#me saying this like i have watched more than 2 adaptations (the 2002 movie & the musical inspired by the movie LOL) | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

reallycolorfulruins · 2 months

Text

Blog #2 | Ringu directed by Hideo Nakata

The film that I chose was none other than Ringu directed by Hideo Nakata. In my opinion, I believe this film has the most international notoriety to it. Based on the short description that I will give of the film, most people should have somewhat an idea of what this film is or have heard of this film. The start of the film we see two highschool girls telling ghost stories and the story involves a haunted tape that if watched you will receive a phone call and die in seven days. This highschool girl, who actually watched the film is killed and no one knows why. We then follow the Aunt, who believes it was this cursed VHS tape that caused her niece's death. The Aunt watches the film and then it follows her seven days of trying to figure out the origins of this tape. If the base story of the cursed VHS tape sounds familiar, then you may have heard of one of the 16 adaptations of this film. This included many television shows of this film and two American remakes and a South Korean remake.

Before we go into the international success of this film and comparing it to the American remake, I would like to discuss a particular scene that stood out from this film. Most people might recognize this scene and maybe not exactly from this movie, but maybe one of the remakes. That scene would be when the long blacked haired girl wearing a white gown comes out of the T.V.. What surprised me from this film, was how late this event was actually shown. I will put a link to this part of this film, so others can watch it. The reason why I chose this part in particular and I am not to worried about spoilers for this part is how notable it is in society. This part of the film is what has been recreated so many time all over media and is what gives this movie it’s horror. The video that I will link is the comparison of the 1998’s version of this scene and the American 2002’s remake (linked below), which will take me to the next part of my discussion. The film was an international success and from the article “50 Facts about the movie Ringu” written by Kania Brazell, “Ringu’s unique blend of psychological horror and supernatural elements has had a significant influence on Western horror movies…”( ¶ 11). That being said, the American remake was different compared to the original. The American remake put more of the jump scare aspect of horror in this film, while the original was a very drawn out slow horror experience. I have personally seen the American remake of Ringu, The Ring and even though it has been some time since I have seen it, I do recall those differences. From the article “The Ring: Why The American Remake Cut 50 Percent Of The Original Story” written by Maisy Flowers,“...Many American horror films—at least from the early 2000s era remakes—were designed to be highly palatable to the largest possible audience, featuring straightforward plots, solid scares, and simplicity…”(¶ 13). Understanding the difference in approach to film America took compared to the original gives a deeper understanding of the cultural differences of this film. The Japanese original revolved around the folk-lore and culture of their country and the American remake was more marketed to get the highest box office hit. This is not to say that the remake is a terrible movie and it stayed faithful to the original story, but with many cuts to the story for a different audience experience. I recommend checking out both versions of this film and seeing which one you enjoyed better.

Citations & Links

Brazell, K. (2024, March 3). 50 facts about the movie Ringu. Facts.net. https://facts.net/movie/50-facts-about-the-movie-ringu/#:~:text=of%20the%20film.-,The%20popularity%20of%20Ringu%20led%20to%20a%20surge%20in%20interest,%2C%20cinema%2C%20and%20storytelling%20traditions.

Farrelledagain. (2019a, September 18). All things ring: Ringu movies & TV. IMDb. https://www.imdb.com/list/ls066282679/

Farrelledagain. (2019b, September 18). All things ring: Ringu movies & TV. IMDb. https://www.imdb.com/list/ls066282679/Flowers, M. (2020, July 15). The ring: Why the American remake cut 50 percent of the original story. ScreenRant. https://screenrant.com/ring-movie-gore-verbinski-changes-original-movie-explained/

youtube

#1990s #2000s #film #horror #japan #Youtube

0 notes

akwardlyuncool · 1 year

Photo

Class Favorites: Movie Rank!

This is a ranking of all the movies I watched for the first time in 2022. I didn’t review every new movie, but I will link to any reviews that I can. That being said, be sure and click the links to also see the trigger/content warnings. (If they are what you need.)

Also it’s not in reverse order because I can never be bothered.

1) Spider Man No Way Home (2022)

It was just good and gave what it needed to give. The “surprise” was very well done and definitely worth the watch. If you haven’t seen but would I recommend. Sorry no review, but I enjoyed myself and I’m pretty sure there were tears at some point in the watching of this film.

2) Lone Star State Of Mind (2002)

We can argue that there were better made movies on this list, but I promise you none of them made me laugh as hard and gave the comedic gold that this one did. Laughter is a strong sway and in a world that’s falling apart, I’ll take the joy of genuine laughter. Joshua Jackson and DJ Qualls don’t hurt either. It’s what you want out of a 2002 comedy.

3) Unpregnant (2020)

I think the movie did what it set out to do very well and that’s why it’s up here so high. Would it be one to get a quicker rewatch? No, but it was still a pretty decent movie over all and in the lineup it stood out as a good movie, if you’re into the the YA book to movie adaptations.

4) The Ultimate Playlist Of Noise (2021)

I think I’m just so in love with music and playlists and having a soundtrack to everything, that there was no way this movie wasn’t going to get a high ranking on this list. It was a little heavy, but still gave off more light than anything. Yes there were the typical he has to save her or they have to save each other, but at the end of the day a decent little movie. Now I’ll be honest and say that my brain didn’t automatically remember this one, but after seeing it in the line up it does spark some good memories.

5) Moonshot (2022)

This movie was good for what it was and because it wasn’t trying to be something it clearly wasn’t, I enjoyed it. it fell right among it’s peers and even out preformed some of them. It was cute, lighthearted and took a couple digs at billionaires and they’re gross infatuation with space, so it metaled in my book.

6) The Making of Lords Of Dogtown

This was like a 30-45 minutes documentary on how they made the Hollywood movie version of Lords of Dogtown. I really enjoyed the original documentary on those kids story and thought the movie was also done really well and this addition to that collection of things was well received, at least by the small subset of folks who claimed to have watched it on Letterboxed. If you watched the movie and just want more, but have already seen the original documentary, then this is a solid recommend. And even if you haven’t seen the movie, but just love skate culture, then I recommend it to you as well. I will say that it is a bonus feature on the DVD copy, however since I only got the VHS tape, I went and found a copy of it on YouTube.

Note: I didn’t rank this one higher because of it being a DVD bonus feature, but if it was a full length documentary it probably would have garnered one of the top 3 spots.

7) Cherry (2021)

We all know that sometimes the drama wins and I think that’s why I went and ranked this the way that I did. There were parts that were really intense and then there were parts that weren’t as great, but overall I thought it was worth checking out and something that I wouldn’t steer people away from, that is unless subjects of war, addiction and PTSD struggles are a trigger for you, then I’d go check something else out.

8) Elvis and Annabelle (2007)

This was a very late watch in the year for me, but it still found a way to make the top 10 cut. I liked this one more than I thought I would and I think most people who are also into dark, but still kinda light romances, would too. It pulls at heart strings and keeps you engaged, definitely one I can see having a small following behind it.

9) Step Up Revolution (2012)

I took a moment in 2012 to rewatch the Step Up series and also catch the ones that I hadn’t seen before. I had previously seen 1 and 2 and maybe the beginning of part 3, so this one was new for me. If my memory is holding up, Revolution was the most fun I had with the series and that’s not counting the first movie. It was also the film in the series that held a lot of it’s own weight without Moose’s character. Moose does show up at the end and does his little thing, but the rest of the movie fares pretty decently without him.

10) Too Young To Be A Dad (2002)

Since I didn’t post a review the quick synopsis is that 15 year old Matt Freeman (Paul Dano) get’s his girlfriend pregnant and the families all have to figure out what to do, when Matt wants to step up.

First it’s Paul Dano, so do with that information what you will. Second this is a “Lifetime,” made-for-TV movie, so treat it like such. Now I’d say it was decent for what it is. It’s not ranking at the top in it’s category, but it does pretty well in mid range. I find enjoyment in this type of movie, however I know not everyone else does, so watch or not watch accordingly.

11) Gully (2019)

Gully is ranked this low simply because it is so traumatizing. To quote my review cause I felt like I said it best then, “if you are emotionally tired of seeing Black youth being brutalized, even in a fictional setting and even if they are sometimes being brutal themselves, (product of their environment) give this one a pass. You do not have to sit through all that trauma because someone on Twitter was talking about how it’s a “must see.” Now if you feel you can handle it, than I suggest watching it with self-care practices in place.”

Basically the cast preformed very well, but it was far too violent and once again traumatizing for me to rank it any higher. Part of me thinks I could have gone even lower with it but since the cast did so well, while there were other just not great performances, it gets a mid rage score.

12) Expecting Amish (2014)

Another “Lifetime” made-for-TV movie, cause I dabbled in a few this year. This one was fairly decent, but it ranked lower because of the ending. When a movie is Oh-Kay, but it doesn’t give you what you want, you tend to drop it down several points. That all being said it has Jesse McCartney, so do with that information what you will lol.

13) Step Up All In (2014)

It’s the Battle of 2014 apparently. It’s also an “All Starts Season,” which everyone knows is typically filler. It wasn’t the worst in the Step Up lineup, but you could see what they were doing and even when you had a moment of fun, you were still kinda tired. It’s fun with the binge though.

14) Step Up 3D (2010)

I remember starting this movie forever ago, but not getting very far into it, fast forward to this binge of the series and I finally understood why. Basically this is the boring feature. It’s the movie they made while thinking they still had clout from the previous two and they were wrong. Again Moose does his thing, as well as Alyson Stoner, but it just wasn’t enough.

15) First Love (2022)

This was a movie that wanted to be something is didn’t deliver. It wanted to be a star crossed lovers film, but never succeeded in making us actually believe that. Yes it was the better of the Hero Fiennes Tiffin movies I saw this this year and it wasn’t the worst thing I saw, but I’m not sure I want to put something I thought was a little empty too high on this list.

16) Left For Dead: The Ashley Reeves Story (2021)

The quick rundown since no review, is that 17 year old Ashley Reeves was assaulted and left for dead, but later found buried alive and it follows how she coped afterwards.

This is an actual Lifetime Movie, based on a true story and sometimes they get them pretty decent and sometimes they fail and this one was not good. Yes the story itself is captivating, but the way it was told here wasn’t. It felt fake and rushed and overdramatic without the actual good dramatic parts to hold it up. It lacked so much for the type of story it was trying to tell and it just wasn’t worth the watch, unless you want to see all of them, good or bad. Good for it here though, cause there were worse movies that I saw in 2022.

17) Love, Game, Match (2022)

Students try to pair up their teachers, but there’s secrets that threaten to get in the way.

Another made-for-tv movie that didn’t give me any of the feels they are at the very least required to give. I’ll pretty much sit through any former Degrassi star’s post community school work, especially if there’s romance involved, but that doesn’t mean I have to call it good. It took me a couple sittings to get through this 1hr 25min movie because it couldn’t keep my attention when it needed to. I’m not a big fan of the word boring, but sometimes that’s the only way you can describe a film that lackluster. The goal is to crank out a lot and sometimes they’re good and sometimes they’re not, but a lot of time they’re just there on the Urgent Care waiting room TV making so the room isn’t totally empty. It was simply fine.

18) The Change-Up (2011)

2 best friends switch bodies after thinking the other has the better life.

I’ve been wanting to see this movie for a long time, cause i happen to enjoy these types of films, but after watching it I feel like it could have stayed as something I just happened to missed. I guess I was over sitting through that much trash with little reward and maybe that’s why I shouldn’t be picking these movies up. There is no redemption arc that needs to happen here, at least not with this one. Sometimes this particular trope or theme or whatever is done well and other times the fact that you’ve seen it play out several times pulls it down even further.

19) After Ever Happy (2022)

One had to come before the other and this one was slightly better and do mean slight than it’s sibling that came out last year. It’s a toxic relationship, no shipping, we’re just in too deep.

20) Zach and Miri Make A Porno (2008)

2 Best Friends/Roommates who can’t pay their bills decide to make an adult film with their friends as well as some paid actors. What once was platonic may be catching some feels.

I love this era of movie, but not even Seth Rogen being Seth Rogen could save this movie, especially with him dropping the n-word. (Like that is one of the most unattractive things I’ve seen him do.) It had points for some professions of love, but lost them. Sorry not sorry, but a sad one in an era that I generally like. I feel like if I had watched it back in high school that I probably would have found some joy in this film, but once again I probably watched it too late and the connection is lost.

21) After We Fell (2021)

This movie was rushed and I barely knew what what going on in relation to where we were in the story line. This story is a mess just like the main character’s toxic relationship. There’s just not much redeeming for this particular film or the After series in general, so I think it was always end up at the bottom of the barrel.

0 notes

thekatebridgerton · 2 years

Text

Now here's my honest review of season 2 gentle reader. And beware beware I have never held my tongue Infront of all of you

SEASON 2 BRIDGERTON can be summarized in one sentence for me: WHAT THE F NETFLIX

I'm sorry I was not aware I was watching the kissing booth 5. Because it seemed to have been written by the same writers who delight in reducing characters to love triangle plot devices

I understand Bridgerton had to stop production multiple times due to COVID-19 and this may have resulted in less intimacy scenes but cero intimacy at all?? Do the creators hate Kanthony?

Let's start with the plot. Those of you who know your classic Indian movies. Tell me this plot between Kate Anthony and Edwina didn't scream 'Mujhse Dosti Karoge' to any of you. Except that 2002 Mujhse Dosti Karoge did it better. Google the Bollywood movie dear readers its one of my favorites

The whole 'marry her even when you love me' thing. Not all viewers know their Bollywood movies but I certainly know mine and I smell a distinct lack of creativity in the writing room for this classic to be what they choose to copy.

Was the writing team responsible for adapting the source material of the viscount who loved me also among those who had COVID-19 during the production hiatus?

Netflix I demand to see your books, so I can know where all your budget went. Because it certainly didn't go to the writers room.

I honestly did not understand what was the big deal about Anthony not being able to marry Kate. He's a bloddy viscount! He's got a title. His reputation will survive and so will his family's if he marries the sister of the young lady who jilted him. He is a peer of the realm and he's rich. His sister is a duchess!!

Why was the ton acting like it would be such a scandal? Not even Penelope saw fit to make fun of the situation in Lady Whistledown. That's how meh it was.

