Movie Poster(s) Of The Week – Deluxe Poster 3-Pack!

I’ve been a little behind on the MPOTWs lately. So, I’m making up for it with a 1-2-3 punch of classic, iconic, moderately sexist posters.

That’s right. Star Wars (1977). You’ve seen it before and you’ll see it again. Arguably the most iconic film of the past 50 years, the poster is equally renowned. The chiseled hero stands tall, triumphantly hoisting his sword in the air. He is literally surrounded by evil (represented in this case by the dark and mysterious mask of Darth Vader). Suggestively sprawled beneath him is a buxom vixen. Her sexuality is palpable. Sure, she has a pistol in her hand, suggesting she has a dangerous side, but one could be forgiven for missing it due to the cannons on her chest. But was Mark Hamill ever so chiseled? Was Carrie Fisher even remotely so sexualized in the actual film? Of course not. This poster is unique amongst those of the Star Wars saga (the remainder of which are much more photorealistic montages of scenes from their respective films). Before Star Wars© the brand existed (The title on this poster isn’t even in official Star Wars© branded type), this was how the powers that were decided to unveil Star Wars to the world. True to the film’s roots in classic pulp fiction, the poster is a very specific mix of action, mystery and sex, designed to arouse the 12-year-old boy in all of us. It doesn’t matter that the images portrayed don’t actually exist within the film, because it is designed to spur the imagination. For someone with no prior knowledge, this poster would likely conjure a film very different from what we know Star Wars to be. And that’s really what we’re talking about when we analyze posters: not the film itself, but the image of the film that is created partially by marketing and partially by our own imaginations.

Conan The Barbarian (1982) is another example of a poster with this same basic structure. Chiseled hero. Sword held high. Engulfed in flame (danger). Subjugated female co-star, immensely sexualized beneath the hero. The elements are all there. While Star Wars was inspired by George Lucas’ love of pulp stories, Conan is an honest-to-god pulp hero, first published in Weird Tales magazine in the 1930’s. Magazines, comics, and novels starring Conan have been heralded by the big pecs, big tits, big swords style of pulp art for decades. Why should the film be any different? Maybe because the film came out in 1982. Most of us have a tendency to somewhat overlook things like sexism in media from before the 1960’s. We accept that it was a different time, and without condoning the acts, we don’t get too worked up about them. If we did, how would we be able to form lasting relationships with our grandparents? But by 1982, the women’s lib movement had been around for decades, so why was it alright to have the female co-star in such a sexualized and obviously subordinate position to the man? Granted, she is technically wearing more clothes than Schwarzenegger, but he doesn’t feel sexualized at all. Maybe I’m wrong…

Regardless, and to prove myself a complete and total hypocrite, I love this poster. It succeeds in virtually every way. And if the heroine weren’t presented as she is; if she were standing beside the hero, lady-bits all shrouded with a beekeeper’s suit, I probably wouldn’t want to watch the movie. Well, I would, but for different reasons entirely.

I’m just going to say this: This is my favorite movie poster of all time. It is.

Army of Darkness (1992), the third and so-far final installment of Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead series, is the finest horror comedy ever crafted and every time I look at this poster, I want to watch it again. The artist’s work is of the highest caliber, easily on par with any of the work by Frazetta or movie poster megastar Drew Struzan. And of course, it fits today’s theme. Hero. Sword. Danger. Babe. The difference here though, is written all over our hero’s impeccably chiseled face. That raised eyebrow and knowing smirk are a sly wink back at us. This poster knows exactly what it is. This is a poster that has seen Star Wars and Conan a hundred times each. The hyper-heroics displayed herein serve specifically to amplify the irreverence and absurdity. His hand is a chainsaw. He is being attacked - with a fork – by teeny, tiny, little men. The female co-star is literally reaching for his junk! He is a hero to be sure, but a hero of a sort you have never seen before. (Unless of course you were in the small minority who saw either of the first two films before this one was released – but that’s neither here nor there) Honestly though, my favourite thing about this poster is entirely personal and intangible…

I remember seeing a giant cardboard cut-out of the poster at the movie theatre when I was 7. I just stared at it, in awe, imagining what this film could possibly be about.  For three or four years following, I would see this poster on the box of the VHS tape in the video store, and it would capture my imagination each time. When I was finally old enough to rent it, the film turned me into an instant fan. It was something so new and wonderful that I must have watched it three times that weekend. But—in finally watching the film, all of my questions were answered. In a way, no matter how good the movie was, it could never really live up to years of anticipation and imagination. I’ve watched Army of Darkness dozens of times over the years, and I’m sure I’ll watch it dozens more. But every time I look at this poster, I am reminded of those three or four years and that certain sense of wonder that, as an adult, is incredibly hard to come by.

