RIP Elizabeth Taylor

Elizabeth Taylor, beautiful actress and movie star, died yesterday at the age of 79.

  To say the truth, all I knew of her before my art and retro movie fanatic teacher was that she was in the advertisement for the perfume White Diamonds.  And then we watched a clip from Cat on a Tin Roof.

I'll admit, I was entranced.  She was truly a gorgeous movie star, as well as an AIDS activist in her later and life and good friends with Michael Jackson.  But her acting was what won me over.

When I got home, the first thing I did was to watch the full movie.  Her expressions, that careful, hesitant behavior in the first scene with Paul Newman-all were incredibly realistic and tense.  Even her Southern accent was spot on in terms of local color:  it added to the setting of the movie, but not too unrecognizable.  Actually, the acting throughout the whole movie is pretty spectacular.  The tense scenes, emotional breakdowns, and fits of yelling were all extremely real and emotional. 

In terms of story, I think the way the director pieced together the broken bits of their family was interesting.  You get Brick (Paul Newman), alcoholic, melancholy and apparently violent and not in love with his wife.  Maggie the Cat (played by Elizabeth Taylor), the suffering wife of Brick who is strong and constantly endures her hardships.  Big Daddy, the strong, powerful tycoon who favors his younger son Brick but has a strong temper.  Big Mama, Big Daddy's wife, who almost parallels Maggie: she too loves a husband who has fallen out of love or has forgotten how to love again.  The characters and their individual conflicts are revealed piece by piece throughout the movie, soon tying together to tell an intricate story of a family's complicated relations.  In the end, though, (SPOILERS! Non-explicit) what got me was the realistic portrayal of the news of death in a household.  To see the transience of life, and the love that makes life worthwhile, touched my philosophical side (okay, it made me emotional too).  The characters realize that death has to come, just the way that Elizabeth Taylor once said in an interview that she doesn't fear death.  May her legacy live on.


Interview here: http://blog.movies.yahoo.com/blog/977-elizabeth-taylor-1932-2011


Images from yahoo.com, www.pennsylvaniatrustsandestates.com

Movie Review: Tangled

Another late movie review for me!

Anyway, Tangled turned out to be pretty good.  It's an animated fairy tale about Rapunzel and the thief who "rescues" her, Flynn Rider.  The animation was detailed and the clothing designs were elaborate, but all you want to know is the story right?  Well, Tangled is a musical, but the songs really aren't the focus of the story, and aren't that memorable.  The story is about average, no really big plot twists at all, but fun to watch nevertheless. Oh, and Rapunzel has an adorable chameleon by the name of Pascal, too.

Rapunzel is a lost princess, locked away by Mother Gothel because her hair has magical properties that can turn back time, and Gothel wants to be young forever (stereotypical much?).  Fast forward 18 years.  Rapunzel has grown to be a lovely young woman, who is curious about the outside world, and the lights that appear each year on her birthday.  After Mother Gothel refuses her request to leave the tower, Rapunzel faces an unexpected guest:  Flynn Rider, an infamous thief that has stolen the royal crown.  Rapunzel hides the crown, and proposes a plan for Flynn:  if he takes her to see the lights, she'll give him back his crown.  It's a plan that he reluctantly agrees to.  And so her adventure begins!


Even though the storyline was nothing extraordinary, the humor in the film is what really makes it come through.  There were plenty of lines that had the whole theater laughing, and the humorous elements (besides the awww factor) are what would make this a film great to see with the whole family, twice over.

Inception and Despicable Me (movies)

Yes, it's overdue.  Again.  But I somehow felt obligated to write this, so here we go:
Inception

I had heard that this was extremely confusing, so I read the summary beforehand.  It's been out for weeks, so I'll just get to the review.  It was good as a whole, with a clear story planned and a lot of explosions (err, kind of a good thing).  It was great for those who like a lot of action and sci-fi, and even had a bit of humor thrown in (sometimes unintentional).  However, I felt the general plot was too simple and the characters other than Dom had very little development-except for Ariadne.  The flashbacks and dream sequences were often confusing, and sometimes lacked coherence.  My main gripe, though, is the end: it doesn't give an resolution for the main characters (again, except Dom) and Dom's ending is open to interpretation, as the director made it purposefully unclear whether it was a dream or not.  The movie was exciting though, and is worth watching if you enjoy dramatic action movies and can handle rapid scene changes  There is supposed to be an extra story after the credits, but my friend and I sat through the whole credits-including the Sony Entertainment stuff-and it still didn't show.  So it may depend on your theater.  After I saw the movie, I had a bit of mental overload-so you might want to sit away from the speakers.

Despicable Me

A light-hearted animated comedy about an evil villain trying to one-up a newcomer villain for .  Who adopts three adorable girls in the process.  And has cute evil minions.
Hm, this one is way older than Inception, so you may want to catch this one on DVD (or whatever they're showing it on these days).  The plot is quite predictable-which is not bad for younger audiences, but the movie still manages to pull it off in an enjoyable way-bad guy turns good guy and gets a new family.  There are, however, some take offs for older audiences, like the 'Lehman Brothers' sign and the infectious rap in the background (I'm still waiting for the full version!).  The movie is hilarious, with the naive minions, giggly girls and all sorts of plans gone wrong, and is a great family movie.  Definitely good for a family movie night!

