Super 8

If reading the title of this movie makes you think first of a chain of reasonably priced motels then you might be a little too young to feel nostalgic when watching Super 8.

I’d read that the story involved a group of kids who accidentally and initially unknowingly capture footage of an alien while filming an amateur movie with their 1970s Super 8mm film camera.  That, combined with the sort of ominous vibe given off by the movie’s poster, had me going in expecting to see some kind of supernatural thriller.  Technically that aspect of the movie is there but Super 8 is really a human drama with some incidental alien action thrown in. On the surface the alien bit seems to be the main attraction but it really serves to enable the human plot to develop and progress.  Steven Spielberg is the producer so I shouldn’t have been surprised to see shades of ET and The Goonies in Super 8.  The kids ride around on the same kind of bikes that Elliot carried ET past the moon on.   They talk over each other like a bunch of Goonies, worse actually.  There is quite a bit of nostalgia in this movie for people around my age but just to be clear, although set in 1979, Super 8 was definitely and obviously made in 2011 for a much more desensitised and jaded generation.  Although bits of it reminded me of ET and The Goonies, the material is much darker.

Soon after the movie started and most of the main characters had appeared I was pleasantly surprised to have recognized none of them.   I find this is generally a good sign, it shows that the producers had enough faith in the story to not worry about having a couple of big stars to carry the film.  (Actually I recognized two of the adults but not enough to know their names.)  The story, although original, did remind me of some earlier Spielberg stuff as I’ve already mentioned.  It started out well and even got better in the middle.  The end was where it just kind of failed to come together completely for me.  It felt like it had tried to recapture some of the early Spielberg magic but came up just short.

That said, I will definitely recommend this movie, at least when it comes out on DVD.  This recommendation is mostly for the work done by the two lead kids.  The boy, Joel Courtney, is very good.  The girl, who looked vaguely familiar but who I really didn’t know, was brilliant.  Turns out she is Elle Fanning, little sister to Dakota.  She steals every scene she is in but there are two scenes in particular where she really shines brightly.  I wonder if you’ll be able to tell which scenes I’m talking about, yeah I’m sure you will.

 I find I’m usually willing to cut significant slack to a mostly mundane movie if it contains even one or two moments of soul stirring, heart rending or even gut wrenching.  Thankfully, despite its failings, Super 8 does have moments of clarity and brilliance (mostly due to one young actress). Without Elle Fanning Super 8 gets about a 6.5 from me.  With her it gets an 8, or shall we say a Super 8.

Precambrian Marble

Precambrian Marble has been discovered in Warterton!
Locals returning to the windy mountain hamlet from their temporary winter (September through May) residences in Arizona and/or St. George Utah were shocked to find significant deposits of the metamorphosed limestone lying about the town. Chaos ensued when several locals were unable to find parking for their Escalade towing "Rock Star tour bus" class RVs due to the white stony formations.
As they endevoured to determine the authenticity of the hopefully valuable stuff more than a few seriously smart sounding statements were said to have been overheard.  "I'm pretty sure this wasn't here last year.  Besides that, it looks way old." "Yep, pretty sure that there's at least Jurrassic, maybe Devonian or possibly even Precambrian Marble we've got here."  "If you look real close between them two strata you can see a petrified Snow Hare. See, it's right there beside that fossilized Mule deer poo."

Just then a Bobcat came by and opened up a driveway right through the middle of it all.

Yep, turns out it was just a snowdrift. It's been a long long winter.

It was a gorgeous day in Waterton.  Besides the random remaining snow drifts there is still a noticably higher amount of snow up on the mountains of course.

The road to Cameron Lake is still closed at the very last gate just as you think you're going to make it all the way.  Here is the obligatory bear picture.  With a mama and three cubs present I knew the place would turn into a Saturday afternoon Costco parking lot within seconds so I just took a very quick snapshot and fled the scene as fast as I could.

Did a lot of walking around the town as usual and bought my new annual pass. It's light blue this year so I guess it won't stand out quite as bad as the bright yellow one did last year.

Waterton, it's still there and it's still awesome!

Retro Cool

Like so many people, lately I have become increasingly frustrated and baffled by the rising prices of razor blade cartridges.  Especially over the last decade or so it seems like they have really gotten out of control.  Also, the ever increasing number of blades per cartridge has just become ridiculous.  What are they up to now, 5, 6, 7?  I'm not quite sure I even know anymore. 

