On a Magical Journey

Based on my new idea to broaden my posting horizons please enjoy a short vingette based on recent modern movie travails....

The past week or so have contained an epic battle-one of good versus evil; of wrong versus right.  This is a battle where truth, justice, and an indomitable will combined to--okay, fine, this week was a battle to get one of my friends to go with me to see Tangled.

Rapunzel

Now before you judge me too harshly let me point out a few important facts.  First of all, digitally animated moves are very in right now.  Toy Story 3 got a 99% on the RottenTomatoes.com meter (personally, though the movie was great, I think that rating is a little too high).  Secondly, I have to say I have an uncanny ability to pick entertaining movies based solely on previews.  I knew it would be awesome.  And thirdly, and perhaps most importantly, I have never outgrown my love of princesses, animated or otherwise.



Rapuzel and her magic hair

It's true!  I know all the lyrics to all the Disney princess songs.
Unfortunately, I am now considered to be an adult.  So if I were to go see the movie alone, I would be the creepy person in the back of the theater.  None of my friends or close relatives have children, and I am not currently babysitting any suitable little children that I can drag to the movie as an excuse.  Therefore, one of my friends has to go with me.

Rapunzel's castle and some Disney magic.

I informed them of this, and received only eye-rolling.  But I persevered.  It only took several impassioned speeches, five threatening emails, one incidence of blackmail, and a pointed facebook post before finally one of them agreed to come along.  And I promised to buy her margaritas.

Tangled early story sketch



Terrifying Mother Gothel probably appreciated the margs...



So--a pitcher of fabulous frozen raspberry margaritas later (was it inappropriate to drink before a children's film?) and we were off to a 3D adventure.

A side note about 3D.  Is it really all that necessary?  Kind of gives me a headache...

My verdict?  I enjoyed the film, though perhaps not the best princess story I've seen.



Rapunzel and her magic hair

Tangled is the story of a princess named Rapunzel, played by Mandy Moore.  Right before her mother is about to give birth, the queen becomes ill, and the only thing that can cure her is a magical flower hidden in the kingdom.  The flower is watched over by an evil witch, Mother Gothel, played by Donna Murphey, who sings a magic song and therefore uses its powers to remain young forever.  But one day Mother Gothel is careless, the guards find the flower and feed it to the queen.  She gets better and gives birth to Rapunzel, who has the power to heal in her shiny golden hair.  Mother Gothel sneaks into the castle and attempts to snip her hair, but when cut, Rapunzel's hair turns brown and looses its power.  So the evil witch steals her away, hides her in a tower and pretends to be her mother.  Heartbroken, the king and queen release golden lanterns into the air on her birthday every year, hoping that the lanterns will reach their daughter and bring her home.

Magic lanterns around the castle.

Eighteen years later, Rapuzel is determined to set out on her own to seek the lanterns, which have become special to her though she doesn't know why.  Mother Gothel refuses to let her leave, claiming the outside world too dangerous.  Enter Flynn Ryder, played by Zachary Levi, a notorious theif who has stolen the missing princess's tiara from the castle.  But in his haste to get away, he ends up hiding in Rapunzel's tower.  She kidnaps him and refuses to return the tiara until he takes her (and her trusty sidekick, Pascal the chamelion) with him to see the lanterns before Mother Gothel returns.  What follows is a typical chase through the forrest, avoiding both Flynn's pursuers and Mother Gothel's machinations.  Rapunzel learns to grow up and face the world, and Flynn finds himself falling in love with the intrepid princess.  But when Mother Gothel becomes determined to keep Rapunzel at all costs, Flynn must step in to save the day by being true to himself and the one he loves.



They just can't get his nose right.

What did I love?

Zachary Levi.  You probably know him as the title character in the TV series, Chuck.  This film is an entirely new side of him as an actor.  Flynn is the best character in this film, by far.  He is funny, charming, witty, and vulnerable.  Actually, I think I'd rank him up there with Aladdin, another thief with a heart of gold.  Levi manages to make the audience actually care about this Disney prince, when the princess is usually the scene stealer.  And this is supposed to be Rapunzel's story. 

Rapunzel's tower

Another great thing was the scenery.  I saw an interview in which the animators mentioned they were inspired by old Disney films like Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty.  I can definitely sense the older, more magical vibe of those films.  In many ways the animation harkens back to the golden age of animation, which, with The Princess and the Frog, Disney has been attempting to return to.


Flynn with one of the villians-with-a-heart-of-gold

Less thrilled about... Suprisingly, the music.  This film was scored by Oscar-winning composer, Alan Menken, he of such famous films as Aladdin, The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast and Enchanted.  I cannot tell you a single song from this movie.  The songs were unmemorable, all realtively similar, and did not help to progress the story line.  The best one is probably the song sung by all the villians in the pub into witch Rapunzel stumbles, and there's also "Mother Knows Best" sung by the evil Mother Gothel.  But when you have a noted singer in your aray of actors, it is suprising when her songs are so completley unmemorable.


