Sometimes you just can't get a break. Today, legendary actor and director Richard Attenborough passed away at the age of 90. He appeared in The Great Escape, Doctor Dolittle, Ten Little Indians, Miracle on 34th Street (as Santa Claus), and directed films such as Ghandi, A Bridge Too Far, A Chorus Line, and Chaplin. For myself though, he will always be John Hammond from Jurassic Park. He has always been one of my favorite parts of that film, and his performance was absolutely superb portraying a man that is obsessed with control but only has the best intentions at heart. His is a character that is filled with human faults but is still ultimately lovable (and pretty darned cool too). I can't say I've really seen any of his other films, but I'm aware of his rich history on the silver screen, both in front of the camera and behind it. It really sucks that we have to lose two Hollywood legends, one after the other. So, farewell Richard Attenborough and thanks for the memories.
R.I.P Richard Attenborough: August 29, 1923-August 24, 2014
Sunday, August 24, 2014
Thursday, August 21, 2014
BEST FILMS OF SUMMER 2014
Well, as sad as it is to say, Summer is once again officially over. I had a good deal of fun, and to commemorate another summer ended here is my top films of summer 2014 list.
6. Transformers: Age of Extinction- Almost 3 hours of things going BOOM and giants robots fighting. Can it get tiring? sure! However, this was still the event film of Summer 2014. This really was like Michael Bay dropping the mic and walking away. Michael Bay made his point, and now he can retire from the directors chair for the Transformers films (which he has). He's earned some down time.
5. 22 Jump Street- Every bit as funny, cool, and fun as the original.
4. Purge: Anarchy- I walked in expecting this film to be crap. Imagine my surprise when it ended up being great, grind house fun.
3. Edge of Tomorrow- Tom Cruise's best film in quite a while. It is refreshing to see him play such a whimpering coward for the first act of the film, and it is always endless amounts of fun watching him die again and again and again. This is pretty meaty sci-fi with top notch action, not to mention the 3-D was surprisingly top notch.
2. Dawn of Apes- The film delivered everything I was expecting and more! Great action scenes, some of the best acting we've seen this year, a great story, and some great complex themes and messages, not to mention it actually made me think.
1. Guardians of The Galaxy- DUH! A film that understands sometimes all you need is some classic tunes, some good laughs, some amazing characters, and some cool action. This film had it all. Laughs, emotions, character development! I could go on for hours about my love for this film, but I'll leave you with this: The film's main message is that dark, brooding evil will never ever win over good-hearted goofiness. The pure hearted weirdos of the world will always win in the end. That's a message I can get behind!
6. Transformers: Age of Extinction- Almost 3 hours of things going BOOM and giants robots fighting. Can it get tiring? sure! However, this was still the event film of Summer 2014. This really was like Michael Bay dropping the mic and walking away. Michael Bay made his point, and now he can retire from the directors chair for the Transformers films (which he has). He's earned some down time.
5. 22 Jump Street- Every bit as funny, cool, and fun as the original.
4. Purge: Anarchy- I walked in expecting this film to be crap. Imagine my surprise when it ended up being great, grind house fun.
3. Edge of Tomorrow- Tom Cruise's best film in quite a while. It is refreshing to see him play such a whimpering coward for the first act of the film, and it is always endless amounts of fun watching him die again and again and again. This is pretty meaty sci-fi with top notch action, not to mention the 3-D was surprisingly top notch.
2. Dawn of Apes- The film delivered everything I was expecting and more! Great action scenes, some of the best acting we've seen this year, a great story, and some great complex themes and messages, not to mention it actually made me think.
1. Guardians of The Galaxy- DUH! A film that understands sometimes all you need is some classic tunes, some good laughs, some amazing characters, and some cool action. This film had it all. Laughs, emotions, character development! I could go on for hours about my love for this film, but I'll leave you with this: The film's main message is that dark, brooding evil will never ever win over good-hearted goofiness. The pure hearted weirdos of the world will always win in the end. That's a message I can get behind!
