Star Trek: Nemesis (2002)

Introduction:

Until Star Trek Into Darkness came out, this was the Star Trek movie most reviled by fans. It was also the movie that signaled the end of Star Trek as a viable film franchise. It came out the same year as Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and Die Another Day. It pretty much failed to attract an audience in that crowded year. Is the movie as bad as history suggests, or is this a sci-fi gem that is dire need of rediscovery?

Summary:

Get your Sunday best ready, because Will Riker (Jonathan Frakes) and Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis) are finally getting hitched. It is nonstop shenanigans as Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) delivers his best man toast, and Data (Brent Spiner) sings Blue Skies. Geordi (LeVar Burton) sees what is inside one of the wedding gifts and cant figure out of Dr. Crusher (Gates McFadden) is a big ol’ perv or knows something about Riker that he doesn’t. As for Worf (Michael Dorn) he spends the whole reception staring down Wesley (Wil Wheaton) over a slight that that occurred over a decade ago but a Klingon never forgets.

What? That doesn’t sound like a great finale to the adventures of The Next Generation crew? Well how about a mysterious signal entices the Enterprise to stop by a world on the edge of the Romulan neutral zone. There they find a prototype of Data named B4 (also Brent Spiner). He isn’t quite as advanced as Data. This causes him to act like a five year old and make faces. Before (see what I did there) anyone can smack B4 too many times, the Romulans want to meet with Picard in person. Turns out their new leader, Shinzon (Tom Hardy) is eager to pursue peace. Picard is wary because the Romulans are tricksy folk. But he is an optimist. Shinzon turns out to be the leader of the Remans, a slave race that revolted against the cruel Romulans. But Shinzon himself appears to be human and even more disturbing – he is a young clone of Captain Picard. Before you know it Shinzon’s master plan to destroy Picard and the Federation is unveiled. Can our heroes defeat Shinzon and his massive new starship the Scimitar? And will one of our beloved heroes make the ultimate sacrifice to save the Federation?

Good Points:

• Some of the best visual effects in the franchises history
• Works an interesting theme of duality into the story
• Patrick Stewart and Tom Hardy play off each other well

Bad Points:

• The script is a mess
• The movie can’t decide what it wants to be
• Lacks the overall impact it should have

Overall:

As far as series finales go Star Trek: Nemesis tries so hard to deliver. On the surface a lot of things seem to work. The movie has great production elements and the cast seems on board and does a good job. But the script tries to do too many things at once and does none of them very well. It delivers some good action set pieces and fine character moments. But anyone looking for a fitting sendoff for these characters should stick with the television series finale.

Scores (out of 5)

Visuals: 4

Sound: 4

Acting: 4

Script: 2

Music: 4

Direction: 3

Entertainment: 3

Total:  3

In Depth Review

Oh pointy ship, oh pointy pointy.

It is strange that Star Trek: Nemesis and Die Another Day came out the same year. Both films have many of the same goals and the same problems. Both films ended up being one of the most reviled of the franchise. How did something that sounded so promising turning out so bad?

Quite frankly this film came out around this time Star Trek was feeling long in the tooth for a lot of folks. While some Trek fans were completely engaged in The Next Generation era of adventures, the general public still clung to the original series and its cast as the definition of Star Trek. First Contact was a success and got excellent critical marks, but it didn’t make as much of an impact as Paramount wanted it too. Insurrection fared worse, and many critics and fans calling it an expanded television episode that relied too much on knowledge of the series to pull in new viewers.

The studio wanted Star Trek: Nemesis to avoid those pitfalls. They wanted a big adventure movie that would pull in the viewers with action and edginess. It was also intended as the final hurrah for The Next Generation cast. The film would need to be some kind of celebration of these characters and all the adventures viewers had shared with them. In addition to all that, Paramount wanted a fresh perspective to the film. This worked well for them when they pulled in Nicholas Meyer in for Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. They turned to director Stuart Baird who had never directed a science fiction film or Star Trek episode before.

Captain Picard is raring for off roading excitement!

One of the most obvious influences on Nemesis is The Wrath of Khan. This isn’t surprising, since Khan is considered by many fans and critics to be the best of the Star Trek films. In fact Khan’s influence looms large over all of the Star Trek films, usually to the other films detriment. So screenwriter John Logan has to frame his film like Wrath of Khan, with an over the top villain, a lot of space ship battles and kill a beloved character off. He also has to give each crewmember a moment to shine and give the film a finality to satisfy the Next Generation fans, something along the lines of the finale of The Undiscovered Country for the original crew.

It is tempting to call this script impossible. But lets just call it a supreme challenge. Sadly it was one that wasn’t conquered. The result is an unfocused script that harms a film with so much potential.

