Portfolio

This is my professional portfolio. At least professional in my opinion.

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Spotlight: Sucker Punch

Did not think I would ever reach this point. When you have to watch this movie in order to do a report in your psyche class, there must be something to it am I right? This movie got bashed hard critically and at first I agreed. Flashy and fun but nothing of substance. However, after watching it again, there might be something to this explosion of awesome. If you'll take the time to hear me out, you just might get a sucker punch to the noggin.

And half the feminists cheered, and the others boo'd 

Plotting in the Asylum: Nickname Baby Doll is thrown into a mental institution by her evil stepfather so he could claim her inheritance. To deal with the stress, she fantasizes that she is a brothel girl in a high class joint. Still set on escaping, she enlists the aid of four other girl's in order to escape. In order to gather the materials they will need for the escape, she delves into another fantasy where she and her friends are bad ass action girls and much violent goodness is had. The plan is not flawless however and soon Baby Doll may realize hat she may be risking more than her life.

Let's all take a minute to appreciate this

Things that felt like a lobotomy: The acting is meh overall and it's not really the actors fault as they have very little dialogue actually. Character is lacking as only two of the main characters are given any real emotion. When two girls are killed (Spoilers btw) I actually didn't remember their names. The pacing is off and the movie should really be an R. Hooray for extended cuts.

Nazi's robots and samurai oh yes

Fantastic fantasies-The things that were awesome: The visuals are glorious. The fantasy sequences are a special sight. The action is good and the soundtrack is fan-flipping-tastic. One of the best. The effects are stunning and I always love a good story involving insane women.

Dragon's improve everything.

Why we're talking about it: As previously stated, this movie was crapped on when it was released. It was all flash and no substance which is the opinion I initially held. I didn't dislike it, i just thought it was fun and that was all it needed to be. The movie is misogynous and play to nerd fetishism. I didn't think of that when watching it but upon reflection that idea didn't seem too far off. It appeals to the lowest and most basic of teenage instincts. Ouch. That hurt me mainstream critics, right in the ego. Was it really nothing but mindless fetishism? Opinion time!

This pic simultaneously disproves me and makes my point.

Smarter than you thought: I agreed that the movie was mindless though i was against the idea that it was misogynistic. Upon re watching it, I saw their point. Mental patients in skimpy outfits doing acrobatics for our pleasure. It was hard not to notice the sex appeal being thrusted into our faces. The constant pantie shots didn't help the movies cause either. Then a weird thing happened. Baby Doll preforms her first dance for a high class creep. Then it all hit me at once. This movie, was a parody. A parody of all the action magical girl cheesecake stories that litter fiction. It was a condemnation of it's genre by turning everything said genre is known for up to 11. It was hard to see at first as a non comedic parody is rare. All of the men she dances for are horrible contemptuous pederasts. These men are meant to be the audience. The movie is actively  mocking it's supposed target demographic. "This is you. You came here to see hot girls in hot clothes doing hot things and you are disgusting for it. You are the exact same as these horrid men." That is what the movie is saying. The clients and the audience came to the show for the same reasons. During a practice run at one of the shows, one of the characters even asks point blank what about mentally unstable women being violated is sexy. The movie finds this genre's audience reprehensible and marketed itself to appeal to that disgust.

One of the things critics claimed was that the fantasy sequences didn't work and were mindless, raw and not filled with any merit. Sweet Pea points this out too. "All that gyrating and moaning, the dance should be more than titillation. My dance is personal, it shows who I am. What do yours say?" See what they did there? The movies purpose is so overt, it's covert.

Now let's talk about the other main character, sweet pea and the other theme I noticed. She at all points appears to be the most adult of the group. She's resistant at first to Baby Dolls plan not because of self preservation, as all the other girls, but that she believes that if they enacted this plan, her sister could get hurt in the process. As previously shown, she believes in being more personal and intimate in her dancing. A good metaphor for the story the movie prefers to be told eh? This as opposed to Baby Doll's raw visceral style i.e. the fantasy reality i.e. the action fetish mode i.e. the one the movie is railing against and here's the most important part, Baby Doll fails. The plan goes screwy and the girls do get hurt. Baby Doll doesn't get away and is still lobotomized. The only one who makes it is Sweet Pea. The first act decries female objectivism in the media, while the second act has just seemingly condemned what some call third wave feminism.

