Category Archives: Movies

Movies

Ghostbuster 2K16

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Because the world needs another recorded opinion on a movie that has people threatening the lives of strangers online.

I will apologize for not putting any images in this post which is 100% against what I stand for when I post, but everything I could find online just reinforces how terrible they were with the press releasing and advertising for this film.

TL;DR: The movie is far better than what we’ve seen leaked/been given with trailers. It isn’t your standard Feig/McCarthy potty humor either. All of the worst parts we’ve seen in the trailers and  I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it.

*****Background to release here, scroll down for Review*****

I don’t remember when I heard about the potential for a reboot of the Ghostbusters franchise, but I am pretty certain my first reaction was either” “Why?” or “another reboot?” Because the entire world outside the indie film festivals is filled with reboots and superheroes.

Like any good researcher I started trying to figure out what was going on with the new one, who was involved, how they were involved, and where the original cast were otherwise. It wasn’t long before a search or two revealed a “leaked” script on Reddit. It read terribly. So that didn’t much alleviate any concerns.

The biggest concern for me was casting and writing. Who could possibly be available to provide subtle wit interlaced within the horror story and terrifying animatronics. Full disclosure to set up my reservations, I hate most modern comedic schticks. The last time I watched SNL on Saturday night Tom Petty was performing. A couple years ago I DVR-ed the episode The National played and tried to watch it around the music. I thought it was terrible.

So when I found out it was going to be a Feig/McCarthy style movie I was more or less terrified. My loyalties with this who franchise lay solely in the cartoon so it wasn’t going to ruin my childhood, it was just shaping up to be a pretty gross movie for my taste. I don’t think that Bridesmaids is funny at all not a single bit, I lumped it into films such as Me, Myself, and Irene, and anything that Rob Schneider has been in.

The internet went mad. Madder than usual. The “gender swap” and Social Justice brigade came out in full force. It never occurred to me to dislike the film because there were women. My biggest concern was it was going to be a two hour SNL skit. It was Harold Ramis’ writing that kept the original from being an 1984 two hour SNL skit that would have originally cast John Belushi, Ackroyd, Murray, and Eddie Murphy. All this wasn’t alleviated by his writing, but knowing he wasn’t around to add substance and understatement to terror was a way bigger problem for me than whether or not Bill Murray was going to be in it.

It was odd too, that with the popularity, success, and brilliance that is the IDW comic run that the movie wan’t going to try and work the woman angle the way they did. I mean I don’t remember an uproar when Janine suited up years ago, or even when Kiley took the lead on Extreme Ghostbusters, but maybe I wasn’t paying as much attention.

Then the trailers hit. My god, those were terrible (they are even worse after you see the film). The most hated movie trailer on youtube, and that is saying something. None of the subsequent trailers made it look any better. I’ve seen episodes of Scooby Doo that are more different than Feig/McCarthy movies and they were selling this thing like just another one of those.

To add insult (sometimes literally) to injury the damage control began trying to force everyone that it would be great, we were all stupid for thinking otherwise, and if we didn’t support it at all we were trump supporters. I tried to avoid most conversations about it, but if the need arose I referred to those involved as Feign and Apathy. The only sane response to any of it came from Ivan Reitman right before the premier. Otherwise it was the battle of the lowest common denominator on both sides. No one in the middle had any chance, and every time someone posted a link about it on social media most of us just shuddered while others were cracking their knuckles to write out a symphony of support or derision for the project, the people involved, and/or the people that liked it or disliked it.

This went on for months, and is still going on in some form now that the movie is out. But, it is out and so are ghostbusters twinkies, and ecto cooler, and ghostbusters mini figures (including those hideous pop vinyl figures). For whatever your take on the film you should at least be enjoying this renaissance, right?

In the world of hashtag teamery I was firmly #TeamIfwhatweseeiswhatwegetthethingisgoingtosuck it was the damage control from Sony and the fierce supporters claiming I didn’t like it because I was misogynist that tipped my off the #TeamGiveitashot fence. From the outset I wanted it to be good, I wanted it to be fun, and I wanted it to be vastly different than what we had seen in the script and the trailers. I was worried it was going to be another Feig/McCarthy teamup with two newbies stretching their SNL chops into a feature length film. It wasn’t.

*****Review Starts Here*****

My wife and I went to see it in IMAX 3D on the opening day matinee. When we purchased our tickets there were only two others out on the guide, but by showtime there were about 30 people in there. The 3D is worth it, if you an afford it. It isn’t gimmicky, there are some things flying at the screen, but not as much as you’d think. The comedy averages out on the plus side for me. There are the compulsory bodily functions jokes the mostly get played out in the first act. My thinking is the PG rating required some toning down from the R Bridesmaids, and that did much to help it out.

