Tweeting About Percy Jackson

Just tweeted out my thoughts on Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief and I figured I should preserve them on my blog as well. Hopefully, I’ll have a chance (and the inspiration) to write out a full review later, but if not I think this summarizes perfectly how I feel about Chris Columbus’ latest movie:

Now that I am allowed to say something about Percy Jackson, I’m not sure how to convey my thoughts on the film… OK, how’s this? It’s like G.I. Joe for the Harry Potter crowd. Kids will love it and adults will see the cracks in the facade BUT it’s so outlandish and over-the-top at times that you can’t help but laugh. Also there’s a horny satyr and an acid trip of sorts.

Percy Jackson also includes a musical montage courtesy of NYUer Gaga.

And in case you can’t tell, I loved Percy Jackson. Chris Columbus movies made my childhood and this is like a cracked-out orgy of them all.

Where the Wild Things Are: A Less-Than-Serious Review

YES THERE ARE SPOILERS EVERYWHERE.

This won’t be a full-bodied review as it’s late, I’m tired, and I’ve only just seen a movie that people stopped caring about months ago. But in case Where the Wild Things Are does end up making the Oscar rounds — at which point the buzz around it will build again — here’s my take on said film.

To put it bluntly, the only way Where the Wild Things Are would have earned my eternal and unwavering love and adoration is if it had been a three-and-a-half-minute music video. All of the necessary elements are there — music by Karen O that alternates between haunting and rousing, and cinematography that evokes more emotion in a single shot than any one line of dialogue in the film — so it seems almost daft that instead of choosing a medium that would have made the most of these strengths, even a 10-minute short, director Spike Jonze took on the task of turning Where the Wild Things Are into a full-length feature that weighs in at 100 minutes long.

Not pictured: Where the Wild Things Aren't

A Short That Sort of Steals Its Sizzle

In just two short weeks, Fede Alvarez, director of the short film “Ataque de panico!” has gone from Internet nobody to the next hot thing in Hollywood.

But after watching the short, I don’t understand why. Is the video good? Yes. However, it’s nothing we haven’t seen before. Alvarez seems to have gone to the Roland Emmerich School of Directing, borrowing not only the aliens-blow-up-a-city-and-the-flames-roll-out-to-devour-everyone-and-everything scenario from Independence Day, but also direct shots from the film as well. (See: cars being lifted into the air as the flames roll down the street.)

And for you film geeks out there, Alvarez even has a baby carriage roll down the steps during the chaos. (See: Battleship Potemkin)

I’m not saying that Alvarez’s movie won’t be good — it could very well be — or that you’re not allowed to reuse shots or concepts — everybody loves Tarantino, after all — I’m just confused as to why Hollywood jumped at a director whose sizzle reel isn’t that new or novel. Is everyone that desperate to make their own District 9?

You can watch the trailer here or check out the screencaps below for my examples.

Capsule Review: “The Box”

This review revels in vague descriptions and nondescript info allowing it to be 80-90 percent free of spoilers. However, since this is a review, there are spoilers regarding the tone and general direction of the plotline. At the most you’ll find a small reference to the tone/set-up up the final scenes but nothing that gives away the ultimate conclusion or explanations behind events.

Suffice it to say, this review is less spoilery than Cameron Diaz at a Comic Con panel.

“It’s essentially the original [short story and "Twilight Zone"] episode extended with WTFuckery.”

– My original review on Twitter.

The Problem With Arguing Feminism in Jennifer’s Body

I had no intention of revisiting my rant/review of Jennifer’s Body and its criticisms, mostly because I believe that if you can’t successfully convey your intent/arguments in one article then you shouldn’t bother with a follow-up.

This is not a follow-up.

Girls Are Different — Suck It and Deal

Jennifer’s Body is dead at the box office — or so it seems after this opening weekend. And there are a couple of likely contributing factors: 1. that it opened against a fantastic children’s film, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2. that it’s battling against people’s cumulative hate/dislike of one of the stars, Megan Fox, and 3. that a lot of the reviewers just don’t understand the film.

And why don’t they understand the film? Because it’s one of the very few honest-to-goodness feminist films out there — and more so then being feminist, it’s one of the few films that views things from a female lens. Boys are there, and make up the majority of the victims in this body horror film, but they’re not a concern. For once we have a story with female main characters who aren’t obsessing about, fighting over, or bitching about boys every five minutes. Jennifer’s Body is about women and how they relate to each other, the horror moments are there for style and allegory, but at its heart the movie is about two girls whose own toxic friendship is eating them both alive.

Is James Cameron a (Blue) Copycat?

I just finished writing up this news over at LatinoReview about the possibility of Fathom Studios taking legal action against James Cameron for perceived similarities between their respective films, Delgo and Avatar.

As you can see from my post, I find the idea laughable. The truth is, I can come up with some other films and properties that share more in common with Avatar than Delgo seems to at this point. Don’t believe me? You’re about to.

My 16 Minutes With Avatar

Yesterday was Avatar Day, and at the last minute I found myself in attendance for the 6 pm showing at NYC’s AMC Loews in Lincoln Square. (The theater and I have a long history together that mostly goes back to me drooling over The Dark Knight in IMAX and feeling insanely dizzy thanks to Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix in IMAX 3-D.)

Three things you should know about me before we get started: 1. I love IMAX, I love 3-D, and IMAX 3-D is always a treat for me when it’s well done, 2. While I was curious about the Avatar footage, I wasn’t planning to attend Avatar Day until the opportunity fell in my lap, and 3. I actually liked the Avatar trailer that was shown earlier this week though I cared little for the design of the Na’vi alien race.

Worthington and his Na'vi-like avatar counterpart.

This is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things

When word first leaked about The Princess and the Frog the working title was The Frog Princess, which would have been fine if the movie wasn’t starring Disney’s first black princess. Racial overtones were immediately and rightly spotted but it all might have been curtailed if Disney had pointed out that the movie was an adaptation of the book series by the same name, and it definitely could have been avoided if they had simply not made the main character black after deciding on a title like that. That’s like making a movie called Spic and Span about the adventurers of a magical cleaning woman and then deciding at the last minute to make her Hispanic and give her a best friend named “Span.” You have to see this coming.

Another Lazy WonderCon Pic Post

Because laziness is the gift that keeps on giving, here’s another pic post from WonderCon. This time however, you’ll get to see stars, desperate wannabe stars, and the creative minds responsible for this year’s can’t-be-missed films.

Day 2: Sitting On My Ass All Frakkin’ Day

There’s only one game plan when it comes to getting a good seat at a high-profile movie panel, get there early enough to find a spot (or have someone save you one) and never leave. That’s why Saturday I found myself with primo third-row seating for the Watchmen panel at 11:30 am, and I did not give that bitch up until McG was done talking about Terminator Salvation at 5:30 pm. Unfortunately, not all the panels in-between were worth my butt’s time or growing numbness.