talkingsoup (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
talkingsoup) wrote2007-02-04 12:43 pm
talkingsoup) wrote2007-02-04 12:43 pm
Two Movie Reviews, A Date, and, um, Other Stuff
So at ASIC this past Thursday we watched the first few episodes of Outlaw Star and then Honey and Clover. Outlaw Star is fun, and relatively strange. The scene transitions consist of a gun being fired at the screen, which is really disorienting, particularly when gunfights are going on. Also just, kind of everything in general is really weird, but at the same time funny and fun. Totally 90's in any case, lol. As for Honey and Clover--YAY! The whole room was making noise just at the opening, mostly because, for those of you who have seen the show, the first opening is probably the strangest thing you will EVER see in your life. At least as anime openings go. All I can say is that it was probably Morita who made the opening. In any case, some people seemed to be thrown by the strangeness. And the cuteness (someone said they wanted to hit Hagu because she was too adorable, hahaha). I suppose it does take a few episodes to really get into it. Ah, but I love it. That show is so purely COLLEGE. And there aren't really any other shows I can think of that hit college so squarely on the head (the nail of college...I'm getting my metaphors mixed up). Lol, and this way we have a healthy balance of guns and fun and killing people in the first half and cuteness and romance in the second half.
First movie review is of Happy Accidents
Happy Accidents
Probably one of the best movies I've ever seen, and I'm totally serious about that. It's relatively chick-flicky, but also...not. It's got Vincent D'onofrio, the guy from Law and Order: Criminal Intent, who is probably also one of the best actors ever.
The premise is, this young woman named Ruby suffers from co-dependency, and has a lot of freaky or bad relationships. So she's seeing a therapist and all to try and put a stop to all that, because she's always trying to fix people. Anyway, then she meets this guy named Sam Deed (Vincent). He's quirky, weird, and kind of unlike anyone she's met before, and she finds herself attracted to him. She falls for him hard, but as she gets to know him better she starts noticing idiosyncrasies and "spells." He'll stop and stare at something and, through the camera, you can see that he seems to be watching time run backwards. Finally Ruby confronts him about it all, and he tells her that he's actually a time traveler from the future, 2470 to be exact. And it kind of spirals from there.
The movie is done simply brilliantly. It keeps you guessing the whole time as to whether Sam is telling the truth, or if he's just crazy (I won't tell you which). The characters are so well done. The script rocks, the acting is utterly amazing. The camera work is simple enough, and yet perfect for the kind of story it's telling. The chronology is broken up in a relatively unique way--the only other movie I can compare it to is Keeping the Faith. As in, it starts out with a character relating a story, then the story ends part way through and continues on in real time, sort of. It works so well because it gives much more quirkyness to the overall story. In a movie, you can tell it's well done when you can see that every factor contributes to the story itself.
Utterly brilliant. Admittedly, it's a romantic comedy, but I think it redefines the genre. It's an independent film, for one thing, which gives it some legitimacy. Keep your mind open and go see this movie, because it is utter love.
Score: 9 out of 10.
So Friday night, Pat and I went to see Children of Men. Pat being "the boy" I mentioned in my last post. It was all very awesome; no awkward silences, since we both managed to fill things in, and we had a lot of questions to ask each other, since we don't know each other that well. We have a lot in common, a lot of the same interests. Right now I think of him as a friend, but who knows? We'll see where things go. He's a cool guy either way ^.^
Then yesterday, me, Julie and the others were gonna go see The Departed (Pat was gonna be there too), but we miscalculated the time. Also we had ordered Chinese food, and the damn place took about an hour and fifteen minutes to get our food to us. So that ended up not happening (Pat went, though, and says it was good). We ended up staying in and talking about a whole lot of stuff, and then we all watched Happy Accidents, (me for the second time), which they all liked. We also got a sixteen inch cookie from Confection Connection, which was wonderful. Lol, I got no homework done, which means I need to work hard today.
Earlier Saturday I also went and bought a new fish light for my fish tank. But it turns out that it's not the bulb that's the problem, the wiring in the hood is dead. And PetsMart doesn't sell replacements, goddamnit. I figure I'll either have to get a new hood online or get a whole new fish tank. Damn. Also stopped over in Barnes and Noble. Now that it's February, I can use my credit card in bookstores again (I promise my dad I wouldn't use it till February last November I think, because I was racking it up in bookstores). Picked up the latest manga--Bleach 17, D. Gray Man 4, Air Gear 3, and Busou Renkin 4. All very brilliant. I'm getting even more into Air Gear, which makes me really upset that the anime didn't live up to the manga's standards. Some of those tricks would have looked so damn cool. *sigh*
And now, lastly, the
Children of Men
Ah, Children of Men. What can be said about Children of Men? Other than one word:
Perfect.
