Listed here is a comment posted to my Facebook page from a fraternity brother and great friend, Manny. He poses a good question, and I would like to highlight the "Tom Cruise made like 6 straigh solid flicks" section because it provides a great segway to the next series to hit Sully's World.
Dude, I love that you put Minority Report in your top 10. I freaking love that movie. While I'm sure you think Spielberg makes the movie, you also have to remember this is when Tom Cruise was at the pinnacle of his career, further propelling this film's "mystique" at the time. Yet, if I were to select any film for Tom Cruise during this period (he made like 6 straight solid flicks), I HAVE to go with The Last Samurai. That movie reaches the level of mood that Minority Report has and is more badass. I'd even argue the acting (including Cruise) crushes Minority Report. It's just as rewatchable, has more interesting characters, is an awesome throwback genre crossover, and LOADED with practical effects. Only weakness in comparison is obviously Spielberg's complete command of the screen (that hug between Cruise and Morton comes to mind, which would literally be the most awkward hug ever, but looks so f*ing cool), yet Eddie Zwick is no slouch either and totally pulled that flick off to the max. Thoughts?
Manny knows his stuff, guys. The Last Samurai was a pretty awesome flick, and while it didn't quite make my Top 20 of the 2000s, he should know that I definitely mark it as one of the best films of 2003 (and 2003 was loaded with good flicks, too).
Manny and I can go back-and-forth for days about why I'd pick Minority Report and he would pick The Last Samurai; but I would like to mention that he referenced a "Tom Cruise era," and how Cruise came out with a bunch of can't-miss films in a 10-year span (if you look at his IMDb page from 1996-2005, you'll see a banner saying "Tom Cruise stars in a Billion Dollars"). Great obervation, Manny, which makes me think about my idol Bill Simmons at ESPN who got me started on this whole "Top 10 of the 2000s" in the first place. During Bill's article on the NBA offseason, he not only mentioned that Almost Famous was his pick for the greatest film of this decade, but also mentioned the following:
"If you were to have a DVD-collection draft with five buddies (and by the way, don't think I haven't done this) in which everyone picks six actors in snake fashion and you get every single movie they made on DVD, (Philip Seymour) Hoffman would be a sneaky late-first-round pick. Because you asked, my top 12 looks like this: Hanks, De Niro, Cruise, Stallone, Pacino, Douglas, Freeman, Damon, Hoffman, Costner, Hackman and Denzel. Late-round sleepers: Clancy Brown and Joe Pantoliano. Admit it, you want to make your own list."
Yes, yes I do. And the next series to hit Sully's World will be the DVD-collection draft between me and Sam Gooley. Tom Cruise is a sure-thing on my list, but other sleepers are sure to be included.
As always, I appreciate the feedback from all readers. I will attempt to reply to each comment via email, Facebook, a blog entry like this one, or, if you don't like what I write, a 3:30am phone call letting you know what I think of you. Just kidding ... kinda.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Where's #6?
If you just read my article on the #5 Film of the 2000s and thought I lost count, don't you worry!
The #6 film will be included with the #3 film of the 2000s.
Stay tuned!
The #6 film will be included with the #3 film of the 2000s.
Stay tuned!
Friday, September 25, 2009
#5 Film of the 2000s: Gladiator
"What we do in life, echoes an eternity."
Not sure about y'all, but every time I see this movie I want to fight someone. Just on principle.
There has never been a better demonstration of the term "fight for your freedom" than Gladiator. (Well ... maybe another film, but you'll see it later on in the Top 10 Films of the 2000s. That film was more of a "let's-all-fight-for-our-freedom" film, where as Gladiator was solely Maximus.) Also, what better tale of vengeance than Gladiator. The plot was known by everybody before it came out - it was so simple - yet it delivered the total punch. Hell, in case you spaced out over the first 90 minutes and forgot what you were watching, Maximus brings you right up to speed with a monologue that should fire up anyone who's got a pair.
"My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius, commander of the Armies of the North, General of the Felix Legions, loyal servant to the true emperor, Marcus Aurelius. Father to a murdered son, husband to a murdered wife; and I will have my vengeance, in this life or the next."
Gloves are off; fists are clenched. Let's go. I dare my roommate to come home right now. The next person who walks through that door is going to get punched in the face. Sure, they'll be pissed ... but they'll understand.
This review is going to be short, simply because with Gladiator there isn't much to talk about. It's so black-and-white, so transparent, so true to the plot, and so epic. Everyone's perfectly cast; everyone fulfills their character; and everyone in the theatre knows what's going to happen next. There aren't any surprises, but we're not in the theatre to be surprised; we're here to know that we can follow a man like Maximus. We can conquer any obstacle if we fight in the name of our family, our countrymen, our honor, and our identity. If anyone tries to stand in the way of these things, the gloves come off; and you better be ready to brawal, or you better be prepared to die.
It calls you out as a man. It pushes me up against a wall, saying, "if you opt not to fight in the name of your family, your countrymen, your honor, or your identity, you haven't an excuse for what happens in your life. You live a life of quiet desperation, hypocracy, and will be forced to watch from the sidelines as others receive the glory that God gave you to claim.
...So what kind of man are you?"
Not sure about y'all, but every time I see this movie I want to fight someone. Just on principle.
