The Midwest Loch Ness

Ah, last night was fun! I do so enjoy a story that can poke fun at itself without ruining its own plot. And I always appreciate a piece of entertainment (whether it be a book, a movie, music, a play or an opera) that contains meta references!

And this opera contained not only that, but also some awesome costumes and set design! The stage contained a whole world within it, which had all sorts of weird and awesome things like giant playing cards strewn about the floor in all sorts of directions, curled up in the sun to look like sand dunes.

This version of play was done by a french group, thus the French title would be Amour des trois oranges.

I do tend to like operas (and foreign films) when they're done in french. Yes, this does have English subtitles! *groans at the possibility of watching a foreign opera without subtitles*

Plus, this was no tragic mess of soapy soppiness... this was pure sarcastic glee; the meta references in the ridiculously awesome plot give the story a heady dose of comic genius. Very well done!

I've only found the DVD for this sold at one website (www.opusarte.com), because.... well, the opera is popular. For good reason!



ETA: By "meta references," I am referring to the fact that the opera is self-aware of its position as a fictional story and a form of entertainment, and has quite a few characters who are also aware of this fact.

So, I saw quite a few movies this week: Sleepy Hollow, School of Rock, Con Air, Meet the Robinsons, Bride of the Monster, and part of Ed Wood.

Oddly, my favorite of them all was the kid's movie: Meet the Robinsons.

It's oddly sophisticated for a Disney movie. Of course, it still had a shadow of that traditional Disney feel... you know: jazzed up, fast paced, squeaky clean yet so overtly quirky that you start thinking that quirky is normal! But Meet the Robinsons was quite different from your standard Disney movie in that the main character actually matured realistically according to his own personality traits, and the 'quirky' supporting cast is actually supposed to be stranger than most!

Or perhaps what drew me into the movie was the soundtrack that fit each scene with its mood, and summed up the whole movie in one song! Man, I really do love Danny Elfman music, don't I?

Speaking of summing up the movie... the theme was awesome. "Keep moving forward" actually helped me through some tough stuff i was dealing with last week, oddly enough. It makes sense, and it's something you can actually point right back to the bible for. Ecclesiastes 7:10 makes it clear: only a fool looks back at their past wishing that they could either go back and relive it, or change it completely. That's my take on the verse.

Oh and the plot? Dude, I totally did not expect the twists that i should have, because it's supposed to be a children's movie, right? But the plot was actually interesting, and detailed. Things that were left unresolved (or were seen as completely random Disney Entertaining Filler Fluff) in the beginning were brought back at the end, with a moment of "aha! so that's what happened!" that doesn't completely overpower you, but it won't go unnoticed, either.

I love the subtle little 'in jokes', too: Tom Selleck, The T-Rex, toilet portals, Wilbur's mom... and yes, I'm making this vague in case you haven't seen the movie.

But anyway... The negatives? It was a little choppy at first when you're introduced to Wilbur and the Robinsons... it felt more Disney-esque then than anywhere else in the movie. But once you get past the obligatory Disney humor, and see the actual story develop, you won't be disappointed.