Let’s focus on some of the good points of Star Trek: Nemesis, because no matter how much it is hated, the movie does have some good elements. Visually, this is one of the best-looking Star Trek films. The visual effects hold up really well today and they looked spectacular when the film first came out. The starship battles are executed with skill and bring a lot of tension to the film. The Scimitar is one wicked looking ship, and is one of the coolest looking starships in the series.

Shinzon knows how to make an entrance.

The sets are pretty great looking too. My favorite is the Romulan Senate in the opening moments of the film. It provides a nice twist on traditional Roman architecture. Many of the ship interiors (where we spend most of the time) are also impressive. The room where Shinzon meets Picard for the first time is all shadows and mystery. It allows Tom Hardy to get a bit theatrical, and it works to his advantage.

One oddity is the decision to give this film a very dark look. Once the crew meets Shinzon most of the movie is a palate of grey, black and shadows. Even the Enterprise interiors are dimly lit. It is a stark contrast to the way the sets were lit in Insurrection and First Contact. It just feels like they were going for an obviously edgy feel, instead of working interesting lighting in as part of the story. That is something Star Trek: Generations did extremely well, and why it is probably the most visually dynamic of The Next Generation films.

"No seriously, that hair cut doesn't suit you."

I do like that the Remans look like aliens, not like humans with bumps on their head. I’m not sure why they look so different from the Romulans, it is never really explained. But I was just happy to see an alien that looked much different than a human. One thing I’m not a fan of is Shinzon’s outfit. I think they were attempting to make him look more like an insect with his iridescent chitin style armor. But there are some moments where he just looks silly and non-threatening, no matter how venomous Tom Hardy’s performance gets.

The sound effects retain all the traditional sounds of The Next Generation television series, but given a bit more power behind them. Since this movie features a lot of space battles, you get more weapon and explosion sound effects. Most of the new sound material revolves around the Scimitar and its weapons. All in all it is a solid mix of the familiar and new, just what you expect from a Star Trek sequel.

When it came to music, there was really no one else to go to. Jerry Goldsmith had provided scores to The Motion Picture, The Final Frontier, First Contact and Insurrection. He composed the main title theme for Star Trek: Voyager as well. In many ways Goldsmith was the musical sound of The Next Generation (along with Dennis McCarthy and Jay Chattaway who provided the bulk of the music for all the television series taking place in The Next Generation timeline). It was only fitting that Goldsmith compose the score to Nemesis.

That outfit... just... wow.

The movie Goldsmith was given to score was darker and more aggressive than any previous Star Trek film and this is reflected in his score. The primary theme is for Shinzon, and you can hear a really thoughtful and reflective version of the theme in the end credits suite. But through most of the score the theme is much more threatening and creepy. He works aspects of the theme throughout the score, underlining intense scenes or hinting at Shinzon’s role in the deception going on around the crew of the Enterprise.

Beyond that Goldsmith creates some exciting action music, using Shinzon’s theme, but also giving us a heroic version of his Star Trek theme from The Motion Picture. There is also a four-note motif that he uses quite a bit for the camaraderie of the Enterprise crew that he established in The Final Frontier and used in all his Star Trek scores since. He also reintroduces what some folks call the Federation motif that he used quite a bit in The Motion Picture whenever the crew was bustling around preparing for action.

This was one of the last scores Jerry Goldsmith composed for films. He was already very ill at the time of the composition. It was great to have him write music for one of the franchises he was best known for, and give us all one more spin around his musical galaxy.

"So, you seen Lore lately?"

One of the elements of the script that actually works well is the concept of duality and the concept of nature vs. nurture. Brent Spiner got to play off this with Data and B4 interacting in the film. The androids allowed Spiner to play to different roles, with B4 coming across as an even simpler version of Data. What is interesting is that the emotion chip that played a crucial role in Generations and First Contact isn’t referenced in Nemesis. There are a few moments where you think it would come into play, but it doesn’t. Still Spiner gives a very good performance as Data and B4, especially his farewell to Picard and the crew before he makes his final sacrifice.

Mirror mirror?

But the real highlight of the acting goes to Stewart and Hardy. The two men make for great counterpoints to each other. Obviously Stewart has played the role of Picard for years by this point, so he was very comfortable with the character. But I really like his performance as he faces a younger version of himself, one that was raised in an environment of hate and fear. Is there an innate quality of nobility and compassion in the DNA of Picard that can be brought forth? Or is Shinzon a completely different man, one forged by the fires of his experience. Hardy does a great job showing the potential for either option. His attempts to gain Picard’s trust feel genuine, but as the film progresses Hardy becomes more and more disturbed and vengeful. While not all of his motivations make sense (why attack Earth at all? Isn’t destroying Picard enough?) Hardy plays them to the hilt. He makes for an effective and challenging villain, certainly one of the best of the franchise – if he had only been given a script that was a bit more solid.

