A Conversation for JJ's Carmalised Movie Review

Nine...?

Post 1

Awix

And there was me thinking that my own tally (three viewings to date) was a bit on the obsessive side. I would probably have gone to see it again post-The Oscars simply for the Two Towers preview (was this on at the version you saw?) but it finally vanished from local theatres before then.

I agree with you wholeheartedly about the soundtrack, BTW - on a related note I listened to John Williams' score for You-Know-What last night and it's staggeringly beautiful and deeply encouraging (hopefully there'll be a Two Towers trailer on before the movie). How many minutes in two weeks? I'm thinking of putting myself in carbonite hibernation till the 16th arrives.


Nine...?

Post 2

Jade (Like a lithium flower just about to bloom... She's incredible math.) and Thras (the token dragon dæmon)

...I got tickets for the 12:01 Thursday morning showing. I'm even worse than you are, Awix, rally I am.

But anyway. yeah, it's too bad for you that FotR got pulled from theatres so quickly, It's still showing in teh US, and I expect it will be until TTT comes out, at this point.

I CAN'T WAIT FOR STAR WARS! SOMEONE SEDATE ME UNTIL THEN!


Nine...?

Post 3

Awix

Yeah, well, I considered going to the midnight showing, but as I don't drive I'd've been looking at a hefty cab fare plus taking at least Thursday off work.

Besides which I think the atmosphere will be just as good, if not better, Thursday night, when it's packed out (I bought my ticket last week and was lucky to get it). I went to an early-afternoon showing of Menace on the day that premiered and it wasn't that busy, which meant there wasn't that buzz of excitement.

My local multiplex did hourly showings of Menace but this time round they're just doing three a day. I suppose the simultaneous global release might have something to do with that (fewer prints to go round) but then again the 'plex is noticeably strapped for cash and maybe they didn't make as much money in '99 as they hoped to, and are playing it safe this time.


Nine...?

Post 4

Jade (Like a lithium flower just about to bloom... She's incredible math.) and Thras (the token dragon dæmon)

*nods* That sounds reasonable to me.

I just can't wait until the showing though. It's madness. I went ut and bought the book and the soundtrack this weekend, and in fact right now I'm listeniong to the soundtrack (Track 2! The love theme!).

I'm about halfway through the book, which I know is a horrible spoiler, but I really don't care. Actually I think it'll be inetersting if I've read it first, and that way I can see if the way I picture things as being is the same way that they're portrayed. Like, kind of the Harry Potter thing revisited, you know?


Nine...?

Post 5

Awix

Well, sort of, but the difference being that the Harry Potters were conceived as books first and films second - the Harry Potter books are novels but the Clones book is a novelisation. I'm desperate to avoid explicit spoilers (though I've figured out most of the plot's general thrust) and am hoping my workmates don't lay their hands on a pirate copy and proceed to torment me with an in-depth discussion of it...

The soundtrack is a thing of beauty, isn't it? Half the fun is trying to figure out which bit of music is going to accompany which scene. Plus it's got all the proper Star Wars themes (the dah-DAH-da-da-dah bit, the dah-dah-dah-dah-de-dah-dar-de-dah bit, etc) as well as the rather gorgeous love theme.

Spent most of yesterday downloading TV adverts from the official site. Which bit am I looking forward to most, I ask myself - Jango's fight with Kenobi, or the speeder chase, or Sam Jackson going into action, or Anakin vs. Christopher Lee, or Yoda putting the smackdown on the bad guys, or the bit in the bar ('I want to go home and rethink my life', etc)... Only another ten days to go. This is embarrassing, I've never been so excited about a new film.


Nine...?

Post 6

Jade (Like a lithium flower just about to bloom... She's incredible math.) and Thras (the token dragon dæmon)

By far the best battle shall be Yoda Vs. Christoper Lee.


Or didn't you know that Yoda was a pimp with the lightsaber? smiley - winkeye

Yeah, he sees some action in this film, or so I've heard (I don't know for sure, because I haven't gotten that far in the book as yet.)

As for the soudtrack, it is gorgey, but I dunno... It seems to be lacking. Perhaps what it is is that the music's taking on more of an... pardon, I can't think of a better word than this; evil undertones, following along with the exceedingly darker storyline.

I mean, even the Love thweme, which I think is gorgeous, has some dark understones. Don't you think?


Nine...?

Post 7

Catwoman

The problem with books of films (in that order) is that a film is usually much shorter than a book and the only way they can really pad it out is with description, which gets a bit dull after a while.

If it's a film of a book then you end up with a really long film and/or have to miss bits out, which can still make sense but is extremely frustrating for people who have actually read the book - people like me who sit there muttering "that's not the way it happens, where is ?"


Nine...?

Post 8

Awix

It's a very thin tightrope when you're turning a book inot a movie - either you're too literal-minded and faithful to the book, and end up with Harry Potter or Interview with the Vampire, or you take too many liberties and miss the point - eg, The Beach. Fellowship of the Ring got it about right (I don't think Bombadil's ever made it into an adaptation!), so did the movie of Trainspotting.

Yoda vs Christopher Lee... hmmm, living legend that Mr Lee is, and no matter how handy Yoda is with his saber, I can't help getting an image in my head reminiscent of Austin Powers fighting Mini-me...

I have to say that the sort of tragic, doomed lyricism of the soundtrack is one of the things I like most about it. The darkness will (hopefully) give the movie a bit of ESB-ish depth...

(Ho ho department: according to the TV ads, Obi-Wan carries a crystal lightsaber and has his Jedi fighter ship, Artoo has an all-pupose claw and antigravity jets, and Jango has blasters and high-impact armour. What does Padme have to compare to this? A 'Secret lake retreat' and her 'Diplomatic wardrobe'. Isn't that just a bit sexist...?)





Nine...?

Post 9

Jade (Like a lithium flower just about to bloom... She's incredible math.) and Thras (the token dragon dæmon)

Yes yes indeed.

She has a blaster too. And a neat white action outfit. Now, myself I would have chosen a colour that wouldn't show so much dirt for a battle action bum kicking outfit. But then I'm not Natalie Portman's costumer, am I...?


Anyway. Yes, now that you speak of it, it shall be fairly odd to see the diminuitive Jedi master we've all come to know ans love with the burning passion of five simoultaneously exploding suns facing off with Saruman... I mean Christopher Lee. (smiley - winkeye) But at any rate it shall be much much fun.




Nine...?

Post 10

Catwoman

Saruman... no, Christopher Lee.

Kinda like 'Hey look, it's Agent Smith from the Matrix' (my initial thought when seeing Elrond, even though I had been prepared). They do have a couple of similarities though - the whole 'humans are viruses' thing. Maybe not quite that much.


Nine...?

Post 11

Jade (Like a lithium flower just about to bloom... She's incredible math.) and Thras (the token dragon dæmon)

No no nooo, it's hobbits that are the virus. Not the Humans.

But anyway.


Nine...?

Post 12

Catwoman

Well he still seemed pretty annoyed about 'the weakness of man' etc, and the narrated part decided that elves were wise, dwarves built cool stuff, and humans were power-mad. Really nice there.


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