Obsessed with Conformity

Why You Need To See Avatar

When I saw the trailers for Avatar over the summer, I thought it looked like a really neat idea if for no more than the special effects. After all, it was James Cameron - the man who made Titanic one of the worst-written movies in history. But then the hype machines started belching out the plumes of praise for Avatar, and I really expected this movie to fail on every level *except* visual effects. Boy, was I wrong. 

I took my daughter to see Avatar on Christmas day. I wanted it to be an experience for her the way Star Wars was for me. When Star Wars came out, I was 13. I went to see it 6 times within a couple of weeks. It changed everything. And yet, when I watch it today I am underwhelmed with the effects and clearly see where the storyline is very basic. But sometimes basic equals classic. Think Beatles. 

And this is exactly where Avatar works for me. Yes, it's the most visually stunning movie I've ever seen, but the most surprising thing was how the visuals were wrapped around a very solid story. Sure, the dialogue is predictable and innocuous, but the story is based on the same core concepts as most classic movies/stories. Good versus evil. Honor versus duty. Love versus indifference. etc. Classic themes. Themes that resonate and reach across generations and demographics to touch universal ideas that exist within each of us. 

This is a 2 hour and 40 minute movie created with mass global appeal in mind - after all, it's still important that a movie makes money. And because Cameron and his gang are out to appeal to the widest audience possible, much of the dialogue is very basic. Even so, the dialogue doesn't suck as much as Titanic did. 

If you were moved by Star Wars when it came out, I highly recommend Avatar. If you weren't moved by Star Wars, I still recommend Avatar - you'll just end up picking it apart more than sitting back and letting this movie take your imagination to new places. Look - nothing is original. If a movie were completely original, no one would go see it because it would be a complete disconnect. Rather, the best we can do in our storytelling (whether in creating advertising for brands, or creating global blockbuster movies) is to take familiar concepts and build on them in ways that get us to think about things differently. Avatar does this brilliantly. Go see it for yourself. If you're like me and my daughter, you'll leave with a big smile and one word - "Wow." 

Note: Despite its length, my daughter (almost 9) sat mesmerized the entire time without one pee break. Proving that really good movies can make you forget about everything. 

Jim is a father, husband, copywriter and founder of the virtual advertising agency smashcommunications. You can find him on Twitter at @smashadv. 

A Very Slick Fox

I'm no Gene Shalit, but when it comes to kids' movies - I'm something of an expert. Since taking our oldest daughter to see Monsters, Inc. when she was a year old, the movies have been an important part of our family life. Mostly we watch them at home once we've had a chance to know more about them, but every month or two we go as a family to the theater. Most kids' movies are disappointing (Where the Wild Things Are) or try too hard to please everyone (Up!), so when we hit on one that resonates with all of us, it's special. 

Fantastic Mr. Fox is special. Very special. In fact, it's the best movie I've seen this year - in the theaters or on DVD. Three things: 

1) No, we haven't read Roald Dahl's book. But will now. 

2) Wes Anderson is a really, really good director. 

3) This is George Clooney's best role ever.  

I'm not going to bore you with a synopsis, just let me say Fox is unlike anything you've ever seen. Yes, you're thrown into a world of woodland creatures who plot against humans (and vice versa) and yes, it's (amazing) stop-motion, but any comparison to typical kid flicks stops there. One thing that occurred to me early on in this movie was that it was unusually subdued. Quiet, even. None of the characters scream and yell, there are no alien sound effects, no digital 3D - just a solid story, beautiful art direction and amazing acting. The score's not too shabby either. 

Will children like it? Our daughters did. They're 6 and 8 and sat mesmerized the entire time. Then again, our kids can entertain themselves for hours with some chalk and a slab of concrete. But when this movie was over, I asked if they liked it and there was no hesitation in their answer. They liked it. A lot. Not so much with Where the Wild Things Are, or Up! when the movie was pretty much forgotten by the time we got to our car. 

If you like innovative thinking, solid storyline, great acting and directing - go see Fantastic Mr. Fox. And you'll leave with a new trademark. And a new appreciation for cussing. 