For my money this is the best movie McCarthy and Wiig have made. The characters are believable if a little over the top. There is a lot of gushing about how McKinnon makes the film, and she is great, but sometimes it is a bit much. Coming from SNL though it is a vast improvement for her comedy, and if someone can get with her to bring her overacting quirkiness down to, say, Jim Carrey levels from the Jerry Lewis levels that make up the show she will be a comedienne extraordinaire. I can’t pinpoint the exact moments, but there were times she had a real Gilda Radner feel to her and that was great.

Leslie Jones has some of the best comic timing I has seen in a long time. The trailers really do her a disservice by casting her as the loud black woman. The only times she acts like that are in the scenes from the trailer. Hands down she has some of the most “Ghostbusters style” lines in the movie. She is also the most relatable character on the screen and manages to level the humor out just as it is about to get out of hand she tones it back down (hard to believe if you just see her in the trailers, right?)

McCarthy is surprisingly understated which I think is an asset to her and Wiig’s chemistry in this, the whole estranged friendship trope, etc. Again the flattest moments for her character are expertly captured in the trailers. There are more than a few scenes from the trailers that were not part of the released production. I am sure they will be put back in and rearranged for the director’s cut.

Not even going to lie, I left with a little crush on Erin Gilbert. Wiig was great, and I don’t think that is due to my terminal weakness for smart redheads, but it could be. As far as characterization goes, I think it is hard for people to work through the lack of a true 1:1 replacement, even with the black chick being the “every(wo)man” that we relate too. There are some definite marks, but it wasn’t a wholesale replication, and that works for me, at least.

Nerd Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is the most impressive dork I have seen on the big screen. The stupidity and klutziness he brings to the receptionist job there is even more amazing if you’ve seen his dramatic performance in The Heart of the Sea and all his work with Marvel. I work with a tall skinny guy with glasses named Kevin and that made this whole schtick even funnier. Some how they managed to wrap Jeanine, Dana, and Louis into one character as well (again no straight 1:1 character replacement)

The cameos are there, and they are surprisingly decent as they go. One in particular was more surprising than the others. Even for the people that weren’t there were covered. There was a great visual nod to Moranis that was great. In fact most of the film is loaded with subtle, or even subliminal, nods to the original. This can work both ways: for the super fans that want to see it, it serves as a sign that someone did their homework, but it can also look like it is trying to hard to prop itself up on the old one and if you can’t suspend disbelief well enough those nods keep reminding you that there is another ghostbusters that happened before.

The effects are great in IMAX 3D even the blue Scooby Doo movie ghosts look pretty cool. It was a fun movie to watch, just from an effects standpoint. I think a lot of people are going to have a hard time adopting the new gear, but getting to watch them develop over test periods was an interesting approach. Again, if you can spring for a 3D ticket, I think it is worth it, especially if you are planning on seeing it again.

The last half of the movie feels a little rushed, like a short story for a test that has to be wrapped up in the last few pages to avoid penalty. I would have liked to have seen more close ups and interaction with all the former inhabitants of New York.  The fight scenes were pretty impressive (the weird possession scene notwithstanding).

For all that it is I will say it follows the Reddit script well, but develops it a bit more to make it better than that. Some dancing gets the editing treatment, but, again, will probably be back in the director’s cut. Where it gets overlain in the version we saw was a lot better than if it had been left in as part of the actual.

The climax, and the oft repeated spoiler of how it comes off, is, I think a direct response to all the actual misogynists out there, and, make no mistake there are many, so, l think I am okay with it. Not the direction I would have taken it, but I wasn’t the one making it.  The final form, known as Rowan, which we have seen in toy and trailer form, looks a lot like Oogie Boogie from the Nightmare before Christmas. The stilts ghost and the parade floats looked pretty cool too.

You are going to see what you want to see. If you want it to suck you’ll think it will. If you want it to be glorious, well, it might not be glorious, but you are going to like it. I think the hardest thing for people is to be able to realize something can be “good” if they don’t “like it.” I have talked to a few friends about it, and some others that are waiting to see it, but in the end I would watch it again, and that is my usual meter stick for things. In fact, I just got back from the noon matinee of TMNT: Out of the Shadows at the $2 theatre today. I mean, I have watched Ghostbusters and Ninja turtles this summer. I have bought Ghostbusters and Ninja Turtles toys this summer, I am sorry if this stuff is ruining your childhood, but it is making my adulthood a lot of fun.

For me, and this may only be me, but I am writing this so you get my opinion, there isn’t a set of male comedians that could have done better. In fact, I think they would have made it worse. I like this movie more than the people that hate it, but I don’t think I love it as much as others might. At times I think it is better than Ghostbusters II, but probably isn’t as quotable. The very idea that a new Ghostbusters could have been, say, Will Ferrell, Rob Schneider, Adam Sandler, and Tracy Morgan is absolutely terrifying and with that in mind this movie was way better than I expected and I really like then that happens.

