Unpopular Opinion: I don't like La La Land

Okay, before we start let me say a few things: this is just my opinion, film is art and as we know art is subjective; if you like this film that’s great and I definitely don’t want to spoil it for you. Also, I don’t hate musicals, in fact some of my earliest and fondest memories of the theatre have been musicals. And lastly, I don’t necessarily dislike this film just because everyone else seems to love it. There have been high rated films before I was first sceptic about but did like in the end (e.g. The Theory of Everything). Okay, so let’s get going about what I liked (yes of course there are also good things) and didn’t like.

What I liked about La La Land:

- The colours are amazing! The colours are bright and glowing and just overall very nicely arranged and combined. Both the sets and the costumes go together very well and you probably will find yourself thinking more than once “yeah, that looks really nice.”

- The costumes are pretty. Again, the colour scheme here is great and almost anything that is worn in this film is some sort of eye catcher or looks at least quite decent. 

- This whole old school 50s vibe is a nice touch. It has this sort of nostalgia of classic (musical) films and gives the story an overall pleasant look and feeling that also fits the music.

- The cinematography and the way it’s filmed. The film knows how to present its aesthetics and its music. The editing and the transitions run smoothly and you don’t get this feeling of “okay, that was weird…”

- Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling do a decent job with the material they were given. Their dancing looks rather neat and there singing is not necessarily perfect but it doesn’t have to be, it fits the film quite well actually. 

- The music and dancing was good. Not “wow!” but it was at least something you could watch and move your feet to. So, it could’ve been worse.

- The ending is nicely done and at least against this cliché happy ending.

Things I disliked about La La Land:

- The story is flat and almost nothing happens! If after 45 minutes I start checking my watch every ten minutes to see how long it’s already been: that’s not a good sign. Aspiring artists fall in love, break apart because of their different successes and meet again years later. It’s nothing new and they also don’t really add anything to make it seem new or more interesting. 

- There are only two characters and both of them aren’t that interesting. I get that the story is about Mia and Seb, but couldn’t there have been at least one proper side character to have some more and different interaction? The characters of Mia and Seb are also nothing new in the world of film and, to me, there was nothing memorable about them. I found myself rooting for neither of them and honestly didn’t care if Mia was gonna get the role or not.

- The whole relationship felt forced and weird to me. Yeah, I get that this is a love story but at least show me how and why the characters fall for each other. The two meet, he’s rude. They meet again months later at a party, not really knowing each other and have a kind of sarcastic, slightly passive-aggressive conversation. They go home and dance on a hill and bum! they are in love. Like, what?! Then the whole “she doesn’t like jazz thing”. That was fine until they of course have to write that he shows her how great the music actually is and what she’s missing and that she eventually comes to like the music. That would have made a nice contrast, why could she simply not dislike jazz? And then they break up for, to me, very stupid reasons. Every relationship has its ups and downs, but they never really talk about things or apologise or message each other when things are about to go differently. So of course they have to break up! No!

- The music is okay but not “wow!”. It’s entertaining and yeah I tapped to the beat now and then but there was nothing memorable about the music. The only song that kinda stuck out to me was the concert song and even of that I couldn’t recall the melody right now. There isn’t this typical one song of a musical everyone keeps in mind and has heard of. The music is good, but not special. 

- The lack of diversity which also goes hand in hand with the no-secondary-characters-thing. Sure, the very first song of the film is basically a boom of ethnic diversity and we see (apart from our two main characters of course) only black people in the jazz clubs. It’s like they thought that with that first song they could cover diversity for the whole film and then forget about it. I also find it a little weird that we have only black people in the jazz scenes as if no one else enjoys that music. And for the huge amount of black people we see in the jazz scene, there’s only one of them who gets focus for like five minutes (the music group guy) and then he’s somehow badly connotated. Some people also said that the film is racist because a white man safes the music of the black community (“white saviour” discussion). I wouldn’t necessarily agree with that though I have to say that something still felt off to me, though I can’t quite pinpoint it. Also, not to necessarily go with the stereotypes, but a musical film in 2016 and there’s not one queer character? Come on!

