The Pre-Emptive Critics
The pre-emptive critics write knee-jerk analyses of upcoming films based solely on hearsay, advance publicity and- most importantly- movie trailers. They have not yet seen the movies.
‘Life of Pi’
I haven’t read the book yet, but I’ve only heard good things. Admittedly, the trailer was a bit confusing to me at first. The first 40 seconds shows a young fellow mastering a huge disaster at sea. When things calm down he meets an angry tiger, but it appears they become friends as time passes – along with many other furry creatures.
Since the rather uninformative trailer only left me puzzled, I hit to the Internet to find out more about this pretty looking film. It turns out the young lad aforementioned is Pi Patel, who is actually now a grown man looking back on his younger days where he finds God and himself through some dangerous forays with animals and nature. Somehow, Pi ends up practicing Hinduism, Christianity and Islam simultaneously, which I just find to be downright impressive.
At some point, Pi is temporarily blinded due to dehydration and meets another blind castaway who initially seems friendly but inevitably tries to attack and eat him. Yum. Good thing Pi has befriended a deadly tiger who ends that little plan with haste.
The plot seems quite unique and clearly will reveal some divine inspiration to viewers. From the trailer, the filming was done quite eloquently and should be a beautiful sight to take in. Though I still am pondering the depths of the entire synopsis of “Life of Pi,” I preemptively recommend it.
– by Natasha Bodily/natashabodily@gmail.com
‘Silver Linings Playbook’
“Silver Linings Playbook” is a movie about mental illness and is one that I have a feeling will strike a resonant chord in anyone who has ever been to therapy, on medicine for a mental illness or been diagnosed as mentally ill.
This is a love story, but I feel it’s going to be a real-life love story about two people who aren’t perfect and fall in love anyway. Really, I like stories like this one, the unhappy or even happy-after-ridiculousness stories.
After spending time in a mental hospital, Pat Solitano, played by Bradley Cooper, moves back in with his parents and tries to move on with his life. He is set up on a date with Tiffany, a girl with her own problems.
They are two crazies in a world of sane people. In one scene the two discuss medicines they have been on, listing and discussing the side effects of them. In another, Cooper gets upset that the main character he’s been rooting for in one of Hemingway’s books dies. So what does he do? He wakes his parents up in the middle of the night and gets upset with them. Sometimes, you just need someone to listen.
There is a silver lining to their stories, and it’s not as cliche as it could be.
“This is what I believe to be true. Y
ou have to do everything you can, and if you stay positive, you have a shot at a silver lining,” Cooper says in the trailer.
Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence play the two main characters, which is quite fitting, because really, after “The Hangover” and “The Hangover Part II” and “The Hunger Games,” anyone would go crazy.
This movie will either help you empathize with those in life dealing with mental illness or make you see the similarities in your own life.
– by April Ashland/april.ashland@aggiemail.usu.edu
‘Rise of the Guardians’
What an awesome sounding title! Add to the fact that this movie has Hugh Jackman, Chris Pine, Alec Baldwin and Jude Law in it and you’d think we were in for two hours packed with manly men throwing down some sweet action and then rising up as guardians of, well, something. It may sound testosterone-packed on paper, but it may not be quite what you’re thinking.
In “Rise of the Guardians,” Hugh Jackman, the stud known for playing Van Helsing and Wolverine is stepping out of his usual roles to play somebody a little different. We have to wonder if he’s been watching a little too much PBS Kids, because he’s trading in his grizzly voice for a pair of bunny ears. They’re not just any bunny ears, though – they’re Easter Bunny ears. If that’s not enough, usual-lady killer Chris Pine, best known for his roles in the the latest “Star Trek” movie and “This Means War,” plays Jack Frost, a fairy with a frosty pole. Alec Baldwin is a version of Santa that appears to be on steroids, and Jude Law is an evil spirit known as Pitch. Sorry girls, I know you were hoping for some man candy out of these guys, but their voices will have to do in this animated film.
In this tweaked and twisted fairy tale, the Tooth Fairy, Sandman, Santa and the Easter Bunny call on Jack Frost for help to defeat the evil spirit Pitch who is allegedly, well, scaring the children of the world. Why? Because according to Santa, he has something special inside. Sounds riveting.
I wouldn’t mind taking my nieces to go see this film, but to get me there it would take monetary compensation for my time. I am more than a little disappointed to see some of my favorite actors reduced to little more than voiced over cartoons. If you still believe in Santa and the Tooth Fairy, have at it.
– by Cale Patterson/calewp@gmail.com