RE:View: Things To Do In a Retirement Home Trailer Park When You're 29 and Unemployed

A frustratingly frequent piece of advice given to young writers is "Write what you know"; something that newcomer Aneurin Wright has taken to the next level with his debut graphic novel/memoir, as Things To Do tells the moving story of what happened to himself when he was 29 and Unemployed, looking after his father Neil in a Retirement Home Trailer Park.

Neil is sick. Emphysema ails him after a lifetime of cigarettes and stress. Nye (that's Wright himself) is his son, struggling to find work after graduating from art school and finds himself in a predicament -- to care for his imperfect father through his illness as per the rest of his family's wishes. So off he sets to spend the next number of months beside Neil in a trailer. Oh yeah, and Nye's a blue minotaur and Neil a blue rhino...

Whilst the majority of the other characters around them are human, this bizarre animal imagery is never addressed full on; we just sit there and take it. But the reasoning behind it is plentiful, with ideas as obvious as giving the book a more fantastical look in art direction and colouring (the blue, red, white and grey dominate the well drawn pages), to subtler narrative cores that pay off astronomically in the long run. As such a personal journey for this writer/artist, the cartoonish feel is essential so that it's visually more engaging and displays the distance set out between writer and experience. And thanks to the sharpness of the storytelling, it blends into the book with ease and style.

With this in mind, the 300 page book comes alive through three distinct acts, each with a good 12 or 13 chapters (varying in length) that bring Wright's comedic, dramatic, emotional or just plain imaginative chops to light. There are scenes so varied that one may consist of nothing else than Neil getting a sponge bath, while another shows Nye's frustration through a dream-like, crime fighting situation. Family, epiphanies, forgiveness, regret, anger and realisation: all major themes. When I say this book has everything, I mean it -- through the humanity of the story (it is true, after all) these things are so present and come from a very real, very first hand "I felt what you're feeling times 10" place, and that carries true in dialogue, imagery, pacing; EVERYTHING. 

Now things aren't all about the present, mind, as Wright consistently throws around the framing of time -- glimpses of childhood, patches of the recent past, even flashes of the imagination and the unruly subconscious of a man coming to terms with his Father's impending death. Admittedly jarring at first, but as the jumbled story progresses things shape out and we're given more fleshed out characters and relationships as a result, which is unimaginably important for the conclusion.

As if the book wasn't brilliant enough on all these other merits, Wright completely knocks obliterates it out of the (trailer) park within the last 80 pages with the most moving moments I've ever seen in the comic book/graphic novel medium. At this point, through the snivelling, heaving, sobs and streaming tears (seriously), you realise all this stuff -- the humourous touches, the flashbacks, the animal charactertures, every last minor detail -- has been plotted excruciatingly for the inevitable finale.

Jaw droppingly powerful.

At the heart of Things To Do lies almost what you'd call an everyday story of life, death and family. But through Nye's emotionally driven scope it transcends into something indescribably huge, human and heart wrenching and warming at the same time. It's in this way that Wright has captured the essence of how moving real life can be for everyone and everything in this world once put in the right story structure and imagery.

Now this is one of the best things I've read, medium regardless, in my life. And it's only his debut. I think that warrants a slogan...
Nye Wright: Future Talent, No Doubt.

ATR

The Sunday Supdate: 31/07/11

Okay so I'm going to make this quick as it's like 11pm and I'm on my step family's PC while they all sleep about 2 metres above me. Plus this computer isn't exactly what you would call reliable, so a crash could be imminent at any moment...

 So of course this week I started up DudeMeisterVlogs down on YouTube, with some incredibly awkward videos of me talking about nonsense and sounding like a douche. But, work is work, and I'm determined to carry on with it, just have to get into the flow if you know what I mean. Once I've found that point where I can loosen up in front of the camera, then perhaps we'll see some actually worthwhile content.

  Along with all that, we've had the busiest month of the blog so far (22 pieces, incl this), partly down to that monster of a Tuesday this week, belting out a whopping 5 trailer articles for you to feast upon. I got to tell you, that was a pretty relentless day that has left me able to recite every word of each of those trailers, which is at the annoyance of others when they appear in the cinema. So that brings us to the hits. July is in contention with May's 1077 count, with an impressive 1033 which could rise to conquer depending on how fast you can refresh your page in the next hour.

   Jesus Christ! Oh sorry, Dynamo: Magician Impossible is on the TV behind me and that guy is just blowing me away with what he can do. If you haven't heard of him, Dynamo is a UK magician who is currently considered as the best in the world, performing tricks that defy what we conceive as humanly possible. Walking on water!? Stepping through glass!? Turning cardboard into butterflies!? I've literally spent the last few hours (I've been watching the marathon on Watch) with my jaw to the floor in awe (hey, sick rhyming!) of this dude's talent. There's just no way these things are happening. Truly unbelievable.Please take the time to check him out, and I promise you won't regret it.

