film term of the day: Cross-cutting

Cross-cutting: An editing technique in which two seemingly unrelated scenes are inter-cut forcing the audience to associate the two

Example: The Godfather
The most famous example of cross-cutting occurs when Michael Corleone stands up at his nephew's baptism. While he is vowing to renounce Satan all the rival mafia bosses are getting offed, we presume, under Michael Corleone's orders. These two scenes are interwoven, contrasting Michael's supposed religious devotion with his ruthless killing of several men (and one mistress).

Cross-cutting can create a sense of tension, can mislead the audience into believing that events that are occurring simultaneously are related when they actually are not, and can relate seemingly disparate events.

Underrated: The Game vs. 12 Angry Men

When I think of The Game I usually forget that it was directed by David Fincher. If this movie is underrated, it might have something to do with its being nestled right in between the two most notable Fincher films, Se7en and Fight Club. Maybe it doesn't quite qualify as 'underrated.' Many people like this movie a great deal. However, I take issue with its mere 7.7 rating on imdb. Consider this nuttiness: 12 Angry Men (the actual most boring movie ever made) makes it into the top ten of the 250 list with its score of 8.8. 12 Angry Men was based on a play (usually a bad thing). The action takes place entirely in one room and involves twelve male (go figure) jurors discussing the probability that the defendant is guilty. Not only is there very little action, there is very little moving at all. I suppose at the time it was a good racial commentary and the acting was considered amazing, but mightn't To Kill A Mocking Bird (a respectable #54) be said to fulfill these criteria even more effectively, whilst also entertaining us? I just can't see how anyone watching 12 Angry Men by today's standards can rank this movie higher than the other 241 movies (others of which annoy me too) on the imdb top 250.

I am not trying to contend that The Game deserves the number 9 (as of this writing) slot in 12 Angry Men's place, but I do think it deserves our consideration.

Fincher does the thing he does best: convinces us to trust the narrative and then yanks us up side down by the ankles. Even though we are repeatedly betrayed, we go along and believe we are in control. To a certain extent, I see this movie as a commentary on the power the storyteller holds over the viewer/listener. Nicholas Van Orton (Michael Douglas) is a controlled, shrewd, business man. He is the master of his own destiny, for we learn, despite some really dark stuff in his childhood, he has made a name for himself and excelled at his profession. His routines begin to topple when, at his troubled brother's (Sean Penn) urging, he enlists in a "game" designed for bored rich people to mess with their lives and shake things up. Soon, he has no idea which parts of his life are "the game" and which are under his control. Some freaky stuff happens, he meets a nice girl, he has a shower in his office (so we know he's doing all right - that part always cracked me up), some other crap happens with his brother, and the lines between reality and fiction are blurred. Until the final moment, it is impossible for Nicholas to bring the situation back under his grasp. He is helplessly along for the ride, even though he tries to stop and get out many times, just as the viewer is at the mercy of the storyteller.

Another thing I really like: even though it is dark and suspenseful, there is a justifiable happy ending. It is tried and true way for a storyteller to leave the audience feeling satisfied after spending an hour and a half messing with their brains, and in this film it is done well. 

Good acting, good story, some tense moments with a nice payoff at the end. If nothing else, it is entertaining, and that's more than 12 Angry Men can brag.

film term of the day: Script Supervisor

Script Supervisor: person on a film crew who maintains continuity from shot to shot and records the progress of daily shooting

Catching continuity errors in movies is part of the fun of movie-appreciation, especially if the story loses your interest for a minute or two. If you've noticed a glass half empty in one shot and in the next it is all the way full, your eyes are sharper than those of the script supervisor who should have consulted their notes and insisted on draining that glass to the proper mark before cameras rolled. And you thought the filmmakers were making a subtle comment on the power perception plays in the forming of our optimistic or pessimistic attitudes.

Continuity errors occur when a shot taken at one time during production is edited together with a shot taken at a different time (maybe weeks or months from the time the original shot was taken) in which something on screen fails to match the original shot.

Next time you are watching a sub par film, play along by watching for some of these generic examples:
1. length of cigarette changes randomly
2. items of clothing missing or appearing
3. placement of actors or objects in background is inconsistent

Extreme Example: Troll 2 (This one is for my friends Sarah and Jayson who just had their 4th baby and who introduced me to this fine film.) There is a scene in Troll 2 where the dad and the mom are having a conversation. When the camera is on the mom, the dad's shirt is open (I think). When the camera is on the dad, his shirt is buttoned all the way. As this film was incredibly low-budget, I am guessing that they just didn't have a script supervisor, but it would be that person's fault if they had.

