Farewell Dear Dollhouse, You Will Be Missed!

So Dollhouse is over. I watched it all online, ‘cause I couldn’t bare to wait for those belated English airdates; how I love the Internet. I realise I’m way behind seeing as it’s been over for over a week and I bet if any of you care you would have read loads of posts about the same thing elsewhere. But meh…. I’ll carry on.

Dollhouse is the latest piece of gold to come from the God that is Joss Whedon and (yet again) Fox didn’t give it the chance it deserved. Cancelled. Morons. With only two seasons to prove it’s worth, you may as well take the time to watch it all!

For non-sci-fi/Whedon fans out there who may not already know, I’ll fill you in. There is this evil corporation which the future-changing technology to be able to re-write a person’s brain. This corporation runs a load of underground ‘dollhouses’ across the globe (though we don’t know that part right away – obviously) full of ‘volunteers’ who have their brains wiped for 5 years. They are referred to as actives and work for the house. Their bodies are pretty much rented by very, very rich people who can pick and chose what qualities they want their doll to have. It’s like a really expensive pimp agency only, your doll doesn’t know they’re a doll and genuinely loves you. All the dolls are beautiful – because obviously us humans would never pay high dollar for an ugly bit on the side. But wait! They’re not just prostitutes, they can be ANYTHING you want… ninja, thief… whatever.

So season one sees Caroline, played by Eliza Dushku sign her life away to Adelle DeWitt (Olivia Williams). She is then wiped and becomes the wondrous Echo.

The initial premise may seem a little far fetched and season 1 was a little samey with the first 6 episodes just setting the scene, sending Echo off to do a variety of different things. It gave us all a chance to settle into the idea of what was going on before it started to hit us with the awesomeness. Unfortunately as amazing as it was, the show was never given a chance.

Dollhouse was at least given warning of the approaching end, given them enough to come up with an ending rather just leaving it in midair but this isn’t like it’s good enough. There are so many shows that just keep going and going until the writers have nothing left to say and they stop caring about their work – it’s just about the money now.

There is an awesome io9 article here which deserves your attention. She talks about the desire – fear paradigm going on through the show and the slow shift towards fear as time goes on.

Because Dollhouse was facing it’s cancellation some things felt a little forced and clumsy, as they sprinted to the end of the story in such a tiny space. If they were given more time, it wouldn’t have been such a sprint for the finish line. And the Boyd thing might have been a little less lame…

Dollhouse is a show that should have made it. It explored something different, but there we have our problem. By stepping away from what everyone else was doing and trying to be creative and explore new ideas the show was always going to be under threat.

Throughout the two seasons, Dollhouse has explored what it is to be human. It was an ambitious concept but I think they did it. Dollhouse takes a possible world (as opposed to a fantasy world) and builds on it. That is how science works; keeps trying to improve on itself and to make money. Science wants to move the world into the future and isn’t going to let a few ethical qualms get in it’s way. This is scary. Actually scary.

Dollhouse was probably too dark for Fox. But it’s filled with a whole bunch of upbeat themes that showed the light through the darkness. The hints for Fox to see and hold on to, like Anthony and Priya’s love being completely unbreakable and able to transcend the mind no matter who they were printed with.

As it turned out, Dollhouse wasn’t as dark as we all thought it was going to be. Joss gave us some optimism, this idea that even though all this is coming at us, we’re still going to come out the other end. Yeah the world is a shitty place, but we can get through it. Ok, I almost feel like that sounds a little cheesy – but maybe that’s ‘cause we feel like there are only two dots on the spectrum; cheese or misery.

It would have been nice to get to see the show run it’s course at a regular pace and smooth everything out a bit. I am a little angry that it was taken away from me! I don’t understand why there needs to be so much of the same crap on TV but as soon as something comes along exploring anything remotely deeper than a group of teenagers having sex or people trying to become pop-stars, then it is shut down. How dare anyone in the media industry try go against the same tired formular…?

Scrubs Without Braff

You must have noticed by now I waste a lot of time watching movies and series'… but hey it’s like research or something. I’m examining different kinds of writing… or something… Ok maybe I’m just an insomniac glued to her laptop, whatever.

So I am not a massive Scrubs fan – I mean, I like Scrubs but I’m not an avid watcher. It’s just one of those shows that’s always on tv and of the bunch it’s probably the best during those hours I spend wasting away. It is pretty funny and JD does make me smile, so when I found out the new season wasn’t going to have Zach Braff or many of the other stars I wasn’t too sure about it. The whole show is from JD’s head, how can you take JD away?

But I’ve been sat here watching a few episodes of season 9 and though I’ve not worked out names yet I am quite enjoying it. It actually feels like it’s a different show, it’s not really Scrubs anymore but that isn’t a bad thing. It’s not good, but it’s not bad; it just is.