Currently one of the most popular razor cartridges is the Gillette Fusion.  Five blades that can be had in a regular or vibrating power version.

 

The cost of these monsters of course varies depending on where and how many you buy but when I checked them out recently down at the local Try-n-Save the per blade price was over $4.

Returning home I felt thirsty and went to my cupboard to look for a straw but found that the last one had disappeared.  Hearing a strange kind of thud out in the yard I rushed outside where I immediately discovered the whereabouts of my last straw.  It was balancing nicely on the fractured back of a completely collapsed and obviously hopelessly lost camel.

The proliferation of big box retailers and malls full of the exact same chain stores has given us ever more square footage to shop in but with a much more restricted and controlled variety of products to choose from I think.  However, thanks to the wonders of the internet, now even those of us whose home towns are not written on the shopping bags of famous fashion houses have access to products we had previously assumed to have long since vanished from the planet.

Enter the retro world of safety razor shaving.  A double edged single blade housed in a razor designed to last GENERATIONS not merely a few days.  After some research I decided on the Edwin Jagger DE87 model.

Although there are several websites in the states dedicated to old school shaving Canada even has a very good one called Fendrihan.com.  It's where I purchased my extra ossum EJ-DE87 razor.  Actually most razors you'll find are fully chromed but I kind of liked the classic look of this genuine faux ivory version.( Although the use of regular ivory from regular elephants has been banned for decades faux ivory from real faux elephants is still allowed. Some people actually think that faux animals don't exist but if that's the case then why do you always hear about their paws?)  This lovely faux ivory handled razor seems like the kind that would have been found inside large heavy steamer trunks on trans-Atlantic voyages.  I imagine that there are several still resting on the bottom of the ocean inside the Titanic.  OK just to be clear, I'm not saying I want to drown in the Atlantic, just that I like the classic image of the old ivory handle. (Maybe if I was with Kate Winslet it would be worth it.  Actually instead of giving up so quickly and freezing/drowning I'd probably just ask her to try one more time to move her ample butt over just a bit so I could share her massive hunk of wood with her.)

At $35 the EJ-DE87 costs about the same or less than an eight pack of Fusion blades and instead of being all used up and thrown out within a couple of months these razors will last until they are flushed down a toilet by a two year old, swallowed by a dog or pilfered by a nosy neighbor during a dinner party.  (It's when parents would invite other couples from the neighborhood over for dinner and talking and the kids were banished to their bedrooms until the  next morning with a wide mouth mason to pee in.)

You might also want to look into shaving soaps and creams, a brush and bowl to make the lather and of course the thing that makes this whole venture most appealing the razor blades themselves.  Upon starting out, it is recommended to buy a sample pack of razor blades and try them all to see which ones work best for you. It is definitely not a one size fits all or one brand is best for eveyone type of deal.  I'm still just starting out myself but I bought ten blades of four different kinds to try.

 In the end once you are set up with a razor, brush and the other accessories you need, the ongoing cost difference between shaving with a retro classic safety razor and the newest and most hyped multiblade catridges is the cost of the blades themselves.  Once you decide on which double edge blade is for you, you can buy most of them in packs of 100 for just under $20 or $0.20/blade. Even the sharpest and most expensive Feather blades (made in Japan) cost less than $0.60/blade in 100 packs.

From what I've read, it seems like the average usage for a DE blade or cartridge is about 5 days.  If you're changing a fusion blade every 5 days it will cost you about $292 per year.  If you change a DE blade (other than a Feather) every five days it will cost you $14.60 per year. even if you decide to shave with the finest blade in our solar system (the Feather) it will still only cost you $43.80 per year.  That still saves you about $250/year compared to shaving with a Fusion or similar.

Besides the huge money savings, I also find it surprisingly refreshing, relaxing and possibly theraputic to shave like men did way back when.  I love the fact that there is no recycling symbol anywhere to be found on my Edwin Jagger razor. ( It's not intended to be discarded before your next trip to Costco.) It looks and feels like it is made to last forever. 

Yellow Yellow Yellow White

Tribond

A red stapler, a lighter and a tin of hard candies, what could these three things possibly have in common.

The Stapler: Red in color and made by Swingline.  (I think that's way too much information already.)

The Lighter: A classic Zippo model 200 with brushed chrome finish.  Preferred by cool non-smoking bank robbers everywhere.

