Chick 1 says:
It’s time to give you a little help with all these tropes I’ve been dishing out so this week we will discuss How To Deal With Tropes. Because, let’s face it, learning about tropes can really screw with your ability to enjoy a movie or tv show. You start realizing that almost everything is a trope and suddenly everything seems cliched and you can tell the entire plot of a movie from the trailer.
It’s OK. You can move past this. And the MST3K Mantra can help. Read more
Chick 1 says:
Whether you live or die in a movie or TV show depends on how secure your contract is. But if you’ve been signed on for the sequel or the next season, then any medical emergency can easily, though dramatically, be solved through CPR!
In the real world, CPR stands for Cardiopulminary Resuscitation. But in trope world it stands for Clean, Pretty, and Reliable. What’s the difference? In real life, CPR is an emergency procedure used to buy time for a victim until more advanced treatment can be given. If someone’s heart and/or breathing stop then brain damage and tissue death can set in fairly quickly. CPR gets the blood and oxygen flowing in an attempt to delay the damage until the patient can be revived. But CPR alone usually does not revive the patient. But not so in Hollywood! Read more
Chick 1 says:
What does this week’s trope have in common with your crazy Uncle Irwin? Both wear a lampshade! The trope this week is a trope about tropes. Confused yet? Then let’s learn about Lampshade Hanging.
Lampshade Hanging is sometimes used when a particular trope is glaringly obvious and threatens to distract from the story. A trope is standing in the middle of the room in all it’s naked glory and the writer thinks that if he puts a lampshade on it, the audience will simply think it’s part of the scenery. How does he do this? By addressing the trope directly and calling it out. Does it work? If done correctly it does. Read more
Chick 1 says:
A slew of interesting trailers came out last week. It looks like the fall will be exciting!
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy: Based on the 1974 novel, this film is packed with British acting heavyweights. The movie looks tense and tightly put together but I’ll be going mostly because of the amazing cast. Opens November 18th.
Chick 1 says:
In case you didn’t know, they are currently filming J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit in New Zealand. After several years of pre-production woes, lawsuits, and a revolving door of directors, filming finally started in March. Peter Jackson, who was originally slated as producer, is directing. All is well with the world. The man who spent more than a decade bringing The Lord of the Rings Trilogy to the screen should be in charge of its prequel. The Lord of the Rings had a huge impact on me creatively, spiritually, and in many other ways. The commitment, passion, craftsmanship, and excellence poured into that story is inspiring. And it appears the same care is being taken with The Hobbit. As proof, I offer this squeal-inducing video published on The Hobbit Blog a few months ago which you can watch here.
I’m happy to report that a huge number of the original cast are returning, at least appropriate cast. Read more
Chick 1 says:
I’ve occasionally stumbled across Ted Talks on MentalFloss.com but I’ve never really had the time to explore them. Yesterday I discovered this 20 minute manic and somewhat scattered speech by Lost & Alias creater, JJ Abrams. While I do wish he had gone a little deeper into the topics, I appreciate his perspective on mystery & what good “action” movies are really about. His thoughts reveal why he is such a successful writer and director. Enjoy.
