50/50 Review #34: The Devil's Backbone.

This is one I've been wanting to see for years, particularly after Pan's Labyrinth. But was it worth the wait? The film takes place during the Spanish Civil War, as an orphan named Carlos (Fernando Tielve) is dropped off at a poor orphanage run by Carmen (Marisa Paredes) and Dr. Casares (Federico Luppi). He immediately makes an enemy in another boy, Jaime (Inigo Garces), who bullies him. Oh, and there's a ghost boy named Santi (Junio Valverde) who walks the orphanage at night while a caretaker named Jacinto (Eduardo Noriega) continually attempts to break into a safe and steal gold.

This is a film about characters. Of course I really liked the relationship between Dr. Casares and Carlos, and they share some really great scenes... including what I like to call the "baby rum" scene. I also had a similar reaction to this as I did with a completely unrelated film--Attack the Block. I was initially so put off by the character of Jaime and how terrible he is that I found it hard to get into the movie. But by the end, I realized that somewhere along the way, I had grown to really sympathize with him and feel bad for him. And I give a lot of respect to writers who can pull that kind of thing off. And he does have great taste in women, as Irene Visedo (who plays Jacinto's significant other), is quite the looker.

There is a lot going on in this movie, but with del Toro at the helm, it's all handled very well. If I had a complaint, it was that things did tend to get confusing to me at times, and I had to look up some plot points before going "ohh, so that's what's going on." Besides that, though, is the main reason I didn't really like this movie... let's see how well I can put this. Pan's Labyrinth, which I love, is a film that is basically a fantasy/fairy tale that just so happens to have the Spanish Civil War happening in the background. My least favorite part of that movie is all the war stuff, including the rebels subplot. This film is a Spanish Civil War movie that just so happens to have a ghost story involved. I loved the ghost story, but the war stuff just doesn't interest me. And unfortunately, that's what drives the bulk of this movie--not the ghost stuff.

But despite my disinterest in a chunk of the story, I absolutely do not deny the skill behind this film. The direction, the aesthetic, the atmosphere... everything about this film is done incredibly well. Even the CGI of the ghost and/or stuff accompanying the ghost looks damn good, especially for 2001. I also really liked the end with the kids banding together and how everything ended up going down. I just wish I could have loved more of the film as a whole. It's good. I liked it. But I think I might have wanted a little something different from it for me personally to really, really dig it.


I Am McLovin!

(P.S. Of course, as usual, the rating is based on my entertainment level, not the level of how good or bad the actual film is.)

Why Haven't They Made This Yet? #3

[Do you know what I find even more annoying than the constant wave of remakes, reboots, sequels/prequels, and comic book and video game adaptations? People complaining about remakes, reboots, sequels/prequels, and comic book and video game adaptations. Seriously, all I ever hear these days is 'waah, why aren't there any fresh ideas? Everything is (see above) nowadays!' And frankly, I'm getting really tired of it. So instead of joining the ranks, I'm going to embrace all said types of film, and I will be celebrating it in a segment I like to call... "Why haven't they made this yet?"] 

Man, I haven't done this in a while, but I was inspired today while watching the original (especially so close to viewing Where The Wild Things Are) that I had to do it. 

Title: Labyrinth.

Type: Remake. 

About: Almost everybody remembers this trippy classic. It was the film that pretty much launched the career of Jennifer Connelly. As a fantasy (on a magical realism level) full of puppets and a pseudo-musical (with everything written and sung by David Bowie, the film's antagonist), Labyrinth works on many levels. A lot of its visual effects don't hold up today, and with what modern cinema has at its fingertips, this movie could be redone as a modern classic... if done right.

Film Possibilities

Genre: Similar to the original, it would be a trippy, puppet-driven fantasy/pseudo-musical for children and/or young adults.

Why This Movie Could Work: Where The Wild Things Are. If anything was outstanding in that recent film, it was the puppetry and men-in-suits work. Movies have come a long way in the realm of realism and puppets, and if the same people were involved as were with "Wild Things," this film could be outstanding visually. 

