About special effects

Hi Lucas #12! After several weeks I finally understood that you are my only readership. As you definitely seemed to enjoy my last posts, I hope that you'll enjoy this one too. So, today, let's talk about special effects! I have chosen that subject specially for you because I made my own investigation about it and I think there are one or two interesting things to say about it. To be clear, I will talk here about handmade special effects, that means not computer generated special effects. This implies that I'll probably have to take older movies as examples in my topic.

Let's begin. You certainly know that before the democratisation of computers, that means before the early 80's, movie makers had to use tricks to create special effects. I will give you some examples of such special effects which have been made in an eccentric way.

The first example I wanted to give you is this one. Look at the picture on the left. It represents spectators in a shot of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999). I think that summarizing the Star Wars saga is unnecessary, if you really want to know more about those movies, I recommend you this blog, which incidentally belongs to #13. Anyway, the shot comes from the well known podracing scene. Anyway, this shot is a special effect. Guess how the crowd has been made!

This has been made by Industrial Light & Magic. Eventually the "crowd" is an amount of painted cotton swabs which have been stuck into chicken wire on a miniature set of the arena. Moreover, some figurines have been placed on the stairs. Amazing, isn't it? I find it great! There's a little close-up of the crowd on the right side.

The next special effect I wanted to talk about comes from the movie The Ten Commandments (1956). It talks about Moses' life. I think that summarizing Moses' story is unnecessary, if you really want to know more about him, I recommend you this site. Anyway, there is a scene where Moses splits the sea. You can watch the scene here:

 

If you haven't watched the scene because you were to lazy, here is a GIF:

You may have noticed that the movie has been made in the 50's. That has probably been an ambitious project in 1956 to make the splitting of a sea on a screen. So, how is it made? Common and let your brain work a little bit to find a plausible explanation for this special effect. As strange as it can sound, all you need to do it is a camera and two garbage trucks filled with water. Cecil B. DeMille, the director, filmed the carbage trucks spilling the water on the ground. Then she turned the pictures upside down and placed them on top of the scene whith Moses. I find that it was well done for a sixty year old movie! Unfortunately, I will probably never ever watch this scene without thinking about garbage trucks...

These were my last words for today, I hope you enjoyed it!

After the one who died the most, let's move to the one who killed the most

Today I'll talk about a funny subject. After the guy who died the most, I logically have to talk about the guy who killed the most characters in cinema. I think you got a chance to find who it is. So, common and make a list of all the muscular, strong-armed and testosterone-fuelled actors you know and try to find who I want to talk about. No, I'm not talking about Silvester Stallone or Steven Seagal. The one who I'm talking about is Arnold Schwarzenegger!
 
Schwarzenneger's story is fascinating, it's close to the American dream. Arnold was born in 1947 in a small European village called Thal, Austria. He emigrated pennilessly to the United States at the age of 21. That's when all started for him: he got some prestigious bodybuilding titles, some roles in action movies, married to J.F. Kennedy's niece and finally became governor of California. He's actually known in cinema for playing in Terminator (1984), Predator (1987) and Total Recall (1990).

Anyway, let's talk about serious stuff. At January 2. 2014, Schwarzy's - that's his surname, slightly unpronounceable for English speaking people - killcount reached 509 (source: http://kotaku.com). That means the characters he played has killed at least 509 other characters in movies. I said "at least" because according to the article, Arnold Schwarzenegger played aside in B-movies which have not been taken into account. He's followed by Chow Yun-Fat with 295 kills and Sylvester Stallone with 267 kills. However, if you don't trust me, here's the video to make yourself sure that it's the truth:

Personally, Schwarzy makes me laugh. Even if I'm not a big fan of action movies, I sometimes enjoy watching some movies in which he plays, but it's above all to hear his ridiculous punchlines and his Austrian accent!

Sean Bean: the guy who always dies

Today I will talk about an actor who is known for a special reason. Now, you will probably ask me which is it. This reason is that he dies always before the end. Ladies and Gentlemen, I am glad to introduce you today's subject: Sean Bean!

Let's stop kidding ourselves, I will set the tone: this guy died more than 25 times in his movies. Of course, he's not really dying, I'm talking about the characters he plays. In fact, he dies so often that it became hard to find articles up to date about the number of times he died. For those who don't know Sean, it is the guy who played Boromir in The Lord of the Rings (2002) or Eddard Stark in Game of Thrones.

Sean Bean

I will spare you the whole wikipedia crap, all you have to know is that he died too much times in his movies. No, seriously, Sean Bean is a guy who was born in 1959 in Sheffield, England. He's career is classic: Sean starred in some low ambitious movies in his beginnings till he got some bigger roles in blockbusters. Now, he's known as a good actor who plays different types of roles.

 

 

He is popularly known for playing characters dying during the movie. Since few years, it became funny to talk about him as the guy who gets killed every time. So he became a sort of mascot in the cinematic culture. As example, you can find many sorts of jokes about him on the web.

