Review: "BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE" is Morbidly Wonderful and Wonderfully Morbid

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 42 of 2024 (No. 1986) by Leroy Douresseaux

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024)

Running time:  104 minutes (1 hour, 44 minutes)

MPA – PG-13 for violent content, macabre and bloody images, strong language, some suggestive material and brief drug use.

DIRECTOR:  Tim Burton

WRITERS:  Alfred Gough & Miles Millar; from a story by Alfred Gough & Miles Millar and Seth Grahame-Smith (based on characters created by Michael McDowell and Larry Wilson)

PRODUCERS:  Tim Burton, Dede Gardner, Tommy Harper, Jeremy Kleiner, and Marc Toberoff

CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Haris Zambarloukos (D.o.P.)

EDITOR:  Jay Prychidny

COMPOSER:  Danny Elfman

COMEDY/FANTASY/HORROR

Starring:  Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Catherine O’Hara, Jenna Ortega, Justin Theroux, Willem Dafoe, Monica Bellucci, Arthur Conti, Nick Kellington, Santiago Cabrera, Burn Gorman, Sami Slimane, Amy Nuttall, and Danny DeVito

SUMMARY OF THE REVIEW:

“Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” is that rare sequel that is as weird and as wonderful as its weird and wonderful predecessor

Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, and Catherine O’Hara are so good at reprising their original roles that it is hard to believe that it has been 36 years since they first played them

“Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” is director Tim Burton's most crowd-pleasing film since 1999's “Sleepy Hollow” 

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is a 2024 American dark fantasy and comic-horror film from director Tim Burton.  It is a direct sequel to Burton's 1988 film, Beetlejuice.  Beetlejuice Beetlejuice finds three generations gathering after a family tragedy only to discover that the latest generation's actions have lead to a new encounter with the Afterlife and also has drawn the attentions of a certain bio-exorcist.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice opens over three decades after the events depicted in Beetlejuice.  Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder) is now a “psychic mediator” who hosts a supernaturally themed talk show, “Ghost House,” produced by her current boyfriend, Rory (Justin Theroux).  Lydia is estranged from her daughter, Astrid Deetz (Jenna Ortega), who is resentful that Lydia had a falling out with Astrid's father, Richard (Santiago Cabrera), who died during an expedition to the Amazon.

Lydia is stressed of late because she has been seeing visions of Betelgeuse (Michael Keaton), the “bio-exorcist” from the Afterlife who tried to force her to marry him over thirty years ago.  Meanwhile, in the Afterlife, Betelgeuse (pronounced “Beetlejuice”) is having his own relationship problems as he has learned that his former wife, Delores (Monica Bellucci), a soul-sucking witch, has been revived and is hunting him in order to avenge the wrong she believes he did to her.

Back in the world of the living, Lydia's stepmother, Delia Deetz (Catherine O'Hara), informs her that her husband, Lydia's father, Charles Deetz, has died.  Lydia, Astrid, and Delia return to Winter River (the setting of the original film) for Charles' funeral.  The three women suddenly find their worlds turned upside down when the Afterlife intrudes and Betelgeuse plots to turn this series of unfortunate events in his favor.

Because of the decades long wait for this sequel, I wondered about the quality of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.  After seeing it, I am pleased and happy to say that I enjoyed it as much as I have any film I've seen this year (2024).  I saw Beetlejuice Beetlejuice during a Thursday night preview showing, and there were several children present.  The children were restless and acted up a bit, especially early on.  Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is not a children's film, or it is, at least, not as child-friendly as the first film.  Beetlejuice had a darkly humorous and macabre sensibility that was similar to the work of the late Charles Addams (1912-1988), the cartoonist for The New Yorker magazine who was best known for his recurring characters that became known as “The Addams Family.”

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is a darker film with a morbid rather than a macabre sensibility.  The specter of death – especially sudden, violent, accidental death – hangs over this film.  Yet it all seems like ghoulish fun and games, thanks in part to director Tim Burton's creative cohorts.  The costume design, production design, film editing, cinematography, lighting, visual effects (practical and CGI), and musical score (by frequent Burton collaborator, Danny Elfman), recall the creative and intense inventiveness of the original film  They make Beetlejuice Beetlejuice more grand theater than “Grand Guignol.”  Still, I don't think elementary school age children, in general, will really enjoy this new film.

I'd call Beetlejuice Beetlejuice perfect except I do take exception with the film's writing.  Although the overall plot is very interesting, the screenplay has some extraneous threads and inessential characters.  I won't mention them just in case they end up being spoilers.

I will say that Tim Burton is fortunate to have the trio of Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, and Catherine O’Hara carrying the load for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.  When I first saw Beetlejuice, I didn’t care for Michael Keaton’s performance as Betelgeuse.  I thought his manic energy seemed forced and phony and that the late Robin Williams, who was really coming into his own as a movie star at the time, would have been a better choice.  Sixteen years later (2004), I watched Beetlejuice again, and that time I thought Keaton was perfect.  Go figure!  How wrong I was.  With Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Keaton proves that no one can be the “ghostest with the mostest” like him.

As Lydia Deetz, Winona Ryder truly evolves the character in interesting and genuinely human ways.  Ryder could easily pull off a third film if one were to be made in the next decade (hopefully earlier).  Given chance, Catherine O'Hara always proves that she is a giant among comedic actors, and does so again.  What she offered in the original film, she offers in comedic droves here.

I had a thoroughly great time at the movies last night, and even the restless kids could not ruin the very funny “Soul Train” references.  Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is that rare sequel that matches the original film in many ways and surpasses it in others.  As a movie fan, I feel blessed to have it.

8 of 10

A

★★★★ out of 4 stars

Friday, September 6, 2024

The text is copyright © 2024 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Review: "HAUNTED MANSION" is Surprisingly Charming and Delightfully Scary

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 35 of 2024 (No. 1979) by Leroy Douresseaux

Haunted Mansion (2023)

Running time:  123 minutes (2 hours, 3 minutes

MPA – PG-13 for some thematic action and scary action

DIRECTOR:  Justin Simien

WRITER:  Katie Dippold

PRODUCERS:  Jonathan Eirich and Dan Lin

CINEMATOGRAHER:  Jeffrey Waldron (D.o.P.)

EDITOR:  Phillip J. Bartell

COMPOSER:  Kris Bowers

COMEDY/FAMILY/FANTASY/HORROR

Starring:  LaKeith Stanfield, Rosario Dawson, Owen Wilson, Tiffany Haddish, Danny DeVito, Chase Dillon, J.R. Adduci, Charity Jordan, Hasan Minhaj, Daniel Levy, and Jared Leto (voice) with Winona Ryder

Haunted Mansion is a 2023 American supernatural horror-comedy and family film from director Justin Simien.  Released by Walt Disney Pictures, the film is loosely based on the Disney theme park attraction, “The Haunted Mansion,” which first opened at Disneyland in 1969.  Haunted Mansion the movie focuses on a single mom and a group of peculiar locals who attempt to exorcise her new home, an old mansion, of its troublesome ghosts.

