What I’m Watching in 2011

Okay, we’re over a month into the year, it’s time for me to begin my running tally of movies I’ve watched in 2011. Those of you who see this list when it’s first posted will notice a definite trend towards 2010 films. If you’ve read this post, that makes a lot more sense. At any rate, this is where I’m keeping my annual running tally of the movies I see this year, and my quick rating of them. And if I review a movie at any of the many websites where I turn out such content, I’ll throw up a link.

1. How to Train Your Dragon (2010), B+
2. Infestation (2009), B+
3. Hot Tub Time Machine (2010), A
4. True Grit (2010), A+
5. Shutter Island (2010), B-
6. Robin Hood (2010), C
7. Easy A (2010), A-
8. Splice (2009), D-
9. Dinner For Schmucks (2010), B-
10. Buried (2010), B+
11. The Social Network (2010), A
12. Repo Men (2010), C
13. Logan’s Run (1976), B
14. Exam (2008), A
15. The Town (2010), A
16. Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole (2010), B
17. Fame (2009), B-
18. Back to the Future (1985), A+
19. Superman (1978), A+
20. Cop Out (2010), D
21. The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (2010), C
22. All-Star Superman (2011), A
23. The Crucible (1996), A
24. Unknown (2011), C+
25. Legion (2010), C-
26. The Book of Eli (2010), C+
27. Mulholland Drive (2001), B
28. A Bug’s Life (1998), B
29. Battle: Los Angeles (2011), B
30. RED (2010), B+
31. Frozen (2010), B
32. Happiness is a Warm Blanket, Charlie Brown (2011), B+
33. A Beautiful Mind (2002), A
34. Machete (2010), D
35. Monsters (2010), C
36. Let Me In (2010), B
37. Limitless (2011), B+
38. Devil (2010), C+
39. 30 Days of Night: Dark Days (2010), C-
40. Scream (1996), A
41. Scream 2 (1997), B
42. Scream 3 (2000), B-
43. To Kill a Mockingbird (1962), A+
44. Love and Other Drugs (2010), B+
45. Moon (2009), A
46. Fight Club (1999), B
47. Megamind (2010), B
48. Scream 4 (2011), B+
49. The Experiment (2010), B
50. It’s Kind of a Funny Story (2010), A-
51. The King’s Speech (2010), A
52. Lottery Ticket (2010), C
53. Mary Poppins (1964), A
54. Ghostbusters 2 (1989), B+
55. Wall•E (2008), A
56. The Other Guys (2010), D
57. Akira (1988), B
58. The Boys: The Sherman Brothers Story (2009), A
59. The Phantom Tollbooth (1970), A
60. The Last Unicorn (1982), B+
61. Chicken Little (2005), B
62. The Fighter (2010), B
63. Saw: The Final Chapter (2010), B-
64. Memento (2000), A
65. The Untouchables (1987), A
66. Thor (2011), A
67. Firebreather (2010), B-
68. Bookwars (2000), B-
69. Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy (2010), A
70. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011), C
71. Not the Messiah (He’s a Very Naughty Boy) (2010), B+
72. Die Hard (1988), A
73. The Adventures of Huck Finn (1993), B+
74. The Princess Bride (1987), A+
75. Holes (2003), B+
76. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), B+
77. Skyline (2010), D
78. The Last Airbender (2010), C-
79. The Last Starfighter (1984), A
80. Duck Soup (1933), A+
81. The Hangover Part II (2011), B
82. Piranha (2010), C+
83. UHF (1989), B
84. Spaceballs (1987), B
85. The Golem: How He Came Into the World (1920), B+
86. Labyrinth (1986), A
87. The Green Hornet (2011), D+
88. Series 7: The Contenders (2001), B+
89. 127 Hours (2010), B+
90. Saludos Amigos (1942), B
91. The Three Caballeros (1944), B+
92. X-Men: First Class (2011), A-
93. The Last Man on Earth (1964), B
94. The Vampire’s Night Orgy (1973), F
95. Chloe (2009), B
96. Nosferatu (1922), A
97. The Virginity Hit (2010), B
98. The Color of Magic (2008), B
99. Green Lantern: Emerald Knights (2011), B+
100. Vanishing on 7th Street (2010), C+
101. Green Lantern: First Flight (2009), A-
102. Rubber (2010), C+
103. Walt and El Grupo (2008), B
104. Super 8 (2011), A
105. Big Fish (2003), A+
106. Black Death (2010), B
107. Battle Royale (2001), B+
108. The Faculty (1998), B-
109. Green Lantern (2011), B-
110. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010), B-
111. Synecdoche, New York (2008), C
112. The Phantom of the Opera (1925), A
113. Fright Night (1985), B
114. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968), A
115. The Fugitive (1993), A
116. Cars (2006), B+
117. Cars 2 (2011), B+
118. After.Life (2009), C
119. Zapped! (1982), D
120. James and the Giant Peach (1996), B
121. Young Frankenstein (1974), A
122. The Addams Family (1991), B+
123. The Great Muppet Caper (1981), B
124. A Fairly Odd Movie: Grow Up, Timmy Turner (2011), D
125. Dracula (1931), B
126. Death Note (2006), B
127. Tales From the Script (2009), B+
128. Unthinkable (2010), B+
129. The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford (2007), A-
130. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001), B
131. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), B-
132. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), B+
133. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), B+
134. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2008), B-
135. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009), B+
136. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 (2010), A
137. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 (2011), A
138. Frankenstein (1931), A
139. The Mummy (1932), B
140. Be Kind, Rewind (2008), B
141. 25th Hour (2002), B
142. The Incredibles (2004), A+
143. Zodiac (2007), A
144. Rec (2007), B+
145. Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), A
146. Miller’s Tale (2011), B+
147. Freaks (1932), B
148. Red Riding Hood (2011), D
149. Battle Royale II (2003), C
150. Cowboys and Aliens (2011), C+
151. Ernest Goes to Camp (1987), B
152. Ernest Goes to Jail (1990), C+
153. The Beginning of the End (1957), F; MST3K Riff, B
154. Manos: The Hands of Fate (1966), F; MST3K Riff, B+
155. Phineas and Ferb: Across the 2nd Dimension (2011), A-
156. Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993), A
157. Cat People (1942), B
158. Curse of the Cat People (1944), C-
159. Sucker Punch (2011), D
160. The Fly (1958), A
     