Kate is all I expected her to be. Except I did not see enough of her and that made me angry. Who cares about Jack and Lady Featherington. I wanted to know about Kate's life in India with Edwina, Mary and her father.

Hate to say it but the Sharma family was better developed in the books. Kate's trauma with storms and the death of her parents seemed entirely removed and I can't believe I'm saying this but the whole love triangle plot made me MISS SIENNA

Gosh I can't believe there would be a day I'd be asking for Sienna to be back.

Anthony's man pain took presedence over Kate's story which is all well and good but I can't help but think that whoever was in charge of season 2 hates Kanthony as much as they hate wholesome female friendships. Of which I found none in season 2

Kate treated Edwina like a child, Edwina treated Kate as her surrogate parent, Eloise and Penelope spent the entire season being low key judgmental of each other. As was Violet, Mary Sharma hardly spoke up for herself, and God bless Genevieve Delacroix really. The only woman with sense in that ensemble

Francesca disappeared to God knows where. But given that Eloise was off romancing a printers apprentice right under her family's noses I have no doubt that the far more discreet Frannie was off expanding her her drug empire From Bath to London with the help of her brother in law Simon.

Daphne at least grew on me. She's a far better secondary character than she was a main. Although everytime she opened her mouth to talk to Eloise I was waiting for someone to call her out on the hipocrysy. Daphne you literally married your Duke because Anthony was all 'pistols at dawn mate'

Eloise, darling I was rooting for you to shake up the ton and speak your mind to your would be suitors. Instead you pull a Colin and run off from camera to prove you lack common sense, at whatever chace you get

Also is the printer man okay? Penelope wasn't particularly nice as the Irish maid but the printer deserves our respect for being a good business partner. I hope he still earns a lot of money

Colin and Penelope were okay but gosh the season was already painful enough without pushing forward the scene that broke Penelope's heart.

The Featherington plot was unnecessary but funny. And Portia IS quite growing on me.

The show is really going out of it's way to hammer down the fact that Colin is a pretty gullible idiot isn't it? Are they trying to convince me he lacks the braincells necessary to deserve our Penelope? Because if so, they're succeeding

It was naturally a delight to see sir Phillip again. He's still the most adorable of all Bridgerton future spouses and I hope we see glimpse of him in later seasons. Marina... Well her personality has not changed, I'll give you that

Benedict. Sigh. Wholesome idiot. Next

Also What the F was up with Lady Danbury?? What was the point of spending 7 episodes cockblocking Kate? Why exactly? Street cred? The opinion of the queen? Satisfying her own pride?.

At least Queen Charlotte is consistent with who she is and her motivations in general. Lady Danbury baffled me to no end.

I feel like the only episode worth watching was #8 because at least the pacing is what it should be in episode 8. Even if it felt like a huge cliffhanger to not even give us a wedding

Overall Season 2 was obviously made for show viewers. Not book purists like myself. I look forward to discussing s2 with all of you. But this author feels that a year and 3 months of anticipation were just dashed and it certainly wasn't what I expected

The good news is, there's still fanworks. And I can definitely find many fanfiction writers ready to rewrite that mess of a season 2 into something that's less of a letdown.

If you put them in my inbox I'll give a signal boost.

And that has been the tea

#bridgerton #what the fuck netflix #anthony bridgerton #kate x anthony #eloise bridgerton #kate sharma #kate sheffield #benedict bridgerton #kanthony #polin #Eloise Bridgerton

65 notes · View notes

aq2003 · 2 years

Text

ranking every recent spidey movie because i am biased and contain opinions

spider-man (2002). this movie is pretty funny and dafoe (best part of the movie) kills it as green goblin. however it also aged badly with the special effects and Not Great Writing of the female characters™. tobey is great but i think he shines more in the later movies (which i will get to). it does a great job of setting up the characters and universe but it's also the most basic of the raimi trilogy imo. because while this is pretty cohesive narrative-wise it's still less enjoyable to me than the others (doesn't mean it's bad, just that it gets better from here). 6.5/10

spider-man 2 (2004). i think this is objectively the best live action spidey movie (even if i personally like 3 better). doc ock is my fav live action spidey villain and the fight scenes in this movie are just. iconic. the train scene obviously deserves every bit of the hype it gets. also this movie leans hard into my favorite spidey trope which is "peter struggles to balance his superhero life and civilian life" and i really love the plot point about peter's powers not working bc of the stress coming out of it. and the raindrops keep falling on my head montage is cinema tm. loses points for the very bad depiction of mj but this is rly the only problem i have with it. 8/10

spider-man 3 (2007). this movie has the biggest "over the top soap opera comic" vibes and god do i LOVE it. the plot is all over the place and it's clearly struggling to juggle the three villains but also i had so much fun watching it so it does not matter. this movie has my two fav scenes in the Entire raimi trilogy which are a) emo peter doing his stupid little walk and b) emo peter doing his stupid little dance. emo peter my beloved. you'll forever be in my heart and i'll never get tired of the memes about you. anyway it makes me a little sad that spidey movies from here on will be afraid to be this cheesy and stupid. 8.5/10

the amazing spider-man (2012). andrew is a great spidey you all were just mean. i like how the movie leans into him having to get used to his powers and the bit at the end where peter brings home the eggs to may was super heartwarming. there are writing decisions i have issues with most notably peter getting his start as spidey by hunting down any long haired blonde guy and how this plot point gets dropped without getting resolved (so the "responsibility" element is kinda missing from the origin to me). BUT skaterman peter is extremely lovable so i'll forgive him. also the lizard is such a hilarious villain. 7/10

the amazing spider-man 2 (2014). ok so i tried really hard to like this movie but. well. lmao. i will say that peter's suit/the overall visual effects look great and i think andrew's performance is the best part of the movie. and that part where electro's theme (?) plays in time when he destroys things is neat. everything else is just. a mess. enough criticism has been thrown at this movie so im not gonna delve into it but i do want to say that i really wish the tasm movies were written better bc there's so much potential in the characters/universe but the writing brings it down for me. 5/10

spider-man: homecoming (2017). i still love this movie i know it makes me a fake spidey enjoyer but still. it's adorable. it's part of what got me rly into marvel and it has a special place in my heart. hoco is not trying to be an origin story it's like this comedy hs movie w spidey elements and also works kinda as a sequel to an unseen origin and i like that (bc we have already seen the origin 2 other times). extra points for being the funniest depiction of high school and having my fav soundtrack out of the rest of the live action movies. However there are still definite sins committed adaptation wise that carry over to the rest of the mcu trilogy and they sting very hard rewatching this movie now. 7.5/10

spider-man: into the spider-verse (2018). cinematic masterpiece and the best superhero movie of all time i am sure that everyone with a brain can agree with me on this. every frame of this movie is so beautiful and it captures the comic book vibe so well. it's a love letter to spider-man as a character and you can tell how much passion was put into it. there are about 5 scenes in this movie that still make me tear up even though ive rewatched it so many times. miles my son . [peter b voice] i LOVE YOU i am SO PROUD OF YOU. beautiful soundtrack and animation, amazing action, top notch voice acting, it truly has Everything. i think the only spidey movies that will have a chance of being as good as this movie are its sequels. 1000/10

spider-man: far from home (2019). i hate this movie and every connection it makes with tony stark. this is because i love tony stark so much hes my favorite guy ever and this movie feels like slander towards him. way back on my sideblog i ranted about how besides the fact that peter isnt a legacy hero it fails at cementing him as a legacy in the first place, But Also this all gets immediately retracted in no way home so whats the entire point anyways. mj and peter are cute but are they worth it for the tony slander. no. i cant have normal opinions about this movie i'm sorry. 3/10.

spider-man: no way home (2021). i know. i know. everyone likes this movie. there's generally a lot to like, from the villains to the action to the previous spideys to the dynamic between the main trio. however i wish that this trilogy had not gone in this direction at all. there are lots of writing choices i super disagree with, the biggest one being may dying because a) the mcu cant stopping killing its important female characters and b) it retcons the previous implication that ben existed and had a hand in peter's origin. also i don't like the ending lmao. to me it feels like every individual mcu spidey movie shoots itself in the foot and makes it increasingly harder to build upon story-wise. 5/10

#marvel #long post #if i'd compare overall 'trilogies' itd be tobey > andrew > tom #in terms of them as spideys they each offer smth different and i like all of them #mcu spidey frustrates me because there was a lot of potential to be executed upon and then it looks like it was just #made up. as they went along. instead of being a cohesive unit that can stand on its own

4 notes · View notes

popculty · 3 years

Text

52 Films by Women: 2020 Edition

Another annual challenge complete!

Last year, I focused on diversifying my list. This year I kept that intention but focused on watching more non-American films and films from the 20th century. Specifically, I sought out Agnès Varda’s entire filmography, after her death in 2019. (I was not disappointed - What a filmmaking legend we lost.)

I also kept a film log for the first time and have included some of my thoughts on several films from that log. I made a point of including reviews both positive and negative, because I think it’s important to acknowledge the variability and breadth of the canon, so as not to put every film directed by a woman on a pedestal. (Although movies directed by women must clear a much higher bar to be greenlit, meaning generally higher quality...But that’s an essay for another day :)

* = directed by a woman of color

bold = fave

1. The Rhythm Section (2020) dir. Reed Morano - Not as good as it could have been, given Morano’s proven skill behind the camera, but also not nearly as bad as the critics made it out to be. And unbelievably refreshing to see a female revenge story not driven by sexual assault or the loss of a husband/child.

2. Cléo de 5 à 7 (1962) dir. Agnès Varda - If you ever wanted to take a real-time tour of Paris circa 1960, this is the film for you.

3. Little Women (2019) dir. Greta Gerwig - Still my favorite Little Women adaptation. I will re-watch it every year and cry.

4. Varda by Agnès (2019) dir. Agnès Varda & Didier Rouget

5. Booksmart (2019) dir. Olivia Wilde - An instant classic high school comedy romp that subverts all the gross tropes of its 1980s predecessors.

6. Girls of the Sun (2018) dir. Eva Husson

7. Blue My Mind (2017) dir. Lisa Brühlmann

8. Portrait of a Lady On Fire (2019) dir. Céline Sciamma - Believe the hype. This film is a master thesis on the female gaze, and also just really effing gorgeous.

9. Belle Epine (2010) dir. Rebecca Zlotowski

10. Vamps (2012) dir. Amy Heckerling - With Krysten Ritter and Alicia Silverstone as modern-day vampires, I was so ready for this movie. But it feels like a bad stage play or a sit-com that’s missing a laugh-track. Bummer.

11. *Birds of Prey (2020) dir. Cathy Yan - Where has this movie been all our lives?? Skip the next onslaught of Snyder-verse grim-darkery and give me two more of these STAT!

12. She’s Missing (2019) dir. Alexandra McGuinness

13. The Mustang (2019) dir. Laure de Clermont-Tonnere - Trigger warning for the “protagonist” repeatedly punching a horse in the chest. I noped right out of there.

14. Monster (2003) dir. Patty Jenkins – I first watched this movie when I was probably too young and haven’t revisited it since. The rape scene traumatized me as a kid, but as an adult I appreciate how that trauma is not the center of the movie, or even of Aileen’s life. Everyone still talks about how Charlize “went ugly” for this role, but the biggest transformation here isn’t aesthetic, it’s physical – the way Theron replicates Wuernos’ mannerisms, way of speaking, and physicality. That’s why she won the Oscar. I also love that Jenkins calls the film “Monster” (which everyone labels Aileen), but then actually uses it to tell the story of how she fell in love with a woman when she was at her lowest, and that saved her. That’s kind of beautiful, and I’m glad I re-watched it so that I could see the story in that light, instead of the general memory I had of it being a good, feel-bad movie. It’s so much more than that.

15. Water Lilies (2007) dir. Céline Sciamma – Sciamma’s screenwriting and directorial debut, the first in her trilogy on youth, is as painfully beautiful as its sequels (Tomboy and Girlhood). It’s also one of the rare films that explores the overlap of queerness and girl friendships.

16. The Trouble with Angels (1966) dir. Ida Lupino – Movies about shenanigan-based female friendships are such rare delights. Rosalind Russel is divine as Mother Superior, and Hayley Mills as “scathingly brilliant” as the pranks she plays on her. Ida Lupino’s skill as an editor only enhances her directing, providing some truly iconic visual gags to complement dialogue snappy enough for Gilmore Girls.

17. Vagabond (1985) dir. Agnès Varda – Shot with a haunting realism, this film has no qualms about its heroine’s inevitable, unceremonious death, which it opens with, matter-of-factly, before retracing her final (literal) steps to the road-side ditch she ends up in. (I’m partly convinced said heroine was the inspiration for Sarah Manning in Orphan Black.)

18. One Sings, The Other Doesn’t (1977) dir. Agnès Varda – Probably my favorite classic Varda, this film feels incredibly personal. It’s essentially a love story about two best friends with very different lives. For an indie made in the ‘70s, the diversity, scope, and themes of the film are impressive. Even if the second half a drags a bit, the first half is absolute perfection, engaging the viewer immediately, and clipping along, sprinkling in some great original songs that were way progressive for their time (about abortion, female bodily autonomy, etc) and could still be considered “bangers” today.

19. Emma (2020) dir. Autumn de Wilde

20. Black Panthers (1969) dir. Agnès Varda

21. Into the Forest (2016) dir. Patricia Rozema - When the world was ending (i.e. the pandemic hit) this was the first movie I turned to - a quiet, meditative story of two sisters (Elliot Page and Evan Rachel Wood) surviving off the land after a sudden global blackout. Four years later, it’s still one of my favorite book-to-screen adaptations. I fondly remember speaking with director Patricia Rozema at the 2016 Chicago Critics Film Festival after a screening, her love for the source material and desire to “get it right” so apparent. I assured her then, and reaffirm now, that she really did.

22. City of Trees (2019) dir. Alexandra Swarens

23. Never Rarely Sometimes Always (2020) dir. Eliza Hittmann - To call this a harrowing and deeply personal journey of a sixteen-year-old who must cross state lines to get an abortion would be accurate, but incomplete. It is a story so much bigger than that, about the myriad ways women’s bodies and boundaries are constantly violated.

