Critiquing the Critic

     In 1984, Peter Travers started writing film reviews for People Magazine. He moved to Rolling Stone in ‘88 and continues writing film reviews for them today. Through this critique, I will explore Travers’ perspective, style, method, and technique. I would describe Travers’ style of writing in the same way he describes Batman Forever; “It’s a thrill-packed joy ride that knocks itself out to please – so much so that it often threatens to collapse from plot overload.”

     Travers writes feature film reviews ranging from 500 to 1000+ words. His reviews are sometimes short and direct like his 1987 Spaceballs review, while others such as The Dark Knight are intensely descriptive and full of critical analysis. He chooses to review a variety of genres including comedy, horror, drama, action, sci-fi, and thriller.

     Travers leads his reviews with a very short paragraph, normally 3-4 sentences tops. The lead usually opens with a short, catchy line, which is either a fact or a snappy judgment about the film. Examples of this are “Mel Brooks is a gutbuster.” (Spaceballs) and “Sometimes a shamelessly stoopid, proudly profane R-rated comedy is all you want out of life.” (Role Models) It’s structured simplistically to grab the audience’s attention, get to the point of the article, and encourage the reader to continue reading. His methods effectively entertain and amuse the reader.

     The basic information of the film is hidden throughout the review in summary content and other judgments he makes about the movie.  In Travers’ earlier reviews like Thelma & Louise, he focuses on plot summary and talks about the actors in the order they appear in the narrative. But lately, he’s been leaving summary at the theaters and only telling the basic set-up like in his Eastern Promises and Apocalypto review. In the ’80s, he focused on plot summary and it could usually be found in the second, third, and fourth paragraph of his review.  Now, he gives the reader a short set-up in the second paragraph, and goes on to discuss the actors, director, writers (and if deserved) the cinematographer.

     Travers’ simple style makes his work easy to follow and fun to read. He chooses to heavily describe actor’s performances and only focuses lightly on cinematic elements, which expands his audience rather than closing it down to technical terms that only professionals would comprehend. His specific descriptions of characters and selected quotations help the reader re-experience the films.  He isn’t likely to incorporate quotes into every review, but when he does he pulls only the best lines from the film’s most memorable moments. 

In his 2008 review of The Dark Knight, Travers quotes the Joker just as he’s holding a razor blade to a victim’s face telling the man how his father carved his smile permanently into his face. Travers quotes the Joker at this plot changing moment saying, “What doesn’t kill you makes you stranger.” This significant quote not only reveals character, but also comes from an extremely memorable scene that highlights the theme of the human condition. The relative ratio of factual information to critical commentary and interpretation was 50/50 earlier in his career. But now that he has gained much experience and seniority at Rolling Stone, his reviews are dominated with critical judgments and pleasurable commentary at 75/25, which is much better than his earlier safe reviews.

      The scope of Travers reviews deal mostly with the actors and genre. But sometimes he centers his review on the most popular person involved in the film. Sometimes the focus of his review is the director such as Mel Gibson’s Apocalypto. All of his judgments about Apocalypto revolve around Mel Gibson and his style of filmmaking. The same is seen in his Freddy Got Fingered review where he concentrates on the wacky Tom Green who stars in the film.

    Travers’ knowledge of film seems to extend as far as that he has seen many pictures, but not necessarily taken any critical analysis film classes. He does however, appear very knowledgeable about actors, directors, and their past performances. He doesn’t speak of any one person or genre without including a comparison or their most recent appearance. He includes these references in very interesting ways.  In his review of Batman Forever, when he’s referencing Jim Carrey’s past performances compared to The Riddler, the character he plays in this film, Travers sites, “Hammered for the crudities of “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective” and “Dumb and Dumber,” Carrey continues to play by his own rules.” He sneaks in references to past performances with similar critiques of the actor’s role.  

   I have yet to read a review where Travers presents himself by using “I.” He does, however, speak directly to the audience in numerous occasions saying how you should feel or what you should do. “Don’t ask whether or not you should take The Day After Tomorrow seriously. Don’t take it at all,” Travers declares in his 2004 review of The Day After Tomorrow.