A recurring theme in Fox was the fact that Mr. Fox does certain things because he's a "wild animal." Which made me think of this quote: "Men have forgotten this truth," said The Fox. "But you must not forget it. You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed." - Antoine de Saint-Exupery, The Little Prince

Jim is a father, husband, copywriter and founder of the virtual ad agency smashcommunications  You can find him on Twitter @smashadv

 

Vampire Teeth

Despite divorce, moving around and living through disco, when I was a child I never thought much about growing up. I just wanted to play. I loved being a kid. Every day was a wonderful new page to fill. 

I don't remember when I was introduced to Where the Wild Things Are, but I don't think it made nearly the impact on me as it did many of you. Like Spike Jonze and Dave Eggers. Those guys obviously saw a lot more into the child's story than I did. If anything, I just remember it being about a normal kid. Big whoop - jungles grew in my room every day. 

And in the movie, they didn't. 

Last Saturday we took our daughters (8, 6) to see this movie based on the playful premise of the trailer. I expected there to be a great deal of playing, but soon found out there's not a lot of things you can do with giant Muppets.  

Don't get me wrong, this is a visually beautiful movie. And Eggers' writing is raw and real. Just a little too real for me. For this movie. With my kids in the audience - who are in their imaginative primes. 

Note - this is not a child's movie. Yes, it's about a boy who uses his imagination to go to a very cool place with very cool beasts - but the fun stops there. This is a movie about the death of childhood - not the celebration of it. Max, the protagonist, is more than just the king of the Wild Things, he's a boy standing on the edge of harsh the world where waves violently crash on the rocks below.

Early on in the movie, Max tells his mother a story. It's about a vampire who builds the biggest castle of all the vampires. Except, at some point the vampire broke off his teeth. And other vampires suggested those were only his baby teeth and that his grown up teeth will come in. But the vampire said those were his grown up teeth that broke. And so all the other vampires left him because he wasn't a vampire anymore. 

This one bit of dialogue sealed it for me - this wasn't a movie about the joy of childhood and the imagination, but of the fears of stepping off the edge. And it was hard to watch. I don't disagree with the critical reviews this movie is receiving - I just expected different. 

The overriding tone of this movie is best summed up by a line Carol (the main beast) says to Max, "Will you keep out all the sadness?" 

I think I'll plug in Monsters, Inc. tonight for the kids. As a palate cleanser. 

Jim is a father, husband, copywriter and founder of smashcommunications and really isn't a dick.  You can find him on Twitter @smashadv

Apartheid Rocks! District 9 - a real review

When I first heard that Peter Jackson was producing a new summer movie, my heart raced. When I saw the trailer - it raced faster. Not surprisingly, District 9 was the top grossing film in its first week of release. And at some point over the weekend IMDB reported that it had also soared to #26 on the all-time greatest movie list  Combine this with one raving review after another - and I was fully caught up in the hype.  So in an usual act of bravado (considering our current workloads), I met my business partner for lunch and a matinee. We were both pumped. 

Then we saw it. 

As we left, we looked at each other and shrugged. Hype sucks. 

There may be some spoilers here, but this isn't a synopsis - so read on at your own risk. 

The core theme of the movie is man's inhumanity to man. Except, it's aliens. Aliens as a double entendre. Aliens who almost crashed to earth but stopped right above Johannesburg, SA. Johannesburg as a double entendre. Apartheid is a black cloud that hangs over the city as a spaceship throughout the entire movie. I suppose all of these 'deep philosophical metaphors' must be the reason for all the hype. Which is to say that this movie was just smart enough to make you feel smart about recognizing the obvious symbolism - but not so smart to fully capitalize on it. In fact - I think the whole apartheid angle pretty much fizzled thirty minutes in. 

The special effects are great. That I'll give it. The aliens are very cool - a cross between Alien, Predator and giant grasshoppers. Part Saw, part Starship Troopers and part Wild Bunch - this movie has a lot of blood (both human and alien.) If you're into movies about people vaporizing into red clouds, amputations, mutilations and mutations - this is the movie you've been waiting for. Plus, the weapons are like...so totally cool! And they use them basically the entire time - all while being filmed on hand-held cameras. It's a downright dizzying pace that stops just long enough for chunks of fresh meat to splatter onto the lens. 

