Revisited: E.T. and POTC

            I had not watched Steven Spielberg’s 1982 classic since sitting on my living room floor, popping in the well-worn VHS, and being amazed day after day.  The film has been a childhood necessity for a generation.  Having re-watched it, I could recall ninety percent of the shots, much of the dialogue, all of the scenes.  It was the first time having seen the anniversary edition with new and embarrassing digital effects.  It is these that I blame for making me wish I had simply the memory of the film and not a recent encounter.

            Increasing the family friendliness of the film, the guns wielded by G-men were digitally removed and replaced with flashlights and walkie-talkies.  Their at-the-ready trigger fingers can still be seen awkwardly protruding beyond the edge of their handsets.  In a similar and much more degrading, unfortunate, and nostalgia shattering fashion, numerous shots of the creature itself have been digitally glossed over making his CGI-smooth skin stand out like a poorly conceived superimposition.  In a matter of minutes all the wonderful feelings I have associated with the film for the last 15 years of my life left me.  Much of the effect of the alien is its tangibility as Elliot interacts with its hairless features.  I am not going to try and reconcile the reasons for which the film has been tampered with.

            I had not watched Gore Verbinski’s 2003 swashbuckling epic since about fall of 2006.  Thus the film was much more in my recent memory and not tied to childhood feelings of freedom and wonderment.  It was a film that I had gorged myself on during its release and for a few years following.  And despite its vast commercial appeal and societal immersion I remain devoted to its fanship.  This is not to say I don't find it easy to identify problems with its technical and story elements.  But more than any other movie in my young film interest days, POTC had the most impact on me wanting to make huge movies.  Such a feeling does not continue, for the moment at least.

            More than anything, in the last few years I have come to realize how my life is defined by movies.  In particular, this refers to the chronology of events in my life.  Any important moment is recalled based on the movies I watched on each side of it.  There are times when the quantity of films watched spikes.  Other times, I go weeks with only watching a few.  Thus films serve as mental retrieval cues for my memories and I can only hope that someday I won’t know whether a memory is mine or is taken from the cinema.

            

Basket Case (1982)

            One of the more aptly named films I can think of.  It is also a very simple and cheaply executed cult film that spawned a pair of sequels during the ‘90’s.  Almost Cronenbergian in parts, the film delivers enough blood and creature carnage to make the midnight movie crowd happy as well as drops a few jaws of the everyday person.

            Duane carries his twin brother around in a picnic basket after a group of evil doctors separated them.  The twin, basically a head with arms, was thrown out with the trash and left to die.  Duane found his brother, being able to communicate telepathically, and saved his life.  The movie recounts their journey of exacting revenge on the doctors and society at large who are unwelcoming of the freak.

            There is not shortage of face grabbing, blood spewing, scalpel stabbing, and stop-motion creaturing, in the 1982 film.  It is no surprise that the film’s lasting status suggested a modern remake. (yet to be seen)  

Sci-Fi Now and Then

            It came to my attention upon exiting the theater on 13 August 2009 that this year had fared quite well for mainstream science fiction.  J.J. Abram’s re-imagining of Star Trek started the year off with a bang that resounded for the remainder of the twelvemonth.  Midsummer, Duncan Jones’s Moon was rewarded two viewings and was an understated, underappreciated, and impressive debut feature.  The surreal atmosphere and fantastic-as-usual Clint Mansell score helped the film be the only science fiction entry that gave District 9 a run for its money.  The fact that Neill Blomkamp’s film received Oscar nods was fulfilling at least.  The fourth Terminator film was refreshingly fun even if overdone in a few select parts.  There was also Avatar.  Thus 2009 was a pretty well rounded year for science fiction, many of which made a big impression at the box office and award ceremonies (monies- never gets old). 

            It came to my attention more recently, in looking over old movie lists and scanning my library, that 1982 was also a prolific years for good science fiction films.  The second Star Trek saw Kirk and Spock battle Khan.  Computer technology and Jeff Bridges were immortalized in Tron.  Ridley Scott’s Philip K. Dick adaptation in the form of Blade Runner has ceased to

The Thing (1982) Prequel

Let me say right from the start that it could be worse; they could be trying to remake John Carpenter’s classic, nearly flawless, fantastic masterpiece, itself a remake of the decent The Thing from Another World (1951) based on John W. Campbell Jr.’s story “Who Goes There?”. So since it is not worse, we’ll at least give it a bad. Word on the street is that the prequel, following the Norwegian scientists, begins filming in Toronto in March of this year.

