Away For A Bit

I've had some family stuff come up so unfortunately I'll be away from blogging for a little while. I've got a few good things from the weekend I'd like to talk about but it's going to have to wait.

In the mean time, if you're in LA you still have one more chance to see Medicine For Melancholy at the LA Film Fest! Tomorrow at 2 PM at The Regent in Westwood. I was able to see it Friday night (it's one of the things I want to talk about) and it's great. I highly recommend it.

I may post in the next few days but I probably won't. If nothing else, I will be back next week.

Thoughts: News Worth Sharing

Two little bits I found whilst perusing Hollywood Reporter's website.

The first is that L.A. Confidential will be getting a special edition DVD come September. While I normally am less than excited by so-called "Special Editions" this one actually sounds like it could be pretty cool.

Hollywood Reporter Article.

The features sound interesting and I'm tickled by the idea of a commentary by critic Andrew Sarris. I have a feeling I'll probably end up purchasing this one.

The other news is bigger and even more exciting.

I get to mention once again Medicine For Melancholy. I heard the news last night thanks to a Myspace bulletin but it's still really cool to see it making actual Hollywood Reporter news.

M4M has been picked up by IFC!

I'm completely psyched for Justin and Cherie and everyone else. I have a damn good idea of how much work they all put into this film. It's just great to see their commitment and dedication rewarded.

If you're in LA you should definitely venture out to the LA Film Fest this weekend and check it out! I can't wait to see it tomorrow.

IFC Films picks up 'Melancholy'

The LA Film Festival

And that's what I've got for now. Back to work!

Thoughts: T-Rex's Tips for Filmmaking

I'm amused.

(Click on the picture for the full comic)

Review: The Happening

Do you ever look around at the world and feel like we’re at the tipping point? That we are precariously balanced, about to fall into disaster. The media is full of talk of global warming, the looming energy crisis, the extinction of different species, pollution, food shortages; the list goes on. We can tune it out but it’s hard to ignore completely. There’s a tension, a waiting for the other shoe to drop.

The Happening begins on this perch and slides into the disaster.

I feel like I’m one of the few people who actually enjoyed M. Night Shyamalan’s newest film. Maybe it’s because I’m a fan; the only movie of his I can say that I straight up do not like is Signs. Maybe it’s because I had no expectations going into it. Either way, while I can’t necessarily argue that it’s a good film, I will say that it is enjoyable and I feel like it gets it right in the places where it really counts.

The story is an exercise in end of the world paranoia. There has been a mysterious attack in Central Park. The population of New York has been exposed to some toxin. It begins with disorientation and incoherent speech. Its ending is fatal. We watch the event spread from the park to the city’s rooftops. And then we are spirited away to Philadelphia. We reach Elliot Moore’s classroom moments before the word of the attack does. And then we see the confusion spread faster than the toxin itself.

Is it terrorists? Is it our government? Is it something natural? Through the increasing panic one thing becomes clear: it is spreading to smaller and smaller populations and nowhere is safe.

We follow Elliot (Mark Wahlberg), his wife Alma (Zooey Deschanel), Elliot’s friend and fellow teacher Julian (John Leguizamo), and Julian’s young daughter Jess (Ashlyn Sanchez). They flee Philadelphia only to find themselves stranded in a small town that lies in the center of the Northeast states being attacked. From there it becomes a race to safety and a fight for survival.

Unlike M. Night’s previous films there is no “twist” at the end. There is no magical solution. Whether or not our characters survive is taken out of their hands. The plot is laid out for us step by step, as is the film’s message. It’s all made very simple. The way the story is told can be a turn off; it can come across as preachy and overly moralizing. At the same time though it lets us focus not on figuring out some convoluted story, we can focus instead on what these characters are going through, what they are feeling, it gives us time to connect.

Unfortunately, we don’t necessarily have something solid to connect to. It’s hard to be engaged with characters when you can see the actors struggling with the material. I like Mark Wahlberg a lot and I think he has the potential to do great things, especially when he’s paired with a strong director, however he also has the potential to be wooden and unconvincing. In The Happening I feel like that is the case. His performance feels stiff and forced. The delivery on some of his lines is just downright painful to watch.

