Okay folks, here’s the thing (and yes, there are some spoilers at the end). I loved this film. It’s kind of an awesome guilty pleasure kind of film. Between the video game fights and the digital score, I really had fun.
What I had issues with was the entire premise of the film. Now, I haven’t read the comic. I only browsed through the first volume and read about a third of it in the store. So please understand that I am only giving my perspective about the film and not the comic.
Scott Pilgrim brings up a bigger problem for me than I thought it would, and a different one as well. I assumed that I might be bothered about another teen film revolving around a teen mindlessly obsessing about someone unachievable. Instead I saw a film about a bunch of terrible people being horrible to each other.
This film has a few issues: 1) The absurd idea of what a hipster is 2) Everyone is terribly obsessed with themselves and barley recognize the humanity of other people and 3) Wow, it felt rushed!  Elaborations follow.
1) So this is a little bit of a issue I have with films every so often. Rarely do they ever get a type of person right. Old people and rich wannabe hipsters thought 500 Days of Summer was a film about hipsters. Sure they may be different types of hipsters, but they are all latecomers to a generational style and attitude. So they say it’s a hipster film, but is it really a hipster film? No.
Scott Pilgrim suffers from the same problem. Teens and geeks who desperately want to be hipsters think the film is their training ground, or it’s about them. SP is no more hipster than 500. SP is a fun but rather random hodgepodge of 20-30 somethings’ memories and references used with the humor and wit of a 13 year old. In fact I’m rather insulted at the idea that this movie constitutes being a hipster. Not that I’m a hipster, but any hipsters I know would scoff over their matté gourds at that idea.
3) (I’ll get to two later. Deal with it.) SP was insanely rushed. What were they thinking? The first part of the film was fun and exciting. It moved fast, but let’s be honest. It was pretty cool, so no complaints. I don’t want to imply the entire film should have been like this, but oddly the points where the film drags are the fights. They are actually rather short, but they drag on forever in comparison to the rest of the film. And seriously, a comic in six parts boiled down into one film? This film could have been split into three, or two at least. I honestly think that this would have helped the filmmakers pace the films better and maybe possibly, hopefully, build something resembling a real character with dimension.
2) Okay. This is the big one. SP has no good people. Everyone is selfish. Everyone is obsessed with whatever they want and never about others. Yeah, in the end they change a bit, but we’ll talk about that in the end of the review.
For every moment of the film, we watch Scott pursue a girl who he never asks himself if he should be with. He just wants to be with her. He dates an underage girl because she is a deviant fantasy of his who he can use to feel good about himself. He is pathetically obsessed and hurt by an ex he uses as an excuse for his actions and a crutch for his love life. Scott never wonders if there is something he is doing wrong or anything that he should change about himself.
Scott Pilgrim is the anti-Twilight in that sense. Scott is the antithesis of Bella. Where she is pathetic and has completely no self-worth, Scott is so full of himself he has decided that he is so important that the world is actively against him. What an appropriate hyperbole for such a overdramatic drama queen like Scott, who turns to gin and tonics and hurtful words instead of reason when confronted with something difficult. It’s not just Scott. Everyone in the film is like this, even adorable Knives. How depressing.
There are 3 moments in the climax that are laughable:
1) Earning the Sword of Love. Seriously. One moment of questionable unselfish thought actually earns you a sword of love? Well at least the Sword of Love was pathetic and couldn’t do anything because love doesn’t really mean anything in this world of SP.
2) Earning the Sword of Self-Respect. Really? Your awesome second sword is because you are even closer to being like the cocky self absorbed big bad you are fighting? The last thing Scott needs is more of himself.
3) Nega Scott. Okay, not really laughable but sad, because it was totally fitting for the entire film, and it sets up why I think the end is totally tagged on and one of the most insincere scenes in years. At the moment Scott has to really defeat his bad qualities (I was excited about this) it cuts to him being friends with Nega Scott ’cause he is “kinda cool.”
And now suddenly everyone is making selfless decisions for no apparent reason. Pathetic.
I wouldn’t be so upset or critical except that this is a film aimed directly at high schoolers. The filmmakers have a responsibility to those kid,s and they didn’t think about what they were making. Kids attach to these characters and learn not how to be better, but to be horrible. So no, it’s not Twilight. It’s Nega Twilight, which may be just as bad, especially for guys.
What a letdown.

