arc_a2007

Listening to Dark Side of the Moon, or in this case, watching The Wall is always a spiritual experience for me. How did I reach this point? Well, like so many of my generation, I grew up hearing Pink Floyd ad nauseam on the radio, never thinking much about it; their music was bizarre, otherworldly, and dreamlike, but nonetheless heard too often to be really appreciated. Fast forward to about 19. One of their songs from Dark Side of the Moon entered my head. Music always enters when I awake, even something I haven't heard in many years.

So I sat down and listened, for the first time, really listened. It was like hearing Pink Floyd for the first time. The lyrics were... I couldn't believe it. Disillusioned with society, the narrator sees through all the stupid games, meaningless rituals and trappings that amount to an ultimately meaningless existence. Money, time... all a poison for the soul and the world that most people drift through without a second glance is a nightmare to anyone who sees it with these cold eyes. It was all spelled out there, as if straight from my mind but more clear and complete. So Dark Side of the Moon suddenly made sense, was completely profound and profoundly personal I had a similar experience with The Wall. This too was heard endlessly on the radio without thinking much of it, even after my aforementioned revelation. Only when I saw this film did it really fall into place, and in a major way. Pink Floyd: The Wall is many things to me. Depressing it certainly is, and a dangerous film for anyone battling depression. It broadens the world view introduced on Dark Side, adding to the bleakness, only this time the insanity flirted with on "Brain Damage" is explored in full.

I haven't gone through absolutely everything that Pink experiences in the film (and I hope no one has to), but many of the scenes are a bit too real. They hit hard, and that's one thing about these Pink Floyd albums: they're profound and potentially beneficial, but far from easy to digest. I guess that's why I don't listen to them often; they're for special occasions when I'm truly ready for the trip.

The Wall is indeed personal; I envisioned making this kind of movie years before I saw it. I'm a lover of the surreal and this movie certainly has that, not only in the excellently twisted animation of Gerald Scarfe but the central narrative in general. The animations, of course, complete the music like its missing half. These also create the most disturbing moments, the parts of the film that will really stay with you.

The acting is great; I love the spontaneity and risks taken to ensure its realness - I certainly noticed that. The masks are appropriate, there's no other word for it, and the school children walking in unison was a great nod to Metropolis. Anyway, the way the visuals accompany the music is sometimes sad, or discomforting, but always completely fitting. Maybe I'll write more later. Right now I'm deliriously tired.

I've got to be honest... I expected this movie to be bad. The trailers gave me a bad impression and the film's poor IMDb rating didn't help. But I was pleasantly surprised. The graphics are impressive, some of the most realistic yet. The mice and rats are just a bit too real for some people; just as easily creepy as they are cute. The environments are meticulously designed, creative and clever, and lighting certainly plays an important role.

But an animated film is not measured by its visuals (at least in my mind). The story is always the driving element, and Despereaux spins a layered tale of redemption. The big-eared hero Despereaux is not the sole focus of the film. It's split between him and Roscuro, with slices of the king and the servant girl as well. Each character has a tale of redemption, and those who become villains are seen in a sympathetic light. These aren't larger-than-life Disney villains, they're human beings (well, not always but you get the point). There's a reason why they turn to negative deeds. And they don't have to die for there to be a happy ending. The emotions are real. The scene where the king plays the lute for example, is heartbreaking without uttering a word.

I really enjoyed this film. Like all of you, I saw the IMDb rating and expected something pretty bad. But after seeing it, I just don't understand the negative hype.

That sums up Open Season perfectly. The film was designed to be shown in 3D, and they make sure you know it by making crap fly out at the screen every few seconds. This has been a bad habit of 3d movies from the beginning, and one that doesn't show signs of stopping if the upcoming "A Christmas Carrol" is any indication. But it's not all bad. The story behind Pixar's Up was so absorbing that you actually forgot it was in 3d. Coraline was even more effective with 3d, completely absorbing you into its surreal, stylized world. But I'm getting waaaay off-topic. Open Season's 3d effects are in-your-face and obnoxious. There, done. Moving on...

The film's visual style is minimal. Many of the animals seem like they were designed by Pablo Picasso, as they come in all sorts of bizarre, deformed varieties. Many of the animals introduced for no reason other than to summon a cheap laugh. Boog - one of the main characters - is annoying, whiny, arrogant and unconvincing. In other words, he's easy to hate. Elliot on the other hand... I expected this Ashton Kutcher-fronted character to be terrible, but he's actually a redeeming factor of the movie. He's very funny and has all of the best lines. The two tourists and their dog are funny as well. The villain is, well... pretty light. Don't expect anything more than a gun-totin' redneck. But at the very least he does create actual tension in one scene where Boog is hiding from him. It's when this film tries to become serious and deliver life lessons that it falls flat.