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Filmsi - A not so serious look at films and film reviews

Anything film =D

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Filmsi - April 2008

What's up doc...

What's up doc...

In the past, documentaries were extremely boring and mind numbing experiences. At least, that was their reputation. The genre was reserved for backlogged dusty film classes and pseudo intellectual talks about World War two.

Enter HBO, Micheal Moore and even MTV and documentaries have become cool again. Granted, these aren't the run of the mill National Geographic documentaries. These are films with soundtracks, biting commentary and subjective points of view.

By any textbook standards, documentaries are supposed to create films and try objectively to document what they have found. Not so with modern documentaries. Films such as Bowling for Columbine had no qualms about taking sides and sticking with the issues. Indeed, these films became attacks on the system in ways that no other films could parlay.

While these films became more popular the nation became aware of issues that were pertinent to our daily lives. Films which targeted obesity and corruption in white collar society such as the film The Corporation and [U]Super Size Me were hot topics everywhere.

Documentaries started to become bolder and more politically charged. Films such as Farenheit 911 threatened a political election. Other movies were amazing in the way they seemed to be scripted movies such as March of the Penguins which spawned cartoon copycats.

Documentaries have become a popular staple of film and television and opened our minds to new horizons. Let's hope it stays that way.

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April 25th 2008 @ 23:00

Posted By: Maryam DiMauro - Category: No Category

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Modernizing clasics

Modernizing Classics

Stories which were frozen in a specific time attracts a certain type of audience. There is a certain expectation that comes with these films, a sense of the prim and proper. Perhaps it is the starched clothes, the intricate wardrobe and haughty accents. However, does it really reflect that time period properly or does it merely reflect what we think those times were like?

At times getting swept up in the details compromises the story itself. It makes it far harder for people to concentrate on the film when they have to focus so much on the expressions and wardrobe. The old school pattern of thought gives an idea about interpreting these texts is best through literal exemplification.

Enter a modern way of thinking. Why not do away with all the corsets and just keep the story in a modern context? The Royal Shakespeare Company would shudder at the notion, butchering authors who have been glorified in time? Destroying their work? Unthinkable!

People sometimes forget that Shakespeare wrote plays for whores and lower classes. Austen wrote for bored housewives and Dickens was the Stephen King of his time. That is to say, in their day they were popular because of their modernity.

So why not reinvent a classic text to fit a modern audience? There is only so many ways you can wear a corset. In that note here

Great Expectations

Instead of just being a gentleman, our hero becomes an acclaimed New York Artist. Stella is essentially the same, and Miss Davisham is a crazy old bat wearing green instead of a crazy old bat wearing a wedding dress. All in all, they do a pretty good job breathing life into an original.

Clueless ( aka Emma)

Few people realize that the 1996 teen movie is based on the popular book, but how would you? The film is riddled with 1990's pop lexicon expressions and teen angst. Take a closer look though. Alicia Silverstone is the modern Emma, and everything that happens to her down to her misplaced matchmaking skills to her almost incestous love for her stepbrother is Austen written all over it.

10 Things I Hate About You (aka the Taming of the Shrew) and She's the Man ( midsummer Night's Dream)

Yet another teen comedy which was, in essence, taken from two classic comedic plays of Shakespeare. Although they are not entirely faithful to the text, a lot of the ideas and emotions are created through them.

But perhaps arguably one of the best modernized version of a classic has to be Romeo Juliet , which was a great marriage between conserving the original text and keeping it relevant to today's audience.

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April 24th 2008 @ 23:01

Posted By: Maryam DiMauro - Category: No Category

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Remaking original films : what works

What Makes a Good Remake of a Film

Remakes of originals are nothing new. We cannot fault the film industry for trying to reinterpret originals just as we could not fault Shakespeare for rewriting an Italian play which would become " Romeo and Juliet." However, remaking an original film is a very dangerous undertaking.

Breakfast_club There are a lot of horrible remakes on the way, among them Rosemary's Baby, The Breakfast Club , Sweet Sixteen, and others. It seems like a horrible idea to mess with a classic , and it is guaranteed to be constantly compared to the original.

The audience will always compare the copy to the original, and if it was a masterpiece it really will always pale in comparison. Take for example the remaking of "Psycho", it is a film that has been so etched into the psyche in every generation it was guaranteed to fail , no matter what. The movie is far too sacred to be toyed with, almost like trying to reinterpret Picasso.

The only way to reinvent a genius interpretation is to completely retool and rethink everything about the film, even the name. It is little known that the movie "Trainspotting" ( a film about Drug addled youth in Scotland) is the modern equivalent of "Clockwork Orange." Because it is placed in a different context, the audience does not even think to compare the two.

Another example of this is the "teen" remake of "Cruel Intentions," which although has the same script as the original film ( and the book) with Michelle Pfeiffer and John Malkovich, the film appeals to a younger and more modernized audience by placing the film in the context of the modern New York socialite world.

Charlie Another rule for successful remakes is for films that were not altogether serious to begin with. "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" is a film that was bankable because of the appeal to children and adults of adding the Oldham quirky touch to a classic film. The film "Sabrina" although having beloved actress Audrey Hepburn in it was remade to a delightful little film with Harrison Ford.

At times having bankable A list stars involved in a film may also prevent the inevitable comparisons. "Ocean's Eleven" was a beloved movie with the " Rat Pack" acting in it. However, it's modern predecessor was equally successful because of the presence of Brad Pitt, George Clooney and Julia Roberts as well as a very well written script.