Haunted Mansion opens in New Orleans, Louisiana.  Ben Matthias (LaKeith Stanfield) is an astrophysicist developing a camera to detect dark matter.  He marries Alyssa (Charity Jordan), a tour guide for the city's famously haunted places.  Tragedy strikes, and Ben gives up his career and continues to operate Alyssa's tour despite the face that he does not believe in ghosts and the supernatural.

Meanwhile, Gabbie (Rosario Dawson), a doctor from New York, and her young son, Travis (Chase Dillon), move to the formerly lavish, but now rundown mansion, Gracey Manor.  Her plan is to transform the abandoned place into a bed and breakfast, but she and Travis soon discover that the place is infested by so many ghosts that they can't count them all.

Father Kent (Owen Wilson), a local Catholic priest who claims to be an exorcist, is helping Gabbie with the hauntings.  He hires Ben to photograph Gracey Manor's ghosts because Ben has a “dark matter” camera that may be able to photograph ghosts.  Kent also calls in Harriet (Tiffany Haddish), a psychic with genuine abilities, and Bruce (Danny DeVito), a college historian and professor who has written a book on Gracey Manor, as additional help.

However, the ghosts of Gracey Manor immediately attach themselves to anyone who enters the mansion.  Those same ghosts are apparently afraid of an alpha ghost who is seeking one more ghost to add to his menagerie, an act that would give him ultimate power.  Can a singe mother, her son, a grieving tour guide with a ghost camera, an eccentric psychic, an odd priest, a cantankerous historian, and Madame Leota (Jamie Lee Curtis), the ghostly psychic trapped in a huge crystal ball, exercise the horrible evil that haunts Gracey Mansion?  Or will one of them have to make the ultimate sacrifice?

I have to admit that last summer, as I watched the advertisements for Haunted Mansion, I could never convince myself that it was a must-see film.  I did plan to see it... eventually because I had seen the previous take on the Disney ride, the Eddie Murphy-vehicle, The Haunted Mansion (2003).  Also, I have had my eye on Justin Simien, the director of Haunted Mansion, since I saw his 2014 film, Dear White People.  But I thought I could wait, and so I did.

Recently, I finally did see Haunted Mansion, and I am surprised by how much I like it.  It is sweet and charming, and it is one of those perfect scary family movies.  I love it.  July 28, 2024 was the one-year anniversary of Haunted Mansion original theatrical release, and the film was a huge box office disappointment.  The mistake was Disney releasing the film against 2023's box office behemoths, Barbie and Oppenheimer, which were still at the height of their box office powers in the last weekend of July 2023.

Haunted Mansion should have been a late September to early October 2023 theatrical release.  This film is perfect Halloween, from its kooky cast of characters to the literal 1001 ghosts with stories.  I think Tiffany Haddish gets the most eccentric mileage out of her character, the psychic Harriet.  Although, LaKeith Stanfield can be a bit stiff at times, the way he plays Ben Matthias brings some center and balance to the wackiness and supernatural craziness.

Jamie Lee Curtis shines in her small role as the ghostly psychic, Madame Leota, and Owen Wilson as Father Kent and Danny DeVito as Bruce are pitch perfect.  Rosario Dawson and Chase Dillon are perfectly “Disney normal” as the mother and son combo of Gabbie and Travis.

Writer Katie Dippold's screenplay, Justin Simien's direction, and the rest of the film's creative crew deliver a haunted house film that is as lavish in its production values as it is rich in chills and thrills.  The cast fills that haunted house with the consummate scary movie characters.  The Haunted Mansion 2003 was a bit of a box office disappointment, but it has gone on to become a Disney television Halloween favorite.  Given time, Haunted Mansion 2023 will also become a beloved Disney Halloween trick-or-treat. 

8 of 10

A

★★★★ out of 4 stars

Tuesday, August 13, 2024

The text is copyright © 2024 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved.  Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Negromancer News Bits and Bites from May 7th to 13th, 2023 - Update #21

by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

You can support Leroy via Paypal or on Patreon:

ENTERTAINMENT AND CULTURE NEWS:

TELEVISION - From Deadline:  ABC has cancelled the Hilary Swank-led drama, "Alaska Daily," after one season.

MOVIES - From THR:  Oscar-nominee, Willem Dafoe, is joining "Beetlejuice 2," which is due Sept. 2024.

TELEVISION - From THR:  The CW has cancelled "The Winchesters," the prequel to its long-running fantasy drama, "Supernatural," after one season.  The broadcast network also cancelled "Kung Fu" after three seasons.

From CBR:  Executive producer, Jensen Ackles, is not ready to let "The Winchesters" die in the wake of its cancellation by The CW.

MOVIES - From CBR:  Despite saying that he would NOT, Dwayne Johnson apparently does appear as his character "Luke Hobbs" in the upcoming "Fast X."

MOVIES/TRAILERS - From EW:  There is a trailer for "My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3." The film is due in theaters Sept. 8, 2023.

DISNEY - From Variety:  Disney+ is adding Hulu content for a "one-app experience" to begin later this year.  The price for Disney+ will increase, also.

CANNES - From Deadline:  FilmNation is bringing is Maria Callas biopic starring Angelina Jolie to the Cannes film market.  Callas was a Greco-American opera singer (soprano) who was one of the most influential of the 20th century.

TELEVISION - From Deadline:  NBC's "Night Court" reboot welcomes back actress Marsha Warfield, who starred as "Roz" in the original series.

SCANDAL - From CBSNews:  A federal jury in New York City found former President Donald Trump liable for battery (sexual abuse) and defamation in a civil trial stemming from allegations he raped the writer, E. Jean Carroll, in a Bergdorf Goodman department store dressing room in the mid-1990s.  She was awarded $5 million total in damages.

MOVIES - From Variety:  "Beetlejuice 2" is set for release September 6, 2024.  Original stars Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder return.  Jenna Ortega, the star of Netflix's "Wednesday," will play the daughter of Ryder's character, "Lydia Deetz."

SCANDAL - From THR:  Marvel Studios star, Jonathan Majors ("Kang the Conqueror") appears in court virtually to answer the assault charges against his girlfriend from March 25th.

MOVIES/TRAILERS - From Variety:  Warners Bros. has released a trailer for "Met 2: The Trench," a sequel to the 2018 hit, "The Meg." Both films star Jason Statham.

AMAZON - From Deadline:  Amazon Studios has formed Amazon MGM Studios Distribution, which will license Amazon original and the MGM library to the international market.

BOX OFFICE - From BoxOfficePro:  Th e winner of the 5/5 to 2/7/2023 weekend box office is Marvel Studios' "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" with an estimated total of 114 million dollars.

From Here:  A Negromancer movie review of "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" by Leroy Douresseaux.