There has never been a better demonstration of the term "fight for your freedom" than Gladiator. (Well ... maybe another film, but you'll see it later on in the Top 10 Films of the 2000s. That film was more of a "let's-all-fight-for-our-freedom" film, where as Gladiator was solely Maximus.) Also, what better tale of vengeance than Gladiator. The plot was known by everybody before it came out - it was so simple - yet it delivered the total punch. Hell, in case you spaced out over the first 90 minutes and forgot what you were watching, Maximus brings you right up to speed with a monologue that should fire up anyone who's got a pair.
"My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius, commander of the Armies of the North, General of the Felix Legions, loyal servant to the true emperor, Marcus Aurelius. Father to a murdered son, husband to a murdered wife; and I will have my vengeance, in this life or the next."
Gloves are off; fists are clenched. Let's go. I dare my roommate to come home right now. The next person who walks through that door is going to get punched in the face. Sure, they'll be pissed ... but they'll understand.
This review is going to be short, simply because with Gladiator there isn't much to talk about. It's so black-and-white, so transparent, so true to the plot, and so epic. Everyone's perfectly cast; everyone fulfills their character; and everyone in the theatre knows what's going to happen next. There aren't any surprises, but we're not in the theatre to be surprised; we're here to know that we can follow a man like Maximus. We can conquer any obstacle if we fight in the name of our family, our countrymen, our honor, and our identity. If anyone tries to stand in the way of these things, the gloves come off; and you better be ready to brawal, or you better be prepared to die.
It calls you out as a man. It pushes me up against a wall, saying, "if you opt not to fight in the name of your family, your countrymen, your honor, or your identity, you haven't an excuse for what happens in your life. You live a life of quiet desperation, hypocracy, and will be forced to watch from the sidelines as others receive the glory that God gave you to claim.
...So what kind of man are you?"
Monday, September 21, 2009
Quick Shout-Out to Lane Kiffin
Dearest Lane,
First I would like to congratulate you on not getting destroyed this weekend in the Swamp. Your ability to call run plays on every single 3rd-and-long make you the most respected woman coach in college football. The way your skirt was blowing in the wind had some of your players forgetting that UT had a cheerleading squad.
In all seriousness, all of us Gator fans enjoy a woman who doesn't always go for it. You kept it conservative, and we're glad you're saving yourself for the opportune moment. Although you took a loss this time around, your team is surely rested for that epic showdown against Ohio next week. It'll be a tough grind - as is the case whenever you play teams from the great state of Ohio - so I'm proud of you for not wasting all your team's talent and ability on a silly team like #1 Florida.
The Gators also thank you. You're so nurturing! By calling run plays deep into the 4th quarter, you allowed us to rest all of our players on offense who have the flu. Why didn't you actually make us some chicken soup?
I'm actually quite surprised you made your team work as hard as you did. I mean, they were sweating and everything! If you wanted to keep it close and run out the clock, why didn't you take a knee to start off the second half? It would have done you the same good; and it would have kept those bright white uniforms from getting all dirty. I hope some of the scholarship money left over from buying that recruit from Florida (you remember, the one Urban Meyer called without your permission? I thought cheating only happened when you did something physical, not call them after their mother goes to bed.) can be used to buy some extra Tide for those grass stains.
Maybe next year when UT gathers 105,000 people into a stadium, you'll decide to bring two testicals, 22 players, and a gameplan. In the mean time, how about you start asking the city of Knoxville and the state of Tennessee for a football team.
Any volunteers?
Love,
Sully
First I would like to congratulate you on not getting destroyed this weekend in the Swamp. Your ability to call run plays on every single 3rd-and-long make you the most respected woman coach in college football. The way your skirt was blowing in the wind had some of your players forgetting that UT had a cheerleading squad.
In all seriousness, all of us Gator fans enjoy a woman who doesn't always go for it. You kept it conservative, and we're glad you're saving yourself for the opportune moment. Although you took a loss this time around, your team is surely rested for that epic showdown against Ohio next week. It'll be a tough grind - as is the case whenever you play teams from the great state of Ohio - so I'm proud of you for not wasting all your team's talent and ability on a silly team like #1 Florida.
The Gators also thank you. You're so nurturing! By calling run plays deep into the 4th quarter, you allowed us to rest all of our players on offense who have the flu. Why didn't you actually make us some chicken soup?
I'm actually quite surprised you made your team work as hard as you did. I mean, they were sweating and everything! If you wanted to keep it close and run out the clock, why didn't you take a knee to start off the second half? It would have done you the same good; and it would have kept those bright white uniforms from getting all dirty. I hope some of the scholarship money left over from buying that recruit from Florida (you remember, the one Urban Meyer called without your permission? I thought cheating only happened when you did something physical, not call them after their mother goes to bed.) can be used to buy some extra Tide for those grass stains.
Maybe next year when UT gathers 105,000 people into a stadium, you'll decide to bring two testicals, 22 players, and a gameplan. In the mean time, how about you start asking the city of Knoxville and the state of Tennessee for a football team.
Any volunteers?
