The New LOTR? Hah, think again!
I went into town today with dutchdiamont to see a movie. Well, it ended up being two movies, actually...
We first went to see The Golden Compass, which was, I am sorry to say, awful. In fact we felt so unfulfilled after leaving the theatre, that we decided after dinner to go see another movie, this time Enchanted.
The Golden Compass was proudly presented by New Line Cinema as being more or less 'the new Lord of the Rings': it's a fantasy trilogy, featuring a small hero who embarks on a Quest with a ragtag crew of figures and a shiny circular object. Let me get this straight: this is where all comparison ends.
I have not yet met a person who has not read LOTR and didn't understand the story from just seeing the films. Despite having many characters and storylines, PJ managed to adapt the books and yet keep the resulting film understandable for the viewing public not familiar with Tolkien's writing.
I have not read the Dark Materials, and though I consider myself capable of understanding a great many fantasy universes, I left the theatre after this film thinking: "okay, WTF was that about?"
This is a confused mess of a story, with way too many characters who are quickly introduced, only to be given nothing to do but stand by the sidelines and give the young heroine advice on who to go to next. They look fancy, but don't have any depth to them at all, their motivations and backstories never made clear, while the plot plods on and on: find this person, find that object, go to this place... and why exactly, I am at a loss.
And yes, it has a few good moments, the actors do their best, the animals look cute and the animation is good as ever... but it isn't enough to save this film from dragging age-long on to its unsatisfactory conclusion, and it certainly does not come anywhere near rivalling LOTR. Sorry, New Line.
Enchanted, however, I found quite charming. A Disney-made Disney parody, how can you go wrong? The prologue is completely animated in the oldfashioned style, complete with cheesy storybook to open the tale. It features Giselle, a beautiful and sweet fairy tale princess, whose songs call little furry animals to her that do the housework and make her dresses etc. She then meets a shallow prince, they fall in love instantly and will be married the next day, but the prince's wicked stepmother won't have it, and throws Giselle down a magical well, so that she ends up in contemporary New York. Of course, the prince and a talking chipmunk hurry to her rescue, and hilarity ensues.
The actress playing Giselle is the star of the movie, I do have to say. She's clearly studied all the Disney heroines very well, and her googly-eyed, whimsical, song-and-dance prone princess is wonderfully ludicrous. James Marsden as her thick-as-a-brick prince is equally delightful, and the film itself is full of Disney in-jokes, from tunes on television to 'making of' books on coffee tables to the names of restaurants.
Of course, the joke can only last for so long and it's still Disney, so expect a sickeningly, tooth-achingly sweet ending, but this was still well worth my time, unlike the Golden Compass, which are two hours of my life I am never, ever getting back.
Only a week more before my weekend to London! Hurray and huzzay!
And before I forget: Happy Tolkien Day Eleventy-six, everyone!
We first went to see The Golden Compass, which was, I am sorry to say, awful. In fact we felt so unfulfilled after leaving the theatre, that we decided after dinner to go see another movie, this time Enchanted.
The Golden Compass was proudly presented by New Line Cinema as being more or less 'the new Lord of the Rings': it's a fantasy trilogy, featuring a small hero who embarks on a Quest with a ragtag crew of figures and a shiny circular object. Let me get this straight: this is where all comparison ends.
I have not yet met a person who has not read LOTR and didn't understand the story from just seeing the films. Despite having many characters and storylines, PJ managed to adapt the books and yet keep the resulting film understandable for the viewing public not familiar with Tolkien's writing.
I have not read the Dark Materials, and though I consider myself capable of understanding a great many fantasy universes, I left the theatre after this film thinking: "okay, WTF was that about?"
This is a confused mess of a story, with way too many characters who are quickly introduced, only to be given nothing to do but stand by the sidelines and give the young heroine advice on who to go to next. They look fancy, but don't have any depth to them at all, their motivations and backstories never made clear, while the plot plods on and on: find this person, find that object, go to this place... and why exactly, I am at a loss.
And yes, it has a few good moments, the actors do their best, the animals look cute and the animation is good as ever... but it isn't enough to save this film from dragging age-long on to its unsatisfactory conclusion, and it certainly does not come anywhere near rivalling LOTR. Sorry, New Line.
Enchanted, however, I found quite charming. A Disney-made Disney parody, how can you go wrong? The prologue is completely animated in the oldfashioned style, complete with cheesy storybook to open the tale. It features Giselle, a beautiful and sweet fairy tale princess, whose songs call little furry animals to her that do the housework and make her dresses etc. She then meets a shallow prince, they fall in love instantly and will be married the next day, but the prince's wicked stepmother won't have it, and throws Giselle down a magical well, so that she ends up in contemporary New York. Of course, the prince and a talking chipmunk hurry to her rescue, and hilarity ensues.
The actress playing Giselle is the star of the movie, I do have to say. She's clearly studied all the Disney heroines very well, and her googly-eyed, whimsical, song-and-dance prone princess is wonderfully ludicrous. James Marsden as her thick-as-a-brick prince is equally delightful, and the film itself is full of Disney in-jokes, from tunes on television to 'making of' books on coffee tables to the names of restaurants.
Of course, the joke can only last for so long and it's still Disney, so expect a sickeningly, tooth-achingly sweet ending, but this was still well worth my time, unlike the Golden Compass, which are two hours of my life I am never, ever getting back.
Only a week more before my weekend to London! Hurray and huzzay!
And before I forget: Happy Tolkien Day Eleventy-six, everyone!