Oh, and if Marvel hasn’t trained you enough, stay through the credits. The last reveal isn’t as great as the one before it.

The only sexist thing I can come up with is that Mckinnon looks better in her movie street clothes and Wiig looks amazing however and I support a sequel to see more of them

Cartoons, Comics, Movies, Popular Culture, Television

My MAN! or How a mutant rhino reminded me who I was

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I still haven’t put together all my thoughts on an action figure post yet (nor have I finished enough of my comps readings to make a useful post) so in the interim you get this, which, admittedly, is just an excuse to put all the Bebop and Rocksteady images I have in one place.

June ended up casting me down the pop culture wormhole that I long forgotten. In much the same manner that a random tweet rekindle my love for the Real Ghostbusters and finding the comics the universe had conspired to help me remember other parts of myself. I still say it is because all the people creating things are the same age as I am so there is a bout of cultural memory taking over production but whatever the reason, it has been fun.

There is a Ghostbusters/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle comic crossover from IDW publishing. This is old news to many, but if you got here through some weird google image search and don’t know about it, check it out. It is what led me over to the IDW TMNT series itself. I probably would have remained agnostic over it otherwise.


 TMNT_GB-1

A brief word about the IDW TMNT comics as a whole: It is great. It nods to the originals (both comics and cartoon) but has a more real feel to it. I don’t mean real in the authentic sense, but I mean it develops the characters in ways that weren’t possible in an animated program used to sell toys.

Now, back to June. A TMNT movie and a special IDW TMNT comic arc were the specials of the month. I’ll start with the comics since I have less to say about it in general. Bebop and Rocksteady Destroy Everything is exactly what it sounds like. The two get their hands on a time traveling sceptre and generally Rocksteady and Bebop their way through time and space. If you know anything about those two (and let’s assume you do since you made it this far anyway) you have some idea of just how bad it gets.

Pretty much the default issues when these guys travel through time
Pretty much the default issues when these guys travel through time

Since Time is involved we see our heroes in a half shell meeting back up with Renet (it has ties with Turtles in Time which is interesting given how much that was hated, at least that is the sense I get from the boards around this place).

As a whole this thing must have been a logistical nightmare. There are 2863 different artists (slightly exaggerated for dramatic effect) on each issue. I usually hate when artists change mid run, much less mid issue, but this one really seemed to work as they popped up and around different times and places.

seriously look at all the artist involved in a single issue!
seriously look at all the artist involved in a single issue!

They also tie back into IDW’s kickstarted for a TMNT board game. Nothing super special, just two scenarios included in the last two issues. Well it was supposed to be two different scenarios but many of us ended up with repeats.

Board Game Ad in Bebop and Rocksteady Destroy Everything #5
Board Game Ad in Bebop and Rocksteady Destroy Everything #5
Bebop and Rocksteady Destroy Everything extra scenario ad Issue #5
Bebop and Rocksteady Destroy Everything extra scenario ad Issue #5

The swath of cover art is fantastic and Nick Patarra‘s interlocking 5 actually interlock back with itself and I am currently trying to find a way to make it into a nice lampshade because that seems like the best way to display it. Thank goodness there us a digital version of it, because it really does loose something when shot together for lampshade purposes. The tangible interlocking is rough, but there is still something about it that is fun.

FullSizeRender
My copies linked
Digital links from Nick Pitarra's twitter cover
Digital links from Nick Pitarra’s twitter cover

The timing for this arc could not have been better. The breakout stars of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows film was Bebop and Rocksteady. This movie was much better than the first one, which, admittedly I never finished. But, Out of the Shadows was absolutely ridiculous and over the top and wonderful.

For one, and for me specifically, it (and the comics really) have allowed me to actually match the turtle that I always liked. Donatello has always been my favorite but I have always been more of a cartoon Ralph in practice. With the movie making Ralph a jock and Donatello a more skeptical practical person, and the comics giving him (and all of them really) more wit, sits well with me.

I have said similar things
I have said similar things

Turtles aside, the single duo reason to see this movie is the rhino and the warthog. Ever since I was a kid, even before the turtles were a thing Rhinos were one of my favorite animals, along with armadillos and anteaters. So when Rocksteady arrived I was thrilled even if he was a bumbling villain idiot. Fast forward to getting back into the comics and seeing how the duo are treated there was what kept me hooked on the series. (Now Leatherhead is back, and while I am more than a little sad he isn’t the crocodile dundee swamp thing he is, I am sure they are going good places with it).