Love,
Sully
Sunday, September 13, 2009
#7 Film of the 2000s: Minority Report (2002)
Before we do anything, let's get one thing straight: Stephen Spielberg is the greatest director of all time. If you disagree with me, that's cool. This is still a free country (for the time being ... but that's a whole other topic right there), so everyone's entitled to be wrong with his or her own conflicting opinion. To over-summarize my argument, no other director has had a resume, style, consistency, and following that even comes close to Stephen Speilberg.
In fact, there's only one argument you could use against that summary that I would even listen to ... and that's the "Tupac is still better than Jay-Z" argument.
Begin Four Paragraph Tangent
Seriously. Look at Jay-Z's career. Of his 11 or 12 albums, most have received critical acclaim (Reasonable Doubt is ranked #248 in Rolling Stone's Top 500 Albums of All Time; The Blueprint is ranked #464, and received a "Five-Mic" review from The Source; and Vol. 2: Hard Knock Life won the Grammy for Best Rap Album in 1999); each has sold at least 1 million copies; and Jay-Z has been the CEO of two record companies. Not bad for a guy who's still in his 30s.
While listening to his latest album with my best friend, Jimmy Lindsey, we both came to the conclusion that Jay-Z has officially passed Biggie as the #2 rapper of all-time. This is hard to admit, because I never thought Jay's talent belonged in the same ballpark as BIG ... ever. While Jay-Z can just think of an idea and roll out a verse at the blink of an eye, Biggie did the same thing with "Juicy," which remains better than any song Jay-Z ever put out. What separates Jay from BIG is Jay's fortunate ability to fulfil the extent of his potential; whereas with Biggie, we can only wonder what could have been. Yes, BIG has 2 All-Time Top 10 rap albums (Ready to Die and Life After Death, and I believe Ready to Die is the greatest album ever), but those are the only albums he ever put out. Jay has my #10 (The Blueprint), #9 (Reasonable Doubt), and #4 (The Black Album) albums of all time.
(#1 Ready to Die; #2 Illmatic; #3 Chronic 2001; #4 The Black Album; #5 All Eyez On Me; #6 Doggystyle; #7 Life After Death; #8 Venni Vetti Vicci by JA Rule; #9 Reasonable Doubt; #10 The Blueprint ... I smell a future article...)
Jay has also said everything a rapper could possibly say in a career. 1.) He prophesized his taking-over of the industry (see Reasonable Doubt). 2.) He dominated the airwaves with radio-friendly songs (see Vol. 2), to become a multi-millionaire. 3.) He told everyone he made it, while simultaneously raising the bar (The Blueprint). 4.) Went out on top, while prophesizing a Jordan-esque return (see "Encore" on The Black Album) 5.) Then he came back; and backed it up (see his work with Linkin Park, Kingdom Come, and The Blueprint III).
So why is Jay-Z still not the greatest rapper of all-time? Why is he not bigger than Tupac? The answer - and this may sound corny - is that Tupac was more than just a man. Here's an analogy for Tupac: imagine if Michael Jordan's athleticism and pop-culture influence was combined with Muhammed Ali's mystique and social commentary, you would then have Tupac Shakur. Jay-Z, like Michael Jordan, has the perfect pro resume; but Tupac accomplished almost everything Jay-Z accomplished before he turned 26. Pac wasn't a businessman, so he couldn't be the CEO of a company; however, he was the spokesperson for an entire generation; and that extends far beyond the measuring stick that Jay-Z uses to scale his career.
End of Four-Paragraph Tangent
Stephen Spielberg, much like Jay-Z, has accumulated the perfect resume. His handful of classics, influence on pop culture, and ability to effortlessly create masterpieces without over-thinking the details make Spielberg the most accomplished director to stand behind a camera. (For those of you who actually read the four-paragraph tangent, re-read it, and replace "Jay-Z" with "Stephen Spielberg" and you'll get the point). To my knowledge, there hasn't been a Tupac-like figure in the film industry to take away Spielberg's crown as the greatest.
What signifies Spielberg is his ability to release multiple classics every decade. Most directors never get the opportunity to tell one classic, let alone two beasts every 10 years. From Jaws to Close Encounters, Raiders to E.T., or Jurassic Park and Schindler to Private Ryan, you can always count on the Dreamworks founder to find a dream and make it work on the big screen.
Entering the 21st Century, Spielberg has put out 2 films that will go down as classics; however, it won't be the flash and epic nature of the films I've listed above that will make these 2 films classics. They're both cop movies, both released in 2002, and both are told as cat-and-mouse throw-backs to the 1940s. What's nuts is that they don't look anything like each other. The first is Catch Me If You Can, featuring the true story of Frank Abagnale, Jr. and all the shinanigans he caused as a teenager in the '60s. While you won't be seeing it in the Top 20 of the 2000s, you will be seeing it on TV every Christmas, just before Love Actually or It's a Wonderful Life. It features a convincing performance by Leonardo DiCaprio; a touching turn from Christopher Walken; and Tom Hanks armed with the best knock-knock joke ever. I also rank it just behind The Shawshank Redemption as the #2 Guy Movie that Every Girl Likes.
The second film is Minority Report - a fascinating parable on human nature, destiny, and how you would react if you knew your own future. For sake of time, space, and your own reading sanity, I'll go over three quick facts that I love about Minority Report; and if you have any additional questions, I'll post your question and my answer for all to see.
