Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)

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Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)

 (spoilers ahead!)

Star Wars: The Force Awakens is a really good movie. It has enough nostalgia to keep everyone happy who knows the world enough to enjoy it but delivers many new ideas to hold newcomers’ attention too. Especially the first half is extremely entertaining and well-written and while the movie slags a little bit (just a little) in its second half, it still never gets boring for a second. I was really impressed by the acting, especially the two new leads, Daisy Ridley and John Boyega, while I’m still not so sure about Adam Driver as Kylo Ren. There was at least one amazing long take that made me want to cheer along with Finn (Boyega) and overall J.J. Abrams’ directing was more than solid. I’m probably the most in love with John Williams’ score which is simply beautiful. I can’t really say anything bad about the movie. It’s endearing and enjoyable and fun while also being tragic. Coming out of the theater, I felt like watching it again, which doesn’t happen so often.

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Why Paris Won't Be Different

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Why Paris Won't Be Different

Yesterday in school, I had a lesson about literature and movies in Germany during the Third Reich and after watching a clip from Die Feuerzangenbowle I wondered aloud, how people in 1944 were able to make such a superficial entertainment movie during that time, despite everything that was going on around them. One student responded wisely by noting that this is always the case, not just in Nazi Germany of the 1940s. I was caught surprised by that comment and had to admit she’s probably right. That same day, I went to see Steve Jobs at a cinema and came out afterwards highly entertained, almost energetic, already thinking about what to write about it. Then I heard the news of Paris. The student’s comment became almost prophetic in retrospect and though I don't want to claim to have anything profound to say about the attacks of last night, I can’t help but share my thoughts, even if it’s just for myself.

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Northwest Passage (1940) [1940 Week]

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Northwest Passage (1940) [1940 Week]

Northwest Passage is a better film than North West Mounted Police, but that doesn’t really mean that much. What makes it better is that it is filmed better, there are some spectacular scenes, the acting is better and the colors don’t blind you. When it comes to the depiction of Native Americans this might be even worse. At least it shows the extinction of Native Americans as detailed and gruesome as possible, while not taking any moral stance against it and actually justifying it most of the time. This is essentially a war movie, but instead of soldiers killing other soldiers in WWI or WWII, we have rangers taking out Native Americans. While they walk through swamps and forests, there is almost an impossible Vietnam vibe to all of it. It sort of works as a war movie adventure, in depicting the struggles the soldiers have to get through (the action scene in the river is kind of cool), the way they plan their mission and the difficulty of getting back home. In that sense it is almost enjoyable, if you ignore any ethical alarms setting of at watching the glorification of war and genocide.

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Comics Are for Everyone: 1940 Edition - Spanking During War Times [1940 Week]

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Comics Are for Everyone: 1940 Edition - Spanking During War Times [1940 Week]

(Coincidentally, this is the 200th post on this blog! Yes, go and count, it's true. Hooray!)

Comics in 1940 were very different than they are now. If you know anything about comics history you know that publishers back then didn’t really care about artists or writers, let alone royalties. Stories were cobbled together with no time and not much care. That the mess of the origin of many famous characters is the basis for what we still read and watch today is somewhat amazing. If you actually look at those comics, you see no great art in most cases and certainly no stories that are well-written. I decided to take a look at some #1s that came out during that year and focus on the most interesting, funny, weird or problematic panels.

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Waterloo Bridge (1940) [1940 Week]

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Waterloo Bridge (1940) [1940 Week]

(spoilers ahead, but you don't care, right, it's a 1940 movie)

Waterloo Bridge is an odd film to judge. On the surface I liked it. The acting was quite good, the dialogue is well written and the direction by Mervyn LeRoy is good. It is an entertaining movie, apart from its plot development and moral, especially concerning women. I have rarely seen such a strange mixture of serviceable filmmaking and questionable ethics. Interestingly, for a movie made in 1940, it is set mostly during World War I but also includes Britain declaring war on Germany in World War II, clearly appealing to audience’s emotions at the time. Anyway, there are worse old movies you could watch and this one at least offers the opportunity for interesting post-watching discussions.

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Music Box: Gang of Four's "Entertainment!"

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Music Box: Gang of Four's "Entertainment!"

After Marie Antoinette I couldn’t help but wonder, why I haven’t written anything about Gang of Four’s Entertainment! before. This is one of my most influential albums that is so bold in deconstructing our society and goes beyond the “everything sucks” ideology of many punk albums. This is post-punk, of course, and while there are other political albums in music’s history, at least for me nothing achieves what this album achieves. It’s angry without being loud, it’s intelligent and challenges the listener because it doesn’t provide easy answers. It’s simply brilliant, lyrically and musically. If I ever need inspiration for change, for doing something, I put this one on and get going.

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Go Play: Escaping, Assassinating, Warring

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Go Play: Escaping, Assassinating, Warring

I realized I look at so many different things here, movies, music, books, comics, etc., I should include something else. Sure, I could also narrow my focus, but I’m not good at that, I want the big picture, all of it. So, today I want to look at video games. Why? Well, just like all the others, they are an essential part of our cultural canon, especially (but not exclusively) for younger people.  More than all the others, they engage you actively in an activity, thereby shaping your ideas and values in a different way than other mediums. I’m not saying they have a bigger impact, but it is a more unique impact than just consumer media. Anyway, I think video games have a different way of portraying and transporting cultural ideas. So, I thought I face them now. Here’s my plan: I look at the list of upcoming games (from Wikipedia, all the quotes are from there), pick some games and see what’s there to see.

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