Story: Similar to the original, a spoiled girl named Sarah is tired of having to give up her time to babysit her baby brother so her parents can go out. So in a fit of anger, she offers up her brother to the Goblin King, but immediately regrets it. She travels to the Labyrinth and discovers she has 13 hours to get to the middle, through the Goblin City, and to the castle to save her brother before he's turned into a goblin forever. Along the way, she makes friends who help her find her way through the dangerous maze.

In the remake, though, I'm sure there would be the want to detract the magical realism and make Sarah freak out about the whole thing instead of act like everything she sees and experiences is as common as rain. I'd hope that would stay in to keep with the fantastical feel of the story. At the same time, though, maybe the remake could add a bit to the characters of Sarah and possibly the Goblin King to make them more rounded and relatable characters. 

Director: My first instinct, of course, is Spike Jonze (as long as he stays away from Dave Eggers in the script department). For the most part, he did good things with "Wild Things." I could also suggest Tim Burton, who would take this already whacked-out story and, dare I say, make it even crazier and more surreal. Plus he's had the experience with musicals (Sweeny Todd). But he'd probably cast Johnny Depp as the Goblin King, and I have other ideas for him. But I'm gonna go out there and say that I'd like to see another artistic take on it by hiring Guillermo del Toro. He's done his own puppetry work (Hellboy I and II, Pan's Laybrinth). And especially with the aforementioned "Labyrinth" film, I know he could make one heck of a magical realism/fantastical film. 

Cast: I'm gonna stick away from the voice actors for now, though I dare say del Toro should hire Doug Jones for a lot of the men-in-suits bits. Boy that would be a nice paycheck, wouldn't it? My main concerns are the protagonist and antagonist: Sarah and the Goblin King.

First, who would take over for the classic Jennifer Connelly role? There aren't a ton of young actresses who I could see taking the role. Dakota Fanning is too young. I could suggest the hot up-and-comer Emma Stone for the role. I'd say it's what she'd really need to break out, but I think Zombieland just did that. Plus, I'm not sure if she could grab the emotion of the role too well.

That's why I'm going controversial. I'm gonna say the role should go to Kristen Stewart. I know, her Twilight role makes her look like she has the depth of a teaspoon, but I know this girl can act (see: Speak or Adventureland). She can also be the dark, broody girl required of the part. Plus... she actually kinda looks like Jennifer Connelly did at that age.

Then we have our villain, the Goblin King. Famously portrayed by David Bowie, the character needs to be able to sing. The actor should also have an androgynous feel to him, as well as not look ridiculous in eyeliner. I really only had two suggestions. If we were going the "older" route, I'd say Anthony Head. We know the guy can sing (see: Buffy's "Once More With Feeling" or Repo! The Genetic Opera). And he's no stranger to the fantasy realm. But I sincerely doubt they'd go that risky and pick a guy that 1) isn't overly attractive, 2) isn't well known by the mass population, and 3) isn't a draw for the young crowd.

That's why I think the perfect person for this role would be recent American Idol almost-winner Adam Lambert. He can do the falsetto. He can dress up in tights and eyeliner and still look good (he did it every week on Idol). He already has the hair for the role. And he falls into the young, attractive, and popular crowd. He'd certainly draw in the big bucks. Not to mention (in my opinion) he has a great voice.

And that's pretty much all there is to this edition. Thoughts?

HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY.

So, the first one was decent and entertaining. This one, on the other hand, was that and more. Hellboy II starts off with a young Hellboy being read a fairy tale by his ‘father’, Trevor Bruttenholm (John Hurt), about the Golden Army and its origins. Flash forward to present day, and Hellboy (Ron Pearlman) is having some issues with his new relationship with Liz (Selma Blair). But when they, along with fellow friend and teammate Abe Sapien (Doug Jones), get called in to look at a crime scene with no survivors, they soon begin to realize something dangerous is afoot. Prince Nuada (Luke Goss) is attempting to reassemble all the pieces of a magical crown in order to bring back and take control over The Golden Army, though not if his twin sister, Princess Nuala (Anna Walton), has anything to say about it. Though after a little mishap that reveals Hellboy to the public eye, the director of the paranormal agency, Tom Manning (Jeffrey Tambor), brings in Johann Kraus (voiced by Seth MacFarlane) to attempt to keep Hellboy in line.

