Current Tunes: Radiohead - The Tourist
Not many days left in this year, so it’s high time I got down to the business of letting you folks know what forms of entertainment got me excited this past year and what let me down seriously. Instead of throwing up one huge post covering everything, I decided to split it into three separate posts, for your reading pleasure. Today I’ll be covering my year in television, while tomorrow’s topic will be music and Monday will bring us the anticipated list of Matt’s favorite (and not-so-favorite) films of the year. Enough with the explanations, on to the task at hand!
In regards to my television habits, I’m not exactly what you’d call a researched or learned consumer of television shows. I have always had a hard time dedicating myself seriously to serial television shows over the years, but this past year it all started to add up for me. I’ve found a few shows that really grabbed my attention, and I’m happy that they did. Most television shows are so contemptible for me, always following the same outlines and rehashing the same kinds of characters and stories. The few shows that I did get attached to in the past year I think caught my eye because they try to do something different, which is really what I look for in any kind of entertainment media. Anyway, I can’t really put together some sort of top 10 for TV because I’m so apathetic about it usually, so instead I just offered up a few words on the shows that did delight me:
“Sons of Anarchy” – This show definitely picked up steam in its 2nd season, to the surprise of many I do believe. When I first heard about “SOA” I figured it would get canned right away for delving too deep into a sub culture that most people know nothing about or are completely frightened of. I guess though I was foolish to underestimate the power of those kinds of emotions; people can so often be drawn to what they don’t understand. This show is a powerhouse for FX right now, and it seems like the sky’s the limit for SAMCRO.
This was my favorite show of this year because out of everything I watched this felt the most real. I believe this characters in the show are real. Especially Jax (Charile Hunnan) and his mother, Gemma. (Katey Segal, still deserves a Golden Globe nomination) This mother and son team is so complex and rich it’s unbelievable. This 2nd season also showed me that the writers and creators of this show aren’t afraid to do what they have to do; i.e. kill of characters that have something coming to them even when I personally want them to stay alive so badly.
“House” – This season isn’t over yet (we’re only half way through) but it’s had a fairly good start. It’s been bumpy, and has had stop-start moments that have felt awkward but there is one single element that’s really keeping me hyped on this show and it came out of left field for me. The story arc involving Chase and the Great Sin he perpetrated early in the season is absolutely phenomenal. I have no idea how it will turn out, but I’m certain it’s only getting started.
Even putting that aside, Hugh Laurie is still bringing down the house night after night. Get it? Bringing down the house??? So far this season we’ve been getting an interesting dose of Gregory House 2.0 after his embroiled, painful stint in rehab created an entirely new breed of monster. He’s still House, he’s still a prickly thorn in everyone’s side, but he’s… different. And I don’t think you can deny that it’s different in a positive way. This show probably only has two or three seasons left, so this is the stretch where the creators will have to determine if this goes down in history as a truly great show, or a show that had promise and floundered out in the end.
“Lost” – Oh, “Lost.” You are an elusive, mysterious mistress indeed. Whatever people might say or think about this past season, there’s only one thing that truly matters when talking about season 5: time travel. I was very skeptical. I didn’t think it would work. “Lost” was already the most complicated TV show in history and time travel only makes things more difficult. But they did it, they pulled it off. Not only did they pull it off, it looks like they’re using time travel as a great device to not really “bookend” the show, but to seal it off, preserving it in a sense. As if they’re wrapping it in plastic to keep out contaminates.
The actors on the show continue to step it up episodes after episode on this show. How valuable are the performances of Terry O’Quinn (Locke), Michael Emerson (Ben), Matthew Fox (Jack), and Evangeline Lilly (Kate), indeed the whole cast? Here’s how I see it: “Lost” would make a fantastic series of novels; the story and the mystery is what makes this show so popular. The actors however are making this a real-world story; a lesser group of actors would merely make this show an overly elaborate fairy tale. The final season has so much to live up to, and the writers could possibly end up failing fans. But I seriously doubt the actors will.
“The Daily Show” & “The Colbert Report” – Not necessarily what I would call the best shows on television, but I don’t think it’s a stretch at all to call them the most important hour of creative television being made today.
“Real Time with Bill Maher” – This show keeps me sane. This is the show that “Crossfire” could have been if it hadn’t been run by ideologues and puppets.
Even with these fine shows, there were a few shows on TV this past year that seriously disappointed me:
“Dollhouse” – Given that I wrote about the failures of this show about a week ago, I don’t feel any especial need to elaborate any further. Despite it’s faults, I very much wish the show wasn’t being canned.
