tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7569705696893575981.post7705779235402683112..comments2023-11-27T00:05:29.054-05:00Comments on Medfly Quarantine: Growing PainsRyan Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18054550377681273142noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7569705696893575981.post-49091402146543771742010-10-09T19:25:15.134-04:002010-10-09T19:25:15.134-04:00Thanks my friend. I don't know your feelings t...Thanks my friend. I don't know your feelings towards Edgar Wright but I absolutely love his first two features, <i>Shaun of the Dead</i> and <i>Hot Fuzz</i> - again, they're so much more than genre spoofs. They're dazzling uses of technique, ruminations on morality, they transcend genre, and, yes, they're funny as hell. I think this is certainly dazzling, but it's lacking the substance of his first two movies, and I really, really hope that he can't only make movies with Simon Pegg and Nick Frost - not because I don't think they'll be wonderful, but because he's so talented I'd like to see him extend himself a little more. I do think this is worth a look, if only for the constantly inventive aesthetics.Ryan Kellyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18054550377681273142noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7569705696893575981.post-65859110148503752442010-10-08T22:54:53.324-04:002010-10-08T22:54:53.324-04:00I didn't think I was interested in this film a...I didn't think I was interested in this film at all, but the excellent review - balancing enthusiasm and skepticism quite well - has intrigued me. Perhaps on DVD...Joel Bockohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11238338958380683893noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7569705696893575981.post-90488546838881974542010-08-29T11:11:18.814-04:002010-08-29T11:11:18.814-04:00That was the second album I ever bought!That was the second album I ever bought!Ryan Kellyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18054550377681273142noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7569705696893575981.post-35871319085324648942010-08-26T14:10:30.834-04:002010-08-26T14:10:30.834-04:00Yikes... good call there on the musical connection...Yikes... good call there on the musical connections to <i>Phantom</i>. I think like Jake I wasn't able to place the familiarities between the Schwartzman and Paul Williams characters while watching the movie. It was the split screens and slow motion sequences that immediately struck the De Palma cords for me during the experience.<br /><br />So, with that being said, I'll continue to bitch about the music sequences, but in a different way: Scott and his band should have either been heavy metal stars (like Beef), or they shoulda been a groovy 1960's band (like the band that sings the opening number in <i>Phantom</i>). But alternative rock? NO! I won't stand for it! <br /><br />How can Edgar Wright possibly like that kind of music? If I recall, in <i>Shaun of the Dead</i> one of the records they throw at the zombies is the <i>Batman soundtrack</i>. But I'd rather have the <i>Batman</i> soundtrack than the soundtrack for this movie!Adam Zanziehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14524618281515322239noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7569705696893575981.post-44808042894774925812010-08-25T18:38:24.714-04:002010-08-25T18:38:24.714-04:00I was entertained and charmed throughout, but I ag...I was entertained and charmed throughout, but I agree that the love triangle was unnecessary, and I think the exclusion of it would have made for a much tighter and better movie, as the film's affection for Scott wouldn't be such a glaring flaw if he wasn't a cheating jerk in addition to a know-it-all smartass.<br /><br />I did like all the music related stuff, though, and without it you couldn't have had the end, which is a clear homage to <i>Phantom of the Paradise</i>, which I think is one of the most enjoyable parts of the movie (in no small part because of Schwartzman). It was just another way to display Wright's formal invention.<br /><br />And I'm glad you, as a fellow De Palma fanboy, note his direction as De Palma - esque; I remember remarking to friends when I walked out of <i>Shaun of the Dead</i> "It's like Monty Python directed by De Palma!". I think his takes on genre, as well as his aesthetic technique, are in the same class as De Palma's.Ryan Kellyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18054550377681273142noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7569705696893575981.post-54826069597049152572010-08-24T18:54:04.820-04:002010-08-24T18:54:04.820-04:00While I haven't read the graphic novels either...While I haven't read the graphic novels either, I'd add that I don't think the love triangle was all that necessary. Despite some occasional touching scenes I never did think that Pilgrim had great chemistry with either Ramona nor Knives. I don't think he would have been happy with either of them, and vice versa. But Wright's direction <i>IS</i> so enjoyably De Palma-esque that it was hard not to favor the movie in the end. I had a good time... but don't expect me to keep being favorable if the movie winds up as one of this year's 10 Best Picture nominees and becomes the next <i>Juno</i>. Then we've got a problem.<br /><br />Another complaint I had with the movie is more minor, but I don't think it was wise for O'Malley to make the Pilgrim character a bassist, of all occupations, in the first place. There's so much fun video game imagery and inside jokes that Wright throws around in this film (the "Great Fairy" sound queue from <i>Zelda</i> was priceless) that I kind of wish the film had been more about games, and not alternative rock music bands. Other than the Dance Dance Revolution game that Pilgrim and Knives are playing at the beginning I couldn't really figure out what the two mediums have in common.Adam Zanziehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14524618281515322239noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7569705696893575981.post-26662020245838566202010-08-20T08:48:34.760-04:002010-08-20T08:48:34.760-04:00Is there such a thing as showing too much affectio...