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Jan. 1st, 2006 08:08 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
backupmemoriesGods, I've been busy. Waaaaay too busy. Too busy to post here. I feel like I'm failing my LJ. ...is that odd?
Lesse, what went on. Hmmm...it snowed. It was lovely. Really lovely. Nice thick blizzard-y snow.
I went for a walk. Everything was so silent and perfect, and my footprints were the first ones out there. It was like taking a photograph of winter, and stepping through the world into a street where no one lived - there were lights in this or that house, but no one was there. And it was quiet. Even as I walked, and the snow blew into my eyes, my own footsteps were being erased behind me, leaving no trace of my presence. Restoring the world to it's photographic perfection, a single perfect moment forever captured in a frame.
In other words, 'twas quite nice.
Saw Narnia twice, once the day it was released, once on Christmas. I LOVED it. They kept so much of the book in it - I swear, it was the book turned into a script, with a few funny moments and one-liners thrown in for good measure. I highly recommend that everyone see it.
My favorite characters, not in any particular order: Tumnus, the Witch, Edmund, the fox. (Yes, the fox. Watch it, you'll see what I mean) Possibly adult!Edmund, but that's just excessive Edmund-love spilling over there, as he did absolutely nothing.
Well-acted characters, again in no particular order:
Tumnus - stole the movie, that one did. Really! He was magnificent.
Lucy - remarkably well done for someone that young. Very cute, very convincing.
the Witch - managing to act out of that hideous clothing must have been tough, and she still did a wonderfully creepy job. The clothing is still horrible, however, and the costume designer ought to be shot.
Edmund - I may be a bit biased with him, though, but I do think he did a lovely job. He managed to convince the audience that he really felt bad about what he was doing, and also that he was being a easily manipulated kid when he betrayed them, not a deliberately evil bastard. Hard work, well done. Of course, I was always a huge Edmund fan (he was my favorite character), so I'm biased...
Borias - The Centaur of Awesomeness. No, am not joking, he was in fact one of the most awesome things in the movie.
the Fox - he was lovely. No more need be said.
the Beavers - they were the perfect bickering old married couple. Absolutely perfect. Anything less would have been incomplete, nothing more could have been added for them. I suggest that all fic writers that want to write a couple that has been together for quite a long time watch the movie, and take notes. Because that's how it's done. I would have bet that the voice actors were actually an old married couple...hmm. I'll have to check that, actually. They were that convincing.
Aslan - Well, given the job of being Jesuslion, Liam Neeson pulled it off rather well. But he was still the Jesuslion, and that's a bit of a *snerk* no matter how serious you try to be.
Mediocre acting in characters:
Peter - he looked the hero, but he had trouble making the audience follow the transition from "OMGican'tdothisforIamANGSTY&alwaysfaileveryone&havenoconfidenceOMISERABLEME" to "I am High King of Narnia so take that, bitches!". I mean, really, with everyone poking at him saying "yes, yes, you can do it"...I kept waiting for someone to snap and just start yelling at him: "YES, you can DO THIS already! Snap out of it! Jees, how many people have to tell you this to get it through your STUPID HEAD?!" I also hoped it would be Edmund, 'cause that would rock.
Sadly, this did not occur. But it would have been funny.
Also, anyone paying even offhand attention to the Narnia fandom would have seen a remarkable upsurge in Peter/Susan fic. This is for a reason, as he was making eyes at her most of the movie. However, you can, if you try, ignore it.
Lastly, the guy can't hold a sword to save his life. Okay, he can, but damnit if he didn't look like an idiot doing so. Some people can pull off the highly complex and difficult acting trick of 'holding a sword'. Peter wasn't one of them. He was holding it in the timeless classic technique of "please jump onto the blade, even though you could probably miss it by moving a few inches. Pretty please?". I'm not a stickler for weapon accuracy in movies, I'm afraid. I want swordfighting in movies to look GOOD, nevermind if it's completely incorrect (this would probably bother me more if I wasn't able to put several years of fencing out of my brain with perfect ease).
