Tag: 2011

140 Character Movie Review – #140RVW

Exactly what it looks like: cute, family-friendly, inspirational, endearing & completely devoid of any sharp edges. Not a bad thing at all.

Spoiler-free Movie Review of Dolphin Tale:

What a cute movie. You know, sometimes a thing just is what it is – and that’s alright. This movie turned out to be every bit the sweet family fare that it teased. And there is nothing at all wrong with that.

You can sort of tell just by the casting what kind of movie it’s going to be. Some of these actors just broadcast this vibe that there isn’t going to be any heavy lifting involved with what you’re about to see. The folksy compassion of Kris Kristofferson, the worldly (& folksy) wisdom of Morgan Freeman, the folksy wholesomeness of Ashley Judd, the jazzy wholesomeness of Harry Connick Jr. – it’s like the cast of a Lifetime special with more star power. But that’s alright; this isn’t the story for acting fireworks.

And it is a great story. Based simultaneously tightly AND loosely on a real story. It’s sort of an interesting mix. The details about Winter are extremely accurate, while everything else is extremely fictional.

The story of Winter, a dolphin stranded on a beach in Florida after being injured in a crab net, is an amazing one. This is a wonderful animal who was rescued by some brave and inventive people and it’s an inspirational story that you’d have to be made of stone not to warm to. The film features Winter in her home location at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium, and in the closing credits of the picture we get to see footage of the events just dramatized. Now, I’m tempted to say that it’s such a good story and the actual recordings are so captivating that a feature film is really unnecessary – that they should have just stuck with a documentary (of which there is one – Winter, the Dolphin That Can – http://www.seewinter.com/winter-hope/real-life-story).

But that would be selling short the job that screenwriters Karen Janszen & Noam Dromi have done in creating a great dramatization that honors the inspirational effect Winter has had on many people. The story of overcoming physical trauma and the adversity it creates is meaningful on so many levels, and the screenwriters have used this as the basis for the film story, which draws parallels with our wounded soldiers. The story is more than a little bit melodramatic and could probably have used a haircut, but it is engaging and well-written.

The picture is very well made – craftsman-like, but not showy. I’m not in love with the over-clean look of the film, but it suits the movie. DP Karl Walter Lindenlaub had to work with the ill-advised decision to shoot in native 3D – this picture never needed to be in 3D – and perhaps that led to the antiseptic image. More than anything, though, everything and everyone are just too tidy.

Dolphin Tale is a heartwarming picture that can truly be inspirational if you watch it with the right audience and right mind frame. If not, it’s earnestness may seem saccharine. But it is a delight to watch with children and highly recommended.

Poster:

Trailer:

Bechdel Test:

Pass

The Representation Test Score: A (11 pts)

(http://therepresentationproject.org/grading-hollywood-the-representation-test/)

[schema type=”movie” url=”http://dolphintalemovie.warnerbros.com/dvd/index.html” name=”Dolphin Tale” description=””Dolphin Tale” is inspired by the amazing true story of a brave dolphin and the compassionate strangers who banded together to save her life. Swimming free, a young dolphin is caught in a crab trap, severely damaging her tail. She is rescued and transported to the Clearwater Marine Hospital, where she is named Winter. But her fight for survival has just begun. Without a tail, Winter’s prognosis is dire “Dolphin Tale,” today serves as a symbol of courage, perseverance and hope to millions of people-both able and disabled-who have been touched by her remarkable story of recovery and rehabilitation.” director=”Charles Martin Smith” actor_1=”Morgan Freeman” actor_2=”Ashley Judd” actor_3=”Harry Connick Jr.” actor_4=”Nathan Gamble” actor_5=”Cozi Zuehlsdorff” ]

Main Cast	Morgan Freeman Dr. Cameron McCarthy, Ashley Judd Lorraine Nelson, Harry Connick Jr. Dr. Clay Haskett, Nathan Gamble Sawyer Nelson
Rating	PG
Release Date	Fri 23 Sep 2011 UTC
Director	Charles Martin Smith
Genres	Drama, Family
Plot	A story centered on the friendship between a boy and a dolphin whose tail was lost in a crab trap.
Poster
Runtime	113
Tagline	Inspired by the amazing true story of Winter
Writers	Karen Janszen (written by) and, Noam Dromi (written by)
Year	2011

140 Character Movie Review – #140RVW

These 2 things may seem mutually exclusive but they’re not: 1) Green Lantern isn’t as bad as they say. 2) What’s wrong with it? Everything.

