A Very Long Week
Mar. 26th, 2004 10:24 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
liptonrm_backupA week that I have happily spent in semi-delirium. Yay! Delirium! I have come to the conclusion that spring colds are the worst sort of colds one could possibly get. Thankfully, all I've really had to do was go work at my boring job and then go home and sleep the rest of the hours away. I love sleep, it's the greatest.thing.ever.
I found that even at work it was absolutely impossible to keep my mind focused on any thing of merit, so I worked on making lots of fun lj icons. See, isn't it pretty, and it's only one example of my 'hard' work;-).
I actually went to see a movie that wasn't Return of the King. I know, it's incredible. I'm not quite sure how I did it either;-). The movie that broke that greatest of trends was Dawn of the Dead Starring Sarah Polley, Ving Rhames and Jake Weber. So, if you've seen it and would like to read my own take on this fun, gruesome tale, please follow me through the cuuuttt...
I'll admit it, I was excited to see this movie even before I walked in the theater. The online trailer that I saw just kicked all sorts of ass. I think I've said this before, but I've always been a sucker for 'end of the world' based stories. When I was younger I whet my appetite on novels like Alas, Babylon and The Postmen. I was caught in that blackout last year and rather then being scared I have to admit that I was kind of excited. I actually daydream about what I would do if modern civillization failed and we all had to fend for ourselves. Yeah, I'm just weird like that.
So, I knew going in that I would enjoy this movie on one level, I just never realized that I would enjoy it on all sorts of levels. When the opening credits begin with a montage of zombie attacks played to Johnny Cash's A Pale Rider you know you're in for something different from your usual zombie fare. The action was real and gritty and disgusting, at times. The horror, while not as strongly painted as it could have been, was definitely real and the humor was effective and very tongue in cheek. A large chunk of the humor comes from this disparate group of people interacting with one another. For example: When our heroes, after having been attacked by a number of zombies after they've made their way to the mall, ride the elevator up to the second floor of the mall, they're met with surly, gun-toting security guards. Why is this funny? Because it seems to play perfectly into that whole 'stupid mall security' stereotype. I just had to grin at that, it was too perfect. Oh, and then there's the part where they're shooting zombies in the parking lot, zombies they've named by the celebrities they kind of resemble. It shouldn't be funny, but it really, really is;-).
And that's the genius of this movie, characters begin as stereotypes, the tired nurse, the stalwart cop, the thug, the redneck security, and then morph into fully realized people with weaknesses and strengths. Perhaps my favorite example of this is the character CJ (played by Michael Kelly), who goes from the most redneck, hardnosed of obnoxious mall security guards to a sympathetic individual. The work done by the case is superb and really makes this movie more then it could have otherwise been.
Dawn of the Dead isn't some stupid faux-horror film filled with WB wanna-bes, it's an honest look at humanity when civillization is gone. At one point our heroes are standing on the roof of the mall, resting after having painted SOS signs to let the rest of the world know they're alive in there. As they stand there, a helicopter flies over the mall and away, out of sight. It's a chilling moment as they, and us, realize that they're all alone in there, and that no one is going to come and rescue them. I'm excited about this trend of fun, yet realistic, end of the world movies and I can't wait to own Dawn of the Dead on DVD. Now, excuse my while I go out and buy 28 Days Later;-).
Stupid new phone system, I've been putzing with it for hours. I defy anyone to tell me that moving is actually an enjoyable activity. Bah Humbug;-). Have a great day and Happy Belated New Year!
I found that even at work it was absolutely impossible to keep my mind focused on any thing of merit, so I worked on making lots of fun lj icons. See, isn't it pretty, and it's only one example of my 'hard' work;-).
I actually went to see a movie that wasn't Return of the King. I know, it's incredible. I'm not quite sure how I did it either;-). The movie that broke that greatest of trends was Dawn of the Dead Starring Sarah Polley, Ving Rhames and Jake Weber. So, if you've seen it and would like to read my own take on this fun, gruesome tale, please follow me through the cuuuttt...
I'll admit it, I was excited to see this movie even before I walked in the theater. The online trailer that I saw just kicked all sorts of ass. I think I've said this before, but I've always been a sucker for 'end of the world' based stories. When I was younger I whet my appetite on novels like Alas, Babylon and The Postmen. I was caught in that blackout last year and rather then being scared I have to admit that I was kind of excited. I actually daydream about what I would do if modern civillization failed and we all had to fend for ourselves. Yeah, I'm just weird like that.
So, I knew going in that I would enjoy this movie on one level, I just never realized that I would enjoy it on all sorts of levels. When the opening credits begin with a montage of zombie attacks played to Johnny Cash's A Pale Rider you know you're in for something different from your usual zombie fare. The action was real and gritty and disgusting, at times. The horror, while not as strongly painted as it could have been, was definitely real and the humor was effective and very tongue in cheek. A large chunk of the humor comes from this disparate group of people interacting with one another. For example: When our heroes, after having been attacked by a number of zombies after they've made their way to the mall, ride the elevator up to the second floor of the mall, they're met with surly, gun-toting security guards. Why is this funny? Because it seems to play perfectly into that whole 'stupid mall security' stereotype. I just had to grin at that, it was too perfect. Oh, and then there's the part where they're shooting zombies in the parking lot, zombies they've named by the celebrities they kind of resemble. It shouldn't be funny, but it really, really is;-).
And that's the genius of this movie, characters begin as stereotypes, the tired nurse, the stalwart cop, the thug, the redneck security, and then morph into fully realized people with weaknesses and strengths. Perhaps my favorite example of this is the character CJ (played by Michael Kelly), who goes from the most redneck, hardnosed of obnoxious mall security guards to a sympathetic individual. The work done by the case is superb and really makes this movie more then it could have otherwise been.
Dawn of the Dead isn't some stupid faux-horror film filled with WB wanna-bes, it's an honest look at humanity when civillization is gone. At one point our heroes are standing on the roof of the mall, resting after having painted SOS signs to let the rest of the world know they're alive in there. As they stand there, a helicopter flies over the mall and away, out of sight. It's a chilling moment as they, and us, realize that they're all alone in there, and that no one is going to come and rescue them. I'm excited about this trend of fun, yet realistic, end of the world movies and I can't wait to own Dawn of the Dead on DVD. Now, excuse my while I go out and buy 28 Days Later;-).
Stupid new phone system, I've been putzing with it for hours. I defy anyone to tell me that moving is actually an enjoyable activity. Bah Humbug;-). Have a great day and Happy Belated New Year!
