Here are the wiener's for our last contest of the "normal" semester. Congrats! And thanks for everyone who participated. Some of the DVD's you all have asked for have already started coming in!
List of winners:
Winner of the framed Sweeney Todd poster: Margaret H!
And we have two winners for the theater tickets, you get two tickets each: Lisa Detlefsen and Laathe Martin
We will still be posting articles and contests over the summer, so check back often! Have a superb summer.
The winner who left the comment is "Blane." Blane has won the nicely framed picture of "Resident Evil: Extinction." Great Job!
"Blane," Come into the TLC anytime during open hours to pick up your poster -- we will be taking a picture of you for the Movie Blog, so take a bath beforehand.
We would also like to mention the two titles that got the second and third most votes:
Aktan Abdykalykov made his directorial debut with this semi-autobiographical French-Kyrgyz drama set in a rural Kyrgyz village where young Adyr plays in the brick mudpits, takes an interest in a girl and attends outdoor movie showings. However, Adyr's pals reject him when it is learned he is adopted, and more dark clouds hover over Adyr after a death in the family. Filmed in Black and White with color inserts, this film played in several 1998 film festivals (Locarno, Montreal, Toronto.) In Kyrgyz with English subtitles.
Darezhan Omirbaev (Kairat, Kardiogramma) directed this French-Kazakh film about a young man driven to the precipice in an uncaring world. Marat (Talgat Assetov) works as a chauffer for a well-known scientist. Driving home from the maternity hospital with his wife Aijan (Roksana Abouova) and their new baby boy, Marat is at fault during a minor traffic accident. The damage payments on both cars put him in debt. Unable to cover costs when the baby gets sick, Marat finds it necessary to follow a gangster's bidding to murder a journalist. Shown in the Certain Regard Section at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival. In Russian with English Subtitles.
Introduced by Dr. Joan Titus, School of music Hamro (Maruf Pulodzoda) is a thug. When he hears that his elderly mother, Halima (Uktamoi Miyasarova), is sick, he returns to his hometown of Asht in Tajikistan. He is not greeted with any jy by the townspeople, and then the doctor gives him the bad news: Halima will be dead in a few days. As Savri (Malkqat Maqsumova), his mother's pretty nurse, explains Halima's dying wish, Hamro's abbandoned young son Yatim (Kova Tilavpur), is brought to him by the family of the boy's mother, who forcefully demand that Hamro take him in. the Director set this film in his hometown and cast his mother and brother in the lead roles. Selected for Un Certain Regard at the 2002 Cannes FIlm Fest and the 2003 installment of new Directors/New Films. In tajik with English subtitles.
In this satiric comedy/drama from Georgian director Otar Iosseliani, a group of censors gather to pass judgment on a new film. But because the reels are shown out of order, instead they are treated to a parade of sex, violence, and bitterly ironic humor as the story jumps between historical eras. A group of modern-day snipers perched on a rooftop fire on unknowing passers-by down below. The ruler of an ancient kingdom leads his troops into battle after putting his wife in a chastity belt -- not knowing that she has a key and revenge on her mind. And a Soviet-era policeman treats his son to a day of watching father beat and torture innocent people. In Georgian and Russian with English subtitles. ~by Mark Demming
Last Week the Academy announced its nominations for the best of 2007, follow the link below to the official site and see if your favorite movie is included. Official Oscar Website
Which picks do you agree with, which do you feel do not deserve mention?
What film, actor and/or director do you think they missed?
All the picks for Best Picture were released within the last few months, what movies would you have added that the Academy looked over?
You don't have to answer each question exactly, just compose your own critique of the Academy's choices in order to be in the running for February's prize.
Add your comment down below for a chance to win February's Movieblog prize.
There will be a First, Second and Third place prize this month.
A nicely framed movie poster (TBA). A 10 dollar gift certificate to Tate St. Coffee. And one more, yet to be announced.
Seconds after this picture was snapped, due to a major technical malfunction, "Michael Clayton" fell off the wall -- killing the presenters and injuring 20 members of the press corp sitting in the first three rows.
