DVD Logging
Dec. 3rd, 2008 07:44 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
the_rckIn recent weeks, I've watched a lot of things that I might otherwise have delayed for quite a while. We have our Netflix account set up with two queues, one containing things just for me and one containing things for both of us or just for Scott. I've been trying to make sure that my queue gives me one DVD in English for every one that isn't, but 75% of what's in my queue is in other languages. That means that anything in English will get watched sooner. (Stuff in English is easier for me to use for breaks while writing or for background noise. I actually have to pay attention to anything with subtitles.)
Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl - I didn't pay a lot of attention to this movie as we checked it out mainly for Cordelia (she saw the first fifteen minutes on TV before we needed to go somewhere. I only pried her away with a promise that I'd get it from the library). I found the plot pretty predictable. There were a lot of sections that were quite blurred around the edges. I suspect that those were the big 3-D sections.
At any rate, dreams penetrate reality. Imagination wins out over every day routines. Friendship blooms between former enemies. Everyone ends up happy. The dreamscape sequences were reasonably surreal without quite reaching confusing levels.
Cordelia found some bits a little too scary (face hiding) but stuck it out.
Batman Beyond season 2 DVDs 3 and 4 and season 3 DVD 1 - I like Terry. I like Bruce. I like Max. I'm not remembering which episodes were on these DVDs (it's been too long), so I can't comment on individual episodes. I do like, though, that things come back later. I also like having a sense that there's a whole world there, that the characters don't exist in a vacuum. It's not just the history of Batman. It's occasional glimpses of the implications of change.
Code Geass 1-5 - I appreciate some of the complications in terms of loyalties and figuring out the right things to do that are implied by these episodes, but I also didn't encounter any active characters who I didn't want to smack in the face with a dead fish. I may watch more, but.... Netflix thought this would be a five star for me? Really? Does it improve? Will there actually be characters who don't annoy me or characters I can like in spite of being annoyed?
Condor Hero 27-41 - I liked this. Maybe some day, when our budget is unstressed, I'll buy it so that I can watch the fight sequences and admire the costumes and acting. The story remained fairly silly and hugely melodramatic, but I expected nothing else. I'm both glad and sorry that this version of the story focuses so heavily on the romance. Focusing on that as central means that I can track a lot of the subplots, at least sort of, but the romance kind of bored me. I wanted to know more about some of the supporting characters.
I stuck with the Cantonese track for the voices. I'd gotten used to them and associated them too strongly with the characters to be able to shift to Mandarin. I suspect that I'd get the names more clearly from the Mandarin.
Doc and Merle Watson in Concert - Three Doc Watson DVDs means that the details blur in my head a little-- Okay, a lot. Good music for those who like the genre.
Doc Watson & David Grisman: In Concert - Music. Music I like but also music that isn't vastly memorable for me. Doc Watson is one of those musicians whose work I'll reliably enjoy but will also mostly forget.
Doc Watson: Rare Performances 1963-1981 - Some of the footage here was hard to watch because, even cleaned up, the recording quality was poor. I suspect that this one is of most interest to people with more passion than I have about Doc Watson and either his personal history or the history of his style of music. This is not to say that I didn't enjoy some of the music.
Forbidden Kingdom - Eh. Not such a great movie. I tuned out everything that wasn't Jackie Chan or Jet Li. I don't think I missed anything at all. I'd have preferred a movie that was actually about their characters. Sadly, there weren't even enough good bits to make it (theoretically) worth making a clip tape of the good parts. (Scott did that years and years ago with Top Gun. He edited out all the dull people parts and had a tape just of scenes of planes flying.)
Golden Compass - Another eh movie. My attention kept wandering. I was reasonably impressed by the quality of the actors involved, but the fact that I didn't really enjoy the book meant that I couldn't invest in the story or the characters (and that I couldn't tell whether or not there was anything in the movie that might have drawn me in under other circumstances).
It was pretty, at least, and I think that low expectations help.
