There is a list, at least in my head, of Hollywood projects that should have happened and didn’t. Joss Whedon’s Wonder Woman is one of those; while this err in judgment is being somewhat corrected by the fact that he is going to helm The Avengers, like so many DC heroes the Amazon princess has still never gotten a fair representation of herself on screen.
Other than Nolan’s Batman the one consistent way DC characters come to screen is through the DC direct to DVD animation division, which produced an origin story titled only Wonder Woman. While this story fit into the less cheesy frame of Dianna’s character than Linda Carter’s TV series, Wonder Woman still lacks everything a big screen version of the tale could bring her – namely reality and emotion.
This is the Batman Begins of Wonder Woman only it’s missing the glorious connective thread David Goyer wrote into Nolan’s tale. Instead, we begin Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazon’s defeating Ares and being granted a sanctuary for her Amazons. Since this great war of the gods the Amazon’s have been living in secrecy in a completely man-free environment until Capt. Steve Trevor crash lands on the Amazon’s island – an event that coincides with Ares escape into the real world. Dianna, princess of the Amazon’s is then sent to return Taylor to his country and find Ares, while Dianna secretly hopes to find a way to reconnect the Amazon’s with the outside world in the process.
While this plot sounds pretty concise and connected let me assure it is not. The main thing missing is any development of Taylor or Dianna themselves and the natural move of Dianna from being an Amazon princess to a super hero reluctant to return home. It all just happens.
Also, while I love the voice talent in this movie, I can’t help but feel that animation is not the way to connect with the Amazon’s. The DC animation lacked the heart and feeling I wanted to get behind the lines that were being said and the animation felt like a barrier leaving me wondering if it was the actors or images that were leaving me unable to connect to the characters.
All in all, while Wonder Woman was enjoyable it left me wanting a big screen version with a killer script that only Joss Whedon could have provided.
Director: Lauren Montgomery
Writer: Michael Jelenic
Wonder Woman: Keri Russell
Steve Trevor: Nathan Fillion
Ares: Alfred Molina
Artemis: Rosario Dawson
Hera: Marg Helgenberger
Hades: Oliver Platt
Hippolyta: Virginia Madsen
Advisor: Mr. President, the threat has been neutralized.
President: How?
Advisor: It seems by a group of armored supermodels.
Showing posts with label alfred molina. Show all posts
Showing posts with label alfred molina. Show all posts
Monday, May 17, 2010
Thursday, February 11, 2010
An Education
Jenny is a young woman in post-war England doing what a proper young lady should do: going to school and working hard to get into university. The only problem is it’s her parent’s plan and not hers. So when dashing a dashing older gentleman takes an interest in Jenny she is swept off her feet into a world of fantasy and fun. The only problem is that Jenny’s parents too get caught up in the idea of her older fellow and abandon their plans for Jenny with a new plan – allowing her to drop university and get married.
There is nothing alarmingly original about An Education and yet even without a best picture nomination I would have still walked out of this film with the same feeling – that this is one of the best done movies of 2009. Every single thing about this film was perfectly crafted and enjoyable to watch, even once the inevitable conclusion dropped into the mix.
Perhaps what makes this movie stand out as far as it does is the cast. No matter what any person critical of actors may tell you, having a cast that delivers great performances is absolutely critical to the end result of your film; you can have a fantasticly written, directed and shot film but if your actors and their performances are off then none of the rest matters. In An Education director Lone Sherfig has cast the right actors, gotten them to give moving performances and managed to infuse each character with a unique quality that allows the viewer to feel empathy for each one of them, no matter how despicable, aggravating or sad they may become in the course of the tale.
Carey Mulligan is also a joy to watch as Jenny. The actress is young but she is strong and the intense naivety and vulnerability she is able to infuse into Jenny makes the entire film worth watching. I will look for Mulligan in more roles.
I don’t think that An Education will win the best picture Oscar this year, but I am very glad it was nominated.
Director: Lone Scherfig
Writer: Nick Hornby
Jenny: Carey Mulligan
Miss Stubbs: Olivia Williams
Jack: Alfred Molina
David: Peter Sarsgaard
Danny: Dominic Cooper
Helen: Rosamund Pike
Miss Stubbs: You seem to be old and wise.
Jenny: I feel old. But not very wise.
There is nothing alarmingly original about An Education and yet even without a best picture nomination I would have still walked out of this film with the same feeling – that this is one of the best done movies of 2009. Every single thing about this film was perfectly crafted and enjoyable to watch, even once the inevitable conclusion dropped into the mix.
Perhaps what makes this movie stand out as far as it does is the cast. No matter what any person critical of actors may tell you, having a cast that delivers great performances is absolutely critical to the end result of your film; you can have a fantasticly written, directed and shot film but if your actors and their performances are off then none of the rest matters. In An Education director Lone Sherfig has cast the right actors, gotten them to give moving performances and managed to infuse each character with a unique quality that allows the viewer to feel empathy for each one of them, no matter how despicable, aggravating or sad they may become in the course of the tale.
Carey Mulligan is also a joy to watch as Jenny. The actress is young but she is strong and the intense naivety and vulnerability she is able to infuse into Jenny makes the entire film worth watching. I will look for Mulligan in more roles.
I don’t think that An Education will win the best picture Oscar this year, but I am very glad it was nominated.
Director: Lone Scherfig
Writer: Nick Hornby
Jenny: Carey Mulligan
Miss Stubbs: Olivia Williams
Jack: Alfred Molina
David: Peter Sarsgaard
Danny: Dominic Cooper
Helen: Rosamund Pike
Miss Stubbs: You seem to be old and wise.
Jenny: I feel old. But not very wise.
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