#Short Film Review

[kvotheunkvothe]

was looking to watch something short and a little spooky, and I found this thing called Jack Stauber's Opal. I figured, it's only 13 minutes.

it made me so uncomfortable. the constant, discordant singing. the claymation mixed with human hands and rough animation with stop-motion. every single character. the content. it wasn't graphic. unless you count how the faces scrunch up like they're fists. but like

so this girl lives across from what's apparently a spooky house. her family sing that they see her and tell her not to look at the house. she sneaks over at night. and right inside there's this blind man watching TV, who sings about how he can't breathe. who thinks she's someone else and asks for his cigarettes, and I guess he's supposed to be the scary one because then he kind of chases her. but? it's his house and some stranger just came in? and the others in the house have other addictions (to mirrors and alcohol) who also lash out at her (again with the singing), but--she fucking broke in. yeah, yeah, symbolism, but also she goddamn broke in, kick this goldilocks OUT. and then I have no idea what the ending means. some arthouse shit about... consumerism and shit, I dunno.

I'm not recommending anyone watch it. I just didn't enjoy it, but in a very intense way that I wanted to discuss because it's not capital-P Problematic, but it just had the ickiest vibes. when I want a "scary" movie I sometimes watch more body-horror type movies (like Cronenberg style) purposefully to make myself uncomfortable because most other types of horror movies typically don't spook me like at all, and I get uneasy with uncanny animation (maybe since it has some same vibes as body-horror). so I did this on purpose. no one made me. I could have shut it off. but then what would I complain about

anyway, this was not a fun time. 0/10 do not recommend. :(

[unblinded-by-nostalgia-blog]

The Story

The film is an adaptation of the classic children's book... gone HORRIBLY WRONG!

The book's story was nonsensical, but it was a book that used rhymes to help young children learn to read. And with an adaptation, you need to change a few things so the story works as a film. But what the film does to this childhood classic is make a 30 minute film out of a 5 minute bedtime story, and it shows!

The story is given no explanation on why the witch is letting the animals on the broom. Or better yet, why the animals want to go on the broom in the first place!

If the witch had a taxi-like service for animals, that would be fine, but we are given no evidence of this and we don't know where the witch is taking the animals too. Maybe she's taking them to her witch cult and use them as sacrifices to their devil overlord? It's a valid reason because we are given no reason at all!

The Characters

The animals are all unlikeable, as soon as they get on the broom, they refuse to let the other animal on the broom. WHY? It just makes them look like jerks and you just want the dragon to eat them.

The other two characters (witch and dragon) are not given any interesting personalities or anything!

The Animation/Special Effects

The Animation is the worst part of this film. The frame rate is horrible, it doesn't go faster than 20 frames per second. Even the original Mario game runs faster than this short made over 30 years later!!!

The dragon is the worst thing I have ever seen an animated adaptation. In the book, he is an intimidating, red dragon with horns and a furry body. In the short film, they make him fat and give him a unicorn horn! He looks as intimidating as a pug snorting!

The rest of the character designs don't work well, either. The 3D art style (I can't tell if it's CGI or Claymation because it's so ugly!) doesn't suit the story, it would of benefited from a 2D art style. It would be closer to the Art style of the book and it would look less ugly!

Final Thoughts

Overall, this is one of the worst adaptations I have seen for a children's book. The story makes no sense, the characters are jerks and the animation is just UGLY!

If you want your children to experience the story you grew up with, just read them the story at bedtime. I know it's easier to show them this film, but trust me, it isn't worth it!

The Story 1/5 The Characters 1/5 The Animation/Special Effects 1/5

Overall 1/5

[fantastica-daily]

Who’s Watching Who Short Film Review

When a single mother is forced to bring on her no-account brother in for the weekend to watch her ten-year-old son, Trevor, she has her doubts but she also has no choice. Trevor is mature for his age… or any age, really. He seems to run the household, making breakfast by himself and getting the house in gear for the weekend. Mother leaves, rushing off with her briefcase in hand, and Uncle Nick steps in.

Before long, Uncle Nick has raided the refrigerator for all its beer and is nearly passed out when Trevor decides to go for a swim in the backyard pool. Trevor is a bit of a brat and he puts his uncle to the test by pretending to drown but in spite of his inebriation, Uncle Nick is wise to the trick.

The pair start to bond, even though they don’t know each other very well—in fact, young Trevor says he loves the uncle because they’re family. Nick has been feeling unloved which has led him to some dark places in his recent past and while Who’s Watching Who only covers a day in their lives, you get the feeling that things are going to turn around in life and that Nick and Trevor will stay close.

