Brad Pitt Saves Humanity From Zombies and Movie Flops in WWZ

So how loyal did World War Z stay to it's novel counterpart?  Based on the non-fiction novel by Max Brooks, the book tells the story of the geopolitical, social, religious, and environmental impact resulted from the zombie war, from a wide variety of perspectives on a global context. The movie follows the story of Brad Pitt's character, Gerry Lane, a United Nations employee, who races against time to save humanity against the Zombie pandemic. I'm not going to lie, it was entertaining in the Hollywood-Big-Blockbuster way, but yet, I can't help imagining what they could have done to move away from a linear narrative path, and stick more closely to the documentary-nonfictional feel of the book.

With that said, adapting the book was not a simple task whatsoever, and I'm sure the idea has crossed the minds of many throughout the course of the project. In 2007, the project began when Brad Pitt's production company Plan B secured the rights to the film and an adapted screenplay was written by J. Michael Straczynski. In 2009, after many delays as the script was still "far from realization," the script was rewritten by Matthew Michael Carnahan. Filming began in July 2011, but several reshoots were scheduled in 2012 after writers Damon Lindelof and his Lost Partner Drew Goddard were hired to rewrite the film's third act. Several scenes were dropped and a new ending was built to make the film less "abrupt and incoherent" and to water down the film's political undertones and drive the film to a more "family summer blockbuster." 

With three different writers on board and credited, did this affect the overall consistency of the plot? I can say that the film did seem a little short, in my opinion, as it lacked the need for a larger and more definitive climax. I also would have liked to see more scenes on a global scale. It is called World War Z after all. Having said that, I can say that Brad Pitt saves it. And I'm not just saying that because you get to watch Brad Pitt's face in high definition for two hours. There's something about Brad Pitt that legitimizes a film, and it's apparent in any film he's part of. If anyone else was cast in the lead role; a Channing Tatum, even a Tom Cruise, this would be completely different film.

Now, just in case we ever find ourselves in the middle of a zombie apocalypse, here are some tips I gathered from the film:

How to Survive a Zombie Apocalypse Brad Pitt Style

1. Magazines make good armour.

2. Keep your finger off the trigger.

3. Nova Scotia is always the answer.

4. Aichmophobia? Get over it.

5. Know how to count.

6. Turn your phone on silent. 

7. Family is always first.

8. Always listen to the dog. No matter how annoying it is.

9. Piling things is a good barricade...chairs, suitcases, whatever!

10.  It's the Zombie Apocalypse, but dammit never forget to accessorize.

What did you think of World War Z? 

New Trailer: Team Scorsese - Dicaprio's Wolf Of Wall Street

Martin Scorsese and Leonardo Dicaprio team up again in the crime drama The Wolf of Wall Street. The film, based on the autobiography by the same name, follows Jordan Belfort, a headstrong New York stockbroker (played by Dicaprio), who refuses to cooperate in a massive security fraud case involving widespread corruption on Wall Street, in the corporate banking world and mob infiltration. Drugs, sex, money, greed, power. This black satire looks fast-paced, filthy, and rather hilarious. A lobster get's thrown at someone, Dicaprio does a little jig, and Matthew McConaughey performs an off-the-cuff-chest-pound-hum thing (which supposedly was completely improvised). Not to mention, Jonah Hill is also in it. Certainly, it will be interesting to see the dynamics of a unique cast.

The film hits theatres later this year on November 15th.

Chasing Ice: Big Ideas Big Visuals

Chasing Ice, a documentary that follows National Geographic environmental photographer and adventurer James Balog takes us on a breathtaking journey across the Arctic as he deploys time-lapse cameras to capture multi-year records of the ever changing glaciers. Balog's videos, composed of thousands of still images, compress years into seconds as they capture ancient ranges of ice melting right before our eyes. 

James Balog was once a skeptic about climate change, even with his scientific upbringing. With one trip north, and the visual evidence before him, it sparked an idea within him: The Extreme Ice Survey. With a team of young adventurers, Balog sets out across the Arctic landscapes of Greenland, Iceland, and Alaska to plant time-lapse cameras to record the melting glaciers. According to Balog, visual evidence of our changing planet is what people need, more so than the facts or statistics. 

The images are incredibly stunning. They truly capture the power and history of these massive forces of nature. And at the same time, I could feel a sort of serene sadness watching them. Some of the shots are other-worldy. They evoke a simplicity, a beginning of time, and a human-nature relationship. It reminds us that we humans depend on nature as much as nature depends on us.

