Daily Soundtrack Song:
The Lord of The Rings Theme
Into The West
By Annie Lennox
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
1/18/2012
A star is born in MMA fighter Gina Carano, starring in what may be the best female driven action movie of all time, HAYWIRE!!!!! In Theaters this Friday!!!
I am currently watching an old movie from when Ethan Hawke was a kid, Explorers. SUrprisingly, it is holding up. I haven't seen this movie since I was very young and I cant believe it, it's pretty impressive and Spielbergian!!!
A star is born in MMA fighter Gina Carano, starring in what may be the best female driven action movie of all time, HAYWIRE!!!!! In Theaters this Friday!!!
I am currently watching an old movie from when Ethan Hawke was a kid, Explorers. SUrprisingly, it is holding up. I haven't seen this movie since I was very young and I cant believe it, it's pretty impressive and Spielbergian!!!
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
The Great Film Artists 1/17/2012
1/17/2012
SO, when I think of the great directors of my generation, there are 3 names that automatically come to my mind. This is solely based on quantity of films I consider to be masterpieces. All 3 of these film makers have very distinctively different visual styles. One goes for epic cinematic realism, the other goes for epic cinema, but loves to take the viewer away from reality, while keeping a work mildly reality based. The third artist is a master of the surreal. He is Poe, Van Gogh, Fritz Lang, Edvard Munch, Salvador Dahli all rolled up into one gothic, beautifully abstract and original artiste! These guys should come as no surprise, so call me cliche!!! They are Spielberg, Scorsese, and Tim Burton.
I consider these artists to be sooo dependable that I have no worries that I'm not going to have a blast with whatever they do next. The fact that I can list their "okay" films on one hand IS saying something.
Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland is my least favorite work of his because I felt dissappointed. Maybe there was just too much hype that he would bring to life the beautiful trippy colors and characters of the Disney Classic. I was so hoping for a mix of his black and white style with a splash of bright neon colors, much like his usual palette in the films Edward Scissorhands and The Corpse Bride. Instead what I had to settle for was his first completely modern, CGI(computer generated imagery) visual feast led by a brilliantly spooky Johnny Depp performance, but Johnny can do no wrong. His movies aren't always gold but his performances are. Okay, so Tim Burton sold out in my opinion with Alice. Where were my giant scale sets of mushrooms??? It was all done on a freakin' computer.
I adored his take on Charlie and the Chocolate factory. I loved Sweeney Todd and thought it was a wonderful musical homage/tribute to the musicals of the 50's and 60's. I think Corpse Bride is one of his best, Sleepy Hollow is almost a masterpiece, Planet of the Apes had some good makeup work but I'd like to forget about that one please. Edward Scissorhands is one of my favorite movies of all time, Beetlejuiice =brilliant, Ed Wood is his masterpiece, and Batman captured the magic of a comic book before any other film could. I could go on and on!!! Tim Burton has an original style that is at times disturbing and at times ahead of it's time, bold, new, beyond inventive, pure genius. And you just get the feeling he wants to preserve something that is wonderful. Until Alice, I respected most that he defied any conventional sacrifices to the computer technological advancement and opted to stick with practical effects as much as he could. Puppet wizardry, animatronics, stop motion, claymation. He would build mini-sets and use camera trickery to make the viewer actually think they are watching the camera float over a real suburban neighborhood. He is a genius. And this is where Steven Spielberg comes in.....
Spielberg is my favorite director of a century. This guy's two truly mediocre movies are 1941, a war satire that is even that bad, and Hook, another movie that really isn't all that bad. Artificial Intelligence is not the best film ever but it is underrated for sheer visual wonderment. This guy made us scared to go in the water. He made us cry for a little alien to get home safely. He made me duck down when U.F.O.'s flew over Richard Dreyfuss's head. He brought to life such icons as Indiana Jones and the T Rex. He made quiet masterpieces with equally strong emotional impacts( Shindler's List, Munich, Catch Me If You Can) . He also made me cautious to be driving on an open road alone with a semi truck on my tail. And then there's Minority Report and Saving Private Ryan. I personally feel that The Terminal, guided by Tom Hanks's absolutely mesmerizing and absorbing performance as a man who is not allowed a home for some time, is right up there with his best work. And War of the Worlds is brilliant as well. This man is proving to be dependable at this very moment as I anticipate his latest, War Horse. I had a blast with Tin Tin, by the way. The guy can do almost no wrong. I love that he loves fantasy but likes to ground it in reality. I love that he, like Burton, loves epic cinema and opts to use hands on effects over computer effects. These guys are masters of their craft. And Martin Scorsese is no different.