The Candy Tin: サクマ式　ドロップス (In those days Japanese writing went from right to left instead of left to right.)　Sakuma Drops have been in production in Japan since 1908.  The tin container has been the same shape from the beginning but the design has changed now and then making them somewhat collectible. This particular version was originally produced in the 1940s .

So there you have it. These three seemingly completely unrelated objects share at least one common trait.  Do you know what it is? As with most trivia the answer is easy if you know it and nearly impossible if you don't.  Duh!  Anyway, give it a go if you like.  I promise to be significantly impressed and to henceforth and forever think even more highly of anyone who can come up with the answer.

Without Fathom

So what's the difference between a villain and a super villain?  Presentation!  At least according to Megamind it is.  After finally seeing this movie I'm inclined to agree.  Although as it turns out Megamind himself isn't really a true villain at all. He's just an earnest alien nerd too smart for his own good and that gets him shunned by his peers and sets him on the path to hidden lairs and high backed swiveling chairs.

Megamind tries so hard to be a real bad guy but it's pretty obvious through most of the movie that he's just playing a role he was mostly forced into and that he would much prefer to be the one who saves the day and gets the girl. Nevertheless, he finds himself in the villains role and he does his best to be the baddest villain he can, always knowing that on most days Metro Man will win and on some days he will almost win.

This movie seems like it was written with Will Ferrell in mind as he fits the character of Megamind perfectly.  It reminded me of his character Mustafa in the first Austin Powers movie , another funny bad guy who you just can't quite believe is really evil deep down.

Although I don't always like Will Ferrell's movies, (many times his schtick is just too over the top and wears out its welcome long before the movie ends) this film showcases his strongest, best and funniest talents and fits him like a Black Mamba. (No not the snake.)

Megamind is full of funny quotable lines. Many of them made quotable by Will Ferrell's delivery... or should I say presentation.  However it doesn't hang the full weight and repsonsibility of the movie on them. As with all good movies there is a strong story and a generous helping of heart to back up the silliness.

 If this movie had come out in another year other than 2010 I may well have called it my favorite animated movie of the year.  Unfortunately Tangled and How To Train Your Dragon are just in another league of their own.  I can see myself choosing Megamind over Toy Story 3 on some nights though.

I will look forward to this Halloween to see dozens of giant blue heads dressed in Black Mambas roaming the streets carrying Forget-me sticks.

Thanks to KJAMBD for lending me their DVD!

Rango

I think my first exposure to any kind of promotion for this movie called Rango was when I briefly glanced at the above poster on IMDb. I mean, it’s a chameleon holding a wind up bathtub fish. Yeah right, I thought. I won’t be seeing this one anytime soon. Then a few days later I took a closer look and read that the director is Gore Verbinski from Pirates of the Caribbean and that the lead lizard is voiced by Captain Jack Sparrow himself, Johnny Depp. OK now I’m interested.

I figured that this movie would either be completely out in left field and a waste of time or (the more likely scenario considering the talent involved) that it would be an unexpected even if somewhat eccentric highly entertaining breath of fresh air. Well, um… it’s the latter.

Rango is definitely not your typical animated feature. In fact I’d say it sits on the seat opposite Tangled on the movie playground teeter-totter. So different but providing the necessary balance to keep either side from crashing down to the ground.

I could be mistaken but I think Rango is what is often referred to as a character driven movie. Of course it has a story with a beginning, a middle and an end but I felt that all of that was almost secondary and maybe even just a vehicle to expose us to the weird and wonderful characters we meet along the way. The dialogue is thick, quick and sharp. You really need to watch intently or you’ll surely miss a bunch of stuff. I was paying full attention and even without the distracting intracranial crunching sound of $7 popcorn I know I need to see it again to catch a few things I missed.

Like Tangled, Rango pays homage to some classic movies from the past. Some of the references are quite obvious, (two times “Rango” reverts to his only slightly different Capt. Jack Sparrow voice to exclaim “that’s interesting” just like he says in POTC when he finds out what the curse feels like for himself) most are not. You may recognize references to Once Upon a Time in the West, Apocalypse Now, The Good the Bad and the Ugly, LOTR, Star Wars (I swear one of the characters looks exactly like Jabba the Hut), It’s a Wonderful Life and probably several more.

