The Easter Marathon 2012

It's Easter once again. That wonderful time of the year when we're supposed to celebrate that a semi-fictional conman faked his own death, and then ran away. As you can tell by this opening bravado, I'm not part of "that club".

People used to be superstitious, because they didn't know any better. They invented gods and religion to make sense of a world they couldn't understand. Today we know better, today there is no excuse to believe in nonsense and magic. And yet we live in perilous times .

On a daily basis religious nutbaggery and intelligent design join forces with criminally stupid nonsense such as acupuncture and homeopathy to ruin any progress made by the human race, with a wall of ignorance. It's never been more important to stay alert. So for this Easter film-marathon we're going to put on our thinking caps, and watch four films that remind us to stay critical and skeptical.

Without further ado, here is your program:

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Film #1: Life of Brian (1979)

"Hail Messiah!"
"I'm not the Messiah!"
"I say You are, Lord, and I should know. I've followed a few."

Life of Brian is one of the best films ever made, full of wonderful sharp humor that tears an irreparable hole in the giant windbag of religion. With just a few perfect sketches (and an awful lot of silliness) the Pythons manage to expose the hypocrisy of blind faith. Not faith overall, mind you, because we need to believe in something, just blind faith. It's the single best thing the Monty Python troupe ever did, and now that I think about it, it should be required viewing every Easter.

Film #2: Sherlock Holmes (2009)

"Never theorize before you have data. Invariably, you end up twisting facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts."

Sherlock Holmes was always the iconic skeptic - though ironically his creator Arthur Conan Doyle was not. Admittedly this modern incarnation from Guy Ritchie is more style than substance, but it's still comforting to watch Holmes battle against the dull-minded superstitious of his time, refusing to surrender his wits, even at the brink of madness.

The film teaches us that if all you're left with, after all facts have been examined, is the supernatural, then you need more facts or more examination.

Film #3: The Illusionist (2006)

"Everything you've seen is an illusion, it's a trick."

I know, I know, this could easily be dismissed as nothing more than a sappy love story, but there's a lot more than meets the eye. This turn-of-the-century magician, not only admits that he's merely performing tricks, but he also challenges authority with his wicked ways, AND uses magic to reclaim his girl. You can't beat that. After all, love is the only true magic of this world.

This is not the only magic themed movie from that year, there's also Christopher Nolan's fantastic The Prestige (2006), if you're in the mood for something a bit more flashy, but unfortunately it's got that major plot-point that disqualifies it from skeptic status.

Film #4: The Usual Suspects (1995)

"To a cop the explanation is never that complicated. It's always simple. There's no mystery to the street, no arch criminal behind it all. If you got a dead body and you think his brother did it, you're gonna find out you're right. "

The Usual Suspects is one of my all-time favorite films. Of course it's well-written, a study in precision storytelling, perfectly acted, and all that, but in this context it's particularly relevant, because it teaches us to be alert and observant.

The entire plot relies on one simple fact: That the obtuse detective is so convinced of his own theory and powers of observations, he literally never bothers to take a look around, and examine his world from a different vantage point. Which is ultimately his undoing.

This story is a deceptively complicated as it is beautiful.

BONUS: F for Fake (1973)

And finally, if you can handle another film after all this, I suggest Orson Wells' fraud documentary F for Fake. Now, this is sort of breaking my own rule, because I haven't actually seen it myself. Not yet anyway, but hopefully I will have a chance to pop it in the player very soon.

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FINAL THOUGHTS

And there you have it.

If you need more skeptical entertainment, I recommending listing to The Skeptics Guide to the Universe podcast (link) aka The One Podcast To Rule Them All. Or perhaps tune in to the BBC panel show QI (link) or Discovery's Mythbusters (link), two excellent examples of how critical thinking can be fun and engaging, even in primetime.

Let's end with a quote from Mythbuster Adam Savage. He said it as a joke, when he came up short during an experiment, which must be why it sounds like it could have come from any old non-skeptical fool.

"I reject your reality. And substitute my own."

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The Easter Marathon 2011

Easter is coming up and that means it's time for another film marathon. Did you forget what the film marathons are all about? Read the intro to the last Easter Marathon.

As always, we're going to watch four films, but I'm doing something a little different this time around. In this marathon you'll get to chose between two films in four categories.

Without further ado, here are the movies...

