garmana::blog

I admit, it's for the popcorn

There are some days that I don't want to do anything other than go watch a movie. I want to get my ticket and a huge bucket of popcorn, shuffle my way between the seats over the sticky floor, and wait for the lights to go down. I want to see previews, and a good movie. I don't want to rent a movie or watch a good show on TV; I just want to go to the theater and see a movie.

When I get that itch I can't concentrate on anything else. I can't read, I can't go work out, I can't do homework, and I can't mow the lawn. Today is one of those days.

American Batman

My friend David inspired this one...

He borrowed my copy of Batman Begins on New Year's Eve and returned it to me today at work. He loved it, but did comment that he just couldn't get the flashbacks of Christian Bale in character in American Psycho (also a great flick!).

It got me thinking, what if Lions Gate and Warner Brothers teamed up to make a hybrid? Bruce Wayne's intelligence and skill combined with Patrick Bateman's dimentia and mental schism. What kind of character would that yield? Okay, maybe someone like Two Face or the Joker, and we're all trying to forget that train wreck.

Maybe we could go with the subtle approach. We revisit the scene in which Batman has just stopped the Scarecrow from releasing his toxins into Gotham City's water supply. Batman has the Scarecrow cornered in the cellar of Arkham Asylum, and he happens to find an axe next to a firehouse in the stairwell.

Crash test dummies

I couldn't resist! For those of you using an RSS reader, open the entry and click to see my very own movie trailer!

For those of you reading the Net at work (and I know none of you do this), you'll need pretty recent or the most recent versions of Flash and Quicktime.

Ewan, Kevin. Kevin, Ewan.

Don't get me wrong, I love Ewan McGregor, but why is he in everything these days? If he's not careful, he'll become the next "six degrees of" candidate. ;-)

Still no dependable Internet connection at home... I've been depending on the school lab, and tonight I'm finding every diversion possible to keep me from my homework (the plan is working).

Private screening

Last night Jessica and I went to see a late showing of The Island, and when we walked in there was no one in the theater and the screen was dark. Mind you, we came in ten minutes late to avoid the body spray and cell phone commercials. I've always wanted this to happen; we were the only ones in the theater!

I'm come close to this a few times but it has never happened. On a few occasions the moment takers were ten or fifteen minutes late, but we made it through the entire show last night. We propped our feet up. We talked when we felt like talking. Anything else we refrained from with a bit of discretion. What if an usher came in? ;-)

I should say also that I liked the movie quite a bit. It was somewhat reminiscent of Logan's Run, but better than a remake would have been in my opinion. The dialogue was a little cheesy, but actually fit well with the main characters (they are, after all, clones with only three years' of life and the education of a junior high graduate). The previews show the basic premise and so I'm not giving much away: the main characters live in a controlled, enclosed environment thinking that they are survivors of a worldwide biochemical contamination. Finding out that they are in fact clones for the super rich waiting to be "harvested" when their "sponsors" get old or sick, they escape to the outside hoping to find their sponsors and expose the company to the outside world.

Michael Bay directed The Island and so it's a fast, fluffy action adventure with car chases, gunfights, and explosions. I also couldn't help but wonder if the anti-cloning undertones were timed with the cloning and stem cell debates in the media. Even with that, the drama is pretty light. There are some satisfying plot twists along the way though, and so if you're in the mood for a good action movie and a bowl of popcorn like we were, it's a fun summer flick.

They finally got it right (or...

I saw Batman Begins on Thursday last week, and I've been meaning to write something about it (summer school midterm over, and so now it's time to write a bit).

I really can't say enough about the adaptation of this film. If I ever wore a hat, it would be off to Christopher Nolan, and really all of the actors in the film. Up until now I have enjoyed the Spiderman franchise the best of the recent superhero craze in Hollywood, but Nolan and Warner Brothers nailed this one on the head. I may be biased since Batman is my favorite comic book character, but the storyline was superb. The Spiderman movies have dealt with Peter Parker's personal torments in his choices regarding responsibilities and his personal life, but this movie goes even deeper. Bruce Wayne's choice to become Batman seemed so much more than just avenging the murder of his parents. As in the comics, it became his agonizing solution to carrying on his family's true legacy of saving Gotham City one step at a time. Leaving and finding himself also became a necessity when Bruce stepped over the line with the mob.