Now we are all aware of the massive recycling program going on in today’s film industry. And if the slew of remakes (too many to name here), reboots (too many to name here) and sequels (too many to name here) aren’t enough, then certainly this prequel is. It stars Elizabeth Winstead and Joel Edgerton. So if you have seen Carpenter’s film, you know the absence of any female characters added a heightened sense of tense discomfort, which, regardless, this film will likely fail to replicate.

If you have forgotten, the film includes Keith David and Wilford Brimley, and of course Carpenter regular and owner of the silver screen’s most badass beard- Kurt Russell. The creature effects are ridiculous and amazing the Carpenter does a fantastic job at creating a tense, claustrophobic paranoia as the characters come to realize the creature could be anyone or anything. I cannot stress enough how much this film would have to live up to for anyone to like it save for the teenyboppers that have not seen either of the other films. The fact that it is a companion film gives it a little room but the filmmakers should know they are treading on dangerous ground.

Matthijs Van Heijningen is directing, and no, that name should not sound familiar. MTV’s movie blog (not a regular source) suggests he could be the next Zack Snyder. Uh oh.

Ever Seen It: Swamp Thing (1982)

Wes Craven’s attempt the show he could handle stars, stunts, and action resulted in this 1982 film based on the comic book of the same name. The film shows a group of scientists working on some special concoction that glows a radioactive green. Its purpose is to create an animal plant hybrid that can survive the harsh conditions of the swamp. To the benefit of the audience, the scientist himself gets transformed into a rubbery plant man with superhuman strength and primitive linguistic skills. He seeks revenge on the military minds who sought to take his prized creation.

The $3 million budget doesn't let the film takes itself too seriously, a necessary ingredient for the given content. And aside from the stray exposition about human nature, much of the film is good old-fashioned cat and mouse, or rather, swamp thing and wanna-be Rambo. Filmed in the swamps of South Carolina, the film includes enough swamp thing destruction and rampage to make it’s 91 minute running time go by in less time than it takes to say AAAGAHAJAHAGAHAAGAgAGAGAHAHAAGAHAA!

One of the most creative and original cinematic experiences carried about in this film is its use of transitions. Be they radial wipes, sides wipes, or black ooze, the filmmakers never fail to find a creative way to branch the narratively distracting lapses in time. Their absurdity is vastly overshadowed by how fun it is to see which one they will use next. But the film’s visual spontaneity doesn't stop there. The zoom is employed to mass benefit and helps bring out the intricate details of the swamp thing’s well done effects. Likewise, the film cares not for consistency in spatial orientation and freely inserts suggested viewpoints that stray (through obvious differentiation in lighting and location) from actual environmental placement. Yet despite these sentimental flaws, the film is entirely fun.

And not to spend and hour and a half for nothing, we learn that the special chemical doesn't immediately make one powerful; it simply amplifies the users essence. The creature we are inside is brought to life. Fortunately for us, the head baddie, appropriately named Arcane (who appropriately followed this film with Octopussy), turns into a marble-eyed, wolf like beast with whose weapon of choice is a medieval sword. Naturally, he and swampie battle to the death in the campiest and most entertaining segment of the film.

RIP Dick Durock -17 September 2009

Joel Silver in talks for 3-D remake...

Upcoming Feature: Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans

Werner Herzog, the German director who has taken on such feats as Fitzcarraldo (1982), and Grizzly Man (2005), has a new release on the way. If it comes as any surprise, as it shouldn’t, it is a remake of the 1992 Abel Ferrara film Bad Lieutenant. The original is a risqué film of drugs, sex, and violence contrasted sharply with the main character’s struggle with Christ and grace. It is a controversial film about a cop who is, as the title explains, bad.

In the middle of a mid-life crisis, the Lieutenant finds himself caught in a Gambling trap, trying to find money for drugs, while the biggest case he’s had comes at him with the power of God. A Nun is raped, and comes to the Lieutenant for help, throwing him into a head spin, second-guessing his poor life decisions, and literally seeing Christ before him.
Herzog's Film, set for release on December 4th, stars Nicolas Cage, and changes the circumstances. Instead of a nun's rape being the main case, the Lieutenant has an immigrant murder case to solve. The plot is a bit more up to date, immigration being a rather large issue these days, but it seems that the main point of the original is lost.
Not knowing enough about the actual plot, this movie will most likely come up in later blogs, or simply as an update. Keep checking back for more details.
Don't forget to check out the trailer at Apple!