Wondering if you really want to see this Irish Indie treasure?Here’s a concise review recently emailed from a friend, “no blood, no guts, no explosions, no dismemberments.”If you’re still with me, you will find this bittersweet and tender gem of a musical-love story genuinely haunting. But now what is, I, TLC’s queen of the documentary, the who cower in fear of those cerebral international movies that need to be read and those gritty introspective independent movies that seem, to me, little more ostentatious ego-babbling, doing falling in love with a musical and a romance (Bleech.)? Well, the truth is, Once (DV4731)is its own kind of musical and love story -- breaking the mold and defying expectations on both counts. As a warning, and this is no spoiler, Once is not the usual Bollywood / Hollywood offering, with hunky and bodacious stars breaking into song at the slightest of provocations, nor is it the common “happily ever after” unreal fairy tale -- although the film is happy from beginning to end.
Set in Dublin, Once introduces a struggling but talented street musician (Guy) who performs for the indifferent and rarely tipping crowds on Grafton St. He seems invisible to all except thieves and a blunt young Czech woman (Girl) who extracts from him the story of abandonment and heartache behind his lyrics. Mirroring the mundane found in life, he fixes her vacuum cleaner, his day job in his father’s shop. She rejects his awkward pass. What grows between them is not the hand in hand into the sunset story, but it is the creative partnership between two gifted people finding a shared voice and harmony which defies their individual loneliness. She is a classically trained musician herself, playing a piano she can not afford at a shop.Her daily life cleaning houses, selling flowers on the street and caring for her child and mother in a one room apartment, makes realizing any musical dreams into just that - dreams.The merging of their talents, while short on tangible achievements -- no sudden and magic record contract -- is long on doggedness, perseverance and the realization of a very human longing to hear and be heard.
Shot on a budget of just $150,000 in 17 days, Once offers scruffy production values (as scruffy as the lead actor –ed.). It features a cinema verite style, handheld camera work, and homemade steadi-cams befitting a quiet little movie that celebrates the coming together, if only transiently, of two people in search of connection. Just as Once has no whiz bang computer generated special effects, it has no grandiose ambitions or knotty themes. It does speak honestly to the strength of the human spirit and its need to find connection and meaning with like-minded others.
The here to fore never heard of cast includes: Glenn Hasard and his band the Frames.He previously was in the cast of the Commitments, another treasure of an Irish indie.Opposite Glenn is Marketa Irglova, a young Czech musician who was 17 at the time of shooting.A quick look at her IMDB profile lists her as actress, composer and soundtrack. Other than promotional appearances, Once is Irglova first film. Both say they are musicians first and will be their last acting gig.
And as for the title, director John Carney, a musician and member of the Frameshimself, is alluding to the spirit of perennial hope that underlies a street musician’s reflection that, "Once I get it together the doors will open."
Hatchet The Dubious and Mildly Shocking "Return" of the Slasher Film Warning, may contain a few spoilers!
Hatchet is the first full length feature by fresh director Adam Green. Green defines his own movie as a return to the gore and conventions of early-eighties slasher films. However, Hatchet plays more as a noble but homogenized low quality copy. This is a shame since the production company’s energy and youthfulness really makes you want to like what they created. Hatchet’s weaknesses come at the hands of an inexperienced director that allowed his crew and actors too much free reign, confusing the plot and standardizing the look. Green says, in the special features, that his film is a slasher like the ones he loved as a kid, and since he is making such bombastic claims, we should look at how Hatchet matches up to those earlier greats.
First, boiling everything down to its most fundamental elements, what are the usual conventions of the 80’s slasher genre?
1 - A group of people, mostly young and hot, and against all warnings to the contrary, consciously travel to a place that has a gory and frightening past. The excitement of the trip serves as an aphrodiasc to some, a way to exact some sort of revenge, or the prospect of an end to a search for a loved one for others.
2 – The frightening and gory past involves the story of a deformed boy (or man) and/or a family of deviants. The deformed boy disappears under strange circumstances into murky town gossip. He grows up to become a gigantic, paranormal, muscle-bound, steroid-freak that, for an unknown reason, has found the alchemical secret to everlasting life and can not be killed under normal circumstances. He/It hunts over his land in order to mutilate each trespasser, one at a time, in progressively creative ways.
