The Artist

Posted on January 28, 2012 by

The Artist, Michel Hazanaviscius’ new silent film about an actor struggling to adapt to talkies (movies with sound), is a solid effort, but not worthy of all the awards and praise that it has been getting. The novelty of watching a silent film about the death of the silent film is clever, but it’s only that. The acting, particularly the performances of Jean Dujardin and Berenice Bejo, is fantastic, but the story is slight and fluffy.

It’s a story we’ve seen a hundred times: a man’s pride gets in the way of success, joy, love, and peace. It’s a simple premise, but one that humans continually deal with. We want to be accepted and loved for who we are and we are afraid to change to do that, so we put on masks to put on a good front and to hide what is truly going on inside of ourselves.

George Valentin, the highly successful silent film star, has put all of his identity in ‘silent film star’. He can’t see himself as anything else. That’s who he is, even in his personal life. He puts on a show for his wife at the breakfast table to win her forgiveness instead of dealing with the problem head on. He has a larger than life portrait of himself in the lobby of his home. He has decided that his mask is that of silent film star, so when that goes away, he has no way of coping with the rest of life. He doesn’t know who he is and he has nothing left.

There are three extraordinary characters in this film that stand by George no matter what. They all portray a deep loyalty and without this loyalty, George would be dead. They revive him both literally and figuratively. Peppy Miller, the first star of talking pictures, continually looks after George and she is forever grateful to him for what he did for her at the start of her career. She knows who he is and who he could be. Clifton, George’s driver, stands by him and wants to see him succeed. He spends a year working without getting paid, just out of loyalty. George’s dog, the real star of the film, will stop at nothing to protect and care for him. It’s the dog that demonstrates a loyalty and support that is needed to sustain George through the dark times.

This story about a likeable persona on top of an unlikeable man, failed to rise above the, “I’m making a silent film about silent film and it’s 2011” gimmick most of the time. When it does rise above it – particularly in the scenes involving the dog and when it deals with pride and masking – it shines. It hits home the point that Jesus made when he told the story of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector, “For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”[1]

It takes a physicality that is rarely seen in film today to pull off a role like that of George Valentin. It’s an impressive performance and should be lauded, but the film doesn’t really rise above the strength of the performances. The screenplay, nominated for a Best Original Screenplay Academy Award, is slight and fluffy; clever at best. It’s a fun premise, but one that only holds up when the fun is actually stripped away to its core revealing a broken man trying to deal with his own short comings and a man that is not able to adapt to a changing world around him without help from a few loyal friends.

[1] Luke 9:14b NIV

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Stranger than Fiction: Movies through a Biblical Worldview

Posted on September 17, 2010 by

Sometimes it takes the voice of God to get people to live a great story. Sometimes that story takes them to unexpected and tragic places. Not knowing if life is comedy or tragedy can lead to a life of stops and starts; confusion. But knowing that life is full of truth, full of the divine everyday, life becomes meaningful and something worth dying for.

Stranger than Fiction is a film about finding truth, about seeking the divine, about living a great story, about willingly walking in obedience. Harold Crick starts out in the mundane and is focused on the everyday tasks that make up a life. He doesn’t think about purpose, or future, or how he is a piece of the puzzle. He doesn’t realize that there is a greater puzzle to fit into. Like many humans, his world starts small. It’s not until the unexpected, the supernatural happens that he realizes his world is big, he has a purpose; he is specifically destined.

Harold Crick hears the voice of God. That is his catalyst for change. It takes something that big to get his attention. Some people hear God in the small things, but Harold needs something bigger, something that would hit him over the head and get him thinking outside of himself. Specifically, he hears the voice of a narrator, but there are some specific Biblical truths about God and His nature that can be extrapolated through the relationship between Harold and his narrator. Who is God?

The fullness of God cannot truly be realized here on earth, but there are some things that can be learned from Stranger than Fiction: God is omniscient. God knows the full context of where people are going and what is going on around them. Since He is all knowing, He understands people as a piece of a greater puzzle in the context of all of Creation, but also knows individuals better than they know themselves and He knows what is best for them. Once Harold Crick follows the voice, once he decides to embrace all that is in store for him, his life becomes full of truth, full of beauty, full of love, full of joy. The pain of life never leaves him, but there is joy in that pain because there is truth of a greater purpose in that pain.

