Movie Review - Free Birds

A movie about thanksgiving that hit Australia just after New Years is an interesting choice for late school holiday viewing (especially given the big guns of Frozen and The Desolation of Smaug hit a couple of weeks earlier).  So is Free Birds a winner or is it a turkey?

Free Birds sees independent thinker turkey Reggie (Owen Wilson), who appears to be the only turkey who is aware of his impending fate, officially pardoned by the President of the USA and taken to live at Camp David.  He quickly makes himself at home only to have his dream life interrupted by Jake (Woody Harrelson) who believes he had been sent by the great turkey to convince Reggie to go back in time to the first thanksgiving and "get turkeys off the menu".

This was an interesting one for me since one of the co-writers/producers is a regular on a podcast I listen to, as such I got to get a heap of info about the movie, well in advance, from Scott Mosier.  In case you don't know, he is a long time collaborator with Kevin Smith and was producer on Clerks, Clerks 2, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back and so on.  Trust me, this diversion is relevant to the following review.

It's hard to say much about this film.  The animation is solid, the performances enthusiastic, the plot is insane and it ticks all the boxes but there isn't that much new stuff.  A lot of the laughs come from slapstick routines and there are a few good one liners but it seems to be one of those movies that you just want to be a little funnier.  That is until you watch it with a bunch of kids.

The group I was with included two boys (9 and 6) and two girls (9 and 5) and they loved it.  Their laughter made it funnier for the adults and there was no doubt that they loved it.  I can see this being a party movie for a bunch of friends with a bunch of munchies.  Why munchies in particular?  Because I believe there will be another group Free Birds will appeal to...

To put it bluntly, this is a kid friendly stoner comedy and the influence of Scott Mosier's previous work is very obvious (see, I told you it was relevant).  From dopey "woah" moments to insane "WOO-HOAH" sequences and a smattering of references to other stoner favourites (The Bill and Ted reference was a personal favourite) along with a great role for the legendary George Takei this is one movie that will... compliment certain states of mind.

Oh, and make sure you hang around for the now compulsory credits scene.

So, if you are in the mood for a quiet evening with an entertaining animated adventure I'd suggest giving this a miss.  However if you want to entertain a bunch of kids and be able to laugh along with them then Free Birds can certainly be put onto your menu.

Alternative (Aussie) Title:  Stone The Turkeys!

Movie Review - The Rep (with bonus Q & A summary plus ranty goodness)

Last night I had the opportunity to see the Queensland premiere of The Rep followed by a Q and A with Brisbane's King of Cult Cinema, Kristian Fletcher.  Quite a number of interesting subject arose so this will be a bit of a multi-part write up.

First up, the review...

The Rep follows the trials and tribulations of three enterprising Canadians, Alex, Charlie and Nigel (all played by themselves) as they try to make a success of an independent rep cinema in Toronto.  Over a year we see the struggles in trying to get enough of a regular crowd to keep the entire venture profitable.  This is interspersed with appearances by other rep cinema runners as well as film makers such as John Waters and Kevin Smith.

This movie evolved from a podcast by the main individuals and when people are not discussing things directly with the camera it becomes very much a fly on the wall documentary.  As is usual in these circumstances it is impossible to say just how genuine and natural the protagonists are behaving when the camera is turned on.  They certainly aren't the easiest bunch to like but given the stress level present throughout much of the film that is kind of understandable.

You often wonder why they don't put on more of the events that bring in the crowds in order to prop up ticket sales to make up for quieter days in their regular programming.  Strangely enough not much is said about the distributors of the movies themselves except for a few brief, mostly negative, mentions.  I feel an in depth discussion on this front may have helped highlight more of the external factors causing issues... but more on this later.

All up The Rep is a very interesting, if a little inconsistent, look at the problems faced by small independent cinemas in a world of multiplexes.  It unfortunately doesn't give much hope for the future of these ventures and really highlights the importance of not just saying you support them but actually getting out there and buying tickets.

Alternate title - Three Slightly Annoying Guys Try Desperately To Run A Cinema

The Rep Movie Trailer

Okay, let's move on to the second part of the show... the Q and A with Kristian Fletcher.

If you live in Brisbane and don't know Kristian, chances are you know someone who does.  Famous (and occasionally infamous) for hosting movie screenings of classic, cult and just plain strange films at venues across Brisbane, including the only ongoing Australian Rocky Horror Picture Show screenings with a shadow cast, as well as retro nights revisiting the 70s, 80s and 90s and artists like Madonna, Kate Bush and David Bowie.

Given that the discussion followed on from the film the focus was very much on just how difficult it can be to get enough people coming to movie screenings to make them profitable, and given that he doesn't have his own venue to host them (yet) and has much lower overheads it is easy to see why individuals like Kristian and the guys from The Rep do this for the love of movies rather than the money.

One of the key points to come out of the Q and A shed some light on one of the aspects of the movie that I felt should have got more attention, the distributors.  With the push to digital the content owners are really restricting access to content across the board and if a venue doesn't have the equipment to show a film in their preferred format then they simply won't allow a screening to occur.  Obviously the big multiplexes have no issues with the upgrades but it puts even more pressure on the independent venues.  Kristian listed a number of titles that he would love to screen, including titles almost 30 years old, that the big distributors simply won't allow in anything less than a fully digital cinema.  The question was asked of the audience if they really cared if a film was screened of an original print, DVD or Blu-Ray or through a digital projector and the general feeling in the room was that people just wanted the chance to enjoy their favourite movies on the big screen regardless of format.

This really highlights the mentality and greed of the content owners, and how they are their own worst enemies in this day and age.  The possibility of allowing cheaper, more varied access for older content seems to be an alien concept.  If maximum profit cannot be squeezed out of something they'd rather just not bother.  In a world where individuals have easy access to Hi Definition content that they can watch on a big screen in their living room, making it more difficult and expensive to enjoy the big screen is counter productive.  People still have fond memories of the old school cinemas, hell I still shed a tear when I think about the old Boomerang Cinema at Annerley (sadly demolished now) where I spent many a Sunday night taking in their cult movie double features.  By pushing these places out of business and funneling families into the money boxes disguised as multiplexes a very important aspect of going to the movies is being destroyed.

Preservation of movies is more that just converting them into a computer file.  The buildings that have shown films for decades must also be preserved.  Unfortunately there is almost a stigma attached to going to the movies now, where the expectation is it is going to be an expensive exercise in feeding the corporate machine while sitting in a characterless box.  Those in a position to change this, to allow more freedom in what is screened and where it takes place, appear to have no interest in preserving the cinema experience and will instead blame any losses, any independent cinema shutdowns, wholly and solely on the internet.

I think the big message from this movie and subsequent Q and A is if you see a screening of a favourite movie or an independent movie event that piques your curiosity in your local area then don't just say you'd like to go.  Make the effort to get there.  Get a bunch of friends to go with you.  If you enjoyed it then tell people and try to get a bigger crowd next time.  We are in danger of losing history.  Not just the venues but also the movies that the likes of Universal, Paramount and Fox do not consider profitable enough to preserve.  The only way this can be changed is by showing them that there is a market, that people do care enough to spend their money, otherwise this unique cinema experience may be lost forever... just like the Boomerang...

I'm going to have a quiet cry in the corner now....