Oscar, Coraline, and Slumdog.

The week of the Academy Awards are over. After all the build-up, I remember again why the awards are so fleeting, and how much of a "meat-parade" they are. I have to admit, I stole the "meat-parade" bit from George C. Scott, which is what he called the Academy Awards when he refused his Best Actor award in 1971. This year, the ceremony couldn't have been more overblown, with a broadway style show led by host, Hugh Jackman. Although I have to praise Jackman's song and dance abilities, the whole thing seemed a little too inappropriate given the current state of the economy. Like Benjamin Button, some of the musical numbers just seemed to drag on. Although I was pleased with most of the outcome, by the end of it, I realized I just didn't care.


This year so far, I am all over two movies that left me with a sense of cinematic hope.

Although it opened two months ago, it wasn't until January I finally saw Slumdog Millionaire. Although I am not as familiar with all his work, director Danny Boyle did Trainspotting in 1996, which is one of my favorite movies. Slumdog is a marvelous movie, filmed more like a blood and sweat independent film, rather than a big budget Hollywood polish. I don't mean to sound too biased, but there are times when I am more in favor of the indie style. Come to think of it, most films looked like that in the days before the digital age.

The story of Slumdog reads like a modern-day fairy tale, with a traditional good vs. evil plot. And I mean this in the best way possible. We get a slimey representation of India and its various battles, notably the slums vs. the economy, and the uneducated vs. the educated, and (more realistically) religious conflict. I love this movie, because it is a gratifying story, portrayed with sweat and dirt, and mixed with glitter.


Next up is Coraline. I've seen it only once, and I make it a point to write a proper review after seeing it twice. But I need to be careful financially, so I can't make too many trips to the cinemas. But after one viewing, I was already blown away by how beautiful the movie was. It is full of charm, stunning design work, and a grand mix of chaos and atmosphere. Obviously the right hands were involved in this, and the result is one that doesn't suffer from a transparent script, and doesn't become too predictable. A big kudos to Henry Selick, whose skills as a director are in terrific form with this film.
The film is solid, and is so far, the best film of the year. I know it is early to say that, but I can say it with honesty. I just feel its a shame the movie had to be released in February, when a lot of attention is usually paid to the Oscar nominations. Still, the movie seems to be doing good business, though it still has catching up to do at the box-office.

Now we have a whole new year of new films to look forward to.

Harry Potter and the words of a Film Loving Yank

I love the Harry Potter movies. I keep hearing a lot of negative things about the movies in general (though the acting usually receives the best accolades). All I can say is that if I am both inspired and entertained, then for me, the films have done their job. I love the characters, because they represent things about us we are often afraid to explore. Harry goes through events that most people dread (losing your family, seeing your friends get murdered, having a whole community against you, etc), and survives through it all in ways we can only hope. I love films with a shade of darkness within them. I don't mean to say I'm a morose person (although if I am, I don't mean to be). But the fact is, these are fantasies that revolve around death and mortality. Harry Potter's life story starts with the horrible murder of his parents, and his mysterious (one-year old) defeat of their murderer, the evil Lord Voldemort.

The first two movies were handled by American director Chris Columbus (best known for family films like Home Alone and Mrs. Doubtfire). While the stories were clear and the acting already in terrific form, the overall feel of the movies were too commercial for my tastes. There didn't seem to be enough going on artistically, and the directing was simply too plain. I don't mean to sound disrespectful to Columbus. I'm sure he's a nice guy, he's just not one of my favorite directors. Besides, if the first movie appears cliched, it was probably because the first book is meant to introduce all the main characters. And from the outset, most of the earlier characters seem to be based on traditional character-types, though they eventually evolve as the story moves forward.


With the arrival of Alfonso Cuaron (Mexican born who did Y tu mama tambien and Children of Men), the series took a new direction. Cuaron's approach involved playing with the visual style (particularly the photography) and making his take on Harry Potter more character driven. Although it has been argued that Chris Columbus's versions were more faithful to the novels, Cuaron's version gave a whole new level of audience accessibility. The relationship and communication of the characters now appeared to be more realistic, which in a way, blurs the line between the wizarding world (fantasy) and the muggle world (reality). The actors seem to be given more room to play with their characters. The Wizarding school of Hogwarts is now portrayed more like a British boarding school, where magic happens to be natural.


These movies get the best actors in the United Kingdom. Not just film and TV actors, but well-renowned stage performers (including Daniel Radcliffe himself). It is known that one of J.K. Rowling's conditions for selling the rights was that an all-British cast be used, unless a different nationality is noted in the stories. One of the reasons I am so entranced with the Harry Potter films is because I am in awe of a fantasy starring the very best British talent in the world. I am simply going to say that I am impressed with every one of these actors. Rambling on any further about them could get kind of boring.

