Writing about film.

I realize I'd probably rather not do it. I was pretty addicted to this website and podcast called Filmspotting, viewing and listening to their reviews, and thought that it was pretty fucking cool. Too bad they've been doing it for years and, as it turns out, writing intelligently about cinema isn't that fun. Oh well, I'll just Tumblr instead.

Movie Thoughts - Tron, True Grit etc

I've been seriously slacking lately on both my blog submissions, my YouTube making, and my creative writing. So, to start out, I'm updating the blog a bit just to get back in the swing of things.

Tron Legacy

Allow me to first say that I've never seen the original Tron and, honestly, don't really plan on it. Yes, I understand the geek love and nostalgia towards a time when there was great excitment and no shitty Mac products flooding the market, but that time is over and I don't believe I'd like it.

Tron: Legacy ultimately reminds me of Avatar (no, not the shitty M. Night movie but the one about blue space Native Americans) in that it relies heavily on its visually stylings to carry the load. Again, as in Avatar, the story here is rather basic (and at times, non existant), stringing along just enough of a plot to semi-justify some of the "big payoffs" that we "get" towards the end. However, the writing is wriddled with ideas and possible points of exploration that they simply didn't capitalize on (fastest lightcycle on the grid, anyone?).

Yet perhaps a larger issue with Tron: Legacy is its complete lack of interesting action. Yes, I know, this is billed as a visually stunning lightcycle ride through an imaginative world, but it turns out it's more of a stroll through a decently constructed cybercity. First, you have this frisbee fight that manages to be boring and also facepalm-worthy thanks to unnecessary and unexplained Capoeira-inspired flips and martial arts moves that literally add nothing to the battles taking place in these suspended boxes trying to pass as "arenas." Fine, I let that slide as a mere obstacle in order to get to the good stuff. The lightcycle fight rolls around and, although still pretty mediocre, is probably the highlight of the film. I was glad to see that the slight innovation on the tried-and-true tron game formula was enough to make it more interesting. However, there is no 45 minute action scene payoff as there is in Avatar, and we get more of a slow crawl to the portal and an inevitable and uninteresting "surprise" appearence.

I must, however, compliment the costume design and the scoring which were both pretty excellent. Beyond that, this flick seems to try and cash in on the spectacle of technology over any real story, any decent character developement etc. I believe the IMAX experience was probably the only one worth money... as of right now, I could have left after seeing Wilde's outfit once and missed nothing.

Not good/10

True Grit

I didn't grow up on Westerns like some of my more educated peers. No, instead I opted to watch cartoons or the filth on the Disney Channel (yeah, I admit it). I've always rather regretted the Wild West's absence in my life, so I was pretty excited to check out the Coen's True Grit. I won't be summarizing the plot since you can IMDB it and I find those sorts of reviews rather tiresome.

At its heart, I think this film is a loveletter to the both the source material as well as the Western genre itself. The language is rich and what I imagine is faithful to the source material, which I suppose could also be construed as a detracting factor for those who dislike the flowery sentences of old times. I, for one, quite enjoyed the way the Coen's dialogue sounds and I think it really adds.

Here, as in A Serious Man (Though that was certainly to a lesser degree), there's a lot of comedy and I found myself and my friends chuckling all along the way. Sure, the story turns semi-serious but never fully shedding the comedic aspects (Thank goodness). Hailee Steinfield's banter regarding selling back horses is hilarious, and the audience learns to enjoy this character who parades around as though adult, though I believe she said she was only 12. At the same time, it's not championing her behavior, and we can relate to Bridges and Damon's characters who at times show their disapproval of her behavior and decision to seek revenge.

The frame in True Grit always has something interesting to show the audience, both the sets and the nature scenes framed and chosen wonderfully. I loved that the Coen Brothers managed to make the countryside seem beautiful while being selective and refrained with their longshots. Sure, we get some, but there aren't many (if any) "LOOK AT ALL THE WIDE SPACES" shots that I find tiresome. The world is as rich as the characters who inhabit it.

It should be said that there are a few things wrong (as with .. anything). There is a short scene Bridges and Steinfield come across some kind of nature man dressed in bear skin and offering to sell them a body they'd only just cut down from a tree. It serves no purpose, makes almost no sense, and can only be included to satisfy what I believe is an obsession with the eccentric that I think the Coen brothers have. Similarly, they telegraph their "climax" far in advance. Yes, it's cliche but I suppose it was that way in the source material... so does that make it ok?

While I sat there watchin' I gave some thought to stealin' a kiss/10

Black Swan

I was enthralled by Aronofsky's The Wrestler a year or so ago, bought the script (which I devoured) and then moved away from the director's work. Sure, I'd seen Requiem though not Pi, but I get overwhelmed by movies pretty often so I didn't make it back for some time. After seeing a couple trailers for Black Swan, I was totally sold and this was further compounded by the directors name being attached. The guy does good work, what can I say?

