Triumph of Animation

It took me forever to see this movie.

I don't know why it took me so long to see Wall-E. Some things came up at the wrong time. I was going to see it in the theatre in the summer. Never did. I was going to see it in the second-run theater in Appleton. But I couldn't make it that evening even though I was slam middle of the city. Couldn't get around to it. I've tried renting it out through a couple of failed copies from Hollywood Video. It was just sheer bad luck. I had to return the movie twice before getting a good copy.

But I finally got to see the film in its entirey. I'm glad I did.

We have come to admire the lovable guy from Wall-E.

He represents something in all of us. A little lonely, always looking for some company. In a way we are searching for that small human touch. And he falls in love deeply, like a good little robot.
But there's no stopping him once he falls in love. He is a dreamer. Determined, faithful, loyal. Those are qualities that should be noticed. Because they teach us something about the value of life. That all life must be precious no matter what.

Wall-E is one of the finest entries from the duo partnership of Walt Disney and Pixar, creating a clever outing that takes the best elements of science fiction and comedy. And gives it a light hearted touch along the way. Written and directed by Andrew Stanton.

But it takes some real genuis for someone to make a movie that doesn't have dialogue for the first fifteen to twenty minutes of the film. The exaggerated silence, which engulfs the entire world, gives a deafening sound. One can get used to the voices and car sounds that drone on in everday lives, the usual noise that has become background substance for us. What if all of that is gone? What would happen if something wiped away all the sounds in the world and leaves it a dead hunk of nothing?

That's what we're doing to it now.

We're killing a planet, slowly, surely, like reckless children wrecking their toys.

It's a nice message Wall-E sends out to us and re-awakens our senses. In a way, the film is playing with our senses... first with our hearing. The winds lift from the dusty grounds, the cemetery moments that reminds us of our carelessness.

Some of my favorite parts is with Wall-E carrying on with his work, like a good soldier, just taking the garbage and condensing them into sturdy little boxes that pile up. And he picks through the garbage to find more "fun" items, takes them home. He puts in a tape to play "Hello Dolly." You can hear the sweetness of dancing and lively music drumming in the background. It is the only thing that keeps Wall-E in good company. His only connection to the old world.

One must not be so alone. So Wall-E continues to do his work despite everything else has gone to an idle calm. The silence, the lack of words, do have a greater impact for us. Suddenly, as an audience, we find out how lonely it really is without the commotion, the craziness. Dare I say that humanity can be missed?

There is no one. They have all left the world and their responsibilities behind.

I know there are some people who have said, "I don't get it." That they complain about the film not explaining anything to the audience. How did the robot get there, blah, blah, blah. Look, the film assumes that you are an intelligent viewer. It doesn't insult you by explaining all the details of the film to you. It leaves for you to figure out what is going on in the first twenty minutes. You can certainly put two and two together. If you can't think it through, then it's your problem.

I'm getting a little tired of that. I don't much care of how some movies are created, in light of millions of dollars, to cater to dimwitted audiences that make up a greater portion of the movie viewing. It's like some movies set a story in Paris, showing you a visual tip such as "Paris, France," and yet there's the Eiffel Tower standing right there in the background! The same with Big Ben in the background if the story is set in London. Yet they show the billing "London" across the screen. What a bunch of... it really insults me when they do stupid stuff like that. And it annoys me further that people need some explanations given to them. They're smart enough. They can do it. I give people enough credit for figuring things out.

But I digress.

This story revolves a love between two robots Wall-E and Eve, a future love that involves much understanding through differences. And they go through the entire story trying to save a tiny plant that Wall-E finds under a fridge. He keeps it in a old shoe for safety. But the other robots of the future does not want to go back to earth after the plant's discovery by keeping humanity ignorant of such facts. The biggest and baddest computer on the Axiom ship is a nice refernce to the HAL computer from 2001. Perhaps the computers are distantly related?

You don't see any humans in the story until about fourty minutes into the film. And there is one disturbing thing about them. They are all getting pretty fat. Lack of exercise, too many foods, not enough walking in those narrow corridors. They rely too much on machines.

There is a lot of nice details pertaining to the story... if you see the pictures on the wall of all the Captains who were in charge of the large ship, you'll see they get slowy fatter as time goes by. It's a nice little detail.

It's great to see the Captain, voiced by Jeff Gellar, who redeems himself, and the human race, by turning the tables on the super evil computer and becomes fixed with the notion of going back to earth. Their real home. And he isn't going to be stopped by some crazy computer. He is determined, loyal, and tries to do best for all his people. He is a human version of Wall-E.

The film offers beautiful animation for the children. And the story is smart enough to enrapture the adults as well. But the most important element of the story is the inner reconnecting to things that mean the most... that life, even on a wasted planet, is the key to everything. The story revolves around this idea. And the eventual return to earth.

It's a nice movie that questions the corporations of today and what they are capable of. And the silly decisions that such companies can make in the wake of serious issues.

But they could not stop one small, yet unbeatable, hero, in a form of Wall-E. That is something for every one of us to be proud. And perhaps we should strive to achieve a little bit of that goodness the hero shows.

