In 2008 Warner Bros. Studios released The Dark Knight, the highly successful sequel to Batman Begins (2005), continuing the story of Batman (Christian Bale) as he faces his most legendary foe: The Joker (Heath Ledger in his final screen role).
Oddly enough, though I was fascinated by Batman around this time, I never got around to watching this movie, or any other movie in the Dark Knight Trilogy to be perfectly honest. I’m not sure if it was because Heath Ledger had died or something else, but I know from reputation that they are an excellent set of films, with a great trilogy of scores co-composed by Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard.
It’s interesting to note that Zimmer created the Joker’s theme while Howard created the theme for Two-Face (to serve as musical contrasts to each other). The score was, for the most part, well-received, though like most films there were those who disliked it as well. I’ve had the score recommended to me for some time, so I should probably get my own copy sooner rather than later.
The interview linked above contains an extensive look at the score of the film and as always provides a valuable insight into how a film composer works. If you’re a fan of The Dark Knight (and even if the film is new to you), I believe you will enjoy this.
*poster image is the property of Warner Bros. Studios
On this day in film history, Shrek 2 (2004) came bouncing into theaters. Like the original, Shrek 2 received extremely positive reviews and proved to be the most profitable film in the series until Shrek the Third (2007).
As the story opens, a mysterious figure makes its way to Fiona’s castle, boasting all the time about how he’s going to rescue the princess (having no idea that this has already happened long since). Instead of meeting Fiona, Prince Charming (yes, that’s really his name) meets the Wolf from Little Red Riding Hood, who informs him that Fiona is already on her honeymoon. (During the honeymoon montage, Shrek ends up being kissed by a red-headed mermaid that is likely a reference to Disney’s Ariel because we never see her face (Fiona drags her away and throws her to the sharks first)).
As Shrek and Fiona return from said honeymoon, they get an unexpected message from Fiona’s parents, the King and Queen of Far Far Away (as in “once upon a time, in a land far far away), who want to see their daughter and her new husband at once. They eventually go, but things are decidedly awkward as no one was expecting Fiona to have married an ogre.
Meanwhile, it turns out that years ago, the King of Far Far Away (John Cleese) made a deal with the Fairy Godmother (Jennifer Saunders) for her son Charming to marry Fiona, and on the basis of that deal, she gave him HIS “happily ever after” years ago. When the Fairy Godmother threatens to revoke the arrangement, the King agrees to find someone to kill Shrek so Charming can step in. Enter…Puss n’ Boots (Antonio Banderas in a brilliant casting choice), famed ogre killer extraordinaire.
A big message in this film is the importance of accepting others for who they really are, and not trying to change them into your vision of “normal” or “happy.” Granted, Shrek and Fiona don’t match the happy couple everyone initially expects, but the King and Queen gradually come to understand that the two are deeply in love, especially after the lengths Shrek goes to in winning Fiona back (there’s a hilarious sequence where Shrek takes a potion, becomes human, which makes Fiona human again, only Charming is pretending to be human Shrek, it’s a long story, but you should watch it!)
Jennifer Saunders (voicing the Fairy Godmother) steals every scene she’s in. This is NOTHING like the Fairy Godmother from Cinderella, while she pretends to be this sugary, lovey figure who only wants to grant wishes, the Godmother is really a nasty person, who’s really out for herself and her spoiled rotten son Charming (she made the deal with the King in order to see her son Charming eventually take the throne, so that presumably she could influence the Kingdom in her son’s name). It’s a shame she only appears in this film, she’d have made a great recurring villain.
The pop music scenes are awesome as well, including this great scene at the climax of the film where the Fairy Godmother sings “I Need a Hero” while human Shrek storms the castle with a giant Gingerbread Man.
Don’t get me wrong, the original film is a great movie, but I almost enjoy this sequel more because it really fleshes out the world that Shrek takes place in.
Random thoughts:
Julie Andrews is perfect as the Queen, that is all.
The reveal of the King as the “Frog Prince” was brilliant.
I’m still weirded out about Donkey and Dragon having kids because, I mean think about it, HOW did that work??? (also, while Donkey was a stallion, the producers stated that Dragon turned into a Pegasus).
Puss ‘n Boots might be one of the greatest characters this film series has ever produced, PERIOD. And nobody could do it like Antonio Banderas, absolutely nobody.
The numerous pop culture references in the Land of Far Far Away are too many to count, but they’re all well-done and it’s fun to watch the movie and try to catch all of them.
