Reflection on the experience of FMS Live

This post is my personal reflection on the entire experience of FMS Live, an enjoyable unit based on cinema screenings and blogging. As I have already noted in my media diary reflection, I deeply enjoy watching films and I find it intriguing to be familiar enough with the art of film to be able to criticise and review it. Therefore, I found FMS Live to be considerably useful to me.

Although I would have preferred it if arthouse films -which are essential for a film student- were an option too, I still think the screenings have been a valuable opportunity. I therefore tried not to miss any of them, except for when I was ill for a week. The screenings were either films that I really wanted to see (like It follows and Kingsman: The Secret Service) or ones that I would have never watched by myself (Furious 7, Unfriended) and I am glad for watching each and every one of them, as they were all interesting in their own way.

In the seminars, I did try to take as much part as possible in the discussions about each film. I did comment on every film I saw, yet sometimes not being a fluent English speaker made it hard for me to communicate my ideas as successfully as I wanted to. Also, I did try to express my opinion in the facebook discussions about the films, but I only felt comfortable doing it when I had in mind something very specific and substantial to note.

Having a blog has also been a very interesting part of the unit. I have been using blogs for years, as I find them to be a very enjoyable way of communicating one’s thoughts to a potential public. Noel’s first lecture on blogging was hence very useful tο me. It provided me with valuable information about other blogging platforms rather than Blogger, which I have always been using, and about the way amateur bloggers turn into professionals. It would have been interesting if I had used Wordpress instead of Blogger for my FMS blog, however I decided this was not the right moment for such experimentations, as what I wanted to focus on were the posts themselves. I knew I would be writing exclusively about films, so I tried to give the blog a relevant look using references to Inception (the spinning top) and Memento (the title). I also used Inception’s spinning top to demonstrate my rating for each film, instead of the common stars, in an attempt to add something special to it.

The reason I chose to focus my blog posts strictly on films and especially on reviews is that film is perhaps the only form of media I am interested in writing about on a professional level. I may have been writing reviews for a while now, but still, this opportunity has been very useful to me. This is mainly because I had never written any reviews in English, which turned out to be quite challenging. Being used to communicating complicated thoughts about films in my mother tongue, I now had to adapt my way of thinking to the English language, with which I am obviously not equally familiar. I therefore needed to either simplify my thoughts or express them in a simpler way.

Hence, my own professional goals have been reflected in the experience of FMS Live, which has therefore been considerably valuable to me. 

Matthew Vaughn: From Layer Cake to Kingsman: The Secret Service

My own infographic on Vaughn's filmography.
Please click to enlarge.

The recent release of Kingsman: The Secret Service reminds us of how talented writer and director Mattew Vaughn is. Looking back at his directorial work, it is not hard to understand why he has been both so commercially successful and critically acclaimed. One could argue he simply makes big-budget, commercially-oriented blockbusters, yet his films do not simply aim to mindlessly entertain the large multiplex audiences at which they seem to be targeted. The personal touch of the director is always visible and his films have more than the average Hollywood action flick to offer.

Vaughn’s directorial debut is the 2004 crime thriller Layer Cake, which is also the only film he has directed without having written the screenplay himself. Still, the amazing final twist of the film was his own idea and didn’t exist in the original script. Also, the film stars Daniel Craig and it is thanks to this role that he was considered as the next James Bond. Layer Cake might not be as memorable as Vaughn’s following films, but it is undoubtedly impressive as a debut.

His second film is Stardust (2007). This is a family-friendly fantasy film, based on Neil Gaiman’s novel of the same name. It tells the story of a man who enters a world of magic, in order to find a falling star and bring it back to the girl he is in love with. Only, in the world of Stardust, stars look like human beings! The movie is but a wonderful fairy-tale about love, as well as Vaugn’s most tender and moving film to date.

Stardust was well received, both by critics and in the box-office, yet it was not until 2010 and the cinematic adaptation of Mark Millar’s graphic novel Kick-Ass that Vaughn’s career was decidedly launched. The film Kick-Ass, although less unconventional than its source material, is an impressively fresh take on the super-hero genre, featuring both satire and gory, R-rated violence (even involving children!). In Kick-Ass, Vaughn demonstrates excellent directorial abilities and a deep understanding of what makes a film truly entertaining. 

