In the movie Batman Begins (because all things in life can be related to Batman in some way) Alfred is heard to say to the young Bruce Wayne, "why do we fall down, Master Wayne?"
To which the boy gives a puzzled look. Alfred answers his own question; "so we can pull ourselves back up."
I am learning in life not to be embarrassed or ashamed of failures. They are part of every growth process. Still that is easier to say than to actually believe. But to keep my self fighting, to keep pulling myself back up when I fall, I am trying to get right out in front of my failures. To put 'em right out on Front Street, as they say. So, for anyone who is a Facebook friend of mine who remembers back in January when I declared publicly I was the heaviest I'd ever been and was going to lose 50 lbs in 6 months, I am here to tell you . . . I failed.
At least, I failed in the overall goal. In the first 2 months I lost 25 lbs. Unfortunately I also lost my job. So the bad eating commenced. And then we had our little girl, and there were some (now we know) minor complications, which led to long days in the hospital, broken up by walks to the cafeteria, gift shop, or vending machines. That was also the week I discovered Peanut Butter Snickers. Holy Shit!
So, as to not dwell on where I went wrong or make excuses for the failure, I will simply say I did not make it anywhere near the 50 lb mark. Depending on the day, I'm down between 10 - 15 lbs from where I was when I made that declaration. Now I'm sure some out there would say "down is down" and "you should still be proud of that." And perhaps that's all true, but I'm not proud. I'm disgusted with myself. Especially this week, and there's a reason why. This past week, I officially became "a fat guy."
My wife and two kids went out of town for the weekend. They were spending the weekend at a friend's summer place in Michigan. I would have joined them except I'd agreed to DJ a block party Saturday night some months back and had completely forgotten. So I sent them off and looked forward to a couple days of alone time. Saturday night came and went, and all the while I wondered what I'd do with a whole day of nothing to do. The answer came to me Sunday. Why not go to Great America?
For those that don't know, Great America is our local Six Flags park in the Chicagoland area. I've been going there since I was 6 or 7 so about 30 years. Originally it was Marriott's Great America. Somewhere I believe in the 90's, Six Flags came in and bought the place. Under Marriott it seemed to be very family-oriented. There were always a couple of big thrill roller coasters, but I also recall a great deal of kiddie rides, shows, and Looney Tunes characters roaming freely around the park. I was particularly fond of the live-action Looney Tunes stage shows every summer. One that always stuck with me involved Bugs Bunny introducing the Tasmanian Devil to his long-lost relatives, ala This is Your Life. At one point they brought out this gigantic Himalayan Snow Devil, or something to that effect, that as a kid seemed to tower over the audience. I was sure if that thing broke loose, we were all dead! It never occurred to me it was just a giant costumed prop controlled by puppeteers.
Those types of shows at Great America are gone. As are, it seems, many of the fun kid rides I remember. Especially the Busy Bees and Red Baron style airplanes. I wandered through an area they call Camp Cartoon Network now which was full of Hanna-Barberra themed rides that all needed some real renovation and refurbishment. At the very least, a few coats of paint would help! That "land" and another new area called Kidzopolis aside, Six Flags has kicked up the thrill factor at Great America over the past 20 years. It became a roller coaster park now, plain and simple. As a teenager into my Twenties, that suited me fine. I loved the thrill of speed, climbing heights never meant to be experience by featherless lifeforms, only to plummet down at ludicrous velocity! I still enjoy the sensation to some degree as a slightly older "adult" but I admit now that I'm a parent, that damn logic and sense begins to play havoc with my brain. Even as I found myself locked in to their largest coaster, Raging Bull, a massive steel "hyper twister" coaster, I began to visualize myself somehow flung out of the open-sided ride vehicle as my weight was too much for the restraint system. Or worse, the entire train of cars somehow jumping the steel tracks and off we'd fly like some terrible horror movie to meet a horrible demise in a wreck of blood and metal and cotton candy.
None of that happened of course. As far as I know there were no fatalities that particular day. But I had some reason to suspect at least one of those scenarios. The thing that put a black cloud over my head throughout a mostly sunny August day happened within my first hour at the park.
I arrived at the park, alone. Yes, let's put that right out on Front Street. I was going to spend a day at an amusement park by myself. Before you scoff and condemn me to the land of Loserdom, let me say that I actually enjoy doing things alone. I go to movies alone, museums, purposely tool around the mall by myself. It's nice to experience things without another voice chirping in your ear. It allows you to process things, and sort through other thoughts clogging up your brain. This was also not my first time flying solo in a theme park. I once had to spend a week in Orlando for a convention, and had a free day to do whatever I wanted. It would have been far too much a Sophie's Choice for me to decide between my four beloved Disney parks, and since we were on the other end of town anyway, I opted to hit Universal's Islands of Adventures. I had wanted to ride the Jurassic Park River Adventure since I'd first seen it had opened. I didn't feel like a complete dork that day, nor did I this past weekend. Although had someone asked, I might have used the "in town alone on business" cover story again!
Anyway, I arrived at the park and made straight for the ride that was new since my last visit nearly 5 years ago, The Dark Knight. It was an indoor roller coaster based on the second movie in the Nolanverse of the Batman films. That was such a geeky statement, I should give myself a wedgie. Anyway, that line was clocking in at 60 minutes, so I decided to circle back around and see if it thinned out in the later afternoon. After walking a bit I came upon the next roller coaster, Iron Wolf. Iron Wolf opened when I was, I believe, a sophomore in High School. It was the first "stand up" roller coaster any of us had ever heard of, and I remember that first year waiting well over an hour to ride it. Honestly, it was not quite as mind-blowing as you might have thought. Truth be told you're hardly standing. A harness comes down over you, and you straddle a bicycle seat, which the attendant comes by and jams right up into your wedding tackle as hard as he can. It's definitely the most awkward roller coaster of its kind. But it is still fun. I hadn't ridden it in years and the line was not long at all so I figured alright, let's go for it. Side note: I often refer to myself in the plural. Wonder what my shrink would say . . .
The line moved quickly, I was up the stairs and in the station in less than 15 minutes and boarding my ride vehicle shortly after. I should preface what I'm about to reveal by reiterating, I know I'm a little heavier these days. I will also take you back in time a moment, to about 10 years ago when I was around the same weight/size I am today. I went to Great America with a group of friends and we were going to ride Batman (not The Dark Knight, another Batman roller coaster. Yes, we have two Batman themed roller coasters at our park! Suck it Magic Mountain!) We boarded the ride, which is one where you hang underneath the track and your feet dangle. Once again a harness comes down over your shoulders, and then you clip a safety belt into it from between your legs. That particular visit, I couldn't get my belt to click. I needed one of my buddies to literally lean into my harness, smashing my ribcage in order to get the seat belt to click in. It worked, but it was not my finest hour.
So now back to 2011. I board Iron Wolf and settle in to the end position. The harness pulls down without a problem and locks in place. Great, I think to myself. Let's get this party started. But I forgot, Iron Wolf also requires the rider to fasten a damn crotch belt! And I didn't have a friend there to smother me. The attendant came by and tried to help. The clip and the connector on the harness were touching, but were not coming together. "Pull down hard," the kid said, already feeling embarrassed for me. No dice. "Try pushing down really hard from the top," he suggested. I sucked in my gut with all my might, and yanked down on the harness like a man desperate not to be publicly shamed off the ride, which is exactly what I was. To no avail. If one end of that safety belt was male, and the other female, than one or both was homosexual, because there was to be no consummation of that relationship. "I'm sorry," the young attendant said softly. I smiled, laughed it off, and told him it was no big deal. That I'd kind of expected it but thought I'd give it a shot. And for the moment, I meant it. But as he had to signal the other attendant to release all the harnesses of my row so I could exit, and I slipped out of the cumbersome position the cars already have you in, the embarrassment began to take hold. I walked across the exit side of the station, past a mother who was next to me in line that was waiting while her daughter rode. Her daughter, I might add, was in the same row I was in, so this lady had seen the whole bloody affair. She gave me this sympathetic cock of the head and half-smile as if to say, "I'm sorry, you poor fat bastard."
I have to admit, I'm no shriveling violet, but my spirit was pretty low at that moment. I started doing a quick inventory of all the park rides in my head and wondering which, if any, I would be able to shoehorn my fat butt into. Then I began to lament what I'd paid to get into the park in the first place. The better part of a Ben Franklin by time you counted "discounted" admission and parking. That would be a high price to pay for a day of walking endless laps on hot asphalt, battling sweaty crowds under a relentless sun, watching other people have fun. I was starting to kick myself for not staying home watching The Larry Sanders Show on Netflix. Long blog post short, it ended up not being so bad. I figured out pretty quickly that I would just have to skip any rides that go upside down, because those employ the harness/belt restraints. In fact the long lines impeded my fun far worse than safety mechanisms. I got a couple spins on some killer coasters, drowned what was left of my sorrows with a pretty decent foot-long chili cheese dog (yeah that's right), and left feeling more or less accomplished.
I didn't even share the events of the day with my wife when she called that night to check-in. I just silently sipped a chocolate cake shake from Portillo's, before turning in early.
The next day, as a strange twist of fate, I received an email from Six Flags asking if I'd fill out a Customer Satisfaction survey. Really? Me? I began to twist the ends of my moustache and laugh maniacally. I logged in, prepared to rip all six of their flags a new one. But then it occurred to me. The obvious problem. My dissatisfaction with the park had far more to do with me then with them. Don't get me wrong, I still let them know how in the years since my last visit to Great America I'd been to Disneyland, World, and Universal, and had no trouble with any rides at any of those parks. I pontificated about how they're alienating much of the country, especially considering they sit on the border of Illinois and Wisconsin . . . the beef capitals of the world, and I ain't talking about cattle! At one point I actually said there are more fat people than thin people in this country, and which group do you expect will pay $11 bucks for a cheeseburger? And if they can't get on any of the rides, how much longer do you expect them to come and spend that money?
But I took full responsibility for my own problem. The weight that I'd gained since my last visit. It presents far bigger problems than riding roller coasters, obviously. And it served as just another painful reminder of my massive failure at the beginning of the year. So, I told Six Flags that while my initial reaction was I won't be returning for a long time, I changed my tune. I told them they've got one more shot, next summer. But that's not a challenge to them. It's a challenge to me. I actually emailed this to the President of the park as well. I said I will lose weight this year, and I will come back one more time. I will walk straight to Iron Wolf and I will pull down that harness and I will, unattended, click that seat belt. And I will pull out the slack in the belt as well.