- The song the girls sing when they’re getting ready for the party is somehow very cringy to me and just weird and uncomfortable. For once, just once, when a character says “I’d rather stay home tonight, I don’t feel great” can friends please understand that instead of forcing them to go? And of course Mia turns around in the end and gets fancy to get to a party she doesn’t even really enjoy that much in the end. (Only to meet Sebastian)

Okay, so those are my main issues I have with La La Land. It’s not necessarily a bad film but to me it would definitely not deserve the Oscar for Best Picture. An Oscar worthy film has to be more than just look pretty and have some fancy music. Visually the film definitely deserves praise, no doubt about that and the costumes are gorgeous as well. But for me the pretty looks don’t make up for a boring story, flat characters and an overall mainstream appealing romance film. Like I said, if you liked this film that’s great. This is just my opinion on a film that I think is worth checking out but unworthy of all the fuss and Oscar praise.

Why Suicide Squad movie's Joker x Harley relationship gives a wrong picture

Hang on there! Don't troll me yet! I swear I'm not one of those people who bash every DC movie! And even though I might be a DC fanboy, I'm not one of those who HAS TO point out every silly detail the movie makers got wrong. I'm just a concerned citizen as everyone else and I just want people to know what's on my mind. There obviously are mistakes within the Suicide Squad movie, but that's not my point. In fact I actually quite enjoyed the movie and found it entertaining, so don't tell me I'm one of those DC haters. I freaking LOVE Batman v Superman. Yeah. I mean that. 100%.

I love the DC comics, especially Batman, he is one of my all-time favourite heroes. And what's a Batman without his Joker? And I love the Joker. No seriously, I LOVE the Joker (like beyond Harley Quinn level of love). He is probably my favourite comic book character of all time, no matter when and where. I like every incarnation of the Joker, also the ones that might be considered "bad"; I can see something brilliant in every incarnation of this character because he's just so awesome! He gets all the cool lines, and, let's be honest here, many of the more brilliant Batman stories include the Joker. So that character means a lot to me and of course I was looking forward to see Jared Leto in this iconic role. I'm not here to talk about the pros and cons of Leto's portrayal of the Joker, that can cover another entire blog post. Just for the record: I thought he was alright. He's not gonna be my favourite (that'll always be Mark Hamill) but it was fun watching him. But this is about something else; this is also about the Joker but not only him, it's about these two:

(Source: mtv.com)

What would Harley Quinn be without her Puddin'? Well, she as a character wouldn't even exist because this relationship is her quint-essence. Her obsession and twisted, crazy love for this man makes her so interesting and insane; partly even more insane than the Joker himself because Harley is crazy enough to love a man like this and would do anything for him. And she fell in love with him because he made her to; he manipulated her and made her feel special to have her on his side. She is so blind in her love for this man that she became crazy and a reckless bad guy (well, girl). And that brings me to the topic of this post. Let's start where Harley started as well, because this already begins to show my point:   

Doctor Harleen Quinzel was a psychiatrist at Arkham Asylum, she has always been interested in the human mind and really wanted a challenge. She wanted to explore the worst and most twisted minds of the Asylum and who else to go to but the Clown Prince of Crime himself to achieve this goal? The craziest of them all and Harley knows that, she wants to discover everything about that man's brain and so she goes down this road, which is going to take a dark and twisted turn. The Joker does indeed talk to Harleen and even opens up a little. But of course he doesn't do that without something on his mind, he's not just talking about himself to anyone. He sees something in Harleen and that's what he uses, he uses her heart, mind and interest from the very beginning. The manipulation starts right there, so early on. That's the point: the Joker manipulates Harleen on every level. He tells her sentiment stories so she starts feeling connected to him, he gives her some compliments and makes her feel special and before you can say "Batsy!" Harleen has fallen for the Joker and disappeared in his web to become Harley Quinn. 

(Source: http://jacqui-m-sky.tumblr.com/)

But what about the Joker? Did he really mean all that? Does he love that girl too? Does he care for hear? Doubtful. I don't deny that there are moments in the comics and the animations when the Joker does feel jealous when someone else has Harley, and there are moments when he replies her advances and thanks her. But this is about some deep psychology and as we all know: the Joker's psyche runs deep. He doesn't purely love that girl; sure he seems to like her somehow, I know that there are actually kind of "sweet" and caring moments between them. But I'm doubting that he does really care for her on more levels than he simply uses her. This is some f-ed up shit we are dealing with. And when it comes to the relationship between Harley and the Joker, things go into some deep dark waters.

