Beetlejuice
31 May 2011 Leave a Comment
in Blu-ray Review, Comedy, DVD Review, Horror, The Chewie Project Tags: Alec Baldwin, Beetlejuice, Michael Keaton, Tim Burton
What’s it about? As if we didn’t already know.
Yeah, well some of us missed the boat on a lot of 80s classics as we were too busy watching Power Rangers.
What, for 12 years?
Shut up. Anyway, a deceased young couple spend the early stages of their afterlives attempting to scare an obnoxious family out of the recently vacated country home with the help of the titular ‘bio-exorcist’.
Feel a bit late to the party?
Definitely. Beetlejuice feels like the sort of movie anyone could enjoy. The story, haphazardly and quickly told, is very much a product of the decade it was made in; it doesn’t make a lot of sense, but it’s so much fun that you don’t really care. The tale of a young couple, Adam (Alec Baldwin) and Barbara (Geena Davis) dying in a tragic car accident, being bound to their house in spirit form and having to suffer the indignity of seeing a new family move into the home they’d slaved over only to see it turned into a ridiculous vision of modern art (plastic everything and large shapes a-go-go) by the family’s suffering artist might initially seem quite bleak. Of course, when you factor in that neither Adam or Barbara can leave the confines of the house after their death lest they get sucked into a shadow dimension populated by giant sandworms, taking the film seriously would be a mistake.
Adam and Barbara inhabit an absorbing and fantastical world where they get assigned to a careworker who advises them on how best to scare the new tenants out of their house. Unfortunately, their attempts backfire spectacularly, accidentally making the new family warm to them, and they soon enlist the help of freelance bio-exorcist ghost, Beetlejuice to get rid of them properly. Michael Keaton is fantastic in the title role, combining off-kilter comments, cartoon mayhem and just enough menace to steal every scene he’s in. Of course, it helps that director Tim Burton is in full-on fantasy mode. This might not be a story he’s written but the special effects, settings and characters are all so well realised that it may aswell be. It’s imaginative, random and damn funny.
Final thoughts?
Enjoyable offbeat story, wonderfully unique special effects and animation, and Michael Keaton is freakin’ awesome.
The Girl Who Leapt Through Time
29 May 2011 Leave a Comment
in Blu-ray Review, DVD Review, Home, Romance, Sci-fi, The Chewie Project Tags: anime, blu-ray, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time
What is it?
Japanese animation film about a schoolgirl who develops the power to travel through time.
Time travel and teenagers, eh?
Yeah, surely a dangerous combination. Makoto’s an energetic, boisterous young girl who, after encountering a mysterious object, discovers she has the ability to freeze and manipulate time. As you can imagine, she uses it to her advantage and gives herself more time to sleep-in each morning, get better scores on her tests and improve her life tenfold. Of course, this isn’t without repercussions, and the film deals with Makoto dealing with the knock-on effects of her time travelling whilst her two best friends, Kōsuke and Chiaki, are kept utterly bamboozled. How can she be so good at catching a baseball every time they play catch? Everything’s just a bit too perfect, and it’s only a matter of time before things start to go awry.
Is it any good?
In other hands, a film delving into deep science fiction conventions with a sharp focus on high school romance could be a bit of a mess. Thankfully, very little gets lost in translation from its original Japanese script and you never really feel out of the loop. The film looks fantastic and is superbly drawn, which helps the predominantly care-free summertime setting feel all the more engaging. It often feels very bright, welcoming and absorbing. Makoto’s means of inducing time travel often involve running, jumping and rolling, which normally ends in her speeding head first in a heap into various pieces of furniture and doors. It’s a good indication of the film’s lighthearted and slightly comic edge, which is wonderfully offset by its darker moments. I won’t spoil anything, but the film pulls out some genuinely intense scenes with Makoto racing against time (ironic, no?) to prevent tragedy.
Any problems?
There aren’t any massive issues that hinder the film too much, but some might find the overly dramatic teenage romance aspect a little bit off-putting. Then again, these are teenagers. Remember hormones? Don’t be fooled, because the film doesn’t get anywhere near the histrionics and cartoony vibe that you’ll find in most anime.This is, for the most part, much more measured, mature and sophisticated.