Chris Levine, who plays Uncle Nick, also wrote and directed the short (which is less than 7 minutes long). Alex Lizzul plays Trevor, and this is his first film but he trains with the Will Wallace Acting Company and I’m sure we will see lots more to come from him.

Who’s Watching Who has been racking up awards on the film festival rounds and will no doubt be available to stream soon. Whether you see it on the big screen or small, Who’s Watching Who is worth your time and attention. I could have lived without some of the fart and boob jokes but I guess that’s for the kids. Other than that, it’s a smart and charming film with two likable leads that you are rooting for.

= = =

P.L. Cohash

[kael-writ]

All you Brennan Lee Mulligan fans should check out this strange and haunting short film he did in 2018, it's very good and impactful, definitely very emotionally riveting, disturbing, thought provoking. It's different from his other work because he is appearing as an actor with a different team (writer, director). The writing and directing is fantastic, holy shit, and the performances range from good to what the fuck (complimentary). It's a dark comedy, so there's lots of comedic moments and there's a glimmer of potential hope that can be read in it but it is also a gut wrenching exploration of trauma, survivor's guilt, and guilt by association... It's a lot, I could write a whole essay on it, it's fascinating.

(some content warnings may apply, it's a bit of a spoiler but there is a backstory involving violence against women committed by an offscreen character that isnt seen in any way but is a major visceral theme. It's something I like about it, but it definitely could be triggering and feel free to ask for clarification).

[musings-and-overanalyses]

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind: Why This is My Favourite Ghibli Movie

CW: Major high-school English teacher vibes ahead. Proceed at your own risk.

Nausicaä of the valley of wind is a story of the titular character Nausicaä and her being a bridge between the world of humans and nature to bring peace, thus fulfilling an ancient prophecy.

Nausicaa is the princess of the Valley of the Wind. The film begins with her walking and exploring the Sea of Decay, an area with toxic air, plants and fungal spores. She collects some spores and finds the hard molten shell of an Ohmu (gigantic blue-blooded trilobite-looking creatures), which her people use to make weapons and tools. As the name suggests, the Valley of the Wind is a civilisation that depends on and bases their culture around wind, which one can see through an abundance of windmills and gliders, including the one that Nausicaä rides. They are shown to be peaceful people who do not interfere with the politics of the warring human kingdoms or disturb nature. Nausicaä in particular is shown to have a special gift with animals—from calming Ohmus to having a pet fox-squirrel. As the existence of the kingdom depends on the sea wind that shields them from the effects of the sea of decay, there is a general reverence towards nature and its other members such as the Ohmus, that are often referred to with honorifics.

This was an element I liked: the symbolism goes deep in this film; for example, with the nature of wind—it being the very breath necessary for life is contrasted with its other face, through toxic spores in the sea of decay capable of killing anyone who inhales it.

It is revealed that humans had built The Giant Men, weapons so dangerous—not unlike our atomic bombs as shown through the characteristic mushroom cloud—that the destruction caused by the war had unleashed the fury of the Ohmus, an otherwise gentle species. They wiped out entire civilisations and where they died, the Sea of Decay grew on their decomposing corpses, showing how all life is interconnected and that even in death the rage of the Ohmus, and through them the rage of nature, wouldn't subside. It is then that the viewers find out that this is not some far-off planet, but a post-apocalyptic future on earth.

New species of plants and fungi made the Sea of Decay their habitat—nature and life always find a way. It is implied that the humans lost the war referred to as the Seven days of Fire, but the truth is that it is not a war that can ever be won. Even if you win the war against nature you lose. As the story progresses, we see that the plants and fungi that Nausicaä collected from the Sea of Decay are actually trying to purify the soil and water—nature holds no grudges but only seeks balance.

The seventh of the Giant Men, a sentient atomic bomb if you will, apparently hid underground for a thousand years until the kingdom of Pejite found it for use against their enemy, the Tolmekians. They both remain oblivious to the sheer destruction that can be caused by this Giant Man and they don't care either. Despite the balance between humans and nature being a delicate one, instead of trying to rebuild together, they justify to themselves that the war is necessary for self-preservation and to put humans back on top of the food chain.

In their hubris, the Tolmekians and their princess Kushana believe that with the help of their superweapon they can destroy the Sea of Decay despite knowing that it will trigger the wrath of the Ohmus. The Giant Man however is not complete and hence, though the devastation is great, the final giant man dies and all that is remains to be done is to calm the wrath of the Ohmus.