It’s a problem of script and direction. I didn’t particularly care for a lot of the dialogue and the actors frequently seemed to not quite know what to do with it. Zooey Deschanel had more or less one expression that she kept plastered on her face for most of the film. While the argument could be made that Alma is in shock and is having a difficult time adjusting to the circumstances, the result is a character who’s emotions fall flat. John Leguizamo also tried really hard to deliver a strong performance. He’s really good but again he just doesn’t have enough good material. You can see him struggling with it.

Stylistically I feel like The Happening has fallen behind M. Night’s previous films. Where you may not like The Village, you could probably at least agree that it looks good. The same with Lady in The Water and even Signs, no matter what they look good. The Happening looks ok. It just doesn’t live up to the bar that M. Night seems to have set for himself. Of course, when he works with cinematographers like Roger Deakins and Chris Doyle you’re pretty much guaranteed a beautiful looking film. That aside the cinematography in The Happening is very much like the script. For the most part unremarkable, at times distractingly bad.

Wait, did I not say that I enjoyed The Happening? With all of these flaws, what is there to possibly like?

While technically the film fails, emotionally it surprisingly manages to work. Despite everything I found myself time after time reacting to what I was seeing happen. I cared. Even where the performances don’t work, the chemistry between the actors does. At the same time I was cringing over Wahlberg’s delivery of a line, I was completely buying the relationship between Elliot and Alma. Their interactions with each other made me smile. There is genuine warmth. The same is true in their relationship with Jess. I believed Alma’s protective, maternal instinct where the little girl was concerned.

The film is as much about the love these characters feel for each other and their struggles to fully acknowledge and express it as it is about the mysterious toxin killing people. It’s about their struggle to overcome the problems that are of their own making.

In the end, M. Night somehow manages to overcome himself and deliver a film that hits all of the right emotional notes. It’s by no means brilliant, it’s even an odd choice for a summer release (the season of blockbusters), but personally I think it’s ultimately an enjoyable story to see told. Especially if you’re a fan of M. Night. Otherwise, there’s plenty in the film to dislike and you may want to give something else a try instead.

Thoughts: My Weekend in Film 6/16

I feel like I have a lot of updating to do. I watched more movies this weekend than I have the last few weeks. I've also been so busy with work that I have a backlog of things I want to write about. I won't say exactly what though since I don't know how much time I'll have to get to it all and I don't want to disappoint anyone when something gets left out.

Before I talk about my weekend I do want to share these to interviews though. The first is an absolutely fantastic one with Andrew Stanton, the writer and director of Pixar's Wall-E. I have told you guys I'm extremely excited about this movie, haven't I? Anyway, you can find the interview here. It pretty much just reaffirms all of the reasons I love Pixar.

The second interview is with director M. Night Shyamalan. Okay, so I may be the only person ever to actually like The Happening. Really the only movie of his that I can straight up say I don't like is Signs. I'm a fan and if nothing else I have to respect his love of movie making. Say what you will about this guy, his love of film seems genuine and that right there makes him a lot more respectable than a lot of directors out there. He does what he does and leaves it up to you to decide if you like. Either way he doesn't compromise his vision, even if that vision may be highly flawed.

Anyway, I'll talk a bit more about The Happening in a minute. You can find his interview here.

Now that that stuff is out of the way let's move on to my weekend shall we?

Friday PM:

A picture from the set of my short "Tomorrow's Party"

Rather than watching other people's work, I actually made a bit of progress on my own. I spent the night working with the guy who is potentially going to be providing me with music for my short. I'm now way past my April goal of finishing but I suppose I shouldn't really be surprised. The picture editing I finished more or less when I hoped to. I just completely underestimated how much time the music was going to take me.

One thing about me: I'm a complete perfectionist. Especially when it comes to anything remotely creative. When I was younger I used to do this thing where if I didn't think I could get something as perfect as I wanted it, I just wouldn't do it. A fear of failure or some such thing. I've grown past that bit but sometimes it can take me a really, really long time to finish something.