Part of me feels like this should actually just be a different show, that they are just feeding off the ready made fan base. But I guess if you can do it, why not? I am actually enjoying it though, I like the idea of getting to be inside the heads of the characters. I actually think it’s a technique more things should use, but then I guess it wouldn’t be so special.

What do you think? Any Scrubs fans? Any script writers? Me and my mate are going to attempt writing a horror movie so every time we watch a movie we get to call it research – maybe that’s just an excuse.

Why a horror movie? Well, they are my favourite to watch. And I reckon I understand the rules of writing horror movies the best, because I understand the movies themselves the best. I always watch them. I can almost always work out what is going to happen, because they always follow the same rules. I want to try to break some of those rules, but work out how to make it a good movie at the same time. A lot of the time, movies that don’t follow the rules, fail. I don’t want to fail!

Also, script is so much harder to write than you’d think. I attempted once (way back when I was 15) and it was a pile of **** (I am not sure if I should swear or not in my blog, I swear a lot but I don’t want to offend anyone. Comment on that too and tell me what you think). You need dialogue in a script, I mean come on – no one really wants to watch a silent movie (unless it’s a short film) but at the same time dialogue can destroy a script. I think from what I’ve learnt in reading and research is that less is more.

Try not to give everything away with the dialogue

Say as little as possible – don’t spell things out

Use dialogue to develop the characters – the way they speak, what they speak about, who it is they are

Any thing you want to share with me is always welcome – we’re all here to learn! Well some people are here for entertainment or ‘cause they’re bored, but those people can just help me learn – ‘cause heck, I’m always learning. I’m a student of the world and even when I’m not officially wearing that Student Status badge I’m always going to be a student. We all are. As soon as you stop learning, you may as well be dead.

Sorry, I ended up on a bit of a tangent with this post… 

Movie Review: It's Complicated

Watching this film made me feel very old, granted I am probably 30 years shy of the movie's target audience but it was still very much worth watching. This film had me fall in love with Meryl Streep just a little bit whilst also having me want to date (or maybe marry) a baker. But mostly this movie made me really hungry. So I suppose I should tell you something about the movie after all that...

Everything I read about this film tells me they're middle aged, but when did 50 become middle aged? Maybe I just have low expectations, but I would have called them old. Anyway, It's Complicated is a rom-com for the older generation. Haha ok, I am focussing on their age way too much - I'm sorry. But it's not everyday I watch a film that fits this slot - most of Hollywood ensures I spend my time staring at sexy 20 somethings. Though apparently director and writer Nancy Meyers pretty much does just this so... I guess I just need to look harder.

The film is set 10 years after Jane (Meryl Streep) and Jake Adler's (Alec Baldwin) divorce, just as Jane is starting to feel normal again. Jake cheated on his wife with a younger woman who he then went on to marry (even though she cheated on him and had a child with someone else - it's all very tangly).

Skipping to the part where it starts getting juicy, they both find themselves staying in the same hotel in New York for their sons graduation. Their three kids are off doing their own thing, having a party or whatever and Jakes wife couldn't make it leaving the two of them alone. They get drunk and dance and reminisce and before long they are panting and laughing semi naked in bed together. And so it begins. There is a bit of crotch fondling going on as Jake says "Home sweet home" in a slightly cringey but mostly funny scene. Jake seems very proud of himself, while Jane is busy throwing up and feeling guilty.

The film pretty much continues with Jane being the other woman but then we get Steve Martin thrown in, playing her architect as another love interest. It's all pretty rom com predictable to be honest and was probably mostly funny 'cause it was cringey in an old people having sex kind of way but the acting was spot on (as you can imagine, look at those names!) but even so I was in hysterics the whole way through and will no doubt be watching it again. And again.

I think the highlight had to be Streep and Martin sparking up a joint. Yes - old people stoned! Classic.

I don't want to give too much away so I'm not going to comment on the ending in the hopes you go and watch it. Meryl Streep is fantastic and Baldwin does what he does best. I think this is my favourite Martin film - but to be honest, what I've seen of his is a bit too slapstick for me.

In fact, I now kinda want to review the Lizzie Mcguire Movie just so I can talk about how much I hate slapstick, but part of me is already a little embarrassed that you know I watched it. He's not in the Lizzie Mcguire movie so that probably seems like a strange leap I just made there.... he's in Cheeper By The Dozen (which is worse) and both have Hilary Duff in... in case you wanted to know why I'm talking about this...

Movie Review: I Know How Many Runs You Scored Last Summer

Ok, you know what, the title says it all. And unless you get some sadistic pleasure out of forcing yourself through terrible horror movies, take a hint and stay away.