TELEVISION - From Deadline:  CBS has uncancelled "S.W.A.T." The police drama will return for a seventh and final season.

From Deadline:  A surge in ratings could not save "S.W.A.T." from being cancelled by CBS.  The last episode of this current season (the 6th) will serve as the series finale.

OBIT:

From Variety:  The Spanish-born American graphic artist, Frank Kozik, has died at the age of 61, Saturday, May 6, 2023.  He designed the album cover art for Queens of the Stone Age's 1998 debut album, "Queens of the Stone Age" and for The Offspring's 1998 LP, "Americana."  He also designed concert posters for such musical acts as Butthole Surfers, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Soundgarden, to name a few.

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WRITERS STRIKE:

From Deadline:   President Joe Biden speaks on the Writers Guild of America strike.

From Deadline:  Retaliation! The studios have starting informing writer-producers who have "overall" and "first-look" deals that such deals are being suspended.

From Deadline:  Retaliation!  Prolific HBO creator, David Simon, who is best known for "The Wire," is one of the many writers who have had their overall deals suspended the studios due to the WGA strike.  Simon has been with HBO for 25 years.

From Deadline:  The Writers Guild of America (WGA) is on strike.

From Deadline:  Disney, HBO/HBO Max, and CBS have sent letters to showrunners (the TV equivalent of film directors) instructing them to return to work, inspite of the writer's strike.

From Deadline:  The WGA's chief negotiator, Ellen Stutzman, talks about the state of the writers' strike, including the lack of engagement on the part of the strike's other party, AMPTP.

From Deadline:  What went wrong between the WGA and AMPTP? What could they not agree on that led to a strike?

From Deadline:  The site explains the WGA strike: the issues, the stakes, movies and TV shows affected, and how long it might last.

Negromancer News Bits and Bites from August 19th to 25th, 2018 - Update #19

Support Leroy on Patreon:

BREAKING - From ABCNews:  Senator John McCain has died at the age of 81, Saturday, August 25, 2018.  A seven-term Republican senator from Arizona, he was a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War, from 1967 to 1973.

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TELEVISION - From BleedingCool:  ABC Studios is developing a reboots of the classic TV sitcom, "Bewitched" (1964 to 1972), this time starring an "interracial" couple.

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JAMES BOND - From BleedingCool:  Rumors about why Danny Boyle departed as director of "Bond 25."

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STREAMING - From TheGuardian:  An article about Stephen Maing's Hulu documentary, "Crime+Punishment," about a group of minority NYPD officers who took on the illegal quota system.

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MOVIES  - From Deadline:  Lena Dunham is among new cast added to Quentin Tarantino's "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood."

From TheWrap:  Mike Moh will play legendary movie star, Bruce Lee, in "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood."  Article contains a link to a fine interview with the author of the biography, "Bruce Lee: A Life."

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CULTURE - From Deadline:  Revered Chinese -American actor, James Hong, speaks on his career on on the success of "Crazy Rich Asians."  Wong never thought it would take this long.

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COMICS-STREAMING - From Deadline:  Brendan Fraser will star as "Robotman" in "Doom Patrol," for the streaming service, "DC Universe."

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TELEVISION - From Deadline:  This coming TV season, the 2018-19 season, will be "The Big Bang Theory's" 12th and final season.  The popular CBS comedy will end its record-setting run in May 2019.

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MOVIES - From Collider:  Peter Jackson's World War I documentary is entitled "They Shall Not Grow Old," and it will premiere October 16th at the 2018 BFI London Film Festival.

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JAMES BOND - From Deadline:  Oscar-winning director Danny Boyle is out as director of the 25th James Bond film, which is due in U.S. theaters in Nov. 2019.

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AWARDS - From TheWrap:  2018 MTV VMA winners list.

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From Deadline:  TNT has ordered a talk show pilot from its "Claws" star, Niecy Nash.

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BOX OFFICE - From BoxOfficeMojo:  The winner of the 8/17 to 8/19/2018 weekend box office is "Crazy Rich Asians" with an estimated take of $25.2 million and also an estimated $34 million over its five days in release.

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SCANDAL - From YahooNews:  #MeToo figure and Harvey Weinstein accuser, Asia Argento, apparently paid off a male teen who accused Argento of sexually assaulting him.

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TELEVISION - From Deadline:  Fall Premiere Dates For New & Returning Series: 2018 Edition

MOVIES - From TheWrap:  Winona Ryder and Keanu Reeves have reunited on the film, "Destination Wedding." But Ryder thinks she and Reeves were actually married during a wedding scene in 1992's "Bram Stoker's Dracula."  [That is one of my all-time favorite films.]

OBITS:

From THR:  Veteran entertainment journalist, Robin Leach, has died at the age of 76, Friday, August 24, 2018.  Leach was best known as the host of the syndicated TV series, "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous" (1984-1995).

From Variety and TVLine:  Film and television producer, Craig Zadan, has died at the age of 69, Tuesday, August 20, 2018.  Zadan and his partner Neil Meron produced ABC's Academy Awards telecast from 2013 to 2016.  He produced the original "Footloose" (1984), among several films. He produced NBC's recent string of live musicals, beginning with 2013's "The Sound of Music Live!" up to this year's "Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert."

From BBC:  Former United Nations secretary-general Kofi Annan, has died at the age of 80, Saturday, August 18, 2018.  In 2001, Annan, born in the African nation of Ghana, won the Nobel Peace Prize for his humanitarian work.

Review: Father and Daughter Hold Down the "Homefront"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 11 (of 2014) by Leroy Douresseaux

Homefront (2013)
Running time:  101 minutes (1 hour, 41 minutes)
MPAA – R for strong violence, pervasive language, drug content and brief sexuality
DIRECTOR:  Gary Fleder
WRITER:  Sylvester Stallone (based upon the novel by Chuck Logan)
PRODUCERS:  Sylvester Stallone, Kevin King Templeton, John Thompson, and Les Weldon
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Theo van de Sande
EDITOR:  Padraic McKinley
COMPOSER:  Mark Isham

CRIME/ACTION/DRAMA/THRILLER

Starring:  Jason Statham, James Franco, Izabela Vidovic, Kate Bosworth, Marcus Hester, Winona Ryder, Clancy Brown, Omar Benson Miller, Rachelle Lefevre, Frank Grillo, Chuck Zito, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Linds Edward, and Austin Craig

Homefront is a 2013 crime thriller and action movie from director Gary Fleder.  The film is loosely based on the 2005 novel, Homefront, by author Chuck Logan.  Homefront the movie focuses on a former DEA agent who moves to a small town, where he soon catches the attention of a local drug lord.

Homefront is a mean, gritty little bastard of a film.  It is a true southern gothic in the tradition of such movies as White Lighting (a Burt Reynolds classic), Deliverance, and Walking Tall.

