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| That title? It's also going to be the name of my third feature film. |
Not
too long ago, I made the decision to give up on this blog malarkey. Instead of
actually writing lots of words to describe boring events and rather tame
descriptions of films that I’d seen with lots of words, I’d simply add five of
the blighters an a number onto one post, as I wanted a way to keep count now
that I’m seeing more films, but without it actually involving much strain on
me, although I do feel some pressure to try and add some wit to the vast ocean
of pith on show.
It’s
worth noting that the numbers don’t lie. Sometimes, I change my mind on a film
a while after I’ve seen it. But while I dropped Woman in Black to a 5 from a 6,
and I stand by that decisions, I have since made the judgment that I don’t want
to rate films against others. This is a very rough scale of measurement- I’m
trying to express both how I feel about what I’ve seen as a film and as a
two-hour experience. While I might have given both Hugo and We Bought A Zoo
7/10, I’d say that I enjoyed WBAZ more, but the cinematic flair and know-how Scorsese
showed was worth nothing less than that very mark. While those numbers aren’t
telling big fat porkies, perhaps they’re not saying the whole truth.
But
that’s the thing I’ve learnt about film over the past few months. Whereas
before I liked to think I had a well-grounded view of the cinematic world, it’s
only going to see two or three films a week that’s made me realise that –actually-
I know nothing at all. Previously, I’d exclusively
see big releases and selected other films that nabbed my (Or, in most cases, a
more hot-blooded friend) attention. However, I was always pining for films ‘About
things’ and for my local multiplex to show some stuff that wasn’t focus grouped
to death (This Means War, I’m still looking at you). While the list might not
show this, perhaps only Pirates, Avengers and Hunger Games (And then probably
one or two other pieces of tosh that just happen to be showing while I’m there)
would have got my post-Unlimited Card buying dosh. The likes of 21 Jump Street
(Which I feel I probably underrated in hinds sight) and the aforementioned We
Bought a Zoo have really opened my eyes to the delights of the
middle-of-the-line films that I’d previously unknowingly avoided. They have neither
multi-million budgets nor interesting arthouse concepts, but more than
delivered in the light entertainment stakes.
The
question I wanted to ask myself here, really, before I got lost in a bit of a
ramble, was just what this has taught me. A hackneyed, obvious question, yes,
but then that’s fitting considering some of the clichéd tripe I’ve seen (This
Means War, my beady eyes are yet to move). But, really, the one thing that’s
come across more than anything else is that film is mad, film is bizzare and
film is far harder to pin-down than anything else I’m aware of. With video
games you’re given tens of hours in which to form an opinion, and often the
choice to navigate your way around the dull bits, as well as the choice to drop
it at any point. A book also lasts a fair while and, due to the incohesive nature
of picking up and putting down, transitions suddenly seem unimportant. TV is a
shortened form, designed for rewatching and continuation. Films are individual entities
that finish in a few hours, during which time they need to establish, develop
and finish with characters, scenarios and locations. They’re a medium that’s
had time to mature, like books, but unlike their wordy friends, we have a more
pre-conceived idea about what we do or do not like in a film. But whereas I
knew exactly how I felt about Super Mario Galaxy when the credits rolled, and
that ‘Genius’ label hadn’t slipped at all, having seen The Cabin in the Woods a
good 10 hours ago now, I’m actually not sure how I felt about it, and am unsure
as to whether or not I’ll ever be able to provide a conclusive answer. The
first hour had me thinking it had film of the year potential, but one line of
the script later and I’m right off it. As we only have 90-odd minutes to go on,
every second is suddenly vital and every line of dialogue deserves pouring
over, and more often than not, these things take time and I know that I’m… Not
going to end this on an irrelevant Smith reference. Instead, I’ll simply keep soldiering
on, watching these things and putting pithy and hopefully witty 5-word
responses and stick with my numerical system that doesn’t quite work.
Wait,
I thought you said you weren’t ending on an irrelevant Smiths reference?
I’m
not. Didn’t you read that last sentence?
Bigmouth
strikes again…
Telegraphed.