3 – Each person has a bloody and disgusting death sequence, progressively more cheesy and graphic than the one before.
4 - Boobies.
How does Hatchet do with the above clichés? Pretty well, but just because you follow the rules does not mean you understand how to play the game. Take the actors; there are a lot of them, which is a positive thing for a slasher -- more bodies, more blood, more death, mwu- ha- ha- ha. In an interesting nod to Natural Selection the older actors are all killed off first, leaving the young and pretty ones to mate and survive (before most of them are also killed off, of course). The three older members of the tour group, all familiar television talent, are Joel Murray, Richard Riehle, and Patrika Darbo. These three work horse actors have been in literally every television show made since the beginning of the eighties. I am barely exaggerating on that point: Darbo herself was in Different Strokes, Growing Pains, and Punky Brewster just to name three.
The other older actors are Robert Englund, Tony Todd, and Kane Hodder, take a moment and look at their IMBD.com online resumes, they each have been in, or associated with, most of the good and bad slasher films since Nightmare on Elm Street. However, you must remember that, besides Kane Hodder (and you could at some length argue including Kane Hodder) these godfather actors appear in nothing more than glorified cameos. Robert Englund (who played Freddy Kruger, of course) opens the movie in the now over used, "kill a star in the opening scene" cliche. Tony Todd, who played Candyman (VH3543), of course, and has an amazing television career, is barely used in Hatchet. He delivers a monologue while standing in a doorway and wearing silly Madre Gras make-up. During that scene the camera is shooting in a tight medium shot which barely varies, Todd’s part is so small that he was probably on set for only one day. Do you know how much Tony Todd is for one day? He can't be too costly -- I could probably afford him. I would make him walk around with me on UNCG campus wearing a scary cape. He would wait in line at Tate St. Coffee and order a cup for me. "One large, and it had better have room for cream," Tony Todd would say all serious and creepy. I am sure that alone would be worth his day rate, afterwards I can tell everyone I live a slasher flick.
Having all these particular actors involved with Hatchet is nothing more than an instant way to lend eighties slasher street cred to the movie. Adam Green says he is going back to the slasher genre and proves it by parading out the usual suspects, and not only with those older actors -- all involved seemed chosen only because of the projects that they have been in, shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and films like Scream. The young actors have been in cult classics; they already lend their own type of street cred to the film. With those actors, the production company can then, in parentheses after the actors name, put the TV show or movie they acted in -- like Wes Craven and Joss Whedon gives Hatchet their blessings through the actors that act in it. NOT TRUE, I tells ya! Actors usually don't pick a film due to matching ideology (unless the actor is Sean Penn, of course), they pick a film due to two things: 1 - The size of the check. 2 - The size of the lines they deliver. And I am not being cynical (very cynical).
The movie may have the "right" actors in it, but the right slasher films should never have to worry about the right actors, great slasher films make the careers of the actors and crew, the actors do not make the reputation of the film. Cameos are fine -- they can be fun -- but filling up your main cast with young B-level heavy weights is not the best of ideas. For Green, it is here that he begins to lose control; the young actors are all given too much freedom to improvise, completely breaking up the mood as you watch these people act in exaggerated, almost cartoon-ish tones.
The worst offender out of the “young” cast (Mercedes McNab, Tamara Feldman, Joel Moore, Parry Shen, and Joleigh Fioreavanti) is Deon Richmond, he runs about the screen in a ridiculous fashion, rolling his eyes in over exaggerated comedic stereotypes. Richmond really calls in his performance, making his character little more than an outdated stereotype. I wondered a couple of times if he was auditioning for the bio-pic on Buckwheat. Richmond is close to awful in Hatchet and that came as a surprise due to his earlier works (he played Little Eddie in Raw and Kenny in the Cosby Show). Deon Richmond exposes the biggest problem with the film -- it doesn't know what it wants to be, is it a slasher film, or a tongue-in-cheek look at the slasher genre? It's hard to say because so much of the film is played out so broadly that when the scary moments come they seem more like the punch line of a not too funny joke than release after suspenseful tension. No tension in fact, no suspense, just screaming and loads of blood.