God is invested and cares deeply for people. The narrator knows Harold completely and knows what is best for him. God caring and knowing people doesn’t mean that everything will be easy and that life will be full of luxury. Without the ‘hard work of the middle’¹, the story that God has planned for people will not come to fruition, it won’t be full and transformative; it will be incomplete and ‘less than’. God knows what we need for where He wants us to go. Sometimes that is a clear path, sometimes it is full of life, sometimes it is painful, but it’s all transformative. It’s a personal transformation that has an impact on the world around Harold; a transformational impact.

Stranger than Fiction is also a story of salvation, a story of redemption. Truth about what Jesus did and who He is can be found in the final act. Harold is representative of Jesus, not Jesus himself, but he acts as Jesus did at the end. He willingly goes to his death for the greater good. Harold knows that through his death, through the saving of a little boy, life will happen and because he willingly goes to his death, he becomes the type of character that is worthy to be saved; to be rescued. Like Jesus, Harold doesn’t succumb to death. He lives. Jesus died and rose again; He is alive. Jesus died for the sake of all humanity, Harold for one.

The movie also has something to say about creation about how humans were created by the words of God. God breathed, God spoke humanity into existence. Harold is created entirely from the voice, the words of the writer, the narrator. God’s voice is powerful as He speaks things into existence. It really shows the power of words, the power of speech and of breath.

Stranger than Fiction shows aspects of the nature of God and creation and it also shows the nature of humanity. Harold starts out as a self-centered man without the eyes to see the significant. Karen Eiffel, the narrator, says “Harold’s life was filled with moments both significant and mundane, but to Harold, those moments remained entirely indistinguishable.” He can’t see outside of himself. It really shows how humanity is naturally focused on self and it’s not until people start following the voice of God that they can truly see what is outside of them. When people open their eyes, take in what is around them, they can start to have a transformational impact. The problem with most is that they keep their eyes on their feet. They are able to see where they are, but lose sight of where they are going. The significant, the divine, truth happens daily in the lives of people, but it’s not until eyes are cast above, around that it is able to be seen and lived out. Sometimes people think the significant is mundane, but is it?

Harold Crick starts living a life full of truth when he starts walking in obedience. Morality and obedience just for the sake of it doesn’t make sense. Harold starts walking in obedience because of the impact it has on the world around him. It’s selfless and that is the beauty of it. It sets Harold free in a way he wasn’t previously. Harold is now free to live a life of significance, of truth, of the divine. Jesus said, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. And you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.”²  Harold follows the voice in obedience and he is set free.

Harold Crick finds his purpose towards the end of the story. He realizes he has a purpose. He is created for a specific reason and he willingly goes to his death to fulfill that purpose. His purpose is to show love towards others, to help others find beauty in the divine, to die for another. He doesn’t find his purpose until he knows the voice. He has to seek the voice, to get to know the voice before he finds his purpose. Without knowing God, humanity is confused by their purpose. Harold doesn’t know what he is created for until the writer tells him. To find purpose people need to seek God, to seek His voice in their lives. People have purpose. People are created for a reason. Once they seek truth, they find purpose.

There are other Biblical truths in Stranger than Fiction that can be extrapolated. This is the question that I like to ask when watching a movie, a television show, looking at a piece of art, listening to music, or reading a book: “What Biblical truth(s) can be discovered in the areas of God, Creation, Humanity, Moral Order and Purpose that I can apply to my life? What is the best way to implement that truth?” Sometimes the truth is hidden in a mess of lies, but there is truth to be found. There is truth in any piece of art. Not all truth is beautiful. Sometimes truth reveals the wretchedness of humanity, but at times truth in art reveals the glory of God. Seek truth in all things.

Stranger than Fiction is full of truth, of the divine. It is a story about living a great story, about finding significance in life, about finding what is worth dying for.

¹ Taken from “A Million Miles in a Thousand Years” by Donald Miller. The book is highly recommended!
² John 8:31-32 New Living Translation

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“Inception”: The Dream-Filled Reality of Guilt, Forgiveness, and Home

Posted on July 17, 2010 by

A refreshingly original idea from Christopher Nolan is like a virus. It embeds deep into the subconscious and blossoms into something that spreads and infects the lives of many. Inception is that virus of an idea. It’s a film that will be a cornerstone, a new entry into the cinema lexicon. Nolan takes a universal experience, pairs that with universal themes, throws in some slick action and creates a multi-layered picture that works from start to finish.