How's that for setting myself up with another stupid public declaration? Setting myself up to fail . . . or flail . . . on a roller coaster? Come with me next summer and let's see. If nothing else, you can smash down the harness for me! ; )
Just kidding. For the record, I've dropped 3 lbs in the last 2 days.
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Cheers Harry! From a loyal Dumbledork!
It's taken me some time, but I've finally gotten my thoughts together about Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows, Part 2.
I must confess I was a little sad knowing this series in which I've invested not just ten years worth of movie watching, but over a baker's dozen going back to when I first started reading the books, was coming to a close.
My initial feeling was "WOW!" Followed by "they finally got it right." And these, I might add came to me long before the film ended. I could just sense early on this finale would not disappoint in the end.
Lastly, a specific and almost strange (and quite geeky) feeling came over me. In fact you might say it took hold of me like a spell during the final climactic battle between Harry and Voldemort.
I have my own little obsessions. I'm not a closet-geek, but I'm not out and proud with my nerd-fandoms either. I don't cosplay. I've never been to a con of any kind, unless you count stone and tile conventions or the World of Concrete (that was a doozy) back in my construction sales & marketing days. When I saw theater goers wearing robes and Hogwarts House scarves, I admit I judged. I scoffed at their silliness. But as the final moments of Deathly Hallows began to countdown, a voice whispered in my brain "this is my Star Wars."
Allow me to explain. There are many guys around my age give or take that are Star Wars fanatics. And not just the ones you see in the mall with the tinted glasses and ill-fitted fantasy t-shirts rolling 16-sided dice on Friday night. Professionals, salesman, lawyers, construction workers. The Lucas curse seems to infiltrate and infect all walks of Gen-X males (and quite a few females.) I worked with a guy who is in management at a multi-billion dollar International banking firm who looks as straight-laced as it gets, but mention the words "Jar Jar" and he's off on a twenty minute dissertation defending the prequels like the rebels defending the communications center on Endor. Or were they attacking it? I don't friggin' know.
See, I never got it. I enjoyed the original three when I was kid. Well the first one I actually found (and still find) kind of boring. (An audible gasp from the audience!) Cut me some slack I was 2 when it was released. I remember seeing the second film, or, well I guess it was what, # 5 or something . . . stupid Lucas . . . in a movie theater and being terrified of that little green gargoyle Yoda. I did really like the last one, with the Ewoks. Which of course, proves I'm not a Star Wars fan because as I understand it that's the least favorite among fan boys. Either way, I just never felt that connection to the franchise so many do. It didn't blow my mind. It didn't inspire me in any way. Other than, I suppose as an artist because I do love to draw weird creatures and aliens, and I suppose there's some Lucas-influence there.
And as for that other trilogy, the Rings deal. I really liked the first film. It could have stopped with that one and I'd have been relatively satisfied. But the second movie and the first 2/3rds of the last one are brutal to sit through. Butt-numbingly so! As Kevin Smith says, they're three movies about walking. I had no desire to strap on a helmet and wield a battle-axe after seeing them. In fact, I'm such a nerd the other way, my favorite scene, the one that sticks with me the most is from Fellowship of the Ring when Sir Ian goes to Bilbo's house in the very begining, and Lord Baggins offers the great wizard tea and cheese. Every time I see it I think "I'd like to live in that little house. Look at that big block of cheese he's eating there."
That's it. That's what the LoTR saga boils down to for me. A quiet little house in the ground with a big round door . . . and a wedge of old cheese.
With Potter, it was different. For starters, I was 4 books in before cameras even rolled on the first screen adaptation. The books, if you haven't taken the time, are brilliant by the way. It's not hype to say that J.K. Rowling is a master storyteller. What she has is a gift. There's no other way to say it. How she took what began as a children's book with fun adventures and fantastic creatures (admittedly with a dark undertone . . . I mean, it does start with a baby whose parents have been murdered) that crescendos into this mature, harrowing, epic with such a satisfying and emotional climax is beyond reason, except to say, again, that she posesses an other-worldly gift. When I closed the last book for the last time, I really felt like I'd been there with those kids all the way. I'd been there and back again, to steal from an aforementioned trilogy.
As someone who fancies himself a storyteller of some degree, I am not ashamed to admit I would kneel at her feet and swear my allegiance were I ever granted an audience. And she would no doubt call for security to have me forcefully removed from the premises.
The first 7 movies however had been kind of a mixed bag for me. I liked the first film, but was disappointed by how much was left out even if I understood the reasoning. I hated the second, Chamber of Secrets. I had read the book (albeit years before) and I was still completely lost. I couldn't fathom how anyone who hadn't read it could understand what was going on. Thought the third, Prisoner of Azkaban was nearly a masterpiece. Hated the Goblet of Fire. Thought Order of the Phoenix was better. Definitely loved seeing wizards using magic to kick a little ass at the end. Thought Half-Blood Prince was pretty good, although, as with that particular book, thought the title was at best a maguffin.
To be honest, I didn't even see Deathly Hallows Pt. 1 in a theater. With two young children, you don't get to as many movies outside the home as one would like. Not too mention, I'm getting older and much tighter with a penny. More often than not, I'm disappointed when I do make the small investment in a movie going experience. So I waited to rent the first half, and I'm glad I did. It was well-done, but not much happens as in the book. It is essential and sets-up the second act but it's kind of boring. If I'm being really honest, I dozed off about midway through.
But oh man! Part 2 delivers and delivers big! I love that it opens on the last scene of part 1 so that you could sit down and watch them back-to-back and it would be a seamless story. A very long story, but seamless. I was struck right away by the performances as well. It would be very easy for the actors to get lost in the fantasy and CGI and the goofy makeup. It takes a very talented actor to play a goblin seriously. To commit to it and say "this is a literary character, not a joke, and I will play it as such."
Warwick Davis gives such a subtle, dare I say nuanced performance as the goblin Griphook. I really watched his eyes, behind that latex, behind the black contacts. He wasn't playing a little monster or cartoonish creature. He was another character in the room, equal to those around him. I'm so glad he got to show his abilities in this part. Due to his size he's often thrown in these creature parts where he doesn't get to show his acting chops. They put some fuzzy mask over his head and say "dance!" (Hey, it beats sitting in a cubicle all day pushing papers around a desk!)
And most of the performances across the board are like that, especially in this final film. Those three main kids really came into their own over the course of 8 flicks. You can see in the first movie they're young and therefore green. It could have gone either way. Acting is a gift. Fortunately they all had it. Or we could have had 8 dreadful , 2 hour cue card reads.
Even the characters who get to be over-the-top, do it with such style that it's believable. Helen Bonham Carter almost seemed to be trying to over-do it, but it always worked. And as for Ralph Fiennes, well, what can you say that hasn't been said a million times over?
When reading the books, I was never really able to picture Voldemort. Ralph Fiennes along with some clever make-up designers created what is the definitive embodiment of that character. Perhaps I saw him as something larger, more brutish and physically intimidating in my mind. Fiennes does look a bit like some escaped, anemic mental patient, but it works. He manages to act through that make-up. You believe he's something no longer human, reborn from evil, down to his serpentine nose. Any distraction from when he first appears in the fourth film and your mind is trying to figure out what he looks like (it takes a minute) eventually melts away and you see him as the real Voldemort. In Deathly Hallows (both installments) he really brings it. Again, this part would have been so easy to take right over-the-edge. What makes him real, is how restrained he plays it. Most of the time, he's not loud or overly menacing. Voldemort's got no reason to freak out. He's winning. He's got the power. Everyone is terrified, even his followers. Life is good being that bad.
But perhaps the greatest performance in this movie, the biggest surprise, even when I knew it was coming, was from Alan Rickman. I love Alan Rickman. You tell me you've got a movie with Alan Rickman in it, I'm going to sit down and watch, whatever it is. Put Rickman in a Barney movie, I'm still in. But for most of the series, Rickman's performance as Prof. Snape the villain (or his he???) has been so dry it could be called one-note, or worse phoned-in.
If you ever watch Love Actually with the director's commentary track, Richard Curtis tells a funny story about having Rickman over for dinner and his children were begging Alan to read some Snape excerpts from a Potter book. Curtis said to him, "I've been reading it to them, but I'm afraid I'm afraid I'm just not putting my back into it."
Rickman allegedly replied; "That's alright, neither am I."
To some degree I might agree. It often seemed like he was showing up on set saying "Right, give me the wig, the cloak, and my paycheck and let's get this over with."
That is until this last flick. In a brief, but perhaps the most moving scene of the movie, we get to see the truth about Snape. And in those glimpses Rickman gives one of the most moving, gut-wrenching emotional performances I've ever seen, and most of it done with just a few simple (but oh so complex) facial expressions. We see the magic of Alan Rickman like never before. If you're someone who has been with these stories for over a decade as I have, and has known the payoff that was to come since the summer of 2007 and you don't roll a tear, you might actually be a Dementor.
If you've followed my blog in any fashion, you know I'm a horrible blogger. When I do post, I post the damn phone book. Blog posts are supposed to be short and sweet. Well, I could fill an entire year's worth of encyclopedias writing about Harry Potter (I'll explain to you kids what an encyclopedia was another time.) But I'll wrap it up.
When the movie ended, and thus did the entire series, the feeling was truly bittersweet for me. Spoiler alert: it has a happy ending. For those thinking "oh no, they'll come up with something. They won't let this cash cow die!" Don't expect a 9th movie. Rowling, in her genius included a perfect insurance policy against that. In the book, there is a line during that epilogue to the effect "Harry's scar never bothered him again." In other words, that was it. The dragon was officially slain. And thank God! Harry deserves to grow old in peace. I'd say he's earned a quiet normal life.
Now I'm not saying there won't be a return to the world of Potter. In the book, she does make a point to mention the child of the late Prof. Lupin and Tonks. So much so that I've always suspected we may see a new series someday about a young werewolf boy's adventures at Hogwarts.
But I'm pretty sure Harry, Ron, and Hermione are kicking back in a London "caf" reminiscing about how all that bad stuff happened once, but life is normal now. And I'm glad for it.
All the same, I couldn't help but be sad to see it end. It was like being a kid watching your best friend waving out the back of a station wagon as he and his family moved away. Or saying goodbye to your classmates after graduation, knowing you'll probably never see most of them again. I know that's dramatic, but these characters have been part of my life, and many peoples' for almost 2 decades. There won't be any more midnight trips to the bookstore (well, now there really won't) to get a copy of the latest book. No more opening weekends, hoping to see your lightning scarred hero knock those moronic Transformers out of the top spot at the box office!