Yes, you heard me. Not perfect as in "my favorite movie EVAR," but perfect as in just a perfect movie.
The premise is that it's 2027, and ever since 2009, everyone on Earth has been infertile. There have been no births since 2009, and no one knows why. The whole world has been therefore plunged into chaos, leaving England as "the last bastion" of civilization. There's a lot of tension because illegal immigrants are being shipped out of England to refugee camps that generally just suck. The main character, Theo, is your average guy, until one day he's kidnapped by anti-government guerilla types, led by his ex-wife Juliane (sp?). They offer him 5000 pounds to get transit papers for them, because they need to get someone to the coast to a place where they'll be safe. He agrees to it, and meets the person they need to transport--a young woman named Kie. Who, if you've seen the previews, turns out to be pregnant. The rest of the movie is Theo trying to get Kie to safety.
Not only is this a relatively unique plot--and a dystopian future set not too far down the line--everything else in this movie is incredibly well done. First of all, the characters are brilliant. Theo makes for an excellent reluctant hero. Kie doesn't entirely understand the importance of the situation, but knows that she and her baby have to survive. The total chaos in the world is completely real, because the writers had an excellent handle on human nature. A crisis like mass infertility would totally cause worldwide chaos like that. Every character in the movie is their own person, has their own story, and their own agenda.
And the camera work is to die for.
For one thing, they startle you. Not in the "boo!" way. I mean, the camera work makes you feel like you're right there in it all. When things explode, it happens suddenly--you don't expect it, because that's how you would feel in that situation. For instance, you'll see Theo walking down the street and suddenly something explodes behind him. Completely real. For another thing, they use totally unique camera work, breaking a lot of rules. Most of it is done on handhelds, which isn't jarring like some movies. It's another way of putting you right there in the action. The camera pans, shakes, bounces some, making it feel like you're following the characters, looking around, running. Towards the end of the movie there is literally an eight minute shot without a single cut. They use all the elements--lighting, angles, etc.--to the utmost best of their ability. And they also manage to make some scenes so incredibly emotional that you just want to cry. There's a scene where Kie is carrying her baby through a ruined house, down the stairs to where soldiers are waiting, and everyone just stops. People start praying, people reach out to touch the baby's hands and feet, and even the soldiers and other fighters just stop what they're doing, because it's a baby. Even if it hasn't been brought home to you before then, when you see that scene it's just like, "oh my god, these people haven't seen a baby in about twenty years." And since the camera work makes you believe like you're right there watching it all, you feel the same kind of awe that everyone else feels.
Brilliance, pure brilliance. Absolutely nothing in this movie was disappointing. You should all see it when you get the chance, and I'm totally buying it when it comes out.
Score: 10 out of 10
If this movie doesn't win an Oscar, I'm personally assassinating the whole Academy.
First movie review is of Happy Accidents
Happy Accidents
Probably one of the best movies I've ever seen, and I'm totally serious about that. It's relatively chick-flicky, but also...not. It's got Vincent D'onofrio, the guy from Law and Order: Criminal Intent, who is probably also one of the best actors ever.
The premise is, this young woman named Ruby suffers from co-dependency, and has a lot of freaky or bad relationships. So she's seeing a therapist and all to try and put a stop to all that, because she's always trying to fix people. Anyway, then she meets this guy named Sam Deed (Vincent). He's quirky, weird, and kind of unlike anyone she's met before, and she finds herself attracted to him. She falls for him hard, but as she gets to know him better she starts noticing idiosyncrasies and "spells." He'll stop and stare at something and, through the camera, you can see that he seems to be watching time run backwards. Finally Ruby confronts him about it all, and he tells her that he's actually a time traveler from the future, 2470 to be exact. And it kind of spirals from there.
The movie is done simply brilliantly. It keeps you guessing the whole time as to whether Sam is telling the truth, or if he's just crazy (I won't tell you which). The characters are so well done. The script rocks, the acting is utterly amazing. The camera work is simple enough, and yet perfect for the kind of story it's telling. The chronology is broken up in a relatively unique way--the only other movie I can compare it to is Keeping the Faith. As in, it starts out with a character relating a story, then the story ends part way through and continues on in real time, sort of. It works so well because it gives much more quirkyness to the overall story. In a movie, you can tell it's well done when you can see that every factor contributes to the story itself.
Utterly brilliant. Admittedly, it's a romantic comedy, but I think it redefines the genre. It's an independent film, for one thing, which gives it some legitimacy. Keep your mind open and go see this movie, because it is utter love.