All of these actors are brought together by the annoying and incompetent leader of a late night ghost cruise (Parry Shen, looking oriental but sounding Creole – ha-ha!). The cruise goes by a cursed area which is banned for visitors. The back story of this land, including the legend of Hatchet Face/Victor Crowley, sounds like something made up by a ten year old kid trying to scare his bunk mates at summer camp. Wait, actually that is exactly where the story came from, Adam Green admits it in the special features – he really came up with the story at summer camp! Unfortunately, over the years, he never fleshed out Hatchet Face (pun intended), he still is childish and shallow. I will not go into the story here, but the reason behind the freaks existence is flimsy as is his motivations for mutilating and killing. All the great psychopaths have deep reasons for their blood lust; Jason, who had an over-bearing mother, was constantly made fun of and allowed to drown, Freddy is avenging his death at the hands of incompetent parents by killing their precious children, Michael did bad things to his sister and family, escaping from the Asylum many years after to kill, Victor is retarded and someone hit him in the face with a hatchet – I mean, COME ON! You can do better than that Adam Green. Geez, just read a couple of chapters out of a General Psychology Textbook (unless College books have too many big words, for you), you can get some great back story there.
So, let’s summarize: for those first two slasher conventions Green seems to go over board in a desperate attempt to prove he knows what he’s doing. Instead of worrying about getting talent that reflects his oeuvre he should have concentrated on Victor Crowley’s creepiness. That is where the horror is and as a result the actors take too much control over the plot and cheapen it with their broad television theatrics.
Now for the third convention, all that blood and gore. Green hired someone who has a long history as a special effects artist for many horror/slasher films, including a stint on Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade ( VH1507) and The Garbage Pail Kids -- his is John Carl Buechler. His effects are fun, cheesy and all very bloody. Honestly, the most blood I have seen in years. Blood sprays out of every wound in large forceful fountains. It’s quite fun and did remind me of those cheesy sequences in Scanners,Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th and Halloween. Green, Buechler and his crew came up with some extremely creative murders, including one never even imagined before – a gas powered belt sander across the face. My favorite was one of the first – Victor chops an old actor diagonally from the shoulder all the way down to the opposite love handle, he then rips the body apart and throws it aside. Blood is gushing everywhere and the actors are screaming and standing there like total patsies. Mildly shocking. Very little horror, but there is blood and, if you are a fan of slashers, you will get a big kick out of the gore effects.
A big positive for Green there, but still not enough to make a totally engrossing film, Hatchet ends up becoming something you have on with a roomful of friends or while you are doing something else. I think that the more people you have watching this crapfest (is that word too opinionated?) with you the more fun it is. Especially if some of those people are queasy and not used to slashers, seeing their reaction to the hyper-graphic gore would be worth the rent.
Now on to genre convention number four – something I bet a few of you skimmed quickly to get to. Boobies.
The slasher genre is utterly known for its pointless misogyny towards its women characters. Often times the movies degrade into a masturbatory torture fantasy that embarrasses the audience and cheapens the film. Again, looking back on the best of the slasher movies will show you women that, although objectified, become powerful heroes in their capacity to survive against the “big, bad killer.” For Green, women are boobies and little else. Right after the opening cliché killing, there is an immediate jump cut to bare boobies. We are later introduced to Joel Murray’s character, who is making a “Girls Gone wild”-type video with McNab and Feldman. In a flimsy plot device McNab and Feldman kiss and show their boobies -- a lot -- then the killing starts and the boobies are put away. Which is a good thing (you won’t see me type that often), because the cheap booby shots become gratuitous and silly very quickly.
But, for all you booby lovers, Green gives them to you!
That’s all four conventions right? Wrong, I lied, there are five conventions -- the last one the most important. It is this – ATMOSPHERE!
