Tag Archives: Bridgit Mendler

MOV095: “Hut Hut Hut!”

In this reel of COL Movies, Carlos Joins us again as we journey back into the past to take a look at the 1962 movie that put the Epic in EPIC! Lawrence of Arabia. Does the Majesty of the film translate through the years. Or is the grandeur lost on today’s smaller screens and modern audiences. Next we take a slightly convoluted journey into the present by looking at Disney’s re-release of the Studio Ghibli film The Secret World of Arriety. Do the boys all fall under the warm and fuzzy spell of Mitazaki San? Finally the boys jump into the undefined future for a look at the bizzare crazy and chaotic John Dies at the End. Does this trailer grab us despite the chaos or does it intrigue us? All that plus news about Prometheus, Johnny Depp with a bird on his head, an Avengers sequel and more on this the 95th Reel of COL:Movies “Hut Hut Hut”

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News:

The Past: Lawrence of Arabia
Rotten Tomatoes: 98% Fresh, 91% Audience

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Director: David Lean

Starring: Peter O’Toole, Alec Guinness, Anthony Quinn

Trivia:

  • Although 227 minutes long, this film has no women in speaking roles. It is reportedly the longest film not to have any dialog spoken by a woman.
  • Almost all movement in the film goes from left to right. David Lean said he did this to emphasize that the film was a journey
  • While filming, Peter O’Toole referred to co-star Omar Sharif as “Fred,” stating that “no one in the world is called Omar Sharif. Your name must be Fred.”
  • To film Omar Sharif’s entrance through a mirage, Freddie Young used a special 482mm lens from Panavision. Panavision still has this lens, and it is known among cinematographers as the “David Lean lens”. It was created specifically for this shot and has not been used since.
  • During an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson in the 1970s, Peter O’Toole was describing just how long the movie took to make by referring to the scene when T.E. Lawrence and Gen. Allenby, after their meeting, continue talking while walking down a staircase. According to O’Toole, part of the scene had to be reshot much later, “so in the final print, when I get to the bottom of the stairs, I’m a year older than I was when I started walking down them.”
  • Peter O’Toole claims he never viewed the completed film until nearly two decades after its original release, by which time he was highly impressed.
  • Alec Guinness had a life-long interest in T.E. Lawrence, and had played him in a production of Terence Rattigan’s play “Ross” on stage. Guinness wanted very much to play Lawrence, but David Lean and Sam Spiegel both told him he was too old. Laurence Olivier was the original choice for Prince Feisal, and Guinness was shifted to that role when Olivier turned it down.
  • In 2007, the American Film Institute ranked this as the #7 Greatest Movie of All Time.
  • June 2008 Ranked #1 on the American Film Institute’s list of the 10 greatest films in the genre “Epic”.
  • In an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Peter O’Toole confessed quite proudly that, out of fear of falling off during a big camel riding scene, he and Omar Sharif decided to get absolutely hammered and then tied themselves down on the camels before shooting. By his own admission, he was so drunk he had no idea where he was or what he was doing for the entire scene (attack on Akaba)
  • Peter O’Toole was nearly killed during the first take of the Aqaba scene. A gun (used to signal the beginning of the scene) went off prematurely, and O’Toole’s camel panicked, throwing him to the ground, while the extras on horseback began charging. Fortunately for O’Toole, his camel stayed still and stood over O’Toole, saving him from being trampled.
  • The film took longer to make than it did for the real T.E. Lawrence to go from lieutenant to colonel, to see the desert tribes united and tip the balance in the Allies’ favor against the Turks in World War I.
  • Steven Spielberg estimated that to make the film today would cost in the region of $285 million
  • When first telecast (by ABC-TV), the film was shown in two parts on two successive nights because of its four-hour length. Even so, it was edited so that Lawrence’s rape by the Turks was even less explicit (and less comprehensible) than in the original film.

Talking Points:

  • What do you think was T.E. Lawrence’s motivation?
  • The no image over music disclaimer (and Ray’s confusing iPad rip)
  • The big gay gorilla in the corner of the room
  • First Person Camel!
  • Is it possible to truly enjoy this film at home on a normal sized television?
  • Omar Sharif Quote: ”If you are the man with the money and somebody comes to you and says he wants to make a film that’s four hours long, with no stars, and no women, and no love story, and not much action either, and he wants to spend a huge amount of money to go film it in the desert–what would you say?”

What We’ve Learned:

  • Motorcycle = WEAR A HELMET
  • The Trick is not minding that it hurts!
  • Big things have small beginnings
  • Only two types of creatures have fun in the desert, Bedouins and Gods.
  • Dreaming won’t get you to Damascus
  • Young people must say their say, but wise people must decide.
  • Nothing is written.
  • Life’s a vale of troubles.
  • There may be honor among thieves, but none among politicians.