The film is mind-bending in its use of a new language about dreams and dreamscapes. Leonardo DiCaprio plays Cobb, a man that, with the help of a team, can enter into the dreamland of a subject. He goes into their subconscious and steals or implants ideas. The ability to do this and how they do this is the complicated and exciting aspect of this film, but at its core, Inception is two simple things: a reverse-heist film and a film about the guilt, fear and shame that shape our dreams and take over our lives.

Guilt is a powerful force that can ruin and run our lives. Cobb is trying to erase his guilt through reconciling and changing the past in his dreams, but the past can’t be erased; the past can’t be reconciled through anything he can do alone. The film is spent trying to regain his past and learning to live in the present.

As in a lot of heist films, the protagonist is going to do “one last job”. In this case, the job will get him home to see his kids. The question the film poses though, is, what is home? Where is home? Can home be attained? What is really real? Are the dreams we dream as real as the reality of our daily life? The human brain is complex and still a mysterious figure in our lives. We still haven’t fully understood the realities of our reality.

The cast is sublime. They play their parts well and each character is superbly written. They feel fully formed and not projections of one’s subconscious. Ellen Page, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cotillard, Cillian Murphy and Ken Watanabe all play to their strengths and give solid, believable performances, but the one actor that steals it all is Tom Hardy. As soon as he graces the screen, the film seems to take flight. Hardy plays Eames with swagger and confidence and the audience can’t take their eyes off of him. He’s a brilliant actor.

The script and direction from Christopher Nolan is top-notch. The film is a beauty to look at. It’s visually stunning, but that works well only because the story and script are locked in solid. The exposition of the film may have been a bit much, but it was meant to orient the audience in a disorienting film and it worked, but sometimes a bit of disorientation is a good thing. It makes people want to revisit the film over and over to try and make sense of it all. Nolan makes a film that is disorienting, but sensible.

One of the most powerful aspects of life is the idea of home. We all yearn for a home and that is a big motivation in our lives. We want to build a home, create a home, feel at home, find another to be home with. This aspect is delved into in Inception. It’s the core motivation of Cobb and one of the core questions of the film. Where is home? If our home is only in our dreams, then is home attainable? Are dreams reality? When we find home, we want to hold it, keep it safe and not let it go. This is what Cobb is trying to do and his struggle mirrors the struggle of humanity.

This is a fantastic film that delivers in every aspect. The writing, direction, art direction, effects, story, acting, and themes are all excellent. Thematically, Inception gets to the core of our dilemma in life: guilt and forgiveness. Where is forgiveness found? Can we do anything to attain it? It’s also the story of a journey home. Reality is broken and dreams are shaken in this film. It’s a mind-blowing, but simple journey that all of humanity can relate to.

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Watching Movies Through a Biblical Worldview

Posted on July 15, 2010 by

Movies are an influential medium. A myriad of worldviews are on display and like it or not, those worldviews seep into the consciousness of the public. Screenwriters, even if they aren’t aware of it, input their own worldview into the piece that they are writing. Sometimes characters have different worldviews than the writer, but if written well, a worldview for each character is established. How does the audience decipher between what is truth and what isn’t? There are Biblical truths that seep through in every single movie. Even if the worldview of the movie is contrarian, there is something that can be grasped and applied.

Worldview, according to Richard Wright, is “a comprehensive framework of beliefs that help us to interpret what we see and experience and also gives us direction in the choices that we make as we live out our days.” So, how do we determine what a character’s worldview is? What do they believe? Sometimes their worldview is more overt and they will actually state what it is that they believe, but other times it is more covert and their actions and choices will uncover their worldview. Here is a good way to determine worldview:

A lot of people’s worldview can be determined by what they say and do. Here is how it usually looks:

Culture
↓
Values
↓
Behavior
↓
Worldview

It works this way for a lot of people. Culture, values, and behavior influence one’s worldview. Culture really can be anything from the general (American culture, Korean culture, etc.) to the specific (family culture, classroom culture, etc.). A lot can be determined about one’s worldview by the culture that they associate with. The same can be said about values (love, order, excellence, wisdom, etc.) and behavior (what people do). To get to the core beliefs of a character in a movie, one can generally look at their culture, values and behavior and determine their worldview.