24. Paradise Hills (2019) dir. Alice Waddington

25. *Eve’s Bayou (1996) dir. Kasi Lemmons – I’ve been meaning to watch Kasi Lemmons’ directorial debut for many years now, and I’m so glad I finally have, because it fully deserves its icon status, beyond being one of the first major films directed by a black woman. Baby Jurnee Smollett's talent was immediately recognizable, and she has reminded us of it in Birds of Prey and Lovecraft Country this year. If merit was genuinely a factor for Oscar contenders, she would have taken home gold at eleven years old. Beasts of the Southern Wild has been one of my all-time favorites, but now I realize that most of my appreciation for that movie actually goes to Lemmons for blazing the trail with her story of a young black girl from the bayou first. It’s also a surprisingly dark story about memory and abuse and familial relationships that cross lines - really gutsy and surprising themes, especially for the ‘90s.

26. Blow the Man Down (2019) dir. Bridget Savage Cole & Danielle Krudy - Come and get your sea shanty fix!

27. Touchy Feely (2013) dir. Lynn Shelton - R.I.P. :(

28. Hannah Gadsby: Douglas (2020) dir. Madeleine Parry - If you thought Gadsby couldn’t follow up 2018′s sensational Nanette with a comedy special just as sharp and hilarious, you would have been sorely mistaken.

29. Girlhood (2013) dir. Céline Sciamma

30. Breathe (2014) dir. Mélanie Laurent

31. *A Dry White Season (1989) dir. Euzhan Palcy

32. Laggies (2014) dir. Lynn Shelton

33. *The Old Guard (2020) dir. Gina Prince-Bythewood – Everything I’ve ever wanted in an action movie: Immortal gays, Charlize Theron wielding a labrys (battle axe), kinetic fight choreography I haven’t seen since the last Bond movie…Watched it twice, then devoured the comics it was adapted from, and I gotta say: in the hands of black women, it eclipses the source material. Cannot wait for the just-announced sequel.

34. Morvern Callar (2002) dir. Lynn Ramsay

35. Shirley (2020) dir. Josephine Decker

36. *Radioactive (2019) dir. Marjane Satrapi – The story is obviously well worth telling and the narrative structure – weaving in the future consequences of Curie’s discoveries – is clever, but a bit awkwardly executed and overly manipulative. There are glimpses of real brilliance throughout, but it feels as if the director’s vision was not fully realized, to my great disappointment. Nonetheless, I appreciated seeing Marie Curie's story being told by a female director and embodied by the always wonderful Rosamund Pike.

37. *The Half of It (2020) dir. Alice Wu - I feel like a real scrooge for saying this, but this movie did nothing for me. Nothing about it felt fresh, authentic or relatable. A real disappointment from the filmmaker behind the wlw classic Saving Face.

38. Mouthpiece (2018) dir. Patricia Rozema - I am absolutely floored. One of those films that makes you fall in love with the art form all over again. Patricia Rozema continues to prove herself one of the most creatively ambitious and insightful directors of our time, with this melancholic meditation on maternal grief and a woman’s duality.

39. Summerland (2020) dir. Jessica Swale - The rare period wlw love story that is not a) all-white or b) tragedy porn. Just lovely.

40. *The Last Thing He Wanted (2020) dir. Dee Rees – As rumored, a mess. Even by the end, I still couldn’t tell you who any of the characters are. Dee, we know you’re so much better than this! (see: Mudbound, Pariah)

41. *Cuties (2020) dir. Maïmouna Doucouré – I watched this film to 1) support a black woman director who has been getting death threats for her work and 2) see what all the fuss is about. While I do think there were possibly some directorial choices that could have saved quite a bit of the pearl-clutching, overall, I didn’t find it overly-exploitative or gross, as many (who obviously haven’t actually watched the film) have labeled it. It certainly does give me pause, though, and makes me wonder whether children can ever be put in front of a camera without it exploiting or causing harm to them in some way. It also makes one consider the blurry line between being a critique versus being an example. File this one under complicated, for sure.

42. A Call to Spy (2019) Lydia Dean Pilcher – An incredible true story of female spies during WWII that perfectly satisfied my itch for British period drama/spy thriller and taught me so much herstory I didn’t know.

43. Kajillionaire (2020) dir. Miranda July - I was lucky enough to attend the (virtual) premiere of this film, followed by an insightful cast/director Q&A, which only made me appreciate it more. July's offbeat dark comedy about a family of con artists is queerer and more heartfelt than it has any right to be, and a needed reprieve in a year of almost entirely white wlw stories. The family's shenanigans are the hook, but it's the budding relationship between Old Dolio (an almost unrecognizable Evan Rachel Wood) and aspiring grifter Melanie (the luminous Gina Rodriguez) that is the heart of the story.

44. Misbehaviour (2020) dir. Philippa Lowthorpe – Again, teaching me herstory I didn’t know, about how the Women’s Liberation Movement stormed the 1970 Miss World Pageant. Keira Knightley and Gugu Mbatha-Raw’s characters have a conversation in a bathroom at the end of the film that perfectly eviscerates well-meaning yet ignorant white feminism, without ever pitting women against each other - a feat I didn’t think was possible. I also didn’t think it was possible to critique the male gaze without showing it (*ahem Cuties, Bombshell, etc*), but this again, invents a way to do it. Bless women directors.

45. *All In: The Fight for Democracy (2020) dir. Liz Garbus and Lisa Cortes – 2020’s 13th. Thank god for Stacey Abrams, that is all.

46. *The 40-Year-Old Version (2020) dir. Radha Blank – This scene right here? I felt that in my soul. This whole film is so good and funny and heartfelt and relatable to any artist trying to walk that tightrope of “making it” while not selling their soul to make it. My only initial semi-note was that it’s a little long, but after hearing Radha Blank talk about how she fought for the two-hour run-time as a way of reclaiming space for older black women, I take it back. She’s right: Let black women take up space. Let her movie be as long as she wants it to be. GOOD FOR HER.

47. Happiest Season (2020) dir. Clea Duvall - Hoooo boy. What was marketed as the first lesbian Christmas rom-com is actually a horror movie for anyone who’s ever had to come out. Throw in casual racism and a toxic relationship treated as otp, and it’s YIKES on so many levels. Aubrey Plaza, Dan Levy, and an autistic-coded Jane are the only (underused) highlights.

48. *Monkey Beach (2020) dir. Loretta Todd

49. *Little Chief (2020) dir. Erica Tremblay – A short film part of the 2020 Red Nation Film Festival, it’s a perfect eleven minutes that I wish had gone on longer, if only to bask in Lily Gladstone in a leading role.

50. First Cow (2019) dir. Kelly Reichardt – I know Kelly Reichardt’s style, so I’ll admit-- even as I was preparing for an excellent film, I was also reaching for my phone, planning on only half paying attention during all the inevitable 30-second shots of grass blowing in the wind. (And yes, there are plenty of those.) But twenty minutes in, my phone was set aside and forgotten, as I am getting sucked into this beautiful story about two frontiersman trying to live their best domestic life.There is only one word to describe this film and that is: PURE. I’ve never seen such a tender platonic relationship between men on screen before, and it’s not lost on me that it took a woman to show us that tenderness. Reichardt gives us two men brought together by fate, and kept together by a shared dream and the simple pleasure of not being alone in such a hard world; two men who spend their days cooking, trapping, baking, and dreaming of a better life; two men who don’t say much, but feel everything for each other. The world would be a much better place if men showed us this kind of vulnerability and friendship toward each other. Oh, and it’s also a brutal take-down of capitalism and the myth of the American Dream!

51. Wonder Woman 1984 (2020) dir. Patty Jenkins - My most-anticipated film for the past two years was...well, a mixed bag, to say the least. Too many thoughts on it for a blog post, so stay tuned for the upcoming podcast ep where we go all in ;)

52. *Selah and the Spades (2019) dir. Tayarisha Poe

I hope this gives you some ideas to kick off your new year with a resolution to support more female directors!

What were your favorite women-directed movies of last year? Let me know in the tags, comments, or asks!

#finally finished this #52 films by women #2020 #writing #movies #movie reviews #orig

25 notes · View notes

being-worthy · 4 years

Text

Saturday Home Cinema: Mulan (2020) - A very honest review!

I just had to write this review because Mulan is one of my heroes and I’m a huge fan of the original Disney Mulan (1998). I saw the movie for the first time as a kid when I had trouble feeling integrated and was daily bullied at school. I re-watched it again and again and again until I was able to learn by heart the script and all the songs in German (and later on, even in English). I just saw so much of myself in Mulan (maybe except for the fact that I’m not as beautiful or witty as she is). I too always felt out of place and I couldn’t be my true self and I was never very ladylike either. I also looked up at her and saw her as a role model. Sometimes I thought that if I stared long enough at my reflection in the mirror, it’d show me my true self - and I’m still waiting to this day… Disney’s 1998 version of Mulan was and still is my favourite Disney movie.

> SPOILER ALERT AHEAD!! <

The best thing about this movie is the soundtrack, especially at the end. Christina Aguilera was the right choice to sing Reflection and Loyal Brave True. The goosebumps her voice gives, I can’t even describe how extraordinary her voice is. In the end credits, you can listen to the English version of Reflection as well as the Chinese version (sadly sung by Liu Yifei ¬¬). It’s worth to watch the end credits and listen to the songs.

*My suggestion: Stop whatever you’re doing. Put on some headphones (even better if they’re noise-cancelling), close your eyes, play the song Reflection song (and Loyal Brave True if you feel like it) by Christina Aguilera, no distractions no interruptions, forget about everything and everyone, let the song flow through your ears, mind, heart, body, and soul, and you will feel like you’re Mulan, especially when the drumming gets louder, it’s epically epic! (Sorry for the redundancy but it IS a remarkable song!)

I welcome the idea of wanting to take a classic and do something new, something fresh with it but humanity could’ve gone without this movie and they shouldn’t ask for $35 to watch it on Disney+ and sometimes a classical doesn’t need to be redone. Additionally, I can’t entirely understand what’s going on these past years not only with Disney but Hollywood and all other big movie production companies. It’s either remake of this classic or a 2nd/3rd sequel of a movie that doesn’t actually require a sequel but it’s still done anyway. Why even bother wasting big amounts of money to create a disaster? You’re better of donating that money to charity (or to me lol). The main thing that Disney has been doing lately are remakes of many of our childhood movies Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, Dumbo, The Jungle Book, The Lion King, among others, and now Mulan. Some have a few good parts in them but they still can’t and never will compare to the original. Why is there no originality and innovation anymore? Have they run out of ideas? Furthermore, let’s be honest people will always compare the remake (either consciously or unconsciously) with the original because there are less than a dozen movies where the remake either was (almost) as good as the original much less better than the original. The movie Mulan (2020) had a massive budget and is the most expensive film made by a female director (Niki Caro), yet how they made it, the battle sequences and CGI effects, etc. they’re all crappy.

Budgets of all Mulan interpretations:

Mulan (1998) - $90 million > Directed by Tony Bancroft and Barry Cook. Made $304.3 million in the box office

Hua Mulan (2009) - $12 million > Directed by Jingle Ma. Sadly, made only $1.8 million in the box office. It deserved more love!

Mulan (2020) - $200 million(!!) > All that budget was a waste!

I’ve seen all three versions. The 1998 version is for everybody and it’s funny and you feel with the characters and the film. Let’s be honest, the granny is one of the best characters, most of us have or had a granny like that in our lives. The 2nd one is a 2-hour long movie, a more mature adaption which illustrates the ugly harsh truth about war and the loss and death it brings with it and that there’s nothing funny or cool about it. This one is not suitable for children. You feel with the characters and their sacrifices and they also develop along the movie. I can only recommend to watch this version if you haven’t. And the latest one is a disgrace.

I’m a bit confused as to what the message of the movie is. On one hand, it tells you shouldn’t hide your inner beauty, you shouldn’t hide who you are, you shouldn’t hide your abilities, you shouldn’t try to hide who you truly are in order to conform to what the world/society wants you to be or who you should be, let your true self shine and be yourself and don’t allow anyone to tell you that you’re inferior just because they think/say you are. This is something powerful and admirable but, on the other hand, at the same time, it tells you that you can only do that if you are the chosen one. Let me explain... In the beginning, we see Mulan as a little girl chasing a chicken up to the roofs of the houses at the village where she lives. Basically, she’s born as a one-woman army (almost deus ex machina) and doesn’t require any further training which is total and utter rubbish. She has all the skills because of her powerful chi (vital life force energy) but has to underplay them because it’s not very ladylike to behave like she wants to and she still underplays them when she trains with the soldiers so as to keep a low profile. Her being so powerful from the beginning makes me feel alienated from her and I can’t empathise with her. It’s also not very realistic, nobody is born with their abilities fully developed. For example, even Bruce Lee had to train hard to get where he got and he wasn’t the only one.

The original version shows us a regular girl, at times clumsy (which is a cliché but we still liked it) and when she’s confronted with new situations, she analyses them and finds a quick canny solution to them. She also has to train her body and mind to get to the peak of her potential and accomplish what nobody else could in her time, and here the character is done from the start of the movie and the only thing she has to do is choose not to hide her chi anymore. This tells us that you don’t have to work hard to achieve your dreams whereas in reality you actually do have to work your butt off!

I’m not a fan of the leading actress they chose for Mulan, aka Liu Yifei, not only because she’s a police brutality supporter according to her controversial tweets a while back - this already makes her unworthy to portray Mulan who is the complete opposite - but also because she didn’t do a good job at depicting this great role. Mulan is a role model for every girl and woman and it’s a massive contradiction if a woman who agrees to the atrocious police methods impersonates her role. What message do we send out to every girl out in the world? In her acting she’s this blank and hollow person through the movie and transmits no emotion whatsoever - not even when she cries. This also makes it difficult for me to identify myself with her. She’s this wooden plank, she is and stays a blank canvas through the whole movie with no growth in her character and it’s frustrating having to see this because the character of Mulan isn’t at all like this. Mulan experiences many emotions from the moment where she makes the decision to enlist so her father doesn’t have to or when she experiences the loss of her comrades or has to kill someone for the first time, etc. she suffers along her journey and all this changes her but you see nothing of it in Liu Yifei’s Mulan.

