nFhNygpkNwwV0jv7ATwp2eQ2t7ApxTJ4XeQCzF82HWGgJ9Z1x5yOZewIxjxu9ZndiniXGno4m9OnMTaFSOocU/s1600/hqdefault.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA0Iq0N2-CPPkMlk92oVXeS7hhG7EtSY8f1hZjrS6CQOOSzZnp2H84pi-nFhNygpkNwwV0jv7ATwp2eQ2t7ApxTJ4XeQCzF82HWGgJ9Z1x5yOZewIxjxu9ZndiniXGno4m9OnMTaFSOocU/s320/hqdefault.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> This is a BYU short film that I saw a few years ago and recently rediscovered. Unfortunately, it was made before my time so I was not able to work on it. But, I really like it so I thought I'd share it.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Watch it <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ir81Jf0fUz0">HERE</a>.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I really like the visuals. And it's in Romanian, so that's cool too. It also has werewolves and it's Halloween, so there's that. Enjoy.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <i>But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-91299369511141937952013-10-02T23:46:00.000-06:002013-10-02T23:46:00.785-06:00Nobody's Business (1996)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1ToK-bOz3lP8nJiHoP_h6PMm7Kj11KbBXw898tlwhDmqbbdwdSdElbFWVx0V4x8RL7F6DqDSz9AfmB7eppwoj85rJhP8qWnbPwd4Q6He8Of1n8cKaeiKZde71PBdB2LU81SaPUln4LCiS/s1600/nobodys-business_592x299.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="161" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1ToK-bOz3lP8nJiHoP_h6PMm7Kj11KbBXw898tlwhDmqbbdwdSdElbFWVx0V4x8RL7F6DqDSz9AfmB7eppwoj85rJhP8qWnbPwd4Q6He8Of1n8cKaeiKZde71PBdB2LU81SaPUln4LCiS/s320/nobodys-business_592x299.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Essential plot rundown: Filmmaker, Alan Berliner, tries to find out more about his family history by interviewing his father. I had to watch this for a documentary class I'm taking. And I don't write a lot about the movies I watch in class so I thought I'd do this one.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I have mixed feelings about this film. I liked some parts and disliked others. First of all, I liked the style. Alan takes the audio from the interview with his father and plays it with archival footage, home movies, b-roll and photographs. Other than making for a visually interesting film, I think that the video grounded the interview in reality. It made Alan's father, Oscar, and the people he was talking about real and not just some person from a story. He also adds a lot of sound effects that add to the style.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> However, after a while, the style starts to get boring and repetitive. The film is only an hour long, but he uses the same sounds and footage over and over again. I think it would have worked a lot better if the film had only been 20 minutes long or so.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I also felt like Alan was trying to manipulate me. Because we actually see very little of the interview, I felt like he was editing sound bites together out of context. Without a visual cue, audio can be edited together to make the speaker say anything the editor wants. And I felt like this was happening. I'm sure an audio professional could listen to it and hear if there were changes in the audio that would indicate that they were taken out of context, but I can't. But I sensed that they were.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And the interaction between Alan and Oscar felt off to me too. They seemed to be getting mad at each other for no real reason other than to spice up the interview. Alan seemed like he was provoking his father into getting excited. I don't know, that might as well be how they really interact (and it probably is) but it seemed like to was a little staged and unnatural.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> But, overall, it's a decent documentary. It was interesting to learn about Oscar and I could relate to him. I liked the style but it eventually became redundant. It's worth watching, but not a must see.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_5xVzja1z2PtbJ1hufags1FS2-Qq-0KHqVZtkTqK1Wvlloh02ZFew1gkKfi1h3ntA7OpbrYOZaDu95WTaVgyrSD0ioey8WHKo2J4Xhn6-lIR3tcHa5iQxN8cs2g-le6bt94LLMxKip5Ak/s1600/nobodys-business-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_5xVzja1z2PtbJ1hufags1FS2-Qq-0KHqVZtkTqK1Wvlloh02ZFew1gkKfi1h3ntA7OpbrYOZaDu95WTaVgyrSD0ioey8WHKo2J4Xhn6-lIR3tcHa5iQxN8cs2g-le6bt94LLMxKip5Ak/s320/nobodys-business-1.jpg" width="233" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-83914810205644468552013-09-29T19:31:00.000-06:002013-09-29T19:31:48.849-06:00Metallica: Through the Never (trailer)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgezA_GndPoVukFSE9_W7ZW6Hq4eyUwwsSoyDM6wLDi-ICbuOLPV6DULGNKKaUOu_Q-JJpH1hlY5m0zamZovEJ5i7Hdd_Ljq4tisNhUwPie0Yq0tSqMt6J1nlzBFrzipgnqiiQw7f-JkaIv/s1600/Metallica-8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgezA_GndPoVukFSE9_W7ZW6Hq4eyUwwsSoyDM6wLDi-ICbuOLPV6DULGNKKaUOu_Q-JJpH1hlY5m0zamZovEJ5i7Hdd_Ljq4tisNhUwPie0Yq0tSqMt6J1nlzBFrzipgnqiiQw7f-JkaIv/s320/Metallica-8.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> So, a while ago I heard that Metallica was going to do a 3D concert movie. And my thought was: <i>Really? You're going to be like Miley Cyrus and the Jonas Bros and do this? Man, if people thought you sold out before, wait until they see this</i>. But then, I recently saw "this" and by "this" I mean the trailer. And my thoughts changed completely.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Check it <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4IhWJ8r7_4">HERE</a>.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> This actually looks really good. I'm loving the whole combining the concert footage with a narrative; it could be really interesting. But, in all fairness, I've never seen any other concert movies so I don't know how they usually play out. Maybe they have more than just concert stuff. But I am eager to see how they connect the two; will it be 50/50 or some other ratio? I just think it looks pretty cool. Even if there is no story other than a riot, that riot looks cool enough for me.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And the concert looks cool too. They're on a huge stage, there's lasers, tesla coil stuff, looks like it could be impressive. And I like Metallica. They've got some sweet stuff. I am very excited to see this. But I wish there was an IMAX closer to where I lived, cuz that would be awesome.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtlSpMMaw0nR2ciy7aO5JVHhmZ-vjWG34RfHgHE3EnfbBeiaRgCvimA5xszMOiUqmr1OvCgvNJGDS1BFnxkU0kWH9aNgSgRW9_woEslGdehtCTR6W1jNb57KEFiJnK26QPZQnI2dQASN0Z/s1600/metallicathroughtheneverlargeposter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtlSpMMaw0nR2ciy7aO5JVHhmZ-vjWG34RfHgHE3EnfbBeiaRgCvimA5xszMOiUqmr1OvCgvNJGDS1BFnxkU0kWH9aNgSgRW9_woEslGdehtCTR6W1jNb57KEFiJnK26QPZQnI2dQASN0Z/s320/metallicathroughtheneverlargeposter.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-14695867249772566062013-09-21T01:54:00.002-06:002013-09-29T19:35:21.142-06:00Prisoners (2013)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLjOuNzjPTrDVmTMPXDp9Qu76Eq1jyARgzLLqNspvzFpyVUCWRFInFmQkjDWEqCCAXyVJ8IfwRmo6gQ6Qz0XER-hu4PY-usl5yupM47Ychfq41mHpDFGP6Xw1lbSoNKroEKWGl08P_ojUO/s1600/maxresdefault.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLjOuNzjPTrDVmTMPXDp9Qu76Eq1jyARgzLLqNspvzFpyVUCWRFInFmQkjDWEqCCAXyVJ8IfwRmo6gQ6Qz0XER-hu4PY-usl5yupM47Ychfq41mHpDFGP6Xw1lbSoNKroEKWGl08P_ojUO/s320/maxresdefault.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Essential plot rundown: Two little girls are kidnapped, so their fathers go after the kidnapper. When I first saw this trailer, I thought it looked amazing. It looked like it would be emotional and hard to watch. I was expecting a powerful film. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">However, what I actually got was a little bored. <i>Prisoners</i> wasn't a bad film, it just wasn't that good either. And that is the biggest problem with the film: it had lots of potential but didn't deliver.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Let's start with the plot. The story itself was really good. It tackles an interesting subject and asks some hard questions. But, something was lost in the transition from page to film. The script could have been a little tighter; it's a 2 and 1/2 hour long movie and there were times when I felt bored. So quickening the pace would have helped. Some of the dialogue was awkward and there were some small plot-hole things; but those are inconsequential.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The biggest problem, I felt, was the lack of character development. The girls are literally kidnapped in the first five minutes of the movie, so I never got the chance to get to know them or their family. They were strangers to me. It's like seeing those missing child posters and feeling bad because they are missing, but you don't get emotional over them because you don't know who they are. If they would have pushed the kidnapping back further into the movie and given us time to get to know the characters, see the parents interact with their kids, it would have been an a lot more effective film. But, I didn't really care about the girls nor their parents. Intellectually I understood why Wolverine was doing what he was doing but I wasn't invested emotionally.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And I didn't think the acting was too great either. Hugh Jackman has the most screen time. And while not bad, he did seem to over act at times. I like Terrence Howard as an actor, but he doesn't do much here. But that's because he isn't given much to do. I wanted to see more of him. But the worst was Jake Gyllenhaal. I didn't like him at all. He just seemed weird and I never knew what he was feeling. And what was up with the old lady makeup? They couldn't just cast an older actress? That was kind of distracting.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> But, overall it's a decent film. Not anything to rush out and see; but it's also not a waste of time watching. It had a lot of potential with a strong story, but it fails to deliver.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ-9v9dn4NjZ0o13RjXzdXQVnQSRrrEoRwv26ieeLhc8qaj3vruGUIsPPRSriJT3OYmUZut57XStNnuBrVTVL4QiN6mbOFQCuaaYizqU_j5M3nv6zxgngn3ESVytFOmqzGeU1rwIRyu2FJ/s1600/prisoners-poster.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ-9v9dn4NjZ0o13RjXzdXQVnQSRrrEoRwv26ieeLhc8qaj3vruGUIsPPRSriJT3OYmUZut57XStNnuBrVTVL4QiN6mbOFQCuaaYizqU_j5M3nv6zxgngn3ESVytFOmqzGeU1rwIRyu2FJ/s320/prisoners-poster.jpeg" width="216" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-45453766392397955212013-09-13T01:27:00.000-06:002013-09-13T01:35:14.698-06:00Insidious (2010) and Insidious: Chapter 2 (2013)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin0W6VZ7XE-KJuBbRIEUHVI63y00f26OIPjU-ROeh_xfc7OVFvqc3_eQq0Md2HdzwBL3MrTpg7Ogjcamq83xhp7oB31l6UTKWcimj1AcjMRe8xXKiWLQZcieM7BpPzlFTFgJPzsHzj58Zm/s1600/insidious_011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin0W6VZ7XE-KJuBbRIEUHVI63y00f26OIPjU-ROeh_xfc7OVFvqc3_eQq0Md2HdzwBL3MrTpg7Ogjcamq83xhp7oB31l6UTKWcimj1AcjMRe8xXKiWLQZcieM7BpPzlFTFgJPzsHzj58Zm/s320/insidious_011.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Essential plot rundown: A family is being haunted. I never saw the original before, but I kept hearing how scary it was. So, when I saw that it was screening before the sequel, I took advantage and saw them both in the theatre.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And I'm glad I did. <i>Insidious</i> was terrifying. It's been a while since I've seen a movie that gave me goosebumps and I had never seen a movie that made me want to cover me eyes. It was that scary. A lot of the scares are jump scares (which I'm not a big fan of) but the filmmakers use them effectively. And there are some atmospheric chills as well, so that was a plus.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And the story was good too. I thought it was interesting how they explained the whole haunting scenario. And it resonated with what I personally believe. I thought the actors were believable. Overall, it was a really well made, effective movie.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> But there are some parts when the film shows too much of the ghosts; which I always find cheapens the mood. Showing too much takes away from our imagination, which is scarier than anything on screen. And that was really my only complaint.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">There is also a part in the first one that may or may not have been a homage to William Castle's <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zdwq3jdvZDI">13 Ghosts</a>. That scene dreadfully made me want to cover my face.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <i>Insidious: Chapter 2</i> virtually takes place right after the first one. And this one was different from its predecessor. The sequel is a natural evolution from how the first ended. And because it continues the story instead of trying to rehash the first, it has a different feel to it. It wasn't as scary, but it was funnier. The story was also a little more complicated, which </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I think</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> worked against it. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> There are some flashback scenes, so they have other actors playing younger versions of some of the characters. And they worked great. Sometimes when they have a different actor playing a younger version of a character, it seems weird. But the actresses chosen looked and acted like the older characters. I totally bought that they were suppose to be the same people.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And there are some parts when the filmmakers combine traditional cinematography with the found footage style. I found it distracting.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Overall, they are effective films. The first one is truly spine tingling. I thought I was going to die. <i>Insidious: Chapter 2</i> is a scary film, but not on the same level as the first. But they are both worth watching.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtBtb1UpsS9k3Ro4R13iiiSSznVzFobzeiSRTnGiFJ0z-6Lmaij_CQMsbwbYDGyjnk_4NjcsHOPzU4dkQTu6EY1Ndi6GOM9cxXwoZxr_1f5zIwPAlnbTEOtah-kPrsDRPc1QmwN0_I056x/s1600/insidious2-poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtBtb1UpsS9k3Ro4R13iiiSSznVzFobzeiSRTnGiFJ0z-6Lmaij_CQMsbwbYDGyjnk_4NjcsHOPzU4dkQTu6EY1Ndi6GOM9cxXwoZxr_1f5zIwPAlnbTEOtah-kPrsDRPc1QmwN0_I056x/s320/insidious2-poster.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-5116201166514848112013-09-11T20:31:00.000-06:002013-09-11T20:31:11.382-06:00Cargo (2013)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHx8k2GjmLm_L6w1LHrMsJGnJ0LWArEVt7crANUh0bZdKENqSUVx6e_xF6zsPubnKh2JohivTlbEJS3iNnc8TBINssepWYEtUN6x2BbMQ-UBrH9NKSl3gaJ508FnqzAc1Y5p4XN7Jy8Avq/s1600/cargo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="137" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHx8k2GjmLm_L6w1LHrMsJGnJ0LWArEVt7crANUh0bZdKENqSUVx6e_xF6zsPubnKh2JohivTlbEJS3iNnc8TBINssepWYEtUN6x2BbMQ-UBrH9NKSl3gaJ508FnqzAc1Y5p4XN7Jy8Avq/s320/cargo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I stumbled upon this short today and decided to share it. It is a refreshing take on the current zombie craze. It also has a lot of heart; I may or may not have gotten a little choked up watching it.