Post-Christmas Update/Movie review though no one gives a shit
Well, something good came out of my Christmas gifts. I got a giftcard to 1/2 Price Books and went shopping today.
Got a few decent books... and the Original Broadway Cast Recording for "West Side Story" for a steal ♥♥♥ And my sis was at our Dad's, so Mom and I got to have lunch and spend some time together. I'm feeling a little better overall now.
Well, nothing like doing what you love to keep yourself afloat, I guess. I saw "The Spirit" today and I wanted to put my thoughts down.
Okay first off-- Scarlett Johansson in that movie? I never really cared about her before but good Lord she was just.... 0_0 I don't know if it was the horn-rimmed glasses or that she nailed the 'femme fatale' thing so well, but....damn. Okay, got that out of my system.
I... I just don't know how to feel about this movie. I mean, it wasn't bad and it wasn't great, it was just kind of...ehh. Basically it felt like "Sin City 2," minus the over-the-top violence and grim humor. That was what kind of made "Sin City" work in the first place besides the inherent sexiness of Bruce Willis/Jessica Alba, the absurd cartoony violence mixed with the dry seriousness of film noir. Another thing that helped that movie was that it felt cohesive, that the story was told pretty well. That wasn't really the case with "The Spirit"-- randomness can work, but not at the expense of the narrative. More than a few times I just felt like I had no idea what the hell was going on, like a parent forced into watching a random episode of "Pokemon" with an enthusiastic kid.
On a side note, I kept wondering (which won't be a shock to anyone familiar with my film taste) why this movie wasn't just animated. I mean, it's great that we have all these advances in computers and stuff so that we can just have actors in front of a green screen, but if we're trying to imitate a cartoon medium ANYWAY, why not just embrace it altogether? I mean, I love stuff like WALL-E and Desperaux just fine, but why not try making Western cartoons that aren't necessarily kid's movies? Push the boundaries of the medium and all that.
It wasn't all bad, though-- it looked great at least and there were a few moments of good humor ("Somebody get me a tie," our titular hero demands after a close brush with death, "...and it sure as hell better be red!") and good ol' Sam Jackson was clearly having a blast with his bombastic role as the villainous Octopus (though he's been playing basically the same part since "Pulp Fiction" anyway). I kind of wish that the stable of varied ladies that come factory-standard with any noir setting like this had been fleshed out more (like the perky but smart cop Morganstern), but there I go getting interested in the secondary female characters again instead of a fairly generic protagonist.
In the end, "The Spirit" was entertaining at least, offering nothing new but at least being a fun mindless popcorn flick.