In the Disney version, there are some crucial moments that are missing in the new one. For instance, the most crucial one is the moment where Mulan decides to go to war. If you remember the animation one, she’s sitting in the rain by the dragon statue and at that moment makes a decision that could kill her or worse bring dishonour to herself and her entire family (including ancestors) which was far worse than death during that time! She gets up, marches to the altar of her ancestors, takes her father’s sword and cuts her hair (I know men had long hair back then too but still), puts on the armour and goes to war. All this while being accompanied by an epic song written by Jerry Goldsmith called Haircut. This is one of the most intense and dramatic moments in the movie and in all Disney movies! You can understand and feel the importance of this decision for the character and you feel the weight of it! In the 2020 one, she takes the sword and the next shot presents her already with the armour on - there’s zero dramatic impact here. That was a great missed opportunity!! By omitting important scenes and their dramatic impacts like this one that are essential to the story and to the characters, to their development and their journey throughout the story and you really need to rely on the original from 1998 to have this context.

The battle scenes are like many modern movies: lots of action, lots of moving (too fast-moving), a few amazing fighting moves and fights but not showed entirely. I at least expected some similar quality, like we’ve seen in films such as Hero (2002), House of Flying Daggers (2004), and Tiger & Dragon (2020) to name a few. Sadly, these movies had better fight scenes quality than Mulan which were filmed in high frame rate but over-edited with action that is negatively frenetic and have artificial CGI effects (even the CGI effects in Independence Day were better - I’m watching the movie while writing this). We’re in the 21st century with great advances in technology and movies are given big budgets (particularly Hollywood films), yet despite all this, most movies end up with CGI effects from another era. How come this happens over and over? In this one, we see people running too fast, horses running too fast, and they’re all like a big mass of headless chickens and you don’t know exactly what is happening where. All this fast running, the constant cut and paste of scenes looks all too modern and doesn’t fit the current time period of the movie and it surely doesn’t transmit the way of fighting of that period.

Moreover, we get lots of flashback-lesson learning scenes throughout the movie. This is another fashion in movies lately, playing the film in the present time while at the same time jumping back and forth between flashbacks. It spends a good portion of the movie with these flashbacks. This is not a big issue and admirable per se but when these scenes are insignificant because they’re glossed over and transmitted without zilch emotion, then why even bother to include them in the first instance?

As a last comment, I like the fact that they hired Chinese actors and actresses for the movie (although I don’t know why it had to be in English, I’d have preferred it to be in Chinese, it’s not like we’re allergic to subtitles - unless they’re not done properly), some of them of renewed name, like Gong Li, Rosalind Chao (I loved her in The Joy Luck Club), Jet Li, Donnie Yen (legendary Ip Man), Jason Scott Lee (saw him in Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story), Tzi Ma but they won’t be able to save the movie even with a great cast like this one.

#disney mulan #disney mulan 2020 #mulan live action #saturday home cinema #boycott mulan #don't watch it #don't watch mulan #don't watch mulan 2020 #disney should be ashamed #honest review #a very honest review #film night #movie night

59 notes · View notes

oculus-de-malus · 3 years

Note

Movie Recommendations #1

You might know movies from this already or you might not, but thought I would share.

This will consist of fantasy and surreal films I enjoy that are not as mainstream or well known.

1) Jack The Giant Killer (1962)

2) Tom Thumb (1958)

3) The 7th Voyage Of Sinbad (1958)

4) The Forbidden Kingdom (2008)

5) Ladyhawke (1985)

6) Jason And The Argonauts (1965)

7) The Fall (2006)

8) The Secret Of Moonacre (2008)

9) Mirror Mask (2005)

10) What Dreams May Come (1998)

11) The Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

12) Tuck Everlasting (2002)

13) Tall Tale (1995)

14) The Tale Of Despereaux (2008)

15) The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009)

First of all, many thanks for taking the time to send me an ask and a list of some of the films that you personally enjoy... I love to discuss film, amongst other things, so this is much appreciated, and I have done my best to go through them, commenting on each one, in turn.

1) Jack The Giant Killer (1962)

One I watched quite a bit growing up as re-runs on TV... we holidayed quite a bit in Cornwall when I was younger too, and it always reminded me of this film... my brother and I used to act out scenes from it (I was the giant and would always be slain, of course, haha)

2) Tom Thumb (1958)

I can only remember seeing this one a couple of times, I think... it's one they either didn't re-run too much, or I just missed it, but I can recall it being quite fun, especially the bumbling villains... I remember thinking of it when I first watched Twin Peaks years later and noticed Russ Tamblyn, who played Tom, as Dr. Jacoby.

3) The 7th Voyage Of Sinbad (1958)

Another that I watched quite a bit growing up... they always seemed to air a lot of these classic fantasy adventure type films on TV during the weekends in the '90s, so there's a bit of nostalgia attached to this one for me, and it is a film that I own.

4) The Forbidden Kingdom (2008)

I've never seen this... I'm not generally into Martial Arts films, although do like some of the Shaw Bros. stuff from the '70s and '80s, but admittedly their more horror themed output... this looks quite interesting from the trailer though.

5) Ladyhawke (1985)

I completely missed this on re-runs and rentals, and streaming during my childhood and teen years... I only first watched it about 5 or so years ago... it was an ex's favourite film when she was young, and she was appalled that I hadn't seen it, so we rectified that... I enjoyed it, but can't help thinking I would have probably enjoyed it more if I had grown up with it... nostalgia often has a lot to answer for in these respects, after all...

6) Jason And The Argonauts (1965)

Yet another one that I watched quite a bit growing up... Harryhausen's effects always mesmerised me, he was a true visual pioneer, and they added such an essence of wonder to the proceedings... another one I own.

7) The Fall (2006)

Tarsem Singh is such a visually creative film maker... I was first introduced to his work in The Cell (2000), which was an incredible blend of sumptuous and beautifully macabre visuals... the film itself, outside of the visuals, was not too good, but he had caught my eye, and it later led me to seek out The Fall... I wasn't disappointed on the visual stakes again, but this time there was a little more substance behind the gorgeous visuals as well... it is a film that I own.

8) The Secret Of Moonacre (2008)

I have never seen this nor read the book it has been adapted from... it sounds intriguing though, plus has Tim Curry in it, which is always a bonus.

9) Mirror Mask (2005)

A visual feast, but I found the story a little lacking... sort of a mesh of Alice in Wonderland meets Labyrinth... by mentioning it, you've got me wanting to revisit it now though to see if my opinion has changed.

10) What Dreams May Come (1998)

I can't say I've seen this more than once... I can't remember too much about it either, other than it was a little too saccharine and emotionally manipulative, as these sorts of films tend to be... I was a stubbornly devout atheist when it was released too, so that probably didn't help me take to this one either... I'm still an atheist, but am much more open minded, and susceptible to explore different ideas and ways of thinking... and I like to do so too... testing what you believe, exploring, experimenting, and challenging yourself and what you believe is real, or not, is very important, I feel...

11) The Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

I only saw this one pretty recently, within the past couple of years... I was convinced that I wouldn't like it, what with having grown up reading the Roald Dahl books (I've always been disappointed in the film adaptations of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory), but I ended up enjoying it, like the storybook had come to life on screen.

12) Tuck Everlasting (2002)

Not only have I not seen this one, I have never even heard of it! I must remedy this, hopefully in the not too distant future.

13) Tall Tale (1995)

I've never seen this! It sounds like the kind of thing I would have enjoyed watching growing up, too...

14) The Tale Of Despereaux (2008)

Another one I haven't seen, although I am aware of it... it's not something I would have necessarily considered watching, but the fact you've recommended it to me might sway that... I'll generally watch anything, at least once, and I enjoy stepping out of my various comfort zones to experience new things when the opportunity arises...

15) The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009)

I watched this one at the cinema... I'm a big fan of Gilliam, so was looking forward to it, especially as it had been delayed from its original release due to Heath Ledger's unfortunate passing at the time, and had gone through some production / story changes because of this... I recall not enjoying it as much as I had hoped... I'm not sure how much of this was due to the edits, and whether Gilliam's originally intended version would have been better, but it is one that I want to reappraise, as I haven't watched it again since that original big screen viewing.

Thank you again so much for sharing some of your favourite films, and for the recommendations! ♡

#ask #answered

6 notes · View notes

ebookporn · 4 years

Text

Movies About Writers: 20 Great Examples Of Authors In Cinema

Best movies about writing: our 20 picks Let’s dive into our 20 picks.

We’ve chosen movies from different genres and ages. Our main criteria is what we already discussed. These movies about famous writers—or fictional ones—take you on a journey. Every movie will teach you something.

1. An Angel at My Table – Jane Campion This 1990 biography of Janet Frame is among Jane Campion’s earliest work. It’s filled with empathy among its three main stages. You’ll see how Janet goes through a troublesome childhood. The film takes you through an erroneous schizophrenia diagnosis, leading to tortuous therapy. However, her work literally saves her, much to our heart’s content.

2. Adaptation – Spike Jonze Jonze’s 2002 amazing comedy has Charlie Kaufman as the main character. Played by Nicolas Cage, he’s working to adapt The Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean’s. It deals with topics like writer’s block and drug usage. It’s a crazy tale—definitely one of the best roles by Cage.

3. Providence – Alain Resnais 1977’s Providence is a character study of a novelist’s mind. It’s an astonishing movie about writing at a psychological level. It’s an impressive fim detailing how real-life merges with the work of a writer.

4. Bright Star – Jane Campion If you’re a John Keats reader, this 2009 movie is for you. Jane Campion’s second film on this list is just as amazing as our first entry. Bright Star is more about the romance between Keats and Fanny Brawne. Honestly, it’s one of the sweetest films you’ll ever watch.

5. The Hours – Stephen Daldry Nicole Kidman is simply stunning in this 2002 title. Playing Virginia Woolf, it’s a slow-paced drama that’ll keep you hooked until it ends. It’s a powerful trip into Woolf’s mind as she prepares to meet her fate in the River Ouse.

6. Before Night Falls – Julian Schnabel Schnabel’s 2000 film about Reinaldo Arenas definitely earned its Academy Award nomination. It takes viewers into the shoes of the Cuban writer, but it’s not pretty. It’s a beautiful but infuriating movie about homophobia and political tensions in the 70’s.

7. Misery – Rob Reiner Of course, we can’t leave out this 1990 pioneer of the psychological thriller genre. If you haven’t seen it, you need to stop reading and do it. Kathy Bates kills this movie as the kidnapper of a famous writer. It’s a mind-blowing movie about writing and addiction that everyone should see at least once.

8. The Motorcycle Diaries – Walter Salles Somewhat similar to Schnable’s film, this one is also very political. However, it’s a great character study of Che Guevara before his uprising. It’s a retelling of his diary entries while he was still studying medicine. He wrote these as he travelled with his best friend around South America. It details how he grew his political ideals.

9. Shakespeare In Love – John Madden If you want light-hearted films about writers, this 1998 title is a must-watch. It details how Shakespeare got his inspiration for some of his greatest work. It’s hilarious while still winning over your heart.

10. The Shining – Stanley Kubrick We’re back with Stephen King now. Horror movies about writers aren’t too common. However, 1980’s The Shining more than makes up for it. It pictures the quick descent into madness for Jack Torrance. It quickly goes from a creepy movie about writer’s block to a spiral of frantic and horrific scenes, one after the other.

11. Reprise – Joachim Trier The 2006 film, Reprise, is a lovely story about success, struggle, and friendship. It takes unexpected twists and turns. You can’t really expect what’s about to throw at you. It’s also the perfect French new wave experience.

12. The World According To Garp – George Roy Hill Any film with Robin Williams is a great experience. This 1982 movie is one of the best films about writers if you’re looking for a twist. We’ll just say Garp is the main character. He’s a novelist. But, his mother is the one finding success. It’s also an interesting look into gender roles released almost four decades ago.

13. Midnight in Paris – Woody Allen Despite how you might feel about Allen, this 2011 film is great. It features Owen Wilson at its charmest. It’s also very nostalgic, and sometimes hilarious, in all the right ways. If you’re an aspiring writer, it might become one of your favorite movies.

14. Kill Your Darlings – John Krokidas Daniel Radcliffe spearheads this 2013 drama, which is a good sign. This film is interesting because it depicts incredibly successful artists. Yet, the plot is elsewhere. The main story follows a murder mystery. It’s perfect if you’re looking for twists and intricate plots.

15. The Royal Tenenbaums – Wes Anderson We have another film with Owen Wilson. Combined with Gwyneth Paltrow, they depict a depressed family. It’s hardly as sad as it sounds, though. Wilson’s character is an amazing parody of masculinity, and the film will make you smile often. The duo is simply perfect here.

16. The Pillow Book – Peter Greenaway This 1996 is actually about one of the oldest records of a “book.” It depicts a deep story about obsession, poetry, writing, and lust. It builds on Sei Shonagon’s (the original author) ideas to create one of the craziest art films ever.

17. Sylvia – Christine Jeffs Sylvia is one of the most interesting movies about writers. It’s basically the only true biopic, yet they failed to get her poetry’s rights. As is, it’s a beautiful film with a great mood. It might not be for everyone, but Plath readers should definitely give it a chance.

18. My Brilliant Career – Gillian Armstrong This 1979 film plays a surprising twist on the love triangle trope. The protagonist is a woman struggling to choose between two men. However, she goes for a much more promising third option. You just have to see the rest to find out more.

19. Sunset Boulevard – Billy Wilder We just had to include this 50’s film since noir and writers go hand-in-hand. It tells the tale of a faded star and an unsuccessful screenwriter, Joe Gillis. They end up together thanks to mere promises of stardom. That said, the film does begin with Gillis’ dead body. Why is it there? You’ll have to find out.

20. Certified Copy – Abbas Kiarostami If you enjoy pseudo-fourth-wall-breaking meta-commentary, then this film is for you. The film kicks off by telling us that authenticity in art is irrelevant. From there, it’s a unique experience you simply need to watch.

HERE IS ANOTHER LIST

I would also add:

21. Can You Ever Forgive Me? - Marielle Heller Melissa McCarthy stars in this true story of writer Lee Israel, who, despite being an accomplished author, earned the legacy of “forger” after embarking on a side career of writing fake letters from literary figures and selling them to collectors. The script is based on Israel’s memoir of the same name, and the story picks up in 1991, when she has fallen on hard times both financially and professionally. Through the forgeries, Israel finds a new way to both make money and restore a sense of pride in her work.