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gryenlQKTbE&feature=player_embedded">HERE</a> is the link for the vid.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> You don't have to be a zombie fan to like this. And there's not much gore in it. So go ahead and watch it. You won't regret it. Unless you don't have a soul, then you might.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <i>But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-92026062779552619952013-09-06T13:07:00.002-06:002013-09-06T13:09:50.700-06:00Robocop (trailer)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh762gPuVaPU7O7e_Mb-5ph_CB7XE6mHNG9TpykAxPFITZdlZQ9pdJh83BKgjKeF5GJMzpHWFHjwCM0JrIuzKv_7UgyVfYBpYxx0MMmdDtMZuzMe5rNNpxrKsaIK_Nq5RPKQ2RIj-4zhPYO/s1600/robocop-580x266.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="146" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh762gPuVaPU7O7e_Mb-5ph_CB7XE6mHNG9TpykAxPFITZdlZQ9pdJh83BKgjKeF5GJMzpHWFHjwCM0JrIuzKv_7UgyVfYBpYxx0MMmdDtMZuzMe5rNNpxrKsaIK_Nq5RPKQ2RIj-4zhPYO/s320/robocop-580x266.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I am a huge fan of <i>Robocop</i>. And I have been as along as I can remember. People ask me what my favorite movie is. <i>Robocop.</i> No hesitation. It's great stuff. So, when I heard that it was being remade, I was excited. Now, I am a fan of <a href="http://redbrickreviews.blogspot.com/2012/02/sequels-and-remakes.html">remakes</a>; so I was interested in seeing how the classic would be updated.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I debated on whether or not I should watch this trailer. Sometimes I <a href="http://redbrickreviews.blogspot.com/2012/07/trailer-experiment.html">don't watch the trailer</a> so nothing in the movie is given away or so I don't have any preconceived notions. But, I can't resist Robocop, so I watched it. And I have never been so nervous watching a trailer before.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INmtQXUXez8">HERE</a> is said trailer.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And I really liked what I saw; though it will take some time getting use to Joel Kinnaman as Robocop instead of Peter Weller. (But, in his defense, Weller only played Robocop in 2/3 of the movies and none of the tv shows). I liked the design of the suit. It still is undeniably Robocop, but sleeker, more modern. I also liked the nod to the original suit, with the gray color scheme before they paint it black. I feel the same about ED-209: still looks like ED, but different. And Gary Oldman is in it; he's badass.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> But I wonder who the bad guy will be. In the original, it was Clarence Boddicker, played brilliantly by Red Forman. He added a whole other something to the original film. But here, at least judging by this trailer, there doesn't seem to be a "villain". It seems to focus more Murphy becoming Robocop.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And that is one of the things that excites me about this movie. It appears that the film will explore more of Robocop trying to find equilibrium between his past life and his new. Making his wife aware that Murphy is Robocop is an interesting choice and I'm eager to see how that plays out. Also, the whole "who is in control" thing could be intriguing.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Anyways, I am super excited to see this movie. I love Robocop and am curious to see a new interpretation of him. However, regardless of how good the remake actually is, <i>Robocop</i> is awesome and always will be.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiml4orfRu7iWW4PpTSjoCVD8rnjG-UtSkIyRzbyLHshwjZJDL4LjsxGACRO9BmITEAEKz0QcoROkRGufQj15T0buHCS9eARw-do1BunHwCSvE-3dYeaOhmerE_8PHlIxtFVOv9Qn5hcZM/s1600/ed-209__span.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiml4orfRu7iWW4PpTSjoCVD8rnjG-UtSkIyRzbyLHshwjZJDL4LjsxGACRO9BmITEAEKz0QcoROkRGufQj15T0buHCS9eARw-do1BunHwCSvE-3dYeaOhmerE_8PHlIxtFVOv9Qn5hcZM/s320/ed-209__span.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> </i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><i>(Except for the part of </i>Robocop<i> being awesome. That's pretty much fact).</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-6537133344018326052013-09-02T22:06:00.000-06:002013-09-02T22:06:42.949-06:00Blackfish (2013)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh15fMUNx8xa4St88Aw17gTvyVAYH2oUMoUv6Rklg9S8cm_KeQUGKadCjSwe0uYP_HxEnSaVC1Ni5zRm97rNojyl6laGgFeoYpqu2MjzxivAEr7zwL6vJGrobGA4yeCTdj65XLEfLBYqsKG/s1600/a-scene-from-blackfish-a-magnolia-pictures-release.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh15fMUNx8xa4St88Aw17gTvyVAYH2oUMoUv6Rklg9S8cm_KeQUGKadCjSwe0uYP_HxEnSaVC1Ni5zRm97rNojyl6laGgFeoYpqu2MjzxivAEr7zwL6vJGrobGA4yeCTdj65XLEfLBYqsKG/s320/a-scene-from-blackfish-a-magnolia-pictures-release.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Essential plot rundown: This documentary looks at how a captive whale, Tilikum, had killed 3 people specifically and at captive orcas in general. I never heard of this movie until Magnolia Pictures started blasting their Facebook page with it. So naturally, I checked it out, thought it looked good, and drove a half hour to go see it.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> This is a pretty interesting documentary, but not without it's problems. The orca footage is pretty cool. They are such majestic creatures that it's hard not to be in awe of them, especially on the big screen. And video of the whale attackings is horrifying. It doesn't show anything graphic, but it is still pretty intense because you know those whales can kill those people without hesitation. The filmmakers also do an effective job humanizing the captive animals. It is quite sad watching a calf being separated from its mother. And that's actually all I have to say about the good stuff.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And now to the bad. The biggest and most obvious is that this documentary is pretty one-sided: SeaWorld is bad. They interview a lot of former SeaWorld trainers which is good; but they only have one person who is pro-marine parks. It did say that SeaWord refused to be interviewed, but they could have found some more pro-SeaWord people to talk with to make for a more balanced discussion. But you know going in that this type of movie has an agenda.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The only other complaint was that, as times, I was a little disorientated. They start talking about one incident, then move to another one without much of an indication. Sometimes I was confused on which whale was attacking who and I never knew when the attacks occurred. Also, there are times where there were too many interviews and not enough killer whale footage.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> But overall, it is a pretty good documentary. A little one-sided (ok, <i>a lot</i> one-sided), kind of slow in some parts, but when it gets intense, it's intense. I'd recommend it to anyone, whether they're pro- or anti- SeaWorld.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPxEaO86aSjuwAanNt7ZxGxq7DYMFvT3tYTJNyfy72TB_BVLy25qVlYqSgXef8aRADOSX9t5Gi1IsWT77LhFldcwBYBCq4tmM2Js55mFF9XZ8gZMaFrtjdHVMfCkAppiu7-rezTORaBS-0/s1600/BLACKFISH-poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPxEaO86aSjuwAanNt7ZxGxq7DYMFvT3tYTJNyfy72TB_BVLy25qVlYqSgXef8aRADOSX9t5Gi1IsWT77LhFldcwBYBCq4tmM2Js55mFF9XZ8gZMaFrtjdHVMfCkAppiu7-rezTORaBS-0/s320/BLACKFISH-poster.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <i>But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-28876773546345803762013-08-17T22:12:00.000-06:002013-08-19T23:26:24.378-06:00Kick Ass 2 (2013)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Abx9AU4QU_UjjDrs-kq6GpYHnelSQIAQfnfu7S9KpX21j7qCnSnBGVvdC0Q5F4_Mnd-9A5usaIKDsQjaNaJjdUQoNKwwbpjof_pA9tZoNhcOruyr9GIReh4QqUCLcrC2p86HZsK2DoU6/s1600/15087.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="142" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Abx9AU4QU_UjjDrs-kq6GpYHnelSQIAQfnfu7S9KpX21j7qCnSnBGVvdC0Q5F4_Mnd-9A5usaIKDsQjaNaJjdUQoNKwwbpjof_pA9tZoNhcOruyr9GIReh4QqUCLcrC2p86HZsK2DoU6/s320/15087.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Essential plot rundown: Chris D'Amico seeks revenge for what happened to his father while Kick-Ass and Hit Girl try to balance being a superhero with their daily lives. I really liked the first one, so obviously I had to see the sequel.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> This was a great film. I was pretty much pleased with most everything. However, I have only seen <i>Kick-Ass </i>once, so I can't really compare the films in their style, seeing as they are directed by two different people. There seemed to be some disconnects between the two films. But, that could just be because I'm remembering the first one wrong. And Todd, who is in the first film, is played by another actor here. So, that threw me off.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I thought all of the characters were interesting. I liked the group that Kick-Ass joins with. I thought they all gave solid performances. And their reasons for wanting to fight crime made them all realistic and relatable. But, by far the best was Col. Stars and Stripes, played by an almost unrecognizable Jim Carrey. I really liked his character and what he was doing and wanted to get to know him more. While he does have a decent amount of screen time, it wasn't enough. I wanted to see more of him. I was surprised to also like John Leguizamo's character. I wasn't expecting much from him. Though, in all fairness, I only know him from <i>Super Mario Bros, Spawn</i> and the trailer for <i>The Pest.</i> Basically, I liked all of the characters.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> As far as the plot goes, it is good. It was intriguing to see how both Kick-Ass and Hit Girl try to deal with being superheroes. The only problem I had was when Hit Girl makes a promise to Marcus and then devotedly follows it. It is in complete violation of a promise she had previously made to her father, Big Daddy. And when Kick Ass confronts her about this decision, she says that she never breaks an oath. <i>But you just did by making that one to Marcus</i>. It seemed off to me.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> There were really only two other things that bothered me. One was a scene where these people begin projectile vomiting and pooping themselves. It was too over-the-top and comical; it felt out of place in the movie and didn't really add anything. The other thing was that at the end of a very dramatic scene, someone would say something funny/stupid and would totally ruin the mood. This happened a couple of times and was annoying.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> But the best part of <i>Kick-Ass 2</i> was the emotions it evoked; and it was able to do that because of the compelling plot and relatable characters. I cried multiple times throughout the movie. Sometimes I could feel the passion the characters had in what they were doing and found it very motivational; and it moved me to tears. Other times I was just afraid that someone would die or they <i>did</i> die that I cried because I was sad. For me, one of the signs of a great film is its ability to elicit emotion in the audience, whether it be happiness, fear, apprehension or sorrow. If I'm feeling something, the movie is doing it's job. (Though, not all great films have to do this). And <i>Kick-Ass 2</i> was able to make me cry. So props to the filmmakers.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> So, overall, <i>Kick-Ass 2</i> was a great film. I want to go see it again, now. It had relatable/likable characters with a persuasive storyline. It would be interesting to see if they make a third, but I think they could end perfectly with the second one.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI6Tvs_hmwTNErzfEIeC0rSKIiYDteM3efrGm-8-T4xgDYtKJVQDo241LbvPm8J_isvfBO7RxtALQvnWxA_o00DRQfmpRG8I3HF6RBinJxojZEmzv1kD6_itTZV7q7YuVNhda4Srn0cOSX/s1600/kick-ass-2-screening-poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI6Tvs_hmwTNErzfEIeC0rSKIiYDteM3efrGm-8-T4xgDYtKJVQDo241LbvPm8J_isvfBO7RxtALQvnWxA_o00DRQfmpRG8I3HF6RBinJxojZEmzv1kD6_itTZV7q7YuVNhda4Srn0cOSX/s320/kick-ass-2-screening-poster.jpg" width="202" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> *author's edit (19 August 2013)</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I've been thinking a lot about the movie ever since I saw it. And my thoughts keep returning to a pair of scenes involving Kick-Ass and his did. In the first scene they get in an argument. And as I was watching it, I totally sided with Kick-Ass. I agreed with his motives. I understood and rooted for him. However, a few things happen and they later confront each other again, finishing the argument. But this time I totally sided with his dad; I sympathized with him. His motives for doing what he did made sense. As I watched this argument span these two scenes, I could see a little of myself and my dad in the characters (though, not nearly as extreme). They were very relatable. I loved these scenes; I found them effective and moving. Whenever I thought about them, I kept getting choked up, which is why I wanted to write about them. They were great story telling.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-43371206583097995852013-08-10T23:46:00.000-06:002013-08-10T23:46:19.221-06:00Elysium (2013)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvXVSJ_Q4ubM0scb4RyD54HTEpekqv4wMS31_IDAGATKglQGVGKqlY3mR9FVP4qM5kJpQ1lUL417XpVGY_EOuNILdpw5Z_p98MSETktHh1YmppId0h2WLXDPJLUIb3p7sy8SWvJz5xXtOp/s1600/Hollywood-Action-Movie-Elysium-Wallpaper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvXVSJ_Q4ubM0scb4RyD54HTEpekqv4wMS31_IDAGATKglQGVGKqlY3mR9FVP4qM5kJpQ1lUL417XpVGY_EOuNILdpw5Z_p98MSETktHh1YmppId0h2WLXDPJLUIb3p7sy8SWvJz5xXtOp/s320/Hollywood-Action-Movie-Elysium-Wallpaper.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Essential plot rundown: A poor guy from earth must fight his way to the rich space station above to save his life. This is from the same writer/director of <i>District 9</i>, which I thought was really good, so I had to go see it. And I had nothing else going on today.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I really liked <i>Elysium</i>. However, I do have to say that it started off a little rocky, but was rolling smoothly by the time it was over. The biggest problem for me was how some of the characters were introduced; it felt too rushed. The audience is blatantly told that the villain is bad, instead of being shown he is bad. And when <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUa5oHgYV2k">Matt Damon</a>'s buddy is introduced, I just thought he was just some random guy. But it turns out that he is kind of a big shot; I didn't get any of that when he was first introduced. (And on a similar note, the story that the little girl tells Matt feels shoehorned in there and rushed.)