Still Wandering...

War Horse-- I want those 2+ hours back.

2012-01-25T00:18:00.002Z

War Horse had so much going for it. It's based on a play that I've heard only wonderful things about, it involves horses (I love horses), men in uniform (I enjoy men in uniform), it was a war movie, directed by Steven Spielberg, countryside of the UK, music by John Williams... so many good things, right?

Yeah, it was rubbish.

I realize I should qualify this: in my opinion, it was rubbish. But really, I'm surprised by how much rubbish I think it is. I'm the girl that finds positive points in anything (*cough Agent Cody Banks, Percy Jackson, Last Holiday cough*), and it was very difficult to find positives for this. Particularly because it falls on the day that the Academy Award nominations were released, because this was nominated for 'Best Picture.' Sure it was pretty, decent talent I suppose, lovely shots, so there may be something there for cinematography, and the sounds of battle were great, so sure, sound mixing...I could see that... but BEST PICTURE?! No.

I found it so indulgent. So superfluous, over the top cheesetastic...and I love cheese! Of all sorts! And this was just wretched. If there was one more shot of pondering in the sunset, or staring deeply into eyes, or a 'change of heart' from the hard army man (seriously, how many times did that happen?), or ceremony for the relationship-- the one near the end where the whole army posse gives him thirty pounds to buy the horse... ugh... indulgent. Cheese.

Now, I'll hold up on the rant and just focus on a couple of film/structural things that stood out.

Tone: I felt like it wasn't sure what kind of film it was trying to be. It had the tone of Babe at times, with the goofy goose and the wire cutters getting chucked over the barrack wall... but really, with the emotion and seriousness that this film was trying (trying...so hard...) to get across, I think it should have been more towards the Saving Private Ryan tone. There were gorgeous moments in Saving Private Ryan that reflected humanity, the horrors of war, the desolation and destruction, and also some very clever, humorous moments. I think War Horse could have done that, and it was a missed opportunity. Instead it went to Cheeseville.

It was just godawful "I'm gonna try to force you to cry... watch me! Here! I'll swell some music! Here! I'll throw in another sunset! How about a 'sick' little girl falling in love with the horse (I say 'sick' because really, she coughed once in the last scene we saw of her... other than that, she ran around, trained a horse, made jam...)" Right... I'll stop there... you see my point, I hope.

Loose ends (it's entirely possible I missed their conclusion and it's my mistake; I was catatonic by the end):

1. The guy in the beginning who had the silk lining in his hat... Is there a reason we spent so much time getting to know him? And had a parting shot of him in the back of the ambulance?

2. His friend in the barracks? We assume he died, right?

3. The rich ass of a landlord-- any comeuppance?

4. The pretty girl in the car-- I can only assume that the fact Rich Boy didn't remember her name was to add to his own character of rich, haughty, and takes things for granted. But why did the girl keep getting brought up?

5. The sketch in his pocket- why didn't they pull that out when he was trying to prove the horse was his? And if they weren't going to use it, why show us his effort to fish it out of the bucket and put it back in his pocket? So we can see that he loves the horse? Yeah... instead of using the picture, instead we'll just wash off the socks...one by one... insanely slowly... and then pondering.... pondering ever so much.... wiping off the mud.... on the horse's face... to see... if... there... was .... a .... star... GAHH Just do it already!! Yeah... issues.

Pacing: As demonstrated in the above section. It was so slow. Really could have been tightened. Every time the horse went somewhere else I sighed; another location? How long 'til he's home? Cause I wanna go home...

Acting:

Sorry, it was rather rubbish. I'm nervous about Irvine as Pip in the upcoming Great Expectations. Although perhaps it was the wretched, schmaltzy script, as that certainly didn't do him any favors, but his performance was rather one note-- simple, good boy, a little weepy, and can't play "angry" very well.

The girl in France (?); she was beautiful, and this was her first film... but yeah, all the slack I'm gonna cut her. Her accent was wretched and performance just so melodramatic...

The horse was great.

Right, I'm a poor sport on this one. It happens so bloody rarely, normally I like films and can find shiny happy things to each production. War Horse, however.... I felt the need to tilt my head and make a massive "barooooo" sound at my utter disbelief, and slight loss of faith, in the Academy for nominated this self-indulgent, superfluous cheese.

Also seen recently:

Iron Lady. Meryl Streep was bloody brilliant. I wasn't a huge fan of the film; the story or the camera work, but she was fab.

Ides of March: SO good. Great script, great performances, I was rather riveted.

My Week with Marilyn: Similar to Iron Lady, the story was a bit weak; it just kind of rolled, with little through-line to hang the rest of the film on, but hot damn was Michelle Williams amazing. The opening footage- I didn't know if it was her, or stock footage of Marilyn. Brilliant.

Girl with the Dragon Tattoo: Rooney Mara was amazing. And I LOVED how much ass she kicked. Daniel Craig was quite literally playing the hot side-piece role. How many times is the girl cast as a pretty thing that they might throw one or two capabilities to her in order to make her seem 'confident' or 'strong'; but in this, Lisbeth was the kick-ass, smart, street-wise, kind, capable badass. Yes, tortured past, and could be very, very difficult to watch at times, but she was bloody brilliant. Great character, and great performance. And James Bond got to play a Bond Girl sidekick.

Sherlock 2: Meh. I'll watch Robert Downey Jr. in anything, and this was pretty, and fun, and a romping good time, but the story was silly. It just kept being 'convenient' that they got out of scrapes, and there wasn't a ton to figure out in this. Yes there was the 'face twist' at the end, but mostly it was just chasing a baddie in a foreign land. Really? That's it? Yup. That's it.

Right, that'll do for now, yes? Sorry for the long delay-- things are going well with Elfin, the PhD is still rolling, and my international travel for my university is picking up quite a bit-- all is well in the world, but busy as anything!

There is No Team Jacob

2011-11-22T09:43:00.000Z

If you've a moment in your post-Breaking Dawn reverie today, I recommend you pop over to my pal Ashley's blog to read her paper on 'There is no Team Jacob' (give the paper a look before you throw daggers her way, all of you Jacob fans. It's a well put together and clearly argued way to look at the whole imprinting malarkey.

Ashley was my right hand lady at TwiCon organizing academic panels with me, and then did the same thing last summer for LeakyCon, where we presented on film adaptation, specifically the final Potter film from book to screen. She's pretty rockin', with a unique voice and a great perspective on this topic. Now just wait for her Harry/Hermione paper... it'll blow your mind.

I'm off to see Breaking Dawn again tonight, and there just may be a little deconstruction and film analysis happening in the near future; we shall see :)

Breaking Dawn Part 1: Reactions

2011-11-18T17:02:00.006Z

First reaction: Fans will be happy, filmmakers will be happy (hello box office intakes!), and color-me-wrong, I thought this film would be ridiculous, awkward for the wrong reasons, rough, and a bit painful to sit through-- it was not! I rather enjoyed it from beginning to end! Definitely some cheese-moments, a lot of eye-rolling worthy lines, but I've come to enjoy and embrace those fabulously cheesetastic moments! It's not going to win any Oscars, and I probably don't need to see it more than maybe once or twice for analysis reasons, but I was entertained.

If you're a not a fan of the books, I think you can skip over this film; it's not gonna make cinematic history except maybe with regard to box office earnings. If you are a Twilight fan, however, I think you'll be very satisfied with this film.

Explanation: Breaking Dawn is the film that I was most skeptical about. Even Meyer wasn't sure it was going to be four books, she thought it would be over at three, so the fourth, while it tied up a lot of loose ends (except for Leah, of course), it felt a bit gratuitous, and splitting it into two-- well, a bit fluffy and indulgent. Don't get me wrong, I loved it! I love any excuse to spend more time reading in a corner about the characters I've grown to love (hence the initial obsession with Pottermore-- although that's waning... hrm, that's for another post), but it never felt like a very strong story. The first half really just consisted of marriage, honeymoon, pregnancy, and could be done in about 12 minutes of film, so I was wary and concerned for how they would stretch this into two films, as there's not a lot of conflict going on in that first bit (yes, the wolves, yes Bella and Edward fighting... but I never had the feeling that a ton was on the line; it was fairly static). The second half gets more complicated with tons of randomly introduced characters, a building and epic battle, with no battle... but all of that being said, I still ate up every word, read it multiple times etc. etc. It was fun, but it wasn't the strongest in terms of story and construction. It was just fun and indulgent. We're all allowed a little non-brain-heavy fun.

Blissed-out Teenage Love

However, it's a crazy different tone of book. All of a sudden we are asked to believe a lot of strange and convenient things (Vampires can be dads? Ok! Wolves can imprint at any age? Ok! Jacob was attracted to a fetus? OK!), so perhaps (aside from box office returns) the thought for two films was that it was going to take us, the audience, a little bit of time to get from seeing this blissed-out, teenage couple, to seeing them as a married couple, and then as married future parents. That's what I took from it anyway, because I enjoyed the film; I didn't find it dragging (except the speeches at the wedding... horrible! Not even funny, just bad. Cutting room floor); it was well-paced, and gave ample time for us to understand and come to terms with all of their fluctuating reactions from bliss (wedding/honeymoon) to acceptance (Bella at first nudge, Edward at first thought-reading).

Source

I was rather impressed for how they accomplished all that they had to with this film. Fans will be happy with this film, I think, because it's so bloody true (pardon the pun) to the book. And why on earth, at this point in the Twilight Saga's lifespan should the filmmakers look to satisfy anyone but the fans? Give the people what they want! Plot points! Gorgeous Wedding! Cute boys in tuxes and topless! Precision with details! Hot sex and smashed headboards!

We're not looking for best screenplay here, we're looking for satisfaction for the series that so many have grown to love, and hate, and perhaps love again (have you noticed how it's pretty cool to hate Twilight right now? And yet it's projected that Breaking Dawn: 1 will break box office records? Funny... haters still gotta see it, eh? :), but even though it might not win an academy Award, that does not mean that it was a bad film. I think this executed a popular text really well, and did so logically and thematically, with ample moments of emotion and beauty (yes, I shed a tear at the wedding-- the look on Charlie's face as he gives her away-- it kills me!).

Anywho, so overall I was well pleased. It was well shot, great use of color, fab special effects (the change), the wolves have improved although are still clearly CG, and the cast seems really comfortable with each other and in their roles (particularly the Bella-Edward, Bella-Charlie, and Bella-Jacob).

DISCLAIMER!

Right, I'm calling the next section "reactions" instead of "analysis" because that will come in time. When I try to do all of it in one blog post, my head explodes, and I'm guessing not a single person gets the whole way through it.... so, this bit is reactions, and I'll do some analysis of specific scenes as requested (if there's a scene in particular you want me to look at, let me know! Right now I'm thinking about the kiss at the wedding... we'll see what else springs to mind).

Reactions:

Titles: Straight in with the titles; I like that-- and effective "BAM! Here begins the story!" moment. I also love that they were a burgundy red, fading into an icy blue. It's the red of human life, fading into the icy blue of a vampire one (Get it? Get it?), especially with the rising sun, shedding light onto the 'new life.'

Voice Over: Intriguing how Bella focuses on childhood; she's about to step into her own marriage, thereby shedding the cover of childhood and stepping into adulthood, but the line "Childhood is the kingdom where nobody dies," immediately refers to the vampire life, and made me think of Renesmee, and the questions of mortality that are still to come. Heavy stuff for 30 seconds into the film, eh?

The Trio: The relationship between them is shifting, and it was well handled. They finally look less awkward and stilted in their roles too, which helps. It's understood the boys don't like each other, but what they have in common (Bella) is strong enough for them to get past their jealousy. I like that in the opening shot we have a sandwich of scenes of the trio: 1) Jacob opening the invitation and running for it, 2) Bella packing up her childhood in her room, and stroking the dreamcatcher that Jacob made for her, and then 3) Edward arriving, and filling her in on his darker past (p.s. They finally got the flashbacks right! It was well-shot, costuming appropriate, and it didn't make me cringe).

They have a good chemistry, all three of them, and as Bella calms Edward's fears about being a monster, it's a real conversation; it doesn't feel trite and cliche...instead it seems sincere and assuring; heavy on the cheese, but again, I've accepted that. Jacob and Bella really do appear best buds, and I like how they can call each other on their crap. Very real.

Oooo pretty. And look! Stephanie! And Wyck! And Melissa!

The Wedding: There may have been more hype about this dress than Kate Middleton's! I liked it, and a little bit more on the sexy side than I was picturing. You hear the description from the book-- 1918's, lace, satin, long sleeves, and you picture a dowdy, frumpy thing; or at least I did. This one was lovely; just a bit of lace at the sleeves, and those buttons going up the sheer almost back-less dress-- gorgeous!

-The Aisle: I like the lack of dialogue; instead, there was a build up of strings, her relaxing after seeing Edward's smile, and the strong crescendo and break of the music as she approaches him. Brilliant pacing, building the tension and excitement, and infusing the scene with emotion.

-Cameo! I loved that Stephanie Meyer, Melissa Rosenberg (screenwriter) and Wyck Godfrey (producer) got to "attend" this scene, too. Fun little nod to them.

Color scheme!

-The colors. the focus on spring, the emphasis on brown and green of the woods, with purple all around and a touch of gold from the Denali clan--- I couldn't help but notice these were the same colors as the meadow-- green, brown, with purple, white, and yellow flowers :) Intentional? I'm going to guess yes. Very little in a film is unintentional. Not when $127 million is being spent. I can also see this color scheme/wedding design inspiring weddings for years, and years, to come!

-Charlie. Stop. Just stop. I got teary! I did not expect that! The look on his face when he gave her away, and his hesitancy to give her away at all; from the time he read the invitation, until he held her arm down the aisle-- lovely. Flippin' love Charlie and Billy Burke's portrayal of him. I also like how they slipped Sue Clearwater into these scenes. Cleverly placing her into the scene, making her a normal fixture in his life, and someone that he fetches champagne for :) I also enjoyed Charlie's "that's just weird" comment about the graduation caps at the Cullen's house.

-The kiss. Great chemistry, and I love how Bella grabs onto the lapel of Edward's jacket. Cute. It was also very effective that the wedding guests 'disappear' during the kiss, so it seems as if it's just the two of them sharing this intimate moment. Also, how rockin' was it that 'Flightless Bird', the Iron and Wine song that played during the gazebo dance at the prom in Twilight (2008) comes back for this moment. Even the camera shots are the same. Spins around them, cuts back and forth to each face... it really brings the love from the first film through to the fourth; as if that love at first sight was the same; strong, true and consistent throughout; this wedding was just the formal realization of it.

-The speeches. They were horrid. CUT! I know they were meant to be awkward, but really... cut. But I loved that Carter Burwell brought the Bella's lullaby theme from Twilight (2008) back into the score, playing softly as Edward gave his speech about his bride. Again, tying that first film through to this one.

Volvo- Of course they drive away in a Volvo! Black this time :) It really does look like a shot directly from the 'Forks' game Volvo did a few years ago. Clever!

Rio: I'm glad we had a little bit of time to watch the happy couple as a honeymooning couple together. It gives a firm grounding to the substantial crap that they have to deal with afterwards. But right now, they're newlyweds, they're away from their family, away from being the center of attention, in a lively and exciting city with lots of people making out on the street and playing music, so how nice that they get to have a romantic, hot little dance, and then escape to their paradise-like bliss on Isle Esme. And what a beautiful shot of Rio in the moonlight as a single boat speeds away into the open ocean.

The First Time: Surely this is the most anticipated scene in all of Twilight. And tell me if you agree, but I think it was pretty damn bang-on to the book. What I remember when reading that section was the horrible awkwardness; the insecurity and the bravery needed to take that first step sans robe into the ocean, and I think this scene really hit that home. The awkwardness staring over the bed at each other, I like her 'human moment' being a total girl and shaving her legs, fixing her hair etc, freaking out at Alice for only packing ridiculous lingerie, and finally sucking it up, realizing the guy she loved was out there in the water, and just walking to him.

Lotsa destruction

I like that they didn't show much in the actual scene. The headboard breaking, and Bella assuring him she's fine, and that's about it. What was really well done, however, was Bella remembering it the next morning. It was sensual, intimate, accurate (of course we all replay our first kiss/whatever over and over), filled with extreme close-up shots bringing the audience into the ooey-gooey mentality of "that was lovely" so when Edward comes in and is all depressed and angry with himself, we're mad too at his incredible ability to buzz-kill!

Nice chess set!

Nice touches: The chess set (very clever), the humor moments as the housekeepers silently takes out the shattered bed... but where are the eggs she eats so much of?

Finding Out She's Preggers: Nice timing with Alice ringing the second that Bella realizes what has happened, and prior to this moment, Bella and Edward have hardly separated. Even when they're doing something apart- like sitting across from each other playing chess- they're still leaning towards eachother; touching at any opportunity, and all over eachother snuggling etc. As soon as the discovery of the pregnancy is clear, Edward removes himself from the picture. He distances himself, and even in the car they don't touch. Clearly he's freaked out, but filmicly, this is good depiction of him mentally and physically removing himself from the situation in order to "deal with it."

I'm not going to get into the abortion chat. We all know it's ridiculous that Edward and Carlisle start to plan it without even consulting her, and I like that Edward gets a bit mad at her for not even involving him in her decision, but isn't it interesting that he didn't really make any initial effort to involve her either! Right... not getting into that...

The Pack Communication: It's a good move to shift attention constantly onto Jacob and his movements since he plays such a large part in this film. They show him on the beach talking about imprinting, showing Claire the two year old, re-introducing the "it's not creepy, I swear" mentality, and I thought the way they handled the pack's communication was pretty decent. The wolves themselves are still clearly CG-ed, and at times laughable, not brilliant, but not as bad as the first version, but I liked that the chatter within the pack was constantly going. It was loud, busy, every thought... just how I imagined it would be. It wasn't overly confusing, so that was well handled by the filmmakers, but it was accurate in showing the horrible power of the alpha order, and the 'voices in the head' commentary they always hear. You can understand why Leah and Seth might want to leave for moral and personal reasons; it's just be a lot quieter! And when Jacob took up the mantle of Alpha, it was epic; the whining of the dogs, with the bending to the will, then fighting back, rising up, and leaving. Hello drama!

More accuracy from the book: Seriously, they stuck so closely to the details, it was nice to see the extra effort in there, even switching the blood from a glass to the plastic cup with a straw when Bella starts drinking blood; showing her mouth completely full of blood though-- that was striking. It might be hiding the blood from Bella to make it 'easier to swallow,' but the audience had no such luxury; we could see exactly what she had to do for this baby.

-I also liked this bit when Alice grabs Jasper and says 'Walk with me' to get him out of the room and away from the blood. Cute.

The Cullen color-scheme, Blues, silvers, whites and greys

Edward Aplogizes: Thank goodness he finally joined #TeamBella and apologized for leaving her alone in all of this, and we finally get a glimpse of the happy family that they could become as he hears the baby's thoughts for the first time. Bella is often in blues and grays in these scenes, which is interesting since that was always the color scheme of the Cullens, particularly in the first film. It was advertised, illustrated and focused on, and here is Bella, gray in skintone now too as she looks just slightly better than dead, wearing blues, and steely grays, taking additional steps towards becoming a Cullen.

Jacob distracting the other pack: Very effective storytelling technique. It shows clearly which side he is choosing, and gives us a quick view of what's going on whilst Bella is stuck in the house.

She has looked better...

The Birth: Holybloodygooeygory. We knew it would be bad, there's no way for it to be pretty and easy, but I wasn't entirely prepared for blood and guts all over Edward. It was well shot though. Tough, red, fuzzy, clear for when Bella sees Rennesmee, and then the turmoil as they desperately try to turn her. That was one hell of a syringe going into her chest; the dense, silver venom, and Stewart can play a corpse well. She looked horrific! I was convinced. The actual process of turning was brilliantly shot; it'd be so easy for that to be super-cheesy, but I just found it really interesting to see a visualization of what that process might look like. Red, fleshy and bloody, turning black like lava with a burning underneath, and then switching to dimondy-iciness.

The Fight Scene: How nice it was to see it since we didn't get that chance in the books. It was interesting to see Edward's understanding of the imprinting, and the immediate backing off of the other pack. Granted it was a "convenient moment" for one of the 'basic laws' to be no harming someone who a wolf imprinted upon, but hey, it worked! It was also very well-shot. It was so tightly packed, that you couldn't tell who was where, and it built the suspense and our concern for the characters. We didn't want any of them to get hurt, and the confusion and close-ness of that filming added to that.

Rennesmee: she's pretty damn cute.

The Change: Brilliant. She looked horrible. Literally a corpse; underfed, bad color, unhealthy... and then... we see the venom flow through, her hair get shinier, her dress fills out, the cuts on her arm heal, her spine snaps back into place, color into her lips, and the dark circles removed from her eyes. Such a neat visualization, and satisfying somehow to see the power of the venom and how it changed each of them.

Final shot: I CALLED IT! I totally called it (yes, yes, Maggie, pat on the back, I promise to gloat no longer), I had guessed that the final shot would be Bella opening her eyes, and them being blood red. I'm sure I can come up with multiple witnesses if required. Whoop!

Source

The flashback in this bit again really ties the first film through to the last. Similar to the end of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix --purely with regard to what it made me think about-- where Harry is possessed by Voldemort and flashes back to all of those scenes with his loved ones-- we got to relive the series. We got to remember the first time we saw those scenes, how they affected us originally and what they have contributed to: a huge saga of drama and emotion! It was nice to see the first meeting, the first dance, the departing in New Moon, the reunion etc.

Extra scene: Who doesn't love the fact that the Volturi are spelling and grammar fiends? Love it. Plus it also reintroduces them into our minds; they see the Cullens as a threat, know that the coven has grown, and we now know that they are a threat-- which leads us gracefully into Breaking Dawn: Part 2.

RIGHT! Let me know if you have specific requests for scenes to analyze, and by the way, what did you think?!

UPDATE:
Ahhh and I love, LOVE Marah Eakin for this article. and the link inside the article for the piece last year from Genevieve Koski. Stop hatin' Twilighters, and don't judge or read too hard into anything... fans deserve some cred, folks!

Breaking Dawn Review Coming this afternoon- diversion first!

2011-11-18T14:04:00.002Z

Allow me to go on a tangent for a minute; if you just want to read my film analysis/review of Breaking Dawn, it’ll be up this afternoon. But as this blog is a place to explore my own personal PhD journey as well, here’s a tangent for ya:

So, I was reflecting the other day on my relationship with The Twilight Saga, because that’s really what it’s been, a relationship, and pondering on the path of the Saga in the world and in the fandom over the course of the last three years (yup, it’s only been three years since this and this crazy, right?)

In terms of my relationship to Twilight, I think it’s gone through the ‘normal’ relationship phases.

1) there was the honeymoon phase. Everything was exciting. I had found this text about a girl with whom I could relate: awkward, bookish, and seriously crushing on a super cute guy. What teen girl didn’t feel that way? And then when it turned out that the cute boy loved her too, and he was a supernatural being—well that’s just awesome piled onto fabulous! I was giddy; I’ve been known to squeal in my early days of the Twilight relationship.

2) Then it progressed into a comfortable place. By this time I’d worked on the set, incorporated it into my PhD research, provided academic analysis on the film-aspects of it etc. I still enjoyed Twilight immensely, but I was over the “Oooo everything about this is perfect! I need to shriek and giggle every time I see a red apple!” phase. It was a part of my professional life, and I was lucky enough to have that thing I study also be something that I enjoyed. Not many PhD students can say that.