I'm okay with that. Every good series has to end eventually. We need closure. Real life goes on and on. If books, movies, etc did the same, we'd go crazy. Or just become so frustrated we'd give up on them, which is exasperating as well. If ever there was a perfect way to end a series, I'd say this was it. Well done Warner Brothers, you really got one right. You did justice to Madame Rowling's creation. Now, please, I am begging you. Have some decency. Do NOT reboot the whole series in a few years. Recycle Batman all you want, I'll be there every time. Spend $200 Million dollars to make the same Superman story a third time. It's fine. But please, leave Harry alone. Let this work stand for a while. You ended with a bang. Be proud of that. We the fans are grateful.
But if you do remake it, I expect to see Peeves the poltergeist, and all the house ghosts subplots that were left out, and Hermione fighting for the liberation of house elves, and . . .
I must confess I was a little sad knowing this series in which I've invested not just ten years worth of movie watching, but over a baker's dozen going back to when I first started reading the books, was coming to a close.
My initial feeling was "WOW!" Followed by "they finally got it right." And these, I might add came to me long before the film ended. I could just sense early on this finale would not disappoint in the end.
Lastly, a specific and almost strange (and quite geeky) feeling came over me. In fact you might say it took hold of me like a spell during the final climactic battle between Harry and Voldemort.
I have my own little obsessions. I'm not a closet-geek, but I'm not out and proud with my nerd-fandoms either. I don't cosplay. I've never been to a con of any kind, unless you count stone and tile conventions or the World of Concrete (that was a doozy) back in my construction sales & marketing days. When I saw theater goers wearing robes and Hogwarts House scarves, I admit I judged. I scoffed at their silliness. But as the final moments of Deathly Hallows began to countdown, a voice whispered in my brain "this is my Star Wars."
Allow me to explain. There are many guys around my age give or take that are Star Wars fanatics. And not just the ones you see in the mall with the tinted glasses and ill-fitted fantasy t-shirts rolling 16-sided dice on Friday night. Professionals, salesman, lawyers, construction workers. The Lucas curse seems to infiltrate and infect all walks of Gen-X males (and quite a few females.) I worked with a guy who is in management at a multi-billion dollar International banking firm who looks as straight-laced as it gets, but mention the words "Jar Jar" and he's off on a twenty minute dissertation defending the prequels like the rebels defending the communications center on Endor. Or were they attacking it? I don't friggin' know.
See, I never got it. I enjoyed the original three when I was kid. Well the first one I actually found (and still find) kind of boring. (An audible gasp from the audience!) Cut me some slack I was 2 when it was released. I remember seeing the second film, or, well I guess it was what, # 5 or something . . . stupid Lucas . . . in a movie theater and being terrified of that little green gargoyle Yoda. I did really like the last one, with the Ewoks. Which of course, proves I'm not a Star Wars fan because as I understand it that's the least favorite among fan boys. Either way, I just never felt that connection to the franchise so many do. It didn't blow my mind. It didn't inspire me in any way. Other than, I suppose as an artist because I do love to draw weird creatures and aliens, and I suppose there's some Lucas-influence there.
And as for that other trilogy, the Rings deal. I really liked the first film. It could have stopped with that one and I'd have been relatively satisfied. But the second movie and the first 2/3rds of the last one are brutal to sit through. Butt-numbingly so! As Kevin Smith says, they're three movies about walking. I had no desire to strap on a helmet and wield a battle-axe after seeing them. In fact, I'm such a nerd the other way, my favorite scene, the one that sticks with me the most is from Fellowship of the Ring when Sir Ian goes to Bilbo's house in the very begining, and Lord Baggins offers the great wizard tea and cheese. Every time I see it I think "I'd like to live in that little house. Look at that big block of cheese he's eating there."
That's it. That's what the LoTR saga boils down to for me. A quiet little house in the ground with a big round door . . . and a wedge of old cheese.
With Potter, it was different. For starters, I was 4 books in before cameras even rolled on the first screen adaptation. The books, if you haven't taken the time, are brilliant by the way. It's not hype to say that J.K. Rowling is a master storyteller. What she has is a gift. There's no other way to say it. How she took what began as a children's book with fun adventures and fantastic creatures (admittedly with a dark undertone . . . I mean, it does start with a baby whose parents have been murdered) that crescendos into this mature, harrowing, epic with such a satisfying and emotional climax is beyond reason, except to say, again, that she posesses an other-worldly gift. When I closed the last book for the last time, I really felt like I'd been there with those kids all the way. I'd been there and back again, to steal from an aforementioned trilogy.
As someone who fancies himself a storyteller of some degree, I am not ashamed to admit I would kneel at her feet and swear my allegiance were I ever granted an audience. And she would no doubt call for security to have me forcefully removed from the premises.
The first 7 movies however had been kind of a mixed bag for me. I liked the first film, but was disappointed by how much was left out even if I understood the reasoning. I hated the second, Chamber of Secrets. I had read the book (albeit years before) and I was still completely lost. I couldn't fathom how anyone who hadn't read it could understand what was going on. Thought the third, Prisoner of Azkaban was nearly a masterpiece. Hated the Goblet of Fire. Thought Order of the Phoenix was better. Definitely loved seeing wizards using magic to kick a little ass at the end. Thought Half-Blood Prince was pretty good, although, as with that particular book, thought the title was at best a maguffin.
To be honest, I didn't even see Deathly Hallows Pt. 1 in a theater. With two young children, you don't get to as many movies outside the home as one would like. Not too mention, I'm getting older and much tighter with a penny. More often than not, I'm disappointed when I do make the small investment in a movie going experience. So I waited to rent the first half, and I'm glad I did. It was well-done, but not much happens as in the book. It is essential and sets-up the second act but it's kind of boring. If I'm being really honest, I dozed off about midway through.
But oh man! Part 2 delivers and delivers big! I love that it opens on the last scene of part 1 so that you could sit down and watch them back-to-back and it would be a seamless story. A very long story, but seamless. I was struck right away by the performances as well. It would be very easy for the actors to get lost in the fantasy and CGI and the goofy makeup. It takes a very talented actor to play a goblin seriously. To commit to it and say "this is a literary character, not a joke, and I will play it as such."
Warwick Davis gives such a subtle, dare I say nuanced performance as the goblin Griphook. I really watched his eyes, behind that latex, behind the black contacts. He wasn't playing a little monster or cartoonish creature. He was another character in the room, equal to those around him. I'm so glad he got to show his abilities in this part. Due to his size he's often thrown in these creature parts where he doesn't get to show his acting chops. They put some fuzzy mask over his head and say "dance!" (Hey, it beats sitting in a cubicle all day pushing papers around a desk!)
And most of the performances across the board are like that, especially in this final film. Those three main kids really came into their own over the course of 8 flicks. You can see in the first movie they're young and therefore green. It could have gone either way. Acting is a gift. Fortunately they all had it. Or we could have had 8 dreadful , 2 hour cue card reads.
Even the characters who get to be over-the-top, do it with such style that it's believable. Helen Bonham Carter almost seemed to be trying to over-do it, but it always worked. And as for Ralph Fiennes, well, what can you say that hasn't been said a million times over?
When reading the books, I was never really able to picture Voldemort. Ralph Fiennes along with some clever make-up designers created what is the definitive embodiment of that character. Perhaps I saw him as something larger, more brutish and physically intimidating in my mind. Fiennes does look a bit like some escaped, anemic mental patient, but it works. He manages to act through that make-up. You believe he's something no longer human, reborn from evil, down to his serpentine nose. Any distraction from when he first appears in the fourth film and your mind is trying to figure out what he looks like (it takes a minute) eventually melts away and you see him as the real Voldemort. In Deathly Hallows (both installments) he really brings it. Again, this part would have been so easy to take right over-the-edge. What makes him real, is how restrained he plays it. Most of the time, he's not loud or overly menacing. Voldemort's got no reason to freak out. He's winning. He's got the power. Everyone is terrified, even his followers. Life is good being that bad.
But perhaps the greatest performance in this movie, the biggest surprise, even when I knew it was coming, was from Alan Rickman. I love Alan Rickman. You tell me you've got a movie with Alan Rickman in it, I'm going to sit down and watch, whatever it is. Put Rickman in a Barney movie, I'm still in. But for most of the series, Rickman's performance as Prof. Snape the villain (or his he???) has been so dry it could be called one-note, or worse phoned-in.
If you ever watch Love Actually with the director's commentary track, Richard Curtis tells a funny story about having Rickman over for dinner and his children were begging Alan to read some Snape excerpts from a Potter book. Curtis said to him, "I've been reading it to them, but I'm afraid I'm afraid I'm just not putting my back into it."
Rickman allegedly replied; "That's alright, neither am I."
To some degree I might agree. It often seemed like he was showing up on set saying "Right, give me the wig, the cloak, and my paycheck and let's get this over with."
That is until this last flick. In a brief, but perhaps the most moving scene of the movie, we get to see the truth about Snape. And in those glimpses Rickman gives one of the most moving, gut-wrenching emotional performances I've ever seen, and most of it done with just a few simple (but oh so complex) facial expressions. We see the magic of Alan Rickman like never before. If you're someone who has been with these stories for over a decade as I have, and has known the payoff that was to come since the summer of 2007 and you don't roll a tear, you might actually be a Dementor.
If you've followed my blog in any fashion, you know I'm a horrible blogger. When I do post, I post the damn phone book. Blog posts are supposed to be short and sweet. Well, I could fill an entire year's worth of encyclopedias writing about Harry Potter (I'll explain to you kids what an encyclopedia was another time.) But I'll wrap it up.
When the movie ended, and thus did the entire series, the feeling was truly bittersweet for me. Spoiler alert: it has a happy ending. For those thinking "oh no, they'll come up with something. They won't let this cash cow die!" Don't expect a 9th movie. Rowling, in her genius included a perfect insurance policy against that. In the book, there is a line during that epilogue to the effect "Harry's scar never bothered him again." In other words, that was it. The dragon was officially slain. And thank God! Harry deserves to grow old in peace. I'd say he's earned a quiet normal life.
Now I'm not saying there won't be a return to the world of Potter. In the book, she does make a point to mention the child of the late Prof. Lupin and Tonks. So much so that I've always suspected we may see a new series someday about a young werewolf boy's adventures at Hogwarts.
But I'm pretty sure Harry, Ron, and Hermione are kicking back in a London "caf" reminiscing about how all that bad stuff happened once, but life is normal now. And I'm glad for it.