Nausicaä saves an Ohmu child who was injured by Tolmekian soldiers to lure the Ohmus into a war. She saves the baby Ohmu and sacrifices her own life to calm the sea of maddened Ohmus. The now-calm Ohmu then revive Nausicaä, symbolising the mystical healing power of nature and its ability to support and create life.

Nausicaä is an excellent protagonist, and how the trope of the chosen one is utilised is beautiful and full of symbolism. Right from the get-go, we see her being inquisitive and brave. She is willing to defend her people but not through violence. And it is made abundantly clear that her avoidance of violence is not due to any lack of strength; when she strikes down the soldiers who killed her father, rather than feeling any sense of pride (as one might expect from a character not used to strength), it sickens her. She shows understanding even towards Kushana, whose men took over her kingdom. She sincerely loves and respects animals and plants.

There was a prophecy among the people of the valley of wind that a person clad in blue over golden fields will save their kingdom and bring peace. And towards the end of the film, Nausicaä's clothes becoming blue with the blood of the baby Ohmu she saved and the golden fields being the tendrils of the Ohmus healing her is poetic to say the least.

In addition to a good female protagonist, we also get a powerful female antagonist in Kushana, who starts out as a one-note expansionist ruler, but it is revealed that she lost her limbs and got severely maimed by the sea of decay, motivating her to destroy it once and for all. Proud and arrogant, sure, but she has a motive beyond just wanting power and possesses some form of a moral code. In another story she could be the protagonist bravely defending humanity against the evil, alien-esque trilobites and spores.

It was a unique and meaningful choice on Miyazaki's part to symbolise nature through the Ohmus—alien-looking giant insects—instead of something cute and fluffy. Oftentimes humans care more about the conservation of animals that they find cute (pandas over, say, Panamanian golden frogs), but an animal doesn't have to appeal to human aesthetics to be worth conserving.

Absolutely not to be missed is the breathtaking soundtrack by Hisaishi. There are symphonies, techno music, sitar-like instruments and a child's humming, all elevating every scene to give a moving experience.

Ultimately it is an ambitious story that aims to deal with themes of coexisting with nature, the futility and dangers of war, and of how innocent children who should live carefree lives are dragged into it and made heroes. This film is often categorised as falling into the genre of Solarpunk: a literary and artistic movement that centres around building a sustainable future interconnected with nature and community. Although this film does depict violence and wars, it ultimately shows a peaceful future is possible.

Truly a masterpiece. 9/10.

[gncrezan]

[grantac]

The short film, I Walk With Ghosts, based on a poem written by me. It’s been around the world and is finally out and available to everyone!

[bunnidid-reviews]

DID Short Films

Something I really enjoy is watching short films about DID :) it's always intriguing to see what sort of representation can be showed in a few short minutes, and just how much care and attention to detail is put into it.

I don't have the energy to do a full review of each, but here's a lil list of my favorite short DID films, along with some trigger warnings!

___________

Petals of a Rose

Triggers to watch out for:

a non-explicit incestuous childhood sexual abuse flashback (there's a safe version to watch with this part cut out in the same link!)

a safe and gentle non-explicit sex scene

dissociating and switching during sex

spiraling, hitting self, friction between parts

over-crowded dialogue

Things I love about this short:

We get multiple stellar scenes of what it can feel like to have DID - like being overwhelmed in the grocery store, talking yourself through the steps of it all. I really related to a lot of this

A good representation of how both positive and negative triggers can cause switches

communication between parts!

the implication of there being more parts yet to be found and how that's just kind of an accepted reality? I don't know if thats relatable for anyone else, but it really is for me

A LOVING AND HEALTHY RELATIONSHIP :DDD a partner who loves and supports and listens even if he doesn't fully understands, but clearly wants to. The amount of relief I felt when the partner STAYED with her after experiencing triggers during sex!!