3) Then I reached the “do I want to continue this relationship?” phase. The breaking point of a relationship; do we go forward or do we break up? We’ll call this year three of my PhD. This is more about me and my PhD than Twilight (ask any grad student; at some point they hate their topic, no matter how awesome it is) and I’d spent two years tearing apart the novels, editing critical essays that examined the chauvinistic aspects of the novel, the apparent anti-feminism themes throughout, I spent a lot of time speaking on countless panels and numerous conferences about the film adaptation and it’s phenomenal success, and constantly analyzing things like costume, camera angle, music, shoot time, scene deletion, recasting, and how the Twilight Fandoms played into every single aspect. I was busy, analyzing, talking, working in and around Twilight… but did I love it anymore?

The overwhelming, giddy love had gone out of the relationship. It was mechanical. Routine.

4) But then I took a step back from the whole school thing, got my head back into filmmaking and script development, fan interaction and fan management—and low and behold I love it again and am once again trucking away at the academic side of popular culture! It’s a comfortable, secure relationship now. There’s no longer a need for the burning desire, since it wasn’t based on anything but superficial reactions, much like a teenage crush; I was in love with the excitement. Now that it’s just a part of life, I’m grateful for it, and I can still just enjoy it like a good partner: I recognize its faults (it doesn’t really have to recognize mine… that’s taking this metaphor a little too far) but I can still appreciate it for the fun piece of entertainment that it is, and for the ground-breaking and pioneering fan-management techniques it has introduced. And you better believe I'll be analyzing the filmic aspects of it ‘til the cows come home.

So we’re at a good place, me and Twilight J

Right… Breaking Dawn review/analysis coming this afternoon. Watch this space.

The Hunger Games- Trailer Analysis

2011-11-16T22:35:00.001Z

First of all, how exciting to have a two and a half minute trailer!The 30 second trailer seemed so rushed, didn't give any sneak peaks to highly anticipated scenes or anything-- just showed Katniss, in the woods. That's it. Plus a 30 second trailer doesn't provide enough time for fans and viewers to digest and come to terms with the images and story; it just assaults the senses with a quick deluge of information. I spent most of my time with the 30 second teaser going 'weird; district 12 looks really lush; oh wait, that's the arena; who's whilstling? That's weird!" Yeah... not really focused on the film with that 'teaser.'

So I'm glad that we finally have a longer trailer to dig into.

Overall, I think it's a decent trailer. I'm still very skeptical of the adaptation thus far as we don't know anything. So I'm just reserving my enthusiasm for now. I hope they've taken care of it. I spoke to their development team early in the adaptation process and they were focused, concise, and very business-oriented, and I think in the good way. That's the feeling I took away from it anyway. I'm hoping they continued on their path of faithful, but well-done and effective adaptation that doesn't alienate the fandom but still provides function, high-quality entertainment for those who haven't read the book. Fingers crossed!

So a bit of the shot by shot, shall we?

:09- District 12 is rather lush; I realize this shot is after the fence, so it's going to be more lush, but even the shot before where she's running through 'town', I pictured that as quite industrial, grey, and run down. Not like a 1800's Western ghost town. Interesting. Perhaps this is to project country, pastoral feel to Katniss? Make it familar and relatable, as opposed to the crazy Capitol-ness we see seeping in at :32

:37- Ahhh there's the cold, steely, industrial District 12 I was looking for! Look at the use of color (or lack thereof). Light blues, whites, and almost all caucasian; this creates a uniform look, allowing no one in particular to stand out, which to me, creates a 'nameless number' scenario. You can see that the capital would not look at these people as individuals with unique, precious lives. Instead, they would all be the same, might as well kill two for sport. Very effective costuming and art design.

1:00- Ahhh it's a reaction like this why I'm thrilled they chose Jennifer Lawrence for this role. She's got gumption, depth, and maturity to wear the heavy burden of responsibility/pseudo-motherhood. This reaction kicks butt. I can feel her panic and my heart breaks a bit. Plus, look at this shot. It's beautifully structured. The Capitol is in power (higher, in the foreground), the crowd flanking on either side, but ultimately splitting the frame into thirds vertically (the crowd on the left, the path, the crowd on the right). You can almost split it in thirds horizontally too, with Katniss occupying the top middle of the frame. Well. Done.

1:16- Yeah, this shot is getting a footnote in my thesis. The build up begins already with words like "epic" and "best-selling" which projects to the viewer that this is a big friggin' deal. If they havent' heard of these books, they're all, "Why the hell not? They're huge and everyone else has!" And if they have heard of the books, they are nodding to the big fans and are all like, "Yeah, you know it's a big deal, so do we, look how much we know..."

1:21- First I noticed that they're utilizing the 'thirds' rule again, and then I thought-- huh, this kinda looks like Thor's hometown. A little less shiny, but still futuristic and modern. Interesting :) Also of note is the sun shining upon it. It makes it look like a place of wonder, which it is to our heroes who have only ever heard of the capital; there is wonder, but for them it's of the terrified kind, not the pleasant "oooo pretty" kind...

1:29- Hrm... not at all what I pictured for the 'girl on fire' dress; but that was supposed to be in a chariot... so I'm going to guess that this is the jeweled one worn later. No jewels... but still stunning. You get the feeling of splendor, glamour, and it's a red-carpet arrival/make an impression type dress, clearly. However, the look on her face definitely says that something is wrong. As does the cheesetastic host holding her hand in the air and smiling about her like she's a prime used car. Weird. But fittingly so. Like a Barker's Beauty... on trial.

1:48- oh dear... did they get the hairstylist who did Jacob's wig in the first two Twilights? That's abysmal! I love the casting of Woody Harrelson for Haymitch though. I can completely see him being the crazy, stumbling drunk, who is strong at his center but has simply been drinking for so many years because every year those that he's supposed to be supporting die. He also can have that slightly southern accent, perhaps supporting that idea of District 12 as a Western, 'cowboy' territory.

2:10- Ahhh this shot is bloody brilliant. Look at the thirds rule-- again-- clearly they're fans of this rule; also, the fact that the entirety of the district is gathered to watch her descend upon the games. It's clearly a national event for "entertainment" but it also breeds fear and ensures control. All are frozen, watching one of their own go into battle. You see the hope of Katniss's neighbors, and the proud salute they share... the bagpipes in the background are a bit distracting... bagpipes? Really? But the sentiment is clear and valid.

2:16-2:23- That count down is phenomenal. As the trailer is nearing it's end, the count down builds the tension, and cuts to a different person with a stake in Katniss's life with each second counted down. Prim to Cinna to Gale... lovely. We can tell something is coming, she seems befuddled so we're worried about her, but the count down keeps going, relentlessly, so you're willing her to focus.... this is a clever and effective trailer technique. It draws us in. It's the hook. It gives suspense and intrigue. Nice!

2:27- then it's followed by a mad, exciting dash, collecting materials, a hand held camera for a lot of it which gives the impression that we, too, are running like mad for our lives, there's a cut to running like crazy through the woods...so you get the idea; we're running. A lot. It's a chase, and if you're caught, you die. And then BAM! We're hit with the fiery, mockingjay pin, followed by the quote "May the odds be ever in your favor," both items that are well known to the fans "in the know". It's a moment where the fan can relate, react, and take a quick breath from that drama of the last fifteen seconds, and possibly shriek with excitement and anticipation, and hopefully not disgust.

Well, that's all for now. I'm intrigued, the production values look good, they're clearly covering their bases with Entertainment Weekly covers and directed advertising campaigns. I hope they go the extra mile to ensure the fans stay onside, and that the fans support rather than critique the adaptation. Here's hoping!

Are there any parts that you're most excited about seeing on the screen? Most nervous about?

Planes, Trains, Automobiles, Buses, The Tardis, Teleport devices...

2011-10-02T13:15:00.002+01:00

Just a quick one here, but I wanted to post that I'm heading Stateside for a few weeks! PhD-land is going well, Elfin work is going very well, and I'm off on a tour of a bunch of high schools and universities talking about my film work, why I came to the UK to study, answering questions about study abroad and the film industry, and in a few places, I'll be holding Pitch Fests for aspiring screenwriters.

This trip is a lot of fun, and I pack a whole lot of visits, talks, panels, and presentations into a short amount of time (i.e. at UMW in Fredericksburg I'm on a panel about fantasy literature adaptation, and in George Fox in Oregon I'm teaching a few classes about event films and the development process!). I'm crossing the country a few times, so there's a chance I'll be in your area should education in the UK appeal to you, or you're interested in the film industry from my experience and perspective.

I'll be in:

New Orleans Oct 3-5 (International High School, Benjamin Franklin High School)

Pensacola FL Oct 5-8 (Pensacola High School, University of Western Florida)

San Francisco CA Oct 9-10 (Berkeley High School)

Los Angeles, CA: Oct 10-16 (CSU: Northridge, Pierce College)

Washington DC/Fredericksburg VA: Oct 16-23 (NACAC fair, U of Mary Washington)

Lancaster PA: Oct 23-30 (Dickinson College, Gettysburg College, and Franklin and Marshall grad fairs, Swarthmore, Villanova, Hempfield High School, and Lancaster Country Day School)

Portland OR: Oct 30-Nov 3 (George Fox University, Reed College)

Seattle, WA: Nov 3-5 (NACAC Fair)

Philadelphia, PA: Nov 5-6 (NACAC Fair)

Lancaster, PA: Nov 6-8 (Conestoga Valley Fair)

NACAC Links

If you're interested in UK education, check out this post from last year, and hopefully I'll see some of you at these events!

Right... I'm heading to London now, and I'm flying to New Orleans tomorrow! Let the mayhem begin.

Captain America: Review and Report!

2011-08-13T22:39:00.002+01:00

I can’t believe I haven’t written this yet. Sorry! I’ve been traveling, and am in the backwoods of New England at the moment with little to no Internet connection, and therefore I haven’t had the motivation to update the blog; I’ve been thesis-ing and swimming in a lake.

However, how could I NOT update about Captain America after being on set in November?!

Have you seen it yet? No? Why the heck not? Even if I hadn’t worked on it, I’m pretty sure I’d be hooked. What a fun film, and a great intro into a new hero in the Avengers/Marvel world.

So, my overall reaction? What a bloody brilliant film. Particularly the first third. All of it was good fun, a few moments fell flat (mostly with regard to editing in my opinion-- the montage of him as a soldier destroying the Hydra plants... the cuts were too short and the action too fast; it was tough to gauge where our hero was and what he was doing. Although there were some fabulous moves with that shield in that section), but overall I thoroughly enjoyed it. I usually do a pro con list for film reviews, but you'll notice this one mostly starts with the phrase, "I loved it when..."

A little analysis:

So, the first third: I LOVE an undiscovered hero. So when you show me a scrawny, unknown, 90 pound but gutsy kid… I’m bound to fall in love with him (plus, what amazing CG. Aside from a few blips with the voice, it was seamless). I love that he tried so hard to join the army; that he stood up for what he believed in whilst in a darkened theater; that he sincerely cheered on his friend when he was about to be shipped off to the armed forces even though he was jealous, and wanted to go for the most noble of reasons. I also love the man (no matter how scrawny) that steps into the shoes of ‘potential hero’ because it was his only shot at doing his duty, whilst embracing experimental procedures.

We’ve covered the scrawny, fatherless hero in past posts (hello Beowulf, Frodo, Harry Potter, Taran, and Bran….), but there’s also the reluctance to be a hero that comes along with them; the fact that they don't see themselves as strong heroes only enhances my love of their heroic qualities.

I loved, loved, LOVED the scenes where he 1) threw himself on the grenade, unthinkingly sacrificing himself in order to save those around him; 2) took the flag down on the training run by rather clever means; and 3) chased after the bad guy through the streets of ‘Brooklyn’ to catch baddie, 4) Was cheered and celebrated when he returned with the captured soldiers and meekly turned himself in for disciplinary action, as his duty required. I love me a lil' hero worship.

Side note, I loved the character of the strong, brave scientist who believed in the good spirit, and not just the strong body (well done, Stanley Tucci). Emphasis of the good man, over the strong, huge, perfect body (although he got that shortly after... and it was a very nice body).

I also loved how they dealt with his costume. He is one of the more cheesy heroes in the Marvel world, with wings on his hat, and a funny shield, so what a brilliant move to use the 'Poster Child for War Bonds' with a chorus of dancers and a showman quality in order to explain the presence of the costume in his life. I like how they roughed it up a little and made it more World War Two-ish, though, once he was out of the costume and into Stark's designed uniform. He wore it all well. Very well.

The last two thirds were certainly enjoyable, but they didn’t match the first third for me. It was very entertaining, but also quite predictable with a few moments where you could clearly see the CG, he almost looked like a video game version, and some cheesy elements like 'Chicago' clearly painted on the bombs; almost cartoonish.

As for the predictable, at this point he was a superhero, there was a girl, and there was an enemy, but because of the first third, I was more immediately rooting for this hero than I have been for others (don’t get me wrong, I LOVE Iron Man, Thor, etc. but it took a few viewings for them to weasel into my heart… Steve Rogers? Not so much. Although that may be due to the fact that Chris Evans was such a lovely human being on set. He was kind, considerate, and very pleasant and professional. He was always ready, he would run between the shot and the director's screens to look at his performance and chat with Joe, he'd tap people on the arm to say "hey" and ask how their day was, and texted the AD when he arrived on set just to give her a heads up-- a rare move, but a much appreciated one.

Now, from my on-set observation, I’ve a few fun facts:

The days I spent on set, these things were filmed:

1) Captain America and Bucky’s POV in the Hydra Plant when Red Skull first pulls off his mask. I say Captain America’s POV, because Hugo Weaving/Toby Jones’s scenes were filmed weeks beforehand. Even though the scene looks seamless between the two parties, only one was present that day. This was just after Bucky's jump when there's no way for CA to get across, Bucky shouts "There's gotta be a rope or something!" ... CA: "Go on! Get outta here!" Yup. That was it. It took hours and hours.

This is also the kind of stuff that makes me realize how actors earn their money. They first had to pretend that the other actors were there, also had to pretend that the entire plant was burning down around them, and lastly, that the rest of the plant was even there at all! Whilst it looked like the plant was huge, five stories tall, and filled with equipment, all that was actually built was a staircase, a platform, and a wall. They were all very impressive, but minimal compared to what we saw CG-ed onscreen.

2) The prisoners running out of the Hydra plant. It was maybe 6 seconds on screen, but took about four hours to film. There were 20 extras that ran through the doors a number of different ways with a number of different camera angles so when it was all cut together, it looked like there were about 100 extras. Rockin'.

3) Inside the Hydra train after they zip-line into it, the shot where the Captain throws his shield, and where Bucky gets thrown out of the side of the train. This took all day. It was very cool though. A huge train in the middle of a sound stage, lots of green screen, effects.... very cool.

Yup, that's it! Three scenes, and it took two, twelve-hour days.

Fun Facts from the set:

- ‘Brooklyn’ was pretty fabulous, because that was actually Manchester, England. The attention to detail was lovely; the little, red-headed kid with the surprise "go get him! I can swim!" and my utter inability to distinguish where CG began and the set ended… it was great, and very well done.

Also for this scene the props/costume department made Chris Evans prosthetic feet in which to run, because whilst Captain America was a quick healer with strong feet, Chris Evans was human and had to run through the paved streets of Manchester very quickly, and still be able to function the next day without cut up and blistered feet.

- The shield in the ice. One of the first things I saw was when Joe Johnston was consulted about which way the ice should be designed for the shot where we see it in the ice. They had the shield under a clear block, a frosted block, they chipped away at it to get it just right, and took the shield from Chris Evans's arm to place it behind the ice block and photograph how it looks. Yes. I touched the shield. Squee!

- There was a 'dead body' wrangler. One of the prop masters who looked after two dummies used as dead bodies. They weighed a ton, and he actually had to carry them firefighter style to move them around; but they were very convincing, unmoving, dead weight dummies.

- On the second day after Chris Evans was done, he spent about an hour chatting with a group of 20 Sega Games people who were on set getting an inside peek at the world of Captain America. It was neat to see the intertextual image sharing early, as the game people had one image in their head of the hero, and then it was replaced, enhanced, or opposed by the images they saw on set.

What a brilliant experience, and I can't bloomin' wait to own it. I sure hope it has good special features :) Bring on The Avengers! By the way, everyone saw the Avengers teaser after the Captain America credits, right? So. Good.

Captain America: Preliminary Report

2011-07-21T22:52:00.002+01:00

Alrighty, Captain America comes out tomorrow, so I wanted to post a few things about my time on set and share in the excitement for what's coming. I'm not going to say much in detail due to confidentiality and whatnot, but here's some general stuff.

Set Report (November 2010)

I arrived on set around 10am and met up with one of the ADs (assistant director; the people who are busier than most, I think. They know what's going on in every corner of the set at any given moment. I was rather in awe of them). We went back to the AD office, a trailer amidst a sea of trailers (about 20 of them), parked between two sound stages.

After procuring my visitor's badge (for which I had to sign my first born away), another AD took me over to the set. We walked into the soundstage and there was a reconstructed train car inside a green-screened wall. The train was made out of plywood, and was made to look like a 1940's water car (grey interior, no seats etc, :50 into the clip below). The train was also on something called a wimble, which permits the set to move like a train. It lifts it gently up and down as well as side to side. The outside was all plywood, the inside painted (as the outside will not appear on film). The set was huge! I really enjoyed the attention to detail, and the movie making magic evident

And just for the record, Chris Evans was a total sweetheart. SCore one for the Massachusetts boy! He was always ready, he was very passionate about his performance and would run between the shot and the director's screens to look at his performance and chat with Joe Johnston about how to try something different (director), he'd tap people on the arm to say hey and ask how their day was, and he texted the AD I was with when he arrived on set just to give her a heads up (very considerate move). Plus he looked pretty awesome in that outfit.

Cool bits: The Captain's costume. I think it looked a bit cheesy on the press photos, but it was pretty cool. Boots were made of rockin' dark brown leather, with a big butt-kickin' big heel, a strap around the ankle, and a strap around the calf. The trousers were denim or herringbone that were super tough, and a cross of like a jodhpur or a soldier trouser. They looked slightly super-hero like in that they had a plastic effect if you know what I mean. Not in a bad way, very cool and purposeful. The top of the outfit had leather, I think, ab and muscle areas, leather belt, scuffed star on the chest, and seatbelt like straps on his shoulders that crossed in the middle of his back around a metal star, and fasted to his belt. The cap was good too. It's hard to make a cap as cheesy as that look decent, I think. It was leatherlike, if not leather, navy blue, with a 'A' on the front and was basically like a batting helmet that fit close to the head, but with raccoon eye loops.

The Shield. Oh girl, the shield. You can see some great photos of it here. Like most films with hero-elements, they had a few for different points in the film. I saw two up close. One was in perfect condition, shiny, cut into steal, the colors were bright, and the other a bit scuffed up, as if it had seen action in the war. Sweet.

It was awesome seeing the shoot, and the details that go into getting one seemingly simple shot. Will expand on that in another post, but I'm not giving anything away :)

On my second day, the shoot started on the same stage as the previous day. They had a few shots to make from the day before that they didn't finish so they went straight into those. Both were interiors of the train, and they also shot a bit of running through the vestibule bit. As they only made one car for the stage, they film the running over the vestibule bit and connect it to the other end with the help of green screen and they can loop it, so to speak, so it looks as if they are running through a larger train. While watching this I got into a lovely discussion with the dialect coach, a really lovely woman, and with the director's assistant who was also a law student, and who was getting into directing and writing. We talked about my work, how we all got into this situation, how its easy to be annoyed about how long shoots can go, how cold and tired you can get, how tired you get of the same food over and over... but at the end of the day it's such a great job.

So once they finished the train shots, we moved to another sound stage-- which was dressed like a plant; power, water, some power-plant. It was HUGE. It's the biggest stage at Shepperton, easily the biggest set I've ever been in and also the coldest! It was like a big fridge. The stage was split in half, with the front half as storage where big heaters were set up to warm up the extras (20 or so of them, who were playing soldiers and guards, plus there were two dummies that were the dead guards-- it was fun watching those get dragged around. They looked wicked heavy), and the back space as the shooting stage.

Taking up one entire wall was the hydra plant which consisted of the ground floor, two levels of stairs (the top level only leading to a landing, as they can loop that as they did the train cars), and a walkway that spanned the whole width of the stage. They shot Bucky and and the captain running up and down the stairs, Bucky's leap from a falling beam onto the railing and then Chris Evans and Sebastian Stan (Bucky) spoke to about 20 people from Sega games about the shoot (Chris was in chill street clothes; comfy, jeans, converse...), and then they were done.

The crew, however, was not done... not by a long shot. They shot a bunch of different shots on the guards and soldiers coming into the plant as things are exploding. There were only about 30 extras total, but they made it look like 100 or more. There were shots of them running from all three doors, as well as on top up the stairs and across the walkway, then shots of all of them coming out each door from different angles so they can cut it together and it will look like tons of guards coming from every aspect of the plant. Very cool. We also got to take a look at the rough cut of the trailer (finished below) which was cool. I like seeing shots before the special effects are in place; it looks strange, but you can also see how actors earn their paycheck. There's that shot of four guys shooting flame thrower guns with the Captain in the middle, and they really make it look like they're fighting with fire, even though they're fake guns with no fire. Impressive.

I'm wicked excited to see it live, all cut together and shiny. The movie-making is always interesting, but the finished product is the awe-inspiring moment. Look for a post after viewing!

Harry Potter. The End. The analysis... well, some of it.

2011-07-15T04:07:00.002+01:00

I think I'm still recovering from that viewing; I'm at LeakyCon 2011 presenting on film adaptation and geeking out with some friends, and we've just returned from the screening. I kinda forgot the mania and emotion with final installments; I haven't been around one since the seventh book came out, and this is like mecca for dramatic reactions right now. At Leaky Con, at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, when the final film comes out... craziness. It was like the last day of summer camp when girls don't want to say goodbye to their friends. Wailing. Heaving sobs. Madness... but also a brilliant exhibition of the emotion manifested through reading, books, adaptation, and the communities created with fiction.

Right... back to the post...

Hot damn, so much to talk about. I wrote most of this post two weeks ago, but I’ve been at LeakyCon all week in Orlando Florida, talking about Harry Potter, analyzing Harry Potter, watching clips, debating text vs. film, seeing the park at Universal Studios, and seeing the film for the second time surrounded by the most die-hard fans I’ve ever had the pleasure of sharing space with. So, all of this has reshaped a few reactions and thoughts on my initial viewing.

I started writing down ‘just a few quick thoughts’ and 8 pages later, I was still just ‘jotting things down.’ So I’ll start with the things that are really irking me, and then just list the rest. Read what you want, skip what you don’t.

Overall, what a beautiful, poignant, and emotional ending to an amazing era. Certainly a forming force in my life, and in the lives of millions of others, I'm sure. Through Harry we encountered evil, supported good, learned to fly, defeated difficult demons like trolls and first kisses... and this film beautifully summed up quite a bit of the emotion I was feeling. I loved the cinematography, the soundtrack, the lack of dialogue-- take note of it on your next viewing; there are a number of scenes where the filmmakers must have decided "we don't need to give exposition; if they made it this far, these guys know the backstory," and the quiet scenes are just lovely.