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FILM #1: The Creature Feature

Beetlejuice (1988) vs. Dragonheart (1996)

We open the marathon with a bit of fun.

Beetlejuice deals with a recently dead couple and their attempt to discourage anyone from moving into their old house, by haunting it and hiring the "people exorcist" Beetle Juice.

This was the film Tim Burton did just before he hit the jackpot with Batman in 1989. It features a perfectly loony mix of typically weird Burton designs and ideas, plus his ongoing fascination with death. Burton had not yet embraced the goth look that would define his later projects, consequently this film is more colorful and more fun than many of his other works, and it's full of wonderful, odd old school effects, which just add to the quirky feeling.

Dragonheart is bit more classic. Even though it's located smack in the middle of the CGI revolution of the '90s, it feels almost '80s-like in story and mood. You could easily imagine this film being done in the middle of that decade, when there was a resurgence in the fantasy genre, or perhaps it could have been done by Disney in the '60s? After all, the story of a dragonslayer who strikes up a friendship with the last remaining dragon, to fight an evil king, is the stuff of fairytales, so it would be a perfect fit with the Mouse House.

Of course, back then they wouldn't have been able to do justice to the spectacular creature at the heart (pun!) of the story, and it really is spectacular! Coupled with Sean Connery's husky voice the dragon is easily the most fascinating aspect of the film.

FILM #2: The Monster Hour

The Monster Squad (1987) vs. Fright Night (1985)

The next choice is between two 80's movies, aimed at the, let's say, "younger crowd".

The Monster Squad would be a great double bill with The Goonies (1985), because it's got the same sense of adventure. A bunch of kids discover that Dracula is "alive" and well, and has brought back a bunch of classic monsters, so he can take over the world. Naturally they must stop him!

You can't go wrong with a clever script, co-written by wünder-screenwriter Shane Black. Add to that the sheer joy of watching the old Universal monsters stumble around in an urban setting. They really don't make movies like this anymore, both in terms of mood, story, style and size. It's great fun, and a little bit scary.

Fright Night is slightly more scary. It's got a wonderfully simple premise - "what if a vampire moved in next door to you?" - which makes for a great, paranoid, but slightly goofy urban horror story. It's not entirely without bite, though. There are a few dicey moments, when young Charley must watch both his mother, girlfriend and best friend fall prey to the beast next door!

The film also features some fantastic monster effects, the kind that could only be done in the 80's. Watch it before the upcoming remake will force you to refer to this as "the original".

FILM #3: The Hunter with a Heart

The Killer (1989) vs. Blade Runner (1982)

Time to get a bit moody, with two lonely assassins.

John Woo's seminal The Killer is a wonderfully operatic take on the classic "killer with a conscience"-story. Chow Yun Fat plays the titular hero, who accidentally blinds a lounge singer during a job, but wows to help her get back on her feet, and get her some essential eye surgery.

The heroic bloodshed genre, made famous by the late 80's and early 90's films of Hong Kong, has never been more perfectly realized than here. Every frame is brimming with style and every scene has a strong emotional core. Hollywood's modern action movies could learn a lot from this.

Blade Runner is equally seminal in its own right.

A visually stunning take on the future where a disillusioned detective, played by a deliberately uncharismatic Harrison Ford, must track down and kill four "synthetic humans".

At its heart this is just a simple detective story - some would call it pedestrian - but it's elevated to new levels by director Ridley Scott's dense and realistic depiction of a decrepit Earth of the future, full of uncannily familiar elements, all of which seems to be a flashing warning of things to come.

FILM #4: The Madman Murderer

The Shining (1980) vs. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

Time to get chilly and more than a little freaked out, as we end the night with a choice between two truly classic films.

A family moves into a remote hotel, to take care of it during the winter. Dad goes nuts, then gets homicidal. It's a family film, then. Stanley Kubrick's The Shining may not stick very close to the Stephen King novel, but who cares? Kubrick sure didn't, and in the process he created a very unusual horror movie, which still works today. Few things are more frightening than Jack Nicholson's off the rails performance, and that ending will leave you chilled to the bone.

Modern filmmakers working in the horror genre these days are incapable of creating the kind of slow, deliberate descent into madness we're witnesses to in The Shining, they are too busy cutting. They should sit down, watch this movie, and learn.

By comparison The Silence of the Lambs is perhaps a bit more mainstream than The Shining, but it's no less frightening. A spiffy young Jodie Foster hunts serial killer Buffalo Bill and gets assistance from incarcerated psychiatrist and serial killer Hannibal Lecter.