Martin Scorsese has not made one single bad film in his whole career. Bringing Out the Dead is probably his least respected work. And yet, even it is an engrossing film. Hugo just reminded me why I love movies so much. They bring magic to life!!! His gangster movies are so wonderful and throw an emotional punch at you that feels very relatable and hit's harder than Robert De Niro in Raging Bull! Spielberg gave me chills when he first showed the scope of his shark in the pond. You could see the length span from the shark's fin to it's tail. Then, the shark swims under. There is an intelligence that works against any land dwelling victim. You see the startled boys watch as the man swims to their boat(which is not even half the size of this shark.) Then, as the man reaches their boat the camera changes to an ariel view and from just above, you see the full body of a giant shark sneaking up, mouth wide open, going in for the kill.... Ahhhhhh! I can see that image in my head to this day. Scorsesw was able to create a similar tension with a paranoid drug induced Ray Liotta in Goodfellas, set to his brilliant soundtrack. Add to that a helicopter and the panic of the wife.....Terrifying!!!
These guys are living, breathing geniuses. They are masterminds in the heroic sense. I love them and will forever consider them to be some of the greatest directors in the history of cinema. Until next time, Gumby Out!----- I dunno why some of the text got highlighted!-----
SO, when I think of the great directors of my generation, there are 3 names that automatically come to my mind. This is solely based on quantity of films I consider to be masterpieces. All 3 of these film makers have very distinctively different visual styles. One goes for epic cinematic realism, the other goes for epic cinema, but loves to take the viewer away from reality, while keeping a work mildly reality based. The third artist is a master of the surreal. He is Poe, Van Gogh, Fritz Lang, Edvard Munch, Salvador Dahli all rolled up into one gothic, beautifully abstract and original artiste! These guys should come as no surprise, so call me cliche!!! They are Spielberg, Scorsese, and Tim Burton.
I adored his take on Charlie and the Chocolate factory. I loved Sweeney Todd and thought it was a wonderful musical homage/tribute to the musicals of the 50's and 60's. I think Corpse Bride is one of his best, Sleepy Hollow is almost a masterpiece, Planet of the Apes had some good makeup work but I'd like to forget about that one please. Edward Scissorhands is one of my favorite movies of all time, Beetlejuiice =brilliant, Ed Wood is his masterpiece, and Batman captured the magic of a comic book before any other film could. I could go on and on!!! Tim Burton has an original style that is at times disturbing and at times ahead of it's time, bold, new, beyond inventive, pure genius. And you just get the feeling he wants to preserve something that is wonderful. Until Alice, I respected most that he defied any conventional sacrifices to the computer technological advancement and opted to stick with practical effects as much as he could. Puppet wizardry, animatronics, stop motion, claymation. He would build mini-sets and use camera trickery to make the viewer actually think they are watching the camera float over a real suburban neighborhood. He is a genius. And this is where Steven Spielberg comes in.....
Spielberg is my favorite director of a century. This guy's two truly mediocre movies are 1941, a war satire that is even that bad, and Hook, another movie that really isn't all that bad. Artificial Intelligence is not the best film ever but it is underrated for sheer visual wonderment. This guy made us scared to go in the water. He made us cry for a little alien to get home safely. He made me duck down when U.F.O.'s flew over Richard Dreyfuss's head. He brought to life such icons as Indiana Jones and the T Rex. He made quiet masterpieces with equally strong emotional impacts( Shindler's List, Munich, Catch Me If You Can) . He also made me cautious to be driving on an open road alone with a semi truck on my tail. And then there's Minority Report and Saving Private Ryan. I personally feel that The Terminal, guided by Tom Hanks's absolutely mesmerizing and absorbing performance as a man who is not allowed a home for some time, is right up there with his best work. And War of the Worlds is brilliant as well. This man is proving to be dependable at this very moment as I anticipate his latest, War Horse. I had a blast with Tin Tin, by the way. The guy can do almost no wrong. I love that he loves fantasy but likes to ground it in reality. I love that he, like Burton, loves epic cinema and opts to use hands on effects over computer effects. These guys are masters of their craft. And Martin Scorsese is no different.