Let me come to the core of this whole story: I saw Suicide Squad and was looking forward to see the Harley x Joker scenes; two f-ed up people in an even more f-ed up relationship, that's exactly my thing. And don't get me wrong: it was fun watching these characters and the actors did a good job. My personal problem is that they portrayed this relationship in a very misleading way. At the end of the movie I was thinking "It was cool to watch, but that's not them!" And what's even worse is that there are now these (without wanting to be biased or too stereotypical) people who make posts about these two and absolutely adore them and say stuff like "Oh, they are so cute together! I want a relationship like these two! Joker x Harley, now that's what I want a relationship to be like!" And I'm just sitting there thinking "NO! YOU REALLY DON'T WANT THAT!!!"

My problem is that the Joker x Harley relationship in the Suicide Squad movie has been portrayed as too loving, too caring and two sided. The Joker is all about busting his baby out of the chaos she was put in, he almost appears "Romeo-like" in his "I'm coming to safe you, my love"-attitude. I had a hard time accepting this "Oh baby, I'm coming for you" part of the Joker character and that's (unfortunately) mostly all the Joker is about in this movie. Again: I know that there are the moments when the Joker does defend Harley when someone's pushing her around and he can get a little jealous ("Stop pushing her around. That's my thing!"). But that's not the Joker's dominant character in this relationship, in fact it's a side that we don't see often. Most of the time it isn't about love and he doesn't care for her. There are moments when he lets her drop like some useless tool, he would push her into danger to save himself and wouldn't move a bit when she got busted by the Batman or the police as long as he gets away to a good place to watch and laugh. 

(Source: hollywoodreporter.com)

The relationship can best be described by these words: dysfunctional, abusive and manipulative. It's by far not all "Aw, Puddin''!" and "Come here, tuts!", it's far more violent and dark. Remember Harley's story: the Joker talked her into liking him, he manipulated her from the very beginning so he could use her. That's what the Joker x Harley thing is all about: the Joker is one manipulative and abusive bastard towards Harley. He abuses her mentally and physically; he can push her off a cliff and she would still come back to him, smiling. Harley's mind has been broken into this reality where she still loves the Joker no matter what he does to her, in the end he can sweet-talk her into almost everything. That's mental abuse and manipulation on the highest and most dangerous level. You can say that the Joker's mind-plays are the whole reason Harley Quinn was born; if Harleen had never met and talked to him, she would never have heard his manipulative words and just stayed the psychiatrist she was. That's what the Joker did: he mentally abused her into becoming another person who is completely dependent on this man. And it doesn't stop with the mind, the Joker has always been known to never leave a body unhurt. He kicks her, he punches her, he strangles her. Anything you can think of, the Joker simply doesn't care, even when it comes to Harley! On multiple occasions he has physically abused Harley and also tried to kill her! This has driven her so far that even she has tried to murder the Joker but she has been so manipulated by him that he can sweet-talk her into lowering the gun and immediately pointing one at her himself. I think you're slowly getting the picture I'm trying to paint here, right?

If I had to point out one scene in the movie that got me thinking about this, it's the scene when Harley jumps into the chemical bath. Now, I didn't entirely have a problem with the scene as a whole; it shows us what really happened to Harley and what she would actually do to win the Joker's approval. What go me thinking was the bit after she landed in the chemicals: first the Joker wants to leave but then he stops, closes his eyes to think, curses and jumps in after Harley to save her. That had me frown because this showed that the Joker must have been thinking something like "Shit! I can't just leave her. She's has been kinda cool, I can't abandon her." (Might be a bit exaggerated) What upsets me is that they are implying that the Joker jumps after her because he actually seems to like and care for her so he feels responsible if something bad happened to her, so he has to jump after her to see if she's okay. Now, let's see how this plays out in the comics:

(Source: amazonaws.com)

This is what I imagined it to be: he pushes her in (the rude bastard he is) and he does go looking for her but not to save her. He just goes to look what has happened to her, to see if he really could push her (literally) so far as to make her like him. And she is, she is even more crazy for him after this and that's how this f-ed up relationship is born.  