“Kings” - This show actually should be included in the section of what I enjoyed, as “Kings” was completely absorbing. It’s not the show that disappointed me, but NBC for not continuing the series, and the rest of the cable universe for not seeing their mistake and picking up and continuing the series. This show was gorgeous. Even if the story wasn’t near Shakespearean in its depth (and it was), it has to be the most beautifully filmed show I have ever seen on television. I’m so sad to see this show go. Ian McShane is a gargantuan actor capable of any task you set before him.
“The Glenn Beck Show” – Now, I know what you’re thinking. Haha, what a funny little joke. But I’m including this here because it was a true, legitimate disappointment for me. On his radio show, I had come to somewhat respect Beck as a pundit for the Republican party. I didn’t agree with hardly anything he said at all, but at least he wasn’t the pompous windbag that Rush Limbaugh is. Turns out if you put him in front of a camera he’s actually worse than Limbaugh. I was fine to disagree with him politically, and his random conspiracy theory rants don’t bother me so much. It’s his tactics that absolutely blow my mind. This guy is an inexcusable weasel.
26 December 2009
25 December 2009
Christmas Workout Cheer
Current Tunes: Anthrax – A.I.R.
Man I feel exhausted., but in a good way. Working out this morning wasn’t a torture session this morning, it actually felt good.
Right as soon as I got done running, I looked up at the TV in the gym & on ESPN they were doing a short feature on Alabama football and they’re upcoming BCS championship game against Texas. A lot of the conversation centered around Alabama being such a favorite in this game, and whether or not all the pundits saying they were so favored would go to their heads. I was encouraged to hear not only Saban saying they’re not listening to that talk, but that the key leaders on both side of the ball weren’t buying eht hype either. That’s the best Christmas present I could get this year: seeing the Tide beat the pants off of Texas and take back the crown for the best football program in college football!
Watching the segment had greater benefit for me though. Seeing all the clips they showed of Alabama’s victories was pretty inspiring for me at that moment. Thinking about how for the decade or so before Saban got there we had to wallow in mediocrity. Controversial, backstabbing coaches and heavy-handed sanctions kept us down to some degree, but whatever adversity held the program back, UA is back on top again.
I thought about all the hard work those kids have gone through this season to get to where they are, and it made me think that I too could work that hard and win my own championship. I could finally loose the weight I needed to loose and could not just feel healthy but be healthy again.
That’s one especially important key to a long, drawn out process like this. You have to constantly find things or ideas to keep motivating you, to keep pushing you along when things feel monotonous or like they’re in a standstill. I realized today too a difference between this attempt at weight loss and times before. Times before I would tell myself how easy it was going to be, and that’s not true at all. Weight loss is hard to do, but nothing truly worthwhile is easy, right?
Happy Holidays to everyone, and bonus points to you for reading my humble blog on Christmas.
Man I feel exhausted., but in a good way. Working out this morning wasn’t a torture session this morning, it actually felt good.
Right as soon as I got done running, I looked up at the TV in the gym & on ESPN they were doing a short feature on Alabama football and they’re upcoming BCS championship game against Texas. A lot of the conversation centered around Alabama being such a favorite in this game, and whether or not all the pundits saying they were so favored would go to their heads. I was encouraged to hear not only Saban saying they’re not listening to that talk, but that the key leaders on both side of the ball weren’t buying eht hype either. That’s the best Christmas present I could get this year: seeing the Tide beat the pants off of Texas and take back the crown for the best football program in college football!
Watching the segment had greater benefit for me though. Seeing all the clips they showed of Alabama’s victories was pretty inspiring for me at that moment. Thinking about how for the decade or so before Saban got there we had to wallow in mediocrity. Controversial, backstabbing coaches and heavy-handed sanctions kept us down to some degree, but whatever adversity held the program back, UA is back on top again.
I thought about all the hard work those kids have gone through this season to get to where they are, and it made me think that I too could work that hard and win my own championship. I could finally loose the weight I needed to loose and could not just feel healthy but be healthy again.
That’s one especially important key to a long, drawn out process like this. You have to constantly find things or ideas to keep motivating you, to keep pushing you along when things feel monotonous or like they’re in a standstill. I realized today too a difference between this attempt at weight loss and times before. Times before I would tell myself how easy it was going to be, and that’s not true at all. Weight loss is hard to do, but nothing truly worthwhile is easy, right?
Happy Holidays to everyone, and bonus points to you for reading my humble blog on Christmas.
24 December 2009
Health Care Bill Passed After 11 Months of Effort! Now What?
Current Tunes: Megadeth – Washington is Next!