</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> But those were really they only complaints I had. I thought Neill Blomkamp did a good job building worlds; this was a believable and realistic (as realistic as a futuristic sci-fi flick will be) environment. I believed and felt for the poor living on desolated Earth and I believed that a space station exclusively for the rich existed.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Speaking of believability, the SFX were amazing. The spaceships look real, the robots looked like real characters. Everything was seamlessly put together. It all looked great. (Interestingly enough, the director graduated from film school with an emphasis in animation and visual effects.)</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Actually, I did have another complaints: some of the accents. I found Kruger's accent distracting (yes, I know he's from South Africa). And I had a hard time understanding Spider at times. So I was a little confused on occasion when I missed some expository dialogue. However, I liked Jodie Foster's accents and felt it added a little to the character.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Right before I wrote this, I was looking through the message boards on IMDB. And most of them were political debates. Yes, this movie does have a moral; but I when I saw it, I didn't see the 1% vs the 99% or Wall Street vs Main Street. I saw it on a personal level. And I personally liked it. But there is much a heated debate on those message boards.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Overall, I really liked it. There were a few things that bothered me and a couple of plot-holes. But it is entertaining and it does give you something to think about. Also, Neill must like blowing people up because in <i>Elysium</i> and <i>District 9</i> that happens a lot.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjuE3mx41ihXC_j6sCacutupGelJPZLq_yy0c-1wVMS9HRhf0V3jsSIzxhylAObr5uQ6ecilcJyZI0e-IuJoo7g7zFD-6Hlg_pLHt-tTJHIe_YULaDXxn6W8iBSznkffcsUeboU6drLPdU/s1600/elysium-poster2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjuE3mx41ihXC_j6sCacutupGelJPZLq_yy0c-1wVMS9HRhf0V3jsSIzxhylAObr5uQ6ecilcJyZI0e-IuJoo7g7zFD-6Hlg_pLHt-tTJHIe_YULaDXxn6W8iBSznkffcsUeboU6drLPdU/s320/elysium-poster2.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-16970566433895183702013-07-27T18:22:00.000-06:002013-07-27T18:22:46.300-06:00Star Trek: The Original Cast<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1pZ4LHtZ5qrtImxnGcRMGukqEeSf6Qatk20eUKthCdJg4L9rUnvdI87ANcSMtigrsvW7rCFqx3ff42oBJjLeyGjl7zN8ZIhdVigTmB4RNXiPEF_azscNaaXhMlu05l2lz09Q0JxCmqtcM/s1600/star-trek-II-the-wrath-of-khan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="134" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1pZ4LHtZ5qrtImxnGcRMGukqEeSf6Qatk20eUKthCdJg4L9rUnvdI87ANcSMtigrsvW7rCFqx3ff42oBJjLeyGjl7zN8ZIhdVigTmB4RNXiPEF_azscNaaXhMlu05l2lz09Q0JxCmqtcM/s320/star-trek-II-the-wrath-of-khan.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> So, ever since they rebooted the <i>Star Trek</i> franchise, I've been wanting to watch the original movies. I'm not a trekkie, but I grew up watching <i>The Next Generation</i> and <i>Voyager</i>, but I had never seen anything with the original cast. So during the last few weeks, I went through them and watched them all. Here are my brief thoughts.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>Star Trek: The Motion Picture </i>(1979)</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> </i>The beginning of this movie feels abrupt. Kirk no longer is captain and all of his crew are scattered about. I felt like that I missed something for not having watched the last few episodes of the series; but my brother told me that there is no connection.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The first half was boring, but once they reach V'ger, it got pretty interesting. I really liked the ending. It was the ending that made the film for me. It it had ended in a different way, it merely would have been a "meh" movie and not a "that was really good" movie.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>The Wrath of Khan</i> (1982)</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> This one is held to be the best of the series; but I was disappointed. I liked it, but it wasn't the best. I did like the fact that they used one of the TV episodes as a launching pad for this movie. But I never felt like Khan was a threat. He's suppose to be a superior being but he spends the whole movie being outsmarted by Kirk. Khan was lucky that he had those brain control slugs for those were the only things that gave him an upper hand.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>The Search for Spock</i> (1984)</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> This was the worst of the lot. I don't remember anything about it other than I liked seeing Bones act like Spock and Christopher LLoyd in black face is far funnier than it is menacing.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>The Voyage Home </i>(1986)</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> This was probably the funniest of the series; but there was way too much tree hugging and not enough star trekking. The plot was kind of dumb and didn't really fit in the series very well. It started out promising with the Klingons after Kirk, but then it took a left turn. This movie was lucky I thought it was pretty <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcC1f1jqCPI">funny.</a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>The Final Frontier</i> (1989)</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I like movies like this one; movies that combine space and religion (e.g. <i>Prometheus</i> and <i>Contact</i>). And while I liked the concept of the ending, it was kind of cheesy due to bad special effects. I just really like the quest they went on, to go where no man has gone before.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>The Undiscovered Country</i> (1991)</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> For overall entertainment value, I would say that this was the best one. I was invested in it, waiting to see who dunnit and how. While it didn't deal with the same topics that I really liked from <i>The Motion Picture</i> and <i>The Final Frontier</i>, I would probably say it was my favorite.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> So, overall it is a pretty good series. I wonder how different my experience would have been if I had seen the original series first. But I did really like Bones. Now I want to check out some of DeForest Kelley's other work.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG3jexqNzEfVmaSOuF4cHhyrJBFvELxpfdNCkChHzt4tqEJj1fQ6GlkEIwQ4YKtj8B3hOtFixiRSI2Lr_PWcRGAQxZS5gj3CeJqosW53GID6YFrogZFmehucc80jqSpCQYHIwPDayNXmoA/s1600/Movies-for-Gamers-Star-Trek-The-Motion-Picture-Poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG3jexqNzEfVmaSOuF4cHhyrJBFvELxpfdNCkChHzt4tqEJj1fQ6GlkEIwQ4YKtj8B3hOtFixiRSI2Lr_PWcRGAQxZS5gj3CeJqosW53GID6YFrogZFmehucc80jqSpCQYHIwPDayNXmoA/s320/Movies-for-Gamers-Star-Trek-The-Motion-Picture-Poster.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-64793856601753935902013-06-30T00:45:00.000-06:002013-06-30T00:45:59.699-06:00Man of Steel (2013)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDSj3tekZR9UwBrBKz5TKMFXgr5nyEBBPxAQpkqq2RcQplM7zGVJtuI8RQjBU9ZdC8LEPfVznIy2V7vwJ50ICf6d83rzA1OqnfYsudoqMoMwb34Q3MMZktOGlXcEbhDvnlx98YP3olpDDs/s1599/man+of+steel+whysoblu+12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDSj3tekZR9UwBrBKz5TKMFXgr5nyEBBPxAQpkqq2RcQplM7zGVJtuI8RQjBU9ZdC8LEPfVznIy2V7vwJ50ICf6d83rzA1OqnfYsudoqMoMwb34Q3MMZktOGlXcEbhDvnlx98YP3olpDDs/s320/man+of+steel+whysoblu+12.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Essential plot rundown: Superman tries to keep his existence a secret until Gen. Zod comes looking for him. I had never seen a Superman movie before this, but I never really have been a fan of Superman either; he's too powerful with too many powers. But, this movie looked pretty awesome. Unfortunately, it wasn't awesome; good, but not awesome.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> My biggest problem with the movie is its non-linear story telling for most of the movie. The movie uses a lot of flashbacks, jumping from Clark Kent doing one job to him as a child. Then it cuts to Krypton and then back to Clark working somewhere else. Not that that is bad in and of itself, it just doesn't work in this type of film. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The film jumped around too much which</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> made it hard me for to connect with and care for the characters. I didn't really feel that there was any character development. I never felt what the characters were going through. And because of this, I wasn't invested in the film, which made it good instead of awesome.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Visually the film is pretty sweet. I liked all of the production design. The costumes looked cool, the vehicles and technology were interesting. Everything looked great (I just didn't care for the characters). Speaking of looks and characters, I thought Henry Cavill looked the part of Superman. When I looked at him, I saw Superman. But, I didn't think he acted the part very well; something was lacking.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And the ending sequence lasted too long. There were a lot of people fighting and things getting destroyed way before the final showdown between Superman and Zod. So by the time they finally confronted each other, the whole novelty of watching things being annihilated was beginning to wear off.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> While I liked it, <i>Man of Steel</i> wasn't as good as I was expecting. But, it did make me want to watch the original movies with Christopher Reeve, which is always a good thing for a remake/reboot to do. But it'll have to wait while I watch the <i>Star Trek</i> films because <i>Star Trek Into Darkness</i> did the same thing.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiNmmsK5V40cnCf3DrLt_4nElJF4qPRtrlDyMFx5sVMWq9UbyTl9QUd-PsQSY-sm2fzBo-oKg_ihfQgamS4UpfZjG6j2BINkDKHYsR-PHli5DD1dLEIy7NufUG9d4ZxtJvVkBIs3_PvnlN/s1280/manofsteelposter8888881999.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiNmmsK5V40cnCf3DrLt_4nElJF4qPRtrlDyMFx5sVMWq9UbyTl9QUd-PsQSY-sm2fzBo-oKg_ihfQgamS4UpfZjG6j2BINkDKHYsR-PHli5DD1dLEIy7NufUG9d4ZxtJvVkBIs3_PvnlN/s320/manofsteelposter8888881999.jpeg" width="215" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-91852721712905066242013-06-18T23:25:00.002-06:002013-06-18T23:25:19.125-06:00MPAA: Time for a Change<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> This was my research paper for my English class. I hated that class.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Millions of people go to the movies each year and many rely on the ratings assigned by CARA (the Classification and Rating Administration) to choose which movies are appropriate for their children to watch. CARA, which is an affiliate of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), was established on November 1, 1968, as a tool for parents (<a href="http://www.mpaa.org/ratings/ratings-history" target="_blank">Ratings History</a>). As stated on their website, the purpose of the MPAA’s ratings system is to “provide parents with advance information about the content of films, so they can determine what movies are appropriate for their young children to see” (<a href="http://www.mpaa.org/ratings" target="_blank">“Film Ratings”</a>). While the ratings system does give a general idea of a movie’s content, the system is inadequate in helping parents decide which films their children should see. The ratings system does not sufficiently inform parents of movie content because the system suffers from ratings creep, inconsistency, and vagueness. The MPAA needs to revise the ratings system to remove these problems. The current ratings system, which assigns a letter grade to a movie designating who should be allowed to see it, should be changed to a system that, instead, quantifies the amount of objectionable content (i.e. violence, nudity, drugs, etc.). CARA also should not look at context or restrict audiences. The MPAA will be able to correct the problems that are presently in the ratings system by changing to a classification system that looks purely at content and not at what may or may not be offensive to prospective audiences.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> One of the problems that the ratings system has (and one a change in the system could fix) is ratings creep. Ratings creep is when content that used to be predominantly assigned to one rating (such as R) begins to “creep” down into another (PG-13). A study done in 2010 by Priya Nalkur, Patrick E. Jamieson and Daniel Romer, provides evidence of ratings creep. Nalkur et al. compared the content from the highest grossing films from 1950 to 2006 to their ratings. Nalkur et al. found that “differences in violence between R and PG-13 were often blurred” and “PG-13 has absorbed films that would previously have been assigned R, and has exhibited an increasing trend regarding the explicitness of violent content” (Nalkur). According to their studies, PG-13 movies are becoming increasingly more violent (Nalkur). A PG-13 movie from 2004 is likely to be more violent than one from 1990.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> A similar study was done by Richard Potts and Angela Belden. However, instead of looking at the actual content of the movies, they only looked at the rating descriptors. (Ratings descriptors explain why a film received a certain rating.) They came to the same conclusion--that there is “increasingly more adult content in movies at all the rating levels examined . . . ” (Potts). Potts and Belden write that “children are exposed to more mature content . . . in today’s G, PG, and PG-13 movies than they were only a few years ago” (Potts). If movies aimed at kids contain more mature content than they used to, then the ratings are not doing their job.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> In addition to reporting their findings, Potts et al. give possible reasons why ratings creep is happening. They point out that CARA is part of the MPAA, which is an “organization whose primary function is to maximize the financial success of motion pictures” (Potts). Because of this affiliation, they continue, a “competing profit motivation exists for CARA to apply the most liberal rating assignments possible and thus facilitate the largest audiences possible for each movie to be released” (Potts). Restrictive ratings, such as R, limit the number of prospective audiences; therefore, these movies are more likely to make less money. By giving more movies PG-13 ratings than R, CARA is increasing their profitability. However, Potts et al. point out that this reason is only “speculative” (Potts).