New Onscreen Text Messages in Fiction TV

      

Recently there has been a rise in a new form of onscreen information in fiction television.  Made famous by the BBC's Sherlock and Netflix's House of Cards, is the concept of displaying text messages on screen for the audience to see.  These messages come completely separate from the phone and aren't your traditional over-the-shoulder shot that we are used to.  The interesting difference between the two comes in the execution of the concept.  Sherlock features the simple plain text as seen in Image 1 below.  Whereas House of Cards, actually uses a text bubble which makes it feel much more directly out of a smartphone texting application (see Image 2). 

Image 1

Image 2

Admittedly when you start watching these shows (and I have seen all released episodes of both), it is somewhat distracting that this information is being displayed in this fashion.  Once you get a fair ways into an episode however, this technique becomes very effective.  I will say that I find the Sherlock format a bit more efficient in lay out and definitely more seamlessly integrated in; House of Cards sometimes uses the technique in a more distracting fashion.  Part of the reason why it is so seamless in Sherlock is that Sherlock incorporates it as a way to have insight into Sherlock Homes' mind.  When he thinks his way through a problem, his many possibilities are projected onto the screen (see below).  This really helps tie the technique together in a big way.  

    

    

I am very excited to see how this technique of extra onscreen text plays out in the future.  It has huge potential to be a great way to help tell stories.  I would be interested to see how long it takes for it to jump to movies.  

The World's End and The Cornetto Trilogy

Back in 2004, Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg released BAFTA nominated zombie-comedy Shaun of the Dead.  Directed by Edgar Wright and written by both Wright and Simon Pegg, this film instantly became a cult classic, starring Simon Pegg and his friend Nick Frost.  Pegg and Wright pledged to do two more movies together and they decided to call it the "Cornetto Trilogy".  The joke here being that each film features a different flavor of Cornetto Ice Cream in a quick shot (The Cornetto is an exclusively UK treat).  2004's Shaun of the Dead featured a strawberry Cornetto.  2007's police comedy Hot Fuzz featured a blue Cornetto.  The newly released The World's End features a mint chocolate chip Cornetto.  I really am a big fan of this trilogy and have to say that The World's End was by far the most hilarious, witty and creative of any in the trilogy.  Edgar Wright has a distinctive style featuring crash zooms, whip pans and really quick transitions that really help pace the comedies that he directs.  Click here to see an example!
What really makes The World's End special comes from its writing style.  This was one of the most well written comedies I have seen in quite a while.  The basic plot is that Simon Pegg's "Gary King" has never truly gotten beyond his high school years, which really were where he peaked.  Back in high school, he and his four friends (played by the hilarious team of Nick Frost, Martin Freeman, Eddie Marsan and Paddy Considine), decided to try and complete the Golden Mile, which is completed by drinking one pint in each of the town's 12 pubs.  The young friends never did manage to complete the mile and Gary King never got past it.  He manages to get the gang back together and what proceeds to occur is a comedy featuring five middle age men finding out that their stamina isn't what it was and that their town is hiding an alien force they must go toe to toe with.  The plot features a brilliant sense of parallel between the high school team and the current middle aged one.  I won't say much more, as it is loaded with spoilers!

Between Edgar Wright's beautiful cinematographic style/directing, Wright's and Pegg's writing and the acting from the five main cast members, this film makes itself the strongest of the Cornetto trilogy and an all around must see!  It currently has a 90% on Rotten Tomatoes!  See trailer here.

The Hobbit 3D: An Unexpected Journey

I like many other saw the Hobbit last night at midnight.  I thought it was very much worth it to go see it in 3D.  The visuals were stunning, and it played along well with the beautiful landscapes of New Zealand.

They did a great job creating the underworld caves of the goblins.  It looked just like I imagined it.  It went weaving through the mountain many layers deep and fo course there was the Goblin King.  In this great scene Gandalf slays the Goblin King in true epic fashion.

When Bilbo falls down to the bottom, everyone who read the books knows what was coming.  Probably my favorite scene in the book, the game of riddles between Gollum and Bilbo.  Gollum looks great and it was perfect to see a Gollum still with the ring briefly.

I thought The Hobbit was a great film, even keeping in the flaming pine cones, that I thought might be at risk.  It really is a must see and I would suggest seeing it in 3D.

Hobbit Production and Various Behind the Scenes

After class on Monday I spent one night this week going through all of the production blog posts for the Hobbit. There's 9 parts in all and I'd highly recommend going through and watching them all, even if you're not a fan of the Hobbit or Lord of the Rings. Especially for us, it's a valuable glimpse into what we're getting ourselves into.

