The Fourth Wall
page 5
Editorial:
By Levi Snyder
Staff Writer
Over the past 19 years of my
life, many of my fondest memories
have been made at my home town
Cineplex, Carmike Cinema 8. It was
here that I saw “Star Wars” for the
first time, here that I had my first
real date, and here that I experienced
the magic of an enthusiastic
audience. It was also here that I
discovered the power of action,
science fiction, horror, and most of
all, drama. It was here that I learned
not just about a visual connection
to film but also an emotional one.
So, it was only fitting that I return
to my sacred theatre over
Thanksgiving break. In fact, [made
two visits.
My first screening was
“Beowulf”, Robert Zemeckis’ (the
director behind “Back to the
Rabbit?”) 3-D CGI adaptation of
the classic epic poem that we all
suffered through in high school.
The second film was another
adaptation of a classic story, “The
(the director of “The Shawshank
Redemption”) is the big screen
version of Stephen King’s 1980
novella.
With “Beowulf”, I was ready for
a fun afternoon at the movies.
Walking into the theatre, I was
confident that the film would be an
amazing visual spectacle. The
previews had looked fantastic. I
was also confident that a capable
director like Zemeckis and capable
screenwriter like Roger Avery (co-
writer of “Pulp Fiction) would be
able to inject a level of substance
and meaning that was lacking in
the original epic poem. I was
correct with my first assumption.
The 3-D effects and visuals in
“Beowulf” are nothing short of
breath taking. Dragons, sea
monsters, and even a half naked
Angelina Jolie blast forth towards
the audience in stunning 3-D glory.
The new age technique of using
real actors and then animating over
top of them proves quite
impressive as well.
The computer generated
characters bare uncanny
resemblances to the film’s all star
cast which includes Anthony
Hopkins, Angelina Jolie, and Ray
Winstone. “Beowulf” is a very
entertaining action adventure film
and the actors seem to be having a
blast. Winstone (best known as Mr.
French in “The Departed”) seems
to be having a particularly good
The movie, “Beowulf”, based on the
epic poem, provides a CGI filled
action and entertainment.
time as the titular hero.
Unfortunately, the action and
fun characters are all that keep the
film afloat. The plot is your basic
warrior kills monsters and saves
the day story, but so is the poem.
However, when I discovered that
the ancient hero in the film differed
I saw great potential. The hero of
the ancient poem is a fearless hero
with no real weakness, but
Zemeckis’ Beowulfis a warrior with
a flaw. He has a bit of a soft spot
for the ladies. Beowulf'is a fearless
fighter when it comes to big scaly
beasts, but he proves to be no
match for Angelina Jolie as the
beautiful mother of his monstrous
enemy, Grendel. I was very
intrigued by this, but soon found
introduction of Beowulf’s flaw
substance of the film. Also, our
hero’s intriguing soft spot is not
explored half as much it could have
been and it quickly takes a back
seat to the dragons and sea
monsters. Don’t get me wrong I
enjoy an action picture as much
as the next guy, but that is really
all that the film is. For weeks, I saw
previews calling “Beowulf”, “the
future of cinema”, but if the future
means all visual effects and little
to no emotional ones, it may not
be so bright. Though entertaining,
this Thanksgiving flick proved to
have lots of stuffing but little meat.
A few days later, I traveled back
to Carmike Cinema 8. This time I
saw Stephen King’s “The Mist.”
To be honest, I wasn’t sure what
to expect from this film. The acting
looked strong and that was what
drew me to it, but a film about
people trapped in a mysterious mist
reminded me a little too much of
“The Fog” and that was not a film
that I particularly wanted to see
again. But I held my breath and
took the plunge. Fortunately, this
was not “The Fog.” “The Mist” is
the story of a small town in Maine
that becomes covered in a
mysterious mist after a violent
storm.
The locals are gathered at the
grocery store grabbing last minute
supplies when the thick mist rolls
in. No one knows for sure what is
out there, but the screams of those
who didn’t make it into the store
tell them they probably shouldn’t
go outside. Inside the store, you
have a gaggle of townsfolk from
all walks of life. You have big time
artist and loving father, David
Drayton (Thomas Jane) and his
young son, Billy. You have the local
mechanic (William Sadler), the
grocery store employees, the big
shot lawyer who no one likes
of the town. Then there is Miss
Carmody (Marcia Gay Harden), the
town’s crazy religious zealot.
Regardless of different social
statuses and beliefs, all of the
people in the store must band
together in order to survive
whatever is lurking in the mist. The
film takes its time with revealing
what exactly is out there. The
camera angles are somewhat
reminiscent of “Jaws”, using little
glimpses of the creatures all
leading up to a stunning reveal.
There is more than one thing
lurking outside the grocery store.
Make no mistake; “The Mist” is a
creature feature. The creatures in
the film are a collection of large
mutated insects accidentally
released from another dimension
by the military.
I know what you are thinking,
corny. I was thinking that also, but
I was dead wrong. The creatures
in “The Mist” are truly frightening.
The evil grinned spiders, tentacle
covered creatures, and vulture like
beasts all managed to send a chill
up my spine. The reason for this is
the extremely realistic looking CGI
used to create the monsters. The
effects are completely seamless.
The creatures are beautiful and
horrific at the same time. Even more
horrific than the monsters outside,
however, are the monsters lurking
“The Mist” is really a story
about people and how they
change during chaotic situations.
David Drayton says it best. “You
The action, horror and suspense
brought forth in Stephen King's “The
Mist” will keep audiences on the edge
of their seat in anticipation.
put people in the dark, you scare
them, and then you see how
primitive they get.” As time goes
on, and more and more people fall
victim to the creatures in the mist,
those inside begin to change.
Sides are drawn. Many join Miss
Carmody on her religious crusade
which puts the rest of the town folk
in danger. Carmody believes that
the mist is actually God’s way of
taking vengeance on mankind and
the only way to appease Him is to
present a sacrifice. Their first
choice is little Billy Drayton. These
once caring and friendly people are
now ready to spill the blood of an
innocent child in order to save
themselves.
The film asks an excellent
question. What happens when it
all comes down to survival? What
is man willing to do to survive? Are
we really any different the creatures
in the mist? “The Mist” works as a
horror film because it provides both
visual and psychological scares. It
also does something that
“Beowulf” could not. It makes a
genuine connection with the
audience. I saw “The Mist” with a
group of friends in a somewhat
crowded theatre. Judging from the
reactions of the audience, however,
you would have thought that it was
completely packed. The whole
theatre clapped and cheered when
Miss Carmody meets her doom,
there were several screams heard
during the creature sequences, and
the entire audience gasped in
unison at the film’s mind numbing
ending.
A few days before this, I had
seen “Beowulf” in a completely
packed theatre. There were no
cheers, no screams; just silence.
The film drew the audience in
visually, but there was no
emotional connection.
Now after seeing the box office
returns for the two films, I am
somewhat worried. “Beowulf”
continues to climb up the charts
while “The Mist” will most likely
be considered a financial flop. If
visually entertaining romps with no
soul are to be the future of cinema,
what reason will I have to travel
back to my beloved theatre.
All of the magic will be gone.