Monthly Archives: April 2014

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This week in history: 12th April – 18th April

Audrey Hepburn in a black and white still from Breakfast at Tiffany's.

 

A black and white image of Barbara Streisand

Image via IMDB

Katharine Hepburn and Barbara Streisand tie for Best Actress Oscar. At the 41st annual academy awards in 1969 were televised live for the first time worldwide, Ingrid Bergman proclaimed “It’s a tie!” upon opening the envelope for Best Actress in a Leading Role. The award went to both Katharine Hepburn, for her turn as Eleanor of Aquitaine in The Lion in Winter, and Barbra Streisand, for her debut performance in Funny Girl.

New sound process for films was announced this week in 1926. Western Electric, the manufacturing arm of the American Telephone and Telegraph company (AT&T), and the Warner Brothers film studio officially introduce Vitaphone, a new process that will enable the addition of sound to film. Vitaphone debuted in August 1926 with the costume drama Don Juan, starring John Barrymore and featuring an orchestral score by the New York Philharmonic.

On April 12th 1914 the first movie ‘Palace’, (cinema) opened in New York City. Before 1914 movie makers would often showcase their creations behind storefronts, known as ‘nickelodeons’. This palace, known as ‘The Strand’ seated an impressive 3,000 people and featured a second storey viewing area. Another ‘first’ seen at The Strand was a two-storey rotunda where movie-goers would socialise before and after the presentation and during the intermission.

 

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Godzilla, a retrospective

Image shows the movie monster Godzilla fighting famous ape, King Kong
Image shows the movie monster Godzilla fighting famous ape, King Kong

Image via: nukethefridge.com

Godzilla has been a part of film for many years, terrorising cities and fighting Kaiju since 1954. The king of monsters is set to be a part of the big screen again with this years remake but, how did Godzilla actually come to be who he is today?

Godzilla (the English translation of Gojira) is the creation of Japenese film director, Ishiro Honda. Inspired by early clay animation dinosaur films such as The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, Godzilla was created as a cross between an iguana and a dinosaur. Thankfully, there was no such dinosaur as Godzilla, that we know of.

The first film, Godzilla, started the introduction of the ‘big monster’ film franchise, something that films such as Cloverfield owe themselves to. This film introduced Japanese audiences to the threat of a monster created as a result of atomic testing. Godzilla stresses that atomic testing may result in Kaiju such as the monster itself, lets hope not.

The subsequent sequels delivered on the success of the first film introducing new monsters and threats such as Mothra, a ruddy great big moth of death. These sequels largely saw Godzilla as a hero of the world (Japan in particular) fighting off monsters that threatened humanity.

Typically, the later the franchise went, the weirder and more surreal the Godzilla movies became. The most recent iterations saw the introduction of Mechagodzilla, Godzilla’s mechanised counterpart.The concepts and ideas of these later films are still no match for the Western introduction in 1998.

Godzilla (1998) was directed by Rolan Ememrich, famous for is action packed disaster films. The remake was criticised by fans and critics alike describing the movie as being nothing buit action, with very little story. Godzilla won accolades such as Worst Picture, Worst Remake and Worst Director at the Golden Raspberry Awards that year. It looked like the films just didn’t translate well to Western audiences.

There is a new hope however, in the form of yet another remake. Next month sees the release of Godzilla, directed by Gareth Edwards of Monsters fame. Looking to cater for Japenese audiences, sticking to the original roots of the monster, the film looks set do very well at the box office. Do you think this is a new era for Godzilla? See for yourself with the trailer below.

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Would you still enjoy the film if you couldn’t see the screen?

Image shows actors, harrison ford, carrie fisher and mark hamill on the set of star wars. The image is blurred.
Image shows actors, harrison ford, carrie fisher and mark hamill on the set of star wars. The image is blurred.

Image via: disney.wikia.com

Can you recognise the film scene above?

For most people, the biggest worry at the cinema is how much that large bag of popcorn costs. For others however, there are more things to worry about when going to see the latest movie.

Not all movie fans have the ability to enjoy films the same as everyone else. Imagine trying to watch a film you couldn’t see or hear.

Many movie goers are in fact blind, deaf or on the autistic spectrum. Whilst at first you may think that this would hinder the movie going experience, more and more cinemas are recognising these problems and catering for a wider audience. Cinemas such as Odeon provide guests with special accessibility screenings for those who are blind, deaf or autistic.

Many films screened at Odeon provide film fans with a separate audio track for those who are blind or partially sighted. Aspects of the film such as scene surroundings, setting, body language of the actor and dialogue are described to the guest. This audio commentary is available at the box office of the cinema, with the headset being used during the showing.

The recent trend of 3D films has meant that some film fans can’t get the full experience as many sight issues mean the guest can’t see 3D cinematography.. As a result, the cinema aims to provide guests with 2D performances where possible. Guide dogs are also welcome in all cinemas.