How monumental is this health care debate to our world? Well apparently it was the 2nd longest Senate debate in history, short only of the discussion over whether or not to join the fight in World War I. But it’s passed now. After a little fine-tuning here and there, it looks like Obama will sign it into law soon.
I wish I knew whether or not I was legally obliged to acquire health insurance under this plan. I’m still in this gray area of student/worker/adult whatever. If I am indeed going to be forced by the government to purchase a health care plan, that might be a silver lining. It would certainly light a fire under me to pick myself up and get a real, 40-hour/week job.
That’s not really what had my attention when I look at the passing of this bill. When I read about this being such a long debate that stacked up to the WWI Senate debates, it immediately called to my mind Woodrow Wilson for me. Suddenly my thoughts turned to a smirking irony, as I added it up in my head and saw Obama become Wilson Jr., in a sense. Wilson was a guy who was laughably idealistic, and had such grandiose plans for America and wanted them to happen, no matter the cost. But he still had these idealistic tendencies, and in politics those are always one of the first costs.
Obama marketed himself as a guy who wouldn’t make those compromises, but it looks to me like he’s already getting a taste of what that’s going to be like. No bipartisan support on anything. Guantanamo's Torture Hotel still not closed for another year. No financial/banking reform. Not saying I want it to turn out this way, but I can totally look to the future and see Obama wheeling around town, broken, beaten, and never smiling just like Wilson did at the end of his time in office, shaking out the hollow shell of a farce they called the League of Nations.
It’s taken him a whole year to build this health care business to this point. I’ll grant him he had some extraordinary barriers in his way, but certainly he wasn’t naïve enough to think the Republicans would just roll over for him, did he? Things will only get tougher from here on out, especially if Republicans win back some seats in the next election. As we say in the south, he better get while the gettin’s good.
I may not have voted for him last year, but I was willing to give him a shot. I thought he’d hit the ground running hard, but it looks like he may have hit just a little too hard and gradually lost all the momentum. If the election were tomorrow I don’t know who I’d vote for, but it certainly wouldn’t be Obama at this point.
How monumental is this health care debate to our world? Well apparently it was the 2nd longest Senate debate in history, short only of the discussion over whether or not to join the fight in World War I. But it’s passed now. After a little fine-tuning here and there, it looks like Obama will sign it into law soon.
I wish I knew whether or not I was legally obliged to acquire health insurance under this plan. I’m still in this gray area of student/worker/adult whatever. If I am indeed going to be forced by the government to purchase a health care plan, that might be a silver lining. It would certainly light a fire under me to pick myself up and get a real, 40-hour/week job.
That’s not really what had my attention when I look at the passing of this bill. When I read about this being such a long debate that stacked up to the WWI Senate debates, it immediately called to my mind Woodrow Wilson for me. Suddenly my thoughts turned to a smirking irony, as I added it up in my head and saw Obama become Wilson Jr., in a sense. Wilson was a guy who was laughably idealistic, and had such grandiose plans for America and wanted them to happen, no matter the cost. But he still had these idealistic tendencies, and in politics those are always one of the first costs.
Obama marketed himself as a guy who wouldn’t make those compromises, but it looks to me like he’s already getting a taste of what that’s going to be like. No bipartisan support on anything. Guantanamo's Torture Hotel still not closed for another year. No financial/banking reform. Not saying I want it to turn out this way, but I can totally look to the future and see Obama wheeling around town, broken, beaten, and never smiling just like Wilson did at the end of his time in office, shaking out the hollow shell of a farce they called the League of Nations.
It’s taken him a whole year to build this health care business to this point. I’ll grant him he had some extraordinary barriers in his way, but certainly he wasn’t naïve enough to think the Republicans would just roll over for him, did he? Things will only get tougher from here on out, especially if Republicans win back some seats in the next election. As we say in the south, he better get while the gettin’s good.
I may not have voted for him last year, but I was willing to give him a shot. I thought he’d hit the ground running hard, but it looks like he may have hit just a little too hard and gradually lost all the momentum. If the election were tomorrow I don’t know who I’d vote for, but it certainly wouldn’t be Obama at this point.
23 December 2009
A Sudden Removal / 'Time Magazine' Annoys Me
Current Tunes: The Sword - Mother, Maiden, & Crone
Welcome to my 50th post! Confetti!!!
Well, it’s gone. That’s the end of that. It’s time to move on from here.
I went and got my hair cut this afternoon. By cut I mean completely stricken from my person. I removed two years worth of hair growth and now it sits in a bundle on my desk, detached from me forever.
