Hey, I’m back, this time with 50% less procrastination! Actually I’ve been working unusually hard over the last few weeks on non-fun stuff - will need to put a stop to that.
Who are The Curse Of Company? You can find out HERE. And if you get there quickly (by the end of the day), and you are good at visual puzzles, you can score yourself a free download of their first single, ‘All The Mines’. A very cool collaboration between some very talented musicians. Looking forward to that Hopetoun gig.
A great parody trailer to the awesome ‘There Will Be Blood’.
“If I say I’m a weedman, then you will agree …. this is my bro and my partner, H.W. Puffington.”
Here’s your chance to learn how to be a great Hollywood actor - courtesy of these free online lessons from James Franco!
Today’s lesson: Sense Memory.
The beautiful and slightly ethereal Laura Marling plays with shadows in this clip for her wistful, melancholic song ‘New Romantic’. A simple idea for a video clip, cleverly executed, particularly the final moments.
More from the great Funnyordie.com. It’s your very own Paul Rudd screensaver!
“I thought Jews hooked each other up - I guess not!”
A very cool ‘Park Benches’ video from the burgeoning Belles Will Ring, courtesy of Shoot The Player (love their idea!). Very raw but it still explains why they are on one of my favourite up and coming bands. Great atmosphere at that location too. Very nice. I like. Will you be my boyfriend?
Everyone should know I loves me a good Tom Cruise impression….. and this guy is solid. Not to mention the spot on dialogue. From the brilliant funnyordie.com, I give you Tom Cruise, Cockblocker:
“Who’s coming with me!? Who’s coming with me!?”
Now I did some stupid stuff with a basketball hoop and trampolines as a kid, but this one puts any of my efforts to shame…. pure comedy gold.
I love how his friends are just bouncing around, ready for the next dunker’s chance to snap their achilles tendon.
Thanks to On 205th’s 22 Worst Dunks ever, also great viewing.
I’ve been meaning to write something about ‘Iron Man’ since I caught it a few weeks ago, and my recent viewing of ‘Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull’ got me thinking about why, despite both of them being undoubtably the biggest drawcards of the early U.S. summer film season, only one of them hit the mark.
I decided to do a Sports Illustrated’s Dr Jack-style breakdown to try and work out which one of them came out on top (hint: it’s the one that doesn’t involve crystal skulls). Oh, and consider this a SPOILER WARNING…. If you are one of the twelve people who haven’t seen either movie and don’t want to know anything, don’t read on. On to the breakdown:
PLOT:
‘Iron Man’ revolves around Tony Stark, a billionaire weapons manufacturer and genius inventor who after being kidnapped by terrorists develops a mechanical suit to enable him to escape. As a result of this experience he also finds his conscience in crisis over the source of his wealth, and vows to further the development of the suit in order for him to right some of those wrongs. The suit is honed and given the power of flight and some kick-ass weaponry, and within it Stark becomes Iron Man.
‘Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull’ finds the intrepid adventurer in the U.S. in 1957, also kidnapped, though his captors are Russian agents determined to harness the power of a mysterious crystal skull from Mayan mythology. The movie sees Indy also drawn into a search for the skulls, though this is secondary to the rescue of longtime flame Marion Ravenwood and an old archeologist friend Harold Oxley. As the story unfolds, the crystal skulls are found to be the actual skulls of interdimensional alien visitors and by returning the missing skull to it’s rightful resting place, Jones and company activate a portal through which the aliens depart.
VERDICT: ‘Iron Man’ requires one leap of imagination (that Stark could be brilliant enough to design a suit is capable of all it appears to be). Indy 4 requires that you suspend your disbelief almost completely for the entire duration. Edge to ‘Iron Man’.
STARS:
Robert Downey Jnr. inhabits Tony Stark with the perfect mix of arrogance, insouciance, and debonair charm. He also has the chops to pull of Stark’s ethical quandary and the soul searching he does as a result. And he’s brilliantly funny, delivering many of his lines with a wit that is so dry you could clean clothes with it.
Harrison Ford returns to ‘Indy’ a little weatherbeaten, a lot older, but still with the same effortless cool and bravado. Watching Indy I didn’t for one minute think of Harrison Ford the actor - I was totally returned to believing in Indiana Jones the character, a virtually bullet proof adventurer who always has the perfect rejoinder or quip.
VERDICT: Slight edge to Downey Jnr. Indy’s emotions are generally deep below the surface, but the contradiction of Stark’s guilt and natural braggadocio give Downey Jnr more to work with.
SUPPORTING CAST:
‘Iron Man’ has an almost perfect supporting cast; Gwyneth Paltrow is excellent as Tony’s long suffering assistant Pepper Potts, as is Terrence Howard as Stark’s military amigo Jim Rhodes. Even an exceptionally hammy Jeff Bridges works well as ally-turned-adversary Obadiah Stane.
‘Indy’ has Karen Allen returning as Indy’s Raider’s squeeze, Marion Ravenwood. She’s a little overt and stage-y, but she was like that in Raiders too, so you accept that it’s probably a character-trait Spielberg and Lucas were after. All others are newcomers and they are a mixed bag. Shia LaBeouf is reliable as Mutt, Indy and Marion’s son he never knew (if you didn’t see this coming you are retarded). But he’s definitely not capable of continuing the series on his own. John Hurt does a lot of nothing as Oxley, a role that was very clearly written for Connery but one which Connery was very wise to refuse. Ray Winstone is wasted as Mac, the quadruple crossing CIA agent friend/enemy of Indy. Jim Broadbent looks like he’s wandered off the set of a sequel to ‘Dead Poet’s Society’. Cate Blanchett is even more overt than Karen Allen as Irina Spalko, the leader of the Soviet forces pursuing the skull. But at least that is acceptable given the throwback origins of her character.
