by Jason Joyner | Aug 21, 2007 | Blog, internet, missions, movies
I had to check this out when I first saw it on Christianity Today. The Interior is a movie being released segmentally on its website. The result is a TV show like feeling of episodes, but it will be brought together at the end to be available on DVD.
It has an extremely interesting premise: a young missionary couple deals with their initial deployment into the field in the rainforest of Brazil. They are linked with an older missionary couple who are a little… different. As the interview says, this is a premise that has a lot of potential and has been untapped for the most part.
The filmmakers have been very bold – taking a second mortgage to fund the project, doing auditions via YouTube, yet the project seems to be succeeding and building a community.
The writer says that it is not necessarily a movie exclusively for Christians. He intends to show real struggles. The first four episodes are available online, and I can say that there is plenty of God talk and some surprising challenges presented. One scene in a church really tickled me – you’ll have to check it out. I haven’t really watched Lost, but the influence is there in the cinematography (at least to my untrained eye).
I don’t know where this is going, but it looks very intriguing and is bold in its vision. Check it out!
by Jason Joyner | Aug 21, 2007 | Blog, internet, missions, movies
I had to check this out when I first saw it on Christianity Today. The Interior is a movie being released segmentally on its website. The result is a TV show like feeling of episodes, but it will be brought together at the end to be available on DVD.
It has an extremely interesting premise: a young missionary couple deals with their initial deployment into the field in the rainforest of Brazil. They are linked with an older missionary couple who are a little… different. As the interview says, this is a premise that has a lot of potential and has been untapped for the most part.
The filmmakers have been very bold – taking a second mortgage to fund the project, doing auditions via YouTube, yet the project seems to be succeeding and building a community.
The writer says that it is not necessarily a movie exclusively for Christians. He intends to show real struggles. The first four episodes are available online, and I can say that there is plenty of God talk and some surprising challenges presented. One scene in a church really tickled me – you’ll have to check it out. I haven’t really watched Lost, but the influence is there in the cinematography (at least to my untrained eye).
I don’t know where this is going, but it looks very intriguing and is bold in its vision. Check it out!
by Jason Joyner | Jul 10, 2007 | Blog, movies, Pixar, reviews, writing craft
The first thing I am going to say about the movie Ratatouille is this: don’t take your kids. Serious. That way you can enjoy one of the best story-tellers in movies today without having to worry about popcorn, drinks, potty breaks, or other assorted kid things.
Okay, you can take the kids. They’ll enjoy the cute rat and his kitchen antics. However, they won’t come close to appreciating the delicious tapestry that Brad Bird and company creates for our viewing pleasure (and my mixed metaphor pleasure…). In my opinion, there is no better filmmaker today, and he happens to work for the best movie company in Pixar. Yes, I loved The Incredibles, also written and directed by Mr. Bird. I have also heard wonderful things about his movie The Iron Giant, which I have yet to see.
Enough gushing. The thing is, if a writer can take the concept of a rat in a kitchen (my mother-in-law is still having trouble wrapping her head around that) and make it entertaining, endearing, and overall believable, then you have a real talent. Remy is a country rat in France who has a nose and taste for the good things in life, related to food. His family is not so picky, and it causes a lot of tension for Remy. It seems he has been sneaking into a house to watch a cooking show by the famous Parisian chef Gusteau and has been learning the fine points of cuisine.
After an incident that sweeps him through the sewers to Paris, he ends up in the kitchen of Gusteau’s restaurant. The restaurant is struggling after the great chef’s untimely demise, and is being run by a charlatan more interested in making cheap frozen foods using Gusteau’s name. Remy stumbles across the new garbage boy, and after fixing a soup that the boy, Linguini, had messed up, is linked with the boy in finding their destiny together.
Linguini is hired as a chef but can’t cook beans. Remy ends up riding under his hat and controls him by pulling hair like levers to mastermind a renaissance in the kitchen. But this cannot be blissful: tension arises from Remy’s lost family, the paranoid head chef, and an icy food critic.
The lesson applicable to writers that read this (and hopefully all of Hollywood can catch it as well) is the insistance Pixar has of making the story first, rather than the other trappings. Remy is a fully realized character. He is nuanced, conflicted, and vunerable. The interaction of Linguini and his rat savior is very touching. The movie plays the heart strings gently and keeps you engaged despite the clamoring of the younger set.
Not that the movie is all character development. The visuals keep improving with time, and Pixar shows off a rat’s fur when wet or impacted by…static electricity. There are times when Remy’s animal behaviors (sniffing, fearing humans or danger) are so lifelike despite his cartoonish image. The zany things Linguini does while controlled by Remy are eye-popping. The story has plenty of action and conflict to keep the pace moving. Even The Incredibles slows for a little while, but I didn’t catch any of that with Ratatouille.