Okay, I can't give the movie all the bad credit. Just as Batman v Superman, the Suicide Squad movie suffers from the fact that a lot of scenes got cut which could have added much more interesting detail. And some of the stuff I have mentioned is due to the fact that so many of the Joker scenes got cut. Among these scenes were actually these abusive and manipulative moments between the Joker and Harley. There is a scene where Harley actually points a gun at the Joker and he sweet-talks her into lowering it before slapping her. And in their last moments in the movie when he pushes her out of the helicopter, he originally doesn't do it to save her; they actually have a fight and he pushes her out in anger. Out of all the scenes they had to cut: why those?! Apparently because the studio thought such a dark relationship as Joker x Harley was TOO dark and not good for audiences, especially the PG-13 audience. Still, BIG MISTAKE! If they had kept those scenes, I wouldn't have to write all this now and we could all be happy. Those scenes would have added the details we needed about Harley and the Joker and would have given a far better portrayal of their psyche. Especially for the people who are not familiar with the comics, they need those scenes to properly understand! But no, we got this lovely, kind of psycho, badass relationship that makes girls longing for such a relationship although they really shouldn't! In fact, you can look up the scenes I described on YouTube and I'm pretty sure most of you will agree with me. 

(Source: gamezone.com)

Okay, I think I have made my point clear. You really don't want a relationship like these two; it's fun to watch but horrible to imitate. I just want those people who don't know the comics or the characters so well to understand what actually lies behind Harley and her love for the Joker. I hope if we really do get that Harley Quinn movie one day, that we'll get to see the true side of this relationship and how destructive these two are for each other. Margot Robbie and Jared Leto are brilliant actors and I personally got the impression that these two really do love to portray these roles and I'm pretty sure they could be totally awesome if they were given the right material. But we are only at the beginning with these incarnations of the Joker and Harley, there's still so much to come in the future. I'm honestly looking forward to see more of Jared Leto and Margot Robbie and I would definitely love to see some more psycho Joker x Harley stuff!

(Source: wallpapercave.com)

  

Concerning the criticism of “Zoolander Transphobia”

Some people, and especially the trans community felt not very excited when they saw the trailer of Zoolander 2 in which Benedict Cumberbatch appeared as an androgynous/non-binary model called All. People felt offended and see it as another step towards the discrimination of trans/non-binary/gender-fluid community. Just read this article if you don't believe me:
 http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/nov/24/zoolander-2-trans-people-step-backwards-for-us-all?CMP=fb_gu

HOWEVER!!!

I am transgender myself and I feel the need to speak out some thoughts regarding this whole discussion which some people might forget:

1. Have we even seen the whole movie yet?

Answer: No, so we don’t really know how Benedict’s character is actually portrait. Perhaps the character and the gender identity of All will be explained to the characters in the movie who don’t know better about gender issues.

2. Why do people, especially trans people, feel offended by this clip?

Answer: I personally don’t know, and mind you, I’m transgender myself and had no problems whatsoever with Benedict’S character. Again: we don’t even know yet what happens in the movie. 

3. “I think he’s asking whether you have a hot dog or a bun.”

Answer: I kind of see the problem with that question since I myself am not very comfortable talking about what’s down there. But think about the way the two main characters appear: they don’t seem to be the most educated people especially not on gender issues. Perhaps the protagonists in the movie don’t know better and they still have to realise that it’s not about the genitalia for trans/non-binary people. Once again: we don’t know yet what they will do in the movie!

4. Where’s the humour?

Answer: It’s there but apparently some people are unable to laugh about the jokes in all their seriousness! Humour shouldn’t know any boundaries and people shouldn’t always be so serious and protective of every little thing. Sure, political correctness is important but sometimes you also have to get down from your high horse. I thought the scene was very funny and I also didn’t feel insulted as a trans person.  

5. Why did they not cast a trans person for this role?

Answer: We don’t even know if All identifies as transgender; it was never mentioned! And maybe they will address it in the movie and perhaps they won’t, does it really matter? And you cast an actor/actress for a role when this person is the best for the job! To cast a trans person simply because it’s about a trans character is ridiculous! That same discussion is also going on about “The Danish Girl” and I find it quite stupid and unnecessary. You hire someone who cares about the character they play and who portrays them in the best and most convincing way possible. And Benedict is a fantastic actor and also a thoughtful and intelligent man. He’s most certainly aware that a gender issue surrounds his character and he’s an educated man who’s one of the last people that would offend/insult a social/cultural/minority group.