This has gotten pretty deep hasn't it? Before you shout that I'm pulling this out of my arse,  let me explain. Third wave feminism is feminism going to the opposite extreme. Sexual empowerment as liberation. Sexual-ism that the woman is in control of instead of the man. This is what Baby Doll's skimpy action persona represents as well as the fantasy scenes overall. Her plan was to use that empowerment to escape the oppression of her overlords, all male btw. The movie is in a sense saying that "no, your sexy schoolgirl outfit does not liberate or empower you. It's enslavement of a different sort." Just as Baby Doll chose yet another form of enslavement for her fantasy. Keep in mind, her fantasy, her liberation is a representation of her dance. The very thing that is attracting the perverts attention.

So the movie appears to have two goals. To show and condemn the genre that the movie itself is, and two that sexual freedom is not the same as sexual liberation. Both of these are juicy themes. Sucker Punch is empty and vapid eh?

Now for the other important bit, Sweet Pea would never have gotten away if not for Baby, who sacrifices herself so that sweet can escape. If we are to take it that Baby Doll represents third wave feminism which in this case we are, does this act of self sacrifice mean that Sweat Pea represents some fourth wave? One that had to endure the third to progress to a further goal? Interesting question isn't it?

So let's summarize shall we? Sucker Punch marketed itself as sexy girls fighting nerdy things, thus bringing in an audience that subscribes to that genre. Then the movie goes on to criticize both it's own genre, and it's audience. Then it goes on to make a statement about feminism and sexual liberation, then theorize about the movements future.

Feminism!

Now I'm not saying I agree with the latter philosophy, nor am I stating these theories as fact. I could just be making this up, but isn't that what the movie wants? It wanted to fool it's audience into seeing it.

Definition:Sucker Punch-A blow that comes from nowhere and is from the target's POV, unexpected

Maybe that title was more literal than you thought? Especially since it hit you with two of them.


Sucker Punch and all corresponding material is owned by Warner Brothers. 
Review is subject to fair use.

A Great Theater Experience

So, how about a look at my favorite theater that I have been to? For prosperity's sake. The warren 21 theater in Wichita Kansas is a theater experience like no other. In the Midwest at least.  Great service, awesome food (Yes food. Like actually food. Their pizza is delicious.) and great screens themselves. It's a huge complex and also boasts the biggest Imax theater in the midwest which was just constructed recently. The only gripe i have is that not all of the screens are stadium seating but if you go see a new movie that won't be a problem. Check it out if you ever feel the urge.


View For reals this time in a larger map

Top # Characters in Live Action Movies

Throughout cinema history, we have been bombarded with great characters. Ones that inhabit our minds years after viewings. I personally think that character in the most important aspect of a story. If you have a weak plot or bad setting, a good cast of characters can save the movie. and in many cases have. These are my top favorite characters in live action movies. If it's based off a book it counts and only one character per series. Also there were a few characters based on real people that i chose not to do too as well. Just movie characters (and books technically but shut up). There will be spoilers as to talk about them you have to have a complete view. No particular order by the way save for my favorite character of all time.

1. Amanda Young from Saw 1-3

"What is the cure for cancer Eric? The cure for death itself. The answer is immortality. By creating a legacy, by living a life worth remembering you become immortal. It is I who will carry on John's work after he dies, and you are my first test subject."

"Oh one of your favorite character's is from saw? What character could there possibly be from a character in a torture porn movie?" You wouldn't be asking that question if you actually saw the movies. Yes they got a tad more mindless as they went but for the first three Amanda served as the heart of the story. A former junkie, Amanda was a perfect picture of self destruction, that is until Jigsaw decided to play a game with her. The stakes? Her life, and lo and behold, she won. Afterwards, she was taken under his wing to serve as accomplish and apprentice. Her methods however differ from her master's. Jigsaw would always give his subjects a chance of escape, whereas Amanda, who can't stand to see the victims suffer, offers no escape. This makes her less psychotic than Jigsaw but also more evil. For the first time in her life she is in control and that control is intoxicating to her. Her sympathetic beginnings juxtapose perfectly with her mental instability making her more dangerous than anyone else in the series as she is the most unpredictable and the easiest to anger. She wants to play a game, and you are not going to survive it.

