Final Exams, Vendettas, and Sheep.

I'm not sure if the time is given along with the date of this post's publication, but it is currently almost 10:45 P.M.on  Monday night. I say this because it is the beginning of finals weeks here at my college and my exams begin tomorrow. My schedule says I have four finals out of my five classes, but I do not believe this is actually the case. My music professor stated that there was no final for the class and that all dated times are false, and no one has heard confirmation of a final from my English 101 professor for quite sometime now. In fact, no word has been heard from her at all. I don't mean to cause any alarm, for I'm sure she is busy in her own affairs, but if my suspicions are correct, I will only have two finals for the entire week. Of course, both of these classes are required general education and are proportionally unrelated to my major. Still, I am anxious to finish them.

During the week of Thanksgiving, I was contacted by a representative of a satirical newspaper company called the Black Sheep which I had sent an application into a few weeks earlier. The representative, who I believe labeled himself as Human Resource Manager, although I could be mistaken, asked if he could call me at some point during the next week to interview me for a writer's position. I accepted and awaited until last Tuesday, when the interview was scheduled for that afternoon and I realized I was woefully unprepared. I spent the day doing research on proper over-the-phone interview etiquette and studied possible questions he may ask. I was also in the midst of juggling several projects due within the week, so it turned out to be a chaotic day for me. I equated around three hours of research time devoted to readying myself for the interview. At a half hour before my interview, I realized I needed to find a proper, quiet place to have this interview. I ended up sitting in the hallway next to a set of elevators with study lounges on either side that were either too loud or so quiet that I wished not to disturb them.

When the clock struck five'o'clock, my cellphone rang. As expected, it was the representative. I picked up the phone and answered, mentally preparing myself for a field of interaction I was unskilled and under-experienced in. I had only had one other interview before that one and I was dressed in a Metallica t-shirt and ripped jeans. (I ended up acquiring the job, but that's besides the point.) When I answered, he answered back, and quickly explained that this "interview" was comprised of simply reading off the list of responsibilities that a potential writer would have working for this newspaper. The entire interaction lasted no more than seven minutes, ending with him giving me an assignment to do before I officially received the job. I thanked him and we both hung up. I sat with my pages of notes in front of me out of breath and starving. Hours of preparation for seven minutes of listening. I began laughing, then went to have some dinner.

Over the weekend, I read Alan Moore and David Lloyd's V for Vendetta, which I enjoyed very much. It was an interesting commentary on fascist ruling and the culture and idealism of anarchy. I've come to really enjoy Moore's work, and even though I fancy Watchmen more, it is hard to deny both of their insightful and thought-provoking content. The artwork was also very dark and intriguing, fitting the mood and story well. While my thoughts are a little jumbled at the approach of finals and therefore momentarily crippled in an attempt to accurately and intelligently analyze and review the graphic novel, I can give my full recommendation to anyone who has not yet read it. That pretty much sums up the last few weeks and now come finals. Perhaps it is customary to leave with a quote relevant to finals and the theme of hours of research. “Knowledge, like air, is vital to life. Like air, no one should be denied it.” Maybe a little too formal and heavy in this setting, but the words still ring true all the same.

A Recap of Life

In the midst of working on a paper of a heavy metal anthology, I have made the decision that this blog post is more important to me and my grade can wait.  For those of you reading, please feel flattered.

This post serves no more purpose then to give me an outlet to write something down, a craving I've had for a few days now.  I would be lying if I said I came here on free will.  In truth, I have just returned from a showing of the film Life Itself, chronicling the life of influential film critic Robert Ebert up to his recent death.  The film was very well done, and emotional in a way that invigorated me into a desire to create, which is a feeling I try to cherish very deeply and more times than not end up allowing to slip by.  Whether this post will grow into more, I am unsure but hopeful.  I wish to use this blog as an outlet for my day-to-day thoughts and directions.  It will also serve as a place to post my different written works of poetry, short fiction, essays, etc.  Is this productive?  The big picture suggests no, but my fingers currently typing these words say yes.  I have neglected this blog and many others.  I have gotten tired of writing posts that claim a rebirth of this specific medium, so I will not make such a declaration.  Instead, I will leave before making a conclusion in the hopes that it will open the door to a new experience for me.  Teachings of responsibility while simultaneously surrounding myself in text.  The future of this blog is unclear, and based on past experience quite dark, but along with this open-ended paragraph, I myself will keep an open mind.