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
SMALLS SEES BEYOND WITH THE GIVER
The Giver and I go back a long way. The first time I read it I was in 6th grade, and it immediately became one of my all time favorite novels. I must have read it at least two or three times. I have been eagerly awaiting a film adaptation ever since, and now, around thirteen years later my wish has finally been granted.
In The Giver, Jonas (Brenton Thwaites) is a teenager living in a utopian/dystopian post-apocalyptic society where everything seems to be perfect. Everyone is essentially the same, people are assigned the roles they are to play within the society (and are also assigned who they are to live with and which children they will take care of), there is no war, no pain, ....in fact, there are no emotions or memories of the far past at all. When Jonas is assigned the role of receiver of memories, he begins intensive training with The Giver (Jeff Bridges), and he begins to realize that the life he and others have been living may not be so perfect after all. Perhaps it's time for a change.
Brenton Thwaites is pretty perfect as Jonas, the young man who finds that it is up to him to save his society. His reactions to feeling emotions and seeing colors for the first time are pretty spot on, and he makes for a likable protagonist that is very easy to root for. Odeya Rush plays Fiona, one of Jonas' cute childhood friends that later becomes sort of a love interest for our lead. She is absolutely adorable and lovable, and she plays her role convincingly. Meryl Streep plays a good bitch as the Chief Elder, who is essentially our villain for the film (although she's not in it much, she still is pretty good whenever she's on screen). Alexander Skarsgard is pretty great and charming as Jonas' Father, who is tasked with caring for newborns and carrying out mysterious procedures called the releases to Elsewhere. Jeff Bridges is the standout (naturally) as The Giver. He puts on the best performance possible with what he is given to work with, and it's really hard not to completely love his character by the end. Bridges puts a lot of heart and hard work into crafting his character, and it works. For those who cried out in fear when they saw Taylor Swift was in this film, there is no reason to worry. She is only in two very short scenes (and is the subject of one of my favorite lines, which essentially says she doesn't exist anymore.)
The Giver is a film that is exquisitely shot. The first part of the film is black and white, but once Jonas receives the memory of color, different colors start to slowly seep into the film in beautiful ways. The first shot of full color is gorgeous, and from then on out the film is filled with beautiful and sometimes haunting shots (often times switching from color back to black and white, and at times having only a few colors present in a scene). It's definitely a visual feast for the eyes.
Running at a swift 97 minutes, the film never fully digs into the source material's rich depths, but it still manages to present most of the books themes and ideas adequately enough for newcomers. It's filled with emotions, and I especially liked the scenes where Jonas and Fiona discover the feeling of love for the first time (and the joy of a kiss). It's a heart-warming film that is really about how much we would lose if we were to lose our emotions and memories.
While it goes without saying that the novel is far better than this film, The Giver is still the best YA film/adaptation I've seen. While it can be a bit bland at times (what the hell do you expect, this is a society without emotions), this film still manages to get you invested in the cast, make you feel, and even make you think a good deal (dare I say it's a bit cerebral at times). This is a film that's got a message and a meaning, which is more than I can say for any other YA film I've seen thus far. It's beautifully shot, the performances are great, and it's got a good deal of heart too (the scenes with Jonas and Gabriel are just too cute and heart warming). While it's not the perfect adaptation of the novel I was looking for, this film still delivers in all the ways that count. I'd say it's indeed quite memorable.
5 STARS
In The Giver, Jonas (Brenton Thwaites) is a teenager living in a utopian/dystopian post-apocalyptic society where everything seems to be perfect. Everyone is essentially the same, people are assigned the roles they are to play within the society (and are also assigned who they are to live with and which children they will take care of), there is no war, no pain, ....in fact, there are no emotions or memories of the far past at all. When Jonas is assigned the role of receiver of memories, he begins intensive training with The Giver (Jeff Bridges), and he begins to realize that the life he and others have been living may not be so perfect after all. Perhaps it's time for a change.