If someone is a follower of Jesus and their basis for behavior and values are the Bible, then a Biblical worldview should actually influence the others:

Culture
↑
Values
↑
Behavior
↑
Worldview

A Jesus follower’s worldview is determined by what the Bible has to say and their worldview should influence their behavior and values, which in turn should transform and impact culture.

Every single worldview that exists has something to say about five things: God, Creation, Humanity, Moral Order, and Purpose. These are the five worldview components.

God deals with questions such as: Is there a God? Is there one God or multiple gods? Is He a personal God or an impersonal force?

Creation deals with questions such as: Did the universe create itself, or did a Creator cause it? What is really real? Does the material world have any purpose?

Humanity deals with questions such as: Are we descendents of fish? Is human nature basically good or basically corrupt? Are people responsible for their actions? What happens to people after they die?

Moral Order deals with questions such as: Are morality and ethics human inventions or does a Creator predetermine them? Is there an ultimate standard of right and wrong? How is right and wrong determined?

Purpose deals with questions such as: Is there a purpose to our existence? Does history have any direction to it?

All worldviews deal with these five components and a fully developed character will have beliefs in these five areas that determine how they act.

Even if a character doesn’t have a Biblical worldview, Biblical truth can be found within movies. Truth will reveal itself. So, how can we find Biblical truth within movies? Here is a question to ask: What Biblical truth can be discovered that can be applied to my life in the area of: God, Creation, Humanity, Moral Order, or Purpose?

Let’s take Avatar as an example because it’s fairly simple and many people have seen it. The Na’vi love nature. That’s great. God created nature and loves nature Himself, but what do the Na’vi believe about nature? Their god, Eywa is a tree and everything in nature is connected through it. The Na’vi even have tendrils that can literally connect to all of nature. The Na’vi basically are pantheists. Pantheism is, at its core, the worship of Nature; the belief that God is the creation. The Na’vi are worshipping the creation. What are Biblical truths that can be derived from this? The Bible states that humans should be good stewards of the environment, but not take it as far as the Na’vi do. Humans should worship the Creator and not the Creation. The simple Biblical truth of stewardship can be derived from Avatar even though the screenwriter, James Cameron, and his characters do not share a Biblical worldview.

It is essential, in viewing movies through a Biblical worldview, that the viewer knows Biblical truth and to know Biblical truth, one must study and read the Bible. There are many things that sound very good, but aren’t Biblical, so to differentiate between the good and the truth, one must know the truth.

Every Thursday, The Joshua Centre will discuss a different movie through a Biblical worldview. There will be a list of upcoming movies being discussed so that you can view the movie before the discussion will be posted. It is my hope that you will join in the discussion and take your movie watching to a deeper level.

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Top 10 Atmospheric Movies

Posted on July 14, 2010 by

The setting of a movie can be its own character when done well. Place is extremely important to any movie, but not all movies pull of place as character. These ten movies are extremely atmospheric – movies in which the place is suffocating, or debilitating, or enhances the story. These atmospheres are consuming. I could have filled this list with war, horror and sci-fi films, so I decided to steer clear of them.

10. Frozen River (dir. Courtney Hunt 2008)

This quiet, but powerful film is all the more powerful due to how Courtney Hunt uses the frozen river as a character. It creaks, it cracks, it is a source of anxiety, a source of comfort, a source of life and death. Melissa Leo gives an outstanding performance of a down-on-her-luck mother.

9. Insomnia (dir. Christopher Nolan 2002)

It’s a great detective movie made all the better due to the setting. Insomnia takes place in a northern Alaska town where the sun never sets. It’s disarming and Christopher Nolan uses it to great effect.

8. A River Runs Through It (dir. Robert Redford 1992)

If you’ve ever been fly fishing, you know the allure of the river. It calls your name and begs you to spend time with it. Redford masterfully captures this fact and films the river beautifully. The river constantly calls.

7. Dead Poets Society (dir. Peter Weir 1989)

The boarding school is definitely its own character in this movie. It’s an inspiring story, but the boarding school seems to suffocate.