The actor's performances were fabulous, with Hermione, Harry, Ron, Lucius, and Snape really standing out, in my mind. The special effects stunning; I love the shield over Hogwarts and how it started to look like a cracked windshild as the Deatheaters spells struck it. The music was tonally spot-on, filling in multiple gaps of dialogue that was not needed, as the music portrayed what words could not.

Okay, analysis. I'm going to get my big problems out of the way first, and then move onto Pros and Cons, as per my usual :)

MAJOR ISSUES:

Final Battle:

WTF folks, WTF. WHERE was Harry saying “No one fight him, it has to be like this; it has to be me and him!”; ….oh wait, where was the HUGE crowd of people that were supposed to watch the battle; revel in Harry’s heroism, and witness Voldemort’s demise. And where was Harry’s “expelliarmus”, so we see a definite action from our hero, a spinning of the wand in the air, a rebounding of the curse, and a physical, mortal wound attacking Voldemort. As it stands, it is an unexplainable moment of destruction, and how on earth is anyone going to believe that Voldemort is truly gone, because NO ONE SAW IT!?

***UPDATE*** Okay, so upon seeing it for the third time, and closely scouring the scene, there ARE a number of people there, but they are rather removed. They are in the cloisters and in the doorway, not immediately surrounding the battle. So I suppose we can assume from this that SOMEONE saw Voldemort die, and Harry do it... I'll give them that, but I'm still not happy about it. There was no speech, and no admiring crowd... bother.

I miss my Harry hero worship; I miss the conquering of love over evil

Which leads me to point two: Voldemort dissolved into whispy, floaty, flakes of Voldemort. "Like Dandruff" as my mother described it. There was no corporeal body. I felt this a necessary moment in the novel and an irresponsible omission in the film. In the book, we see Voldemort returned to the empty, powerless shell that is a mutilated Tom Riddle. His body is ignored, and tucked away in an alcove away from the other dead. It is mortal, empty, and non-threatening. In the film, no one is there to see it, Harry does not sacrifice himself for their protection, and Voldemort disappears, leaving the question of ‘could he come back’? At least I’d be asking that, as everyone thought he disappeared/was killed when Harry was one, but we can all see how that turned out…

Lastly, the focus on love (or lack thereof). There was a sacrifice by Harry, we know and see this, but only in order to save the world from Voldemort by making the enemy mortal. His sacrifice does not put the protection on all around him as it does in the book. Love is the main crux of the story, the weapon against the worst evil, and the filmmakers didn't emphasize this weapon to save humanity, to save his adopted family… it lessens the strength of Harry’s character against the pull of the Hallows vs. Horcruxes; a pull that also was largely ignored. We didn’t have Harry debating inner demons about which to choose; self-promotion or self-sacrifice.

Other Random Notes, divided into like, dislike, and wonder:

LIKE

Horcruxes: I think it brilliant that Harry can FEEL them. This isn’t true in the novels, and that high pitch squealing is a fab reminder about what they represent; a cutting evil like a dentist’s drill… I also love that Hermione picks up on it, especially after the fiend fire; she looks at Harry’s chest, and they have a little understanding; that Harry doesn’t just recognize a horcrux, but that he also relates to it; he can feel it… therefore he must be one.

This easier to recognize moment on film allows the viewer to question Harry’s relationship to them, and also to emphasize the threatening power of them. The constant shriek, the recognition of evil in each other… these devices allow for otherwise inanimate objects to rise above being just a cup or just a book, but an actual threat; a villain worthy of fear.

Harry Taking Charge: I like that he becomes proactive instead of reactive. He really starts to come into his own being decisive and not just reactionary. He says, “I need to see the Goblin” at Shell Cottage, and strongly makes a deal with Griphook, and bluntly tells Ollivander that Voldemort has the Elder Wand. Harry is decisive. We know that this is him making a decision of horcruxes over Hallows, but they never tap into that moral dilemma: I think this is a missed moment for character development and understanding as we don’t see the temptation for Harry from the Hallows; we see it a tiny bit with Dumbledore in the flashbacks of Snape’s memories, but overall, he just does as he’s told without a lot of internal reflection/decision making.

Hermione in Gringotts: First of all, how great was our first vision of Bellatrix/Hermione? Great performance. So after that, Hermione is the one who makes the decision to jump onto the dragon. I love that it’s her move; definitely a stereotypically un-Hermione moment, but necessary, and it gives her a hell of a lot more of the moxie that I enjoyed so much from the last film.

The dragon was brilliant. A phenomenal work of special effects and animation. It didn’t look CG at all, really, and I felt quite a bit of sympathy for it. Bloody from digging chains, retreating painfully from the noise of the Clankers, I loved how it sniffed the air when it finally broke out, and the crashing on roofs as it can’t really fly all that well at first was very effective.

The Passage to Hogwarts: It was a great effect of the passage to Hogwarts through the picture of Ariana. And the first "rah rah" moment for Neville… I love him. And there was a brief moment of hero worship for Harry here via the burst of applause from the crowd, and a reference to Potter Watch on the radio (“lightning has struck”) that I really missed from the first one as it set up Harry’s heroic position in the wizarding world (yes, I’m harping on this… but he’s a hero! Don’t take that away from him!)

Great Hall and Snape: Very interesting change from the book where they’re standing the great hall, Snape is imploring the students for information, asking them to step forward if they know anything, and out steps Harry! It's a rather uncalculated risk on Harry’s part, but it was a fab reintroduction of the Order’s arrival, gave a great action moment for Snape and McGonagall as they battle before Snape “does a bunk” (a line I sorely missed in the film), and the beginning of the final battle within the grounds of Hogwarts

Neville and McGonagall! I enjoyed Harry here turning to Neville, and instructing him to “hold the fort” whilst Harry continues on his mission. Also the lovely interchange between McGonagall and Harry, “It’s good to see you” and McGonagall not questioning what Harry needs, but providing all that she can without question. Also, who didn't laugh when she used the locomotor spell to bring the stone statues to life and had a moment of glee “I’ve always wanted to use that spell.” Cute.

1^st tears arrive: setting up the guard around Hogwarts. Very serious, beautiful music, somber, and you get a very strong impression that these people may die for what they believe in.

Diadem- Grey Lady, well done scene. We didn’t need all of that back story about the Bloody Baron and whatnot as it detracts from the central necessity of Harry's story line, but I do wish there was a line or two about why Helena wasn’t bothered that Harry wanted to destroy it. “I could never live up to my mother… a disappointment… couldn’t even destroy it…” something so we understand why she’s helping Harry, and why she wants the diadem destroyed

Draco: well done to Tom Felton. He worked the “I’m tortured” face the whole time, and his uncertainty as to which side he should actually be on was rather fab. I really hoped he was going to stay back in Hogwarts when Voldemort taunted people to switch sides, but meh well... I'll take what I can get from Draco.

The fiend fire was a brilliant effect. The way it crashed like water, but destroyed all in its path, took on shapes, the most harrowing of which was Voldemort’s face after the destruction of the diadem. There was a change from fiend fire being able to destroy the horcrux to instead using basilisk fangs, but I’m okay with that. The fiend fire destroying horcruxes always seemed a little convenient to me in the novel anyway J

**Fave moment** After this scene was one of my favorite moments of performance, story-telling, and the positive potential power of adaptation additions. When the diadem is destroyed, both Harry and Voldemort feel it, very strongly. Harry falls on the floor, clearly in some kind of pain as sweat drips down his brow, but he plays it off as “I know where the snake is” to distract from his own suffering, and to move the story along to the next horcrux, but Hermione sees through this. She looks at him solidly, knows there’s more happening here, but doesn’t say anything; she lets him be the self-sacrificing hero.

Voldemort’s weakening: It’s an interesting spin/change how Voldemort becomes weaker, more vulnerable, how even his dark mark disappears (which is odd; as all of the other death eaters are human, and theirs have not faded…hmmm) and more ‘human?’ with each horcrux killed. I don’t recall this from the books. It added to the drama, I think, of him realizing his vulnerability, and desperately trying to hang onto his immortality (perhaps why he randomly “Avada Kedavra-ed” that death eater? Was that a last ditch effort to make another horcrux?).

Move from Shrieking Shack to Boathouse for Snape's end- that’s a fine change. It doesn't affect the story, it gives a neat visual location with rowing shells and oars, and moves the dispute closer to the castle, minimizing massive travel (they just don’t have time for that, really). And also, if you have sharp eyes, there’s a Gryffindor scarf just behind Snape’s head through this whole scene; I can help but wonder if that’s a suggestion as to the shread of good in Snape, or ever-constant presence of Lily.

Snape. Alan Rickman. Snape. What can I say… brilliant. Stunning. His emotional responses made me cry times 2, 3, and 4. The inevitability of his demise, the horrific, violent death (I think it’s worse that we can’t actually see it from the other side of the glass, but we hear it, and see Snape’s shadow thrown up against the window), the pleading cry to look at Harry's eyes, and his sincerity. I’m glad the memory came from him via tears and not through the wounds as it is in the book; this allowed a stronger focus on Snape’s eyes as they desperately tried to lock onto Harry’s/Lily’s, before he died.

The Memories: this montage had a lot of ground to cover in about thirty seconds. I’m listening to this section of the novel on the audio books as I type this, and the film really did encapsulate all of these elements in a very short amount of time, but I didn’t feel like it was rushed. The casting of the children were good matches for the character (and they were at LeakyCon this week; so adorable and enthusiastic!), you could see the rift between the sisters of Lily and Petunia, the sorting hat at Hogwarts separating Lily and Snape, and introducing the rambunctious James, the development of the hate between Potter and Snape, the constant adoration of Snape to Lily, Snape begging Dumbledore to protect them, the flashbacks to the first film (when Harry was so tiny!), Dumbledore deciding his own death (although I missed the “compose your epitaph” line, but that comedy didn't fit in such a heart-wrenching collection of scenes), and his instruction to inform Harry that Harry must die by Voldemort's hand.

Also, it aptly covered Snape’s protection of the boy, and while I don’t think there was reference to Snape finding Lily dead in the novels, that scene was tough one of the most devastating I’ve seen in ages! I was definitely close to wailing, but it was rather a quiet scene… it would have been pretty damn obvious if I started bawling.

It was a beautiful death scene of drama and violence, with redemption and secret heroism for Snape. Plus a brilliant performance by Alan Rickman, who really embodied the depiction of a “man on fire” with love. If you haven’t read his comment on the back of the recent ‘Empire’ magazine, google it. It was beautiful, and packs the emotion, gratitude, and drama that I think we’re all feeling as fans.

Harry’s Acceptance of Death: Harry, after learning that he must die immediately grabs his chest. This was satisfying as I vividly remember the impact of the line in the novel about his pounding chest, how his heart almost knew its beats were numbered. He showed resolute acceptance that he was off to die.

Letting Ron and Hermione in on his Death: I liked the change from the novel where Harry tells Hermione and Ron that he’s heading to the forest now. They’ve been through so much together, it does seem natural to include them in on this massive decision. It was nice to have the recognition from Hermione, and the understanding, and also the goodbye. Although, where was Ron’s hug?! Denied…

However, I also love in the novels that he goes into the forest without anyone knowing. Perhaps a compromise (you know, if I had a say :-p), would be tell Ron and Hermione, have him stalk off, take stock of what’s happened in the Great Hall, see the destruction, the sacrifice, and then he throws the invisibility cloak over him and goes to the woods. Ron and Hermione would still know, but the rest would be unaware of his self-sacrifice.

The Forest: The Open at the Close: The ethereal ghosts were beautiful, and the slow shot of him releasing the stone into the forest undergrowth, dropping his mortal life, and walking bravely into death supported by those that love him… beautiful… and cry #6? 7? I’ve lost count at this point

King’s Cross. I like that it was a subtle suggestion of King’s Cross, and how it got mildly clearer and more defined as Harry and Dumbledore conversed. It was also fun seeing it with the London audience who snickered at the “It looks like King’s Cross, but cleaner” line. It’s true. It did.

I also liked Dumbledore saying “Brave Man” and Harry sans glasses. He’s not naked, as depicted in the novel, but this lack of identifying accessory has a similar effect. It is just Harry; not famous Potter, or The Chosen One, just Harry.

I pictured the crumpled piece of Voldemort to be more like the baby-like thing that Wormtail threw into the cauldron in the fourth film, but this was more like a bog-man. Curled up fetus-like, bloody and pink, but decayed and depleted. Ugh… different than imagined, but very effective. It’s more of a mutilated and mutated form of what it once was.

Narcissa checking on Draco with Harry; I was glad this was still here. It shows the Malfoys as not evil, just made some bad choices (lots of focus on choice) and how difficult it was to get out of those choices once they were so deep into that world.

DISLIKE

Continuity errors: I’m not sure if it was an editing thing or what to make the treasure only multiply and not burn (I think not, as the actors didn’t react), but when they escape off the back of the dragon into the water, surface, and are on dry land, Hermione puts dittany on their hands to cure the wounds from the burning treasure. We know this from the books, but it’s not explained in the films. Therefore it kind of just looks like Hermione is putting anti-bacterial gel on their hands. I suppose you never do know what germs those albino dragons can pick up in the fathoms below London.

Friggin’ Ginny: I’ll try not to harp on about Ginny. But for the love of pete… worst reunion ever. Ron completely saved it with his fab humor about her not seeing him for six months and yet she only has eyes for Harry, but there’s just nothing between Harry and Ginny. It’s more like she caught him in the middle of an awkward act or something, and the kiss had no response, whereas Hermione and Ron's brought down the house.

Slytherin Issue- I’ve a problem here where Prof. McGonagall straight out instructs Filch to take the Slytherins to the dungeon. That is inappropriate, and contrary to the true spirit of Hogwarts. As Harry says at the end to lil’ Albus Severus, Slytherin is a great house, and not necessarily evil. To condemn the whole house because of one tattle tale and a few bad eggs is very un-Dumbledore, and very un-Hogwarts. In the novels, the Slytherins are clearly told “You have a choice. Stay and fight with us, or leave, but do not get in our way.” Their immediate banishment to the dungeons in the film smacks of apartheid.

Um... Teddy Tonks? The loss of Tonks and Lupin was of course devastating, but they are a couple cheated as the films did little to depict their growing and developing relationship. I fully understand the need, as they are non-central characters whose arcs don’t need to distract from Harry’s, and the trio’s, but hello? The baby? It’s mentioned with the circle of loving ‘ghosts’ that walk with Harry into the forest, but that’s it! There’s never actually an announcement of a baby (the half-sentence with the seven Harrys doesn’t count), there’s no mention of Harry as godfather, no mention of his birth, no image of him in the epilogue… I can only assume this is a continuity issue.

No Grawp! No Kreacher! I missed them. Particularly Kreacher with his fab change of heart; I love the image of that lil’ elf running out of the castle, locket bouncing on his chest. This must be due to time and the cost of creating Kreacher scenes, but this, along with Dudley’s change of heart in the first part, are character arcs I missed from the novels.

OF TWO MINDS

Aberforth. I’m of two minds here. The performance was great; there was good resemblance to Albus without being a complete mimic; you can believe that they are merely related but quite different individuals. He explains the mirror in a manner of speaking, which I really wondered about how they’d climb out of that hole, so that was good. The mirror doesn’t have the import, as the audience doesn’t know that Sirius gave it to Harry, and that Harry had hoped that he would see Sirius in it after his death… it just suddenly appeared in Harry’s hand, but it was good to see it on Aberforth’s wall, and I love Hermione’s declaration that “he was watching us, and saved us twice… that doesn’t seem like someone who’s given up.” Very true.

However, there was another missed opportunity for moral import. This is where the audience gains another hint of Albus’s potential for not being an honest, wonderful wizard; that there’s more to him. We get a brief mention of Albus sacrificing many things, we are to infer this is Ariana, but there’s no explanation or discussion of the relationship to Grindelwold (I don’t mean his romantic one per se, but certainly the connection; how Albus got the want, their relationship to eachother as a building block of Albus rising, his potential desires for power, and him ultimately choosing good, although tempted by evil, over ruling power “For the Greater Good” argument and all of that.

However, I LOVED Harry's response. "I don't care about your history, I respected the man that I knew." Decisive, proactive, rational Harry.

The Chamber of Secrets. I’m glad that Hermione and Ron told Harry their plan. I remember being bothered in the novel when they just disappear. I don’t think they’d do that and worry Harry additionally. Plus, that scene was awesome. I thought it a bit of a cop out and convenient with the Parseltongue to open the door with Ron's explanation of “Harry talks in his sleep”… really? But meh, it works.

Once inside, I think there was another minimal cop out as we don’t see the horcrux going after Hermione as it did Ron. It’s difficult, and then there’s retribution with the water, but there’s not the personal torment to Hermione's character as with Ron and Harry in the destruction; it’s just a close call to escape and rather brief. Once the waves die down, however….

The. Kiss.

SO CUTE, and so natural, fitting, great payoff… the whole audience erupted. And their lovely relationship just continued. The little giggle after the kiss, Ron mentioning something Hermione said last year and her befuddlement that he remembered that… the adorable look Herimone threw Ron’s way when he runs after Draco in the Room of Requirement, and their hand holding at the end with Harry's smile of "finally".... it was very natural, and just lovely.

Harry didn't fix his wand!

Meh, I know it shocked and smarted (there were gasps in the cinema tonight), but I just tell myself he fixed it before meeting up with Ron and Hermione.

19 Years Later

Um... hrm... well? Hrm...

I didn't really like this epilogue in the book. It didn't fit, it was too tidy, but I didn't hate it either; it just didn't quite flow for me. So it was similar in the films. Plus I couldn't help laughing at Ginny's bad hair, her shoes, Ron's paunch, Draco's receding hairline... meh; it was cute, and I liked Harry's hug with his son... that part, at least, was sincere, and my first thought was "ah; he has a real family now." For the filmic depictions though, I'm think they as well as they could do. They streamlined the scene (again, no Teddy, but I think we've established that story line is messed up somewhere), and certainly wrapped it all up with a shiny bow.

I once again missed the hero worship moment, however, when people on the platform stare at Harry, the kid asks about it and Ron responds with, "I'm very famous..." comedic relief alongside hero worship. Sigh...

Thanks Jo! It's been a stunning 13 years, and I hope this is just the end of the beginning :)

More to come, I'm sure, and I'd love comments to chat and consider stuff. I'm sure I'll have some more analysis as there are specific scenes I feel I could write a whole book on, but for now... gotta grab a beer with friends and discuss, and lead an adaptation workshop tomorrow.

Sigh. Sweet dreams to all :)

A few questions answered

2011-07-04T08:48:00.000+01:00

I refuse to divulge too much, so you're just going to have to see the kiss and whatnot on your own, as a play by play from me will not be the same thing, and you'll lose that first reaction 'awww' moment. The questions were great though. You asked some things that I was wondering as well, and a few things that I didn't consider but I had immediate answers for, which makes me think the filmmakers knew what they were doing. They anticipated the fan questions and filled in the holes with required material.

So, here are a few bits answered:

Question 1:

Could you tell me specifically which scenes where "horrifically wrong". I don't need spoilers but just the names of the scenes? And was their anything wrong with the final battle?

”Horrifically” may be a bit dramatic… but I was disappointed by a key omission in the final battle scene (the one from the book that is Harry vs. Voldemort, with everyone gathered ‘round, watching the confrontation, and where Harry insists “it has to be like this. It has to be me,” and where Harry offers Voldemort a chance to regret, a chance for remorse and forgiveness, and where we end with an empty, human, mortal shell of a body that was Voldemort… that’s probably more than a hint as to what I’m annoyed about…

Question Two:

1) How was the meeting between Harry, Hermione, Ron and Abeforth? Do you remember any great line from this scene?

My fave line was from Hermione, “That doesn’t sound like someone who’s given up” in response to Aberforth's grumbling. There were a number of omissions here that irked, and a spotty explanation of the mirror, but none of the omissions were destructive to the main throughline of the story. I wish they were there, but they weren’t vitally necessary.

2) Can you describe (the most as you can) the boathouse scene? The place, the lines, how was it, etc.

Sorry, not going to give a play by play. But it was great. There were tears.
3) Did you like the scene of Hermione and Ron in the Chamber of Secrets? What happens when Hermione destroys the Horcrux? Will we see something of Voldemort? How was the kiss?

Bloody brilliant scene. I wish the horcrux was more volatile, i.e. like the locket, because we got to see what Ron truly feared, but that whole scene was phenooomenal. And the kiss… oh the kiss… fab. Natural, giggly, snog-fest.

Question Three:

How was the 3D, was it distracting or horribly converted?

Interesting question. I usually dislike 3D and avoid it at all costs because I find it gimmicky. I hate when they make a scene overly 3D just because it makes people go “oooooo” (i.e. snow falling in people’s laps, the flight in Avatar like a Disney ride…) I find it generally is neat, visually, but it takes the viewer out of the narrative of the film. They’re thinking about the 3D, about the glasses, about the effect, rather than the story.

That being said, I didn’t mind the 3D in this. The only gimmicky moment was during the final battle, when I was already cheesed off by the other stuff mentioned above, so I didn’t really focus on it. The 3D was non-distracting. I think I’d still opt for 2D, but it wasn’t bad at all.

Question Four: Could you please describe what the end credits was like? And did "Leaving Hogwarts" play during the epilogue? Thanks.

The end credits were very simple. No animation as in the earlier films, just white words on black background. And I don’t think I heard “leaving Hogwarts” during the epiologue, but I was too focused on Ginny’s old lady shoes, so I didn’t really notice the soundtrack at that moment.

Question Five: Your description of chemistry was amusing.. any more adjectives for Ron Hermione kiss ;) was it too short? or was it satisfactory enough? And was it Hot enough?

The best adjectives I have for the kiss are natural, passionate, and snog-tastic. Remember Aragorn’s kiss to Arwen on the balcony during 'Return of the King', where he sees her behind the flag, stares for a second, and then just dives in for a fantastic snog? It’s similar J

Question Six:

My question : When Ron sees ** dead, what does he do?? What is Hermione doing then? doesnt she console/hug him or is she hugging harry then?

Again, I won’t say much here. But there were tears. And Ron’s tears initiated many more tears.

Question Seven: Is there enough ron and hermione moments throughout the movie to be satisfied with besides the kiss and handholding moments???thanks!!

They had some great moments. Most were just their little interactions, looks exchanged and whatnot. My fave was after the Chamber of Secrets, when they’re in the Room of Requirement. Keep an eye out for their facial expressions and reactions.

Question Eight: I, too, would love to know if there are a lot of cute Ron and Hermione moments, even before this kiss. The last movie ended with his arms around her, but in the new clip it doesn't seem as if they've gotten any "closer." Are there cute moments between them like the piano one in DH1? Thanks!

Also, someone posted a message saying there was a scene with Ron rubbing ointment on Hermione's arm, was that completely made up?

Definitely good moments, and nice clear hints and explanations (i.e. to Harry, which was another question) that they are together now. Adorbs.

Hm… I don’t recall any ointment. There was a continuity issue after Gringott’s with essence of dittany, but that was Hermione to Harry and Ron… it was like she was giving them hand sanitizer… weird.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2. Initial Reaction, Analysis to Follow

2011-07-02T17:55:00.002+01:00

I’ve just returned from a pre-screening of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 in London. The UK film scene can often be like a big family, and is quite interconnected, so clients, talent, and friends know friends etc, and I've a friend, who works for a script agent, works with Heydey films, and invited me to the preview; yes, I know how bloody lucky I am. I walk under a lucky star, blah de blah, but I think it helps to have great friends in the industry who enjoy sharing and geeking out!

