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Friends In Your Head | Forums → Posts by fireproof78
They can also use cookies to follow your own browsing history. I looked at a certain desk lamp online two weeks ago and every website I visit is still trying to sell me that lamp.
So, did you buy the lamp? If not, can I sell you one? 
The Star Wars team is thrilled to announce the cast of Star Wars: Episode VII.
Actors John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, and Max von Sydow will join the original stars of the saga, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Kenny Baker in the new film.
Director J.J. Abrams says, "We are so excited to finally share the cast of Star Wars: Episode VII. It is both thrilling and surreal to watch the beloved original cast and these brilliant new performers come together to bring this world to life, once again. We start shooting in a couple of weeks, and everyone is doing their best to make the fans proud."
Star Wars: Episode VII is being directed by J.J. Abrams from a screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan and Abrams. Kathleen Kennedy, J.J. Abrams, and Bryan Burk are producing, and John Williams returns as the composer. The movie opens worldwide on December 18, 2015.
I am actually starting to get a little excited about this project. I also read that they have a script finalized, which, hey, is more progress sometimes Lucas had
Hey there!
Been a while since I do a full review, but this film seems to be the one everyone is talking about, mostly my daughters and their friends, but that's my social circle right now 
Heads up, there is nothing that will not be spoiled in this film after this review. Beginning, middle and end, I will probably touch on it all. So, spoilers for you all.
Alright, still here?
Yes?
Ok, good.
Frozen was one of those films that I could not escape. Multiple friends with kids had it, my sister brought it over for my daughters to watch, so it was inevitable that I would see it. Unfortunately, I only saw the end for the longest time, lending some confusion as to who was what in the film.
The movie opens with people hauling ice and singing about a frozen heart. Good musical piece, but it won't really fall in to place until after we meet Elsa and Anna. We meet the girls in the usual way-sisters who are close and then something happens to drive a wedge between them. Elsa's powers are revealed and a troll gives the exposition as to the fact that fear will be Elsa's enemy. Her parents then decide to conceal her powers from the world.
Unfortunately, in true Disney fashion, the parents die due to a montage of them sailing away. The girls grow up in a sheltered castle life, hidden from the world.
Until, Elsa's coronation day, when she comes of age. Then there is lots of ceremony, pomp, circumstance and everyone excited to finally see the Queen and Princess and be inside the castle.
Inside the castle, Anna is thrilled to be able to be with people, and dreams of finding true love, while Elsa dreads the ceremony and worries that she will not be able to conceal her powers.
Outside, since princesses are naturally allowed to wander during a signing montage, Anna discovers Prince Hans, and they hit it off. Anna thinks he is the one, and they continue singing and dancing, until he proposes. Anna says yes, and rushes to ask her sister's permission. Elsa says no, and Anna, upset, pulls off Elsa's gloves, upsetting Elsa. Elsa, in a fit, accidentally shows her powers, frightening all the guests and nobles who had arrived for the coronation.
Elsa, afraid, runs away, her powers going crazy due to her emotions. She accidentally freezes the fjord, causing a winter in the middle of summer. Anna, realizing it is her fault, goes after Elsa, leaving Hans in charge of the kingdom.
Elsa sings "Let it Go" while Anna ends up at a resort/sauna and meets Kristoph and Sven, Christoph's reindeer, who acts more like a dog. Anna purchases his help to go find Elsa. On the way, they meet Olaf, a living snowman who is probably one of the most endearing characters in this film. Olaf is oblivious to what happens when snow gets hot and sings of his dream of summer.
They finally find Elsa, and Anna tries to talk to her. However, Elsa doesn't understand her powers and gets more and more upset. She lashes out in emotion, accidentally freezing Anna's heart. Christoph takes Anna to see "the love experts" who are the trolls from the beginning of the film. After a fun song about love, Anna nearly collapses and the grandfather troll says that a frozen heart can only be thawed by an act of true love. Christoph takes Anna back to see Hans. Hans, by the way, has endeared himself to the people of the kingdom, as well as gone out on an expedition, and manages to capture Elsa.
And now, we get the twist. Hans didn't love Anna, he just manipulated her so he could become king of a kingdom. We discover that he is a wonderful manipulator, and leaves Anna to freeze to death. Olaf comes to Anna's rescue, building a fire and willing to melt to keep Anna warm. Hans goes to kill Elsa, but she escapes, causing a winter blizzard due to her fear of the soldiers killing her.