In this case, I could have settled on a couple of music options earlier. They just weren't quite right for my film. And if I settle on less than perfect music, well, what was the point of putting all of this time and energy into something that I'm just going to give up on in the final act? Instead, the process has dragged out two months longer than I hoped it would. I think the time will be worth it though. From the progress made Friday night I feel like what I'll be getting is music that fits the story and the emotions that I'm attempting to convey. Every little detail is so important; the more details I get right the better my final film will be. This film means so much. I want it to be as close to perfection as it humanely possible to get.

It's also been a huge learning process. I can add this music experience to the list of other things I now know. It's all to make the next one that much easier to do ;)

Saturday Afternoon:

I was so incredibly lazy all weekend. Saturday started with breakfast (huevos rancheros from a little Mexican joint nearby. Delicious!), moved on to hanging out in my front yard, and finally made its way to film. That wonderful marine layer we're all so used to out of the westside maybe Saturday a bit chilly. A slightly overcast, chilly Saturday? Perfect time to go to a movie!



So here's where I'll talk more about The Happening. See, the thing is, I really enjoyed it. Yes, it's flawed. Yes, there's a lot wrong with it. The acting is stiff, the dialog can be absolutely atrocious, stylistically I don't think it's as strong as M. Night's other films. However, emotionally it hit all of the right notes for me and while I can't really argue that it's a good film I can confidently say that it is an enjoyable one. If you're a fan of his previous works then I definitely recommend you go see The Happening. If you're not? Then you may want to wait for video. I don't regret seeing it in the theater (especially since I went to a cheaper matinee show) but it's not necessarily something that absolutely has to be seen on the big screen.

I also have to mention that I really do appreciate the restraint they showed in releasing a film that runs only about an hour and half long. When there are so many films with ridiculously inflated running times, it is so incredibly nice to get a film that doesn't run too long. Hollywood just doesn't seem to know when to say "Stop, it's time to CUT now" anymore. A movie doesn't have to be over two hours long in order to be good. In fact, a too long running time has frequently been my biggest complaint about a lot of films in the recent past. Shorter can most definitely be better.

I'm really hoping to write a full review on The Happening in the next couple of days so I won't write anymore now. I think I've really said enough at this point anyway.

Saturday PM:

After going to the local park with a few people and throwing a baseball around until it was too dark to see, we came home and just kind of hung out for a while. There was a bit of channel surfing going on that I didn't pay much attention to.

Finally the channels stopped changing and we were left watching 2003's Ben Affleck vehicle Paycheck.



I never actually saw Paycheck when it came out. At the time I was working part time at a video store and even the free rental didn't convince me that watching Paycheck was a good idea. I mean, John Woo is a cool director, he's made some awesome films. However he's not exactly someone I would pick to direct an adaptation of a Philip K. Dick story. (Honestly the only Philip K. Dick adaptation I've ever liked is Ridley Scott's Bladerunner. Possibly a "duh" statement. And even that departs quite a bit from the story Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep.)

Ben Affleck? Yeah, I'm not really a fan. So Paycheck I skipped.

Finally watching it this weekend what I have to say is this: It's not a good movie. But. It's an ALMOST good movie. It has a lot going for it and it certainly keeps my interest. In the end it doesn't quite work as well as I would have liked but it's fun. I'm sticking with my original opinion of John Woo being the wrong choice for this film though. The focus is too much on making it a standard action flick rather than taking advantage of all of the cool things the story offers.

Again, I'm kind of hoping to be able to write a full review so I'm going to move on to the next one now. Don't want to blow my load to early now, do I? Er, is that I bad phrase to use? I think maybe it is...

On to Sunday!

Sunday PM:

One of my favorite animated films ever was on Sunday night. Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away. I've talked about my love of Miyazaki in my reviews of Kiki's Delivery Service and Howl's Moving Castle.



Spirited Away is possibly his best film. Character design, story, writing, animation, I can not think of one thing I wish was better. I love it all. So much time and care obviously goes into his films. The results are beautifully crafted films that far surpass most of what we see America producing. His films are always kid friendly and yet challenging for the adult viewer as well. There is always a strong moral center but his themes never come across as preachy.

I love this movie so much. I highly recommend you all watch it. There's a good chance you'll fall in love as well.

After Spirited Away, K and I managed to once again leave to couch and get out of the house. We had somewhere we needed to be. After all, The Incredible Hulk opened this week.