I on the other hand got a little bit excited trolling through Amazon for cheap horror movies I could laugh at.   Just look at the title, it has to be funny! They can't be taking themselves seriously with a title like that, right?

Well, I don't even know. I may be throwing in some spoilers here people, so if you're excited about watching this pile of wank then maybe you should look away, but I'm sure I couldn't ruin this film for you even if I tried.

It could maybe fall into the category of Aussie Comedy-Slasher or whatever, but all that means is a stupid film with lots of blood and unnecessary, over prolonged nudity. There is even a bit of body doubling from Miss Nude Australia going on, Miss Arianna Starr. Yes, there is a shower scene with the porn glow and hints towards masturbation...

Basically the film amounts to a pissed off bloke who was bullied by his cricket team as a kid, killing off his team members now that they're all grown up and he's developed super strength. There's really bad policing with one of those serial killer boards drafted up by the Australian sergeant, who is a bit of a tool. Then a British detective is brought in to aid the investigation, little do they know she is not part of the solution at all.

The cops collect up what's left of this old cricket team and put them all in a house in the middle of nowhere, calling it a safe house. Erm, I'm sorry but since when was a house in the middle of nowhere safe? Especially in a horror movie... So yeah story goes, they've put all the soon to be victims in the same house together to help out the crazy cricket guy kill the lot of them off in one go.

Dressed in a full cricket kit with a silly moustache and a big floppy hat, he goes around killing them with cricket related weapons. You have your state of the art cricket ball with nails hammered through, sharpened cricket stumps and of course the cricket bat. And if that wasn't enough, he also hammers (or screws?) nails into a cock guard (I don't actually know what they're called, but you know what I mean) to add a little bit of spice to his killings.

One guy sneaks off near the beginning to have sex with his lady friend - I don't know who she is, some woman who trekked to the middle of nowhere with a whip and handcuffs for a bit of a shag. Obviously, following the rules of a horror, he is the first of this lot to be knocked off. But not before getting his naked arse whipped by the killer a few times...

About 15 minutes is spent leading up to the death of one guy, with him sneaking around a room after finding a dead body behind him. I can only imagine this took so long because he was topless.

All in all the film goes nowhere. Everything took a really long time, but the film somehow felt incredibly short - however that works. And if it wasn't all ridiculous enough for you, they've thrown in a bit of incest at the end. Everyone loves a bit of incest when it comes to crazy murderous folk...

This film can now take it's rightful place on my list of worst films ever, along with The Forest and Wolf Creek etc

Go check it out =p therunsmovie.com

A New (albeit late) Discovery

I don't really like TV in general and tend not to bother watching it unless I am in serious need of some brain dead time or feel like I've been neglecting my mother and go watch some soaps with her over a cup of tea or two. This doesn't mean I don't like a good TV show when it comes around! There have been many to catch my eye, which for the most part I have streamed online when I can't sleep or slip into procrastinator mode. Now, there hasn't been a TV show that I have loved as much as I loved Buffy (snigger if you must but growing up to Buffy was fantastic). I'm not sure if my lack of loving is down to TV never being as good or just the fact that I got older and my love became harder to give away, but either way there has been nothing to make me feel the way Buffy made me feel. But perhaps this is a story I shall return to...

The point of this blog wasn't to reveal how much of a geek I am to the people who didn't already know, but instead to talk about Dexter. I keep hearing about it everywhere I go, but I've never put in the effort to watch it. I have no idea when it's on TV or even what channel airs it. Besides there are so many other things I need to be doing and other shows I need to work my way through (Insomnia is something that has been popping up since I was around 9 - but this is a story for another time too). Dexter even has Julie Benz in it, and generally having Buffy actors is normally reason enough for me to watch something...

So, about an hour ago I was sat at my laptop replying to emails and what not, mostly wanting to go to sleep but not being ready to give up on the day yet, when I decided to watch something to fall asleep to. I scoured watch-series for anything that I've not already watched that I would actually want to watch (scoured is kinda a lie) and came across Dexter. Sure, why not. People keep going on about it right? May as well give it a shot...

So here goes Episode one of Season one... and OH WOW. It is genius. How on Earth have I managed to miss 4 seasons of this show? Ok so they're short 12 episode seasons (unless watch-series is just lying to me, but I can usually trust it), but still - that's a lot of amazing to just pass under my radar. So here begins my new sleepless nights series. This year I have got through quite a lot - From beginning to either end or up to date - Grey's Anatomy, Sex and the City, Family Guy, Bones, Xena, How I Met Your Mother, Dollhouse etc etc for any I can't remember.

I realise I could spend my time more productively - after all if I have all those awake hours imagine how much work I could get done! Well - there was a time when that was the case. Perhaps I'll leave that story for another day too.