Movie Notes: Ernest Saves Christmas

Ernest Saves Christmas (1988)
Director: John R. Cherry III

I watched this as a kid.  I didn't remember it, though I do remember that I loved all of the Ernest movies as a kid.  I'm not sure why.  Somehow, I found Ernest funny.  He is somewhat funny, but he's best in small doses as his humor is not very broad.

That's the beauty of this movie.  Ernest is a supporting character, and that's using him to his best effect.  That's probably the best part of the movie.

Movie Notes: The Hobbit

The Hobbit (2012)
Director: Peter Jackson

When considering how to make a prequel to the Lord of the Rings, as understood and consumed by modern American culture, it would have been difficult for Peter Jackson to have done a very accurate interpretation of the book as written.  After all, The Hobbit is a jolly fairy story about a middle-aged comfortable English gentleman of independent means who decides to go on an adventure with a group of somewhat humorous dwarves and a good-natured wizard.  It's children's literature.

So, Peter Jackson tried to cast the story in a more serious cast.  More in line with Tolkien's own recasting in his appendices and Unfinished Tales - that is, the story as told by Gandalf.  This allows Jackson to take into account the greater context of which Bilbo was blissfully ignorant.  So, the additional material is true to the world, if not to the spirit of the novel being interpreted.

Unfortunately, when you bloat a simple story with complicated themes, it's going to be hard to keep the story flowing in a natural way.  The first half of The Hobbit, where much of this greater context is found (Radagast is particularly terrible) is therefore terribly dull.  Once Jackson launches his action sequences (intentionally sillier and less frightening than the ones in the Lord of the Rings), things get more interesting.  At that point I got immersed in the story and found myself disappointed that the movie was ending when it did.  Which is good!

Also, as opposed to the action sequences (which are adrenaline-inducing), the best part of the movie was actually the Riddles in the Dark sequence.  Which is as it should be!

So, all in all, this is not an amazing movie.  It's a fun one, though, once you get into it.

Libby and I intentionally sought out a theater showing it in 48fps.  I wanted to experience it closer to the way the director intended.  I found the higher frame rate really distracting, at first, but eventually I got over it.  It does make everything crisper looking, and there's perhaps more a sense of actually being there.  Unfortunately, it also exposes the special effects to be what they are, and in that sense Libby found it distracting for the whole movie.  Computer animation, sets, and costumes look like computer animation, sets and costumes.  I don't know if this is the future of the movie industry, but my preference is still for 2D film at the normal frame rate.

Movie Notes: Paths of Glory

Paths of Glory (1957)
Director: Stanley Kubrick

The execution scene staged in this movie is intensely powerful.  When artists grip their audience as compellingly as Kubrick does during htat sequence, they've done something special.

While I freely admit to having sentimental taste in movies, I also like a movie that really bites at my moral intuition.  This movie challenges them, and draws its power from them.  I don't think there are many deeper wells from which the artist may pull.

Anyway, a beautifully shot, fascinating film that I highly recommend to everybody; though it's not an easy one to watch.

Movie Notes: To Have and Have Not

To Have and Have Not (1944)
Director: Howard Hawks

What's really remarkable about this film to me is the gooey underbelly presented by both of the hardened leads.  I know it's cliche in this kind of movie, and I know Bogart and Bacall do the same thing in other movies similar to this one, but the way they balance the sharpness and gentleness in their relationship on the screen is compelling.

Libby and I always make fun of the whistle line in the movie, but there's  definitely a smolder going on here!

Movie Notes: Skyfall

Skyfall (2012)
Director: Sam Mendes

Libby and I saw this a few weeks ago, now.  I'm really behind on my movie notes.

This was an entertaining, if rather serious, Bond film.  I liked two things: first, that Bond's womanizing is shown to be a pathology due to abandonment issues stemming from his orphan childhood, and, second, the touching relationship between Bond and M.

All in all, a solid three star movie.