Tangled: A Movie Review

I took my sweet wife to see Tangled on Friday night. I want to buy it. My computer graphics professional's eye was tuned to the quality of the CG animation. It was an interesting contrast to Tron, which is a mixture of live action and deliberate CG.

In Tron, the storytellers and artists went for photorealism. They expected the audience to do the suspension-of-disbelief thing that sucks people into Star Wars, Star Trek, and so on. In most of the scenes, they succeeded.

In Tangled, instead, the storytellers and artists went for cartoony effects. The characters were caricatures, the scenery elements were fanciful and exaggerated, the physics was cartoon physics -- and yet they sucked you in anyway.

And just when you were getting comfortable with the cartooniness of the thing, they gave you a visual effect that was stunning in its realism. I offer you four examples:

1. Rapunzel's dress
Disney being Disney, I'm sure they made several real dresses, put them on several models, and took hundreds of videos and stills for the artists to work from. Well, their meticulousness paid off. The laces on the back of the dress were not spaced perfectly, just as laces on a real dress would not be, and yet the laces kept their imperfect spacing when Rapunzel moved - just as they would on a real dress. The hem on the white petticoat looked and moved just like a lace-trimmed hem on a real petticoat.

And the sleeves! Did you notice the sleeves? I'm not talking about the puffy shoulders, but the delicate, sheer, skin-hugging material that went all the way down her arms and ended with embroidery? binding? some kind of fancy trim, anyway, at her wrists. Maybe these subtle touches were missed on most of the audience, but without them, the film would have felt a little less polished. It's like a dressmaker drew every frame with the dress in it.

One other subtle touch, and please don't think I'm a perv for noticing this: In real life, a wide neckline gapes open just a fraction of an inch at the sides, at the reverse curve on the front of the shoulder. (Shoulder straps can often be seen in this gap.) The gap widens and closes according to the wearer's posture and movement. Few, if any, animated movies get this right. No, change that. Until Tangled, every animated movie ignored this gap completely. Even Shrek ignored it. I don't know how, but Tangled got it right.

Again, you might ask: why go for all this realism if you intended to make a cartoony movie in the first place? I dunno. But the fact that they did, and got it right, makes the movie that much richer.

2. Water
Everywhere there was water, its modeling was a mixture of cartooniness and realism. The cartooniness was deliberate, and so was the realism. How they decided which approach to use, and when, is beyond me, but again they got it right. The waterfalls, the dam, the flooding of the cavern, and - oh my - the lake that surrounded the island town, were all modeled so perfectly that they enhanced, rather than distracted from, the film. For a contrast, look at the CG water in The X-Men, which was a nice try but still obviously fake, and in The Incredibles, which was also intentionally cartoony, and felt more like plastic than water.

3. Light
If you watch the film again, you will notice that "light" was a central theme throughout the movie. That was deliberate, and they put real money into "light". The Lighting department got a major portion of the credits at the end.

The story line followed the light, emanated from light, and always returned to light. Starting with the fireflower in the prologue, then with the incident in the nursery, light against darkness mattered. It was central to the story. It told the story. The interplay of light rays and shadows in the tower told of good versus evil, knowledge versus ignorance, courage versus fear, hope versus despair, freedom versus captivity. The complicated animation that was Rapunzel's glowing hair was fascinating. But to me, the most breathtaking use of light was during the festival of the lanterns.

4. The lantern scene
When the first lantern was lit and launched, that was okay. Yeah, it was amazingly realistic, but by then I was used to the amazing realism. But then the entire town lit up lanterns - and I gasped out loud. These glowing tissue-paper lanterns lifted off and floated around, hundreds of them, in individual paths, all around the palace towers. It was a powerful visual representation of hope. It brought tears to my eyes.

Then, combining the water and light effects, the camera zeroed in on the boy and girl, sitting in a small boat in the middle of the lake, surrounded by lanterns in the air and lantern reflections in the calm water. Right then, I wished we were watching the movie in 3D. That's the kind of scene 3D cinema was made for.

I sat there with my mouth hanging open until the lantern scene ended. Between the tears and the mouth agape, I'm glad the theatre was dark.

