Friday, May 18, 2012

Ghost World

I didn't plan this to come out at the same time that Scarlett Johansson is appearing in The Avengers in theaters, but it is a fun coincidence to pay tribute to one of her earlier films right now.

This was my first attempt at scripting the review first.  I hope to get some better recording equipment so that the sound and video aren't so wonky in future reviews.  Regardless, I hope you enjoy it.


6 comments:

  1. OMG, I've never seen a video of you! You cut your hair.

    And yes, some get it, some don't. I got it, it leaves Martin dead cold. And as an art student, yes, it's spot on in how ridiculous some artists are. I do wish the film wasn't so dark, though. It's brilliant, but it's so negative about people.

    Did you know I made a big pile of Ghost World icons, back when I was starting icon making? They're pretty basic, though.

    http://www.relaxorium.com/roy/ghostworld.html

    Love the shirt, BTW.

    Yeah, Martin thinks it's slow, too. But it's so easy for a lot of us females to really associate with Enid. I wanted more from the ending, too. I got the ending, though, and I'm not sure Martin really did. I don't see it as a suicide ending, either, I agree that she ended up happy somewhere else.

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  2. If you click the video tag on here you can see some more videos, mostly me talking about my X-men collection and Beastie Boys stuff. They're unscripted so they get a bit long winded, but if you're curious... :) And yeah, I really like this haircut but all attempts to take a picture of myself with it have turned out awful, so I hadn't posted any yet.

    One of Jak's friends recently watched it and said he couldn't entirely get into it because he was never a teenage girl, and I think that says a lot about it. Though it's interesting that the comic was written by a man and the film was directed by a man.

    I feel like I've seen at least a few of those icons before.

    Which shirt? :) I changed them each time I talk about Enid changing direction and wanting something different.

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  3. First of all... This is less of a criticism and more of a technical comment. Some of your cuts are a bit rough and jumpy. If you like, I can go through every video and point out every instance this happens. Like I said, it's not a major thing - just something you might want to work on a bit more in your next review.

    But as for the review itself, I liked it. You did a good job of summarizing the movie's high points and explaining why it appealed to you. The personal recollections made the review all the more entertaining. I appreciated the fact that you separated the spoiler from the less spoilery bit (though it did make for a bit of an abrupt ending).

    And, as somebody who's read the comic and watched the movie, I don't think you have to be female to get into it. I might not identify with Enid the way you did, but I've known girls like that, and I can relate to many things she experienced. So I guess you can say guys can get into it - just in a somewhat different way.

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  4. Trust me, you don't have to point out the rough cuts. I know exactly where they are and I hate every one of them. Part of it is my fault as I need to do a better job of either sitting still or saying my lines in one take, and the rest of it is the limitations of iMovieHD. I plan on downloading the trial of Final Cut Pro for my next review to see if that helps me get more precise cuts in the videos. And you know, just learning my lines better. :)

    The abrupt ending is another thing that bugged me, but I also didn't know what else to add to it thanks to the recommendation I had already included earlier. Hopefully the more I do these I'll think up proper intros and exits in order to keep a better flow.

    I personally don't think there's anything particularly feminine about what Enid experiences. It's pretty clear that she is so attracted to Seymour because he's the grown up version of how she feels right then, and while a teenage boy might not have changed his look quite as much as she does, a guy could certainly feel that struggle of not really belonging anywhere or being uncertain where they are going in life. However I would say that Enid and Rebecca definitely talk in a very girly manner, and I'm guessing some guys who watch the film have a harder time getting past that.

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  5. I can't believe I haven't given you an official thumbs-up on this yet! A solid first attempt, and I agree - I'd have totally slept with Steve Buscemi too.

    Because it was a topic of discussion, I thought most of the jump cuts were part of the style. They blend together fairly well.

    My only advice concerns the lighting. Put a lamp or some light source behind the camera so you stand out against the background and your face isn't lost to shadows. :)

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  6. Thank you! And LOL :)

    I think at least a few jump cuts are expected in these kind of videos, but I definitely would like to decrease them going forward.

    Excellent point about the light. I moved away from my old filming spot (the kitchen table) because it was visually uninteresting, but my office is definitely much more dim. I'm going to have to figure out if I want to dress up the old space or brighten up the new one before I record again.

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