One year later, Vaughn went on to direct X-Men: First Class. This X-Men prequel came after two considerably disappointing films in the franchise, only to turn out to be arguably the best X-Men film ever! Vaughn’s take on the popular mutant team is refreshing and substantial, as the film truly pays attention to its characters. Perhaps, even more than to the action itself! Thanks to Vaughn (as well as his excellent casting choices) the X-Men franchise was successfully reborn. The following film in the series, Days of Future Past, is co-written by Vaughn and it is almost as good.

Vaughn’s latest film Kingsman: The Secret Service is to the espionage genre what Kick-Ass is to the super-hero genre. Having once again adapted the script from the homonymous graphic novel written by Mark Millar, Vaughn demonstrates the same amazing ability to blend unconventionally brutal action with humour and also with hints of social commentary, making a film that, above all, is extremely entertaining. In fact, it’s probably as entertaining as films can get.

I think Hollywood filmmakers should really take example from Matthew Vaughn. With five films to date, he has managed to deconstruct and provide a new, fresh take on two different genres, as well as decidedly revitalize a long-running Hollywood franchise.

Reflection on group work

This post is a reflective piece on the way I collaborated with the other members of my group, namely Fatima, Josh and Liam, in order to produce four infographics.

Unfortunately, I was unable to attend the first two meetings and thus to contribute in the production of two out of four infographics. This was due to unpredictable problems, such as an illness and a cellphone dysfunction which unfortunately affected our communication. To be honest, however, had I been more eager to find out about the second meeting, I could have tried harder contacting the others instead of relying on the assumption that they will get in touch with me.

Of course, I was not feeling comfortable with having missed half of the group meetings and I knew I would have to make up for it. I met Fatima at that week’s seminar and we agreed one of the remaining infographics would be made just by me and Liam, who had also missed the last meeting. However, although I was glad we had both agreed to this as a way to make amends, it was at this point when the communication within the group was at its weakest. Having missed both of the meetings that far, I was not yet feeling comfortable enough to undertake this task on my own with Liam. I needed to attend a meeting with the entire group first, in order to get a grip on the process of producing an infographic. I tried to explain this to Fatima, but either I did not do it very successfully or she did not really agree with it. In any case, I ended up expecting we would have a group meeting whereas Fatima and Josh were expecting me and Liam to do the infographic by ourselves.

This problem was solved at the following week’s seminar, when my group and I had the chance to discuss about this in person. Then, we arranged we would meet the following Thursday and do both the group piece and the separate one. After all, this misunderstanding might have served as a short delay to the creation of the third chart, but it did not by any means disrupt the collaboration of the group.

During our last meeting, my group and I tried to focus on a subject relevant to the latest film we had watched at AMC, Unfriended. We thus decided to produce a piece about the found-footage genre. I had a suggestion of my own to which the group did not stick, but our final idea worked out fine, so we were all happy with the result.

What I found interesting about working with Liam on our own infographic is how useful cooperation can be to the conception of an idea. Whilst the main suggestion of doing a chart about super-heroes was mine, we both contributed equally to the final decision of the subject. We both helped to develop each other's thoughts and highlighted their flaws, jointly arriving to the final concept.

After that, all the infographics were complete. Nevertheless, I still felt the need to make amends for the meetings I missed, as I had only been in half of them. I therefore did one more chart on my own, as part of my final article on Matthew Vaughn’s filmography.

I finally feel quite satisfied with my contribution to producing the infographics, although some mild problems could have been avoided had I been more careful. 

Unfriended (2014) review

During a group Skype video call, six friends start receiving messages from a stranger, who seems to be using the profile of an old friend of them. The girl to whom the profile belongs had committed suicide exactly one year before, because of cyber bullying. It all looks like a prank at first, until one of the teenage friends is found dead in her room…

What’s strange about Unfriended is that it seems to be not only more effective, but also more interesting as an overall experience if watched on a computer! This is because the only thing we see in Unfriended is but a computer screen. The entire film consists of a Skype group call which takes place in real time -it is filmed all in one take, with the actors being in different rooms of the same house. We have seen this before in VHS, yet this is the first time a whole film is made using such a modern type of media. If anything, this method of filmmaking and storytelling (along with the young age of the actors) makes absolutely clear that the film’s target-group consists of a very specific generation of viewers. It also introduces a new form of found-footage horror and indeed manages to refresh this worn-out sub-genre. Given that, the film itself seems to acknowledge this as one of its pursuits, through the main character’s name, Blaire, which possibly serves as a reference to the legendary Blair Witch Project.