Widowed ex-solider Phil Broker (Jason Statham) works undercover for the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA).  After an operation goes bad, Broker retires, and he and his 10-year-old daughter, Maddy (Izabela Vidovic), move to the quiet Southern town of Rayville.  However, the small town is riddled with drugs and violence, and, after Maddy gets into a fight at her new school, Broker discovers that Rayville is not as idyllic as it seems on the surface.  Broker catches the attention of Gator Bodine (James Franco), a local drug lord with big ambitions.  Those ambitions cause Gator to go into Broker’s past, which brings trouble for everyone.

It is too easy to mock a screenplay written by Sylvester Stallone; after all, he has been writing movie scripts for four decades.  His Homefront screenplay is tightly written, perhaps a bit too tightly.  The movie runs at about an hour-and-a-half of actual story time, which is too short for the plot and characters.  Stallone introduces several characters and establishes them as potentially having a major impact on the story.  Many of them, however, end up being used sparingly, especially the teacher Susan Hetch (Rachelle Lefevre), who might have romantic feelings for Broker.  Cassie Bodine Klum (Kate Bosworth), as a character connected to both Broker and Bodine, has the most potential to improve the drama in Homefront, but, except for a few scenes, Cassie is underutilized.

What Stallone’s script gets right is the relationship between Broker and his daughter, Maddy.  The film takes the time to establish how important both characters are to each other.  The movie emphasizes two things:   as a family that recently underwent loss, Broker and Maddy are in a fragile state and also that external threats are not the only things that can damage the family.  Maddy is every bit as stubborn and determined as her father, and her love for him won’t deter her from confronting him.  So when the bad guys start attacking, the audience will buy into the threat to the family because the film made the bond and relationship between Broker and Maddy seem genuine and honest.

Fear not, Jason Statham fans; our guy gets to kick ass and pop caps.  Director Gary Fleder and film editor Padraic McKinley largely eschew CGI god-tech and instead, offer old-fashioned, no-gloss gunfights that will glue your attention to the screen.  The bone-crunching, ball-rupturing, face-smashing fights are short and to the point, and I found myself re-watching them.

Homefront is one of the better Jason Statham vehicles because his character seems more grounded in realism.  Phil Broker is both susceptible to being hurt and has something to lose.  And because this movie was not a box office success, we likely won’t get to see Statham as Broker in another film – a pity.

6 of 10
B

Sunday, March 09, 2014


The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

Review: Sparky Zaps Uninspired "Frankenweenie"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 40 (of 2013) by Leroy Douresseaux


Frankenweenie (2012) – Black and White
Running time: 87 minutes (1 hour, 27 minutes)
MPAA – PG for thematic elements, scary images and action
DIRECTOR: Tim Burton
WRITER: John August (based on the screenplay by Leonard Ripps, which was based on an original idea by Tim Burton)
PRODUCERS: Allison Abbate and Tim Burton
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Peter Sorg
EDITORS: Mark Solomon
COMPOSER: Danny Elfman
Academy Award nominee

SCI-FI/COMEDY/FAMILY with elements of horror

Starring: (voices) Charlie Tahan, Catherine O’Hara, Martin Short, Martin Landau, Atticus Shaffer, Winona Ryder, Robert Capron, James Hiroyuki Liao, and Conchata Ferrell, with Dee Bradley Baker and Frank Welker

Frankenweenie is a 2012 black and white, stop-motion animation film, presented in 3D, from director Tim Burton. This sci-fi family film is a remake of Burton’s 1984 live-action short film, also entitled Frankenweenie. Frankenweenie the movie is a parody of and pays homage to Universal Pictures’ 1931 film, Frankenstein (an adaptation of Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel, Frankenstein: or, The Modern Prometheus). Frankenweenie is the story of a boy scientist who brings his dead dog back to life.

Frankenweenie focuses on kid filmmaker and budding scientist, Victor Frankenstein (Charlie Tahan). Victor and his parents, Susan and Edward Frankenstein (Catherine O’Hara and Martin Short), live in the quiet town of New Holland. After his dog, Sparky (Frank Welker), is hit by a car and killed, Victor falls into a depression. Inspired by his teacher, Mr. Rzykruski (Martin Landau), Victor comes up with an idea to revive Sparky’s corpse. Bringing his beloved Sparky back to life, however, has unintended and monstrous consequences.

Screenwriter John August has written two mediocre Tim Burton films, Big Fish and Corpse Bride. He also wrote Burton’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, but the screenplay was not the film’s strong suit. August almost wrote a third mediocre Burton film, Frankenweenie, but there are some elements in the movie’s second half that do the heavy lifting of making this at least a good movie.

As in his best films, Burton focuses on the misfits, and since Frankenweenie is filled with misfits and oddballs, it should be a great film. But Frankenweenie isn’t great, and that is because many of the characters just aren’t that interesting or engaging. It takes practically the entire picture for Victor Frankenstein to come to life, and his mom and dad are cardboard cutout versions of parents from 1950s television sitcoms. The flat monotone voice performances from much of the cast don’t help.

There are two good human characters, neither of which have enough screen time, as far as I’m concerned. There is the sly Edgar “E” Gore (Atticus Shaffer), a hunch-backed kid who would have made a nice sidekick for Victor. Next is the Vincent Price-inspired Mr. Rzykruski, who delivers this movie’s best moment in a speech before a mob-like gathering of “concerned” parents.

The star is Sparky, or, at least, Sparky should have been the star. I think this movie would be much better if it were told from the re-animated dog’s point-of-view. Sparky is proof that when used wisely, a dog can be both the star and the saving grace of a movie. There are also a few science-created monsters that liven up Frankenweenie’s last act.

Filming this movie in black and white was the wrong decision. I know that the black and white choice had to do with all the movies to which Frankenweenie pays homage, but who cares? Referencing Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein has been done to death. Color would have made this movie visually pop on the screen, and this often-flat flick needed some pop. Animated films, even stop-motion, are best in color.

What does give this movie some pop is the musical score by Danny Elfman, a long-time collaborator with Burton. Elfman’s score is a lovely amalgamation of textures, styles, moods, and, if you can imagine it, colors. As the story advances, I could feel Elfman imposing his will on the movie. This is his best work in years.

So Mr. Burton: no more John August, no more black and white, and no more references to the films and pop culture that filled your childhood and apparently left an indelible mark on you. Your desire to parody and to homage hurt Frankenweenie.