A couple of other new faces appear in Nemesis. Ron Pearlman plays the creepy Viceroy that hangs around Shinzon and looks sinister. Kind of a shame they don’t use Pearlman to better advantage, but he does a good job glowering at everyone. Dina Meyer as the Romulan commander Donatra gets a bit more meat to her role. She provides the Enterprise with some much needed information and aid. There is even a fun cameo by Kate Mulgrew as Admiral Janeway where she delivers some exposition, but it was nice to see her on the big screen.

The rest of the cast gets to have their moments to shine and all of them do a fine job. Frakes and Sirtis probably get the most interesting moments in the film, but they also seem like the most shoehorned into the plot – just to give them something to do.

Some of the best action in the franchise.

That brings us back to the main issue with Star Trek: Nemesis, the horribly messy script. With a cast of characters this large, it is very difficult to get them all involved in some way. But it can be done. As much as people like to dismiss Abrams recent Star Trek films, his scripts always managed to give key plot moments and dialogue to all the characters. Nemesis does the same, but in such a clunky fashion. Obviously Picard and Data are the main draws for most fans, and most non-fans do recognize these two characters. So the script focuses all the conflict on these two characters.

But the rest of the cast has some minor moments to work on. Dr. Crusher helps analyze Shinzon’s blood and determine the medical issues the antagonist is facing. She helps Geordi with B4. Speaking of Geordi, he is pretty much around to be Data’s friend so when the big death scene happens he can look depressed. But Geordi and Data had formed a bond in the show and that does get played into a bit here. Worf gets to glower and say some ironic lines. But mostly he is around to shoot from the back of a dune buggy.

Some of the goofiest action in the franchise.

Yeah, that whole moment with the dune buggy chase and the lasers and aliens and Picard going all X-games on us… Well, it is just hilariously out of place. I end up laughing each time I see it. This is one of the main reasons the film feels so shallow at times. You get the feeling that these scenes were manufactured to get teen boys riled up about Star Trek. But I doubt it worked.

Then you have the whole Viceroy/Troi/Riker thing. In an attempt to give Troi something to do, the writers say that she can use her empathic abilities to find the Viceroy in the cloaked ship? How is this possible? Because the Viceroy and Shinzon try to mind rape her at one point in the film. Um… yeah. It is never explained why they attempt to mind rape her. Shinzon thinks she’s hot? I don’t know. Anyway it happens when Riker and Troi are getting steamy and it kind of kills the mood. Riker doesn’t like anyone killing his mood. So when the Viceroy leads an attack on the Enterprise Riker and the Viceroy engage in a pretty uninvolving and extended fight scene. Yeah Riker was always the man of action, but I’m sorry it just doesn’t work in Nemesis.

Now there's a Romulan!

Finally there’s the big sacrifice moment. You can see the writers attempting to mimic Wrath of Khan. It has never been confirmed, but I believe it was Paramount who keeps insisting the Star Trek films mimic Wrath of Khan time and again. The thing is, they miss the real reasons that Wrath of Khan is so beloved. It gives us a villain with stakes, a villain with a driving need to directly attack our heroes. It also gives us a sacrifice that is earned. We feel the death of Spock like a gut punch. Each time they attempt to do Wrath of Khan again, they fail at one of these elements.

In the case of Nemesis I think they actually got the antagonist correct. He does have a real reason for wanting to destroy Picard. The mirror can’t keep seeing itself. There has to be a “real” person. For Shinzon, Picard is the reflection that must be destroyed. Because of the medical issue of his cloning, he must kill Picard to save his life. Those are high stakes and they make perfect sense. But adding the destruction of the Federation to the mix is pointless and clutters the story in a way that is never delivered.

The sacrifice fails because of how it is resolved. I was invested when Data makes his final move. It feels right that he should attempt to save his friends and his father figure: Picard. It completes his journey to become human. Likke his human companions, Data is no longer immortal. He can die, and he chooses to die out of compassion – an emotion that he has developed over the journey of the story.

So far, so good.

"Is that seriously the last episode of Enterprise?
What the hell was that?"