Truth be told, Unfriended does not truly differentiate itself from most cheap found-footage films. The script is based on the overused plot of a supernatural entity terrifying a bunch of teenagers and the cheap method of jump-scares is used a lot, although not always clumsily. The film wouldn’t stand out in any way, if it wasn’t for the concept of the computer screen and the Skype call. This is what makes the film feel quite original and unexpectedly interesting, allowing the lack of surprises to go unnoticed. Thanks to this intriguing concept, the overall illusion of realism is enhanced and the actors have the freedom to improvise, which makes their performances look impressively natural. Also, the Skype call provides some deeply creepy scary scenes…

Unfortunately, the film’s most apparent weakness is technical. A viewer who is familiar with computers easily notices the technical mistakes which give away the film’s artificiality and reduce its realistic feel. For instance, the sound of the video call is conveniently muted whenever the director needs it to. Without this sort of technical details (which are the film’s greatest flaw), Unfriended could have been a truly suspenseful, if not scary, film. Still, the praiseworthy performances and the compelling concept are responsible for a rather unsettling and certainly very interesting experience.

(2½ out of 5 spinning tops)

Inforgraphic #4: SUPERHERO DEPICTIONS ON SCREEN

A comparison between different cinematic takes on the same superheroes, in terms of budget, box-office gross, their IMDb rating and their Rotten Tomatoes critics score.

Infographic #3: FOUND FOOTAGE MONTAGE

This infographic notes the films that made the found-footage sub-genre popular in the first place, the five most popular found-footage films of all time time in terms of Google searches and the genres besides horror that have used the found-footage concept.

Snow-White in modern cinema

Kenneth Branagh’s Cinderella is the latest of a series of live-action adaptations of classic fairy-tales Hollywood has been constantly attempting the past few years, mainly after Tim Butron’s take on Alice in Wonderland. The peak of this cinematic trend was the year 2012 and the fairy-tale of Snow-White. During that year, not only did two Hollywood studios make two different blockbusters based on the same popular story, but also a Spanish silent adaptation was released, called Blancanieves (Spanish for Snow-White)!

Snow-White is arguably the most interesting of all fairy-tales in terms of film adaptations. First of all, Walt Disney’s Snow-White and the Seven Dwarves (1937) is the first sound and colour animated feature film ever made. It is therefore a film of great historical significance, as well as one of the best films in Disney studios’ filmography. But the tale’s modern cinematic adaptations are of great interest too, as the story has been seen on screen on significant variations.

Before 2012, an alternative take on the famous story was created in 1997 by director Michael Cohn, who envisioned the tale of Snow-White as a gothic horror film. Snow White: A Tale of Terror, starring Sigourney Weaver as the evil queen, heavily relies on its dark atmosphere, without however providing anything truly memorable as an adaptation, except for some gruesome alterations of some parts of the story.

In 2012, both Relativity Media and Universal Studios released their own takes on Snow-White, with none of the films being very faithful to the source material. However, Relativity’s Mirror Mirror is the only one of all these modern adaptations that actually tries to include little children into its target group. It is also probably the weakest of all. Indian director Tarsem Singh’s film was an effort to blend comedy, fairy-tale, action and fantasy elements at the same time, perhaps so that the result would be suitable for all kinds of audiences, but it failed to maintain a balance between all these genres.

Universal Studios’ response to Mirror Mirror was Snow-White and the Huntsman, starring Kristen Stewart as Snow-White. This film is very loosely based on the original tale and it rarely tries to even feel like a fairy-tale. Instead, it makes it absolutely clear (in contrast to disoriented Mirror Mirror) that it is but a dark, epic-fantasy blockbuster, which draws inspiration from the Lord of the Rings mythology. It might feel slightly disappointing as a fairy-tale adaptation, hence the mixed reviews, but it turned out to be an unexpectedly solid and visually compelling epic adventure, with amazing direction by Rupert Sanders.