Christoph is almost out of town, having left Anna with Hans. Sven, his reindeer gives him a look of disbelief when Christoph says that Anna is with her true love. Then, he notices the storm, and rushes back to save her. Elsa struggles with her power, until Hans lies and says that Anna died. Elsa, overcome, lets her guard down. As Hans prepares to kill her, Anna rushes in, just as she freezes solid, her frozen form blocking the killing blow. The act of true love thaws Anna, and Elsa realizes that love helps her control her powers. Hans is sent packing, Olaf sees summer without melting and Anna ends up choosing Christoph as her true love. The end.
This is one of few Disney movies that made me go, "That's different." It took a nice twist on the idea of true love being a sisterly love, rather than a purely romantic love. It also twists the notion of the princess ending up with the prince, as the prince ends up being a bit of a sleezeball.
The problem, is the world building. Elsa has powers-that is the extent of the explanation. We don't really know the rules of the powers, only vague or nebulous warnings from the trolls and her complete inability to deal with people for fear of her secret becoming known. So, when she figures out that true loves thaws, it feels rather convenient and a rather neat, almost TV, ending as all the loose ends get tied up.
The characters are a mixed bag. Hans is probably the most interesting, with his political machinations and plots. Christoph is a lot of fun, bit of rough around the edges type of person. Anna is a sheltered girl experiencing the world for the first time. Elsa, unfortunately, feels like she is defined by her powers and goes around being afraid until the very end. Olaf is a happy, go lucky character, it provides a lot of comic relief, and is generally very endearing.
The plot is a bit rushed, as the events happen in the span of maybe 3 days at most. After the opening scene, until the coronation, we get a montage of Anna wishing she can play with Elsa and then the parents die. Then, it is rapid fire to coronation, meet Hans, meet Christoph, meet Olaf, Elsa's captured, Hans is a jerk, and we're out. There is not a lot of time for this film to breathe, and the few small moments that do do not last long enough.
The music is decent, if a bit repetitive. It works well as a child's film, since the music is pretty memorable, but gets kind of irritating after time.
The effects are one of my favorite parts, as the snow and ice particles are a lot of fun.
Final thoughts:
Overall, the film is ok, with some great twists on common Disney tropes. It just needed some more exposition that made sense, and some more room to brief.
I honestly don't like this film. I think it needs more space to really work, rather than crammed together in what amounts to a lot of memorable songs, but not a lot of exposition. I really wish I could explain why I have such a weird aversion, almost love hate relationship, with this film. It feels like it is a rushed job, but with good music, and fun characters. It just, doesn't quite land for me. Despite all this, I still score it high because it is a beautiful film, and the dialogue works, even if the world feels narrow and undefined.
8/10
As a bonus, below is How it Should Have End's version of Frozen. There are few films where I agree with them, beyond the good jokes or fun they poke at a movie's flaws. Frozen, however, makes much more sense in their version:
Honestly, that would be fun as shit.
I mean, I'd have to be shitfaced. And I'd be slobbering all over Lego, and committing hate crimes against Frozen.
But yeah.
So, that's a maybe from Teague
You reminded me of something. The two second floor bedrooms were on either end of the house. We each had a closet on the same side of the house as the stairway. Dad linked the two closets with a hidden storage area, running along the front of the house behind the stairwell.
Maybe you can link two bedrooms. Even if it's just you in the house now, think of the stories the next owners will come up with. Particularly if you don't tell them about it when you sell
I always wanted to that! I like that idea
*conspires to figure out a way in his new house*
Invid wrote:As former Script Editor Terrance Dicks said in the introduction to the first New Adventures book, if continuity gets in the way of a good story, you throw out continuity
See, my problem with this idea is that it often seems to be applied both proactively and comprehensively when a creative team simply want to have free reign, and that has nothing to do with the quality of the story that's ultimately produced. Throwing out some small aspect of the continuity is acceptable as the last resort in an effort to make a good story workable. Ignoring it in its entirety is unacceptable as the first gambit of a new author with no ideas for working in an established universe. If you can't make any of your ideas work without first wiping the slate clean and starting from scratch, then you probably shouldn't be working with an existing property.