Brenton Thwaites is pretty perfect as Jonas, the young man who finds that it is up to him to save his society. His reactions to feeling emotions and seeing colors for the first time are pretty spot on, and he makes for a likable protagonist that is very easy to root for. Odeya Rush plays Fiona, one of Jonas' cute childhood friends that later becomes sort of a love interest for our lead. She is absolutely adorable and lovable, and she plays her role convincingly. Meryl Streep plays a good bitch as the Chief Elder, who is essentially our villain for the film (although she's not in it much, she still is pretty good whenever she's on screen). Alexander Skarsgard is pretty great and charming as Jonas' Father, who is tasked with caring for newborns and carrying out mysterious procedures called the releases to Elsewhere. Jeff Bridges is the standout (naturally) as The Giver. He puts on the best performance possible with what he is given to work with, and it's really hard not to completely love his character by the end. Bridges puts a lot of heart and hard work into crafting his character, and it works. For those who cried out in fear when they saw Taylor Swift was in this film, there is no reason to worry. She is only in two very short scenes (and is the subject of one of my favorite lines, which essentially says she doesn't exist anymore.)
The Giver is a film that is exquisitely shot. The first part of the film is black and white, but once Jonas receives the memory of color, different colors start to slowly seep into the film in beautiful ways. The first shot of full color is gorgeous, and from then on out the film is filled with beautiful and sometimes haunting shots (often times switching from color back to black and white, and at times having only a few colors present in a scene). It's definitely a visual feast for the eyes.
Running at a swift 97 minutes, the film never fully digs into the source material's rich depths, but it still manages to present most of the books themes and ideas adequately enough for newcomers. It's filled with emotions, and I especially liked the scenes where Jonas and Fiona discover the feeling of love for the first time (and the joy of a kiss). It's a heart-warming film that is really about how much we would lose if we were to lose our emotions and memories.
While it goes without saying that the novel is far better than this film, The Giver is still the best YA film/adaptation I've seen. While it can be a bit bland at times (what the hell do you expect, this is a society without emotions), this film still manages to get you invested in the cast, make you feel, and even make you think a good deal (dare I say it's a bit cerebral at times). This is a film that's got a message and a meaning, which is more than I can say for any other YA film I've seen thus far. It's beautifully shot, the performances are great, and it's got a good deal of heart too (the scenes with Jonas and Gabriel are just too cute and heart warming). While it's not the perfect adaptation of the novel I was looking for, this film still delivers in all the ways that count. I'd say it's indeed quite memorable.
5 STARS
Monday, August 11, 2014
I MOURN THE LOSS OF ROBIN WILLIAMS
Today, Robin Williams was found dead inside his home around noon from an apparent suicide (reports say asphyxia). Williams' publicist says he had been battling severe depression. I am still reeling from this sad and sudden news. I have always loved Robin Williams, but I never realized just how big of a figure he was in my life until I went back and looked at his filmography: Aladdin, Ferngully, Hook, Jumanji, Flubber, Dead Poets Society, Mrs, Doubtfire, and the list goes on and on (other films of his include The Fisher King, Good Morning Vietnam, Patch Adams, What Deams May Come, Good Will Hunting, Insomnia, Death To Smoochy, A.I, Bicentennial Man, The Birdcage, and Jack). I literally grew up watching his films, he was a large part of my childhood (I'd say my personal favorite film of his is probably Jumanji). He was a great source of laughter and joy, a real light...and now he's gone. I can't believe that according to IMDB his last films will be Night At The Museum 3, Merry Friggin' Christmas, and Absolutely Anything. A sad end to a rich legacy. Williams' was one of the most respected and loved actors in Hollywood, he was a man who fought alcoholism and drug abuse and came out on top (though apparently he recently checked himself back into a rehabilitation clinic to work on his sobriety). He made the world laugh and cry, and he inspired me a great deal. It's true his latter films seemed to be of a lesser quality, but he had already proven his worth long ago with one of the best modern day film legacies around. Robin Williams was a talented actor, mastering both drama and comedy while also being a top stand-up comic as well. I know I'm going to miss him a great deal, and he leaves a void that no one else can really fill quite the way he could.
RIP Robin Williams: July 21 1951-August 11 2014
RIP Robin Williams: July 21 1951-August 11 2014
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)