My Random Term Glossary

This post will be continuously edited and reworked as I add more things to it. It will get messy. It will get disorganised. I will not apologise. Yes I will, I'm British. Sorry!

Deep Impact Effect
This is when a film worries that people are not emotionally invested enough in a harrowing plot line / are getting bored, so they hold up a crying baby to remind you of how serious this all is. Courtesy of Deep Impact (1998).

Hamster Style
Something happens in the first 10 minutes that comes back to haunt the narrative. Ever noticed how anyone who coughs at the start of a film almost always dies of consumption at the end? Your basic Chekhov's gun. "One must never place a loaded rifle on the stage if it isn't going to go off. It's wrong to make promises you don't mean to keep." - Chekhov. Genuinely can't remember who nicknamed it Hamster style though.

Phoebe Buffay Treatment
When you never show the ending to a film in order to protect the viewer and yourself from a horrific ending. From the Friends (1994-2004) episode 'The One Where Old Yeller Dies'.

Titanic Disorder
An illness in which a film has to mention the name of the character each line is addressing, every single time. This is to ensure the audience remembers their names, and that they know exactly who they are talking to because editing, acting or any form of direction just isn't enough. It is most commonly found in plays written by primary school children, and James Cameron films. Courtesy of Titanic (1997).

Gravity (2013) Review

Or, the first actual roller coaster ride of a film in years. 

You can watch the trailer here.

Gravity (2013) was absolutely perfect, and so much more deserving of the Best Picture Oscar than 12 Years a Slave (2013). Seriously, how can a film possibly win the following accolades but not Best Picture?

• Best Achievement in Directing
• Best Achievement in Cinematography
• Best Achievement in Film Editing
• Best Achievement in Visual Effects
• Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score
• Best Achievement in Sound Editing
• Best Achievement in Sound Mixing

Of the 10 Oscar's it was nominated for it won 7. Every sum of its parts was listed as the best but it did not win best picture. The only other wins for 12 Years were Best Supporting Actress for Lupita Nyong'o (which was thoroughly deserved) and Best Adapted Screen Play. Grrrrrrr!

Anyway, I have already digressed. I can't say I often agree with the Oscar winners so why this came to be such a surprise for me I will never know. 12 Years was written to win an Oscar and white American slave guilt won out after all. I just wish they hadn't been so obvious about it.

I'm going to try and keep this short as my posts have been intolerably wrong recently and for that I apologise. I am an arrogant critic who loves to hear the sound of her own voice it would seem. Though this blog is done for my benefit more than anyone else's so if you don't like it, frankly my dear, I don't give a damn!

Anyway, let's compose ourselves shall we. Here is your IMDB synopsis;

Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) is a brilliant medical engineer on her first shuttle mission, with veteran astronaut Matt Kowalski (George Clooney) in command of his last flight before retiring. But on a seemingly routine spacewalk, disaster strikes. The shuttle is destroyed, leaving Stone and Kowalsky completely alone - tethered to nothing but each other and spiraling out into the blackness.

The atmosphere (see what I did there!) throughout the film was fantastic. I haven't been made to feel in that way by Cinema for what feels like ages. It seemed like Hollywood had lost its ability to make us emphasise with a character without throwing in an hysterical tearjerker.