Paradise Lost: Metallica, The Root of All Evil

Title: Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hill (1996)

Genre: Documentary

Director: Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky

Tagline: Whose innocence is really lost?

Grade: B

Good Movie For: People with a strong stomach, teenage sleuths, Metallica fanatics

I don't entirely know how I came about selecting this movie for my Netflix queue. It might have been mentioned on a tv show that I was watching. A friend might have recommended it to me. A stranger might have whispered it into my ear. All I know is that it ended up in the top slot and I had to watch it. I had briefly read the synopsis of the film on the DVD cover so I knew the gist of what the film was about, but it didn't fully prepare me for what I watched. 

The film is pretty long for a documentary. Typically docs round out at about an hour and a half. This was two and a half hours, but even with the prolonged build up, I was still completely enthralled in the story of these three young men. The concept reminded me of The Thin Blue Line in the aspect that there is a definitive verdict to the trial, but the filmmakers present a case where you aren't entirely sure who is and isn't innocent. 

The film was good and interesting. What I didn't like about it though was the horrifically graphic images that the filmmakers chose to include. I understand that the images and pictures were used to drive home a point of the gruesome nature of the murders, but there inherently is a fine line between emphasis and the gag reflex. Looking past that though, this was a good watch. But refrain from listening to Metallica after. People will think you're worshipping Satan. 

You might want to say a couple hail mary's before too.

You know.

Just to be safe.

Blackfish: Don't Fuck With Them Killer Whales

Title: Blackfish (2013)

Genre: Documentary

Director: Gabriela Cowperthwaite

Tagline: Free Willy has taught us nothing

Grade: A

Good Movies For: People with hearts, People who live on earth, People who breathe

When I was 10 I saw Keiko at the Oregon Coast Aquarium. I had seen the Free Willy movies so I knew who he was. Hundreds of people crowded around the the glass wall of this giant aquarium as the all too familiar curved dorsal fin swam around. We had gotten a new panoramic 35mm camera. I remember snapping shots of him in the water. Those pictures are in a box somewhere, but now I don't know if I have the heart to look over them with fondness. 

I had been hearing a lot of buzz around this movie for the past couple of months. I initially wanted to watch it in theatres, but then it went on dvd and digital stream with a fucking quickness. I had been putting it off because of that pesky thing called school, but when I finally watched it. Shit.

I loved The Cove, and from what I was hearing this was quite similar. It was good. Really good. Good enough for me to force my family to watch it during our happy and joyful Christmas party. They call me The Mood Killer.

 Blackfish is an activist movie, much like The Cove. It has a stance and it's stance is clear, but it's delivery isn't one that is met with a grain of salt. The movie directly tackles the inhumanity that these animals face, specifically when it comes to the realm of America's favorite water spectacle, Sea World, but instead of having random people talk about the horrors, it has a cast of former Sea World trainers to dish the dirt. 

Blackfish was a good movie. It lets you peek behind the curtain to see the sadness and anguish that are covered by the splashes sent by Shamu. You should watch this. Everyone should watch this, but only when your faith in humanity is at an all time high. This is the swift kick needed to tumble you down that optimistic slope.

Well Shit....

I feel like I've written this post too many times.

I'm bad at consistency, blah blah blah.

I'm a sprinter, blah blah blah.

Life gets in the way, blah blah blah.

I've struggled. People struggle. But I'm getting back on the horse. If I want to take this writing thing seriously I need to put in the hours. I need to be somewhat consistent. So I'm going to start again, but this time with less stress.

Shit happened. Shit is happening. Shit is going to happen, and hopefully I can be active enough to jot it down here. One shit that happened is that I finally graduated from college. I'm now what society calls an "adult". Yea, sure, whatever. I guess I'll stick with that title. I've also landed this thing called a job. Weird. I can afford things now, like better quality alcohol. A shit that is still continuing to happen is this writing business. I'm done with school deadlines, but now I have to work up to my own self imposed deadlines. Let's see how that turns out.

Point is, I'm getting my shit together, and hopefully it doesn't hit the fan. I'm still learning and still progressing in this university of life. I still have a shit ton of movies that I need to watch and learn from.

Well shit. Here I go, again.

Again.

The Writers Group That's Not Really A Writers Group

Since my realization that I lack any type of drive or will in my life, I have decided to join a local writers group. It isn't your typical sharing pages and destroy you to build you back up group (ok, not all writers groups are like that) it's a different type of writers group. The only way I can describe it is solo writing, but sitting in a group. Basically you shut the fuck up and get shit done, but instead of doing that by yourself where the temptation of Tumblr lurks across your computer screen, you do it in a crowded Starbucks where you feel less inclined to show people your strangely intense obsession with the show Criminal Minds and Dr. Spencer Reid. I should probably delete my tags on Tumblr. That's a paper trail.

 I was reluctant to join this group at first. It consists of other screenwriters who are some of my best friends so that was the main draw. I was in another group where everyone else was writing novels. I felt like the gimpy kid that gets picked last for dodgeball. And this guy named Stardust kept asking me what I was writing about. The comfort of these friends is what drew me in. I knew that Stardust wasn't going to be lurking over my shoulder. I feel a bit discouraged though. Why is it that I can't write on my own without getting distracted? Is there such a thing as onset ADD? I probably have it. 