Final Thoughts:
Great characters, effective if overly long ending, good story that only occasionally baffles and a great setting. Well worth watching.
The Chewie Project: Getting Started
25 May 2011 Leave a Comment
(Subtitled: Houston, The Rocket’s Taken Off, Man)
In all honesty, I love a good project. I really enjoy getting stuck into to something for the long term and watching it grow. This is what makes me so excited to kick this off today. It’s all based on a love I have for writing and reviewing, and it’s developed from writing movie/album/game reviews on this blog back in late 2009 to interviewing some of my favourite bands and musicians for www.subba-cultcha.com for the last eighteen months. Writing for Subba has been fantastic, and I’ve gotten to meet some amazing people aswell as having some fantastic times. Unfortunately, Small World (the blog you’re visiting – cheers for that, by the way), which still feels like my baby, has taken a bit of a back seat. Well, not so much now. Today, Small World is particularly chuffed to present The Chewie Project. How did it begin, you ask? What does it involve? Why the hell have I misspelled chewie? Read on, dude. Read the flip on.
It all started with an innocuous looking package that arrived in the post yesterday morning. I knew my girlfriend had gotten me something for my birthday that was going to arrive pretty soon, and it duly turned up whilst she was visiting. It was a LoveFilm package, addressed to me, with two blu-rays inside. After opening said package, I found The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (an anime movie, screenshot below) and Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice tucked away inside.
I was then instructed to open and read SECRET BIRTHDAY FILE 1, a super-secret word document she’d written for me to accompany the blu-rays. Intriguing, cool and a nice surprise, I thought. The birthday file was great; laced with her trademark command of language and randomness, and she’d easily guessed that I would be thinking over which films and shows I could rent out, but, to quote the file, “IT’S NOT THAT SIMPLE.” So, after watching The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (which will be the opening subject of the whole shebang……wait….heh, heh……shebang), I was pointed in the direction of SECRET BIRTHDAY FILE 2. It handily informed me that for the next three months, I’d be receiving movies chosen for me, by my girlfriend. Pretty sweet, awesomely thoughtful, but it got even better. Knowing about this ol’ blog, she challenged me to write a review for every single release that comes my way over the next twelve weeks. “Oooh, a challenge! Eff yes, I’m up for that”, thought I. But hold up there, young ‘un. It got better. Again.
I now have my very own website. How freakin’ sweet is that?!
Yep, www.smallworldreviews.co.uk is mine. She secured the domain name herself and in a few days, you’ll have a nice, easy, professional-looking link to catch up with all the stuff I’m going to be watching and doing. I have no idea what’s coming in the post, so it’s a voyage of discovery where the compass is buggered, but we know we’re going in the general direction of awesome. I also have absolutely no idea where this will lead, but I am stupidly excited to get started and to keep going.
Oh, and the name? Well, two years ago, when I met the lady who provided this quite fantastic present, she made a noise akin to that of the famous Chewbacca (if you don’t know who that is, for shame), so I started calling her Chewie. Not that I still do; we’ve moved on from that, even if our sense of humour hasn’t matured dramatically. But it seemed like an appropriate title for something that is all down to her and her quite fantastic imagination. In my, admittedly, pretty limited experience of people, someone who goes to lengths such as these to encourage you to succeed at doing something you have a passion for isn’t a dime a dozen. She’s pretty damn special, y’see.
So, over the next few months, all I ask is this; keep an eye on www.smallworldreviews.co.uk (bookmark it, newsfeed, whatever your preference) and if you like what you read, come back. If you know of one of the movies up for review, then comment. Tell me if you feel that I’ve perfectly hit your feelings on said movie on the head with a large, metaphorical hammer. Tell me if you think I’m talking out of my backside and my ramblings are a blight on your existence. If you like what you read, check out the films and let’s delve into them. I’m going to have a blast with this, and I hope you will too.
Either way, let’s get going.
Iwan x