But then you get B4 and the fact that all of Data’s memories were slid over to him. The film ends with a funeral that seems so subdued. Sad, yeah, but also kind of limp. When B4 wanders in, you get the feeling (right or wrong) that the crew realizes they still have Data around, and he’s been reset to Season 1 (or even earlier) so they can start all over again. Data isn’t really lost. This feels like such a cop out. Were the writers that afraid of killing Data? Nemesis loses its entire gut punch in those final scenes. And you realize that the only reason B4 was even in this mess of a script was to give them an out when they killed Data. Is that because they thought Nemesis would be a huge success and they might be able to squeeze out another film? Was it to give Spiner a chance to reprise his role in a later television series? Who knows. But it comes across as very misguided. The same issue would hurt Star Trek into Darkness.

Even at a wedding you can keep Picard from speechifying.

Director Stuart Baird ended up with a lot of footage for this film. He ended up having to trim it down quite a bit, and most of what was cut were character moments to celebrate the crew of The Next Generation. We found out what happened to Wesley, why Worf was hanging around and all kinds of stuff. But all that material had to be trimmed to keep the movie at two hours. Baird did the best he could, but the film ends up paced really strangely. It moves briskly and has plenty of action, but you feel all two hours. I’ve seen this film a few times and I still can’t figure out why the pacing feels so off.

Sadly Star Trek: Nemesis falls apart. All the seams in the script become painfully obvious. The manufactured feeling of the film further undermines the final experience. Insurrection has its flaws, but in many ways it feels like a better script more realized and grounded in the world of The Next Generation. Nemesis feels like a franchise flailing for relevance. It didn’t need to flail. It needed to trust its characters and the world it created to deliver an excellent, exciting and relevant story. At its core Nemesis has those kernels, but they never quite sprout. By the end of the film, you’ve had an entertaining time with the crew, but it feels like a missed opportunity.

The fine crew on their last voyage.

Nostalgia Nugget: Star Trek was Always Around - Part 1

Just seeing this title screen brings back the warm
fuzzier of nostalgia.

Star Trek was always around.

That said, I honestly don't remember the very first time I saw an episode or a movie. I just seemed to always know who Captain Kirk was. I knew Mr. Spock was logical and calm. I knew that McCoy was a doctor dammit! I know I must have seen some episodes of the original series before I saw Star Trek II - The Wrath of Khan, because Spock's death upset me. I suppose I could blame the emotion on James Horner's excellent score and the performances, but I had an idea who these characters were.

I know I saw Star Trek: The Motion Picture in the theaters in 1979, but I honestly don't remember seeing it. I have more vivid memories of the Happy Meal carton with The Real McCoy match game on the side and the Starfleet iron ons that came with it. I may have watched the film on VHS a couple times before 1982. At that point in my childhood I was watching anything and everything with spaceships and aliens (Battle Beyond the Stars and The Black Hole were definitely on the VHS rotation).

Space and Greek Gods! Sign 8 year old me up!

At some point after seeing the Wrath of Khan I started watching the original series on syndication. My grandmother was a big fan of William Shatner (and action movies in general, she loved TJ Hooker). She lived with our family for a number of years in the 1980s and I remember us watching the adventures of Captain Kirk and his crew. I have vivid memories of a few episodes, like seeing Captain Pike in mangled form in The Menagerie, the reptilian Gorn in Arena (I always loved lizard men monsters) and most vividly Who Mournes for Adonis.

The reason that episode really caught my attention is because it combined two things I loved: spaceships and Greek mythology. In that episode the crew of the Enterprise runs into the Greek god Apollo. He turns out to be a real jerk, and of course Kirk is about to outwit him. That always disappointed me a bit, because I really like the concept of the Greek gods and heroes. I lay the blame firmly at the feet of Clash of the Titans for that.

Seriously this was a real episode? I thought it was
some kind of candy fueled fever dream from the 80s.

I must have seen about half the episodes of the original series with my grandmother. I eventually picked up the DVD releases of the original series, and was surprised how much the imagery came back to me in these odd nostalgic flashbacks. The strange puppet alien from The Crobomite Manuver, the myriad of alien races from Journey to Babel and the odd journey to the old west in Specter of the Gun. For years I thought that was just some bizarre dream I had about Star Trek and cowboy hats.

As a kid what stuck out to me were the strange aliens, bright colors and spaceships zipping around. I really didn't remember much about the plots or the themes of the episodes. I mean I remembered Kirk and the Gorn wandering around in the desert trying to kill each other, but I didn't remember why.

What I did remember was the music. Obviously there was the main theme, which pretty much anyone who's seen an episode of the original series remembers all too well. But I also remembered certain cues that were used time and again. On of the most distinctive was the music from Amok Time composed by Gerald Fried. I always associated it with Kirk fighting (since I think it was used in many Kirk fight scenes after it's first appearance here). I don't think I ever saw Amok Time until many years later, so this music will always be Kirk's Fighting Music. I remember laughing my butt off during an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000 when Joel and the bots suddenly break out into an a cappella version of this music during a fight scene in Hercules Against the Moon Men.