Trailer

Recommendations:
Jeff: And another long epic movie. This movie suffers alot from lag with the intent to inspire the feeling of the long journeys through the desert and such. When it gets to the point, we have some good stuff. Although at times I swear I had flashbacks to Priscilla.
Ray: So, yes it’s a long movie, and probably one of the strangest long movies I’ve ever watched. If you have an opportunity to watch this on some sort of large format screen and have the time and patience for the film.. go for it. I actually want to re-watch this again once the Blu-ray comes out in June.
Carlos: This is the protypical David Lean movie: long, intelligent, beautiful, male, well acted, long, long, long. It’s kind of a British thing. Only they will make a film about a controversial historical figure, show it all it’s depth and beauty, and then bore you to tears if you don’t buy it. Watch it when you have time, when you have a big beautiful screen and when the Blu-Ray comes out. Also, Peter O’Toole is beautiful.

The Present: The Secret World of Arrietty
Rotten Tomatoes: 94% Fresh; 88% Audience

Director: Hiromasa Yonebayashi

Starring: Bridgit Mendler, Amy Poehler, Will Arnett

Trivia:

  • Directorial debut of animator Hiromasa Yonebayashi.
  • Hayao Miyazaki began the development stages in July of 2008. His original plans included a run time of 80 minutes and the film to be titled “Chiisana Arrietty” (Little Arrietty).
  • Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata had considered adapting the novel for the past 40 years.
  • The story takes place in 2010 in Western Tokyo’s neighborhood of Koganei. Koganei is also where Studio Ghibli is located.
  • At 36 years old Hiromasa Yonebayashi, was the youngest person to direct a film for Studio Ghibli.
  • 7.5 million people saw the film in theaters, an all-time record in Japan for a movie with a first time director.
  • The fourth feature film from Studio Ghibli to not be directed by Hayao Miyazaki or studio co-founder Isao Takahata.
  • French singer Cécile Corbel, a big fan of Studio Ghibli’s films, had sent the studio her second album as a gift back in 2009. Toshio Suzuki listened to it, was seduced and thus decided to hire her to compose the film’s score.
  • Nervous at the idea of directing the film himself, Hiromasa Yonebayashi would initially always seek Hayao Miyazaki advice and opinions. He eventually realized he was on a journey he should face alone when the time came to draw the storyboard, and Miyazaki congratulated him for it.
  • In the U.S. version, Bridgit Mendler and David Henrie play the lead characters who become best of friends. Prior, the two played boyfriend and girlfriend on the show Wizards of Waverly Place.
  • In the Borrowers’ home, they have three cups with playing card symbols (heart, diamond, and club). The only symbol they do not have is the spade, which in many cultures is considered to be bad luck.

Talking Points:

  • The Whimsical vs the sad
  • Sort of Japanese / Celtic hybrid music.
  • Why do you think we do not see films like this directly from Disney anymore?
  • The Great Anime Collapse

What We Learned:

  • Children are more vicious than grown ups
  • Borrowers only take what they need
  • You can’t live a life built on nothing but wishes.

Trailer:

Recommendations :
Jeff: What can I say? All these type of movies have such a charm to them. I can’t help myself but to enjoy the movie. Go see it in the theaters. This is the type of storytelling we need to support.
Ray: What can I say, it’s a Studio Ghibli / Miyazaki film. Miyazaki is able to take stories and breathe so much life, whimsy and emotion into the world he creates. It’s like the man ejaculates color right onto the film. It warms my heart to see animation like this in American theaters so I can do nothing but recommend that you go.
Carlos: Some folks just love Studio Ghibli no matter what they do, but it’s deserved. Unlike previous films, this one is less about a glorious wonderful world and more about the intimacies of family and friends. What does work is the beauty of the painted backgrounds, the voice acting and the idea of friendship between very different, but not so different beings.

The Future: John Dies At The End

Release: Not Announced (see it at SXSW)

Director: Don Coscarelli

Starring: Chase Williamson, Rob Mayes, Paul Giamatti

Summary:

It’s a drug that promises an out-of-body experience with each hit. On the street they call it Soy Sauce, and users drift across time and dimensions. But some who come back are no longer human. Suddenly a silent otherworldly invasion is underway, and mankind needs a hero. What it gets instead is John and David, a pair of college dropouts who can barely hold down jobs. Can these two stop the oncoming horror in time to save humanity? No. No, they can’t.

Talking Points

  • Somehow getting a “Fear and Loathing In Las Vegas” Meets a Horror flick vibe

Trailer:

Excitement:
Jeff: Wait, what just happened? Umm, okay. Well, it could be good, with Paul Giamatti and all, but seriously, I felt like I must have been on some of this “Soy Sauce” or something. I’ll just give it a Meh.
Ray: To be honest.. It had me at Paul Giamatti and from the Creators of Phantasm and Bubba-Ho-Tep
Carlos: I love that it’s crazy and wacky, and a cracked.com writer is involved. I love the Giamatti is in it. I love the opening shot with the snow and the field and the hammer. I may hate this movie but I loved trailer.

Coming Attractions

The Past:

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The Present:

The Future:

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