1. The Technicalities. Minority Report was nominated for 1 Academy Award: Sound Effects Editing. That may be the most pointless category of all Oscars, and I almost wish the Academy went all-out to completely forget the movie altogether. Instead, I'll take it as an insult that such a well-crafted film didn't receive critical acclaim for its cinematography, art direction, and visual effects.
...or maybe they simply didn't notice? Now that I look back at each film nominated for cinematography, art direction, and visual effects, each features over-the-top performances of each category. Road to Perdition and Far From Heaven looked like motion-paintings, not motion-pictures (cinematography); Gangs of New York literally re-built NYC, and Lord of the Rings-Two Towers literally re-built all of Middle Earth (art direction); and Spider Man and Attack of the Clones consisted of characters doing corny poses in front of green screens (visual effects). With all of these showy effects, the audience loses its grip on the actual storyline; therefore, in my opinion, weakening the film. Minority Report - while using a plethora of effects - stays so loyal to the storyline that we may not even notice the efforts involved to make each scene possible. We just enjoy it.
The realistic future of Washington D.C. is set up with understated cinematography, art direction, and visual effects. His long-time cinematographer Janusz Kaminski (Schindler, Private Ryan, and the non-Spielberg film Diving Bell and the Butterfly to name a few) takes out the majority of the color in each shot: creating a hazy, gray world that's filled with smog and lacking excitement. With pre-cogs preventing every murder, the world is transparent; and Spielberg embodies this transparency using glass-walled sets througout the picture. Pre-Crime Headquarters, for example, doesn't seem to have an opaque substance in the building. All walls are made of glass; and computers show images on a clear screen that can be viewed throughout the building. On the surface, this company has nothing to hide. Even the weapons the police use are understated. Minority Report's triumph comes through its use of CGI to accentuate (not show off) the intensity of each scene. Example: I never thought to myself, "Wow, what kind of technology did they use to come up with those spiders that trace the building?!" Instead, I was thinking, "Holy crap, what are those spiders going to do when they find Tom Cruise?!" This is a lot different than my feelings when watching the first Spider Man ("Dang, that looks fake as hell. Yea, it looks cool and all. But that's fake as hell.")
2. The Story Itself. Spirituality, fate, prophecy, action, suspense, noir, drama, and sci-fi: Minority Report has it all. While I won't dive in to the details of each thing that makes Minority Report a complete film, I will go back to how it fits the three criteria in choosing this list: Quality, Lasting Effect on the Memory, and Rewatchability.
It's quality rests within it's visual flair and it's unique way of storytelling. There's rarely a wasted shot in the 2 hours and 20 minutes of running time (except the "Rocketeer" chase scene; I'll admit that was pretty corny and probably shouldn't have been included in the final cut); and each shot has it's own unique symbolism. Credit the trust between Spielberg and Kaminski for allowing this to manifest. The use of eyes (close-ups, eye-scanners for advertisements, black-market eyeball dealers, etc.) creates such a powerful motif that complements the "what-if-you-could-see-your-future?" premise. Nearly every scene focuses on some attribute pertaining to the eyes, thus giving us a cornerstone to talk about all the themes permeating the film (spirituality, fate, prophecy ... all the ones listed in the paragraph above can be tied back to the motif of "eyes" or vision).
Rewatchability is a big duh. Minority Report has all the popcorn entertainment you can ask for in an action film; and with all the visual motifs permeating the film, it will keep detail-oriented critics like myself consumed for 20+ viewings.
3. Lasting Effect on the Memory. This film will only get better as it continues to predict the future. Could we predict in 1968 that a computer (which, at that time, was the size of a building) built with artificial intelligence would create a world of its own, go crazy, and maybe start killing people? We can definitely forsee it now, and that's the main reason the American Film Institute ranked 2001: A Space Odyssey the #15 film of all-time (up from #22 in 1998). Could we predict in 1998 that a reality television company would adopt a human being and put his entire life on television, thus raising him in a completely ficticious world? Shoot, we didn't even know was reality television WAS in 1998. In fact, the only show that ever fit the description of reality TV was Real World on MTV (this was the Real World when they actually had to get jobs, work together to make a living, and not base their entire television career on how many people each person can sleep with and/or fight). Now, in 2009, if a reality TV company decided to adopt a human being and create his life on television, would it even MAKE the news? Probably not. So tell me this: how prophetic was The Truman Show?
What makes Minority Report such an effective futuristic movie is that its hypothesis of our future isn't without reason. With Facebook's marketing team placing ads on your website that are catered to the information you put on your profile, along with ever-developing webcam technology, would it be hard to envision a contraption that scans your eye, identifies you, and includes your name in their advertisement? Personally, I don't think so. Do me a favor and watch the scene when Tom Cruise walks through a tunnel; and all of the billboards start calling out his name. All those companies have to do is invest in an eye-scanner thingy and BOOM: target marketing. In the real world, how long do you think it will take to invent something like this? My guess: not very long, especially if a company decides that an invention like that would provide a spike in revenue.