Another distinctive piece was for the episode The Doomsday Machine. Composer Sol Kaplan provided this memorable theme and again it was reused throughout the series, usually when something intense was occurring. it just stuck in my memory and when I revisited this episode in the late 2000s, the score brought back a slew of memories about my grandmother and hanging out watching Star Trek.

For the rest of the 1980s the original crew of the enterprise were always around in the theater. I loved that Spock came back in the spoiler-rific title The Search for Spock. Just like everyone else in 1986 I thought The Voyage Home  was a ton of fun, feeling most like some of the classic episodes I remembered watching. I remember thinking The Final Frontier was Ok at the time. But I also remember Batman being a lot more entertaining that same year. By the time The Undiscovered Country rolled around in 1991, I was losing interest in Star Trek, but still though the movie was good. Any movie that had David Warner in it and surrounded by floating Klingon blood is a good movie.

Every few years in the 1980s you could count on a Star Trek
film to hit theaters.

In a strange twist of fate, one of the very first CDs I ever purchased with my own cash from my job at the video store was the score to The Undiscovered Country. The moody and dark score really appealed to me, even though I was getting into Mtv and SNL at that same time.

I also remember watching a few episodes of the original series on VHS around this time. I tried to watch them in some kind of order following the VHS releases that had two episodes per cassette. I didn't get very far into them. I think I saw The Squire of Gothos episode and it was so goofy that I decided to just stick with the movies.

I eventually came back to Star Trek because of a friend, who was very much a Trekkie, got talking about the classic series. I mentioned the fond memories I had of the show and also that I hadn't seen it in years. Well he had the newly released box sets on DVD that came out around 2008 or so. He generously let me borrow them.

The colors on the remastered Trek are so vivid
Mr. Spock needs shades.

That summer my wife and I watched all three seasons of Star Trek the original series and had a blast with it. It was so colorful (much more colorful than I remembered from the old syndicated prints I watched in the 80s) and the updated visual effects and surround sound was so much fun. Yeah there were clunker episodes, but even the goofy ones had an energy and fun to them that kept us watching. I was surprised my wife enjoyed them as much as I did, but it turns out she grew up with Star Trek always on the television too, her dad was a big Kirk fan. I ended up returning the box sets to my friend, but turned around and bought them myself.

I still revisit the series from time to time. It has a lot of nostalgia for me, and now I can enjoy some of the really excellent episodes the original series had to offer. Mr. Spock is still my favorite character, but I've grown to really like Dr. McCoy as well.

The Enterprise never looked this good on my 80s
televison set!

As for the rebooted series that J.J. Abrams brought to us in 2009. Well, I've enjoyed the first two films quite a bit. Not quite the Star Trek of the 1960s, but I honestly wouldn't expect that. Its fun and entertaining and filled with great action. But like many modern blockbusters, feels a bit empty inside. While I think Star Trek needs to change with the times, I do wonder if this change is going to end up being a problem when Star Trek Beyond comes out later in 2016. Only time will tell.

So Star Trek was always around, especially when it came to Kirk and the crew. But I have a whole different set of memories when it comes to The Next Generation and all the series that followed. Stay tuned for part 2 of this nostalgic trip through space... the final frontier.

Score Sample: Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country

When it comes to Star Trek the movie franchise has a pretty impressive legacy. Jerry Goldsmith knocked it out of the park with Star Trek: The Motion Picture and followed it with the excellent score to The Final Frontier a decade later. In between James Horner brought us to tears with The Wrath of Khan and to thrills with The Search for Spock. Now we have Michael Giacchino giving us top notch scores for Star Trek (2009) and Star Trek into Darkness.

But there have been a couple of other composers who got to tackle a single movie. They tend to get lost in the shuffle, and I wanted to spotlight the work of one of them today: Cliff Eidelman and his music for Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. His score is much different from the ones that preceded it. Instead of starting with a bombastic fanfare he gives us a dark brooding opening theme that builds and builds in intensity until it erupts into a barrage of notes at the end. it does a great job of setting us up for the darker movie we had coming our way. But I also want to share Eidelman's cue Sign Off which acts as a wonderful farewell to the cast. The heroic theme plays as each cast member's signature appears on the screen before erupting into the classic Star Trek theme for Shatner's name. Eidelman composed one of the best scores of the series, and deserves some recognition for it. So please enjoy two samples, the Overture and the Sign Off cue from Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.