*film poster is the property of DreamWorks Pictures
Alright, admit it: from the moment the prequel trilogy started, THIS is the movie you were waiting for. Everyone wanted to see Anakin make his final transformation into Darth Vader, and oh boy, did this film deliver!
This entire film is a giant climax of sorts, because there’s precious few moments when there isn’t some action of some kind going on. The tragic thing is, things start out so well for Anakin and secret wife Padme at the start of the film: Anakin returns to a hero’s welcome after saving the Chancellor (he also killed Count Dooku in cold blood but since Palpatine was the only witness, he doesn’t mention that part), he finds out Padme is pregnant AND, not long after, he’s informed by Palpatine that he wants him (Anakin) to be his representative on the Jedi Council.
Anakin (in typically arrogant fashion) believes that this means he’s also being promoted to the rank of Master, since traditionally only Jedi Masters sit on the council, but while a seat is granted to him, his dreams of glory are shattered when the promotion is not given (even though Obi-Wan assures him that it will come soon enough). Anakin has been thoroughly manipulated by both sides (Jedi and Palpatine) at this point, and is growing increasingly tired of it. Palpatine is aware of this and uses Anakin’s frustration and growing mistrust to finally push him over the edge (where he’s been teetering ever since Attack of the Clones).
Palpatine’s gambit is impressive: he admits EVERYTHING to Anakin, that he’s a Sith Lord, that he knows about Padme being his wife and furthermore, that he can prevent her from dying in childbirth (Anakin has been having recurring dreams about Padme dying, similar to what happened right before his mother died).
Anakin draws his lightsaber and almost kills Palpatine on the spot (in fact, during this moment, I was practically begging Anakin to do exactly that, even though I knew it wasn’t going to happen), but he needs to do “the right thing” so he leaves to inform the Jedi, who try to arrest Palpatine, who kills them all (ultimately with Anakin’s help) and from this point on the Jedi are doomed/royally screwed.
But as agonizing as Anakin’s turn to the dark side is (that scene with the younglings in the temple KILLS me every time), it’s what comes after that is the real highlight of the film: Anakin and Obi-Wan’s final confrontation on Mustafar. There’s actually something of an urban legend regarding that final duel and the entire sequence in fact. The story goes that Steven Spielberg happened to be visiting the set that day and Lucas asked him, half-seriously, if he wanted to direct this scene. And allegedly, Spielberg accepted (without taking credit) and that’s supposedly why the entire Mustafar duel is so freaking awesome. I don’t know if it’s true (but I’d kind of like it to be).
The music for the Mustafar duel was dubbed “Battle of the Heroes” and is just amazing (Williams really outdid himself there). The moment when Obi-Wan finally realizes that there is no way to pull Anakin back from the dark side and that he MUST kill him, is just so heart-wrenching to watch. Of course, in the end, Anakin’s arrogance is what does him in. Even though Obi-Wan warns him that he (Obi-Wan) has the high ground (and therefore the advantage), Anakin leaps anyway and loses the rest of his natural limbs as a result. I still find the burning scene difficult to watch (I know people criticize Christensen’s performance, but I really think he nailed it here).
And finally, I have to talk about that “transformation” scene when Anakin finally becomes recognizable as Darth Vader (in the armor and helmet). This scene, if you think about it, is really the lynch pin that ties the prequels into the original story. Everything that has happened has been slowly building up to this moment, and it’s really perfectly done.
And quick question, did anyone else geek out just a little bit when the newly rebuilt Darth Vader spoke and it was James Earl Jones’ voice? That little detail also helped to tie things together, and was an excellent choice. Also, the birth of Padme’s twins answers the age-old question of whether Luke or Leia is older, and the answer is: Luke!!!
Revenge of the Sith is often called the best film in the prequel trilogy and I absolutely agree with that assessment. What did you think of the conclusion to the prequel trilogy? Let me know what you think in the comments below!
*film poster is the property of Walt Disney Studios
Check out the YouTube channel (and consider hitting the subscribe button)
It was the film announcement heard ’round the world: George Lucas was returning to the realm of Star Wars to create a prequel trilogy to the original films. Given that this took place just before social media really took off (no Twitter, no Facebook, not even YouTube), excitement was at a fever pitch, with everyone speculating on how the origins of Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader, Obi-Wan Kenobi and others would be shown.
I remember being over the moon excited about this. I’d always been jealous that my parents had gotten to see the original Star Wars movies in the theater, and now (as I saw it), here was my chance to see a new Star Wars film on the big screen, just like they did so many years ago.