On the Special Features DVD, Spielberg describes how they went about creating the technology of the future. In a nutshell, folks from Dreamworks went to work with grad students from MIT, Cal Tech, and a bunch of think-tank universities; and they brainstormed methods of police weaponry in the not-so-distant future. Two clever tricks I noticed in Minority Report: the only gun we see apears in the very end; and all weapons the cops use are non-lethal. For sake of argument, let's say our Second Amedment rights are tossed out the window and we can no longer carry guns. How will we defend ourselves; or, better yet, how will cops be able to subdue criminals? These answers were provided by those MIT and Cal Tech kids, and were included in the film. They have "sonic boom" guns (that Tom Cruise uses at car manufacturing plant) that knocks you unconscious; "sick sticks" that cause you to throw up the moment they touch you (no more tasers, I guess); and jet packs that get you from place to place. Yes, all these weapons seem expensive ... and way too expensive for your basic police department. However; for sake of the futuristic world of Minority Report - where there aren't any murders, and the crime rate has dropped by epic proportions - there probaby aren't that many cops out there to pay, thus freeing up money to pay for all the new toys.
The point I'm trying to create is this: while Minority Report hasn't received the critical accolates it deserves, neither did 2001 or The Truman Show when they first came out. Sure, they were well-received; but so was The 40 Year Old Virgin. Classics become classics because of their influence. Their ability to predict the future - whether it be the future of the real world (like in 2001 or The Truman Show) or whether it be the future of filmmaking (like Citizen Kane or Star Wars) - is what make classics, classics. I believe Minority Report will become a classic; so let's wait and see.
In fact, there's only one argument you could use against that summary that I would even listen to ... and that's the "Tupac is still better than Jay-Z" argument.
Begin Four Paragraph Tangent
Seriously. Look at Jay-Z's career. Of his 11 or 12 albums, most have received critical acclaim (Reasonable Doubt is ranked #248 in Rolling Stone's Top 500 Albums of All Time; The Blueprint is ranked #464, and received a "Five-Mic" review from The Source; and Vol. 2: Hard Knock Life won the Grammy for Best Rap Album in 1999); each has sold at least 1 million copies; and Jay-Z has been the CEO of two record companies. Not bad for a guy who's still in his 30s.
While listening to his latest album with my best friend, Jimmy Lindsey, we both came to the conclusion that Jay-Z has officially passed Biggie as the #2 rapper of all-time. This is hard to admit, because I never thought Jay's talent belonged in the same ballpark as BIG ... ever. While Jay-Z can just think of an idea and roll out a verse at the blink of an eye, Biggie did the same thing with "Juicy," which remains better than any song Jay-Z ever put out. What separates Jay from BIG is Jay's fortunate ability to fulfil the extent of his potential; whereas with Biggie, we can only wonder what could have been. Yes, BIG has 2 All-Time Top 10 rap albums (Ready to Die and Life After Death, and I believe Ready to Die is the greatest album ever), but those are the only albums he ever put out. Jay has my #10 (The Blueprint), #9 (Reasonable Doubt), and #4 (The Black Album) albums of all time.
(#1 Ready to Die; #2 Illmatic; #3 Chronic 2001; #4 The Black Album; #5 All Eyez On Me; #6 Doggystyle; #7 Life After Death; #8 Venni Vetti Vicci by JA Rule; #9 Reasonable Doubt; #10 The Blueprint ... I smell a future article...)
Jay has also said everything a rapper could possibly say in a career. 1.) He prophesized his taking-over of the industry (see Reasonable Doubt). 2.) He dominated the airwaves with radio-friendly songs (see Vol. 2), to become a multi-millionaire. 3.) He told everyone he made it, while simultaneously raising the bar (The Blueprint). 4.) Went out on top, while prophesizing a Jordan-esque return (see "Encore" on The Black Album) 5.) Then he came back; and backed it up (see his work with Linkin Park, Kingdom Come, and The Blueprint III).
So why is Jay-Z still not the greatest rapper of all-time? Why is he not bigger than Tupac? The answer - and this may sound corny - is that Tupac was more than just a man. Here's an analogy for Tupac: imagine if Michael Jordan's athleticism and pop-culture influence was combined with Muhammed Ali's mystique and social commentary, you would then have Tupac Shakur. Jay-Z, like Michael Jordan, has the perfect pro resume; but Tupac accomplished almost everything Jay-Z accomplished before he turned 26. Pac wasn't a businessman, so he couldn't be the CEO of a company; however, he was the spokesperson for an entire generation; and that extends far beyond the measuring stick that Jay-Z uses to scale his career.
End of Four-Paragraph Tangent
Stephen Spielberg, much like Jay-Z, has accumulated the perfect resume. His handful of classics, influence on pop culture, and ability to effortlessly create masterpieces without over-thinking the details make Spielberg the most accomplished director to stand behind a camera. (For those of you who actually read the four-paragraph tangent, re-read it, and replace "Jay-Z" with "Stephen Spielberg" and you'll get the point). To my knowledge, there hasn't been a Tupac-like figure in the film industry to take away Spielberg's crown as the greatest.
What signifies Spielberg is his ability to release multiple classics every decade. Most directors never get the opportunity to tell one classic, let alone two beasts every 10 years. From Jaws to Close Encounters, Raiders to E.T., or Jurassic Park and Schindler to Private Ryan, you can always count on the Dreamworks founder to find a dream and make it work on the big screen.