Happy Feet - I was in the wrong mood for this when we watched it. I had to restrain myself from making cynical comments about plot developments and the simplicity of the solutions to problems. That would have spoiled Cordelia's enjoyment.
She found the scenes with predators pretty terrifying. Scott and I explained that the main character was not going to get eaten because that would end the movie, but that didn't make the snapping teeth less scary.
One of the penguins made me think of Londo Mollari. That part did amuse me.
Iz: Hot Hawaiian Nights - I wish I had the vocabulary and knowledge to talk intelligently about music. Then I'd have more to say about all these music DVDs I've been watching. This is another okay-but-not-memorable-to-me DVD. I had no idea what I'd be getting when I put it in my Netflix queue.
Kingston Trio and Friends: Reunion - This one's good for those as like the Kingston Trio and probably beyond dull for those who don't care. I liked the music, so it was good for me.
Kung Fu Panda - We were in Target shortly after this came out, and Scott decided to grab it. I'm generally reluctant to buy anything that none of us have seen, but this one proved a good investment. We watched it that night, and Cordelia was so excited that she couldn't stay seated. She hovered, she danced and she jumped. She then proceeded to rewatch it six times in the next three days. I didn't mind the first two. After that, I was ready to give the movie a rest for a while.
Anyway, I liked the characters. I liked the secret ingredient in the soup. I liked the story. I wouldn't have minded if it had been longer, but it ran the right length for the story.
Added later: And weeks later, Cordelia's still talking about the movie. I'm impressed.
Kyo Kara Maoh 40-44 - It had been long enough since I last watched any of this series that I'd lost track of whatever slivers of plot there were. The level of silliness is generally such that I need a break between DVDs, so I'm unlikely to really pick up on story arc.
Legends of Flatpicking Guitar - I wish this DVD had extras so that I could find out who all the musicians are. I suppose that, if I'd bought it, I'd have information from the case. The sleeve blurb lists several names, but I don't know who's who. At any rate, I enjoyed the music enough to want to look into other music by the same people.
Legion of Super Heroes DVD 1 - Superhero cartoons seem to be a safe bet for me and Scott to watch together. We enjoyed this one and will go on with the series but found ourselves wishing for more character development (as opposed to setting development and character introduction). I rather like the idea of Clark Kent making a detour between Smallville and Metropolis and learning how to be a superhero somewhere else.
Legion of Super Heroes DVD 2 - I kept spacing out during this DVD, so I don't have much to say. I don't think it was entirely the fault of the episodes. It was more that I was tired and stressed and wanting to give my attention elsewhere. Scott was sick and couldn't go to bed until he felt a bit better, so he wanted to watch something even though I wasn't really interested. At least I don't think I missed any major developments.
Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium - We got this from the library as a family movie. It proved a decent pick. Cordelia's reaction to the toy store and its wonders reminded me a lot of my reaction to parts of Willy Wonka's factory in the older movie based on that book. I really wanted there to be a place like that that I could visit, and she really wants there to be a toy store somewhere that's like this one. The overall plot was fairly predictable, but I'd rewatch it just for the toy store sequences. I want to visit that toy store, too.
Night Court 1.8-1.13 - Still funny. Dated but still funny. John Larroquette is so good at playing that particular character type. I always forget that. For some reason, I like him here even though he's playing the sort of character who normally makes me cringe and flee due to the embarrassment squick. I haven't entirely figured out why this sitcom is okay for me when most are torture.
A Prairie Home Collection: Lake Wobegon Spring Weekend - I remember nothing about this (to be fair, it's been more than a month, possibly more than two). My general impression is, "Ah, Prairie Home Companion. Pretty much what I expected." So, I'd say there was nothing spectacularly good or spectacularly bad for a viewer who starts out liking Prairie Home Companion.
