Movies
A neat surprise. I'm not the biggest George Miller fan (which is an understatement). Don't care for Mad Max, don't even mention the Happy Feet films to me. This was something else though. Miller comes with an inspired mix of fantasy and romance and even though the finale is a bit disappointing, the rest of the film is well worth exploring. On a trip to Istanbul, a literary scholar buys a little bottle that holds a djinn. She's granted three wishes for freeing him, but her background in mythology makes her weary of the outcome. She wants to have a good conversation with the djinn first, so he tells her how he ended up in her hotel room. The fantasy elements are pretty explicit but stylish, the cinematography is lovely throughout and the premise is fun and quirky. The story does start to wane in the final third, but not so much that it drags the rest of the film down. Miller shows he has talent, I just wish he'd show it more often.Read all
Apparently, the first Happy Feet film was enough of a success for Miller to grace the world with a sequel. Personally, I remember Happy Feet as one of the worst films ever made, an amalgam of terribly unfunny comedy and ever worse musical bits. Well, the sequel just gives you more of the same. Erik, son of Mumble the tap dancing penguin, hates dancing. He doesn't fit in with the rest of the penguins and sets out on an adventure with two of his friends. It doesn't take long before the penguin empire is under threat of an iceberg, an impending doom that can only be averted when everyone works together. Miller pulls open another can of atrocious pop songs and has a bunch of animated animals sing and dance to them. The comedy is still extremely dire, there's no lack of bland life lessons and though the animation is technical proficient, the film's a real eyesore. Not that I'm a Mad Max fan, but I'm glad he ditched Happy Feet to continue that franchise.Read all
