Coraline

[Drunk Monk]

this was my way of buying off his kid so we could attend the victory opening. had i known there was cookies and a squishy yin yang pillow in the deal, i could have gone without the bribe. but we're all gaiman fans here, so maybe it was my way of dealing with the wake of the anchor brewery tour the night before.

coraline is very trippy, very alice in wonderland like so much of gaiman's work - sort of a younger, yet creepier mirrormask. nice use of symbols like needles and buttons. the whole button eye doll thing worked really well. ultimately the plot lacked the subversive quality and depth that i expect from gaiman's work, but the imagery was so scenic that i overlooked to story arc. i'm a sucker for good stop-motion. had a hard time coping with hatcher as the voice actress - she was ok, not over-the-top as most voice-actors are, but dm kept tripping on going to high school with her.

the main thing is the 3d. if you haven't seen a 3d movie in the last year, it's time to check one out and this is a great one for that. the technology is so good now. and this film really works, drawing you into this doll-like dioramas instead of popping crap out at you for the shock factor (there's some of that - almost obligatory, but not it never got obtrusive). i can hardly wait for up and monsters vs. aliens - the 3d previews for those were pretty cool.

i though it might be too creepy for t, but she liked it a lot and wasn't in the least bit scared. there were some crying younger kids. it's dark, with very few moments of comic relief.

[thatguy]

I haven't seen it yet, but I still recommend checking out the book...

<!-- l --><a class="postlink-local" href="http://brotherhoodofdoom.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=8&p=8410">viewtopic.php?f=8&p=8410</a><!-- l -->

--tg

[El Dingo]

Dee Dee and I liked this better than "Wall-E"

I love seeing kids movies at matinees where the parents are clueless and the kids are terrified. The nearly-full 11:40AM showing was loud until the movie started, then dead quiet (except for the occasional gasp or scream).

This movie is incredibly intense, very "Hitchcockian" in its slow build up to a frenetic climax. I didn't get the tear-up rush at the end like 'Iron Giant' or 'The Incredibles' but the subtle/extreme art direction really takes the viewer's aesthetic on a roller-coaster ride.

I had skimmed through an article in Wired about the mixture of CGI and puppetry (I didn't want to read spoilers). It really disturbed me that I couldn't identify CGI elements from the thousands of pieces of gravel they used to recreate stonework. I mean - if you can't tell the difference, what's the point?

Go see it.

I saved my glasses. Here's hoping they work on the Blu-Ray release.

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

Owing to the fact I don't pay attention, The Queen and I ended up at a non-3d version. This is fine because 3d just gives the Queen headaches.

I kept asking myself was this really aimed at kids. There were a lot strange moments especially the French and Saunders Burlesque team from downstairs. I think I was a bit shocked by the nudity. Mr. Bobinsky was a bit sickening especially the close up of the belly button. Ewww.

Storywise it was fine. It was a great use of puppetry. For me, the CGI was pretty easy to spot. But then I was looking for it because of ED's comments. I'm curious if the film might not be better in 3d. I did like the Vampire Scotty dogs and I can't wait to find a breeder to buy one.