Movie time!

Napoleon Dynamite: There comes a time in every young filmmakers’ life when he or she feels the need to make a pseudobiographical coming-of-age film, drawing and embellishing on her/his own adolscent experiences. Occasionally, if those experiences are interesting enough, and sufficient artistic liberty is taken, the result is a real gem, like Garden State. Napoleon is not such a film. Instead it’s a film about the utterly uninteresting life of a small town bizarrely stuck in the late 70s/early 80s, who’s highschool is inexplicably populated by 10-year-olds, stuck in adolescent bodies, played by actors in their 30s. I’m sorry Jared Hess, we just don’t care about your loser childhood. Only redeeming feature: some great 80s music from Alphaville, Cindi Lauper(sp?), and When in Rome; which I fear will now be forever tainted by memories of this movie.

Princess Mononoke: Very nice. Studio Ghibli’s track record remains unblemished. Nice to see an Anime film actually come through on the vaunted moral ambiguity it’s fans are always talking about. I love the way Monoke is introduced, mouth dripping with blood… it’s somehow a very compelling image; it conveys her wildness beautifully.

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7 Comments

  1. Have you seen Spirited Away?

    1. Yep. I liked it a lot.

      1. I assume you’ve also seen Kiki’s Delivery Service and Castle in the Sky, right? I’ve only seen Kiki’s. Its cute, but very Disney-ish. What version of Princess Mononoke did you watch?

        1. No, I haven’t but I will.

          I went with the english dubbed version, if that’s what you’re talking about. Normally I go for Japanese with english subtitles; but in this case I decided after a few minutes that the voicework was of sufficient caliber, and stuck close enough to the subtitles, that it wouldn’t detract from the experience.

          1. Actually, sometime if you have the chance, go for the Japenese with LITERAL English translations. Its GORGEOUS! Seriously, mind blowing. I don’t think the English dubbed did a very good version. Check it out, you’ll see what I mean.

  2. Hi! It’s been a while since I’ve seen you/talked to you. My personal favorites of Studio Ghibli have to be My Neighbor Totoro and Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, closely followed by two others: Porco Rosso and Lupin III: Castle of Cagliostro. Check http://www.nausicaa.net/miyazaki/films/ for other awesome films by them.

  3. OMG I LOVE MONONOKE…(shivers)

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