So Nate and I watched “An American Tail: Fievel Goes West” on Valentine’s Day…
And I haven’t been able to get the soundtrack out of my head ever since. It’s probably because the soundtrack was done by James Horner, who was one of the best orchestrator of film scores ever (he did Apollo 13 and Titanic which are both good movies made INFINITELY BETTER by their soundtracks).
So I had to buy the whole freaking soundtrack on iTunes ‘cause I needed it. I was listening to it while walking the other day and heard the “Cat Rumble” track.
Listen to it. Does it sound really familiar?
Why?
Perhaps you’ve seen the title sequence to “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids.”
Was this James Horner, too? Yup (1:43).
I already mentioned this one on here a while back (like a year and a half ago? I dunno, man, time makes no sense anymore), but I love how Horner used Aaron Copland’s “Hoedown” as a base for the “In Training” song.
Finally, I’d forgotten how much I liked the “Way Out West” scene:
I distinctly remember this as being one of the first movies I saw where I really connected with the music. I mean, I think I’ve always been attuned to the music in all movies/TV, but this was one where I was like holy crap the music is so freaking good and adds so much!
Triplet
Does anyone else remember this super artsy movie?
This odd little movie was something I first watched back in high school. In 10th grade, I had to get a few* EEGs done due to a weird blackout thing I had during English class one day. They were testing me for some sort of epilepsy or something and I had to be sleep deprived for it, which meant staying awake for 24 hours before the test.
Somebody (a neighbor? One of my mom’s friends? I don’t remember) knew that I had to do this, so they bought me a few movies to watch to help pass the time. One of them was Triplets.
I love the exaggerated style of the characters and how there’s very little dialogue. The music is fantastic, too. Give it a watch if you can find it!
*It should have just been one EEG, but Gritman is incompetent and they kept screwing it up. I had to get three of them total.
Favorite Movies
Heyo, buttbandits.
So remember back in February sometime when I did my “Top 5 Books” blog post? Let’s do movies today.
‘Cause I’m trying to avoid all the work I’m going to need to do to move my three classes online for the rest of the semester.
From fifth to first:
#5: Toy Story
This movie came out around the time I was in first grade and I loved it so very much. As in, “let’s-force-the-whole-first-grade-class-to-pick-characters-and-then-make-our-own-version-of-it,-‘cause-I-was-mini-Stephen-Spielberg-and-no-one-was-going-to-stop-me” level of love. It still holds a very special place in my heart. Also, Tom Hanks.
#4: Armageddon
Armageddon kind of terrified me when I first saw it as a kid (specifically when the Independence shuttle bit it in the debris, that was horrifying to me as a little). But I love it now. It’s just such an American film, yeah? Awesome music. Bruce Willis. Manly drilling…in space. I love it.
#3: Mystery Men
I had my appendix removed in 2000 (literally as I was supposed to be attending my 6th grade graduation). I couldn’t do much for a few weeks after that, so there were two movies I watched incessantly while I had to stay home: The Music Man and Mystery Men. Mystery Men is kind of a nostalgia trip for me because it just brings me back to that time of my life. It’s funny and weird and has a lot of very quotable lines in it (“you threw a spoon at the guy, Jeff!” “Yeah, what was up with that?”).
#2: Apollo 13
I’ve loved this movie ever since the first time I saw it. It’s a very beautifully-put together movie with AWESOME music. Seriously. The music is probably what pushes this over the top for me. My favorite is “The Launch.” Also, Tom Hanks.
#1: Sunshine
(I have a thing for space disaster movies, can you tell?) Not a lot of people know about Sunshine, which is a shame because it’s freaking fantastic. You look at the DVD cover or you read a brief synopsis of it and you’re like, “oh, so it’s Armageddon but with the sun instead of an asteroid?” Nope, not even close. It’s so different from Armageddon, and I think that’s why I like it. Oh, right, and THE MUSIC OMFG. Here’s one of my favorite scenes with one of my favorite parts of the soundtrack.
It’s so beautiful. And yeah, the whole movie is about that level of intensity.
More Sunshine
If I haven’t yet convinced you that Sunshine is a beautiful, heart-wrenching, mind-wrenching movie, give this a watch and see if it does it for you.
It really is a wonderful movie (with the most beautiful score).
Oh, Ferngully…
Heyo.
So I was browsing Tumblr, as I commonly do, and I came across a post someone made about the “Toxic Love” song from Ferngully. “Toxic Love” is the villain’s song, and the villain, Hexxus, happens to be voiced by Tim Curry. The poster was basically saying how they used to be scared by the song when they were a kid but absolutely loved it now ‘cause it’s Tim Curry being Mr. Sexy Voice for like 2.5 minutes.
Then I had to look it up on YouTube and oh my god, the comments.
Everyone: choking on pollution
Y’all: H A R D E R D A D D Y
Us as kids: Oh no it’s the bad guy!
Us now: [Sexual Tension Intensifies]
Never thought I’d see a cartoon where Tim Curry orgasms on-screen over the thought of destroying a rainforest, but here we are.
We know the real reason he was locked in a tree and this song proves it.