So I’m not going to go into major detail until later. What’s the use of that? Any true fan won’t want spoilers, and it makes me feel like I’m gloating. I will, most definitely work on my analysis, and I’ll write something resembling a review here so you have a taste of my reactions and what’s to come.

It began in Leicester Square at 9am, where we handed over our gorgeous tickets (see above), and were escorted into open seating. There was not a mad rush at all; everyone was just grateful to be there, very patient and quite fun. Plus there was a lot of room, as it was at The Empire cinema in Leicester Square, in one of the largest screens I’ve ever visited.

Once all were gathered, 3D glasses on, note pad and pen poised (pictures of my notes to the right; they’re rather a mess as I was writing in the dark!), David Heyman and the three other execs on Heyday Films came out to thunderous applause. It was the family and friends/Heyday Film Partners day, so there was a lot of support for him and the team as there were many friends and co-workers in the audience. He took the mic, thanked everyone for coming, and for supporting him and the story for the past ten years. He also announced “I don’t see this as the beginning of the end; it’s the end of the beginning.” Which is rather appropriate for a tiny production house that had made nothing close to the realm of Harry Potter prior to this worldwide phenomenon franchise, but it is poised to make huge strides in filmmaking, and certainly in British filmmaking, in the future.

Heyman was brief, grateful, and humble, then quickly moved aside for the film to begin.

I shall not discuss it here.

I will, however, give a quick review.

It was bloody brilliant. Remember my post about Black Swan being a good film but a bad movie? I know Harry Potter is a different kettle of fish entirely, but I’d say it succeeded in being both a good film and a good movie. Including DH: Part 1, I think this film has been the most cinematically beautiful; the performances were grand with many characters, Hermione and Snape in particular, coming into their own, with the only exception in my mind being Ginny. I’m sorry; I’m just not going to be a fan. I’m sure she’s a lovely person, but she just does not fit the part for me, her acting seems quite forced be it down to skill or script, and the chemistry between Harry and Ginny just did not develop, unlike Ron and Hermione’s whose has flourished and grown naturally…. theirs… the kiss… guys… seriously… whoops and hollers; it was bang on lovely, sweet, passionate, giggly…. Lovely.

90% of the film was satisfying, heart-wrenching, funny, poignant, terrifying, suspenseful, teary, correct in spirit to the novel, visual depictions bang on (the protective spells, the dragon, the piece of Voldemort in the Heavenly King’s Cross… wow). Yes, there was 10% that I will wonder about, some continuity issues and questions about why they did that the way that they did, and maybe 2% that I’m really confused/angry/disappointed about (HERO WORSHIP! Where the heck was it? Final battle?! I can’t continue here; it was 98% great, but 2% something was horrifically wrong).

Overall, however, it was a wonderful conclusion to a huge chapter of popular culture, film history, and my own personal life as well as it began when I was a freshman in College in Virginia, and just a Harry Potter fan, and has now ended with me as Head of Development for a production company in the UK, finishing up a PhD in event film adaptation studying Harry Potter amongst other things, and incorporating brilliant, epic, phenomenal storytelling from book to screen in my daily life. It’s been with me on the journey.

More soon; I may respond to some stuff in comments if you want, but for the most part, I try to steer away from reviews and whatnot before seeing a film so I can make my own opinions clearly without any influence from another, so I’ll more than likely let you do the same J

Sigh. What to do for two more weeks until I can see it again at LeakyCon? And then again…and again…

Watch this space.

Hint about what's to come, interesting discussion on Harry's ability to 'feel' the other horcruxes... and I've seen the comments; I'll respond to some tomorrow or Monday as they pose some neat questions. I'm moving in the morning tomorrow, then on a train to Cardiff for a few days, so forgive me if my responses aren't immediate :)

Breaking Dawn Part 1: Trailer Anaylsis

2011-06-09T13:27:00.002+01:00

To quote River Song... Spoliers! Yes, I will discuss Breaking Dawn bits, so if you don't want to know what happens, stop reading.

If you want to refresh yourself with the trailer, it's in the post below this one.

So the trailer... Getting hitched and knocked up never looked so exciting! And I don't mean that in an "I condone this behavior" type of way, but wow... the people who edited together this trailer really earned their paycheck. Breaking Dawn is not a complicated book. In comparison to the other books in the saga, it's a bit longer, but not much more complex. The main component that covers every page with text is discussion about love, self doubt, self realization, emotion, and inner conflict. There's a wedding, a honeymoon, a transformation/birth, a threat, a battle (kinda), and a resolution, but the editors of the trailer made it look truly EPIC.

I still stand by that Breaking Dawn did not NEED to be broken into two films. I don't think Harry Potter 7 required a split into two films, but I really, really think it benefitted from two as it had so much ground to cover-- literally and figuratively. There was a massive journey, a search for multiple horcruxes, people and landmarks, there were various battles, new characters, and complex issues that require background introductions and time to digest (like horcruxes and hallows). Breaking Dawn doesn't really have that complexity. Wedding, honeymoon, pregnant, horrific birth, new life, threat, resolution. There are complex emotions, but not complex plot points.

...That's not a criticism, just a comment. It didn't NEED to be split... but I don't think anyone will really mind, minus those naysayers who are sick of hearing about the phenomenon! They'll get over it... until then, putting Breaking Dawn out in two parts extends the franchise, appeases the fans with a longer shelf life for their obsession, and gives multiple more events for fans to interact with and get pumped up about (DVD releases, theatrical premieres, two more MTV Movie Awards instead of one, two more rounds of TV and print interviews, two years instead of one for merchandise production etc.). Business-wise its a smart move, and most fans will be stoked that they will see more of their favorite novels instead of coming to terms with the vast amounts of info that would have to be cut from the novel to fit into one film.

The split: I've heard it will be part one with Bella as a human, part two as a vampire. I'm guessing the last shot will be Bella opening her eyes-- blood red eyes; perhaps quickly preceded by a cooing baby and a love-struck werewolf downstairs, and I'm guessing that the beginning of Part 2 will begin with Jacob's Point of View... I'm still pondering how they'll do that, but I've some ideas.

Okay, onto the trailer; speculation can happen in the comments or in another post later if anyone feels so inclined :)

Opening screen: In the past, each film has had a color scheme to it (see the bottom of this post) I quite like the blood-red/pinkish hues they're going with here and the literal 'breaking dawn' of the light through the Summit logo.

Threat reminder: We are then giving an extended montage of images of the various characters and camps being presented with a document (we all know what it is, but it's not revealed yet). We start with the Volturi-- a great upshot as the doors open onto the thrones, depicting the Volturi as tall, dominant, and almost god-like; the framing in the door also provides ceremony and pomp, and the music begins to build here. It's rather epic already, and we're only :24 in. We're engaged, reminded about the Volturi threat (interesting that they're first--- Bad guys! Alert! This film has bad guys! It's not all about love!)

Parent reminder: Next it goes to the parents: I love how Charlie looks defeated. Grumbling, not so thrilled, but resigned, and Renee kind of smug (like in the book how she wasn't surprised, and told Bella she was expecting it), and pleased.

--- Cut to the release date ----- (oooo it's all red and black and gives a date to get excited about, and has the ambiguous "on November 18" building suspense (you ask, what? What? What's on November 18?!)

Other Love Reminder: Remember that other guy? Yup, he's still here too. Shirtless, of course, and pissed that his love is marrying a Cold One. It's in the rain, perhaps echoing his emotions, his dad following him into the downpour, calling out to him, and Jacob just too angry to respond or care; immediately stripping and going wolf. We're reintroduced to this conflict, we are shown that he's upset and running away... and he's shirtless. Again.

The Reveal: Ooooo an invitation! Squeal! Emotional wedding!

--- cut to: "You are Cordially Invited"-- this is great; it breaks up the trailer, gives the viewer pauses and beats to engage with the material, and it directly involves the viewer/fan in the trailer. On November 18, YOU are invited ----

Now it all gets a bit fast...

Shot of the aisle, guests strewn around-- I've two things here

1) It's quite identical to the images splattered around the internet of inspirations for a Twilight wedding; it incorporates the beautiful outdoor elements alluded to in the text, really bringing the lush nature established in Hardwicke's Twilight through to this fourth installment; this is a good matching of textual description and audience expectation.

2) Did you catch Stephenie Meyer, Wyck Godfrey (producer) and Melissa Rosenberg (screenwriter) in the congregation? In front of Boo Boo Stewart, second to last row, on the left. Cute.

Shot of Bella gripping Charlie's arm: even the nervous energy Stewart emits screams Bella; shots to her ring, to her 1918-esque hair comb, huge, epic choir music beginning to build, operatic voices enter and build... all of these elements rise to the big reveal of:

The reluctant but stoked bride.

Cut to:

"From the World Wide Bestseller" -- this gives another beat, and restates the drama, the epic-ness of this story, and it establishes the continuing phenomenon.

Rio: The next shot of Rio de Janeiro introduces the entry to the honeymoon location (true to the book), and incorporates the first dialogue of the trailer (of course it's Pattinson/Edward). "We'll start with forever"... I'm guessing these are his vows.

The Headboard: Of course that had to be in the trailer... the hottest PG-13 moment in teenage girl history. And we've seen the shot with the feathers, so we know that makes it into the film as well (this is definitely a match of fan expectation here; you better believe fans will be looking forward to their first moments together). So we've got smashing headboards, shots of them in bed, and then cutting to red words on a black backdrop:

----FOREVER---

Then a beautiful, idyllic shot in the waterfall....

----IS ONLY THE BEGINNING--- it sounds sweet, doesn't it? But actually, it's a transition tool to bring THE THREAT back into the shot as we immediately cut to one pissed-off Volturi, a PJ-clad, worried Edward, a dejected and wandering Jacob, people being thrown all over the place, and then... the music dies down... and we get this:

Our girl is knocked up. Good dramatic cap to the building tension, building music, they quickly take us through the wedding, the honeymoon, the conflicts and the threat... and then lay on the crazy element of a vampire pregnancy. She's stunned, but seems in awe with the fact (in line with the book) and then there's Edward:

How's that for a "man on fire" look? He looks slightly constipated, but I think you can begin to see that Dad is not very thrilled about this fact...

Cut to:

Titles (just in case you weren't sure which trailer you were watching) and I enjoyed the well-timed chimes-- chime 1 for the title, chime 2, about two seconds later, for the "Part 1." Even just stating the "Part 1" aspect raises the stakes as it leads the viewer to expect something epic, a la Harry Potter 7: 1.

All in all, it's a well put together trailer that makes teenage marriage and a surprise baby seem like the plot of a Die Hard movie.

I certainly have my reservations, but I'm still stoked and rather happy with the look and pace of things thus far. But reservations-- I think this book was a fun read, but it read like fan fiction a lot of the time-- which I thoroughly enjoyed; it's fun to spend time with your characters and go on pages and pages of exploration into their head-- but it's not as plot driven as the other books. I think splitting it into two could be problematic, and I'm guessing that they will spend a lot of the first movie re-establishing the threat of the Volturi, and cutting away to introduce the extended coven that will play a larger role in part 2 (The Denali clan, the Amazons, the Irish posse etc.).

We shall see, eh? Until then, I'm thesis-ing my FACE off (not really, but it feels like it), trying to finish by September. I'll be presenting on adaptation at Leaky Con this summer and leading a workshop there (anyone coming?), and things are really starting to roll with Elfin Productions, more on that soon too. So, as I finish up my thesis, the next chapter of life is beginning.

I'm glad that my next life-chapter doesn't involve a vampire baby.

(p.s. All screenshots taken from the IMDB spotlight trailer)

Just in case you haven't seen it yet...

2011-06-06T13:45:00.003+01:00

The first Breaking Dawn trailer has hit the internet and all are in a kerfuffle over busting headboards and Little Nudgers :)

Link to the trailer here, or you can just watch it below

I'm going to take a break from PhD Thesis Land later today or tomorrow to provide a little trailer analysis since I haven't done that in an age and there's all sorts of fun stuff to discuss with this. It'll be a nice distraction from genre theory and practical applications of adaptation and remediation on popular event film culture....zzzzz... yup... welcome to my life.

Watch out for the cameo of Wyck Godfrey (producer), Melissa Rosenberg (screenwriter), and Stephenie Meyer (if you need me to tell you who she is, I'm not really sure why you're at my blog :) at the wedding scene. Back row, on the left.

The Royal Wedding

2011-05-01T22:48:00.000+01:00

Can this shot BE more British?

I'm departing a bit from my normal film analysis/industry observations, because I think it's also important to occasionally acknowledge the other aspect of my life which is of an American studying abroad in the UK. It was this aspect that was in full, fabulous light this past weekend as I was in London to join with the world in celebrating the marriage of Catherine Elizabeth and William Arthur Philip Louis :)

It. Was. Brilliant.

I got down there on Thursday evening and met up with my pal Lindsey, a royal-aficionado (really, it was like having my own personal pop up video of royal history and even gossip; fun!). I was staying at her place right next to Victoria station. Thursday was chill; a glass of wine, pad thai, and discussion about the following day's plans. We knew we had to get there early, but didn't feel it was necessary to join the masses camping out on the parade route. We're keen, but not so keen that we needed to pitch a tent for the night :)

Tent City by Westminster

We did, however, take a stroll down to Westminster to see the action, the preparations and decorations, and take a look at where it would all go down the next day. This was my first hint at the fun to come. Everyone was so happy. Enthusiastic, polite, buzzing, but more than anything else, HAPPY. It was great! There was a media village put together of vans, reporters, camera and sound people, tons of tents, and wandering enthusiasts breaking into cheers, high fives, and lovely conversations. People were nothing but pleasant, and there was a real sense of community in those little makeshift towns. It was fabulous.

Ahh...perfect picnic

Then we prepped our picnic for the following day (tuna sandwiches, Victoria sponge cake, scones, strawberries and cream, bubbly... can you GET more British?), and then went to bed, as our wake up call was 6am!

We figured we'd head to Green Park tube station and see where the crowds were wandering too. We wanted to be by a big screen so we could see everything, and were more interested in that than being on the parade route where we'd have to camp out all day for only a possible glimpse as they rode/drove by.

Our spot (and after access was closed, obvi)

So coming out of the tube station, straight in front of us, was a flippin' HUGE screen, and a barely-filled field. So that was our home for the next seven hours! Blanket laid, picnic prepped... we were ready. The coverage started shortly after that, and more, and more people began filling up the previously empty park. I went for a wander to Buckingham Palace (about 100 yards away), saw the parade route, the crowds already five deep at 8am, Union Jack flags everywhere, and more children in tiaras and princess gowns, women in wedding dresses, men in full suits of armor... it was fab!

Shiny armor

Best. Dress. Ever.

I really love any situation where this many people come together and are enthusiastic about a positive thing. The crowds at Twilight events, fans at Harry Potter releases, and a country on a wedding day! We became pals with those around us, enjoyed watching the little girl in front of us wearing her flag dress, and cheering with the crowds as excitement built.

The viewing party

When William left Clarence House everyone cheered, when the first shots of Westminster appeared there were oohs and ahhhs, and the crowning moment (pardon the pun) was when Kate stepped out of the car. I'm not gonna lie, and this will sound cheesy, but honestly she stepped out, and then the sun came out. The whole park looked up at the sky and then broke out into cheers. It was amazing! People are making cheesy claims about 'it being Diana' which may be true for those that wish to believe it, but regardless... it was a very WOW moment. Her dress was stunning... I still think she was a little too skinny (apparently she was surviving on Winegums during the week before the wedding; William said she was too nervous!), but hot damn she wore that dress well. Her arms looked gorgeous in the lace, hair, makeup, and a blingin' tiara didn't hurt the look either :) Beautiful!

Props Pippa, props...

I think Pippa deserves an award for having the most challenging dress (it's not easy to move in a mermaid tail!), wearing heels, and holding the hands of three year-old flower girls down an aisle, bending down to get the train... she definitely had the trickiest jobs, I think!

I love a little pomp and ceremony, and the fanfare really set that off. We bought a bunch of programs (for ourselves and family souvenirs), so we could sing along with the hymns, read along with the prayers, it really gave a feeling that we were at the service too; talk about participatory culture! It felt like the sanctuary extended to every park/television screen that was watching, particularly when you're watching it with thousands of reacting people; cheering, singing, dabbing away tears, and popping bubbly.

The bubbly bit was a favorite moment. It was during the vows, when they said 'I know pronounce you man and wife,' and throughout the entire park you just heard cheers and 'Pop! Pop! Pop!' It was fabulous. So we poured our bubbly in our Union Jack cups, sang the national anthem, and then treated ourselves to lunch and a Victoria sponge cake whilst we waited for the kiss.

British Queuing at its finest

Side story: I love the British and their queuing ability. Anywhere else that would have been a disorganized mess; but no, it was lovely. It was waiting in this queue that I also realize how bloomin' close we were to the action. I looked to my left, and there was the Queen Victoria memorial, which is the fountain right in front of Buckingham Palace where tons of people were now crowing around to watch the kiss. Another side note, I also loved how calmly everyone walked down the Mall to the palace; it was orderly, sedate, and there were no mobs, shoving, or stampedes. Yay!

Of course the kiss was adorable, and it was pleasant to be treated to two! My fave moments of that whole part though were when Kate first stepped onto the balcony and said, "Oh wow!" It was a very human moment. And also when William looked at her and said, "Shall we do it again" followed by the second kiss. Uber cute, and such fun to have the crowd's reaction.

Lastly, I got super teary when the planes flew overhead. These old planes which helped save the UK during World War 2, alongside the new-era protective planes, closely followed by the yellow Sea King helicopter that William flies in (with my friend Ally as his captain who was invited to the wedding itself, actually; so it was fun having a friend on the inside to spot on TV and hear stories about the inside after the fact)... anyway... I got teary at the planes. Also because we were watching them in the screen, and then all of a sudden there they were, over our heads! We were watching exactly what they were watching... So close! Oh it was so exciting.

I just can't get over how happy, friendly, and united everyone was. We hear nothing but gossip and disaster and blerg-ness on the news, so it was fabulous to have a bit of pageantry, camaraderie, politeness, and a shared enjoyment of a wedding; even for just a moment to come together over something centered around love, history and pageantry, but also looking forward into progression, hope/future of the monarchy and faith in humanity type stuff.... heady, I know, but SUCH fun.

"It should have been me" Cute.

The rest of the day was celebrating, of course. Bubbly and strawberries on the roof deck, a pint in the local, and watching updates all day long about the wedding, and the couple's current movements. I'm so glad I went; definitely a wonderful life experience, I'll remember it forever, and it renewed my faith in humanity a smidge. That whole huge day with no mishaps except smiles on our faces :)

Celebratory pub

Swag I purchased: programs, key chains, a mug, four biscuit tins, a replica of her ring (yup; cheesy I know, but it makes me smile :)

I realize they're money-makers blah de blah, but you know what? They're also keepsakes and story-starters. Well worth the few quid I spent!

Sigh... now back to reality, production progressions, international interviews, life decisions, house hunting, and oh yeah.... thesis-writing.

THOR: One Thunderous god

2011-04-26T15:46:00.002+01:00

So previews for Thor started last night in the UK, and how on earth could I NOT go?! Superheros and pre-release and supernatural awesomeness... oh my!

Firstly, there was a trailer for Captain America, and I've just been hanging onto that blog post. I was able to visit the set of Captain America in November, but I had to sign my life away and am sworn to secrecy until its released... sorry! But it was super exciting to see on the big screen, mostly to see some of the scenes that I saw being filmed but now with all of the finalizing and special effects added in. It looks amazing.

Right, so that was fun, but back to THOR! I had absolutely no preconceptions, which I'm starting to love when going into a superhero movie. I knew Branagh was directing (weird, right? From the otherwise classic Shakespearean-type actor), Natalie Portman was the girl, and Thor looked hot. Plus he was Chris Hemsworth, the guy from the beginning of Star Trek, and I'm a fan of that.

So initial reactions? It was bloody brilliant! I like the more fantastical/mythical elements of this story (grounded in Norse myth; Iron Man can't quite vouch the same saga-esque beginnings), and the parallels of the fantasy world with the known world-- i.e. a Portal Fantasy. The film was fun, with great timing by the actors with comic jokes and good pacing from the script writers; the characters are well-developed and fun from the headstrong Thor to his goofy but loyal friends, and the tortured good/bad Loki; there were shiny costumes involving cloaks, ab-plates, and flannel, beautiful special effects (I loved the rainbow road, the traveling between worlds, the clouds, and the cosmos), and overall it was a fun, escapist but satisfying way to spend an evenint!

Favorite things:

Characters- Thor was bordering on hysterical genius when he was first stuck on Earth. Bumbling through a hospital, smashing a coffee cup on the floor of a diner and demanding another (in true Viking style), and his slow but steady journey to worthy and good god/leader.

His buddies at the window when they arrive to help him cracked me up... Erik (Stellan Skarsgard) of course is the stereotypical casting choice for anything involving Norse/Viking backgrounds, but it works a treat and I loved him after he and Thor went drinking. Classic.

The Hammer- It would have been so easy to make that bit of wood and metal look cheap and cheesy, and it was awesome. I was reminded of Captain America's shield and I know the work that went into that, so I assume it was a similar process for the hammer. It rocked! Super badass, I loved that it had a loyalty to its owner and power in the hero's hand (similar to Sting, Excalibur, sword of Gryffindor, the million other mythical weapons), and when he whirled it around to make a cyclone-- kickin'.

Set Design- the town in New Mexico was atmospheric, and realistic, but looked dressed enough that it allowed you to suspend some belief. The distressed signs were a little too quaint, the barber shops and cafes a little too designed so that you could believe it was an easy lead-in to a replica in an amusement park. Contrast to that was the stunning world of Asgard. It was like Rivendell, but more blingin'. Lots of gold, silver, prismic glass and technological aspects that were more Star Wars than Middle Earth. It was hard to tell where the set ended and the CGI began, and that is a feat unto itself.

Storyline- I liked how so many elements were handled, how loose ends were tied up, but also how small elements were referred to and introduced that we know come from the Marvel universe and could lead into The Avengers. There was a reference to Stark Enterprises weapons technology, Samuel L. Jackson appears, as does SHIELD and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) who we know will be in The Avengers.

Sweet!

Music- I'm a sucker for a good score, and whilst I think some of the soundtrack choices are a bit off, the themes and background score from Patrick Doyle (HP: GOF, Eragon, Calendar Girls, etc.) were lovely.

Not so Favorite Things:

I have to say the only real negative I have is the women in the film. Yes, one of his pals was a kickass woman, Sif (Jaimie Alexander), but she still had to wear a teeny miniskirt (lame) and played backup to the other four men in these scenes; and Natalie Portman was a genius astro physist-- great! Really, she's got brains, good, cool, nice... but then she goes gooey within ten seconds of seeing Thor, compromises herself for him, abandons self preservation and the potential future continuation of her work by taking him to the SHIELD-covered site where his hammer is located, and she continues to be a bit panicky, weepy, pathetic/in need of rescue. Blerg.... So close, Marvel, so close...

That's all I'm gonna say at this point. I've gotta see it again, and don't wait to give any spoilers before my friends can see it; they may kill me if I reveal too much.