However, even with all of this, he still wasn't all that bad.
Badly acted characters:
Susan - a mechanical doll could have played her role. She had one role - looking like a self-important twit - one line - "LOGIC says" - and one facial expression. We're talking as emotional as Keanu Reeves here. Yes, dear, it sucks being the only one of the group not granted salvation, but it doesn't mean you have to take it out on us in THIS movie..!
Good effects:
WWII tactics in Narnia warfare. Brilliant. Really. The parallel to the start of the movie was just awesome, and it really would be something people who just got out of London at that time would have thought of.
The cheetahs. That was SO awesome.
The wolves were really great, too.
Actually, all of the animals, real and not, were great.
Bad effects:
The stuff you can tell was ripped off from LOTR. The part where the buffalo (I think) walked up to the hill and roared, then gestured for the armies to come forward? Darlings, we've SEEN the Two Towers. We REMEMBER that scene, where the lead Uruk-hai did the exact same thing. I kept wincing whenever I saw a particularly ripped-off scene like that, and quietly hoping that the people around me wouldn't notice it because Narnia IS a good movie, and should not be tossed aside due it it's ripping off of another movie.
Musings on the actors:
Tilda Swinton (the Witch) did a great job, given the godawful costumes she was given.
Susan was really awful, if screwing Peter. Peter was only mediocre, if screwing Susan or Borias (there were definite hints in that direction).
Lucy was very convincing. Tumnus was brilliant, especially the guilt and the betrayal and he was just PERFECT. You couldn't tell that this wasn't some teenage/young adult faun, not quite sure of his place in the world and no longer having anyone to guide him. He does what he thinks is best, but he doesn't know what's best. *loves*
The Beavers, as mentioned, were perfect.
Edmund...well, I was always a huge Edmund fan. I really hate redemption stories, but this wasn't one - this was someone who was always on the right track, but got screwed over by someone older and smarter than he was that managed to spot his weaknesses. They changed a line from the book to the movie, though, which I thought was more effective in the book - in the book, the Witch promises Edmund that his siblings will not be equal to him, but rather will be "Dukes and Duchesses, members of [his] court". In the movie, she says they'll be his servants. I think it worked better in the book, because Edmund doesn't hate them - he thinks he ought to be treated better, of course, but what child with siblings DOESN'T want to be the special one? The one everyone love best? But he also wants his family to do well, if only not quite as well. It's really perfectly reasonable, and a perfect example of an impressionable mind being manipulated.
All of the kids were really well done - none of them were perfect or particularly good-looking (in my eyes, anyway). They were normal, almost defiantly so. Peter polished up pretty good, but he's the hero, that's excusable. Susan...I didn't like how she looked, but then again I just didn't like her. Or her character. Edmund wasn't handsome, he was sulky and just like anyone's little brother (naturally, having none, I compare him to my sisters and sigh). Lucy was cute, but in a normal way. Not in a Hollywood way.
All in all, a great movie.
Hmmm...I visited friends, saw some great movies - Goldeneye (for which I was conned into writing a novel-length story from the POV of a character I don't even like...I'm still only on the planning, but just the outline took six pages. *cringe*), Tombstone (yay for Doc Holliday, for he is of the unbelievably cool. Everyone should see that movie), and many, many others.
Well, I'm back, and the Silmarillion comic is progressing. I need to start worrying about the wheres and whyfores of putting it up...I've no idea how/where/etc. Suggestions, please? Pleeeeeease? Also, would anyone who knows stuff about the Silm be interested in helping me with some parts? Because there are parts that are just so absolutely depressing in their cores that it's hard to make them funny.
Also, I'm intending on posting the comic in order, as things occurred in the Silmarillion, but I think I'll post a little snippet-preview of the part where Fingon has to cut off Maedhros' hand. Just one strip, so you can see the style I'm talking about. Might be a while before I do, but would anyone be interested in seeing...?
