I was super pumped up for this geeky adaptation of Ernest Cline’s novel, but sorry, folks. This is one of the moments I will say the book is better than the movie.
I LOVED THE BOOK. I even read it twice because I got hooked with Wade Watts’s adventures despite being a non-gamer. I understood what he was hoping for, how he wanted to escape, how he wanted to be seen, how he wanted to connect, and how he wanted to help the world defeat tyranny in his dystopian world. I had a blast trying to imagine all the old video games he conquered in my head and how it would have been awesome if the movie got the rights to ALL of them. Alas, my boyfriend found it amusing that I sulked deeper and deeper into my seat as the film’s story unfolded. Man, that was one wallop of disappointment.
(SPOILERS AHEAD. If you’re a curious cat, why not).
Don’t get me wrong. I’ve always loved Spielberg movies and the visuals were top of class and I am a supporter of female roles taking the limelight but I felt like Art3mis stole the thunder from Parzival.
It.really.wasn’t.supposed.to.be.that.way.
I am talking about Wade’s awesome infiltration of Innovative Online Industries (IOI) for weeks in the novel. More than that, Daito was pushed to death, Sorrento is as horrifying as some world leaders in real-life, and Wade’s win was almost hopeless but ingenious because of his perseverance in one time of his life. It was life-changing in the end when he shared his pot money to his friends and to the world and it gives you hope about the youth in that pocket of the fantasy universe.
“I created the OASIS because I never felt at home in the real world. I didn’t know how to connect with the people there. I was afraid, for all of my life, right up until I knew it was ending. That was when I realized, as terrifying and painful as reality can be, it’s also the only place where you can find true happiness. Because reality is real.” – Anorak, Ready Player One
The novel’s themes were very timely, too. The build-up of Aech being female shattered gender stereotypes and the book expounded this quite well.
“As we continued to talk, going through the motions of getting to know each other, I realized that we already did know each other, as well as any two people could. We’d known each other for years, in the most intimate way possible. We’d connected on a purely mental level. I understood her, trusted her, and loved her as a dear friend. None of that had changed, or could be changed by anything as inconsequential as her gender, or skin color, or sexual orientation.”
As a female non-gamer, I would only watch guy friends and lovers who get wrapped up in moments when their hands touch the console, lost in that world. I can’t say I fully understand the feeling of why there is an addiction to it and other factors that make playing games for hours a need, but I guess it’s pretty similar to when I get my hands on a much-awaited novel and I shut off the real world with a Do Not Disturb sign.
“If I was feeling depressed or frustrated about my lot in life, all I had to do was tap the Player One button, and my worries would instantly slip away as my mind focused itself on the relentless pixelated onslaught on the screen in front of me. There, inside the game’s two-dimensional universe, life was simple: It’s just you against the machine. Move with your left hand, shoot with your right, and try to stay alive as long as possible.”
Needless to say, this is a review of the film being so much NOT THE BOOK, and if, by any chance, you get the time to read it after you’ve seen the film, DO IT. It’s a richer fantasy world and more than you’ll ever dream of.
While everyone was still flocking the cinemas for Marvel’s Guardians on its second week, R & I went to see a less popular flick, The Zookeeper’s Wife, because we heard of its heroic connections to saving the Jews during the Holocaust (I was coincidentally carrying a copy of Elie Wiesel’s Day in my bag that time). Rated R-13 for nudity, violence, and mature themes, most of the moviegoers were mature Filipino and American audiences.
There is something chilling about anything connected to the Holocaust, and the beauty of the Polish petting zoo and its inhabitants were soon marred by the arrival of bombs. Antonina and Jan Zabinski, along with their son Ryszard, witnessed the heartless killing of their animals by the Nazis because the bombing set the zoo inhabitants loose. In comes the villain in the guise of a friend, Dr. Lutz Heck, Germany’s top zoologist who wants to work with Antonina and use the zoo for his experiment. On the other hand, the Zabinskis thought that they could raise a pig farm as a way to extract the Jews from the ghetto by covering them with the fruit peelings they collect at the mentioned camp as food for the pigs. In the zoo’s premises is an underground passageway that served as quarters and hiding place of the “fugitives” of war.