     Travers expresses his attitude of films through his short and to the point phrases that precede many of his in-depth character and plot analysis paragraphs. These simple judgments prepare the reader for the complex sentences that follow and allow for easier interpretation.  All of his reviews include vigorous comparisons to similar genres and artists. His writing flows smoothly with transitions leading into each and every paragraph. If he knows he wants to talk about a specific character in the next paragraph he includes them in a scene or quote in the end of the previous paragraph. His transitions stream by seemingly unnoticed and holds the piece together like invisible glue. His recent reviews are always focused and sustain a single line of interpretation that is reiterated at the end. Travers’ writing style is very basic, but nonetheless informative, persuasive and of course entertaining.

Thelma and Louise

    I thoroughly enjoyed this 1988 chase action comedy by Callie Khouri. Two women who are unsatisfied with their lives set out for an adventure that will change their lives more than they ever could imagine. A housewife's dream come true. 

    Thelma and Louise, are unhappy with their day-to-day lives and decide to get away and go on a two-day trip to a cabin in the mountains. On the way, Thelma gets hungry and the two are encouraged to stop at a Bar & Restaurant for dinner. Thelma meets a real charmer and the two dance the night away cheek to cheek. Thelma gets sick and the man accompanies her outside. He becomes too friendly with Thelma as the situation escalates quickly into him attempting to rape her. Louise stops the man and holds him at gunpoint. The girls begin to leave, but when the man continues to utter degrading words showing he didn’t learn his lesson, Louise pulls the trigger. Never being in this situation before, the girls jump in their convertible and speed away. The women continue to run from authorities and move from location to location. Louise tells Thelma she’s off to Mexico because she has no reason to go back since her boyfriend doesn’t love her. Thelma attempts to phone home to her husband, but when he takes a fatherly role of control, Thelma finally tells him to fuck off. 

From there, the two meet a very attractive hitchhiker named Simon, who Thelma falls for and has the night of her life with. Other than the best sex ever, Simon also shares with Thelma his techniques of robbery, which prove to be useful to Thelma later on. Louise boyfriend, Jimmy, shows up with the money he was supposed to just wire to her. After a romantic night of engagement, marriage, and consummation Jimmy leaves promising to love her no matter what happens. Thelma and Louise are back to their change purses after realizing Simon has stolen the money Jimmy brought. Thelma then uses Simon’s skills to rob a convenient store so Louise doesn’t have to sell her ring. Thelma and Louise continue to outsmart the police and teach ignorant men who are woman users a lesson. The two almost completely switch characters and become true criminals along the way. After a final run from the police, there’s no going back now and the two decide to...I can't ruin the best movie ending of all time -read the screenplay or WATCH THE MOVIE!!
    The plot was highly original and significantly different from other adventure films. Many popular themes were addressed such as women’s rights, but the overall plot of two harmless women becoming criminals has never been explored in this manner. This plot was successfully interesting. Watching these two characters roll with the snowball effect never seized to entertain. I do believe given the right circumstances and time, anyone is capable of anything. These characters were driven to their questionable actions. I reasoned with them the whole way. This plot is plausible, not necessarily likely, but given the characters circumstances it is believable. The premise from which the conclusion is drawn from works for me, however some may feel the two needed to eventually be caught and return home. I was glad they were never caught and in the end, they found the only possible solution to remain free and wild.

    The concept of two characters that are finally going to seek a fulfilling life and the way they go about it, completely transforming their identities, was sincerely original and appealing to any audience. The housewife, whose life is totally controlled by her husband, takes off with out permission and has the time of her life. When Thelma’s husband demands she returns home instantly, she finally tells him to fuck off. After finally telling off her husband, Thelma is free from him and runs wild. This script demonstrates how hell is other people. People make people crazy. After years of suppression, Thelma is out of her cage. Louise is a real man hater, but she falls in love and shows she actually has a sensitive side. Thelma has the best sex of her life with a stranger, and Louise shoots one. These small town girls become big time criminals. The characters make this movie. Unsatisfied best friends step out of their comfort zones for a break from their daily scene, but never return. The fact that these two women are two of the most unlikely people to become criminals only furthers the interest of the reader/viewer. Even hot stuff Darryl, is taken off his pedestal and put in his place. The concept holds interest and the characters only become more intriguing and developed as the script progresses.    