Lesse, what went on. Hmmm...it snowed. It was lovely. Really lovely. Nice thick blizzard-y snow.
I went for a walk. Everything was so silent and perfect, and my footprints were the first ones out there. It was like taking a photograph of winter, and stepping through the world into a street where no one lived - there were lights in this or that house, but no one was there. And it was quiet. Even as I walked, and the snow blew into my eyes, my own footsteps were being erased behind me, leaving no trace of my presence. Restoring the world to it's photographic perfection, a single perfect moment forever captured in a frame.
In other words, 'twas quite nice.
Saw Narnia twice, once the day it was released, once on Christmas. I LOVED it. They kept so much of the book in it - I swear, it was the book turned into a script, with a few funny moments and one-liners thrown in for good measure. I highly recommend that everyone see it.
My favorite characters, not in any particular order: Tumnus, the Witch, Edmund, the fox. (Yes, the fox. Watch it, you'll see what I mean) Possibly adult!Edmund, but that's just excessive Edmund-love spilling over there, as he did absolutely nothing.
Well-acted characters, again in no particular order:
Tumnus - stole the movie, that one did. Really! He was magnificent.
Lucy - remarkably well done for someone that young. Very cute, very convincing.
the Witch - managing to act out of that hideous clothing must have been tough, and she still did a wonderfully creepy job. The clothing is still horrible, however, and the costume designer ought to be shot.
Edmund - I may be a bit biased with him, though, but I do think he did a lovely job. He managed to convince the audience that he really felt bad about what he was doing, and also that he was being a easily manipulated kid when he betrayed them, not a deliberately evil bastard. Hard work, well done. Of course, I was always a huge Edmund fan (he was my favorite character), so I'm biased...
Borias - The Centaur of Awesomeness. No, am not joking, he was in fact one of the most awesome things in the movie.
the Fox - he was lovely. No more need be said.
the Beavers - they were the perfect bickering old married couple. Absolutely perfect. Anything less would have been incomplete, nothing more could have been added for them. I suggest that all fic writers that want to write a couple that has been together for quite a long time watch the movie, and take notes. Because that's how it's done. I would have bet that the voice actors were actually an old married couple...hmm. I'll have to check that, actually. They were that convincing.
Aslan - Well, given the job of being Jesuslion, Liam Neeson pulled it off rather well. But he was still the Jesuslion, and that's a bit of a *snerk* no matter how serious you try to be.
Mediocre acting in characters:
Peter - he looked the hero, but he had trouble making the audience follow the transition from "OMGican'tdothisforIamANGSTY&alwaysfaileveryone&havenoconfidenceOMISERABLEME" to "I am High King of Narnia so take that, bitches!". I mean, really, with everyone poking at him saying "yes, yes, you can do it"...I kept waiting for someone to snap and just start yelling at him: "YES, you can DO THIS already! Snap out of it! Jees, how many people have to tell you this to get it through your STUPID HEAD?!" I also hoped it would be Edmund, 'cause that would rock.
Sadly, this did not occur. But it would have been funny.
Also, anyone paying even offhand attention to the Narnia fandom would have seen a remarkable upsurge in Peter/Susan fic. This is for a reason, as he was making eyes at her most of the movie. However, you can, if you try, ignore it.
Lastly, the guy can't hold a sword to save his life. Okay, he can, but damnit if he didn't look like an idiot doing so. Some people can pull off the highly complex and difficult acting trick of 'holding a sword'. Peter wasn't one of them. He was holding it in the timeless classic technique of "please jump onto the blade, even though you could probably miss it by moving a few inches. Pretty please?". I'm not a stickler for weapon accuracy in movies, I'm afraid. I want swordfighting in movies to look GOOD, nevermind if it's completely incorrect (this would probably bother me more if I wasn't able to put several years of fencing out of my brain with perfect ease).