When they announced the TMNT sequel I was skeptical and shrugged it off as another summer 2016 movie to ignore. Then I saw the first Bebop wanted poster. I instantly hit social media and tagged a friend of mine, who happens to be a DJ with a substantial mohawk (although not purple) that he had the perfect halloween costume. The next day or so Rocksteady’s showed up. So I went back and added that one and admitted that I had to do it.

Bebop Rocksteady

I saw their action figures first. I was in WalMart on the hunt for the classic Ghostbusters mini figures and since they were working on part of the store they had staged about a dozen pallets of TMNT toys in the main aisle and I had to wade through them to get to the tiny little Ghostbusters section in the back. I ended up getting Donatello first and outfitting him with a proton pack. The next time I went back I got the 11″ Rocksteady and Bebop to go with the 13″ classic Rocksteady and Bebop. For the record I don’t actively collect action figures.

2016
2016
~1990
~1990
Here is another mutant for scale.
Here is another mutant for scale.
Sitting on a TV tray for scale
Sitting on a TV tray for scale

counterparts

I didn’t know anything about either one of the guys playing them (I have been working on PhD stuff for a while and not watching television and I have never been into wrestling) so I went in with no preconceived ideas of what we were getting and it turned out great. The entire setup and most of the movie are rife with plot holes, impossibilities, and utter nonsense but that makes it great. Someone sat down with the comics and the original cartoons and said “how do we translate this to the big screen” and however they did it and whoever made it work need awards.

I went to see it the Sunday after it opened at an IMAX matinee and there were only 20 people in there and 90% of them weren’t born when the Turtles first fell into our laps. The 3D was awesome, but not the crux of the movie which is always nice. Donnie’s holographic gadets looks great and the internal mutation stuff with the cell binding and DNA structure changing looked really good in 3D.  After seeing it, I had to go back and get the regular sized figures. The Rocksteady comes with a sledgehammer which he uses in the comics, but not the movie.
 Rocksteady 2016

Bebop 2016

A couple weekends ago I pulled out some of our paints and took a stab at the comic and cartoon duo. I had recently been working on pastels based on the Cryptozoic Ghostbusters trading cards that I liked so it wasn’t a huge shift. I usually do something like that over the weekend to decompress from exhibit work and reading for comps. That is really why I got back into comics, they are a nice palate cleanse from comp prep.

Rough sketch outline
Rough sketch outline

 

Finished acrylics based on a comics page by Mateus Santolouco. Check out his stuff it is all great
Finished acrylics based on a comics page by Mateus Santolouco. Check out his stuff it is all great

Finished cartoon versions
Finished cartoon versions
"You're like the Bob Ross of Ninja Turtles" three people made that reference
“You’re like the Bob Ross of Ninja Turtles” three people made that reference

I still haven’t gotten the $20 (each) sets of Bebop and Rocksteady on their bikes. But I am watching for a clearance. I have wanted to chop my own bike for a while but don’t have the money and means to,  but I now at least know how I want to do it.


Rhino ChopperBebop and Trike toy

Incidentally the Paul Jr. from that old Orange County Choppers organization designed and produced the bikes. I would have watched that episode. Actually if someone cut out all the Days of Our Lives family drama and focused on bikes the series would have been great. Maybe it will come out in a behind the scenes book or DVD extras or something.

Designed and brought ot Life by Paul Jr. (pauljrdesigns.com)
Designed and brought to life by Paul Jr. (pauljrdesigns.com)
This and below from Designsbyjoyce.com
This and below from Designsbyjoyce.com

13320588_1151305054932722_6735414045006964892_o Bebop-and-Rocksteady-motorcycles-1024x448

rocksteadybike

Bebop's trike

I have never been big into trikes either and the only ones I had really ever seen were huge and were powered by Volkswagen engines and not an actual bike/chain drive, so Bebop’s was interesting to me on that front.

Bebop Trike For more great photos see http://pulse.therpf.com/bebop-and-rocksteady-posters-new-spot-for-teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-out-of-the-shadows-features-krang
Bebop Trike For more great photos see http://pulse.therpf.com/bebop-and-rocksteady-posters-new-spot-for-teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-out-of-the-shadows-features-krang
Bebop Trike For more great photos see http://pulse.therpf.com/bebop-and-rocksteady-posters-new-spot-for-teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-out-of-the-shadows-features-krang
Bebop Trike For more great photos see http://pulse.therpf.com/bebop-and-rocksteady-posters-new-spot-for-teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-out-of-the-shadows-features-krang –If anyone has any Pulse quality shots of the Rhino Chopper please share!

I even tracked down the UK released poster that was just Rocksteady and Bebop so I could frame it. There standard posters are 30×40 so framing it whole was going to be a gazillion dollars but luckily(?) the one I got in had a crease in it (so I got my shipping refunded) and didn’t feel bad about cutting all the words off the bottom. After getting it into a poster frame I already had, I think it looks better without the words.