“What’s this?” “A local.”
The Phantom Menace (if I understand the timeline correctly), takes place just over 20 years before the Battle of Yavin (the climax of Episode IV). The Republic rules the galaxy, but corruption is starting to take over. While escorting the young Queen of Naboo (Natalie Portman) to the galactic capital Coruscant, Jedi Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson) and his Padawan Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) encounter an extremely Force-sensitive boy named Anakin Skywalker on the planet Tatooine (and he ultimately ends up leaving with them after helping the group secure the parts to fix their ship by winning a podrace). Ultimately, Naboo is saved from the vile Trade Federation, Anakin becomes Obi-Wan’s apprentice, and Senator Palpatine is now the Supreme Chancellor of the Republic, all in all it sounds like a great story, but was it really?
I still debate this question to myself from time to time. Considering that I was only 11 when I saw this film in the theater, I couldn’t understand for a long time why people didn’t like this film. My thinking was “It’s Star Wars, so it’s automatically awesome!” And yet, as time went on, I found myself preferring to watch the original trilogy over the prequels. What happened?
I don’t think there will ever be a universal consensus, but for The Phantom Menace there is one element that everyone agrees they hate: Jar Jar Binks. Of course *I* thought he was funny…until I grew up, and the humor got old after the 12th viewing. I know Jake Lloyd (the child actor who played Anakin) has received a lot of flak for his performance, but for goodness’ sake he was what, 9 years old? Given everything he had to work with, I think he did a great job in the role.
Problems aside, the lightsaber duel (accompanied by “Duel of the Fates”) at the climax of the film was beyond awesome in my young eyes. Darth Maul was beyond terrifying, and it was really all well done. I remember gasping in horror when Qui-Gon got impaled too, I did NOT see it coming and I really wanted Qui-Gon to live. Looking back, the lightsaber duel between Maul, Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan remains one of the few highlights in a film that hasn’t aged terribly well (especially where some of its CGI effects are concerned).
It goes without saying that the rest of the score was equally as amazing (in seven movies there hasn’t been a bad Star Wars score yet and I don’t think there ever will be).
I think only time will tell how good (or bad) The Phantom Menace really was.
In 1991, Walt Disney Studios released The Rocketeer, a period film set in 1938, which told the story of how a stunt pilot named Cliff Secord discovered a prototype jetpack that could enable him to fly without a plane. He uses this device to become “The Rocketeer”, a hero and a media sensation. Before the story is over, Cliff will have to use all his skills to save the girl he loves from some Nazi spies, including one hidden right in their midst!
While the movie was favorably received, it didn’t perform well enough to justify continuing the story and plans for a set of sequels were cancelled (which is a shame, I remember enjoying this movie very much, though I found a hard time accepting Timothy Dalton as a villain).
James Horner was selected to compose and conduct the score for this film and the score is still highly praised as one of the stronger elements of the film. I think it’s interesting to listen to how he composed music before his big successes in 1995 and 1997 respectively. I hope you enjoy this all too brief interview with James Horner regarding his work on this film. Please enjoy!
In the grand scheme of Beauty and the Beast, “Be Our Guest” serves as Belle’s proper introduction to the various enchanted inhabitants of the castle under the elaborate guise of providing her with a forbidden dinner (since she refused to dine with the Beast, he had decided that she wouldn’t eat at all, unless it was with him). It’s a masterful production number and one of the visual highlights of the film. But it wasn’t always going to be Belle as the recipient.
Let me explain: it’s no secret that movie scripts often go through many revisions, with scenes (or songs) being moved around to different points in the movie before a final order is decided on. With Beauty and the Beast, the storyline was originally going to be somewhat different. According to an earlier draft, Maurice was going to be serenaded with “Be Our Guest” until the commotion attracted the Beast, who would break the party up by dragging the poor guy into the dungeon. The sequence was partially animated (with Maurice) until the writers realized that, story-wise, placing the song this early in would drag down the story and that it should be Belle receiving this introduction, not her father. So the song was moved to it’s current position and Maurice’s scene was changed to the “spot of tea” moment we know today.
When I was young, I always thought that the Beast would charge into the room at any moment and be furiously angry that the servants (and Belle) defied him. It kept me from properly enjoying this moment for a while.