VERDICT: Edge to ‘Iron Man’. There’s just too much cast in ‘Indy 4′, probably a result of them trying to sandwich four screenplays into one. I mean, what exactly was necessary about Oxley’s character to the story? And Mac’s ridiculous switching of alliances makes the other characters just look stupid.
FILMMAKING:
‘Iron Man’ is your typical comic-book origin story, but the manner in which director Jon Favreau treats the material raises it above its pulpy origins. It’s a comic book story for adults, where the fantastic is merged with the real and the characters are aware of it. I’ve been a longtime fan of Favreau since ‘Swingers’ and with each of the films he’s directed so far he’s progressed technically and creatively. Our boys all grownsed up!
‘Indy’ is similar in that its origins are also quite cheesy, but Spielberg and Lucas revel in them, forcing the audience to accept that this story does not take place in any sort of reality, even a pulp fiction one. That said, Spielberg is effortlessly inventive with his camera and the production design is typically top notch. The biggest fault falls under the next heading…
VERDICT: Tie. But it’s a big day for Favs when his direction and storytelling is on par with the Big S.
SPECIAL EFFECTS:
‘Iron Man’’s special effects were a little too glossy at times, and some of the battle scenes were a little like an Xbox 360 game, but all in all they did not take anything away from the table. Stark’s lab scenes were a perfect mix of physical and CG effects, flawlessly combined. Aside from the slight straying into cartoon territory, the Iron Man CG was solid.
‘Indy 4′ on the other hand…. Oh brother, where do I start? Definitely some of the worst effects I have ever seen in a Spielberg film. It all started with the ridiculous prairie dogs in the opening act, and went downhill from there. Did those prairie dogs get a laugh at any other screening because all I heard at mine was the chirping of crickets. I have my suspicions on who thought they were comic gold (his name starts with Luc and ends with ASS - you know, the same guy who thought Jar Jar Binks was the intergalactic Jerry Seinfeld).
Then you have the swordfight on moving jeeps in the South American rainforest, which looked about as realistic as ‘Prince of Persia’ on the Sega Megadrive. Just awful.
I thought the worst CGI of the movie was in the ridiculous ‘Tarzan’ homage, where Mutt befriends a small group of monkeys who teach him to swing through the jungle on vines at a speed that somehow allows him to catch up to two speeding jeeps. But that honour belongs to the CGICF of the final 20 minutes. Let’s just say it’s a sad day when the nearly 30 year old effects used in ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’ are far more realistic than the cartoony slop Spielberg thought a modern day audience would appreciate at the conclusion of ‘Indy 4′.
Even the actual crystal skulls of the title look like they cost $1.99 at a prop shop.
VERDICT: Iron Man by a long shot.
BEST MOMENT:
Iron Man taking to the sky for the first time was pure exhileration. There’s a reason my future brother-in-law came out of the movie wishing someone was actually working on these suits.
The first twenty minutes of ‘Indy 4′, ending with the escape from a nuclear test by hiding in a fridge were a great reminder of the delicate balance of action, adventure, and comedy that made the first three Indy’s special - and then the wheels came off.
VERDICT: Tie. If ‘Indy 4′ had somehow maintained that balance throughout the film, coupled with some realistic CGI and a tighter script, it might have worked.
WORST MOMENT:
The worst moment of ‘Iron Man’ was the CGI fakery of Obadiah Stane and his own suit, not to mention the leap of logic that would have allowed him to construct it. But, hey, that’s small beans when compared to the aforementioned ‘Tarzan’ scene. Seriously, what is with George Lucas’ monkey fetish? The ewoks didn’t get it out of his system? Does he perhaps have his own ‘Bubbles’ at Skywalker Ranch?
But Even without the monkeys, Indy would still have convincingly won the battle with any of these moments: the tree lowering the car into the river, the returning of the skull, the “call it a rope” scene.
EDGE: Congrats Indy. One category you totally dominated!
SHELF LIFE:
It will all depend upon where Marvel, Favs and Downey Jnr decide to take ‘Iron Man’ next, but I’m optimistic. There is plenty of room for plot and character development. The final scene after the credits points favourably toward where they are going …. Avengers Assemble!
I will probably add ‘Indy 4′ to the DVD collection for the sake of being a completist, but I’m pretty sure I won’t be worrying about including it in my Indy marathon, next time I feel so inclined.
VERDICT: Slight edge to ‘Iron Man’.
FINAL VERDICT:
Iron Man is quality entertainment without the need to check your brain at the door - as the previous three films of the Indiana Jones series were. The fourth entry of the series is destroyed by poor storytelling and overblown CGI which takes you out of the film and allows you to see the filmmakers pulling the puppet strings as poorly as they have ever done. A very disappointing outcome for Indy fans. The final edge goes convincingly to Iron Man, the most exciting introduction to a new series since the first X-Men film.
And here’s a great article by Steve Rose of the Guardian, who has perhaps deciphered the real meaning of the new Indy movie.