The movie tried its best to not sugarcoat the cruelty and harshness of the true-to-life accounts, especially the rape, but it artistically diverted the heaviness by always juxtaposing goodness right after. There was a lot of emphasis on the empathy and the care for others in the midst of great danger. In the Warsaw Zoo, the animals were loved as much as the humans while the war treats the Jews as helpless creatures. The couple managed to save 300 people, and what courage they had to shield them from death!
It’s the most successful live-action Disney remake to date, judging from the box office records it smashed and everyone’s hangover with its merchandise, photos, and scoring. My Instagram feed was filled with Beauty and the Beast photos from all over the world, and it took me the second weekend of screening the chance to sit down and watch it in the cinema.
I was crying like a baby from start to finish.
The Beauty of It All (Spoilers ahead)
The Music Served the Backstories
I already spoiled myself rotten by listening to the pre-released soundtrack on YouTube, but I still didn’t expect the impact the new songs had on the actual film itself, especially “How Does a Moment Last Forever?” Disney was able to convince the iconic Celine Dion to sing again for the live-action soundtrack, and I’m going to make a prediction that this particular track will be nominated for Best Song for next year’s Oscars.
How does a moment last forever?
How can a story never die?
It is love we must hold onto
Never easy, but we try
Sometimes our happiness is captured
Somehow, our time and place stand still
Love lives on inside our hearts and always will
Minutes turn to hours, days to years and gone
But when all else has been forgotten
Still our song lives on
Maybe some moments weren’t so perfect
Maybe some memories not so sweet
But we have to know some bad times
Or our lives are incomplete
Then when the shadows overtake us
Just when we feel all hope is gone
We’ll hear our song and know once more
Our love lives on
How does a moment last forever?
How does our happiness endure?
Through the darkest of our troubles
Love is beauty, love is pure
Love pays no mind to desolation
It flows like a river through the soul
Protects, persists, and perseveres
And makes us whole
Minutes turn to hours, days to years then gone
But when all else has been forgotten
Still our song lives on
How does a moment last forever
When our song lives on
Of course, we all know Ms. Dion is not in the film, so it came as a sucker punch that Kevin Kline, who plays Maurice, Belle’s father in the movie, sings a portion of this in such a gentle, sweet way to remember his long lost wife as he repairs his daughter’s music box. *cue waterworks*
This age-old fairy tale managed to gain more depth as the screenplay made the creative license to present a backstory on why Belle doesn’t have a mother. It turns out that she died because of the plague in France after her daughter was born. Watson sings a reprise of this tune when she time traveled with the Beast to Paris to know the truth about that painful topic for her father.
This is the Paris of my childhood
These were the borders of my life
In this crumbling, dusty attic
Where an artist loved his wife
Easy to remember, harder to move on
Knowing the Paris of my childhood is gone
The inventor role also went to Emma Watson instead of Kline, for the latter was more of the artist who longs to preserve the memory of the deceased wife. Somehow, it made sense that Belle is an inventor because she would likely read anything and learn a lot from theory.
Meanwhile, it is not just Maurice who had the chance to sing of his loss. In “Days in the Sun,” the cast are able to reminisce of their lives as human beings since their time as living creatures is dwindling if nobody breaks the curse. It starts with young Beast singing to his dying mother, then Stanley Tucci’s new character, Maestro Cadenza, lovers Lumiere and Plummette, Mrs. Potts. Belle then interjects, empathizing with their state in life, where Audra Macdonald’s gorgeous soprano voice responds to being hopeful to the very end.
Last but not the least, “Evermore,” which I wrote about previously. It was heartbreaking to see the Beast sing of his sadness on his way up his towers to let go forever the girl he has fallen in love with. I also predict this in the list of Best Song because a movie can have two songs in the Oscar category! I’ll be waiting, Academy Awards!
The Wit Goes to LeFou
Josh Gad’s lines are the funniest if nobody else noticed.
And his name’s G-A-S-T… I believe there’s another T… It just occurred to me that I’m illiterate and I’ve never actually had to spell it out loud before…
Hilarious!