So stop bitching about the movie before you have even seen it and at least give it a chance. After you have seen it you can still complain but then you have at least a basis for it. 

An old love found again: David Thewlis

The last few days I have, out of fun, re-watched all the Harry Potter movies and was so happy when I came to my favourite one "Prisoner of Askaban" because that's where my favourite character comes in: Remus John Lupin. I'm so in love with this character also because he is played so brilliantly by the amazing David Thewlis (actually David Wheeler). And since I'm not a normal girl and can be obsessed and fall in love with men who are 20 or 30 years older than me, it's only natural that I've started to catch up with everything about David Thewlis.

What I have to say is: go and watch David's other movies, he's so awesome!!!! He became famous with the film "Naked" from 1993 and also got many awards for playing the part of Johnny so brilliantly. And I can only agree to that. Johnny might have some serious problems (he rapes women) and is not always the nicest person in the room but he is a very clever young man who has something of a philosopher. And David plays this really well, he's able not just to give his sometimes really thoughtful text a face and a voice you want to listen to but also manages it to make this statements his own ones so they don't just sound like something that's re-told from a book. But David also plays the vulnerable side in a stunning way so you can be able to understand what exactly is the character's problem although it wasn't really put into words in any way. In this movie David Thewlis makes it possible that you go with his character Johnny and that you think about what he says although Johnny can be quite cruel.

Yesterday I've seen the movie "Dragonheart" from 1996 and apart from the fact that this movie is actually really good and so funny David also does a great job in this in playing the bad guy. And you can really see he's the bad one, not just from the awful haircut but also from David's ability to use his presence and his look to make you see at first sight that he really is this spoiled grown-up teenager who's only interested in himself. And the movie is also worth a watch because I bet you've never seen David Thewlis having a sword fight!

The wonderful thing about David's acting is that even when he plays a guy who's actually bad you still get interested in him and sort of grow attached to him. For example in the movie "The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas" he plays a father in the 1940's in Germany who is a Nazi. Because of David's acting and the good original writing from the book you always see more the father than the terrible Nazi soldier. And no matter whom he plays or for how long he's actually in the movie itself, David Thewlis always plays every role with a lot of character and emotion that you will have the feeling that he's really at that moment that specific person.

His latest movie you can see him in will also delight a lot of you because he has also a part in "The Fifth Estate" in which Benedict Cumberbatch plays the main role. Though it not an easy issue the movie deals with and you really have to pay attention to what is happening, you will get a fascinating movie with a perfect cast including David Thewlis, Benedict Cumberbatch, Peter Capaldi and also two of Germany's best actors, Daniel Brühl and Moritz Bleibtreu. (Since I'm from Germany you can believe me when I say that ^_^). And that movie shows again that David Thewlis can pull over every kind of character and no matter how big the part is, you can always be sure that David Thewlis does some really amazing acting!

Matt Smith being a homosexual and a clone

We all have our first times seeing our most beloved actors. And often we start to associate them with the first film or TV show we see them in. Benedict, Martin and Andrew with "Sherlock" and Christopher, David and Matt with "Doctor Who". But some day we start to wonder what they are like in other projects so we look up their filmography. After doing this for all the aforementioned actors except Matt I've also finally found the curiosity to look up his works and I found two very interesting movies.