In the meantime, Joss Whedon and co. are starting up with The Avengers now (oh, and by the way, make sure you stay through the credits at the end of Thor-- it's worth it), and that shall be the next major excitement/goal post for Superhero movies I think :) Win!

Travel, Jobs, Writing... sanity? What's that?

2011-04-12T06:02:00.002+01:00

The view out of my window at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel

I'm summing up me in a few lines, then will move onto other interesting bits, so skip this part unless you really do fancy hearing about my nutso life at the moment! I'm currently working about six jobs, and they're all kicking my ass. I'm loving and committed to them all at the moment, however, so I shall deal with the insanity for a few more months whilst I finish this blasted PhD and then winnow down to two jobs.

So, jobs: International Welfare assistant, Central's International Program assistant, student warden (like an R.A.), PhD student, International Student Ambassador, and head of development for Elfin productions (Yes, it's official!). The last three are the real time-consumers, and the last two are the ones that will most likely become permanent. I won't be an 'ambassador', but I'll still travel to the US to discuss UK education as I'm really committed to sharing the opportunities, particularly at Bangor, of studying in the UK, and I'm absolutely committed to development for Elfin. It's my dream job; reading scripts, finding talent, making stories better, considering ways to strengthen characters and aspects of the story, finding dream projects to add to the list of eventual adaptations and discover hidden projects from talented individuals... I love it.

Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel- like the Tower of Terror :)

SO... what have I been up to right now? I'm traveling the US on behalf of Bangor University attending fairs, talking to students, teaching classes about film adaptation and how to get into film, and catching up with family and friends. Love. Oh yeah, and writing my thesis in every spare second. I started in LA, then San Francisco, Portland OR, New York, now I'm in Boston, and up to New Hampshire on Thursday before returning to Wales.

Ahhh iconic

In LA I had a few film meetings, met some prospective writers, discussed potential films and projects with producers and companies... it was really interesting. It was definitely inspiring, but you can also see how much work needs to happen before anything can more forward. I'm quite used to the UK system, well, at least the UK system that I've been exposed to, that what you propose, you actually plan to move forward with. Some of the meetings I absolutely believed that sentiment. The participants were committed, deadlines would be met, and this could happen... others it was a 'who are you and wouldn't it be nice if we could do something...' and I feel like many people in the industry could spend their entire lives in meetings... with no production! Hours and hours of script development, treatment creation, meetings, coffees, chats, ideas, thoughts, funding prospects... very, very few things are a done deal. Ever. But honestly, it's okay.... it's all part of the process :)

Me and the professional Disney-goers

In this random, somewhat scattered post, I'm gonna throw out my thoughts that came up about a film's adaptation and my trip to Disneyland. So I'm going to Harry Potter world this summer for Leaky Con, I've certainly been to Disney World many times whilst growing up, and I realized a childhood dream by going to Disneyland for the first time EVER two weeks ago. It was SO much fun. I had a meeting that morning with a producer who has done a few Disney and Disney-esque productions so I was already in the mood from being inspired to making feel-good films, and the gang I went to the park with were professional Disney-goers. They knew the layout, we had goals, a plan, we could recite the elevator monologue at The Haunted Mansion, and there was a scheduled churro time. Love it. It was amazing. SO much fun. We did Space Mountain, Thunder Mountain, Indiana Jones (loved it... particularly the boulder part), Pirates (weird to see Johnny Depp on the ride, as I haven't seen it since the post-film refurbishment), The Matterhorn, and, my favorite, The Haunted Mansion.

Haunted Mansion. Love it.

So let's break these down: The Haunted Mansion was made into a film, although a somewhat unpopular one. It mad a ton of cash (made $178 million on a $90 million budget), Indiana Jones was a film first and then a ride where Harrison Ford appears in the ride, telling you what to avoid and what to do during your adventure, and of course, the fabulous chaos that has exploded from the very successful Pirates films. The pirates ride was just as lovely as I remember it from my childhood trips to Disney World, but this time there were four Johnny Depps around, a teeny story line about trying to find and catch him throughout the ride, and a quick flash to Davy Jones. I can handle those minimal changes to my childhood memories. Much like a decent adaptation, I understand the evolution of the story to incorporate new fans, and the expanding necessities that come along with a visual media (film) affecting other remediations of that story... there are different pictures in people's minds when they think about Pirates of the Carribean, so the ride should reflect that; so whilst it was new and weird... it was also okay.

But aside from the big shiny rides, you can't help but notice some of the other bits and bobs... and changes... that have happened. There was a new Tangled Ride, A New Orleans type area that was straight from The Princess and the Frog, and The Swiss Family Robinson house (a film I grew up on, and it was vague-enough that I could truly lose myself as a child in this magical tree house) is now Tarzan's tree house. Awha?? Apparently kids don't know about The Swiss Family Robinson anymore... harsh.

There was something so lovely about an entire place that allows you, as a "grown up" to completely lose yourself in a story, in a set, in props, paint, fake cobwebs or facsimile mine shafts and succumb to giggles, shrieks, laughter, and just a darn good time with friends, in a lovely location, experiences rides and shows based off of films and stories from other walks of life. It's a remediation of a that you can participate with and experience as a player in the story (Indiana Jones) or as a tag-along observer (Pirates, Haunted Mansion). There's a sublime pleasure in that!

So I'm stoked to see Harry Potter's Wizarding World, particularly during Leaky Con, with thousands of the most focused and die-hard fans around, when the final, FINAL film is released. It's most definitely going to be an experience, and I'm ready to hang up my analytical, PhD hat for a smidge and just be a carefree goon again, but also to see a different remediation of a beloved text (yes... there will be some minimal analysis) :)

Sorry, that's it for now! Need to go to bed! I'm doing a NACAC fair in Boston tomorrow and Wednesday all day, then teaching at Waltham High School and Wellesley College on Thursday, then heading up to New Hampshire for some serious thesis work and teaching at Plymouth State and Dartmouth on Monday. Win! Busy as bugger, but it's super fun. It's nice to talk to students about what I've done, what I'm doing now, and how I didn't have a plan for any of it... I just kept following my gut and bliss (to quote Joseph Campbell) and it's taken me somewhere I love, with projects I can pursue, be proud of, love and create, but also pay the bills, travel, and look beyond the shiny veneer.

Things I'm contemplating discussing here (feel free to weigh in):

Hunger Games (casting, my work with the series, etc.)

How books are found by filmmakers

Thesis writing (not likely until the bugger is done; I don't really want to spend a ton of external time pondering it!)

The Twilight Illustrated Guide

My co-edited Twilight Anthology of Essays (with the publishers finally!)

Superman (new film coming out)

Captain America, Thor, Avengers... those are stewing

Cult Projects (With ComicCon coming up I've been thinking about cult films: Rocky Horror, Dr. Horrible, Boondock Saints...)

Controversial Adaptation: Atlas Shrugged; why some are made, and made in a certain way

Development: What goes into it

The musings continue... my next few posts are bound to be random, scattered, or reactionary... that seems to be all my brain can handle! At least for the next six months or so whilst this blasted PhD is finished!

To finish, a site that brings me sanity... the Oregon coast. Siiigh :)

Update on the life of a (nearing the end?) PhD student...

2011-03-11T01:47:00.001Z

My PhD in dry-erase board form

Yes, I know it's March. Yes, I know I haven't posted since January. Yes, I'm sorry. But you know what? LAST SIX MONTHS OF MY PhD! I've been told for years that this is when it truly gets crazy, and you know what? It's true. It's not like the work has escalated; that's always been there, that's always been a constant. But my relationship to the work has gotten crazier. Some days its a good relationship, some days its a bad one, and after the bad days it somehow cajoles you back and you're sucked into its clutches again... sigh. All I know is that I considered giving up wine for Lent (I'm not really all that religious, I just like the challenge) and then I giggled... 'cause that's not gonna happen for a few months.

Anywho, PhD is.... going... I'm not going to say well or poorly, it's simply going at this stage. My one piece of advice to people considering a PhD? Make sure you LOVE your topic. There's no way I could make it through this process if I wasn't a huge fan of films, and truly interested in the adaptation processes of popular literature.

So, no big news or film thoughts at the moment. I think I'm currently working five jobs: PhD student, International Student Ambassador, International Office assistant, International Office Welfare Officer, Warden. PhD is the only full time job; the others are as needed... the things you do to make it through!

www.elfinproductions.com

There have been some rather awesome developments in my film world, however. It looks like I may have a definite dream job lined up post-PhD, and possibly two. I'm going to hold off a tiny bit longer until I announce anything, but methinks it'll be swell and add all sorts of dimensions to my understanding of the filmmaking process. And it might just start with an 'E' and end in an 'lfin' :)

I'm currently writing up a chapter about fans' uses of fansites, Facebook and Twitter, as well as the case study section of Twilight's adaptation from the film maker's point of view. Fans will be next, and then what those two aspects together created.

My life... at least it looks like Hogwarts

Side-note- I'm heading to LA at the end of the month for some film meetings, then doing some recruiting for my University in Portland OR, NYC, Boston, and New Hampshire. CanNOT wait to get Stateside and write up some of this thesis from favorite pubs, coffee shops, and friend/family homes. YAY.

Keep on keepin' on, folks. I'll try to. In the meantime, I'm eternally grateful for Gilmore Girls, Firefly, Masterchef, Doctor Who, and sudoku. They keep me going :-D

The REAL King's Speech

2011-01-27T23:48:00.001Z

I just had to share... how fab is this? I love comparing the original to the copy; it's a real-life adaptation. I think Colin Firth's stammer was quite a bit more prominent than this, but you can still see the difficulty in getting the words out, and the mannerisms to get through the speech (the rolling on the feet, pausing etc.). It's also interesting to see the faces of the audience. Certainly not inspired... patient perhaps? I also wonder if it is edited; it jumps quite a bit, and that could be down to rudimentary filming techniques, or from editing to minimize the pauses?

The first two minutes are pretty painless (unlike the film where the stammer starts right off the bat). But after the two minute mark, you start to see the difficulty in getting through the speech.

And the trailer below has some of this speech in it.

A Week with Film Agency for Wales

2011-01-25T19:54:00.001Z

So I'm in Cardiff this week, where I haven't been for about nine years, and I'm thoroughly enjoying it! The Film Agency for Wales was kind enough to have me 'round for a week of script development experience. Thus far it's been bloody brilliant! I can't talk about specific scripts, but it's been rockin' to see how things come together, how stories get funded, and how many people are involved in the daily process and creation of a film.

Yesterday I met Tracy Spottiswoode and Adam Partridge, and they investigated my purpose for the week, and what I hoped to get out of it. Honestly, I was just looking for some experience and exposure. Whilst doing a PhD involving film practice, it's hard sometimes to put what you're doing into context. It's very easy to get stuck in the theory and discussion, and forget how it actually happens, so I was super grateful just to sit quietly at a desk and see how the office functions.

But I'm getting a heck of a lot more than that.

On just the first day I went along with Tracy and Adam to meet with a writer that they are interested in supporting. The agency supports Welsh talent or projects, basically, but it is quite competitive and thus far I've been most impressed that what they focus on is the STORY. Not the product tie-ins, not the marketing, not the money-making pitch, it's about the story; the characters, the voice... it's refreshing to hear so much care and interest about the projects! The writer just spoke for about 30 or 40 minutes about three ideas she had mulling around in her head, and after each one, we would list pros and cons, references to things that might help her develop the ideas into a tight, cohesive script. The whole meeting was just a focused, organized brainstorming session about how to make neat ideas better. Fab.

Today was all in the office, more 'mundane' work but I still found it infinitely interesting as I could see what projects are on their slate, what the range of topics they focus on (everything from comedy to musicals, documentaries and fiction), and the range of funds required for involvement as well as full, detailed budgets and how funds are dispersed once a film starts making money (assuming it makes money!).

So I've read six scripts thus far, I've three more to read tonight, and the next three days are filled with development meetings. I'm wicked grateful for the opportunity, and I hope they don't mind me being around! Plus they're so stinkin' nice! Yay UK Film culture. They're wicked supportive and friendly thus far... I'm gonna stick with the conviction that they're all nice and supportive. I'm loving sitting in on these meetings and being encouraged to share my thoughts as well, thus making me contemplate some more work in script development after the PhD is done. We shall see...

Added bonus? It's like two blocks from Torchwood's base :)

More at the end of week, most likely!

The King's Speech

2011-01-21T02:22:00.003Z

Oh The King's Speech. It was beautiful. I love historical dramas. Full stop. I love them. When you take a historic moment in time with which we are all familiar, like the start of WW2 (no, I wasn't alive then, but we all know the basics), and give me a personal story of trials and triumph, Colin Firth is involved, and then you throw in Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bonham Carter and the monarchy? I'm donefor. I'm in. Take me away I need to see it. And oh boy did The King's Speech deliver. You really don't need to me say that, you've seen the nominations and reviews, but there were a few cinematic moments and story telling scenes I wanted to point out.

I loved the 'in this space we are equals' sentiment. If the King of England (or soon to be) wanted anything accomplished, he had to be on the same level as the common man. He had to do silly things like roll around on the floor and scream out of the window; it made the monarch human. As a side note, I really wish it was socially acceptable to have curse words coming out of your phone, because if it were, I would have Colin Firth screaming obscenities as my text alert tone. Brilliant.

The conversation shots in Lionel's office between Firth and Rush were also beautiful. It's a medium-wide shot with the subject off center, and a sparse and deteriorating background (the paint is peeling off in layers). This shows the subject, but shows it as slightly off; something is wrong (speech impediment? Fear? Lying about qualifications? Distant? Unsharing? Guarded?). The cut-away quick editing effect also illustrated that nothing was seamless. Everything took effort, as did every word that left Bertie's lips.

The score was GORGEOUS. Well done Alexandre Desplat. You are quickly growing in my list of genius composers (Twilight fans, he did New Moon and Harry Potter: Deathly Hallows, 1 & 2). I can't stop listening to 'The King's Speech' (name of the track) and Beethoven's Symphony no. 7, 'Speaking Unto Nations'- yes, this is Beethoven, not Desplat, but it's still gorgeous, and tells a story in this score. Simple progression that is thematic enough to remain consistent and familiar to the listener, but unique enough to allow the listener to identify which emotion and story element that music accompanied. Lovely!

Some of the imagery of tiny elements was also great. The size of the microphones he had to deal with; they were imposing, dominating most of the frame, and intimidating. They honestly looked like a threat, and the settings where they were located, were open (the cavernous room where his father gave the Christmas address), or full of expectant listeners (the stadium). This made him more vulnerable, under scrutiny, and the awkward pauses oh so much more awkward. Thus I loved the room that Lionel had created for the King's speech at the end. He made it feel 'cozy' and therefore slightly less frustrating. The king found his voice, Lionel found a job, a Queen helped her King rise to his position, and a nation found a monarch of which it could be proud. Rockin'. Well done.

I think I need to re-watch Firth's Golden Globe acceptance speech now. I love the "surprisingly robust triangle of manlove." Lordy... lovely.

So yes, I LOVED the King's Speech, and want more. ASAP. I think I may have to see it again this weekend... lush.

Black Swan... no one warned me that it was a horror film!

2011-01-01T20:13:00.000Z

Just a quickie, because I needed to hash out some thoughts...

Black Swan.

Beautiful film.

Bad movie.

I make the distinction that a movie is something that you'd want to have your girlfriends around for; dudes on a sofa with a beer, or a moment of escapism, adventure, entertainment and thrills that you want to relive and explore. It might make you think, laugh, or cry, but it's story and entertainment at its core (for me... this is not a Webster definition).

A film, however, is a piece of art. Every moment is thought of at length, details are never accidental, and camera angles mean something. A film can be a movie, and a movie can be a film, but some are just movies (Center Stage, Speed Racer, Sixteen Candles), and some are just films (Talk to Her, A Clockwork Orange). Black Swan is a brilliant film. Not such a good movie.

I do not want to relive this film. I found my stomach in knots for the full two hours. I was looking inward at my own demons, breathing with her, moving with her, on the verge of some tragic or wonderful emotion throughout the whole thing... all things that signify a great film. I do love it when I need a moment to collect myself during the credits before leaving. At this point, it's hard for me to not overanalyse a film and lose myself in a story, so when something does affect me like that, I like it. It means it has done something to allow me to transcend the audience member role that I am filling, and instead, forces me to exist in that film in some capacity. That's a great film.

Great moments:

The pervasiveness of the Swan imagery and sounds was incredible. The tune on her music box, the tone on her cell phone, the original score took multiple themes from Tchaikovsky's score and reinterpreted it; manipulated and contorted it so it was throughout the entire film, and the repetitiveness of it started to add to the maniacal basketcase-ness of it as well. It was all you heard, it was in your head, driving, pounding, and wearing you down. Image-wise, it was the stuffed toys in her perpetual-child bedroom, the tile behind her head in the bath tub, the gooseflesh (swan flesh) that rippled over her body, and the feathers and costumes-- feathers on her scarf, the white swan dress at the gala, and Lily's black dress there as well contrasting her; also the black top from Lily that she put on when they went out for drinks and psychedelic encounters. It was the black on the white, infiltrating her psyche and therefore her performance.

Plus the camera work. It was often very close-up, and almost always moving. That gives the feeling of being unsettled, and not sure of what's going on, because we can only see what is really close. It was invading my personal space. I kept wanting to take a step backwards to view the scene, but I couldn't which forced me into a bit of the maniacal headspace that Portman occupied. It also kept moving (a hand-held camera) thus making it unstable, dizzying and confusing at times.

And of course the special effects. Lily morphing into Nina and vice versa, which always makes you as a viewer question what is real and what is not. The painting shifted, the shadows moved, and the reflections in the mirrors did not match the human figure in front of them (this has always scared me... I shall avoid mirrors for a week or so).

And her eye makeup. I want to do that eye makeup. At least once in my life.

All in all I enjoyed the final experience because it moved me as good art should. Good cinema, theater, or music is often akin to a religious experience to me; I experience something outside of myself that makes me look inward. This, although it made me think of unsettling and disturbing elements of human nature, it still evoked that reaction from me, which I find impressive in a work of film.

I definitely recommend seeing it, but not if you have any history of mental health issues. The gorgeous dancing is not enough to overshadow the dark exploration into Nina's psyche!

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows... Part two... of Part one

2010-12-11T12:59:00.002Z

Okay, I'm going to sum up the rest, as I waxed on a little long in the first part, and I have other things I want to blog about (Fangbanger/VILF conference, Dawn Treader, Love at First Sight... yikes, lots to do, and oh yeah... my thesis... right).

So I'm going to jump into the ministry scenes.

Things I liked: getting flushed into the ministry ('Ron's' face and comment of “that's disgusting” was rather funny, and broke the tension of that scene with a truly 'Ron' comment), I also liked the muggles being crushed in the fountain (well, I didn't like it, but it was effective), and I loved the distraction outside of Umbridge's office; those bumbling devices were flippin' hysterical.

I also liked the small prop touches of the horror books in Umbridge's desk: When Muggles Attack and the like; clever. I thought the chase at the end was very well shot, especially the shots on Ron. It was super intense, and beautifully done with the slow motion movement. Also, it is here in the courtrooms that we first see and hear the true horcrux. I rather liked the noise that it made; an ear-splitting, high pitched squeal, like the noise a TV can make when it's on the fritz. It was enough to be annoying and thus show you that its menacing, bothersome, and not at all just a pretty trinket. I also like the way that it moved when the trio were trying to destroy it, or when Harry, Nagini/Bathilda, and the locket were all in the same room (3 horcruxes in one room! Oh my!) and it jumped a bit on his chest. Very cool.

Right... getting distracted.

Things I missed: I was once again bothered by the lack of Moody-- it should be a big deal that Harry steals the eye out of the door, because it shows that Umbridge was somehow involved in his murder, and again, gives us that lovely scene where Harry buries the eye, which would be the only thing we have that resembles a funeral for Mad-eye.

On to the forest
Ron's splinching. Great acting on his part, and even more on Hermione's part. This scene also showed quite well how the trio works. Hermione immediately did what was best for them and for Harry to succeed- I think she's kind of like Harry's producer; he's not gonna get done what he needs to get done unless she's right next to him organizing it. So she takes them to the forest of Dean instead of sticking around London, which immediately puts Hermione in charge of the situation when Ron was splinched, but it also showed how much Ron meant to her based upon her reaction, and her immediate move to protect them once Ron was out of harm's way, and I loved how Harry immediately took her place by Ron's side to comfort him whilst she was putting up the protective spells. The whole scene was maybe 20 seconds long, but it flowed seamlessly with tension, love, and showed the workings of their relationships. For further discussion on Hermione, check out my friend Ashley's blog. We saw it together the first two times and discussed it at length; we agreed on most parts, so it's fun to see her expand on aspects, particularly Hermione here, because I really think she kicked arse in this film.

Phew...we're safe... and bored.

The forest. This part of the film is contentious between fans and the lay-viewer, I think. Yes, it runs a bit long. Yes, it could have been edited here and there-- but I think that is its beauty. We're supposed to get bored, and frustrated... just like Ron. I liked the device of the radio in the film. It was a constant buzz that annoyed Harry, and frankly annoyed me after awhile too! I was like 'SHUT UP' and I think that's the reaction we're supposed to have. Get bored. Get frustrated. Now you're on par with the characters. I think that was neat for fans, and they understand the emotion at that point, but I can also see how that would be tedious and wicked boring to a lay-viewer.

Hermione and... Harry? Wait... what?!

The haircut. Lovely little moment where you can see how the relationship of Harry and Hermione (always supportive, but not inappropriate) really gets to Ron who views it as a threat. She is doing something intimate, touching his head, holding his trust as he trusts her to not mess up his 'do,' but in actuality, every snip of the scissors seems like a cut to Ron and his positive feelings which are quickly receding.

After Ron leaves, and the Awkward Dance.

This is where Ashley and I differed. Well, at the start, anyway. The first 10 seconds of Hermione and Harry dancing was horrific. I was mad. Why would they insert this? Why would they show an element of Harry's character that I firmly believe would never exist? Harry would never do that to Ron, and it makes him look desperate and pathtic. I say on the first ten seconds, because that's where its inappropriate. He looks at her all sexy-like, and it makes the viewer go, 'wait, wait...what is he doing?!' but then the tension breaks by his horrible dancing and you realize he's just trying to lighten the situation and be normal with his friend. That part is great! The tension was too much! We needed a break! But goofy dancing would have sufficed. Not 'I'm gonna mack on my best friend's girl' first. Gross. And wrong, Harry, wrong. I watched the 'Making of' special on ITV (sorry, only in Britain), and Radcliffe actually talked about this scene. He said “it's the only time in the whole series that you think, 'wait, what's he doing, are they gonna? Are they...? Oh no, no, phew...” so he obviously saw it as weird and out of character too... so why is it there?! I have no answer. I guess just to throw a twist in it, but I'm not cool with that twist. It makes Harry seem a bit seedy, especially with the line from Hermione, “Don't ever let me give you a haircut again.” I feel like that line was actually, “Don't try to put the moves on me again, Harry. It blows.” I agree, Hermione; I agree.

Godric's Hollow... something different.

I'm glad they didn't come via polyjuice; that's a change I support. We'd lost our friends for too long in the ministry, and I'm glad we got to see Harry go through the emotions of going back there, and not someone else acting as Harry. I still really miss the plaque outside of the Potter's house, but the rest of this whole scene was lovely. The emotion of finding the Potter's grave, the creepiness of Nagini/Bathilda, getting the Rita Skeeter book, finding the Hallows on Peverell's grave, breaking the wand... a lot fit into this scene, but it didn't feel rushed.

