15 3 / 2013
Black Swan meets Oz.
The thing that pushes Nina the Ballerina over the edge in Black Swan is the ballet director’s decision to cast the same dancer in both the roles of Odette and Odile — White Swan and Black Swan. White is innocence; black not so much.
Mila Kunis was terrific in Black Swan as Nina’s real life Odile. I’d liked her before the movie, but that film really sold her as a real deal actress to me.
I am, frankly, not a James Franco fan … with a few exceptions. (Yes, Freaks and Geeks.) But, I was certain the casting around him (maybe not so much Zach Braff who is turning into a disappointment) would elevate the film and elevate his performance.
Hahahahaha.
Nina’s struggle in Black Swan to embody both the white and black swan was Mila’s struggle in Oz the Great and Powerful. And it was a struggle that she did not wear well.
Her innocent was so stiff and strange and unbelievable and her not-so-innocent so over the top that I almost couldn’t believe this was the same actress who went toe-to-toe with Natalie Portman.
But she and Franco were not the only problems. Michelle Williams and Rachel Weisz both turn in good performances, but they’re not great. And that’s because of the material.
The script, and film itself, is performing a Black Swan struggle between wanting to be different things.
Is the movie a tale of war and triumph or a story of friendship and love? Is it a modern fairy tale or a nostalgic nod to Hollywood past?
It never lands in a solid territory and there lies its downfall. The film not knowing what it is puts the actors in a position of not really knowing what to bring to their performances.
Also: The script is terrible. There are moments I loved — a foray into the poppy fields for one — but there simply weren’t enough.
The little hollow tea pots in Oz’s Chinatown have more substance than the film.
It was such a beautiful thing. I wanted to love it. I read all the books — I inherited my mother’s set of all Baum’s Oz books — every summer. I was delighted by a new Oz tale.
But it seems as though the filmmakers, and even writers, got so caught up in the visual effects they forgot to give the movie that thing the Tinman was after all those years ago — a heart.
Yes, yes, yes! I’ve been telling people I didn’t love the movie but couldn’t explain very well as to why. This is a lot of it.
25 2 / 2013
Oh, E.T. By far one of my best childhood memories…. especially when I stood up in the theatre to announce, “My E.T.!!” and when another kid yelled the same, I apparently (not so kindly) reiterated that E.T. belonged to me.
Oh my poor parents. I was indeed a lovely child. :)
(Source: cannibalbastard, via spicyfruit)
05 2 / 2013
07 1 / 2013
Oz the Great and Powerful Trailer [HD]: James Franco, Michelle Williams, Rachel Weisz & Mila Kunis (by ENTV)
Yep, I’m excited.
02 1 / 2013
29 10 / 2012
I’m going to need a few more days to let this movie settle in, but all in all, wow.
Fear, beauty, truth, wisdom, love, imagination.
17 7 / 2012
"Monday June 23. The Dark Knight Rises. VIP Ultrascreen. Front row [balcony] on railing. 5 center seats.
You’re. Welcome. ;) xo"
Tha Kate, in an emailed ticket purchase confirmation to me just now
In other news: my wife kicks ass.
(via apoplecticskeptic)
Yes, sometimes I do. ;)
(Source: apoplecticskeptic)