For customers with a visual impairment, Odeon offers audio descriptive showings of recent films at your local cinema. Whilst there may not be many showing in comparison to standard showings, this is certainly welcome. Odeon also offers some captioned, subtitled performances for those with a hearing impairment. They also offer use of a headset to improve your hearing of the film soundtrack itself.

A standard showing of a recent film can certainly be a challenge for movie goers who are autistic. In recent years however, many cinemas have started showing autism friendly screenings, specific for those on the autism spectrum. Odeon for example, host an autism friendly screening one Sunday each month at 11.30 am. These showings have certain changes within the performance, lights at a lower level, lower sound level, no advertisements and allowances for movement and noise within the theatre.

These screenings are partnered with Dimensions, a non-profit organisation supporting services for people with learning disabilities and autism. The aim with these screenings is to make guests feel as comfortable as possible, with the hope that in time, they would be able to attend a standard screening.

Whilst there is still some work to be done in order to ensure every guest has the same experience at the cinema, these are certainly some advancements that are welcome and is a step in the right direction. In time, everyone will be able to have an enjoyable experience at the local cinema.

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Events, Offers and Releases 07/04/14

Image shows a still from the upcoming animated movie, Rio 2. The still shows 5 blue birds sitting together as a family in the jungle.
Image shows a still from the upcoming animated movie, Rio 2. The still shows 5 blue birds sitting together as a family in the jungle.

Image via: uiconstock.com

The main movie release this week is the eagerly anticipated dancing animation sequel, Rio 2 on April 11th. Jewel and Blu are now happily settled down since the events of the first film and have 3 children. They decided however, that they wish to move to the Amazon, quite the trip from Rio de Janeiro. Nigel the Cockatoo is back, seeking revenge! This is definitely something for the kids (and maybe a few adults too!)

If you’re looking for something a bit more spooky, Oculus has you covered. A family with a dark and disturbing history, decide to find out just how 2 members of their family died. Convinced it was a supernatural force, the family find out that some things are just left alone. Critics are already raving about this film and it’s certainly set to scare the heck out of you on April 11th.

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The Death of Brandon Lee: One of Films Most Tragic Moments

March 31st 1993 will forever remain one of the saddest days in modern film history. 52 days into a 60 day shoot, Brandon Lee, son of the late martial arts expert Bruce Lee, was tragically shot and killed during the filming of the supernatural action film, The Crow.

As did his father (Enter the Dragon 1973), Lee never lived to see the release of his most successful work. However, also like his father, mystery and suspicion surrounding the actor’s death will forever immortalise Brandon Lee in movie folklore.

Young Brandon Lee with father Bruce. image via es.wikipedia.org

Young Brandon Lee with father Bruce.
image via es.wikipedia.org

On April 1st 1993, the Los Angeles Times reported “Actor Brandon Lee, the 28-year-old son of the late Kung Fu star Bruce Lee, was killed Wednesday after a small explosive charge used to simulate gunfire went off inside a grocery bag during filming on a movie set in Wilmington, N.C.”

However, the article later states that “it is still unclear whether the projectile came from the gun or the grocery bag or both. “When the other actor fired a shot, the explosive charge went off inside the bag,” said Wilmington police Officer Michael Overton. “After that, we don’t know what happened.”

Although admitting the case was still under investigation, Wilmington Police announced that they were treating the incident as an accident, yet many fans suspected foul play. After suspicion surrounding the cause of Bruce’s death from an apparent reaction to painkillers in 1973, many were sceptical about the causality of Brandon’s fatal last scene.

The unfinished 1973 martial arts film Game of Death, starring Bruce Lee, provides even more spooky coincidences that further fuelled the fire of many conspiracy theorists, as Lee’s character is shot in similar circumstances to his real life son, although he does return to take revenge.

So how did this tragic event really occur? In the scene, Lee is supposed to have been shot by thugs as he walks into his apartment to find his girlfriend being raped. It is believed that due to increasing time restraints, the decision was made to use dummy cartridges in the prop weaponry, which appear functional, yet contain no gun-powder.

The empties would be made from real cartridges, a responsibility handed to effects technician Bruce Merlin. To do this, Merlin, assisted by prop master Daniel Kuttner, would dismantle the live cartridges by removing the bullets, emptying all contained gun-powder, detonating the primer (a device for igniting the powder charge in a modern cartridge of centerfire ammunition) and then re-assembling the cartridge.

During preparation, Merlin and Kuttner tested the gun that would be used in scene by using a cartridge containing only a primer and a bullet with no gun-powder, which caused the bullet to become lodged into the forcing cone of the gun. When it came to shooting the scene, the live bullet remained in the barrel, which was then propelled out by the explosion from a blank cartridge, fatally injuring Lee in the process, as the cameras rolled.

Lee was pronounced dead at 1.04pm. After being buried next to his father in Washington, footage capturing Lee’s death was destroyed before ever being developed. Released in 1994, The Crow became a box office smash and is now regarded as a cult classic.