2. Alex Delarge from A Clockwork Orange

"What we were after now was the old surprise visit. That was a real kick and good for laughs and lashings of the old ultraviolent.":

I admit, my liking of this character stems from my love of this movie, but that doesn't take away from the fact that this is one screwed up little turd. In terms of plot there's not alot to say. It's a dystopian future and he likes to do wrong. Scratch that, he loves to do wrong. He loves the mere act of doing wrong so much it's like wrongness has its own life to it. Alex is probably the most brutal and savage character on this list which is made all the creepier as he is merely a teenager. A man this young doing things as horrible as he does is just unsettling. Plus he loves Beethoven and that's just awesome.

3.Gollum/Smeagol from The Lord of the Rings Trilogy

"The rock and pool, is nice and cool, so juicy sweet. Our only wish, to catch a fish, so juicy sweet."

I would lake to take a moment out to say how incredibly lucky we are that the movie version of Gollum turned out as good as it did. Have you read the books recently? This guy's dialogue could so easily go horribly wrong when spoken on screen and his mannerisms could have been done so horribly but hot damn did they pull this off. Smeagol was just a simple river folk before his friend Deagol found the ring. The ring being the ring, they fought for it and in the end Smeagol killed him for it, after which the ring began to takes it's hold. Duel personalities is so hard to pull off well but in both movie and book it is. My favorite part about him is that he's so quick to change. One minute he's adorable, the next and he's trying to bash in your skull with a rock. It's that chaotic nature coupled with the fact that he really is a sympathetic character that led me to route for this sad creature.

4.Luna Lovegood from the Harry Potter series.

"That's all right. Anyway, my mum always said things we lose have a way of coming back to us in the end.  If not always in the way we expect."

Not much history to this one. She was a Ravenclaw student at Hogwarts and helped out our leads on occasion. Plot wise she's not the most significant character ever written but she is one of the more endearing ones, as well as one of the odder ones. and that is probably my main reason for loving her so much. She's just so gosh darn awkward and mellow. She's like the stoner of the wizarding world and her lines are so quotable if you don't mind the odd looks you'll get from strangers when you say them. This one is hard for me to put into words so I'll end with this: keep looking for those Crumple-Horned Snorkacks.

5.The Joker, from The Dark Knight.

"Why so serious?"

Do I even have to explain this one? What can i say that hasn't been said a thousand times before. He's awesome, best performance of the movie, even gave jack a run for his money. Seriously nothing left to say but all fear the clown prince of crime.

6.Atticus Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird

"There's a lot of ugly things in this world, son. I wish I could keep 'em all away from you. That's never possible."

This one stands out from the rest doesn't he? I'm not giving a description of this one because if you haven't seen this movie, see it. Right now. I don't care what your doing, watch it. This is just a perfect role with a perfect actor that drives home all of the perfection. He is the pinnacle of movie father's. Plus I like characters who never falter from their beliefs.

7. Asami Yamazaki from Audition

No quote. No history. Just her name. This is one of the greatest characters ever written, you have to see the movie. If i were to tell you anything about her, it would ruin it. I have no idea how you can watch this movie since the fricking cover is a huge spoiler. Get a friend who has seen it and have them put in and start the movie before you watch it. The fact that I've told you there is something to hide is a spoiler in and of itself.

8. Jen Yu from Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon

"Bow your head and ask for mercy. I am the dragon from the desert."