The reiterations at the end that Now Time Is Safe and also, We Deserve to be Loved, and also, Each and every part is appreciated and loved

________________

Alter

Triggers to watch out for:

mild friction between parts

time loss + confusion

Things I love about this short:

The actress who portrayed the parts did a really stunning job with expressing complicated emotions surrounding time loss and the acceptance of a new part showing up

portraying a well-established system with functional multiplicity!

the use of color to portray parts is something I always remember about this one! I love that each part represents a color! I love that you can see all those colors throughout the home and in the outfits!! I love the rainbow-striped shirt she wore in the end with all the alters' colors + extra space, as if to signify that they're ready to accept more parts!!! aaaa!!! Such a great aesthetic to this film

I was SO pleased there really isnt anything triggering about this film. It's important to indicate that trauma creates the disorder, but it's SO nice when we get a bit of a break from the Horrors

supportive therapist :D

_____________

Alters and Me

Triggers to watch out for:

Mentions of trauma/abuse (very general + vague)

use of Alcohol to cope

self harm, visible scars

yelling/crying

Things I love about this short:

I like that this one's more like a general overview of the alters and how our main character came to understand and accept her DID

nonhuman alter representation!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (a doggo)

The alter who struggles with alcoholic coping and self harm has a realistic reformation arc and turns out to be a cherished caretaker!!

Overall this one's pretty short, but very down to earth and realistic without being too triggering. I liked it a lot!

_______________________

I'm sure there are others that are good too, but that's my list for now! I tried to choose ones that didn't lean too far into horror trope editing or twists so they're safe for anyone to watch :) I might add to this sometime in the future if I see more

In the meantime, I hope you enjoy! Feel free to let me know your thoughts or share some of your favorites with me, you know I'm always curious to hear about this stuff

[filmbrainbmb]

New Projector Short! A high-achieving school prefect experiences a sexual awakening in the drama Girls Will Be Girls, a refreshingly thoughtful and mature take on the coming-of-age film, that won two awards at Sundance earlier this year.

Girls Will Be Girls US Release Date: TBC

[secret-restaurant-press]

[letstalkshipping]

calling crochet tumblr...

this looks like the easiest thing ever to make, but I don't feel like I have a good enough grasp on the theory of crochet to do it correctly by winging it... could anyone give me some tips on how I might be able to crochet this beanie???

[unblinded-by-nostalgia-blog]

The Animation/Special Effects

I just want to get this part out of the way first, the voice acting and animation is Hilariously bad! The frame rate goes as slow as 5 frames per second and some of the characters are constantly smiling, even though they are supposed to be sad and/or worried.

I couldn't stop laughing at the badly edited scenes. They were just hilarious!

The Story

The story is about a prince who leaves his home to find out more about the world.

At first, I thought it would be a Mulan rip-off like many other of Golden Films's library. But this film managed to do its own thing.

Okay, the story isn't the most original out there, and the majority of the jokes in this are bad. But the film told its story surprisingly well for a bargain bin film and there were a couple of lines that did genuinely made me laugh.

The Characters

The characters are not the most complex out there,but the prince and his father, the emperor, are actually quite interesting characters (when you get over the terrible voice acting) that have interesting personalities and you do root for them to be happy.

The love story in this is definitely rushed. After a single song, they are like a married couple who have known each other for many years, but even Disney is guilty of that one!

The Songs

The songs in this are not very good. There are about three of them and the lyrics and tune of the songs are more cringy that memorable, and you do forget them very quickly.

But the actual lyrics spoken do suit the scenes of the film very well, if only they hired a better songwriter for this!

Final Thoughts

This is a film definitely aimed at very young children, very few adults would find anything of value in this film. But as a film to keep your children occupied for just under an hour, there are FAR worse films out there. You can easily find this on Amazon Prime and many other streaming websites. Even though the Animation is bad, this is just a harmless little film for even littler kids.

The Story 3/5 The Characters 3/5 The Animation/Special Effects 1/5 The Songs 1.5/5

Overall 2.5/5

[giveamadeuschohisownmovie]

“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” review:

Short review

“Uncharted 4” hit the same story beats, but better. I’ll give the movie a 6/10.

Long review

As the final chapter in Indiana Jones’ life, I have mixed thoughts. Is it because of the time travel? No, I was actually fine with that. Indiana Jones has always had some element of weirdness, ranging from the supernatural to literal aliens. My issue with this movie is that, as the final chapter in the series, it felt…underwhelming.

It’s strange because the movie was sorta hitting all the points it needed to hit. They had the emphasis on Indy being old, the passing of the torch to Wombat, the return of other classic characters like Sallah and Marion, bringing the Nazis back as the villains, and so on. James Mangold was hitting the points he needed to hit, which makes sense since this is the guy who gave us “Logan”.

But the problem is, Indiana Jones isn’t Wolverine. I think Indiana Jones, as a character, is unsuitable for the type of somber, deep character study that the movie was trying to do. This is a character who was made to represent light-hearted escapism, and you could see that by how the first three movies never went too deep or too serious with Indy. Even “Crystal Skull”, with all its flaws, didn’t do that. So now we have “Dial of Destiny” trying to shift gears into darker, more dramatic territory and it just doesn’t hit.