The song is led by Lumiere (Jerry Orbach) who performs in the style of famed French singer Maurice Chevalier (1888-1972). Poor Cogsworth (David Ogden Stiers) spends most of the song trying to hush everything up, but even he’s swept up into it by the end. There’s a lot of food paraded past (and presumably Belle eats her fill, even though she’s not seen to eat a lot), a cabaret performed by the cutlery, dancing tea cups, singing kitchen pots, etc. and so on.
Ma cherie Mademoiselle, It is with deepest pride and greatest pleasure That we welcome you tonight. And now, we invite you to relax, Let us pull up a chair As the dining room proudly presents – Your dinner!
Be… our… guest!
Be our guest! Put our service to the test Tie your napkin ’round your neck, cherie And we’ll provide the rest
Soup du jour Hot hors d’oeuvres Why, we only live to serve Try the grey stuff It’s delicious! Don’t believe me? Ask the dishes
They can sing! They can dance! After all, Miss, this is France! And the dinner here is never second best!
Go on, unfold your menu Take a glance and then you’ll Be our guest Oui, our guest Be our guest!
There is a rather interesting interlude in the song, and for me it’s always created a bit of a problem. The music turns rather somber and Lumiere expresses how lonely and bored they’ve been without anyone to serve:
Life is so unnerving For a servant who’s not serving He’s not whole without a soul to wait upon Ah, those good old days when we were useful Suddenly those good old days are gone
Ten years we’ve been rusting Needing so much more than dusting Needing exercise, a chance to use our skills!
It’s interesting that Lumiere notes this state of affairs has existed for ten years. Remember in the prologue, it was stated that the rose would bloom until the Prince turned 21. In that case, wouldn’t that have made the Prince 11 when he was enchanted? Cause in those stained-glass pictures, he doesn’t look 11 years old, and that’s why it’s a problem, it’s something of a plot hole that you can’t really resolve.
Aside from “Belle” and “Tale as Old as Time,” “Be Our Guest” is one of the most recognizable Disney songs out there. Who wouldn’t love being sung to by a bunch of enchanted objects? That’s about it for “Be Our Guest” I hope you enjoyed it.
*all images are the property of Walt Disney Studios
I have a confession: knowing that Shrek is fifteen years old today makes me feel exceptionally old (and I’m only 27).
On this day in film history, Shrek was released by DreamWorks Pictures and established the studio as a competitor to Pixar in the world of computer animation (as the technology used in Shrek was state of the art at the time of release). The film is a combination of a parody film and a fractured fairy tale in that, at times the film openly mocks pop culture (Duloc is a parody of Disneyland) and it also twists the original fairy tales (princesses are supposed to be rescued by handsome princes and defended FROM the ogre, not vice versa).
In this story, reclusive ogre Shrek (Mike Meyers) is forced into a quest to rescue Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz) for the spineless Lord Farquad (John Lithgow) when his swamp home is overrun with fairy tale refugees driven out by Farquad (who desires perfection above all else, and fairy tale creatures don’t belong as far as he is concerned). Fiona appears to be a spoiled princess upon first meeting: she’s miffed that she’s been rescued by an ogre and not “Prince Charming”, she’s rude and demanding, but over time she, Shrek and Shrek’s annoying sidekick Donkey (Eddie Murphy) reach an understanding.
But Fiona has a BIG secret of her own. It turns out (*spoiler alert*) that she’s under a curse: by day she’s a gorgeous princess, but by night, she turns into an ogre (a female version of Shrek, to be precise). She tries to tell Shrek about it because she discovers she wants to go off with the ogre (and to heck with “happily ever after”) but due to a misunderstanding, Shrek thinks that Fiona hates him for being a “beast” (not realizing that Fiona was talking about herself). As a result, an unhappy Fiona ends up being led away by Lord Farquad (who also has no idea about his bride-to-be’s secret). Thankfully, due to some intervention by Donkey, Shrek comes to accept that he does love Fiona after all and saves her at the last minute from being wed to Farquad (who himself ends up as a dragon’s dinner in a particularly satisfying moment).
In one final twist, the curse is broken, but instead of remaining human (as you might expect in a traditional fairy tale film), Fiona remains an ogre (which makes her absolutely beautiful in Shrek’s eyes) and they get married and ride off in an onion carriage (a parody of Cinderella’s pumpkin carriage), but is it happily ever after? Shrek 2 might have something to say about that…
I remember going to see this movie in theaters and laughing hysterically for most of the story. The film does appear slightly dated fifteen years down the road (CGI has advanced by leaps and bounds since then) but it’s still a cute family film (that will hopefully be added to my collection someday).