    The dialogue was humorous and not over done. I enjoyed reading each character’s dialogue and their words fit well with their character persona. I love when Simon tells Darryl he liked his wife. This comment only parades Thelma’s actions and recent sense of self-discovery. Also, the script for robbing the bank was especially entertaining. Even the corny wedding vows read well and entertained. The action and scene description was highly detailed and painted a clear picture for the reader. The descriptions were unique and kept the interest of the reader. The description of the bar in the beginning, and when Louise is waiting in the line for the bathroom, are so well written I can still envision these specific scenes in my head. Harlan suffocating Thelma’s personal space and then getting his brains blown out all over some nice car, is just one more out of the many impressive scenes described in this well developed script. The cinematographer has it easy with this script. The writer just lays everything out for the reader. The actions and scenes were so meticulously described the reader could in fact paint the scene onto film. However, I do not believe the write went overboard; instead she just clarified the situations. The writing flowed well and kept pace, as this was a chase story. The ending scene was a masterpiece as it speaks volumes and highlights the entire meaning and intent of the script and its characters.
    This screenplay is so interesting because of its unlikely criminals. The characters were amusing and exciting people to follow around. Witnessing their thought process and tagging along to see the effects of their decisions made their onscreen/on-page transformations all the more enjoyable. The ending might catch some people off guard as it was quite edgy, but nonetheless the perfect ending in my opinion. 

It’s sort of Strange but…

I sometimes like to watch other people. They don’t know I’m watching. I sit in the dark while they go about their lives, taking risks and finding fulfillment. But I’m not alone. I sit there with other people -complete strangers actually. We all sit tightly together, in the dark. But we never speak a word. In fact, it would be considered rude to do so. We just watch. We watch and we wish. We admire and we dream. We do this for about two hours. But when the lights come on, it’s all over and the worries, fears, and grief that brought us, filter back into our conscience. 

….So why do we escape to the cinema?

It’s very dangerous to take an animal from its natural habitat. A manufactured environment will never fulfill the animal’s essential needs. In fact, an unnatural environment can put an animal in a constant state of hyper stimulation, nervousness or anxiety. Their nervous systems are blown beyond the ability to cope. The animals must do whatever it takes to balance their nerves. They sometimes do what may appear unacceptable or strange. They run around in circles without a purpose.

How is it we fail to recognize and admit that humans are just simple animals… meant to live day to day with the only purpose to survive till the sun goes down each day.

This entire civilization is far beyond what any single mind could dream up.

It’s not a mystery why we do whatever it takes to balance our nerves. We develop habits that help us cope in this constant state of hyper stimulation. Some people submerge in bubble baths, some people put on headphones and close their eyes, some drink a glass of wine, others smoke a blunt or pop a pill rarely prescribe to them.

Some people speed in the rain, sleep past noon, scream their lungs out in the shower, eat a gallon of ice cream, run till they faint, paint a white wall, drink till they can’t remember, but other people…

Other people escape entirely. They sit completely still… not speaking, not blinking, not living. For about two hours in a dark cave without any light, they sit there and admire the paintings before their eyes… submerging into complete and utter satisfaction, a sense of... fulfillment.

But it’s not supposed to be this way…

I haven't been able to escape to the cinema lately, so here's my critique on life and the way it's "supposed" to be:

This is a new kind of post intended to entertain those whose lives AREN’T piecing together as quickly or perfectly as their childhood dreams promised…

By the age of 26, most people are moving back home to be near family and taking a menial job (me·ni·al adj 1. relating to or involving work that requires little skill or training, is not interesting, and confers low social status on the person doing it 2. suitable, typical of, or relating to a servant or servants) at their local bank or town hall. Accepting their numerous failed attempts at obtaining their dream job as “a good try” and realizing the importance of a steady income.

By the age of 28, most people notice their hairline receding, metabolism slowing, and appearance overall dwindling and decide they better tie the knot before no one wants to share a bed with them besides dear old mom.