I may be an environmentalist, but if this is what pollution actually looked like, lemme just say I wouldn’t be drinking out of a metal straw.
Every 90’s child’s sexual awaking
thank you all for making me feel less weird about this XD
I can’t stop freaking laughing, oh my god.
(I always liked this scene when I was a kid, too, hahaha).
Movie Throwback: Team America
So for whatever the hell reason, YouTube recommended a clip from the movie “Team America” for me today and I was having flashbacks to when this movie was prime ‘Murica satire back in like 2005/2006. I watched it with my friends quite a few times because we all thought it was great.
Anyway, I’d completely forgotten about this movie, but now that I’ve seen a few clips, I remember how wild it was. The puppets, oh my god.
It’s amazing how some things have changed since then and how some things have not changed at all.
HmmmMMMMMmmm
Hahaha, I found this movie terrifying as a kid as well.
Edit: aaaaaand of course they’re making a sequel this year. Nothing is safe. Humans are terrible.
Hoof
Go see Endgame, it’s good.
You probably won’t have to walk 16 miles through the snow to go see it like Nate and I did (‘cause, you know, it’s freaking May, why shouldn’t it be snowing?), but go see it anyway.
Totoro
I completely forgot to mention this, but on my birthday, Nate and I watched My Neighbor Totoro because it was one of those movies that I watched repeatedly as a kid and he had never seen it before.
The “original” one with the first set of English-dub voice actors is, I guess, ridiculously hard to find now; the only English-dub version you can find now is the Disney dub version.
It makes a huge difference. It’s not nearly as enjoyable in my opinion. That might just be because I’m *that person* who memorizes every inflection, pause, and emphasis in dialogue because my brain has decided that’s more important information than, say, remembering to shower every once and a while—but the only thing I could focus on for the whole movie were all of the differences in the dialogue and the way it was spoken.
I hope Nate found it okay (he probably did because he hadn’t seen the original?), but it was super distracting for me and detracted from the amazingness that is My Neighbor Totoro.
Edit: this was the best comparison I could find. It’s hard to tell what’s what if you haven’t heard both of them; maybe try with earbuds and listen to the original through the left ear only and the new one through the right ear only.
Dudes, Primer is on YouTube
Ever since I met Nate, I’ve been raving to him about Primer, a movie made back in 2004 that focuses on some ordinary people accidentally discovering time travel. It was a super low budget movie ($7,000) and wasn’t very widely released, which means it’s super hard to find.
But hey, there’s a legit version of it on YouTube, which is awesome! I haven’t seen this movie since we watched it in high school physics.
So for anyone who wants some super dense time travel fun, here ya go.
Oh dear god
Matt, do you remember when we watched this whole DVD at Maggie’s after that horrible winter semester in 2007? I think we also played some near-naked Rock Band, but that might have been later.
Sometimes I miss undergrad.
The Prince of Egypt is Underrated
I think I’ve blogged about this movie in the past in various forms, but I just found this:
And it reminded me of how underrated this movie is. Not just in terms of the songs, but the whole thing.
I mean, this scene? This is some of the most beautiful animation I’ve seen.
I don’t know if it’s because my little stupid kid brain always pictured like 200 people going for like a quarter of a mile to cross the Red Sea when we read about all of this stuff in Catholic school, but when I first saw this movie I was amazed at the immense number of people and how long of a walk it was to cross the sea. It makes the story that much more impactful, I think.
And yeah, I know, bible stuff, but still. This movie is really well done. Watch it if you haven’t.
Edpool
The highway scene in Deadpool overdubbed with sound effects from Ed, Edd, n’ Eddy? FANTASTIC.
Ed makes a great Deadpool, honestly. And this made me realize just how sound effect-heavy EE&E was. Such a good cartoon.
THE AVALANCHE
I’ve seen my fair share of movies in my life.
But this damn avalanche scene from Seven Brides for Seven Brothers is still one of my favorite movie moments.
Couldn’t tell you why, but I’ve always loved the avalanche. Ask my mom.
Anyway.
RAGNAROK
HOLY CRAPPLES, Y’ALL.
Go see Thor: Ragnarok. Do it. It’s so good. It’s probably my second favorite Marvel movie after The Avengers.
(Edit: OKAY I LIED IT’S MY FAVORITE)
I knew I was going to love it after that first fight scene. Go watch it and tell me that scene doesn’t get you PUMPED.
Act
‘Sup, my dudes?
So for whatever the hell reason, I was thinking about the movie Sister Act this afternoon. My mom and I had it on VHS.
And thanks to YouTube, I can relive my absolute favorite part of the movie.
Loved it then. Love it now.
Getting ready!
I got my wedding dress today!
It was a pretty fun experience. My mom, Nate’s mom, and I all went down to the David’s Bridal in Calgary and spent my hour and a half appointment time looking at probably six dresses total. I had a tough time choosing between two of the dresses in the end, but I think I chose the right one. It’ll need some alterations (I’m short as hell; plus, they didn’t have my dress size in that style), but it’ll need fewer alterations than the other dress I would have chosen and seems more appropriate to wear for an outdoor summer wedding.
