Saturday Small News

1) For any of you who don't already know (this is probably a minority of people), my all time favorite director is Stanley Kubrick. His work is stunningly cinematic and fascinating. I urge any of you who haven't already, to go and watch this list of fabulous Kubrick films: A Clockwork Orange, Lolita, 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Shining. They are must sees for anyone interested in film.

Anyway back to the Small News!  For all of you fellow Kubrick fans, earlier this week Kubrick's daughter and grandson opened up a Reddit Q&A session. It is truly amazing to hear about their relationship with the director and get a true incite as Kubrick as a person, not just the meticulous filmmaker.

Here is a link for all that are interested: http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/134rvs/stanley_kubricks_daughter_katharina_kubrick_and/

2) Just caught wind of Warner Bros. planning a live-action remake of Pinocchio. Jane Goldman, screenwriter of Kickass and The Woman in Black, is currently been negotiated as screenwriter for the new project. 

The one thing that worries me about this remake is one of the other names that I have heard to be in connection - Tim Burton. I'm not going to say I hate Burton, as I truly do love some of his films, especially Nightmare Before Christmas. However, the problem that I do have with him is he enjoys taking some of my favorite stories and overplaying the whole "I'm a quirky gothic director" thing, thus ruining them for me. I hated Alice in Wonderland, as Burton's style took over the brilliance of the classic tale. So please please, Burton, don't do the same to Pinocchio.

3) For everyone who hated Promethus, take a gander at this. Now I need to get my hands on a copy of the original script

http://www.filmschoolrejects.com/opinions/the-8-worst-parts-of-prometheus-explained-in-the-original-script-jsarg.php

4) New Les Mis trailer everyone! Can not wait to see this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkHHHUk8RCw

My Top 5 Favorite Crappy Films

This post was inspired by a blog set up by my friend Alex. His posts will all be "Top 5" list style. So in an attempt to help promote his blog, and because it's a brilliant idea, I'd thought I should it steal for one post, here is this shameless confession of guilty film pleasures.

Alex's blog: http://weebldude.blogspot.co.uk/

We all have those films that we love, but can openly admit that they are pretty shoddy. So, here are mine, laid bare for all you lovely people to see. Feel free to point and laugh.

1) Mean Girls

This is one of those fabulously cheesy American teen comedy films, so please take this film with a pinch (or maybe a ladle) of salt. Mean Girls follows Cady Harring (Lindsey Lohan - post child actor drug and booze rampage) as she enters the scary dog eat dog world of American high school. This over exaggerated representation of high school life is the nucleus for everything that is brilliant about Mean Girls - the bitchiness, the groups and the scare tactic sex education classes. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8q1y1JYvMlc

2) Exit Through The Gift Shop

A "documentary" from street artist Banksy. Basically this film is trying to pretend to pretend to not be factual.Confusing. In essence it is one big rip-take on how graffiti as an art form, with odd fictional (?)  subplots of the "filmmaker" turned graffiti artist Mr Brainwash. Let's all be honest with ourselves, I don't think the whole concept works, as it's trying a bit too hard to be some crazy commentary on consumerism, but a comedy also. Despite this, I actually like it. I have no idea why!

Lovely but uninteresting fact: The DVD comes free with these amazing Elton John-esque polarising glasses!

3) Bridget Jones' Diaries

Oh come on, I'm female. I'm not even sure if I could include this as a crappy film, it's so bloody brilliant! I'm sure this is one of the most relatable films to anyone with two X chromosomes.

4) Eight Legged Freaks

Giant spiders roam, hilarity ensues! This is a prime example of a mock horror film and it's cringe-worthily bad. Please skip this one if you are the type to faint at the sight of a spider, although this film may momentarily stop your phobia and lull you with its crappy charm. Remember it's all dated CGI!

5) The Human Centipede

Wait, who am I kidding, this film was shoddy and not even half as gruesome as expected.... Sigh.

Saturday Small News

• It's been announced that there will be a new Star Wars trilogy. I want to be happy for this news, but I'm struggling  I just don't understand why everything has to be sequelled to death now. It seems as if every upcoming film is a sequel or an adaption of a video game. Where are all of the refreshing stand-alone originals?! Don't get me wrong, I'm a massive Star Wars fan, I just think they are going into overkill. 

Even poor Lucas looks like he's signing away his soul, bless him.

• Throughout the month of November, Film 4 are offering a film rental for 30p daily, in celebration of there 30th anniversary. Great news for broke student film lovers like myself! Here's the page to check out what is on sale and when - http://www.film4.com/videos/article/30-films-for-30p?30films

Tarnation

For many years now the song Tarnation by Max Avery Lichtenstein has been my ultimate study/cry-your-eyes-out song. It's just one of those songs you'll always come back to.

My connection with this song inspired me to watch the film Tarnation, of which the song is it's soundtrack.

Tarnation is a self-made documentary biography of director Jonathan Caouette and his life. We are transported through the film like a timeline, with lots of footage from Caouette's childhood and adolescence forming the basis for the more recent clips and photos.

What really drives the story and helps us understand Caouette is the focus on his schizophrenic mother, Renee. After falling pregnant with Jonathan, Renee the teenage model and flower-child drug addict, started losing her sanity. This honest representation of Renee creates understanding for Caouette's own emotional struggles, the influence she had on him and the lack of influence from his stray father. 

A very heartfelt, emotional film. Not for the easily disturbed, but highly recommended. 

8/10