  All right, that'll be all. Like I said, I've got time constraints and there are two dogs barking at me in the hallway so I best be off. See y'all yonder.


ATR

Trailer Tuesday: The Smurfs

No, it's not Avatar 2...

Yeah, The Smurfs have got a movie! The little blue creatures are hitting the big screen this summer, in their 3D theatrical debut. Prepare to see a lot of blue. Here's the synopsis:

 "When the evil wizard Gargamel chases the tiny blue Smurfs out of their village, they tumble from their magical world and into ours -- in fact, smack dab in the middle of Central Park. Just three apples high and stuck in the Big Apple, the Smurfs must find a way to get back to their village before Gargamel tracks them down."

  - Columbia Pictures




And here's the trailer:

A bit of a "back-to-basics" breakdown:

• 0:17 - OMG Smurf Village! Mushrooms an' all!  
• 020 - Smurf riding stork - their preferred method of transport.
• 0:24 - Slightly Incredibly creepy Gargamel breaks into Smurf land. I'll be honest, this shot/acting looks incredibly cheap...
• 0:31 - And then the douchebag lets his cat, Azrael, free on the poor Smurfs.
• 0:40 - Of course! All water-hyperspace travel leads to NYC!
• 0:42 - A good shot of the main Smurfs - From left to right - Brainy Smurf, Gutsy Smurf, Jokey Smurf, Papa Smurf, Grumpy Smurf and Smurfette.
• 0:53 - Neil Patrick Harris (NPH) discovers his new found Smurf buddies. On a side note, inside the box is a Belgian/French magazine - a possible reference to the Smurfs original creation?
• 0:57 - Jayma Mays also stars alongside NPH, as his wife.
• 1:12 - Modern Family's Sofia Vergara also joins the cast as Patrick(NPH)'s boss.
• 1:15 - Clumsy/Jokey (I'm not sure which) gets busy in the bathroom.
• 1:39 - This Blue Man gag always stifles a chuckle out of me...
• 1:43 - Papa Smurf goes Rambo.
• 1:58 - Hat-chutes FTW!
• 2:04 - Smurfette is actually voiced by, would you believe it, Katy Perry!
• 2:07 - And there's some more stork riding for you.
• 2:16 - And, in true Smurf fashion, the little guys recite the classic theme tune.
• 2:27 - You can get your Smurf on, August 11th in 3 Dimensions.

So that's The Smurfs. Very Smurfing Smurf but not a lot of Smurf Smurfing going on however. But the Smurf of the CGI is very Smurf. I will admit I'm not a big fan of the whole "Gargamel gets smacked by lots of different things" stuff, which makes me fear that we're heading down the Yogi Bear angle of classic cartoon ruining Hollywood-ism trying to make it funny for kids. Sigh... When will they learn that kids aren't always into that kind of thing. I mean look at the Pixar movies; great kid-friendly films with tons of charm and little to no pain distribution. Fingers crossed for not too much of this slapstick then...  

  

   However, the rest looks pretty awesome especially NPH's time with The Smurfs, (which looks to contain far more chemistry than Jason Lee with Alvin and The Chipmunks *shudder*) and plus the fact it's set in New York, where I have been, and I love that "I've been there" feeling I get. And I'm hoping for some proper time with the Smurfs Village, because it did look pretty sharp from that small section in the trailer.   

Anyway, that's all for today's Smurfarific trailer, but before I Smurf out, I'd like to give a big shout out to my Uncle Sean: A life-long Smurf fan who will most likely never speak to me again for this. Ha ha, here's to you Sean! Over an out.

Trailer Tuesday: Real Steel

Because men boxing is just so 1980's!

Like Rocky, but with more steel.