Frozen pond, I think I see something shiny in there!

Holy crap that whole scene made me cold. and I loved how the horcrux tried to kill him underwater. Extremely well shot scene. But Harry, really, why didn't you take the locket off before you jumped in the freezing water?

Ron's back, let's open the horcrux.

Very cool. At first it kind of weirded me out; I know it was just a dream, but just seeing Harry and Hermione making out and naked (all vital bits covered) was a bit of a shock, and not what I was expecting. But then I realized that was the point! It's supposed to weird you out! It's a personification of EVIL! The smoke effect, the evilness writhing, the terrible beauty of the scene that came from it... it was ethereal and awkward and wrong... everything I imagine a horcrux really is! I thought it was well done, and gave Ron a great moment of kicking the sh*t out of it; you could see at what point he would no longer stand for it, and Harry and Ron were proud but okay after it... “Imagine, only three more to go,” that breaks the tension... nice.

I also LOVED when Ron comes back and Hermione is just pissed. She grabs anything she can get her hands on (the leaves... love it when she throws a handful of leaves), and demands her wand back from Harry in order to (presumably) curse Ron. It was such a great girl moment; stupid boys, Harry covering for his dumb friend... love these little moments where you see their friendship and their comfort with each other. I also enjoyed the following scene where Harry mildly mocks the cheesiness of Ron's ball of light story, and when they were testing out the new wand on the flame, all of a sudden there's a huge burst of fire rising in the tent, and then the calm it and quickly assure Hermione that nothing is wrong. Fab.

The Lovegoods. Love that hippie fellow...

Great art direction, props, casting, and costuming. Xenophilius was great. This is the scene where we get the legend of the Hallows from Hermione. I wondered how they'd do this, and while is was rather a departure from the Potter canon (it looked more like Tim Burton), I loved it. It was beautifully animated (the lace, the sparkles...), and gave all of the information we needed well, and showed it; didn't just tell it (it annoys me in the past films that when something needs explaining, Hermione just conveniently has the answer, and the filmmakers have acknowledged this in past interviews and articles. She's the information giver, (i.e. “Of course! Nicolas Flamel...”), so it was nice to have it shown to us in another, beautiful way. I wish in this scene we had the explanation of Ravenclaw's diadem, and I find it problematic that Hermione didn't keep them around Xenophilius's house until the Deatheaters saw Harry, thus protecting Lovegood, but overall it was an enjoyable visit to the Lovegood's tower house.

Skipping ahead a bit... the snatchers get them, Hermione curses Harry, and they're carted off to Malfoy manor.

At Malfoy Manor

Things I liked: I love John Hurt. Even moreso since working with him in Love at First Sight, but I thought his performance of Ollivander was lovely. I didn't like Luna's outfit here (a jumper/playsuit? Really?), but her performance was also pretty fab. The scene where Bellatrix is torturing Hermione is possibly one of the best. It's so forceful and uncomfortable to watch; it's violating and inhumane... it really gives the emotion to the act, particularly with Ron and Harry powerless to help down in the dungeon. I also loved Dobby's parting line, “Dobby didn't mean to kill, only maim or seriously injure.” Classic Dobby.

Things I missed: why on earth didn't Harry disarm Draco for the wands? There's such a big point put upon the wand lore of ownership at disarming, ownership through changing hands etc. that I do think that Harry has ownership of the wands as he literally ripped them out of Draco's hands, but it would have been much more clear, and a rather rockin' hero moment, if Harry dramatically disarmed Draco, thus clearly winning the wands.

Oh Dobby... RIP my friend

This scene was beautiful. It was shot in Wales (yay!) and provided a beautiful, but lonely and desolate setting to lose our friend. I thought Radcliffe's acting was a bit forced and awkward here, but I loved the separation of Harry from Ron and Hermione. Ron's priority was to be with, and take care of, Hermione in that moment, and they left Harry on his own. I thought this an important distinction; that in the end... it will be Harry. Perhaps that's just my reading of this moment... but the clear begging for help, and granted there wasn't much of anything that could be done, but there was no move from them to help... that's what I read from it. I thought the burial scene was lovely, and once again the music featured heavily here with that gorgeous cello solo as Dobby's requiem.

Dumbledore's tomb. Let's wrap it up, folks...

I'm glad they ended on this scene. We had the emotional turmoil of Dobby's death, the horrific escape from the manor, and for the moment we know that our heroes are in trouble, but safe for the time being, so we needed that tiny lead to make us go "Oooooo" for the next film, and we get that with Voldemort's theft from Dumbledore's tomb. I thought the tomb was a bit cheesy, blatantly CGI, but the shot of Voldemort's face onto Dumbledore's was lovely. It wasn't disturbing or horrific to see a dead Dumbledore; it was smoothly transitioned from Voldemort, who we were watching and expecting anyway, to our old friend, who appeared to be sleeping. Smooth scene, and we now know that Voldemort has the wand, and nothing is okay yet....

AND IT ENDS. Ugh... I know that's the point, and of course that's what you expect from a split film.... but lordy it left me hanging and I canNOT wait for the next installment. The clips and shots I've seen from the second installment look good and intriguing; I'm wondering about the final battle as from the one shot I've seen it looks like it takes place in the courtyard, with no one around, and that bugs me... again, I want more hero worship. Where are my hero shots of Harry! Well, I shan't make any judgements yet; I'll just have to wait until July!

Harry Potter review... part one... of part one

2010-11-24T00:15:00.002Z

Harry Potter, book seven, part one. Eeeeeeeeep.

Initial thoughts- I really enjoyed it. A few decisions I'm not sure why they made them, and a few things I thought really necessary that weren't in there (hero worship of Harry), or one or two scenes that needed a few more lines/moments for import, depth, and believability, particularly for the actions that need to happen in part two (Ginny & Harry, Moody, Godric's Hollow, Dursley's, Kreacher...).

So I'm breaking my normal template, and instead of doing the pros and cons, I'm listing overall points, and then going through plot events, and commentary on them. It should be in order as we go through the film.

Music: The score is beautiful. Particularly the repeated notes in close succession that run throughout the score; it builds tension in every scene, even when that scene may be quiet. For example, 'Obliviate' has rapid notes that get you rather riled up, put you on edge, but it's a sad and quiet scene. It goes right into 'Snape at Malfoy Manor' where the quick notes continue. In 'Ministry of Magic' it's almost comparable to a ticking clock its so constant, driving, and measured. It's a frantic and frenetic feel due to fast notes, on similar tones, and contributes very well to the scenes. And who didn't shed a tear at the cello in 'Farewell to Dobby'? I might need to do a whole post on the music...

Costuming: There were some great moments. Mundungus looking skeezy and slimy, Fleur's over the top wedding dress, Xenophilius and Luna's outfits at the wedding (also love the hippy dippy dancing which Lynch choreographed herself, based off of Rowling's descriptions of the dancing from the book- win!), Fred and George's dapper outfits (I didn't notice if the coats were dragonskin, but they were snazzy nonetheless)... and then some raised eyebrows at costumes I wasn't 100% on board with, like Luna's when she's in the dungeon (it looks like a child's romper playsuit from the 80's)

Such. An awesome. Shot.

Cinematography: Some of those shots were simply beautiful. The one that stands out the most in my mind is when Harry and Hermione are on that rocky cliff just after Ron leaves, and Harry is silhouetted against a sun-setting sky... it's gorgeous. Well-framed, and it's from a distance to give the audience some perspective on his pensive mood from afar which lends ample emotion. Also, in Grimmauld place, there's a slow retreat of the camera from the trio as Hermione says 'We're all alone...' emphasizing their solitary position in the wizard world.

Now to plot discussion....

Scridgemour opening: Brilliant. It was so up close, in our faces, it was like he was addressing us, the audience as well as the magical population. He was focused, and intense, but blatantly shaken whether by fear or fury, so we could see that he was strong and capable, but also under threat in some way.

Saying goodbye to family: Hermione's section had me shed a tear just five minutes into the film! I'll point it out elsewhere, but I really thought she stepped up her game in this film, and Hermione really shined in this film. Hermione is strong, confident, capable, and kickin', and Emma Watson plays her well. There were still a few moments where the overacting reared its head, but Hermione also overreacts sometimes, so it wasn't too disturbing. It was really good to see the characters on their own, having to sever ties... you really got the idea that they were consciously making the decision to leave, that they knew the consequences, but this is what they were deciding to do.

7 Harrys: I loved seeing the range of acting from Radcliffe. You could clearly tell which one was Fleur (and not just by the bra), Mundungus, etc. And the CG effects on Hermione as she's turning into Harry is pretty fabulous (apparently that was a new way of filming involving glow paint and tons of cameras to capture every moment of transformation from one actor to Dan Radcliffe). I also loved Moody's lines in this section. They gave him a few more than he has in the book, and I think this worked well; we hadn't really seen Moody since the 5^th book, and this brought him back into our minds, and in two lines gave us humor as well as seriousness of the situation and his obsession with the mission at hand.

-However, I missed the moment after Moody dies. There was little weight to that scenario. I like the group of them having a shot of fire whiskey in his honor, a bit of mourning, etc. I feel like all of that sadness went to Hedwig and none to Moody.

Limited Polyjuice: First at the wedding where Harry is Harry and not Barny Weasley, and then in Godric's Hollow, they don't use polyjuice like they do in the books. I'm VERY glad for that. I think we needed more face time with our trio, with our heros, and while the ministry bit was certainly necessary for them to use polyjuice, and it gave some nice humorous moments to an otherwise very serious scene, it was enough of us not being able to see our heros' faces. Plus I loved the line 'I'm not coming back here as someone else...' when Harry arrives in Godric's Hollow.

Doubting Dumbledore? I don't doubt him much yet... during this half of the book, we should have known more about Dumbledore's past from the obituary and segment in the paper from Rita Skeeter's book, Elphias Doge's conversation at the wedding, and Hermione should have read out to him the section in Rita Skeeter's book about Grindlewald and Dumbledore being friends, about 'For the Greater Good,' about Dumbledore needing to go home to care for Ariana. None of this is set up, so I'm quite curious how they're going to wrap all of this up.

It's also good to remember though how quickly ground can be made up in film though. (i.e. that one line in the beginning of New Moon about Jasper messing with emotions; it made up for it not being touched upon in Twilight). In one flashback, they can bring everything up to speed regarding Dumbledore's past... we'll just have to wait and see on that front.

Really? Not convinced...

Grimmauld Place: Loved Ron and Hermione's interaction. Their relationship, unlike Harry and Ginny's, is growing, believable, and it functions. Messing about on the piano, Ron wiping the drop of blood from her cheek in the diner, holding hands as they fall asleep... it works. And works well. I also loved Dobby assisting Kreacher in getting Mundungus Fletcher. It brought Dobby back into our minds (we hadn't seen him in a few films either), and gave him great character as he shoved Kreacher out of the way to say 'and then Dobby noticed... and then Dobby said...' it showed us how keen he was to help Harry Potter and his friends, and how important that friendship was to Dobby. I was very sad, however, to lose the change of heart of Kreacher. I love that he loves the trio after they give him the locket and treat him well. I love the idea that he made them soup, tidied the house etc., but I also recognize it wasn't necessary, and we didn't have time for that in the film. A sad loss, but an acceptable one.

Things I missed: The change of heart in Dudley. I feel like Dudley's realization that Harry isn't 'a waste of space,' is the first step to the reader/audience realizing the seriousness of the situation. If Dudley can recognize that something is wrong, and Harry somehow plays a role in making it right, then we know that something is up even in the muggle world. Also, Harry can own the title of 'The Chosen One' all he wants, but when others acknowledge that title, or his role in the fight at this point, that's where his true hero points accumulate. Like when Spiderman's mask is removed, or Will Stanton states that Bran (from The Dark is Rising) is the Pendragon, it's the acknowledgement of your hero status from others that removes any conceit, makes it a clear and true fact, and thus raises Harry's hero capital.

-I also really missed the plaque from Harry's house commemorating Voldemort's first fall there with messages of 'Good luck Harry...' etc all over it, the statue in the middle of Godric's Hollow honoring the Potters, and POTTERCAST! Oh I missed Pottercast... All of these things let the audience see how important Harry is. They all recognize it, and it makes him even more heroic because he doesn't acknowledge it. He is just getting on with his business, while the world holds him on a pedestal; this makes him humble, honorable, and uber heroic. I miss that! I like a little more hero worship in my life!

The letter from Lily: I think this is a big deal in the book, as we later see to what lengths Snape would go to in order to get a memento of Lily... but I can also see why it wasn't necessary in the film. It wasn't a make-or-break moment, we still have the doe which symbolizes his love, I do wish we had more of their past; that we knew Snape and Lily were friends growing up, or there was some sort of history there. I know it will all come out in 'Snape's Last Memory,' but maybe one or two instances where this could be set up so it's not so out of the blue in the next installment may have been helpful.

Lordy... I'm only in Grimmauld Place and it's running this long. Going to stop here for this one; next one up in a day or three (it IS Thanksgiving, it might take me until Friday. Plus I'm up in Leicester, England right now at the Vampires, VILFS and Fangbangers conference. There will definitely be a post about this too, I'm sure, as there are some really interesting papers planned, and I'm curious to see what's to be said about Twilight and the supernatural world in emerging scholarship).

More soon...

Clooney's New Film: The American

2010-11-19T16:32:00.003Z

Yes, I've seen Harry Potter. Yes, there will be a post. But it takes me time! Surely you know that by now :) I'll try to get it up Sunday or Monday.

But in other news...

So I've just come back from a screening of George Clooney's new film, 'The American,' about an assassin trying to get out of the business while on assignment in Italy, after a bit of a debacle in Sweden.

The screening was for bloggers and online media staff, and apparently someone at the publicity company had me on their roster as a film blogger (sweet!) so I got an invite.
Firstly, the screening experience was interesting and had me asking a lot of questions. Who organizes them? What points are given to the organizers? How do they find their audiences? I've asked, and I'll let you know when I have some interesting updates. It was neat though. I went with my friend Jen, we walked in, and were offered a glass of wine. There was little socializing, which I found odd because we were obviously all bloggers and media people, about to see the same film, you'd think there'd be some networking going on...nope. So then we went into the screening room which had THE MOST comfortable seats ever. It was like temperpedic memory foam seats... very nice. I also found it odd that there was no introductory speech, no welcome etc, no press pack handed out, and after the film there was no discussion. Everyone just left. Huh.

Maybe that was on purpose though, to not give any preconceptions about the film; but as this was my first proper screening, that was my reaction. I just figured that someone was paying for renting this room, someone was paying for the wine... I thought there'd be a bit more production and ceremony in it; but it's possible that it purposely wasn't there, so nothing would taint our experience.

Anyway, onto the film...

If you've seen The American (it was released in the US September 1, but doesn't come out in the UK until November 26), and if you've read this blog, then you may know where I'm going to go with this post.... analysis, pros, and cons... my first questions is, 'Really? This is the best that they came up with? With that talent and what I'm assuming was a healthy budget?' I mean it wasn't horrible, it wasn't even bad, but it certainly wasn't good and it had the potential to be really lovely!

Let's start with the name, shall we? Because I often wonder from the start why they change titles when based off of an original work. Why remove the familiarity of the title? Sometimes there is very good reason, and I happily admit that, but I'm not sure on this example. After that, I'll then go into pros and cons.

So it's called 'The American,' when the work it was based off of is called 'A Very Private Gentleman,' ... the first really has little implication on the film. Yes, they ask him in Italy if he's American, twice, and for Americans abroad that's a question that resonates (with me, at least), and yes, there is a spaghetti Western playing on the TV perhaps suggesting that he is a cowboy in his tiny, Italian village... but that's where it ends. His character has been living abroad for years; 'The American' has very little reference for the audience at this point. The film does not make an overarching political statement about Americans these days, or anything of the sort! It is about a dude, yes originally from America, who is an assassin and has been living abroad for what we can deduce is YEARS (the film opens in Sweden, then moves to Italy. He is fluent(ish) in Italian, and we have no reason to suspect he's been in America for some time)... but it's not actually much of a statement about him as 'an American' as it is about him as a man, or perhaps him as an assassin.

Whereas if it was entitled 'A Very Private Gentleman,' that would intrigue me. That almost implies an opinion from and outsider, as if someone was being interviewed about an incident and they stated that he was just “a very private gentleman.” This lends intrigue to the title, and makes you immediately think that there is more to this person than the description. There must be. It lends interest instead of stereotype. Perhaps I'm sensitive to this point, but 'The American' seems like a cop-out title to me. It does not contribute to the story. I want to know about the story of this assassin with a soul, and 'A Very Private Gentleman' does much more to intrigue me to finding out that story.

Good points:

The cinematography was excellent. I almost think that the production company hired some small, aspiring Italian filmmaker to camp out on the hilltops to get some of those establishing shots in the wee hours of the morning or in the twilight hours of the evening. They were beautiful! Rolling clouds, gorgeous lighting, and striking angles. Also, there was a steady shot of a road from an aerial point of view that is still causing me to wonder how they got that shot. A suspended crane? A plane with a somehow wicked, really steady camera attached?

Of course the setting was brilliant. As well as the premise. Basically Clooney is a bad-ass assassin who can put together a gun in less than a minute, and he's in Sweden and Italy...gorgeous, and somehow mysteriously hot. Plus there are a few scenes of him doing push ups, pull ups, and sit ups (lots of ups) topless... of course that appeals. You have the bad boy elements with some rockin' abs, plus the distinguished awesomeness that has come from Clooney's career, age, and experience.

ProCons (Not good nor bad):

The story... it wasn't bad, but it wasn't good.

Premise: assassin wants to get out of the business, but how does he do that without getting killed himself because he knows too much? Intrigue, international locations, gorgeous, sexy, mysterious....

But yeah, it ends there.

Cons:

There were far too many moments that were unearned. The shoot-off with the Swedish assassins, hot on his tail... too quick and the climax unearned. Too fast.

The tale of the hottie assassin lady- that's how it ends? Really? She kicked ass, and you get rid of her that quickly and easily? Lame. You could have done better.

The boss-man. Clooney kept reporting to this guy through the WHOLE film. All of a sudden he shows up, decides Clooney's character is too much of a risk, wants to kill him, and there's barely a shoot off. There's a mini chase, and suddenly it's over. There are three shots, and only two go into the bad guy, so we can clearly infer what's going to happen next... end revealed... blerg.

The prostitute. Sure, it showed that he wanted something else in his life, but he didn't even care when she was sleeping with other dudes. Did he really care about her? Or was he just playing a part like he was when they went to dinner and he seemed happy that they were assumed a couple? The realistic 'girl' in me can't help but say... 'honey, he's not honest with you, he's just sleeping with you to feel good, he even told you that... how long do you think its going to last, and at what cost to yourself?'

Okay, rant over for now. I guess its good that I had such a strong opinion about this film, but more than anything it just made me mad that they had such an opportunity to make a film to be proud of with a good story, a huge leading man, gorgeous shots, and an emotional conflict... but they lost it at story and conflict. There could have been SO much more.

Travel, Filming, Harry Potter Premiere, and a Screening...

2010-11-13T13:12:00.004Z

Oh what a week... well, four weeks, really. I left October 15 for the States to do some recruiting for my university- telling people about my life in Bangor and answering the questions of potential students. I went to school fairs, and visited colleges and high schools. It was uber fun, believe it or not. Particularly my visit to Mary Washington, my old undergrad Uni, where I gave a lecture on my work, and taught a seminar class on C.S. Lewis where we read a section of The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe. I then had them write a script from those pages, tell me where the camera was, who was talking, why they made those decisions, then we watched those two scenes in the BBC adaptation from the 80's and the more recent Disney one. SUCH fun.

The trip took me to Philadelphia, Baltimore, Williamsburg, Fredericksburg VA, Washington DC (where we dressed up my friend's dog, see below picture, who currently has a cone on her head (hahaha... I mean... uh... awww), and we went to the Rally to Restore Santiy), then Lancaster PA, and New York City. Whoosh... 'twas fab though, and I even got some work done on my PhD. Go figure.

I left the US on Sunday, arriving back in the UK on Monday, and then this past week was a week of ridiculousness in London. I landed Monday around 8am, went to a really skeevy B&B and slept for a few hours, walked around the town of Shepperton, and then went to bed for real as I was spending two days on a super busy, super famous film set at Shepperton Studios.... Captain America. I was doing some observation and running with the AD department there. Sadly I'm not allowed to say ANYTHING about it (I literally had to sign my life away), but it was awesome. After the film's out I might be able to post about it... I don't know. But it was fab.

After that, I spent Thursday in central London because I had a screening that evening, so I caught up on some work, and then went to the Harry Potter premiere in Leicester Square on my way to the screening in Piccadilly! I didn't attend the film, so don't throw flames at me just yet, but I had to check out the mayhem while I was there as I had yet to see a Harry Potter premiere live and in person, and it seems vital somehow. You can't study fantasy film adaptations, live in the UK, and not at least check out one of the premieres to see what goes down.

I love anything where that many people can come together and get excited about the same thing. It's such a rockin' energy. So as I approached the square I could hear the crowd (and this was at 2pm; the actual activity didn't start until about 5pm), then turned the corner and saw the masses already assembled; some in costume, some with signs, all excited and pressing to the front of the gates to get a better view of where the stars would be walking in just a few hours.

There were banners of the characters all over the place, torches with actual flames shooting out of them, stories-tall posters advertising the film, huge screens showing the cast arriving, clips and videos to get the fans pumped, and arches emblazoned with the Deathly Hallows symbol surrounding the square. I killed some time in a pub off of the square, chatting with a nice American on a semester abroad who was there to cheer and hopefully spot a star at the premiere, and then I headed back out into the fray just after 5pm. As I walked out of the door, I was forced to go left due to the cattle gates, and as I rounded one of the gates who did I run into? RUPERT GRINT. Not kidding. He was just hitting the end of the row signing autographs and taking pictures. I tried to get a good picture of him, but I didn't have my camera out when I first saw him, and by the time I got it on he was a bit far away and every picture makes him look like soup. So take my word for it that he was there, looked good, and you can google image that one. I'm sure some reporter or fan got a photo more clear than my soupy one.

But then as I kept walking towards Piccadilly, I looked to my right about halfway down the gates, and there was Emma Watson! Sadly I didn't see Dan, it would have been nice to have the set (to quote Slughorn), but I'm glad I got to see some of them. All in all it was wicked fun to see what a Harry Potter premiere is like- watch the excitement, and even grab a glimpse of the cast.

It was also neat to compare it to the Twilight premiere I went to in Leicester Square back in 2008. If anything, I think this crowd was more controlled than the Twilight gang two years ago. There was excitement, and palpable energy to be certain, but it didn't have as much of a manic edge, in my opinion, as the Twilight fans had. I remember hearing the Twilight fans screaming from about three blocks away... it was chaos. Hormone-charged chaos. This was a little more controlled... controlled is the wrong word... focused? Intense? Less 'I wanna rip my shirt off,' and more 'I'm so excited, and I just can't hide it,' kind of a feel.