All the same, I couldn't help but be sad to see it end. It was like being a kid watching your best friend waving out the back of a station wagon as he and his family moved away. Or saying goodbye to your classmates after graduation, knowing you'll probably never see most of them again. I know that's dramatic, but these characters have been part of my life, and many peoples' for almost 2 decades. There won't be any more midnight trips to the bookstore (well, now there really won't) to get a copy of the latest book. No more opening weekends, hoping to see your lightning scarred hero knock those moronic Transformers out of the top spot at the box office!
I'm okay with that. Every good series has to end eventually. We need closure. Real life goes on and on. If books, movies, etc did the same, we'd go crazy. Or just become so frustrated we'd give up on them, which is exasperating as well. If ever there was a perfect way to end a series, I'd say this was it. Well done Warner Brothers, you really got one right. You did justice to Madame Rowling's creation. Now, please, I am begging you. Have some decency. Do NOT reboot the whole series in a few years. Recycle Batman all you want, I'll be there every time. Spend $200 Million dollars to make the same Superman story a third time. It's fine. But please, leave Harry alone. Let this work stand for a while. You ended with a bang. Be proud of that. We the fans are grateful.
But if you do remake it, I expect to see Peeves the poltergeist, and all the house ghosts subplots that were left out, and Hermione fighting for the liberation of house elves, and . . .
Friday, July 8, 2011
At A Crossroad: Jump Through the Hoop or Not.
In his memoir, A Pirate Looks at Fifty (one of my top 5 favorite, "desert island" books) Jimmy Buffett speaks of how he often wishes he didn't have to go on stage and be a human juke box all summer, playing same songs every college frat boy knows and loves to get drunk to. He says he would love to someday scale down to himself and another guitar player, sit in a club, and do the songs he loves, and the ones nobody (except us true Parrotheads) knows.
I'm paraphrasing of course but he essentially muses that he knows it's too late for that. At least it was a decade & a half ago when he wrote the book. He openly admits there came a point in his career where he had to make a choice: continue being a struggling folk singer, clutching desperately to artistic integrity and non-commercialism, and risk not knowing where the next paycheck (or meal) was coming from, . . . or jump through that flaming hoop the ringmaster was dangling in front of him and dive headlong into pure showmanship and spectacle.
At that moment, he chose to jump.
Does he regret it? I'd say look at his multiple houses, multiple personal airplanes, annual sold out summer concert tours, legion of adoring fans, and . . . yes, the balance in his bank account . . . and tell me if you think. I'd say that aside from occasional daydreams, he hasn't looked back much since.
Where is it written that art has to look like suffering anyway? Why is it that if you create with a smile, your considered a sellout? I would say to both, it is not. The only people who truly believe that are the ones suffering for their art, and struggling to make it happen.
I struggle with it sometimes myself. I am currently at a crossroads as to what to do next. I mean that in the bigger sense of "what action must I take to further this fledgling second life as a storyteller I so desperately want?" But I mean it more specifically too, as in "I don't know what to write next."
Notice I said storyteller, not specifically writer, although is from the pen (or keyboard) that all stories flow. Music, books, art, theater, film . . . all conceived first in the mind, then birthed on paper before being presented in the final medium.
I currently have about 6 books, 1 play, and 1 screenplay already sitting in my hard drive. Of those, 3 have full finished drafts. I have beginning, middle, and end for them. In theory they're only a few rewrites from being ready for public consumption. Are they good enough? Well, that's the rub. A couple definitely. A few, well, still working on that.
But the thing that's really holding me up right now is not which book do I want to write. The question is more what kind of writer do I want to be. For some reason, we as a society like to compartmentalize people. "This is what you do, and therefore you can't do something different."
And there's the issue of, am I writing what I want, and writing it for me, or am I just writing something I think/hope will sell? I'm working on a novel now that at one time I was completely in love with, but now I find myself in the rewrite process thinking "This is terrible. People won't like this. Why am I bothering? I should change the whole thing?"
Anyone reading this most likely has seen me shamelessly shilling my self-published young adult novel Balaam. Balaam was a short story I wrote 4 years ago based on an Old Testament character. To overly simplify it, Balaam was so stubborn God made his ass talk. No, not like Jim Carrey. I mean his actual donkey stood up and spoke. There was also this little incident where he, like Moses, saved the Hebrews from being slaughtered by an angry king, I mean, if you want to get specific and all. Anyway, I just decided to take this character and expand on his life. Truth be told, I never intended it to be published.
Of course I've always wanted to be a published author, but this was not the book by which I meant to introduce myself to the world. However early this year I learned about Kindle Direct where one could publish their work for free in the form of an ebook. I am a bit of a Luddite and have not embraced ebooks or ereaders, but am I not so ignorant to turn my back on them either. So I decided as an experiment, I would test it with Balaam. And in the first week I sold a dozen. I took the next step and made Balaam available in paperback through Amazon's p.o.d. wing Create Space. It's not free, but it is pretty inexpensive if you do it yourself. Again, sold a few right off the bat. Within a month I'd made the tiny initial investment back. And it continues to sell, little by little. But hey, it's selling.
If you only fail when you don't try, it must also be true that if your book makes money, it's a success. If so, I am a successful author. Just don't look to closely at the specifics. Actual numbers aside, if Random House had the percentages I've got on Balaam, they'd piss themselves with jubilation! They'd call it the salvation of the publishing business!
And I didn't publish the book the make money (lucky for me!) I published it because I'm a storyteller. It's all I am. It's all I want to be. And a storyteller who has no one to hear his stories is that proverbial tree falling in the forest. I just wanted to get my words out there, in the hands of readers. I wanted my stories to thrill and delight. And I've gotten a lot of feedback from readers saying it has. Again, this is success.
But, no good deed goes unpunished. I am still disappointed. I made a conscious choice to make Balaam my first, not simply because it was finished (although that helped!) I chose this particular piece because it's a family friendly story, and while based on a Biblical story it is non-denominational. I can be enjoyed by Christians, Jews, Muslims, Atheists, Whatevertarians . . . ! That's the idea. Yet, ironically, one of the few literary agents I sent it to said to me in her response "I did like it, but it's too Christian to be commercial, and too controversial to be Christian fiction."
I wanted to jump all over her and say "Lady, it's not Christian fiction! Old Testament! Thousands of years before Christ was even born!"
Her words were probably the original inspiration to make me self-publish. I just wanted it out there, as is. I didn't want it compartmentalized. I don't even go overboard selling it as "Young Adult fiction." I honestly believe (and have been assured) many adults enjoy it just as much (and perhaps in different ways) than the intended demo. Plus I thought, screw what she said, I'll put it out there and push it on Facebook, Twitter, & LinkedIn. I've got over 700 friends on FB, surely I can sell at least 200 - 300 books without breaking a sweat.
Funny thing about life. When you really want to know who your friends are, ask them to shell out a couple bucks. You'll find out, and you'll usually be disappointed.
Maybe the religious/Biblical smell of the subject matter is too strong, and turns people off. I don't know. I approached it more like a fairy tale, to be honest. And I didn't want to omit the things known. And while I the point was to create a back story for character that wasn't given, and make it interesting, I didn't want to dilute or twist what was there. I wanted to blend them with more of fantasy and magic story, a mash-up of the Divine and Pagan traditions. Wow, that's a lot for a kids book! I've actually been asked when I'll write a sequel, but I just laugh and say sorry, but there'll never be one. I managed to write and publish this one without lightning from the sky striking me down. I'll leave the old boy wherever he is.
Maybe that's me. Maybe that's the writer I am. A foot in both worlds. Can an artist create exactly the work he wants to and still appease the masses? I think I'm lucky. I have such a wide array of interests that I can write almost anything and enjoy it. It's just the process of creation that I love. Some of them are hits (at least to me), some are stupid monsters, but I enjoyed sewing them together just the same.
Still as I work on another Young Adult project, there's a voice in my head saying "you're going to get pigeon-holed. It's like this little cigar-chomping monkey whispering "You screwed yourself putting out that last one. If they wouldn't buy it, they really won't buy this. "
I can't help it. I love writing for younger readers. You can tell exciting tales, and throw in a good amount of absurdity, and they don't care. I don't write down to them. I don't try to complicate it, but I do like to challenge them just a bit. Increase their vocabulary. Maybe throw in a philosophical conundrum here or there. It's good for them, trust me. It's good for me too! It is what excites me, even if it means I'll never be considered a "serious writer."
I have projects I'm developing that are the distant end of the spectrum. I'm working on a memoir of my years at a Christian college that you wouldn't dare let a kid read. I probably wouldn't let my wife read it! It's meant to be crass, funny, and shocking. And it will burn a lot of bridges! But it's honest. And it's damn entertaining. Might even get me on Oprah . . . sorry, on OWN. So do I crank the wheel, jump the center median, and speed off in the other direction?
I have a novel where the protagonist is actually pretty unlikable. He's slovenly, he does a pretty despicable thing for a living, and he's a drunk. And the whole thing takes place in Vegas. Scene one involves a tranny hooker. Do I go full-steam ahead on that one instead?
Nobody can answer those questions. Only me, I suppose. I guess that is the process. You have to make that decision for yourself and decide what kind of writer (insert your trade) you want to be. What stories you want to tell. And you have to make that decision, completely detached from the trappings of money, audience, etc. If you are a storyteller, you will tell the stories you have to tell. All else be damned.
So now if I'm to take my own advice, I guess there's really only one solution. I have to write all of them. That's my plan. Write them all. Put them all out there. Let the world decide what they want to read. The only real problem is, which one do I try to focus my ADD brain on to finish first?
That said, if anyone wants to hold out that flaming hoop for me, I may be all to happy to jump!
(Hey, I've got 2 kids and a mortgage!)
I'm paraphrasing of course but he essentially muses that he knows it's too late for that. At least it was a decade & a half ago when he wrote the book. He openly admits there came a point in his career where he had to make a choice: continue being a struggling folk singer, clutching desperately to artistic integrity and non-commercialism, and risk not knowing where the next paycheck (or meal) was coming from, . . . or jump through that flaming hoop the ringmaster was dangling in front of him and dive headlong into pure showmanship and spectacle.
At that moment, he chose to jump.
Does he regret it? I'd say look at his multiple houses, multiple personal airplanes, annual sold out summer concert tours, legion of adoring fans, and . . . yes, the balance in his bank account . . . and tell me if you think. I'd say that aside from occasional daydreams, he hasn't looked back much since.
Where is it written that art has to look like suffering anyway? Why is it that if you create with a smile, your considered a sellout? I would say to both, it is not. The only people who truly believe that are the ones suffering for their art, and struggling to make it happen.