I've gotta say, the rumors are true. Marvel managed to deliver us TWO excellent comic book movies this summer. It gives me hope for their future adaptation plans. I'm not sure I liked the Hulk more than Iron Man but I enjoyed it at least as much. It's really well done. Edward Norton continues to earn my love. He and Liv Tyler are also great together. She's not always my favorite actress but I've liked her more than I haven't. I guess I can't completely blame her for Armageddon. She's not the worst part of that movie. (I'm looking at you animal crackers! Worst. Scene. Ever.)

She's good in The Incredible Hulk though. As is the rest of the cast. And the CGI. Sure the Hulk still looks like CGI. But dude, he's a giant green guy. How realistic are we really expecting him to look? The action is one thing that I would say Hulk does better than Iron Man. Where the final fight in Iron Man leaves me wanting more, it's a bit anti-climactic, all of the action in Hulk is great. It's well paced, it's explosive, and all of the build up comes together in one kick ass finale.

And thank you Marvel. First Robert Downey Jr. and now Ed Norton in all of their male shirtless glory. I am one happy lady right now. Damn but do they both look good. I've never been one to put up pictures of celebrities on my walls. But these movies are really making me reconsider that decorating decision. There are worse things to stare at than Ed Norton in torn up jeans. Mmmm... I would tear those pants up myself, I tell you what!

Is it just me or is this post getting increasingly inappropriate?

Again. Moving on.

On the Slate:

Lifeforce - In from Netflix. Hopefully I'll have time to give it a go.

The Tripletts of Bellville - It's been a while since I've watched this one. I'm all in the mood for it so maybe I'll make that happen this week.

Mongol - I really need to see it!

Medicine For Melancholy - Playing as part of the LA Film Festival I'm planning on going to the Friday PM showing. For more info check out the LA Film Fest's website.

Thoughts: My Weekend in Film 6/9

After a crazy April/May, I decided to give myself a little mini-vacation. I escaped LA and spent the weekend with my parents in Phoenix, AZ. A lot of sun, a lot of pool, mini-golf, batting cages, and new glasses. All in all a good weekend.

Movie watching this weekend was a little sparse. With You Don't Mess With the Zohan and Kung-Fu Panda being the only major releases this weekend, I was in no rush to get to the theater. Of course, Mongol wasn't playing in Phoenix. That I would have gone to see.

I mostly spent my weekend hanging out with my parents and friends, but there was a little watching going.

Friday PM:

I caught the last flight out of LA to PHX so I had a bit of time to kill after work. I wisely spent it watching last week's episode of Top Chef.



The series finale of Season 4 is on this Wednesday and I'm pretty excited. I've watched Top Chef on Bravo since Season 1 and this is the first time since that season where I've really liked the chefs. Harold is still my favorite but I liked Leanne and even Tiffany of Season 1. Season 2 gave us Sam Talbot, and who doesn't love Sam. And season 3... well, I mean, the competitors were likeable. They just weren't very competitive. I just feel like talent-wise (which is sort of unfair to judge from home because we can't actually taste the food) this season gives us chefs who I feel like could compete with the Top Chefs of season 1. Season 2 didn't and neither did season 3. But Richard and Stephanie are awesome. They seem amazingly nice and genuinely talented. No offense Lisa, but I think it's pretty much down to the two of them to win.

And I'll be happy with either one of them. It would be cool to see a woman chef win but Richard is so awesome that I won't hold his gender against him. Either way, I'm looking forward to Wednesday's season finale.

Saturday PM:

Before the cold medicine kicked in and I passed out on Saturday, I watched The Rock. I know, what was I thinking? Voluntarily watching a Michael Bay movie? She really must be ill!



Actually, I used to really enjoy this movie. I never necessarily thought it was exceptionally good. But it was entertaining.

Watching it again... I can see where I enjoyed it as a teenager. Now though? Eh. Nicholas Cage is horrible. The dialog is so incredibly cheesy. I remembered that line at the end about the bad guy being Rocket Man (who could forget that garbage?) but seriously. The whole movie is just as bad.

Oh well, at least the Benadryl kicked in pretty fast and knocked me out. There are worse things to fall asleep to.