Rainbow Quest: Judy Collins and Elizabeth Cotten - I'd have liked to see more of Elizabeth Cotten. She wasn't in much of her episode at all, only one song as I recall. Judy Collins had more screen time in her episode. Pete Seeger's voice, when he's talking at least, tends to make me zone out so that I hardly hear his words. I like his voice. It's soothing. It's just that making listeners relax to the point of not hearing words isn't a good quality in the host of a TV show. I'd kind of like to know what he's saying. I just can't make myself follow the words.
Romance of Red Dust 1-10 - Wikipedia let me down on this one. There's no entry for it at all or wasn't when I looked. I did find out a bit by looking up the hero. He's a real historical personage. I'm not sure I entirely followed how his career went due to not tracking the factions and rebellions and such properly. I could probably untangle it if I worked at it, but I don't care quite enough. I simply concluded that he's historically important, very well respected and lived to be relatively old.
I do like the heroine. She has complicated motivations and backstory. (Scott repeatedly remarked on her hair style and features being slightly asymmetrical and wondered why she was allowed that when nobody else is.)
The corrupt official has peculiar notions about how to enforce loyalty. I like the actor because he's able to convey some fairly subtle reactions, particularly around his character's interaction with his son, without saying anything or overstating anything.
I like the mad alchemist's lab. It's very obviously equivalent to the SF mad scientist's lab, and I kept wondering what plot devices would emerge next. No rayguns so far....
I ended up labeling the two new guys who're now with the hero and heroine as comic-relief guy and wow-look-at-those-muscles! guy. I rather expect that the sequence where the wow-look-at-those-muscles! guy is bathing in the river is available on YouTube somewhere. It ratchets up the UST and provides some fan service.
Rosemary & Thyme season 3 DVD 3 - I had more trouble watching these episodes than I expected. They kept hitting my embarrassment squick, and they had more emphasis on Rosemary and Laura being in a precarious financial situation and being isolated. I watch these more because I like the main characters than because I have any interest in the mysteries, so I prefer not to see the main characters quite so miserable. I like seeing them being good at their jobs and reasonably smart about other things.
Sense and Sensibility - This is the recent Masterpiece Theater production. I enjoyed it less than I hoped. No matter what version of this I watch, Marianne annoys me. I want to shake her until her teeth rattle. I always forget how bad it is until I watch again because I like Elinor so much (When I read, I tend to skip over the Marianne bits). As to this specific production, the acting is good. The sets are excellent in that the various indoor spaces seem very different from each other and are definitely not modern. I can't speak to the accuracy of the costumes.
Sword Stained with Royal Blood 16-25 - The lighting in this series is very muted. There's a lot that happens in shadows, making it hard for me to follow. I'm finding myself less drawn to the beauty and sheer skill of the fight scenes than I've been with other similar series. I suspect that the lead actor isn't actually doing all of the combat stunts. That alone would explain the cinematographic choices that I'm having trouble with. The fights involving the hero cut back and forth between nearly static close ups and very distant, wide angle action sequences where the actors' features aren't easily seen.
I'm still finding the occasional translation of names disconcerting (especially when a particular character's name isn't always translated). It seems only to be done to the young women. (Later) I take that back. 'King Rush' hasn't actually appeared, but judging by Wikipedia (yes, I know), that's a translation of his name.
::pokes further at Wikipedia:: I think that my ability to follow this series is really suffering from not knowing the real history of the period. Most of the history is off to one side, but historical events are influencing the characters heavily (and may well explain why the hero keeps intending to kill people for revenge and then not doing it. They're all historical figures who actually died in a different way), and the history's recent enough that people object more when it's heavily modified.
I knew the setting was relatively recent when the three European characters appeared. They were only around for a couple of episodes, but their presence and attire told me something (the fact that they were transporting guns told me more). The trio spoke English, but I'm not sure I should take that to mean that they're meant to be British. The varying accents with which they spoke English amused me a bit. I suspect that two of the three actors were Eastern European. They definitely weren't native speakers of English.