Rapunzel with the villians.

Which brings me to Rapunzel...
I've never hated Mandy Moore, though her combination whiney/impassioned little girl acting has recently begun to grate.  But I at least appreciate the effort to be different, instead of routinely banging out syrupy half-baked romantic comedies like so many other actresses these days.  I actually like it when she plays a mean girl.  Much more fun.


Rapunzel and Flynn

But I think her Rapunzel never really gets off the ground.  She has a voice perfectly suited to princessdom (sweet, innocent, and a good singer without being too good) but there are moments where she just becomes too cliqued of a character.  She's just so darn earnest..with everything.  I don't need another five heartwarming "I get achieve my dream if only I try" songs.  Just one or too would have been okay.  She's not bad, but when the prince is much better, you know you have some problems.  Also if your personality is eclipsed by your hair...again...problems.  Look to Aladdin and Jasmine.  They have a partnership that actually seems to snap and crackle and work.


Flynn finds Rapunzel

All in all, not a bad film, although I do think Disney has the potential to create bigger and better films a la The Little Mermaid and Aladdin.  The Princess and the Frog was definitely a step in the right direction.  This film feels close--but not quite there (Treasure Planet, anyone?).  I look forward to their next attempt...Winnie the Pooh!

In the Beginning

The first time I got this idea into my head, I was in high school.  I went to an old, prestigious boarding school somewhere in the cow fields of Connecticut, where one of the few things to do on a weekend was to watch a good movie with your friends in the dorm.  Very cool, I know.  But I had always loved movies, and it was a great day when I figured out that I could go to the school library and rent as many movies as I wanted for free! (And 30,000+ a year.)  The library had been saving up movies for the past decade or so, and was even beginning to have an extensive DVD collection.  Wow, I'm old.  Anyway, I couldn't get enough of the movies I now had unlimited access to, Netflix having not been invented yet, and I embarked on a plan to educate myself by watching the best movies ever made: the "Best Picture Oscars."  I tried to start at the earliest one the library had, Cimarron, and painfully sat through one of the worst movies I think I've ever seen.  After that, my desire to conquer great cinema noticeably ebbed, I grew up, and spent all my time and effort trying to get into New York City clubs with an ID made out of paper.

Flash forward to the present, and I find myself in a situation that 10 years ago I never could have imagined.  The economy decided to take a serious downswing right around my graduation from college, and job opportunities for a confused English major seem to be few and far between.  I can write, or I think I can write, but other than the several half-finished starts of novels and poems littering my hardrive, I can't seem to work up the enthusiasm for anything.  I'd even thought of a blog, but couldn't think of anything worthwhile to write about.  I knew it should be a challenge of some sorts; at the risk of enraging my peers, blogs had always seemed to me to be largely narcissistic.  Who could possibly care about the everyday trials of my life? Much better to focus on something tangible that others could relate to.

Then the idea occurred to me.  Why not now, armed with my Netflix account and an abhorrent amount of free time, attempt to do what had alluded me nearly 10 years ago?  Of course, with several film classes now under my belt, I have learned enough to know that the Academy Awards are not necessarily the arbiters of great filmmaking.  Many of the best films have been passed over by the Academy, or have lost out to other films that were later forgotten.  I briefly considered the AFI film list; surely if I wanted to watch the best films of our time, I should adhere to that.  But, while I may sometime try to conquer that list, I am still completely drawn to the "Oscars."  I enjoy the idea that I can watch them in order, journeying through time, in a sense.  There are drawbacks (witness Cimarron), certainly I could do without certain titles, but in general I think each movie will give me a sense of the time that it's portraying.  I've always loved old movies for their ability to connect us with the past, with what was important to that particular time.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.  This first entry is my way of writing a forward, an explanation for all that's about to come.  I've decided to watch every movie ever to win an "Oscar" for Best Picture, from the silent movies of 1929 to whichever movie wins this year.  To give myself a guideline, I'll begin when the Academy Awards this year begin, and end with the Academy Awards next year.  To my estimation that's around 2 movies a week.  With each movie I'll write about my thoughts: what that movie was like, a little history of the film, and the reactions of those I can beg into watching them with me.  I'll watch them in order, every one, even those I've already seen.  Yes, even Cimarron.  God help me.

And last but not least, I've decided to rip off TBS and do Dinner and a Movie.  With each film, I'll use what skill I can muster to make something for everyone to snack on while they watch.  Be it popcorn, tacos, meatloaf or lasagna, I'll make something fun that somehow correlates with the particular movie I'm watching, and share it with all of you!  This is more bribery than anything else...I think if I make food, I won't be watching these all alone.

So that's it!  Here I go...the first two, both silent movies, and both winners of the 1929 award for Best Picture (I'll explain in my next post) will be watched by me on Saturday, March 6th and Sunday, March 7th, 2010.  After I've watched both, somewhat fittingly, I'll watch the Academy Awards.  So please read, and maybe watch, with me.  I'll enjoy your comments and support!  And the envelope goes to...