#authors #writers #film #movies #cinema #librarians #booksellers #literacy

26 notes · View notes

queermediastudies · 4 years

Text

Blue is, in fact, not only the Warmest Color, but her name is Emma - Alec Thomas

Blue is the Warmest Color is a 2013 film adaptation of a comic series of the same name, made by Julie Maroh in 2010. This film follows a French teenager named Adele, who is what seems to be very introverted and unsure of her place in the world. Adele dates a boy named Thomas at school, but when they eventually have sex for the first time, Adele is left unfulfilled by Thomas, realizing there might be more to her sexual identity than she knows, and decides to break off their relationship. Her openly gay best friend Valentin hears about her confusion, and decides to take her out to a men’s gay bar. Adele leaves Valentin and wanders off to a neighboring lesbian bar, where she ends up meeting Emma, the blue haired girl who is also a graduating art student. The two have resounding energy off one another almost immediately, and they become friends quickly. It isn’t long after that they kiss for the first time during a picnic, before they bloom into a full relationship with one another. Emma’s family is very welcoming of Adele’s presence and relationship, while Adele’s more conservative parents are told Emma is a tutor for Adele’s philosophy class at school.

The film fast forwards a few years, and we see Adele and Emma living together while they continue their jobs. While Adele finishes school and gets a job teaching at an elementary school, Emma tries to further her painting career by throwing parties to socialize among her art peers. It’s at one of these parties that we meet Lise, a pregnant old colleague of Emma’s. Emma makes fun of Adele’s current job choice, saying that her writing could do exceptionally well, and Adele asserts that she’s much happy with where she’s at now. It’s here where we see some disparities come to light, as it seems like Adele and Emma don’t share that much in common even anymore, and out of loneliness, Adele sleeps with a male coworker. Emma finds out about the affair, and subsequently and ferociously kicks Adele out, ending their relationship. 3 years pass before they end up meeting again, only to find out Emma is now in a relationship with Lise and has a family with Lise’s daughter, while Adele still cannot overcome her heartbreak. Adele expresses how in-love she is with Emma, and despite their strong connection, Emma declines, but tells Adele that she’ll always have an “infinite tenderness” in her heart for her. More time passes before we see the two convene one last time at one of Emma’s art exhibits, where the two meet, but don’t really connect. It’s clear that Emma would rather tend to all her patrons and guests at the party, so Adele congratulates her before quietly leaving the exhibit. The film ends. I argue this film is a generally a great depiction of a heart wrenching love tale between two women, which effectively explores themes of sexuality and queerness explicitly, in order to create a film that leaves audiences wanting more among an ambiguous ending.

youtube

This movie definitely connects with some of the talking points we’ve discussed in class. Probably one of the easiest examples we see coming to light is in one of the first scenes in the film, where Adele’s friend group displays some signs of heteronormativity. In the clip above, we see Thomas staring at Adele from afar, with Adele’s friends insisting they’re “so obviously into each other”. Adele then begins to tune out of the conversation as the rest of the group starts discussing other cute boys, while Adele remains silent, clearly uncomfortable to some degree. It’s clear here that Adele’s friend group is using heteronormativity in the sense that they believe Adele is straight, despite no context being added whether they’ve discussed this before. Seeing as how the rest of the film pans out, they clearly haven’t discussed this. “For queer theorists, sexuality is a complex array of signifiers, social codes and forces linked to institutional power which interact to shape the idea of normal or deviant, good or bad, and which has the function of including and excluding people,” (Andersson, 2002, p. 3). In this scene, Adele is unsure of her sexuality, but it is clear how it should be demonstrated among the institution of her school in the ways of heteronormativity. This environment excludes any notion of queerness existing normally, which is reinforced by Adele’s friend group. This becomes problematic for Adele, as it feels as though Adele is almost pressured into going out and sleeping with Thomas because of her friends' heteronormativity enacted upon her. She is then only left to be unfulfilled, simply because she wasn’t attracted to men it seems at this point.

youtube

The above clip happens once Emma and Adele start spending more time together, and Adele’s friend group at school seems to pay attention to this fact. They all begin to grill and question her about where she met this girl, only to find out it was at a gay bar. Her “friends” then start getting heated with Adele, begging her to “fess up” to being lesbian, and to “just admit it”, while another girl starts making remarks about how she doesn’t care if Adele is lesbian, but that she’s slept naked in her bed a few times and seen her checking out her ass, calling Adele a “whore”, and then asking the question “Does your bitch have a blue p---y?” before Adele starts to fight. While this is clearly homophobia, it’s carefully inserted into the film to show some of the general public’s opinion on gay or lesbian reception, those of which lines match pretty well with Adele’s parents ideals. You could compare this to a time where “homosexuals” were compared to Communists in the U.S. “Communists bore no identifying physical characteristics...Homosexuals too could escape detection...Because most people confronted with accusations of homosexuality during these witch-hunts quietly resigned, it is impossible to determine the number of careers and lives that were destroyed.” (Gross, 2001, p. 22). This scene almost plays out like an interrogation or a witch-hunt of Adele, which I think draws on some lines on queer folk having to “admit” their queerness publicly, while cisgender folk never have to admit their sexuality in the same way. This part especially demonstrates queerness in a real world lens. To me, this scene was put into the film in order to demonstrate the harsh world that queer folk often experience. It’s made for the audience to have a better understanding of Adele’s current position, and therefore allows the audience to become more compassionate with Adele’s struggles along her life, for simply choosing who she wants to love.

Another dominant theme we see arising out of this film is sexuality and pornography. That being said, I wouldn’t recommend watching this film with your parents in the same room, because boy, you would be in for a trip. The film’s graphic sex scenes are all pretty exposed for Adele and Emma, leaving almost literally nothing to the imagination of the audience. I think this is done in the film because it wants to show the raw and unfiltered bodies of the two lovers, and more obviously done to display queer love on screen. “Queer film study, then, understands cinematic sexualities as complex, multiple, overlapping, and historically nuanced, rather than immutably fixed...queer film study explores how and why the fluidity of all sexualities relates to the production and reception of cinema.” (Benshoff & Griffin, 2004, p. 2). We especially see this sexual fluidity occur within Adele, when she sleeps with Thomas at the beginning of the movie, along with her fling with a male coworker that ultimately ended her relationship with Emma. Adele’s sexuality isn’t ever exactly defined, which leaves it ambiguous to the audience, therefore showing that even Adele is still discovering what her sexuality is exactly. While the sex scenes are explicit, to me, I wouldn’t qualify them exactly as porn, because they are also increasingly dramatic with expression. In a way, if we didn’t have these scenes, I don’t know if the audience could even understand the level of obsession that Adele and Emma have for one another. It’s in these scenes that we get just a glimpse of what it means to love as humans, and how sex is one of many facets to deepen our love for one another.

youtube

For myself, the above clip is one scene in particular where I think the movie doesn’t really hit the nail on the head. In the scene as discussed in the intro paragraph, it features Adele and Emma in a restaurant, a few years after they’ve broken up, with Adele confessing her deep love for Emma again. Emma declines Adele’s love, citing that she’s with someone else now, and thus leaves. Before Emma is able to do that however, there’s a pretty lengthy portion of the clip where the two begin to passionately make out with one another, even getting to literal third base blatantly happening at the dinner table. Don’t get me wrong, my issue isn’t at all with any of the pretty graphic sex scenes in the movie, but this one in particular stands out because it’s literally in public. Literally a waitress confirms an order for coffee before the scene starts, and then the camera even pans out at the end of the scene to witness two other customers dining a few tables away. I felt like this part ran into a few problems, since both Adele and Emma completely ignore everyone else in the room in order to sexually fulfill one another, which for me not only feels a bit insensitive to not only the other people in the restaurant, but a bit unrealistic and hypersexualized. I think this part is more damaging to queer identities, in the sense that the ideal is being pushed that when it comes to sex, they are completely unable to control themselves for their lust for one another. You also get a sense of the power of looking at these characters by the minor characters in this scene, which pins them as public interpretations of sexuality inside the restaurant unfairly. They are more than just the objects of lust being viewed upon by other customers and work staff, but this scene doesn’t help that argument whatsoever.

Much like most things in the movie, the ending is completely ambiguous. You see Adele walk off around a street corner, to supposedly never talk to Emma again. We see this love come together, fall apart, and have a smidge of possible recovery, only to be let down again. Shortly put, I wanted more out of this story, because it felt like it wasn’t over. Maybe the reason it ended was to show that things don’t always have a “Happily Ever After”, especially when it comes to real life. Overall, for myself as a cisgender white straight man, I think this film is great in terms of queer media exposure. I think white and straight people have been given too much in terms of amount of privilege, especially when it comes to roles in love stories in cinema. I was forced to be critical when it came to my analysis of this movie, simply because I wasn’t the identity featured in this movie. I had to interpret information from a queer lens, which made me more objective and honestly a bit uncomfortable - but in a good way. I was forced to feel and see the things these characters were experiencing, in the exact same exposed ways they were seeing them. In a way, I think that made me more drawn to the story, simply because I was experiencing something that I had never gotten the chance to see anywhere else. The fact that the entire film is in French plays a big role as well, as I noticed I was using a lot of nonverbal cues in order to determine how a character might feel at any point in time. To conclude, I think this movie does a mostly great job on representing queer identities in order to create a love story that is unequivocally matched to any other story you see. It hits on the realistic parts of life and love that humans experience, in order to show how rough love can truly be.

References

Andersson, Y. (2002). Queer Media? In E. Kingsepp (Ed.), Media Research in Progress. Stockholm: Stockholms University.

Benshoff, H., & Griffin, S. (2004). Queer Cinema the Film Reader. New York, NY: Routledge. Taylor & Francis Group.

Gross, L. (2001). Up from Invisibility: Lesbians, Gay Men, and the Media in America. NEW YORK: Columbia University Press. doi:10.7312/gros11952

#queermedia #blue is the warmest color #moviereview #queermovie #loveislove

25 notes · View notes

naivesilver · 3 years

Text

@bewilderedmoth FINE. Fine. Since today is a Monday and therefore a day much more suited for a vitriolic commentary on terrible insects, I shall fulfill your request and the anon’s. I’m warning everyone in the premises, though - this is a “no fucks given” list, so it may get ugly at any time. Also, as usual, this is only for things that I’ve already watched, so if you know of some cricket horror and don’t see it mentioned, assume I’ve yet to get to that specific adaptation.

Alright then! To the barricades!

1) Disney’s Pinocchio (1940)

The first of his genre. Look at this asshole - he’s literally the last creature I’d entrust my child to. The fact Pinocchio had to spend his first couple days of life with this guy shadowing his every step is mind-boggling, and it’s made even worse by the fact that the Blue Fairy put him in charge of another man’s kid, as though she had the right to make that choice.

(I won’t fall for the desire of dunking on the Fairy more, as this is a Cricket list, but believe me, the temptation is there. It always is.)

As Disney sidekicks go, he’s one of the worst. He’s not funny, and despite having literally ONE job he manages to fail spectacularly at it. He’s snappish at Pinocchio, he abandons his charge about two hours into the new day, he spends a much longer time flirting with female-presenting inanimate objects/animals/supernatural beings than doing any actual childrearing. He should have been forgotten the instant the movie left the theaters, but instead Disney made him one of his main mascots, giving him the role of storyteller or ghost or whatever the fuck they need him to do at the time. So not only is he single-handedly responsible for every other entry in this list, I keep finding him everywhere I turn my eyes to. A knock-off version of his Ghost of Christmas Past self was in the new Ducktales, too, so my friend freenklin (who already has had to endure many of my complaints) received some VERY disappointed scream-texts as I was liveblogging my watch.

Just...no. Get him out of my sight.

(Also Ewan McGregor is bound to voice him in the live action and like??? Excuse me??? Are we supposed to not make Obi Wan jokes??? Will he abandon his young padawan Pinocchio to the evil Strombolitroopers???)

2) Pinocchio and the Emperor of the Night (1987)

This movie is at the bottom of my Pinocchio adaptation ranking, and boy, does it deserve the dishonor. The story is a weird mixture of adaptation and sequel, approximately a tenth of the characters actually appear in the book, and I can’t forgive them for ruining what could have been the coolest concept ever (Pinocchio as a pawn in a fight of good vs evil) into this disgrace of a cartoon.

As for the Cricket, in this case he’s not even a cricket. He’s a glowworm, and he’s a goddamn puppet too, to whom the Fairy gave life. I wonder, is the entirety of her job just...transforming people’s creations into sentient beings so that they can lead others to a honest life? Tell me, ma’am, do you want to breathe life into my disappointing Powerpoint presentations too, so that they might bully me into graduating?

Anyway, if you’re wondering what purpose Gee Willikers (sigh) serves, the answer is NONE. Pinocchio gets rid of him at least twice (good for him) and as easily as drinking a glass of water, he’s a burden to the (admittedly cooler) additional characters, like the aviator bee, and not only is he ugly as fuck, but also so annoying every time he gets a chance to speak that it’s a miracle he wasn’t cut out in post-production.

In short, disgusting. If he entered my home I’d swat him with a flycatcher until he leaves.

3) Pinocchio (2009)

This is essentially Disney’s Jiminy Cricket, but female, anthropomorphic, and with a passion for books instead of pretty ladies or ladies-adjacent objects. Mind you, a sapphic Cricket would perhaps have saved more than one adaptation, this one included, but I’m glad they skipped that part altogether. This miniseries has enough issues as it is.

I’m sorry, she’s just too annoying. Luciana Littizzetto can be funny, but in small doses, otherwise her jokes start to become repetitive. Two hours straight - and yes, it’s that much, because SOMEONE decided to follow Disney’s footsteps a little too well - are too long even for the strongest of hearts. Plus, none of the characters’ costumes are very flattering, accurate or well-made (except for Lampwick 💖), but hers just might take the cake. It looks like a mixture between a teenager’s first attempt at steampunk fashion and a Mardi Gras costume lifted from the discarded items’ bin at a cheap store. Takes you out of the fantasy more than anything else.