To have a slasher or a horror film you must have the appropriate atmosphere. The night sequences need to be dark and grainy, the audience should not be looking at a well-lit forest. Hatchet looks like it was shot for television, it is common, bright and plain. For a true example of slasher atmosphere check out Texas Chainsaw Massacre (the original, not the juvenile remake, DV3448-3449), watch the sequences shot in the woods with the heroine running from the chainsaw-weilding maniac (which reminds me, Leatherface also has great motivations: mmmm, food). Tobe Hooper, a true slasher master, shot that part so dark that half the time you can not even make out what you are seeing, it's there that the horror starts, because your brain begins making things up. What your mind imagines is going to be infinitely more scary than what any filmmaker can bring to the screen.
Green however; seems more focused on showing where the budget went ("More light on the headless, bleeding torso!"), it’s obvious to anyone who has worked on a film set that Green had a great grip truck at his disposal. For this movie I think that is a bad thing, someone should have stolen the truck – it may have made Green come up with interesting and creative solutions that would have lent some atmosphere to the film. Hatchet desperately needs some, unless it was trying to be Scary Movie, but Green assures us he is making a slasher – maybe Adam Green got confused somewhere.
Adam Green, I know you tried hard, but as a fan of slasher films myself I think you might have tried too hard. Hatchet is a ship with no captain that quickly wrecks and rots. As a comedy it is not too funny, as a horror it is not at all scary, as a slasher there is some nice deaths, and as a booby movie – well, there are better booby movies on the internet.
Not that I am writing Adam Green off yet, I like his relationship with actor Joel Moore (who I thought was pretty passable in the lead role), and I think they will dig-up a true gem soon. Maybe Green and Moore’s next film, Spiral, is that gem. They are co-directing and Moore plays the lead, it looks infinitely more cultured and classy of a suspense thriller than Hatchet was a slasher. Most horror fans should agree that Hatchet is a film where the director is learning his way and hopefully, Spiral will show us that he has graduated from film school and is ready to start making good movies.
We will find out in February when Spiral is released on DVD. Until then, check out Hatchet, watch it with your friends, then go back and watch all the eighties slasher films you can, you will get more out of the originals.
Here is a list from the TLC search engine:
Halloween VH2316, DV1188-1189, Freddy vs Jason VH11561, Piranha Part 2 VH11043, An American Werewolf in London VH10242, Suspira DV1204-1206, Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn VH8781, The Thing DV1003, Tobe Hooper's Lair of the White Worm (a must see, great effects!) VH8416, Ghoulies (with make-up effects by John Carl Buechler) VH2103, Nightmare on Elm Street VH2319, and the entire Elm St series: Freddy's Revenge VH2320, Dreamwarriors VH2336, Dream Master VH2335, Dream Child VH2334.
Check out Hatchet’s trailer!
Trivia: The shirt Joel Moore wears throughout the movie is from Newbury Comics, a famous North Eastern US comic book store chain. Visit Newbury Comics to see the smiley face bloodless.
What are your favorite slasher films and why? Leave a comment down below.
Although the Teaching and Learning Center is usually a very busy and adventurous place, there are a few down times that can bore even the most deadline-oriented student-workers into staring blankly ahead contemplating the white wall. That's often why, when someone walks up to ask a question, we blink back into focus and look around with a surprised expression.
In order to defend against such neuron-killing, serotonin-sucking boredom, the people who work behind the desk often find themselves doing or saying pretty silly things. During one such boring day one of our bored front desk guys -- we will call him Michael since that is his name -- invented a new game he calls "Double Feature." We played the game for hours that day -- laughing as our customers looked at us with blankly surprised expressions.
It's fun and hilarious and will shake those bores away! The game also has the added benefit of rebooting your brain betweens boring bouts of study.
Here are the rules:
1- Take two movie titles.
2 - Connect them using a word that shows up in both titles.
3 - Laugh.
4- Drink liquor.
5- Repeat.
For example, "Gone with the Wind" and "The Wind in the Willows," can be combined into "Gone with the Wind in the Willows!" Hahahaha! Hilarity ensues! It's like you're some idiot owner of a corporate-owned doubleplex movie theater that is running out of marquee letters!
Step 4 is optional. It is mostly there to make things more interesting.