***

It was a good story, too, and well told. There's a reason G and PG movies still pull in most of the money in the movie industry, in spite of the fact that they are outnumbered by all the other titles. And I'm not embarrassed by the fact that I prefer movies like Tangled over most of that other stuff.

Having said that, I am looking forward to Cowboys and Aliens this summer.

Take Two with Phineas and Ferb

I just saw the preview for tomorrow's Phineas and Ferb episode: a talk show mixing live celebrities with Dan and Swampy's fantastic mix of wit and imagination.

I have avoided talking too much about Phineas and Ferb on this blog because I don't want to sound like a sappy fanboy. That's why you didn't read a word from me about their "Summer Belongs to You," a fascinating and complicated mix of every story line the boys hadn't explored yet, steeped in references to pop culture, current events, and previous episodes, and seasoned with the kind of wit and humor that have made P&F famous among adults as well as children.

See? Sappy fanboy.

Oh well. I shall now state calmly and with great dignity that I'm looking forward to tomorrow night's episode.

Phineas and Ferb have done it again

Actually, Swampy and Dan have done it again.

Since I posted my first paean to the boys with the geometric heads, three great things have happened in the P&F universe: first, new episodes have been created; second, the soundtrack CD that I had wished for has been released; and third, the Disney Channel hosted a P&F singalong to promote both the CD and the new episodes.

I'm not suggesting that the CD came about because of my posting. The Disney folks have always been shrewd marketers, and Swampy and Dan have obviously had a lot of fun while riding this gravy train. Hey, more power to them. P&F is a great show and a great brand, and it will be a great franchise, if it isn't already.

You know, 25 years ago I used to race home from work at 4:30 so I could watch Inspector Gadget with my older son. P&F has the same draw for me as Inspector Gadget did, only now I can enjoy P&F just about any time of the day, with my younger (17 year old) son.

Anyway, about the CD: it features 26 selections from the series. I understand how difficult it was to choose the songs. They had a lot of good material to pick from. Only a couple of my favorites ("Evil Love" and "Swinter," actually) are missing.

Several of the songs have been re-orchestrated, or perhaps the TV versions are the re-orked versions and these are the real things. Rest easy: the ones on the CD are just as good as the ones on TV -- if not better.

The Emmy-nominated theme song, "It's Going to Be a Great Day," is the full 3-minute version, not the 60-second TV version, sung (as on TV) by the very listenable band Bowling For Soup. (I don't know which version got the 2008 Emmy nomination.) "Gitchee Gitchee Goo" has been expanded and enhanced, and although the original is fun to sing along with, this one's even better -- well, once I learn all the new parts, that is.

All of your favorites are on there. I can't get enough of "Truck Drivin' Girl" and the pizzicato stylings of "Let's Take a Rocket Ship to Space."

And I'm sure I expose myself to charges of not being a true P&F aficionado when I confess that I hadn't realized that the gravelly blues solo in "Chains on Me" was the same voice as the one in "E.V.I.L. B.O.Y.S." Oh, and it's definitely not Ashley Tisdale - not even if she gargled with alum water for an hour, let alone being exposed to wild parsnips. According to the CD jacket, it's Dan Povenmire. I tried singing with a gravelly voice like that once. I can't do it for more than 40 or 50 seconds before I start gagging. I wonder how many times Dan had to stop and gag while recording these two masterpieces.

Dr. Doofenshmirtz, also voiced by Povenmire, got his "My Goody Two-Shoes Brother" on the CD, with all of its very carefully fashioned lyrics.

The normally taciturn Ferb gets his moment in the spotlight with "Backyard Beach" and "Phinedroids and Ferbots."

Other special favorites of mine include the clever "My Undead Mummy," the Abba tribute "Disco Miniature Golfing Queen," and the Love Händel suite, including the Emmy-nominated "I Ain't Got Rhythm."

I tip my hat to, wave my Bic lighter in the air for, and applaud in the general direction of:

• the real voices of Love Händel (including Steve Zahn, one of my favorite actors)
• the P&F actors who lend not just their acting talents, but also their singing voices, to their characters
• the composers and lyricists who created these little gems
• Dan and Swampy, of course
• everybody else who sang and played on the series and the CD

Props to all of you.

