Sunday, November 18, 2012

Movie Review: Breaking Dawn 2


Okay, I admit it. I've seen all of the Twilight movies—opening night in most cases (now where did I put that man card …). Here's another confession: I read all the books before the movies came out. You see, my wife and I made a deal a some years back: I'd read the first Twilight book, she'd read Ender's Game, one of my favorite books of all time. She kept her end of the bargain, but it didn't entice her enough to go on with the series (btw, I would recommend reading Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow—not the usual path through Speaker of the Dead … but I digress). I, however, read Twilight, then moved through all the other books as they came out. Reading the books was sort of akin to a big bag of Lay's potato chips; you know you shouldn't eat them, but man, once you get started, it's hard to stop. I remember when the first installment came to the theater, I was one of two men in a sea of women in the audience (moms and daughters mostly). The demographic evolved over time and I must say the testosterone was fairly well represented in this last one.

In reading the series, I found myself groaning inwardly while going through the last book. Breaking Dawn seemed like a real shoddy sum up of a lot of loose ends. In fact, I felt Meyer should've ended the series with the Eclipse, perhaps inserting the wedding scene as the ending. That was not meant to be as Bella and Edward go on to becoming parents (Renesmée? Really? Sounds like some Utah-parent fusion name) and taking on the entire Vulturi clan like some kind of global underworld adaptation of Seven Samurai. So I really ended up loathing Breaking Dawn the book.  

Be that as it may, I went into the cinematic conclusion of Twilight with an open mind. Ironically, the final movie seemed more satisfying than the final book. Just like the book, there were some adjustments that took getting used to: the addition of Bella's abilities as a vampire, and her hybrid daughter with accelerated growth issues. Yes, there was some hokey moments as the Cullens went about gathering allies for their stand against the Vulturi (viz., the Amazonians and Argentinians—they looked like injuns from a 50s western). And there was the flimsiness of an alliance formed at vampire speed. But the culminating portion of the conflict really actually … worked. And what's more, it dealt a surprise to everyone in the audience—even those who'd read the books! Now I'm not going to recommend BD2 as the best thing in the history of movie-making, but I can endorse it as a decent ending to a big bag of Lay's chips. Just be sure to follow it up with something more dense, like a Netflix marathon of Lord of the Rings. That should quiet the cinematic digestive tract. “B+

Saturday, November 10, 2012

Movie Review: Skyfall


With the 50th anniversary of the Bond franchise, the newest installment, Skyfall, hit theaters this weekend. I took in the latest offering at a packed Friday night viewing and was not disappointed. I will say that it doesn't feel like your typical Bond movie. It starts out with a roller coaster of an opening scene and sets up for what you expect in a usual 007 story. Halfway through, however, it takes a very personal turn and it almost feels as though one movie has ended and another begun. Not that it is a particularly bad thing, just different. I will say the villain is very unique in this installment. Silva (Javier Bardem), a wonderfully twisted psychopath, has meticulously planned revenge upon M (Judy Dench) and the M16. This movie leaves you with a warm fuzzy of nostalgia in its imagery (note Aston Martin above) and music. Adele's title song for the soundtrack conjures up 007 movies of yesterday and meaningful use of classic Bond guitar music anchors the mood well. A few personnel changes and introductions are made in this film that set up the series nicely for the next few installments. I hope Daniel Craig can find the fountain of youth through the next decade as he has proven to be one of my favorite Bonds.
“A-/B+”                                                   

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Movie Reviews: Wreck It Ralph and Frankenweenie

Okay, I've been horribly remiss in keeping up on my movie reviews, so here are a few flash reviews for some of the latest flicks I've seen:


Wreck It Ralph
Animation good. Plot a little slow at first, even felt a bit contrived in parts (it's hard to shoehorn a bunch of video games into one film), but the story ends well and almost eked a tear out of me.  “B


Frankenweenie
Argh. Usual great animation from Mr. Burton. Felt like the script was written over the weekend. Some cute oldster, inside movie references throughout, but nothing that could stitch up the monstrous neglect to the story. Too bad.  “C+

Thursday, October 4, 2012

2013 Incompatibles Calendar


Announcing the 2013 Incompatibles Wall Calendar! Order before Nov 1st. Get your signed, limited edition copy here.

Thursday, September 20, 2012

Stabs at Sketching

Here is some preliminary sketching for last week's Incompatibles installment. It’s funny how the drawing can lead to finer nuances in the narrative. Originally “Vegan Rituals” was slated to display a knife-toting priestess poised to sacrifice her giant carrot. As I was toying with different blades, the thought hit me: “Why a knife? It should be a peeler.” I think that one edit really added finish to the gag. 


Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Toothpaste and OJ

This particular cartoon was a revamp of a gag I drew 20 years ago. Above is the second generation rough (you can see the blueline I'm drawing over). Yup, it's that sketchy until I'm satisfied with all the relationships. I started from scratch as the previous version was just a guy standing in a non-descipt background. I thought it would be more compelling to have the setting be a man in his bathroom mirror. Why he would have OJ in there? I have no clue. :)


Friday, August 31, 2012

Blueline of Strange Shopper


Above is the second-to-the-last blueline of my latest cartoon. I wanted to make this character look quirky with an odd fashion ensemble and a pose that reflected a shopping game face. It's not a matter of IF he's going to use the product, he's just weighing the different types at this moment.



Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Movie Review: Bourne Legacy


Caught the restart of the Bourne saga this last Thursday. It's fairly easy to summarize The Bourne Legacy: Try to imagine one of the earlier Bourne movies crossed with a movie like … say …  Beaches. Man, way too much talking and self-reflection here; not near enough KICKING BUTT AND TAKING NAMES. Lots of guys will go to this movie and walk out shaking their heads. The plot was solid, it just suffered from chronic action deficiency. It made the 2:15 run time feel like an eternity. Jeremy Renner did what he could with the script. He has the charisma and presence to take on this mantle, he just needs better material. Rachel Weisz played her part well too and she looked surprisingly youthful at 42. So no foul in regard to the acting personnel. Nupe, the fault here lay at the feet of the guy in the director chair, Tony Gilroy (coincidentally the co-screenwriter with his brother, Dan Gilroy). My advice to the two bros: do a marathon of Bourne Identity, Bourne Supremacy, Bourne Ultimatum and sprinkle in a little Rambo First Blood I and II for good measure; THEN write the script for next film. And, ooh, please omit the cheesy violin-cliff hanger riff at the end of the next movie. I groaned audibly when I heard it. I say keep the "legacy" of patootie-kicking action and let this new generation of Bourne find its own footing (and music). "B-"

Monday, August 6, 2012

Movie Review: Total Recall


Here's my brief recap of this remake of the 80s film by the same name: The futuristic earth world created was reminiscent of Blade Runner. The chase scenes and action were awesome. The actors were not easy to engage. In fact, if any character seemed somewhat interesting, it was Douglas (Colin Ferrell) Quad's villainous wife (Kate Beckinsale). She at least had a personality. Perhaps the chase plot gives us less time get to know these characters, perhaps the script and story just under use them. Either way, it seemed flat. On paper it looked like a home run; in reality, it was a double. Schwarzenegger need not fear.  "B"

Saturday, August 4, 2012

Background Details

You'll notice in the rough drawing above that I originally had a group of guys running away from the scene, as if they were unwilling participants in this warped game of tag. I elected to go with a playground scene in the background for the final. I found it more funny with boys who seem oblivious to the activity down the hill. You'll also notice the tagged guy's pants and shoes are different in the final.