After that, I met up with my friend Emily and headed down to Piccadilly Circus for the screening of Love at First Sight, a short that I worked on in June starring John Hurt (He's an absolute legend... and Mr. Ollivander in Harry Potter) and Phyllida Law (TV Goddess, and Emma Thompson's mom) at the BAFTA theater. It was such fun. It was great to see the individual pieces we shot over three days cut into a seamless story. I need to make sure I can post about it, but when I can I'll put up some more pictures and talk about the process. It was good fun, and a good night to chat about what the hell I'm doing with my life after I finish this PhD (because someday, I will finish this!). I'm thinking I'll be working in development for a bit, and see how that aspect of the process works, and if that's where I'm happiest and my skills fit, and hopefully head into producing while doing that. We shall see!

Okay, not the most coherent post I've written, but that's pretty much where my brain is right now! Tuesday I'm heading back to London for a screening of George Clooney's new film, The American (just coming out in the UK), so I'll blog about that, then my friend Ashley from TwiCon is coming to visit, and next week I'm giving a paper at the Fangbangers and VILF conference at DeMontfort University in Leicester. Which I haven't written yet. It'll be fine...

More soon! And I'll try to get all of these pictures up on my website soon.

UPDATE: Pictures are up on MaggieParke.com

Studying in the UK-from my perspective, anyway

2010-09-27T11:09:00.003+01:00

Handy article where this pictures is from.

So a ton of people have been asking me about my program in the UK, and why I chose Wales over the thousands of other Universities in the world. I'm afraid I don't have a 'tied up in a pretty bow' answer, but I can tell you a bit about why it worked for me, and why it made sense over some US programs I was considering. For those that don't know, I did a semester abroad as an undergrad at Bangor University, loved it, came back to do my MA in Arthurian Literature (studying King Arthur in Wales...yeah, awesome), and am now at the end of a PhD in Film and New Media at the Creative Industries department.

Three main reasons why I came to Wales:
1) Location
2) Academics
3) Cost

I'll tear those down.

1) Location- I think it's fabulous to live abroad for some portion of your life. It gives you a better view of the world, takes you out of your comfort zone and you learn more about yourself, your limitations and your capabilities. Plus you get some great stories out of it!

Now why did I choose this location? I've been obsessed with Wales since I was about 8 and I read The Dark is Rising Sequence by Susan Cooper. I thought Wales was this secret, magic place where legends still live...and it's kind of true. There's no where else in the world where I feel this sense of wonder when I look to the hills. I love the language, the culture, and the fact that it's not overrun with tourists like parts of Scotland can be. Wales is a little more tucked away. Plus, my town is on the ocean, with Snowdonia National Park in the backyard (big, gorgeous mountains).

Bangor, between the sea and the mountains

Bangor is a small city that I can walk from one side to the other in about 45 minutes, but it's uber well connected to big cities and airports. I love that, because I feel like a part of this community. In London I think I'd always feel like a visitor, but here, it feels like home. But I do need to travel to maintain my sanity, I simply was born with itchy feet, so it's great to jump on a train and be in London in three hours, Manchester in two, Liverpool in an hour and a half, and Dublin in two hours (yes, I'm closer to Dublin than London). I love it here. It's gorgeous, it's friendly, and I'm living in the location where my childhood dreams of fantasy and adventure were born.

On set of Olivia's Army getting hands on experience

2) Academics. I knew what area I wanted to study (Film and New Media), and what I wanted to look at within that area (Event Films), but I didn't have a definite title in mind when I started, and didn't know what holes yet existed in the field. I had to go see this work in progress to discover where the holes were and thus find my topic. I can't really do that at any US program. US programs have much more structure- there are classes, TA programs, language requirements etc. whereas with most UK programs it is purely self-led research. My research was observing, it was holding a camera, it was working in production.... hands on and real-life practical application stuff!

This self-led aspect can also be the kiss of death as you are the one organizing your time, you're often questioning what exactly you're paying for since the onus is on you to find your topic and do your degree, but that's also where the joy of discovery is. I would never have found this topic unless I did it the way I did it! I had the freedom with this UK degree to travel, spend time on film sets (Twilight, obviously amongst others), talking to authors, observing game designers etc. and it was through this fieldwork that my department supported, that I found the topic that I could explore: the fandoms in event film adaptations.

My supervisor with the art director for Doctor Who

It's not completely on my own though. The biggest piece of advice I can give students thinking about studying in the UK is make sure you get along with your supervisor. They are the navigator of this carriage ride. They're like the 'options' button on Googlemaps: They won't give you a plan of what you need to do, but they will look at your plan, ask questions to develop it, ask how you want to get there, and help you avoid major delays, roadworks, and speedbumps! Okay, I took that metaphor a bit far, but it works.

The staff here are knowledgeable, experienced, well-known in the academic world, and supportive of new ways to research (it's no longer just sitting in a library... my research is out THERE, in the field, in the production process).

3) Cost. Not gonna lie, it was an attractive selling point. International tuition at Bangor is about $14,000 a year, and it's a 3 year degree for a PhD, and a 1 year degree for an MA. Most US programs run about $40,000 a year, and can take 5 to 6 years for a PhD and 2 for an MA. I also got two scholarships so I'm paying less than half of that fee; I've still taken out loans (federal loans, which apply to school in the UK), so yes, I will be in debt, but it's a fraction of what a lot of my friends are in debt for, and I get to live abroad, doing exactly what I want to do.

So there are my reasons to go to the UK. It's not for everyone: you have to be self motivated, innovative, and be able to take and create initiative, but if you can do that, then this degree is rather rockin'. Make sure you have a good supervisor, make sure you're in a town that's on a train line so you can get to cities and travel when needed/wanted (you're living abroad... you have to make time for travel!), and follow the path of your own interests until you find a hole in the research!

I hope that helps, gang. FYI I'll be touring the east coast in a couple of weeks (mid October to beginning of November), heading to NACAC fairs in Philadelphia and Baltimore, as well as college and high school visits in Virginia, Pennsylvania, and New York. Let me know if you think I should come to your school, or let me know if you're coming to one of the NACAC fairs and want to know more!

Happy researching all :)

Helpful links:
British Council
Search Engine for UK and Ireland schools
Bangor University

Editing an Anthology on Twilight...

2010-09-16T23:40:00.000+01:00

So now for something completely different...

I'm in the throes of final revisions of the essays for my forthcoming anthology of Twilight criticism, co-edited with Natalie Wilson (of Ms.Blog), and it's a doozy. I just figured I'd run through it as a few people asked me about the process. We think it will be called Critical Essays on Stephenie Meyer's Twilight Saga and its Impact on Popular Culture, it will be published by McFarland, and hopefully out this spring or summer.

So to take it back a bit, it started during TwiCon 2009, where I met Natalie (I was not a head organizer for TwiCon, but I did put together the academic panels and papers there, and Natalie gave a paper on the female role in Twilight). We knew we wanted to do something with the exposure we experienced at the convention to other academics who were looking at the Twilight Saga, and an anthology of essays seemed to be the best move. There was a lot to say about it over a broad range of topics, people have very strong opinions about it (I'm not sure if you know that or not :-p), and it's rare to find people with whom you can have an academic conversation about the work and not just gasps, swoons, snorts of disapproval, or scoffing at the subject matter. Not many take the analysis of Twilight seriously, so it's brilliant when you meet a huge group of people that not only discuss it, but discuss it knowledgeably, clearly, with appropriate context and reference to other works and its implications on society.

So we put together a call for papers, requesting an abstract-- basically a summary of what they planned to write about, and a biography of themselves (always handy to know backgrounds, histories of your contributors, etc.). We received a ton. And when I say a ton, I mean a ton. It took an age to sort through them, let alone organize, mark, and prioritize favorites. It was tough because we couldn't just pick our top twenty; we had to pick ones that worked well with each other, flowed from one to the next, complemented the work, but also ones that filled in the gaps in the existing research (which wasn't too hard as there's only one other work of Twilight criticism out there, Twilight and Philosohpy, and that leaves a wide range of topics to explore).

We picked about 25? 30? Somewhere around there. We were aiming for a finished group of 16-20 essays, so there were still going to be cuts, and some authors inevitably withdraw due to a multitude of reasons. Natalie and I split up the essays, each becoming sole editor to half of them. We worked with our authors to develop and improve their essays, and eventually switched and read each other's essays so we're now familiar with every aspect of the pieces going into our anthology.

Joys of this process:

working with someone accountable, with a good head on their shoulders, and with great insight into a different aspect of the Twilight Saga (Natalie focuses on gender, and the female role; I focus on film practice-- so quite different!), so working with Natalie was great.
I loved reading all of these new takes on a work I know so well and having it challenge my own perceptions of Meyer's novels (wait until you read the essay on the role of parents and ageism; very cool, and it made me look at Charlie, Renee, Esme and Carlisle in a whole new way).
I love that there will be a finished product at the end; too often with a PhD you have nothing 'completed' at the end of the day. It's a constant, drudging process. With this, I have multiple finished drafts, comments included, new drafts coming in, and eventually there will be a clean product that many participated in and hopefully all are happy with!

Hurdles:

Deadlines. Organizing 28 people. Keeping track of different versions. Keeping track of email addresses!
Learning how to pick and choose (there were about five essays I would have killed to include because they were about the filmic aspects of the work, but it just didn't fit in this work... thus I'm hoping to put together an anthology focusing on the adaptation of the event film in the near future... but after I finish this bloomin' thesis).
Sanity! There are so many bits and pieces that need to get done in order for this to come together on time; so time management, keeping people happy, encouraged, on time, and creating a good piece all while working on my thesis, producing some shorts for Elfin Productions, going to work, and surviving grad school- it was a hurdle indeed!

We still have a lot to go: final versions of the essay, dedication, introduction, formatting... and then we submit to the publishers (McFarland), and I'm not sure how long they have it before it's released, but you can be sure I'll share all of the info as I get it on here!

Things upcoming on my plate: I'm starting my final year of my PhD which means writing up my thesis, I'm working in the international office focusing on international student recruitment from the US, I'm producing a short for Elfin and assisting on other bits and bobs with them, I'm giving a paper at 'Vegetarians, VILFs, and Vamps' conference in November at DeMontfort University, and heading home for a work trip in October, and for a family visit at Christmas. BUSY. But that's the way (uh huh uh huh) I like it. :)

Ta ta for now, and let me know what you think about popular culture as a discussable thing. Have you been laughed at for dissecting and discussing Twilight? Do you think it silly to investigate? Worthwhile? Why or why not?

A Little Bit Country...

2010-07-12T23:10:00.006+01:00

I did a bit of work with Elfin Productions on a short called Little Bit Country for Virgin Media Shorts competition, and it's just been released for general viewing! It stars Tim McInnerny (Casanova, Blackadder) as the Dad and Richard Southgate (the UK production of Spring Awakening, the show in which Glee's Jonathan Groff started). It was really interesting coming into this project. Adam Coop (the director of Little Bit Country) was the first AD for Love at First Sight, the short I worked on a few weeks ago with John Hurt (Mr. Ollivander from Harry Potter). Adam is lovely and I'm quite happy with this short film. It was really neat to read over the different versions of the script, see how the camera crew was brought on, the difficulties that we encountered with locations, sound, and the dozen other things that occur when filming anything, and finally see the finished product that I'm quite happy with. Virgin shorts competition is very strict on its time allowed, so the cut is a bit choppier than the director wished, so he's doing his own cut that will be more around the 4-minute mark that he can circulate around festivals that will have all aspects he wants, and not be cut short due to time.

When we watch a film, either a professional one like Twilight, James Bond, Iron Man or something, or a video randomly posted on YouTube by the dude down the street, we hardly ever think about the process. How did that actor get there that day? Was he excited? Hungover? Did he go over details of his character with the director right before "action"? How did they find the location? Who paid for the cowboy hats? How did they get the ability to show magazine covers and play artists' songs in the short? All of these things were investigated and explored! So, it was nice to come into this one a smidge late, see how the script developed, and see what needed to happen in order for this short to make the deadline for Virgin Media and now how to make the 'director's cut' of a slightly longer version that can circulate on the festival circuit, as that is where it is heading next.

Crazy, huh? It's wicked interesting to look into though. There's a lot I don't know about these things (i.e. I know many bits very well, but not every single particular aspect of film making), but I'm learning more and more about which aspects I think I'd be good at (development and marketing), which aspects I'd be bad at (sound), and where I'll be going from here. Every day on set, and every little hurdle that contributes to a final product adds to my investigation of event films in a very practical manner. I get quite frustrated with people who preach and teach about how it is in the film industry and what certain aspects may mean, but really, they've never been on a film set or actually worked in film, so it's good to put these pieces together and see if and how they reflect each other.

Anywho, check out the video, it's 2 minutes long, and rather adorable. It's a story we're probably all familiar with in some way. You've got a passion that you're hesitant to share with certain people (*cough*Twilight*cough*... some people just don't understand, and I'm sorry for them), so you hide that passion, and what happens when you're caught? Well check this out and let me know what ya think:

Virgin Media Shorts: A Little Bit Country

Bit from the site:

I'M A LITTLE BIT COUNTRY. ARE YOU?

A Little Bit Country is about an inevitable part of growing up: the terrible sinking feeling when your parents find your secret stash hidden in your wardrobe – and confront you one morning across the kitchen table. Gut wrenching and universal, this is one teenage rite of passage that has happened to us all... although maybe not quite like this…

My Eclipse reactions and ponderings- Finally!

2010-07-04T16:16:00.001+01:00

Alrighty, I've seen Eclipse (finally... stinkin' UK delayed release...) and I am pleased, bordering on impressed, with the film's final product. The progression of the talent, the story development and the improved tone were most impressive to me.

The first thing I'm impressed by how much they were able to fit into a two hour film in order to provide background information, plot progression information, and fan-demanded information. Let's review: trip to Florida, virgin conversation, proposal, tent scene, Jasper's background, Rosalie's background, Leah's backstory, reiteration of main points like talents, wolf telepathy, body heat, the make out scenes, punching a werewolf in the face, the jealousy and anger of the Volturi, Riley and Victoria's messed up relationship...

The list goes on. I'll go into a few comments though in my normal manner.

The storyline- cheers cheers cheers to Rosenberg. She had a lot of ground to cover, and she did it well. The story progressed smoothly, and I was most impressed by the one-liners that, ironically, were not in the book, but fit perfectly in the film. She inserted a few lines that took the tone from that scene in the book and worked well in the film. Two lines in particular I'm thinking of: First when Jacob is leaning smugly and shirtless against the VW, girls everywhere swooned, and the tension is cut with Edward saying, “Does he own a shirt?” and when Jacob enters the tent and says, “You're just mad because I'm hotter than you.” These lines give the snarky edge to Jacob and Edward's relationship, without superfluous dribble and, frankly, the extensive exposition from the novel. Yes, they are different from the books, but the tone is spot on, and that's good adaptation- making it work with the pre-existing material and the feeling that exists in that moment from the book, and matching it visually with concise, even if different, words. When those lines were said, we got the anger, jealousy, humor, and poking fun while really loathing the other person quite appropriately.

The acting- Stewart didn't stutter in a horribly awkward way and in fact seemed supremely confident with her character; Lautner didn't bury all of his lines in monotonous tones and really showed his leading man capabilities in scenes like the kiss after the tent and the bedroom scene after the fight; and Pattinson didn't just look sad and tortured; there was contentment, happiness, jealousy, fear, and anger... and Jackson Rathbone finally had a few lines to develop his character beyond someone who just looks constipated and 'in pain' most of the time. Also, the relationships really showed through for me, particularly with Jasper and Alice. I loved the little peck she gave him after they did their battle practice in the woods.

The wardrobe/hair/eyes- I know, it's a bit trivial in the long run, but these can often be the things that people take notice of if it's poorly done, 'wrong,' or different from the books and thus can be a necessary branch of adaptation studies. If we can see the line of the contacts around the actors' eyes, it removes us from that moment of the story; we become critical and say 'oh, I can see the contacts' instead of 'ah, he's just hunted, it must be okay to be around Bella...' etc. etc. The eyes were very well done. Black when they needed to hunt, and the gold was lovely. I think it may have been CGI-ed on this one as it blends well into different shades of gold.

Jasper's hair is finally good, Rosalie finally fits the bill of stunningly beautiful, Alice is dancer-like and svelte and isn't wearing matronly outfits, And the vampire pale-ness no longer looks strikingly fake. Carlisle's hair still needs some work... but meh, not too shabby overall.

The sparkle- finally! No tinkling bells in the background when he sparkles! I hated that cheesy effect. It made the sparkle a gimmick, whereas this one it was simply a fact; something that just happens when he's in the sun. No big deal was made, and there were no stupid tinkling bells.

The flashbacks- I loathed the thought of them because the more I watch Twilight, the more I dislike the ones in the first film; I found them cheesy and contrived. These, however, were very well-handled, and I think that's because of their authenticity. In Twilight, they were sepia-toned, there was seemingly contrived wardrobe (i.e. Rosalie's ruffled collar, and cliche pageboy caps), and inappropriate mardi-gras wolf hats on the Quileutes... the Eclipse flashbacks seem more factual. The story of the third wife, Rosalie's backstory, and Jasper's- they all looked appropriate, they weren't filled with soft-focus cheesiness, and they very much set the tone of the characters and gave them some depth and believable history. It gives a lot of substance to the being. We were able to see Jasper's compassion, and his struggle with killing vampires when Maria ordered it, and Rosalie's dark past was well-handled, as well as her sensitivity and slight humor when she reminisces on killing Royce in her wedding dress as 'theatrical.' As one movie-goer remarked, “You forget how long they've been around; it was neat to see the history.”

Anna Kendrick- Jessica has a minimal part in the novel, but graduation plays a big roll. It was clever to incorporate Kendrick into graduation as an integral player. She has the talent, the recent Oscar/Golden Globe buzz from 'Up in the Air,' and can really carry a scene. It was nice to see Summit give her that kickin' graduation speech to mark the meaning of choices, decisions and the future that we know is playing so thoroughly through Bella's mind, but through the words of Kendrick.

The sex- Yes there's a big debate out there right now about abstinence and the message and all of that.. but I'm not going to go into that. From a film-critic point of view, I think it was pretty great. They spoke as teenagers speak, acted as teenagers act: with passion, intent, awkwardness, and honesty. Their chemistry was real; you could feel it and believe it in every kiss, embrace, hair touch, forehead kiss, boob-grope and chest-stroke. It was nice to see the filmmakers bravery in taking this challenge: a charged and heated topic in the fandom and with the parents of the fandom, and just showing what needed to be shown. Like any other part of the book, they took the tone and information from the page, and translated it to the screen, and I think the tension and anticipation that we all loved from the books was there in spades. I missed the 'this would be difficult on a couch' line, but that's just a smidge of nostalgia; the line wasn't necessary for the scene to work- the making out and the tension was necessary, and they got that.

I also greatly enjoyed the opening scene in the meadow. In the first film their relationship moves so fast, the ending was satisfactory, but it can seem quite rushed. By this film, they are utterly devoted to each other, and its scenes like this that illustrate the natural partnership that they have. They just look so comfortable and easy with each other. It's lovely, and I think it has the feeling of attraction, suspense, and subtle eroticism of that first meadow scene from the novel that fans were looking for in Twilight's meadow scene. They're so stinkin' cute

The 'virgin' conversation: Just awkward enough. I loved the movement through that scene too. How Charlie just stood his ground, determined to make it through this conversation and Bella is continuously moving towards the stairs, fleeing as fast as she can, but still giving her dad the information he needed to stop worrying.

Choices- I would have loved to be a fly on the wall of Rosenberg's thought process to change Bella into a wicked stronger character in this one. We all love Bella, but she really can be a bit pathetic; always in need of rescuing, protection, and always needing a man. In this, she still needs protection and still needs her men, but she is more definitely her own person. She gets angry at Edward for lying to her, goes off with Jacob against Edward's wishes because it's her decision and what she needs to do to be with her friend, and my most favorite Bella moment is the speech in the meadow at the end where she says 'yes, I love you' blah blah blah, but also 'I don't fit in here, I'm not normal, I belong in another life, your life.' Meaning with him, but also as a vampire. It so clearly makes it her decision and not dependent just on being with the man, but flourishing and becoming her own person on her own terms in a life of her choosing.

It's best in that scene, but also in that conversation with Rosalie on the balcony. We see Bella, the strong capable human who survives and holds her own in superhuman situations, and can see how she can fit into this other world. Well done. I hope Meyer was down with it as it changed Bella's central being, but I think it changed it in a way most people imagine Bella anyway; we all want to defend and champion her, but it can be tough with her actions from the text at times. This Bella in Eclipse gives us all of the fodder we need to illustrate her as a strong leading lady (who still needs some rescuing, but so do Edward, Seth and Jacob as she sacrifices herself left right and center to save them).

Parent relationships: They are so underplayed in every aspect of the story (they're not very active in her life), and there are some really lovely moments that are played up in this film effectively in order to show what Bella is giving up in order to be with Edward. There's the easy, touching scene with Renee, the success of which has a lot to do with Stewart's performance, and of course all of those lovely 'Charlie Moments' like where he utters 'super' and tries to have some serious conversations with her. I love Billy Burke; such a rockin' guy, and great actor.

Also the Carlisle and Esme moments where you see their parental tendencies in their family. Carlisle tries to appease the Volturi and keep the peace when Edward loses his temper ("if you had arrived half an hour earlier..."), and both he and Esme were the ones in shot, ready to take responsibility for Bree.

Well good on ya for making it this far.... but I'm going to stop there for today. There's so much more going on in my head that I want to sort out; These are just my initial thoughts of the film, but there's so much more to consider in the adaptation of event films. I'm thinking about the marketing, the cross advertising, Volvo is tied in, Burger King, and how the imagery has changed in the promotional materials; colors changed from the cold iciness of Twilight to the soft, warm browns of New Moon, and to the steely grays for Eclipse (see image from My TwiLife), the lines, the storyboarding process (Slade and Rosenberg worked together to adapt this one where she would have the script, he would get it and storyboard it, and he would give it back to her to adapt the script to fit the shots; very cool process and unusual for this saga at this point).

See, I'm waxing on again... okay. Stopping now! Would love to hear your thoughts, and I'll be mulling over a few more in the next few days... and hopefully seeing it again a few more times!

Twilight Week at In Media Res

2010-06-28T06:59:00.001+01:00

In Media Res is doing a week of posts on a Twilight theme. Five 'curators' are posting videos with a short commentary putting the video in context and commenting on it.

It's a neat set up, and I'm the first entry, Natalie is the second (my co-editor for the forthcoming Twilight anthology). There are a couple of quite notable people writing this week- exciting build up to the exciting event of Eclipse's release!

Enjoy!

Website updates! Pictures! Statistics! And Info! Oh my...

2010-06-18T23:57:00.000+01:00

You know, it was about stinkin' time I figured out how to work my own website. After owning the domain for a year and a half, I finally sat down tonight, watched a slew of tutorial videos, and figured it out. It was not hard. I am just impatient and expect all things to come to me easily... but they do not, and that causes frustration, until I go 'oh just do it already...' so I did!

SO in conclusion, everything is now in one place. My stats are there, info about what I've done and where I'm going with this whole PhD and producing malarky, and probably the most-interesting-to-the-general- public aspect is that there are lots and lots and lots of pictures from the set of Twilight, the UK premiere in Leicester Square, Vampire Baseball in Oregon, the Breaking Dawn release in New York, TwiCon 2009... all sorts of fun things to explore!

So yay for finally figuring out that aspect of my New Media degree; now I get to play, make it shiny, and see what other fun elements I can add to it, right? Right.

