Moon: 'Cause not every film can be what you expected

I know a lot of people who loved this movie. I know a lot of people who described the film in this way: it’s about a man who is sent on a three year mission to the moon with no company other than a talking computer (voiced by Kevin Spacey) and two weeks before he’s scheduled to go home, he finds another version of himself. Which one is the real Sam and be sent back to Earth? If you’ve heard of this film and heard it described in this way, start questioning the people who told you that. Because it’s just not the truth.

Here’s what true: we have Sam, the sweet, harmless hero who is nearing the end of his three year mission on the moon, and is uber excited to get back to his wife and young daughter on Earth. We have GERTY (which must stand for something really smart-sounding), the computer who cares for him. We have a crash while out on a mission. Sam wakes up and is told he is too weak to go outside, that a rescue mission is on its way, and Sam tricks GERTY into letting him go outside, where he discovers another version of himself. What we don’t have is them discussing which is the “real” Sam and who gets to go back to Earth. Because the secrets they discuss are MUCH bigger and more interesting than going home.

To say that this film didn’t fulfill my expectations of it would be an understatement, but that’s hardly the fault of the film. It’s the fault of the advertising. Because when you advertise a film in a certain way, people are going to expect the film to play out in that way. In this case, I expected to see a bloodbath, killing-to-survive fight to break out between the two Sams, and the one left standing was the one who got to go home. You know how many fights the Sams get into? Exactly one. And it’s over one Sam not wanting to stop working on his model town long enough to move it out of the way.

To say that I didn’t like the film would be a lie, though. It was well-made and the acting was phenomenal, especially coming from Sam Rockwell, who I mostly think of as the villain in The Green Mile. I think of him as an actor who doesn’t have too much variety in his talent. This was a different role for him, one that I was able to really sink my teeth into and take seriously. It was a pleasant change of pace to see him take the spotlight for once, and I enjoyed his performance quite thoroughly. And because this wasn’t at all what I was expecting to be, I was surprised by the twists and turns that the film made.

As with most movies, I didn’t feel quite satisfied by the ending. With a lot of films, I feel like there is always so much build-up that the ending is always a letdown, and Moon was no exception to this feeling. The way that the film was playing out led to so many different possibilities of where it could go in the end, and then to have everything work out so well (sorry, spoiler alert!) for Sam in the end, was kind of a disappointment. I know that Hollywood loves a big, fat, happy ending, but the struggle to find that end could have been more challenging.

In general, I think this is the type of film that space and futuristic nuts would enjoy, and it’s worth checking out.

February in Vermont: a joke review

So this semester I'm taking a Reviewing class and the first couple of weeks we had fairly serious conversations about the merit of Black Swan and what constitutes a "good" review, as well as what the reviewers responsibility is to the reader. So I was glad to take a step back from all that discussion and be able to write a fun review of last week's snow-mageddon. For those of you who don't live in the Burlington area, the snow was accompanied by Mass Hysteria and Canceling Classes the Night Before. Here's my review. Hope it makes you giggle as much as I did writing it.

Mother Nature Gets Back to her Roots and

Shows Winter in a Way That Will Dazzle

No one can say it's an easy job being Mother Nature. Controversial in the past, Mother Nature's work is often panned by critics for either playing it "too safe" or "revealing too much", but with last week's episode of February in Vermont, she struck the right balance between covert and obvious. I think it's safe to say that no one walked away from the episode disappointed.

February followed a storyline similar to those we've seen in the past--everything is very picturesque and quintessential until Snow enters the scene and begins to destroy the town Godzilla-style--but Mother Nature managed to both tone down the obviousness of Snow's attacks and yet bring  out a more forceful and assertive performance from Snow than we've seen in the past. It was refreshing to see the young actor actually act rather than puff out his chest and strut around to make himself known.

Snow really needed the success of February to bring back his career after a slew of failures, such as Christmas in June and I'm Going to Ruin Your Graduation Party, where he played in a supporting role so bad the critics said, "The only thing relevant that Snow will do in the future is keep the toilets clean for serious actors". But in his guest role in Wednesday's episode as a terrorist covering windshields and roads alike, he brought something new to familiar territory, and really dazzled in the role.

Mother Nature also brought something that was new and interesting for her. Her work with February has been limited to working with Ice and Temperature playing the role of Bitter Cold, so it was refreshing to see her take a step away from that and bring Snow in a guest role. Wednesday's episode was just what she needed to bring audience interest back to the show.

Mother Nature has been known for her use in visuals, most notably for her subtle use of color in last fall's mini-series, Autumn Leaves, but it was the simplicity of February that delighted and charmed audiences. It seems Nature has found her calling in keeping things one-toned and clean. It allowed her to focus her efforts on the more psychological side of the subject matter, which is where she really shines.

Audiences will love and relate to February in a way that hasn't been seen in a weather series in a long time. The last time we've seen one with such heart was in 1998's Rain Showers in July. February come onto the scene just in time to show audiences that weather series are still around and have fresh things to say. This series, and Wednesday's episode in particular, are worthy of being watched, especially if you are a fan of Snow's earlier work. This is his best performance to date. I wouldn't be surprised if Nature brought him back in a future episode.

There was an encore performance on Saturday evening for those of you who missed it during the premiere, and it was equally as satisfying the second time around.

The Game Plan.

Since setting foot onto Champlain campus almost three years ago, (wow, has it really been that long?) it seems like every assignment and class is a result of the teachers sitting around a table saying, "That seems like it could work. Let's try it!" My class, the class of 2011 that is, is lucky enough have been the guinea pigs for a thing called Core, which was met with many mixed reviews from my fellow classmates (but that is another topic all together, saved for another time). For now, it leads me into my discussion of what I want to do for the Capstone, yet another new Champlain creation set for the upcoming year.

Here's the thing, though. The Capstone Project isn't creating a self-portrait (Concepts of the Self, freshman year). It isn't creating a new amendment to the Constitution (Capitalism & Democracy). It isn't creating an altar to something (The Secular & The Sacred). It's a project of my own design. If I fail, it's on me. If I succeed, it's because of my own doing. Welcome to senior year, folks.

So what do I want do for an entire semester? Let's brainstorm.

1) Recently, I've been really interested in the environment. I've been investigating Greenpeace as an option for after graduation. I just wrote a paper on the effects that climate change is having on Antarctica (for yet another Core class) and it was something that I got really into. It's an important topic to inform people about and I can't say that about a lot of topics that I've written papers on. I'm not entirely sure that this is right for the Capstone Project, though. I'm a writing major. Shouldn't I be a little more creative with my final project than to write a standard thesis paper? I feel like I should be doing something that's more writing and less research. But then I see the footage of the polar bears drowning and I know in my heart that I won't think of a more important topic to dedicate myself to.

2) I'm taking Screenwriting right now and I am loving it. Sitting in that class every Wednesday morning, I think I could write a screenplay in a semester, or at least get a good chunk of one written. Then I come home from the class and I think I'm going crazy. I get bored. I get distracted. I get discouraged. A screenplay is a lot of pages to stay engaged and focused for. But maybe that’s a challenge that I need to have. If I have to write it, if my degree is dependent on writing an entire screenplay, write it I will. And I will give it my soul to not fail. So, that's something to consider.

3) I want to be a publisher. That's the end goal. So why not have an immediate goal to path the walkway for the end result? I could make a publication. I could work with writers to find their raw talent and create a work that is the fruit of my labor if you will. I could polish up my editing skills and give my opinion a workout (because everyone knows I need that). It would be the most work of the three options, I dare say, but great success comes with great failure.

Needless to say, I have a lot to consider. Stay tuned. It's going to be a wild ride as always.