It took me a long time to gather up the strength to go to the salon, sit down in the chair and actually go through with it. I’m talking at least two months of dancing around it, thinking about it, but never finding the time or motivation or whatever it took to actually go through it. Until today, when I just woke up, decided I would just do it, no more thinking about it, just purely and simply deciding to go and do it. It’s funny how it’s not a complicated thing, really, to just up and decide that yes this thing will happen. You let the (imagined) weight of it fester in your mind, and you start to second-guess yourself.
Anyway, I’m so happy I did it. It’s cliché, but I feel like a completely new man. I think I look like a real person now, a respectable person, not some caricature or anything like that. My viking-self is of course sad that my hair’s gone, but he’ll get over it soon enough. This was meant to happen. It feels like the realest thing I’ve done in a while.
So I don’t know where “Time Magazine” gets the idea that they are a major authority on cinema, but they somehow decided that publishing their own list of the “Best 100 Movies of All Time” was warranted. I really don’t have a lot of bad things to say. I’m overjoyed to see them put “Blade Runner,” “Brazil,” and “City of God” on the list. Lumping all three “Lord of the Rings” films into one is kind of cheating; those films are overrated anyway.
There are plenty of the usual choices, and that’s perhaps the biggest gripe I could have about this list; it’s just too safe. There’s no ‘omg’ choices to get people talking. It’s all the same choices you always see on lists like this, in fact this list looks eerily similar to AFI’s.
OK, I take it back. There is one choice on this list that definitely puzzles me, and it’s the “The Fly” from 1986. I’ve never seen that film, and probably never will given how much I dislike bugs and horror films in general. So perhaps I shouldn’t judge, but really? “The Fly?” Let’s even operate on the presumption that this specific slot is reserved for a film that falls in the sci-fi/horror genre. Are you trying to tell me that you chose “The Fly” for that slot over Ridley Scott’s “Alien?” That’s just silly. Stick to politics, please.
22 December 2009
Bringing the Pain & "Karate Kid" Remake Looks Meh
Current Tunes: Strapping Young Lad – Love?
Throwing my jeans into the dryer earlier today, I wondered why exactly I hear so many people say they don’t like doing laundry. I don’t get it. Doing laundry is a cinch. Maybe my view of laundry stems from my undying love for clean, hot clothes fresh from the dryer. It’s the best feeling ever. Beyond that, aren’t there other more irritating house chores? Sweeping/mopping the floor? Washing dishes? Laundry’s just picking up some clothes, dumping them in the washer with a little soap, then bang! Twenty minutes later they’re clean. Done deal.
Sorry to disappoint you, but this isn’t a post dedicated to the virtues of laundry-doing. So now that that’s covered…
I woke up and worked out today. Holy crap did that hurt. Daily workouts, along with a balanced and healthy diet, is a serious goal that I’m incorporating. I’ve done it before too; I’ve had significant two or three month periods where I did work out regularly and saw results. I eventually fell off the track though; I don’t particularly remember why and I don’t particularly care either. I’m not going to let past failures at this inhibit me. Looking toward the future, that’s what happens from here on out.
Though it’s moderately frustrating at the starting phase, and for a very strange reason. I only worked out at about 75% intensity as I was at during my peak exercising stints. My mind wants me to be back at the level I was at during my peak, but because it’s been so long since I worked out I have to start slowly, of course. Lest I kill myself. However, this is just another facet of teaching myself to reject the idea that failing once before means I will always fail. That is a fallacy and it is one that I am done with.
My dieting plan is a two-fold attack. The first part is learning to cook things. I barely know how to cook a grilled cheese sandwich or pasta. I think a major problem in my normal diet is I eat too many things that are processed, easy-to-fix foods that are loaded with calories. If I would just learn to cook well, I could eat healthier food I’m certain. And loose weight, which is of course the final desired result.
The second prong of this battle strategy is eliminating certain foods all together. Yes, all together. From here on out, no more soft drinks, no potato chips, no frozen chicken tenders, no more cookies, and most sadly, no more beer. Soft drinks I have eliminated before; I remember a good three or four year stretch where I never drank one. The difficult part is finding something to substitute for soft drinks. All the other things I can find easy substitutes for that are healthy, but tasty beverages that aren’t water are not easy to come by. Tea is definitely a candidate to replace coke. I’ll manage though. Success is the only option.
On the movie front… A new trailer for the remake of “The Karate Kid hit the Internet today. I heard about this a while back, and what made me not immediately vomit at the news was the fact that Jackie Chan was to be involved in the Mr. Miyagi role.
