Category: Other

Why Is Audrey Hepburn So Popular In Japan?

Published May 24, 2021

I’ve recently begun watching Gundam Unicorn, an entry in the Universal Century timeline, and have been finding it to be an incredible experience. However, something that caught my attention was when one of the characters, not wishing to use their real name, identified themselves under the alias “Audrey Burne”. “Surely this is a reference to Audrey Hepburn” I can remember thinking to myself but it also made me wonder how popular and well-known she was in Japan.

First, it might be worth explaining who Audrey Hepburn is for those who are unfamiliar with her. Originally born in Belgium before moving to Britain and performing at the West End, she eventually made her way to Hollywood and ended up becoming an exceptionally popular actress, being recognised by the American Film Institute as the 3rd greatest female star of the Golden Age of Hollywood.

Leave a Comment

The Amazing And Not So Amazing World of Don Bluth Part 2

Published May 10, 2021

Here is the conclusion of my article that began in The Amazing And Not So Amazing World of Don Bluth Part 1.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is Thumbelina-1994-Poster.jpg

Thumbelina, released in 1994, is an adaptation of the Hans Christian Anderson story of the same name. Interestingly, the character of Thumbelina was voiced by Jodi Benson, the same actress who voiced Ariel from The Little Mermaid, an adaptation of another Hans Christian Anderson story. The movie Thumbelina begins with a widow, who longs for a child, receiving a seed from a witch. This seed eventually produces a flower which reveals a tiny girl who is adopted by this old lady and named Thumbelina. Thumbelina feels isolated due to her size, despite the love of her adoptive mother, but eventually comes across a fairy prince called Cornelius and falls in love. However, a travelling show troupe leader called Mrs. Toad decides to kidnap Thumbelina and have her marry one of her sons. The film got only a more marginally positive reception than Rock-A-Doodle and grossed $17 million, well short of its $28 million budget.

Leave a Comment

The Amazing And Not So Amazing World of Don Bluth Part 1

Published May 6, 2021

I recently discussed the films of Warner Bros. Feature Animation as well as discussing the 2D films of Dreamworks Animation in the past. However, arguably more important than those when it comes to the legacy of animation are the films of the legendary animator Don Bluth. While his films are certainly not of even quality, I still think it worth looking at the various films he directed and examining the amazing and not so amazing world of Don Bluth.

First, it’s worth discussing who Don Bluth is and his work prior to directing films. Don Bluth first began working in the animation industry as an assistant animator on the 1959 Disney classic “Sleeping Beauty”. He would continue to work on many other Disney animated films such as The Jungle Book, Robin Hood, The Rescuers etc. as well as working on some TV animated series such as Fantastic Voyage, Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, Groovie Goolies etc. The last Disney film he worked on was The Fox and the Hound and, in 1979, he led a group of animators out of Disney to set up Don Bluth Productions, later renamed Sullivan Bluth Studios, due to his dissatisfaction with Disney’s attitude to animation at the time.

Leave a Comment

The Fascinating World of Warner Bros. Feature Animation

Published April 22, 2021

The 1990s was the beginning of a new era for theatrical animation. The Disney Renaissance was in full swing, seeing a level of success both in the box office and amongst the critics that animation had never seen before. Other studios were eager to profit from this new demand for theatrical animated films and the era saw the establishment of Dreamworks Animation, Fox Animation and many others. However, to me, one of the more interesting studios that was established in this era was Warner Bros. Feature Animation. This studio created many fascinating feature animation films and I thought it would be worth taking a look at some of these films, the general apathy of the world towards this new studio and why Warner Bros. ended up shutting this studio down.

The first film that was produced by this studio was a live-action/animation hybrid à la Who Framed Roger Rabbit called Space Jam. Released in 1996, this film saw revered American basketballer Michael Jordan end up in the world of the Looney Tunes where they have to play and win a basketball match against Swackhammer, tycoon and owner of the intergalactic theme park Moron Mountain and his team of Monstars. The film was a big box office success and became the highest grossing basketball movie of all time. However, critical reception was mixed and, when I look back at it now, the film focuses too heavily on Michael Jordan himself to the detriment of the Looney Tunes cast although I do confess that I was quite a fan of the film as a child.

2 Comments

Why Reviews Are Important When I’m Picking Media To Consume

Published April 8, 2021

When I was in secondary school, I began to become fascinated by the worlds of anime, manga, movies, TV shows etc. while also doubling down on my passion for video games. However, as you might imagine, this was quite a lot of media to juggle while I had to attend school and do homework. I had to try to determine what was worth spending my precious time and money on and one of the ways I could determine that was to watch and read reviews. When I spoke to my friends about this, I distinctly remember them saying “Ignore the reviews. Just watch what you want”. While I partially understood their reasoning, I thought it might be worth discussing why reviews remain important to me when it comes to picking the media that I consume.