</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Another possible reason Potts et al. give is the raters on the board are becoming desensitized to adult content (Potts). They write that “ratings creep could also result from a natural psychological process in which CARA raters themselves, in the execution of their jobs, become involuntarily desensitized to evocative adult content, resulting in collective assignments of more ‘lenient’ ratings” (Potts). If the act of them doing their job compromises the integrity of the ratings, then a revision is needed.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> One way to fix ratings creep is to quantify the content instead of assigning an age category. If the raters scaled the amount of violence or sex on a scale from one to ten, instead of deciding whether the movie should be given a PG-13 or R, it can prevent ratings creep. The amount of adult content is objective, whereas assigning content to an age category is subjective. While a better way to rate movies than today’s standard, it is still not perfect. In order for a quantitative rating to really work, there has to be a definitive way of quantifying. But, establishing a standardized way to quantify content is beyond the purpose of this paper.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The second problem a change in the ratings system could fix is inconsistency. In an article for “The Hollywood Reporter,” Joan Graves, head of CARA, wrote, “Our most important job is consistency: Whether a film is educational, delightful, terrible or insightful, ratings are applied based on the level of content in a film” (<a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/mpaa-ratings-chief-defends-movie-159815" target="_blank">Graves</a>). However, by examining the content/ratings from different movies, a lot of inconsistency can be found. One example would be the documentaries Gunner Palace (2004) and Bully (2011). Gunner Palace is about the war in Iraq and Bully raises awareness about bullying in public schools. Both movies were originally rated R for language and both appealed to the MPAA to get their ratings changed (<a href="http://www.documentary.org/content/war-may-be-hell-fighting-mpaa-over-r-rating-fin-lethal" target="_blank">Tucker</a>; <a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv-movies/bully-rating-reversal-mpaa-weinstein-agree-compromise-nets-documentary-pg-13-article-1.1057027" target="_blank">Sacks)</a>. Gunner Palace’s appeal was successful and the film was given a PG-13 rating (<a href="http://www.documentary.org/content/war-may-be-hell-fighting-mpaa-over-r-rating-fin-lethal" target="_blank">Tucker</a>). However, in order for Bully to achieve a PG-13, it had to remove some swearing (<a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv-movies/bully-rating-reversal-mpaa-weinstein-agree-compromise-nets-documentary-pg-13-article-1.1057027" target="_blank">Sacks</a>). While one movie was able to get a PG-13 rating without any editing, the other had to be re-cut. Bully removed half of the f-words used, taking it from the original six down to three (<a href="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/movies/2012/04/some-f-words-but-not-all-cut-from-bully-to-get-pg-13-rating.html" target="_blank">Zeitchik ‘Bully’</a>). Gunner Palace, which was not edited, contains forty-two f-words (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0424129/" target="_blank">“Gunner Palace”</a>). If CARA cannot consistently rate language, then something needs to be changed. By quantifying the content, Gunner Palace would have rated higher on the language scale than Bully, allowing for more consistency. A quantification also would have alerted parents of the actual content better than a letter would have.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Language is not the only thing that is unsystematically rated--sexual content also is. In 2010, two movies with similar sexual content were released, Black Swan and Blue Valentine. However, Black Swan was rated R while Blue Valentine received a NC-17. The distributor of Blue Valentine appealed the NC-17 rating and won, allowing the rating to be dropped to an R without any change in content (<a href="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/movies/2010/12/blue-valentine-nc-17-r-rating-overturned.html" target="_blank">Zeitchik ‘Blue Valentine’</a>).</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> These movies show two different inconsistencies. One, they show that the MPAA does not always give the same rating to movies with similar content. One would assume that movies which contain similar content, such Blue Valentine and Black Swan, would receive the same rating. It also shows another inconsistency: changing the rating without changing the content. Bully had to be edited to receive a PG-13 rating. It had different content, so it deserved a different rating. However, Blue Valentine kept all of its content intact while obtaining a lower rating. So, whether it was rated R or NC-17, it was the same movie with the same content.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> If the MPAA changed their ratings system to one that quantifies material, it would help decrease the inconsistency in the current ratings. Instead of the board members trying to decide whether something deserves a PG-13, R or NC-17, they only have to measure the amount. By simply quantifying the amount (in whichever way CARA decides is best), it will be able to more consistently describe a movie’s content.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Another concern a revision of the ratings system could change is the vagueness of the ratings themselves. The MPAA assigns a rating (G, PG, PG-13, R or NC-17) to each movie and then offers a description. According to their website, the purpose of the rating is to signal “the degree of caution parents should exercise in weighing whether a movie is suitable for children” (<a href="http://www.mpaa.org/ratings/how-to-read-a-rating" target="_blank">“How to Read a Rating”</a>). However, not all R-rated movies require the same amount of “caution.” Some R-rated movies, such as The King’s Speech, only have a few f-words, whereas other R-rated movies contain horrendous acts of violence. Not all R-rated movies have equal content and, therefore, should not have equal ratings. Scott Wampler, a writer for Examiner.com, wrote about his surprise that The Human Centipede, a movie “where three characters were stitched together, mouth-to-anus, and forced to parade around a mad scientist's lair,” received a less restrictive rating than Blue Valentine initially received, both of which were released the same year (<a href="http://www.examiner.com/article/why-did-the-mpaa-give-blue-valentine-an-nc-17-rating-you-ll-never-guess" target="_blank">Wampler</a>). After Blue Valentine’s appeal, they both have an R-rating. But, are parents sufficiently “cautioned” about the movies’ content? According to the rating, the true story about a man overcoming a speech impediment, as seen in The King’s Speech, deserves the same amount of caution as torture-porn films such the Saw franchise. Movie critic, Michael Phillips, in an article for the “Chicago Tribune,” wrote “If ‘The King’s Speech’ and ‘Saw 3D’ warrant the same rating, then the system underneath leaves me speechless” (<a href="http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2010-11-04/entertainment/chi-talking-pictures-1105_1_joan-graves-r-rating-mpaas" target="_blank">Phillips</a>). It is arguable whether the profanity used in The King’s Speech is offensive, particularly to younger children; however, one cannot argue that The King’s Speech is equally offensive as Saw 3D or The Human Centipede. If they are not equally offensive, they should not have equal ratings. The vagueness of the ratings system necessitates that it be updated.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> In attempts to make the ratings clearer, the MPAA started including descriptions with the rating during the 90s (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motion_Picture_Association_of_America_film_rating_system" target="_blank">“Motion Picture”</a>). As described on their website, the rating descriptor “aims to convey with precision why the film received its rating” (<a href="http://www.mpaa.org/ratings/how-to-read-a-rating" target="_blank">“How to Read a Rating”</a>). Adding these descriptions did help, allowing parents to know the general content of a movie. However, the descriptions are still too vague. The MPAA does modify the content, but these modifications are also unclear. Some PG-13 rated movies contain “violence,” “combat violence,” “sci-fi violence,” “fantasy action violence” and “intense war violence” (<a href="http://www.movieinsider.com/mpaa/PG-13/" target="_blank">“PG-13”</a>). Essentially, these modifiers only name the genre of the movie. Is there a difference between “combat violence” and “war violence”? It can be seen that these descriptions are not very precise.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> While the present ratings system is useful, it is not as effective as it should be. It does provide general information about movie content, but it needs a revision. In a study similar to the ones mentioned above, Lucille Jenkins et al. suggest that the ratings could be improved by “the addition of a quantitative component” (<a href="http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/115/5/e512.abstract" target="_blank">Jenkins</a>). However, this idea needs to be taken further and the current letter system replaced by a quantitative system. Referring to how they rate films, Graves wrote, “When we assign ratings to films, we do not make qualitative judgments; we are not film critics or censors” (<a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/mpaa-ratings-chief-defends-movie-159815" target="_blank">Graves</a>). However, they are making a “qualitative judgment” when they decide whether certain content is worth a PG-13 or an R-rating. A quantitative system would help CARA achieve its goal and reduce ratings creep, inconsistency and vagueness.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> To make the ratings system more effective, the MPAA should adopt a system similar to the one used by Kids-in-Mind.com. As posted on their website, Kinds-in-Mind claim, “We do not assign an inscrutable rating based on age but 3 objective ratings for SEX/NUDITY, VIOLENCE/GORE & PROFANITY, on a scale of 0 to 10, and we explain in detail why a film rates high or low in a specific category” (<a href="http://kids-in-mind.com/" target="_blank">Kinds-in-Mind</a>). Instead of giving a movie an R-rating, the MPAA should assign a rating similar to four-seven-six (reflecting the amount of sex, violence, and profanity) and then have a detailed outline of the content on their website.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> While not a perfect solution, a quantitative ratings system would cut down on the amount of ratings creep. Instead of deciding from movie to movie which deserves an R-rating and which deserves a PG-13 rating, they determine up front how to scale content when the quantitative system is implemented. This will give them a baseline for consistency. Establishing a standardized way to rate films will, of course, be the tricky part. Will sex be measured by screen time, body parts shown or some other way? But, once a way has been chosen and implemented, it will help prevent the amount of ratings creep. One way in that it would help ratings creep is that it would be more transparent; it would be a lot easier to keep track of one specific category and to tell when ratings are creeping.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Another problem that a quantitative ratings system could solve is inconsistency. A scale of one to ten is objective whereas a letter rating is subjective. Saying a movie, in regards to violence, earns a seven out of ten would be easier than deciding whether it deserves a PG-13 or an R rating. Because the one letter grade would be changed to a three category content grade (or whatever is decided upon), it would be more consistent. The rating given to one category would not be influence by the amount in another, thus making it easier to be consistent in scaling it. The raters would only have to look at and measure one category at a time, instead of weighing all of the content and coming up with an average rating for the entire movie.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The four-seven-six example would not necessarily remove the vagueness of the current ratings. However, having a detailed description on a website explaining each category would. Instead of saying that a movie contains “war violence,” it would describe the violence--people are shot with blood splatter, a man gets his arm blown off, etc. It would also clarify the sexual content by saying whether it was consensual or forced, a same sex encounter, etc. Also, some parents may be more concerned about one type of content over another. By having the content divided, the specific content in question would be more accessible to parents and will better help them decide which movies are ok for their children to view.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> In addition to preventing ratings creep, inconsistency and vagueness, a switch to a quantitative system would prevent the MPAA from interpreting context and establishing restrictions. Context is more subjective than content. It is true that a war movie might be a more realistic portrayal of violence then the glamorized action blockbuster; but, violence is still violence and some people may want to avoid all of it. A person who wants to avoid all forms of violence would be more easily able to do so with a categorical rating of content.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> This type of ratings system would also prevent the MPAA from restricting audiences. It could be argued whether the MPAA should have the right to do so, but I am not going to go into detail about that here. However, Joan Graves, did write that “The ratings system exists for one purpose: to inform parents about the content of films” (<a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/mpaa-ratings-chief-defends-movie-159815" target="_blank">Graves</a>). Therefore, they should not censor who sees what, but should leave that to the individual and parents. Potts et al. point out that “The assertion, or assumption, by the MPAA . . . that CARA raters are somehow valid representatives of the American public, and that their judgments reflect the public's values, is implausible” (Potts). The members of CARA cannot represent the American norm and they should not try; parents should decide what their children see.