4) Roberto Benigni’s Pinocchio (2002)

I’ve talked at length of the weirdness of this movie, but all in all it’s a pretty accurate transposition of the story, from the dialogue to the scenery.

Except for him.

The Cricket in this case does appear in the scenes belonging to him, but ALSO in a long and extremely useless sequence where he tries to find Pinocchio in the Land of Toys and gets kicked around by literally everyone present. Don’t get me wrong, that’s something I would have liked to do as well, but it was totally unnecessary, and it gave nothing to the overall story. This movie still holds the record as the most expensive Italian movie ever made, so wouldn’t it have been better for everybody to skip that part entirely? Not only it would have saved them some money, but also it would have saved me from seeing this guy for an additional fifteen minutes on my screen.

Still, pretty tame compared to some of the others. Could have been worse.

5) Once Upon A Time (2011)

I debated long and hard before making this choice, and I’m not putting him in with a light heart, but before you come at me with pitchforks, please listen.

I like Archie, okay! He’s a fun character, the human side of his backstory was great and gave him a lot of depth and inner turmoil, and the concept of Jiminy Cricket being a therapist is amazing and hilarious. But he’s kind of a shit therapist, whose actions aren’t always what you’d expect from someone who’s supposed to be a conscience and a guide. And despite the show giving us the impression that he and Pinocchio had the same adventures as in the Disney movie (which doesn’t exactly endear him to me - if it wasn’t for his later character development he’d already be Lil Nas X-ing his way down to the bottom of my list), he and August never interacted on screen after the First Curse broke. Not once. And if there’s someone who needs therapy and support, that’s August Wayne Booth.

Yes, I did say at some point that I’d like to fix this in a fic. I’ll write it when I don’t have like eight projects on my table at the same time.

Finally, two scenes settled the matter for me: one, him pontificating at Snow about her trying to do everything on her own, without even pretending to help her set up the stroller she was struggling with at that very moment. I work with kids every day, I know exactly what she’s going through. Shut your mouth and open the damn stroller, Archie.

And two...That one fucking scene where he’s jumping out of Snow White’s cleavage. Honestly, what the fuck??? I wouldn’t even have remembered it if Libby hadn’t reminded me, so I suppose my brain tried to remove the traumatic memory before it caused any further damage, but it exists, and I’m still wondering why. What exactly was the deal with the writers, when they made that choice? I want a glass of what they were having, because by God, does it sound like a trip-inducing cocktail.

Aaaand we’re done! Remember, this is all part of my personal opinion, and I’m not to be taken seriously even on the best of days. Plus, my favorite cricket-esque character, aside from the book-accurate ones, is Gina from Piccolino no Bouken, who is a duck, a sassy little bastard and no closer to Collodi’s canon than any of these fuckers. So yes, when it comes to choices dictated by the heart, I am an hypocrite. Au revoir!

#the amount of time I spent of this is not comparable to the lampwick post #but it's still A LotTM for a cricket rant #meme gif included #pinocchio

9 notes · View notes

lucyreviewcy · 4 years

Text

Cats (2019) Dir. Tom Hooper

The musical Cats. Except this time it’s a movie.

I haven’t read any of the reviews for Cats because I wanted to come to it completely fresh. Ever since its announcement, I have been harried by the fear that my love of both Taylor Swift and actual real-life cats would cause my friends and acquaintances to assume I would be anticipating its release with anything other than dread. Let me put any of those assumptions to rest by saying that I did not want to see this movie, and it was morbid curiosity that drew me to a screening.

The first fascinating thing about Cats is that the screening I was in was the busiest I have seen a cinema (for a non-Star Wars title) for years. This was unexpected, I was fully prepared to view Cats in an empty screen, and instead I was surrounded with fellow viewers, some of whom even applauded at the end.

I struggled to pick up on any of the lyrics to the songs, the way that they scan (or rather don’t scan) with Lloyd Webber’s aggressively 80s musical accompaniment makes it difficult to follow the actual words. It is clear nothing has been learned from The Phantom of the Opera film adaptation, no lessons about maybe updating the music so there’s less synth and more actual instruments, so that the music sounds like something from 2019 instead of something from 1981.

Dance, rather than music is at the heart of Cats. On Radio 2′s First Cast programme (well worth a listen if you like Brian Blessed), Cats is defined as “Britain’s first dance musical.” Much of the fairly simple story is told through imagery and through dance. I was introduced to Cats on VHS when I was very small, and I would imagine that those who are very small are those most likely to enjoy the movie. Or at least I did until a small boy a few rows back began voicing his criticisms, loudly, about five minutes in.

During Victoria’s (Francesca Hayward) first Ballet solo, the small boy queried “What’s wrong with her?” This is a question that was probably not answered through the film.

The essential issue with Cats as a film is that dance is the key selling point. When dance is performed live, it is exciting. There is a thrill to seeing people perform incredible physical feats in front of a live audience. One of my favourite things to do when I visit the Edinburgh Fringe is to go and see circus shows, because there is nothing more thrilling than watching somebody do something that seems impossible right there in front of you. Breathing the same air as you. Within reach. I can see the appeal of Cats as a live show, because it requires incredibly skilled dancers and (considering the uncomfortable scansion of the music and lyrics) singers, to be performed successfully.

However, the movie has misunderstood this appeal. Despite casting some incredible dancers and performers, this is combined with CGI that is, at its worst, about as good as The Phantom Menace and, at its best, a bit better than The Phantom Menace. There is so much CGI, so much unnecessary digital fur, that the performers don’t just look like they’re not quite human, but they look like they’re not quite there. This results in performers who may as well have been completely animated, Taylor Swift’s Bombalurina looks about as realistic and present as Frozen 2′s Queen Elsa. When I initially saw the trailer for Cats, I remember wondering why it felt OK for live actors to be dressed as cats on stage, but not at all OK for actors on film to be covered in CGI fur. Swift’s digitally-enhanced furry embonpoint was a particularly upsetting feature. When the audience is presented with an actor in a leotard, dressed as a cat, I suspend my disbelief and accept that this is a person representing a cat. It is obviously not a cat. It is a person. But they are pretending, and I accept the pretense. When they are rendered in Jar Jar Binks brand CGI, it feels like we are watching a horrifying creature which is, as the small, incredulous boy two rows back remarked “Half cat half person.”

The dance is diminished by the CGI, because these don’t look like incredible human feats. These look like video game characters. Or Legolas in that bit of Lord of the Rings where he’s on top of the Oliphant and he goes all bendy. The impressive human achievement of dance is lost.

It might have been a more enjoyable watch if any of the performers were having a nice time, but they don’t appear to be. James Corden plays James Corden, while Rebel Wilson looks almost disappointed in herself as she is left to pratt-fall about the set in a way that somehow invites not one single laugh.

There was no way that Cats was going to work in 2019. It may have been one of the longest running musicals of all time, closing after 21 years on the West End and 18 years on Broadway, but that doesn’t negate the fact that it did close. It closed. The audiences ran out. It ended. There weren’t enough people that wanted to see Cats to keep it going beyond 2002. For me, Cats doesn’t resonate with anything, it doesn’t mean anything. I have a cat, I love her. She is an idiot and she likes to kill shrews. I don’t look at her as a metaphor for anything spiritual, emotional or political. She’s a cat. She’s cute and furry. She’s warm. This Christmas she threw up on my bed. I love her, but she’s not got a lot going on. One could argue that Cats is escapism, like the Marvel movies, but the Marvel movies have characters you can relate to in them. I can’t relate to these weird cat-human-gungan hybrids.

You are well within your rights to enjoy Cats - although I defy anyone to see Idris Elba’s Macavity sans coat without feeling a little bit unwell. Those members of the audience who applauded in the screening I was in are very welcome to Cats. Please, take it away. Enjoy it! Just... don’t make me watch it again.

#Cats #andrew lloyd webber #taylor swift #tom hooper #movie review #cats the musical #cats movie #2019 movies #movies #idris elba #rebel wilson #james corden

10 notes · View notes

hellzyeahthewebwieldingavenger · 5 years

Link

Oooooookay a bit to unpack here.

First of all let’s get something crystal clear. This is not truly confirmed beyond doubt just yet and sources are conflicted over what this stand off is even about. From what I’ve encountered it’s about Disney and Sony going in 50/50 which was not the arrangement in earlier films (I think Sony got all or the lion’s share, at least on the solo Spidey movies). Other sources say it was just a credit issue.

I’m inclined towards the former.

IF it is true this would mean there will be another unresolved MCU movie subplot, like with Incredible Hulk, but much more substantial. Now the good news about that is that it isn’t something that the MCU in general hinged on. Like the cliffhanger affected Spider-Man and his cast and no one else. I mean arguably Happy and Pepper, but the former was essentially absorbed into the Spider-Man cast and the latter was more than likely retired after Endgame. It will be the SECOND iteration of Spidey on film though to end with an unresolved plotline (Spidey media has a habit of this, remember the end of Spider-Man 1994 or Spec Spidey?).

Allegedly according to this article 2 more Spidey movies were in development with Watts involved with at least one of those. Speculating here but possibly they might’ve been pulling an Infinity War/Endgame thing. That would actually have been a storywise good way to have given weight to the ramifications of Peter’s identity being exposed before it (very likely) would’ve gone back into the bag, and it would’ve allowed a lot of space for a potential Sinister Six storyline. After all if you go by the MCU technically there are 6 Spidey villains around already (Vulture, Scorpion, Shocker, Tinkerer, Mysterio and Chameleon). But you’d need to give Scorpion and Chameleon powers, reintroduce the other guys and let’s be honest they would never use Tinkerer seriously, they’d sub him for another more formidable foe like Doc Ock or Kraven or someone like that.

We do not know the specifics of the original Disney/Sony deal nor what was on the cards for this one, so it’s not impossible (but I’d guess highly likely) that the ending of their relationship also means Marvel wouldn’t get to use other Spider-Man characters in other movies. So that Norman Osborn showing up in a Dark Avengers movie that was very likely on the cards? That’s very unlikely to happen now if the break up is real.

As for my own views...I regard this as at worst a lesser evil.

I’m no fan of the Marc Webb movies and they dealt damage to the brand and to the character on film in general. But the worst thing they did was lead to the Marvel/Sony deal which, whilst technically helping out public opinion on Spider-Man, damaged the integrity of the character and mythos yet more.

I don’t need to go into details for you (just read my Homecoming and Far From Home reviews) but suffice it to say that the MCU adapted Spider-Man in the most insultingly superficial of ways.

MCU Spider-Man looked like comic book Peter Parker, had a costume heavily resembling his, had his powers, lived in Queens, went to a school with ‘Midtown’ in it’s name, had an aunt named May, a love interest called Liz Allan, another love interest nicknamed ‘MJ’, was a member of the Avengers and had a father-son relationship with Iron Man/Tony Stark who gave him a high tech suit.

And with absolutely 0 hyperbole, that is where the similarities end. Even then the similarities are very much in the letter not the spirit. The nature of Peter’s Avengers membership, what it meant to him, how he got it and so on was fundamentally different. The nature of his relationship with Iron Man (which was idiotic in the comics too btw) was fundamentally different. I could go on but you get the picture.

It is a version of Spider-Man is utterly devoid of the substance that defines the character, so utterly missing the point in fact that he literally could be an original character if you changed those superficial details and lose next to nothing storywise.

I give the Webb movies a lot of shit, and it is not unearned, but although they were problematic Spider-Man movies...at least they WERE Spider-Man movies. Not movies effectively pretending to be about Spider-Man rather than Iron Man Junior.

Of course this opens up a debate about what is more important, being a respectful adaptation or a just a generally good movie regardless of fealty to the source material.

Frankly that’s a talk for another day.

But what’s most important to my personal enjoyment of these movies is most definitely the former over the latter.

Don’t get it twisted, I want BOTH. I’ve seen Spider-Man 2002 and Spider-Man 2 too many times to count, whilst I’ve seen Spider-Man 3 maybe 4 times, ASM 2012 maybe 3 times and ASM2 like twice, I wouldn’t even bother to watch it on Netflix.

And I’m not calling any of them perfect adaptations, but Jesus Christ they got more right than the MCU films ever did. At least Raimi and Webb were presenting interpretations of Peter Parker rather than an hybrid abomination of Miles Morales/Robin/Ultimate cartoon Peter Parker/Ultimate Comics Peter Parker/616Peter Parker (in that order).

For the record I REJECT the notion that making a respectful adaptation or a good movie are mutually exclusive. Spider-Man 2002 and Spider-Man 2 were both. Batman Mask of the Phantasm, Batman Begins and the Dark Knight were both. Superman 1978 and Superman II were both. Captain America the First Avenger, Winter Soldier, Civil War and Avengers 2012 were both.

I has been done and it can be done.

My high ball hopes for this is that Sony will look to Lord and Miller’s fine work and take notes.

Low ball hopes, more movies of at least Webb’s quality.

P.S. The fact that Watts was involved with MCU Spidey 3 fills me with dread. If that movie is dead then thank God.

P.P.S.

#Spider-Man #MCU #marvel cinematic universe #disney #sony #Sony PIctures #Sam Raimi #Marc Webb #Jon Watts #spider-man: homecoming #Spider-Man: Far From Home #spider-man 2002 #Spider-Man 2 #Spider-Man 3 #Amazing Spider-Man 2012 #Amazing Spider-Man 2

19 notes · View notes

tlbodine · 5 years

Text

A Decade of Horror Recommendations: Millennium Edition

After my 2010s horror recs post, @comicreliefmorlock asked me to do some for older films. So I figured I’d just work my way backward.

The lists might get a bit shorter and less diverse as I go back in time as I’m not as well-versed in older horror films, but I’ll toss out some recommendations for what I’ve seen and maybe some will be new to you anyway :)

Long post under the cut!

2000: A Surprisingly Good Year for Horror

Maybe we don’t think of the Y2K year as a big one for the horror genre, but it was still riding the tail end of the slasher/teen horror revival. Some must-sees:

Final Destination: I’ve written pretty extensively about this movie and it’s no surprise that I like it a lot, even if the sequels get downright ridiculous. The original still stands on its own feet.

Ginger Snaps: Maybe one of the best werewolf movies, period. Smart writing and a strong female cast as an added bonus.