161. Peeping Tom (1960), B
162. Best Worst Movie (2009), A
163. Troll 2 (1990), F
164. Psycho (1960), A
165. What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962), A
166. Quarantine 2: Terminal (2011), B
167. Super (2010), B+
168. The Haunting (1963), B
169. Night of the Living Dead (1968), A
170. The Last House on the Left (1972), C-
171. Suicide Girls Must Die (2011), C-
172. Wait Until Dark (1967), A
173. The Exorcist (1973), A
174. Gamera (1965), C; MST3K Riff, A
175. Gamera Vs. Barugon (1966), D; MST3K Riff, B+
176. Gamera Vs. Gaos (1967), D; MST3K Riff, B
177. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), C+
178. Jaws (1975), A
179. Carrie (1976), B+
180. Suspiria (1977), D+
181. Gamera Vs. Guiron (1969), D; MST3K Riff, B+
182. Contagion (2011), C+
183. Halloween (1978), A
184. Alien (1979), A
185. The Shining (1980), C+
186. Friday the 13th (1980), B
187. The Evil Dead (1981), B+
188. The Thing (1982), A
189. Poltergeist (1982), B+
190. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), B
191. Return of the Living Dead (1985), C-
192. Misery (1990), A
193. Ringu (1998), B+
194. The Blair Witch Project (1999), B
195. Saw (2004), A
196. The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949), B+
197. The Creeping Terror (1964), F; MST3K riff, B+
198. Mad Monster Party (1967), B
199. Zombiemania (2008), B
200. Tower Heist (2011), B-
201. Scream: The Inside Story (2011), B
202. Still Screaming (2011), A
203. Your Highness (2011), D
204. Repo: The Genetic Opera (2008), B-
205. The Cannonball Run (1981), B
206. Batman: Year One (2011), A-
207. Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987), A-
208. Up (2009), A+
209. The Muppets (2011), A
210. Good Luck Charlie: It’s Christmas (2011), B
211. Santa Claus Conquers the Martians (1964), F; Cinematic Titanic Riff, B
212. Christmas and A Christmas Carol (2009), D
213. Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny (1972), F; RiffTrax, A
214. The Great Gatsby (1974), A
215. The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992), B+
216. Tom and Huck (1995), Bl
217. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993), A
218. Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmas (1999), B
219. Joyeux Noel (Merry Christmas) (2005), A
220. Scrooged (1988), A-
221. The Magic Christmas Tree (1964), F; RiffTrax B+
222. It’s a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie (2002), B
223. The Lemon Drop Kid (1951), B
224. Miracle on 34th Street (1947), A+
225. It’s a Wonderful Life (1946), A+
226. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989), A
227. A Christmas Story (1983), A
228. Love, Actually (2002), A
229. Source Code, (2011), B+
230. Paul, (2011), C+
231. Tron: Legacy (2010), B+
232. Attack the Block (2011), B+l
233. The Captains (2011), A
234. Gnomeo and Juliet (2011), B
235. Dylan Dog: Dead of Night (2011), C

