2008 Summer Movie Preview…
Here are my most anticipated movies of the Summer (in release order)…
Son of Rambow – Limited Release (St. Louis May 16)
- Released last year in the UK, Son of Rambow is a movie about a couple of kids growing up in a strict religious household in the early 80’s. It is so strict that they aren’t allowed to watch movies of any kind until they sneak a viewing of Rambo: First Blood. Their minds are blown and they become inspired to create their own film and hilarity, no doubt, ensues. The film is written and directed by Garth Jennings, the man behind the recent Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy film adaptation, and he seems to be chummy with the guys who did Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead, so I expect more of that brand of genre lampooning. Plus, I just like movies about average people having emotional responses to films (see Be Kind Rewind).
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull – May 22
- The Indy movies are the stuff of childhood fantasies. What boy doesn’t want to grow up traveling around the world, evading booby traps, and chasing fortune and glory. I personally don’t remember a time without the Indiana Jones movies existing. They have always been there and have always been familiar, like a voice you heard in the womb. I would have gone to see this movie no matter what, but seeing Harrison Ford swinging around in the trailer just like the old days brought a powerful burst of nostalgia that I can’t really explain. My most anticipated movie of the year.
The Foot Fist Way – May 30
- I didn’t know much about this movie until reading some other summer movie previews. Apparently, up until a few months ago, nobody knew anything about this low budget film about an inept Tae Kwon Do instructor. It eventually made its way to Will Ferrell and the producers of Anchorman who loved it so much, they used their clout to get it studio support. An admirable production backstory and shades of The Office style humor make this film something to watch out for.
The Happening – June 13
-OK…Lady in the Water sucked. But before it was trendy to hate on M. Night Shyamalan, he delivered some pretty tense and entertaining thrillers. The Happening could be a return to form for the director who promises that this film will be his most gripping and suspenseful yet (and the R rating suggests he didn’t pull any punches this time around). Even if it bombs, it could mean the end of the Shyamalan hype so all you haters have something to look forward to as well.
WALL-E – June 27
-Pixar can really do no wrong. Every movie they make is a hit. Every movie they make is quirky and entertaining. Every movie they make pushes the CG animation envelope. Early indications are they’ve made their masterpiece with WALL-E. Not only does the sci-fi setting intrigue, but the fact that most of the movie features no dialog (only robotic bleeps and bloops) makes it worth seeing out of curiosity alone.
The Wackness – July 3
-Another smaller film that’s grabbing attention, The Wackness is about a kid named Luke Shapiro who trades his therapist (Ben Kingsley) weed for therapy sessions. I get a real Juno meets 1994 Brooklyn vibe from the trailer.
The Dark Knight – July 18
- How many reasons do you need to go see a film? The Dark Knight has about a million. Batman Begins was awesome and this year’s sequel promises more of the dark knight and less of the campy-colorful-Joel Schumacher-knight that we had in the 90’s. Heath Ledger’s Joker looks downright disturbing (and I’ve seen two people already calling for a posthumous Oscar for the performance). They even ditched Katie Holmes and upgraded to Maggie Gyllenhaal for the love interest. This is how comic book movies should be done.
Pineapple Express – August 8
- Judd Apatow has taken over the world. I’m not positive, but I think he’s been involved with every comedy released in the last 3 years. I wasn’t immediately won over by The 40 Year Old Virgin, but as I saw Knocked Up and Forgetting Sarah Marshall (my personal favorite), I gradually found my way into the Apatow Fan Club (member # 45,694,128). Pineapple Express looks like more of the same and that’s a very good thing. Bonus points for awesome trailer music.
Towelhead – August 15
- When Fox News and other conservative media says a movie is too controversial and needs to be banned, I find myself wanting to see it more and more. Towelhead (aka Nothing Is Private) is about an Arab-American 13 year old who finds herself as the sexual obsession of a white neighbor (Aaron Eckhardt). Alan Ball, the genius behind Six Feet Under and American Beauty, seems to have brought his trademark way of looking at social problems to this film and it promises to be both disturbing and darkly comedic.
Oh, stop it Glenn. You’re making me blush…
I think Glenn Beck just called me a loser.
Well, technically he didn’t call just me a loser, but people who blog and talk about video games are losers.