Scarecrow and Ra's Al Ghul were also good choices for the villains in this movie. Neither should be campy or too over the top (I'm glad they didn't get carried away with special effects regarding the Scarecrow or his chemicals' effects). Ra's' deep respect for Bruce Wayne did not come out in this film like it does in the comics -- they instead portrayed him as a man feeling betrayed by a brilliant pupil -- but both of them respected the mission they were each on to save society. Bruce's education and training in the Far East were also spot on with the Batman mythos. I liked the imaginative ways the makers of the film carried that forward into Batman's costume with the sword guantlets, black color, and the bat symbolism itself. It made Bruce's progression to donning the suit that much more plausible.

I also thank Nolan and crew for the respect they showed to the Batman character. Creator Bob Kane didn't see Batman as a campy, squeaky clean superhero as we've often seen him. He is a persistent, methodical detective that uses criminals' fear to his advantage. He depends on his knowledge, strength, and technology instead of super powers. He is also a living paradox; he may not believe that he can ever remove the criminal element from Gotham City, but he also cannot stop until he does. Not wanting to ruin the sequel possibility that they put on the table at the end of this movie, I for one am looking forward to Warner Brothers letting him continue on in his quest given this new foundation.

Okay, I got to see it

I saw Episode III: Revenge of the Sith yesterday. Overall I thought it was a great film, though the second half was admittedly disturbing.

All of the usual elements were there that make great Star Wars films: amazing visual landscapes and effects, the grandios story arcs, loveable hateable characters, light saber duels, and R2-D2's toddler-like beeping and chirping. I have to say, the light saber fights in this episode were outstanding. Not to build too much hype for those who haven't seen it, but they were actually how I pictured them in my mind as a kid watching episodes IV-VI. Yoda battling against the Emporer in the Senate chamber was very cool, and General Grievous's four armed-attack was dizzyingly fast.

Yoda was another strong force as he was in Episode II (No pun intended. Okay... little bit). He was my favorite character as a kid (proven by my lunchbox and thermos), and is all over again. His highlight for me was the scene in which he is coming from the destroyed Jedi temple into Palpatine's office, and Yoda is pissed. He marches in and wastes no time; he waves his hand and the Imperial Guards crash into the wall behind them and crumple to the floor. He confronts Palpatine, who mocks Yoda for being no match to his power, and then the two scuffle. Palpatine tries to flee and Yoda jumps between him and the door, seething in only the way he can, "If as powerful as you say are you, then why to leave are you trying?" At that point I swelled with reverence and hope, thinking that the Jedi may have a chance. Of course, they don't.

I thought I was ready for the slaughering of the Jedi, but I really wasn't. That portion of the movie actually made me physically uncomfortable. It's very well done, and with that comes some truly saddening moments. I'm trying for zero spoilers here (ignore that last paragraph), and so I'll just say that some specific killings, particularly at the temple, are very uneasy to watch. By that time Vader is consumed with his new campaign. I wanted to come home and watch episodes IV-VI just to be reassured that things swing back into balance in the end.

I loved the film, and so I don't want to spend too much time with my last observation or sound like a whiny fanboy, but large chunks of the dialogue are awful. Almost every exchange between Anakin and Padme sounds forced, and cornier than a high school film project. Her love and devotion for him doesn't make a lot of sense to me. In the first two episodes she is a moral rock with the highest regard for her duty for democracy. In this episode she's reduced herself to being totally blinded by her love for him, and it doesn't seem substantiated by anything other than by physical attraction. Forget the Axe body spray, get yourself some midichlorians. Many of the characters also used some variant of "search your feelings, you know it to be true," throughout the entire movie. That's nit picky I know, but Vader's line to Luke later seems a bit trite after hearing it so many times.

All said, whether the elements were good, bad, or the other, they were all distinctly Star Wars. For that, I applaud George Lucas. This closes the gap between the old and new (new and old?) stories quite well. He has told the grandest of stories succinctly, consistently, and from what I see and read, exactly the way he wanted to. That is great filmmaking.

