The West Side of the Kingdom
Page 3 of 4
As we walked out of the Coronet Theater in San Francisco, my sister said to me, "That was really sad." I agreed and said that it was a terrible, terrible moment in our country’s history and that it resulted in America becoming directly involved in World War II. Sylvia then said something that I didn’t have a slick, quick response to. She looked at me and said, "It sure makes me feel different about Japanese people."
What do you say to something like that? My mind spun out of control in a matter of seconds as many responses zipped silently through my brain ranging from, "Well, they did it and they should be sorry," to, "We would have done the same thing to them, probably." Before I could manage most likely an inadequate response, Sylvia said, "But that was a long time ago and I know that time and people have changed."
Sometimes, the simple point of view from a 13 year-old child is by far, the most intelligent response of them all.
Pearl Harbor is a well-done film that does a decent job at depicting the attack on America by the Empire of Japan. Randall Wallace’s screenplay was very fine (we need more credit given to those who write the films for these big celebrities and directors to use as vehicles to super-stardom) and of course, the special effects in the movie are seamless; it’s definitely a visual film as opposed to heavy plot or involved story line. The music by Hans Zimmer and a handful of other musicians is sweeping and well orchestrated. If you do not see this while it’s in theaters, the DVD will be on its way soon, and from what I’ve heard, it’s going to be a collector’s delight.
From the island of Oahu, I want to take you to the Lost City of Atlantis.
I first met Tab Murphy, the screenwriter of Atlantis (contributing writer of Tarzan and The Hunchback of Notre Dame as well), while creating Theme Park Adventure Magazine’s Tarzan’s Treehouse Feature Issue. Tarzan was in the theaters and Disney was sitting pretty at the box office as millions flocked to the big screen to see the company’s newest animated feature. Tab was very enthusiastic about the project and was flattered when I asked him to write the intro to the magazine. One of the things that we both talked about while working on the Tarzan issue was Atlantis, which I knew very little about at that point. He did confirm what I had already heard in the rumor mill; that Atlantis would be the first Disney animated feature in a long time without song and dance numbers, etc. The movie would be a complete departure from the typical Disney formula of the past decade or so.
And that was really the last we spoke of it until about a month ago, when all of the marketing started in with heavy merchandising, commercials, etc. I called Tab to ask him if he’d seen the film yet, etc. and what he thought of all the publicity and push behind the movie.
It was fun talking about all of the hype that was starting for the movie and I said to him that Doobie and Rebekah were interested in me doing an interview with him for LaughingPlace.com; just like the first time I asked him to work on a project, he jumped at the chance and was nothing but enthusiastic. The end result is the interview that’s now available on this site.
I took my little sisters (12 and 13 years-old) to the 11:45pm show on Saturday night in San Francisco. Why so late? I dread seeing this type of film with an audience made of up 50% adults and 50% little children. There is nothing more annoying to me than yapping children during an animated film; that is why I am destined to see each new Disney animated feature in the late hours of the night. Our master plan just about worked, too; as the movie started, there were perhaps 15 other adults in the theater. Not one child in sight, except for my little sisters, who are quiet as church mice in movies.
Five minutes into the film, a family walks in with yup, you’ve got it; a two or three year-old child. The kid immediately started screaming at the screen and the rest is history. I will never understand why people must take little kids or infants to the movies in the middle of the night when obviously adults choose to see such late shows to avoid such distractions. It’s annoying to no end and I feel that theaters should reduce toddler hours to the daytime to ensure a positive experience for older crowds that want to see these films late at night. It’s not too far of a stretch in my opinion; some chains have started charging full admission price for infants and small children to discourage this type of thing. The next step is only allowing them in during "family hours." I’d be the first to sign a petition; AMC, United Artists, Edwards - you listening?