Sunday:

No movies. But I did get new glasses. To better enjoy future movie goodness. Mmmm... more goodness...

Anyway, yeah...

On The Slate:

Mother of Tears - Plans to go on Wednesday. Yay!

Mongol - At some point this week. I hope.

The Incredible Hulk? The Happening? I dunno. Maybe. We'll see.

Thoughts: My Weekend in Film 6/3

How on earth did it get to be June all ready? Where has 2008 gone? Jeez time is wacky. Anyway. Weekends and movies.

Thursday PM:



Yeah, you all ready know that I went to see Sex in the City. I wrote my review (er, rant?) about it so I'm not going to say much more about the movie. I just want to express frustration. It's this thing where all of these women I know are going to see the movie. And the theaters are packed with other women. Part of me says "Sweet! A movie for chicks in the summer kicking ass!" and then the other part of me gets even more frustrated.

Why should it be such a rare thing for there to be a large opening of a film geared to a female audience? And when we finally get one, why does it have to be all about sex and marriage and babies? Every single plot point of the movie felt contrived. It feels like the writer or whoever tried to pack into this film every single thing that society thinks we're supposed to want as a female. The only problems we're supposed to worry about are the ones in our love lives. Granted, that's pretty much what the show is as well. It just seemed to me that at least in the show we saw the girls occasionally working. Or doing something other than being in a relationship.

It would just be nice if we could have chick flick that wasn't patronizing. Yeah. Anyway. I'm done.

Friday PM:

I love Friday night beer and pizza with K. Best roommate idea ever. Just gotta say.



After pizza and beer there were martinis and Planes, Trains, and Automobiles. Odd mix maybe, but it worked.

The 1987 John Hughes flick stars Steven Martin and John Candy. I'm not usually much of a fan of this type of comedy but I gotta say it hit just the right note for the night. It has some hilarious moments, a lot of goofiness. And some surprising seriousness. I watched it, I liked it, and then I passed out. Awesome.

Saturday PM:

Saturday night I ventured out to the Hollywood Forever Cemetery to enjoy their outdoor screening. If you live in LA this is something I highly recommend doing. Bring food, bring drinks, bring blankets, sit outside, enjoy a movie. In a cemetery. I went last summer and fell in love.



Saturday night's movie was a film from 1968 by Blake Edwards called The Party. It stars Peter Sellers as an Indian guy who accidentally gets himself invited to an Executive's party when he was instead supposed to be fired. It was mildly entertaining but I honestly didn't get that into it. Mostly I enjoyed hanging out with a few friends, eating some tasty food and enjoying some good wine.

They have screenings every Saturday and this year they've added Sunday screenings as well. It's only $10 to get in which is pretty awesome. You can park at the cemetery for another $5 or you can find street parking in some of the surrounding neighborhoods (what we always do).

Check out their website at Cinespia for more info about this summer's movies.

Sunday:

I had such an incredibly lazy Sunday. I've just been so tired from everything that I needed a day of nothing. I don't think I moved off of my couch until after 3.



A&E was rebroadcasting their mini-series adaptation of Michael Crichton's Andromeda Strain. The mini-series actually looked pretty cool so I turned it on.

I love the book and the original film from 1971 and I was curious to see how they would handle this update. Verdict? It's ok, not bad. For a made for TV thing it's actually pretty good. They modernize the science a bit, throw it into our current political climate, add some more conspiracy type stuff to plot. Which is all ok. It's not my favorite thing ever, a lot of the acting is pretty cheesy, but it entertained me enough for my Sunday. I might even give it another go sometime.

On the Slate:

That's pretty much it for the weekend. Overall it wasn't a bad one. This next weekend I'll be in Phoenix visiting my family so we'll see what happens there. A couple of movies I want to watch this week may have to wait until next.

Mongol - Comes out Friday. I'm super excited but I'm not sure it will be playing in PHX.

The Mother of Tears - Finally we're getting the final film in Dario Argento's Three Mothers trilogy. Again, this will probably have to wait for next week.

Don't know what else yet. I might try and see The Strangers. This week is shaping up to be pretty busy at work so a lot kind of depends on that. There will be something I'm sure.