For example, the reveal that Mutt Williams got killed in the Vietnam War. It’s a reveal that’s too dark and sudden to really leave a lasting impact, especially since the next scene afterwards is a thrilling dive to a shipwreck. You just want the movie to slow down and let these moments sink in. But the problem is, if the movie slows down, it stops being a fun Indiana Jones movie.

So, we got a problem here. Was there ever a way that the writers could’ve solved this clash of conflicting tones?

Now I will say, I think there’s a version of this story that COULD HAVE worked. Like I wrote, James Mangold was hitting all the story beats he needed to hit. It’s just that the story needed:

Yup. I’m gonna say this with full sincerity; “Dial of Destiny” would’ve worked if it was centered on Indiana Jones and Marion Ravenwood going on one last adventure. You can keep Mutt Williams dying, because that would mean the story would be about Indy and Marion reconciling with each other. Going back to my short review, the more I thought about it, the more that “Dial of Destiny” felt like James Mangold’s attempt at making an “Uncharted 4” movie.

Just like “Dial”, the fourth “Uncharted” game centered on an aging Nathan Drake getting pulled out of retirement for one last adventure. That game managed to actually be BOTH somber and lighthearted. You’d have scenes where Nathan is riding around a motorcycle and spewing one-liners, followed up by Nathan having a deep conversation with Elena.

But here’s why I feel “Uncharted 4” worked while “Dial” didn’t. Naughty Dog knew that in order to bring Nathan’s story to a proper close, they needed to center it on the main cast. In fact, one of the best sequences in the entire game is literally just Nathan and Elena driving around the jungle talking about their lives.

“Dial” doesn’t work because the story is centered on Indy, his goddaughter who we’ve never seen before (and whose father is a new character), and this random kid who was pretty much Short Round 2.0. And it’s frustrating because the BIGGEST dramatic reveal of the movie was Indy talking about his dead son and his divorce. Sorry to Phoebe Waller-Bridge but that scene should’ve had Marion as the focus. In fact, it gets even more frustrating since Mutt’s death means little to Wombat as a character. She didn’t know the guy, the most she could’ve felt in that scene was, “Sorry for your loss, goddad”.

Even the presence of Wombat and Teddy are frustrating. Wombat could’ve easily been rewritten as Marcus Brody’s daughter (or if you wanna be spicy, she was Willie Scott’s daughter with Indy, making her Mutt Williams’ half-sister). Teddy could’ve been Sallah’s son. These may seem like small changes, but at least there’d be a stronger connection to the past. Since it’s Indiana Jones’ last journey, this movie should’ve been more rooted in Indy’s past adventures, even if the connections are more with legacy characters.

So, yeah, it’s a mixed bag. “Dial” is a movie that is supposed to be closing the door on Indiana Jones as a character, but doesn’t really accomplish that due to its detachment from the past movies. It’s a movie that’s too somber to be a lighthearted adventure, but too lighthearted to be a somber character study. And what does that mean for the end result? A movie that’s just okay, but doesn’t really justify its existence. Could’ve been worse, but you wish it was better.

[the-casbah-way]

forbidden romance (scottish person x english person)

[crystal-lillies]

Inside Out 2!!! No spoilers!!

A good sequel! Did not make me ugly cry as often as the first did (and continues to do so to this day) BUT does have well executed shots to the feels when it counts.

Pacing was OK, did feel a little janky compared to the first's very tight pacing, but it still had great setups and payoffs and callbacks to the first film.

The animation team popped off, utilizing several different styles at various points in the movie, not to mention the detail work on Riley's facial and physical expressions that have improved immensely since the first movie (which already did a fantastic job with subtle facial details).

Overall movie experience gets a dock, however, because there was NO PIXAR SHORT FILM IN FRONT OF THE MOVIE. 0/10 WHAT ARE YOU THINKING BOB IGER. UNACCEPTABLE. (This doesn't reflect on the movie itself)

All in all, Inside Out 2 is a solid 8.5-9/10 in my book.

I went through one pack of travel Kleenex out of three. This movie might be one that gets more emotional on rewatch and with a state of mind (particularly regarding the beats that hit the feels), so I would still recommend bringing three packs of tissues.

Go see it!!!!!

[thethirdbill]

My video about watching Opal by Jack Stauber for the first time is up! I hope you enjoy my analysis thoughts and reactions if you check it out!