6 of 10
B

NOTES:
2013 Academy Awards, USA: 1 nomination: “Best Animated Feature” (Tim Burton)

2013 BAFTA Awards: “Best Animated Film” (Tim Burton)

2013 Golden Globes, USA: “Best Animated Film”

Monday, June 10, 2013

Review: "Bram Stoker’s Dracula" Still a Stand-Out Dracula Movie

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 16 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux

Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992)
Running time: 128 minutes (2 hours, 8 minutes)
MPAA – R for sexuality and horror violence
DIRECTOR: Francis Ford Coppola
WRITER: James V. Hart (based upon the novel by Bram Stoker)
PRODUCERS: Fred Fuchs, Charles Mulvehill, and Francis Ford Coppola
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Michael Ballhaus
EDITORS: Anne Goursaud, Glen Scantlebury, and Nicholas C. Smith
COMPOSER: Wojciech Kilar
Academy Award winner

HORROR/FANTASY/ROMANCE with elements of drama

Starring: Gary Oldman, Winona Ryder, Anthony Hopkins, Keanu Reeves, Richard E. Grant, Cary Elwes, Bill Campbell, Sadie Frost, Tom Waits, and Monica Bellucci

The subject of this movie review is Bram Stoker’s Dracula, a 1992 vampire movie and Gothic horror film from director Francis Ford Coppola. The film’s screenplay essentially takes the familiar Dracula story and emphasizes romantic and sensual elements. The film’s lavish production values helped it earn many honors, box office success, and some favorable attention from film critics.

Francis Ford Coppola’s lavish and colorful gothic extravaganza, Bram Stoker’s Dracula, is a three-time Academy Award winner. Dazzling, lush, and sensuous, the film affirms Coppola’s place as imaginative and brilliant filmmaker. The film also testifies to the talents of all the cohorts. Eschewing the (then) burgeoning use of computers to add special effects to films, the SFX, cinematographer, makeup, sets artists, and designers used old-fashioned craftsmanship and artistry to create an amazing movie that harks to the past while looking out of this world impossible.

The film’s story is similar to previous adaptations of Bram Stoker’s novel (although most films are actually based on an early 20th century stage version of Stoker’s novel than the novel itself), but the attraction here is the visual interpretation. Jonathan Harker (Keanu Reeves), a young lawyer, travels to into the gloomy misty land of Eastern Europe, Transylvania, to meet a mysterious client, Count Dracula (Gary Oldman), who is buying several tracts of property in London. Dracula, a vampire, later imprisons Harker when he discovers that Mina Murray (Winona Ryder), Harker’s fiancée, exactly resembles is late human wife, Elisabeta (Ms. Ryder), who killed herself centuries ago. Dracula travels in secret to London where he seduces and drains the life out of Mina’s friend, Lucy Westenra (Sadie Frost). However, the cautious Dr. Jack Seward (Richard E. Grant) summons his old mentor, Professor Abraham Van Helsing (Anthony Hopkins) who immediately recognizes Lucy’s ailment and subsequent death as the work of a vampire. Van Helsing gathers Lucy’s friends to destroy Dracula, but the undead count has in eyes on Mina, and she, surprisingly, as her eyes on him.

The film is very entertaining, a stunning visual treat, and a unique horror film that hypnotizes you into watching it over and over again. Gary Oldman is one of the best screen Dracula’s ever; he is magnificent and alluring, but also fearsome and awe-inspiring. Winona Ryder is simultaneously demure and spirited as the brave Mina who is also secretly a naughty girl. The rest of the cast is mostly hit or miss. Anthony Hopkins gives a mostly annoying performance as Van Helsing, in which he only occasionally makes the character the brave and resolute leader he was in the original novel. Keanu Reeves is wooden, stiff, and nearly undead himself as Jonathan Harker. How could Mina not choose an undead monster with romantic inclinations over a pebble like Reeves’ Harker. The rest of the cast is functional and has its moments. The attraction here is the amazing work of Coppola and his filmmaking crew, as well as the screen duo of Oldman and Ms. Ryder; they’re the reasons you see this film.

7 of 10
A-

NOTES:
1993 Academy Awards: 3 wins: “Best Costume Design” (Eiko Ishioka), “Best Effects, Sound Effects Editing” (Tom C. McCarthy and David E. Stone), and “Best Makeup” (Greg Cannom, Michèle Burke, and Matthew W. Mungle); 1 nomination: “Best Art Direction-Set Decoration” (Thomas E. Sanders and Garrett Lewis)

1994 BAFTA Awards: 4 nominations: “Best Costume Design” (Eiko Ishioka), “Best Make Up Artist” (Greg Cannom, Michèle Burke, and Matthew W. Mungle), “Best Production Design” (Thomas E. Sanders), and “Best Special Effects” (Roman Coppola, Gary Gutierrez, Michael Lantieri, and Gene Warren Jr.)

"Frankenweenie: an Electrifying Book" a Free iTunes Book

Disney Publishing Worldwide Lets Fans Go Behind-the-Scenes of Tim Burton’s New Animated Film Unveiling Frankenweenie: an Electrifying Book

Features Exclusive Art, Video, and Music into Disney’s First Book to Leverage Apple’s iBooks Author

GLENDALE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Disney Publishing Worldwide announced today the release of Frankenweenie: An Electrifying Book, based on Walt Disney Studios’ highly anticipated stop-motion animated film directed by Tim Burton, “Frankenweenie,” in theaters October 5, 2012. Capturing the creative process from concept to completion, the interactive book integrates videos, vibrant music, and original sketches to offer readers a fully immersive behind-the-scenes look into the making of the movie. Available on the iBookstore (http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/frankenweenie-electrifying/id557041056?mt=11), this book is Disney Publishing’s first to be created with Apple’s iBooks Author.

“We’re thrilled to give fans a look at how Tim Burton and his creative team brought Victor Frankenstein and Sparky to life in the town of New Holland,” said Lyle Underkoffler, vice president, Digital Media, Disney Publishing Worldwide. “Using iBooks Author, Disney Publishing was able to include more digital content than ever before—including previews of animated storyboards documenting the transition from sketch to screen.”

Frankenweenie: An Electrifying Book incorporates a brief history of the 1984 live-action short film and details the upcoming full-length stop-motion animated feature, including a foreword by Academy Award®-winning actor Martin Landau (the voice of Mr. Rzykruski in the film) and introductions to over 200 resident puppets of New Holland (with a special introduction to Victor and Sparky), as well as a look into “The Art of Frankenweenie Exhibition,” now on tour.

A chapter on the film’s music includes previews of each track from the original motion picture score by Oscar®-nominated and GRAMMY®-winning composer Danny Elfman and from Frankenweenie Unleashed!, a 16-song compilation of music from and inspired by the film, featuring artists including Karen O, Neon Trees, and Kimbra. Both albums will be available from Walt Disney Records on September 25 and can be purchased directly from within the book.

Using Apple’s iBooks Author app, Disney Publishing was able to include video, audio, multi-touch, and 3D widgets to create a robust storytelling experience that enlightens “Frankenweenie” fans of all ages. Readers can watch interviews featuring producer Allison Abbate and executive producer Don Hahn and explore the art of stop-motion animation with Tim Burton, while younger fans can create their own “chalkboard collage” using the film’s characters.

“Thirty years after he first visualized 'Frankenweenie' as a student at CalArts, Tim Burton has finally made the movie he dreamed of making way back then,” said Martin Landau, voice of Mr. Rzykruski in the film. "The eBook reveals how a truncated, live-action version made by Tim three decades ago evolved into the 90-minute, black-and-white, stop-motion (Tim’s favorite animation process), 3D motion picture that he visualized all those years ago. It’s wonderful that Tim has managed to keep Victor and his friends young, energetic, and alive for 30 plus years."