Score: 9 out of 10.
So Friday night, Pat and I went to see Children of Men. Pat being "the boy" I mentioned in my last post. It was all very awesome; no awkward silences, since we both managed to fill things in, and we had a lot of questions to ask each other, since we don't know each other that well. We have a lot in common, a lot of the same interests. Right now I think of him as a friend, but who knows? We'll see where things go. He's a cool guy either way ^.^
Then yesterday, me, Julie and the others were gonna go see The Departed (Pat was gonna be there too), but we miscalculated the time. Also we had ordered Chinese food, and the damn place took about an hour and fifteen minutes to get our food to us. So that ended up not happening (Pat went, though, and says it was good). We ended up staying in and talking about a whole lot of stuff, and then we all watched Happy Accidents, (me for the second time), which they all liked. We also got a sixteen inch cookie from Confection Connection, which was wonderful. Lol, I got no homework done, which means I need to work hard today.
Earlier Saturday I also went and bought a new fish light for my fish tank. But it turns out that it's not the bulb that's the problem, the wiring in the hood is dead. And PetsMart doesn't sell replacements, goddamnit. I figure I'll either have to get a new hood online or get a whole new fish tank. Damn. Also stopped over in Barnes and Noble. Now that it's February, I can use my credit card in bookstores again (I promise my dad I wouldn't use it till February last November I think, because I was racking it up in bookstores). Picked up the latest manga--Bleach 17, D. Gray Man 4, Air Gear 3, and Busou Renkin 4. All very brilliant. I'm getting even more into Air Gear, which makes me really upset that the anime didn't live up to the manga's standards. Some of those tricks would have looked so damn cool. *sigh*
And now, lastly, the
Children of Men
Ah, Children of Men. What can be said about Children of Men? Other than one word:
Perfect.
Yes, you heard me. Not perfect as in "my favorite movie EVAR," but perfect as in just a perfect movie.
The premise is that it's 2027, and ever since 2009, everyone on Earth has been infertile. There have been no births since 2009, and no one knows why. The whole world has been therefore plunged into chaos, leaving England as "the last bastion" of civilization. There's a lot of tension because illegal immigrants are being shipped out of England to refugee camps that generally just suck. The main character, Theo, is your average guy, until one day he's kidnapped by anti-government guerilla types, led by his ex-wife Juliane (sp?). They offer him 5000 pounds to get transit papers for them, because they need to get someone to the coast to a place where they'll be safe. He agrees to it, and meets the person they need to transport--a young woman named Kie. Who, if you've seen the previews, turns out to be pregnant. The rest of the movie is Theo trying to get Kie to safety.
Not only is this a relatively unique plot--and a dystopian future set not too far down the line--everything else in this movie is incredibly well done. First of all, the characters are brilliant. Theo makes for an excellent reluctant hero. Kie doesn't entirely understand the importance of the situation, but knows that she and her baby have to survive. The total chaos in the world is completely real, because the writers had an excellent handle on human nature. A crisis like mass infertility would totally cause worldwide chaos like that. Every character in the movie is their own person, has their own story, and their own agenda.
And the camera work is to die for.
For one thing, they startle you. Not in the "boo!" way. I mean, the camera work makes you feel like you're right there in it all. When things explode, it happens suddenly--you don't expect it, because that's how you would feel in that situation. For instance, you'll see Theo walking down the street and suddenly something explodes behind him. Completely real. For another thing, they use totally unique camera work, breaking a lot of rules. Most of it is done on handhelds, which isn't jarring like some movies. It's another way of putting you right there in the action. The camera pans, shakes, bounces some, making it feel like you're following the characters, looking around, running. Towards the end of the movie there is literally an eight minute shot without a single cut. They use all the elements--lighting, angles, etc.--to the utmost best of their ability. And they also manage to make some scenes so incredibly emotional that you just want to cry. There's a scene where Kie is carrying her baby through a ruined house, down the stairs to where soldiers are waiting, and everyone just stops. People start praying, people reach out to touch the baby's hands and feet, and even the soldiers and other fighters just stop what they're doing, because it's a baby. Even if it hasn't been brought home to you before then, when you see that scene it's just like, "oh my god, these people haven't seen a baby in about twenty years." And since the camera work makes you believe like you're right there watching it all, you feel the same kind of awe that everyone else feels.
Brilliance, pure brilliance. Absolutely nothing in this movie was disappointing. You should all see it when you get the chance, and I'm totally buying it when it comes out.
Score: 10 out of 10
If this movie doesn't win an Oscar, I'm personally assassinating the whole Academy.