Is it awful that I like the Princess better than Miss Green? I can see why the hero's ending up with Miss Green (it makes sense, and it works, and I quite think that's the way the hero would go), but the Princess comes across as more mature, and I'd kind of like to see her get a happier ending than her historical counterpart. (I think she's in the sequel novels, so perhaps she does in this fictional universe.)
Not that I dislike Miss Green. She just comes across to me as rather juvenile. She doesn't have much tact and seems to prefer not to, and she's not at all kind. She is brave and loyal. She just seems so immature that I wouldn't choose to spend much time with her.
I don't dislike the series; if I did, I'd have stopped watching it. I'm just in a picky mood and not ready to talk story entirely. I did end up stalling out for quite a while on the most recent DVD over a scene with the Princess talking to her father (who does not look old enough to be her father, but I'm not going to let myself think too much about the supposed ages of various characters. That way lies madness). Even before I looked the Princess up on Wikipedia to see her history, I was reading her as a potentially tragic figure, so I keep expecting disaster to strike her.
Tsubasa 11-14 - I watched some of these dubbed so that I could do fic editing and watched the rest subbed. It probably shows that I have limited investment in the anime. It's pretty, but I'm not searching for clues to future developments or comparing the anime to the manga (I'm not sure I remember the manga well enough at this point).
The Water Horse - Cordelia liked this one (except for the scary parts). I think Scott did too. There was too much water involved for me and a few too many explosions. I did like that neither of the two men courting the widowed mother was evil. The water horse was very cute when it was tiny, and Cordelia wanted to rewatch those scenes.
I did keep thinking that, if I were the mother, I'd be a bit worried about my daughter given the large number of soldiers around. Even assuming that most of them were good men (not an unreasonable assumption), I'd be worried that some might be a problem. The girl acted about twelve but looked at least fourteen.
I suspect that this is one of those movies that will really appeal to people who like kids having adventures and secrets.
Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl - I didn't pay a lot of attention to this movie as we checked it out mainly for Cordelia (she saw the first fifteen minutes on TV before we needed to go somewhere. I only pried her away with a promise that I'd get it from the library). I found the plot pretty predictable. There were a lot of sections that were quite blurred around the edges. I suspect that those were the big 3-D sections.
At any rate, dreams penetrate reality. Imagination wins out over every day routines. Friendship blooms between former enemies. Everyone ends up happy. The dreamscape sequences were reasonably surreal without quite reaching confusing levels.
Cordelia found some bits a little too scary (face hiding) but stuck it out.
Batman Beyond season 2 DVDs 3 and 4 and season 3 DVD 1 - I like Terry. I like Bruce. I like Max. I'm not remembering which episodes were on these DVDs (it's been too long), so I can't comment on individual episodes. I do like, though, that things come back later. I also like having a sense that there's a whole world there, that the characters don't exist in a vacuum. It's not just the history of Batman. It's occasional glimpses of the implications of change.
Code Geass 1-5 - I appreciate some of the complications in terms of loyalties and figuring out the right things to do that are implied by these episodes, but I also didn't encounter any active characters who I didn't want to smack in the face with a dead fish. I may watch more, but.... Netflix thought this would be a five star for me? Really? Does it improve? Will there actually be characters who don't annoy me or characters I can like in spite of being annoyed?
Condor Hero 27-41 - I liked this. Maybe some day, when our budget is unstressed, I'll buy it so that I can watch the fight sequences and admire the costumes and acting. The story remained fairly silly and hugely melodramatic, but I expected nothing else. I'm both glad and sorry that this version of the story focuses so heavily on the romance. Focusing on that as central means that I can track a lot of the subplots, at least sort of, but the romance kind of bored me. I wanted to know more about some of the supporting characters.
I stuck with the Cantonese track for the voices. I'd gotten used to them and associated them too strongly with the characters to be able to shift to Mandarin. I suspect that I'd get the names more clearly from the Mandarin.
Doc and Merle Watson in Concert - Three Doc Watson DVDs means that the details blur in my head a little-- Okay, a lot. Good music for those who like the genre.
