Miscellaneous Movie Musings

[innerSpaceman]

6:15ish??? I may be a little late.

[Gn2Dlnd]

We'll save you a seat.

But we won't buy you popcorn.

[flippyshark]

Just saw Zombieland, and true to the buzz, it was immensely entertaining. So, why did I find the last third of it lacking?

Spoiler:

The blend of comedy and horror was pretty much perfect for the first two thirds of the film, but once MAJOR SPOILER

Spoiler:

the movie paused for a very lengthy Bill Murray tribute/cameo, which was admittedly kind of funny, my investment in the characters came to an end. This happens so often when movies get pop culture happy or self-referential. Note to Hollywood - Get the fvck over yourselves, please.

The tone of the movie shifted to something much tamer - essentially it became skit comedy, with no emotional stakes whatsoever.

I still had a really good time, but came away thinking of it as kind of a wasted opportunity. Still worth a look, and if you aren't bothered by the thing I talked about in the spoiler above, hang out until the credits are over.

[innerSpaceman]

Yeah, but the double-spoiler section had me doubled-over in laughter, so the shortcomings resulting from that were worth it.


And I'm so glad that hadn't been spoiled for me. I was surprised with hysterics.

[Gemini Cricket]

I think Ratatouille has the best animation of all of the Pixar movies. I just watched it again and it continues to blow me away each time I watch it because I see new stuff with each viewing. And I just adore the Anton Ego speech at the end. I think I've watched this one more than the others.

[innerSpaceman]

Speaking of Pixar, Toy Story 2 still sucks. It's sequelish through and through.

No character arc for any of the characters. There's a villain, which the first movie didn't have. But the first movie was a buddy film with a decided arc for each of the two main characters so that they move from enemies to, ya know, buddies.

Part 2 was a plain-jane actioner with zero further character development. Bah.


But now I'm curious if the two Barbies the Prospector is "auditioning" during the hilarious end-credit outtakes will really be in Toy Story 3 as he promised them.

[Strangler Lewis]

I thought the second was better than the first in every respect. Buzz may have had a character arc, but it was one of those arcs that start at complete blowhard and are very annoying to watch.

The second dealt bittersweetly with disappointment and the passage of time, i.e., toys being put on the shelf, shows being cancelled, relationships fading, dreams being dashed. And it didn't have an annoying mean kid.

[innerSpaceman]

That's what most people say. Better in every respect, in fact, were mousepod's exact words last night.

I just don't see it. I found it completely inferior in absolutely every respect, though not without its charms. It suffered from Star Trek Syndrome ... i.e., how to gin up drama when your entire cast is all lovey dovey. I liked it much better when Buzz and Woody hated each other, and all the toys except Bo Peep wanted to lynch Woody from the nearest Lincoln Log.

So outside characters were introduced to be villains and have the dramatic tension. I felt something for Jesse, but none of the others did anything for me and the action-packed rescue plot was sequel-all-the-way.


Bah.


But to each his own.


And I'm actually looking forward to Toy Story 3.

[Ghoulish Delight]

In a rare occurrence for this thread, I completely agree with iSm.

[Alex]

The big flaw with the first Toy Story is that it is vaguely boring. That first visual thrill covered all flaws the first time I saw it, but with each subsequent viewing I find I care for it less.