Coraline (2009), pioneer in animated 3D films

This film is an adaptation (from reviews, the film seems to have taken as much liberty as possible with the novel)of Neil Gaiman's 2002 novel of the same name published by Harper Collins and Bloomsbury. To get a background of the novel that becomes the inspiration for this film, watch the clip of the interview with Gaiman



I was first acquainted with the production of this film at Siggraph 2009 in New Orleans last August, when one of the people working on the 3D design team talked about the process in which they had to go through, as well as a lot of painstaking manual hand-painting (I kid you not!\) which they had to do just to make sure that the details look right. The puppets, which are made in many different ways and thus have individualized qualities, had most of their minutest expressions created with a 3D printer, thus creating an almost invisible montage between CGI technology and good old-fashioned puppetry design. However, despite the emphasis on technology, much attention is paid to the way in which the story is told and the director, Henry Selick, made sure that vivid story-telling remains the focus of the film, and that the multiplicity of eye-candies found in the film only enhance the affectivity of the story. As the film is animated, there are many usages of transitions, though subtle, such as wipes, cuts, fades, and dissolves. The mise-en-scenes you will see throughout this film were constructed out of real solid objects before they were superimposed with CGI effects.

Website of the Film: http://www.coraline.com/
IMDB site: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0327597/

I have chosen two short clips. Unfortunately, as it is a bit too difficult to rip out the 3D version of the film, you'll have to contend with the 2D version. But do try the 3D version, watching through a pair of good 3D glasses, when you get the chance, if you haven't already done so.

1. To show the opening sequence as well as its relation to the overall film (this clip goes from the opening credits up to the point where Coraline is trying to dowse)


2. The next 5-6 minutes here will give you a better lead into the film :)

Kontroll

Kontroll is a Hungarian thriller/comedy by first time director Nimrod Antal, released in 2003. The film was shot entirely in the Budapest Metro System. Kontroll focuses on the protagonist, Bolscu, and the other members assigned to his group of Kontroll, the Metro workers responsible for randomly checking passengers tickets to insure they have paid their fares. The group is full of quirky personalities. Their work is portrayed as extremely unpleasant, as they are both hated and disrespected by the Metro riders whose tickets they try to check. Much of the film focuses on the dreariness and inherent humor involved in this process. However, the real substance of the film consists of two mysteries: Why Bolscu, who the audience learns was once brilliant in some unrevealed field above ground, choses to work, and live full time, in the Metro, and the identity of the hooded figure who pushes Metro riders to their deaths in front of speeding trains. In typical foreign film fashion, these questions are not directly addressed, but instead have subtle hints towards the answer.

This particular clip shows Bolscu going "railing", a high speed race on the tracks against both each other and the approaching Metro train, with the leader of a rival gang of Kontroll. Although the clip is not the best example of the humor of the movie, or the message of the film, nor is it the most exciting part of the film, it does an excellent job of providing the viewer with the feel of the movie. It is tense, with elements of humor, showcases some of the stranger personalities of the characters, and perhaps most importantly, displays the amazing way Antal interacts with his setting.

The clip begins with the beginning of this youtube video, and ends at approximately 4:25.


For more info, please check:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0373981/

An Affair to Remember (1957)

Leo McCarey’s An Affair to Remember (1957) is about a romance between two people who fall in love aboard a cruise ship, despite the fact that they are both engaged to others. The film is essentially divided into two parts: their magical time spent together during the cruise vacation, and the year or so following their arrival back in the US (where being together is more of a challenge than they had anticipated). Despite a plan to reunite atop the Empire State Building six months prior to their homecoming, a chance occurrence leaves one of them unable to arrive, leading them both to believe that their chance has passed. But Nikkie Ferrante (Cary Grant) and Terry McKay (Deborah Kerr) are meant to be together, and in the end, their destiny is fulfilled, as any classical Hollywood film would have it. In the following clip, Nikki and Terry enjoy the company of Nikki’s grandmother, whom they have come to visit while temporarily docked in Italy during their cruise. Until now, they have resisted violating their faithfulness to their partners back home, but this scene represents a turning point in which their romantic connection reaches a point of no return.
Details on first tweet:Through various techniques, this clip (see 1:38-3:20) conveys that, although they have just met, Nikkie and Terry are undoubtedly in love. For example, the lighting, which produces a bright glow upon/surrounding Kerr, seemingly serves to create an aura of love radiating outward from within her. Visions of Light, a documentary on film making, discusses the importance of dramatizing leading ladies’ beauty, particularly in moments when their characters are filled with sentiments of love. Here, note the stark shadows cast on the wall behind Kerr during the intervals 2:49 -2:53 and 3:03-3:07. Clearly, the lighting was directly focused upon her in this sequence, and a strong, bright light was utilized to enhance this representation of her joy. The fact that she (not the others) is positioned against the wall allows for this lighting scheme, and the white walls in themselves contribute to the brightness surrounding her.
Details on second tweet: From 1:38-3:20, several eyeline matches connect Nikkie, his grandmother, and Terry as the women perform this song about a sacred love affair. Sometimes, these eyeline matches literally move in a circle, signifying the crucial role of Nikkie’s grandmother in their romance. Now at the end of her life, she awaits reuniting with her late husband in death—her life was fulfilled in true love. Her looks back and forth from Nikkie and Terry (2:56-3:03) and her expression of warmth suggest that she believes that a love as magical as she and her husband’s could exist between her grandson and Terry. Rather than conveying this through dialogue, the film makers chose to have her communicate her thoughts to Nikkie via eye contact. From 2:04-2:11, the eyeline match between them and their expressions convey their mutual understanding. Nikkie subsequently looks up at Terry, depicting his comprehension of his grandmother’s message.

