Beowulf - Looks like an XBox game. Not even a CGI Angelina could coax me into the theater.
The Golden Compass - "Hey Kids! You drooled over that tripe that was 'Narnia'! You'll love this!" Ick - looks more like 'The Neverending Story 3' starring Jack Black.
Well, I'm not bothering with "Beowulf", but will be going to see "Golden Compass". I've read several of those books, and believe those stories got short-shrift because of Potter-mania that swamped them. I enjoyed the plot, so I'm looking forward to seeing the treatment it's been given. Yeah, it could be crappy like "Narnia" (I much prefer the old animated versions of those. Anyone recall those?), but I'm willing to risk it.
To be fair, it doesn't necessarily look as if they are going to Disneyfy 'The Golden Compass' (as soon as I see a 'PG'-rating, I am SO tuned out). If it garners some decent word of mouth, then maybe I'll see of it.
But BD, you're right, I liked the cheap animated version of 'Narnia' better as well.
I will not be seeing Golden Compass. As much as I don't enjoy these types of movies, the fact that the books are about killing God and turning children into aethiest is enough to keep my out of the theater.
'Killing God'? Really? REALLY?! Listen, Chachi, I don't need the friggin' Golden Compass to tell me that, the Kids in the Hall already got that covered:
See, that's the thing. While you can read all of the leftist, liberal, "let's kill religion" symbolism into a lot of fiction you do or don't want to, I tend to put that aside in some of these cases.
I saw "Narnia" as being hugely, scarily pro-Christian. The books themselves, originally, were not written in an attempt to bully children into conformity or into one faith. Like a lot of Lewis' writings, they were very cleverly written arguments in support of his particular faith.
If you sense that a film or a book has this hidden, deeper meaning that you don't ascribe to, then by all means you shouldn't be forced to see it. I don't think films that contain a certain "message" can be criticized for the message itself, necessarily.
I have to agree. And sometimes people don't even recognize the hidden meanings and themes under the surface. I mean, if people really understood that Chachi was supposed to be a guiding Christ-like figure, and Joanie represented us, the mere humans, I think the show would have attracted a larger audience. Fortunately, some people got these same religious references that Scott Baio pulled off in "Charles in Charge" (of course, here he wasn't being merely 'Christ-like', but actually rather God-like) which resulted in a much longer run and even re-run syndication.
Whether you agree with the underlying religious themes or not, I think that giving Chachi another chance on the big screen is going to be, if nothing else, interesting, and it will be a nice wrap-up for the Gibson trilogy of Passion-Apocolypto-Chachi. Both Gibson and Baio, regardless of their personal mistakes, are artists of the highest caliber, whether you agree with them or not.
Did Chachi really love Joanie or did we simply fool ourselves into thinking this? It is a question that I think has haunted philosophers & even simple folk through the decades.
As for Apocalypto - fucking kick ass movie. Loved it.
I saw Beowulf in IMAX 3d and was very surprised at how much I enjoyed it (except for the icky parts). My boyfriend had read a review that said if you are going to see it, 3d was the way to go and I agree. Angie was nipple-less, which was weird, she was still hot, even without the nipples.
Only good thing about Beowulf- Angelina Jolie. Holy crap. I haven't had a boner like that from a cartoon since Cheetara from Thundecats. (Just kidding.)