But, of course, instead of being a Japanese-American war veteran, Chan looks like he plays a homeless, drunken, street-dweller. Maybe that’s not the case, but that’s how it looks. Well regardless, looking at the trailer the one problem that’s grating on me now is actually the title. They should have changed the title to “The Kung Fu Kid.” It’s kind of an insult to both Chinese and Japanese cultures by mislabeling this film; Kung Fu is a Chinese martial art and Karate is uniquely Japanese, for those of you who do not know. There might be some who say I’m nitpicking, but people in this country would pitch a fit if a movie suggested some cultural facet based here in America were confused with, or drawn parallel to, Canadian culture.
I’m just saying is all. The real truth of the matter is they probably kept the title for its clout and prestige, to help sell a product to the masses. Everyone knows the original film, and that’s a selling point for this film. Even if the context and culture have been completely changed, for many people it will still appear to be the same film all over again. Bah, Hollywood can be oh so frustrating sometimes.
Throwing my jeans into the dryer earlier today, I wondered why exactly I hear so many people say they don’t like doing laundry. I don’t get it. Doing laundry is a cinch. Maybe my view of laundry stems from my undying love for clean, hot clothes fresh from the dryer. It’s the best feeling ever. Beyond that, aren’t there other more irritating house chores? Sweeping/mopping the floor? Washing dishes? Laundry’s just picking up some clothes, dumping them in the washer with a little soap, then bang! Twenty minutes later they’re clean. Done deal.
Sorry to disappoint you, but this isn’t a post dedicated to the virtues of laundry-doing. So now that that’s covered…
I woke up and worked out today. Holy crap did that hurt. Daily workouts, along with a balanced and healthy diet, is a serious goal that I’m incorporating. I’ve done it before too; I’ve had significant two or three month periods where I did work out regularly and saw results. I eventually fell off the track though; I don’t particularly remember why and I don’t particularly care either. I’m not going to let past failures at this inhibit me. Looking toward the future, that’s what happens from here on out.
Though it’s moderately frustrating at the starting phase, and for a very strange reason. I only worked out at about 75% intensity as I was at during my peak exercising stints. My mind wants me to be back at the level I was at during my peak, but because it’s been so long since I worked out I have to start slowly, of course. Lest I kill myself. However, this is just another facet of teaching myself to reject the idea that failing once before means I will always fail. That is a fallacy and it is one that I am done with.
My dieting plan is a two-fold attack. The first part is learning to cook things. I barely know how to cook a grilled cheese sandwich or pasta. I think a major problem in my normal diet is I eat too many things that are processed, easy-to-fix foods that are loaded with calories. If I would just learn to cook well, I could eat healthier food I’m certain. And loose weight, which is of course the final desired result.
The second prong of this battle strategy is eliminating certain foods all together. Yes, all together. From here on out, no more soft drinks, no potato chips, no frozen chicken tenders, no more cookies, and most sadly, no more beer. Soft drinks I have eliminated before; I remember a good three or four year stretch where I never drank one. The difficult part is finding something to substitute for soft drinks. All the other things I can find easy substitutes for that are healthy, but tasty beverages that aren’t water are not easy to come by. Tea is definitely a candidate to replace coke. I’ll manage though. Success is the only option.
On the movie front… A new trailer for the remake of “The Karate Kid hit the Internet today. I heard about this a while back, and what made me not immediately vomit at the news was the fact that Jackie Chan was to be involved in the Mr. Miyagi role.
But, of course, instead of being a Japanese-American war veteran, Chan looks like he plays a homeless, drunken, street-dweller. Maybe that’s not the case, but that’s how it looks. Well regardless, looking at the trailer the one problem that’s grating on me now is actually the title. They should have changed the title to “The Kung Fu Kid.” It’s kind of an insult to both Chinese and Japanese cultures by mislabeling this film; Kung Fu is a Chinese martial art and Karate is uniquely Japanese, for those of you who do not know. There might be some who say I’m nitpicking, but people in this country would pitch a fit if a movie suggested some cultural facet based here in America were confused with, or drawn parallel to, Canadian culture.
I’m just saying is all. The real truth of the matter is they probably kept the title for its clout and prestige, to help sell a product to the masses. Everyone knows the original film, and that’s a selling point for this film. Even if the context and culture have been completely changed, for many people it will still appear to be the same film all over again. Bah, Hollywood can be oh so frustrating sometimes.
21 December 2009
Cameron Answers the Call; "Avatar" is Stellar
Current Tunes: Nachtmystium – Ghosts of Grace
So the next step in the filmmaking evolutionary ladder has finally stumbled onto the scene; “Avatar” is out and running in theaters all over the world raking in metric tons of cash. I still remember years ago when news was leaking out about Cameron finally coming back to popular filmmaking, with some sci-fi themed project he’d been working on for years upon years. It sounded pretty preposterous to me, I admit. But I had to hold faith in the project, because this was James Cameron we were talking about. The guy who’s simultaneously responsible for the highest grossing, 2nd-most-Oscar-winning film in history (“Titanic”) as well as inarguably the greatest pure action flick ever made (“Terminator 2: Judgment Day”). Not to mention projects like “Aliens,” and “The Abyss.”