Lastly, the Spanish film Blancanieves is arguably the most special of all the above, as it is basically a modern silent film about Spanish tradition and the cruelty of the entertainment industry! Still, it is probably the most fairy-tale-like of all three 2012 adaptations, thanks to its traditional style of storytelling. Also, comparing to all the above Snow-Whites, Macarena Garcia in the role (and even with a short haircut) truly is the fairest of them all! Blancanieves is a masterful, moving fairy-tale set in the real world, which uses dark humour to brilliantly highlight that, in real-life, there is no such thing as happy-endings…

With four modern film adaptations, three of which came out in the same year, Snow-White has therefore had a truly interesting cinematic history…

Infographic #2: HOW TV SHOWS PLAY OUT

Key elements of TV shows according to genre.

Cinderella (1950) review

Since Kenneth Branagh’s live-action Cinderella is out and pays homage to the classic cartoon of the same name, it is a great opportunity to remind ourselves of the beautiful Disney film we all grew up with. Disney studios decided to adapt the classic fairy-tale of Cinderella for the screen after the financially unfortunate decade of 1940, which had left the company indebted and nearly bankrupt. Luckily, the 1950 animated film Cinderella turned out to be the studios’ greatest commercial success since pioneering Snow White (1937) and Walt Disney’s company managed to recover decidedly.

It’s not hard to realise that, in a sense, Cinderella tries to imitate Snow White in terms of both characters and structure. Almost every character of the former has his or her match in the latter, from the “fallen princess” to the evil stepmother and from the handsome prince to the amusing friends of the heroine (mice in Cinderella, dwarves in Snow White). However, thirteen years have passed and more than ten films have intervened between Snow White and Cinderella and the improvement in both animation and narrative is more apparent than ever before. And the fact that Cinderella brings in mind Walt Disney’s cinematic debut cannot but emphasize this development. Some strong signs of improvement are the way the characters move, which feels more natural than before, and the characters’ faces, which look more carefully designed, especially the stepmother's. That way, their amusing expressions can make the characters interesting even if they lack any actual depth. It therefore feels like Walt Disney studios, after years of experience and quite a few commercial disappointments, return nostalgically to their first steps, while at the same time making one more forward. Cinderella seems more self-assured than its predecessors and bridges the small gap between the pure innocence of the studios’ “Golden Age” (30s - 40s) with the more commercially oriented, as well as mature “Silver” one (50s), while shaping the style of the studios’ upcoming triumphs.

In a way, the plot might seem simply like the realisation of a girl’s wet dream (the handsome prince falls madly in love with the humble heroine, asks her to marry him and takes her away in his princely carriage), yet it feels like this archetypal story is seen here in its purest form. Cinderella might be one of the most girly Disney films, establishing on screen the children’s love for princesses, however it does not exclude the rest of the viewers from its target group -note that there are no longer elements that feel too childish for an adult.

After all, what the Disney studios achieved in Cinderella is to create arguably their most amusing film until then. Also, to make the audience (regardless of age) wish with all their heart for the prince to save Cinderella from her suffering, as well as that a fairy godmother would someday appear in front of them too, singing “Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo”…

 
(3½ out of 5 spinning tops)

Infographic #1: ORIGINAL VS REMAKE

A comparison between original films and their remakes.

The Little Death (2014) review

 After explaining that “little death” is a French euphemism for orgasm, Josh Lawson’s film introduces its characters, a series of couples. The fact that they live in the same neighbourhood is the only thing they would seem to have in common, if the film did not give us an insight of their sexual life. What really connects all these people, however, is that each couple’s effort of satisfaction or rekindling the fire in their sexual life is being tested by sexual fetishes. Masochism, role play, dirty phone calls and other, more unusual situations give to each of the film’s five different stories its main theme. Also, they make the film’s subject sound far more daring than it actually is…

In reality, The Little Death is but a common dramedy or even a rom-com. The interesting subject and its division into different stories may make the film a bit special, but, for the most part, the theme of sexual fetishes is exploited simply as a way to produce comedy rather than approached with realism. The result is undoubtedly amusing, as well as tender, but there is always a sense of lacking enough dare and honesty. Thankfully, Lawson avoids the danger of clichés and forced happy-endings and, truth be told, we would have no reason to complain about the film had its stories been truly solid and resolved. Its main flaw, however, is that after its ending (which might be unexpected, but it is also sloppy) most of the stories remain literally unfinished! 