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner: An Eclipse Novella

2010-06-15T00:18:00.001+01:00

I've just finished this novella, based off a seemingly trivial character from Eclipse, but who apparently stuck with Stephenie Meyer a bit as she indulged the character and gave her her own story. It was an enjoyable romp through the periphery development of characters that contribute to the central work, and I'll be curious to see what influences seep into the film for Eclipse.

For example, with the creation of the newborn army- we now have a bigger frame of reference for them: what their 'bases' look like, how they think, how they were 'raised' and treated before marching on the Cullens, and where we as the readers probably originally just viewed them as the enemy because they wanted to destroy the heroine Bella, we now have some sympathy and understanding of their situation and how it isn't as clearly evil as we perceived. Bree hiding behind a vamp with the power to nauseate people, vampires killing each other every day, and the flippant discussion of who to murder for lunch and what the hot blood rushing down their throats was like...

It's interesting how nothing could have persuaded us to look at the army as anything but villains unless Stephenie Meyer deemed it so, you know? If David Slade showed the newborns as victims he's probably be thrown to the wolves (pardon the pun), but as Meyer did it, it's perfectly acceptable; it's her universe- she can do as she pleases!

As a side note, the latest Eclipse TV spot was also just released, which heavily features Riley as the villain; there isn't even a mention of Victoria. Riley gets the focus as the threat, and this is surprising if you haven't read TSSLoBT (lordy that's a lot of letters) as he is certainly secondary to the terrifying Victoria. In Eclipse, she is the horror-striking, stalking, lurking threat, and Riley is her minion who she has manipulated into doing her will.

However, in TSSLoBT, Riley is the ringleader. He's the guy in charge, and in the new TV spot, it sure portrays him as such... I can't help but wonder if the filmmakers found a male threat more terrifying and stronger than a female threat, and so is making him a focal villain. We shall see, I suppose.

So that's all for now, just a tidbit of a thought. Big things happening on this end; I just spent last week working on the set of 'Love at First Sight' in London. It's a beautiful little short starring John Hurt (Mr. Ollivander) and Phyllida Law, and I will definitely be blogging about that if I get the all-clear from the producer to do so. I'm also starting work with a production company here producing some shorts with them and learning the processes more thoroughly, we've had some very good news regarding the anthology I'm publishing with Natalie Wilson, and I've just bought my tickets back to the States for the summer. I'm looking forward to that!

So once again, more soon! Eclipse thoughts, discussion of filming and processes, what it's like to go through editing an anthology perhaps... lots of irons in the fire, but it's keeping me happy. I also finally have the layout of my PhD thesis that I'm happy with, and a title! The Remediation and Adaptation of the Event Film Twilight: The Filmmakers, the Fandom, and the Phenomenon.

Now I just have to keep writing it!

Oh Oregon, how I love thee... let me count the ways...

2010-04-12T00:38:00.000+01:00

Reasons I love Portland, Oregon:

Farmer's Markets
Yoga every day
Biking to yoga
Compost bins in the convention center
Free public transport in the city
More microbreweries than air molecules (okay, slight exaggeration)
1.5 hours to the craggy, wonderful coast
1.5 hours to the 14,000 foot awesomeness that is Mount Hood
Wine Country. Pinot Noir. 'Nuff said.
People re-use ziploc bags and they sell bamboo racks on which to dry them.
Foodies abound.
It's a city of hippies, but motivated hippies who get things done!
The growing film industry.
The can-do attitude
The unique artist shops
Classic cinemas
POWELL'S
The Kennedy School
New Seasons
Food, road trips, beer, wine, active lifestyle... LOVE.

Okay, so obviously I'm glad to be back in Portland, Oregon and am thrilled to be here doing some work for my university (I'm meeting with college counselors about Bangor's programs, advertising to high schools for undergraduate applications, and attending college fairs), and I'm seriously beginning to contemplate the feasibility of moving here. It's doable, and with the film tax breaks being what they are here, it's a wonderful place to bring some new work, get some more experience, and widen my professional net :) Fun.

So just to update, today I ran my first 10k ever (I've been running for about two years, but certainly not competitively. It's a good day if I put the clothes on and get out of the flat, let alone break a sweat), so a 5k was a big deal, and a 10k awesome. It was SUCH fun. There were 5,000 runners, it's a beautiful day in Portland, everyone was friendly, happy, and enthusiastic about being up at 6am to run 3.2, 6.4, or 13.1 miles (depending on their race). It was really a blast, and I feel great for having done it. I think I may need to find another one to do!

I came back after that and cooked a lovely meal (cooking has been a major stress reliever for me) of a poached egg on asparagus with sweet salami, parmesan, and homemade cornbread. Yum! Now I think I"m going to head to yoga for a little stretching, and then definitely having a beer or three. Nice.

I also watched the documentary on Forks today that came with my New Moon DVD and it kind of blew my mind. Of course I know the impact Twilight has had on the world, possibly better than some considering the breadth and scope of my research, but it still continues to amaze me. This blog first took off when I went on a tour around the actual sites in Washington from the Twilight books, and since then, things have changed! I can't believe how much it has changed with new stores, tours, merchandise, and I appreciated that the DVD emphasized the focus of the events on the books (therefore things could look different than things in the films), although there were reference to the movies, and the interviews on the DVD with the fans, managers, and members of the fandom pulled in really gave some depth and credibility to the statements of the impassioned ones.

It certainly makes me want to go up there again and see for myself how it has changed in just two years. I think that may be a project for this summer. I'll see if I can wrangle together some of the Twilight posse and re-analyze Forks.

But until then... I'm working on my thesis, I'm hopefully going to be producing shortly with Elfin Productions (more news on that coming soon, I hope), publishing the anthology of Twilight criticism (so exciting; there are some brilliant articles), and living life to the fullest! I'm thinking about either a work day at Edgefield tomorrow, or a drive to the coast. Hmm...

Next stop on the University tour is San Francisco, then New York City, Boston, and finally Pennsylvania before heading back to Wales. Whoosh!

Revamped! Pardon the pun...

2010-03-14T10:06:00.001Z

Welcome to the new look of imstillwandering.blogspot.com as well as my newly launched page maggieparke.com. I'm still learning how to upload and edit html and all of that fun stuff.... but it's a start! I've just loaded all of my pictures from the Twilight-y experiences, so I'll try to get those onto maggieparke.com asap.

So... the trailer... I've heard from lots and seen lots of youtube reaction videos... not too shabby, eh?

Here's a lil' rundown of my first observations discussed via time into the trailer:

:13 seconds in, A very similar shot to the opening of the Twilight trailer (8 seconds in)

:16, Nice sweeping shot into the meadow; gives it that whirly, falling in love feeling.

-throughout this sequence, the fade to black is like eyes closing. I think I mentioned this in the
Twilight trailer too; to me, it made it feel like we were seeing scenes as if we were actually there. The watcher is physically there watching, as if it is them closing their eyes... this really draws the audience into the experience; as if it were a first-hand event.

:19, definitely a ring on that finger...

:32-40, I like the illustration of intimacy; with Edward, obviously, but also with Charlie and Renee. The steady camera with the soft contact of a touch to Charlie, and a hug with Renee translates well; that mixed with the music and the heavy drum beat anchoring the scenes... it all adds to the sincerity and seriousness of the relationships, and thus what it would mean if that relationship were altered or...ended.

:42, the sun comes up, and the next shot is Jacob (sun-Jacob-sun-- get it?)

:52, the vampire makeup keeps improving, I think. And Edward looks sufficiently tortured here. You can physically see the weight of the stress on his shoulders. I also like that shot; it starts looking at Jacob so we can see who is talking (just in case you didn't recognize the voice), but then switches to a slowly closing shot onto Edward, so we get the feeling of focusing on him; of the poignancy of this statement to Edward from Jacob.

:55, a re-iteration of Bella on the cliff, but this time it's not her as an adrenaline junkie. Instead, you get the feeling of her jumping fully, knowledgeably, into a choice. Jacob or Edward.

Around 1:00, the fade to black, the pause on black, the music coming to a halt... all contribute to the giant suspense, before the statement, "Edward, she found us." We all know the relationship between Edward, Bella, and Jacob is the central element of the story, but for the film they're going to need to beef up the ferocity of the villain, and they're starting right! A minute into the trailer, BAM! You get the fear in Bella's voice, Edward alone by the skyline anticipating something... and then...

1:05-:09, rockin' jump from Victoria that shows her power, not to mention the threat of her speed and power. It marks her as a real threat.

1:13-1:24, the eyes closing (fade to black of the editing) is paramount here. With each 'eye opening' it focuses on a different person in this intense, three-person triangle. We get the devotion of Edward, the confusion of Bella, and the resolution of Jacob. Well played.

1:24, the titles. This is often my favorite part of a trailer. There's all this build up, you can't help but get keyed up (honestly, it doesn't matter much on the trailer, these tell-tale signs are in most trailers to hook, line, and sink-in the audience...). And here is no different. Music building, shots getting more intense, shorter, suspense building, and then silence- BAM! Titles.

Other thoughts...

The momentary focus on the Volturi was good; the filters looked just right; there was a mystery and a threat... the colors and motion give a sense of foreboding, but I'm glad only that one shot was spent on them. It just reminded us of the threat, but didn't take away from the real central turmoil of the relationships and choices. I think choices is the big focus here. Jacob or Edward. Vampire or human. The Volturi are just a constant threat that we needed to be reminded of, but they don't need to detract entirely from the core issues of the story centered around the relationship.

Also, have you seen the behind the scenes sneak peak? It's definitely neat, definitely informative. I like the discussion about this as darker, they recognized that, and David Slade contributes to that more serious tone but without comprimising the relationship elements of the film. I also loved seeing Victoria kickin' ass on the green screen and wirework filming.

And lastly, I'm stoked for the DVD commentary for New Moon. I was so disappointed with the commentary for Twilight. I'm glad Catherine Hardwicke, Kristen Stewart and Rob Pattinson all talked openly about their experience with the film, and I remembered some of their stories from my days on set, but there was no insight into the process; it was more like three friends getting together and laughing at themselves watching the film. Chris Weitz, at least in this one shot, is really telling the viewer some interesting bits and pieces about the process, the making, the experience, the actors, the story... I'm stoked. It's going to take me days to get through all of that. Fun!

More soon. I'm in the throes of writing a chapter for my thesis about how films can utilize the fan base of a popular adaptation to the benefit of the film and increased box-office earnings: exciting.

I'm back to the film set of Olivia's Army next weekend (I'm shooting the behind the scenes stuff- it's awesome). Then I'm off to the States in about three weeks, and will be there for just over a month touring the US (Portland OR, San Francisco, Boston, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania), advertising UK education, and talking about my work. Again- fun!

So until next time, watch the trailer a thousand more times and gear up for the New Moon excitement.

Kristen Stewart wins the BAFTA...continues to take over the world.

2010-02-22T14:52:00.000Z

I don't know why I'm still surprised at the breadth and extent of the Twilight fandom, but I'm kind of glad that every time I see a huge group of screaming fans it still makes me smile. There's something about seeing that level of enthusiasm for a film/novel/actor that makes me feel happy and encouraged about people being okay with the world. Nothing made them as happy as catching a glimpse of Rob's floppy fro and Kristen's gorgeous dress.

So I wasn't at the BAFTAs, but I saw the mayhem in London last night. I'm down here for a week to see Dame Judi Dench in A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Rose Theater (she was AMAZING, and so gracious), I'm doing some research, and having a chat with a production company here about producing some shorts with them (more on that fun news later). But of course it was the BAFTAs, and Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart were both in London, and therefore I couldn't escape the Twilight chat, and further infiltration of it into my life!

It was fun to watch it here, where Twilight is certainly a big deal, everyone has heard of it, but it doesn't have the same mania that exists in the US. So when she won, I think it came as a surprise to everyone, and most of all- to Kristen herself. The speech was rather rough, awkward... definitely unrehearsed. We know she's not one to grab the spotlight and would rather just keep to her own devices and quietly do her work... she's not the most comfortable in front the masses of screaming fans that follow her wherever she goes, but I think I would have at least jotted down a few bullet points for a 'speech.' It was a bit painful, wasn't it? And they kept zooming in on Rob's face... no pressure Rob, act normal...

I'm glad they're both having fun in London and able to see the Twilight universe here, and the fans get a glimpse of them as well. I imagine it's a nice break from the LA craziness. So congrats to Kristen, yay BAFTAs (I love them, seriously, who didn't cry when Vanessa Redgrave did a proper curtsy to Prince William and showed him the utmost respect as royalty?! It was very humbling), and yay Twilight fans.

Update...

2010-01-25T14:52:00.015Z

Nothing too new to report from Wales/Portland/Boston/London/any of the other dozen places I've been hopping around! I guess that's what happens with the ol' PhD work... eventually you have to buckle down to the actual PhD writing, huh? Silly expectations... you'd think PhDs were hard to get or something.... riiiight :) (note the heavy, heavy sarcasm).

Anywho, first of all I just heard that Howard Shore is scoring Eclipse- wow. It is exciting when heavily credible artists start signing up to work with these projects. It's not surprising, everyone from Shakira to Justin Guarini are trying to hitch their wagons t Twilight's success, but it's great that these well-respected, established artists like Howard Shore, Thom Yorke, and hell, half of the contributors to the New Moon soundtrack, are joining the party. It broadens the scope of Twilight, and I think it may bring additional credibility and validity to the saga as something more than a teenage-obsessed romance; that's certainly the main audience, but it's also a bit of a detriment to the series that it is it's key description; I think the series would benefit from a wider scope of talent and something other than screaming teenagers being it's main claim to fame. I also think it ups the game of the filmmakers. It's not just a one-off that they're making for a lot of money; a lot more is going into these films, so hopefully everyone's game is raised.

I'll be interested to analyze the script development from the first film through Eclipse and Breaking Dawn (whenever that one gets rolling), and see if it shows the growth that seems to have happened organically with the other aspects of the films like the soundtrack, score, and production processes.

So... moving on from that... I'm mainly just writing up this semester as I need to start producing huge chunks of my thesis (the final focus for the thesis is the adaptation of event films and how their processes utilize the fan culture of the source material- FUN). I am working both Vampire Baseball, events, however as their photographer/handler again, and of course the film festival/film making cruise event. So excited about that. Book your place if you haven't yet; it's going to be uber fun, you'll come out of it with a film short, and tour the Caribbean....nothing wrong there!

I'm also beginning a bit of production work with a small production house in London (more news of that soon; their new site is about to launch), and we've just made the final decisions for accepted essays for the anthology of Twilight criticism that I'm co-editing. So busy like woah, writing, editing, producing, and three or four trips back to the US in the next six months, but that's how I like it! Busy, productive, and above all fun :)

And lastly, I'm putting together a post about my program, education, the PhD, the course... whatever you want to call it. I've had a lot of emails asking about it and I feel wretched that I haven't answered them yet! So I will answer them, but hopefully this post will cover a lot of ground since a lot of the questions are the same. It's coming!

Until next time...

Okay, I've seen it...

2009-11-29T18:07:00.010Z

I'm sorry it's taken me so stinkin' long to get this up, but this year is called 'hell year' by most 3^rd year PhD students in the UK, and thus far it's living up to that! Monumentally busy... but good :) Teaching, working in the international office, writing an article, editing an anthology of Twilight criticism, and planning some Twilight events this spring (Vampire Baseball and Fan Film Festival Cruise- wahoo!)

But, now to the point.... I've seen New Moon. Three times. My immediate reaction: pleased. Improvement. Smoother than expected. Better performances than expected. Elements still stilted and dialogue still lacking occasionally, but overall I thoroughly enjoyed it! I think I should scan in my notes that I took during the film- as it was dark (it was in a movie theater, obviously), they slant all over the place and are at times on top of each other, so I'll try to make out what I wrote.

Things I liked:

Firstly, the theater was filled with girls wearing 'team Edward' shirts, shrieking, and stating 'my heart is thumping in my chest.' This is vastly different from the quiet, unobsessed viewing I had in Wales last year. Twilight fever has officially struck the UK.
The opening shot of the large, golden moon: brilliantly raises the anticipation as the moon slowly waxes to reveal the title of the film, New Moon (we all knew what it would say, but it was exciting when it was finally revealed)
This one begins with a voice over as well, illustrating Bella's point of view. I'm also surprised but glad that they included the 'Gran' dream. I really felt that was a moment in the book where you could see Bella's point of view. You could see the issue you would have if you were 70 and your husband was perpetually 17. Seeing that moment visualized on screen really shined a light on that fear of hers.
The vamps have better contacts, and Edward's sparkling is much better. Although the tinkling bells are still there. Grrr...
Whoever had the idea for Edward to recite Romeo's lines from Romeo and Juliet deserves a bonus. I don't think Rob delivered them all that well, but who didn't coo and melt a bit at hearing Shakespeare from his lips?
I enjoyed the improved effect of the vampires' movements. We first see it at the birthday when Jasper goes after Bella. The speed of their movements- Edward pushing in front of Bella, Jasper slipping through Emmet and Carlisle's hands at first, and then throughout the film- Laurent's chase and fight, and of course that fight with the Volturi (I'll get to that more later), it didn't have the cheesy whooshing sound effects from Twilight, and depicted the vampires more realistically- ultra fast movements that don't seem contrived or cartoon-like.
I greatly enjoyed the moment between Carlisle and Bella when he is stitching up her arm. It seemed rather natural for them to be that close, showed how comfortable Bella has become with this family, and provided an unhurried and believable conversation about vampires and their souls.
1. Nice touch at the end of this scene, when Carlisle burns the bloody gauze- it's in the shape of a heart. It's a bloody, burning, heart in a bowl. Foreshadow much?

The camera shots in the break up scene. The camera stays quite solidly on Edward, but when it cuts to Bella the angle is skewed; it's usually moving, and is often a disconcerting upshot. This illustrates the apparent calmness and decisiveness of Edward breaking up with Bella, and the utter collapse of Bella's world.
October, November, December, January.... Brilliant. Brilliant. Brilliant. Wonderful shot, poignant music, continuous, driving, circular shot showing the utter despair within Bella. I remember reaching that part of the book, as I'm sure we all do, and going 'What?! What!? What?!' and I'm glad they effectively recreated that in the film.
Bella's relationship with Jacob. I love Taylor Lautner, truly, but I still find the delivery of his lines very awkward and stilted. His interaction with Bella though, and their physicality with each other seems so much more natural in this film. Perhaps their camaraderie offscreen seeped into their onscreen scenes.
“Dear Alice...” emails. It's a good narrative technique. It allows us to hear Bella's thoughts as we do in the novels, but without being pure, cheesy, voice over. Some of them seem out of place to me (the one before she goes into Emily's house stands out in my mind as forced), but overall it was effective.
Attention to detail: Emily made muffins, Jacob's house is red, Edward was in Rio de Janero (something only true fans would know as it's in the deleted chapters from Stephenie Meyer's website), Alice had a yellow porsche... all things that aren't necessary for the film to be good, but are acknowledged and appreciated nods to the fan base.
Bella is less awkward. Not as much of that blinking, lip-biting, fifteen minutes to get out one line-ness. Mike is more awkward (“gotta get that protein in there...”) and it works wonderfully. Oh Mike... definitely laughed at the 'Face Punch' scene with the boys hands ready and waiting for Bella to grab them...
Two words: Thom. Yorke. Damn I love that song, and its use in that compiled scene of Victoria's chase, Harry's heart attack, and Bella about to jump off of the cliff is perfect.
“When you put the dog out.” Witty line... I liked it.
Clever placement of Virgin Atlantic advertising... a little tongue in cheek product placement at the protagonists' virginity perhaps?
When Bella crashes into Edward and he says “Heaven.” Granted I missed the “Carlisle was right...” line, but this was the next best thing.
I enjoyed the awkward moment when they're all in the elevator at the Volturi headquarters, it's as tense as anything, and then this cheesy, Italian elevator music comes on. Beautifully awkward and a nice humorous moment during such a tense scene.
The vacuum sounds as Aro reads thoughts. Oddly enough, it wasn't an annoying effect; this is what I imagine you actually hear when he tromps through your head. And the fight. Wow...the fight. Definitely better visualized than what I was picturing. Strong, fast, effective, and shows the lengths that Edward would go to in order to protect Bella.
The effect of the vamps breaking apart and turning into stone. So thaaaat's what that looks like :)
Complete silence... and then? “Marry me.” Cut to black. Uber effective.

Things I didn't like:

Jake still has a horrible wig.
Alice's clothes. In some outfits she looks classy and funky and Alice like; in others she looks like Katie Holmes at her most Stepford-esque; large, old-lady type suits and childlike painting smocks.
Obvious CG work on the cliff jumping scene. If The Lord of the Rings can make Legolas slide down the trunk of a collapsing olliphant and make it look real, surely we can have Bella or the wolf pack jumping off some rocks and have it look believable.
The vision of Bella as a vampire. Cheeeesetastic.
Dialogue. There are still big chunks of dialogue that I find flat, and missed opportunities for further character development or just better film moments. Every second of screen time costs thousands or even millions of dollars- I hoped that they would fill every moment with productive elements. For example, the exchange at the cinema when Jake and Mike nearly fight; I know that Jake needs to get angry for the change to trigger, but that whole section seemed forced; in fact, I thought a lot of Jacob's elements were forced. I still find him a slightly stilted actor, but it didn't help that he got some cheesy and poorly-delivered lines.

I know I've been doing a lot of comparison to Twilight in order to rate New Moon. It's hard not to acknowledge the first film that is so burned into our memories, and was certainly such an impressing and formative filmmaking experience for me. If I were to just look at New Moon, and try to remove the preconceptions from Twilight, I don't think I'd think New Moon was very good. If I hadn't read the books, if I didn't already enjoy this world, I don't think the film would appear fluid, well-structured, and interesting. It doesn't follow the general rules of three-act script very well, character development is lacking, and honestly, I found the plot under-structured.

It is in the novel too; that's not necessarily a bad thing, the whole point of the book is to illustrate Bella's despair, show the depth of her feeling toward Edward, develop the relationship with Jacob and develop the threat of the Volturi. In that sense, mission accomplished, and accomplished quite well. But the adaptation

challenge arises here when one considers how to turn that transitory novel into an interesting film. They made it a great adaptation for fans, I think. It's a very, very difficult one to make a good film and appease the fans, and monetary success was guaranteed if they made the fans happy, so I think that was more of the focus; true to the book, true to the fans, make them happy, and they did the best that they could with the material.

Therefore, I think this was a wonderful step in producing a better adaptation. Chris Weitz always said this was a film for the fans, and he stood by that throughout. If this film was a project for the fans, and hopefully for a few people to get into the books who were unfamiliar with them previously, then I think it has succeeded. I certainly enjoyed the film. It was entertaining, I think the performances improved, I think the script improved, it was more fluid, the music was brilliant, and I thought the cinematography was often quite beautiful. It's hard to say 'this looks good for the series, it'll only get better...' because you want each film to be brilliant. You want them to stand on their own and be very good, but in this instance, I think we have to look at it in the series.

With Twilight, they didn't necessarily know what they had. They knew it had a fervent following, but no one anticipated the reception that it got. Now they DO know what they have, and that is changing the adaptation process, the filming, the release, and everything else. I think each film will improve on the previous one, but they'll continuously struggle to make a good film that is also a good adaptation.

That's the challenge, and what I find so fun to study!

More soon, but there are the initial reactions and thoughts :)