Sean Bean wearing a t-shirt on which stands "#DontKillSeanBean

On top of that, a web site has been created (http://dontkillseanbean.com) which is dedicated to the ending of Sean's character on television and movies. Nowadays, he's called the "two legged spoiler" because he's appearance on the screen means almost officially that he will die. I personnaly love Sean Bean.

Let's laugh a bit, the best things for the end. Here's for you a video which shows the scenes shot till 2012 where he dies.

Some urban legends about cinema

Hi everybody!

Today I will talk about some urban legends about cinema you already may have heared. As you certainly know, some controversial anecdotes have become so popular that it became hard to make the difference between what's true and what's false. I will talk about two well-knowned urban legends on movies.

Urban Legend n°1: The Poltergeist Curse

The rumour says that all the actors of the saga Poltergeist died in mysterious circumstances while making the movie. Poltergeist is a horror saga and some people say that those movies are cursed. True or false? I have been investigating for you.

First of all you need a little overview of the situation. Poltergeist is made of three movies: Poltergeist 1 (1982), Poltergeist 2 (1986) and Poltergeist 3 (1988). I personnaly remember that heared about that "curse" when I was a child. Anyway, whats the truth about it? Eventually, four actors who starred in Poltergeist died between the first movie and the last one: Dominique Dunne, Julian Beck, Will Sampson and the twelve year old Heather O’Rourke. Anyway, is it a curse? The answer is no. Will Sampson, Julian Beck and the young Heather O'Rourke died because of serious health diseases they already had. Dominique Dunne has been found strangled by her boyfriend. So there is an explanation for all these facts and Poltergeist is not mysteriously cursed as many say it.

Urban Legend n°2: Sexy Disney

There is a popular rumour which says that some Disney movies contain pornographic pictures. The biggest thing someone told me: The porn industrie would have payed Walt Disney Pictures in the late 80's to put subliminal images in their pictures. The goal: to incite children to watch porn later. That sounds amazing, but what's the truth about it? Once again, I have been investigating for you and I found that there are two different urban legends about Disney's.

The first one is that there is a picture of a topless woman in The Rescuers (1977, known in France as Bernard et Bianca for you french reader). That's definitely not a rumor. You can see it in the following video.

 

                              

The topless woman has been noticed twenty two years after the movie release. Untill now, nobody knows who has made it. Disney pleads not guilty. However, Walt Disney Pictures swapped all the concerned versions with a corrected one without the topless girl.

The second rumour about Disney is that The Lion King (1994) contains a scene where a cloud in the sky presents the word "SEX" in capital letters. Look:

                              

I see you look sceptical. Don't worry, the word you are seeing isn't "SEX" but the abbreviation "SFX" which stands for special effects. Used by those who make cartoons, "SFX" is like a signature which you can find in most of the anime movies.

Why dramas are the best movies

Dramas are the best ones. How? You asked what drama actually is? It is a film genre in which characters are dealing with deep emotional feelings. Dramas are putting the characters in conflict with themselves and often have tragic or painful resolutions. Personally, I love them, they are my favorite. Did you know that drama is the genre that includes the most movies? Are you surprised? That movies such as Inception (2010), The Godfather (1972) or Into the Wild (2008) are dramas? That most of the best movies belong to that genre? What can give you more feelings that love combined with sadness, a bit of hope or fear? That movies who are talking about life and death?

Don't talk about comedies, most of them sink into oblivion half an hour after being watched. You sad sci-fi? That's for old children. What about romance? That's for old moms. Horror movies? Honestly, do you really remember the last time you were scared while watching them? I don't. May be I was to young. Action movies? Forget it, they are all nearly the same. Drama! That's what you have to watch! However, I would bet a lot that you already have seen good movies of those genres, but I would bet much more that they also were dramas! It is actually a genre which you can combine with almost all the other genres.

Drama is also the best way for the directors to transmit emotions and make us think about some subjects. Nothing better than a sad story, you will keep it in mind. There's no more explicit way to denounce something than the drama genre: it takes you by the heart. Watch out! I don't talk about the bad movies, but about dramas of good quality made by a good crew and lead by a good director.

If you too have remarked that movies have got more and more boring since your childhood, it is that you haven't even been dazzled by a good drama! You don't like watching movies anymore? That's because you haven't watched the right ones! Try dramas. As I said it, they are the best ones!

Characters facing choices in movies

What impassions me the most in some metaphysical movies is that some of their characters are sooner or later confronted with a choice which has important consequences! Such scenes, combined with good staging, can give me goosebumps! In many cases, those choices call into question the character himself or making him stronger. I will give you some examples of such scenes I really liked!

If you have ever seen The Matrix (1999) you will probably remember the scene where Neo (Keanu Reeves), living in a crafted world, has to choose if he wants to discover the real world. Here is the scene:

                                   

I love this scene. I find that it's a very good idea to show Neo's reflection in Morpheus' glasses. What is amazing is that Neo's character is reduced to the choice between two pills. It is also a noteworthy scene because it is the moment when everything changes for him!