I struggle with it sometimes myself. I am currently at a crossroads as to what to do next. I mean that in the bigger sense of "what action must I take to further this fledgling second life as a storyteller I so desperately want?" But I mean it more specifically too, as in "I don't know what to write next."
Notice I said storyteller, not specifically writer, although is from the pen (or keyboard) that all stories flow. Music, books, art, theater, film . . . all conceived first in the mind, then birthed on paper before being presented in the final medium.
I currently have about 6 books, 1 play, and 1 screenplay already sitting in my hard drive. Of those, 3 have full finished drafts. I have beginning, middle, and end for them. In theory they're only a few rewrites from being ready for public consumption. Are they good enough? Well, that's the rub. A couple definitely. A few, well, still working on that.
But the thing that's really holding me up right now is not which book do I want to write. The question is more what kind of writer do I want to be. For some reason, we as a society like to compartmentalize people. "This is what you do, and therefore you can't do something different."
And there's the issue of, am I writing what I want, and writing it for me, or am I just writing something I think/hope will sell? I'm working on a novel now that at one time I was completely in love with, but now I find myself in the rewrite process thinking "This is terrible. People won't like this. Why am I bothering? I should change the whole thing?"
Anyone reading this most likely has seen me shamelessly shilling my self-published young adult novel Balaam. Balaam was a short story I wrote 4 years ago based on an Old Testament character. To overly simplify it, Balaam was so stubborn God made his ass talk. No, not like Jim Carrey. I mean his actual donkey stood up and spoke. There was also this little incident where he, like Moses, saved the Hebrews from being slaughtered by an angry king, I mean, if you want to get specific and all. Anyway, I just decided to take this character and expand on his life. Truth be told, I never intended it to be published.
Of course I've always wanted to be a published author, but this was not the book by which I meant to introduce myself to the world. However early this year I learned about Kindle Direct where one could publish their work for free in the form of an ebook. I am a bit of a Luddite and have not embraced ebooks or ereaders, but am I not so ignorant to turn my back on them either. So I decided as an experiment, I would test it with Balaam. And in the first week I sold a dozen. I took the next step and made Balaam available in paperback through Amazon's p.o.d. wing Create Space. It's not free, but it is pretty inexpensive if you do it yourself. Again, sold a few right off the bat. Within a month I'd made the tiny initial investment back. And it continues to sell, little by little. But hey, it's selling.
If you only fail when you don't try, it must also be true that if your book makes money, it's a success. If so, I am a successful author. Just don't look to closely at the specifics. Actual numbers aside, if Random House had the percentages I've got on Balaam, they'd piss themselves with jubilation! They'd call it the salvation of the publishing business!
And I didn't publish the book the make money (lucky for me!) I published it because I'm a storyteller. It's all I am. It's all I want to be. And a storyteller who has no one to hear his stories is that proverbial tree falling in the forest. I just wanted to get my words out there, in the hands of readers. I wanted my stories to thrill and delight. And I've gotten a lot of feedback from readers saying it has. Again, this is success.
But, no good deed goes unpunished. I am still disappointed. I made a conscious choice to make Balaam my first, not simply because it was finished (although that helped!) I chose this particular piece because it's a family friendly story, and while based on a Biblical story it is non-denominational. I can be enjoyed by Christians, Jews, Muslims, Atheists, Whatevertarians . . . ! That's the idea. Yet, ironically, one of the few literary agents I sent it to said to me in her response "I did like it, but it's too Christian to be commercial, and too controversial to be Christian fiction."
I wanted to jump all over her and say "Lady, it's not Christian fiction! Old Testament! Thousands of years before Christ was even born!"
Her words were probably the original inspiration to make me self-publish. I just wanted it out there, as is. I didn't want it compartmentalized. I don't even go overboard selling it as "Young Adult fiction." I honestly believe (and have been assured) many adults enjoy it just as much (and perhaps in different ways) than the intended demo. Plus I thought, screw what she said, I'll put it out there and push it on Facebook, Twitter, & LinkedIn. I've got over 700 friends on FB, surely I can sell at least 200 - 300 books without breaking a sweat.
Funny thing about life. When you really want to know who your friends are, ask them to shell out a couple bucks. You'll find out, and you'll usually be disappointed.
Maybe the religious/Biblical smell of the subject matter is too strong, and turns people off. I don't know. I approached it more like a fairy tale, to be honest. And I didn't want to omit the things known. And while I the point was to create a back story for character that wasn't given, and make it interesting, I didn't want to dilute or twist what was there. I wanted to blend them with more of fantasy and magic story, a mash-up of the Divine and Pagan traditions. Wow, that's a lot for a kids book! I've actually been asked when I'll write a sequel, but I just laugh and say sorry, but there'll never be one. I managed to write and publish this one without lightning from the sky striking me down. I'll leave the old boy wherever he is.
Maybe that's me. Maybe that's the writer I am. A foot in both worlds. Can an artist create exactly the work he wants to and still appease the masses? I think I'm lucky. I have such a wide array of interests that I can write almost anything and enjoy it. It's just the process of creation that I love. Some of them are hits (at least to me), some are stupid monsters, but I enjoyed sewing them together just the same.
Still as I work on another Young Adult project, there's a voice in my head saying "you're going to get pigeon-holed. It's like this little cigar-chomping monkey whispering "You screwed yourself putting out that last one. If they wouldn't buy it, they really won't buy this. "
I can't help it. I love writing for younger readers. You can tell exciting tales, and throw in a good amount of absurdity, and they don't care. I don't write down to them. I don't try to complicate it, but I do like to challenge them just a bit. Increase their vocabulary. Maybe throw in a philosophical conundrum here or there. It's good for them, trust me. It's good for me too! It is what excites me, even if it means I'll never be considered a "serious writer."
I have projects I'm developing that are the distant end of the spectrum. I'm working on a memoir of my years at a Christian college that you wouldn't dare let a kid read. I probably wouldn't let my wife read it! It's meant to be crass, funny, and shocking. And it will burn a lot of bridges! But it's honest. And it's damn entertaining. Might even get me on Oprah . . . sorry, on OWN. So do I crank the wheel, jump the center median, and speed off in the other direction?
I have a novel where the protagonist is actually pretty unlikable. He's slovenly, he does a pretty despicable thing for a living, and he's a drunk. And the whole thing takes place in Vegas. Scene one involves a tranny hooker. Do I go full-steam ahead on that one instead?
Nobody can answer those questions. Only me, I suppose. I guess that is the process. You have to make that decision for yourself and decide what kind of writer (insert your trade) you want to be. What stories you want to tell. And you have to make that decision, completely detached from the trappings of money, audience, etc. If you are a storyteller, you will tell the stories you have to tell. All else be damned.
So now if I'm to take my own advice, I guess there's really only one solution. I have to write all of them. That's my plan. Write them all. Put them all out there. Let the world decide what they want to read. The only real problem is, which one do I try to focus my ADD brain on to finish first?
That said, if anyone wants to hold out that flaming hoop for me, I may be all to happy to jump!
(Hey, I've got 2 kids and a mortgage!)
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Cars 2: Electric Bugaloo or It Takes a Big Man to Admit When He's Wrong
I admit it. For the last few months since they first released an official trailer for Cars 2, I was not excited.
Understand, I love the first Cars. Not only does the Route 66 storyline & the theme of American history fading away touch my heart in a real way, I have a deeper, sentimental attachment to that flick. The first time I sat down and watched it end-to-end was in the delivery room while my wife slept between contractions. It's not poetic license when I say that just as the end credits rolled, the doctor came in and said "time to start pushing." Those moments stick in your brain forever.
And about 2 years later, Cars became that baby, my son's favorite movie. We have no doubt watched it close to one hundred times (ok, that may include some poetic license.) I can nearly quote that movie from start to finish . . . from "Speed, I am speed." to "McQueen and Sally parked beneath a tree, k-i-somethin' somethin' . . ."
And if you ever watch the "Making of" documentary on the bonus disc, about how the PIXAR crew took a road trip down the Mother Road, it will bring a tear to your eye if you're any kind of American! Shows you how important that movie is to it's creators, as well as the audience.
Point is, I love that movie. But after about the 73rd watching, maybe 74th, it did start to become tiresome. I was very much anticipating a sequel, just for the prospect of something new for us to eventually wear out in our DVD player.
But from the get go, the previews of Cars 2 and the whole International spy thriller concept just didn't resonate with me. Not as a sequel to this sweet little character driven piece about the passing of generations and culture in small-town America.
In fact, my immediate reaction was they are making a big visual movie with colorful new backdrops, chock full of new characters (to line Target, Toys R Us, and Disney Store shelves) with no plot and without the heart that made the first one great.
To be blunt, it looked like a money move. It looked like John Lasseter had finally sold his soul for a buck.
So the Monday after the initial opening weekend, I came home from work, threw on some shorts and flip-flops, and said "Son, let's go to the movies." Now, despite my concerns, I was determined not to spoil it for the 4 year-old who couldn't wait to see it. I put on my Lightning McQueen tee, as did he and off we went. Yes, we looked like goons eating our Sbarro in the mall food court but so what? I'm always willing to look silly if it makes my kid smile. I also decided to go in with an open mind because, despite so many critics and fanboys poo-pooing Cars 2, local legend Roger Ebert gave it a glowing review, even proclaiming he liked it better than the first. I'm not one who is always swayed by critics, especially with cartoons or comic book flicks, as those genres are generally not in their wheelhouse, whereas they are very much in mine! But if Rog said it, I was willing to give it a shot.
Let me say, here and now, for the record and posterity, I was wrong. Not only do I know my misgivings were incorrect, I knew it within the first 5 minutes. Cars 2 is a great movie!
Is it better than the first? No, of course not. But that's not really a fair question. It is completely different. It really is a stand alone movie. You really could watch Cars 2 having never seen the first and enjoy it just fine. It's an action movie. And it's really funny and exciting. And I mean for adults. There is some adult humor (well, for Disney) and I was surprised at the level of violence (I guess take that as a warning.) But my little guy stayed with it the whole time, never fussed, didn't get restless (at almost 2 hours it is a long flick for a "kid's movie") and at the end he proclaimed "that was awesome!"
I am truly, as Blackbeard would say "in a bewilderment" as to why it's getting panned so much.
The ending I will say seemed a little, I don't know, thrown together. And while I actually liked that the movie at least addresses the idea of alternative fuel, I admit it kind of leaves the subject without much resolution. In fact it sort of sets us back . . . well, never mind, I don't want to say much more for fear of spoiling it. By the way, what a pleasant surprise hearing the voice of the great Eddie Izzard!
