All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy
All work and no play makes Jack a dul boy
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy
All work and no plany Makes ack a dull boy
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy
All work and no play makes Jack a dul boy
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy
All work and no play make Jack a Dull boy
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy
All workand no play maks Jack a dull boy
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy
All work and no plany Makes ack a dull boy
All work and no play make Jack a Dull boy
One might guess that it is a no-brainer to rate this movie a 10/10, however, for me it wasn't. The reason is that Tolkien is one of my favorit authors of all time. I've read everything that he ever published, and also everything that he didn't but that was published posthumous. This includes letters, and scripts, essay-like writings where he just describes how certain islands look like, or how certain plants look like, family trees, etc.
My favorite book, by the way is the original release of Narn i Chîn Húrin, which is a loose collection of chapters that did not really fit together and that missed some chapters - in Germany at least it was released as single book, in England/America it is part of the Unfinished Tales. Recently (2007) his son Christopher Tolkien edited that story into a finished tale and released it as new book under the title "The Tale of the Children of Húrin" (which until now I haven't read because I am really content with the J.R.R. Tolkien-Version).
But I digress. What I tried to point out is, that while being his famous work, I think "The Lord of the Rings" is one of his lesser works, with his best being those about the early times (which are really unfilmable). Still being a fan of Tolkien I've read Lord of the Rings several times and some of my favorite parts are the first encounter with the woodland elves, as well as the adventures in the Old Forrest and of course Tom Bombadil - non of which appeared in the movie. Instead, you get the feeling, that Frodos travel to the prancing poney is a days jorney (it isn't, and in the book it takes months to prepare and further months to reach), and that meeting Aragorn and going on to Rivendale is another day or twos journey (again it itsn't) - all in all it takes 9 months from Gandalf telling Frodo about the Ring to the journey of the Fellowship starting in Rivendell. And the time between Bilbos birthday and Gandalf returning from his research about the ring is 17 years, rather than the same evening (what some people actually believed after watching this movie).
So while watching it for the first time in cinemas I felt totally rushed through the story, I missed important parts in the book, and instead Peter Jackson added things that never happend, e.g. all the scenes with Arwen (Arwen in the books is a sidenote, that Tolkien takes when finishing the third book and explaining what happend to all the characters of the book, after they disband). And also Galadriel getting all blue-greenish ghostlike. And I hated, the soupy romantic scenes "I choose a mortal life. - You cannot give me this. - It is mine to give to whom I will. Like my heart." ....
So, even though I hated it, befor it came out to cinemas I did buy tickets for two shows at once, one with German dubbings and on the next day in original Language. And at second viewing, while knowing what to expect, I liked it a bit better - still being angry of course, I had time to take into account all the little things. And of these, the movie has plenty, such as using the Rings engravings in Black Speech as background song at the Council - something only true fans of the book would recognize - as well as adding parts of Bilbos journey (the stone Trolls), or the Lore of Middle Earth with Aragon singing about Beren and Luthien. Some things are so well hidden, that even hardcore fans will have a hard time recognizing them, for instance when Boromir dies the music uses elvish singing using English quotes from the book. So we find references to all of Tolkiens other works, showing that Peter Jackson has read them all and understood their importance and relationship to the Lord of the Rings-Story. He also wanted Christopher Lee in his Cast, because Lee is famous for being a Tolkien fan, and at own admission reads books by Tolkien every year; furthermore he was the only one in the crew to have met and spoken with J.R.R. Tolkien in person, which is why his input was valued highly - most of the scripts where rewritten daily to incorporate such input, and even Tom Bombadil was to have an cameo which in the end they couldn't shoot. Besides we have homages and cameos hidden all over the movies, paying tribute to famous Tolkien artists as well as people who have had any connection with Tolkiens works (Ian Holm voiced Frodo Baggins in the 1981 radio series, many scenes where taken straight out of Ralph Bakshis 1978 animated Lord of the Rings moive, etc.)