I don't think they are trying to ignore it entirely but trying to craft a good story. Given the amount of resources that Disney is pouring in to Star Wars, having a fairly open playing field is a benefit to the authors. One of my biggest sources of frustration of reading anything in the "Old Republic" as it often repeats aspects of the movies or the conflicts are similar, since we know what eventually is going to happen to the Republic. The whole idea of the Sith Empire and defeating the Emperor feels a bit like a repeat.
The Star Wars movies were never going to continue with things like Thrawn or New Jedi Order because that was not Lucas' vision. Sorry to all the authors, but as the articles made clear, it was not a part of the story, much in the way that Doctor Who was explained. Not to beat a dead horse, but it makes more sense when you realize that the EU was not ever official anyway.
And now, when trying to do a new film, there is so much continuity after the movies that it creates its own baggage rather than any sort of freedom for the writers.
Just to add quickly, continuity was thrown out once when Lucas did the prequels. I recall a Star Wars Dictionary that highlighted Palpatine's rise to power and the construction of the Death Star, and the prequels obviously squashed those ideas. Like Invid said, if they are starting new, in a way, then there is no need to regard the old material if they have a story already in mind.
I know that fans can get their collective panties in a twist over a studio or artist defining canon in their work, yet fans are welcome to create their own interpretations as well. After all, there are numerous fan edits and the like out there, as well as a general rejection of some parts of the story. So, there really is no reason for fans to accept this new continuity at all.
I don't mean this to be snide but what does this change? Many of the storylines were being wrapped up, or as BDA cited, so convoluted as to lose their meaning. I enjoy things like Thrawn and the like and they will still be there. But, if Lucas had ever done sequels, those books would have been meaningless anyway.
I'm not sure how it affects the old books. They are still there. This means the potential for new books and new material. For me, who has not kept up on all the books and EU, it gives a fresh start to get in to the fandom again.
This is not surprising. If I recall correctly, Disney sent people out to basically read and research all EU material and make the determination from there, what to keep and what not to keep.
I have no issues, because EU was not "George Canon" anyway. George had his own vision of what Star Wars would be (for good or for ill) and then the authors were allowed to do whatever they wanted. There is an understanding, at least on Lucas' and the authors part, that the movies and screen material would always supersede books, comics, novels, etc.
While I have enjoyed several books over the years and own many of them, if Disney wants to take it a different direction, more power to them. It doesn't diminish what has been done, or the books that exist currently.
It is funny, because I was just listening to X2 commentary and Eddie, or Brian, discussed the different time lines of the X-Men universe. Even "Days of Future" past is supposed to deal with discontinuity between First Class and X-Men. So, Star Wars really isn't anything different. There are different ideas and continuities that have been going since "Splinter of a Mind's Eye." Lucas never liked Thrawn or Mara Jade or Luke's marriage, so this isn't really new. It is just now official policy.
And, if anything, go buy old books, play Knights of the Old Republic, and call it good.
Invid wrote:Can we remember that most HB cartoons were not that good, and in no way can sustain a half hour story let alone a full movie?
No.
Seconded.
Well, to answer your question, I am and have always been horrified by Jamie, specifically, and GoT's sensibility from day one. So, you are not the only person "horrified" by it, Doc.
Beyond that, I really don't have an answer. HBO has been pushing the boundaries as far as they can with GoT. I mean, if I recall correctly, wasn't Danereys marriage to Drogo and their wedding night considered "rapey" as well? I only ask because I can't remember.
Wish list updated to reflect recent listens or film watches:
Twilight sequels-even an Intermission will do
League of Extraordinary Gentlemen or an Intermission on the end of Connery's career
Blade 2
Frozen
X Men 3 and X Men First class double shot
Just stuff after revisiting some old commentaries 
Hey man, don't be dissing Mini-DV...
(anyone have a firewire I can borrow)
I wish I could, but work schedule is completely whacked this week-not off until Friday 
It hasn't been that long, has it?
Good grief!
Dorkman wrote:Baseball is the easiest sport to grasp by far. It's basically a board game. The goal of the players is to start at "home," round the other three squares and return to home, and when they do they score a point. Only one person can be on a base at a time so they have to round the bases in sync. The ball is a timer -- they can only move after it's been struck by the bat, and if the ball makes it to a base before they do -- the other's team's goal -- that playing piece (i.e. player) is removed from the board. If the player at bat fails to hit the ball after three chances, he's removed from the board for that round (inning). When three players fail in this way, the team's turn is over and they swap. The team who was trying to hit the ball becomes the one trying to catch it and get it to the bases before the other team, who is now trying to round the bases. They play nine paired rounds and whichever team has accumulated the most points at the end wins.