As I said, the first movie was decent and entertaining, but this one takes it to another level. It’s not as dark as the first one, though. In fact, it’s a lot lighter with more fantasy and fairy tale aspects instead of the nitty-gritty demons, Nazis, and evil Russians of the first. In fact, there’s even a scene in a Troll Market that is somewhat reminiscent of mixing Harry Potter’s Diagon Alley with the Star Wars cantina. And the beginning with Abe and Manning walking through the department reminded me of something out of Men In Black.

The visuals are amazing, as per usual with Del Toro. There is some CGI, but there are far more puppets and costumes than computer graphics (at least from what I noticed), which is nice, because it’s not an overwhelming sensation of fakeness. There were even some really creepy parts, such as the Angel of Death sequence, which I loved. And one of the issues I had with the first movie was that it felt like I was cheated out of the battle scenes, especially the final battle. This time, I didn’t really feel like that (okay, maybe once). But the final battle was long, entertaining, and quite acceptable. Oh, and we finally got to see some cool moves from Abe at one point in the movie, though it’s very brief. Still, it was cool, nonetheless.

The humor from the first movie is still here, as well. In fact, there might be even more. The movie had me laughing out loud quite a few times, specifically the Hellboy/Kraus ‘fight’ and the Hellboy/Abe ‘moment’ (I don’t want to give it away, but you’ll know what I’m talking about).

The acting was a little stiff at times, but not too often. I was glad to hear Doug Jones’ voice for Abe. The villain of the movie, Prince Nuada, actually had some depth to him. He wasn’t just your typical revenge-seeking baddy. In fact, I could compare him (and a lot of the movie’s themes) to that of Magneto from X-Men. There were quite a few parallels, actually, to the themes of X-Men and the themes of this movie. And yes, when I said Seth MacFarlane, I did mean that Seth MacFarlane. But you really can’t tell (at least, I couldn’t).

Overall, I really enjoyed it. I found it much better than the first one, and I wasn’t left with a feeling that something was missing. Selma Blair still could have been given a bit more to do action-wise, though. She got some cool special effects with the fire, but that was about it. So she was nice to look at in more than one way. But yeah, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

A Keanu 'Whoa'

P.E.S.T.

So what do I think about the movies coming out this week? Let's see! It's time for Pre-Emptive Strike Thursdays!

-----------

Title: Hellboy II.

Pre-Thoughts: Obviously the big movie of the week. I enjoyed the first Hellboy, though it could have been better. I'm suspecting that the sequel is going to be similar. I love Guillermo del Toro, though. He's one of the great directors of today with a great vision for his films. The movie is obviously going to look great. And I like the fact that the creatures are all people in suits instead of CGI, including all the ones my homeboy Doug Jones portrays. And this time, Mr. Jones actually gets to do the voice of Abe Sapien! Anyway, this looks like it'll be more action than the first, but the trailer doesn't give much on story, so I'm kind of iffy on that aspect. Either way, I still think it'll be pretty cool. And it has been getting some good reviews, but I'm trying to keep my expectations for this to a middle-point. That's the safest bet, I think.

Pre-Score:

I Am McLovin!


Title: Journey to the Center of the Earth.

Pre-Thoughts: Well, my mom really wants to see it... but I'm not incredibly hyped about it. I mean, it looks fun, and it seems like it would be even more fun in the 3-D theaters (which isn't the one here). But it's heavily reliant on CGI and looks to be almost too child-friendly for my tastes. Though, Brenden Frasier is always cool, so I'm not sure. I'm kinda blah on this one.

Pre-Score:

Stop Saying Okay! Okay.


Title: Meet Dave.

Pre-Thoughts: No.

Pre-Score:

She's Gone From Suck to Blow!