Even when the project first got rolling, plenty of hype-spewers were saying the most puzzling things; it was going to be a 3D masterpiece, it would change the cinema dynamic, maybe even it was his greatest project yet? I was baffled by all of this talk. Cameron didn’t have anything to prove to the world; he’s the Hank Aaron, the Michael Jordan of popular American cinema. If there were a motion picture “Hall of Fame,” he’s wouldn’t be inducted yet but they’d already be preparing an entire wing of the museum just for him.
Then the previews hit the street a year or so ago and I wondered where all this cut footage of “Star Wars: The Phantom Menace” had suddenly appeared from. It definitely looked like something stuck in-between a live action film and a Saturday morning cartoon. This significantly lowered my expectations. I almost wondered if I would even see it. But last month, as the early reviews started to come in and it became clear that “Avatar” might have some legs, my heart lifted a bit. Perhaps the Hero of Hollywood, Cameron, would return triumphantly.
“Avatar” is a good film; undeniably I would say. Film history isn’t something we always have a firm grasp on, so saying someone’s work is “revolutionary” or “game-changing” is a bit premature, especially for a film only in its first week of release. However I’d say it certainly looks like it will be. But let’s not even talk about the future, when the present for this film is so much more interesting….
For starters, it did $77 million in business in America over the weekend alone, with more than $242.5 million cashed-in worldwide for the same time period. So it’s pretty much already made its money back. Which, normally, that’s not such an astounding feat on its own; plenty of films have done that. What’s important to recognize is this is a film that by most accounts cost $300 million to make. Compare that to the $140 million it took to make “Iron Man,” the $185 budget of “The Dark Knight,” or even the $200 million price tag on this year’s monstrous “2012.”
We’ve seen some serious watershed moments for box office tallies, between last year’s unbelievable fun for “The Dark Knight” and this year’s box office beating brought to us by “Transformers 2: ROTF,” which grossed $800 million worldwide. Don’t be surprised when “Avatar” outshines both of these films at the ticket counter. We would be wise to point out that perhaps some of the reason why its box office totals will be due to increased ticket prices from the inclusion of 3D glasses, but don’t be fooled. People are going to go see this movie because it rocks.
Now, also, to you sci-fi fans out there who might think it looks a little too much like a kids movie, I want you to consider a very important little factoid. After his weekend’s debut, “Avatar” now boasts the largest debut weekend ever for an original film. By original we mean not based on previous material, not based on a comic book or a sequel or what have you. This one fact is what has me harping on “Avatar” so much. Like “District 9,” it represents an original, creative science fiction vision whose power and appeal isn’t already prepackaged with a previously published book series or a lifetime of nostalgia to help it sell. This is something new that wants to (and confidently does) stand on its own.
Smart, original, and entertaining science fiction film is dying out, and it hurts me so much to say that. The reason it’s dying is because the genre is becoming flooded with these mediocre comic book adaptations and series sequels and other bombastic nonsense that’s geared more towards selling popcorn than getting people to talk about good ideas. I won’t launch into a prejudiced tirade against “Star Trek,” but even that film falls into the same lump of super-blockbusters that feel like all whiz! bang! and pow! and come up significantly short on true substance. That’s a series that used to really belt out some of the best thought-provoking American science fiction, but it looks to me like that’s a thing of the past.
All this text so far and I’ve talked so little about the film, haven’t I? Well, I’d like to believe that the less I tell you, the more you’ll enjoy it once you go see it. That was part of caused me to be so stunned by what I saw: I didn’t know what to expect. So let me just go with generalities.
It’s a roller coaster ride like any other modern blockbuster, but it’s smart. It’s clever, and it’s technically masterful, as all Cameron’s work is. The story you’ve probably heard before, but there’s enough new twists to it to keep you engrossed and entertained. The effects and computer animation are probably the best committed to film yet. That’s one of it’s most appealing qualities sure, but how I would describe the film’s use of effects is that Cameron was less concerned with using them to wow you and instead concentrated on just showing you. That strategy worked wonderfully, as you very gradually and gently become lured into the world he creates; you can literally feel the planet encompassing you as you try to brush away the limbs and bugs that flitter past your face as you voyage from scene to scene.
