Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: Part One, The Lightning Thief (or, how I learned to stop worrying and love my dad the god of the sea)




This film suffers from too many flaws. Most of the problems probably lie within the original material which was a young adult fiction novel. It doesn't really matter to the intended audience in the end.

I liked the world and what could have been done, but inevitably I thought it was trying too hard to be Harry Potter.

Verdict: Rent It

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Karma

KARMA

A very interesting thing happened to me the other day. Very interesting indeed.

First a bit of backstory:

(In the past...)
Eric anderson
20 Years Old
Rating: Newbie

I had decided that I wanted to become a writer and producer of movies. This had been decided for quite a while, but I needed a jump start. I naively took my resume to a local production company that had made some solid films. I really wanted to talk to a certain director that I had admired.

With all the hope in the world and all my fingers crossed, I set out to get a job with this company. I met the producer, I met the writer/director, and I met a few others. I was determined to be a part of their team, even if it meant working for free.

I received no response from them but: "we really only hire students."

Later, when I was a bit older and going to school - I had the chance to meet with this particular director again. I again asked him for an opportunity to be a part of his films - I was now a student.

I again received nothing but coldness and a shirking shoulder.

FLASH FORWARD a few years.

I am now interning at a pretty prestigious independent film distribution company in LA. I am working under one of the VP's of acquisition - someone who wants their films distributed talks to this guy. One day, an invite comes in. It is an invitation for that director's newest film. He wants the VP to come see the film and hopefully be willing to distribute it.

Now I am stuck with a moral dilemma. It was my job to decide whether or not to forward along these invites (and there were a lot of them) along to my boss. Should I send it to him? Should I hold on to it? Should I throw it in the trash?

I decided NOT to forward it along. But not because I had a vendetta against this man, I still liked him. It was because I felt that his film wasn't right for this company. (Also, maybe a bit because I didn't really want to help this guy out who wasn't willing to help a naive, impressionable young filmmaker get a leg-up.)

FLASH FORWARD AGAIN

I'm working at a top Literary agency in Beverly Hills. A submission letter for this SAME director comes across our desks. He is seeking representation with our agency. I chuckle a little and then shrug it off. I'm not going to help him. I won't even tell any of my bosses about him. It's not worth it to me.

If he had been nice, if he had taken two seconds, I would have tried my best to help out in both of these situations.

It's about KARMA. It's about helping each other, no matter how insignificant or how silly it is. All that guy had to do, was give me some advice, or take a few minutes to discuss things with me. If he had I'm sure I would feel differently about him and I would have done more to help him out when the tables turned.

So that's basically it. You need to be nice and you need to do the best you can to help others out. What goes around, comes around.

If any of you feel I have treated you poorly or that I shrugged you off - I'M SORRY! Please let me know about what I said/did and I will try my best to correct it.

And no, I will not let you know who the director is.

Monday, February 1, 2010

Twitterpated <--(stolen title)

Spencer did another Twitter-style review of things that have recently caught his attention, so I thought I would do the same. These reviews are less than 140 characters to make them simple and concise.

As you remember, I did a TV one last year during season kickoff. This one here has more things added - like books, comics, movies and other entertainment. Please enjoy!

Book of Eli (Feature - Theater) - Exciting and fun. Different than what I expected. Still not as good as the script (oh man, tell me that saying this is not a new thing!)

Scott Pilgrim (Comic) - Utterly fantastic! Smart, funny, exciting. It plays off the expectations and surprises on each page. Can't stop reading (I'm on vol. 4).

Modern Family (ABC Sitcom) - By far the best show on TV right now. I love Community and 30 Rock and all those others, but this one is just so amazing.

The Gamers: Dorkness Rising (Feature - Netflix Streaming) - Do not watch.

When in Rome (Feature - Theater) - Exactly what I was expecting. Bad writing and ridiculous plot. The side characters (including my friend Jon) were amazingly funny. Cute.

The Middle (ABC Sitcom) - I really didn't like this show to start out with. It's grown on me quite a bit. I especially love the crazy antics of their son Axel.

Accidentally on Purpose (CBS Sitcom) - The show has slowed down quite a bit, but at least they've strayed from the stupid formula. The stoner friend is still the best character.

The Lovely Bones (Feature - Theater) - Really liked the first and last 20 minutes of the film. Everything else in-between took way too long. Adaptation = Cutting down. Sorry Peter.

The Da Vinci Code (Novel) - Read this for the first time in December. Really enjoyed it. I love a good thriller, especially if it is written well.

Daniel Tosh: Completely Serious (Comedy Special - Netflix Streaming) - Hilarious. He's so all-over-the-place with his comedy. You never know where he will end up. A tad bit offensive if you're sensitive to that.

Step Brothers (Feature - Netflix Streaming) - Really funny, really cruel. Not sure where the story lost me, but it didn't completely work in my opinion. Loved seeing Brent in the psychologist scene!

Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (Feature - Theater) - Initial reaction - what the? Second reaction - okay, I get it. Overall, Gilliam is king of distorted reality.

The IT Crowd: Season 3 (BBC - Netflix Streaming) - You have to watch this series. It is completely amazing. All-time favorite moment is when Moss shows Jen "the Internet."

Grammy Performance: Pink (Online) - This is so cool!

SNL Digital Short: The Tizzle Wizzle Show (Online) - "Knife, knife, pick out your knife. Three more seconds to pick out your knife! 3, 2, 1!"