Luke Evans Is a Singing Revelation
Acting-wise, he’s perfect as Gaston. I’ve heard some feedback that he’s still “thinner” than the animation. Peeps, he’s not supposed to look like Johnny Bravo. Anyways, in the song “The Mob,” I could hear the grit and arrogance in his voice that just gave the chills. And you’ll really get mad at him when he starts taunting the sad Beast you’d really want to punch him in the face. As a singer, he was a delight. In the promotional videos, he and Gad just have so much fun it’s great. In one interview, he said he’d really have to internalize narcissistic Gaston or else he’ll burst out laughing or cringing doing the scenes!
The Moment Everyone Stood Still
It was easy to imagine this in the animated film; the hurried goodbyes, the fact that they were “dying.” Despite their deaths, everyone was grateful to each other for a life well-lived. That scene was set-up beautifully, considering they were just collateral damage to the consequence of the ill tempers of their master.
Overall, the visual effects met my expectations. It felt like home in the original, this is only grander. Even the Beast’s transformation was almost the same thing!
Belle and Maurice are Stuck in a Time Loop???
A recent fan theory went around the internet explaining why Belle stuck out like a sore thumb in the provincial life. In “Little Town,” she sings,
Little town in a quiet village. Every day, like the one before…
It apparently explains why she’s bored and aims to break free from the routine (but she still did run into a trap of slavery of rights with the Beast, eh?).
The Ugly Beast of Issues
There was too much criticism of the protagonists’ non-singer voices, Watson and Stevens. I appreciate Disney’s move to not cast professional singers because some would just tend to oversing (yes, it could be a tendency, just listen to Ariana Grande for the pop version).
LeFou’s sexual orientation reveal was blown out of proportion. Wouldn’t you think that his idolizing Gaston so much in the original animated movie would have made sense because he has a crush on him other than being a blind follower?
Overreading the fairy tale to be a dangerous example of Stockholm syndrome. Can’t you guys just have fun and be a kid at heart once again to not make everything a literal interpretation?
People disliking Prince Adam’s real face than the water buffalo. SERIOUSLY?
On a more academic note, The Atlantic wrote an article on the topic of the love for animals and arranged marriages.
“Beauty and the Beast,” Tatar writes, is a love story about “the transformative power of empathy,” but a dark and weird one. Coded inside it are all kinds of cultural neuroses regarding the social and emotional structure of marriage: fear of the other, fear of leaving home, fear of changing oneself by forming a new partnership.
These neuroticisms, however, is a way to show adults and children alike “a desire to transform fairy tales from adult entertainment into parables of good behavior, vehicles for indoctrinating and enlightening children about the virtues of fine manners and good breeding.” Belle and Prince Adam/Beast contrast in values despite going through the same maternal loss. It’s just helping each other conquer the monsters within.
I think I’ve made my case, and I think I’ve been obvious in explaining this is a favorite adaptation at this moment. If the next live-action remakes tops this, I’ll let you know.
P.S.
Mulan is in shambles now, so it has huge shoes to fill in terms of expectations.
You didn’t think the cast of the live movie adaptation would sing, would you?
Here’s a sample of Emma Watson’s take on “Something More”:
She doesn’t sound like a professional singer, but her sweet voice rings a lot of sincerity in it. Belle’s songs have been sung countless of times before, but could anyone ever replace Angela Lansbury’s “Beauty and the Beast”? Let’s wait and see.
When I saw the trailer a few weeks back, I made a mental note that this film was a must watch. My two girl friends and I went to the cinema to watch it on the last day before the film switch for the week, and the movie did not disappoint. It also made us weep quite a lot!
Thoughts on the Film
The visual effects were spectacular. It was a delight that the three tales had its own kind of animation. Liam Neeson’s voice fits the low, gravelly sound of Papa Groot (sorry, can’t help it), and while there was a lot of authority and command, he/it sounded gentle and consoling enough for the troubled boy.
Its emotional appeal and tug at the heartstrings were beautifully executed in the narrative. It just had the right kind of nostalgia for Conor’s confusion with his attachment and detachment to his mother and her terminal illness. Felicity Jones had the perfect kind of tenderness for a (dying) mom. Despite little or limited screen exposure, she was very effective.