With all the C.S.I. and Criminals Minds shows on TV these days, the hunt for serial killers has become a bit stale, luckily The Silence of the Lambs draws its mojo from the scenes between the innocent young girl and the shrewd, cannibalistic older man. They are still as electric today, as the first time we saw them.

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FINAL THOUGHTS

So there you have it folks. Pick one film in each category, watch them during a single day, and report back with your results. It really is that simple.

As for me, I think I'll pick Dragonheart, Fright Night, The Killer, and The Shining to watch. It's going to be epic. I can't wait!

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The Easter Film Program

I do this every now and then. Usually, being a working stiff and all, I'm rarely able to watch more than one film a day, perhaps two, but then one of these unprovoked religious holidays come along and I suddenly have all the time I need for a quick little movie marathon. I know some people do 20 film marathons, but I get no enjoyment from that. Four is the perfect number of films for me.

I use these mini-marathons to reacquaint myself with old favorites, so they can only include films I've seen before. I pick film that I've been keen to re-watch for a while, and I try to design a program that will make them flow well together. It usually means: A film for the morning, a film for the afternoon, and two films for the evening.

The upcoming Easter holiday presents an excellent opportunity to do this again. This particular program I've put together is also a potential Bluray marathon, since all the films here have been released on high-def.

But enough talk, let's fight:

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Film #1: The Goonies (1985)

"OK! I'll talk! In third grade, I cheated on my history exam. In fourth grade, I stole my uncle Max's toupee and I glued it on my face when I was Moses in my Hebrew School play. In fifth grade, I knocked my sister Edie down the stairs and I blamed it on the dog..."

We open the ball with an Eighties classic. This should be watched lying on the couch in your pajamas, while eating breakfast.

Richard Donner directs the story of a bunch of mismatched kids who go on a treasure hunt in an attempt to save their neighborhood. It's fun, full of adventure, and most importantly: It's not exclusively aimed at kids. Plus, Steven Spielberg wrote the story, what more do you need? They sure don't make films like this any more.

Film #2: Twister (1996)

"The Suck Zone. It's the point basically when the twister... sucks you up. That's not the technical term for it, obviously."

Ex-cinematographer Jan De Bont directs this tale of a band of hurricane chasers and does it with the subtlety of a nuclear explosion. This is so bad. And yet, so much fun. Gotta love the way Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt just COMMITS to the whole ridiculous thing. And it's got Philip Seymour Hoffman in it as well! He won an Oscar you know.

In the wake of Jurassic Park Hollywood tried to figure out just how much they could push the envelope with CGI. They haven't stopped pushing yet. This, though, belongs to the early days of the big CGI films, which makes it kinda charming.

Film #3: Smokin' Aces (2006)

"How bad?" "Mortal..." "What?" "Mortal!" "No! F**k!"

We're kicking it up a notch with this unbeatable kick-ass-awesome action movie. This is not just style over substance, more like: style has knocked substance down, cut off its face and is now wearing it as a mask.

This is just a story about a lot of contract killers who are going after the same guy, and the cops who try to protect him. Luckily director Joe Carnahan infuses the plot with the most excessive, beautiful, raw action-film style seen since John Woo did The Killer.

Film #4: A Modern Horror film

"It's okay, we're cutting your arm off."

So this is a cheat, because here we have a choice between three modern horror movies. Take your pick!

The Orphanage (2007) is a classic horror film, spliced with Asian horror antics. A couple plans to open an orphanage in the women's childhood home, but it all goes horribly wrong when their son begins to communicate with an "invisible friend".

Silent Hill (2006) is a great combination of mainstream CGI thriller, and dark, underground mystique, as Radha Mitchell search an abandoned mining town for her missing daughter, under the watchful eye of director Christoph Gans and Danish cinematographer Dan Laustsen.

Splinter (2008) is a near perfect low budget body-horror film, dealing with a few random travelers who find themselves stalked by a weird parasite at a gas station. It's one location. Four actors. The CGI is used sparingly, but well. Plus, it's just so damn nasty and creepy. A perfect end to the evening.

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Final Thoughts

This is my program for a Easter Holiday Mini-Movie Marathon, feel free to use it, or come up with your own. And if you do that, please share it in the comments below.

Enjoy!

FADE OUT.