6. Slumdog Millionaire (dir. Danny Boyle 2008)

The slums of Mumbai are on full display in this film. They not only provide the setting, but are crucial to the plot and story of the film.

5. Jaws (dir. Steven Spielberg 1975)

When a movie comes along that scares a generation out of the water, the setting must have played a part in it.

4. Into the Wild (dir. Sean Penn 2007)

The topography and landscape of this film is a catalyst for change for Christopher, the main character. Without the setting, their would be no transformation; their would be no journey.

3. The Shawshank Redemption (dir. Frank Darabont 1994)

In this fantastic film, the prison changes Andy and provides a the suffocating force that he must escape.

2. Groundhog Day (dir. Harold Ramis 1993)

Setting plays so much into this film. Phil has to learn to love the place he’s in before he can love himself and eventually others.

1. There Will Be Blood (dir. Paul Thomas Anderson 2007)

The vast open spaces of Texas plays a major part in this revelatory film, especially during the almost silent opening sequence.

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Toy Story 3

Posted on July 13, 2010 by

When thinking about the best trilogies ever to grace the screen, people might talk about The Lord of the Rings, The Godfather, Back to the Future, or Star Wars. Out of those four, The Lord of the Rings is the only one without a weak finish. It’s hard to do a trilogy well. Toy Story does trilogy well. Toy Story 3 is one of the top 2 or 3 trilogy finishes of all time. It’s a solid entry into the Toy Story mythology and some may argue it’s the best of all three of the films.

This adventure film harkens back to the beginning of Pixar, when ingenuity, chase, and adventure dominated their movies. Pixar, as a production house, has evolved into something pretty amazing with their three best films: Ratatouille, Wall-E, and Up. The heart that those films portray is moving and beautiful. Toy Story 3 has heart, but not like the Pixar films of late. This movie really relies on the fondness formed for these characters in the previous 2 films and because of that, the movie becomes a moving portrait of friendship and family.

The creative ingenuity that the Toy Story franchise is known for is in full effect in this entry. There are new toys on display and new perils that face Woody and his gang. This really is a dark and scary film. The Baby and Lotso are genuinely terrifying and the basis for their evil ways is done incredibly well and is believable.

This really is a movie about banding together as a group into a family that looks out for each other and sacrifices for each other. Family includes those we don’t choose and those we choose, but through all of it, family is together; is in it all together and will support and love each other in a deep and meaningful way.

It’s also a movie about the importance of toys and imagination in the life of every child, no matter how old they are. Creativity and imagination are essential in the lives of young people growing up and Toy Story 3 does a great job at portraying the positive effects of those aspects of our brain.

The animation, once again, is spectacular. There is a depth and attention to detail that is rarely seen outside of Pixar films. It’s genius animation and the detail is worth the price of admission alone, but it’s not just a movie that looks good, it’s a story, though prototypical, that works extremely well.
There have been many escape films over the years and they all follow a similar route. This movie is no exception, but it does it in a solid and deep way that continues to surprise and thrill to the very end.

If someone enjoyed the first two films, they would certainly enjoy this final chapter. It’s a great escape and adventure film about the importance of coming together, of forming a bond that runs deep, of creativity and imagination, and the loss of innocence, but not the loss of imagination, about the perpetual nature of toys and the love of family. This is a movie that shouldn’t be missed. Finally a great film comes out in 2010.

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Paradise Now

Posted on July 13, 2010 by

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not going away any time soon. At least that is what it seems like. Both sides want what they want and both sides feel they have a right to it. In Paradise Now, the story of the conflict is told through the perspective of Palestinian suicide bombers. These are not evil men trying to perpetrate evil on the world. They aren’t opponents of peace and dignity. They feel like they are victims; that nothing is effective except bombing. Their military is inefficient compared to the massive stronghold of a military that Israel has.

The subject matter isn’t conducive to escapism. This is the opposite of escapism in film; this is realism. The movie is not shot in any stylistic way. It’s not shown to beautify a process of murder, nor is it shot to demonize what is being done. It’s not smooth or gritty. It feels real and that really benefits the movie. The direction and cinematography are not distracting; it’s almost invisible as one gets engrossed in the story.