Entering the 21st Century, Spielberg has put out 2 films that will go down as classics; however, it won't be the flash and epic nature of the films I've listed above that will make these 2 films classics. They're both cop movies, both released in 2002, and both are told as cat-and-mouse throw-backs to the 1940s. What's nuts is that they don't look anything like each other. The first is Catch Me If You Can, featuring the true story of Frank Abagnale, Jr. and all the shinanigans he caused as a teenager in the '60s. While you won't be seeing it in the Top 20 of the 2000s, you will be seeing it on TV every Christmas, just before Love Actually or It's a Wonderful Life. It features a convincing performance by Leonardo DiCaprio; a touching turn from Christopher Walken; and Tom Hanks armed with the best knock-knock joke ever. I also rank it just behind The Shawshank Redemption as the #2 Guy Movie that Every Girl Likes.
The second film is Minority Report - a fascinating parable on human nature, destiny, and how you would react if you knew your own future. For sake of time, space, and your own reading sanity, I'll go over three quick facts that I love about Minority Report; and if you have any additional questions, I'll post your question and my answer for all to see.
1. The Technicalities. Minority Report was nominated for 1 Academy Award: Sound Effects Editing. That may be the most pointless category of all Oscars, and I almost wish the Academy went all-out to completely forget the movie altogether. Instead, I'll take it as an insult that such a well-crafted film didn't receive critical acclaim for its cinematography, art direction, and visual effects.
...or maybe they simply didn't notice? Now that I look back at each film nominated for cinematography, art direction, and visual effects, each features over-the-top performances of each category. Road to Perdition and Far From Heaven looked like motion-paintings, not motion-pictures (cinematography); Gangs of New York literally re-built NYC, and Lord of the Rings-Two Towers literally re-built all of Middle Earth (art direction); and Spider Man and Attack of the Clones consisted of characters doing corny poses in front of green screens (visual effects). With all of these showy effects, the audience loses its grip on the actual storyline; therefore, in my opinion, weakening the film. Minority Report - while using a plethora of effects - stays so loyal to the storyline that we may not even notice the efforts involved to make each scene possible. We just enjoy it.
The realistic future of Washington D.C. is set up with understated cinematography, art direction, and visual effects. His long-time cinematographer Janusz Kaminski (Schindler, Private Ryan, and the non-Spielberg film Diving Bell and the Butterfly to name a few) takes out the majority of the color in each shot: creating a hazy, gray world that's filled with smog and lacking excitement. With pre-cogs preventing every murder, the world is transparent; and Spielberg embodies this transparency using glass-walled sets througout the picture. Pre-Crime Headquarters, for example, doesn't seem to have an opaque substance in the building. All walls are made of glass; and computers show images on a clear screen that can be viewed throughout the building. On the surface, this company has nothing to hide. Even the weapons the police use are understated. Minority Report's triumph comes through its use of CGI to accentuate (not show off) the intensity of each scene. Example: I never thought to myself, "Wow, what kind of technology did they use to come up with those spiders that trace the building?!" Instead, I was thinking, "Holy crap, what are those spiders going to do when they find Tom Cruise?!" This is a lot different than my feelings when watching the first Spider Man ("Dang, that looks fake as hell. Yea, it looks cool and all. But that's fake as hell.")
2. The Story Itself. Spirituality, fate, prophecy, action, suspense, noir, drama, and sci-fi: Minority Report has it all. While I won't dive in to the details of each thing that makes Minority Report a complete film, I will go back to how it fits the three criteria in choosing this list: Quality, Lasting Effect on the Memory, and Rewatchability.
It's quality rests within it's visual flair and it's unique way of storytelling. There's rarely a wasted shot in the 2 hours and 20 minutes of running time (except the "Rocketeer" chase scene; I'll admit that was pretty corny and probably shouldn't have been included in the final cut); and each shot has it's own unique symbolism. Credit the trust between Spielberg and Kaminski for allowing this to manifest. The use of eyes (close-ups, eye-scanners for advertisements, black-market eyeball dealers, etc.) creates such a powerful motif that complements the "what-if-you-could-see-your-future?" premise. Nearly every scene focuses on some attribute pertaining to the eyes, thus giving us a cornerstone to talk about all the themes permeating the film (spirituality, fate, prophecy ... all the ones listed in the paragraph above can be tied back to the motif of "eyes" or vision).
Rewatchability is a big duh. Minority Report has all the popcorn entertainment you can ask for in an action film; and with all the visual motifs permeating the film, it will keep detail-oriented critics like myself consumed for 20+ viewings.
3. Lasting Effect on the Memory. This film will only get better as it continues to predict the future. Could we predict in 1968 that a computer (which, at that time, was the size of a building) built with artificial intelligence would create a world of its own, go crazy, and maybe start killing people? We can definitely forsee it now, and that's the main reason the American Film Institute ranked 2001: A Space Odyssey the #15 film of all-time (up from #22 in 1998). Could we predict in 1998 that a reality television company would adopt a human being and put his entire life on television, thus raising him in a completely ficticious world? Shoot, we didn't even know was reality television WAS in 1998. In fact, the only show that ever fit the description of reality TV was Real World on MTV (this was the Real World when they actually had to get jobs, work together to make a living, and not base their entire television career on how many people each person can sleep with and/or fight). Now, in 2009, if a reality TV company decided to adopt a human being and create his life on television, would it even MAKE the news? Probably not. So tell me this: how prophetic was The Truman Show?