One post in particular stood out to me though. The focus was on the technical aspects of the film. They talk about filming in 3D, and they do a great job at explaining how filming in 3D works. They also go over the logistics of shooting in 48p and how design had to change because of it. I wouldn't have thought filming in a higher frame rate would cause them to completely redesign some costumes with different fabrics, patterns, and colors as well as complete set pieces, but they did.

Definitely watch the video, and all of them if you have time (HA!) It's definitely a good project for over break. They're really interesting.

Also, if you're into the behind the scenes type videos, there's a girl on youtube who has chronicled the process of making her first short film out of college. I've been following her and the process of pre-production, production, and now post production since around October. It's interesting to watch someone who is in the same position we'll be in all too soon. Everything she makes is oddly captivating and I can't wait to see "The Water's Fine." Here's the first video in her playlist for the making of "The Water's Fine." Throughout the whole series she gives you a glimpse into her writing process, location scouting, casting, and more. Check it out.

Into Darkness Teaser Trailer

At 3:01am yesterday morning, 12/6, the new Star Trek teaser trailer was released.

Here was me and my roommate's first reaction:

We were ecstatic. One of the reasons being that we got to hear the voice of Benedict Cumberbatch AND see him in a number of shots, which we were both not expecting. Now don't get me wrong, Hannah and I were both very happy to see this trailer for a plethora of reasons since we are both semi-Trekkies (I've even met Leonard Nimoy!!), but for this post's sake I'm mainly going to focus on our friend, Benedict Cumberbatch.  Benedict, if you don't remember from a previous post, plays the title character in the British television show Sherlock. This is how he mainly gained his popularity. He actually plays opposite Martin Freeman who is playing Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit, while Benedict is voicing the dragon, Smaug, and the Necromancer. Aside from his appearance in The Hobbit, this will be Benedict's first major role in a Hollywood production. 

Being many months before the expected release date on May 17th 2013 and with much speculation surrounding his character, we thought that they would decide not to show Benedict at all this time around. However, in this teaser we see him a number of times seeking 'vengeance.' Knowing that he is the villain of the film, but not knowing what character he is portraying has caused some uproar amongst the fandom. It was rumored for the longest time that he would be portraying Khan, the notorious dictator, however, it has not been confirmed and Benedict has actually denied the association. Some characters that he might possibly be portraying are Khan, Gary Mitchell, Charlie X, or some new character that we have not seen before. I actually hope it is the latter because I would like some new characters.

Regardless of who he plays, I can not wait to see Benedict in his first major Hollywood role.

I have seen him go from the top 5000 on IMDB to 32. I am very proud of him.

Watch him in Sherlock if you haven't!

Love Actually

Every year one of my family's Thanksgiving traditions, besides watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is to watch Christmas movies. We love to watch Home Alone, Home Alone 2, Jingle All the Way, Miracle on 34th Street, It's a Wonderful Life, several versions of A Christmas Carol, etc. However, one of my favorite holiday movies that I love to watch, but only when I am amongst friends, would be Love Actually.

Love Actually (2003) is a British romantic comedy that follows several characters' friends and family as they find love during the holiday season. Granted I am not one to like rom-coms, but this one I can sit through and watch multiple times in a row most likely because it has such a fantastic star-studded cast. Hugh Grant, Liam Neeson, Colin Firth, Keira Knightly, Alan Rickman, Rowan Atkinson, and Martin Freeman are only a few of the actors involved in this well-executed and delightful British love story. Some of the characters have office romances, one couple breaks through a language barrier, and another couple even met for the first time on the set of a movie as sex stunt doubles. Although the movie mostly focuses on couples, some characters just find the love of their family and friends that help them carry on. This movie goes to show that "love, actually, is all around us."
Besides the story and the cast, the music is another significant aspect of the film that I enjoy and cherish. The movie begins with a British has-been pop star that still has one hit left within him. Although using the same melody from one of his past hit songs, he only has to replace the word 'Love' with the word 'Christmas' and he's got a new hit. This song, although quite a bit of a joke, is used throughout the film and can be heard on the other character's radios or on their 'tele.' Another song that is particularly memorable in this movie is 'Bye Bye Baby' sung by Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. The song begins to play when Liam Neeson's character says goodbye to his late wife, the love of his life, at her funeral, and then the song carries over into the next scene where Keira Knightly's character has just been happily married and the couple is sharing their first dance. The duality of this song is beautiful. There are other moments in the film that are accentuated through the use of music as well, but I don't wish to give anymore away.
I highly recommend this British comedy for the holiday season.