These are enourmous levels of detail, and once you get over the fact, that the Lord of the Ring movies are not 1-to-1 adaptions of the book (which is impossible to do) you will actually realize that the adaption per se is pretty darn good. Everything you see, meets your expectation, there is always the highest amount of detail, even all the little things matter, nothing seems arbritary. A lot of craftsmanship was put into the movie - they use CGI only where absolutely neccessary and if used, it is extremely good. But hordes of orcs are masked extras, weapons have been forged, a lot of carpenters, gardeners, mansons, blacksmiths, landscapers, etc. employed to create middle earth. The score is one of the greatest in the last years, with a number of themes that all have their single purpose (we have the theme for the wraiths, the theme for Gondor, the theme for the hobbits, a theme for the fellowship, one for Gollum, etc); in the end, listening just to the score, when closing the eyes you can see the entire movie in your head!
The acting of course is also great, everyone was put through a lot, by having to learn languages such as different Elvish languages (Quenya and Sindarin), dwarfish language and orcish language (which all exist! Tolkien was a philologist, and in one interview he said, that his stories are just a side product as any good language mus have it's story of origin - so in the end, what he really did was develop at least 6 languages with all their words, pronounciations, grammatic rules and writing systems!), they had accent coaching, Gandalf for instance talks in the same accent that Tolkien did!, they had to learn to fight and to ride, etc. And it is all turned into perfection, nowhere is it half-hearted. The scenes and locations are great, the camerawork is beautiful, all in all it is a good movie in every aspect.
I've ended up watching the movie 6 times in cinemas, then I got a copy of the movie and watched it for half a year nearly every weekend at least once, until the official home release of the cinema version of the DVD, and half a year later, I of course got the extended cut, and watched that at least as many times as I did the DVD. So to sum up: It is my most favorit, most often watched movie - even today I am not tired of watching it, altough I nowadays only watch it once every 1-2 years. If compared to other movies I wouldn't say it is the best movie ever, because of several reasons: First and foremost it is an adaption, and therefore not an original work, which I think is an important factor - I wouldn't know if I was a fan of the movie if I never read Tolkien or disliked him - then and only then would I be able to judge the movie without prejudice. Also - I am a big fan of all the works so I get a lot of the little hints, which to me are a "wow. how cool is this"-moment. But that is just me (and some other hardcore fans), but to the general audience these little acts of greatness that influence my judgement go unnoticed. In addition to that, a movie that has so much to tell and three overlength movies to do so, escapes the boundaries of a traditional movie, i.e. to bring across a story, emotions, and a message, to make the audience meet new people that they like and that they understand, in just under 2 hours. That, I think, is a hard job to do and a reason why most movies might be "okey" but only a few are great.
So is it the best movie ever made? Certainly not, although it deserves to be listed beside those. It is however the best adaption I've ever encountered, it is the greatest, most fan-friendliest movie that takes into account everything available to that fictional universe and it is one of my alltime favorites and the best tribute that could have been paid to the works of J. R. R. Tolkien.
Game of Thrones might be too familiar, too expansive, to have the same force it once did. When a show's been on the air for five years, it's harder for it to surprise you; you know many more of its tricks, and you've seen much of what it's good and bad at. And Game of Thrones is good at a lot of things--humorous asides, daring rescues, and striking character moments--so that even when it's simply chugging along, it's still a very enjoyable show.
But for a season premiere, "The Red Woman" was underwhelming. It wasn't bad, mind you--there were plenty of exciting moments and interesting developments--but little to make you stand up and take notice of a series at the height of its powers moving toward the end game, save for perhaps one scene.
That scene is Brienne saving Sansa, and pledging fealty to her, while Podrick feeds his master's new lord the appropriate reciprocal words and Theon nods in approval. There's several things that make that moment stand out. There are real stakes to Sansa and Theon's attempt to escape from Winterfell, both from the hounds barking in the distance and their clear fatigue and stress from traipsing through the snow. There's genuine character development, in the cold giving the two of them reason to embrace, and Theon's attempt to sacrifice himself in order to save his near-sister. Brienne's daring rescue is a thrill, giving solid moments to Brienne, Podrick, and Theon, and having the action feel anything but gratuitous given what's at stake. The aftermath is triumphant, with Brienne finally fulfilling her oath, the poor, constantly embattled Sansa finally having a true protector, and their seconds each having a hand in the result.
