Top 10 Influential Animated Characters

Check out my first article for the brilliant film website Flickfeast.

http://flickfeast.co.uk/top-ten/top-10-influential-animated-characters/

Film Posters

I am always disappointed with the lack of creativity, imagination and graphic quality of film posters today. Some of my favourite offerings are from the 1950s and 1960s, Saul Bass' masterpiece for Hitchcock's Vertigo (1958) is most certainly in my top 10! So I was both surprised and delighted when I discovered these gems for two upcoming films I am extremely excited about. Unfortunately this Almodovar's The Skin I Live In (2011) poster is for the Spanish release and so we Brits will not get to enjoy its sheer beauty but hey here it is for you to enjoy! As for Tyrannosaur (2011), well, what can I say, utterly gorgeous and it makes me even more excited about Paddy Considine's debut.   

Total Recall (1990)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0100802/

This is a film I hadn’t seen since I was a child, when the brief eyes popping out scene at the beginning traumatised me for years, so when I saw it was on telly I couldn’t resist the opportunity to revisit it. The tone of this film is a little confusing to start with; Arnold Schwarzenegger seems to take himself very seriously which is quite a contradiction for both himself and the director Paul Verhoeven. Add to this the fact it is based on a Philip.K.Dick short story and this film becomes quite literally mind-boggling. However, once you get used to Arnie’s wooden acting and realise that perhaps this film doesn’t take itself quite as seriously as would first appear, it becomes an entertaining violent sci-fi rollercoaster ride.
Based around the notion of virtual memories, the film follows Douglas Quaid as he discovers his life is not what it seems and he has some sort of connection with Mars. As he realises the people in his life are not who they say they are he has to return to Mars to find out what is real and what is not. Apparently this was then the most expensive film of all time up until a year later when it was beaten by Terminator 2 and the special effects, while nothing compared to today’s standards or Terminator 2’s for that matter, are pretty great and rather admirable. The mutants are suitably freaky and Kuato is believable and grotesque as the resistance leader on Mars. With a three-breasted lady and a midget among the characters we encounter on Mars it is easy to see the trashy Verhoeven sense of humour in Total Recall. The violence is quite extreme and surprising in parts but this is so fast paced the viewer does not have time to dwell on this.
As in all Arnie films he is invincible and it is amusing to see him wounded, by enemies he encounters on his quest for his real memories, but never affected, a true action hero! The scientific elements of the plot are questionable and parts of this film do seem dated but in most parts I was entertained by the ‘what is real and what isn’t’ plot, a standout scene being where the doctor visits Arnie’s character Douglas Quaid in a hotel room on Mars and informs him that it is not real and he is in fact sat back at Rekall and all he has to do is take a pill to return. This questioning of what we believe to be the plot is what develops the film and ensures it has the right mixture of sci-fi and trash. So does Total Recall have a place in film history? I believe so. It is not one of the greatest sci-fi films ever made and the acting is not always that good but at the same time it demonstrates the momentum and thrill that a great action film should have. Its violence is commendable and there are some great lines to quote; Arnie pushes a giant drill into someone and shouts “screw you”, dialogue at its best.
The combination of Schwarzenegger, Verhoeven and late eighties special effects make this film a must see. It does verge on so bad it’s good in parts but manages to retain credibility somehow. With the news of a remake that remains more true to the Dick short story and an absence of Mars I wonder if the world of film really needs firstly another remake and secondly one that takes itself so seriously. What seems to be missing from Hollywood films today is good old-fashioned action films that have fun and do not pretend to be something they are not.

Into the Wild

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0758758/

Emile Hirsch plays Christopher McCandless, a successful University graduate who decides the career rat race is not for him. He abandons his family and gives all his savings to charity and becomes Alexander Supertramp, trekking to Alaska to be at one with nature and live off the land. Into the Wild is a film in the same category as Wendy and Lucy (2008) and 127 Hours (2010), films that make you want to be more spontaneous and daring in life, they make you want to get up, leave everything and go. But what are the consequences of such actions? Wendy has to give up Lucy and we never find out what happens to her or if she even makes it to Alaska and Aron has to cut off his own arm to survive. So what are the consequences for Alexander Supertramp/Chris McCandless? This is based on a true story, like 127 Hours, but is described as tragic; giving the ending away to the viewer. This disclosure does not affect the enjoyment of watching Chris on his journey, meeting people who assist him in his new perspective on life and develop into the person he wants to be.
There are plenty of profound moments and screenwriter and director Sean Penn keeps the 148 minutes interesting by employing techniques such as split screens, slow motion, speeding up, photo montages and excerpts of Alexander Supertramp’s diary scrawled across the screen. The film is divided into chapters that revolve around the significant ‘magic bus’ and most of the film is in non-linear flashbacks which allow the viewer to piece together the events leading to the tragic end. I felt that the end was not as tragic as expected, it was rather undramatic and the extreme selfishness of the character meant I did not empathise with the predicament he gets himself into. The big flaw for me in this story is the fact that I don’t think I actually liked the character enough to care but at the same time his selfishness adds a very interesting element to what could be a rather routine coming of age drama.
Emile Hirsch does a superb job as the main protagonist and is reminiscent of a young Leo DiCaprio. The other characters that Alex encounters along the way are what make this film, Catherine Keener and Brian Dierker are brilliant as a pair of hippies who become fond of Alex. There are poignant moments too, one that stood out for me was when an old man asks Alex to be his adopted grandson as he has no family left to carry on the line. Into the Wild shows how nice people can be and the story becomes less about Alex and more about humanity. The sister’s narration throughout adds another perspective to the story and there are flashbacks to family incidents and the violence of the father that are perhaps there as an explanation of Chris’ abandonment of his family.
Another character worth mentioning is nature itself, which is allowed to just merely exist within the film, no extra drama is added. The landscape of North America is beautifully depicted and seduces the viewer just as it did Chris. The film is rather romanticised and feels very Hollywood, if this had been British imagine the grim realism that would have been depicted. Despite its flaws Into the Wild is an interesting piece and I was fascinated throughout, even though it is a long film. It is not often I have so much to say about a film, showing that this is definitely a film worth watching. It may not be a favourite but there is a lot of depth and food for thought.