Spoilers.  I think.

Okay, I hate to disappoint, but I really don’t plan on discussing whether or not the whole film or parts of the film are a dream, or if Cobb’s wedding ring is his real totem, or if his wife only left him and didn’t really kill herself. Blah blah blah.

I’m very into discussing the movie, but what I think is really interesting and worth discussing is the relationship between the filmmaker, the film, and the audience. Nolan is known for his thoughtful movie making from Momento to Insomnia to The Dark Knight. In many interviews he mentions his connection of dreaming and filmmaking, and he doesn’t shy away from inserting himself into his films. I think that this film is especially familiar to me as it feels much like one of my favorite films, 8 1/2.

The focus of this film is the discussion. I hate the idea that people are comparing this film to The Matrix. That film is nothing like this one. Inception isn’t a film that screws with you, making you wonder what reality is. Nolan is too smart and intentional about filmmaking to waste our time like that. Inception is a film about film, filmmaking, and the filmmaker, just like 8 1/2.

Full disclosure on this article: I am a dream junkie. I spent years studying dreams, I really like to explore lucid dreaming, and I have written a lot of material on the ethics and morals of dreaming and the dream state (while lucid dreaming or not). On a side not, one thing I thought was fun about Inception is the use of a totem to tell if you are in a dream or not. Lucid dreamers do sort of the same thing to wake up in a dream. I think Nolan has some experience in lucid dreaming.

OK, back to the theory. Film is a fascinating medium unlike any other because it attempts to do something impossible. Films transcend time by attempting to affix your mind in the eternal present, and you have to give yourself wholly to the artist to truly transcend timespace. Watching a film allows us to live as close to the eternal present as we can without supernatural or chemical assistance.

Nolan’s Inception literally transposes the filmmaking and viewing experience into a film. One reason it’s hard to have discussions about when the characters are dreaming in the film is that film itself bends and distorts spacetime in ways that are unseemly to nature. As an audience, we are constantly being transported through timespace without questioning those cuts unless they are poorly executed. A skilled filmmaker and editor can make cuts seem natural and undetected so we don’t find it strange that our perspective moves inches or thousands of miles in 1/24th of a second.

This film takes on a bigger and more important discussion than whether are we all really sleeping (yawn). It forces us to look at every other film we watch with a careful eye. If he did his job, Nolan  is doing at least two things in this film, and they are HUGE!

1: Inception raises the bar for the rest of the industry. He is bare-faced, calling out his peers and reminding them that film is like a dream, a powerful tool that can reveal humanity and truth to the world.
2: Nolan’s film reminds audiences of what film is capable of. He reminds us how we should feel when we watch a film, and tells us not to bother with films that aren’t worth our time.

These are just a few of my thoughts. Let me know what you think!

Every year I get a chance to see many really talented people graduate from my program. Michelle was seriously talented and smart. This girl was able to keep up with al lof my crazy rants on film art and even produce some pretty thought provoking reviews and ideas on film.

With all of that said I just found out that she has not only taken her love for photography to the world but after some correspondence i found out that she was really interested in working on films! She is a Photoshop wiz and a great photographer so if anyone out there is looking for any sort of photography to be done I would recommend her. If you are looking for anyone to do promotional materials She looks to be great choice.

her Site here Michelle Monique

his is a bit of a ramble so bear with me :)

So I have been a casual fan of Dr. Who for a while and I have never seen the original series. The wife and I decided to watch the relaunch on Netflix instant watch (m new favorite thing). after 3 seasons I realized that Dr. Who is something I always tell people Sci-fi has the potential to be, but rarely is.

Have you every thought about mercy and grace and peace? I mean really think about them. How can we bring peace to the world? If you were given perfect wit, power, and intellect would you have the power to restrain yourself? If all you wished was to bring peace to all and you had the powers of a god could you do it?

I’m not sure if it is that every season begins at Christmas or the fact that the most powerful things in the universe are words but something in it makes me so dang excited I can’t even begin to express it. not only is The Doctor this crazy detailed image of God but he actually works in the Sci-fi world they writers created. The show is uniquely able to do some amazing things that would seem out of place or inappropriate in other context. The Doctor on the other hand is a character who I believe capable of unmatched and seemingly irrational grace and mercy. He is capable of moving freely thorough time but will not changing time but allowing free will of all humans determine the outcomes of all events. His acts are called upon by all who ask and even occasionally prayers(physic paper). now with all that said about his mercy and grace the flip-side of that is that it is said (by River Song)just his presence in the midst of those who know him can drive back armies of evil. and that at times his justice and mercy are so great that he hides it from those who it will destroy because he has mercy in a way that we don’t understand and cant comprehend.