Images from: screencrave.frsucrave.netdna-cdn.com and the-reviewer.net

Alice in Wonderland (movie)

I finally got to see the movie version, directed by Tim Burton, of Alice in Wonderland today.  I must say, I enjoy these types of movies-the kinds with interesting spins on old classics and good music, characters, and scenery.  I especially liked the sci-fi feel to it, reminding me of a movie version of The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor, another version of Alice in Wonderland.  It has the same dark, slightly twisted feel and surreal descriptions of their world as the new movie.

The story begins with the past, showing 6 year-old Alice Kingsley and her father, Charles.  She tells him she is having dreams about Wonderland, and he tells her not to worry; dreams cannot hurt her.  Thirteen years later, her father has died, but Alice is still having dreams about that same place.  Arriving at her own engagement party and wanting to avoid answering her suitor, she chases after a white rabbit in a waist coat and thus begins the main story.

 

I think many aspects of this movie are spot-on.  The settings, the characters, the costumes, and the special effects produce a world of slightly morbid fantasy that is new to the normally innocent and curious children's story Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.  Even though this is rated PG, my mother expressed doubt that children under 6 would understand the movie.  I agree.  It would take someone who has read the original stories and appreciates a fantastical, darker twist of plot to fully enjoy this movie.  That said, there weren't many witty one-liners except from the Mad Hatter himself, and the plot was a rather typical remake of Alice in Wonderland.  However, I did enjoy the Mad Hatter's dancing.  Quite.

Image from media.onsugar.com

Dead Poets Society (1989)

Okay, enough angsting for me.  I need to get back on track, with all this stuff to do.  Anyway, after you start a huge angst-fest, you usually regret acting so nasty afterward.  I decided to be more proactive about what I can do, and stop being so reactive to what people want me to be.  (I think that was from a self-help book.  Wow, I'm hopeless.)  Onward!

In class recently, we watched Dead Poets Society.  The main theme of the movie got through my mind and into the rant I did above, so I thought it would be good to post some of my thoughts on the movie.

Set in 1959, Welton Academy is a strict and traditionalist boarding school where many of the new students feel oppressed by the teachers' standards and the way the school is cut off from contemporary America.  Todd Anderson, a new student who's brother was a valedictorian, is shy and insecure.  Neil Perry is an active student, but with an authoritarian father who has planned every step of his future.  Charlie, Richard, and others form with Todd and Neil a close-knit group.
Compared with the other teachers however, John Keating the new English teacher is unusual and unconventional.  He tells his students to be free thinkers, and "carpe diem" (seize the day).  He shows the students old pictures of former Welton students, in an effort to show that you should make the most of your life while you can.  His teachings leave a great effect on his students, and many of them later do things to Carpe diem.

 

Mr. Keating and his class

When Neil looks up Keating's records, he finds that Keating was once part of the Dead Poets Society, a group of students who went to the Old Indian's Cave and read poetry.  Neil is inspired, and gets Todd nad the rest of his friend to join him to revive the Society.
Following this is a length of scenes featuring Mr. Keating's lessons and the boys' adventures.  However, soon things take an unexpected sorrowful turn, and brings Todd and the others a different view of their ideas.

I felt that this movie, though old, expresses to you in a way that allows the characters' feelings and emotions that leaves you thinking at the end.  The scenery was perfect for the story, and Keating's humorous lines really lightened the mood.  It didn't feel rushed, except the way they ended the movie.  (I though the last shot was awkward.)  The theme of this movie was very strong, and truely showed what it meant to "seize the day".

Picture and Summary (well, as a guideline) from faculty.frostburg.edu/phil/forum/deadpoetsalt

Inspiration + Infatuation

I was busy with sickness and school the past few days, and I was feeling a bit uninspired on what to blog about.  In an act of desperation, I turned to some wonderful blogs and photos.  On style rookie, The Clothes Horse, and Fashion Pirates I realized they had all posted on inspiration.  Such as, what is inspiration?  How does something influence you or inspire you?  Something that influences me:

from UK Yahoo

Sherlock Holmes.  Victorian England, dapper gentlemen, practical yet elegant clothing/accessories.  A modern touch on a classic in the movie, with fighting and skilled manuevers.

 Turns into this:  My Christmas present for myself.  I bought the face form Magnoliasupplie on Etsy, and used the chain to match it.  I wore it to see the movie!

Some more influence, this time from Teen Vogue:

from Teen Vogue

The name of that slide show said it all: Rebel Chic Fashion.  Edgy, clean, but colorful.  Everything is expensive though.

from FRUiTS magazine

What can I say?  I like street style.  I very much enjoy seeing non-models pull off what they want to wear.  I like color, especially since it is so foggy here.  I like contrasting elements too.

Overall, I'm not sure whether is is influence, inspiration, or just interesting to look at (but for your information, my bet's on all three!) but it's fun looking at culture + fashion.  I needed a break!  What do you think about this? 

Sherlock Holmes (the movie)

I went to see Sherlock Holmes today with my mother and a relative. Straight to the point, I liked it. The action scenes were well done, and the music fit the mood perfectly. Even though Jeremy Brett is a better Sherlock Holmes, the new movie had decent acting and characters. They twisted some of the characters from the stories and also added new ones. I'm not sure how I feel about the bond between Holmes and Watson in the movie. However, some of the quotes were epic. Search it up, watch the trailer, or even watch the movie. It's not the best, but you could do a lot worse.
"You've never complained about my methods before."
"I've never complained! When have I ever complained about you practicing the violin at three in the morning, or your mess? Your general lack of hygiene or the fact that you steal my clothes?"<-interesting...
~Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson
Quotes from IMDb