Who doesn't love a good action girl? And this is one of the best. Pretty simple beginnings for this one. She steels a fabled sword and uses it to kick vast amounts of behind. That's an oversimplification but there you go. I love arrogant characters who can back up their ego and Jen is a prime example of that. She is one of the best sword fighters in the story and probably would be the best if she took the time to slow down and actually learn from anyone else, but of course not. She knows she's the best and anyone who says otherwise is a fool not worthy of her time. Also, i like that she makes mistakes. For the whole movie, it is unclear if she is the protagonist or an antagonist as for a majority of the movie she is entirely in the wrong but what makes her likable is her complete and utter confidence in herself.  Plus she has some of the best action scenes ever so that bumps her up to one of the greats.

9. Burt Gummer from Tremors 1-3 

"I feel I was denied... critical... need to know information."

This man, we should all strive to be like this man. A war veteran, he moved to the middle of nowhere in Nevada and set up and underground bunker filled with hundreds of guns, a canon, and bombs. He is a man who likes to be prepared and he usually was until giant underground worms attacked. This man is like every Chuck Norris joke made flesh and he truly one of the greatest word smith's since the bard himself. It's taking everything i have not to fill up these pages with the rest of his quotes so I'll settle on just one more to finish.

"You know Grady, some people think I'm over prepared, paranoid, maybe even a little crazy. But they never met any Precambrian life forms did they?"

                             Now for my favorite character of all time, drum roll please.

10. Shosanna Dreyfus from Inglorious  Basterds

"My name is Shosanna Dreyfus and this is the face of Jewish vengeance."

A french Jew during the second World War and the last surviving member of her family after there murders at the hand of Hans. She changed her name, inherited a theater and tried to get back to some form of normality before she finds herself hosting a movie premiere at which the entirety of the Nazi high command will attend. Now I will give my legit reason for loving her but my simple reason is this. She defeats Nazis... with film. There is so much awesomness in that sentence, I don't even know. We all wish we were so badass. Now as for more thoughtful reasons. If anybody other than Tarantino had written this movie, this character would just have been an Anne Frank alike, but no, she is the anti Anne Frank. She doesn't identify with her tormentors, she hates them. A good, pure kind of hate, and when the opportunity presents itself, she acts on this hate. She's simultaneously selfish and selfless at the same time. She doesn't take a higher road or a peaceful route, she takes the violent approach and I love that. A character with this much hatred in her is rare to see in a lead role in a triple A movie and I like that there's that much honesty with her character.  I like the purity of it. Shosanna Dreyfus, my favorite character in all of film.

Now I'll go and remember than hundred other character i forgot to put in this list. Next time we take a cruise in the future.

The Trouble with Ratings

These are my thoughts on the ratings system and what is wrong with it. I apologise for the stuttering and sound snaffus.

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Evil Dead 2013

I was dreading this one. Trying to remake the cult horror classic of a generation? Can't be done. Not no way not no how. This opinion was shared by most, then the reviews started rolling in from pre-screenings. They were good. Outstanding in some cases. With a horror movie that is rare. So were they right? Mount on than chainsaw arm and we'll find out. Fair warning, the pictures in this will be graphic.

It's like it's daring you to see it.

Don't read this! Just kidding. The history of this remake, reboot whatever starts with a film maker named Sam. He wanted to make a horror movie but had barely any money. So he decided to go out into the woods find a nice little cabin and pour blood all over it. The result? Evil Dead. A damned good movie considering the situation and soon it had a sequel and then another. It's been along time with rumors abounding of a fourth sequel or a reboot. Now we finally got her.

Peek a boo.

The story is begins with a group of friends meeting at a long deserted cabin in the woods. They have all come here because one of the leads sister Mia is going cold turkey to solve her drug problem. Time passes and the gang stumbles upon a trapdoor leading too a grizzly sight. Dead animals hang about the room at the center of which lays a book wrapped in a garbage bag and barbed wire. What does one of the gang choose to do? Open it of course! How else are we gonna get the plot moving? Inside is a book bound in flesh and inked in blood and on the first page is written DO NOT READ. So he reads it. Of course. Wacky shenanigans ensues. Wacky here meaning people gonna die. More than once in some cases.

Wanna know how I got these scars? 