Spoiler-free Movie Review of Green Lantern:

I have never read a Green Lantern comic. He sometimes would show up in other DC Comics I read, but even then it was pretty rare. So my review is limited to the merits of the movie as a standalone and not on any adaptation criteria. So if you are a fan of the comic series or character, I will probably annoy you with the following statement: Green Lantern is not an interesting character. Maybe that’s just in this movie – it probably is. But most of the problems with the Green Lantern film don’t strike me as poor filmmaking…

I wanted to like this movie – I really did. And I don’t hate it. But it just really doesn’t work very well.

The problems start almost immediately – there’s something about a narrated introduction that fills me with dread. It means that you instantly are going to be told things that you are expected to remember – that isn’t a problem. No, the problem is that my silly meter is very often set off by a whole bunch of exposition filled with silly names and suspect logic. Sometimes this isn’t a deal-killer. Off the top of my head I can think of three great films with silly opening narration (written or spoken): Highlander, Terminator & Blade Runner. Sometimes you just have a bunch of info that you have to get across or the movie will be confusing. But the roll-out of Green Lantern had me rolling my eyes before the titles:

The immortals or Guardians on the planet Oa have harnessed the emerald energy of willpower. (The power of this story is based on a color?) They divided the universe into 3,600 sectors and sent out a bunch of green rings which would choose worthy peacekeepers, so naturally these oddly-numbered recruits would be known as the Green Lantern Corps. (Wait a minute, I thought the ring was the magic item? Now it’s a lantern? Did they send lanterns out to everyone, too? Why aren’t they called the Green Ring Corps?)

I know this sounds like a really nit-picky point, but I think this is part of the trouble I have with the character. There’s just too much going on. There’s a ring, but it needs to get charged by a lantern, which needs to get charged by a planet, which was created by weird looking aliens that are immortal, which is another way of saying they are stuck looking like that forever. It all takes place in space. And there are three thousand and six hundred of them. Oh, and the power doesn’t come from the lantern or the ring or the planet, it comes from willpower. Which is green. Not yellow, because that’s fear. Fear is more powerful but it corrupts. I don’t know what red does…

Parallax is the main villain. He is gross – really gross. All yellow and brown with an enormous forehead. In fact, there are a lot of ugly characters in this movie. And not just the villains. I consider this a bit of a deal-killer. Again, maybe I’m being petty and maybe long-time readers were thrilled to see Sinestro as pink with a widow’s peak and David Niven mustache. Or the fish-guy or Hector Hammond (also mustachioed…hmm…). But I think I speak for most of us when I say that watching the hero fight a nauseating brownish-yellow cloud and a sweaty guy with greasy hair and a bulbous forehead is entirely joyless.

I think we were all a little confused and wary when it was announced that the suit would be entirely digital. I’m going to say that again – the main character’s costume is CG. How could you possibly manage a budget when the costume has to be created for every frame that the title character appears in? They certainly didn’t skimp anywhere else, because the effects are top-shelf. Like the rest of the movie, they look weird and have questionable design, but they are unquestionably well done.

The action, too, is well done if not riveting. The actors themselves are fine. I don’t really even have a problem with Reynolds in the title role; he plays it too goofy, but again, I think that’s the filmmaker’s choice. And I’m not going to criticize anyone who had a hard time taking this seriously.

There’s a sameness to Green Lantern that is ultimately the most damning thing about it. The comic-book action is good but can leave you bored because of any number of reasons: story, design, characters. DC obviously swung for the fences with this one but really was undone because of the fundamental shakiness of the character. It may work very well on paper and I’ve even seen a fairly enjoyable animated movie, but for live action it’s just a little out there. That said, I think that the character would probably work much better in a Justice League movie. I’m just not sure that he’s strong enough to support his own franchise.

Poster:

Trailer:

Bechdel Test:

Fail

The Representation Test Score: D (3 pts)

(http://therepresentationproject.org/grading-hollywood-the-representation-test/)

[schema type=”movie” name=”Green Lantern” description=”A test pilot is granted an alien ring that bestows him with otherworldly powers that inducts him into an intergalactic police force.” director=”Martin Campbell” actor_1=”Ryan Reynolds” actor_2=”Blake Lively” actor_3=”Peter Sarsgaard” actor_4=”Mark Strong” ]

Main Cast	Ryan Reynolds Hal Jordan/Green Lantern, Blake Lively Carol Ferris, Peter Sarsgaard Hector Hammond, Mark Strong Sinestro
Rating	PG-13
Release Date	Fri 17 Jun 2011 UTC
Director	Martin Campbell
Genres	Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Plot	A test pilot is granted an alien ring that bestows him with otherworldly powers that inducts him into an intergalactic police force.
Poster
Runtime	114
Tagline	One of us… becomes one of them.
Writers	Greg Berlanti (screenplay) &, Michael Green (screenplay) …
Year	2011