What makes Minority Report such an effective futuristic movie is that its hypothesis of our future isn't without reason. With Facebook's marketing team placing ads on your website that are catered to the information you put on your profile, along with ever-developing webcam technology, would it be hard to envision a contraption that scans your eye, identifies you, and includes your name in their advertisement? Personally, I don't think so. Do me a favor and watch the scene when Tom Cruise walks through a tunnel; and all of the billboards start calling out his name. All those companies have to do is invest in an eye-scanner thingy and BOOM: target marketing. In the real world, how long do you think it will take to invent something like this? My guess: not very long, especially if a company decides that an invention like that would provide a spike in revenue.
On the Special Features DVD, Spielberg describes how they went about creating the technology of the future. In a nutshell, folks from Dreamworks went to work with grad students from MIT, Cal Tech, and a bunch of think-tank universities; and they brainstormed methods of police weaponry in the not-so-distant future. Two clever tricks I noticed in Minority Report: the only gun we see apears in the very end; and all weapons the cops use are non-lethal. For sake of argument, let's say our Second Amedment rights are tossed out the window and we can no longer carry guns. How will we defend ourselves; or, better yet, how will cops be able to subdue criminals? These answers were provided by those MIT and Cal Tech kids, and were included in the film. They have "sonic boom" guns (that Tom Cruise uses at car manufacturing plant) that knocks you unconscious; "sick sticks" that cause you to throw up the moment they touch you (no more tasers, I guess); and jet packs that get you from place to place. Yes, all these weapons seem expensive ... and way too expensive for your basic police department. However; for sake of the futuristic world of Minority Report - where there aren't any murders, and the crime rate has dropped by epic proportions - there probaby aren't that many cops out there to pay, thus freeing up money to pay for all the new toys.
The point I'm trying to create is this: while Minority Report hasn't received the critical accolates it deserves, neither did 2001 or The Truman Show when they first came out. Sure, they were well-received; but so was The 40 Year Old Virgin. Classics become classics because of their influence. Their ability to predict the future - whether it be the future of the real world (like in 2001 or The Truman Show) or whether it be the future of filmmaking (like Citizen Kane or Star Wars) - is what make classics, classics. I believe Minority Report will become a classic; so let's wait and see.
150 Days of American Bliss, by Tyler Norris
Since my knowledge of football circulates primarily around the NCAA, I'll let my good buddy Tyler Norris break down the start of the 2009-2010 NFL season. For those of you who think this site is just about college football, let me throw out a simple quote from Howard Dean:
Byahhh!
(His on-point title also makes for a good follow up to the (500) Days of Summer review. I even thought of the unbearably corny title "After 500 Days of Summer comes 150 Days of American Bliss;" but as you will soon see, Tyler can actually write, whereas I can only ramble and come up with stupid titles.)
So now let's get to the goods...
150 Days of American Bliss
Tyler Norris
Today starts the greatest 5 months of the year. Yes, the 2009-2010 NFL season has commenced. And yes, that is 5 MONTHS of professional football. For those of you who think that that is too much, you must be a Yankee's fan or simply, Un-American. Super Bowl XLIV (or 43 for our non-Roman friends) is exactly 150 days away, which means that the NFL season is almost into the second week of February and that the Super-Duper-Extra-Special-Early-Bird Rate on hotels in South Florida is in effect.
American sports today has all become about the future. It ranges from betting on who will win the World Series to NFL Draft hype (where players will be effective in 3-5 years) or my personal favorite those tricky little March Madness brackets. The NFL is no different, we have football predictions or as we say in the industry, 'Pick 'Em's. This constitutes going through and picking each and every game each and every week. The winner of course being the person who correctly picks the most games out of the year (or usually who remembers to keep up with it each week).
The start of the NFL season is an exciting time for most sports fans. It is the start of spending over 8 hours in a bar in one day and not considered to “have a problem.” No, it is dozens of people wearing the jerseys of teams they love and worship. This is the greatest time in sports for most of the fans in this country, from the ASTRONOMICAL number of people who play Fantasy Football (I have 4 teams this year) to people who make amusing T-shirts to celebrate opening day... (i.e. “My Other Shirt is a Puffy Jacket, or “Back-up QB Hall of Fame”) for the Titans vs. Steelers. Which all brings me back around to my point – the beginning of the season and my predictions.
There are some obvious predictions such as that the Patriots and Chargers will make the playoffs and subsequently the Lions and Browns will not. But this is all part of the system, the system that no one agrees on and people over analyze and over think, I am one of those people. Still, there are some things that cannot be avoided in considering the outcome of how good teams will be this year. For starters, Strength of Schedule (SOS) is one of the greatest factors in sports today, this is how Tom Brady threw for 76 yards and the Patriots still go 11-5. After that it is simply a mix of weighing home field advantage, program coaching stability, skill position talent, and simply who is a better team (the Saints will most likely beat the 0-16 Lions).