Bond is Back...

There’s a new Bond movie that is out now. It hits the theaters with a big bang. More characters, more action, plenty of rough-around-the-edge looks for Bond.

"Quantum of Solace" picks up where the first film leaves off. This is the first for the Bond series that follows quickly the previous film. His abduction of mister White, the ruthless banker from the first film, carries the momentum forward into this movie. It starts a little crazily.

There’s frantic jumps in the action, a lot of gunfire, and Bond is further motivated by the death of his loved girlfriend rather than the importance of politics played by the shadow organization known as the Quantum.

It’s a bold move. And many may consider this to be the early, more refined version of the Specter group that made their appearance during the 1960s. Such a thing wouldn’t work nowadays as it sounds a little too campy. So film's tone goes for a more underground side government type ruled by many people with money, power and greed. They are like a legion of chess players hiding in the public.

When Bond moves in on this world-wide network, through their communications system, you’ll see exactly how many people there are in the Puccini’s opera house. It’s amazing as how many people there were, getting up, leaving so they could maintain their anonymity. Isn’t that how it always is? They were trying to keep their identity a secret. The gods behind the myth. The masters who pull the strings. With the effortless support of this organization. They are like the folks from Enron.

Basically Bond infiltrates a plot to buy a large amount of desert as a way of getting all the needed water. And water would be an expensive commodity once the greenhouse effect would kick in. Mr. Greene owns his corporation associated with Quantum to usher this idea into the new world. A world where poverty grows as people begin to kneel under a different kind of rule. The kind where money says all.

The Quantum group isn’t a very nice bunch of people. They are calculating, cruel and do anything for the sake of money. And that is all what matters in the end. Everything else is expendable.

Much of the action is forthgoing as directed by Marc Forster. At times he tries too much with the action with no room to breathe. With plenty of whirlwind scenes filled with fists and fury. The action is never ending. With some nice set pieces including a fight scene involving glass windows falling apart when crashing from great heights. And another classic Bond with the building exploding at the end, with all the blasts going in sequence, and Bond is stuck inside exchanging punches with Green.

I felt some of the action is too jumpy, losing me in some of the confusion. Especially with the first car chases, with some of the scenes flashing here and there, and some of the fluency of action getting lost in the craziness.

I know the homage of the Goldfinger movie is there with the girl being covered in oil. That’s a kind of nod to the old series and saying that they haven’t forgotten the earlier entries to the Bond saga. But it’s much too well known of a scene that I felt it should not have been included. It’s nice. But the homage might have been misplaced here due to the over-familiarity of the content.

But there are some really great stuff in there too. I was slightly taken back by the killing off the rather decent character Rene Mathis. In a sort of very ironic way, he would turn out to be the only person Bond trusted. And of all the people, he is the one to be gunned down. That really helped to project the film forward with his rather sad death. But Bond gets back in a great scene when he jumps down on the killer’s car, lifts his eyes to meet the killer, and shouts, “Hey, we got a mutual friend!”

And Bond just shoots the guy point blank through the windshield. It’s a knockout scene. And there were a couple of scenes where you think Bond is getting to be a real rogue, a maverick, pointing to his direction of reckless behavior. But one believes that he is doing this for his Majesty’s service. But he always has that ulterior motive as well.

The main villain of Greene is well realized. Slightly handsome, mostly sleazy, he wades through a ton of money like a snake. And he is constantly reeling in deals for the Tierra Project, like a rat.

But, most importantly, is the fact that Bond does learn his humanity a bit. That he hasn’t lost his soul under his cold blooded exterior. Maybe someday some lucky punk will get to make a hit on him. But not today, not tomorrow. Bond is at the top of his game here, running through like a catapult. Daniel Craig makes a strong performance as the conflicted man.

Not conflicted enough that Bond does let his deceased girlfriend’s killer live… so Bond doesn’t have to kill everyone on sight and can allow for someone to live for questioning. Which was what his government wanted in the first place. Being too hell-bent on revenge may loosen the mind, become too reckless.

I also love the bit with the CIA agent Felix coming into the middle of the film to give Bond some good dialogue. He’s a trusted agent also to Bond’s side. And one only hope that the next film would give this character a real backstory and some good action scenes. When he looks at you, there’s a solid menace in his eyes that says, “Yeah, I cant take you anytime, buddy.”

I do admit to still like the previous outing “Casino Royale” slightly more. It’s a good set up with some great characters in it. But it is still worth seeing Quantum for some fine action scenes that doesn’t focus on a love story. Instead, it does propel the story ahead, knowing very well that it is leaning at full tilt. And there is still the matter of mister White, the banker, who may have a bigger part in the third film as Bond gets into the heart of the Quantum organization. Perhaps Bond is saving this guy for last yet. There’s always that possibility.

But there is mister White’s chilling line, “We are everywhere.”