The story is simple, yet effective. Two down on their luck Palestinian men are chosen to carry out a mission in the name of Allah. They find out about the mission the night before they are to carry it out and they get to spend one last night with their family. The day finally arrives and the mission is on. After some obstacles are set in their way, the question becomes, will they go through with it? Is it right? Is this the way to propagate peace? The two men come to a decision.

During the night before the mission, one of the men, Said, goes to the home of a girl he has a crush on (Suha) and has a very interesting conversation with her about movies. Suha asks him his favorite genre and he can’t really answer. He doesn’t know how to answer. She asks him if he’s ever been to the cinema. Once, he said, the day of the demonstration when we blew it up. She keeps asking him, why the cinema. He can’t really answer; he pauses to think and then finally says, “Why us?”

Small conversations like that are littered throughout the straightforward, no nonsense script. A poignant discussion of collaborators and martyrs happens near the end of the movie that provides the basis of why Said wants to be a suicide bomber. Suha doesn’t understand why anyone would do it; what effect it has; what purpose it serves.

The other suicide bomber, Kahled is at a point in his life where he needs to believe in something greater than himself. Kahled is a screw-up, not keeping a job for more than a minute and when this opportunity to go on a mission for God arises, he is all for it. His life now has purpose, where it didn’t before. He is going to be a hero. Said has different reasons to be a suicide bomber that are revealed later in the movie, but are they good enough reasons?

The movie does a great job of telling the story from the side of the victim. Said says that Israel plays the role of oppressor and of victim: how can you defeat that? When the world sees Israel as victim and Israel is one of the most powerful militaries in the world, how can Palestine compete? Kahled and Said’s answer to that is suicide bombing. Is there another way? Is there a way Palestine and Israel can be on equal footing?

The acting in the movie is fantastic. All of the actors seem to be real people reacting in ways typical to their character. Said’s mother, Hiam Abbass, is particularly wonderful. She has the special ability of conveying a myriad of emotions with a look. She is fantastic. She had a good role in The Visitor as well, one of my top 10 movies in which cultures collide.

This is a fantastic little film that realistically portrays the role of a Palestinian suicide bomber with humanity and dignity. It’s a movie that should be watched and discussed. Sometimes we need to see the other side to finally see the truth.

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Despicable Me

Posted on July 12, 2010 by

Despicable Me turned out to be a different movie than expected. Usually, that’s a good thing. Surprises at movies are few and far between these days – original ideas are getting harder to come by. But this movie does nothing more than follow familiar beats.

It’s hard not to be influenced by the marketing of this movie. The minions have been everywhere. If a television was turned on in the last few months, a preview was probably seen. If people were amused at the minions on television, they would probably thoroughly enjoy this movie. If they found the minions annoying, Despicable Me would hardly resonate with them.

Gru, the despicable character voiced by funny man Steve Carell, is essentially the Grinch, but instead of stealing Christmas, he decides to be the greatest villain of all time by stealing the moon. Yes, the moon. Hijinks ensue with a rival villain and that should have been the movie. It should have been entirely fun and creative, but it turned out to be ordinary and amusing.

This movie follows every beat that the cartoon version of How the Grinch Stole Christmas had, but it doesn’t do it as well. The audience never really feels how despicable Gru actually is. He is consistently played with an undercurrent of humanity, so his inevitable change isn’t surprising. That’s too bad because this movie had the potential to be great, to be moving, to have an emotional heart, but it never quite reaches that potential. It should have stuck to being a fun and entertaining heist movie.

A few of the gags work well the first time, but after they are played once, they lose the emotional impact and they fall flat. It’s a fairly funny movie, but the laughs aren’t consistent.

The movie does remind the audience about the importance of family and connection to others. It really does let people know the impact parents have on the lives of their children. The presence of a quality older adult in the lives of children can have a massive positive effect. The impact of Gru’s mother was felt throughout his life and changed the course of his life. The movie also focuses on orphans in a stereotypical way, but it does make the case for adoption and family.

Stereotypes run rampant in this movie and are played for laughs, but the laughs don’t come. Fat American tourists, evil bankers, the evil woman who runs an orphanage, the square jawed newscaster are all examples of stereotypes that seem to have run their course and have lost their juice.

Despicable Me has the potential to have a heart and have a deep emotional impact, but it never quite gets there. The heist and villainy are both fun and enjoyable, but there never is enough of it. The movie is humorous without being really funny. The little minions are clever, but don’t do enough to carry the movie. This is one movie that doesn’t need to be seen in theatres. It’s definitely a fun movie to watch at home.