Cars 2 is solid entertainment from beginning to end. I've heard a lot of talk about how this one is Mater's movie. No, it's not. This is Finn McMissile's movie. Michael Caine steals the show all the way through, and deservedly so. I can see a whole spin-off (spin-out?) franchise of Finn McMissile movies, and I would go see them too.
Also, there are some great little Easter Eggs throughout, my favorite being "Gastow's." I'll leave it to you to figure it out. And the tribute to Paul Newman is perfectly touching and a nod to the grown-ups in the audience. I would have preferred they did something similar to the great George Carlin as well, rather than recasting him with a cheap imposter, but oh well . . .
Overall, I'll say if Cars 1 was a 9.5 out of 10, then Cars 2 is a solid 9.25. I really enjoyed it, my kid enjoyed it, and I'm willing to pay to see it one more time on the big screen. That's saying something.
Once again, ignore the critics who lost their souls years ago. See it and judge for yourself. It really is like 2 hours in an amusement park. Well worth the price of admission and a worthy sequel that really isn't even a sequel . . . which is probably the best kind!
Understand, I love the first Cars. Not only does the Route 66 storyline & the theme of American history fading away touch my heart in a real way, I have a deeper, sentimental attachment to that flick. The first time I sat down and watched it end-to-end was in the delivery room while my wife slept between contractions. It's not poetic license when I say that just as the end credits rolled, the doctor came in and said "time to start pushing." Those moments stick in your brain forever.
And about 2 years later, Cars became that baby, my son's favorite movie. We have no doubt watched it close to one hundred times (ok, that may include some poetic license.) I can nearly quote that movie from start to finish . . . from "Speed, I am speed." to "McQueen and Sally parked beneath a tree, k-i-somethin' somethin' . . ."
And if you ever watch the "Making of" documentary on the bonus disc, about how the PIXAR crew took a road trip down the Mother Road, it will bring a tear to your eye if you're any kind of American! Shows you how important that movie is to it's creators, as well as the audience.
Point is, I love that movie. But after about the 73rd watching, maybe 74th, it did start to become tiresome. I was very much anticipating a sequel, just for the prospect of something new for us to eventually wear out in our DVD player.
But from the get go, the previews of Cars 2 and the whole International spy thriller concept just didn't resonate with me. Not as a sequel to this sweet little character driven piece about the passing of generations and culture in small-town America.
In fact, my immediate reaction was they are making a big visual movie with colorful new backdrops, chock full of new characters (to line Target, Toys R Us, and Disney Store shelves) with no plot and without the heart that made the first one great.
To be blunt, it looked like a money move. It looked like John Lasseter had finally sold his soul for a buck.
So the Monday after the initial opening weekend, I came home from work, threw on some shorts and flip-flops, and said "Son, let's go to the movies." Now, despite my concerns, I was determined not to spoil it for the 4 year-old who couldn't wait to see it. I put on my Lightning McQueen tee, as did he and off we went. Yes, we looked like goons eating our Sbarro in the mall food court but so what? I'm always willing to look silly if it makes my kid smile. I also decided to go in with an open mind because, despite so many critics and fanboys poo-pooing Cars 2, local legend Roger Ebert gave it a glowing review, even proclaiming he liked it better than the first. I'm not one who is always swayed by critics, especially with cartoons or comic book flicks, as those genres are generally not in their wheelhouse, whereas they are very much in mine! But if Rog said it, I was willing to give it a shot.
Let me say, here and now, for the record and posterity, I was wrong. Not only do I know my misgivings were incorrect, I knew it within the first 5 minutes. Cars 2 is a great movie!
Is it better than the first? No, of course not. But that's not really a fair question. It is completely different. It really is a stand alone movie. You really could watch Cars 2 having never seen the first and enjoy it just fine. It's an action movie. And it's really funny and exciting. And I mean for adults. There is some adult humor (well, for Disney) and I was surprised at the level of violence (I guess take that as a warning.) But my little guy stayed with it the whole time, never fussed, didn't get restless (at almost 2 hours it is a long flick for a "kid's movie") and at the end he proclaimed "that was awesome!"
I am truly, as Blackbeard would say "in a bewilderment" as to why it's getting panned so much.
The ending I will say seemed a little, I don't know, thrown together. And while I actually liked that the movie at least addresses the idea of alternative fuel, I admit it kind of leaves the subject without much resolution. In fact it sort of sets us back . . . well, never mind, I don't want to say much more for fear of spoiling it. By the way, what a pleasant surprise hearing the voice of the great Eddie Izzard!
Cars 2 is solid entertainment from beginning to end. I've heard a lot of talk about how this one is Mater's movie. No, it's not. This is Finn McMissile's movie. Michael Caine steals the show all the way through, and deservedly so. I can see a whole spin-off (spin-out?) franchise of Finn McMissile movies, and I would go see them too.
Also, there are some great little Easter Eggs throughout, my favorite being "Gastow's." I'll leave it to you to figure it out. And the tribute to Paul Newman is perfectly touching and a nod to the grown-ups in the audience. I would have preferred they did something similar to the great George Carlin as well, rather than recasting him with a cheap imposter, but oh well . . .
Overall, I'll say if Cars 1 was a 9.5 out of 10, then Cars 2 is a solid 9.25. I really enjoyed it, my kid enjoyed it, and I'm willing to pay to see it one more time on the big screen. That's saying something.
Once again, ignore the critics who lost their souls years ago. See it and judge for yourself. It really is like 2 hours in an amusement park. Well worth the price of admission and a worthy sequel that really isn't even a sequel . . . which is probably the best kind!
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
On Stranger Tides (though hardly on any tides at all!)
Yes, if you actually are a reader of this blog lately you're saying "what? You haven't even finished your last blogging project!" In fact, you're probably saying "you never finish any of your projects!!!"
I know. I know. Honestly, I swear I do. I just tend to finish the ones that provide food for my children first . . . and the others, well, I get around to them eventually.
But I will post the last installment of The Mongello Project soon. As well as a sort-of "Springer's Final Thought" about that whole week, which is now two weeks gone by! Whoops!
But I wanted to weigh in on Pirates 4 while it's still somewhat fresh in my mind.
A lot of online fanboys and would-be Roger Eberts have been slamming it pretty hard. I don't get it. I suppose there is a simple explanaion: they aren't really fans of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies anyway.
And if you're not, you probably won't like it. But if you are . . . you're probably going to have a great time watching it! Especially in 3D!
Is it the best of the series? No. But I'd say it is pretty close to tied with At World's End for my second favorite of the series. If I were to list them in order of favorite to least-so, it would probably look like this:
1. Curse of the Black Pearl
2. At World's End
3. On Stranger Tides
4. Dead Man's Chest
Ok, honestly I'd make Dead Man's Chest # 5 and hope the 5th installment is good enough to fill that fourth spot, if not push one of the others even lower. I admit I'm not a big fan of the second flick. If you cut the whole cannibal island sequence out, there's a good chance I'd look more fondly upon it. But it was just too long and that scene did nothing to serve the story, except to maybe explain why a few crewmembers from Black Pearl weren't around any more!
By the time it got to the good stuff . . . Davy Jones and the Flying Dutchman. . . I was so exhausted I had a hard time sticking with it. And I still don't understand the rules of that dice game they played! None-the-less, I'm not saying I hate the movie, it's just not one I've watched multiple times.
But back to On Stranger Tides . . . is it a great cinematic epic achievement. No. But it's full of action and excitement. And I laughed out loud numerous times throughout, and for me that's saying something. Johnny Depp has officially morphed into Jack Sparrow, or vice versa. And we as fans have completely bought in. To the point where I find myself laughing as simple facial ticks, because I can almost hear what he's thinking . . . and it's funny!
Now . . . SPOILER ALERT . . . as they say on the interwebs . . .
It has it's weak points. It seemed like a cool idea that Blackbeard zombified his officers to make them more compliant, but they really didn't act like zombies. They were just ugly. They didn't seem to be under any kind of enchantment at all. They still seemed to be doing their own thimking, speaking, etc, so why add that? Not too mention, if you buy into that idea, wouldn't it make more sense to zombifie the crew?
And on the subject of Blackbeard, I will admit as a fan of actual pirate history and lore, this Blackbeard left me wanting. Ian McShane looks great in the part, but the performance just didn't quite hit the notes of bloodthirsty, soul-less monster he was said to be and I wanted to see portrayed. In life, Edward Teach would have made Jack Sparrow quake in his boots even more than Tentacle faced Davy Jones & Skeleton-man Barbosa put together.
However . . . it did occur to me halfway through that this Blackbeard is nearing the end of his life . . . rapidly in fact. So perhaps in his defense he had mellowed, a bit, and wouldn't be quite the monster he was in his prime.
The other little issue that stuck in my craw; on the piece of the map that Jack reveals at the end of At World's end, isn't the location of the Fountain of Youth implied to be in Florida? Which, by the way is where I thought most believe it would have been, were it real? Maybe I'm remembering wrong but I swear the camera zooms in on the map and it's clearly our beloved SouthEastern-most state.
And lastly, the flick is called On Stranger Tides but it seemed like 80% of it took place on land! What tides are we talking about?!?!
Anyway, all that aside, it's little stuff. The movie is a ton of fun and well worth the price of admission. And, while I am skeptical about the current deluge of 3D conversions, I loved seeing it in 3D. Does it really add anything to the movie? Not to the story, but I'll say while you won't miss anything if you see the 2D version, you might get a couple more thrills if you pop for the glasses!
I also really enjoyed Captain Barbossa's story arch. I daresay I'd almost pay to watch an entire movie just about the continuing adventures of Captain Hector Barbossa! He is a great character and I remember the reaction of the entire audience, myself included, when he came clomping down those stairs, ressurected at the end of Dead Man's Chest. I think it is time for a spin-off.
So rest easy, my Pirates (and Disney in general) fans and friends. If you haven't seen it, do! Don't wait for the DVD or Blu-Ray. See it on a big screen as it's meant to be seen. Don't listen to the mundane critics out there. I walked out of the theater feeling excited and entertained and already hungry for the next installment, which I predict there will be. Jerry Bruckheimer is already having a script written. And why not? For those keeping count, there have been 25 James Bond movies and they've been pretty darn successful! I think at least 5 Jack Sparrow flicks would be permissible! The only caution, never recast Capt. Jack as they do 007.