But it also stands out because it's one of the few parts of "The Red Woman" where the story is moving inward rather than continuing to expand or running in place. While I'm sure there's much more to come in each of their stories, this is a major landmark in Brienne's quest to fulfill her promise to Catelyn Stark, to Sansa's endeavor to be safe and in charge of her own destiny, to Podrick's desire to help his master rather than hold her back, and to Theon's quest for redemption. Each of these story threads is tied together in one tremendous scene.
That stands out in comparison to the rest of the episode, which has some moments and scenes that are better than others, but for the most part, feels scattershot. A season premiere for a show like Game of Thrones is difficult, because as the series's plot has telescoped out to encompass so many different stories and characters, there's a sense that at the start of a new chapter, it has to check in with each of them (give or take a warg).
The result is something of a hodgepodge of tones and atmospheres and settings, most of them glancing, many of them pretty good, but few of them truly cohesive in any way. There's not necessarily anything wrong with that. Game of Thrones is a series known for its scope, and by definition that's going to require some jumping around, especially as a reintroduction to all of the ongoing conflicts. It just makes it hard to judge an individual episode like "The Red Woman" as anything other than the sum of its parts.
Three of those parts all stem from the aftermath of last season's adventure in Mereen. The best and most promising of them is Tyrion and Varys's journey through the streets of their new home. I could watch an episode of just the two of them bantering back and forth for an hour and be entertained, but "The Red Woman" uses Tyrion's attempt to get to know the place he intends to govern both to illustrate how he, unlike Varys, is not a man of the people however much he may try and care, and that a civil war is brewing in the contentious land they're trying to keep in order. The worst is Jora and Daario's little horse ride to find their queen, which does little other than repeat character beats we're already familiar with, remind the audience of Jora's cheesy stone infection, and move the rescue plot a few spaces forward.
Somewhere in the middle is Daenerys's encounter with another group of Dothraki. The journey to meet the new Khal is a bit silly and crude, but generally amusing, as Dany's captors appear to be the Dothraki answer to a pair of leads in Kevin Smith movie, and Dany's look of palpable discussion when listening to a conversation they don't think she can understand is perfect. That scene, and the ensuing one where the Khal declares his intentions to lie with her regardless of her wishes will no doubt launch a thousand thinkpieces, but each of them lean into a venerable idea when it comes to the mother of dragons -- the way she is at once attempting to project strength and power, but still quite vulnerable, uncertain, and even frightened at what fate might await her. Emilia Clark does a superb job of showing the many shades of her character as her fortunes wax and wane during her conversation with this new Khal. The promise to transport her to what sounds like the Dothraki homeland is a foreboding one, that threatens to add yet another spot on the map for the show's intro.
The least interesting of the stories in "The Red Woman" centered around the events of Dorne. There's something of a shock to the Sand Snakes' coup at the Dornish palace, but we barely know most of these people, so the impact is blunted. Admittedly, there's intrigue Dorne being ruled by someone who's directly antagonistic to the Lannisters, and to the idea that the people of Dorne resented their leaders and yearn to stand against those who hold sway over King's Landing, but there's more promise in the concept than in the execution thus far. (No pun intended.) Similarly, the hokiest two Sand Snakes taking out the Dornish Prince on the boat only served as a reminder of how pointless he was as a character and how annoying, dare I say Poochie-esque his assassins are.
That said, there was more meat on the bone in Cersei and Jamie's reunion. The excitement in Cersei's voice when she heard of a ship on the horizon and said her daughter's name, and the attendant way her expression slowly but surely fell when she saw the floating shroud heading toward her, and the grave look on her lover's face was devastating. The death of Joffrey brought Cersei to anger, to her most bitter and vindictive, but Marcella's death has a much different effect. She is, instead, simply crestfallen, brought as low as she imagined she could be, slowly but surely losing the most important things in her life. The idea that Marcella perishing is particularly devastating to Cersei because she saw her daughter as pure and good, and it made her feel better about herself and all she's wrought, is one that adds yet more depth to one of the show's most complex characters. Jamie's response that they are neither cursed nor bound by fate, but should respond to this horror by lashing out at those who brought it to their doorstep does more to warrant interest and excitement as to where the conflict with Dorne will lead than all the bloody coups and painful attempts at bon mots that preceded it.