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Predators

Posted on July 12, 2010 by

Predators has the potential to be a great suspenseful film about the nature of humanity and the surprising lengths we go to survive, but it never strives to be that. Predators is content with being a fun and amusing B-movie romp and is not ashamed of that fact. Unfortunately, the movie doesn’t succeed at being more than just entertaining.

Because of the nature of the beast, the script is paper-thin. None of characters have any development and are just stereotypical stock characters. This sort of thing is nothing new. Because the movie doesn’t have the time for developing characters (this isn’t really true, every movie has time to develop characters), it relies on the audiences’ pre-conceived notions of these characters. The characters are exactly what we’d expect and nothing more. This is helpful in a movie where the action is non-stop and characters are being picked off one by one, but only one of those facts are true. The movie tries to have quiet contemplative moments that don’t do the job of humanizing the characters. It ends up being boring exposition. The action isn’t the type of confusing nonsense that is popular in movies today, but it is a bit silly and shot in a way that doesn’t build any suspense.

As an action star, Adrien Brody is an interesting choice. The filmmakers made a bold casting choice, and that is definitely commendable. Brody is infinitely more interesting than 99% of the action stars today, but unfortunately that’s where the interestingness ends. The filmmakers didn’t utilize his talent, instead they chose to try and hone him into a prototypical action star. If that was the goal all along, that was a strange choice in casting. The movie had such a great potential with the casting and it was never realized.

Even though this was a fun B-movie, there are things in it that can be extrapolated. Even though the prey are the dregs of humanity, a bit of dignity is retained. The humans don’t all turn into animals and strict survivalists, they retain their humanness. They realize that teamwork and collaboration is necessary to defeat the enemy. Humans are stronger in numbers and we can do exponentially more together than we can alone. This simple fact is apparent consistently throughout the movie. It’s hard to win alone, but when unity among people happens, success can be had.

Predators really could have been a thrilling, suspenseful ride that had something to say about humanity, but it never had that ambition. If a fairly fun B-movie is what is wanted, this is the movie to watch. If anyone is looking for more than that, go to the local art house and find some quality.

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Adapting Books to Film

Posted on July 8, 2010 by

Book to Film adaptations are a tricky thing to navigate. They are two distinctly different mediums, but they are similar in ways that make people believe they should be the same. Film is truly visual. As much or more is said with a look than with a word. Books work through the words on the page. The turn of a phrase, the description of a setting, the dialogue: all of these things are essential to the success of a book. How does one successfully adapt a book to a film?

There are a couple of routes that adapters usually take. One of them is the faithful adaptation. They follow the beats and the plot of the novel to make the film and a lot of the time they lift dialogue straight out of the novel and throw it into the screenplay. This works extremely well if there is an adept director at the helm that knows how to set the mood and tone of the story with visuals and music. When the director focuses on the subconscious acts during the conscious interaction, the movie works. When the director is focused on plot beats and is just trying to get to the next scene, it doesn’t work. It’s about everything that isn’t said as much as it is about what is said. A film that does this well Atonement directed by Joe Wright. Joe Wright gets the mood and tone of the story pegged correctly right away. The story is all about misperception and the camera allows this to be put at the forefront.

Another route is to take the source material and totally re-do the story to make it fit in a visual medium. This route usually sparks the filmmaker with a solid idea that he/she builds upon. It’s not about being faithful to the plot and characters; it’s about building on a solid idea and adapting it to a visual story. The most effective filmmakers do this well when they focus their energy on the script and story. Since they are taking liberties with the source material, the script needs to have a solid story to flesh out. One film that does this really well is Up in the Air directed by Jason Reitman. Reitman uses the source material as a foundation, but really changes things to fit his aesthetic. It’s also completely different because of the time we are living in now compared with the time the novel was written.

Both of these routes can be used to great effect. What filmmakers need to realize is that they are not making a novel or even a play; they are making a film in which the primary storytelling method is visual. Adapting the mood, the tone, is essential and this is all done visually. There have been some amazing adaptations and some adaptations that were constricted because they tried to be something they weren’t.

Also, check out my top ten literary adaptation movies: here.

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