By the age of 30, most people are painting teddy bears, clouds, and ducks on the walls of the spare bedroom of the house they bought with their menial desk job preparing for their average life to be invaded and conquered by their first-born…Who hopefully won’t feel the pressure of life bearing down on them as early as their parents did and give up on their dreams only to join their friends who have settled down to watch life pass them by and live their static, routine life.

But he's not like most of them. He's 32 and swimming around all the Hollywood hotspots in the intern pool. And he'll tell you that 95% of all interns are hott college grads still enjoying life living out of daddy’s pocket, so he doesn’t reject their kind invitations for drinks on them/daddy after a long unpaid day of dry office work.

But right now, he's outside on his balcony writing his frustrations on his college Mac book pro -whose expected operational life is about to expire, and when it does he’ll lose his million dollar screenplays that brought him to Hollywood. People normally sit outside to be in the sun and get that essential vitamin D that energizes and inspires them to go out and get that dream job no matter what it takes. Unfortunately, his balcony is shaded from ALL the shiny, bright things in life most importantly “The sun.”

It’s hard to keep moving when it seems as though everything else in life has stopped like the economy and job market, but he finds Live music inspiring so he's going to apply for a new credit card, buy tickets to a show, and forget about his accumulating debt that will undoubtedly land him a spot in prison one sunny day when he should have been painting teddy bears, fluffy clouds, and smiling ducks in the spare bedroom of the house he bought with his menial desk job he got when he moved back home and realized Dreams only come true at night…

And coming to terms with not getting that dream job is perhaps the Santa Claus of adulthood.

The Difference Between The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

   The Action-Thriller film genre is best known for its exciting action packed plot and intense visual appeal. But spending a little more time on developing their heroes has proven to not only boost box office sales, but also provide new market space for sequels, prequels, and even figurines. Filmmakers are running out of new ways to save their damsels in distress and keep their car chases fresh. Action seeking fans are now going to the theater expecting more than the same stunts they’ve seen executed from different angles; now they want complex characters and simulating storylines. Whether moviegoers are realizing it or not, they’re flocking to character driven action films.

   The Coen Brothers have been keeping audiences entertained for years with their mix of action, thrill, and complex characters. Marge Gunderson (if her name isn’t enough of a description) is the unforgettable heroine in the 1996 thriller Fargo. She’s the pregnant sheriff in town, but make no mistake, she means business. Her intelligent and polite police work along with that Minnesota accent, makes her a likeable heroine few audiences can forget. And the Coen Brother’s antagonist from No Country For Old Men haunts your nightmares with his retractable steel bolt airgun reminding you to never steal money from him—the all-knowing, merciless Anton Chigurh. Characters like Marge and Chigurh are becoming the difference between a good action film and a great action film.

   Some of the best action films are defined by their protagonists such as Jason Bourne, John Rambo, Peter Parker and John McClane. These films can simply be referred to by their main characters because lets just face it, they are what make these movies great. Big explosions and bloody deaths just aren’t enough these days and more is being asked from writers of this formulaic genre. Now they have to edit out a few story twists and make room for compelling characters with more than a double barrel shotgun.

   Action films lack in dialog and usually focus more on telling story through physical action and that part is also changing more and more as we see more characters developing onscreen. Ridley Scott’s 1991 Thelma & Louise is a thriller adventure film that takes a serious interest in these two women’s lives and their characters grow and develop along with all the action. The action in this film appears to serve a greater purpose than just blowing up something or killing someone who gets in the way unlike many other films in its genre such as the 2008 Death Race which does just that. Death Race’s Jensen Ames (Jason Statham) is unbelievably underdeveloped and the film suffers as a result. Too many characters die senseless deaths and explosions are pointless and have no effect on the lives of the characters. Visual appeal? Maybe, but nothing more. Death Race struggled to make its expected profit from box office sales and this should not come as a surprise to those who witnessed its absurdity.