Note: continuity errors are a product of simple human oversight and can crop up in the classiest of films. They are, however, more likely to occur (or be noticed) in bad movies.

I'd love to hear some of your favorite examples.

A Late Night Facebook Chat (with minor editing to cover up my typos)

11:47pmJayson

did you like inception btw?

11:47pmMe

didn't you read my reviews?

11:48pmJayson

oh i didn't see them geesh

11:48pmMe

i think i am less enthusiastic than most people i have talked to, but i still liked it

11:49pmJayson

i agree with ebert's sentiment. its not that it was perfect, but come on, look at the movies they're making today

everything is a remake or a sequal or another chipmunks movie

11:50pmMe

so i'm supposed to judge it against airbender and sorcerers apprentice?

i was judging it against the dark knight

11:50pmJayson

i would say its better than the dark knight, imho

11:50pmMe

we won't get quality movies if we lay down and take it, which is what ebert suggests

not better than dark knight

11:51pmJayson

i think it was REALLY good. i'm just saying it wasn't perfect like some people think

11:51pmMe

if total recall and matrix didn't exist then maybe

11:51pmJayson

.....

11:51pmMe

i thought it was good too, but i didn't scream and hoot at the end or gasp with surprise is all

11:52pmJayson

what movie did you scream and hoot at? in the theatre?

11:52pm

Spolier Alert

  

Me

that's a good point

i was comparing myself to the audience with whom I saw the film who all groaned when nolan cut the camera before the top fell

i felt alienated from the human race because i didn't care

11:53pmJayson

really?

11:54pmMe

i knew it was going to be an ambiguous ending (again, total recall), and I knew the top was going to come into play

i'm just saying it wasn't a big shock

End Spoiler Alert

11:54pmJayson

so you're saying that you give independence day positive reviews and this a mildish review?

11:55pmMe

LOL. I guess?... When you put it that way it does sound ludicrous

11:55pmJayson

lol

11:55pmMe

maybe i can appease you

ID4 was exactly what it was supposed to be, ie fluff

I expect cheesy lines and over the top action from a goofy film

Inception was clearly meant to be more serious and more seriously taken. I think it failed to reach its potential, that's all

11:57pmJayson

maybe. for you. but i think it worked for the rest of the audience.

look at this

http://www.imdb.com/chart/top?tt1375666?inceptionnumber3

11:57pmMe

Good Lord. That 250 list is so effed up.

11:58pmMe

Being a critic, for me, is not about choosing what I think other people will like, but about writing honestly about what I like

film quiz 2 - actor's challenge

Same rules as before. No checking on the internet. Tell your friends to play, don't pump them for answers. Honor System. Play Nice.

Each question is worth 1 point, except number 10, which is worth 3 points. Deadline is August 1. One winner will receive a mystery prize...

Email answers to veronicathefilmcritic@gmail.com

1. Who plays Veronica Corningstone in Anchorman?

2. Who plays Shorty in Get Shorty?

3. Which actor sweeps Mrs. Doubtfire's ex off her feet?

4. Who played Alice Ayers in Closer?

5. With which actress did Peter Gallagher have an affair in American Beauty?

6. Who plays opposite Helen Hunt in the 1985 teeny-bopper flop Girls Just Want to Have Fun?

7. Which actor annoys Steve Martin as the wedding coordinator in Father of the Bride?

8. Which actor is lobotomized in the final scene of One Flew Over he Cuckoo's Nest?

9. Which actress nearly destroys The Paper in The Paper?

10. In what way are all the "answers" to the above questions connected to one another?

Have fun!!

In Bruges

I know I am woefully behind the bandwagon, stumbling as I run, out of breath as I wave my arms calling, "wait, I like this movie too..." The cart rattles on, down a cobbled street in a fairy tale town, too far ahead for me to catch up. 

I don't care though. I am still going to review In Bruges. I have to. 'It's what I do.'