In addition to the eBook, Disney Publishing Worldwide has released several print books in support of the feature film, including Frankenweenie: A Cinematic Storybook, Frankenweenie: A Novel, and Frankenweenie: A Monstrous Menagerie of Stickers! A graphic novel and a visual companion will also be available at retail in the coming months.

Frankenweenie: An Electrifying Book is available for free exclusively on the iBookstore in 32 countries around the world.


ABOUT THE MOVIE
From creative genius Tim Burton (“Alice in Wonderland,” “The Nightmare Before Christmas”) comes “Frankenweenie,” a heartwarming tale about a boy and his dog. After unexpectedly losing his beloved dog Sparky, young Victor harnesses the power of science to bring his best friend back to life—with just a few minor adjustments. He tries to hide his home-sewn creation, but when Sparky gets out, Victor’s fellow students, teachers and the entire town all learn that getting a new “leash on life” can be monstrous.

A stop-motion animated film, “Frankenweenie” was filmed in black and white and rendered in 3D. The talented voice cast includes: Catherine O’Hara, Martin Short, Martin Landau, Charlie Tahan, Atticus Shaffer, Robert Capron, Conchata Ferrell and Winona Ryder.

Presented by Disney, “Frankenweenie” is directed by Tim Burton, produced by Tim Burton and Allison Abbate, from a screenplay by John August, based on a screenplay by Lenny Ripps, based on an original idea by Tim Burton. “Frankenweenie” releases in U.S. theaters on October 5, 2012.

ABOUT DISNEY PUBLISHING WORLDWIDE
Disney Publishing Worldwide (DPW) is the world's largest publisher of children's books and magazines, with over 250 million children's books and over 400 million children's magazines sold each year. Disney Publishing Worldwide consists of an extensive worldwide licensing structure as well as vertically integrated publishing imprints including Disney Book Group in the U.S., Disney Libri in Italy, and Disney Libros in Spain. DPW publishes a range of children's magazines globally, including Topolino, Le Journal de Mickey, and Donald Duck, as well as family titles in the U.S., which include Disney Princess and Phineas and Ferb. Disney English is DPW's English language learning business, which includes Disney English schools in China and a worldwide retail licensing program. DPW's digital products include best-selling eBook titles as well as original apps. Headquartered in White Plains, NY, Disney Publishing Worldwide publishes books, magazines, and digital products in 85 countries in 75 languages. For more information visit www.disneypublishing.com.

ABOUT DISNEY MUSIC GROUP
Disney Music Group is home to Hollywood Records, Walt Disney Records, and Disney Music Publishing. The labels’ genre-spanning rosters include Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato, McClain Sisters, American Idol finalist Stefano, Coco Jones, R5, Lucy Hale, Grace Potter & The Nocturnals, Plain White T’s, Redlight King, Cherri Bomb, Bridgit Mendler, ZZ Ward, and more. DMG also releases family music and film and television soundtracks such as Avengers Assemble, Phineas and Ferb, Shake It Up, A.N.T. Farm, and TRON: Legacy.

Review: "A Scanner Darkly" is Amazing (Happy B'day, Keanu Reeves)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 166 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

A Scanner Darkly (2006)
Running time: 100 minutes (1 hour, 40 minutes)
MPAA – R for drug and sexual content, language, and a brief violent image
DIRECTOR: Richard Linklater
WRITER: Richard Linklater (based upon the novel by Philip K. Dick)
PRODUCERS: Tommy Pallotta, Jonah Smith, Erwin Stoff, Anne Walker-McBay, and Palmer West
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Shane F. Kelly
EDITOR: Sandra Adair
COMPOSER: Graham Reynolds

SCI-FI/DRAMA/MYSTERY

Starring: Keanu Reeves, Robert Downey, Jr., Woody Harrelson, Rory Cochrane, Winona Ryder, Chamblee Ferguson, and Angela Rawna

The subject of this movie review is A Scanner Darkly, a 2006 science fiction thriller and animated film from director Richard Linklater. The film is based on the 1977 Philip K. Dick novel of the same title, and George Clooney and Steven Soderbergh are among its executive producers.

In a future world (“7 years from now” the movie tells us) where drug addiction is rampant, law enforcement will do anything to catch dealers and their suppliers – even turn one of their own into an addict. Fred (Keanu Reeves) is an undercover agent who spies on (or “scans”) a drug addict and dealer named Bob Arctor (Keanu Reeves). Through this assignment Fred becomes hooked on Substance D, a hallucinogenic drug that is as destructive as meth is in our own times. However, this tale has a twist on reality for us. Fred is also Bob. Fred finds his sanity splintered as he deals with his duplicitous law enforcement superiors, and, as Bob, with the two addicts who are his housemates: the shaggy dopester, Ernie Luckman (Woody Harrelson), and the conniving James Barris (Robert Downey, Jr.). Barris turns stool pigeon and joins Fred and his superiors in a complicated scheme to catch Bob and tear down Bob’s drug operation. Meanwhile, Bob has fallen in love with another addict, Donna Hawthorne (Winona Ryder), but there may be more to her than meets the eye.

Richard Linklater’s trippy sci-fi film, A Scanner Darkly, is an animated film, but not the kind we usually think of (Disney, Pixar, DreamWorks, Warner Bros., etc.). For this movie, Linklater shot live-action footage of his cast and the sets. Animators then took that footage and painstakingly drew and painted over it – a process known as “interpolated rotoscoping” or simply “rotoscoping.” There was some rotoscoping in early Disney animated features, possibly Snow White and the Seven Dwarves (the animators animated Snow White by drawing her over footage of a live actress). Linklater used this process in his 2001 experimental film, Waking Life. Here, it’s like watching a film in which the characters, objects, places, and settings are all shifting liquids – living paint-by-numbers pastels.

As for the quality of the rotoscoping in A Scanner Darkly on the performances, the cast largely looks like themselves, and the audience will certainly recognize the bigger names here: Keanu Reeves, Robert Downey, Jr., and Woody Harrelson. Only Winona Ryder seems less like herself, at least until the end, and that may have been a deliberate choice on the part of Linklater. The technique serves the actors quiet well. They seem lively and free to be someone other than their famous selves, even Reeves who can be a bit stiff. It’s the kind of freedom that comes from wearing a masking, and in a sense, knowing that film recording of your performance will be painted over is like acting with a mask.

As for the narrative, A Scanner Darkly is trippy, but Linklater has captured the paranoia and schizophrenia of Dick’s work on screen like no one has ever done before. That’s saying a lot considering that Dick’s short stories have become films such as Total Recall, Minority Report, and Paycheck, and one of his novels became the film, Blade Runner. Published in 1977, Dick’s novel is a sci-fi allegorical recount of his drug experiences going back to the 1960’s, and it’s one of his most beloved works. I’m happy that Linklater was able to make his own film while retaining so much of PKD’s lunacy.