Overture

Sign Off

Big Eyes (2014)

Introduction:

There are some things that we see all the time and it never crosses our minds to think about where they came from. One of my favorites comes from Calvin and Hobbes where Calvin ponders who was the first human to look at a cow’s udder and say, “I’m going to drink whatever comes out of this.” But I digress. I had seen the big eyed little waif pictures before, but I had never thought about who painted them. And lo and behold, Tim Burton decides to make a movie about this. Well this ought to be interesting.

Summary:

Life is tough for Margaret (Amy Adams) and her daughter. She’s left her husband to make a life in San Francisco. There she meets fellow artist Walter Keane (Chrisoph Waltz) a charming man who sweeps her off her feet. The two marry and attempt to make ends meet selling their paintings. But when Margaret’s big-eyed waif paintings start selling like hotcakes, Walter accidently tells a few folks that he painted them.

Soon the lie gets out of control, and as the popularity of the art grows, so does Walter’s fame. Margaret is pushed aside to paint in a secluded room in their own house (even hiding the truth from her own daughter) while Walter finds more ways to exploit their fame. But this secret can’t stay buried forever, and when it gets out that Margaret may have painted all the paintings with Big Eyes, Walter isn’t going to let her get away with it. Danny Huston, Krysten Ritter, Jason Schwartzman, Terence Stamp and Jon Polito round out the cast.

Good Points:

• Solid acting by the whole cast
• Some great use of colors and visuals
• Moves at a good pace 

Bad Points:

• Follows the typical biopic beats – no surprises here
• Comes across a little less visually interesting than you’d expect from Mr. Burton
• A few characters seem to get lost in the story only to reappear when needed

Overall:

This is one of those movies that will be a great find for those interested in the Keane’s saga already. For everyone else, it is solid entertainment, but is missing that extra something to really knock it out of the park. Part of issue is expectations. Burton crafted the amazingly entertaining Ed Wood so I was expecting something with a bit more of a unique flavor. But this is not even in the same league. It is closer to Lovelace. Not a bad film by any means, but not one you are likely to remember a year or two from now.

Scores (out of 5)

Visuals: 3

Sound: 3

Acting: 4

Script: 3

Music: 3

Direction: 3

Entertainment: 3

Total:  3

Curious about a full review, sent me an email and I’ll make additional thoughts to this review.

My Neighbor Totoro (1988)

Introduction:

No one sets out to make an iconic character, or at least those that do usually don’t accomplish this. These characters are just connect with an audience and grow into a phenomenon. If you are an anime fan, you know who Totoro is, you can’t escape his fuzzy presence. If you don’t know who Totoro is, then go watch My Neighbor Totoro as soon as you can, because he is an iconic character, not just in Japan, but around the world.

Summary:

Satsuki (Noriko Hidaka) and Mei (Chika Sakamoto) are moving to the country with their father (Shigesato Itoi). We soon discover that the girl’s mother (Sumi Shimamoto) is sick and hopefully the country air will help her get well. But mother has to stay in a local hospital until she is well enough to join the three at the new place. After they arrive the girls think mysterious Dust Bunnies may haunt the new home. Satsuiki and Mei explore the house and discover clues to supernatural inhabitants.

In the meantime the girls help their dad around the house and make new friends like Kanata (Toshiyuki Amagas) a young boy who thinks Satsuki is cute, but doesn’t know what to do about it. They also befriend kindly old Granny (Tanie Kitbayashi) who tells them about the forest spirits that live nearby. That is when Mei encounters the Totoro, a huge furry creature living in a huge camphor tree near the house. Totoro and his tiny friends befriend the girls and take them on all kinds of adventures including flying through the air, taking a ride on a Cat Bus and entering an enchanted tree. But when mother takes a turn for the worse is there anything Totoro can do to help the girls in there hour of need?

Good Points:

• Miyazaki creates a wonderful sense of place and wonder in the animation
• Totoro and all the supernatural creations are a joy to behold
• You grow to like all the characters in the film

Bad Points:

• There isn’t really an overall story, more like a series of vignettes
• Looking for an antagonist to boo? Not going to find one here.
• Some may find the movie too simple or too childish (I don’t agree, but I’ve heard that argument before)

Overall:

This is a wonderful example of family entertainment. Young children will connect with the protagonists and fall in love with Totoro and his pals. Adults will find a nostalgic quality to the film that is so appealing. The movie puts you into the world of a child and does it so effectively. All the pieces come together to make a film that is entertaining and soothing all at once. It isn’t hard to see why this became a big hit and remains a classic in Miyazaki’s filmography ever since.

Scores (out of 5)

Visuals: 5

Sound: 4

Acting: 4

Script: 4

Music: 4

Direction: 5

Entertainment: 5

Total:  4

In Depth Review

The big Totoro lets out a giant Yawp!