So, the first movie in which I saw Matt Smith for the first time is called "Christopher and his kind". It's based upon a autobiography of the same name by Christopher Isherwood. Basically it's about Christopher (played by Matt) who moves from his home in England to Berlin in the year 1931. There he meets his old friend who takes him to a special places that relatively early makes clear that Christopher is a young, book-writing homosexual. The film now shows Christopher's life in Berlin where me meets other British people and falls in love with other men. As it can't be prevented in such a story you also see men kissing and having sex but one has to say that they don't overdo it in the movie with showing love scenes. And who doesn't want to see Matt without his clothes? ^_^ Okay there was the fangirl speaking. - Christopher meets a man called Heinz with whom he really seems to be in love. He wants to be part of his life and always stands by his side. You can see that Christopher cares for him because at the time the Nazis and Hitler take over in Germany Christopher recognises they have to leave because their sexuality will not be accepted. So of they go in a future which is never quite clear.
The story itself is a very interesting one especially if you think about the fact that the life of Christopher Isherwood has really happened. I find the topic itself very fascinating and since I'm also German it was interesting to see how the gay community was in the thirties. Another great part for me in this movie is the fact that you get Matt Smith speaking German what for me was obviously great fun to watch. Though I have to say, since I know it's difficult to speak German if you're a native English speaker, his German was quite well to understand. There were only a few sentences which were funny to listen to but he did a good job with his German parts. But then you also have to say that the Germans English in the movie is also not always the best, especially when some of them try to pronounce Christopher's last name ^_^ One has to say that you will not get thrilling action or big discussions but I personally think the movie doesn't need that. I have to say that maybe some people who will watch the movie are just sitting through until the end because Matt Smith is in it but if you're open for an interesting and well-staged biography you will get a good story. The characters are written brilliantly and you find yourself clinging on to them and thinking about their situations in such a difficult time. And every actor and actress did a great job even if they just had a small part. Matt Smith, as nearly always, gives a great portrait of his character in this movie. He doesn't play Christopher as a stereotype gay man, he plays him naturally, emotionally and also very seriously if needed. You get a very good portrait of Christopher Isherwood because Matt Smith gives him a honest and believable character and you don't get the feeling that Matt has any problems with the role of Christopher.

The second movie I saw today has the name "Womb" or "Clone" (it has been changed for special DVD stuff). It focuses on the story of Rebecca and Tommy. They have been best friends when they were young but then Rebecca had to go to Japan to live with her mother. The two don't see each other for twelve years. Rebecca comes back to their old home and finds Tommy who still likes her very much. Rebecca and Tommy restart their relationship and are again spending much time with each other. One day they are taking a trip to Wellness Centre because Tommy's activist group is panning something there. They stop for a second because Rebecca needs to pee. Tommy gets out of the car as well but gets hit by car and dies still lying on the street. Rebecca and Tommy's parents are having their saddest days ever but Rebecca doesn't want to accept Tommy's death. She explains his parents the possibility of bringing Tommy back if they take his DNA from his dead body and let her have a baby, a new Tommy. The mother objects but the father gives in and Rebecca gives birth to a second Tommy whom she raises as her son. And so a sometimes difficult life begins for Rebecca and Tommy. Especially after some years when Tommy is older and near the age "Tommy 1" died and has a girlfriend the relationship and understanding between him and Rebecca becomes more difficult with every day.
This movie follows a brilliant and fascinating idea because you see yourself also confronted with the rules of society. Rebecca, played by Eva Green, is played brilliantly and you feel yourself put into her character. The movie manages it to portray this difficult and rather unusual scenario in a very emotional and serious way that you really want to know how Rebecca is going to handle the relationship with Tommy. You will catch yourself hoping that even though Tommy is Rebecca's son that the two of them could just be together as Rebecca remembers it but at the same time you fell sorry for Tommy because for so many years he doesn't know who he really is and has a, maybe for him, unexplainable close relationship with his mother. Matt Smith plays Tommy in a astonishing honest and emotional way. This role shows again how brilliantly Matt can play a characters who is actually a happy man but then over time has his dark and very serious even furious times. Especially in the discussions and conversations with the character of Rebecca Matt manages it to make the audience put into his situation. While watching this movie you always feel very attached to the two main characters because both Eva Green and Matt Smith play them very, very well and emotionally.

Both movies are definitely worth a watch through my personal favourite of the two is "Womb". You get brilliant acting of Matt Smith in both stories though he plays two very different characters. And you will notice again that the personality of Matt himself never gets lost in the movies because there are always the little moments where you have this young man with a bright smile behaving sometimes somehow childish and full of happiness. Matt Smith is a great actor and I hope that after his brilliant acting in "Doctor Who" he will get more new roles so he can finally expand his talent more and give us many awesome portraits of interesting people.

"Christopher and his kind": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hjidIaTYiE
"Womb": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7r_kkK9yCqY