American Psycho: Did you know this came out in 2000? I honestly always thought it was older, somehow, maybe because by the time I watched it in college it seemed like everyone had seen it. Fun fact: did you know it was directed by a woman?

What Lies Beneath: Part psychological horror, part drama-thriller, and sporting a surprisingly A-list cast. It has some well-worn tropes, but it’s a solid watch.

Battle Royale: Speaking of movies that seem like they’re way older than they are, did you know Battle Royale only came out in the year 2000?

There were a smattering of Asian imports in 2000 but none of them quite got their feet under them. I will make a shout-out/honorable mention here for Blood: The Last Vampire, an anime film that’s pretty well-known and gets referenced a lot.

2001: The Beginning of the End (for a little while)

Some solid stand-alone titles came out this year, but it also was the start of when the 90s revival started to dwindle down, I feel, with plenty of disappointments to go around. Scary Movie didn’t help much (and it also launched a whole trend of really awful spoof movies, which tried real hard to kill the comedy genre for a long time, imo). Anyway, some recs!

Jeepers Creepers: The director is an unfortunate sack of shit, but the movie is quite good. The first part, which draws heavily from a true story, is especially chilling.

Thirteen Ghosts: An underrated gem. The plot twists too much for my liking, but the ghost designs are super cool and the whole concept of the house is neat. A+ for originality.

The Devil’s Backbone: Maybe my favorite Guillermo Del Toro film, and a damn good ghost story to boot.

Suicide Club: A Japanese import that feels a bit ahead of its time in terms of pop culture (and internet culture especially). Features a couple of squick-heavy scenes I still struggle to watch (but, like, in a good way).

Ichi the Killer: Another Japanese import and my introduction to Takashi Miike, who makes me more viscerally uncomfortable than just about anyone.

It’s also probably worth mentioning From Hell, the Johnny Depp movie about Jack the Ripper, which many people enjoyed. I personally strongly dislike the film for reasons I can’t fully explain.

2002: Wait, That’s When That Movie Came Out?

I feel like 2002 was a big year for me in the “movies I enjoy but didn’t watch until years later” department, probably because I was a teenager with minimal access to decent cinema. It was also a rocking good year for Japanese horror.

28 Days Later: A movie that brought about the return of zombies in a big way, and also introduced (or at least popularized) fast zombies. Also it’s super scary.

May: I don’t even know if May counts as horror, but it’s a dark, quirky movie that I try to make everyone watch because I love it so much.

Ghost Ship: Honestly the bulk of the movie is pretty forgettable, but the opening scene is one of my favorite moments in gory cinematic history.

Signs: M. Night Shyamalan’s last decent movie or his first shitty one, depending on who you ask. I liked it a lot when I first watched it, and it started to fall apart more and more as I got older.

Ju-On: The Grudge: One of the better-known Japanese horrors and one whose tropes still get referenced and re-used. Skip the 2004 remake and watch the original trilogy.

The Ring: Probably the best-known Japanese horrors and maybe the import that put “Japanese horror” into public consciousness.

There was a lot of shlocky dreck in 2002, some of it decent (Cabin Fever) and some of it downright awful (Pinata: Survival Island/Demon Island). I should also mention Red Dragon, based on Thomas Harris’s novel of the same name, which quite a few people liked (I’ve only seen it once but I recall being underwhelmed). Also an honorable mention to Dog Soldiers, which I have not seen but which I hear frequently recommended as an A+ werewolf film.

2003: Wow that’s a lot of dreck

Look fam nobody said these film recs would be objective. There were a ton of horror movies that came out in 2003, I just didn’t really like hardly any of them. Some exceptions:

Willard: The movie that made me want to start keeping rats as pets, which says more about me than it does the film. It’s a great movie, though, the first thing I ever saw Crispin Glover in (and god, he’s amazing), and one of the few films that I think is better than the book.

Identity: A pretty decent psychological horror starring John Cusack. Watch this and 1408 together as a double-feature for maximum fun factor.

House of 1000 Corpses: Look, if you’re reading this blog, you probably already have an opinion one way or another of Rob Zombie. The movie’s on the list because it’s arguably historically important, not because it’s objectively good.

A few other notable moments from 2003 included a Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake (just watch the original, but if you insist on a remake, this is one of the better ones), the second Final Destination film (the last good one in the franchise), the Jeepers Creepers sequel, Freddy vs Jason, Darkness Falls, and Dreamcatcher. Like I said, there were lots of movies that came out this year, I just don’t think they were very good.

2004: Oops we created torture porn

I was in college at this point, which meant I was watching less horror than at any other moment in my life (I had a roommate who really hated scary movies) so maybe that’s why I haven’t heard of the majority of movies that came out that year. Or maybe they were all just really bad, hence why I still haven’t seen them. Hmmm. But! A few shining stars:

Saw: Obviously a classic. I’m lukewarm about the franchise, but the original is an excellent film and well worth watching, especially given the impact it would have on the next many years of horror cinema.

Shaun of the Dead: Hilarious, and honestly one of my favorite zombie films of all time.

Dumplings: A Korean important you likely missed in 2004 but may have seen in a Three Extremes compilation. Well worth the watch if you’re not squeamish.

Otherwise 2004 was pretty lackluster. Some forgettable franchise installments, some shlocky creature features, some unnecessary remakes. Lots of titles I’m unfamiliar with, though, too, so somebody tell me if I missed a big one that year!

2005: Ehhhh

Just a couple important titles this year too:

Hostel: Not a great movie. In fact, pretty damn campy. But an important one to watch to understand the torture porn genre.

The Devil’s Rejects: See above re: House of 1000 Corpses. Hit or miss but a well-liked film by Rob Zombie fans.

And you know what, I think that’s actually it. I mean there were other movies -- a remake of The Fog, the infinitely predictable Hide and Seek, the second Saw installment, and of course Doom. But it just wasn’t a great year for horror, imo. One shout-out here though for Wolf Creek, which is on my to-watch list; I haven’t seen it so I can’t vouch for it, but it does get recommended to me a lot.

2006: Mostly more of the same

Did we seriously have a Saw movie every year in the 2000s or what? No wonder everybody got sick of them and thought all horror was torture porn for a while. Talk about market saturation.

Anyway, some shout-outs:

Stay Alive: This movie is ridiculous, but I love it a lot. It’s about a video game that kills you in real life, and is a more successful video game movie than most actual adaptations.

ReCycle: An Asian import. I missed this one entirely when it came out, but it’s one of my favorites to have discovered in later years. It’s a seriously cool movie, both fanciful and deeply uncomfortable. Content warning for abortion, but it’s not what you think.

Otherwise, just some mostly soulless remakes (The Omen, The Hills Have Eyes, The Wicker Man), some franchise installments (Saw III, Final Destination 3, The Grudge 2). I will give an honorable mention to Black Sheep, which is so-bad-it’s-good ridiculous, and to that cult favorite Slither.

2007: Wait, is horror getting good again?

Well, not quite, but we’re back on the map with some promising additions in a year where the genre seemed to be struggling to rediscover its identity:

The Mist: One of the better Stephen King adaptations.

30 Days of Night: A divisive entry in the canon, but a pretty interesting piece to study for anyone interested in vampires.

28 Weeks Later: Not exactly a direct sequel to the earlier 28 Days Later, and probably not as good of a film, but pretty good in its own right.

1408: Watch this one with Identity (see above) and enjoy a night of John Cusack going crazy in hotel rooms.

The Orphanage: One of my favorite horror films of all time, both deeply unsettling and agonizingly sad.

Paranormal Activity: The highest-grossing film of all time thanks to its low budget. Also what we can blame for the burst of popularity in the “found footage” style.

Dead Silence: A movie that still frequently gets recommended and delivers some solid spooks. I’m not as fond of it as a lot of people, but it deserves a mention for how often it gets referenced (and for playing “killer ventriloquist dummies” straight as a trope).

Trick r Treat: A Halloween classic.

Of course the year brought us another Saw and another Hostel, a contentious Halloween reboot, another stab at I Am Legend (often adapted, rarely well), and a smattering of other sequels. I have not seen The Girl Next Door but based on how rarely I hear it recommended compared to the book, I imagine I’m not missing much. Borderlands was OK but, for my money, forgettable. Oh, there was also Grindhouse, a double feature which I quite enjoyed (I saw it in theaters, where it came with a warning for length, which I found amusing) but which history does not seem to have remembered positively.

2008: Did Somebody Order a Recession?

Back to slim pickings, although I admittedly have not seen most of the films released that year (I was pretty damn broke in 2008, so maybe that’s why). Still:

Let the Right One In: Skip the later English remake, you cowards, and watch this with subtitles. It’s so good. SO GOOD. An unexpected twist on the vampire story, and kind of a romance to boot. Sort of. In a really messed up way.

Cloverfield: A couple things are neat about Cloverfield. One, it was an early adopter and trope-setter for found-footage movies. Two, it successfully spawned a franchise where none of the movies feel related at all. Three, it launched with some really cool viral marketing that was utterly ahead of its time. On the downside, the shaky cam may in fact make you vomit if you get seasick easily.

Repo! The Genetic Opera: A classic. Also may in fact be the only film of its kind, or at least the only rock-opera scifi-horror that comes to mind.

I haven’t seen Pontypool, though it’s on my watch-list -- I’ve heard it’s quite good. Ditto Tokyo Gore Police which delivers, to my understanding, exactly what it says on the tin. Speaking of movies I didn’t see, can we take a moment to appreciate that a film called “Sauna” with the tagline “cleanse your sins” came out this year? Jfk 2008, are you OK?

2009: Why are all the best horrors comedies this year

It really does become obvious just how much the genre was floundering to figure out what it was doing the latter half of the decade, because the movies are so weirdly hit-or-miss. I do have some favorite hidden gems, though, alongside a couple well-known recs:

Zombieland: A genuinely funny feel-good zombie comedy-horror, feeding right into a growing cultural fascination with zombies.

Jennifer’s Body: Is this a comedy? Is this a horror? What is this? I’m not sure how to classify it but I sure do like it.

Antichrist: Ok I don’t know if this is a recommendation per se, but if I had to watch this with my own eyes, I’m making y’all watch it too. Have you ever wondered what it might look like to watch a filmmaker have a psychotic break while making a movie? That’s almost literally what this film is.

The Human Centipede: This is a cop-out because I have not watched these movies and I in fact refuse to watch these movies because the premise is fucking stupid, but I will acknowledge the historical, ah, importance? of this film in the greater scheme of 21st century horror.

Dread: One of my favorite movies, and the film I recommend to anyone who wants to watch a torture film done right. I love the shit out of this movie. Please go watch this movie.

Grace: Deeply disturbing and pulling approximately zero punches. It’s one of the best films to tread the “horrors of motherhood” territory, which is saying something because that’s very fertile (ha, ha) ground.

I actually have not seen Drag Me to Hell or The Last House on the Left, although people have recommended both to me. Anyone want to chime in with how good they might be? I also want to make a shout-out to Daybreakers, which I feel like nobody ever talks about but which actually has one of the most fascinating vampire concepts I’ve ever seen on film. The movie itself is kind of boring and forgettable, but the idea is really neat.

And that wraps up my journey through the 2000s in horror. Next decade: The 90s, coming right up!

#horror movies #film recs #movie recommendations #horror #horror by the decade

9 notes · View notes

geek-gem · 5 years

Text

So this is a random post and it’s random. Been watching Sonicguru again. So at 34 to 36 minutes with a couple more seconds. Dan literally asks if there has been ever a good video game movie?

You know considering the fact he mentions Assassin’s Creed and Warcraft. I’m honestly seriously annoyed by the fact he didn’t mentioned Tomb Raider 2018 and Rampage 2018(He probably didn’t see them anyway). Including this huge video of Dan and his friend reacting to and talking about the first Sonic movie trailer. Yet here’s a list of, “Good” or video game movies I personally like. While some aren’t perfect. They are watchable and have things I like.

Rampage 2018. (While I agree Detective Pikachu despite it’s flaws is a much better made film. I wanted to say I whole heartedly love this movie. Especially I’m listening to, “Requiem” from the film right now)

Detective Pikachu.

Tomb Raider 2018.

Mortal Kombat 1995.

Resident Evil 2002. (Despite my gripes and nitpicks of the movie itself. But much more better than a lot of it’s sequels)

While I’ll be honest I haven’t seen the Angry Birds movies. They seem alright. Also I’m feeling like there seems to be some sort of unrealistic expectation when it towards video game movies. I think I’m just thinking about how annoying that Rotten Tomatoes score thing is.

Yet I mean Dan has a point. Considering a lot of video game adaptions aren’t the best. Especially there are a lot which surprised me.

I mean Sonicguru is mainly pessimistic about the film yet I shouldn’t blame him. He even if I recall admitted that before. Despite I disagree with his notion that Wonder Woman was the first good DCEU film. Besides I didn’t finish the video anyway.

Also I mean I feel like 2018 is the year now where we got much better video game films. Despite there were some other ones that seemed alright.

While I admit I’m not a big fan of how the Sonic movie looks. Because selfishly it doesn’t look like the kind of film I wanted. Despite my what if ideas would possibly get fans thinking, “Jesus Christ are going back to the phases with Shadow The Hedgehog and Sonic 06?” which is something I have thought about. Despite my inspirations were Rampage 2018, and even Sonic Adventure 2 which I have been playing more so I can be inspired by that game. Along with the goal to, “Make Sonic cool again” despite that line can be understood, but it would bother people making them talk about, “Why does Sonic need to be cool again?”.

But considering the fact and Speedsupersonic has mentioned this in his videos. The fact the people behind it really wanted to do this film and didn’t gave up on it. I’m interested in their vision and I hope I’m proven wrong about the movie and hopefully it’s an alright or good film. Especially the early test screenings with people saying they liked it. Comparing to a film like Bumbleebee 2018 and whatever else, being called a good version of the 2014 TMNT movie.

I’m gonna put this in the Sonic movie positivity tag if no one minds. Because I felt like it became that. Despite my feelings towards the film. Was thinking of tagging those other movies but I think I’ll be fine without those. Yet seriously Sonicguru is cool. Been a while since I watched him. He just has different opinions that’s all, I can’t blame him for how he and his friend think of the movie. Because they said they expected shit.