I enjoyed “Avatar” because I could just feel in my bones that this wasn’t a film that was solely concerned with taking money from your wallet, then presenting you with a few mindless distractions as compensation. “Avatar” has a place to take you, and makes sure you’re incredibly comfortable for the ride and makes sure to take the scenic route. Simply joyous. Phenomenal. This is a film to end this decade on. Don’t wait for DVD, this is a theater experience unlike anything we have seen before.
So the next step in the filmmaking evolutionary ladder has finally stumbled onto the scene; “Avatar” is out and running in theaters all over the world raking in metric tons of cash. I still remember years ago when news was leaking out about Cameron finally coming back to popular filmmaking, with some sci-fi themed project he’d been working on for years upon years. It sounded pretty preposterous to me, I admit. But I had to hold faith in the project, because this was James Cameron we were talking about. The guy who’s simultaneously responsible for the highest grossing, 2nd-most-Oscar-winning film in history (“Titanic”) as well as inarguably the greatest pure action flick ever made (“Terminator 2: Judgment Day”). Not to mention projects like “Aliens,” and “The Abyss.”
Even when the project first got rolling, plenty of hype-spewers were saying the most puzzling things; it was going to be a 3D masterpiece, it would change the cinema dynamic, maybe even it was his greatest project yet? I was baffled by all of this talk. Cameron didn’t have anything to prove to the world; he’s the Hank Aaron, the Michael Jordan of popular American cinema. If there were a motion picture “Hall of Fame,” he’s wouldn’t be inducted yet but they’d already be preparing an entire wing of the museum just for him.
Then the previews hit the street a year or so ago and I wondered where all this cut footage of “Star Wars: The Phantom Menace” had suddenly appeared from. It definitely looked like something stuck in-between a live action film and a Saturday morning cartoon. This significantly lowered my expectations. I almost wondered if I would even see it. But last month, as the early reviews started to come in and it became clear that “Avatar” might have some legs, my heart lifted a bit. Perhaps the Hero of Hollywood, Cameron, would return triumphantly.
“Avatar” is a good film; undeniably I would say. Film history isn’t something we always have a firm grasp on, so saying someone’s work is “revolutionary” or “game-changing” is a bit premature, especially for a film only in its first week of release. However I’d say it certainly looks like it will be. But let’s not even talk about the future, when the present for this film is so much more interesting….
For starters, it did $77 million in business in America over the weekend alone, with more than $242.5 million cashed-in worldwide for the same time period. So it’s pretty much already made its money back. Which, normally, that’s not such an astounding feat on its own; plenty of films have done that. What’s important to recognize is this is a film that by most accounts cost $300 million to make. Compare that to the $140 million it took to make “Iron Man,” the $185 budget of “The Dark Knight,” or even the $200 million price tag on this year’s monstrous “2012.”
We’ve seen some serious watershed moments for box office tallies, between last year’s unbelievable fun for “The Dark Knight” and this year’s box office beating brought to us by “Transformers 2: ROTF,” which grossed $800 million worldwide. Don’t be surprised when “Avatar” outshines both of these films at the ticket counter. We would be wise to point out that perhaps some of the reason why its box office totals will be due to increased ticket prices from the inclusion of 3D glasses, but don’t be fooled. People are going to go see this movie because it rocks.
Now, also, to you sci-fi fans out there who might think it looks a little too much like a kids movie, I want you to consider a very important little factoid. After his weekend’s debut, “Avatar” now boasts the largest debut weekend ever for an original film. By original we mean not based on previous material, not based on a comic book or a sequel or what have you. This one fact is what has me harping on “Avatar” so much. Like “District 9,” it represents an original, creative science fiction vision whose power and appeal isn’t already prepackaged with a previously published book series or a lifetime of nostalgia to help it sell. This is something new that wants to (and confidently does) stand on its own.
Smart, original, and entertaining science fiction film is dying out, and it hurts me so much to say that. The reason it’s dying is because the genre is becoming flooded with these mediocre comic book adaptations and series sequels and other bombastic nonsense that’s geared more towards selling popcorn than getting people to talk about good ideas. I won’t launch into a prejudiced tirade against “Star Trek,” but even that film falls into the same lump of super-blockbusters that feel like all whiz! bang! and pow! and come up significantly short on true substance. That’s a series that used to really belt out some of the best thought-provoking American science fiction, but it looks to me like that’s a thing of the past.
All this text so far and I’ve talked so little about the film, haven’t I? Well, I’d like to believe that the less I tell you, the more you’ll enjoy it once you go see it. That was part of caused me to be so stunned by what I saw: I didn’t know what to expect. So let me just go with generalities.