I almost got to see it

I was supposed to be seeing Episode III tonight at midnight, but it didn't work out. A co-worker pre-ordered two tickets with his wife, and unfortunately she had to go on bed rest last week due to some complications with her pregnancy. He offered me hers, and since I'm planning to see it Saturday anyway (and the whole work thing) I told him I'd see what else I had going on this week.

Stupid move. He's been out all of this week, and so I haven't had a chance to get back to him (he is unlisted). I hope everything is okay with his wife! I mean no ill wishes for them of course, but I was starting to look forward to seeing the movie.

The moral of the story: Always "yes" to a free movie ticket, one should say.

Looking for the next Kevin Smith

Last night I went to The 2005 Bloomington Normal Film Fest at my local art theater, a festival of short films sponsored by a local group promoting educational and independent filmmaking. They've had events for K-12 students in the past, and this year for the first time they added a second night for an open independent category.

There was a huge variety of pieces, about twenty in all, and they ranged anywhere from two to fifteen minutes. Some were good, some were bad, and some were very bad. For every miscut transition and audio mistake there were two examples of cleverness and imagination. A group from Bradley University put together a tightly-edited action flick with car chases and a shootout in the forest; it was well done. A professor from Bradley is apparently very good at HD video cinematography and special effects. He helped perfect the multicam "anime sweep" first used in The Matrix, and he spoke at the beginning of the festival showing a little bit of a behind-the-scenes slideshow of the F/X work he did for a rap video by The Game and 50 Cent.

The most memorable piece for me was "Drag Racing" by Paul Brooks. It was a hilarious parody of a racing broadcast. Instead of cars of course, the racers were six college students in drag. There were only two rules: 1) You must be in your complete drag outfit during all forward progress, and 2) to win you must cross the finish line with the sexually confused Ken doll (i.e. a Ken doll in drag complete with pony tail wig and smeared lipstick). Everything else goes. The "ladies" kicked, wrestled, punched, and somersaulted their way to the finish line, and there was even a brutal, slow-motion clothesline for a surprise finish. All the while, two broadcasters gave a play by play. One of the announcers had a bottle of beer in the opening scene, and each time the camera broke to the broadcasting booth there were one or two more. By the end he was sloppy drunk, and beer bottles, plastic shot glasses, and lemons littered the counter. It was truly a redneck racing extravaganza to be remembered.

For those of you not close by, I hope to be posting a short film in the fall that I hope to be good enough to submit. I have a whole year; maybe I could submit two! For those of you living close by: be warned. I may be hitting you up to be an actor or a boom mic grip.

Something for everyone

Standing in front of the concession stand with Brian, I realized that there was no combo for us to split and save a few bucks. There's the "Medium Combo" with a single medium popcorn and drink, which is what I got. They also offer upward varying sizes of that with super-sized grossness, but the only one with two drinks is the "Couple's Combo."

Now Brian and I are good friends, but I don't want to find myself grabbing his hand in the popcorn bucket while I'm absorbed in a movie, and I've always had a "thing" about sharing cups and dishes. One of my quirks I suppose, but the marketing geniuses behind the concessions stand's silk curtains would surely find that I'm not alone here. That's why I'm proposing the "Buddy Combo." Both you and your friend can pick any two of the following: popcorn, soda, bottled water, candy, or nachos.

The Buddy Combo.^TM The choice for those wanting to save money, but not have a Lady and the Tramp moment at the movies.

The Fanboy Chronicles, part deux

Very sweet. Check out the recent trailer for the upcoming production of Frank Miller's Sin City.

Director Robert Rodriguez of indie dreams come true should give this the gritty, straight from the sewer feel that this movie deserves. The styling in the trailer looks phenomenal (my inner child is screaming, "It looks just like the comic! Elijah Wood's sunglasses; the rain at the end of the trailer!!!"), but hopefully it won't be overdone or take away from the movie. Frank Miller is codirecting, and so hopefully he's helped see to that.

Frank Miller almost singlehandedly revitalized the comic book industry in the 1980s, giving comics the darker realism that they mainly have today. The men were still in tights, but he replaced the bright flamboyance and corny dialogue with deep, emotional storylines that could have coexisted with current events (i.e. the cold-war era's The Dark Knight Returns, and Sin City). Bulletproof, infallable characters got chinks in their psychological armor, and the stories were all that much better for it. This movie being made is a tribute to Frank Miller's work, and I hope they do it justice.