To the Lovely Girl in the Window

It strikes me as surprising how I’ve never noticed

The gloomy shadows of this dark neighborhood

Until I discovered the warm summer’s light

From the window where she stood.

During a casual, nightly drive,

I took nothing more than a glance

And in that moment, to see you there

In your beauty, and your brilliance

To spend an infinity in mere seconds

When my modest peek turned into a longing stare

As I saw all I needed in my life

Standing at the window, combing her hair.

Her eyes drifted out into the night

Oh, how the urgency rose in my to catch them

To pluck her vision and keep it close

I would treasure her attention like a valuable gem.

“Do not judge a book by it’s cover,”

Is a relatively flawed and dated phrase

For in that moment, I felt as if

I had read her entire story, page to page.

Perhaps, if only out of desperation

The only end I could possibly see

To this plotline that she has beautifully crafted

Would be to end it with me.

But, as forever drew to a close

And reality continued its forward motion

I realized the flaw of my captivating fantasy

And the foolishness of my lovesick notion.

Because it wasn’t until my vision of her was broken

That I realized, to her, I was nothing.

I wish I could say I saw her again

But sadly, I would be bluffing.

To her, I was simply another, aimless soul.

Traveling through a nightly void of nonexistent dreams

A background piece for her own life story

A speck of dust on her life’s support beams

Obvious, I know, that I wanted more

There was only so much I could’ve taken

It is best to move with the flow of time

Instead of deeming my heart a forsaken

So I move ahead with her tucked away

In the recesses of my mind’s eye

Since I couldn’t say it then, I might as well say it now

To the lovely girl in the window, good-bye.

A Sort Of, Not Really Review - Godzilla

I love Godzilla.  Simple as that.  And for years I’ve always entertained the idea of a Godzilla movie that was both serious and dark.  As much as I enjoyed the cheesy dialogue and large-scale battles in rubber suits of the originals, I thought that, especially with what CGI could do these days, a new Godzilla would be perfect.  Then, to my delight, rumors of this movie began to surface on the internet.  When the first trailer was released, I could feel my body melt with excitement.  So yes, I will have to admit, that when I went to see the movie, I was excited for nostalgic purposes and had a small list of things that I wanted to see in this movie.

Going into the theater, I had little to no idea of what to expect.  The trailers have done a fantastic job of giving off suspense without giving away any crucial information.  I’ll also have to admit that some of the lackluster parts of the trailers, in my opinion, were a lot more dramatic and interesting within the movie itself.  When it finished, and the house lights went up, my friends all gathered to rave about the movie.  When asked what I thought of this iteration, I said, “I loved it! …Buuuut…”

Ok, so plot.  Not that I want to give much of it away, since a large part of the fun of this movie is in the secrecy of it all.  Basically, a father (played by Brian Cranston of Breaking Bad fame) loses his wife in some sort of calamity in a nuclear power plant in Japan.  Fifteen years later, he is convinced that whatever caused the fall of the power plant is happening again.  He calls on his son, played by Aaron Taylor-Johnson of “Kick-Ass” fame, to help him prove that he is right.  I’m going to stop there, for if I say anymore, I will end up spoiling some of the larger events of the film.

As far as acting goes, everyone does pretty well, I guess.  Any time Cranston is on screen, though, I am immediately invested in what is going on.  He is involved in some pretty emotional scenes, and he does wonders. Its amazing to watch him break down when losing his wife, to see the torment in his eyes.  However, he isn’t really in the movie as much as the trailers may have depicted, making his role seem pointless other than to say that they have the Breaking Bad star in their monster movie.  Johnson does an alright job as the lead, but his character seems emotionless though a majority of it.  One can argue that he is caught up in the intensity in the moment, and I would agree with you, but that still doesn’t mean he has to deliver a slightly underwhelming performance.  Still, though, he wasn’t awful, and he portrayed the character well.  I could talk more of the actors, but its these two that stand out the most.  The supporting cast does well with their rolls, but nothing special or surprising.  Ken Watanabe plays a scientist who researches the disruptions caused by these monsters, and every time he is on screen, he always has the same, shocked expression on his face, like he just learned that his daughter died, but throughout the movie.  It becomes a little too dramatic for my taste.  Elizabeth Olson plays Johnson’s wife, but she isn’t really focused on except in a few scenes here and there to remind you that she is still in the story.  She shines in some emotional scenes, but overall she delivers sort of a bland performance.  There was one line in particular that I thought she could have delivered much better, but I’m nitpicking now.  