VIEW 1:38-3:20 BELOW! Enjoy.

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Karate Cop, 1991

With a tagline like “In the future there is no law and no order. Only John Travis, The last cop on Earth.” are you setting yourself up for disaster?

Karate Cop (1991) is actually a low budget sequel to a 1990 film Omega Cop. The film starts out in the future with Rachel (Carrie Chambers) running (that’s what I’ll call it) away from the evil cronies only to be “hit” by a rock.

We are then introduced to the hero of the film—John Travis (Ron Marchini), the last cop on Earth. As for the other cops, we don’t know, I guess the directors felt that that fact was irrelevant to the story. John saves her and through some dialogue and a couple of “hee-yahs”, we find out that she is some sort of unidentified “scientist”. She is also the leader of the Freebies, a rebel group. Seeing as they are the only remotely attractive middle aged people in the film—as everyone else is in some kind of Halloween costume as the bad people or too young—we assume that these two are love interests.

The plot, more simple than the characters, is John and Rachel scour the city in search of a priceless stone. The villain, David Carradine, of course, intends to rule the world with that stone.
There’s some time travel, but you can’t tell, because the whole set looks like the backyard of a rundown 1980s city projects. There’s some acting, for example when Rachel falls down, she looks genuinely hurt. There is supposedly martial arts too, but it’s hard to tell when you kick and knock someone down 7 feet away from you. All in all, with Karate Cop, you get what you’d think a title like that would bring.

Chocolat

IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0241303/


Youtube clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CYA6JWB5tHs

Chocolat (2000) is a romance film starring Juliette Binoche. Set in a beautiful French village, it is about Vianne Rocher's arrival and the changes she incurs by setting up her chocolaterie during Lent. At first met with criticsm by the townspeople and especially the mayor, she manages to win over everybody with her charm and chocolates. Vianne's feats include reviving a couple's marriage, reuniting estranged family members, saving a woman from her husband's drunken beatings and overall inspiring a benefitical change in the town. The film culminates with the arrival of gypsy river crew members, one of which Vianne eventually falls in love with. Although the film has been classified as a romance, there is much more to be taken away from it. Binoche's performance as a feisty, independent woman willing to break rules to rouse a sleepy town certainly should have won the Oscar she was nominated for.

The Fifth Element

The Fifth Element (1997) is an action-adventure science fiction romance (ha!) starring Bruce Willis as Korbin Dallas, an ex-soldier-turned-taxi-driver in 23rd century New York who is recruited to help the alien Leeloo (Milla Jovovich) in a literal battle against evil (which, it turns out, looks like a planet-sized metallic black sphere.)

This is a film meant to envision an utterly different yet utterly universal world, so it foregrounds its endless stream of innovative costumes (done by Jean-Paul Gaultier), sets, and props, but underlying it is a very basic story of the importance of love, which makes up the "fifth element" required to save the world. Although it is in English, it is a French production, written and directed by Luc Besson.The following clip is a short sequence from the middle of the film, depicting the point at which Korbin definitively decides to help Leeloo. In previous scenes, Korbin has hidden several military officers in his apartment, in order to talk to Leeloo and her friend Cornelius, and then hidden Leeloo and Cornelius to pass a police inspection. The officers were trying to convince Korbin to accept a mission to gather the first four elements, and rigged a contest to get him tickets to the cruise ship where he can obtain them, though he doesn't want to go.

When the clip begins, the police have just left.

The scene is dictated almost exclusively by the technology (the shower that retracts into the ceiling, the bed that retracts into the wall, the "autowash," even the plastic used instead of paper) or by love, as represented by Leeloo. The sequence, like the rest of the movie, couldn't exist without them.

Also, since I mentioned Jean-Paul Gaultier's crazy costumes in my tweet, a selection of my favourites for your amusement:

Leeloo!

Ruby Rhod!

Jean-Baptiste Emanuel Zorg!

Sky Waitresses!

American Gangster

Haven't seen this amazing film? Below is an alternate opening not in the actual movie. This way you won't spoil the viewing experience




American Gangster (2007) is an adaptation from Marc Jacobson's article "The Return of Superfly." Denzel Washington stars as Franc Lucas in his rise to the top of the Harlem drug trade. After taking over his mentor Bumpy's position, Lucas quickly finds himself at the top of the heroin business and having difficulty staying clear of a detective team led by Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe). The scene below occurs around the middle of the movie. Pay careful attention to how the camera is able to zoom in and show us what Lucas is looking and thinking about as he pears out the window around the waitress.





A Haiku
A film about drugs.
But also about true love.
But mostly just thug.

Enjoy