Foreign film adaptations can also hold success when they are adapted. "City of Angels" the lovely and heartbreaking story of an angel falling in love with a woman, was originally a much darker German film. "The Birdcage" with Robin Williams was also a very successful French comedy. These films were bankable because they did not reach the larger world audience and therefore were freed from the inevitable comparisons to the original. They are also allowed a bit more slack because of the fact that they were "Americanized."

There are also films which were originally good but enough time has passed to allow room for reinterpretation. The film "Cape Fear" was successful in the 1950's but did not stand the test of time and allowed for a modern interpretation. "The Departed", "Titanic", and "The Fly" were also based on older films and in fact it can be argued were better than the original.

Remakes will always be present in Hollywood, and in the world. The vital thing is to respect the original material and to try to find a cohesive way to see things in a whole new way. Audiences will eventually respect people for it instead of just going for the literal interpretation.

Remakes imply that there was something horrible with the original film. This is not always the case, but many successful remakes have had certain levels of success through using these basic techniques. If only the film industry would follow them they would have saved themselves a lot of heartache!

Maryam DiMauro

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April 18th 2008 @ 17:53

Posted By: Maryam DiMauro - Category: No Category

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Movie quiz

What makes a great scene the music, the dialogue , the acting or a little of everything?
Below are a couple famous scenes, see if you can guess the movie, the song and the dialogue

An old puffy italian gangster delivers a famous line

A beautiful girl enters a small bookshop and pleads to her former lover to take her back , she gives him a painting and some very famous lines.

A guy enters the living room where a group of scorned women and delivers a speech to win back his wife. His wife stops him with a famous line

An evil conniving madman sits in a therapy session and tells his life story of how he became evil

A southern gentleman refuses a woman's advances and pleas for forgiveness, delivers famous line

Two thugs discuss what burgers are called in France

A guy goes on top of the ledge of the ship with his love, and screams the famous line while the sun sets

The evil lord of the universe is fighting the young rebel, he delivers a chilling line in which the boy is left stunned...and ends the movie

A man on his deathbed delivers one single word, to the confusion of others before he dies

A woman peers into the crib of her newborn child but recoils back in horror, says famous line

A girl arrives , in the midst of a tornado into a unknown land ( in colour) she turns to her dog and delivers a line

Two brothers glance at the graves of their loved ones on top of a hill. One brother yells at the other in rage over the death of his wife, the brother's wife, their brother and their father.

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April 16th 2008 @ 13:50

Posted By: Maryam DiMauro - Category: No Category

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Tina Fey rocks my socks

I love[LINK=http://www.moviezen.com/celebrity/tina-fey] Tina Fey because her comedy is so spot on , sprinklied with subtle jabs at society's paternalistic behavior.
Her comedy is effortless and self defacing without becoming overly dramatic or overstated. She is sort of that cool friend who has no idea how amazing she is. She has that every person appeal which makes people look out for her. She is also one of the few SNL alums which have had crossover appeal with her hit show and film career. I shall be anxiously awaiting her next film, Baby Momma, which probably tackles tough issues about society and the unwritten rule of motherhood.

She made women be proud to be smart and outgoing without objectifying themselves. She brought back the sexy nerd and people love her for it.

One of my favourite movies of all time has to be [Mean] Girls . Instead of becoming the same run of the mill teen comedy, on closer observation we see a poignant film about society's need for female competition, our constant need to berate eachother and compete and having our worst enemies be the very people who should understand us better.

We see through the eyes of Catie ( " Like Katie but with a C") played by Lindsay Lohan ( slightly ironic now given her subsequent spiral into drugs, Paris Hilton plaything and ridicule) who is a genuinely naive girl who is thrown into the claws of the most popular group on campus, The Plastics. What sets this film apart is how baffled the writer is at the girl's creative ways to torture each other. Perhaps the ending was slightly overly positive but it is nice to see a girl find her way out of the tortured madness that is female competition and backstabbing.

I would be highly disappointed if Tina Fey doesn't hit a home run with her new film. After all " bitches get stuff done"And who can forget " Bitch is the New Black" ?

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April 11th 2008 @ 03:19

Posted By: Maryam DiMauro - Category: No Category

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Recycled parody comedies

Ah yes the stupid genre spoof movies. Ridiculous way to attract cheap laughs and large audiences.
Granted spoofs can be good in their idiocy , the first was Airplane which is still a classic. What has happened is that films are relying entirely on pop culture to fulfill the need to create a parody.
I can't say it better than the following video

[ Click here to read more ]

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April 9th 2008 @ 05:26

Posted By: Maryam DiMauro - Category: No Category

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The Orphanage : A horror story with Peter Pan

Tonight I got the chance to view Guillermo del Toro's latest film.

[Really Long Link here for Guillermo del Toro's Biography[B]
[ Click here to read more ]

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April 5th 2008 @ 07:01

Posted By: Maryam DiMauro - Category: No Category

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Why do cats get such a bad rep in film?

Why do cats get such a bad rep? They are usually the villains in most films. They are sneaky , selfish, vain and ambitious. They are also usually associated with being sexy, and sneaky. So what's the deal?

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April 3rd 2008 @ 18:05

Posted By: Maryam DiMauro - Category: No Category

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