Somehow, when thinking of guardians of children facing life issues, I am reminded of The BFG and My Neighbor Totoro. But since we’re dealing with illness and death, the Hayao Miyazaki classic has similar elements here for the protagonist to survive difficult emotions.
While Totoro and the sisters had secret adventures, Conor’s realizations were challenged by stories. These stories mostly dealt with themes of justice, prejudice, belief, and choices. In the end, he had to tell his own story: the truth.
It was a nice closure for Conor to discover his mother’s artwork…and how, it seems, that the monster was the guardian that she had designated for him.
Thoughts on the Book
The title was out of stock in all branches of National Bookstore, so I went to Fully Booked to search for it. I was excited to read again about the three tales, and the book had a more menacing monster yet still fantastic illustration.
The only major difference of the book from the movie adaptation was that there was no mention of Conor’s mom as an artist. Because the author, Patrick Ness, also wrote the film screenplay, I think it was a good move that the last few scenes had contextualized what was missing from the original text.
A minor omission from the book came in the form of Lily, Conor’s sort of female best friend. She fiercely protected him, and he was more vulnerable in that sense. It worked in the screenplay, though, that book character Lily was absent so that the focus would be on Conor’s solitude.
For a YA novel, the book on its own could be heavy material for anyone. My friend, who read the book first before watching the film, had to process herself after finishing the sad but inevitable end. Therefore, my recommendation would be to watch the visual form first before reading it.
This is definitely one of the best movies I’ve seen in 2016.
What do you think, Disney fans? Are you excited about all the animated classics suddenly turned to live-action one by one? For the most part, I’m curious, though am not sure if Disney’s tired of thinking of new material. I guess for entertainment’s sake, younger generations will be up to speed on what we loved when we were younger. It will have brand new songs from Alan Menken and Tim Rice, and a stellar cast aside from Emma Watson. Here’s the cast list from the official press release:
Emma Watson as Belle; Dan Stevens as the Beast; Luke Evans as Gaston, the handsome, but shallow villager who woos Belle; Oscar® winner Kevin Kline as Maurice, Belle’s eccentric, but lovable father; Josh Gad as Lefou, Gaston’s long-suffering aide-de-camp; Golden Globe® nominee Ewan McGregor as Lumiere, the candelabra; Oscar nominee Stanley Tucci as Maestro Cadenza, the harpsichord; Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Plumette, the feather duster; six-time Tony Award® winner Audra McDonald as Madame Garderobe, the wardrobe; Oscar nominee Ian McKellen as Cogsworth, the mantel clock; and two-time Academy Award® winner Emma Thompson as the teapot, Mrs. Potts.
I tried reading this. I really, truly tried. I guess I just didn’t like Lewis Carroll’s style for me to not be able to finish the book. I’d just watch the Tim Burton adaptation instead.
It’s perfect that Tim Burton picked up this project because of his penchant for unconventional plots and characters. Notably missing from this Ransom Riggs adaptation, however, is what happened to Jacob’s family even before he met the Peculiars (who look exactly like the photographs in the book). I guess the film doesn’t want to start with that sad tale anyway. I wonder if Eva Green will ever be casted for a ‘normal’ role. Haha.
I saw the trailer go viral a few weeks back on my FB feed even before I picked up this book last week. It was a reverse comparison then of me thinking of Emilia Clarke and Sam Claflin’s faces when I was reading this. Let me post the trailer first before I share my thoughts.
As far as the trailer goes, it’s pretty faithful to the text. The lines are almost verbatim, and Clarke and Claflin seem perfect as these two would-be lovers in a doomed mess. Yes, you read that right. The book might as well have been titled “Love Does Not Conquer All” lest you want the trailer to lead you to high hopes of romantic success. Sorry to spoil anyone reading this entry at this point so turn away if you must. Strong emotional reactions from a friend and from the writer under me who wrote an entertainment story about this already revealed to me the plot twist. The trailer made me weep twice, and armed with my knowledge of what will happen in this friggin book, I gathered the courage to read it knowing it’s not gonna be a happy ending.
I still cried a bit.