Here's some of my favorites (actually the ones I can remember) that we came up with that day.
North by East Northwest of Eden Weird Science of Sleep The Meaning of Life of Brian Super Size You, Me and Dupree Stranger than Pulp Fiction Toy Story of Us Dial M for Murder by the Numbers Three Men and Rosemary's Baby A Little Trip to Heaven Can Wait Die Hard Day's Night of the Living Dead (Triple Feature, extra points!) Bridge to Terabithia on the River Kwai The Great Escape from New York Scream Two if by Sea Boiler Room with a View A Nightmare on Elm Street before Christmas Groundhog Day of the Dead The Corsican Brothers Grimm Ocean's 12 Monkeys Return of the King of New York The Fellowship of the Ringu A Time To Kill Bill Master Harold and the Boyz in the Hood Next Friday the Thirteenth The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas Chainsaw Massacre The Man with Two Brains Who Knew Too Much, Knew Too Little, Wasn't There
What Double Feature Titles can you come up with?
Leave a comment down below, we at the TLC will vote on our favorite and award the winner a prize!
Yes, a free prize! AREN'T YOU LUCKY?!?
(Only current UNCG Students, Faculty and Staff are eligible for the free prize.)
Next Movie: February 21, 2008 @ 6.30p, Weatherspoon Art Museum:
The Power of Community -- This uplifting film tells the story of how the Cuban people survived when they lost access to Soviet oil in the early 1990's: co-operation, conservation & community. Megan Quinn from the Community Solution will lead the discussion.
For info call Sarah Dorsey at 336-334-5610 or just click here!
Future showings:
March 12, 2008 @ 6.30p, Weatherspoon Art Museum:
Manufactured Landscapes -- This film captures the birth of industrialized China. Beginning in rural villages, the evolution builds to an engineering feat that shifted the wobble in Earth's rotation.
April 10, 2008 @ 6.30p, Weatherspoon Art Museum:
Wild Caught -- Folkways of fishing in NC vs. mega fishing? This film will show you the inside story as family fishermen of Sneads Ferry, NC work against a backdrop of globalization. Filmmaker Marr Barr will lead the discussion.
Previous Movies:
January 24
Freedom Fuels (48 minutes).
Abuzz about biofuels ... what are they really about? From straight vegetable oil to ethanol, this film shows 150 years of biofuel possibilities.
For info call Sarah Dorsey at 336-334-5610 or just click here!
Get ready to support independent filmmakers at the Carolina Film and Video Festival New and innovative films from local and international filmmakers. You can go and watch the future of cinema. Contact cfvf@uncg.edu for further info or visit the official website at this link!
New to our collection are some of the latest and bestest Japanese animation. These titles are NOT intended for children but are to be enjoyed by those 16 or older.
Afro Samurai: starring the voice talent of Samuel Jackson and Ron Perhlman.
Afro Samurai is a true treat for fans of series like Cowboy Bebop. (DV823) Its hardcore imagery and unapologetic storyline tell about a lone Samurai completely obsessed with killing the man who murdered his father. Each of the five episodes explore a portion of the Samurai's past while he travels through present obstacles to meet his future -- a mad gunslinger named Justice bent on remaining "number one." This is the first series created by Takashi Okasaki
Our two disc version includes ultra-violent images and a graphic sex scene, Rated R, this series is very highly recommended, although the second, Special Features disc is far from special, it includes the usual interviews and half thought out "behind the scenes featurettes," it can be ignored completely.
Paprika:The Newest feature-length Anime from Satoshi Kon, the director of "Millennium Actress," (DV408) "Perfect Blue," (DV4819) and "Tokyo Godfathers" (DV586)
Lush, beautiful and well animated, this long awaited new film is an amazing journey into the interior dreamscape of the mind and the fear of conformity inherent in the human experience.
Paprika is the name of the alter-go of Dr. Chiba Atsuko, a psychoanalyst who has "freed" Paprika from her own psyche to interpret dreams and heal those in mental anguish. With the help of a special new tool invented by the over-weight, child-like Dr. Tokita Kohsaku, the doctors are able to become a part of and record the dreams of their patients.