   Christopher Nolan’s 2008 The Dark Knight has numerous complex characters that develop onscreen and without a doubt contribute to the film overall success. Heath Ledger portrays the best Joker to ever hit the screen. He adds the missing link that other jokers—including Jack Nicholson—couldn’t seem to grasp. He’s cruel and cold, heartless and thrillingly psychotic. His character alone makes the film a successful action thriller. In comparison, Halle Berry’s Patience Phillips in the 2004 Catwoman is an example of a poorly developed character that is to blame for the film’s failure. The filmmaker’s first mistake was choosing an idolized sex symbol like Halle Berry to play an already over sexed role like Catwoman. The action and killing in the film appears humorous rather than thrilling and no one can take Halle Berry’s performance for anything more than soft-core porn. Characters can easily make or break a film even in the action thriller genre.

   It’s no debate fans of action films aren’t going to the theater expecting life changing stories or heart felt dramas, but what films do they call great action thrillers? Is it films like Dragonball Evolution, The Mummy Returns and Hitman or Fight Club, Rocky, and Lethal Weapon? Many of the most popular and favorite action thrillers have an undeniable similarity in common. That similarity rests in its characters and their onscreen development.

   Psychotic Dr. Hannibal Lecter and relentless FBI agent Clarice Starling are among the many complexed characters in the 1991 thriller The Silence of the Lambs. This thriller is packed with jaw dropping action, but unlike most action films, it makes room for dialog and a slice of drama. Clarice doesn’t blow up anyone’s car or go on a random shooting rampage, but she does hunt down the scariest serial killer to ever graze the screen. Compared to the action crime thriller Bangkok Dangerous, …well there is no comparison other than the genre title. Bangkok Dangerous doesn’t have one intriguing character or memorable plot moment. The film is comprised of scenes where Nicolas Cage chases people, makes a mess, shoots them and blows stuff up—but nobody cares. The characters are so severely underdeveloped and simple that the viewer just doesn’t care enough about them for the ending of their lives to feel dramatic or be the least bit entertaining.

    Not all filmmakers are going to change their clichéd formula for action films into character driven action thrillers like The Matrix, Kill Bill, and Iron Man. But highly developed characters appear to be what’s attracting audiences and selling the tickets. Writers of the action thriller genre should make room in their scripts for an unethical Dirty Harry or an impervious Terminator; or otherwise prepare to suffer an excruciating death in sales.

GOMORRA

   Gomorra is an Italian mob drama that takes an inside look at five Italian civilians whose lives are influenced by the all-powerful Comorra mafia. You’re either with the Comorra or you’re their enemy, and we get a glimpse of both sides and what their daily lives consist of. Gomorra is an eye-opening film that exposes the unfortunate truths hiding in America’s closet.

    One of the plot lines tells the story of Pasquale (Salvatore Cantalupo) who is a tailor working at a factory controlled by the Comorra. When the mafia finds out Pasquale has taken a night job teaching Chinese competitors how to sew, they attempt an attack on his life and he is forced to flee. Pasquale’s talents go to waste, as he becomes a truck driver in order to escape death. By the end of the film, many intriguing themes have surfaced, but none as so interesting as the one that is a startling wake up call for Americans.

    This controversial theme that has put the life of director Matteo Garrone in danger surfaces as waste manager Franco (Toni Servillo) calls to a colleague who decides the unethical business going on isn’t for him. Franco yells to him as he’s walking away, “Don’t think you’re any better than me.” He implies that just because Americans aren’t the ones calling the shots doesn’t mean they aren’t enjoying the benefits that result from the distress and suffering of others. 

    These horrible crimes being conducted in Italy are all at the hand of the Comorra mafia, who are ironically enough invested in the rebuilding of the Twin Towers here in America. They control the factories that make beautiful dresses for our movie stars to wear. They control the outsourcing firms that make our food, our most cherished possessions, our cars, and everything we use on a daily basis without considering whose blood was shed for our happiness. 

    Translating from one language to another doesn’t come without its misfortunes. At times the English subtitles were unfortunately funnier than they were meant to be because definitions differ in every language and finding a word with identical meaning can be difficult. The five plot lines became confusing to follow as the non-Italian speaking American was forced to read subtitles and differentiate between stories all at the same time.

    Despite its technical difficulties, the documentary type style of this film makes the stories and acting appear indisputably real and fascinating. A film like this one could start a reformation—If not a war.