Don't ask me about football, though, because I have no idea.
Now you do cricket.
Ya, I agree, Baseball has to be the easiest sport by far. Mostly because you don't need to know
every single little thing. You hit a ball and run around a field before they catch the ball and try
and tag you with it, and there are 3 safe places where you can stop running. Then the next guy
hits the ball. miss 3 times and your out. 3 outs and the teams switch places.
thats it, thats all you really need to know to watch it with friends on TV.
Now football, forget it, I don't even know all the rules. But I don't watch sports, ever, so...
Technically, even the football players do not know all the rules. That is why you have coaches and advisers and the like for reviews. Baseball is becoming the same way, now.
Every sport is odd to an outsider. I use to coach tennis and explaining the scoring and rules to first time players took some time.
Football-11 guys try to move a ball 100 yards and have four tries to do it. Move 10 yards get 4 more tries. Get 6 points for crossing the end zone. Other side gets a chance.
There you go
Because I know of the decidedly mixed reception the song has garnered around these parts, here's Patton Oswalt belting out Frozen's "Let It Go" in rage.
In the same vein, How it Should Have Ended gives their take on Frozen, complete with a partial rendition of "Let it Go"
Also, Patton Oswalt serves as the narrator for "The Goldbergs," which appears to star a young Dorkman Scott:
Efficiency is fine, but only if I can get a sense of the characters and why I should care. Train Job is not one where I felt I understood the world enough to care. Heck, I think Ariel did a better job for me and getting me in to Firefly, but I have a bent towards medical stories
It is a common term used but I'll throw it out there: stakes. Serenity establishes the stakes, the desperation of the crew rather than just getting a job, only to discover it doesn't jive with Mal's sense of honor. Train Job works better, for me, after seeing Serenity.
fireproof78 wrote:Yeah, the "Train Job" was not a good way to start the series. Serenity (pilot) is better, but that was, of course, the purpose. Train Job was a more rushed job, with little to invest in the characters.
Wow. Man, I could not possibly disagree more. I think The Train Job is one of the finest pieces of television writing I've ever seen. You've got an unusual sci-fi world to establish, 9 characters to introduce who already know each other (so no "I'm the captain. What do you do?" conversations), plus you've actually got to tell a story, and you've got 42 minutes. Every second of that show is doing at least double duty, and usually triple duty.
Plus, and pardon me a sec while I get my asbestos suit on, I think that Fox was right about Mal. There's a quote I have stuck in my head attributed to Joss Whedon, but if it's not, it certainly sounds to me like something he would say -- "You have to earn the right to go to the dark place". And I think that applies to Mal's character. To my mind, he's more engaging as a lead character with the shift in tone. Then when you see those flashes of the soul in torment, or when things start getting a little darker later in the series (and not even that much later), they resonate more.
And the guest stars in The Train Job are all amazing. Adelai Nishka is a great villain, and Michael Fairman is terrific. Gregg Henry hits just the right note of forceful dignity. So many great lines. "I've got a vision of it not being me. Let's do the thing." "You've got the - the light from the console... keep you, lift you up. They shine like...little angels..." "Yes, precisely. Only the exact phrase I used was 'don't.'" "Oh, I get it! I'm good. Best thing for everyone. I'm right there with ya."
Man, I gotta go watch it again right now....
Please note that I said "a start to the series." I have no problem with the episode, overall (save for some minor bits here and there). However, I think that it Mal is fine as a character, and have no problem with the darker tone.
However, and me being me, I am far more invested in someone who I understand better, and feel that the crew is better introduced in Serenity. That's me though.
I agree that the guest starts are great, and I think the Western idea of a train robbery is a fun concept. I just think that, as a pilot, it isn't the best intro to the characters, save maybe for Mal.
I will revisit it though
Tomahawk wrote:If you're gonna continuously add in characters that are seemingly of importance, make me remember them. I don't remember the names of half these characters, and I don't care for less of them.