Kids might enjoy Rango on their own level but this is definitely a movie which will be most fully appreciated and enjoyed by adults. It is highly entertaining mostly in a comical way. I and most everyone else in the theatre were LOLing like totally super often!!!!! I think you’ll find most of the laughs come in quick short bursts. Lots of ha-s, (singular form of ha-ha) chuckles, chortles and other proclamations of recognition of a clever or subtle bit.

In the end I’m struggling to explain Rango especially without giving away too much. I love movies that reward you for giving your full attention and Rango does that continually. Now that I think about it, the lack of talking and texting around me was a rare throw back to ancient days when people had manners. Although deep down I know it was only because everyone was just trying to keep up and not miss anything rather than a sudden mass discovery of etiquette.

Finally, just to be clear, this is not Shakespeare (although Rango himself is a big fan of the Bard) and it’s not ALL THAT either. It is a funny, entertaining and unique little picture that I enjoyed very much the first time and plan to watch several more times in the future.

Children of a Greater God

It seemed like everybody who is anybody was going to be attending the Billy Joe concert last night here in Cardston.  I hadn't really planned on going even though I was pretty sure I'd enjoy it. Finally deciding that I couldn't let a chance like this get away (again) I got home from work yesterday and decided to call the theatre in the off chance that by some miracle the tiny room wasn't yet completely sold out... and it wasn't.  I couldn't understand why but counted myself lucky and rushed down to buy one of the last seats available.
I figured I was pretty lucky to get a seat right in the middle of the theatre.  Even though it was in the last row of the center section the place is so small that I would still be very close to the stage relatively speaking.  Upon entering I immediately found out why my seat had lasted until three hours before showtime. Resting on my left armrest and rising up from it like a black monolith from either of the Space Odyssey movies was a big wooden control console of some kind. Lights? Sound? I'm not sure but it was there and wasn't going anywhere. It would be a little extra squishy on my left side but my line of sight was surprisingly good as I had a clear view of all the performers and both of William Joseph's hands, except when they moved so fast my eyes could hardly keep up.

Including William Joseph there were four members of his band.  With the lights still down the Cellist and Violinist entered first to a round of applause. Next and still in the dark a man came in and sat at the piano.  I'm sure I'm not the only one who thought this was WJ himself because he got even more applause than the ladies did but after hitting a couple of notes on the piano to which the violin and cello replied with just a couple of their own he went back and settled into the drum kit.  Fooled already and it hadn't even started yet.  When WJ finally took the stage you could tell the applause was ever so slightly reserved just until the audience was sure that this wasn't just the tambourine man or piano bench height checker.

I had only watched a couple of YouTube videos to get a taste of what to expect at a William Joseph concert so all of his music was pretty much  brand new to me.  I immediately realized that I was extremely privileged to be seeing and listening to some world class musicians in an unreasonably intimate setting.  It almost seemed wrong that such a small number of us were being touched by so much talent and that there should have been so many more to share in the light only we few were basking in.

After his pretend last song of the night and a standing ovation which I'm sure we were all prepared to continue much much longer William Joseph quickly reappeared to perform two more numbers.  The first was one he said many would recognize but no one I was with did so just in case you didn't either it was Bella's Lullaby from the first twilight movie.  Last and never least was Asturias. Here is a link to a YouTube of it where he plays it in a setting more deserving of his talent.

In the end it was a great night out. So glad I went.  The music was wonderful, beautiful and awe inspiring.  The skills and talents of William Joseph and his band were almost too much to believe.  It almost seemed like I was watching it all on TV because it was just too magnificent to be happening there right in front of me.  Just a little surreal I guess.  Chances are good that I will never again hear the piano, violin, cello and drums played live so well and so close by.

Fix You

Until yesterday I had only heard the song Fix You by Coldplay once.  Actually I had only heard the first verse even at that.  It was on an episode of Ricky Gervais' Extras in which Chris Martin (Gwyneth Paltrow's husband and lead singer of Coldplay guest starred.) This clip shows what I saw and heard then.



Having somehow never heard it before I assumed it was just a little bit they made up to do on the show and that was the end of that... until yesterday.

I don't think I've ever mentioned here that I really like the movie WALL-E and in particular there is one scene that is one of my favourite movie moments ever.  It's the scene where Eve is putting WALL-E back together again.  More on that later but for now I'll just say that I was reviewing some of my YouTube favourites yesterday and a clip of that scene was one that I rewatched.  Following that I just clicked on one of the "related clips" on the side just for fun and this is what I found.



