Game Off
Tuesday, June 21, 2011 at 4:30PM Three stories of how I'm off my game.
1. In the podcast post about "Midnight in Paris", I was all "you should read these articles" and then I didn't link to them. D'oh. We briefly mentioned Fandor's "TOP TEN FILMS ABOUT FILMMAKING" which you should definitely look at (I did the Sunset Blvd honors therein and I shared a personal ballot) and we talked about Mark and Joe's series on Oscar nominated Original Songs which has covered 1980 "Fame", 1981 "Arthur", 1982 "Up Where We Belong", 1983 "Flashdance", 1984 "I Just Called To Say (I Love You)", 1985 "Say You Say Me" and 1986 "Take My Breath Away" thus far. It's great fun to read.
2. Today is the 50th anniversary of THE PARENT TRAP (1961) only one of my favorite movies of all time. I think I was born loving it. Maybe I was meant to be twins? And I forgot to write it up. *sniffle* Forgive me Hayley & Hayley!
Yes, it is amazing!
3. You have to be chosen! With each passing day my own Green Lantern review fades in my own estimation (and I was so happy with it when writing it) whilst my hatred for the movie grows.
First Christopher Orr at The Atlantic provided the funniest traditional review, absolutely skewering the movie's hateful messages. I had tried to do the same with that "thinking is bad for you!" anti-intellectualism angle but the Tyranny of Beauty complaint is just as valid when it comes to the movie's deplorable subtext. Now Topless Robot has an incredibly funny but, more importantly, entirely accurate synopsis of its "best" scenes. It's hilariously precise and a great reprimand to all future movies that would like to have their screenplays written by committees and portray"heroes" as assholes whilst demanding that you root for them.
Remember how juvenile and bratty that movie Jumper was wherein the "hero" basically called everyone watching it "schmucks" in the opening scene and then we were supposed to root for him and his enormous and undeserved powers anyway? Green Lantern is totally like that... but it gets away with it a bit more on account of cocky Ryan Reynolds winning the sweepstakes of "who would you rather stare at you in 'puny human'* contempt mode?" sweepstakes handily over whiny Hayden Christensen whose ass you could probably kick anyway.
*I realize I just mixed up superhero tropes. Shut up! My ego has already taken a beating.
I will diminish and go into the East and remain Nathaniel.
Reader Comments (7)
The Parent Trap! My favorite guilty pleasure moment in any movie is "the makeover" and this movie is just full of them. The twins' makeovers sure, but also Maureen O'Hara's, and I guess Joanna Barnes' sort of reverse makeover. Cutting out the back of the dress? Brilliant. The Monterey home/set architecture? Thrilling. "Let's get together!"
Brian Keith and Maureen O'Hara had such chemistry. Two of my favorite actors. They made the Parent Trap for me which I would watch every time I caught it on the Disney Channel. I need to check out the other lesser-known movies they've done together - think they are both westerns.
Dave, I wanted to live at the Parent Trap ranch!
Boo nathaniel! I enjoyed Jumper!!! :) Well, Jamie Bell was in it...
Well I was born a twin, and like you, Nathaniel, born loving THE PARENT TRAP ( see my reader profile for more details!) I know every line by heart, every face, every move... I once started dating a guy only because when I mentioned Boston, he went "ooh, Boston!" and I immediately knew he was a kindred spirit ;-) Cannot believe it is 50 years old!!
Maureen O'Hara's other movie with Brian Keith is called "The Deadly Companions", and it also happenes to be Sam Peckinpah's first movie. Production was troubled, to say the least, but I kinda like the movie all in all.
Just carry on being you Nathaniel and that's enough to be on your game!:)
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