Nevertheless, the beautiful final story leaves a sweet aftertaste, being arguably the best of them all. Along with the story about masochism, these two clearly stand out as notably sensitive and actually complete.

(2½ out of 5 spinning tops)

White Bird in a Blizzard (2014) review

Shailene Woodley might only be twenty-three years old, yet she has already given a series of truly amazing performances. It feels like she always brings a part of herself into her characters, no matter how different each time they may be. And her role in White Bird in a Blizzard is not an exception. To be precise, Woodley’s performance is the best thing Gregg Araki’s film has to offer, even though her character is not as memorable as other roles she has played. Besides the talented actress, however, the film proves to be rather weak.

It would be considerably interesting to watch a film which never reveals in what direction it’s going to move next, as long as the film itself knows! Unfortunately, White Bird in a Blizzard feels disoriented: it is not the atmospheric thriller it sometimes tries to be, nor does it use very effectively the element of mystery as a disguise for a coming-of-age drama. The script never manages to make Woodley’s character likeable enough for us to actually care for her, while the finale seems to mostly focus on the mystery side of the story rather than the drama, unlike the rest of the film. The biggest mistake, however, Araki makes is that he chooses to conclude the film with an epilogue which explains -in a far more straightforward way than expected (and needed)- everything that could have remained subtly hinted. And it feels like a letdown, since it was the film’s subtlety that made it interesting in the first place.

(2 out of 5 spinning tops)

Coherence (2013) review

Eight friends gather in a house for a common dinner party, while a dangerous comet passes over the Earth. The comet seems to have only affected the house’s electrical devices, but it is not until the guests are forced to leave the house that they discover its real effects.

Having been developing the film’s concept for a year, James Ward Byrkit (who has previously participated in the art department and screenplay of Gore Verbinski films) gathers an eight-member cast and shoots, almost entirely within a house, an independent, experimental science-fiction thriller on a tight budget and… with no script! In the beginning, Byrkit as the director gives the impression of the simple observer of a random dinner party between eight everyday people and the realism of dialogues and performances reveals undoubtable improvisation. Actors speak on top of one another and at times even mix up their words, making the film feel impressively realistic.

In the first fifteen minutes of the film, one can link it to the sci-fi genre only through random hints. However, the development of the plot leads to us being surrounded by an engrossing science-fiction atmosphere, as well as to a number of enjoyably unpredictable twists, which not even the actors themselves (excluding co-writer Alex Manugian) knew about.

Given all the above, it may sound like it is impossible for the film to be actually decent (outside the margins of an interesting experiment). Still, all those elements end up being the exact reason Coherence proves out to be such a remarkable sci-fi thriller. And this is because its success does not rely on the special effects -which it avoids in an exemplary way, not simply due to the small budget, but because it doesn’t need them- but on the imaginative development of an extremely compelling idea. Lance Pereira’s achievement in editing, which is as excellent as it is difficult, seems to give a vital pulse to the improvisational scenes and the found-footage-like realism makes us even more surprised at the unexpected plot twists. This way, the film plunges us deeper and deeper into an existential nightmare, which never runs out of surprises.

Of course, there’s no doubt the film loses its strength at some points, as Byrkit does not avoid the -rather common in American independent cinema- focus on unnecessary dramatic subplots focused on individual characters. Also, the film’s finale, although it does climax the story’s existential spirit, feels disappointingly awkward. Nevertheless, it’s interesting to reconsider these flaws from the point of view indicated by the film’s original title, The Understudy, which refers to the character of the protagonist Emily Baldoni. In any case, James Ward Byrkit’s impressive achievement proudly manages to prove that good science-fiction films do not necessarily need dazzling visual effects to be impressive and it turns out to be -in the simplest way possible- unsettlingly suspenseful and nearly mind-blowing. 

(3½ out of 5 spinning tops)

Media Diary & Reflection

My media diary. Please click to enlarge.

One’s media diary can lead to many conclusions about one’s media usage. In my own media diary, I have not included internet usage as a form of media, because the amount of websites I have visited throughout the week and the amount of hours I have spent on the internet are too large to record. My media diary therefore consists of the films and episodes of television shows I have watched throughout this particular week and it also includes one radio show I listened to.