This movie is visually brilliant. The lighting is atmospheric, the sound design is great with one of the best horror movie soundtracks in recent memory and the directing is from solid to ingenious with one or two scenes of mild shaky cam though it doesn't detract as much as it could. Usually modern horror movies have a sterile feel to them. They're just too clean looking sometimes which is what the movie's trailer made it look like. However the movie has a gritty and oppressive feel that most just can't capture.

Leather Face's early years.

The acting is good. Not great. Good. This movie get's it right however where so many other movies get it wrong. While the characters aren't exactly lovable, they aren't detestable scum of the earth we can't wait to see offed. The trade off here being they're fairly bland, with one notable exception. Jane Levy's Mia is fantastic, capturing a junkie needing a fix and a deadite perfectly. She's really the standout of this movie and keeps you invested through the whole running time.

Like dogs? Don't worry I'm sure nothing will happen to her.

Time fore some personal back story if you'll indulge me. When i was but a child, I hated horror movies. Scared the dickens out of me. Couldn't stand them. That is until one day, when I being the young rapscalion i was, found my parent's copy of the movie. I don't remember what compelled me to watch it but I did. I was seven. I loved it. Very few movies change you but his one changed me. It turned me into the horror nut I am today. So being a devoted fan, when I heard of a remake, I scoffed at the notion. I could not have been more biased. When I saw the trailer  was so very ready to rip into this thing without mercy.

For dry red eyes, use clear eye!

I loved this thing. So much. From beginning to end I was hooked. While the movie isn't run out of the theater terrifying it has atmosphere so thick you need a chainsaw to cut through it. And the effects are astounding. I was expecting this to be another cgi crapfest and indeed there are a few times were there is cg and it looks out of place, but 90% of it is done practically and practically amazing. Best gore effects in recent memory bar none. The movie isn't a carbon copy either. It takes the idea and does its own thing. It starts at the same point but then goes on to do what it wants. The first act brings you in with Mia's battle, the second act builds the tension and horror and the third act in a nothing held back gorefest the likes of which we haven't seen since Braindead. Honestly, the movie is worth admission price for the last ten minutes alone. Everything a remake can do right was done right. Is it as good as the original? Who cares? You could nitpick a thousand things but it doesn't matter. It's a bloody blast and I regret nothing.

We don't need no water, let the blood rain!

This is a case of never judge a movie by it's appearance. Anything can be good if you do it right. This movie is a blood drenched masterwork worthy of it's inherited name. Applause to those involved, can't wait for it's sequel. No scale, you know if your the kind of person who would enjoy this. But if you are a fan of the original and call foul still I have some good news for you. This movie gets a sequel. Sam the man is going to make Army of Darkness 2. Then we get another movie from Sam and this guy combining the two story's. Eyes to the future my fellow deadites. We're gonna get more, not another wait, time to go to 2. Keep devouring those souls and singing those creepy lullaby's. Ash will return, and there's not much groovier than that.

Nice of the guy to translate the necronomicon so that other's can read it and doom themselves. Jerk.

 

Oz: The great and Powerful

We're off to see the... no. Not doing it. Too obvious. Oz the Great and Powerful came out last week and how could any Kansan not notice?  How could it be ignored? Even though we try.

What does it say about societal trends that even the archetype of an ugly villain must have cleavage? Does this bother anyone else?

So in case you have been living under a rock, or if somebody reads this thing who does not hale from Kansas, a little  back story. The wonderful wizard of oz was a children's book written by author L. Frank Baum in 1900. This is not it's most popular incarnation. The Oz franchise in known almost solely because of the 1939 MGM movie The Wizard of Oz. It was a landmark, it changed the industry and ensured that the only defining characteristic of a Kansan is that you can quote the movie ironically at them until they're ready to pour mo;ten hot lead into their ears. Fun fact, at the time the movie was considered a flop, not even coming close to a return on it's budget. However, thanks to re-releases and TV showings, it has become one of the most enduring movies ever made. So much so that it has never been remade. In eighty years, Hollywood who are so short of ideas that they greenlit a battleship movie, have not had the stones to even touch the movie. With so much untapped potential in the form of around a dozen sequels to the original book, obviously the natural solution was to make a prequel. Of course!