Batman Begins

Could it be...? A Batman movie that shows him the way he was intended; a brooding, ingenious detective? When I found out that director Christopher Nolan (Memento) and screenwriter David Goyer (the Blade trilogy) were teaming up on this earlier this year, I was excited. My hope was that they would tackle the Batman mythos with a serious, darker edge showing his true motivations and the qualities that make him a great character: unmatched intelligence, a haunted determination, and a student of countless philosophies, martial arts, and cultures. Despite his strength, acrobatic, and fighting skills, Batman's sharpest weapons are his intellect and ability to unravel the most tightly-knotted puzzle. Writers like Frank Miller and Denny O'Neil tied all of these together and gave them a dark twist in my favorite Batman stories.

The latest trailer is here.

The story looks like it focuses strongly on Bruce's training and education in Asia, and his apprenticeships with Ra's Al Ghul and Henri Ducard. Ken Watanabe plays Ra's, which is a great choice. He should convey the intensity and cunning that I always imagined in that character. When Bruce comes back to Gotham City to begin his existence as Batman, he is an entirely different person. A lot of the drama appears to focus on his inner conflict and knowledge of himself. It should make for an interesting story if they even scratch the surface faithfully of his character.

This may be enough to make me forget the campy, bubblegum garbage that the studios cranked out after Tim Burton's solid take.

No H.G. Wells grave spinning, ple

I just watched the teaser trailer for War of the Worlds, another project by Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg.

The trailer hardly shows any plot or movie imagery, but it did succeed in making me hope that they do a great job with this movie. I read the book twice as a kid, and I even made a video book report in eigth grade playing Orson Welles as a TV reporter narrating the story. That will be on my first DVD. ;-)

I'm a complete sucker for this stuff, as long as it's treated with respect and not dumbed down too much. It will be marketed as a summer blockbuster, so I'm cautiously optimistic. At least they're trusting Steven with this movie instead of someone like McG or John Woo (no doves amid the near apocolypse, please).

Primer

The trailer for Primer was posted recently on apple.com's trailer site, and I am definitely intrigued. I think I've seen it before; possibly on /. a month ago?

Shot for $7000, it won the Grand Jury prize at Sundance in 2004, as well the Alfred P. Sloan award for a science fiction entry. From what I have read it is especially impressive for a first-time, self-taught filmmaker. Shane Carruth, a former mathemetician and Air Force engineer, studied filmmaking at night for three years, spent a year on the script, and shot in five weeks with a crew of four in addition to himself). He wrote, directed, scored, and stars in the film.

If Jessica still lived in Chicago I would check it out this month, but it won't be coming downstate. I have tried to find something about video distribution but I didn't have any luck. Hopefully it will be at the video store in the spring.

Is that James Earl Jones breathin

Aaron posted a trailer today to the upcoming Episode III. I had heard a rumor that it was going to be unveiled in The Incredibles this weekend, but it's proliferating across the net.

Able Edwards

Today I came across a story about the process for making a new independent film, "Able Edwards." Its creator, Graham Robertson, did the production in just fifteen days of shooting on a Canon XL1 miniDV camera, and the total budget came in at just under $30,000 USD.


I know what you are saying; Kevin Smith did that with his debut, too. What is most impressive about this film is that it is not a situation plot driven primarily in one location. It is a sci-fi epic, self described as crossing that genre with "Citizen Kane." Graham and his crew shot the entire film in a warehouse against the backdrop of a green screen, and used scanned images of architecture texts from the local library to create the futuristic sets. He combined multiple images, worked his doctoring magic in Photoshop, and converted all imagery to black and white to make the meshing of the elements more seamless. He documents the process and more information about the production on the movie's site (which includes a trailer).


From what I can see in the trailer it looks a little akward, the special effects obvious, but it looks like Graham has pulled off something extraordinary given his budget and tools. Think of the special effects and camera shots in movies 30-60 years ago, and television even now. If a guy can do this using a single room and a Mac in 2004, then I can hardly wait to see the leveling of the production playing field and the imaginations of the world's creative talent on screen twenty or thirty years from now.


Damn, I need to get off my butt and shoot my first short.