I think that one of the toughest genres to create in movies is the family film. Most end up too dumbed down for adults to enjoy. Others end up a little too snarky and meta to be anything more than a mild amusement that is soon forgotten. It is rare that you actually see a family film that is whimsical, positive and entertaining all at once. My Neighbor Totoro should be required viewing for anyone attempting to create family entertainment and do it the right way.

I often hear Hayao Miyazaki called the Japanese Walt Disney, and I think his work on My Neighbor Totoro and Kiki’s Delivery Service is where that idea comes from. I appreciate the comparison, but it doesn’t quite fit. Both men are more then just comparison points to each other. As I mentioned above, you could compare Totoro to Mickey Mouse when it comes to a popular icon created from family entertainment. Totoro is inescapable in Japan. And if you have any stores near you that sell merchandise or pop culture from Japan (especially anime or manga) odd are you’ve seen Totoro there too.

Why the lasting appeal? Why the accolades? Why the huge amount of success that allowed Miyazaki to continue with his dream of making animated films into 2013? Let’s take a look at all the different elements and see how they work together.

The pastoral and old fashioned setting.

For the first time in a Miyazaki directed feature film we have a setting in Japan. Because we aren’t in the post apocalyptic world of Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind or the steam punk fantasy of Castle in the Sky, the design has a more down to earth feel. The film is a period piece, set in 1958. This gives the clothing, automobiles and town surrounding our protagonists an old fashioned but homey feel to it.

The country setting allows Miyazaki to show off nature in the form of the giant camphor tree, the rolling hills surrounding the village and waving open fields of grass. My Neighbor Totoro feels much more open and airy compared to Castle in the Sky. The setting adds to the nostalgic atmosphere that wraps the whole film in a comfy familiar blanket, even for non-Japanese audiences.

What mysteries await in the new house?

The character design follows Miyazaki’s normal style. They are variants on what we’ve seen in the past. The Totoros look related to the Panda family from Panda Go Panda and Satsuki could be Nausicaa’s little sister. Old Granny could be a stand in for Yubaba in Spirited Away. But this movie actually establishes more designs that Miyazaki will use in future films.

Like the previous films, some of the visual highlights include moments when characters take flight. Totoro uses a magic top to take to the air with Mei and Satsuki. Later in the movie, the flying Cat Bus hurtles across the countryside and leaps high into the air, providing a thrilling ride for those inside. It just wouldn’t be a Miyazaki film without those moments.

Who ya gonna call? Dust Bunny Busters!

But I also like some of the creepy scenes early in the film, when the girls explore their new house.  The home has plenty of darkened passages and closed doors that could open to anything: even a group of Dust Bunnies! Miyazaki does a good job creating an eerie atmosphere of mystery. It’s not too scary (like elements we’d see in Spirited Away or Princess Mononoke). But it creates a few moments of the uncanny as the two girls come in contact with the spirits that inhabit the house and surrounding forest.

Sound work follows suit for the film. Most of what we hear is typical sound effects for the pastoral setting and vintage cars. When some magic is needed for the Totoros and the Cat Bus then some interesting sound design is used. It is all creative and immersive.

Mei befriends the giant Totoro.

When it came to the music for My Neighbor Totoro Miyazaki once again turned to his composer of choice, Joe HIsaishi. Hisaishi creates three main melodies for the film, and they are all used to flesh out songs used in the film and on the soundtrack album. The opening title theme Hey Lets Go! gets things off to a cheery start. It is also used when the family goes to visit their sick mother in the local hospital. The end title track, is the theme for the Totoros, and actually features a chorus singing their name several times. It’s a jaunty tune and is used several times in the film. The other theme is one used when Mei gets lost. We only hear it a couple times at the end of the film, but Hisaishi uses the melody for a song called The Lost Child on the album. Hisashi creates a set of other memorable motifs for the Dust Bunnies, Cat Bus and the girl’s mother. The music is all light, melodic and fits the film so well. Much of the emotion and nostalgia comes from Hisaishi’s score. While it is primarily orchestral, there is some use of 80s synthesizers in nearly every track to supplement the music. It may be one of Hisaisihi’s most cheerful and uplifting scores for a Miyazaki film – and that is saying something.

Even the Cat Bus is pleased that Mei and Satsuki find
each other.

When it comes to the vocal cast, it is important that the two main girls are able to convey the mixture of innocence and wonder that makes the film work. In Japanese you have Noriko Hidaka as Satsuki and Chika Sakamoto as Mei. Both girls do a fine job. Sakamoto makes Mei just cute enough that you don’t want to strangle her when she gets bratty. Hidaka also does a great job combining the affection and annoyance of having a younger sibling to take care of. Their interaction with each other and the other characters goes a long way to making the whole thing work. There have been two English dubs for this film one done in 1993 for Fox and one in 2005 for Disney. Both English dubs work well, with Dakota and Elle Fanning appearing in the Disney version with Lea Salonga (of Aladdin fame) as their mother.  I usually like to watch this one in Japanese, because of the very Japanese setting, but both English dubs work just fine and allow English speaking viewers a chance to enjoy the animation.

