Summer Movies

I knew we'd be going to a few movies and concerts over the summer, so I had been planning on writing one blog post sometime in September about all of them.

I have recently concluded that it would make more sense to write brief posts about each of individually because these will be more manageable.  I am teaching and working throughout the summer, in addition to writing this little thing called a dissertation proposal.  So I figured before I have to return to my fortress of solitude where I have minimal contact with the outside world and can be found sitting amongst stacks of articles and half-full cups of coffee with a crazed look on my face, I should post a few updates on my blog.

I've decided to start off easy with movies.  If you are a person who goes to the movies all the time, this might not seem noteworthy to you, but we very rarely ever go to the movies.  We're talking maybe once or twice a year, typically only when a Disney or Pixar movie is released.

So when I say I've been to the movies six times this summer, it's very, very unusual for me.  What I need to explain is that I've only seen two movies.  If that doesn’t seem to make sense, it's because I saw Inside Out five times.  Crazy?  Maybe.

But as I alluded to in my Lava post, it is a deep movie and I noticed different things with each viewing.  I went twice with family and three times with friends who have kids (I absolutely love having friends who have kids for this very reason), and it was interesting to me that the adults all seemed to have a more emotional reaction to the film than the kids did.  I say interesting because it was not surprising to me at all; I really do think this is a film for adults.  And for me, it actually became more sad and more dark each time I watched it.  That is not a bad thing.  Merely a personal reflection on my experience.

In her NPR article published on June 19 entitled, "Why The Key Character In 'Inside Out' Is The One Who Isn't There," Linda Holmes wrote one of the most poignant sentences I have read about the film.

"Riley is, in one sense, fighting a battle we know she will lose:

the battle for Joy to rule all things forever."

Realistic or not, this is an incredibly sad statement in my opinion.

Let me be clear.  I loved the movie very much.  It's just made me think a lot about my own childhood and my own "imaginary" friend (my Pooh Bear).  Adult life is so complicated and busy!

It also reminded me of one of Don Draper's quotes from episode 13 of the first season of Mad Men, called "The Wheel":

"Nostalgia - it's delicate, but potent. Teddy told me that in Greek, "nostalgia" literally means "the pain from an old wound." It's a twinge in your heart far more powerful than memory alone. This device isn't a spaceship, it's a time machine. It goes backwards, and forwards...it takes us to a place where we ache to go again. It's not called the wheel, it's called the carousel. It lets us travel the way a child travels - around and around, and back home again, to a place where we know are loved."

Such lovely words.

As for the other movie I've seen this summer, it was Jurassic World.  We've owned the soundtrack to Jurassic Park since 1993, and every single time we clean out our CDs for donation purposes, it makes the cut because the music is just so beautiful.  John Williams is a genius and his music is magical!  If you don't know who he is, I guarantee with 100% certainty that you know his work.  Google him.

I didn't love the second or third installments of the Jurassic Park franchise, but I certainly did love the original.  In light of that, I wasn't sure if I would like Jurassic World.  In short, here is my grade sheet for the film:

Chris Pratt: A+

Dinosaurs/Special Effects: A+

Dialogue: F

Plot: I liked it the first time when it was called Jurassic Park.  In other words, not a lot of originality.

Just my opinion.  And being a devoted fan of Parks and Rec, I already loved Chris Pratt, so I can't claim that "A+" to be an unbiased opinion.  I don't regret seeing the movie, but I do recall rolling my eyes throughout.  The dialogue was painful at times.  It was beautiful to look at, though, and there was a lot of action.  I'll leave it at that.

I was disappointed to learn that John Williams was not composing the music for Jurassic World, but was pleased that his "replacement" (I use that term loosely – no one can replace John Williams) was Michael Giacchino, who wrote the music for Up.  Clearly I am a fan.

That's it for movies at the theater, but C and I have started watching all of the Disney animated movies in chronological order.  There are currently 54 of them, and we've only made it through 8 so far this summer, so obviously this endeavor is going to take us a long time!

Happy Tails to you!