Last Updated on January 1, 2012.

Another crime against literature

Last month, I finished teaching my 11th-grade students what I consider the greatest novel in the history of American literature, Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. And I decided I wanted to show the class a movie version of the story. I found a made-for-TV version from the 60s, which I didn’t screen beforehand. (It was in the school library, what could be wrong with it?)

As it turned out, an awful lot. While the film began pretty much in synch with the book, although a few incidents were left out, it didn’t seem anything to get upset about. Until Huck began his journey down the Mississippi River. The next thing I knew, he was encountering the characters Twain named the “Duke” and the “Dauphin.” It is a testament to my students that so many of them immediately realized what was wrong with this.

“Wait a minute,” one of them said. “Where’s Jim?”

If you’ve never read Huckleberry Finn, allow me to explain. Jim is a runaway slave who joins Huck in his adventure on the Mississippi. In fact, Jim is the impetus for the journey — early in the novel Huck fakes his own death to escape his father, but when he discovers that Jim is suspected in his murder, he promises to help him escape to the Free States by traveling south on the Mississippi until it joined with the Ohio River, which Jim could take north. At first, Huck wrestles with his conscience, as he is technically helping with the theft of property (Jim) from somebody who has always treated him well (Jim’s owner, Miss Watson). Through their shared experiences, though, Huck comes to view Jim as a human being and reject ingrained attitudes of racism and acceptance of slavery that he was brought up with. It is, in fact, a masterpiece of American literature.

Of course, that means somebody wants to come along and screw it the hell up.

In the worst case of a crime against literature since Snooki got a book deal, Entertainment Weekly is reporting that NewSouth Books is publishing a revised edition of Huck Finn, in which all instances of the dreaded N-Word have been removed. I am, of course, sensitive to this word, just like everybody else on the planet. I don’t use it and I find its use morally repugnant. But I also respect Mark Twain and what he was trying to do with this incredible novel. Having re-read it so recently, one of the things that struck me about the book is the way Twain used that word to puncture holes in those characters that clung to racist ideals. The first reason most people will give for rejecting this change will be because the word is a period-accurate term, regardless of how modern readers think of it, and that is true. But even more importantly, if you remove that word from the book, much of the power is gone.

Twain didn’t just use that word because it was accurate to the dialect of the time. He also used it to demonstrate just how much it was (and, sadly, still is) used to dehumanize black people. By replacing that word with a euphemism, or even a less emotionally charged racist term, we lose what Mark Twain was trying to accomplish. Take, for example, the conversation between Huck and Tom Sawyer’s Aunt Sally in Chapter 32. Huck (pretending to be Tom for reasons too complicated to get into here) is telling one of his many lies, this one including a steamboat that blew a cylinder head. Sally, hearing about the “accident,” asks a perfectly reasonable question:

“Good gracious! Anybody hurt?”