When Johnny finally says no more, that will be the nail in ol' Jack Sparrow's coffin.
Perhaps I am biased of course due to a connection to the source material, but what's wrong with that??? No apologies, just like a pirate.
I know. I know. Honestly, I swear I do. I just tend to finish the ones that provide food for my children first . . . and the others, well, I get around to them eventually.
But I will post the last installment of The Mongello Project soon. As well as a sort-of "Springer's Final Thought" about that whole week, which is now two weeks gone by! Whoops!
But I wanted to weigh in on Pirates 4 while it's still somewhat fresh in my mind.
A lot of online fanboys and would-be Roger Eberts have been slamming it pretty hard. I don't get it. I suppose there is a simple explanaion: they aren't really fans of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies anyway.
And if you're not, you probably won't like it. But if you are . . . you're probably going to have a great time watching it! Especially in 3D!
Is it the best of the series? No. But I'd say it is pretty close to tied with At World's End for my second favorite of the series. If I were to list them in order of favorite to least-so, it would probably look like this:
1. Curse of the Black Pearl
2. At World's End
3. On Stranger Tides
4. Dead Man's Chest
Ok, honestly I'd make Dead Man's Chest # 5 and hope the 5th installment is good enough to fill that fourth spot, if not push one of the others even lower. I admit I'm not a big fan of the second flick. If you cut the whole cannibal island sequence out, there's a good chance I'd look more fondly upon it. But it was just too long and that scene did nothing to serve the story, except to maybe explain why a few crewmembers from Black Pearl weren't around any more!
By the time it got to the good stuff . . . Davy Jones and the Flying Dutchman. . . I was so exhausted I had a hard time sticking with it. And I still don't understand the rules of that dice game they played! None-the-less, I'm not saying I hate the movie, it's just not one I've watched multiple times.
But back to On Stranger Tides . . . is it a great cinematic epic achievement. No. But it's full of action and excitement. And I laughed out loud numerous times throughout, and for me that's saying something. Johnny Depp has officially morphed into Jack Sparrow, or vice versa. And we as fans have completely bought in. To the point where I find myself laughing as simple facial ticks, because I can almost hear what he's thinking . . . and it's funny!
Now . . . SPOILER ALERT . . . as they say on the interwebs . . .
It has it's weak points. It seemed like a cool idea that Blackbeard zombified his officers to make them more compliant, but they really didn't act like zombies. They were just ugly. They didn't seem to be under any kind of enchantment at all. They still seemed to be doing their own thimking, speaking, etc, so why add that? Not too mention, if you buy into that idea, wouldn't it make more sense to zombifie the crew?
And on the subject of Blackbeard, I will admit as a fan of actual pirate history and lore, this Blackbeard left me wanting. Ian McShane looks great in the part, but the performance just didn't quite hit the notes of bloodthirsty, soul-less monster he was said to be and I wanted to see portrayed. In life, Edward Teach would have made Jack Sparrow quake in his boots even more than Tentacle faced Davy Jones & Skeleton-man Barbosa put together.
However . . . it did occur to me halfway through that this Blackbeard is nearing the end of his life . . . rapidly in fact. So perhaps in his defense he had mellowed, a bit, and wouldn't be quite the monster he was in his prime.
The other little issue that stuck in my craw; on the piece of the map that Jack reveals at the end of At World's end, isn't the location of the Fountain of Youth implied to be in Florida? Which, by the way is where I thought most believe it would have been, were it real? Maybe I'm remembering wrong but I swear the camera zooms in on the map and it's clearly our beloved SouthEastern-most state.
And lastly, the flick is called On Stranger Tides but it seemed like 80% of it took place on land! What tides are we talking about?!?!
Anyway, all that aside, it's little stuff. The movie is a ton of fun and well worth the price of admission. And, while I am skeptical about the current deluge of 3D conversions, I loved seeing it in 3D. Does it really add anything to the movie? Not to the story, but I'll say while you won't miss anything if you see the 2D version, you might get a couple more thrills if you pop for the glasses!
I also really enjoyed Captain Barbossa's story arch. I daresay I'd almost pay to watch an entire movie just about the continuing adventures of Captain Hector Barbossa! He is a great character and I remember the reaction of the entire audience, myself included, when he came clomping down those stairs, ressurected at the end of Dead Man's Chest. I think it is time for a spin-off.
So rest easy, my Pirates (and Disney in general) fans and friends. If you haven't seen it, do! Don't wait for the DVD or Blu-Ray. See it on a big screen as it's meant to be seen. Don't listen to the mundane critics out there. I walked out of the theater feeling excited and entertained and already hungry for the next installment, which I predict there will be. Jerry Bruckheimer is already having a script written. And why not? For those keeping count, there have been 25 James Bond movies and they've been pretty darn successful! I think at least 5 Jack Sparrow flicks would be permissible! The only caution, never recast Capt. Jack as they do 007.
When Johnny finally says no more, that will be the nail in ol' Jack Sparrow's coffin.
Perhaps I am biased of course due to a connection to the source material, but what's wrong with that??? No apologies, just like a pirate.
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Day 4: "Lou Spin Me Right Round, Baby Right Round, Like a Record Baby . . .
The WDW Radio Show – Episode 119 – Originally aired May 17, 2009
The radio dial intro is all over the place, but include a couple familiar jingles from the past. Most notably “Little Orange Bird” by hate-monger and former Miss America Anita Bryant. Wait, I’m sorry that’s not fair . . . she never was Miss America. She lost.
I can tell almost immediately that I’m going to love this one because Lou announces there’s to be a Top 10 with Tim Foster. Always entertaining.
News and Rumors: The BIG news comes from D23. They are rolling out a series of events in addition to the coming inaugural D23 convention in Anaheim. Including an event called “Up all Night” at the El Capitan theater which would allow guests to see an advanced screening of PIXAR’s new film Up.
There’s a pin event. Something to do with Mary Poppins, including one in my hometown Chicago since Mary just flew in here too. A number of others I won’t type out here. You can listen.
I have to come clean here. I am not a member of D23. When it was first announced I was really excited. But when the details were unveiled I was greatly disappointed. I know a lot of people are saying “but you get access to buy exclusive merchandise and buy tickets to exclusive events!”
So in other words it’s an opportunity to spend more money for the privilege of spending more money?
And as for the events, I wouldn’t be able to attend most if not all of them. So basically I’d be paying $75 for 4 magazines a year.
I realize some people love being members and I don’t put that down. I understand it. I still often feel that tug at my heart that I’m NOT a member of the officially community. There is a sense of feeling “left out.” But I’ve just decided I can live with that, until they start offering a few more benefits to the club that I can’t live without.
The Disney Store Online is now selling theme park merchandise, including Mickey ears, pins, clothes, etc.
I have noticed that the selection is pretty limited even now two years later. I really want that monorail warning in Spanish shirt!!! And there’s a new one I saw on FB that says “Real Men wear Mickey Ears!” WANT IT!!!
The Virgin Mega-store is closing. Always kinda wondered if they were doing enough business to afford what I imagine was premium rent in DTD.
Let’s get to it . . . The TOP TEN ATTRACTION THEME SONGS!
Although Lou starts with his Top 10 nicknames for Tim Foster. “Bananas, Freckles, Samantha Brown, . . .”
The boys are kind of all over the place on this one, and understandably so. There’s so much to choose from, between four parks. I’ll try to just hit some highlights. I’m not going to bury the lead either, there really is no Top Ten. These two list roughly their top 214 songs from the parks here. Even when Lou tries to give a definitive 10, he is completely derailed. So if you’re reading this hoping for an orderly, even list . . . sorry.
They decide to go park to park, but Lou kicks it off right in the Magic Kingdom and with arguably the best composers, especially of Disney music, The Sherman Brothers.
Lou’s first pick is “TheTiki Room.” The original of course, not the current Iago “Never Had a Friend” version. Although I guess that’s not even current since Iago has since been barbequed!
Tim follows with . . . “It’s a Small World.” I admit, he’s right. It belongs on the list. I could live the rest of my life without ever riding it again (unless they finally add characters like Disneyland did) but the song is a classic. And if you actually delve into the lyrics it is a good song.
Since Lou educates as well as entertains, I learned from this segment that the title of “Grim Grinning Ghosts” was actually lifted from a William Shakespeare poem, Venus and Adonis.
“Hard-favour’d tyrant, ugly, meagre, lean,
Hateful divorce of love,’—thus chides she Death,—
‘Grim-grinning ghost, earth’s worm, what dost thou mean
To stifle beauty and to steal his breath
Lou says one of his favorites is the “Swiss-a-polka!” Man that’s kind of a thin one but ok, it’s original!
Lou also goes with Country Bear Jamboree, which admittedly is full of good ones. And written by Tex Ritter, father of the great John Ritter!
There is some contention between whether “Now is the Time” or “Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow” should make it in, since they are from the same attraction. Believe it or not, I have never seen the show in the GBBT incarnation. Haven’t seen it since I was a kid and that was during NITT. I still hear that chorus in my head. So I’m a little partial to it. When I was a kid we’d always go straight into Tomorrowland and ride Misison to Mars first, and the over to Carousel of Progress, my dad’s two favorites.
As for Epcot Lou suggests Soarin’, composed by Jerry Goldsmith, Oscar winning composer. Now, don’t know if this should count as it’s more of a score than a song but it is Lou’s podcast, his list, his rules. And it is awesome music! Lou’s bit of trivia: Goldsmith said after actually seeing Soarin’ he would have scored it for free. (Of course I’m assuming he didn’t return the check!)
Again, another conflict, this time in Epcot. “Tomorrow’s Child” vs. “If We Can Dream It.” At least they’re from separate attractions. Do you know which??
Tim picks “We Go On” from Illuminations. Boy am I a pathetic Disney fan! I did not know that was the name of the song!
Lou picks three from Imgination. The theme from Honey I Shrunk the Audience. “Another Part of Me” from Captain EO. And of course, the great Sherman Brother’s creation, “One Little Spark.” That should be at the top of the list for me. As Lou says, they wrote it as a theme song for people. I love it. If I did my own list, it would definitely be up in the top 3, if not #1.
The boys had some difficulty with Hollywood Studios because most of the attractions actually use previously released music. Tower of Terror, uses recycled Twilight Zone and Disney music. Rock & Roller Coaster . . . duh. Lou says Star Tours uses original music. I guess I don’t know enough about Star Wars in general to weigh in. I’m a super hero geek, not a sci-fi geek.