A good flick that bodes well for the series, and you really have to look at it as one big story. And it hasn’t hurt the continuing franchise at all. Daniel Craig will come around for the third film to settle old scores. And hopefully tie up loose ends in the most savage, brutal way possible. This guy isn’t kidding around.

Asian Horror Film not Re-cycled Trash, but Something New...

Since my return from the country of China, in the heart of the eastern culture, I’ve learned to appreciate more of their work and thought. Seeing them for the real people they are, filled with creative ideas, always hanging on to old traditions that mean so much to them. They take so much pride in themselves.

Though some rental places in Oshkosh aren’t exactly catering to the different foreign movies out there. That’s too bad. Because watching a movie from a different country exposes us to different ideas.

Which brings us to the film “Re-Cycle” of 2006. A very creative and fabulous movie of many incredible layers directed by the Pang brothers. The same ones who were responsible for the original film “The Eye.” Not the crappy version starring Jessica Alba. Hollywood needs to stop remaking other movies and try to make their own from now on.

The film “Re-cycle” shares the same lead actress from “The Eye”: Angelica Lee.
She’s a very capable actress who is able to dig down into the emotional turmoil that is strangling her life. She struggles with her new novel. But other things come to haunt her: an old relationship with her boyfriend. The inability to keep in touch with her family.

All of these things comes to her after deleting the first chapter of her novel, out of frustration, not being able to focus, concentrate. She is lost in her thoughts.

The film turns a sudden, supernatural path when she discovers a route into a parallel world filled with strange images, cast away people, their frightening faces filled with devilish horrors. They are filled with abandoned things. It is a place where banished ideas go to. It is almost a hell spot for lost creativity.

And this world follows along the same route as her novel to be. In fact, there is a nice comment the lead actress makes when she observes this crude, strange world. She said, “If this place is filled with abandoned things, why do they always turn out so frightening?”

The soundtrack is awesome. It is a pulse pounding beat that seems to be discomforting, almost threatening, as if telling you that a danger is approaching. The drop kick sounds seem to drown your ears out as it grows louder, signaling a terror that rises over the lead character like a dark ocean.

The Pang brothers know how to use good music for a horror film. Or is it a fantasy film? Whatever. Clive Barker would like this movie very much if he’s watched it.

But it is like a gothic version of Dante’s Inferno. The lead is taken through many different levels, each one growing worse than before, dwindling further, like falling into an endless abyss without a face. Only a darkness waits to comfort you in the very end. There is no brightness here, just a sense of loss. Feeling abandoned. It is no wonder that the spirits are very angry here.

The ghosts have been left behind.

The film is written also by several writers including the Pang brothers. They come up with some good ideas. And, unlike the American culture, this film digs right into the idea of losing a child. The eastern films certainly do like this theme: the death of a child seems to pervade their movies very much. But, to understand the eastern culture, you must realize that family is very important to Chinese people. That is their life. Everything surrounds the family. I know this through my two week venture into China and found that I have been welcomed into a family. It’s a singlemost lovely feeling of belonging.

But films such as “Re-cycle” explores the damage of losing a child. A theme that most American movies won’t even touch. And for good reason. It’s a very disturbing thought. Many people who love their children or are parents may want to stay away from a movie like this. The oriental culture makes no bones about portraying a loss of a child.

The abandoning of children is a theme most often explored here. But, in some ways, it sends a message about how one should appreciate children more. Their youthful enthusiasm should not be missed.

It’s a horror film. But more than that. It peers into the loneliness and feelings of destruction one has when a family is split apart.

This is a Cantonese film made in Hong Kong which is almost a country of its own. But many of the stark images of decay, and riddled trash, remains a poignant theme in many of the scenes: you can see the simmering amounts of dust along the buildings as they are collapsing slowly, like a dying city. It is a remarkable scene when you see the lead actress running through the maze of cumbersome buildings, finding her way though the pain of abandoned streets.

The actress Angelica Lee is great. Also a beautiful woman. She conveys a lot of her pain through silence and thoughtful gestures. Her face is framed with a lovely rain of dark hair that makes her younger looking, but she approaches her acting with a maturity that one needs for a film like this. She knows how to make her character very vulnerable. And that is very tragic in the film.

The nice thing is the ending of the film which offers a novel twist. And you’ll need to get there to find out what it is. (Just like the movie "Phone" that has a great last twenty minutes). I’m not going to spoil the story "Re-cycle" for you. But it’s fantastic to see some Asian cinema are going at length to tell a very good story through using horror elements. It’s not really a horror film. Because lots of fantasy has been thrown into it. Imagine if Terry Gilliam had been Asian and you might end up getting a movie like this. It’s filled with a spectacular string of picturesque scenes that might have been pulled out from a deranged mind.

But this is a journey for the woman involved in this different world. She learns more about herself as she digs deeper into the empty shell of this place. And she finds that she may be empty herself without realizing it. That’s very scary.

Now if I can only get my girlfriend Alina to watch a movie like this with me during an evening. Though I don’t think that will ever happen. She hates horror movies in the same manner that I hate Republicans. But I might persuade her someday. For now, I think I’ll have to enjoy them on my lonesome.