Millions of dollars worth of cg to recreate cardboard, paint, and dry ice.

What's the plot? Well assuming that you're familiar with the 39 movie here we go. MOST USELESS SPOILER EVER!!! The wizard from The Wizard of Oz was of course a fraud. So how did he come to be? He was merely a simple magician and conman with a traveling circus in Kansas. Due to whackiness, he is whisked away to the mystical land of Oz in his hot air balloon. There he meets three witches all with their own goals and agendas which he will have to figure out in order to keep up appearances and lead us into the original. Will he dupe the witches? Will he dupe himself? Being a prequel the answer is obvious but that's as maybe.

Get it? Chinatown? Lol

So how are the technical's? Despite the previous jab at the CG, the movie's strongest aspect is that it is so very pretty. There are good chunks of scenes where you won't be looking at the characters but instead at the scenery. The 3D was also top notch as most of the colors in the movie are bright, making the 3D actually watchable unlike the previous Alice remake and Pirates 4. The direction was solid and the sound design was decent. You can tell it's directed by the Sam man. The whole thing reminds one of Army of Darkness in a way.

Would not guess that the witch would hang out near waterfalls, and why are Mila and Rachel staring at us?

James Franco is odd as the wizard. Not exactly bad, just off. Plus he has a really odd expression when he has to smile. It's rather off putting.
Mila Kunis is strange as well. Not entirely sure if that's not the point and everything is supposed to be off and unnatural but as it stands she's too eager.
Rachel Weisz is decent as scheming Evanora, though being very British is wierd when everyone else has a normal accent. Normal being Kansan.
Michelle Williams does a good job as Glinda. She works the kindness and hopefullness very well.
Zach Braff is Zach Braff.
Joey King probably does the best as a little china doll who will either steal your heart or annoy you to no end.

Couple inches closer and this would be a very different movie.

So is this a good movie or a bad movie? Sorry couldn't resist. Well as a whole, it cannot escape the shadow hanging over it. Everything that even touches the Oz name has huge expectations on it that they can never live up to. Even the things that are better will never dethrone the champion. That being said, this movie is hard to gauge as a whole. There are chunks of it that are really good, and chunks that drag and suck. The opening scene in Kansas for example is really good. As is the introductory scene of the china girl, The scene where we get our first hint as to who the Wicked Witch of the West is, is also well done though it raises more questions than it answers. To derail for a moment, the marketing of this movie really played up the which witch is which thing though if you paid any attention to the trailers it is obvious who it is. I shall not spoil though suffice it to say it doesn't work. The design is bad, the makeup is distracting and the actress though a good actress, does not have the inherent character to pull this off. There are just some people who can't work the screaming and yelling angle and this is a good example of that. Also the character if the wizard is probably the worst part of this movie. He's flat out unlikable as he continues to be a jerk and makes horrible decisions that he never solves or learns from and in retrospect it makes his actions in the original movie incredibly questionable.. So overall, it's hard to gauge. Trying to be unbiased is nearly impossible given the source material. This is a prequel to the movie by the way, not the book. In wrapping up, the things that are good are good enough to make it worth your money.

I thought fire got rid of witches!

See it if your from Kansas. You have an obligation too and there's no say in the matter. Or see it if you love visuals at expense of story.
Rent it if your an Oz fan but are hesitant.
Skip if you hate the source material and every incarnation of it sense.

Don't know what movie's coming out this week so it'll be a surprise.

Notes:
-This movie might have sexist undertones. Just saying.
-No ruby slippers, what kind of prequel are you?
-You CG'd the witches arm?! We can't even just paint a woman green nowadays!
-There are many references to other Oz works if you have a sharp eye.
-Oz is kind of awesome for the fact that he shuts down a musical number that almost occurs.
-People say that the flying monkeys from the original are scary but these guys win out if only because it give the impression that in an actual fight these things are brutal. Like neck snapping and intestine ripping brutal. Not kidding.
-Seriously movie? No explanation for the whole acid water to the witch thing? You're a prequel, that's your job to explain things!