Original 30"x40" size
Original 30″x40″ size
detail
detail
Cut for a 27"x40" poster frame. I really think it looks better without the ads
Cut for a 27″x40″ poster frame. I really think it looks better without the ads
Framed on the wall
Framed on the wall

To that end I am trying to track down all the pieces for a good human Rocksteady halloween costume, so far not a single custom shop will touch it. One custom leather place in Chicago can get a basic one I would have to stud myself for almost $300. So I think it will be old jacket and razor blade time. I will probably make a post on that process too just to see how it comes off.  The patch on the movie vest is a Black Label Society patch by the way, in case you are trying to make an authentic custom. It doesn’t show up as such on the figures, which makes sense if you listen to metal. It helps that Sheamus is only a couple inches taller than me and serves as a nice avatar for what I could look like in shape.

The final thing I haven’t gotten and probably won’t ever be able to afford are the SideShow collectibles figures for the two. (Rocksteady, Bebop) Both together are hovering around $700 before shipping, and I mean you really can’t get one and not the other that is just wrong. But the prototypes look AMAZING. Already decided when I win the Mega-Millions and build my museum of art and natural history (Faux-Art Gardens, HA) I am going to have life sized statues of these in the entryway. tmnt-out-of-the-shadows-rocksteady-statue-vault-productions-902745-07 tmnt-out-of-the-shadows-rocksteady-statue-vault-productions-902745-06

tmnt-out-of-the-shadows-rocksteady-statue-vault-productions-902745-04 tmnt-out-of-the-shadows-rocksteady-statue-vault-productions-902745-01

tmnt-out-of-the-shadows-bebop-statue-vault-productions-902744-06 tmnt-out-of-the-shadows-bebop-statue-vault-productions-902744-01

In the end, I clipped just a fraction of the trailer in to put on my youtube channel to share whenever someone asked why they should see this movie:

Someone on youtube has clipped most of their scenes from a bootlegged cam and put them together for about 7.5 minutes of madness, which is funny but I think it is even better when it is strung out throughout the movie.

***I literally just–like as I am typing this part of the post–received my stickers in the mail to put on my bike’s windscreen. I can’t afford to get the bike converted into the Rhino Chopper, but I can afford $3 skateboard vinyl stickers. These will go well on the bike since I have the No-Ghost Logo on my saddlebags and the bike *is* an 86.

Skateboard stickers for my bike's windscreen
Skateboard stickers for my bike’s windscreen

Whatever the back stories on the other in-universie mutants, (I think Rocksteady was a Russian Arms dealer in one, I haven’t kept up with them all, but I might be getting around to them later this year). For my money and universe these guys are Bebop and Rocksteady. Now it is just question of making sure my Halloween partner doesn’t flake.

Rocksteady 2

I guess the whole take home point to all this is realizing that I had packed away a lot of what made me, me. These are the things that shaped my primary school years and are people (imaginary or not) that live in my pysche. These are things I put away when I went to high school and then to college to be replaced by things like books and journals. I read the books as a kid too. Red Badge of Courage and Moby Dick in Jr. High and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea a half a dozen times before that.

But the books could stay, they were acceptable part of the trade of growing up. Why did Ghostbusters and TMNT shed? I have no idea really, but  I am glad they are back on the scene, even if their influences never really went away. Welcome back guys, it has been too long.

via GIPHY

now I have to go put those decals on my bike.

Bye Turtles

 

****Update: The Decals are on****

Installed
They have a whole set and a few others (Ghostbusters, Deadpool) at their Ebay shop.

Rocksteady Bebop

Archaeology, Art History, Movies, Museums, Paleontology

Prehistory and Paleolithic Pop Culture

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Screen Shot 2016-04-06 at 11.42.09 AM
Image Source: IMDB.com

Turns out Hugh Hudson has a new film out that focuses on the discovery of the prehistoric cave paintings in Altamira. If you aren’t familiar with the discovery, the Cliff Notes version is an 8 year old girl named Maria led her father Marcelino Sanz de Sautuola to a cave which held amazing paleolithic paintings of bison among other wonders; scientific debates ensue.

Screen Shot 2016-04-06 at 11.40.46 AM
Image Source: Screen capture from Mark Knopfler Making of Altamira Soundtrack video on youtube
Screen Shot 2016-04-06 at 11.41.08 AM
Image Source: Screen capture from Mark Knopfler Making of Altamira Soundtrack video on youtube

The end of the 19th century was rife with debates on man’s place in nature as well as the entire story of mankind in general. The established French view was that prehistoric humans were incapable of such higher forms of thought required to create such things. Arguments about the past and the professional nature of the scientists and divided disciples were heated, marked, and many times personal. Paleoanthropology and other disciplines as we know them were in their infancies fetal stages and battle for the authority to pontificate on humanity’s past was as much the prize as finding answers to the questions they were asking.