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> In addition to censoring children, the ratings system is also censoring filmmakers. Filmmakers try and earn money from their movies; but a restrictive rating would decrease the prospective audience and, subsequently, box office earnings. So, in order to reach the widest possible audience, filmmakers edit, and censor, their movies to get a lower rating. Steven Zeitchik, in an article for the “LA Times,” wrote that </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">An NC-17 rating means anyone younger than 17 cannot see the movie in theaters — even if they are accompanied by an adult. Many theater chains have a policy of not exhibiting NC-17 films, and some media outlets refuse to carry ads for NC-17 movies. That means the box office receipts and cultural impact of an NC-17 film are likely to be much more limited than an R-rated movie. (<a href="http://articles.latimes.com/2010/dec/04/entertainment/la-et-sex-movies-20101204" target="_blank">Zeitchik “Two Films”</a>)</span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Many NC-17 rated movies are mature takes on adult themes, but they are not available because of their rating. In an interview with “TIME,” Dan Glickman, chairman and CEO of the MPAA, said, “Some people still see this as a censorship board. It's not. It's an information system. It's actually designed to keep censors at bay” (<a href="http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1854732,00.html" target="_blank">Cruz</a>). The MPAA may be defending movies from government-imposed censorship, but the structure of the current system is only shifting the censorship to distributors and theaters.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> In order for the present ratings system to better fulfill its purpose, it needs to switch from the subjective letter grade based system to an objective quantitative system. Ratings creep, inconsistency and ambiguity in ratings prevent the system from fulfilling its purpose. The ratings system also is imposing its own interpretations on context and is restricting people from seeing certain films. However, a change to a ratings system that objectively assigns content (sex, violence, etc.) a number from one to ten and provides an explanation of the number on its website would greatly help in reducing the current system’s problems. The next question is to decide how to quantify content.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Works Cited</span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Cruz, Gilbert. "Happy 40th Birthday, Movie Ratings." Time.com. Time, 30 Oct. 2008. Web. 11 Mar. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> "Film Ratings." MPAA.org. Motion Picture Association of America, n.d. Web. 11 Mar. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Graves, Joan. "MPAA Ratings Chief Defends Movie Ratings." The Hollywood Reporter n.d.: n. pag. 23 Feb. 2011. Web. 11 Mar. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> "Gunner Palace." IMDb. IMDb.com, n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> "How to Read a Rating." MPAA.org. Motion Picture Association of America, n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Jenkins, Lucille, Theresa Webb, Nick Brown, A.A. Afifi, and Jess Kraus. "An Evaluation of the Motion Picture Association of America’s Treatment of Violence in PG-, PG-13–, and R-Rated Films." Pediatrics 115.5 (2005): E512-517. 1 May 2005. Web. 1 Mar. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> "Kids-In-Mind." Kids-In-Mind.com. Kids-in-Mind, n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> "Motion Picture Association of America Film Rating System." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 03 Oct. 2013. Web. 10 Mar. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Nalkur, Priya G., Patrick E. Jamieson, and Daniel Romer. "The Effectiveness of the Motion Picture Association of America's Rating System in Screening Explicit Violence and Sex in Top-ranked Movies From 1950 to 2006." Journal of Adolescent Health 47.5 (2010): 440-47. ScienceDirect. Web. 28 Feb. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> "PG-13-Rated Movies (MPAA)." MovieInsider.com. The Movie Insider, n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Phillips, Michael. "There's a Word for the MPAA...." ChicagoTribune.com. Chicago Tribune, 4 Nov. 2010. Web. 10 Mar. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Potts, Richard, and Angela Belden. "Parental Guidance: A Content Analysis of MPAA Motion Picture Rating Justifications 1993–2005." Current Psychology 28.4 (2009): 266-83. SpringerLink. Web. 28 Feb. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Sacks, Ethan. "‘Bully’ Rating Reversal: The MPAA and Weinstein Co. Agree on Compromise That Nets Documentary PG-13." NY Daily News. Daily News America, 5 Apr. 2012. Web. 9 Mar. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Tucker, Michael. "War May Be Hell...But Fighting the MPAA Over an 'R' Rating Is F*@#in' Lethal." Documentary.org. International Documentary Association, Feb. 2006. Web. 10 Mar. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> "Ratings History." MPAA.org. Motion Picture Association of America, n.d. Web. 09 Mar. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Wampler, Scott. "Why Did the MPAA Give 'Blue Valentine' an NC-17 Rating? You'll Never Guess." Examiner.com. Examiner, 8 Oct. 2010. Web. 10 Mar. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Zeitchik, Steven. "'Blue Valentine' Wins MPAA Appeal, Will Be Released as an R-rated Film." 24 Frames. Los Angeles Times, 8 Dec. 2010. Web. 10 Mar. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Zeitchik, Steven. "'Bully' Rating: Some, but Not All, Profanity Cut to Get PG-13." 24 Frames. Los Angeles Times, 5 Apr. 2012. Web. 9 Mar. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Zeitchik, Steven. "Two Films, Two Sex Scenes, Two Different Ratings." 24 Frames. Los Angeles Times, 4 Dec. 2010. Web. 10 Mar. 2013.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-37970263137293928732013-06-15T02:00:00.000-06:002013-06-15T02:18:22.548-06:00The Purge (2013)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5p8Ho7UPC62qMjuiw13Hk7Mmz_S2CYFhLYGFHzoUnxmbdGnNB3m9nchRekIiphOy4Yd6AT62fJouEjaTWhi8FcWRoxsvKLWwi8f9OEilQPhIAzKtP81EKnryUNEos-8j6OtfGPETiuMPW/s1600/the-purge-ethan-hawke-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5p8Ho7UPC62qMjuiw13Hk7Mmz_S2CYFhLYGFHzoUnxmbdGnNB3m9nchRekIiphOy4Yd6AT62fJouEjaTWhi8FcWRoxsvKLWwi8f9OEilQPhIAzKtP81EKnryUNEos-8j6OtfGPETiuMPW/s320/the-purge-ethan-hawke-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Essential plot rundown: In the not too distant future, all crime is legal for 12 hours out of the year and during this time, one family gets some unexpected company.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> So the trailer for this movie looked terrifying. I was sure it was going to be the scariest movie I've seen in a long time; but it wasn't. It still was really good, just not that scary. The movie starts off promising, building lots of tension. But, once the intruders got into the house, it lost all of its intensity. I was more nervous and scared before the intruders got in than afterwards. It's still a good movie after they break in, just not very scary.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And the kids were stupid. Why would you run away and leave your parents?</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> While the movie itself was pretty good, the best thing about it was the concept. As a way to "purge" ourselves, everything is legal for 12 hours. This idea opens up for a wide range of stories. I think it would be interesting to see somebody seek revenge during a purge for something that happened to a loved one in the previous purge. It would also be interesting to see people acting as vigilantes, protecting those who can't defend themselves. There are a lot of possible stories for future movies. I wonder if this will become a franchise. They could even have future installments be anthologies, with 3 or 4 segments about different situations.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Another good thing about this movie was that it really made me think. I was putting myself in their situation trying to see what I would do. And I couldn't come up with an answer. A lot of times with movie you think <i>Well, if I was so-and-so, I would just do this...</i> But with <i>The Purge</i>, I had nothing. I couldn't think of any moral decision; I had no idea what I would do. But, the family ends up choosing pretty well I thought.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> As I was talking about this with my friend on our way home from the theater, we got onto the topic of violence in the media. We discussed whether consuming violent movies/games makes one more violent or if it acted as a catharsis. Which made me see <i>The Purge</i> as a metaphor for cathartic violence. In <i>The Purge</i>, people have 12 hours to do what they want. By having this freedom, it decreases the amount of crime the rest of the year. Similarly, watching a violent movie purges you of your violent tendencies, decreasing the possibility of you acting violently in real life. But that is just how I interpreted it.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Overall, I really liked it. It did run out of steam by the end but it still works. I would really like to see other movies that take place during the 12 hour purge. Could make for a compelling franchise.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuAusqbLoKMof5EAgcN7hKiKWmgITtA3SZTNW3tMHU2ObTazD1g2nad_ZZa4TlQJmkHPPkz_HX_CgA_xKkXRmf6Z2TseG4uRDqc3lEYixw8cbI9ThJKYLhyphenhyphenGQ_ZI81yrtFoTXhGEfifGcK/s1600/the-purge-poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuAusqbLoKMof5EAgcN7hKiKWmgITtA3SZTNW3tMHU2ObTazD1g2nad_ZZa4TlQJmkHPPkz_HX_CgA_xKkXRmf6Z2TseG4uRDqc3lEYixw8cbI9ThJKYLhyphenhyphenGQ_ZI81yrtFoTXhGEfifGcK/s320/the-purge-poster.jpg" width="202" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-53877221371691905882013-05-19T16:43:00.001-06:002013-06-26T22:21:17.505-06:00Ocean Heaven (2010)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> In my English class last semester, we had to choose a movie playing at International Cinema and write a review about it. So here it is.</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXh7_wVUA4UNdDEEG49bW6Srq4rQBbHis2UhyphenhyphenWHMaWKu-FnQVfrG39t-qw44pf7I2h_KEnt3wMm_CKV9vVcSRi5A3svgwod9uFmcU__h2DeEHUtXfKJmfAVI_Wg_qUoQ06e6cpZiXidR7h/s1600/oceaan+heaven+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXh7_wVUA4UNdDEEG49bW6Srq4rQBbHis2UhyphenhyphenWHMaWKu-FnQVfrG39t-qw44pf7I2h_KEnt3wMm_CKV9vVcSRi5A3svgwod9uFmcU__h2DeEHUtXfKJmfAVI_Wg_qUoQ06e6cpZiXidR7h/s320/oceaan+heaven+1.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></span></a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-665e69c8-bee1-d1de-2df5-ca98da825850" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></b></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: center;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Ocean Heaven</i> (2010)</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">An Average Story of a Father and his Son</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span>The premise of <i>Ocean Heaven</i> looks like a very promising tear-jerker: A father with a terminal illness, awaiting his own death, must find a way for his autistic son to survive on his own. And it stars Jet Li as the father. However, while someone would expect a powerful film, <i>Ocean Heaven</i> does not really pack a punch.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Don’t get me wrong, Ocean Heaven is a decent film, just not as moving as I anticipated. The film is about Wang (played by Jet Li) who works at an aquarium. Wang is a widower who takes care of his twenty-two year old autistic son, Dafu (portrayed by Zhang Wen). After finding out that he is suffering from a terminal illness, Wang must find a place where Dafu will be taken care of after he dies. It seems like compelling stuff, but the whole movie is subtle and does not really invoke any strong emotions. And I think that is partly because of the script and partly due to the restrained acting. There are some tender moments between the father and his son. There are also some hard moments. But these are all small; there are no big, emotional scenes that most drama movies of this kind normally have. There are no dramatic hospital scenes, no powerful “I love you” moments. The emotions are pretty much low-key here. I could see and understand why this situation would be hard on Wang; but, I never felt his struggles.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The script could have also benefited from some more revisions. There are a few plot points and scenes that feel a little out of place. The opening scene sets you up for one type of movie, but fails to follow that, taking you in a totally different direction. The beginning brings up some interesting ideas and questions, but the rest of the film never pursues or examines them. It is almost as if it never happened.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And just like how there is no follow up to the opening scene, there is no build up to the ending. I do not want to give anything away (though, the movie is fairly predictable with no real surprises) but the ending involves a sea turtle. But I do not think we ever see a sea turtle before then. Sea turtles actually play a pretty big part in the ending of the film, but it comes as kind of a shock because it appears so random. The guy works at an aquarium; I imagine it would have been fairly easy to insert a scene early in the movie, introducing the idea of the sea turtle. But, there is none; so the ending is a little weird and not as compelling as it could have been.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The same thing applies to the mother. Early in the film, it is established that she died when Dafu was still a young boy; but, it leaves it at that. Later in the movie, some more information is revealed about the mother’s death. But, because she is basically absent from the whole movie (there may have been one flashback), this revelation has little impact.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> But, like I have said, <i>Ocean Heaven</i> is worth watching. The actors do a good job. This is Jet Li’s first main role outside of the action genre. He trades in his lightning fast hands for a pair of glasses and a blue jumpsuit. Li plays an average man who works hard and wants the best for his son; and he pulls it off pretty well. Zhang Wen also is believable in his role of Li’s autistic son. I have not spent any time with autistic children, so I do not know how “realistic” his portrayal was; but I bought it. (Though, the hand thing seemed a little weird to me.) All of the supporting actors are also convincing in their roles.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> It does bring up some interesting points about our society. Whose responsibility is it to watch after and take care of a person with a mental disability when he has no family members? Dafu is twenty-two years old with no mother and a dying father; and all of the institutions that Wang visits are unable to accept Dafu. Wang tries to teach him how to take care of himself; but without external support, it does not appear to be enough. Should the government institutionalize him? Should the community get involved? Who should be responsible?</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> It is interesting to see what points and themes are brought up, considering that the writer and director, Xiao Lu Xue, had previously volunteered for fourteen years at an organization for autistic children. <i>Ocean Heaven</i> is her directorial debut. Her only previous film credit was writer of <i>Together</i> (2002), which was also about the relationship between a father and his son.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> While not as moving as expected, <i>Ocean Heaven</i> is good film. It has a strong story with honest acting; but, everything was too subtle to really stir me. But, it is worth watching. I give it three out of five.</span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></b></span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR3oUyslOVJ6GeMB1IU5nBqhdzKvkknUtQHU3R7-rf4GDWRJfO7fkO9mM6YGfgf3UEIYXhvDN4bVOjPCClqIv_4DNR6UFLCaPbqBEt7Jv15FRDYVCNhJPXVlAn8V0bOHhcKwuZe5lGBy6e/s1600/Ocean-Heaven-Hai-Yang-Tian-Tan__1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR3oUyslOVJ6GeMB1IU5nBqhdzKvkknUtQHU3R7-rf4GDWRJfO7fkO9mM6YGfgf3UEIYXhvDN4bVOjPCClqIv_4DNR6UFLCaPbqBEt7Jv15FRDYVCNhJPXVlAn8V0bOHhcKwuZe5lGBy6e/s320/Ocean-Heaven-Hai-Yang-Tian-Tan__1.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="218" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<i> But that's just my opinion...</i></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<i><br /></i></div>