Daniel Radcliffe is an actor with a lot of promise, and hopefully, he will embark on a career beyond Harry Potter. This image of Radcliffe is not from Harry Potter, but from Equus, a Peter Shaffer play currently on Broadway, starring Radcliffe and Richard Griffiths (Harry Potter's uncle Vernon Dursley).





Ralph Fiennes gives Lord Voldemort, the primary antagonist, an amazing energy. His performance makes the character not only dangerous and fearful (as he should), but also gives a charming demeanor, which plays to the character's strengths.












Along with the best British talent, the fourth movie featured some of best musical talent. The Yule Ball scene called for a famous rock band from the wizarding world, The Weird Sisters. In an inspiring cameo, the Weird Sisters are fronted by Jarvis Cocker (leader of Pulp), and members of Radiohead, Pulp, electronic groups All Seeing I, and Add N to (X). The result is a band that looks like a Goth version of Queen meets Jethro Tull.



With Mike Newell, there is now a distinctly British feel to the whole thing. Current director David Yates has managed to maintain that feel. When I say a British feel, I am more or less referring to the British dialects and wording. With that, the movies feel like they are taking place somewhere real; in this case, England. In the third and fifth movies, some of my favorite scenes are those that take place precisely in London. The flying sequence at the beginning of movie 5 is dazzling for me, not just because of the effects, but because of the footage capturing London seen from the River Thames (and Nicholas Hooper's score compliments it nicely). All in all, a nice visual composition.


Now, I don't want people to think I wish these places were real, but like a toddler, I do. But I am old enough to know better. I can call these movies fantasies, and at the very least, they exist on paper and in movie sets.
Anyway, I have read the last two books, and am looking forward to their adaptations. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (movie 6) is set to be released in July.

A Late Start to the new year

In case anyone still reads this blog, here is an internet update.

Parasite's Delight is being shown this week on Channel Frederator. Also included is a brief interview. Thank you for the exposure, Frederator.


Also, my new website is now up at emmettgoodman.com. Its been (and it still is) a long time in the making. Now that is it up, I expect it to be redesigned in a matter of months, hopefully looking more professional.

I sincerely apologize for the lack of updates. I have been busy working on the website, as well getting a few projects started. And the painful truth, unfortunately, is that I have more energy going into my swamp blog, than this one. However, I do not wish to abandon this blog at any point. I always have something to write about, I just never get around to it. Perhaps like the swamp blog, I should find something to update this blog with everyday or something.

Emotional Draining from both sides

I have been unable to write anything since last time. I have been working as part of the crew on an independent film. I don't feel like its my place to discuss any details of the film, and its bad enough I'm not getting immediate payment for it. But I can definitely say the experience is emotionally draining, and if there's anything I'm getting out of it, its possible inspiration for something of my own.

Recently, I got chewed out (to a lesser extent) for putting down the Academy Awards in the comments section of Michael Sporn's blog. Sporn had listed all the animated shorts submitted for consideration, and they of course included all the major studios as well as independents. I've only given attention to the Academy the last few years, but I got the feeling that the Academy was going to nominate Disney, Pixar and Blue Sky, no matter what, because they were the bigger names on the list. I said it, and opened up a can of worms from Sporn and a couple other readers. I immediately apologized when I saw it, but I think I made myself look bad. I didn't mean to cause any grief, but I still believe there is a certain bias in the Academy's selection. Of course, many independent films have won Best Animated Short, which I am fully aware of. But being nominated gains you just as much credibility as winning. And not every Disney short is an outstanding piece. But since I am still relatively new in this industry, I don't have an seasoned experience like some others.

WALL-E, which I think is one of Pixar's most unique works, won the LA Film Critics Circle's Best Picture award. I understand this is the first time an animated feature has won best picture for the LA Film Critics Circle. That's a big achievement, as far as I am concerned.

I currently have a couple of jobs coming up, both unpaid. Though I am very interested in their possibilities, I still yearn for some paying work. Unfortunately, the economy hasn't been on mine or anyone Else's side lately.

A week in review.

Last week, I saw things you couldn't believe. Actually, they are plenty easy to believe, I just felt like saying that.

This is late, but I had a lot in the way. Last week, Don Hertzfeldt, one of my indie idols, came to New York and visited both Pratt Institute and the IFC theater (the latter as part of his current tour). At Pratt, Andy London conducted a Q&A with Mr. Hertzfeldt, who is currently promoting his newest creation, I Am So Proud of You, a sequel to his last masterpiece, Everything Will Be OK. The Q&A was pretty basic, with information I already knew from previous interviews. Of all things, one part of the interview that excited me was when Mr. Hertzfeldt said he had recently seen Morrissey in concert. Andy later turned questions onto the audience, and I got a turn: I asked Don "Can you name your least favorite movies?", and I think he got caught off guard. It seemed like a fair question at the time, but I think he felt a little too cautious to answer it. Instead he turned the question into something I can't remember now (again, sorry for being late. Crazy schedule). I felt really bad, but everyone assured me it was all fine.