I’ve enjoyed Spiderman 3, watched Pirates 3, and suffered through Fantastic Four: Rise of the Poor Screenplay. None of them compare to the joy that is Ratatouille. Those of us in the creative community need to speak with the only language Hollywood understands: our dollars. If you value creative and compelling storytelling, go see Ratatouille. You’ll also have a great time!
by Jason Joyner | Jul 10, 2007 | Blog, movies, Pixar, reviews, writing craft
The first thing I am going to say about the movie Ratatouille is this: don’t take your kids. Serious. That way you can enjoy one of the best story-tellers in movies today without having to worry about popcorn, drinks, potty breaks, or other assorted kid things.
Okay, you can take the kids. They’ll enjoy the cute rat and his kitchen antics. However, they won’t come close to appreciating the delicious tapestry that Brad Bird and company creates for our viewing pleasure (and my mixed metaphor pleasure…). In my opinion, there is no better filmmaker today, and he happens to work for the best movie company in Pixar. Yes, I loved The Incredibles, also written and directed by Mr. Bird. I have also heard wonderful things about his movie The Iron Giant, which I have yet to see.
Enough gushing. The thing is, if a writer can take the concept of a rat in a kitchen (my mother-in-law is still having trouble wrapping her head around that) and make it entertaining, endearing, and overall believable, then you have a real talent. Remy is a country rat in France who has a nose and taste for the good things in life, related to food. His family is not so picky, and it causes a lot of tension for Remy. It seems he has been sneaking into a house to watch a cooking show by the famous Parisian chef Gusteau and has been learning the fine points of cuisine.
After an incident that sweeps him through the sewers to Paris, he ends up in the kitchen of Gusteau’s restaurant. The restaurant is struggling after the great chef’s untimely demise, and is being run by a charlatan more interested in making cheap frozen foods using Gusteau’s name. Remy stumbles across the new garbage boy, and after fixing a soup that the boy, Linguini, had messed up, is linked with the boy in finding their destiny together.
Linguini is hired as a chef but can’t cook beans. Remy ends up riding under his hat and controls him by pulling hair like levers to mastermind a renaissance in the kitchen. But this cannot be blissful: tension arises from Remy’s lost family, the paranoid head chef, and an icy food critic.
The lesson applicable to writers that read this (and hopefully all of Hollywood can catch it as well) is the insistance Pixar has of making the story first, rather than the other trappings. Remy is a fully realized character. He is nuanced, conflicted, and vunerable. The interaction of Linguini and his rat savior is very touching. The movie plays the heart strings gently and keeps you engaged despite the clamoring of the younger set.
Not that the movie is all character development. The visuals keep improving with time, and Pixar shows off a rat’s fur when wet or impacted by…static electricity. There are times when Remy’s animal behaviors (sniffing, fearing humans or danger) are so lifelike despite his cartoonish image. The zany things Linguini does while controlled by Remy are eye-popping. The story has plenty of action and conflict to keep the pace moving. Even The Incredibles slows for a little while, but I didn’t catch any of that with Ratatouille.
I’ve enjoyed Spiderman 3, watched Pirates 3, and suffered through Fantastic Four: Rise of the Poor Screenplay. None of them compare to the joy that is Ratatouille. Those of us in the creative community need to speak with the only language Hollywood understands: our dollars. If you value creative and compelling storytelling, go see Ratatouille. You’ll also have a great time!
by Jason Joyner | Jul 5, 2007 | Blog, miscellaneous, movies
Whew.
I forgot to post that I was going to be on a little vacation (though maybe that is a good thing-I had visions of people searching the net for people posting that their house was basically up for grabs). Pulled in today hot, tired, and ready for a vacation from vacation. Thankfully I still have my normal weekend.
Anyway, just a quick note to say that regular programming will resume with some special posts this weekend. I need to catch up some bills, emails…haven’t seen Ratatouille yet, which we will rectify tonight!
by Jason Joyner | Jul 5, 2007 | Blog, miscellaneous, movies
Whew.
I forgot to post that I was going to be on a little vacation (though maybe that is a good thing-I had visions of people searching the net for people posting that their house was basically up for grabs). Pulled in today hot, tired, and ready for a vacation from vacation. Thankfully I still have my normal weekend.
Anyway, just a quick note to say that regular programming will resume with some special posts this weekend. I need to catch up some bills, emails…haven’t seen Ratatouille yet, which we will rectify tonight!