Doc Watson & David Grisman: In Concert - Music. Music I like but also music that isn't vastly memorable for me. Doc Watson is one of those musicians whose work I'll reliably enjoy but will also mostly forget.
Doc Watson: Rare Performances 1963-1981 - Some of the footage here was hard to watch because, even cleaned up, the recording quality was poor. I suspect that this one is of most interest to people with more passion than I have about Doc Watson and either his personal history or the history of his style of music. This is not to say that I didn't enjoy some of the music.
Forbidden Kingdom - Eh. Not such a great movie. I tuned out everything that wasn't Jackie Chan or Jet Li. I don't think I missed anything at all. I'd have preferred a movie that was actually about their characters. Sadly, there weren't even enough good bits to make it (theoretically) worth making a clip tape of the good parts. (Scott did that years and years ago with Top Gun. He edited out all the dull people parts and had a tape just of scenes of planes flying.)
Golden Compass - Another eh movie. My attention kept wandering. I was reasonably impressed by the quality of the actors involved, but the fact that I didn't really enjoy the book meant that I couldn't invest in the story or the characters (and that I couldn't tell whether or not there was anything in the movie that might have drawn me in under other circumstances).
It was pretty, at least, and I think that low expectations help.
Happy Feet - I was in the wrong mood for this when we watched it. I had to restrain myself from making cynical comments about plot developments and the simplicity of the solutions to problems. That would have spoiled Cordelia's enjoyment.
She found the scenes with predators pretty terrifying. Scott and I explained that the main character was not going to get eaten because that would end the movie, but that didn't make the snapping teeth less scary.
One of the penguins made me think of Londo Mollari. That part did amuse me.
Iz: Hot Hawaiian Nights - I wish I had the vocabulary and knowledge to talk intelligently about music. Then I'd have more to say about all these music DVDs I've been watching. This is another okay-but-not-memorable-to-me DVD. I had no idea what I'd be getting when I put it in my Netflix queue.
Kingston Trio and Friends: Reunion - This one's good for those as like the Kingston Trio and probably beyond dull for those who don't care. I liked the music, so it was good for me.
Kung Fu Panda - We were in Target shortly after this came out, and Scott decided to grab it. I'm generally reluctant to buy anything that none of us have seen, but this one proved a good investment. We watched it that night, and Cordelia was so excited that she couldn't stay seated. She hovered, she danced and she jumped. She then proceeded to rewatch it six times in the next three days. I didn't mind the first two. After that, I was ready to give the movie a rest for a while.
Anyway, I liked the characters. I liked the secret ingredient in the soup. I liked the story. I wouldn't have minded if it had been longer, but it ran the right length for the story.
Added later: And weeks later, Cordelia's still talking about the movie. I'm impressed.
Kyo Kara Maoh 40-44 - It had been long enough since I last watched any of this series that I'd lost track of whatever slivers of plot there were. The level of silliness is generally such that I need a break between DVDs, so I'm unlikely to really pick up on story arc.
Legends of Flatpicking Guitar - I wish this DVD had extras so that I could find out who all the musicians are. I suppose that, if I'd bought it, I'd have information from the case. The sleeve blurb lists several names, but I don't know who's who. At any rate, I enjoyed the music enough to want to look into other music by the same people.
Legion of Super Heroes DVD 1 - Superhero cartoons seem to be a safe bet for me and Scott to watch together. We enjoyed this one and will go on with the series but found ourselves wishing for more character development (as opposed to setting development and character introduction). I rather like the idea of Clark Kent making a detour between Smallville and Metropolis and learning how to be a superhero somewhere else.
Legion of Super Heroes DVD 2 - I kept spacing out during this DVD, so I don't have much to say. I don't think it was entirely the fault of the episodes. It was more that I was tired and stressed and wanting to give my attention elsewhere. Scott was sick and couldn't go to bed until he felt a bit better, so he wanted to watch something even though I wasn't really interested. At least I don't think I missed any major developments.
Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium - We got this from the library as a family movie. It proved a decent pick. Cordelia's reaction to the toy store and its wonders reminded me a lot of my reaction to parts of Willy Wonka's factory in the older movie based on that book. I really wanted there to be a place like that that I could visit, and she really wants there to be a toy store somewhere that's like this one. The overall plot was fairly predictable, but I'd rewatch it just for the toy store sequences. I want to visit that toy store, too.
Night Court 1.8-1.13 - Still funny. Dated but still funny. John Larroquette is so good at playing that particular character type. I always forget that. For some reason, I like him here even though he's playing the sort of character who normally makes me cringe and flee due to the embarrassment squick. I haven't entirely figured out why this sitcom is okay for me when most are torture.
A Prairie Home Collection: Lake Wobegon Spring Weekend - I remember nothing about this (to be fair, it's been more than a month, possibly more than two). My general impression is, "Ah, Prairie Home Companion. Pretty much what I expected." So, I'd say there was nothing spectacularly good or spectacularly bad for a viewer who starts out liking Prairie Home Companion.
Rainbow Quest: Judy Collins and Elizabeth Cotten - I'd have liked to see more of Elizabeth Cotten. She wasn't in much of her episode at all, only one song as I recall. Judy Collins had more screen time in her episode. Pete Seeger's voice, when he's talking at least, tends to make me zone out so that I hardly hear his words. I like his voice. It's soothing. It's just that making listeners relax to the point of not hearing words isn't a good quality in the host of a TV show. I'd kind of like to know what he's saying. I just can't make myself follow the words.
Romance of Red Dust 1-10 - Wikipedia let me down on this one. There's no entry for it at all or wasn't when I looked. I did find out a bit by looking up the hero. He's a real historical personage. I'm not sure I entirely followed how his career went due to not tracking the factions and rebellions and such properly. I could probably untangle it if I worked at it, but I don't care quite enough. I simply concluded that he's historically important, very well respected and lived to be relatively old.
I do like the heroine. She has complicated motivations and backstory. (Scott repeatedly remarked on her hair style and features being slightly asymmetrical and wondered why she was allowed that when nobody else is.)
The corrupt official has peculiar notions about how to enforce loyalty. I like the actor because he's able to convey some fairly subtle reactions, particularly around his character's interaction with his son, without saying anything or overstating anything.
I like the mad alchemist's lab. It's very obviously equivalent to the SF mad scientist's lab, and I kept wondering what plot devices would emerge next. No rayguns so far....
I ended up labeling the two new guys who're now with the hero and heroine as comic-relief guy and wow-look-at-those-muscles! guy. I rather expect that the sequence where the wow-look-at-those-muscles! guy is bathing in the river is available on YouTube somewhere. It ratchets up the UST and provides some fan service.
Rosemary & Thyme season 3 DVD 3 - I had more trouble watching these episodes than I expected. They kept hitting my embarrassment squick, and they had more emphasis on Rosemary and Laura being in a precarious financial situation and being isolated. I watch these more because I like the main characters than because I have any interest in the mysteries, so I prefer not to see the main characters quite so miserable. I like seeing them being good at their jobs and reasonably smart about other things.
Sense and Sensibility - This is the recent Masterpiece Theater production. I enjoyed it less than I hoped. No matter what version of this I watch, Marianne annoys me. I want to shake her until her teeth rattle. I always forget how bad it is until I watch again because I like Elinor so much (When I read, I tend to skip over the Marianne bits). As to this specific production, the acting is good. The sets are excellent in that the various indoor spaces seem very different from each other and are definitely not modern. I can't speak to the accuracy of the costumes.
