we don't need no water
Before I delve into the dulcet words of Dr. Peter Orlik in preparation for my BCA 310 exam, I figured it'd be a good idea to get all caught up on the assorted nonsense that fills my life. So, you know. Deal with it.
As alluded to by the good captain, this past weekend was Sibs weekend here at CMU. Good times were had by all as I brought my younger brother and young cousin for a weekend full of rock-climbing, ice-skating, finger-painting, video games, movies, you know. All that good stuff. All told, it was pretty fun, though as a direct result I now have enough snack food in my room to feed a small army. Or my roommates. Whichever comes first.
Now would also be a good time to get some movie commentary out of the way. I'll start with the movie I saw as part of the aforementioned Weekend:
Chicken Little - Don't get me wrong. It's not a bad movie. In fact, it's downright likeable. But if Disney seriously saw this as their way to compete artistically and financially with Pixar and in doing so prove they didn't need them...well...that's pretty much pure egotism. The fact is that it lacks the timelessness and wonder of Pixar's work, and instead is basically a really expensive Saturday morning cartoon. Granted, it's a pretty top-shelf one, with great voice work by, among other folks, the incomparable Zach Braff, the also quite good Joan Cusack, the obligatory Patrick Warburton, and the sublime, nigh-godlike Adam West. The animation is also pretty good, and a nice way of bringing the pace and vitality of 2D animation into the 3D world. And Chicken Little is actually a fairly well-designed character, even if his friends aren't nearly as interesting. And it's funny.
But the movie also suffers from the same thing that the prior paragraph does: namely, it's way too scattershot and hyperactive for its own good. I don't think I've ever had to work that hard just to keep up with a movie before, and there were a lot of scenes where I just couldn't tell what characters were saying. Maybe that was due to lackluster audio quality during the screening, but maybe it isn't. Even if it was, the entire movie still plays out like it's on a mix of methamphetamines and Fruity Pebbles. Even the pacing of the movie falls victim to this lack of focus - it spends so much time in building up the world and the characters that when the actual plot arrives, it feels like it's shoehorned into far too small of a timeframe. Some jokes seem to be shoved into the movie for no other reason than to make a pop culture reference, as well - for example, there's a King Kong reference that has nothing to do with anything, and funny though it is, it does kind of take away from the cohesiveness of the story.
Still, I couldn't bring myself to dislike this movie. It's charming in its own head-spinning little way, and there are some genuinely funny moments, as well as some surprisingly moving ones. There have been comparisons to Dreamworks' animated features in terms of the use of pop culture references, but those critics are missing one vital point: Chicken Little is funny and charming enough to last for a while, whereas Dreamworks movies will probably make no sense to kids ten years from now. Ultimately, the movie is cute, it's funny, and it's generally pleasant to be around. It lacks the staying power of, say, Toy Story or the damn-near perfection of The Incredibles but I could see myself watching it again. And possibly renting (or even buying) the 20th anniversary re-release to watch with my kids. If I ever have them. But that's an entirely different topic.
At any rate, Chicken Little is good enough to earn three star-type thingies. It's not Pixar, but then again, few things are, and this at least comes within shooting distance.
Hm. I'm done with my desk shift in two minutes. Guess my Ultimate Avengers writeup will have to wait until next time. Look forward to it.
As alluded to by the good captain, this past weekend was Sibs weekend here at CMU. Good times were had by all as I brought my younger brother and young cousin for a weekend full of rock-climbing, ice-skating, finger-painting, video games, movies, you know. All that good stuff. All told, it was pretty fun, though as a direct result I now have enough snack food in my room to feed a small army. Or my roommates. Whichever comes first.
Now would also be a good time to get some movie commentary out of the way. I'll start with the movie I saw as part of the aforementioned Weekend:
Chicken Little - Don't get me wrong. It's not a bad movie. In fact, it's downright likeable. But if Disney seriously saw this as their way to compete artistically and financially with Pixar and in doing so prove they didn't need them...well...that's pretty much pure egotism. The fact is that it lacks the timelessness and wonder of Pixar's work, and instead is basically a really expensive Saturday morning cartoon. Granted, it's a pretty top-shelf one, with great voice work by, among other folks, the incomparable Zach Braff, the also quite good Joan Cusack, the obligatory Patrick Warburton, and the sublime, nigh-godlike Adam West. The animation is also pretty good, and a nice way of bringing the pace and vitality of 2D animation into the 3D world. And Chicken Little is actually a fairly well-designed character, even if his friends aren't nearly as interesting. And it's funny.
But the movie also suffers from the same thing that the prior paragraph does: namely, it's way too scattershot and hyperactive for its own good. I don't think I've ever had to work that hard just to keep up with a movie before, and there were a lot of scenes where I just couldn't tell what characters were saying. Maybe that was due to lackluster audio quality during the screening, but maybe it isn't. Even if it was, the entire movie still plays out like it's on a mix of methamphetamines and Fruity Pebbles. Even the pacing of the movie falls victim to this lack of focus - it spends so much time in building up the world and the characters that when the actual plot arrives, it feels like it's shoehorned into far too small of a timeframe. Some jokes seem to be shoved into the movie for no other reason than to make a pop culture reference, as well - for example, there's a King Kong reference that has nothing to do with anything, and funny though it is, it does kind of take away from the cohesiveness of the story.
Still, I couldn't bring myself to dislike this movie. It's charming in its own head-spinning little way, and there are some genuinely funny moments, as well as some surprisingly moving ones. There have been comparisons to Dreamworks' animated features in terms of the use of pop culture references, but those critics are missing one vital point: Chicken Little is funny and charming enough to last for a while, whereas Dreamworks movies will probably make no sense to kids ten years from now. Ultimately, the movie is cute, it's funny, and it's generally pleasant to be around. It lacks the staying power of, say, Toy Story or the damn-near perfection of The Incredibles but I could see myself watching it again. And possibly renting (or even buying) the 20th anniversary re-release to watch with my kids. If I ever have them. But that's an entirely different topic.
At any rate, Chicken Little is good enough to earn three star-type thingies. It's not Pixar, but then again, few things are, and this at least comes within shooting distance.
Hm. I'm done with my desk shift in two minutes. Guess my Ultimate Avengers writeup will have to wait until next time. Look forward to it.