The episode takes time to check in with the rest of those across Westeros and beyond. Arya's still blind and begging on the streets, being tested by Jaqen H'ghar in a bow-fight that seems headed toward a Karate Kid montage. Margaery Tyrell is still in prison, thoroughly cowed and shell shocked after her repeated encounters with her captors. The High Sparrow plays good cop/bad cop with her as she asks how her brother is, with little more than an ominous assurance for her to go on. And even Ramses has a brief moment of humanity, couched though it may be in his usual sadism, as he mourns the loss of the only lover who shared his deranged sensibilities, and feels the blowback from his father for how his extracurricular activities led to the loss of both Sansa and Theon, threatening both the Boltons' hold on Winterfell and Ramses' claim as his father's heir.
But the other major fireworks of "The Red Woman" take place at Castle Black. Ser Davos proves himself both for his kindness, his cunning, and his wits when he collects Jon Snow's dead body, brings in Ghost, and holes up with everyone in a storeroom before sending Edd to rally support among The Wildlings. Davos's dry wit carries the day in these scenes, that still take care to sweep across the desolate environment of The Watch and its guests.
At the same time, Thorne has an impressive moment defending himself in front of his fellow brothers after confessing to the murder of their Lord Commander. As I wrote in my discussion of the Season 5 finale, what makes Thorne's actions and his speech her interesting is that you believe he truly means what he says, that there's a certain noble impulse behind his choice even if it seems foolish or wrongheaded to the audience. Thorne's disdain for Jon Snow has been clear from the beginning, and he admits to the assembled that he had no love lost for the man. But there's something genuine when he says that he never disobeyed an order, that as harsh or self-important as he could be, his assassination, joined in with the other commanders, was about something bigger than him, a tradition and a brotherhood that he saw posed to be destroyed under Jon's care. I don't exactly admire the man, but I admire the show for making him more than the one-dimensional villain he occasionally devolved into in previous episodes.
Finally, there is the titular Red Woman. She sees Jon's dead body and has a moment of questioning. She saw him fighting and Winterfell in her vision, and yet there he lies, white as a stone. She promised Stannis that sacrificing his daughter would lead his side to victory against the Boltons. It becomes much more of a question, smoke monster or not, how much she has or had real power, and how much of her prophecies and persuasions are simply more of her admitted parlor tricks. Then, she undresses and reveals a much older, more withered woman, and the nature of her abilities is at once both more and less a question. It's a revelation, meant to be one of those trademark big moments in Game of Thrones, but for the time being, it just seems strange with little immediately obvious point at this juncture.
Perhaps it simply fits into what appears to be the animating principle for the rest of "The Red Woman" -- giving the audience just enough of a taste to rekindle their interest in the spiderwebbed plots that stretch across Westeros, while pointing us in the direction the balance of the season will follow. The episode feels more like a grand reintroduction, a preview almost, for what's to come than a unified story all it's own, and familiarity with the shape of the series' arcs takes some of the thrill away from events like that closing twist. But it's enough to keep us talking, and wondering, and tuning in next week, so I suppose it'll do just fine.
It took 8 years to do... this?!
It goes for scary instead of fun most of the time and that just doesn't work at all. I mean it could have worked if it was actually scary but it's a failed attempt. And really, who could ever be scared of these cute cuddly furry animatronics... it DEMANDS to be fun and campy. Willy's Wonderland and The Banana Splits Movie both understood that. There are some fun moments sprinkled throughout but there wasn't nearly enough of them for the long runtime, it needed way more crazy animatronic moments. It's mostly just a drama.
I was mildly invested in the mystery and characters but the twist is predictable within the first 15 minutes, they make it so damn obvious and there's a very limited number of characters. Story is full of plot holes. Just because your source material is known for having a convoluted story doesn't mean you get a free pass to do a convoluted story, they had 8 years to make it better—it was awful!
