Online social networking has many different objectives. It serves as a central hub to bring people together from across the world, yet others use it as a means of escapism. The World Wide Web allows users to take on different identities. Consequently, their appearance is much more attractive, smarter, and extraordinary than they actually are. What boundaries are crossed, when we constantly lie about ourselves? Do we lose touch with reality? How far is one willing to go for social acceptance? Directors Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman touch on these questions through their film Catfish.
What's the story?
New York photographer Nev Schulman enjoys posting pictures of his work on Facebook. He captures the attention of eight year old Abby Pierce, also a Facebook resident, who mails him paintings of the pictures posted online. Instantly, Nev forms an online friendship with Abby, her mother Angela, Angela's husband Vince, and Abby's older half-sister Megan. Nev, convinced he found his ideal girl, begins a romantic correspondence with Megan. The relationship extends beyond Facebook to text messaging and phone calls. Eventually, she sends him recordings of songs written by her, but Nev discovers that they were all fabricated from much more famous musicians. Heartbroken, he decides to confront Megan at her house. Unfortunately, he learns of a much bigger deception than just a simple act of plagiarism.
The Result?
A critic should never judge a film by its trailer. Unfortunately, I am guilty of falling into that trap. I was expecting a much bigger climax, yet it wasn't what I desired. The problem was an error in the narrative. If nothing had been revealed about Megan, then there could have been a much more lasting impact. Joost and Schulman should have played more with the idea of deceiving the audience. Megan's lie watered down the film's theme that appearances are misleading.
The originality and concept were interesting ideas. Joost and Schulman explored how users let themselves be fooled by what is shown to them online. Social networking websites create this built in validity, yet we accept all this information without question. Assumption over inquisition hinders our chances for a positive outcome.
Tyler's Verdict: 2 Stars. A nice idea, but it offers nothing special.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Monday, June 13, 2011
Super 8: A Love Letter to Steven Spielberg? Not Quite.
J.J. Abrams loves to bring us to the edge of our seats. Fans of LOST are not strangers to his method of storytelling. He is a director who doesn't unravel his plot right away, rather he creates scenes that imply an idea. As that same notion resides in our heads, he will amplify our original thoughts into something bigger. He prefers to keep us in the dark as a means of creating suspense. So, it shouldn't come as a surprise that the story for Super 8 was top secret. As the first teaser trailer premiered last summer, little has been revealed about what Abrams project was actually about. Today, we are three days past the premiere. So, what's the verdict?
What's the story?
In the summer of 1979, 13 year old Joe Lamb (Joel Courtney) is trying to overcome the recent death of his mother by helping his friend Charles (Riley Griffiths) finish a zombie movie that is filmed on a Super 8 camera. One night, they decide to shoot at an old train station, where they witness a train wreck. In the midst of the destruction, something inhuman escapes from the trains cargo. After making a vow to keep silent about what they have seen, the kids notice strange things happening in town. The military shows up answering no questions, people begin disappearing, and abnormal electricity shortages become common. Joe, like all teenage protagonists, ignore the warnings to find out the truth. What he discovers will leave him forever changed.
The Result?
Conceptually, the film was fantastic. It was both a love letter to Steven Spielberg and a tribute to Science Fiction B movies of the 1970s. Elements of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and The Goonies are everywhere. The Spielberg nostalgia fuels the heart and soul of the picture.
Unfortunately, a variety of problems made the experience unbearable.
The screenplay contained an excess amount of cheesy dialogue and stock characters. Often, the plot stopped to extract a cheap laugh from some of the character absurdity. In all fairness, Abram's direction was meant to satirize the B movie. However, this satire has no consistency.
Character development was absent. Joe Lamb and his love interest Alice (Elle Fanning) are the only ones that demonstrate genuine moments. The rest of the kids create annoyance. Charles was loud, crude, and had an obsession with saying how things are so "mint". During any of his screen time, I wanted him to shut up. He did nothing for the film's story, except play off a Hollywood cliche that every adolescent lead needs an obese best friend.
Tyler's Verdict: 2 1/2 Stars. The terrible writing and cliches pollute the originality of the idea.
What's the story?
In the summer of 1979, 13 year old Joe Lamb (Joel Courtney) is trying to overcome the recent death of his mother by helping his friend Charles (Riley Griffiths) finish a zombie movie that is filmed on a Super 8 camera. One night, they decide to shoot at an old train station, where they witness a train wreck. In the midst of the destruction, something inhuman escapes from the trains cargo. After making a vow to keep silent about what they have seen, the kids notice strange things happening in town. The military shows up answering no questions, people begin disappearing, and abnormal electricity shortages become common. Joe, like all teenage protagonists, ignore the warnings to find out the truth. What he discovers will leave him forever changed.
The Result?
Conceptually, the film was fantastic. It was both a love letter to Steven Spielberg and a tribute to Science Fiction B movies of the 1970s. Elements of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and The Goonies are everywhere. The Spielberg nostalgia fuels the heart and soul of the picture.
Unfortunately, a variety of problems made the experience unbearable.
The screenplay contained an excess amount of cheesy dialogue and stock characters. Often, the plot stopped to extract a cheap laugh from some of the character absurdity. In all fairness, Abram's direction was meant to satirize the B movie. However, this satire has no consistency.
Character development was absent. Joe Lamb and his love interest Alice (Elle Fanning) are the only ones that demonstrate genuine moments. The rest of the kids create annoyance. Charles was loud, crude, and had an obsession with saying how things are so "mint". During any of his screen time, I wanted him to shut up. He did nothing for the film's story, except play off a Hollywood cliche that every adolescent lead needs an obese best friend.
Tyler's Verdict: 2 1/2 Stars. The terrible writing and cliches pollute the originality of the idea.
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