etherealtouch
Joined Jan 2019
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Ratings19
etherealtouch's rating
Reviews12
etherealtouch's rating
I should put out a disclaimer that I generally don't care for illumination movies. Dreamworks and Pixar truly paved the way for quality 3d animated flicks for kids and set the bar fairly high. Illumination, while not terrible, always felt like it was playing catch-up and emulating its cinematic predecessors with lukewarm success.
I was initially wary as the movie really seemed to embrace the "zeitgeist" of the modern music industry "top 40" offerings, but, Sing is the first movie where it truly seems as if they "got it". It has its own issues and isn't perfect... But what it DID get right, is far more significant than what it got wrong.
The way the story is put on display from a circulating perspective around the main character (Buster) is done in a classic "hub and spoke" fashion. This generally shouldn't be considered remarkable as many movies, for quite a while now, have used this approach. Sing just pulls it off incredibly well. The way they've decided to interweave all the characters and their respective circumstances was creative and interesting.
The movie also pulls at the heartstrings gracefully. It doesn't feel cheap. There's some real thought that went into this in order to engage the viewer. Over the course of the last few years I have watched this movie 4 times now (with healthy breaks in-between), and each time, without fail, my eyes get misty at certain parts.
The subject matter this movie delves into is complex, but it tries to approach it gingerly. There's too much fluff in some moments, but the primary focus NEVER shifts away from the meat of the matter. I am glad to see that the studio has remained consistent with this with Sing 2 as well.
I could keep extolling this movie's strengths but it really all boils down to 3 things:
There are little details that you will catch on your second or third re-watch that'll make you appreciate it more. This is generally true of many movies- but here the way it's presented is very subtle.
I will continue to re-watch this periodically as it honestly surprised me.
I was initially wary as the movie really seemed to embrace the "zeitgeist" of the modern music industry "top 40" offerings, but, Sing is the first movie where it truly seems as if they "got it". It has its own issues and isn't perfect... But what it DID get right, is far more significant than what it got wrong.
The way the story is put on display from a circulating perspective around the main character (Buster) is done in a classic "hub and spoke" fashion. This generally shouldn't be considered remarkable as many movies, for quite a while now, have used this approach. Sing just pulls it off incredibly well. The way they've decided to interweave all the characters and their respective circumstances was creative and interesting.
The movie also pulls at the heartstrings gracefully. It doesn't feel cheap. There's some real thought that went into this in order to engage the viewer. Over the course of the last few years I have watched this movie 4 times now (with healthy breaks in-between), and each time, without fail, my eyes get misty at certain parts.
The subject matter this movie delves into is complex, but it tries to approach it gingerly. There's too much fluff in some moments, but the primary focus NEVER shifts away from the meat of the matter. I am glad to see that the studio has remained consistent with this with Sing 2 as well.
I could keep extolling this movie's strengths but it really all boils down to 3 things:
- The characters and their happenstance are relatable and not overly simplified
- Leading in from the previous point, the movie seems to respect the viewer
- The thematic through-line from beginning to end is subtle, and not hamfisted
There are little details that you will catch on your second or third re-watch that'll make you appreciate it more. This is generally true of many movies- but here the way it's presented is very subtle.
I will continue to re-watch this periodically as it honestly surprised me.
Have you ever watched a show with an absolutely stellar first season, that either quickly derails (not because of hamfisted messaging that gets stuffed into just about everything nowadays) a couple of seasons in and limps along going forward?
This movie suffers from the same thing, so to speak. Some TV shows are written with either only one season in mind, or so much of the "secret sauce" that made the writers/creators so excited didn't spill over and distribute evenly across the board.
Vesper had a lot of interesting things on display, both conceptually and visually, but suffered from bizarre writing. Namely the way the stakes in the movie's universe are presented, the baffling choices the characters make, and an ending that truly feels like you've been punched in the gut after an hour and a half of talking to someone that kept your interest from waning until the last 30 minutes.
While I enjoy movies that respect their audience and expect them to put the pieces together, this falls into the "oops, the jigsaw puzzle is missing half the pieces" category. The way that some of the components of the plot are explored are great- while others frankly fall flat on their face and end up both confusing and disappointing the viewer after attempting to garner emotional investment.
I'm not sure if this was the by-product of an attempt to introduce a modicum of mystery... But it was neither a modicum or, true mystery. You're just left hanging.
This movie suffers from the same thing, so to speak. Some TV shows are written with either only one season in mind, or so much of the "secret sauce" that made the writers/creators so excited didn't spill over and distribute evenly across the board.
Vesper had a lot of interesting things on display, both conceptually and visually, but suffered from bizarre writing. Namely the way the stakes in the movie's universe are presented, the baffling choices the characters make, and an ending that truly feels like you've been punched in the gut after an hour and a half of talking to someone that kept your interest from waning until the last 30 minutes.
While I enjoy movies that respect their audience and expect them to put the pieces together, this falls into the "oops, the jigsaw puzzle is missing half the pieces" category. The way that some of the components of the plot are explored are great- while others frankly fall flat on their face and end up both confusing and disappointing the viewer after attempting to garner emotional investment.
I'm not sure if this was the by-product of an attempt to introduce a modicum of mystery... But it was neither a modicum or, true mystery. You're just left hanging.