Acting ranges from ordinary to good, generic dialogue and the camera cuts away at every kill (PG-13). I'm not a fan of jumpscares in general but this is an occasion where they needed them (the games are huge on them)... hardly any here, sadly.
The biggest praise I could give it is the animatronics look freakin amazing! Great design. Whenever they're on-screen, which is rare, I was fully captivated. The Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria set was kinda perfect. I also liked the brother sister dynamics it was the heart of the movie.
I went in with somewhat high expectations, since looking at the cast and the fact that HBO picked this show up made it look like something that could be good. They do very little correct here. Just because a character makes meta commentary about what makes a show good, it doesn’t actually make the show good. This kind of just feels like a cash grab, making money from those who somehow somehow like it, and people who are sticking around to see how it goes. I did catch some things that I do like though. One major point towards the Velma show here, is her parents don’t have silly stereotypical jobs/accents. That is pretty huge. This is overshadowed by the other jokes about race though, so idk if this is really redeeming. Other than that, Noreville is tolerable. I like his running joke that he is against drugs, which I have a feeling will be constantly reiterated throughout the show. Maybe it won’t be though. Time will tell. The dialogue isn’t great, nobody really talks like any of these characters. They make all of the characters unlovable, but I’m willing to stick around to see if there are any good character arcs implemented to see them flourish, since I do have some faith in Mindy and the team. If this isn’t the case, then idk what’s going on over there at HBO. Also for those who are expecting a decent murder mystery, this is a pilot, but every part of this episode was pretty predictable. Also this show is grossly raunchy. It’s silly since there are other shows that are far more raunchy, like Rick and Morty, but it think the difference is that R&M knows what it is, is properly self aware, and can land its marks a decent bit better. Velma has trouble with this and the raunchy bits feel forced. Maybe it’s like that since I wasn’t necessarily expecting how brain dead the humour could get, but maybe I’ll be ready for it in the next episodes. The Velma show did make sure to tell the audience what it was though in the first few minutes, when we got a goofy monologue and roaches fornicating before selling sex incredibly hard, so it’s my fault if I expect anything else in the coming episodes and get disappointed. I should know what to expect. Also, scooby-doo fans looking to have a well done adult scooby-doo show, such as an adult mystery inc. or something, be ready to be disappointed, since this is nothing like any of the source material. This is a completely different retelling. None of the characters are the same, and the source material is thrown in the garbage.
Also I don’t appreciate the body weight jokes, they are disappointing, cheap, and poorly done.
I should drop this show, but I want to stay optimistic in case this show gets better. But as a pilot, Velma does way too much, and so much of it wrong. The only reason why it seems to be gaining any popularity, is because it holds the scooby-doo name. But hey, what do I know, I’m not a writer or producer. Grumble grumble.
I read the comment "Def made for young teenage boy demographic. You're better than this Tenacious D!" and had to comment !
F*ck that !!! I love metal and we are boys. I'm 45 years old and people don't understand why I look this young. It's because I feel young.
Tenacious D you are spot on and this film Rocks BIG time... This movie ROCKS and that riff was f*cking asome. The proof of that is that your friends (I mean F*ck just look at the cast) wanted to make this film.
I'm a DIO and Rainbow fan (Ronnie R.I.P.) and you have the sound of ROCK !!! This film is the best gift for a DIO fan.
You must have had so much fun making it... Wish I could have seen Dave Grohl do take after take, because you guys just didn't want to tell him take one was perfect and the camera stopped filming 30 minutes ago. It's al about having fun and loving what you do.
Metal can not be defeated
check out the Heavy Metal Monk. Yep, this guy is a real monk and has a long white beard.
Don't forget that most music we loved as kids originated in the 70s.
Check out Linzey Rae - Screaming Vocal Tutorial With Mom. It's fun right... Rockers are nice people with humor !!!
The negative ones end up claiming it was a phase. Rock is the kind of music that can bring peace between different alien species, because they have something in common. And maybe Rock already saved our planet from being destroyed because they wanted to hear the end of that guitar solo (just enough to change their mind destroying our planet).
Negative NON research comment by Mark Kermode - Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny...
behind the scenes The Making of Tenacious D | The Pick of Destiny