Black Swan manages to be many things; a peek into the world of proffesional dance, a psychological thriller, drama, and a little bit of horror sprinkled on top. It turns out to be a winning combination, holding the audience's attention both with sharp dialogue and character developement, as well as fast-paced scenes of suspense and terror. I was even happy with the more disturbing shots of the film, the cringeworthy stuff, because it got my entire audience to react vocally or physically. I love when a movie does that.

The sound design is, simply put, brilliant. The music ebbs and flows throughout the entire movie as if it were a ballet itself, fluttering of wings and giggles, and even abrupt dropoffs of all sound. I've always thought, and I think everyone agrees, that silence is far more terrifying than creepy music. There's a lot of silent scary parts here, even when Aronofsky is toying with our expectations.

I'd also like to mention [spoiler] how I feel about the lesbian and maturbation scenes. I've seen a lot of negative response to these select parts of the film; it's degrading, serves no purpose in the film, mysogeny. Let me first say that I don't think any of this criticism would come about if the genders of the characters were reversed, but obviously that means nothing. Considering Nina is ordered to explore her more sexual side in order to better become the Black Swan, it's a no brainer that her sleazy instructor might ask her to touch herself. It's even more believable that she would try to, as Nina is driven to perfection. Sure, maybe this whole idea of exploring one's "dark" side is a bit raunchy, but... so? There may be other ways to get 'in character' but I felt this was a potent way for Nina to explore her Black Swan. Combine this with the fact that she's always interrupted by something scary, and we may see the film not condoning this act.

The lesbian scene, which (SPOILER) turns out to be Nina's fantasy, also makes sense from a plot standpoint, perhaps being a fantastical dance with the dark side that Nina goes through to better fill her stage role. Yes, it's pretty hot, these actresses are incredibly beautiful and it must've delighted many to watch Mila Kunis perform oral sex on Natalie Portman (sure, I thought it was awesome) but it's not exactly just some cheap sex scene, either.[/spoiler]

I knew it would be too much. I knew it!/10

Enter the Void

I caught this with a group of friends at the Bijou Theater. It was playing at midnight... and I think only at midnight... so it goes without saying that I was up late on Friday not partying, but watching a wild visual ride. Void is set in Tokyo, a city I visited this summer, so it was pretty fun to see a few familiar places and re-enter the Japanese atmosphere. However, the film quickly deviates from anything remotely normal and the audience is treated to a visual experience unlike any other I've ever experienced. Sure, I saw Requiem but I don't feel like there's any need to compare this film with Requiem as I find such comparisons and bases for criticism tiresome and unnecessary.

I was entranced by the whole drug trip spectacle in a fantastic way, enjoying every second of the DMT hallucination that we experience in first person along with the protagonist. It's visually stunning, and kind of reminds me of VJ work at Raves or the like. I also really dug the whole first person experience and I think it added something to the story. When I think about the plot itself, it's a pretty run-of-the-mill drug story, and yet Void takes a sharp left turn away from this the moment [SPOILER] Oscar is shot and killed in a seedy nightclub.[/SPOILER] The film suddenly switches to the perspective of Oscar's ghost as he, now looking down at scenes rather than straight on (so we experience most of the subsequent tale from above (a new thing I have mixed feelings about). It's hard to get used to, but once you do it manages to make things interesting. I did long for a regular conventional perspective frequently, but I was glad the flick was making me work a little.

I think my most favorite part of the entire movie was not watching it, but watching the people watching it. One couple ragequit after enduring most of the movie, but simply couldn't stand the long Love Hotel sequence. Though I agree that it went on far too long, it wouldn't be the portion of the film I would think people would walk out over. There was cringing, laughing, protests against some of the longer takes, and as always, DoubleFine mentioning things to me. Certainly made it more fun.

This is certainly a flick that you're either going to love or hate, and in accordance with this, I probably love it more than I hate it. Yeah, it takes too long and could be trimmed without losing anything at all. Perhaps once it comes out on DVD, I'll edit it a little myself just so I can show it to people without having to preface with "It's 3 hours, but shouldn't be". The incestuous family dynamic is well-crafted, the acting is... not so well-crafted but at least it's not horrible. It's easy to see that the visual style and technique is really the selling point, and it sold the movie to me. I can't wait to read reviews and thoughts as more people get to watch it. As of right now, there is the inevitable dribble put out by "critics" working in the journalism world. Check below for some laughably bad responses.

/10

Here's an example of a bad review.

Dear Walter Addegio,

Let me explain to you that you are paid to write about movies. First, explaining the plot to people while you write about it on a website is redundant; they can simply look up the plot for themselves on helpful sites like Wikipedia or IMDb. Your summary, filled with disdain, is lackluster and unnecessary. How you got this by your editor is beyond me. Your criticism of the camera style ("Look, I'm Flying") is laughably underdeveloped. So, too, is your assessment of the sex scene; is the only purpose of sexual intercourse in cinema to arouse you? Hell, you even mention the sex again as though it might be the only reason you'd decided to see the film. Though I agree the Love Hotel sequence was far too long, it does include that little juicy tidbit where Oscar hallucinates that he's making love to his mother.

In the future, please try harder to write something intelligent. If you have a problem with my criticism, hit me up.

Jeff