Signs (2002) was actually the third collaboration between composer James Newton Howard and director M. Night Shyamalan (the others being The Sixth Sense (1999) and Unbreakable (2000)). For this film, in which a family is terrorized by mysterious aliens, Howard created a score that drips with tension almost from the start.
This musical trend is inspired by Shyamalan’s approach to telling the story, a story that keeps the audience hooked until that last moment (which I think is one of the biggest WTF? moments in all of cinema, let’s just say that the payoff to all this tension isn’t exactly what you’d expect).
It’s hard to believe this film is 14 years old already, I remember when all my classmates in school were talking about it. Please enjoy James Newton Howard’s discussion of the film score.
(prepare for a rant/tirade because I have some issues with this movie)
Oh the deja vu….like the first Star Trek film in the reboot era, I had high hopes for Into Darkness, especially once it was announced that Benedict Cumberbatch was cast as the villain. Everything looked great, the story details sounded good, the teaser was amazing, but then one little detail came to my attention: the name of Cumberbatch’s character was Khan.
Having seen every Star Trek film there is (and almost all of the TV series to boot), knowing the villain was named Khan meant only one thing: Into Darkness HAD to be a remake of Wrath of Khan (1984), the film which is considered by many to be the greatest in the series. Oh wait, that’s right, I’m sorry, it’s not a remake, it’s *clears throat” “How the events of Wrath of Khan MIGHT have occurred set in an alternate universe.” Which is a clever way of saying IT’S.A.REMAKE!!
I MIGHT have been able to come to terms with this if the story had been really good, but it’s not. Every plot detail begs for a comparison with the original film, and for me, the original comes out on top. I’m not saying Cumberbatch did a bad job per se, but compared to Ricardo Montalban’s epic performance? Nope, it’s not even close.
The only twist that got my attention is that they flip-flopped who sacrificed themselves to save the ship, that was the one twist I found believable. Of course, Kirk being as devoted to his ship and crew as he is, would surely have done what Spock did in Wrath of Khan, given half the opportunity.
The ending wasn’t half bad either. True, Khan is still alive at film’s end (which means he might pop up sometime in the future), and McCoy’s final line “Five years in space, God help me.” is pretty funny (and perfectly in character too), and yet, I don’t like it, I CAN’T like it. If you’re going to reboot a series, do what the James Bond writers did and keep coming up with original material, only set in a new context, don’t try to rehash the original films and use the “alternate universe” as an excuse.
For me, truly, Star Trek Beyond is the studio’s last chance to keep me as a fan of the new films. If this doesn’t blow me away, well, there’s always the original films to enjoy.
This concludes my rant. (I know I take a bit of a hard line when it comes to the remakes, it’s just that the original films are very special to me, and if you like the rebooted series, that’s ok! Promise!)
In case the audience had any doubts about Belle’s feelings following Gaston’s ill-fated marriage proposal, the reprise to “Belle” (which I’ve also heard called “Madame Gaston”) sets the record completely straight.
Once Gaston leaves (a furious, mud-soaked mess), Belle flies into a tirade as she sets about her chores feeding the farm animals, mocking the “cozy life” Gaston had propositioned her with only moments ago:
Can you imagine, he asked me to MARRY him/ME, the wife of that boorish, BRAINLESS…
Madame Gaston! Can’t you just see it? Madame, Gaston, his “little wife”!
No sir, not me, I guarantee it, I want much more than this provincial life!!!
I want adventure in the great wide somewhere, I want it more than I can tell…
And for once it might be grand, to have someone, understand…
I want so much more than they’ve got planned…
I can completely empathize with how Belle feels at this moment (and I know many others can too). It is downright maddening to have your dreams and aspirations be ignored (or worse, derided) by everybody you know, and the pressure to “be normal” can be overwhelming. But Belle isn’t going to give in, she’s going to have her adventure, whether the townspeople like it or not (you go Belle!)
This moment is really as close as Belle comes to making a wish about meeting her Prince Charming and getting out of the small village, and it seems this wish is granted too, because no sooner does the song end than a terrified Philippe (the family horse) comes running up to her without her father, which leads Belle to ride Philippe to look for him, which leads her to…the castle!!!
Next time: “Be Our Guest” (and I’ll tell you a secret, Belle wasn’t always the “guest” in question, but that’s for later. Until then!!!)
*all images are the property of Walt Disney Studios
Film Music Central 