rose_griffes | three quick movie reviews and other media stuff

Movies this week! Two on DVD, one at the theatre. Frequency was released in 2000. It has Dennis Quaid and Elizabeth Mitchell as the Sullivans, a firefighter (him) and a nurse (her) in the 1960s. One kid, John. (How cute was wee John? Oh my, so adorable!) We meet this generation of Sullivans first, and then skip to their son as an adult (played by Jim Caviezel), who ends up having a ham radio conversation with his father: from October 1969 to October 1999. There's an implausible explanation for how this happens, but the actors do a good job of selling it at an emotional level, which is what counts for a movie like this.

John Sullivan tells his father Frank enough information to make him believe that they're connected... and to lead him to survive a fire that killed him in one version of the past. That change of events has a ripple effect of other unfortunate consequences, and John and Frank have to figure out how to counteract them while separated by thirty years.

It's pretty cool. And all of the actors did some lovely work with their roles, so I'd recommend it.

Inception was 2010's big movie. My students with good taste liked it, so I finally decided to try it. It's quite marvellous: a marvellously earnest gimmick movie. It's one of those puzzles that you can look at from different angles and see different things. But what's missing to make a truly great movie is more emotional resonance, a more memorable catharthis. That's true of a lot of heist movies. There are emotional moments, and the cast does a beautiful job with them, but at its heart it's a puzzle with a lot of incredible scenery.

Though I do like the theory that the whole set-up is a way for Cobb to forgive himself.

The sountrack is seriously amazing. I may have to buy it.

I did see Brave, and it was charming and enjoyable. Also not a great movie, but a very good one. The starting point is a potential arranged marriage, but the story itself is really about parent-child relationships. Also, there are shenanigans with mischievous children, archery contests, treks through scary forests, bears, etc.

So I'd recommend all three movies, for different reasons.

I mentioned Inception's music; for me that's one item on a list of odd things that have helped convince me to watch something. (Music from the movie kept popping up on one of my Pandora radio stations, and I really liked it, so I bumped the movie up in my Netflix queue.) Other unusual things? I started watching Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles after reading this crossover fanfic (Battlestar Galactica) and watching this crossover fan-made video (also Battlestar Galactica).

And speaking of (possibly?) fan-made things, Tumblr now has A Guy in a Suit--abbreviated AGIAS, if you notice that acronym showing up. He's "following" Person of Interest fans on Tumblr; their names are on a list of Irrelevants (heh). (He started following me yesterday*. Clearly I need to take some evasive measures.) I can't decide if it's done by Warner Bros. or CBS as viral marketing, or by a clever and dedicated fan. Either way, it's been hilarious to watch the changes as fans notice them and post about them. Tumblr is a very good format for building enthusiasm that way.

(Hm. Just noticed there's now a "coming soon" page now. Makes me more inclined to believe it's done by WB or CBS, not by a fan...)

*I have to admit, that was a hilarious notification from Tumblr. a-guy-in-a-suit started following you. Dun dun DUUUUUN!

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You got a notification when AGIAS started following you? A lot of us didn't. That's one of the things that made it so weird! :-) But it is really intriguing and fun. I'm hoping this guy is going to start giving out goodies, like season 2 clips or something. (Hey, a girl can dream . . .)

I did get a notification, yes. Maybe because I was added later? (yesterday... evening, I think it was)

Re: Frequency. I really liked that movie, but I also really wanted it to be MOM who showed up to rescue her son at the end. I just wanted to see his mother go all momma bear on the bad guy. Especially after she defended him in the past. I wanted to see that continue into the future too.

I rather liked Brave. Especially because our heroine doesn't end up married at the end, which is where I thought the movie was going. I actually thought the happy ending might be breaking the other bear's spell would reveal a handsome prince and the typical marriage leads to happily ever after. I was rather pleased that the movie left us with her still an independant woman. =D

I thought it was very poignant when we saw the prince's ghost for a moment. I liked the whole way that was handled.

Re: "Frequency," the mom was a great character, true, but the movie was so much about Frank and John, having the dad be the rescuer was perfect.

...the movie was so much about Frank and John, having the dad be the rescuer was perfect.

I had the same thought as

brickhousewench, actually. Since it was the father, I can see how it works well to reinforce their connection. But having the mom save him would have been a cool nod to her character as the protective one, as well as show that she probably knew about all of it; it would be a nice way to emphasize her good relationship with her husband.

Ooohh, I still have my Elizabeth Mitchell userpic! Different character and hair color, but still...

I also really wanted it to be MOM who showed up to rescue her son at the end. I just wanted to see his mother go all momma bear on the bad guy. Especially after she defended him in the past. I wanted to see that continue into the future too.

MEEEEE TOOOOOO! And then I figured it was just me and my general preferences, but it would have been such a cool "knot the family together" sort of move, so... yeah. Not that I don't get the emotional resonance of having it be the father, but I would have loved it to be the mother, yup.

Hah, I was just telling my sister-in-law how refreshing it was to have an animated princess movie that didn't end in a marriage! Like, thirty minutes ago I said that to her! (I'm guessing my niece is going to get to watch it now...)

MEEEEE TOOOOOO!

Hee! I figured if anyone I knew would want to see a stronger mother character, it would be you. ;-)

You saw Brave! It's not like Up and Toy Story but it has something all it's own. And how charming are Merida and Elinor? I'd gladly watch them again.

Wish I could say more but it would be spoilery and I think it's great to go unspoiled into this movie. :-)

And how charming are Merida and Elinor? I'd gladly watch them again.
I'd like to watch it again, in part to see how everything plays out when you know the spoilery thing ahead of time. (To say I was surprised is an understatement. I managed to be completely unspoiled about that particular element of the story.)

Aw, man. I want Reese to follow me on Tumblr! (But then, I don't really *post* on Tumblr, just read other people's posts, so... :-/ )

What's your handle over there? I can at least follow you. *g*

Here's me:
http://rose-griffes.tumblr.com/

If you post something in the person of interest tag and say you want to be followed by a guy in a suit, you'll probably get followed sooner or later. ;-) All I did was like someone else's post that said that, and then I got followed.

I actually own a copy of Frequency and have for years. It's a nice feel-good movie.

It is definitely a feel-good movie. If I owned the DVD, I'd be rewatching certain scenes when I wanted a morale boost.

three quick movie reviews and other media stuff

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