Martin Scorsese has not made one single bad film in his whole career. Bringing Out the Dead is probably his least respected work. And yet, even it is an engrossing film. Hugo just reminded me why I love movies so much. They bring magic to life!!! His gangster movies are so wonderful and throw an emotional punch at you that feels very relatable and hit's harder than Robert De Niro in Raging Bull! Spielberg gave me chills when he first showed the scope of his shark in the pond. You could see the length span from the shark's fin to it's tail. Then, the shark swims under. There is an intelligence that works against any land dwelling victim. You see the startled boys watch as the man swims to their boat(which is not even half the size of this shark.) Then, as the man reaches their boat the camera changes to an ariel view and from just above, you see the full body of a giant shark sneaking up, mouth wide open, going in for the kill.... Ahhhhhh! I can see that image in my head to this day. Scorsesw was able to create a similar tension with a paranoid drug induced Ray Liotta in Goodfellas, set to his brilliant soundtrack. Add to that a helicopter and the panic of the wife.....Terrifying!!!
These guys are living, breathing geniuses. They are masterminds in the heroic sense. I love them and will forever consider them to be some of the greatest directors in the history of cinema. Until next time, Gumby Out!----- I dunno why some of the text got highlighted!-----
Trivia Answers
The answers to the trivia are:
1. Sandra Bullock and Tom Hanks
2. The Saw series
3. The Truman Show
4. Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails
5. A raccoon and a humming bird
6. Steve Carrell
7. a. The Imagination of Dr. Parnassus, b. Johnny Depp, Jude Law, Colin Farrell
8. They were both born in Kentucky, George Clooney was born in Lexington and Johnny Depp was born in Owensboro.
9. Obese due to advanced technology providing all their needs to where they do not ever have to even stand up.
10. Zyzzyx Road starring Katherine Heigl, I hadn't even heard of the film until I researched it. The movie only cost 1.5 million dollars to make, but it only made 20 dollars in it's release. Two of the six people who saw the movie were the stars who saw it for free!
My favorite movie is impossible to decide on for sure, but the movie I could watch more than any other and still appreciate as if it was my first time, is-----Spirited Away!!!!! Hayao Miyazaki's greatest film.
1. Sandra Bullock and Tom Hanks
2. The Saw series
3. The Truman Show
4. Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails
5. A raccoon and a humming bird
6. Steve Carrell
7. a. The Imagination of Dr. Parnassus, b. Johnny Depp, Jude Law, Colin Farrell
8. They were both born in Kentucky, George Clooney was born in Lexington and Johnny Depp was born in Owensboro.
9. Obese due to advanced technology providing all their needs to where they do not ever have to even stand up.
10. Zyzzyx Road starring Katherine Heigl, I hadn't even heard of the film until I researched it. The movie only cost 1.5 million dollars to make, but it only made 20 dollars in it's release. Two of the six people who saw the movie were the stars who saw it for free!
My favorite movie is impossible to decide on for sure, but the movie I could watch more than any other and still appreciate as if it was my first time, is-----Spirited Away!!!!! Hayao Miyazaki's greatest film.
Monday, January 16, 2012
1/16/2012
Hola, Bromigos!!!
Gumby here, so I am gonna need until tomorrow to get my surprise tribute typed as well as my essay on Originality... Is it dead?!!!
And the daily mystery picture isn't working for me so starting right Now every Monday I will be posting a 10 question Trivia quiz for all who care to take on my challengeee!!!! Enjoy:
1st Weekly Trivia Quiz:
1. What two Mega Movie stars who have never worked together in their long careers, star in a soon to be released nationwide Drama as a couple(one is a widow and the other character is recently deceased)?
Hint: the widowed character's actress has recently won her first academy award and the other has won a few but been nominated for many...
2. What movie franchise has such a bad rep it gave birth to the term "torture porn"?
3. Scrambled movies: What is this film? [_teh munrta wsho]
Hint: This movie stars one of the funny men of our time in a more dramatic role... not that you need it because this is an easy one!
4. What lead singer of a hard rock band recently won an oscar for writing the score to one of the most critically acclaimed movies of 2010?
5. What type of animals are Pocahontas's two friends in the disney cartoon?
6. Who is the actor that provides the voice of Hammy in Over the Hedge?
7. What was Heath ledger's true last movie and what other three actors took on his character after he died so the movie could be finished?
8. What geographical thing do George Clooney and Johnny Depp have in common?
9. How does the film Wall E depict humans in the future?
10. What is the biggest box office bomb in film history?
BONUS : What is your favorite movie???
-Feel free to give your answers in the comments board. I will post the answers tomorrow afternoon.....
Hola, Bromigos!!!