The second example I wanted to share with you is a scene from Braveheart (1995). I may be partial because it's a movie that I carry in my heart since my childhood... This movie stages William Wallace (Mel Gibson) who fights against England for Scotlands freedom in the XIIIth century. Warning: the following part may spoil the movie. At the end, Wallace will be tortured in front of the crowd. He has only to utter the word "mercy" to put an end to his pain and be executed. But watch what happens instead (you can stop the video at 3:35)!

This is one of the best ending scenes I've ever watched, it is just amazing! Wallace has chosen to be loyal to his motherland till the end. His character has been immortalized by this scene and he has got a strong personality. The scene gives me so much emotion, pride and sadness at once! Moreover, the music in this scene is really awesome.

The last movie I have to talk about is Mr Nobody (2009). It is a movie that discovered recently and that impressed me! It is the story of a little boy who stands at the station with his divorced parents. His mother is catching a train to leave for good and the boy is facing a choice: on one hand, he can stay here with his father, and on the other hand he can catch the train with his mother. The whole movie shows the different existences he could have had according to that choice. It is on one of the last scenes that we can clearly see that his whole life is reduced to the choice of that innocent little boy. It is a good illustration of the butterfly effect. The overlapped structure of the movie impassions me very much, and Jared Leto as Mr Nobody acts very well. The only thing I regret is that I didn't like a part of the movie, when the main character is still a teenager, and I don't like typical american teenager movies! I can't watch them!

Movie n°1: Cloud Atlas

 

 

Title: Cloud Atlas

Release date: 28 September 2012
 
Directors: Tom Tykwer, Andy Wachowski, Lana Wachowski

Stars: Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Hugh Grant, Jim Broadbent, Hugo Weaving

Duration: 172 min

Budget: $102 000 000

I will talk to you about a movie that really impressed me: Cloud Atlas. The whole story takes place in different places around the world and different periods of our history. The movie stages beings who born and reborn time after time. As they make choices, the characters are affected by their consequences: the past, the present and the future are connected to their story. The movie draws a parallel between six different stories, and that concept charmed me! I will briefly sum them up to give you an overview.

Story 1: It takes place in 1849. The lawyer Adam Ewing has his own slavery business. As he is coming back to San Francisco on the boat, his personal doctor attempts to murder him. However, a slave saved him just on time and Adam decides afterwards to abandon the slave trade. This is the story that I found the less good, but there is still a very good staging!

Story 2: In 1936, Robert Frobisher, a young homosexual musician, composes The Cloud Atlas Sextet. When his master tries to steal the masterpiece, Robert shoots him before commit suicide. I think it is my favourite part of the movie! Frobishers character touched me deeply! Moreover, it is the part where the main theme, the Cloud Atlas Sextet, is played and I love this music!

Story 3: 1973. Luisa Rey, investigation journalist, hears about a plot against the oil industry. As she tries to reveal the truth, she and her colleagues are hunted by a bounty killer. She finally gets out of that situation and brings the plot to light.

Story 4: In 2012, Timothy Canvendish, a sixty year old publisher, is send to a retirement home by his brother. Together, with other boarders, he will escape the home to leave the nasty nurse. There is much humor in that fourth story, it really maked me laugh sometimes! Some scenes with the elderly persons escaping the retirement home ar just hilarious!

I find Hugo Weavings make up as a Korean a really strange!

Story 5: 2144, Seoul. Somni-451 is a clone used in a fast food. Helped by a mysterious man, she escapes from it and joins the rebel forces against the government. She finally sacrifices herself to reveal the truth about how clones are treated. This story the main actors (Halle Berry, Tom Hanks, Hugo Weaving, Hugh Grant and Jim Sturgess) are all maked up as Koreans  and that maked me particularly laugh!


Story 6: Many years after the apocalypse, Zachry (Tom Hanks), a tribal member, is hunted by another tribe. Another civilisation, helps him to find shelter somewhere else in the universe. In my opinion, it was a risky gamble to make Tom Hanks play a tribe member just as Hugh Grant which is used to play in comedies! However, it worked fine and I found Hugh Grant even good in that role!

The important thing in the movie is that each main actor is playing different characters in the movie. I found the way the directors handle it great because a movie with such a complicated story must be very difficult to make! The repercussion of the acts of each character is highlighted in other stories. "Everything is connected": that's the feeling I got at the end!

My opinion is that Cloud Atlas is a really good movie. First of all, there is a high-level cast: actors like Tom Hanks (Forrest Gump, The Green Mile), Hugo Weaving (The Lord of The Rings, The Matrix) and Halle Berry (X-Men) are very convincing on the screen. The script may be the thing that puts Cloud Atlas in one of my favourites! The six stories are effectively overlapped and I enjoyed it very much!

Sources: www.imdb.com