Here, it’s fun to wonder who is really who and if what’s going on is “real” or just drug-induced fantasies or simply paranoia. Linklater adds a counter-culture, post-millennium vibe all his own. The narrative gets a bit soft and slow in the middle and at the beginning of the last act, but otherwise Linklater’s experiment reaches for perfection. This is like watching his classic mid-90’s flick, Dazed and Confused with a David Lynch remix and backbeats from Requiem for a Dream. Occasionally maddening, sometimes confusing, rarely stupefying, A Scanner Darkly is an experimentalist art film that succeeds on the very path the filmmaker set for it.

9 of 10
A+

Friday, August 4, 2006

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First Burton/Depp Joint, "Edward Scissorhands" is a Classic

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 34 (of 2012) by Leroy Douresseaux


Edward Scissorhands (1990)
Running time: 105 minutes (1 hour, 45 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13
DIRECTOR: Tim Burton
WRITERS: Caroline Thompson; from a story by Tim Burton and Caroline Thompson
PRODUCERS: Tim Burton and Denise Di Novi
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Stefan Czapsky (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Richard Halsey
COMPOSER: Danny Elfman
Academy Award nominee

FANTASY/ROMANCE

Starring: Johnny Depp, Winona Ryder, Dianne Wiest, Alan Arkin, Anthony Michael Hall, Kathy Baker, Robert Oliveri, Conchata Ferrell, Caroline Aaron, O-Lan Jones, Dick Anthony Williams, and Vincent Price

The subject of this movie review is Edward Scissorhands, a fairy tale film from director Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp in the title role. Edward Scissorhands is the first of several films in which Burton and Depp have collaborated, including the shortly to be released Dark Shadows.

A romantic fantasy, the film opens with an elderly woman telling her granddaughter where the snow outside their window comes from (because they live in an area in which snow is not common). That story begins when a local Avon saleswoman, Peg Boggs (Dianne Wiest) visits a Gothic mansion that sits on a hill just outside her suburban neighborhood. She finds Edward (Tim Burton) hiding in the castle. Edward is a mechanical young man created by an old inventor (Vincent Price), and he has scissor-like contraptions where his wrists and hands should be.

Peg takes Edward home where he befriends her son, Kevin (Robert Oliveri), meets her husband, Bill (Alan Arkin), and later meets and falls in love with her teen daughter, Kim (Winona Ryder). At first Edward fits right in with the family, and the neighbors also take to him, especially after they discover that he has skills they can put to use. However, petty jealousies, simple misunderstandings, and selfish interests soon make it difficult and dangerous for both the Boggs and Edward.

Critics and movie fans have described Edward Scissorhands as Tim Burton’s most personal film. According to the 2006 book, Burton on Burton (by author Mark Salisbury), the title character of Edward Scissorhands comes out of a teenaged Burton’s feelings of isolation and also his inability to fit in and to communicate with the people in the suburb where he grew up. The more I saw of Burton and of his work, both films and illustrations, the more Edward Scissorhands’ themes of self-discovery and isolation made sense to me. I can see Burton, a Goth-type teen with his strange drawings and stranger looks, not exactly fitting in with the conformity zone that suburban areas are (at least on the surface, cause there’s no telling what goes on behind closed doors).

Seriously though, I think Edward Scissorhands goes beyond mere commentary about familiar suburban vs. rebel themes. In the film, the Boggs live in a drab suburban world that manages to make even the pastel colors that blanket the wood frame homes seem dull and boring. When Edward comes into the Boggs’ world, it isn’t so much that he is a breath of fresh air. It is that he becomes a novelty act, and he is accepted, for the most part, as long has his talents are of use to his new neighbors and as long he entertains. The black-garbed Edward is the proverbial Negro in a white bougie woodpile.

Edward, although he is a mechanical boy, has a good soul and has an open spirit. He isn’t clueless, as throughout the film, we can observe how quickly Edward learns. He has a surprising sense of humor, born of the way he can see past the façades people put forth. The problem for Edward is that he is open-minded or, at least, open to new experiences; his neighbors are not.

In this film’s last act, the neighbors reveal themselves for what they really are – a white citizens council, a lynch mob willfully ignoring any truths so that they can kill someone. They want an excuse, any excuse, to get out the torches and pitchforks. Hell, when it comes down to it, they don’t really need an excuse. It is not a coincidence that the most understanding and sympathetic person to Edward, outside the Boggs, is an African-American police officer played by the late Dick Anthony Williams (who died in February of this year.)

One can make an argument that Edward Scissorhands is Burton’s best film. For all its autobiographical elements, it is his sharpest and most satirical drama. In the context of Burton’s apparent persecuted youth, Edward Scissorhands is the revenge of the nerd that made it in spite of the haters.

9 of 10
A+

NOTES:
1991 Academy Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Makeup” (Ve Neill and Stan Winston)

1992 BAFTA Awards: 1 win: “Best Production Design” (Bo Welch); 3 nominations: “Best Costume Design” (Colleen Atwood), “Best Make Up Artist” (Ve Neill), and “Best Special Visual Effects” (Stan Winston)

1991 Golden Globes, USA: 1 nomination: “Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Comedy/Musical” (Johnny Depp)

Wednesday, May 09, 2012

Review: "Beetle Juice" Never Loses its Juice (Happy B'day, Michael Keaton)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 226 (of 2004) by Leroy Douresseaux

Beetle Juice (1988)
Running time: 92 minutes (1 hour, 32 minutes)
MPAA – PG
DIRECTOR: Tim Burton
WRITERS: Michael McDowell and Warren Skaaren; from a story by Larry Wilson and Michael McDowell
PRODUCERS: Michael Bender, Richard Hashimoto, and Larry Wilson
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Thomas Ackerman
EDITOR: Jane Kurson
COMPOSER: Danny Elfman
Academy Award winner

COMEDY/FANTASY with elements of horror

Starring: Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Jeffrey Jones, Catherine O’Hara, Glenn Shadix, Annie McEnroe, Rachel Mittelman, Patrice Martinex, Dick Cavett, and Sylvia Sidney

One of my very personal favorite films and the film that made me a Tim Burton fan is Beetle Juice, the story of a young couple whose accidental deaths starts them on a journey of wildly bizarre exploits filled with uncanny events, tricky people, and fantastic creatures. Adam (Alec Baldwin) and Barbara Maitland’s (Geena Davis) premature deaths in a car accident leaves them ghosts in their New England home. Getting used to death is one thing, but the Maitlands face an even bigger challenge. Charles (Jeffrey Jones) and Delia (Catherine O’Hara), a pretentious New York couple, have bought the Maitlands’ home and Delia is determined to transform the old-fashioned abode into a postmodern art show place.

