Art – Page 45

And the winner is…

Published on February 14, 2008 by Mae @ Rainydayinmay12 Comments

“Wesley says: I told you I would always come for you. Why didn’t you wait for me?

Buttercup says: Well… you were dead.

Wesley says: Death cannot stop true love. All it can do is delay it for a while.”

There is something about this movie which fits where my romantic senses are these days… Though it’s been a 24 hour toss up between these lines, the lines submitted by Kelli from Bridget Jones Diary & there was a third, but it’s early and I can’t remember… In the end though, Wesley & Buttercup won! Congratulations Annikke!!!!

This concludes February’s Favorite Things give away, but keep checking back! In a few weeks I will introduce you to March’s… And let me just say, it’s a pretty special one! :)

Photo courtesy of IMDB…

Trade…

Published on February 2, 2008 by Mae @ Rainydayinmay11 Comments

My heart is really heavy.
There was a film that I was assigned to review named Trade, this summer. The film didn’t do well and wasn’t released nationally so I had to wait until it’s DVD release.
Trade was released on DVD this week, and so it was with eagerness that my friend, her husband and I sat down to watch it. Having extensive experience in dealing with survivors of sexual abuse, we expected a movie which would advocate for them. We knew it’s content was of that nature… With sexual abuse being so often swept under a rug because the world, in majority, still cares about their discomfort when dealing with it- I was ready to see a film released to raise awareness…

And this is when the film person in me has to step up and ask: how much is too much?

Scenes of men in bushes with children; a very blatant rape scened shot cold and honestly… I am that Christian who defends the films, at times, for the “offensive” material they carry. When someone complains about “S**t” of “F**K” being in a film that is intense and action packed, I point out that the bad guy wouldn’t seem so bad if suddenly he yelled “Grab your shoot and shut the flippin heck up!”
I can be the overly tolerant one, at times…
The more liberal one…

And yet this movie made me squirm and cringe. A lot. This movie made all three of our hearts ache, and the general consensus was this:
– this was never intended to be the movie that everyone walks away from, saying “i really loved this movie!”
– this movie was made for awareness purposes.
– this movie is gritty and raw, and as horribly painful as it is to watch- it likely doesn’t touch the real surface of what the sex trade industry, it’s workers or it’s victims lives are like…

But again, still, after my review is written and submitted- I have to ask: how much is too much?
In the name of awareness… In the name of an abuse which is still so much a secret… In the name of ruined children, crime, hatred and brutality— how much enactment is too much?
It’s been over 24 hours since I saw this movie, and my regular every day life has moved on. But my heart is still there, watching. Remembering. Aching.

Sad day…

Published on January 23, 2008 by Mae @ Rainydayinmay24 Comments

It was a really sad day. A sad day at home, a very hard day as a parent…

And then sad as a film lover.

It’s interesting to know that friend’s reach out to one another when a celebrity dies, but they do. We do… It’s strange to have your best friend phone from the other side of the country. I know that when Princess Diana was killed, the world felt as though it stopped spinning. I imagine to most people, especially those Christians who were disappointed in the making of the film Brokeback Mountain, that the passing of Heath Ledger isn’t of the same caliber. ***

To a film lover it could be…

When I started writing about films just over five years ago, I launched in with starry eyes. I giggled like a school girl at the thought of meeting “movie stars”. It took my first press junket and three interviews when I worked with Allied, to finally realize that there isn’t anything any different about them, than us. Sure, some of them are arrogant and entitled, but so are some of us.

From that point, attending interviews and screenings was a lot less intimidating. It was with a peaceful excitement that I planned my trip to Sundance this week. (which is now changed due to Home Schooling) In fact, I have a small list of people I would love to interview. People who I think are courageous or clever. People with insatiable talents.

Heath Ledger was on my list…

Not because he was beautiful, but because he was one of the few incredibly gifted actors in the industry. With his role as the Joker in the new Batman, we would have finally seen him cast in every type of role- and he could do them all wonderfully.

So, yes… I am sad. Sad at a missed opportunity, sad for his little girl to grow up with out her daddy. Sad for our industry…

This is just a tragic loss.

***(By this I am not intending, at all, to insult Believers. I am a Christian. Proudly so. And I know that it was mostly Christians who found it a tragedy that HL or JG would take the BM roles that they did. This isn’t intended to be a religious dispute, I am simply saying that there are people who are saddened and shocked by this, and people who aren’t due to their dislike of him since Brokeback. There are also a lot of people (my mother for one) who will say “Who is Heath Ledger???”… And so my point, in comparison to Diana was that everyone knew who she was, and found the news of her death shocking… But not to everyone, will this be equally as tragic. It was a simple statement and I apologize for any offense taken.)

August Rush…

Published on November 18, 2007 by Mae @ Rainydayinmay12 Comments

August Rush is a good example of the higher end of films we will be seeing quite a lot of, if the Writer’s Strike continues.
It’s the perfect example of some studio dumbing a movie down enough to slap a PG rating on it, when in all actuality it isn’t suitable for children at all.
As we sat there, my sister and I were the perfect example of the two types of film watchers. There are those who get swept up in the emotion and only see the romanticism. Then, there are those who actually think throughout the film and need for things to, at the very least, make some semblance of sense.
I am in the latter crowd.
While my sister was crying and going on and on about what a beautiful movie it was, I left with annoyances and questions.
It isn’t a bad movie. The storyline is glorified a little more than it should be. I can live with that.
For the first 20 minutes, or so, nearly every line said seemed lined. Not only did it feel like it was a script, but the things they said were cliche’ and likely not what people would have spoken, in reality. Thankfully, this changed and it never felt like that again.
The music in this film is incredible. These scenes in which the music is played, are shot and edited remarkably. Over all, despite the heavy layer of cheese which blankets parts of this movie to sugar coat the grittiness of it’s plot line, it is a feel good movie. I had hoped for it to be a little more real. Coming from a group home, and working in several as an adult, I had hoped they would be real about this life. At times they were real, and you saw these homes and shelters for what they were. It gives a good glimpse of life on the street, exploitation and a truly flawed system. It has moments where, even the most cynical of viewers can feel their heart church…
And then cheesy, fairy-tale moments occur and those of us “deep thinkers” are plunged back into the reality that this could have been made a lot better…
August Rush would be great for a DVD rental, or dollar theater choice… Maybe even a Matinee…