True, but it's more than just that I think. The first time I saw LOTR, I didn't remember who a lot of the important characters were, because there were so many of them. But it was still a great movie. DoS is kind of a mess of a film, and I think it has most to do with the intense focus on the visual grandeur rather than... well, everything else. The visuals are beautiful, yes, but they're so quixotic and phony that they suck the heart out of the movie.
I know the book is more light-hearted than LOTR, but when you go bubbly with dwarves, elves and goblins, things start to get real silly real quick; and that overarching tone brings down the more serious moments. It would also help if the leader of the pack had some redeeming qualities.
I'm still mixed on Desolation of Smaug. On the one hand, it had a more serious tone with the Orcs, and spiders (yuck) as well as the revelation of Smaug. I think Bilbo is well done, showing more energy and pep and initiative, possibly because he does not want to be left behind by the company. I think the seen in Mirkwood helps establish his ability to think differently than the Dwarves.
On the other hand, I do miss the more light hearted tone of the first one, but the story is getting darker so we will call that a wash.
I agree that there are too many characters, a fault I am finding with movies more and more. Radaghast was an odd insert again, same thing with Bolg-Azog should have been Bolg from the beginning. I didn't mind the Gandalf in Dol Guldur-actually enjoyed that more than the end of the movie.
Did not enjoy Laketown, mostly because that is like twenty more characters to keep track off.
Overall, enjoyable, but I can understand the frustration.
Yeah, the "Train Job" was not a good way to start the series. Serenity (pilot) is better, but that was, of course, the purpose. Train Job was a more rushed job, with little to invest in the characters.
fireproof78 wrote:Just got back from "God's Not Dead." Very good movie, though a bit of an emotional roller coaster (happy tears and sad tears). I know that many will just think it is a Christian propaganda movie, but it is a very character driven movie, and all the actors do a great job.
If I were to fault the movie at all, is that there were too many characters. I liken it a bit to "Love, Actually,"where there are multiple character stories revolving around some central events. However, some characters don't get as much development as I would like.
Still enjoyable, and a bit emotional in many parts, but enjoyable. I haven't cried at a movie in a while and it was a rather nice experience.
To me most of the characters were too 1-dimensional/cookie-cutter, and a lot of it was very unrealistic, so that brought it down. But it did succeed in generating emotion, and Sorbo really brought it.
That was the "too many characters and stories" part that I mentioned. Some of the characters were good, Sorbo, as you mentioned, as well as the pastor and Josh. Some of the others were, as you said, more caricatures, but, had a bit of an everyman feel to it. So it is a mixed bag, depending on how you respond to the characters. Personally, I thought Amy, the blogger, and her reaction to her diagnosis was one of the better one's that I have seen in film.
Again, your mileage will vary.
I watched FROZEN. I liked it but the machinations are ridiculous. Things happen because they do. Every character makes terrible decisions until they don't.
You know, it's funny, but I kind of felt the same way. I hadn't seen the movie, except bits and pieces, until recently and was trying to figure out what bugged me about the movie.
I think you are right about that, and I think the pacing is a little off, and motivations are unclear or not explained and just happen.
However, it is still one of the better messages I've seen from a Disney princess movie, and the music is so catchy so it is definitely enjoyable. But, little things just nag at me about it. Glad someone else felt the same way.
Just got back from "God's Not Dead." Very good movie, though a bit of an emotional roller coaster (happy tears and sad tears). I know that many will just think it is a Christian propaganda movie, but it is a very character driven movie, and all the actors do a great job.
If I were to fault the movie at all, is that there were too many characters. I liken it a bit to "Love, Actually,"where there are multiple character stories revolving around some central events. However, some characters don't get as much development as I would like.
Still enjoyable, and a bit emotional in many parts, but enjoyable. I haven't cried at a movie in a while and it was a rather nice experience.
I recently read Heinlein's "The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress". It's a really interesting tale of a luna penal colony trying to gain it's independence. Well worth a read. I mentioned this to my neighbour who loves Heinlein who wouldn't let me leave without a copy of Stranger In A Strange Land
Heinlein is definitely one of my favorite authors, regardless of genre. I read "Space Cadet" and "Tunnel in the Sky" when I was around 10 and kept going. I was not a huge fan of "Stranger in a Strange Land" but it certainly was an interesting book and very different in a good way to most of the sci fi that I had read.
Sorry, sellew, that does not rings a bell
Friends In Your Head | Forums → Posts by fireproof78
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