The next night, Mr. Hertzfeldt made it to the IFC theater, where the place was totally packed. It was a mix of animation locals and hard-core indie/Hertzfeldt fans. Watching Hertzfeldt's films on actual film was a real treat. Real Unorthodox-Old School. And I Am So Proud of You is a beautiful piece of work, possibly Hertzfeldt's darkest film to date.


The next night was ASIFA-East's annual animation art auction. Due to my financial instability at the moment, I couldn't afford to buy anything over $25. And of course, as the night went on, all this (I guess) amazing stuff went as high as $400. And all the while, I am thinking how can people afford to buy some of this stuff given the shape the economy is in? President Dave Levy stunned me with his excessive spending of the night. I sat between animators and friends Tony Lamberty and Katie Cropper, and gawked at the their spending the whole time, though they were not as excessive as some.

An ink drawing by Christy Karacas, based on his own brilliant, inhumane creation, Superjail.

I really liked this drawing from Maxwell Atoms of his characters from Billy and Mandy.

There were five animation cels/drawings from Mark Kausler's brilliantly animated short, Its the Cat. Katie got one of the sets, and gave me the cel as a birthday present. Thank you again, Katie.

I'm usually very cautious about stuff at auctions, because if I want to buy something considered so rare and once in a lifetime, it has to be something I can be inspired by in years to come.

On the other hand, MC Tom Warburton (creator of Codename: Kids Next Door) was very entertaining and really let loose.


Finally, the 22nd came. My Birthday
I had a nice gathering at an English chip shop, and then we all congregated off to a local bar (with a chalkroom in the back, yay). Although I am feeling weird around birthday time now, its still a good reminder of all the things to take care off in my lifetime.

My sister Clio and I looking deep in thought, yet fully engaged, as always.





And finally. Happy Thanksgiving.

Madagascar 2: A few steps forward for Dreamworks

Dreamworks animation is a touchy and often unpleasant subject for me. The studio revolves around money, and as far as commercial animation goes, Dreamworks is the worst of the lot. The last few years, it has seemed like the movies with the worst reviews make the most money. Now that is tragic (at least for me). For all I know, it is nothing new. But some of these films may never be revisited again, and I wonder if they are going to inspire artists in the future.
I recently caught Dreamworks' Madagascar 2: Escape 2 Africa. It picks up right where Madagascar left off, with the animals and guests making their way off Madagascar and hopefully back to New York.



As usual, the movie goes overboard with celebrity voices behind the characters. I am not the biggest fan of Ben Stiller (I'm not sure if I have met one yet), hence I don't enjoy seeing a character (Alex the Lion) who acts and sounds just like him. Its more or less the same with Chris Rock, Jada Pinkett Smith, and David Schwimmer (although Chris Rock has some nice control vocally on the microphone).

The top performance of the film belongs to Sacha Baron Cohen as King Julien of the lemurs. This is no surprise as Cohen is a brilliant comedian, as well as chameleon. Cohen does what any great voice-over actor should do: he masks himself behind the visual, and breaths life into another character. In fact, I don't think Cohen has allowed himself to be photographed or taped performing his recording sessions for the movie, which is kind of admirable, as it maintains some mystique. This is the kind of celebrity that works best in animation.
The late Bernie Mac, who has a nice silent tribute at the end of the movie, does a pretty decent job as Alex's father. But the rest of the actors in the movie seem to be underused, and merely there to give some star credibility.
And of course, there is the issue of dialogue. Though its not all bad, some of it could have been better and less predictable. The parts of the story which are considered the emotional center, the dialogue felt predictable and used before.

However, there are some perks. A hallmark that has made me dread Dreamworks features is the overuse of pop-culture references. I don't mind a few, but I take artistic issue when the entire script is based all around them. The first Madagascar was no exception. But a couple of Dreamworks' last movies have cut back on the excess references, and here they continue to cut back. Because of this, I found the story to be less cluttered and easier to sit through.

And visually, as well as the first movie, it stands out from other Dreamworks pictures with a more unique design and color scheme. All the characters have simpler yet interesting shapes, and show a better focus on design than an obsession with realism. I love the way the lemur characters are designed. Although they are based on various species of lemur, their designs are all unique and have some features that distinguish them. And it is much more colorful, with an emphasis on coloring associated with African art.

All in all, not a great movie, but a pretty good movie.

There are vast improvements here that give a good impression. I can only hope the artists at Dreamworks continue these improvements, and their movies may actually reach a level of timelessness. And hopefully, Dreamworks can make some innovations of their own, instead of copying the innovations of Pixar. One innovation which I don't mind being copied is the idea of the credits being presented in original 2D graphics and animation.
Maybe one day, independent animated features will really take off, and Dreamworks will copy those.