However, even with all of this, he still wasn't all that bad.
Badly acted characters:
Susan - a mechanical doll could have played her role. She had one role - looking like a self-important twit - one line - "LOGIC says" - and one facial expression. We're talking as emotional as Keanu Reeves here. Yes, dear, it sucks being the only one of the group not granted salvation, but it doesn't mean you have to take it out on us in THIS movie..!
Good effects:
WWII tactics in Narnia warfare. Brilliant. Really. The parallel to the start of the movie was just awesome, and it really would be something people who just got out of London at that time would have thought of.
The cheetahs. That was SO awesome.
The wolves were really great, too.
Actually, all of the animals, real and not, were great.
Bad effects:
The stuff you can tell was ripped off from LOTR. The part where the buffalo (I think) walked up to the hill and roared, then gestured for the armies to come forward? Darlings, we've SEEN the Two Towers. We REMEMBER that scene, where the lead Uruk-hai did the exact same thing. I kept wincing whenever I saw a particularly ripped-off scene like that, and quietly hoping that the people around me wouldn't notice it because Narnia IS a good movie, and should not be tossed aside due it it's ripping off of another movie.
Musings on the actors:
Tilda Swinton (the Witch) did a great job, given the godawful costumes she was given.
Susan was really awful, if screwing Peter. Peter was only mediocre, if screwing Susan or Borias (there were definite hints in that direction).
Lucy was very convincing. Tumnus was brilliant, especially the guilt and the betrayal and he was just PERFECT. You couldn't tell that this wasn't some teenage/young adult faun, not quite sure of his place in the world and no longer having anyone to guide him. He does what he thinks is best, but he doesn't know what's best. *loves*
The Beavers, as mentioned, were perfect.
Edmund...well, I was always a huge Edmund fan. I really hate redemption stories, but this wasn't one - this was someone who was always on the right track, but got screwed over by someone older and smarter than he was that managed to spot his weaknesses. They changed a line from the book to the movie, though, which I thought was more effective in the book - in the book, the Witch promises Edmund that his siblings will not be equal to him, but rather will be "Dukes and Duchesses, members of [his] court". In the movie, she says they'll be his servants. I think it worked better in the book, because Edmund doesn't hate them - he thinks he ought to be treated better, of course, but what child with siblings DOESN'T want to be the special one? The one everyone love best? But he also wants his family to do well, if only not quite as well. It's really perfectly reasonable, and a perfect example of an impressionable mind being manipulated.
All of the kids were really well done - none of them were perfect or particularly good-looking (in my eyes, anyway). They were normal, almost defiantly so. Peter polished up pretty good, but he's the hero, that's excusable. Susan...I didn't like how she looked, but then again I just didn't like her. Or her character. Edmund wasn't handsome, he was sulky and just like anyone's little brother (naturally, having none, I compare him to my sisters and sigh). Lucy was cute, but in a normal way. Not in a Hollywood way.
All in all, a great movie.
Hmmm...I visited friends, saw some great movies - Goldeneye (for which I was conned into writing a novel-length story from the POV of a character I don't even like...I'm still only on the planning, but just the outline took six pages. *cringe*), Tombstone (yay for Doc Holliday, for he is of the unbelievably cool. Everyone should see that movie), and many, many others.
Well, I'm back, and the Silmarillion comic is progressing. I need to start worrying about the wheres and whyfores of putting it up...I've no idea how/where/etc. Suggestions, please? Pleeeeeease? Also, would anyone who knows stuff about the Silm be interested in helping me with some parts? Because there are parts that are just so absolutely depressing in their cores that it's hard to make them funny.
Also, I'm intending on posting the comic in order, as things occurred in the Silmarillion, but I think I'll post a little snippet-preview of the part where Fingon has to cut off Maedhros' hand. Just one strip, so you can see the style I'm talking about. Might be a while before I do, but would anyone be interested in seeing...?