Screen Shot 2016-04-06 at 11.41.29 AM
Image Source: Screen capture from Mark Knopfler Making of Altamira Soundtrack video on youtube
Screen Shot 2016-04-06 at 11.41.48 AM
Image Source: Screen capture from Mark Knopfler Making of Altamira Soundtrack video on youtube

Having done a fair amount of research on the Piltdown Affair and its context within the debates that came to a head because of find like Altamira, I am especially intrigued. Adding to that is the fact that like so many other important discoveries in this period it was made by an amateur. That is to say it was reported by an amateur since it was originally discovered by a child.

800px-Altamira-1880
Drawing of Altamira cave originally from grotte d’Altamira, Espagne. Relevé du plafond aux polychromes publié par M. Sanz de Sautuola en 1880 (d’après Cartailhac, 1902) hosted on Wikimedia Commons

The movie itself looks wonderful since it will have the debates and forces of will involved (including the Church). It also included the wonder that fills Maria as the bison from the cave come alive in her dreams and become a part of her.

Bison in the reproduction museum in Altamira
Bison in the reproduction museum in Altamira

As with most things in life I didn’t get to this from any direct route. I actually first heard of this film through a trailer for its soundtrack. As bizarre as soundtrack trailers sound the bits and pieces around it are where I can glean more of the story.

Mark Knopfler and Evelyn Glennie worked together to create the score for the film and it sounds incredible. It was on Mark’s official Facebook page that I first say the trailer to the soundtrack. Complete with the reimagined stylized version of the famous bison on the front.

The bison form Altamira are iconic and you may recognize them from the plethora of Bisonte cigarette ads/packs that are everywhere. (I say everywhere, that may only be the case if you are as interested in Spain as I am).  If not everywhere then at least on cigarettespedia.com which is a more useful website than you may think, especially for someone who studies visual culture.

Bisonte Cigarrettes, From Cigarretespedia.com
Bisonte Cigarrettes, From Cigarrettespedia.com

Getting to the heart of the film is difficult since all the available trailers are in Spanish since it was released there at the first of this month (April 2016). This isn’t because the film is in Spanish, but because of locality (I guess). So the trailers are dubbed into Spanish which just strikes me as odd, even if I am appreciative of the fact that was produced in English.

There are a few English clips that are part of the making of the soundtrack video below where I grabbed some of the above photos. As far as the cave itself goes, it remains closed to visitors since the damage it sustained from visitor’s breathing in the 1960s. The museum close by has a full replica included some sculptures of human faces that you couldn’t get to in the cave itself.  There are also reproductions in Madrid, Germany, and most recently Japan.  The Caves were up for reopening to the public a few years ago, but in an effort to preserve the site the decision was made to keep them closed. looking at a fake trope was still contentious in 2014.

The Cave was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1985 and they have a short video on it as well. Until it gets wider release this will have to suffice to piece together what is going on.

 

Update: Aug. 3, 2016 Full length English trailer finally hits youtube.

 

Books, Movies, Wildlife

For the Birds Part Two

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  Another bird made the theatres recently.  This one may seem a bit more dark compared to the light hearted Dodo/scientist adventures; it is.  So, death by Poe story, I said when it came out that the premise was Saw for smart people.  The movie is more than that though.
Studies reveal that ravens are incredibly intelligent, tool using creatures.
Again, this movie will be overshadowed by comicdom, but it shouldn’t.  The literary connections aside, the movie is as well done a whodunit as I have seen in awhile.  The plot keeps you guessing, and characters are pretty believable.

That’s what the bird says, you say all these other parts.

The characters are pretty well developed, notwithstanding historical inaccuracies, but this is not a documentary.  Cusack captures the arrogance, the poverty, the brilliance, and the addiction of Poe as well as anyone probably could have.  Although the goatee, not sure.

splashed with mud adds insult to injury

There are many who know more about Poe than I do. A well respected literary historian airs his disagreements here.  But for the most part, the Poe that has made his way into popular culture is more Poe than Poe was. Poor Poe.

