Unlike most Hollywood films, the most remarkable aspect of Danny Boyle’s Steve Jobs is undoubtedly its style. Narrative, characters, and even the themes of the film all play second fiddle to the distinct styles of Boyle and screenwriter Aaron Sorkin. And still, Steve Jobs avoids the “form over substance” trap through splendid performances and a powerful story of family amid the backdrop of Jobs’ unique innovative spirit. The result is a film which we appreciate both for what it has to say, and the means in which it speaks.
Derek Jacobs
State of the Blog – November 2015
As happens, the inexorable passing of time has continued unabated, so it is time for another sobering and disappointed recounting of the previous month at my movie blog. There were still a few cool things that I got up off the ground last month, and also plenty to look forward to in November – including a couple of great outside projects that both look incredibly fun and should increase traffic towards my little online moviespace. So, let’s get to it!
The Animation of Don Bluth – Part I: Leaving Disney and Early Independence (1979 – 1984)
On September 13th, 1979 Disney animator Don Bluth turned 42 years old. He had worked as an animator on Disney feature films for the previous eight years, and was dissatisfied with the cost-cutting measures being employed there. Also, he felt that Disney had abandoned their roots of character-driven storytelling and meticulous animation in favor of churning out banal crowd-pleasers. This led Bluth, along with Gary Goldman, John Pomeroy and nine fellow Disney animators to abandon Disney and form Don Bluth Productions, their very own animation studio. Through financial struggles, ever-changing partnerships, and industry-wide strikes, Bluth and his collaborators were able to produce their own animated masterpieces which continue to delight.
Back on the Big Screen: “Back to the Future Part II” (1989) and “The Iron Giant”(1999)
I am trying something new here on Plot and Theme: “Back on the Big Screen” will be a series of posts focused around familiar films that I had the opportunity to see screened in a theatre. Sometimes I will focus on a single film, but like today I will also use it as a way to comment on multiple films without delving into a full-on review. The first official Back on the Big Screen will showcase two films recently shown in theatres in the last month as a special occasion: The Iron Giant and Back to the Future Part II.
Criterion Blogathon – Things to Come
Keep your eyes peeled for this Criterion Blogathon in November; yours truly will be participating by posting a review of Roman Polanski’s “Macbeth” (1971)!
“Sicario” is a Tense and Grim Look at the Futility of the Drug War
Last week on Plot and Theme we had an entire week devoted to the feature films of Denis Villeneuve, and now we get a nice cherry on top: Sicario. Villeneuve’s seventh feature film stars Emily Blunt, Josh Brolin, and Benicio del Toro, and tells the story of a FBI SWAT agent Kate Macer (Blunt) who is whisked away on a special task force dedicated to hunting down the head of a Mexican drug cartel. The film is comfortable exploring gray areas and dwelling in the nooks and crannies of the legal justice system, but ultimately cannot find any effective answers.
“The Martian” Champions the Mind and Compassion
It is remiss to classify The Martian as “Ridley Scott’s” or “Matt Damon’s” or with any other possessive; it is a true ensemble film. Though the story begins in serious medias res with the crew of the Ares III mission escaping a Martian dust storm and leaving Matt Damon’s Mark Watney behind on the red planet, this is not Cast Away where we dwell on our lone character for the majority of the runtime. The success of the narrative and the impact of the theme require that seemingly infinite characters aid in Watney’s survival, but also that Watney himself is capable of titanic intellectual feats. What results is a film dictating that the strength of humanity is found in the reasoning mind – from an isolated individual struggling to survive to large teams working towards effecting a rescue.
Denis Villeneuve Week – Day 5: “Prisoners” (USA, 2013)
Denis Villeneuve week nears its end with his only true American film, and the largest budget he’s had to work with to date: the kidnapping mystery/thriller Prisoners. Of all of Villeneuve’s films, this may be the most uneasy, the most challenging to watch, and the one film that is truly unafraid of exploring the depths that humanity can reach at the intersection of desperation and good intention. Its subject matter is particularly challenging for parents, as it primarily deals with the disappearance of a pair of young girls.
Denis Villeneuve Week – Day 4: “Enemy” (Canada / Spain, 2013)
Denis Villeneuve Week – Day 4: “Enemy” (Canada / Spain 2013)
Another day, another crazy Denis Villeneuve film to review. This time it is his first true English-language film, Enemy (as previously mentioned, Polytechnique was filmed in both French and English). Enemy feels most similar to Villeneuve’s early feature Maelström in that it has some amazing peculiarities but overall deals with a very human problem. In this case, it is the duality of man and his struggle to choose between two very different alternatives – both in his life, and his mind.
State of the Blog – October 2015
I’ve got to say, September was a bit of rough month over here at Plot and Theme. After very strong success in August, I fell back below my site views for July and published fewer posts than I have in a full month. You may have also noticed that my Classic Review Friday posts fell by the wayside a little bit there as I was traveling and then occupied with work, which is disheartening. Still, I saw some great movies and made some very good posts this month, so I would like to focus on the successes with this State of the Blog post. Let’s get to it.