Lets move on to the star: Godzilla himself.  If there is anything you should take away from this movie, its Godzilla.  He looks incredible in the film, and every time he is on screen, I am floored by how he moves and acts and handles himself.  The creators captured his enormous and intimidating structure wonderfully, and I couldn’t take my eyes off of him.  Unfortunately, like Cranston, Godzilla really isn’t in the film as much either.  Half the time, he is swimming through the ocean while the military follow him.  You really only see him in his full glory a small handful of times in this movie.  I understand that the creators don’t want to mainly focus on him as to not run down his welcome, but he seems more like a side character then the main focus.  Which brings me to another point.  This movie focuses a lot on the humans.  Which, in itself, is fine.  Its interesting to see people in the middle of this turmoil.  Yet, when I go to see a Godzilla movie, I expect to see, well, Godzilla, kicking monster ass and wrecking cities.  Yes, there is some of that in here, but not enough to keep one satisfied for long.  There are many times where they lead up to a large fight scene between Godzilla and another monster (we will get to the other monsters in a bit), but then are suddenly hinted at and wiped away with little mention of it.  Its frustrating and underwhelming.  When Godzilla is finally revealed (after being teased A TON) they cut to him for a few seconds, then cut away to a completely different scene, skipping his fight completely.  Its choppy, and disappointing.  Other would argue that this is to show more of the human side, and I agree, but again, this is a Godzilla movie.  Not Cloverfield.  Maybe I’m being a little too blinded by nostalgia to appreciate it, but its just how I view it.

Now yes, Godzilla does in fact fight other monsters in this film.  I don’t want to talk about them much, for their reveal is amazing.  For right now, I will just say that their designs are actually really impressive. They are large and intimidating, and are able to look modern while still looking like a suitable monster to fight Godzilla.  I could see some inspiration from Cloverfield (I apologize for going back to it again, its just the only other monster movie other than Pacific Rim that I can go back to) but that is not a complaint.  If anything, its an improvement.

Now, I have talked on how the fights were teased and then glazed over, and while this is still true, there really is only one major fight scene at the end.  This is what the entire movie has been leading up to,and when it arrives, there is a lot to expect.  Does is deliver? For the most part, yes.  Godzilla is seen at him prime, struggling with the monsters, but also showing he has the strength to fight them off.  Some of his actions are so well executed that it really got my adrenaline pumping.  This was what I wanted to see from a modern day Godzilla movie.  Monster fights in brilliant CGI.  Now, one could say that Pacific Rim delivered this already, and in a larger quantity, and yes, they did.  But Godzilla’s atmosphere was dark and serious, lowering the volume in some parts to focus more on the monsters than relying on music to carry the scene.  Yes, the soundtrack was very good, and well timed at some places, but it was the moments with near silence that was suddenly broken by Godzilla’s roar that really stood out. Now, although the climax was large and a joy to watch, it wasn’t perfect.  It kept cutting back to the humans, who were developing their own plot, which was interesting, yes, but I was way more interesting in the battles than I was how the humans were doing.  It ended up sort of killing the mood in some spots.  Again, not that the human’s plot wasn’t interesting.  But when you compare it to the one scene that the movie has been building up to since the very beginning, it becomes annoying very quickly.  But when the monsters are on screen, it is truly amazing to watch as they throw themselves around the city and demolish everything in their path.  Again, I really don’t want to give too much away, but if you were considering watching this movie but wasn’t sure, then watch it solely for the ending, for that is where the movie shines the brightest.

Overall, I really enjoyed the movie.  On top of everything else, there were some consistency issues that I really had to question, but the monsters as well as the cinematography and overall atmosphere carried the movie into something memorable.  If you havn’t yet, go see this movie, even if you aren’t familiar with the original Godzilla movies.  Actually, you might enjoy it more.  Since I grew up with Godzilla, I went into the theater with a preconceived notion of what I wanted and what I didn’t  want.  However, my friends, who knew little to nothing about Godzilla and just wanted to see the movie for the action, liked the movie for some of the reasons that I complained about.  So, it may just be my nostalgic view of the franchise that’s keeping me from seeing the true beauty of this movie, but I still really loved this film (way more than Pacific Rim, thank you very much) and I will likely see it again.