What's up, guys! Jaron here. Popping in to drop off this week's film reviews of About Time and Over The Garden Wall. I hope you guys enjoy the reviews, and we'll catch you next week for another round on us! Laterout. About Time Wow. Just… Let me begin with that. Absolutely wow. About Time is an absolutely wonderful piece written and directed by Richard Curtis, who did 2003’s Love Actually as well as the famously impressionable Mr. Bean film, curiously enough. This film stars Domhnall Gleeson as loveable goof Tim, who learns from his father that the males in his family all have the ability to travel through time. Sweet mother of frogswallows, let me tell you about this movie. I yelled. I yelled at the television. I yelled frequently, over and over, as I watched Tim screw up his life countless times. To completely clarify, I was so engrossed in this film that I could not help myself from outbursts of frustration and joy at the events. I wish I could share more about those events, but I really could not bare to spoil too much of it. About Time is clearly a film about appreciating every second of every day that we’re given. It’s with great sadness that I learned of the most recent passing of one of my childhood idols, Leonard Nimoy. His last-sent message into the void that is the twittersphere was thus: “A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory.” (https://twitter.com/TheRealNimoy/status/569762773204217857) I watched as Tim lived and relived so many of life’s perfect moments, and it would be a lie to say that I did not envy his ability. It would be a lie to say I didn’t envy his relationship with his father, or with Mary. It would be an absolute lie to say that I did not spend the majority of silent moments in this film wishing harder than anything that I could walk into my own bathroom, clench my fists, and relive some of the more magical moments of my life if, for no other reason, than to remember them more clearly. About Time is so beyond worth watching, and I absolutely strongly recommend checking it out. Final Score: QWERTY I cried. I cried twice. Over The Garden Wall
Over The Garden Wall is a 10 chapter mini series that premiered on Cartoon Network earlier last year. It was created by Patrick McHale the creative mind behind Adventure Time and The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack. It stars the voices of Elijah Wood, Christopher LLoyd, Melanie Lynskey, as well as many others.Over The Garden Wall is about two brothers (Wirt & Greg) that are struggling to find their way home through a forest known as “The Unknown.” Along their way they meet a talking bird named Beatrice, a peculiar woodsman, creepy pumpkin people, a purely terrifying “Beast,” as well as loads of other odd places and people. When I first heard of OTGW back in December, I thought it seemed very intriguing. I didn’t know anything about the plot, but the art style caught my eye. However, I never got around to watching. So, when Jaron informed me my suggestion was OTGW, I was more than thrilled. Now, having watched OTGW 9 times, I must say that it is a breath of fresh air amongst the neon crazed random abyss that Cartoon Network has become. Don’t get me wrong, I can appreciate shows like Adventure Time or Flapjack, but it feels like recently CN is trying to shove that formula into all of their shows. *cough* clarence *cough* *cough* Ugh... sorry. Over The Garden Wall’s beautiful early 1900’s style, their simplistic character design against their beautifully detailed settings, and their old-timey folk songs makes it a striking and refreshing piece for modern animation. Alright, so let’s get a little deeper into OTGW by discussing the plot/writing. In my personal opinion the overall plot of this series is fantastic.Although OTGW is advertised as a “cartoon,” it deals with very serious themes of fear and growing up. However, there were times in the episodic adventures where I was not thrilled. My main issue was primarily and almost solely Greg’s dream sequence in chapter 8. It came off as very childish amongst some very dark and serious themes. But, that was kind of the point. Greg’s character represents a sort of childish innocence. So, it’s fitting that his dream would be very childish and fun. So, even my issues with this series aren’t even issues. Like I said one of the main themes is fear. Whether it be the fear of growing up, the fear of losing one's daughter or the fear of unleashing a hidden evil. All of the characters suffer from some sort of fear. Primarily the fear of the “unknown.” Which is the name of the forest that Wirt & Greg are trapped in. Fear is actually personified as a character in “The Beast.” “The Beast” is a tall black shadowy figure that we never fully see, except for a millisecond at the end. He is a perfect representation of those thoughts that lurk in the back of your head. The thoughts that creep around late at night that make you question everything in your life. That is what “The Beast” is. He preys on your most darkest fears and exploits them for his own benefit. We see the effect of this fear as Wirt and Greg embark on these little adventures during their travels. They go from place to place and and help people with their problems that are almost always the result of fear. But, as they go through these situations we see a conflict that resides between Wirt and Greg. Wirt and Greg’s relationship is a perfect representation of the optimism of childhood versus the cynicism of adolescence. Greg is a free spirited, easy going, and fun loving little boy. Where as Wirt is a depressed, questioning, and pessimistic teenager. This creates a very interesting conflict between the two characters. For most of us, when we are children, life seems to be the best thing ever. We can’t be afraid of the future because we haven’t experienced much of what life has to offer. But, as we grow and experience hurt, suddenly the future becomes terrifying. This is because if we don’t know what the future holds, that means we don’t know whether or not we’ll get hurt. This fear can become crippling and can prevent us from going or doing anything. This is Greg and Wirt. Greg can’t wait for the next moment of every day. He even states “This is amazing!” while the two of them are being attacked by a gigantic monster dog. Where as Wirt is utterly terrified of what “might” happen. It could be said that Wirt might even resent Greg for his never ending optimism. He is constantly annoyed with Greg’s bubbliness and criticizes him for it. Wirt doesn’t see it as positivity, but rather carelessness. He lets that eat away at him to the point that he nearly loses himself to it. That is until he realizes that his negativity can affect the people he loves. This forces Wirt to rise up and face his fears. He is forced to face “The Unknown.” We all must face our “unknown” at some point in our life. Stand up and face our most terrifying fear. It’s never easy, but we are better in the end because of it. In closing Over The Garden Wall is a beautiful tale about two brothers as they struggle to conquer their fears and find their way home. It’s unexpected stylistic choices are a refreshing change in a sea of sugar crazed mindless cartoon garbage. Over The Garden Wall is unique and remarkable. Final Score: QWERTY There needs to be more animations like this.
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