I probably should emphasise that when I began to explore these media, I wasn’t entirely sure where to begin. I had watched plenty of movies and TV shows and played many video games as a kid but I was entering a new world of more mature media and had no idea where to begin. Not to mention that I was practically clueless about where to begin with anime and manga. While I did ask friends and family what some of their favourites were, I wanted to learn even more and find some hidden gems. To do that, I sought out reviews of media that I found interesting to see what the reviewer’s thoughts were and whether I should check them out.

A picture of my horror film collection in October 2020. — When I discovered horror films in secondary school, I had no idea where to begin and I turned to online reviewers to find out what movies I should seek out.

Leave a Comment

The Template of the Hero’s Journey

Published March 25, 2021

It has been argued that, despite the enormous amount of stories told throughout the world and media, there are only a limited amount of “frameworks that are recycled again and again in fiction“. Easily one of the most popular would be the template of the “Hero’s Journey”, also referred to as the monomyth.

The secondary name for the hero’s journey, “Monomyth” comes from James Joyce’s “Finnegans Wake” and refers to the fact that numerous myths and stories from cultures all around the world use this structure for their storytelling with classic examples such as King Arthur, The Epic of Gilgamesh, Yamato, Beowulf and many others falling into this category.

An illustration of the hero’s journey by Reg Harris

Leave a Comment

Anime and Manga References in Western Media

Published March 4, 2021

I’ve recently been getting into a live-action TV series called “American Horror Story”, surprise, surprise, and while I was watching the first season, I noticed that a character called Violet was reading a manga, Nana to be specific. While gaining a newfound respect for the character for her good taste in manga, I also enjoyed the fact that it was subtle. I only recognised that it was Nana due to my familiarity with the series and, save for a brief shot which clearly shows off manga artwork, most people would probably mistake it for a prose novel. Soon after, I began to think about other anime and manga references in Western media.

Western animated series and films in particular contain many references to anime and manga. This makes sense to me as many modern animators are fans of the mediums of anime and manga. Easily one of the most famous examples of this is the appearance of a Totoro plushie in Toy Story 3. John Lasseter stated in an interview “we thought it was a very appropriate homage to let Studio Ghibli know how much they mean to us“.

@ChibiUFO @MichaelToole always fun to see manga on TV! I thought it was cute to see Nana on American Horror Story. pic.twitter.com/18bgDAHmO5
— ⚡Bubblegum Midlife Crisis⚡ (@bunnycartoon) January 6, 2015

Leave a Comment

Why Are Clip Shows Even Made?

Published March 1, 2021

I’m sure that at one point or another we’ve all been watching one of our favourite TV shows, enjoying the content and eager to see the next episode when we come across an episode that is merely a compilation of clips from previous installments. Whenever my family comes across one of these shows, they pretty much give a collective groan and even make the unusual request sometimes to skip this particular entry. Taking this into account, I thought it might be interesting to take a look at what clip shows are in general and why they are made.

A clip show fundamentally refers to a TV episode of a series where various clips from previous episodes are strung together to fill up the time. Usually there is a frame story that tries to explain why we are seeing all these clips again with characters reminiscing being a typical example. These clip shows are often critically derided and their only purpose seems to be to create an episode with as low a budget as possible.

Friends infamously had 6 clip show episodes.

Leave a Comment

Why Trope Deconstruction Is So Fascinating

Published February 15, 2021

Anyone who has consumed even a moderate amount of storytelling media will realise that many stories fall back on clichés and common themes in order to express themselves. These are called “Tropes” and, while tropes aren’t a bad thing, it can become quite tiresome when you see one appear over and over. However, some works are self-aware of these clichés and take the opportunity to reinterpret them in different, unique ways. This is called “Trope Deconstruction” and I thought I might share my thoughts on why I find these works fascinating and enjoyable.

When I was a child, I was, for the most part, blind to tropes, simply consuming media such as movies, TV series, books etc. without much consideration for the tropes that made it up. By secondary school, I had begun to develop an interest in horror films and set about consuming them with great gusto. By the time I reached Scream, I had begun to develop a particular interest in slasher films and the various tropes associated with them, in particular that of the final girl.

Leave a Comment

How Important Are Dark Themes in Children’s Media?

Published February 1, 2021

I’ve been listening to YouTube videos, in the background, as I work recently and I noted in one of the videos that a YouTuber brought up “The Land Before Time” after they saw a dinosaur in the game they were playing. The other YouTuber responded by saying “That depressing children’s movie?”. Hearing this reminded me of how surprisingly dark some of the themes are in children’s media but also how I believe that it is vitally important that children’s media tackle these subjects.

Having brought up The Land Before Time, I think it might be worth discussing Don Bluth’s philosophy when it came to directing animated films. His policy was “that kids can handle dark stuff as long as it has a happy ending” with many of his films not afraid to tackle the topics of death, trauma, abandonment etc. While some may criticise this philosophy, I believe that it makes sense that children’s media should teach kids some of the darker points of life as a way for children to understand and interpret the world.

The Land Before Time wasn’t afraid to tackle the theme of death.

Leave a Comment