Jack Attack Tuesday – 7/22/14 – Jodorowsky’s Dune, Filming Syrian Weddings, Path of Exile and Sobbing Like a Bitch
Jack Attack Tuesday – 7/22/14
Jodorowsky’s Dune, Filming Syrian Weddings, Path of Exile and
Sobbing Like a Bitch
***MODERATE AMAZING SPIDER MAN 2 SPOILERS NEAR THE END***
Another week, another piece of summer gone. I must say I didn’t do much to utilize the past seven days, but despite all that I still managed to enjoy my one week off from school, even though I was still working. The time off, however, gave me a chance to truly decompress and take in some flicks I’ve been after for quite a while, one of which turned out to be one of the best movies I’ve seen all year. In between all this, I got to get drunk with Ammon and Moreno this week and get into a new PC game for a bit.
For those of you who already caught this week’s BingeCast, you’ve heard me fife the fuck out of this already, but it bears repeating. Jodorowsky’s Dune is an essential documentary for all us movie fans. Even for those of you who have seen Jodorowsky’s stuff and thought “not for me,” I can almost guarantee this documentary will show you things that are deeply fascinating. Every few years a movie comes along that radically changes my perspective, and this flick did it for me in regards to Hollywood. The influence this unmade film has had over the past forty years is undeniable, and I’m dying to get my hands on a copy of the illusive Dune book shown here in the film. This, much like Orson Welles’ failed Batman adaptation, is one of the great what-ifs in the movie world, and this documentary is the closest we’ll ever come to seeing it come to fruition. What amazed me most was that despite the fact that some of the concepts highlighted here have been done in movies at this point, Jodorowsky still has a lot of fresh perspectives that are both emotional and innovative. See this movie, pronto, and check out some additional art from the storyboards below.
Some of you may know from previous articles but I am currently in school. However, I’m also a wedding videographer on occasion, and a particular wedding this past weekend was a good example of exactly why I don’t want to do this for the rest of my life. I think when most people think of a wedding, they either associate it with boredom or drunken fun. I’ll let you guess which camp the guy below falls into:
There is a whole other side of weddings that only people who have worked them can understand, and that is the frustration and inordinate amount of work and attention that you need to have to either film one or take pictures at one. A wedding is one of those life events where you need to be at your best when filming it, due to the fact that you can’t have the “actors” reset and shoot the scene again. If you missed their first kiss, you’re shit-outta-luck. I’ve been doing this for five years now and have a pretty good general understanding of when certain things happen. In a Jewish ceremony, the kiss comes after the groom breaks a glass. In a Christian ceremony, typically the priest/pastor says something along the lines of “You may kiss the bride,” or some such thing. Well, take the difficulty of following the proceedings when they’re in English and multiply that by ten during a Syrian wedding where only the bride and groom communicate to you in English. This makes for an exceedingly difficult day, on top of what is already a strenuous and stressful situation. I don’t know about anyone else, but I sweat balls in a suit no matter what time of year it is. To have to wear one for between 7-12 hours and be on your feet non-stop…let’s just say it requires a liberal and regular use of some fast-acting powder (I can’t stress this point enough). It was a very tough day that capped off what was otherwise a pretty laid back and relaxing week. The good thing about it all is the video actually looks just as good as all my other jobs, but still, it just reinforced the fact that I am not a live videographer by any stretch of the imagination. Also, if you’re living in America and planning on participating in the culture, it might be a good idea to understand basic English. Just sayin’.
As mentioned before, this was a mostly glorious week of sweet nothings. I had some time on my hands, and decided to crack open one of the many games I acquired during the Steam Summer Sale. So what did I choose? Path of Exile, a free to play Diablo clone that’s fun as shit. The irony of this does not escape me but I’m a creature of habit, and I like RPGs. Sue me. The thing that makes Path of Exile especially intriguing is this:
That, my dear BingeFriends, is the skill-tree for Path of Exile. It is massive. Each of those dots can be acquired after achieving one level in the game and allows for deep customization options. You begin with one of seven classes and it is highly suggested that you choose a path somewhere on the board and stick with it to get some of the better buffs later in the game. My class, the Duelist, began in the center of the board and branched outwards. The game is a lot of fun and if you’re into Diablo 3 but sick of the repetitive dungeons, give this a shot, as I’m definitely hooked. I’m talking to you Kupka, let’s do dis shit.
When I was younger, Toy Story was one of the first movies I saw in the theater. I was always a fan of Woody over Buzz, I think because I identified with him more as a little kid. As I’ve gotten older, I’m so happy that not only is Toy Story one of the best film trilogies of all time, but that it is still beloved by new generations of children. Despite all Pixar has done, I still hold the original up as my favorite of all their movies. Toy Story 2 brilliantly expanded the first film, but Toy Story 3 is a hell of an emotional gut-punch. LOTR gets a ton of shit for having a ton of endings, but the thing people always forget is that the story in Fellowship takes around 45-minutes before they embark on their adventure. Those 45 minutes do wonders for building character, setting and story, and at the end of Return of the King, Jackson does the same to bring things back to The Shire and remind the audience what truly matters about the story. Toy Story 3 does the same thing. The Sunnyside/Lotso storyline is resolved, or brought to a conclusion, with about 20 minutes to spare. In a three hour film, that wouldn’t be too abnormal, but this is Toy Story. These flicks barely crack an hour and a half, so 20 minutes is a lot of time. Seeing Andy bring the toys to the little girl and seeing her embrace and care about them is heart-wrenching stuff. In a flick about toys that come to life, the themes they deal with are incredibly resonant and make one of the best Disney moments ever. It’s pretty much Niagara Falls when this scene comes on. A great flick that will stay that way for a long time, I’m sure. Unfortunately for me, there was another flick that had a similar scene, although the rest of the flick was liquid garbage.
Boy did this movie screw the pooch. While not being nearly as bad as Spider Man 3, this flick just felt like it was a few sidesteps of being really great. Everything here just felt like I’d seen it before, from the opening Inception/Dark Knight Rises ripoff (plane attack/rotating like Inception) to the non-existent Electro arc. This flick felt really half-baked and was unapologetically begging for a sequel/franchise.. I honestly didn’t give a shit about anyone for the entire runtime, especially Gwen Stacy who is just a little too perfect for Peter. And while I hated the way Rhino was handled, I must admit that had he not shown up at the end, we wouldn’t have been treated to the truly amazing scene referenced above. There have only been a few moments in superhero films that encapsulate the essence of what these characters are, especially in regards to how children see them. At the end of the first Captain America, there’s a scene where, after the Cap crash-lands Red Skull’s plane, we see some kids playing in the street with a homemade Captain America shield. In The Dark Knight Rises, there’s that quick moment near the end, when Batman’s flying the bomb out of Gotham, where after a small explosion some kid goes “It’s Batman!” That stuff is really important to add to these films and too often we don’t see it. I have to give this movie props for remembering that stuff like this is important and that kids who loved this stuff throughout their lives are largely to thank for the current state of Hollywood.
That’s it for this week guys. Sorry if I rambled a bit, this one turned out longer than I expected. Check out our Strain commentary for this week and don’t forget to check back for Kupka, Ammon, Law and Luke’s blogs!