But while I’m gonna sound stupid, I was just bothered by his comment if any video game movies were good. That was my problem.

#sonic the hedgehog #sonic movie #sonic movie positivity

4 notes · View notes

neriad13 · 4 years

Text

Best of the Best Media Consumed 2019!

This year I had a whole lot of focus on nonfiction, film and comics. Resolution for next year: read more fiction. Seriously, I read over three times more nonfiction than fiction this year. I read a little over one novel a month. But I really do love picking up a book on something I know nothing about and coming away knowing more than something. X-P

Anyway! The list!

Books - Fiction

Out of the 17 works of fiction I read this year, the best of the best is...

The Snow Queen, by Joan Vinge

The Snow Queen was one of my absolute favorite fairy tales as a child. The 2002 film adaptation of it was one of the things I watched endlessly.

It was SO MUCH FUN picking apart this sci-fi retelling and discovering which characters are meant to represent the ones from the original story (of particular interest: the character representing the reindeer is human in this...and he has a one night stand with the character representing Gerta. Yes, I’m still cracking up about this. Yes, it actually was a pretty well written scene).

But the absolute best part of it was the masterful characterization. Every single character has ulterior motives and often heartbreaking reasons for why they are the way they are - especially including the Snow Queen herself, whose final scene is horrifying, tragic and beautiful.

I always like me some solid villain characterization.

Runner Up:

Fairy Tales: Traditional Stories Retold for Gay Men

I am not a gay man...but this very much spoke to me. It was at turns heartwarming and hilarious and the turns these fairy tales took felt so natural, like they’d been told that way all along.

There are also many allusions to AIDS in the stories - sometimes as something a character is directly dealing with whether in himself, or a loved one and sometimes under the guise of a metaphor for inevitability. These ones were my favorites (aside from The Frog Prince, which was turned into a metaphor for accepting the process of aging with grace).

Books - Nonfiction

Oh boy. There’s...definitely going to be more than one here. Of the 65 works of nonfiction I read this year, my favorites were...

Smoke Gets in Your Eyes & Other Lessons From the Crematory

A memoir about the author’s time spent working as a crematory operator and her entry into the funeral business. This book was absolutely hilarious (it contains a story about the author getting absolutely soaked with corpse fat that wouldn’t stop flowing straight out of the incinerator), tragic (a 12 year old girl is cremated and her ashes are mailed back to her parents as part of a cremation mail-in program) and extremely poignant (the author talks openly about the time she was contemplating suicide).

I love Caitlin’s youtube channel and I loved this book even more.

My Age of Anxiety

Partially the memoir of a man who has battled his extreme anxiety his entire life, a historical study of famous figures who have also endured it and a scientific look into why it exists at all.

Ultimately, it offers no answers. As of the writing of the book, the author has found no treatment that helps him for longer than a few months. But what he has found over the course of his research is that he is not alone - that anxiety has historically been a factor in scientific breakthroughs and artistic accomplishments. And that perhaps most importantly, that anxiety has been a key part of human evolution from the start, which served a vital role in the survival of the species.

Mental illness or evolutionary adaptation? Is there even a line between them?

Cassell’s Encyclopedia of Queer Myth, Symbol and Spirit

This is the only book, period, devoted to queer mythology, that I have ever been able to find. But the good news is that it’s fairly extensive (though the authors themselves admit that they had trouble finding as much information about non-western mythology as they did for western mythology), is chock full of references and is extremely thorough in the information it presents.

I’ll admit that it was a slog to get through at times, but what it’s provided has been invaluable to my conception of history and my own place in it.

Also, I can now say beyond a shadow of a doubt that almost every culture on earth has at some point in their history had a tradition of transgender shamans.

Hope After Faith

This is the memoir of a charismatic Pentecostal pastor turned atheist. It follows him from teenagerhood and the beginnings of his dream to be a preacher to a little bit after his deconversion decades later.

The eventual crumbling of his faith was something that spoke to me on a deep level. The scene that I still think about months later is the one in which he finally gives up his belief in the afterlife and accepts the finality of death by saying goodbye to everyone he ever loved who has died with the words “I love you, but I’m never going to see you again.”

I was not a huge fan of the writing style at first, but this one won me over totally and completely. It touched me immensely at the time when I needed it most.

Comics - Fiction

I read 52 fictional comics this year and 46 nonfiction. I absolutely raided my library’s graphic novel section for months. It was a good time.

Beautiful Darkness

A French graphic novel wherein tiny people survive and feud over the corpse of the child they came from. It’s...hard to explain. Kind of a fairy tale Lord of the Flies, but more subtly horrifying. It’s a story about decay and collapse - of society, of the physical form, of the dreams of a child. It has no single interpretation and different people may take something very different from it. The most inventive horror story I read this year.

My Brother’s Husband

A story about microaggressions and how their buildup over time can drive a wedge between people without them even noticing. I cried. Go read it.

Mis(h)adra

A semi autobiographical account of a college student learning how to live with his epilepsy. I also cried over this one.

The art is stunning, the metaphors are amazing (the main character’s epilepsy is visually portrayed as a set of ghostly knives that follow him around) and the ending is extremely affecting if you’ve ever dealt with any kind of chronic illness.

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba

The absolute most fun I had reading a comic this year. Gets extremely dark and incredibly sad but never feels overwhelmingly heavy, thanks to its great sense of humor.

Edward Scissorhands: Parts Unknown + Whole Again

A series of adventures set decades after the movie, after Kim’s death, in a time when her granddaughter begins wondering if the stories about the castle on the hill are true.

It deals with such issues as the difficulties Kim had with her daughter growing up, when all she would do is tell stories about Edward rather than give her the emotional support she needed, whether removing the thing that both makes you unique and brings pain is worth it and how to stop angry villagers from burning down your house (again).

Also, seeing Edward be surrounded by a group of friends who care about him was extremely healing.

Comics - Nonfiction

My Solo Exchange Diary vol 1-2

A series of updates about the author’s continuing battle with mental illness and about how recovery is anything but a straight line.

Can’t We Talk About Something More Pleasant?

Finally, some light reading!

It’s a memoir about the decline and death of the author’s aging parents.

I found it...extremely comforting. Extreme old age, whether in one’s self or in one’s loved ones, is a scary and often obscured prospect, despite being a near-universal human experience. This book took the mystery out of aging and the fear out of taking care of aging parents. I’ve seen it done now. I’m more ready to do it myself.

The Best We Could Do

A memoir of the author’s family’s flight from Vietnam and their immigration to America, through the lens of the birth of the author’s first child. About how being a refugee changes a person in small, often unexpected ways, how trauma leaves its mark on families - and how, knowing all this, one can still keep living and raising the next generation.

Film - Fiction

I caught up on a lot of classics I’d not seen before and really got into Jidaigeki this year. Me putting only four of them on the list is a show of restraint. Of the 64 films I watched this year...

The Fall of the House of Usher

Impeccable costume and psychedelic set design. The unanswered question that bounces throughout the entire movie: is it the curse or is it the fault of human belief in the curse?

Patch your walls, dude.

A Monster With a Thousand Heads

A Mexican thriller about a woman whose husband is denied cancer treatment for seemingly no reason. The doctor gives her the runaround. No one can answer her questions. No one listens to her.

So, naturally, she and her teenage son spend a night kidnapping and holding at gunpoint every person she needs to get her husband’s cancer treatment approved. Wild and intense and timely.

Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb

I watched a couple of Kubrick movies I hadn’t seen before and of them...I died laughing at this one. The tight plotting! The inevitable buildup to disaster over something so insanely stupid!

I did not live during the Cold War, but damn do I feel for the inherent ridiculousness of it now.

Seven Samurai

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAFGFTRTRNHUKIJUHNJNHHHHHHHHHHHHYHYHYHYHYHYHYHYHYXCVVGGERDSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!

...this movie is insanely good. I watched Citizen Kane this year. This movie’s better.

It has a plot which can be described in its totality, in a single sentence - a group of samurai are hired to defend a village from bandits - but what they do with that premise is so much more than that.

This movie is three hours long. It did not lag once.

Hara Kiri

As the Tokugawas secure their grip on all of Japan, war ceases. Great houses are dissolved and their retainers, cast into the streets. The relevance of the samurai is ending and the cities are awash in starving ronin.

Once, one of these starving ronin approached a great house, asking if he might be able to end his life honorably, in front of witnesses there. So impressed was the lord with this ronin’s resolve, that he instead hired him on as one of his retainers.

Hearing this story, other ronin, having no intention of actually offing themselves, tried the same trick in the hopes of securing a job, or at the very least, a little something to eat.

It became a common scam which, in the end, fooled no one. Most houses gave the ronin a handful of cash and sent them on their way.

But one house, seeking to preserve their warlike spirit in these peaceful times, chooses to treat one beggar ronin very differently.

This is the story of vengeance taken for that death.

Yojimbo

A ronin enters a town that is being torn apart by gang warfare and decides to play both sides in order to end the conflict. It contains such comedic gems as:

- the ronin suddenly deciding not to take part in a street battle, leaving both sides evenly matched and extremely nervous about fighting each other, while he watches it all from the top of a watchtower, laughing his ass off

- the ronin is critically injured and being smuggled out of town in a coffin. A fight breaks out while this is happening and scares away one of the people carrying the coffin. A less intelligent goon of the gang he just escaped from is cheerfully recruited to carry the coffin the rest of the way

- standing up in the coffin, declaring that he’s fine and immediately fainting

Also, you should totally bring a knife to a gun fight.

Ran

A jidaigeki reimagining of King Lear.

A visually astounding, sweeping epic with amazing acting and a complex interplay of conflicting passions which might just be more bleak than the original play.

The scene in which the main character goes mad and is cast out into the wilderness is especially haunting.

Jojo Rabbit

I don’t think I’ve EVER experienced such violent mood whiplash in a movie before. One moment you’re crying-laughing from a joke that hit with absolute perfection and the next you’re...actually crying. In the same scene. Within thirty seconds. Multiple times. It is the oddest feeling to be so elated by the best joke in the entire movie while every character we’ve come to know across the course of the movie is in the process of dying violently. It’s not a feeling everyone’s going to like, but for me it was completely new and fantastic.

The best part of the movie is the main character’s relationship with Imaginary Friend Hitler. He’s wildly funny and relentlessly charming. I got excited every time he appeared in a scene and was, oddest of all, actually comforted by his presence.

He was all of these things until, in the most terrifying scene in the movie, he was not.

This movie shows you the mechanisms through which fascism becomes an appealing idea for a lonely child by putting the audience through a version of the same process. It’s so clever, so funny and so sad.

What do you do when your world is destroyed by absurdity and there is nothing left for you to return to?

You dance in the streets.

TV Series

Good Omens

Wildly hilarious comedy, fantastic costume design, multiple androgynous characters for which NO ONE bats an eye and honestly?? the best queer love story I’ve ever seen in television or film.

The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance

I am not sure if I have ever seen a production with so much love poured into it. The dozens of painstakingly crafted sets and characters, the sheer level of artistry on display - the next thing I saw was always more amazing than the thing I’d seen before it and the amazingness just kept coming with no end in sight throughout the entirety of the show.

And the story itself! The way it deepened and played with the lore of the original movie in the most perfect and unexpected ways! It felt like I was watching the most fantastic and labor intensive piece of fanfiction ever conceived, that was written by a person with a deep passion for and knowledge of the source material.

Speaking of fantastic throwbacks...

Dororo

I’ve said a lot about this one already. While it ultimately fell kind of flat, what it did get right was phenomenal. The motherfucking FIGHT SCENES! The love between bros! The fascinating reconception of Hyakkimaru’s powers and its emphasis on a disabled character actually being portrayed as disabled! The journey of good characters going down the path of evil with good intentions!

Mwah!

Primal eps 1-5

Genndy Tartakovsky’s next big project after the completion of Samurai Jack!

It is gory. Like, extremely gory. Do you know how much gore a thing has to have before I consider it ‘extremely gory?’ It’s a lot. Like...really a lot. There’s a thirty second (or possibly longer. time lost all meaning as I watched it) sequence in which the main character punches the intestines out of a horde of hominids in loving, exacting detail. It’s like Genndy’s letting out all the pent-up gore he was forced to keep in check during the years when he was working on Samurai Jack.

But it isn’t just gore. It’s a journey about the main character’s grief over the sudden, horrific, unexpected death of his entire family. A story which is also mirrored by that of the dinosaur he joins forces with. There were parts during it in which I literally felt my heart being torn in two over the travails of these two, as well as wildly funny and completely adorable parts.

The settings, creature design and fight choreography are insanely creative, as is the decision to do it with no dialogue whatsoever.

And that cliffhanger, DAMN!! They’d better get the next five episodes out soon!

Honorable Mention:

Rick and Morty S4 eps 1-5

This one doesn’t entirely make the list proper because the latter two episodes...were rather subpar. But I can’t entirely keep it off the list because the quality of the first three episodes was off the charts. A particular shoutout to ‘The Old Man and the Seat’ and ‘One Crew Over the Crewcoo’s Morty’ - the former, which somehow managed to use toilet humor, of all things, to reach a crushingly tragic conclusion and the latter, which has a twist better than that of some of my favorite horror movies.

Games

Shogun 2

I didn’t do a whole lot of gaming at all this year. But what I did do is have a fantastic time getting into the Total War franchise. Shogun 2 was my entry point and a FANTASTIC game. The ninja animations! The tiny, exacting animations of every single person running around on a sinking ship! The way Realm Divide changes the game into something much more dangerous and the way I learned to dance on the edge of it until I was good and ready!

Plays

Love’s Labours Lost

One of two Shakespeare plays I saw this year, the other being The Tempest - which was also excellent (especially the part where it legit started raining when Ariel summoned the storm in the first scene and then that showing had to be cancelled. The second time was the charm).

Love’s Labours Lost had some excellent comedy and the usual absurd web of misunderstandings you’d expect to find in your standard Shakespeare romcom. But the thing which pushed it over the edge for me was that...it had a sad ending. It goes against the definition of comedy and has a sad ending. Because it was so unexpected, it hit unexpectedly hard and made it that much more memorable.

#jojo rabbit #akira kurosawa #rick and morty #the dark crystal: age of resistance #good omens #primal #a thought #long post

1 note · View note