Gumby here, so I am gonna need until tomorrow to get my surprise tribute typed as well as my essay on Originality... Is it dead?!!!
And the daily mystery picture isn't working for me so starting right Now every Monday I will be posting a 10 question Trivia quiz for all who care to take on my challengeee!!!! Enjoy:
1st Weekly Trivia Quiz:
1. What two Mega Movie stars who have never worked together in their long careers, star in a soon to be released nationwide Drama as a couple(one is a widow and the other character is recently deceased)?
Hint: the widowed character's actress has recently won her first academy award and the other has won a few but been nominated for many...
2. What movie franchise has such a bad rep it gave birth to the term "torture porn"?
3. Scrambled movies: What is this film? [_teh munrta wsho]
Hint: This movie stars one of the funny men of our time in a more dramatic role... not that you need it because this is an easy one!
4. What lead singer of a hard rock band recently won an oscar for writing the score to one of the most critically acclaimed movies of 2010?
5. What type of animals are Pocahontas's two friends in the disney cartoon?
6. Who is the actor that provides the voice of Hammy in Over the Hedge?
7. What was Heath ledger's true last movie and what other three actors took on his character after he died so the movie could be finished?
8. What geographical thing do George Clooney and Johnny Depp have in common?
9. How does the film Wall E depict humans in the future?
10. What is the biggest box office bomb in film history?
BONUS : What is your favorite movie???
-Feel free to give your answers in the comments board. I will post the answers tomorrow afternoon.....
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Shrimp Gumbo aka Gumby's Intro
Allow myself... to introduce......myself. What movie is that from???The name is Powers. Austin. Dangerrr. Powers. My name is Clay but you can call me Gumby, Claymation, Claydough, Playdough, or my latest nickname, Unharry Pottery(because I dont have much facial hair, you can make pottery out of me and I loveeee the Harry Potter series!!! I am 25 years young, just beginning to grow, and have 3 or 4 passions in life, The Arts: 1. Movies 2. Music 3. Writing, I also adore nature and the environment and want to preserve something that is natural and beautiful. My outdoor hobbies are Canoeing, Fishing, Hiking, Camping, but mostly, when I envision paradise I see myself floating down an untreaded, undiscovered stream on a hand-carved wooden canoe, looking up at a nearly clear blue sky, a few cottony clouds rolling by. This daydreaming has to come from my two grandfathers, Pops, and Pope!!! I am a dreamer. And my other love is for humanity sooo I am a deep dreamer. I believe that who I am is someone who can never lose sight of my adolescence because it makes me who I am. And I am an open book when it comes to the possibilities. The fact that I have this newly open mind tells me that I am in deed growing in life. So who knows where this life takes me. I'm on a wonderful, thrilling journey and who knows, maybe you'll see me one day in the director's chair or in a magazine. Maybe you'll find me in a national park or maybe you will get a postcard from South Africa letting you know I'm safe... anything is possible!!! That's exciting!!! That is what Film is... it is breaking through that barrier that can hold an adult hostage from letting his/her imagination just run free. I feel like I have to share that power with anyone who wants in on it. It is within us all. It is the fantastical creatures of Cinema magic. It is the emotionally breathtaking story of a real person we admire as portrayed by an artist with a true understanding and love for who they are paying tribute to. It is Meryl Streep becoming Margaret Thatcher and Julia Child. It is Cate Blanchett making you fall in love with Katherine Hepburn all over again. It is the sympathy you feel for King Kong and the rage you feel when you realize "wow, the villian was government all along" at the end of Avatar! Film has the power to pull out your heart strings and play beautiful music that spreads throughout the world. The artist's message has the power to change a person's life, maybe even a broken world!!! That's where my passion comes to play. That's where my obsession shows. I'm not a great writer, as writing goes, but I have a lot to say about movies.... and if this interests you than I am happy to be here for you. Sometimes I may come off as an A hole, like say, I get tricked into a movie that bums me out so bad I am put into a rage and have to vent it out here... it is just my opinion and I do respect other people's opinions very much because people have different taste than me and it took a while for me to realize this haha. But I also just want this experience to be very fun. And maybe my knowledge on the subject can spark some passion in a future cinema lover??? That would "make my millenium"-Beetlejuice ... So now that I have gotten past my lengthy, talky, introduction to this long delayed blog you can expect something very soon from me, a review, and an article I'm writing on Originality! Is It Dead??? I'm so thrilled to be here...Here's to 2012!!!!!!!!
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