-G

Does this poster suck? Think You can do better? Leave a comment with your suggestion and maybe we'll use it... or maybe we'll make fun of you and your terrible taste.

Canucks / Blackhawks 2011 Game 7 Tribute Video - Vancouver Celebrates

A joyous Vancouver takes to the streets in celebration! Just minutes after Alexandre Burrows' game winning goal in the seventh game of the 2011 NHL Western Conference Quarterfinal, downtown Vancouver erupted with thousands of fans, fat on the taste of victory and hungry for more. Through it all, Vishnu Productions' cameras were rolling. Relive the experience or witness it for the first time. Find yourself. Find your friends. Find people you've never even met before!

Enjoy!

Special thanks go out to Alan 'Boo' Burns, Zack 'Attack' Lazarus and a certain public figure, without whose help this video would not be possible. You know who you are, sir.

-B&G

Cinematic perfection is a small, bespectacled director, slowly devouring himself.

Alright, this has been brewing in me for a couple of weeks but I’ve only been able to get to it today. Sue me if I’m not right on the cutting edge, but we’ve got a business to run here, people! It all started in mid-March, when the new trailer for JJ Abrams’ highly anticipated Super 8 dropped. I should state for the record that my relationship with Abrams has been bumpy to say the least. I thought Star Trek (2009) was not only flat but completely managed to miss its own point, but I will watch the Abrams scripted Forever Young and partially scripted Armageddon every time I come across them on TV. And yes, I watched Lost. All of it. And yes, I thought the ending was a huge cop out. But I still enjoyed watching the series as a whole. Regardless of my opinions on Abrams’ resume however, the Super 8 trailer raises an entirely new set of questions and concerns.

Steven Spielberg is the most prolific filmmaker of the past forty years. Sure, you could make arguments to the contrary, but deep down, you’d know you’re wrong. The guy has been churning out industry changing hits for virtually his entire career. His effect on the film industry today is incalculable. The level to which he consistently captured our collective imaginations was heretofore unprecedented. Unfortunately though, nothing lasts forever. The 21st century has seen something of a fall from grace for the old ‘Berg. Surely, he has produced some of the most interesting work of his career in this time. But for every Munich, there was a Minority Report, for every Catch Me If You Can, a Terminal. While the individual successes and failures of those films are debatable, what seems very clear is that the sense of wonderment and awe that Spielberg once wielded so handily is no longer present. Nothing illustrated this point more thoroughly than the universally disappointing Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull. Spielberg attempted to go back to the well of one of his most beloved series and yielded nothing. Since then, he seems to have more or less shaken Indy 4’s negative reception (perhaps by ducking behind the movie critic’s favorite whipping boy, George Lucas, waiting for the tomatoes to stop flying, or perhaps he just sleeps on the humongous pile of money it made), but it will always be on his record. This all points to two things: 1) people will still clamor to the theatre for even the faintest hope of being presented with something truly awe-inspiring. And 2) maybe Steven Spielberg is no longer the man for the job.

If not Spielberg, than who? Today, there are an entire generation of filmmakers, coming into their own, who have been spoon-fed Spielberg films since birth. JJ Abrams is their valedictorian. Abrams’ feelings for Spielberg are well documented. He once gave a TED Talk (a seminar at the annual Technology Education and Design conference) wherein he virtually declared his undying love for the man. Spielberg’s influence ripples through all of his work in one way or another (for better or worse). But with Super 8, he seems to have reached a whole new level.

From the opening seconds, the new trailer makes its intentions very clear: THIS MOVIE WILL BE LIKE WATCHING CLASSIC SPIELBERG. In fact that seems to be the Super 8's entire marketing strategy. While details are sparse in terms of what the movie will actually be about, viewers can rest assured it will be chock-full of awe-struck, wide-eyed children and flashy lights. Super 8, however, is no mere homage. It’s not just the product of a young filmmaker saluting his roots. How do we know this? Well first off, Super 8 is produced by the man himself. That’s right. Steven Spielberg personally signed off on the whole production. He paid-in real Spielberg-monies and used actual, personal Spielberg-time to see its creation. While Spielberg has produced numerous films for numerous young directors (Robert Zemeckis and Joe Johnston jump to mind), never before has he done so on a production so obviously, artistically inspired by his own work. Is it possible that, while he himself is either unable or unwilling to recapture his old lightning in a bottle, Spielberg is all for guiding some eager, young sprite towards a potentially huge cash-in on the very same schtick he pioneered decades ago? No. That doesn’t sound like Hollywood at all.