The first thing one would notice by looking at my media diary is that I watch at least one film and one TV series episode every day. This is because of multiple factors. First of all, it is my own pursuit to watch as many films as possible, as the total amount of films I need to watch in order to gain enough experience as a film student is immense. 

Besides that, watching films and TV series is probably my main form of daily entertainment. One could probably describe me as kind of a loner. I do not go out as much as other people do and sometimes I even prefer to be on my own. This is also apparent through the fact that I watched almost all these films and TV episodes at home. I like to feel devoted (in both a passive and an active way) to the arts I love, such as that of film. Therefore, one can realise why watching films and TV shows is so important to me, whether it can be seen as a way of cultural development or simply as pure entertainment.

Judging from the media diary, there is no particular film genre I have shown preference to, but it is interesting to examine what kind of TV shows I have watched throughout the week. It has been almost exclusively animation and in particular the famous shows The Simpsons and Family Guy. There is a reason why I watch at least one episode of these shows every single day. It is firstly because they last only twenty minutes and secondly because they usually request no sentimental attachment, as they only aim to make you laugh. This way, you can watch them any time of day, no matter what mood you are in or how much time you have. By doing this, it feels like I have almost got addicted to them and I always need to watch at least one episode a day. As one would probably realise by looking at my media diary, this has almost become a typical procedure. I always watch an episode in the afternoon while having lunch, because I feel like I need to somehow distract my mind while eating, with those episodes being the easiest and most entertaining way to do this. Also, it is very usual for me to watch them right before I go to bed. I am not sure why I feel the need for this, but it could be seen either as a way of slightly postponing to turn off the computer and go to bed or as a way to distract my mind before I sleep.

Had I been keeping a media diary for longer than just a week, there would have certainly been more things to discuss and a broader understanding of my media usage. What I analysed above, however, is what I consider the main points in a week’s media diary.

Chappie (2015) review

Neil Blomkamp, director of District 9 and Elysium recently apologized for the latter, admitting he had relied too much on its appealing concept and neglected to pay the same attention to a satisfactory screenplay. This statement sounds sincere on one hand, but we would appreciate it more if it meant that Blomkamp has learned from his mistakes. Unfortunately, everything he accuses his previous film for can be used to describe his new one as well…

Chappie is, precisely, a promising idea that would need a much more powerful script in order to be effective. This idea is the creation of a form of artificial intelligence (Chappie) that needs to discover the world from the beginning, in a process that resembles a child’s upbringing. As a concept, it contains an intrinsic humane element, as well as the potential for substantial parallelisms with man himself and the formation of his perception of the world. But most of all, it shows that Blomkamp can still demonstrate a sense of filmmaking creativity: he consciously tries to follow the rules of different genres simultaneously, creating a violent, R-rated… “family” film, with no intention of compromising by subjugating one genre to the other.

As expected, unfortunately, this is exactly what the South-African director stumbles upon. He creates a film that doesn’t really know what kind of film it wants to be. The violent action often gives its place to a humane approach and the latter to the lighthearted humour, with the film being disorientated and almost never truly functional. Moreover, the music composed by Hans Zimmer, despite being otherwise interesting, often seems to force the transition from one tone to the other, thus only making it clumsier. Chappie’s biggest flaw, however, is its script’s incapability to convince about almost anything that happens throughout the film. From the criminals’ transformations into either tender parental figures or repentant heroes to the naively humanized robot Chappie, the film’s concept feels annoyingly rough. Also, some details like the battery sign on Chappie’s chest and the obvious product placements cannot but make things worse. As a result, the sentimental elements seem melodramatic and the action never feels exciting, with the humour being the only actually amusing thing left, although it tonally confuses the film even more.

It is worth mentioning that here, apart from certain hints about religion, the social subtext of Blomkamp’s previous works is absent. Lastly, Yolandi Visser and Ninja, members of South-African rap group Die Antwoord, star in the film as themselves for some reason –and some of their songs are included in the soundtrack. Ninja is at times enjoyably comical, whereas Yolandi Visser should have given a considerably stronger performance for her poorly written character to feel engaging.

Chappie has undoubtedly good intentions but it would need a more elaborate screenplay in order to be sufficiently solid and convincing. Blomkamp misses a second chance (after decent, but not memorable Elysium) to live up to the triumph of District 9, only this time, his sci-fi vision seems worryingly ‘blurred’…

(2 out of 5 spinning tops)