It’s a roller coaster ride like any other modern blockbuster, but it’s smart. It’s clever, and it’s technically masterful, as all Cameron’s work is. The story you’ve probably heard before, but there’s enough new twists to it to keep you engrossed and entertained. The effects and computer animation are probably the best committed to film yet. That’s one of it’s most appealing qualities sure, but how I would describe the film’s use of effects is that Cameron was less concerned with using them to wow you and instead concentrated on just showing you. That strategy worked wonderfully, as you very gradually and gently become lured into the world he creates; you can literally feel the planet encompassing you as you try to brush away the limbs and bugs that flitter past your face as you voyage from scene to scene.
I enjoyed “Avatar” because I could just feel in my bones that this wasn’t a film that was solely concerned with taking money from your wallet, then presenting you with a few mindless distractions as compensation. “Avatar” has a place to take you, and makes sure you’re incredibly comfortable for the ride and makes sure to take the scenic route. Simply joyous. Phenomenal. This is a film to end this decade on. Don’t wait for DVD, this is a theater experience unlike anything we have seen before.
20 December 2009
Keep On Raging in the UK
Current Tunes: Killing in the Name - Rage Against the Machine
So how powerful is Facebook? It's ability to move people and breach barriers was definitely proven today in the UK, where a few average citizens got so tired of being force-fed the same old pop music crap and pulled off a miracle. It seems that for the four years before this one, the winner of the UK Christmas #1 Single happened to always be a song by the winner of the show “X-Factor,” which is essentially the UK's version of “American Idol” if you didn't know.
Two brave and creative folks from Essex, Tracy & Jon Morter, decided they would put together a protest to fight against manufactured, soulless music and started a group on Facebook dedicated to putting a different musician at the top of the Christmas charts this year. Their musician and song of choice? “Killing in the Name” by Rage Against the Machine. After organizing hundreds of thousands on their Facebook group, they launched a massive campaign encouraging people all over the UK to buy online downloads of the 15-year-old RATM song from their self-titled album. Just a few hours ago, the charts made their finally tallies and Rage came out on top over recent “X-Factor” winner Joe McElderry.
Now they could have chosen just about any song by any real, legitimate musician and I would have totally been behind this. But choosing Rage, and “Killing in the Name” in particular, really warms my heart. Over 500,000 people in the UK ended up buying a digital download of the song to make this awesome protest happen. That's a whole hell of a lot of people who are fed up with fake, plastic, artificial music that gets made just to make profit for major record companies. That fact alone gives me a little more hope for the future of the music industry, a business that is already struggling so hard to find new footing in the digital age. Hopefully it won't be lost on these companies that this event also proves that online distribution of music is indeed the future.
I don't want to over exaggerate and call this the biggest story of the year or anything, but I think this event is far more significant than it might look with a brief glance. Here we have just about finished up the first decade of this century, of this millennium actually, and we have this interesting little event come along that nudgingly reminds us that this world we live in is indeed getting smaller. And technology is the reason why.
So how powerful is Facebook? It's ability to move people and breach barriers was definitely proven today in the UK, where a few average citizens got so tired of being force-fed the same old pop music crap and pulled off a miracle. It seems that for the four years before this one, the winner of the UK Christmas #1 Single happened to always be a song by the winner of the show “X-Factor,” which is essentially the UK's version of “American Idol” if you didn't know.
Two brave and creative folks from Essex, Tracy & Jon Morter, decided they would put together a protest to fight against manufactured, soulless music and started a group on Facebook dedicated to putting a different musician at the top of the Christmas charts this year. Their musician and song of choice? “Killing in the Name” by Rage Against the Machine. After organizing hundreds of thousands on their Facebook group, they launched a massive campaign encouraging people all over the UK to buy online downloads of the 15-year-old RATM song from their self-titled album. Just a few hours ago, the charts made their finally tallies and Rage came out on top over recent “X-Factor” winner Joe McElderry.
Now they could have chosen just about any song by any real, legitimate musician and I would have totally been behind this. But choosing Rage, and “Killing in the Name” in particular, really warms my heart. Over 500,000 people in the UK ended up buying a digital download of the song to make this awesome protest happen. That's a whole hell of a lot of people who are fed up with fake, plastic, artificial music that gets made just to make profit for major record companies. That fact alone gives me a little more hope for the future of the music industry, a business that is already struggling so hard to find new footing in the digital age. Hopefully it won't be lost on these companies that this event also proves that online distribution of music is indeed the future.
I don't want to over exaggerate and call this the biggest story of the year or anything, but I think this event is far more significant than it might look with a brief glance. Here we have just about finished up the first decade of this century, of this millennium actually, and we have this interesting little event come along that nudgingly reminds us that this world we live in is indeed getting smaller. And technology is the reason why.
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