tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7128131605312127923.post739714084832292860..comments2024-02-20T22:17:21.542-08:00Comments on Will Finn Blog: Are Movies Therapy?Will Finnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01297122976077620877noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7128131605312127923.post-2708022377958442892010-05-10T18:11:22.602-07:002010-05-10T18:11:22.602-07:00Good stuff, Will.
After some fifty years in the a...Good stuff, Will.<br /><br />After some fifty years in the animation business There's one thing I've learned. Some people can tell stories, and most people can't. It's painful but true.<br /><br />The best story instruction I ever received was sitting in the same room and getting chewed out by Walt Disney.Floyd Normanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08635960964922892254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7128131605312127923.post-59951539632357571172010-05-09T08:26:45.968-07:002010-05-09T08:26:45.968-07:00Will,
And did you take the Robert McKee Story Se...Will, <br /><br />And did you take the Robert McKee Story Seminar when he was going around in the 90s? Something similar there: everyone ran out and applied all his stuff and there seemed to be a ton of very similar movies all of a sudden. (I know the other guys went when we were on Huncback..even Don, Gary, the Zondags and some others went to hear him in London while i was at the studio in Dublin...)<br /><br />On another tack, i always loved the story in "Ferdinand the Bull", 'cause the hero never changed! One of the best of the SSs.SCOTT CAPLEhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00383231992299446364noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7128131605312127923.post-62642835255528658492010-05-06T12:58:01.951-07:002010-05-06T12:58:01.951-07:00Thanks for the post, Will! I've been waiting ...Thanks for the post, Will! I've been waiting for animated films to tell stories from a more emotion-centric perspective -- i.e., let the story be somewhat scattered or episodic, but allow the viewer to draw a conclusion from the actions of the characters, which would give the film in question a subtler structure. I say "animated films" rather than "films" because too many live-action filmmakers have let their ideas sprawl and their craft wither, losing the abstract beauty that makes movies worth watching.<br /><br />But as you just discussed, better to have more personal ideas than not enough. If we've seen a hero go from Point A to Point B in STAR WARS, we don't need to see it in anything else. To George Lucas's credit, Han Solo went through a redeeming character arc throughout the course of the trilogy (considering he totally shot first -- right, George?), and Luke had to make tougher decisions once he successfully nuked the Death Star.<br /><br />I always loved it when Ralph Bakshi's films had a couple characters from outside the story discussing the current plight of their world, like the reluctant Ralph-voiced soldier in Wizards and the opening of Hey Good Lookin'. It gave you a larger picture and a break from the plot, both at once.Mike Pelenskyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06760727837984043090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7128131605312127923.post-83510472878269114052010-05-05T12:47:09.395-07:002010-05-05T12:47:09.395-07:00I'm not entirely happy the way this post came ...I'm not entirely happy the way this post came out, but I will weigh in again at this point to say that I think a "catharsis" (emotional and/or psychological) is a good natural goal for a story, but that sometimes "pop psychology" gets in the way. <br /><br />For me, too much of the latter is like a post-modern version of the "morality play". I don't think a story has to be conclusive (the way a morality play tends to be) to be cathartic or good. Or, more importantly, entertaining.Will Finnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01297122976077620877noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7128131605312127923.post-3106680672757249682010-05-05T11:34:14.272-07:002010-05-05T11:34:14.272-07:00I've felt like these Hero's Journey and ot...I've felt like these Hero's Journey and other such formulas gain so much traction because they give executives a sort of checklist so they can judge and be involved in the filmmaking process on their own analytical terms. No unlike in animation where they become the on-model police.<br /><br />Movies being therapeutic seems like good thing that can easily be taken too far. Going from being more relatable and empathetic to just being preachy.gbeaudettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15659851637646829732noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7128131605312127923.post-25135850883645596062010-05-05T02:15:24.077-07:002010-05-05T02:15:24.077-07:00Hah, funny you mentioned Duck Soup, I just reviewe...Hah, funny you mentioned Duck Soup, I just reviewed it myself!<br />http://filmstripmemories.blogspot.com/2010/05/review-14-duck-soup-1933.html<br /><br />As for movies being therapeutic, I say they are. Often, the characters are seen as reflections of our own personalities, wills, fears, dreams and ambitions. If the character is able to overcome the obstacles we feel happy, because its as if WE made our dreams a reality. This often inspires the movie goer and feels good afterwards. Of course, this is sometimes temporary, but a great movie with a well told story can lift the spirits of the audience.<br /><br />I also noticed that many of the greatest films are those made during the worst eras the world has ever seen, such as the Great Depression, the Cold war and World War I and II. Movies served as a means to escape the real world and delighted us with stories of perseverance, hopes, faith, dreams and happiness. It kept many people working hard and happy regardless of the reality they were facing.<br /><br />I often wish movies were like this once more. We are so caught up in the sensationalism of the media that even inspirational stories tend to be very graphic and depressing.<br /><br />Sorry for rambling, but this subject fascinates me since I love both movies and psychology.Celluloid Memorieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11502032098335435971noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7128131605312127923.post-1247593992903959612010-05-04T20:43:52.528-07:002010-05-04T20:43:52.528-07:00Excellent post. You definitely know how to get a m...Excellent post. You definitely know how to get a man thinking. I have to say I agree with you. The type of stories described by Joseph Campbell are good, but they are not the only type of story out there. That is the unfortunate side-effect of a film like STAR WARS. Don't get me wrong, I love those films (well, the original trilogy that is), but that type of storytelling has become cliche in Hollywood. <br /><br />Mainstream Animation should strive for different types of storytelling. That's why people lose interest in it and it degrades to levels like what happened in the seventies and eighties. The stories became cliche and it no longer held any relevance to peoples' lives. Thank yo for bringing this topic up. I would like to see more posts on this. I eat this kind of stuff up.Eric Noblehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05872046921674512158noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7128131605312127923.post-44344389998224480492010-05-04T17:34:37.558-07:002010-05-04T17:34:37.558-07:00It's like your reading my mind.It's like your reading my mind.Steven M.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17284662120928553055noreply@blogger.com