</span></b><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></span><br />
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-62529016319231952112013-05-05T00:44:00.001-06:002013-05-05T00:44:44.982-06:00Iron Man 3 (2013)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcBOhSjVGhwBt3y8NgusIs0dMRVq4VyqqhOjanDwC1axsziOKjat7-gCrtZRs4q-Z2gkTNJJ5x2mvE7IoeLOY7AyO8b5FJKLbXNgLlMCCH4V5gKiqoolxXI0AzW_F3QBBN4dul-5jAEzj7/s1600/iron-man-3-image06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcBOhSjVGhwBt3y8NgusIs0dMRVq4VyqqhOjanDwC1axsziOKjat7-gCrtZRs4q-Z2gkTNJJ5x2mvE7IoeLOY7AyO8b5FJKLbXNgLlMCCH4V5gKiqoolxXI0AzW_F3QBBN4dul-5jAEzj7/s320/iron-man-3-image06.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Essential plot rundown: Iron Man takes all of my money again. This is the first Marvel movie to come out since <i>The Avengers </i>and it will be interesting to see where they take things. And this movie review is full of spoilers.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And considering this takes place in a post <i>Avengers</i> world, I didn't feel there was a strong enough connection between the two. There are a few references to the events; but it mostly consists of Tony Stark not being able to sleep and having a panic attack whenever somebody asks him about New York. I was expecting something stronger, something that would tie in with the plot of <i>Iron Man 3</i>; but no. But, before I started writing this, I read a few reviews and they better explained the connections. They explained that War Machine being changed to Iron Patriot was a response to Captain America and superheroes (not the government) saving the world and how his perspective of what really matters changed after what happened in <i>The Avengers</i>. These things are hinted and while I didn't pick these up during the movie, now knowing them makes me like the movie a little better.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> But my two biggest complaints were about the plot. The movie starts off with an obvious set-up for a revenge flick: Tony Stark disses some loser, said loser becomes cool and powerful, he then seeks revenge on Tony. Lame and unoriginal. (Though, most movies are unoriginal; but they could've done better than that). It just didn't work for me. (Now that I think about, the plot for <i>Iron Man 2</i> also was a revenge one, but that worked). I didn't feel it was a strong enough motive for the villain.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And I didn't like what they did with the Mandarin. I'm not comic book fan; nor did I know who the Mandarin was before this movie came out. But I did not like how they made him a phony. I imagine that some people would feel the same way about this as they did about Bane in <i>TDKR</i>. They make him appear all awesome and badass, but it turns out he's just a drunk actor? That's lame and really disappointing. I could see how that could work, but not in <i>Iron Man 3</i>. It is an interesting concept and would be cool to see, but don't do it in a superhero movie. I really wanted to see Iron Man face the Mandarin.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The rest of the things are just mild complaints. I didn't like how they changed Pepper into the fire thing only to change her back two seconds later. If you're going to kill her, kill her. If you are going to changer her, change her. But don't do a "just kidding, she's not really dead" and immediately follow it with a "just kidding again, she's not going to be a fire thing." Just pick one and go with it. Have Iron Patriot save her or something.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> But, one of my favorite parts of the movie involved Pepper. That was when Tony's house gets blown up and he activates his armor. You think it is going to him, but instead it attaches to Pepper and saves her. I thought that moment was moving and revealing of Tony's character. And was a cool moment.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> At first, I thought the part with all of the Iron Man suits was kind of corny. I saw that in the trailer and was dreading it. It was a little silly at first, but then you get caught up in the excitement of the scene and go with it. And it was cool to see some new technology that Tony had created.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And what is up with the extreme fire guys? How come some die by a single gun shot, whereas others get shot multiple times without stopping? And how is it that some of them get killed by a laser gun but others have to be blown up multiple times before they are stopped. And is he breathing fire?</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And why didn't Tony remove the shards in his heart in the first movie, after he got out of the cave? He had access to a hospital then</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> But overall it was a really good movie. The action was great. The acting was good. I really liked Ben Kingsley. It was also really funny. It had a kid in it that wasn't annoying. I might have to say I may have liked this one better than the first. It is a close call...</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW_S1Qvqy0Cqt8I-Uw0ZjXuanjAZ_fuFmvk6X5qQZs8LMfPq-MamyjNNbo3kB4qaGGvK0HJZgz-aiAaYps0LXBQPPws0-u0D-oDufunJ3uK4K-ug-iDk0UXqAEvJuuMPOuLPkRRWuRKk_J/s1600/iron-man-3-poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW_S1Qvqy0Cqt8I-Uw0ZjXuanjAZ_fuFmvk6X5qQZs8LMfPq-MamyjNNbo3kB4qaGGvK0HJZgz-aiAaYps0LXBQPPws0-u0D-oDufunJ3uK4K-ug-iDk0UXqAEvJuuMPOuLPkRRWuRKk_J/s320/iron-man-3-poster.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-53544632833248542882013-04-23T20:03:00.001-06:002013-04-23T20:03:12.488-06:00Les Misérables (2012)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzPeuqBYHOhMmVDVIG_Bi0F4vC4FETJpkvy8x28GhBdKrmGu8BjE5XQKS8si4ESwePzuXtB4f2jocb4D9-Xcz5pWFv9Hr8w4HEkc-vYV9ewoSzkor-YRN5590EctjoWuzxYl1wiZrGuAjd/s1600/Les-Miserables-46.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="182" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzPeuqBYHOhMmVDVIG_Bi0F4vC4FETJpkvy8x28GhBdKrmGu8BjE5XQKS8si4ESwePzuXtB4f2jocb4D9-Xcz5pWFv9Hr8w4HEkc-vYV9ewoSzkor-YRN5590EctjoWuzxYl1wiZrGuAjd/s320/Les-Miserables-46.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Essential plot rundown: Wolverine and Catwoman sing in France. So this was based on a musical that was based on a book that was based on a Saturday morning cartoon. I went in with high hopes for this movie, but I left disappointed and bored.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <i>Les Misérables</i> probably has to be the biggest let down I've seen in a while. It was nominated/won some things and I've only heard good things about it. But, halfway through the movie I was bored and wondering when it was going to be over.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I think the biggest problem was that I didn't connect with any of the characters. I didn't feel for them or care for them. I think that that may have been because there is no dialogue; it is all musical numbers. And I have a hard time understand people when they sing, so I didn't know what they were singing about. Maybe if they had speaking lines like most musicals do, I may have connected better with them.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And speaking of the musicals, I though they were kind of meh. None of them were memorable; none of them stood out. The songs weren't bad, they just weren't particular good. But I though all of the actors did a good job singing. Crowe's singing took a little to get used to, but it was good. And I thought the little kids did really good as well, not only with their singing but with their acting too. I thought they both were really good all around.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I also felt that Sacha Baron Cohen's and Helena Bonham Carter's characters were distracting. I know they were suppose to be comic relief or whatever, but it didn't work for me. Whenever they were on screen it took me out of the movie. I have a hard time taking Sacha Baron Cohen seriously. (I also didn't like him in <i>Hugo</i>).</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And the love story felt extremely forced. Cosette and Marius falling in love after only seeing each other from a distance? Give me a break. They only talked to each other for like five minutes. I felt Éponine's love was more genuine.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And why didn't people move farther away? People are always constantly moving, trying not to get caught, but they only move like four blocks away. If they really wanted to escape why don't they move to a different country?</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> But it wasn't all bad. Like I said, I liked most of the actors. And I thought the cinematography was really good. I liked the close-ups with the shallow depth of field. And I liked how things were composed. It was a good looking film.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> But, overall, it was an ok movie. I didn't care for what was happening on screen, but it sure did look good. Would it be weird to say that I was more moved by <i>Source Code</i> than this?</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjltUWDacc4c9XxfK6pqROhxETwk4htXybKBBs6Vx-o1rYn6fQCyfawJTkshkR8XTFmIXUXKoVNb_Ugc7cDltidEgpqaBFYM9aOIpQH12FKO2uu5tE47LxT0CwODhxpWl1bUEVExiRFs_6k/s1600/Cosette-Official-Movie-Poster-les-miserables-2012-movie-32280133-864-1280.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjltUWDacc4c9XxfK6pqROhxETwk4htXybKBBs6Vx-o1rYn6fQCyfawJTkshkR8XTFmIXUXKoVNb_Ugc7cDltidEgpqaBFYM9aOIpQH12FKO2uu5tE47LxT0CwODhxpWl1bUEVExiRFs_6k/s320/Cosette-Official-Movie-Poster-les-miserables-2012-movie-32280133-864-1280.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-84927113534335042652013-04-20T20:51:00.000-06:002013-06-26T22:58:41.985-06:00TRON and The Thing: Changes in Film Technology from 1982 to 2011<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> So, it is the end of the semester, that mean research papers. And since my major is Media Arts, all of my papers are movie related. So, I'll probably be posting them on the blog. They're longer, ranging from 7 to 10 pages; so you don't have to read them. But they'll be here if you want.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> This first one is a paper I co-wrote with a classmate about changes in film technology in regards to SFX. He wrote about the <i>TRON</i> franchise and I wrote about <i>The Thing</i> movies. We then put them together.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHYACGItmXiyWuxTLfn9K5QshnOVdAncXxy4P5Pwk5clkMh18QugjMQ65AXbDc-0_77svLRYTUrid3KZsmTFEBjL_zPIogxU4-7VJ7YwX5ef-JN2qkbRnEXRpgmEvVNvpRpjDM3LLOK5Ce/s1600/the-thing-title-image.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="139" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHYACGItmXiyWuxTLfn9K5QshnOVdAncXxy4P5Pwk5clkMh18QugjMQ65AXbDc-0_77svLRYTUrid3KZsmTFEBjL_zPIogxU4-7VJ7YwX5ef-JN2qkbRnEXRpgmEvVNvpRpjDM3LLOK5Ce/s320/the-thing-title-image.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>TRON and The Thing:</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>Changes in Film Technology from 1982 to 2011</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The study of the history of cinema rests upon four pillars: aesthetics, sociology, economic and technology. Every work of cinema both influences and is influenced by each pillar, and the pillars intertwine to affect each other. For instance, technological advances create new and unique aesthetics and are informed by social demand and industry prices. A careful comparison of films divided by decades reveals the shifts in filmmaking technology that have occurred. An effective means of comparison involves appraising the differences and similarities between movies in the same franchises between which many years of technological advancement have elapsed. Comparison and contrast of special effects in the 1982 film <i>TRON</i> with its 2010 sequel <i>TRON: Legacy</i> and the The Thing (1982) with its 2011 prequel by the same name indicates the clear and drastic shifts in the technological pillar over the 28 years that divide the films.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <i>TRON</i> is about a computer programmer who is digitized and transferred inside the mainframe of his company’s computer. Once inside the computer, he must find a way to escape. The sequel follows the programmer’s son as he enters the computer in search of his father several years later. By taking place inside of a computer, <i>TRON </i>was an ideal film to explore the possibilities of computer generated effects.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The 1982 film <i>TRON</i> and its 2010 sequel <i>TRON: Legacy</i> are stylistically similar in their </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">visual aesthetics by intentional design. However, the areas where the aesthetics differ between </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">the two films indicate clear shifts in film technology, mainly in post-production computer graphics and compositing technology.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The 1982 film <i>TRON</i> remains a milestone in the history of computer-generated imaging, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">as it pushed the boundaries of the cutting edge of computer imaging and pioneered new </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">technologies that became the foundation for modern practices. It was one of the first movies to rely extensively on CGI. The imaging computer used to create scenes such as the light cycle sequence was the size of a washing machine and used two MB of processing data on a drive with 330MB capacity – figures archaic and minimal by today’s standards, but state-of-the-art at the time of the <i>TRON</i>’s production. In reference to the limitation of their computer, scene programmer, Christ Wedge, recalls, “Our system couldn't hold enough data for us to resolve much stuff in the distance. We had a fog function that would track along, and at a certain distance, we would start mixing in black to fade things out. We called it ‘depth cueing.’ Richard Taylor used to say, ‘When it doubt, black it out!’” (“Tron Then and Now”). The predominantly black environment in which the heterotopic story-arc transpires became an identifying characteristic of the Tron franchise by technological necessity, but the look carried over into the 2010 sequel to maintain stylistic consistency.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The post-production procedure was a tedious and time-consuming process. Effects </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">animator John Van Vliet recalls the hours of painstaking frame-by frame animation and compositing: “[<i>TRON</i>] was a curious hybrid of live action, CG, and hand animation. Every frame </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">of live action had to be blown up to animation-sized cels, color tinted with mattes, have hand-</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">drawn animation added, and then composited under a huge camera” (“Tron Then and Now”). Whereas the computer technology of 1982 required frame-by-frame matte painting and manual compositing, the 2011 picture utilized blue screen technology consistently to composite digital imaging with live action. Director Joseph Kosinski and his team knew they would be pushing the boundaries of what current effects technology can achieve to make <i>Legacy</i> in the spirit of <i>TRON</i>. The result is a complicated blend of techniques, from blue screen to 3D cameras, that Kosinski and his team melded together for the film.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <i>TRON: Legacy</i>’s post-production supervisor Eric Barba claims that the matte painting techniques would have made the overall look of the film, including its exhibition in 3D real-D, quite impossible to achieve. “The cityscape of The Grid traditionally would have been matte paintings, but in a 3D movie other 3D elements won't look right with a flat matte painting. You can't cheat like that. We had to project everything onto geometry with scenes built to the correct scale and depth’" (quoted in Bunish). The advances in filmmaking technology over the 30 years since the original minimized, if not eliminated, the limitations on scope inherent in the original.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Comparison of the costume design of the two films is indicative of the magnitude of the advances in technology over the three decades that divide them. In both films, the suits worn by programs within the TRON system exhibit glowing electronic circuitry, and the faces of the characters while in the program are colored and illuminated. The techniques used to accomplish this coloration differ between the two films due to advances in computer imaging and practical effects. According to Alex Santoso, one of 41 ink and paint artists employed on the crew of the 1982 original, “The glowing circuitry on the character's costumes… were hand-painted onto each frame” (Santoso). By contrast, in the 2010 sequel, the costume designers engineered cutting-edge suites that illuminated themselves with self-contained power and fluorescent light strips flexible enough for high levels of physical motion in thick foam suits. Christine Clark, the film’s associate costume designer, revealed in an interview with “Popular Mechanics” that “we used seven little tiny lithium-ion batteries, together about the size of a deck of cards, for each inverter. And this is all buried inside the hubs in the identity discs on the backs of the suits… and then we would lay the lights into little channels in the foam suits and secure them with Velcro” (Clark). This was accomplished practically due to the fact that the film was shot and screened in 3D, which would have made the frame-by-frame post-production painting very difficult in dual-optic visual effects.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Another film franchise that similarly demonstrates changes in film technology over the past three decades is John Carpenter’s <i>The Thing</i>, released in 1982, and its prequel of the same name, <i>The Thing,</i> which was released in 2011. Similar to <i>TRON</i>, about twenty-eight years passed between each installment, and because of this, the two movies use very different technologies to bring the title creature to life, with each technology adding to the overall aesthetic of the film.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> John Carpenter’s <i>The Thing</i> is a remake of 1951’s <i>The Thing From Another World</i>, which in turn was based on a novella by John W. Campbell, Jr., called “Who Goes There?” The basic story involves an alien ship crash landing Antarctica, where it is dug up by a team of scientists. Once uncovered, the alien turns out to be a shapeshifter and begins assimilated members in the group until it is finally defeated in the end. However, in Carpenter’s film, the alien is originally discovered by a Norwegian team prior to the start, then makes its way to the American camp.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> We could even look back to the 1951 production to see an even wider change in technology. The alien portrayed in the earliest version is merely an actor in a suit; the filmmakers did not have the technology to depict the alien actually changing its form. However, with advances in technology, John Carpenter was able to show one thirty years later. Rob Bottin, head of the special effects team, used animatronics and puppetry to bring the creature to life. Robert Zak, a freelance writer, wrote that <i>The Thing</i> “represents the pinnacle of prosthetic and animatronic-based special effects in horror films” (Zak).</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> There are several scenes where the alien, disguised as a human or a dog, begins to change and ruptures to reveal the monstrous alien. Once such scene occurs when one of the characters, Norris, goes into cardiac arrest. The doctor attempts to use a defibrillator on him, only to have Norris’s chest burst open like a mouth and bite the doctor’s arms off. A second head then emerges from the chest, rising up into the air. The first head detaches itself from the body, sprouts legs and tries to escape. Luckily, the protagonist is able to kill it with a flamethrower.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> There were several techniques used to accomplish this horrendous scene. The first thing that had to be done was to replicate the actor. A reproduction of the head was sculpted into clay, a mold was taken and filled with latex, finalizing with a fake head controlled by a puppeteer. Another puppeteer pushed on a rod, that ran hidden through the fake body, that forced the head away and off of the torso. Other workers controlled the chest/mouth mechanism. A double amputee was used as a body double for the doctor. Fake arms were attached to the actor’s stumps, which were then ripped off by the mouth mechanism. To accomplish the detached head trying to escape, a fake head was attached to a remote control car, that, when drove, moved the legs.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Because all of the effects were mechanical, they had a specific aesthetic to them. All of the effects were very limited in movement. When the second head grows from the chest, the audience sees the body shaking, then it cuts to a reaction shot of one of the researchers, and when it cuts back, the new appendage has fully sprouted. The audience never actually sees the head emerge. There are multiple scenes where the film cuts away and then back to reveal a person farther along in a mutation. Also, the movements of the alien themselves are distinguished. Zak also wrote, “The jerky, twitchy movements do look mechanical, but then the human body essentially is mechanical” (Zak). Because of the limitations and physics of the puppets, the creature has a distinct feel to it.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Twenty nine years later, the prequel was released, which primarily used computer-generated imaging. However, in between the two films, J<i>urassic Park</i> came out, which relied heavily on the combination of practical effects and complex computer-generated imagery and ushered in a new wave of special effects. From that point forward, CGI has become a norm for movie special effects.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> 2011’s <i>The Thing</i> is a prequel to John Carpenter's version, depicting what happened at the Norwegian camp. The alien shown here was done with computer effects. To accomplish these, a team of animators would use computer software to design the look of the creature, decide how it was going to move and change, and adjust textures, layers and lighting, and finally composite it into the final sequence. There were two groups of animators, one working on things like blood and slime and the other animated the transformations themselves. And similar to Carpenter’s version, the creature here splits open, changes and sprouts new limbs. The animators were also able to put actual footage of an actor’s head onto the alien’s CG body, instead of having to “sculpt” a head like Bottin’s team did. They even had a CG alien merge its face into the head of an actor, combining them into one creature, which would have been impossible using puppetry. However, because these were all done inside the computer, they were not limited in the ways that Bottin’s practical effects were. The alien was free to move and change as it wanted to. And because the alien was no longer restrained in what it could do, it had a different feel to it than the previous version.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> While the Thing in the 1982 film only showed part or simple transformations, the prequel was able to show everything. Instead of cutting between reaction shots and progressively more mutated animatronics, the prequel depicted the complete change in shape. A human character would suddenly grow monstrous legs out of its torso and begin to walk around. And while the practical version was limited in movement, the CG version was free to do whatever the animators could think of. There are several scenes in which the creature chases people around the compound, even jumping through a window to get them. All of these movements would have been extremely hard to achieve with practical effects. Zak described the effects as “fast” and “fluid” and that the alien can sprout any number of limbs “with ease” (Zak).</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> These two films demonstrate a major shift in film technology. John Carpenter’s version relied on practical effects. Because of this, they were limited in the creature’s movements and the amount of mutations actually shown. On the other hand, the prequel primarily used computer-generated imagery. And because of this, the creature was free to move, run, change, and sprout all it wanted to. These two different technologies also lend themselves to the overall aesthetic of their respective films.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The dramatic advances in filmmaking technology over the past three decades as indicated by the <i>TRON</i> and <i>The Thing</i> franchises illustrate the awe-inspiring rapidity of technological development. One must only observe the trajectory at which the technological world is evolving to extrapolate the future sophistication of the visual effects industry, which excites practitioners and audience members alike. The technology with which filmmakers accomplish ‘movie magic’ will continue to develop and progress as the medium moves into the brightness of the future.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Bibliography</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jurassic_Park_(film)" target="_blank">"Jurassic Park (film)." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 04 Sept. 2013. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.</a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <a href="http://www.outpost31.com/cfspecial.htm" target="_blank">"The Incredible Effects of The Thing." Cinefantastique n.d.: n. pag. Outpost31.com. Outpost 31. Web. 8 Apr. 2013.</a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0084787/?ref_=sr_1" target="_blank">"The Thing (1982)." IMDb. IMDb.com, n.d. Web. 08 Apr. 2013.</a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <a href="http://film.image-engine.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=287&Itemid=167" target="_blank">"The Thing." Imagine-engine.com. Image Engine, n.d. Web. 08 Apr. 2013.</a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who_Goes_There%3F" target="_blank">"Who Goes There?" Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 04 Feb. 2013. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.</a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Works Cited</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <a href="http://www.creativeplanetnetwork.com/dcp/news/tron-then-and-now/41956" target="_blank">"Tron Then and Now." Creativeplanetnetwork.com. Creative Planet Network, n.d. Web. 9 Apr. 2013.</a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <a href="http://www.markeemagazine.com/january-february-2011/137-digital-domain-creates-a-21st-century-tron-legacy" target="_blank">Bunish, Christine. "Digital Domain Creates a 21st-Century Tron: Legacy."Markeemagazine.com. Markee 2.0, 5 Dec. 2012. Web. 9 Apr. 2013.</a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <a href="http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/digital/visual-effects/tron-legacy-lightsuit-costume-vfx" target="_blank">Clark, Christine. "Creating Tron: Legacy's Lightsuits." Interview by Erin McCarthy.Popularmechanics.com. Popular Mechanics, 9 Dec. 2010. Web. 9 Apr. 2013.</a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <a href="http://www.neatorama.com/neatogeek/2010/06/28/10-neat-facts-about-tron/" target="_blank">Santoso, Alex. "10 Neat Facts About Tron." Neatorama.com. Neatorama, 28 June 2010. Web. 10 Apr. 2013.</a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <a href="http://blogs.independent.co.uk/2012/01/30/modern-horror-lay-off-the-cgi-and-bring-back-prosthetics/" target="_blank">Zak, Robert. "Modern Horror: Lay off the CGI and Bring Back Prosthetics."Blogs.independent.co.uk. The Independent Blogs, 30 Jan. 2012. Web. 08 Apr. 2013.</a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="background-color: transparent;">
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: center;">
</div>
</div>
