The Fireside

  I was initially quite skeptical about the Fantastic Beasts franchise. It took a later trailer (the final one, I believe?) for me to actually get interested. I've reviewed the first two films, but recently I've seen the latest title, The Secrets of Dumbledore . I'll give that a review, then break down why I believe the the franchise (not Harry Potter, not Wizarding World, just the Fantastic Beasts films) aren't quite working. The film picks up some time after The Crimes of Grindelwald . Because it's been a few years (for both the audience, as well as in the chronology of the films) we get somewhat-reintroduced to the characters, and brief recaps here and there as we catch up with familiar faces. Nothing from The Crimes of Grindelwald is flat-out 'retconned' per se, but all the multiple story angles and elements are somewhat down-played. The primary focus of the film is of Dumbledore (played very well by Jude Law) and Grindelwald (played by Mads Mikkelsen,...

  Many fans consider the extended editions of The Lord of the Rings films to be the definitive version. Peter Jackson, however, considers that to be the case for the theatrical editions. It makes sense - they are, after all, the versions that came out into cinemas and are 'finalized' because of that. Some state that the theatrical editions have better flow and editing than the extended editions. Overall, I prefer the extended editions myself. They aren't just a 'longer' version of the movie, the stuff re-inserted usually has meaning. That being said, there are some things that the theatrical editions does better, and some things that the extended editions do better. In this post, in honour of The Fellowship of the Ring's 20th anniversary, I'm going to use both (and slight hypothetical editing on my part) to create the best version of the films as possible. Well, to me, that is.  Now remember - what works on page doesn't always work on screen. These nee...

  I got to see Dune . Or, Dune: Part 1 as it's called in the film itself. I'll explain how that works. The director has explained multiple times during the film's pre-production (and production) via interviews that the Dune film that opened in cinemas (and is now streaming on HBO Max) is not the entirety of Dune , the first book, by Frank Herbert. He's stated that he would need two films to accurately, and fully, tell the story properly. He also hopes to do a third and final film of his (the director's) Dune Trilogy, which will be based on Dune Messiah , a much shorter book than Dune . So, if each of these Dune films is 2 hrs 30 - 2 hrs 45, that'd be adequate to tell the complete journey of Paul. Now that the background info is given, I'll talk about the film. The scope of the film reminded me more of 2001: A Space Odyssey than it did Star Wars: A New Hope . This is due in part to long shots and takes, the scene changes, etc. Filmaking-wise, it seemed to...