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Assorted Media of March: Movies
Apr. 5th, 2016 05:45 pmScott Pilgrim vs. The World - I liked this quite a lot, really, which is surprising in that I found the graphic novel wearying. Then again, it has Anna Kendrick being snarky and both Chris Evans and Brandon Routh chewing scenery, which bodes well for most things. It condensed most of the jokes from seven volumes of comics into a single movie, which helped a lot. Also, Scott comes off as somewhat less an asshole you want to punch and more a clueless dork you want to smack and tell to grow up—which is good, because he matures a little bit by the end and it feels vaguely like a hero’s journey, or at least a parody thereof.
Who Framed Roger Rabbit - This really holds up—especially when you realize that there was no CGI and all the animation was hand-drawn. It’s also amazingly filthy when you’re old enough to get the jokes—the stealth innuendo is amazing. Also, while I acknowledge that the movie was made by and for residents of LA, Judge Doom is nonetheless a giant “fuck you” to Robert Moses.
Mean Girls - The internet loves this movie, and for good reason. It’s funny and amazingly quotable. The one thing that occurred to me that I didn’t see addressed online about it, though: Janis is just as much a “mean girl” as any of the plastics, and we know that from her very first introduction: When told the proper pronunciation of Cady’s name, she replies, “I’m gonna call you Caddy.” That’s a power game. That’s boundary-testing of, “I’m blatantly disrespecting your wishes to your face. Will you let me get away with this?” which establishes who has power in the relationship. Teenage girls do it; 45-year-old white male bosses do it.
Julie & Julia - Meryl Streep only takes roles that allow her to have fun, and who can blame her? She’s clearly having the time of her life and it’s hard not to love the Julia scenes. The Julie scenes…are okay, but at least lend more conflict and narrative arc t the movie. I feel sorry for the costume designer who had to make Amy Adams look “fat”.
Superman Vs. Batman: Dawn of Justice - That was…something. They’ll never need to make a Squadron Supreme movie, because this covered it well. Wonder Woman is the only character who seems vaguely in-character for their namesake, though, as Superman is only vaguely concerned with the people around him (though he’s learning—rather than fight Doomsday in Metropolis, his opening move is to shove him into the stratosphere); and Batman uses a dozen different guns and a has a body count of at least two dozen. (Though to quote True Lies, “But they were all bad.”) Also, I’m not sure why they thought they could make a good movie by mashing together The Dark Knight Returns, The Death of Superman, assorted bits from Crisis on Infinite Earths and also the first few storylines from the New 52 Justice League reboot.
Who Framed Roger Rabbit - This really holds up—especially when you realize that there was no CGI and all the animation was hand-drawn. It’s also amazingly filthy when you’re old enough to get the jokes—the stealth innuendo is amazing. Also, while I acknowledge that the movie was made by and for residents of LA, Judge Doom is nonetheless a giant “fuck you” to Robert Moses.
Mean Girls - The internet loves this movie, and for good reason. It’s funny and amazingly quotable. The one thing that occurred to me that I didn’t see addressed online about it, though: Janis is just as much a “mean girl” as any of the plastics, and we know that from her very first introduction: When told the proper pronunciation of Cady’s name, she replies, “I’m gonna call you Caddy.” That’s a power game. That’s boundary-testing of, “I’m blatantly disrespecting your wishes to your face. Will you let me get away with this?” which establishes who has power in the relationship. Teenage girls do it; 45-year-old white male bosses do it.
Julie & Julia - Meryl Streep only takes roles that allow her to have fun, and who can blame her? She’s clearly having the time of her life and it’s hard not to love the Julia scenes. The Julie scenes…are okay, but at least lend more conflict and narrative arc t the movie. I feel sorry for the costume designer who had to make Amy Adams look “fat”.
Superman Vs. Batman: Dawn of Justice - That was…something. They’ll never need to make a Squadron Supreme movie, because this covered it well. Wonder Woman is the only character who seems vaguely in-character for their namesake, though, as Superman is only vaguely concerned with the people around him (though he’s learning—rather than fight Doomsday in Metropolis, his opening move is to shove him into the stratosphere); and Batman uses a dozen different guns and a has a body count of at least two dozen. (Though to quote True Lies, “But they were all bad.”) Also, I’m not sure why they thought they could make a good movie by mashing together The Dark Knight Returns, The Death of Superman, assorted bits from Crisis on Infinite Earths and also the first few storylines from the New 52 Justice League reboot.