All Colin Farrell-appreciation aside, this was a fantastic movie. It was brilliant choice to write the character Ray (Farrell) as somewhat childish. It was a good way to contrast his character with the older, wiser hit man, Ken (Brendan Gleeson). It was a good way to highlight the conflict he felt, having killed an innocent. It was a funny and clever way to illustrate his loathing of Bruges, Belgium. He has no interest in sight seeing, whines and complains, manipulates Ken into taking him out when Ken wants to stay in and read. The beauty of old buildings and gory art are all lost on him. He scuffles his feet and makes noise on purpose in an old church. He is not awed, but bored; as bored as a ten year old boy being dragged with his family through cultured sights when all he wants to do is go to the hotel pool. Very cleverly done. Farrell pulls it off, but just barely. There were a few moments when it felt like acting; when the mood was broken by an off line or facial expression, but that is getting nit-picky. I loved the scene in the hotel when he was bargaining with Harry (Ralph Fiennes) about where they should try to shoot each other. I also loved his child-like fascination with midgets. He was innocently enthralled, and that was so perfect for his character.

There were a few "Seinfeld" shticks that didn't work for me. The Canadian man Ray hits in the restaurant finds him on his train out of Bruges and has him arrested. The tower where Ray and Ken want to shoot each other in private is closed because a tourist (a fat man Ray tried to convince the day before not to go up all the stairs) has suffered a heart attack in the tower. These are minor details, and I can see how they fit into the story, so I think I'm letting them off the hook.

At the risk of gushing, I will just say that the acting was great all around. Ralph Fiennes was cold-blooded, but also humorous. The scenes with Jimmy (Jordan Prentice) managed to be tasteful while also exploiting midget humor. It is possible, after all.

I am finding it difficult to categorize this film because the dark was somewhat removed from the humor, and it wasn't overwhelmingly a comedy. Part of its charm is that it defies classification. It was compositionally tight. It felt organized and meaningful.

A fine film; entertaining, emotional, touching and fun-ish.

film term of the day: Steadicam

Steadicam: a camera mount equipped with a gyro that a camera man uses to prevent shaking during hand-held shots.

Example: My Cousin Vinny
Mona Lisa Vito meets Vinny outside the prison where he has been held overnight for contempt. A steadicam follows the couple as they walk away from the prison yard.

Similar shots can be produced using cranes or dollies, but the steadicam tends to provide a more intimate feeling since it can get very close to the action. Also, a steadicam can move along with the action in more versatile ways than a crane-mounted camera can.

Inception: a review within a review within a review

In the spirit of fun and to pay homage to the dream within a dream theme (one of a vast number of themes in this  flick) I am offering you all your choice of review. If you would like to read a favorable review of Inception, click here. If you would like to read an objective/neutral review, click here. If you would care to hear me lambaste, eviscerate and pan the film, click here. The strange thing is, each review captures my true feelings about this tricky film. I'm not sure how that's possible, I just know I am enjoying the aftermath of its effect on me, even if I didn't completely enjoy the viewing experience. All comments here please.

Also, I heard this quote through the grapevine today via Gorvey Garfoul, and it made me LOL.

Andrew O'Hehir - Nolan's dreams are apparently directed by Michael Bay

Gorvey - Ha 

Things I am yelling at the screen while I watch "Shooter"

Let me briefly preface this post. Everything in quotes is taken word for word from the movie. This movie is a freaking GOLDMINE of one-liners. I had to leave some of them behind because hubby finally refused to push pause. Everything else is the way my brain works while I watch Shooter. Finally, to my best friend, my sincere apologies for any rift in our friendship this post might cause. 

worst premise ever

I don't for one minute believe that this guy would take this job (you thought you were going to be arrested, but instead we're offering you a job to help stop people like you from doing what only you can do)

I can't understand Danny Glover's gravely lisp

"He said yes, just doesn't know it yet."

Awe, he's worried about the president. He's a patriot at heart, even though his country screwed him. I know because he asked his dog if he should take the job defending the president. It's sweet, his relationship with his dog. I'm sure that won't be exploited later on.

The cocked eyebrow means, 'I'm thinking hard.'

Slow motion strut out of the garage...with american flag in background. This guy is screwed.

I don't for one minute believe this guy can be this smart but not realize he is getting set up.

I know the rest of the movie has to be about him getting the guys who set him up, because this is happening way too early in the movie for it to be about the assassination attempt

So the government wanted the arch bishop killed, but it had to look like an attempt on the president and there had to be a fall guy... clever, except I figured it out right now, as the arch bishop hit the ground

If your plan is to set up and kill an assassin, why not choose one who is less competent than this guy; and then pick someone more competent than the fat police officer to dispatch of him?

Nice. Ditch Brody-style escape.

Bob Lee Swagger... that's this guys name?

The shooter is a crazy survivalist, so he's just going to go ahead and administer first aid to his shot-up shoulder while his stolen secret service car goes through/hides in the car wash.