The romantic part of me was in anguish and frustrated. There are matters that love cannot fix (especially a depressed human mind). Love can be a balm, but daily physical and complicated pain in an invalid’s life can sometimes be unmendable…Will Traynor is always close to death every time there is a medical complication on how his body cannot deal with its injuries. By now, you will get what I mean, so I’d have to see if they stick to the book’s ending in this film. I’ll be both glad and sad if they do.
Now, for a bit of feedback on the protagonist, Louisa Clark. Lou is quirky, which is cute and acceptable. I truly do get the girl-living-an-ordinary-sheltered-life aspect, but yes, maybe her intellectual blandness did need the juxtaposition to Will’s daredevil history for our female lead to come out of her shell and see that the world is a big playground. At 26, she was forced by circumstances to see the world and to actually seek a stable job. So yeah, yeah, it’s a reality that other people influence or inspire us to be greater beings. I guess it’s true, though, how Lou, like middle-class women like me, would actually settle for stable and okay jobs for a time to get finances going before actually taking a leap and dare to follow a dream. I can imagine Will scoffing at this thought because he was a man of privilege where he could do whatever he wants, travel to places on a whim, ya know, rich guy things. Money can be a catalyst to settling or succeeding on an economic level.
Lou did make the most of all her earnings. She even learned how to manage her time properly and even wildly because a clock was ticking. Maybe some women will turn out like her in her shoes. How do you live the remaining time to save the one you love?
Will’s situation is very tricky. There are moral and ethical issues at stake, and I dare not discuss his decisions as a quadriplegic and what people in this state go through lest I become insensitive.
Read the book or watch the movie. This bestseller makes sense and it will push you to make a stand. The most neutral way is to be emphatic. It’s up to you on its moral and ethical bearings.
If you need a modern-day example of human versus Nature, will-to-live story yet sci-fi exciting, then this is perfect. Adapted from the novel of Andy Weir of the same title, it tells the story of astronaut and botanist Mark Watney and his goal to survive in the Red Planet after being left and thought of as dead by his Ares III crew when they had to abort the mission. Most people, upon realizing they’ve been stranded on an island, hell, an alien planet, would cave in and give up. Not Mark Watney.
I’m gonna have to science the shit outta this planet. – Mark Watney on Mars
I’m not nerdy enough to explain Watney’s scientific calculations and plans, but it’s as simple as this: he needed to find a way to prolong his food rations until the next NASA Mars mission. The catch? That mission will happen in four Earth years while his food can only last him 300 sols or Mars solar days. What did he do? He’s a botanist so he literally crapped a solution in the next few weeks. Why? Human manure + martian soil + leftover potatoes = produce. The tricky part was finding a way to produce water, but with his scientific experiments, it finally worked. With one problem solved and 99 to go, Watney kept on thinking and testing and using himself as a guinea pig to find a way to prolong his life sol by sol. All odds were mostly against him, but his big heart, his tough soul, and his brilliant human mind tested its limits to exhaust all scientific possibilities with a huge amount of wishing and hoping.
I started the film wondering how he’ll get out of this almost impossible situation. I ended up crying with relief and jubilation, cheering Matt Damon on in this very challenging role. I searched for Neil de Grasse Tyson’s tweets if he had anything to say about this movie like in “Interstellar,” but I didn’t. I found, however, an article on Astronomy.com that lauded Scott Ridley for his dedication to scientific detail and intensive research on everything NASA.
“We want to make the film as much science fact as science fiction.” – Executive Producer Mark Huffam
NASA.gov, on the other hand, cited nine technologies that do exist in real life and can be seen as variations or iterations of truth in “The Martian.” Super duper cool.
Damon was funny, brilliant, humble, and relatable. I haven’t seen the other actors in the award-nominated movies yet, but he does seem like a great winner for a 2016 Golden Globe for this. He made Mark Watney an admirable and inspiring soul that even kids should watch to learn how to persevere in desperate situations without going insane (or almost). I don’t recall the character ever really panicky, because there’s always a quiet resignation if an experiment fails. His frustration passes, and he soldiers on. There aren’t over-the-top theatrics because Mark Watney felt real, the way the film “The Martian” made scientific exploration real.
I really like this movie. I should go grab a copy of the book.
P.S.
I’ve always wanted to be an astronaut but I suck at Math and Science. Oh well.
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