Mei in hot pursuit of the white rabbit... I mean
little and medium Totoros!

If there is one criticism you can level at My Neighbor Totoro it is that the film doesn’t have a traditional narrative. The movie plays out more like a series of vignettes about the girls moving into the new home with their father and how they adapt to the changes and the fact that their mother is still very ill. There is a story arc of sorts, as both girls grow up a bit over the course of the movie. But there is no antagonist to challenge the girls, or grand goal or objective at the heart of the film, at least not one that is obvious. As a writer I really admire how Miyazaki and his crew are able to make this approach work. We connect immediately with the girls, most of us have moved to a new home and had to deal with all the strange things we encounter. I love how Satsuki and Mei have this mixture of excitement, fear and daring in the first portion of the film as they explore the “haunted house” and meet the dust bunnies. Even the scenes where the girls meet Totoro are an interesting mixture of suspense and wonder. All these moments keep us interested in the girls and what they are going to encounter next.

Satsuki is isolated in this frame, as she searches
for the lost Mei.

In many ways this film reminds me strongly of Alice in Wonderland as envisioned by Disney or the Jim Henson film Labyrinth. You get a series of encounters and adventures, but not a clear plot path. The story seems to meander at times as you take the journey with the characters. But by the time it is over, you realize that each moment played into the character’s growth in some way and by the end of the film they have learned something about themselves.

It takes a deft touch to make something like My Neighbor Totoro work. For me this is the first film where everything comes together just about perfectly for Miyazaki. His abilty to capture that childlike wonder, that thrill of discovery, the fear of the unknown and the dispair of losing someone so important to you – all these elements come into play in this simple story. But it is that simplicity that makes the film so endearing, entertaining and have that staying power. Pretty much anyone who sees My Neighbor Totoro will not forget it. Children connect with the girls and the cute and helpful Totoro. Adults will pick up on the nostalgia for a simpler time and the delightful visuals that capture the imagination. Miyazaki even manages to include a little ecological message about the Totoros being spirits of the forest and being attracted growing plants.

The leaf hat just isn't cutting it.

Of course some folks find the whole thing just too cute, or too slight. While I can understand that to a point, I think they don’t understand the core of the film. My Neighbor Totoro Isn’t going for the narrative scope of something like Princess Mononoke or even Castle of Cagliostro. It is about a family dealing with some serious issues, a sick mother, a big move to a very different place and meeting new neighbors. But it does it from the point of view of children, who see some of these things as games, fantasy or sometimes as confusing and scary events. That is the magic of the film. Miyazaki reaches younger viewers who feel like the film is speaking to them. It reaches older viewers because it reminds us of our childhood and some of the great and amazing things we experienced. My Neighbor Totoro is a must see for anyone who enjoys good entertainment. I can understand why it is many people’s favorite Miyazaki film, and while I rate a few other films a bit higher, it is the start of his winning streak.

The girls rush to find adventure in the "haunted house".

Time for a snack after the move.

The girls visit their sick mother.

She seeks him here, she seeks him there. She seeks
that rascal everywhere.

And then this happened... a cat bus appeared.

"Are you seeing this $%@&?" "Yeah, I totally see
a Cat Bus."

The girls and the Totoro's combine forces to make the
little acorns grow.

Mei is a child of the corn.

Hey Link, I think the Totoro has the Ocarina of Time.

This has to be one of my favorite scenes in the movie.

Anime Juke Box - Absolute Destiny Apocalypse - Revolutionary Girl Utena

The 1990s were great for fans of the 1970s, because there was a huge nostalgic boom for that disco decade. It explains why we ended up with The Brady Bunch Movie as well as Boogie Nights. But we also had a bit of a 70s throw back for film music and even J-pop featured in anime. One of the most 70s-tastic scores of the 1990s was for the anime series Revolutionary Girl Utena. During the series the leading lady would engage in a sword duel with various rivals, and the whole thing was scored with a full blown 70s rock opera style of pop.

The musical style is kind of hard to describe, so I'll just let you listen to it. This piece is played quite a few times during the series as Utena climbs a glass staircase to face her next dueling opponent. The title can be translated a few ways, but I've always seen it as Absolute Destiny Apocalypse performed by the mysterious J.A. Seazer. And if you think this sounds strange, some of the other dueling songs are even odder.