There is no doubt that the Arctic is changing. You can see it plain and clear in Balog's videos.  I believe that teaching the world through the visual is extremely valuable. In such a visually enriched world, there's a growing need to see to believe. But as much as visual evidence is important, we need the facts too. We see the change, but what exactly is changing it? And more importantly, how do we stop it from changing?

Watch the Official Trailer:

Learn more about the film here

A Tribute To Alfred Hitchcock

The Master of Suspense. A kind of suspense that he understood to be universal and eternal. He established techniques that are used to this day.

"Fear isn't so difficult to understand. After all, weren't we all frightened as children? Nothing has changed since Little Riding Hood faced the big bad wolf. What frightens us today is the exact sort of thing that frightened us yesterday. It's just a different wolf. This fright complex is rooted in every individual."
-Alfred Hitchcock

Sure, our wolf today may look a little different (maybe some more CGI, maybe some more gore) than the one from Alfred Hitchcock's time. But the fundamental aspect of the wolf, the feeling the wolf gives us, fear is universal. It's not the what we're scared of, it's how it's presented to us. Suspense is the how. It can make us fear anything. This is why his films are timeless.

Take a step down memory lane in this Alfred Hitchcock "Film Checklist" Tribute by Jean-Baptiste Lefournier:

Short Film: "Under The Knife" - Etta Bond

A short film collaboration project for the "Random Acts" series by Channel 4 literally goes "Under The Knife." The film, directed by Jeremy Cole, opens with a continuos shot of UK singer Etta Bond which is fragmented into hundreds of shattered pieces. 1374 3D layers in After Effects to be exact, all individually key framed and positioned. As the song progresses, the pieces begin to merge together, revealing a face behind the voice.

"Under The Knife" is undeniably unique and technically beautiful, with a powerful message. And not to mention, Jeremy Cole is an After Effects wizard.

See how the film was made here.

Clever "Pictogram" Movie Posters

Stumbled upon this collection of minimalist movie posters designed by Milan-based creative studio H-57. This series, titled "Shortlology Movies Collection," takes popular movies, past and present, and summarizes their plots into a simple pictographic form. Check them out:

    

Underdog Films of Summer 2013

(1) Kristen Wiig, Darren Criss, one movie? Is this real life? Girl Most Likely follows Imogene (Wiig), a failed New York playwright who moves back home after both her career and relationship backfire. Back home in New Jersey, Imogene must awkwardly navigate life as she's forced to live with her eccentric mother (Annette Bening), and two new strange men sleeping in her house (Matt Dillon and Darren Criss). I missed this at the Toronto International Film Festival last year (where the film was previously titled Imogene). I'll definitely be checking it out this summer when it hits theatres July 19th.
Watch the trailer here

(2) Remember little Moises Arias as Rico from Hannah Montana? Well, he's back making a name of his own while working on projects like Ender's Game and this summer's film The Kings of Summer. The Kings of Summer follows three teenage friends who, in a declaration for freedom, spend their summer in the wilderness building a house and living off the land. The Kings of Summer is playing in select theatres now.
Watch the trailer here

(3) A Sundance nominated film, Ain't Them Bodies Saints starring Rooney Mara is an romancic-drama following the tale of an outlaw who escapes prison and journeys across the Texas countryside to reunite with his wife and daughter who he has never met. Slow paced and beautiful photography, this film was the winner of the Cinematography award at Sundance Film Festival. Ain't Them Bodies Saints opens in theatres August 16th.
Watch the trailer here

(4) Another TIFF film, Much Ado About Nothing is a modern retelling of Shakespeare's classic comedy. Shot in 12 days, in Black and White, and using the original text, the film follows two pairs of lovers with different views on romance. The film will be released in select theatres on June 7th.
Watch the trailer here

(5) Cate Blanchett stars in this summer Woody Allen film Blue Jasmine. The plot of the film is somewhat of a secret, the only thing disclosed is that it is "the story of the final stages of an acute  crisis and a life of a fashionable New York housewife" according to the film's distributor Sony Pictures Classics. Blue Jasmine hits theatres July 26th.
Watch the trailer here

Life Saving Technology Protecting Endangered Species

  

One rhino is killed every 11 hours in Africa.

The Zoological Society of London (ZSL) is making global impact. The organization plans to install state of the art camera technology to better protect endangered wildlife in Kenya. These camera traps, installed in poaching hotspots, will be equipped with sensors that will instantly transmit images of intruders, detect vibrations from vehicles, and sounds of gunshots. Park Rangers can then identify the location of poachers and act immediately.

The organization, winner of fan favourite for Google's Global Impact Challenge, is hoping the project will reduce poaching incidents in a Kenyan protected area by 50% in the next two years.

Learn more about the charity and their projects here