(I bought the CD only a couple of days after it was released. It wasn't for me, though: I gave the CD to our son for his 18th birthday. I'm hoping to get one of my own next week, for my birthday.)

All Hail Phineas and Ferb

If you've watched any of the Disney Channel on cable or satellite TV, then you're familiar with the half-hour cartoon, Phineas and Ferb. Today, I salute Phineas and Ferb, the cartoon.



The story line of the show is always the same: it's summer vacation, and two stepbrothers are trying to decide what they're going to do that day. (Okay, that's eerily like Pinky and the Brain, but we're not going to go there.) They always settle on a project that is completely off the wall: an elevator to the moon; a flying car; a real beach in their backyard. And then they go ahead and do it.

At the end of the half-hour (and the end of the cartoon day), they always manage to get everything back to normal, mere seconds before their sister can tattle on them to their mother.

Although it's irrelevant to the point of this blog entry, I have to give a nod to their pet platypus. Every episode features a subplot involving Perry, their pet platypus, who disappears into his underground hideout, assumes his Secret Agent P identity, and goes off to do battle with his arch-enemy, the evil Dr. Doofenschmirtz. The Agent P vs. Doofenschmirtz battle usually meshes with Phineas and Ferb's project towards the end of the show, thwarting both Dr. Doofenschmirtz's evil plot and their sister's attempt to bust them.

The story line is augmented by some of the most imaginative studio music since the glory days of Fame and Miami Vice. I would buy a Phineas and Ferb soundtrack album, if such a thing existed.

The greatest thing about the show, though, is what it teaches its young viewers. The creators of P&F may not have done this intentionally, but it's there nevertheless.

Remember the second half of that famous George Bernard Shaw (swiped by RFK) quote? "I dream things that never were and say why not." Today's world seems aimed at squashing "why not" dreams, at squelching creativity and innovation. To make matters worse, this same world portrays the careers and the personal attributes of successful scientists and engineers as uncool or worthless.

(Go on, admit it: it's true. Even the hit shows that could be fostering these values, such as House and NCIS, attach way more value and coolness to physical appearance, a sharp wit, an acid tongue, and fighting and shooting ability, than they do to the more cerebral attributes.)

P&F turns that around. Every episode shows the boys having fun with the skills and character traits that make scientists and engineers really successful: creative thinking, innovation, planning, project management, systems engineering, design, problem-solving, leadership, determination, and self-confidence.

Repeatedly, Phineas takes delivery of some crucial material for their project, such as a truckload of sand for their beach, and the delivery person says, "Aren't you kind of young to be doing this?" Without missing a beat, Phineas replies, "Why, yes. Yes, I am." Then he smiles confidently and keeps going.

Everything the boys tackle, they tackle with enthusiasm. Especially in today's business climate, with businesses on the ropes and employees afraid of losing their jobs, you don't see a lot of enthusiasm in the workplace. Phineas and Ferb find fun in everything they do, and the work is always its own reward. To the (adult) members of today's workforce, sitting down and watching 30 minutes of this kind of enthusiasm is healing and refreshing.

They also display an interesting character trait that the world could use more of: honesty. No, it's more than that. It's a complete lack of guile. The missuz and I were talking about this last night. Their sister is never successful at busting them -- their parents never get to see their sons' grand creations. But it doesn't mean the boys are sneaky. They don't try to hide anything. In one episode, Candace tells her parents that Phineas and Ferb have built an elevator to the moon. Mom and Dad don't believe her, so Phineas says, "But it's true!" and he and Ferb display an American flag and some moon rocks to support Candace's story.

Another admirable trait of the boys is their complete unflappability. (I don't even know if that's a word.) Nothing fazes them. If their inventions fail or their plans go awry, either they go to Plan B, or they successfully wing it, or they shrug their shoulders and say, "Well, that was fun while it lasted."

It seems to be a modern tendency to panic and brood over things that go wrong, or even to find someone to blame and someone to sue. Not so with Phineas and Ferb. After all, life to them is just one summer day after another, and as long as they can find something fun to do every day, life is good.