Posts filed under 'movies'
An Open Letter to the Fans of “Hancock” (Spoilers)
Dear Manohla Dargis, David Denby, and other people who enjoyed the 2008 feature film “Hancock”:
Have you seen the second half of the movie? The movie started out so great. We’ve got Will Smith as a down-and-out with superhero abilities. He’s trying to help but unable to. He’s a lonely alcoholic and no one ever told him how to do his job, which everyone expects him to do because of his raw ability. This is a fresh take on the superhero angle, and a lot of it is good. The comedic paring Smith with Jason Bateman as his PR Agent is fresh, and it culminates in Hancock’s successful post-prison assist.
The movie could have gone in so many directions from here. But instead, they strike up this crap with Charlize Theron’s character that makes no sense and eclipses the rest of the movie without any regard for the first half. The movie “culminates” in this ridiculous hospital scene with a lot of requisite writhing and screaming and me scratching my head and wondering how these poorly described limitations on Hancock’s power are supposed to be working. Did you notice that when Hancock is (kind of) told of his identity, he doesn’t even ask what his name is? They should have at least had Will Smith speaking Greek or something interesting. That won’t make any sense to you if you haven’t seen the movie, but you probably shouldn’t. I’m inclined to agree with the age-old Filthy Film Critic. Or, better yet, get it on DVD and stop watching after the bank scene.
photo courtesy of Dwarf Hippo blog
Add comment July 14, 2008
A Paris Journal
Well I’m home. Bigger soda containers and even bigger automobiles. More culture shock reflections to come. Now, the first European post in retrospect. I’m going to try and hit the main places, though I may not go in order. Going to get my three disposable cameras developed soon.
As promised, here are my thoughts on Paris that I jotted down while I was there. I tried to get a “drawing” on each page. Almost. Sorry if you can’t read it, that’s my actual handwriting. Click to enlarge, more after the jump.
1 comment June 19, 2008
Russian Tattoos in Eastern Promises
So, I just saw “Eastern Promises,” the latest David Cronenberg movie, which like “A History of Violence,” also featured Viggo Mortensen (Aragorn). It was really good, and prominently featured the Russian mob. Viggo’s character is decorated in tattoos, which end up as a big part of the movie, and it’s really interesting. In the “thief in law” tradition, tattoos say everything about you. As explained in this article:
In Russian prisons, tattoos emerged as a visual mode of communication, linked with social division. The images of churches, Christs, cats, Madonnas, dolphins and bears, to name just a few, became part of a secret, political language that allowed for clandestine communication both in and out of the system.
There’s even a special featurette on the DVD about the alcohol-based fake tattoos made for the movie. From a design perspective, it’s really interesting to think about the tattoos as a visual code. The tattoos say everything: what kind of crime, if you used to do it or still do it, prison sentences, and affiliations. I mean, despite the horror of what these people are responsible for, it’s pretty bad ass. Two of the tattoos Viggo picked for his character are a pair with one on each foot. On one foot, it says “where are you going?” in Russian. On the other, it says “what the fuck do you care?” There’s even a movie, called the The Mark of Caïn, which Netflix doesn’t have unfortunately.
2 comments January 17, 2008
Michael Chabon’s X-Men
So I was doing some research on Michael Chabon for some academic writing today, and in looking for something else he had written in Harper’s, I stumbled upon something else quite interesting. Harper’s has this amazing feature on its website where everything is scanned and available to subscribers online.
I remember reading on wikipedia that Chabon pitched a story for the X-Men movie, but Fox passed over it in favor of the version that eventually became “X-Men.” However, Harpers published an excerpt from Chabon’s treatment and you can read it here in PDF form. I don’t know what the weather’s like where you are, but here in DC we had the first snow of the season, and I thought it was appropriate for Wolverine’s breakout.
Chabon is my favorite writer, and “The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay” is my favorite book. This pitch is really interesting to read. While certain dynamics do show up throughout the three movies, which I enjoyed overall, Chabon’s story is so different. I think it’s especially interesting to substitute g-men wearing jackets with Bodoni typeface for Magneto as the villain. (Why Bodoni, is it Facist because it’s Italian?) In terms of why the studio didn’t go for it, I think it might have been too far out of the comics universe for many fans. If you take a little bit of the macho out of Wolverine it makes him a more interesting character, but then you run the risk of taking the “x” out of x-men.
the above image is taken from Ultimate X-men #2, which has its own version of Wolverine’s escape.
1 comment December 5, 2007
Wes Anderson Ranking: What’s Your Top Five?
So it seems like every time a Wes Anderson movie comes out, people love to rank them. Darjeeling Limited makes five movies, and that’s enough to make a decent list. Most people I have discussed this with are very opinionated about it and rightfully so—so many people love these fucking movies. Below is how I arrange them, but write how you would do it in the comments.
5. Bottle Rocket: This movie is raw and fresh, but distinctly WA. The Wilson brothers are always played well against each other and this is great first movie by any standard.
4. The Royal Tenenbaums: I like this movie a lot, but I don’t connect with it as much as other people do. It has all the necessary story elements and is told like all the others, but I don’t feel the need to re-watch it over and over: once every two years or so is enough to keep me going. It does really make me want to live in a brownstone though.
3. The Darjeeling Limited: My initial reaction to this movie was huge and I really enjoyed it. The Indian imagery is captivating and engaging and the acting is great, but my friend called it a little “forced” and now I can’t get that out of my head. I see what he means, but it doesn’t make it that much less enjoyable for me. And I liked the music, even (gasp) without Mark Mothersbaugh.
2. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou: I fucking loved this movie and still can’t believe the people who didn’t get it. It had an excellent cast and score on par with Rushmore’s. It was almost surreal/magical realist in premise but completely consistent with the rest of his movies in content. If you can’t handle claymation fish, then I really don’t know what to tell you.
1. Rushmore: I just love this movie. Not only because of what the movie did for the handjob (you really have to have seen it to understand that) but because of how I feel when I watch it. For someone in school, there’s so much to relate to and linger over. It’s my favorite movie and it features my favorite movie soundtrack, and that’s entirely subjective but entirely justified. Have you ever been biking on a brisk fall day while listening to “Hardest Geometry Problem In The World?” Have you noticed that squirrelly little kid in almost every scene? Have you ever seriously considered starting the Kite Flying Society?
photo from The Darjeeling Limited courtesy of flickr user idealterna
3 comments October 22, 2007