I think this is the best amateur movie clip montage/music video that I have ever seen. It's pretty much perfect in fact.  It really captures the essence of the whole movie and the song fits so well.  As the clip began I first realized that this was the same song that Apple's daddy sang on Extras.  Having not been particularily impressed with the short version at that time I wasn't expecting much but decided to watch to the end anyway. About two and a half minutes into the song the guitar kicks in and I suddenly realized that there was going to be much more to this song than I had imagined.

The entrance and urgency of the guitar expresses so well Eve's sudden change when she discovers the plant and WALL-E's desperate chase as he tries to reach her before she is taken away by the space ship.  The drums join in to bring the music to full force as the ship blasts off with WALL-E barely hanging on.  The song is finally complete and epic when the now multivoice harmony vocals return to compliment WALL-E's sense of wonder as he does the old hand drag through planetary rings vortex trick. (Suddenly sticking your hand out of the car window on the highway seems extra mundane.)  Of course the song must return to it's humble beginnings at the end and this too fits with the end of the movie. 

Finally as promised, the reason that the scene where Eve fixes WALL-E is one of my favourites.  The urgency and speed with which Eve acts is what I love.  It surely wouldn't have made any difference to the outcome if Eve hadn't worked quite so quickly.  But she loved WALL-E and her desperation and unnecessary speed showed it.  The exact moment that still gets me even now when I recall it is when Eve, having finished rebuilding WALL-E whips up her arm and blows a hole in the ceiling to immediately bring in WALL-E's life giving sunlight.  Surely no one would have thought it strange if she had taken the extra half second to move WALL-E back outside herself but to her every millisecond counted.  It was if she was trying to save him from drowning.  That is what I love most about the movie WALL-E and this newly discovered YouTube clip brings it all back to me.

A great song and an inspired video, the two together are much greater than the sum of their parts.  Another in my growing list of YouTube favourites.

So, have you seen it yet?

No, not Harry Potter silly, Tangled of course!

Maybe I'm mistaken but I can't help feeling that this little gem is being passed over by a lot of people for whatever reason.  It kind of seems that everyone will rush out to see the Shreks, the Ice Ages, the Madagascars or any movie with penguins, especially talking ones.  Maybe Tangled just didn't get enough hype. Maybe it suffers from NOT having an "agenda."  Now that I've seen the movie and have gone back to watch the trailers for it I admit I am a little disappointed to see that Disney even tried to target the Shrek demographic with their quite misleading previews. Nearly all of the scenes which would appeal to those who enjoy trendy, sarcastic, parody humour are in the trailers.  In fact I'd say that about half of what is in the trailers isn't even in the actual movie.

As I said in my review, although Tangled is very funny and a lot of fun (not quite the same thing), it is completely sincere and it will make you feel as though you've received an antidote to so many of the animated movies that have come out over the last couple of decades.  You may come out feeling like the fog has lifted, that things had gotten worse so gradually you hadn't really noticed and then the sudden return to a bright ray of sun is almost shocking.  I couldn't remember the last time I'd felt as heart warmed and happy as I did at the end of Tangled. 

In case you're waiting to see it at the cheap theater or on DVD I would urge you not to wait.  This movie needs to been seen in 3D, shown by an expensive projector in a theater where a popcorn and pop will cost you $14 (not saying you have to buy it, just that it needs to cost that much if you do);  not at some sticky smelly theater/homeless shelter where the image is projected onto a (not even 100%) cotton sheet hanging unevenly in front of an unpainted and slightly moldy concrete brick wall.  The animation in Tangled is new and improved and it does look absolutely beautiful. The 3D does make a big difference in a very good way.

I know I've mostly been preaching to the choir here but I just wanted to make sure anyone who is on the fence about seeing this movie will do so.  It's my new favourite Disney film EVER! There, I said it and I meant it.  Maybe the songs aren't quite as good as The Lion King or The Little Mermaid but the story and in particular and couple of specific scenes in Tangled just made it the best to me.

The following YouTube contains the first song which plays as the credits begin to roll at the end of Tangled.  The people in it are many of the crew who made Tangled at Disney Animation Studios.  It's a fun little clip and it may even bring back the happy feeling and warmth you felt or will feel at the end of the movie. Enjoy!
(The first girl who appears in the clip is Grace Potter who is the actual singer of the song.)