We (Nate, Nate’s brother Curtis, my mom, and I) also went and saw Captain America: Civil War. It was freaking great. Go see it if you’re into that stuff, but don’t go if you’re not caught up on your Marvel movies. You’ll be VERY confused. Just ask my mom.
YAY!
HOEDOWN, BITCHES
ALRIGHT, SO.
Tonight I was listening to some Aaron Copland, ‘cause Copland’s awesome. Specifically, I was listening to Hoedown on repeat for about a half an hour. Some of you may know it better as “the beef song”:
Anyway, awhile back, Nate and I had either seen the name of this song somewhere or had heard a reference to it, and when I referred to it as “the beef song,” he didn’t know what I was talking about (‘cause apparently it’s only ‘Murican beef that’s for dinner). So tonight when I had finished listening to it for like the tenth time, I let him have a listen and told him again that this was the beef song. He mentioned that he thought he’d heard this somewhere before. After a quick YouTube search, it turns out that a very similar song was in Fieval Goes West!
This song was actually composed by James Horner (RIP); apparently he took Copland’s Hoedown and kind of remixed/remade it to fit the movie.
Pretty awesome if you ask me.
Inside Out!
Nate and I went to see Inside Out today. It was very enjoyable! When I first saw the previews back in May (when we went to see Age of Ultron), I didn’t think it would be a movie that was up to Pixar’s usual standards, but the reviews are right: it’s a very good movie. I really like what they did with the geography of Riley’s brain and how it all fit together at various points in the story.
Also, the Bing-Bong part (you know what I’m talking about if you’ve seen the movie) was really freaking sad.
But yeah, it’s definitely worth seeing in my opinion. While I still haven’t seen some of Pixar’s films (Up and WALL-E are the big ones), of the ones I’ve seen, Inside Out ranks pretty high up there. Not Toy Story high, but high.
Holy crap, I went to a movie theatre.
Nate and I saw Age of Ultron today!
It was pretty damn good overall. It seemed really rushed at times, especially in the beginning, but considering Whedon’s original version was supposedly quite a bit longer, that might explain things. We’re hoping that when the DVD comes out it’ll have a director’s cut.
I’d definitely watch it again; I always seem to get waaay more out of any given movie if I watch it a second time.
Also, this was the first movie I’ve seen in theatres since Watchmen way back in 2009.
Wonderful Noise
Holy crapples. If you haven’t watched Gravity yet, you need to do so, even if it’s just for the scene that goes along with this amazing song:
Or just for that song alone.
Marvel and Maps
TWO THINGS!
1. We watched Iron Man! It was very enjoyable. I even liked quite a bit of the soundtrack.
2. This is full of some wonderful statistical snark. FlowingData has some great and insightful posts, but this one has to be my new favorite. 4, 5, 7, and “9 through 18” made me seriously laugh.
Chocklit
Hahaha, this is great. I’d actually never seen Forrest Gump until I was like 16. We were supposed to watch it in shop class in 7th grade (yes, I took shop class) on the day before Christmas break, but someone mentioned that there were bare boobies in it and our shop teacher flipped out, screamed at us to keep working on our projects instead, and stormed into his office.
I’d never seen such an adverse reaction to the mention of boobs.
Anyway.
The review is funny. A couple of the lines are just great:
“Forrest run-Forrest-runs right through a college football game and the football coaches are like, “Gwuuuuuhhhhhh!???!!?!?!” and they hire him to play football for their college even though he is clearly 45 years old.”
“That’s when Gump meets Bubba, who is secretly 100,000 live, writhing shrimp standing on each other’s shoulders wearing a human suit.”
“We’re back on the bus bench! Forrest is like, “Yep, I got this letter that I should come visit Jennay, so I’m on my way to her apartment,” and the people on the bench are like, “FUCKING FINALLY, MY FAMILY THINKS I’M DEAD,” and then some old lady gives him directions and it’s denouement o’clock.”
Haha, sorry, I got nothing else today.
But hey, it’s supposed to snow tomorrow!
Yay for Netflix letting me re-live my childhood
I used to watch The Prince of Egypt at my dad’s house when I was younger (it came out in 1998). This was always my favorite scene.
I’m not religious, but I did go to Catholic elementary school (as most of you have probably read on here). I always thought the story of Moses was one of the most interesting components of the Bible, especially the “parting the Red Sea” part.
And at the very least, I think we can all agree that the animation and music here is ridiculously amazing.
Holy crap, The Hunchback of Notre Dame is on Netflix?
I know what I’m watching tonight.
I pretty much grew up on Disney movies and this one used to scare the living crap out of me for some reason, but now it’s definitely my favorite. I don’t know if it was the whole “going to Catholic school for six years” thing or what, but I really find myself enjoying books/movies/entertainment with religion as a main source of struggle or conflict. Such themes have always stricken me as being very honest and very impactful. Hunchback was one such book and movie; The Crucible was another. There is a bunch more, too, but for whatever reason I’m totally blanking on everything else I’ve ever read/watched right now. Probably ‘cause it’s like 5 AM and I had Red Bull and I’m feeling really antsy tonight.
Also, tell me this isn’t the best opening ever (I know I’ve posted this on here before, but screw it):
Eigenblogger 