How many times did I use Poe in one sentence?
Couldn’t find a photo of my favorite scenes.  Poe with his pet raccoon.  I particularly enjoyed this piece of the film, as in addition to Poe being one of my muses, I grew up with a pet raccoon on two separate occasions, and felt a nice warm connection between myself and one of my favorite authors. The fact that he might not have had a pet raccoon does not diminish that feeling.
Back when newspapers mattered

All in all it is a period piece and they are generally always fun.  The music was good, the costumes were great, the dialogue was very good.  Anytime someone calls out a mouth breather is a good time.  Professional historians aside, (as they tend to take themselves entirely too seriously to enjoy a film with) I think The Raven is worth a see. Probably twice.  The second time you will be trying to see if the director or actors give away anything to reveal the killer(s).  If you have read Poe, go see it for the joy(?) of his stories coming alive, plus the added bonus of getting several asides that the general public will miss.  If not, go see if for the mystery.  Don’t take your history from hollywood though. Maybe this will drive you to research the father of horror writing, and stem more than a little pride for an American author trying desperately to make a name for himself when very little of anything coming out go the United States was respected.  You may also find out why copyright laws are such a big issue these days.

Of all the ones I have seen, this is the best movie poster
There are a couple other reasons to go see this thriller.
1.) Luke Evans’ portrayal of the inspector is quite good.

Brillaint performance actually. Though still damnably difficult to run in a top hat.
…and B.) Alice Eve is quite nice to look at.
If you like a fresh look at old cliches and never take historical fiction too seriously, you should enjoy this film. However, if you see it your duty to go through life correcting everything then you will be an annoyance to anyone that takes you to see this film, and perhaps you should be stuffed into a chimney.  You probably read Longfellow too.
Books, Movies, Wildlife

For the Birds: Part One

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After a dreadfully long absence from the blogging scene, I return with something a bit out of character for the presets of this blog. At least on the surface.  As I have been writing and rewriting my Master’s Thesis, things have been a bit back burner lately.  However in todays riveting episode I will be talking about two movies that ARE NOT the Avengers.  Not that I am knocking the Avengers, I just never got up to the fever (okay, any) pitch to go see it. These two, however, did pique my interest some time ago. Shall we begin? Part I.

Firstly we went to see the latest in stop motion animation by the incomparable Peter Lord Aardman and co.  Pirates! In an Adventure With Scientists (or “Band of misfits” as they dumbed it down for the states.*eye-roll*) The adventure is based loosely on the absolutely hilarious book by Gideon Defoe:

There are more as more or less a serial.  They are all literally laugh out loud funny. They are a bit more adult than the “family” movie portrays.  Not in a bad way, just more of the literature jokes are geared toward a high capacity of thought.  The take for the movie is quite good. Without revealing any of the secret nuances of the film I will stick with how it related to this blog: Polly.
She’s the one on the right.

Polly is a Dodo. The last one it seems. Hilarity ensues. To see the Victorian fascination with the extinct is part of the joy that is the movie.  It’s just a fun movie will all the wit and humour that make Wallace and Gromit and Chicken Run so enjoyable.

There is also a bit of victorian fun poking going on as well. 
Here we see a young Charles Darwin aboard the Beagle. Baboon Kidneys and all.
 He shares a great interest in Polly, but does not love her the way the crew does.
The Pirate Captain commonly refers to his new friend as Chuck.  For some reason this is funnier than when Peppermint Patty does it to Charlie Brown.  As I chose the UK title more because I like scientists more than misfits, I will say as a historian of science I found the scientific references and underhandedness quite funny. 
Rampant monocle dropping ensued.

Another Americanism that made its way in differed from the trailer.  Don’t go to American theatres looking for the “complete pants” remark.  Instead, we get (and I quote:) “a load of crap.” Still funny when you find out what the reference is to, but I suppose people in the U.S. don’t get underwear jokes.
 Either way, there is a great and gallant crew (in the street sense, yo) always supporting the Pirate Captain. As well as an overly zealous Queen Victoria. The movie is worth going to see and the books are worth more to read. Just use care when reading on the bus or train as boisterous laughter may get you some stares.

Pretty sure they raided Keith Richards closet for the zebra print captain’s jacket.

If nothing I have said will help you fence sitters decide whether or not to go and see Aardman’s latest barrel of fun I will leave you with this small token from the Pirate King. 

BRIAN BLESSED! 

Movies, Wildlife

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Mole.

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     My wife and I chanced to have dinner and a movie with some dear friends of ours.  Briefly, the film Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy is far from the edge of your seat thriller.  My friend’s wife slept through it all, my wife tried to, and my friend said that he had seen many independent movies and that this was particularly hard to follow.  I enjoyed it for what it was. That being said, the movie was dreadfully slow and painfully precise.  Since I am neck deep in thesis material I haven’t had time to read the book so I called my grandfather.
     He said he had figured it out by the second or third chapter, and that it was incredibly slooowwww (the drawn out emphasis is his).  I had hoped the book would have been better but, alas, perhaps no. Now, I told you all that to tell you this: The premise of this story began my gears whirring anew. Why are spies within organizations called “moles” anyway? (I haven’t found out yet) For that matter why isn’t there more attention paid to moles in the natural world? And, why, oh why do I end up thinking about these things after watching movies? (I haven’t found that out yet either.)