Huck’s response? “No’m. Killed a n*****.”

Sally’s reply? “Well, it’s lucky; because sometimes people do get hurt.” (Emphasis mine.)

When we got to this part of the book, several of my students were horrified at what Sally said. And dammit, that’s how they should feel, because (in case you can’t figure it out yourself) she’s basically saying here that black people aren’t human beings. There’s no other interpretation. Would it mean the same thing if Huck had used a different word? Technically, yes. Would it have had the same impact? Hell no.

What makes it even stupider to me is that the editor of this Huck Finn, a supposed “Twain expert” named Alan Gribben, has chosen to replace the inflammatory word with the word “slave.” Which I suppose wouldn’t look out of place, as that word is already used liberally throughout the book, but will it do the job of the dreaded N-word? No. And for one simple reason. The N-word is a racially derogatory term. “Slave” is not.

Although American slaves were overwhelmingly black, they weren’t all black, nor were the slaves of many other cultures throughout history. In some culture or another, slaves have been Asian, white, Christian, Jewish, children, adults, men, women… slavery itself is a dehumanizing institution, and Twain demonstrates that wonderfully in his book the way it is right now. But slavery itself is not a racial institution. Admittedly, for the characters in this book who use the word in question, when they refer to slaves, they’re talking about black people. But the word “slave” is not a derogatory term for someone who is black. The other word is. And for that reason, if no other, this change is utterly inadequate to accomplish the goal of the brilliant Mark Twain.

Fortunately, Huckleberry Finn is in the public domain. This is, of course, the reason that NewSouth Books is able to publish their version –the book is out of copyright and Twain’s estate has no way to stop anybody from doing whatever the hell they want with it. But because of this same law, other publishing companies (Bantam, Penguin, or anybody else) who want to publish an unedited version of the novel will be perfectly free to do so. So when you’re shopping, friends, make sure you get the original version. Make sure that Mark Twain’s message is communicated unaltered. Make sure that you can view history in perfect clarity, so that we can recognize how far we’ve come, and know exactly the direction we need to go.

What I’m Watching: 2010 Edition

Like I did last year, this year I’m going to keep a running tally of the movies I see. If you’re interested in that sort of thing, I’m going to place the permanent link to this post in the “Blakestuff” category running down the right side of the page. I’ll update this every so often, and whenever I happen to review one of the movies (either here, at Comixtreme.com, or even on the Showcase podcast), I’ll make the title a link. I am, in fact, a man of the people.