Trying to veer back to my point, the writer's group has actually been a huge platform for me. I've only been going for the past couple weeks, but it's been good so far. OK. I haven't actually written anything yet, but I've been reading scripts during the session. That's good right? A step in the right direction. Well actually that's a lie. I wrote an outline for a short, but didn't muster enough drive to actually write anything past Fade In. I'm getting there. Slowly. Really slowly. Excruciatingly slow.

I think my point and the gist of this post is that everyone writes differently. Some feel more comfortable writing in a darkened room where the light that glares off of the computer screen is the only thing that illuminates your tear streaked face as you realize that you've fallen into the bitch known as the 2nd Act Black Hole. Others, like myself, need the structure and nagging eyes of other writers writing to keep me on track. I read a post by Amanda from The Aspiring TV Writer & Screenwriter Blog and she talked about how Diablo Cody could only write in a group with other writers otherwise she would be too tempted to look up the latest gossip on whatever D-list actor stumbled out of jail that day. Diablo Cody is me. I am her. Basically what I'm trying to get at is whatever way you feel comfortable, don't be ashamed by it. Writers need to write. Anyway they can. 

At Home Therapy Sessions

I've figured out what I lack.

It's consistency.

I'm a sprinter.

Well, not really.

I don't think I've ever actually ran a full mile in my entire life.

I need to become a marathoner.

Going to continue this chain again.

Hopefully it doesn't break this time.

Savages: The Recession Hits Drug Cartels

Title: Savages (2012)

Director: Oliver Stone

Writer: Shane Salerno, Oliver Stone, Don Winslow (Novel)

Starring: Aaron Taylor - Johnson, Blake Lively, Taylor Kitsch, Benicio Del Toro, Salma Hayek, John Travolta

Tagline: Pot growers Ben and Chon face off against the Mexican drug cartel who kidnapped their shared girlfriend.

Grade: C-

Good Movie For: Polygamists, Sub-Par Drug Lords, Mexican Politicians, Cougars

I watched this on a whim. I was wavering whether or not to see it. I generally liked the cast that was in it, but I was apprehensive about the story. So when one of my best friends called me up and persuaded me to watch it with her, I agreed. I've been a fan of Aaron Taylor-Johson since he first appeared on my TV screen in Angus, Thongs, and Perfect Snogging. So I was looking forward to seeing him in this. Yes. Even with the dreadlocks. Usually having one of my favorite actors in the film is a win for me, but this just fell short.

I don't entirely know if it was something that went wrong between the adaptation from book to screen, or if it was just too little amount of time to engage with the characters before the real shit happens, but it just didn't work for me. The story basically hinders on the two male characters and their love for their girl. Yes. Girl. Singular. They like to share. I just didn't see or feel the connection between the three. Because I didn't believe it, the rest of the film just didn't feel right. I wasn't rooting for them to get her back because I didn't believe they really loved her.

I had really high hopes for this movie. Reviews and interviews with Oliver Stone were stating this as his comeback. That Stone was now going back to his roots. If this is his roots, I'm not sure I want to watch those movies anymore. (No wait. That's a lie. I'll probably have to watch Platoon. It's on the list.) This fell short for me.

Also, I may just be completely disillusioned with the whole drug cartel because of the skewed views it has in films, but 10 million dollars? Really? You're making a big fuss about that petty ass bitch shit? Apparently the recession hits everyone. Including top notch Mexican drug lords. 

Dumb and Hot vs. Smart and Ugly - What's More Important?

Going off of the Holy Motors review from yesterday, a glaring topic came into mind. There's an ongoing debate, it seems, as to what exactly is the most important aspect of a film? Is it the story? Is it the visuals? Is it the stars? 

I have debated this idea in many discussions with fellow film students and have come up with my own philosophy. I believe that the importance of a film all hinders on what you, yourself, place the most emphasis on. For screenwriters, it's generally the story that they key in on when they watch a movie. For cinematographers, the visuals dominate their thoughts. Basically the question of whether the visuals or the narrative are more important than the other is something that does not truly have a definite answer. There are some films that are able to achieve a balance between the two ends of the spectrum, but there are often times where films veer towards one end only. But at the end of the day, the question still lingers. Is it more important to make a impact in the film visually or within the story? While it's hard to justify a singular answer, here are my thoughts.

As a wannabe screenwriting, I tend to steer more towards the story end of the spectrum. In my mind, I don't fully feel emotionally satisfied with a film unless is has a good story. That's not to say that I don't appreciate the visuals of a film, I do, but when push comes to shove, story will always be the top in my book. That being said, I can fully understand where the other half comes from. If a film isn't visually engaging, then what's the point in shelving out loads of money to watch it? Cinema is inherently a visual medium so the image must look good, but does that come at the expense of the storyline? Movies depend on the visual, but without a story, movies end up just being sequential pictures without any real resonance of emotion in them. Beautiful images can only get you so far, but if you have a narrative that is just as beautiful, more times than not, you'll have a memorable film experience.