Netflix Diary
a) WALL-E
I'm not the type to get mad about the Oscars, but damn, this was the movie of the year, probably one of the best films of the decade. Every time I think Pixar couldn't top themselves, they do it again, and I loved Ratatouille. Even though the humor wasn't always pitch perfect and the social commentary was sometimes a little heavy-handed, it all tied together beautifully and I feel like this is the movie that children should see, rather than just one that they would enjoy.
b) Kung Fu Panda
This was kinda fun but felt especially lightweight when seen so soon after WALL-E. It was really funny in parts, and the combination of computer animation and traditional animation was really sharp. But it kept feeling like it was going to build to some grandiose Lion King type shit and the plot just never picked up steam and it closed out feeling really minor, without the slightest bit of suspense or gravity, which feels like an odd criticism of this kind of flick but you really do notice it.
c) There Will Be Blood
This could've been more than a scenery-chewing Daniel Day-Lewis showcase, but it's not, and it's mainly because the great look and atmosphere of the movie is constantly undermined by the Radiohead guy's score, which might be the most poorly implemented score this side of Miracle At St. Anna. It was almost constantly tonedeaf to the pacing and the emotional tenor of every scene, to the point that my favorite parts of the movie were the stretches with no music. Half the time the guy just throws on Psycho strings to induce dread for no particular reason (much the same way the title makes the film seem much more ominous than it really is), and even when he settles down there's something awkward about the way the music mingles with the dialogue. And Paul Dano was really cringe-inducing in ways that I think had way more to do with him than his character, just an awful over-the-top shrieking performance, which is a shame because I could really see a more subtle actor doing great things with the role.
I'm not the type to get mad about the Oscars, but damn, this was the movie of the year, probably one of the best films of the decade. Every time I think Pixar couldn't top themselves, they do it again, and I loved Ratatouille. Even though the humor wasn't always pitch perfect and the social commentary was sometimes a little heavy-handed, it all tied together beautifully and I feel like this is the movie that children should see, rather than just one that they would enjoy.
b) Kung Fu Panda
This was kinda fun but felt especially lightweight when seen so soon after WALL-E. It was really funny in parts, and the combination of computer animation and traditional animation was really sharp. But it kept feeling like it was going to build to some grandiose Lion King type shit and the plot just never picked up steam and it closed out feeling really minor, without the slightest bit of suspense or gravity, which feels like an odd criticism of this kind of flick but you really do notice it.
c) There Will Be Blood
This could've been more than a scenery-chewing Daniel Day-Lewis showcase, but it's not, and it's mainly because the great look and atmosphere of the movie is constantly undermined by the Radiohead guy's score, which might be the most poorly implemented score this side of Miracle At St. Anna. It was almost constantly tonedeaf to the pacing and the emotional tenor of every scene, to the point that my favorite parts of the movie were the stretches with no music. Half the time the guy just throws on Psycho strings to induce dread for no particular reason (much the same way the title makes the film seem much more ominous than it really is), and even when he settles down there's something awkward about the way the music mingles with the dialogue. And Paul Dano was really cringe-inducing in ways that I think had way more to do with him than his character, just an awful over-the-top shrieking performance, which is a shame because I could really see a more subtle actor doing great things with the role.
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on Tuesday, February 10, 2009 at 11:54 PM.
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