An Eastern Mole.  Look at those hands.
Think how dramatic a molian facepalm would be.

     My first positive relationship with a mole was the fictional Moley in Kenneth Graham’s Wind in the Willows, which is and forever will be my favorite book.  Of all the animated/action renditions my hat has always been off to the folks at Rankin/Bass for their portrayal.

Always have to appreciate it when he tells Ratty he
“Can’t say I really love duck poems”

A side note: Roddy McDowell’s Ratty is the reason that I have always pronounced the world ad-VERT-isment and not ad-ver-TISE-ment. But, back to Moles. I also tried Pate de foie gras once just to see.  I wouldn’t sing about it, but I tried it thanks to this song. I guess animation works on impressionable children. I tried pate, I never bought anything from Acme.

     But, back to moles.  My first relationship with moles were as pest in the yards of my grandparents.  They would burrow everywhere and destroy their garden.  They would set mole traps and if I was visiting I would go with them to check the traps.  Mole fur is incredibly soft, if you have never felt one.  I also remember being confused at my great grandparents calling moles “salamanders” but I never questioned them, I just quietly kept my knowing better to myself. (that was once the m.o. for all children)

Salamander
Mole

      I don’t know much about the fossil record of moles. Given the little research I plinked through for this update, that may be due to the lack of an extensive fossil record.  You would think that a burrowing animal would be more likely to become a fossil since it was buried in its burrow upon death.  Apparently there is a burrow patrol among moledom that facilitates the removal of any deceased parties and rendering any extra chance at fossilization null and void.

     There is a late Miocene (somewhere in the neighborhood of 8 m.y.a) mole fossil from Idaho that shows characteristics similar to the modern coast mole. They are so similar in fact that they are lumped into the same genus: Scapanus.  Scapanus hagermanensis hails from the Hagerman Fossil beds in Idaho.

Scapanus hagermanensis

    There are also phylogenic complications within the realm of the mole. Oh, are there some interesting connections here. 
The Golden Mole:
A Golden Mole
The golden moles belong to the same branch on the tree of life as the tenrecs, called Tenrecomorpha or Afrosoricida which in turn stems from a main branch of placental mammals called the Afrosoricida. Not so scientifically interesting, but in the words of Hamlet, “Aye, there lies the rub.” This means that they share a closer common ancestor with such existing Afrosoricids as Elephants, Manatees and Aardvarks than they do with other placental mammals. Genetics. Wow. The Mole apparently falls a long way from the tree. 

The Marsupial Mole:

This has got to be one of the most awesome nature photographs ever. 

The marsupial mole’s awesomeness is two-fold. First and far most, this little critter looks more eccentric than anything that ever haunted George Lucas or Peter Jackson’s nightmares.  Secondly there is some genetic marsupial connection that make it interesting to other people. As marsupials, these moles are even more distantly related to true talpidae moles than golden moles, (think rich-great-granduncle twice removed) both of which are placental mammals. So what does this mean? This means that Marsupial Moles are more closely related to such existing Australian marsupials, kangaroos or koalas, and even to a lesser extent to American marsupials such as opossums than they are to placental mammals such as Golden Moles or Talpidae moles.

They may also be the Studebakers if their genus,
as it is difficult to tell the direction of travel based on their shape
    In 2010 the Marsupial Mole again stood some folks on their ears. A fossil find indicated that they likely evolved in rainforests than in the deserts they call home today.  That fascinating article can be be found in Australian Geographic.

Moles ran amok in Scotland for a time and would have been just another plague on the isle had Queen Alexandra not ordered a mole fur garment and set off a craze.  (Not unlike Kate’s wedding dress phenomenon.)  I am tempted to draw a parallel with my young life and that of the queen.  Did the queen, on visits to her grandparents wander with them to check the mole traps? Did she inspect the perished vermin intently, gently rubbing its soft fur? Did she in the back of her mind think, “when I am queen I shall have a garment of this?” Probably not.  I guess there is no parallel,  I never thought I would be Queen. 

   So, we leave the stately mole, with a passing mention of the Star-nose mole that can smell underwater by blowing air bubbles  and snorting them back in. Great little creature there too.  

The Star-nosed Mole. For obvious reasons. 

I doubt there will ever be a save the mole foundation, but I hope people will take it a bit farther to ponder on these creatures a bit. As more than mere infiltrating spies, nasty dangling growths on your aunt’s neck, or the namesake for the journals that so many of us use. There are greatly adapted for their environments and go unnoticed by some, cursed by many, and understood by few.  



General knowledge of the mole. From nps.gov