Dr. Chiba and her crew are in a race against time when they find the same, insane dream invading and killing everyone in the research hospital and the surrounding city. It is up to the phantastic Paprika to stop the invasion before everyone's dreams are co-opted and taken over by a deluded madman. Highly entertaining and gorgeous to watch, this is yet another gem by director Satoshi Kon. Check out the website at http://www.sonyclassics.com/paprika/.
The less wrote about Perfect Blue the better -- not because its bad, its not -- Perfect Blue is one of the best Anime's ever released, it is a taut, psychological thriller which should be experienced instead of summarized. Think of Perfect Blue in this manner: it is a bloody Alfred Hitchcock film in Anime form. The movie will keep you guessing, with its broken plot line and complex story, until the shocking denouement.
Directed by Satoshi Kon, this addition to the TLC completes our Kon collection.
Nothing but opinion by Phoenix: I began watching Anime before I hit double digits but, at the time, there was very little available in VHS rental stores. Somehow I got a copy of Akira (DV163) and watching it, I remember the feeling of my brain pulsing from having to evolve to the new storyline, rapid fire imagery, and convoluted hyper-plot. Even today I am not sure I understand Tetsuo's final transformation as much as I have allowed myself to get used to it. Akira was a true watershed for a lot of animation fans, it even inspired rising filmmakers to change the modern American action genre to take on a more of an Anime feel. Tekkonkinkreet (DV4822) brought me back to the first time I saw Akira, the plot and animation style new and familiar at the same time, your eyes dart around the screen as the brain tries in vain to connect all the visual symbols with the plot and the character's motivations they support.
The story is about two very territorial street urchins named Black and White who constantly protect their blocks from the Yakuza and other petty criminals. Black, the eldest, is dealing with his own inner demon, while the younger, childish White shares a strange, mystical connection to Black and the entire city around them. A very evil Alien entity slides in through the compromised Yakuza in order to take the island community over for their own nefarious, extraterrestrial plans. Black and White are the only ones who can stop this force, actually they seem to be the only ones who even care to rage against the changing machine. This almost common plot (for Anime that is) is laid over a much deeper metaphorical and allegorical subplot with vivid symbolic imagery that permeates each frame.
While Akira might be considered existential adolescence exploding into pure malice, Tekkonkinkreet is a personal, Fruedian exploration into the deep forces (located in humanity and the environment) that balance our life and how that exploration is in constant opposition to humanity's need for stability and "concreteness." Tekkonkinkreet can be watched over and over again, each viewing opening up a deeper level of understanding as well as creating room for analysis and dialogue amongst its viewers.
I have been frevently waiting for director Michael Arias' first feature, with his chapter in Animatrix (VH11281) titled Beyond, anyone can see that the future of Anime lies with him. Beyond was creative and beautiful, a high peak in Animatrix that has started the Arias mythology. Arias' procrastination and inability to meet deadlines coupled with an unhealthy obsession with his protagonist -- the cat-hunting Yoko, made the producers of Animatrix afraid Arias' chapter would not be delivered on time. Luckily, it was and Beyond went way beyond what anyone could have expected. Michael Arias will be the next Miyao, who is the "Japanese Disney," only Arias will be his own voice, evolving the genre in ways that are exciting by bringing in a whole new animation philosophy of spiritual connectedness with the environment and the objects that make it up. Michael Arias' films will be considered instant classics, as is, in my opinion, Tekkonkinkreet. Get in on the ground floor now and enjoy his films and career as they both unfold.
Probably the most kid friendly title on this list Bleach is a very fun, and at times hilarious, action series. Roughly, it is about a very vain, spoiled young man whose strange talent to see and help dead people leads him to Rukia, a beautiful and fierce member of the enigmatic Soul Society. She becomes an ignored guide on the journey to realize his ultimate destiny of becoming the best Soul Reaper ever!
Fun and very addictive, the TLC copy includes the first five episodes of the series.
Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (DV4632) and Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (DV 4696) This franchise has attained a cult status to rival Akira and if you haven't seen Innocence yet, it is past time for you to plug in to this cinematic mainframe. The sequel is superior in its technical form than its predecessor, seamlessly combining the CGI with hand animated sequences. Some of the more interesting parts involve first person viewpoints through enclosed spaces. So much detail is found in this film that you will have to watch Innocence numerous times to get it all. Showing off some of the most amazing animation to date, Innocence is one of those rare sequels that leaves its first movie way behind.
Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex is a TV series based on the movies. Although the Animation is nothing like Innocence, it is still more than what is usually seen on Japanese television. Some of the CGI looks clumsy but the storylines and action sequences make up for the smaller budget. This DVD has the first five episodes of the series. Also, the TLC is still expecting the first Ghost in the Shell movie to come in at any point. Be on the look out for that in the coming months.
Cowboy Bepop: The Movie (DV4821) and Samurai Champloo
Ending our list of Anime titles is something old and new from already legendary director Shinichiro Watanabe. Watanabe has, in just a decade, become the most influential animator working on either side of the Pacific. His first television series, Cowboy Bebop (the TLC has Cowboy Bebop: The Best Sessions (DV823), six episodes picked by Watanabe and Fans), has inspired many English and Japanese copy cats. A Watanabe original is the best though, his loose animation style, enigmatic anti-heroes and blend of Western and Eastern sensibilities always make for fun.
Cowboy Bebop: The Movie is Watanabe's first film and, obviously, an off shoot of the same titled television series. The movie expands story lines from the series to give us a deeper look at the mysterious past of Spike. Through Spike's dysfunctional space family of bounty hunters, the investigation and attempted capture of a drug addicted smuggler, and Faye's always well-timed betrayal and loyal return, the tale unwraps its plot like a multiple gifts nested one in another. My own criticism of this film, when I watched it back in 2001, is that there is not enough space ship battles. Other than that minor issue, Cowboy Bebop: The Movie is a fun and touching nod to a great television series . Watanabe's newest series, Samurai Champloo, makes Cowboy Bebop look simply quaint in comparison. Evolving and refining his technique to another level, Watanabe gives us an incredibly animated, highly stylized program. Samurai Champloo is more graphic than Cowboy Bebop, it even was aired after midnight in Japan to keep complaints and censors at bay. Samurai Champloo's wraparound story is not very important in the face of the moment by moment interactions with stupid bounty hunters and stubborn villagers that the two master swordsman and their ultra-feminine keeper constantly get stuck in. Watanabe perfectly balances hilarity with face-slapping action sequences in Samurai Champloo, it is a must see for fans of Watanabe and anyone interested in animation.
Keep looking on the shelf and checking your TLC Movie Blog, because there is more fantastic Anime to come!!!
Do you have any suggestions for titles you would like to see? Leave us comment down below!
You'll need a valid and activated UNCG ID to check out any materials from Media Services or watch an instructional video. You are allowed to check out 2 DVD's for up to a week at no charge. After that, there will be an overdue charge of $1 a day per movie.
The UTLC is not organized by titles or genres. The best way to find the movie you are interested in is by going directly to our search engine -- you can find the link at the top of the page.
When searching, there are a few things to be on the look out for. First, is the movie checked out? If so, the result of your search will let you know.
Second, is it for student check-out or is the movie labeled as instructional? If it is, students are only allowed to watch it in-house.
Third, what is the number of the film? You need the number to find it in our McIver Building location.
The very rare Rabbat was seen flying through the TLC's garden, possibly to collect pollen and blood.
Now we know who has been eating the TLC's cabbage!
Winner of January"s Movieblog Contest
A very happy Blane gets to take home quite the prize! "If only finding a date was this easy," Blane told your half-insane Movieblog editor. Indeed, if only.
Freddy Versus Jason and the Argonauts
Movieblog Winner Blane came up with the title, Movieblog Editor Phoenix made the poster.
Happy Bluesday, Jake & Elwood!
This year the Blues Brothers turn 30! Their first official appearance was on Saturday Night Live 1-21-78!
What is your favorite Heath Ledger film?
The Academy has annouced its nominations for the Oscars, what is your vote for Best Picture of 2008?