Of course, he also laughed off those wildfires in California because it was just “America Haters” losing their homes and he felt compelled to ask a Muslim senator if he was working for the enemy…
A Salute to Bacon
Homer: I’ll have the smiley face breakfast special. Uhh, but could you add a bacon nose? Plus bacon hair, bacon mustache, five o’clock shadow made of bacon bits and a bacon body.
Waitress: How about I just shove a pig down your throat?
(Homer looks excited)
Waitress: I was kidding.
Homer: Fine, but the bacon man lives in a bacon house!
Waitress: No he doesn’t!
“If a man will begin with certainties, he shall end in doubts; but if he will be content to begin with doubts he shall end in certainties.“
– Sir Francis Bacon
A Post About Grand Theft Auto
Ok, I give in…GTA IV is good. Really good.
After making a post about how games don’t excite me anymore and how they aren’t keeping up with other media, here comes a brilliant beacon of violent and sexually explicit genius to cut though the fog. Grand Theft Auto 4 is one of the best games I’ve played in a loooong time…and I’m not even a third of the way through it yet.
You know the deal already. If you are reading this, you’ve probably at least seen a previous GTA game played before and know what you are getting into. I’ve dabbled in the series prior to this, but I never became the obsessed fan boy that was so commonly seen around my college dorm. Aside from the initial thrill of driving around and doling out mass amounts of destruction, the game never really hooked me. The characters were always cookie cutter stereotypes, the action got repetitive, and if you actually played the missions, you realized they were boring seek-and-finds that frustrated more than thrilled.
Most of that has changed with this new GTA experience. The most immediate improvement is the the work that has gone into making this version of Liberty City a real city. If you did nothing but walk around observing, you would see computer controlled characters going about their daily life. You would see garbage men making their rounds, cops busting criminals that aren’t you, fender benders on the highway and countless other mundane pictures of modern life made stunning by their realism in this created world.
The main characters are also given more humanity in this game. I can’t even remember the characters from the previous games…there was nothing to remember. GTA IV has characters that you actually like and care about. Niko, the character you control, isn’t a faceless criminal with no emotion. He’s just a regular guy caught up in the rat race of the American underground.
Which leads me to my next gushing accolade: GTA IV is also biting social commentary. Just listening to the in game radio stations proves this point. Many modern stereotypes are parodied from the constant “terror threat” warnings of the conservative talk radio station to the self indulgent tone of the NPR rip-off. But it goes deeper than simple parody. Many of the cut scenes paint a picture of a seedy world of crime created by the people in charge who claim they want to clean it up. Immigrants lured by the the American Dream are left to rot not far from the boats they came in on. Wars are declared by the rich and powerful, yet fought by the young and poor. Yeah, there is lots of violence portrayed in the game, but the characters portraying the violence don’t all come off as evil people. Most seem like average men and women hardened by an unfair system and losing at a game where the rules make it impossible to win.
What disturbs people about this series may not be the level of fictional violence portrayed, but the fact that actual problems that are much worse are being faced by real people every day. Maybe instead of blushing, scoffing and getting all in a tiff about a game, we as a society should address the real problems this game is based on.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go steal a helicopter so that me and my Rastafarian friend can head to the strip club in style.
GTA IV
Pros: Story, presentation and design are all top notch. You won’t be forgetting this game soon. The in-game music is especially fantastic.
Cons: Controls take a lot of time to get used to. Driving is harder (but more realistic) than in previous games, and other tasks (shooting, camera control) are still a little cumbersome. Missions do tend to stick to a few repetitive types (though the excellent story makes you care more about completing them).
—————————————-
Other things to address this week:
- That Facade game I said I was going to try out last post…yeah, it’s crap. I get where they want to go with it, but the technology isn’t there yet. Not worth the lengthy download.
- Two exciting musical releases this week. The first is the latest release by Portishead. Third may not be as instantly gripping as their first two albums, but it is haunting in its own right. The second album to check out is the debut of Santogold. The easy way to describe her would be a Brooklyn M.I.A., but her sound is, for better or worse, more varied than M.I.A.’s. She does the whole retro synth mixed with tribal beats, but she also throws in some indie guitars and 80’s pop/rock. Not every track is perfect, but when she hits (like with the song Creator) she hits hard.