1. Star Trek (2009), A
2. The Gamers: Dorkness Rising (2008), B+
3. Superman/Batman: Public Enemies (2009), B+
4. The Man With the Screaming Brain (2005), C
5. Re-Animator (1985), B-
6. Soylent Green (1973), A-
7. Igor (2008), B-
8. Dug’s Special Mission (2009), A*
9. Partly Cloudy (2009), A*
10. 1408 (2007), B
11. Pigeon: Impossible (2009), B+*
12. Vegas Vacation (1997), C
13. Cat People (1982), C
14. Psycho Beach Party (2000), B
15. Sorority Babes in the Slimeball Bowl-O-Rama (1988), D
16. Planet Hulk (2010), B+
17. A Charlie Brown Valentine (2002), B*
18. The Wolfman (2010), B+
19. Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010), B
20. Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths (2010), A-
21. The Hangover (2009), B+
22. Surrogates (2009), B
23. Silver Bullet (1985), D
24. Paranormal Activity (2007)
25. Ringers: Lord of the Fans (2005)
26. Ink (2009), B+
27. Darby O’Gill and the Little People (1959), B
28. The Hobbit (1977), B
29. The Lord of the Rings (1978), C+
30. The Return of the King (1980), B-
31. Clash of the Titans (1981), B
32. Clash of the Titans (2010), D
33. Iron Man (2008), A
34. Office Space (1998), B+
35. Meet the Robinsons (2007), B+
36. I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell (2009), B+
37. Hancock (2008), B+
38. Fritz the Cat (1972), C-
39. The Losers (2010), B-
40. Kick-Ass (2010), B+
41. A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1968), C+
42. Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971), A
43. Midnight Meat Train (2008), B+
44. Plan 9 From Outer Space (1958), F
45. The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009), B+
46. The Muppets’ Wizard of Oz (2005), B-
47. Iron Man 2 (2010), A-
48. The Grapes of Wrath (1940), A
49. Cloak and Dagger (1984), C+
50. The Odyssey (1997), B+
51. O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000), A-
52. The Pixar Story (2007), A
53. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010), C+
54. Richard III (1995), B-
55. Miss March (2009), D
56. Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991), B+
57. A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010), D
58. Toy Story (1995), A
59. Toy Story 2 (1999), A
60. Red Dawn (1984), B+
61. Day and Night (2010), B*
62. Toy Story 3 (2010), A+
63. Muppets From Space (1999), B-
64. Jonah Hex (2010), D
65. Monsters, Inc. (2001), A
66. Zardoz (1974), C
67. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (2008), B-
68. Predators (2010), B
69. Laserblast (1978), F (MST3K riff), B
70. Better Than Chocolate (1999), C
71. Alice in Wonderland (2010), C+
72. Inception (2010), A
73. DC Showcase: Jonah Hex (2010), B*
74. Batman: Under the Red Hood (2010), B
75. The Beginning of the End (1957), F (MST3K Riff-B+)
76. Sold Out: A Threevening With Kevin Smith (2008), B
77. Let the Right One In (2008), B+
78. Manos: The Hands of Fate (1966), F (MST3K Riff-A)
79. I Accuse My Parents (1944), F (MST3K Riff-B)
80. Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World (2010), C
81. The 40-Year-Old Virgin (2005), B
82. A Wink and a Smile (2008), B
83. Fame (2009), B-
84. Water Lillies (2007), B
85. Jennifer’s Body (2009), B
86. Sex Drive (2008), B+
87. Dead and Gone (2007), D
88. Dead Snow (2009), A-
89. Vampire Killers (2009), B+
90. Netherbeast, Incorporated (2007), B
91. The Zombie Diaries (2006), C
92. Survival of the Dead (2010), B
93. I Sell the Dead (2008), B+
94. Saw VI (2009), B-
95. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007), A
96. The Wolfman (1941), B+
97. Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman (1943), B
98. Werewolf of London (1935), D
99. She-Wolf of London (1946), D
100. Due Date (2010), B
101. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 (2010), B+
102. Tangled (2010), B
103. Tron (1982), B
104. A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965), A+*
105. Prep and Landing: Operation Secret Santa (2010), B+*
106. Santa Claus Conquers the Martians (1964), F; MST3K Riff, B+
107. The Adventures of Huck Finn (1992), B
108. Tom and Huck (1993), B
109. Miracle on 34th Street (1947), A+
110. Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town (1970), B-*
111. The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974), B+*
112. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964), A*
113. Frosty the Snowman (1969), A-*
114. Tron: Legacy (2010), B+
115. Gremlins (1984), A
116. Santa Claus (1959), F; MST3K Riff, B
117. A Muppet Family Christmas (1987), B*
118. The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992), A
119. It’s a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie (2002), B-
120. A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa (2008), B*
121. Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny (1972), F because I can’t give Qs; RiffTrax Riff, B
122. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993), A
123. The Polar Express (2004), B-
124. Love, Actually (2003), A
125. A Christmas Story (1982), A
126. Funny Games (2008), B
127. Christmas Eve on Sesame Street (1978), B+*
128. Destino (2003), A-*
129. Secret Origin: The Story of DC Comics (2010), B
130. Superman/Batman: Apocalypse (2010), B-
131. Waking Sleeping Beauty (2010), B
132. Despicable Me (2010), B+
133. The Crazies (2010), B-

*-Denotes Short Film

Last Updated on January 1, 2010.