<i>Is there such a thing as showing too much affection for your characters?</i><br /><br />That more or less sums up what I was going for in all 1000 or so words I wrote. On one hand, part of what I've loved about Wright's films to this point is that very affection, and yet, I felt it was misplaced here. And what you say about the ending is spot on, because that's when the movie really just says "He's an asshole, but you should love him anyway, because he's mixed up like we all are/were!". The portrait of Scott Pilgrim felt like a somewhat disingenuous attempt to connect to my/our generation, if that makes sense.<br /><br />And I didn't bring this up in the review but I really didn't like the way the love triangle was resolved. It was just a part of the rather hackneyed formula that the film adhered to - everyone hugs and everyone learns something.<br /><br />But, as you say, this is certainly amongst the most visually inventive films of the year, I just really expected more from Wright.Ryan Kellyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18054550377681273142noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7569705696893575981.post-11526392547981620582010-08-19T23:16:52.989-04:002010-08-19T23:16:52.989-04:00Ryan: It's kinda unsettling how on the same wa...Ryan: It's kinda unsettling how on the same wavelength we can be on movies...because you nail my thoughts on <i>Scott Pilgrim</i> more or less to a T. Is there such a thing as showing too much affection for your characters? There were moments when I felt that maybe Wright was working at cross-purposes with the title character's self-absorption, but the ending ends up more or less enshrining it. But of course, if only all celebrations of narcissistic self-absorption were this consistently inventive with its visuals!Kenji Fujishimahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10635553450551818306noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7569705696893575981.post-40468811453515150232010-08-19T20:35:43.200-04:002010-08-19T20:35:43.200-04:00Yeah, it's much less bankrupt a formula than A...Yeah, it's much less bankrupt a formula than Apatow's, but I couldn't help but feel that it trivialized relationships somewhat. In fairness, <i>Shaun of the Dead</i>'s take on relationship wasn't much more intricate, but I feel it's portrait of Shaun is more nuanced than that of Scott, and there is more to the film, subtextually, than there is to <i>Scott Pilgrim vs. the World</i>. <br /><br />What you say about this film in relation to <i>Kick-Ass</i> is fair, but I still feel that calling this a 'spoof' could accurately encapsulate it, whereas that's really a gross oversimplification with respect to his first two features. So if I'm being a little hyper-critical of this film it's only because I really love his first two movies and I was somewhat disappointed in this. The brilliant aesthetics were there, as expected, but something about it bugged me in a way I frankly didn't expect.<br /><br />That's a shame that it doesn't capture the emotional depth of the comic book (I've never read it but I'm just gonna go ahead and take your word for it), because I too would have loved it if it was only a little more sophisticated in its handling of the romance. I just felt like it trivialized in a way most romantic comedies do, even good ones, instead of transcending the genre as he did in <i>Shaun of the Dead</i> (though in fairness he transcended a great many genres in that film).<br /><br />And as for the Swan/Gideon thing, usually I'll take any opportunity to relish in my observational prowess, I'm pretty sure Edgar Wright tweeted about this a few months back, and the moment I saw the Schwartzman and heard the way he inflected his voice I recalled it. Still, it was a truly great touch, and my God Schwartzman is so perfect in the role.<br /><br />And don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed the movie, and I know for a fact my little brother would absolutely love it, so I'm going to see it again and look forward to it. Maybe it'll go down a little smoother the second time, though I don't expect to think any more highly of it than I do.<br /><br />As always, thanks for reading and for the insightful comment.Ryan Kellyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18054550377681273142noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7569705696893575981.post-49412404462803564792010-08-19T20:01:51.688-04:002010-08-19T20:01:51.688-04:00I'm thrilled you caught on to the Gideon/Swan ...I'm thrilled you caught on to the Gideon/Swan connection. It vaguely nagged at me but I couldn't figure out why Gideon seemed so familiar until after my review is done.<br /><br />I think when you compare Scott Pilgrim to other superhero spoofs, you're right that this film assumes you know your stuff but I disagree that the others do. My chief gripe with Kick-Ass, besides it discarding some of the darker implications of the story to essentially be a bog-standard super movie posing as a deconstruction, is that it could never make fun of something without overly explaining the joke to everyone. Discontent to simply let the gag play for the "enlightened" few, it belabored what the joke was about and why it was funny until it just bored those like me who would have understood the bits. Wright, on the other hand, just throws himself into it, and I think the movie works a lot better for it.<br /><br />As for the romance/maturity angle, I would be the first to say that it sadly excises many of the comic series' more insightful passages. Had it found a way to really include them or stuff them into moments that didn't feel overcooked, I would without hesitation call this the best movie of the year. But I still think there was something there that ran deeper than perfunctory moments of grown-up time. It's certainly not as subtle or moving as the stuff in, say, Adventureland, but I think they sufficiently built Scott up over two hours for it to rise above the Superbad method of doing dick jokes for two hours and then forcing a square resolution through a circular hole.Jakehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09078001374402400232noreply@blogger.com