Not five seconds into the trailer, it already, quite literally, evokes classic Spielberg. The viewer is greeted with the logo for Amblin Entertainment, Spielberg’s production company. This may not seem out of the ordinary. After all, he is the film’s producer. But that logo has been virtually absent from movie screens for over fifteen years. While it opened countless Spielberg projects throughout the eighties and nineties, it was essentially decommissioned in 1997, when the Spielberg co-founded Dreamworks Pictures began releasing all of his films. This means that within the first ten seconds of any given Spielberg film, the audience is given a distinct visual cue as to whether this is comfy, classic Spielberg or less-reliable, edgier Spielberg. A few years back, Spielberg, along with the other founding partners, sold their controlling stakes in Dreamworks to Viacom, effectively severing their connection. It seems incredibly convenient that now should be the time the old Amblin logo (which, in case you haven’t noticed, literally features a picture of E.T.) makes its triumphant comeback.

The logo alone could be written off as coincidence. If it were the logo alone, I wouldn’t be writing this. Looking at the content of the trailer, it simply oozes Spielbergisms. Here are some examples, based on the little information we are given. The film takes place in a peaceful, American everytown in the late seventies. The principal characters are a young boy who (possibly due to the fact that he comes from a broken home) seems socially awkward, but full of innocence and wonder; his stern but lovable father who also happens to be the town’s Sherriff; and the boy’s gaggle of monster-movie making friends (including a girl with whom he will no doubt share his first kiss). The plot centers around some unnamed supernatural (I’d put money on extraterrestrial) event which brings the entire military en masse to the small town to perform some sort of shady cover-up, where they will undoubtedly (and in the end, unwisely) marginalize the simple, country Sherriff and his simple, country wisdom. If you have seen Jaws, Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, and E.T., none of these elements should be foreign to you.

Playing devil’s advocate, all of this could still be chalked up to Abrams perhaps overindulging in some of his old favorites during the scriptwriting phase. So let’s take a look at the visuals of the trailer. Once again, both the imagery and cinematography scream “all Spielberg, all the time.” In fact, Super 8 looks more like a Spielberg film than anything Spielberg has actually done in over a decade, from the lighting (with the notable exception of the over emphasized horizontal lens-flares Abrams picked up on Star Trek) to the camera moves (dramatic push-in on the concerned Sherriff, anyone?). I would like to describe for you an iconic scene in which a yellow pickup truck has a sudden encounter with a paranormal force at a railroad crossing. It is dramatically lit with blue and gold and the red crossing lights blink in the background. Is it from Close Encounters or from Super 8?

“Who cares?!” screams the film industry.

A shot like that is carefully orchestrated beforehand. It was designed to deliberately foster memories of Close Encounters. Was this done to give the audience a warm, nostalgic feeling, subconsciously rubbing a little bit of your pre-existing love all over this ‘new’ movie-watching experience in the theatre, after you’ve already paid your twelve dollars? Perhaps. Or was it done to instill the very same feelings in you now, watching the trailer, coaxing you out of your home, twelve bucks still in hand? That’s really the question here-- Is there any part of this film that wasn’t designed with the exclusive purpose of selling me back my own, sugarcoated memories?

I admit that I have seen all of two minutes total of Super 8. And none of this is intended as a review of the film as a whole. I would be absolutely thrilled to wind up eating my own, skeptical words upon walking out of what turned out to be an insightful, beautiful film. I just don’t feel like that’s going to happen. The worst part of this feeling is knowing just how popular Super 8 will be, regardless of the validity of everything I’ve said. We as audiences have become so accustomed to having exactly what we like constantly repackaged and resold that we can’t even tell when it’s happening anymore. Over the past century, film studios have boiled what was once an art down to what has essentially become a big, red button with the word “more” printed on top. They just keep pushing it and we keep lapping it up. Obviously this scenario goes far beyond this one movie, but there was something about this trailer that really hit a nerve. I love Steven Spielberg movies, especially the classics. Is it so wrong to hope for a film that makes me feel like those ones did, without resorting to the exact same bag of tricks, now aged and forgotten for long enough to become commercially viable again? Are there any filmmakers with the skill and creativity of a young Spielberg, willing and capable of blazing their own unique trail?

-Graeme

The Movie Poster Of The Week - Moon (2009)

With Duncan "Zowie Bowie" Jones'sophomore directorial effort "Source Code" in theatres now, I thought it would be a good time to showcase one of the best posters of the past decade, Jones' first film, 'Moon'.