At Animal Kingdom, Lou goes for Big Blue World from Finding Nemo the Musical. I haven’t seen this show, but I do know the song and I can agree. I had a hard time watching Finding Nemo the movie even before I was a father. Now that I have two young kids, forget about it. Don’t know if I could handle the live show either. Lou even bought the CD at a souvenir kiosk right after the show the first time he saw it, which he “never does.”
As the boys say, Animal Kingdom has some of the greatest background music flowing through the park. However, that doesn’t count here.
Tim takes a strange turn and tries to include some music from the Wilderness Lodge, but fortunately Lou immediately vetoes him. This is music IN the parks!!! Nice try Tim “Dancing with Wolves” Foster!
(You’ll have to listen to the show to get that one.)
They more or less wrap it up after that, although Lou is still thinking of more music as the segment fades out . . .
Walt Disney World Trivia time! This week’s trivia prize is very specific and really can only be utilized by a limited number of people, due to geography. Lou has secured tickets to The Little Mermaid and The Lion King on Broadway!
The Questions are as follows:
1. What was the name and proposed location for a magic themed restaurant in a Disney theme park? (If you’ve been following my blog this week, you already know!)
2. On a daily Disney diary video, Lou completed a list of questions at the Italy pavilion as part of the Italian Liberation Day celebration and went to collect a prize, which he thought would be a cruise, but was really what? ( I actually remember this video, but don’t remember the prize.)
3. Name all 3D films that have played in WDW theme parks.
4. When Pecos Bills Tall Tale Inn was refurbed in 98 in took over space from what establishment, and what audio-animatronic characters could once be found inside? (I don’t remember the name, but wasn’t it the three heads from Country Bear Jamboree?)
5. Name a place you can still find reference to Roger Rabbit in a WDW park.
That’s all the time we have . . .
The next Meet of the Month was going to be at the Studios, June 6th during Star Wars Weekend. I can’t remember if the upcoming Star Tours refurb had already been announced at this point.
It’s funny to note that I don’t even notice the Facebook and Twitter plugs these days but they stand out now that I’ve spent most of this week in past casts. In the first 3 podcasts I’ve blogged about this week, I don’t recall a word about Facebook, Twitter, etc. They both would have been in their very early stages. Heck I think Mark Zuckerberg was still trying to figure out how to rip off those weird twins when Lou first started WDW Radio!
So that’s about it. A number of nice voicemails complimenting Lou and the show but nothing too notable. Although this is the second appearance in my week of Lou that Josh, a highly energetic (and oft out of breath) fan called in. Something tells me this was far from his second call though!
This was kind of a long one but a good one. Sorry it took so long to get it on the blog. Time got away from me, and Blogger was down most of Friday anyway! SOmething tells me nobody noticed anyway! ; )
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Day 3: WIth or Without Lou
The WDW Radio Show – Episode 60 – Originally aired March 30, 2008
The intro includes a mix of World Showcase music and audio from Animal Kingdom. I already have a feeling I’m going to like this one!
As Lou begins to speak we hear that he is recording live outside somewhere. Indeed he is in World Showcase and it’s the Flower & Garden Festival at Epcot. Kind of ironic since it’s going on right now there as I’m listening.
This is also the year of a Million Dreams and before his first interview, Lou plays audio of Cast Members on the Disney Dream Squad discussing how great their job is, as if we didn’t know! Its interspersed with audio of kids talking about their dreams. Also has a clip of Scoop Sanderson who was just mentioned in last week’s (2011) podcast about Steetmosphere. What’s killing me is the music behind the voices which I remember from that campaign and it’s making the hair on my arms stand up. I love it. Disney knows how to get to us, even with simple background music. Man, I want a recording of this. Still, the adult contemporary Celebrate You music they played on some commercials and the free vacation planning DVD a couple years ago was favorite. Not, however, the Corbin Blue version (I think I spelled his name wrong – he spells it like the cheese right?)
Lou’s first guest is Carrie Schoen, Manager of the Disney Dream Squad. It is mentioned, but really needed not be that she has the greatest job in the world.
I really thought this was a great promotion, and clearly must have been considered a success by Disney standards since they extended it. The interview is really great but it’s lengthy and I’m not going to repost every great little snippet. I’ll just hit a couple highlights and my own thoughts.
I must admit I’m a little sensitive about this subject because we went to Disneyland towards the tail end of this celebration, November 2008, and there was a brief moment where I was certain we were getting a Dream! A Cast Member came over and began talking to us. She saw that my mom uses a cane and we had rented an ECV for her. The CM made sure we knew where the special entrances to attractions were, etc. Then she reached into her pocket and pulled out a stack of folded up pieces of papers which she started sorting through. My heart started racing. I was getting the sweats. I was sure this was it! We were getting one! Then, she put the papers back in her pocket, smiled to us and said “have a wonderful time” and walked away. Wa-wa-waaaah!!!
Anyway, I will go into this segment with an unbiased opinion!
The CM’s never knew where they were going or what they were giving away ahead of time. They literally found out minutes before. It was a truly random process. Guess that kept it fair. She does kind of imply that she as the manager got to pick which prize she would give away when she would decide to go out and do a giveaway herself.
Two of her favorite Dreams awarded were giving a young family with two little boys a free membership into the Disney Vacation Club. For the next 48 years they’ve got their resorts covered. That would be like hitting the lottery to me! The other was a younger girl was there with her grandparents because her parents had to work and she was awarded a trip to Europe via Adventures by Disney. Carrie said she got to be involved when they called her mother, a teacher in her classroom, to give her the new. That’s pretty sweet.
Being on the Dream Squad was a temporary gig. Most members only were involved a couple months, in order to rotate more CM’s through and let as many be a part of it as possible. She said it was actually heartbreaking to tell some CM’s they’re time on the Squad was over. I can imagine. As she said, some days she drives home saying to herself “I can’t believe this is my job! I can’t believe I just did that today!”
She receives numerous letters and emails from guests thanking them. They are all filed in what is nicknamed “the feel good” file. Aww . . . that’s a little too sweet! ; )
He ends the segment with the continuation of that audio of the Dream Squad members talking over the music. Gettin’ me again!
Lou’s next segment is not an interview, but it is a special guest. He plays audio of a special journey on Kilimanjaro Safari with Director of Animal Operations at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, John Lehnhardt. Instead of the usual tour narration or storyline, John is giving a special tour explaining secrets of the savannah and how they care for the animals. The truck even goes off the tour path to show areas guests usually never see.
I’ve seen enough Travel Channel specials to know about the hidden borders and blockades the Imagineers have hidden throughout the safari. But in this segment there are a lot of great “Did you knows . . . ?” specifically about the animals themselves. They’ll make for sounding like a real know-it-all to your family next time you, and by you I mean me, go!
I must confess I haven’t ridden the safari in a while. The last couple visits we just didn’t for whatever reason. Listening to this I will make certain we do next time.
Did you know they have two pairs of lions, male and female that they rotate? Sometimes they rotate them in the same day. Sometimes it’s every other day. Sometimes a pair will go for days at a time. Guess depends on Simba’s mood.
They have enough land that they actually “lose” elephants from time to time.
The Nile crocodiles were shipped FedEx! Now that would have made the movie Castaway far more interesting!
You’re likely to see ostrich eggs in nests along the tour. But did you know that those eggs are actually replicas created by Imagineers? However, the ostriches do in fact lay eggs constantly. The problem was they’re all female so the eggs never get fertilized, and the Cast Members discovered the rhinos were kicking the eggs around and smashing them all over the place. So the keepers go in and collect the eggs before the rhinos can have their next soccer game. The artificial eggs are to keep the ostriches laying!
Of course, it’s begs the question, if they’re not breeding the ostriches in the park, why do they need them to keep laying? What are they doing with the eggs? Not to be a conspiracy nut, but if you saw Jurassic Park you may remember the dinosaur embryos gestated inside unfertilized ostrich eggs!!! Could it be Disney is trying to take Dinoland to a whole new level . . . ?!?!Did you know the climate in Orlando is very similar to East Africa, therefore the animals adapt quite well? However they did build “Hurricane Ride Out” areas for the animals just in case. But even in winter the animals don’t really have too much trouble with the temps.
Did you know, at least at the time, the largest elephant at the Animal Kingdom was named Big Willy, and he weighed 13,000 lbs.?Did you know as of the recording of this segment in the early spring of 2008, Disney’s Animal Kingdom had raised over $11,000,000 for wildlife conservation?
This segment is just really great. It’s like being on the safari. If you’ve done the ride before you can see everything in your head as John’s speaking. I was driving to pick up pizza as I was listening to part of it so I purposely hit a few potholes and drove up over a couple yards, just to really live the experience. Still, not sure how my Honda would hold up on the Kilimanjaro road.
Now back to Epcot’s Flower & Garden Festival! The theme that year was Fun in the Sun! Lou describes some of the numerous character topiaries, such as Goofy with a beach ball, Stitch as a lifeguard, the Peter Pan gardens, etc. He then goes into the construction of a topiary . . . zzzzzzz . . . oh sorry . . . I’m up!
The Chinese pavilion decided to ignore the theme (surprise) and did the Chinese Zodiac in topiaries.
France had perfume bottle shaped topiaries.
What I really found interesting was the explanation of Disney’s “Good bug / Bad bug” policy. They release 8 species of “good bugs” throughout the park which are harmless and don’t bother us humans. But they devour the bad bugs which would otherwise have a field day on the horticulture and likely the food in the park. God bless the lady bug!
Interesting tidbit: This is now my 3rd podcast from the WDW Radio Show archive, and this was the first time I noticed Lou say what has somewhat become his catch phrase: “like I said.” I’ve often mused there could be a Lou Mongello drinking game where every time Lou says “like I said” you take a shot. You better listen right before bed though, or at least a point where you’re done driving or operating heavy machinery for the day, just to be safe.
So no News & Rumors on this one, but two really interesting segments that I would highly recommend you go back and give a listen. It’s pretty amazing how good Lou is at this. I’ve listened to numerous WDW podcasts, but this one is absolutely the best. The production values are the highest. It’s always consistent. And Lou is a smooth professional who was clearly born for a microphone in front of his mouth.
I really recommend doing this same project to all of you. Spend a week in the show, especially if you’re someone like me who can’t get to the world but once every couple years. This is about as good a proxy as you can get!
Well, this and Bill Burke’s Mousejunkies! Look for Mousejunkies 2 coming soon!!! Sorry guys, I always plug Bill's book. It's awesome if you're a fellow "sufferer!"
Well Mousketeers, fire up the DeLorean, because I believe tomorrow we blast ahead into the future again!
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