Sword Stained with Royal Blood 16-25 - The lighting in this series is very muted. There's a lot that happens in shadows, making it hard for me to follow. I'm finding myself less drawn to the beauty and sheer skill of the fight scenes than I've been with other similar series. I suspect that the lead actor isn't actually doing all of the combat stunts. That alone would explain the cinematographic choices that I'm having trouble with. The fights involving the hero cut back and forth between nearly static close ups and very distant, wide angle action sequences where the actors' features aren't easily seen.
I'm still finding the occasional translation of names disconcerting (especially when a particular character's name isn't always translated). It seems only to be done to the young women. (Later) I take that back. 'King Rush' hasn't actually appeared, but judging by Wikipedia (yes, I know), that's a translation of his name.
::pokes further at Wikipedia:: I think that my ability to follow this series is really suffering from not knowing the real history of the period. Most of the history is off to one side, but historical events are influencing the characters heavily (and may well explain why the hero keeps intending to kill people for revenge and then not doing it. They're all historical figures who actually died in a different way), and the history's recent enough that people object more when it's heavily modified.
I knew the setting was relatively recent when the three European characters appeared. They were only around for a couple of episodes, but their presence and attire told me something (the fact that they were transporting guns told me more). The trio spoke English, but I'm not sure I should take that to mean that they're meant to be British. The varying accents with which they spoke English amused me a bit. I suspect that two of the three actors were Eastern European. They definitely weren't native speakers of English.
Is it awful that I like the Princess better than Miss Green? I can see why the hero's ending up with Miss Green (it makes sense, and it works, and I quite think that's the way the hero would go), but the Princess comes across as more mature, and I'd kind of like to see her get a happier ending than her historical counterpart. (I think she's in the sequel novels, so perhaps she does in this fictional universe.)
Not that I dislike Miss Green. She just comes across to me as rather juvenile. She doesn't have much tact and seems to prefer not to, and she's not at all kind. She is brave and loyal. She just seems so immature that I wouldn't choose to spend much time with her.
I don't dislike the series; if I did, I'd have stopped watching it. I'm just in a picky mood and not ready to talk story entirely. I did end up stalling out for quite a while on the most recent DVD over a scene with the Princess talking to her father (who does not look old enough to be her father, but I'm not going to let myself think too much about the supposed ages of various characters. That way lies madness). Even before I looked the Princess up on Wikipedia to see her history, I was reading her as a potentially tragic figure, so I keep expecting disaster to strike her.
Tsubasa 11-14 - I watched some of these dubbed so that I could do fic editing and watched the rest subbed. It probably shows that I have limited investment in the anime. It's pretty, but I'm not searching for clues to future developments or comparing the anime to the manga (I'm not sure I remember the manga well enough at this point).
The Water Horse - Cordelia liked this one (except for the scary parts). I think Scott did too. There was too much water involved for me and a few too many explosions. I did like that neither of the two men courting the widowed mother was evil. The water horse was very cute when it was tiny, and Cordelia wanted to rewatch those scenes.
I did keep thinking that, if I were the mother, I'd be a bit worried about my daughter given the large number of soldiers around. Even assuming that most of them were good men (not an unreasonable assumption), I'd be worried that some might be a problem. The girl acted about twelve but looked at least fourteen.
I suspect that this is one of those movies that will really appeal to people who like kids having adventures and secrets.
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no subject
Date: 2008-12-03 02:26 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-12-04 05:15 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-12-03 05:57 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-12-03 07:24 pm (UTC)I think I'll keep the second DVD in my queue against a time when I actually want to watch something like this. It might happen. I'm just a bit boggled that Netflix thought I'd rate this five stars.
Scott kept mocking the military tactics while I was watching.
Kung Fu Panda!
Date: 2008-12-04 05:01 am (UTC)Did Cordelia find the villain at all frightening? When we saw it in the theater, the appearance of the villain made some small children behind us cry.
Re: Kung Fu Panda!
Date: 2008-12-04 05:18 pm (UTC)She didn't find the villain all that frightening after the first time. I think she got used to him and found the scariness part of the fun.
no subject
Date: 2008-12-06 10:41 pm (UTC)