Adam and Barbara befriend the couple’s daughter, Lydia (Winona Ryder), who is not only fascinated with all things morbid and macabre, but she can see the Maitlands. However, Adam and Barbara turn to Betelgeuse (Michael Keaton), a “bio-exorcist,” a mischievous spirit who claims he can exorcise the living, to chase Charles, Barbara, and their obnoxious friends from their house. But Betelgeuse has own evil agenda behind his guise of helping the undead young couple reclaim their home.

The concept was tailored made for director Tim Burton’s unique visual style, and he certainly molded the film with his “twisted” imagination and skewered vision, as he and his co-conspirators pack the film with clever ideas, fantastical objects and locations, and kooky gags. Beetle Juice was the last time Burton seemed to really let loose and have fun on a truly wacky filmed.

Still, some of the credit should go to the art director and set decorators, costume designers, SFX people, and make up artists, as the combination of these artists and craftsman created a film that gloriously combines pulp fiction nonsense, pop art, and modern art into one of the few films that looks and feels like a cool Looney Tunes cartoon. Also, Danny Elfman’s score for the movie is one of the great film scores of the last two decades of the 20th century.

When I first saw this film, I didn’t care for Michael Keaton’s performance as the title villain; at the time, his manic energy seemed forced and phony. Sixteen years later, it seems just right; go figure. The rest of the cast gives inspired performances that fit the film’s darkly comic tone, making Beetle Juice a unique film treat. It’s not a great film, (the third act seems rushed and… damaged), but I like it.

7 of 10
A-

NOTES:
1989 Academy Awards: 1 win: “Best Makeup” (Ve Neill, Steve LaPorte, and Robert Short)

1989 BAFTA Awards: 2 nominations: “Best Make Up Artist” (Ve Neill, Steve LaPorte, and Robert Short) and “Best Special Effects” (Peter Kuran, Alan Munro, Robert Short, and Ted Rae)

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Review: Portman and Aronofsky Give "Black Swan" Its Wings

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 42 (of 2011) by Leroy Douresseaux

Black Swan (2010)
Running time: 108 minutes (1 hour, 48 minutes)
MPAA – R for strong sexual content, disturbing violent images, language and some drug use
DIRECTOR: Darren Aronofsky
WRITERS: Mark Heyman, Andrés Heinz, and John McLaughlin; from a story by Andrés Heinz
PRODUCERS: Scott Franklin, Mike Medavoy, Arnold Messer, and Brian Oliver
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Matthew Libatique (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Andrew Weisblum
COMPOSER: Clint Mansell
Academy Award winner

DRAMA/THRILLER

Starring: Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, Barbara Hershey, Winona Ryder, and Benjamin Millepied

Black Swan in an Oscar-winning psychological thriller directed by Darren Aronofsky. It is the story of a ballerina descending into delusion and paranoia as opening night nears and the pressure to be perfect builds. Black Swan isn’t entirely satisfying, except for the dark and gleaming magic director Darren Aronofsky and star Natalie Portman make.

Nina Sayers (Natalie Portman) is a ballerina in a prestigious New York City ballet company. Her life is completely consumed with dance, and she lives with her obsessive mother, the former ballerina Erica Sayers (Barbara Hershey), who exerts a suffocating control over her daughter. Thomas Leroy (Vincent Cassel), the artistic director of her ballet company, decides to make Swan Lake the opening production of their new ballet season. Thomas wants to replace prima ballerina, Beth MacIntyre (Winona Ryder), and needs to cast a new principal dancer. But this new lead must be able to portray both the innocent and fragile White Swan and her sensual evil twin, the Black Swan.

Nina is Thomas’ first choice to play the coveted role of the Swan Queen, but Nina has competition. A new dancer named Lily (Mila Kunis) impresses Thomas as well. Swan Lake requires a dancer who can play the White Swan with innocence and grace and also capture the guile and sensuality of the Black Swan. Nina is a perfect fit for the White Swan, but bad girl Lily is the personification of the Black Swan. The two young dancers become friends, but as opening night approaches, that friendship twists into a treacherous rivalry. Nina struggles to access the dark side within her that will allow her to depict the Black Swan with perfection, but her new reckless behavior threatens to destroy her.

Black Swan is indeed a good movie; in fact, it is sometimes riveting, but not because of the writing. The script is shallow, and the screenwriters put the onus on the viewers to accept the great leaps of faith the writers make with the development of Nina Sayers. The depictions of her delusions and paranoia often seem contrived, but the writers handle Nina better than they do the other characters.

Vincent Cassel’s Thomas Leroy is such a stereotype that you can see Cassel fighting onscreen to make his character real or tangible rather than just be a type. Barbara Hershey is more successful in making Erica Sayers a character that electrifies the story every time she appears, but Erica is really a tired stage mother type. Mila Kunis is blood sugar sex magic as Lily, but I get the feeling that the screenwriters were afraid of where this character could take the story. Lily often seems like spicy seasoning overused in some places and woefully underutilized in others.

Black Swan’s success is in Natalie Portman and in the way Darren Aronofsky uses the camera to drink in every bit of Portman’s virtuoso performance. This duo makes Black Swan wonderfully creepy, almost always managing to stop whenever the entire thing seems on the verge of turning campy. Portman is passionate when being passionate is better than being intense. Black Swan looks good under Aronofsky’s bold direction. Watching this film, I believed that I could see him with a handheld camera just outside the picture frame gliding behind Portman.

Perhaps it is Aronofsky chasing Portman that makes this movie feel so wildly melodramatic. Everything that is so attractively lurid, sensational, and bracing about Black Swan is because of this director-star pairing made in heaven.

8 of 10
A

NOTES:
2011 Academy Awards: 1 win: “Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role” (Natalie Portman); 1 nominations: “Best Motion Picture of the Year” (Mike Medavoy, Brian Oliver, and Scott Franklin), “Best Achievement in Cinematography” (Matthew Libatique), “Best Achievement in Directing” (Darren Aronofsky), and “Best Achievement in Editing” (Andrew Weisblum)

2011 BAFTA Awards: 1 win: “Best Actress” (Natalie Portman); 11 nominations: “Best Achievement in Special Visual Effects,” “Best Cinematography” (Matthew Libatique), “Best Costume Design” (Amy Westcott), “Best Editing” (Andrew Weisblum), “Best Film,” “Best Make Up/Hair,” “Best Production Design” (Thérèse DePrez and Tora Peterson), “Best Screenplay-Original” (Mark Heyman, Andres Heinz, and John J. McLaughlin), “Best Sound,” “Best Supporting Actress” (Barbara Hershey), and “David Lean Award for Achievement in Direction” (Darren Aronofsky)

2011 Golden Globes: 1 win “Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama” (Natalie Portman); 3 nominations: “Best Director - Motion Picture” (Darren Aronofsky), “Best Motion Picture – Drama,” and “Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture” (Mila Kunis)

Sunday, May 22, 2011

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