So go watch Dr Who…I’m waiting…seriously

Once I watch the rest of the old episodes Im planning on a whole treatise on Dr Who so stay tuned for my newest obsession!

America is lazy and wants to be comfortable. There is nothing inherently wrong with this, in fact I am exactly what I just described. We have progressed so much as a species that it seems that we deserve a good break isn’t that right? Why not, we work hard to create a world that is comfortable why shouldn’t we take full advantage? It seems that our careless comfort has actually become an issue for certain areas of society.

I believe that art has suffered in the last 10 years. In general people want art to be easy and unchallenging. Why should we have to think about what art means when we can put a sign under it telling us. Why watch a film with subtitles when we can get it dubbed (and then we get to turn it into a comedy because lip sync doesn’t match)? Why should we read books when there are cliff notes and movies made of them. (even comics!? How Lazy Are We?)

I remember the day that our local theatre in Scottsdale Arizona opened with brand new seats. I remember it was so exciting because watching a movie in a theatre would be just like watching it at home on the sofa. I remember being inordinately happy that I would no longer need to sit on my folded legs to see over the person in front of me. Im a short guy and learned to sit in unique and uncomfortable positions for long periods of time. I also actually liked sitting in the front row for the same reason. I still do actually:)

Old theatres were pathetic! Musty, hard walls that bounce sound in uneven ways unforgiving to THX sound, hard chairs that reminded you that you did in fact have a rigid skeleton that wanted to be free of its flesh suit and the quickest way was apparently sitting in those seats for 2 hours. In these theatres you could hear every wrapper crinkle like it was in your own lap. And the slanted floors were deadly for combinations of shoes and spilled drinks flowing from the rows behind you. The hard wood and steel clapped and creaked with every movement of the fidgety kid (me) and old man who needed to take another trip to the bathroom.

New theatres were the second coming. I never saw a head in front of me again. The silence of the theatre was beautiful (Yay THX certifications for theatre envrionments)! The seats were silent and felt like sitting in an alpaca chair stuffed with clouds in comparison to the rat trap wire and wood creations of old.

I have another soapbox that discusses the problem with in home entertainment, really just films in the home. The main focus of that diatribe is that I think that not only do we want to be more comfortable in life we want to have the option to ignore those around us. Let’s face it that is often the most comforting thing we can imagine (especially if we are Faust fans as many of us are admittedly or not.)

The issue is that since movies were in the home we could start to ignore people as a whole when we were being entertained. We no longer had to hear those annoying laughs, constant comments, people eating their food, or foot tapping, etc. We could limit our entertainment annoyances to those we knew and not have to deal with strangers. You have to admit it is easier to hear a friend eat popcorn than a stranger do the same. Other people are disgusting, horribly rude, loud, smelly, fat and should be put out of their misery. Ourselves and our friends are just fine though.

Movies used to be made to be seen in community. There was time for laughs and cheers and part of the film was the experience of the theatre. You could learn what was appropriate and not by the reactions of those around, you could spent time before and after chatting about the film. Now theatres are inside other distracting and entertaining centers where you are tempted not to spend time talking about the movie afterwords. Besides you wouldn’t want to offend someone with your opinions or be found to have the wrong opinions. Truly a fate worse than death.

Now the Theatre is a place where you go with a group of people so that you can be alone for 2 hours (just like at home). And if you get tired of (nervous about) talking about the film afterwords…”Hey let’s go shopping!”

New theatres are horrible. They are designed so that the minute that you walk in the door you can begin your journey into the depths isolation so that you can see a film all by yourself with the satisfaction of crediting yourself with some “family time” or something of equal value.

Movies have suffered. The people have suffered. The solution is simple…burn them down!! Wait, no never mind that would be worse.

The solution is simple. Regardless of the institution and how it has ruined itself be the handful that actually treat the theatre like it should. A place for people to congregate and learn more about being human by great Myth and Story, let the characters guide you for a few hours and them see how others were affected and how they may be different because of the experience that you, as a community, shared together.