<div style="background-color: transparent;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-40665922091471880552013-04-03T23:44:00.000-06:002013-04-05T14:47:48.338-06:00G.I. Joes: Retaliation (2013)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeZNxzhLcCKBu35Q1fALezZplqSqSYTo-CpNguwiiIAiQN387YVjXgDNMxouZw27lqSx3s_kbMKVp_VoY9jEiVO00zEIPooQfPGOlyDfGp4VylIEZmOTZzHquKtzJPKgC_fqEy6Pn2HAkX/s1600/NewGIRImages2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeZNxzhLcCKBu35Q1fALezZplqSqSYTo-CpNguwiiIAiQN387YVjXgDNMxouZw27lqSx3s_kbMKVp_VoY9jEiVO00zEIPooQfPGOlyDfGp4VylIEZmOTZzHquKtzJPKgC_fqEy6Pn2HAkX/s320/NewGIRImages2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finally, Cobra Commander looks cool.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Essential plot rundown: The GI Joes must stop Cobra from conquering the world in this rebootish sequel. So this movie was suppose to come out about a year ago, but they decided to delay it to add more Magic Mike and 3D. Who would have thought that Channing Tatum would have become such a hot item between these two movies?</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> So, the question on everyone's mind is: is this better than the first? Yes, yes it is. It is a completely different movie. The tone is a lot better; it is more actiony and less cartoony than its predecessor. It felt more like a GI Joes movie. The nature of the team itself has completely changed. Instead of a huge international organization with a silly underground headquarters, the Joes are portrayed as a covert group, more like the SEALS or something. There are only a handful of returning characters. (Wait, Stormshadow is alive?) And the only real connection, story-wise, to the first is Cobra Commander is being held captive and Zartan is the president. Pretty much everything else has been wiped clean.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And while that sounds all good and dandy, <i>GI Joes: Retaliation</i> isn't perfect. (Surprising, I know). One thing that seemed odd to me was that Cobra had their logo on <i>everything</i>! Briefcases, motorcycles, satellites, pins, everywhere. It just seemed a little conspicuous, considering that Cobra is a terrorist organization.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And there was too much ninja stuff going on. Snake-Eyes is out on his own, doing ninja stuff and everytime it would cut back to him, it took me out of the movie. All of those scenes didn't really mesh well with the rest of the movie. He should have just stayed with the Joes and those scenes scrapped. And they screwed up Stormshadow. They reveal some stuff about his backstory which weakens his character, doesn't add anything to the movie and, frankly, doesn't make any sense. So, that was lame.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I also wanted more. The whole time I was thinking, <i>I want more Bruce Willis. I want more Cobra Commander. I want more Firefly. I want more cool vehicles and stuff.</i> I really enjoyed the movie, but it left me wanting more, and not in the good way. At the moment, I'm not excited for an another sequel; I just wanted more in this one.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> But, overall, it was a fun movie. There was some cool stuff and ideas. I really liked the scene where the president meets with the other world leaders. So, yea, check it out if you want.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMjdC-RbxnwZ8UEZ_gVS18mL1pVkJbW19eeTjhb-Hczttbjv4BPrX0GOlJIoyPeCgxTOAQHjq3RyAnq_LGweix-W4ixMYNTfuXQ7-IOqxDZpHJwULfM83F2rfGaSpKhwU5yQtywMKJnk_W/s1600/gijoe-international-watermark-jpg_163728.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMjdC-RbxnwZ8UEZ_gVS18mL1pVkJbW19eeTjhb-Hczttbjv4BPrX0GOlJIoyPeCgxTOAQHjq3RyAnq_LGweix-W4ixMYNTfuXQ7-IOqxDZpHJwULfM83F2rfGaSpKhwU5yQtywMKJnk_W/s320/gijoe-international-watermark-jpg_163728.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-69640559694353897802013-03-22T00:29:00.000-06:002013-03-22T00:29:36.845-06:00Iron Man 2 (2010)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Qmc34S5R5p7skAA6Z_Y7T9ORmRH736PjWZQleAlQSROcSNj9GLAS5AoBbAin639CqcIXap1SJZjKXpTgEwdSZD3I3WtNHseutZ9dXuKoBZXYxsEZcFkMBO_82lLI-vnvBRvrnMaVuInM/s1600/800_iron_man_2_blu-ray_5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="137" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Qmc34S5R5p7skAA6Z_Y7T9ORmRH736PjWZQleAlQSROcSNj9GLAS5AoBbAin639CqcIXap1SJZjKXpTgEwdSZD3I3WtNHseutZ9dXuKoBZXYxsEZcFkMBO_82lLI-vnvBRvrnMaVuInM/s320/800_iron_man_2_blu-ray_5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Essential plot rundown: Iron Man has to deal with the government, a communist and some lead poisoning. So, I wanted to watch this when I re-watched everything for <i>The Avengers</i>, but I never got around to it. But, we watched <i>Iron Man</i> in my class yesterday so it re-sparked an interest.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <i>Iron Man 2</i> is not nearly as good as <i>Iron Man 1</i>. It is not as funny. It doesn't have as much heart. The soundtrack is not as awesome. And it has a lot more problems. And it is those problems that I will primarily be addressing.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The whole War Machine thing bothered me. First of all, I preferred Terrence Howard over Don Cheadle; for some reason, I'm not a big fan Don Cheadle. And how did Rhodey get access to the suits? Tony must have given him some kind of clearance to get into his basement (because we see him using codes to get in), but access to a suit? And when did he learn how to operate it? It doesn't make sense. And that fight scene was kind of weird.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And then he just steals the suit? What a dick. And then he hands it over to Hammer so he can "weaponize" it? Isn't it already weaponized? Isn't that why the government wanted it? What's the point of putting a gun on another gun? It seemed a little redundant to me. And then he presents at the Stark Expo? It's like stealing a Big Mac, putting some bacon on it and advertising at a McDonald's convention. It doesn't work.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And why didn't Ivan Vanko die in the beginning? He gets hit by a car multiple times and then Iron Man punches him in the face. Does having an arc reactor give his super strength?</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And what about the poison? Other than dying, it doesn't really add anything to the plot. Everybody just sits around saying how bad it is. But it doesn't really affect him. And then he easily creates a new element right after JARVIS said he couldn't? Why does JARVIS say he can't do it when, in the very next scene, he does?</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And I didn't care much for Agent Fury. They should have just shown him once and then left him out. Just have Iron Man interact with the hot chick and the cool guy.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And how can Vanko transform suits into drones? The only thing he does is replace the helmet with a remote control.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And how many paragraphs can I start with the word 'and'?</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> So, overall it is an ok film. It's not bad, it has some good action sequences. But it pales in comparison to the original. But, the third one looks pretty badass; so, I'm excited for that.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-IGT_cdoiAqdKPO84aWBjQIq3vGlXYcEhz3HSsVAJCWEUWg8wHkjgO3Lgo-Gti5Erb82cLWzl8iDBsxt1ptlqQZQCBoLIuhgNZHXUfdF_7uFwFjzMYYKxu7L85k6a_n-fJAWHDVwB3uxG/s1600/iron-man-2-movie-poster-war-machine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-IGT_cdoiAqdKPO84aWBjQIq3vGlXYcEhz3HSsVAJCWEUWg8wHkjgO3Lgo-Gti5Erb82cLWzl8iDBsxt1ptlqQZQCBoLIuhgNZHXUfdF_7uFwFjzMYYKxu7L85k6a_n-fJAWHDVwB3uxG/s320/iron-man-2-movie-poster-war-machine.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-50398970793931312362013-03-12T22:47:00.000-06:002013-03-12T22:47:25.296-06:00The Reward (2013)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsFH8-2Pzk1vcdxQwxSkJYp_ldx1kJjS2NlpAhHRqJLdJdERnKLgGKOAcw9yNxsWua92v-IX56hGEb4HTvA0CsSoTaZWsYqHXSfxVQioQyC2K_ObBsa9kqNpTK3FaYu4LYrLrRahNASZhc/s1600/TheReward.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsFH8-2Pzk1vcdxQwxSkJYp_ldx1kJjS2NlpAhHRqJLdJdERnKLgGKOAcw9yNxsWua92v-IX56hGEb4HTvA0CsSoTaZWsYqHXSfxVQioQyC2K_ObBsa9kqNpTK3FaYu4LYrLrRahNASZhc/s320/TheReward.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> So, this is a pretty sweet animated short. It's good and I liked the ending; good moral. But yea, enough of me; go watch it.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Watch it right <a href="http://vimeo.com/58179094" target="_blank">HERE</a>!</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> But, seriously; go watch it. And they are trying to get funding to make it into a feature film. So thats' cool too.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <i>But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-69221587969192063542013-03-07T16:57:00.001-07:002013-03-07T16:57:11.472-07:00The Iron Giant (1999)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3hsVHlRQvcVkYfpdySPt3naQWJntsx286-FPSIwpmPsxZfIoTsntd-JwRwTYAwzWBOoZE-UOYje2oLBXeSgKdq2cd7wc-0yUarnoDD0gaL-1rO9LVdwT6RvV5codKgyTw9HKFVjUqh4aP/s1600/iron-giant-film-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3hsVHlRQvcVkYfpdySPt3naQWJntsx286-FPSIwpmPsxZfIoTsntd-JwRwTYAwzWBOoZE-UOYje2oLBXeSgKdq2cd7wc-0yUarnoDD0gaL-1rO9LVdwT6RvV5codKgyTw9HKFVjUqh4aP/s320/iron-giant-film-2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Essential plot rundown: A boy must protect a giant robot from the government. I watched this in my class yesterday. And I guess it's based on a book.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> This is a really good movie. Probably one of the best things about it is that it can appeal to both kids and adults. It is not a childish cartoon. It has a good story and it also has some pretty good themes and messages. (Though, I felt like it's "anti-gun" moral was a little heavy handed.) Other than that everything was handled pretty well.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Like I said, the story is pretty solid, though not entirely original. It's pretty funny, there are some good one liners and comic timing; it's also a little moving. (I may or may not have gotten a little teary eyed...) The animation is good. The Iron Giant has a cool design. And he's entirely CG whereas the rest of the movie is traditional hand drawn animation.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> There was only one negative thing I could think of. I don't see how a train could do more damage than an army. But I'm glad they haven't done a sequel.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> So overall, I really liked it. I don't really have much to say other than it has a solid story, good animation, it's funny and moving, and has some good messages/themes. I feel like this whole post is just me repeating myself... But you should go see it if you haven't yet.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlPE-mOds86FMhgBeGDwtOmcCE6Sao8aM_52a8mcbxEPruMzA498ke9PsEJcVJLLQXqMT9bwal2BuqYJQyrp-Kyacy5j1AZGgpzS0ys7hF3h1FiD33xRgZu6aiVu7UHUbnBjSSyKHYNATu/s1600/the-iron-giant.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlPE-mOds86FMhgBeGDwtOmcCE6Sao8aM_52a8mcbxEPruMzA498ke9PsEJcVJLLQXqMT9bwal2BuqYJQyrp-Kyacy5j1AZGgpzS0ys7hF3h1FiD33xRgZu6aiVu7UHUbnBjSSyKHYNATu/s320/the-iron-giant.jpg" width="241" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4209646800630561837.post-90535298467787817022013-03-05T22:19:00.000-07:002013-03-05T22:19:19.535-07:00Mama (2013)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE4TJ2V4VtKIobpNZJCOD4WlYa_FrMnTw66cIgiRNZNrWe4Gw1bS95BJt2ZseNmGqgXGVwzWkmuSSbCI8NK1gLmsK-aKDyUGYdsTAp-M9IW_b9N0t5klWphyphenhyphenonKT5Wvc9xbFDSwCUR84Ch/s1600/Mama-2013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE4TJ2V4VtKIobpNZJCOD4WlYa_FrMnTw66cIgiRNZNrWe4Gw1bS95BJt2ZseNmGqgXGVwzWkmuSSbCI8NK1gLmsK-aKDyUGYdsTAp-M9IW_b9N0t5klWphyphenhyphenonKT5Wvc9xbFDSwCUR84Ch/s320/Mama-2013.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Essential plot rundown: Two lost kids pick up a ghostly follower. So, it had been a month since I've been to the movie theater and considering I had some free time in between classes, I decided to go. And this was the only movie that ended before my evening class, so I saw it.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I had mixed feelings about <i>Mama</i>; I felt it had a lot of potential, but didn't execute properly. One of the things that bothered me was the story; it didn't flow well. Basically, what it seemed like was that they had two interesting stories and mashed them together and they didn't mash very well. Story 1 was about these girls that grew up alone in the woods, then re-entered society and had to adjust. Story 2 was about a ghost that did ghostly things. I thought each individual story was interesting and could have work on their own as individual movies; I didn't think they blended too well. Story 1 had some touching moments and I think they could have really expounded on those and made a convincing drama. And, while I don't know how original story 2 was, I was intrigued and thought it was a good ghost story. So, basically the potential was the two stories and the bad execution was putting them together.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I didn't really think it was scary, either. It relies mostly on jump scares and music. Yes, there were some scary parts (the best coming straight from the short on which it was based; that gave me chills), but it didn't work for me overall. Part of the reason for this was that they showed waaaay too much of Mama. They show her right in the beginning and continued to show her throughout the whole movie. And some of the things she did looked really corny and stupid. Less is defiantly more.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I also had mixed feelings about the ending. The ending, once again, shows way too much of the title character. And it didn't really make sense. So, I wasn't a fan of that. But, I did like that fact that they "went there". I don't want to spoil anything, but you'll probably know what I mean when you see it. I give them kudos for that, because it is so easy not to.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And one last thing, I don't know how it took them five years to find the car. It wasn't that hidden. They must have been pretty dumb not to see it sooner.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> So overall, it is an ok movie. It had some good parts and merits; but it also had a lot of mistakes. It's worth checking out when you have the time but it's nothing special. But Jessica Chastain is pretty hot.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsj-cEG9OzzftoSc5LzjX3OAfue9A7vOjE5OAFBd7kcXkmNKrRvnOFqN_7MvYtAZvWDErJTJMZ6OF0DzpMSO6siy-yCfj5O-wLOlokRF047aNJqSovs1NdDqS4Y5d4gz3C5CBUxQUa0oXA/s1600/mama-movie-poster-2013-jessica-chastain.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsj-cEG9OzzftoSc5LzjX3OAfue9A7vOjE5OAFBd7kcXkmNKrRvnOFqN_7MvYtAZvWDErJTJMZ6OF0DzpMSO6siy-yCfj5O-wLOlokRF047aNJqSovs1NdDqS4Y5d4gz3C5CBUxQUa0oXA/s320/mama-movie-poster-2013-jessica-chastain.jpg" width="202" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i> But that's just my opinion...</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
rscottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653142414614084847noreply@blogger.com0