Oh, and duh, how could I forget? There is a significant Nigerian voodoo warlord angle in this movie too! FTW! 

Ultimately though, this is a buddy flick. The question of whether there's hope for humans to overcome our fear of people (or species) who are different is played out through the relationship between one of the smarter aliens (who responds to the name Christopher) and a protagonist human who starts out as a infanticidal antagonist with a dogmatic commitment to duty. But rather than a relationship like Riggs and Murtaugh in the Lethal Weapon series - this one's more like Willis and Jeriba in Enemy Mine. In fact...oh forget it. 

This movie mercilessly ends at some point. Or does it? There were multiple hints about a 'return in three years.' Maybe we'll learn to live with each other by then. But I doubt it. 

Jim is a father, husband, copywriter, founder of smashcommunications and still a fan of Peter Jackson despite this review. You can find him on Twitter @smashadv

Art & Copy

 Watching this trailer, I can only sit and nod in agreement. I can't wait to see this film.

Jim is a father, husband, copywriter and founder of smashcommunications. You can find him on Twitter @smashadv

Unforgiven

Unforgiven, 1992. This is the best 10 minutes of my favorite movie of all time. The significance of the bottle at the beginning of this scene, combined with Munny's resolute conviction to the memory of his dead wife up until this point, make for pretty intense drama. It's the crescendo of a man who once slayed his inner beast, only to find that it had been festering within him longing to be unleashed. 

So what's your favorite movie of all time? And don't give me that Citizen Kane crap because the only ones who really liked that movie were English professors. 

Jim is a father, husband, copywriter and founder of smashcommunications.com. You can find him on Twitter @smashadv 

Why I Hated Slumdog Millionaire

Slumdog Millionaire is a moving film about trials, trivia and love. The story is set in Mumbai, India, and follows two boys and a girl from their upbringing as fecal-covered children to conflicted young adults. Director Danny Boyle (Trainspotting) does an excellent job of introducing us to a culture that is so different from our own (here in the West), that you can't pull your eyes away from the screen. As beautiful as it is horrific, Slumdog manages to shock us into rooting for the three main characters as they somehow survive in this man-made nightmare. Most people who have seen it use words like 'Genius' and 'Breathtaking' to describe it. And while no doubt this film will be on the tips of Oscar's tongue, I'm the guy who didn't like it. And here's why:

1. Did you like Rocky? You'll like this movie.
2. Who Wants to be a Millionaire? Have never seen one episode. I can't watch a rhetorical question.
3. The acting. I don't know why, but I never once bought the love story. And I kept seeing Boyle in each scene.
4. Where's Keyser Söze? I kept waiting for the story to become brilliant at some point. It seemed so obvious and rehashed. And ended that way.
5. I'm not a hype guy. In fact, I'm always more skeptical of a movie when it seems like the whole world loves it. Great films don't try to satisfy everyone. This one does. Except for maybe the Hindus.
6. Who Wants to be a Millionaire? Oh, I've already mentioned this one.
7. Always look on the bright side of life - da dum, da dum da dum da dum. Hello Hollywood? We know about the atrocities of Guantanamo. There's really no good reason for you to keep showing us what torture looks like. Jesus (pun intended). 
8. Every Dog has its day. Whatever you do, don't see Marley and Me the day before Slumdog. And I know that it's not hip/chic to say that I liked Marley, but I can tell you this - the theater was packed and when it let out - there was not a dry eye that walked past me.
9. Speaking of Credits - Why the hell did everyone stay for the credits of Slumdog? Are you kidding me? It wasn't like there were bloopers - they were the Indian actors dancing. Hello? You want Indians dancing, rent the brilliant Bride and Prejudice.
10. Who Wants to be a Millionaire? I get cultural cross pollination, and am all for it, but can't we do better than export some silly game show to the rest of the world on behalf of America?

I'm really looking forward to Benjamin Button now. According to the hype on their site, they say it's a great film.

 

Jim Mitchem is a copywriter, father, husband, American and founder of smashcommunications, llc.