Does huffing whipped cream really knock you out?

Bob Lee Swagger is a conspiracy theorist, and it took him 35 minutes (movie time) or 2 days (elapsed story time) more than it took me to figure out that the archbishop was supposed to get shot and that the US government did it.

Who could have predicted the dog's death? Me.
Hubby, filling in dialog for Swagger who just found out his dog is dead: 'Now I'm really mad.'

"They're never gonna stop chasing you." She's wise beyond her southern accent...

Really. These people who just met (one of whom is recovering from very recent gunshot wounds) have time for inappropriate sex?

Why do women "in disguise" always dress like prostitutes?

Good costume change, Swagger, 'cause a black hoodie doesn't look conspicuous

"You are asking questions way outside your pay grade." -FBI gal to FBI guy

"I don't think you understand. These guys killed my dog."

Nick Memphis - who thought up these names?

"This is about to get worse."

"Welcome to Tennessee, the patron state of shootin' stuff."

"Most guys shoot to kill, he'd shoot to wound. Turn one target into four."

lots of compliant women in this movie; compliant and pretty much unnecessary

"Sometimes to catch a wolf you need to tie the bait to a tree." Next scene. "The man we thought was tied up, came untied."

"It's a trap, every time," says the guy who was easily framed in the beginning of the movie. I wish you had figured that out before so this movie wouldn't have to exist.

Hey, he just stabbed that guy; they should have called this movie "Stabber."

Moral ambiguity much? Why is it OK for the hero to shoot a whole bunch of US soldiers who have nothing to do with the conspiracy, who are just following orders (like him in the beginning)?

Hey, Swagger, what the my-hands-are-tied-by-jurisdiction investigator is saying is: 'What this case needs is a little vigilante justice, so just in case Danny Glover turns up dead in the morning, I won't press any charges. Wink Wink.'

Good thing the shooter got to the corrupt Senator and the corrupt Colonel right before they were about to pull another job on another third world village. He just saved a whole bunch of South American babies. I know 'cause he started shooting the bad guys right after they got done talking about their plans to go kill babies in the morning (while smoking big fat cigars and laughing about how above the law they are). At this point in the movie, do I really deserve to be bludgeoned over the head with the notion that these are the bad guys?

Of sassy camera moves and futile attempts to entertain me...

Something very strange happened to me yesterday which has managed to trump brain space that would otherwise have been fully focused on reviewing Inception. Since it sounds like many of my readers have already seen Inception or are planning to no matter what I say, I am giving myself over to writing about this weird occurrence.

A few days ago, I rented Agora because I like Rachel Weisz and well, that's pretty much why. I watched the first half yesterday afternoon and could not make myself continue. Close to the point at which I had enough the following takes place on-screen: the Christians storm the library at Alexandria (with permission from the emperor) and start destroying everything. There are scrolls flying through the air like streamers. The camera begins to tilt and doesn't stop. Soon the viewer is upside down, just as the pagans, whose former persecution of the Christians was once sanctioned by the emperor, now find themselves displaced from their center of knowledge. I can't help but chide the film in the most sarcastic voice imaginable, "Their world will never be the same." This is the sort of camera movement that has to be subtle as it relates to the story. In this case, it was way too obvious so it just seemed gimmicky, like a substitute for good film-making.

When I came home from Inception, hubby was watching the final half of Carlito's Way, a film he saw many moons ago, and one I have never seen. Here too is a movie I have no desire to watch in its entirety, but it was somehow destiny that I saw these two halves of these two movies on the same day. When Carlito gets shot, they roll him away through the subway station, the camera becomes unbound by gravity and end over end it goes. I am not kidding. It was the same shot. I will now stop to marvel at the likelihood that anyone could be inspired by Brian De Palma or Carlito's Way. It is a camera movement that has been used before and will be used again, in the same tired "my world's turned upside down" way no doubt. So the most likely explanation is that it was all a big coincidence. But, even then, it feels a little like the Universe converging, right? I almost fell asleep before the end of Carlito's Way. I would have missed it! But something made me stay with it. It might have been hubby asking me to watch the end of the movie with him. Yep. That was it. He didn't plan it though. He too was amazed by the similarity of camera movements and overall badness of the two films.

I have to say one thing in defense of Carlito's Way. Sean Penn really is a great actor. I felt like he was channeling my old boss from The Unnamed Law Offices. I wouldn't want to hurt the scumbag's feelings.

Something this poetic happens to a film fan so rarely. I feel quite blessed.