'Moon' was a simple yet striking little gem from 2009. It harkened back to a time when a science fiction film could be both more and less than a mega-budget action-fest featuring spaceships/robots/lasers/etc. A film like 'Moon' is entirely concerned with humanity. It uses its futuristic setting as a sort of hyper-intensified mirror in which we may see our own strengths and weaknesses with more clarity than the humdrum of real life normally allows. I think this poster manages to capture all of that, while still maintaining its sense of mystery and betraying almost nothing of the film's actual plot. The imagery (and the film itself, to be honest) is reminiscent of both Hitchcock's 'Vertigo' and Kubrick's '2001: A Space Odyssey' but manages to find its own legs just the same. While I normally don't like to admit being manipulated by marketing, it was this poster that directly led to me seeking out the film during its extremely limited theatrical run. And that, if nothing else, points to a successful poster.

Does this poster suck? Think You can do better? Leave a comment with your suggestion and maybe we'll use it... or maybe we'l make fun of you and your terrible taste.

Gamma follow up!

Just as an example of the post production requirements of using the cine like gamma settings on the Sony XDcam. Here is a screenshot of a sample clip I shot using the cinelike 3 gamma, the left side of frame is raw from the camera, the right side is corrected in Apple color. This clip has no saturation adjustment to it, simply exposure adjustment and some color shifting.
-Brian

Gamma knee techno info!

This is a Technical post, gadgety and informative. I've got two XD-cam F335's that I use and I refer back to this video and a few others often to make sure I'm using the best possible settings for every scenario. The phrase "fix it in post" is the worst thing you can say around me or anyone I work with. Do it right the first time and it will be better in the end, not to mention easier. Thats not to say post doesn't have its place. The Cine like 1, 3, and 4 for example capture the highlights up to 109 IRE which means you NEED to put it through colour correction to bring it back to broadcast standards in the highlights. This allows for more detail in the shadows and an overall higher dynamic range. I've referred to this on set when asked about my exposure of the darks and said the words "We'l adjust it in post". NOT the same as fix it in post, rather its shooting FOR post. If its a run and gun shoot and a quick edit i'l either use cine 2 gamma or one of the std gammas ,depending on the shooting scenario, so that if there is no colour grading the footage is still within legal broadcast limits.
-Brian

The Movie Poster Of The Week - To Please A Lady

The art of the movie poster is becoming something of a lost art. Why put together an eye-catching original composition when you can photoshop a handful of heads onto a neutral background? Here at Vishnu, we wanted to build a showcase for some of the greatest, funniest or weirdest movie posters around. So, without further ado, the first MPOTW ever: To Please A Lady (1950) starring Clark Gable and Barbara Stanwyck.

Alright, sure, compositionally it's not too far off the bland photoshoppery of today. But there's something special about the painted posters that define the first 40-or-so years of cinema. Painted by hand, laid out by hand, it's the visible artistry that really lends a heightened sense of character to Gable, Stanwyck and the film itself. Just look at that winning smile. Clark Gable will please a lady whether she wants him to or not!

Does this poster suck? Think You can do better? Leave a comment with your suggestion and maybe we'll use it... or maybe we'l make fun of you and your terrible taste.

New Mascots?

Found these mice in the office mouse trap. What should we name them?

Send suggestions to Graeme. graeme@vishnuproductions.ca

-Brian

Die Antwoord Molests Your Senses And Sensibilities

This is the video for the song Evil Boy from South African rave-rap outfit Die Antwoord. If you haven’t come across it yet, you’re in for a treat… or something. The video is comprised of a bizarre mix of sexually charged imagery, genuinely disturbing moments and some solid filmmaking, kind of like a classic Cronenberg movie if it were tied together with hip hop video staples such as rapping directly into the camera and backup dancers who are equal parts bootylicious and degrading to women. Lurking just below the provocative surface though, both song and video address some of the predominant sex-based issues facing Africa today such as the proliferation of AIDS and forced circumcision. Considering the video’s newfound popularity online, an argument could be made that this rap video which features, among other things, dozens of comically enormous penises in just about every shot, could have a measured positive impact on society. The world is a weird place.

-G

(Note: The video is probably NSFW for all of the reasons I just blogged about)

The First Post Ever!

This is The Pipeline's very first post. It's so exciting, I think I might just post the video for Drive Me Home by Carly Thomas.

-Graeme

Carly Thomas - Drive me home from Vishnu Productions Canada on Vimeo.