But as the leaves start to think about falling, Rudy starts to do sprints in the Notre Dame Stadium concourse, and Christmas decorations start to fill the shelves, the pigskin is picked up by some of the greatest athletes in the world not named Phelps or Bolt. Coincidently, has there ever been a better name for an athlete than Bolt? I think not, I'm talking to you Chad Ochocinco! So me and my fellow fans clad in respective jerseys, pints of beer in our hands will cheer once more for our teams remembering that everyone is even in Week 1. And if not, we put our sights in the future, after all, the 2010 NFL Draft starts in 224 days.
Final Bullets:
-This is the 50th Anniversary of the AFL, look for the throwback uniforms from the original 8 franchises. This all coincides with the UFL opening its inaugural season in a few weeks, lets see if this future Triple A league can survive or be absorbed.
-The Detroit Lions have a current losing streak of 17 games, the NFL record is the 1976-77 Steve Spurrier-led Tampa Bay Buccaneers (26 games). The Lions do not play a sub-.550 team until week 8; which, if things go according to plan (or not according to plan, if you're actually a Lions fan), their streak could reach 25 games without much problem. Will this team make history with a failure of epic proportions? Wait and see.
-You can follow along and play against me in ESPN's Pigskin Pick 'Em. Just search for “Sully's World” group in the public leagues and sign up.
-Opening Day Pick : Steelers over the Titans covering the spread to win by a touchdown.
Other picks and yearly predictions to follow soon...
Byahhh!
(His on-point title also makes for a good follow up to the (500) Days of Summer review. I even thought of the unbearably corny title "After 500 Days of Summer comes 150 Days of American Bliss;" but as you will soon see, Tyler can actually write, whereas I can only ramble and come up with stupid titles.)
So now let's get to the goods...
150 Days of American Bliss
Tyler Norris
Today starts the greatest 5 months of the year. Yes, the 2009-2010 NFL season has commenced. And yes, that is 5 MONTHS of professional football. For those of you who think that that is too much, you must be a Yankee's fan or simply, Un-American. Super Bowl XLIV (or 43 for our non-Roman friends) is exactly 150 days away, which means that the NFL season is almost into the second week of February and that the Super-Duper-Extra-Special-Early-Bird Rate on hotels in South Florida is in effect.
American sports today has all become about the future. It ranges from betting on who will win the World Series to NFL Draft hype (where players will be effective in 3-5 years) or my personal favorite those tricky little March Madness brackets. The NFL is no different, we have football predictions or as we say in the industry, 'Pick 'Em's. This constitutes going through and picking each and every game each and every week. The winner of course being the person who correctly picks the most games out of the year (or usually who remembers to keep up with it each week).
The start of the NFL season is an exciting time for most sports fans. It is the start of spending over 8 hours in a bar in one day and not considered to “have a problem.” No, it is dozens of people wearing the jerseys of teams they love and worship. This is the greatest time in sports for most of the fans in this country, from the ASTRONOMICAL number of people who play Fantasy Football (I have 4 teams this year) to people who make amusing T-shirts to celebrate opening day... (i.e. “My Other Shirt is a Puffy Jacket, or “Back-up QB Hall of Fame”) for the Titans vs. Steelers. Which all brings me back around to my point – the beginning of the season and my predictions.
There are some obvious predictions such as that the Patriots and Chargers will make the playoffs and subsequently the Lions and Browns will not. But this is all part of the system, the system that no one agrees on and people over analyze and over think, I am one of those people. Still, there are some things that cannot be avoided in considering the outcome of how good teams will be this year. For starters, Strength of Schedule (SOS) is one of the greatest factors in sports today, this is how Tom Brady threw for 76 yards and the Patriots still go 11-5. After that it is simply a mix of weighing home field advantage, program coaching stability, skill position talent, and simply who is a better team (the Saints will most likely beat the 0-16 Lions).
But as the leaves start to think about falling, Rudy starts to do sprints in the Notre Dame Stadium concourse, and Christmas decorations start to fill the shelves, the pigskin is picked up by some of the greatest athletes in the world not named Phelps or Bolt. Coincidently, has there ever been a better name for an athlete than Bolt? I think not, I'm talking to you Chad Ochocinco! So me and my fellow fans clad in respective jerseys, pints of beer in our hands will cheer once more for our teams remembering that everyone is even in Week 1. And if not, we put our sights in the future, after all, the 2010 NFL Draft starts in 224 days.
Final Bullets:
-This is the 50th Anniversary of the AFL, look for the throwback uniforms from the original 8 franchises. This all coincides with the UFL opening its inaugural season in a few weeks, lets see if this future Triple A league can survive or be absorbed.
-The Detroit Lions have a current losing streak of 17 games, the NFL record is the 1976-77 Steve Spurrier-led Tampa Bay Buccaneers (26 games). The Lions do not play a sub-.550 team until week 8; which, if things go according to plan (or not according to plan, if you're actually a Lions fan), their streak could reach 25 games without much problem. Will this team make history with a failure of epic proportions? Wait and see.
-You can follow along and play against me in ESPN's Pigskin Pick 'Em. Just search for “Sully's World” group in the public leagues and sign up.
-Opening Day Pick : Steelers over the Titans covering the spread to win by a touchdown.
Other picks and yearly predictions to follow soon...
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