Real Steel is the new boxing movie hoping to make its way onto the scene; with a twist. We're not talking about humans sparring it out here, oh no: Real Steel is a robot boxing-movie. Set in the near future, it stars Hugh Jackman as Charlie Kenton, the retired boxing-champ from the old days trying to build up a new robot to become the next fighting-bot champion. Here's the synopsis for you:

"A future-set story where robot boxing is a popular sport and centered on a struggling promoter (Jackman) who thinks he's found a champion in a discarded robot. During his hopeful rise to the top, he also discovers he has an 11-year-old son who wants to know his father." - IMDb

 And now for a breakdown:

• 0:10 - Looks like Charlie's in a spot of money problems and his trailer home suggests no different. Nice phone though... 
• 0:20 - Some nice black and white shots of his old boxing days. 
• 0:21 - Charlie's son there, played by Dakota Goyo who recently appeared as the young Thor in Thor.
•  0:22 - Turns out Charlie was No. 2 in the world at boxing. That's my opinion of him lowered...
• 0:24 - First look at the robot battle arena, with metal railings and reinforced floors I'm guessing. Note the "WRB" logo in the background, which I presume stands for World Robot Boxing. Or We Race Bums. 
• 0:27 - 2-headed red bot.
• 0:28 - Mean looking blue bot.
• 0:29 - Mohawk bot goes for the nut shot on a lavishly painted purple bot.
• 0:30 - Champion bot. Lots of bots in this trailer, in case you hadn't noticed.
• 0:33 - Take your son to work day? Or not.
• 0:40 - Looks like dad gives in as the two lead a Japanese looking bot to the ring. Loving the old-school Transformers feel to this one.
• 0:45 - Nice phone device.
• 0:46 - And the mohawk bot goes to town on the shiny new oriental model.
• 0:53-1:00 - Charlie gets in deep with some lone sharks. Never a good idea...
• 1:04 - Scrapyard time!
• 1:11 - Who'd a'thunk it! They found a full robot, what are the chances?
• 1:14 - Iron Giant, anyone?
• 1:16 - The new-found bot awakes. 
• 1:20 - Sparring-bot, aye? Sounds like the perfect setup for some character development to me.
• 1:25 - "I'm Adam, bitch!"
• 1:31 - Adam gets the smack in a street fight. 
• 1:36 - And some more blows from a red-rimmed bot in what looks to be a garage battle.
• 1:52 - Training looks to be on the menu for Adam, as Charlie builds him up, Rocky-style.
• 1:55 - Ah, the classic uppercut.
• 1:58 - And the money starts flowing...
• 2:00 - Adam's making the big time, baby!
• 2:09 - WRB comes to Madison Square Garden.
• 2:10 - "You're in the big leagues now, kid"-kind of look from a tough bot to Max.
• 2:14-2:17 - Max slips and Charlie saves. Father and son bonding, no less.
• 2:24 - Highly appropriate looking title there, in the chrome steel typography.
• 2:28 - 7th October release... And not in 3D, would you believe?

So there you have it, Real Steel or as I like to call it, Rock'em Sock'em: The Movie. It's a new take on the boxing-genre, that's for sure, and it looks to be trying to give that mainstream/family friendly appeal with the use of robots; very cool. Anyway, that's your fix for the week, but come back next Tuesday for some more trailer gnarliness.  

Family Feuds: An Editorial Piece

Family arguments; we've all had them. Whether it's over money or relationships, I think it's safe to say that everyone has had some sort of experience with a kindred dispute. But what are they good for? Who do they help? Why do they need to affect all of our lives?

  Of course, if the issue is over something very serious like murder, rape or assault, then such grudges can be understood. But what I'm talking about is those stupid little arguments, the kind that can easily escalate from something as simple as a misplaced comment.

 In these cases, I frankly find these minor squabbles rather pathetic, especially when it ends with a loss of contact between family members. If someone is angry over something that's been said or done, the answer is to see it from their point of view, not erase them from your life. You may not agree with their reasoning, and you certainly won't like it, but you must have some sort of understanding of how human emotion works, and that we all do stupid things at some point in our insignificant lives.

  Typically, the instigators of such spats are usually those who are most proud and stubborn. Those who refuse to back down on something, just for the sake of being "right". Well, newsflash for you uptight ninnies: Get down from your goddamn high-horse and show some compassion for Christ's sake. Because what you don't realise is you're making all those around you suffer, because of your ridiculous obdurateness.

  More than once in my time have I had some sort of restriction put on my activities (especially recently) down to these frustrating feuds. It's not my fault, it's not my doing and it's definitely not my problem. So why do I, and those also uninvolved, need to be punished? Can't people see the bigger picture; that for their stubbornness is ultimately sacrificing other's happiness.

What it really boils down to is plain old selfishness. Putting yourself and your feelings before others, that ends in harsh times for all. It'll be hard, and I respect that, but sometimes we need to compromise in order to protect the ones we love most. If we never forgive and forget, then how can you expect to move along, because the way forward is the only way to happiness.

 In the end, you only live once, and that once is never that long. So you've got to ask yourself, is it all really worth it? These objects of debate may be infuriating in the short term, but it's the long term that matters, so make it count. Let us not waste time bickering among ourselves and enjoy our time on this Earth. After all, life's too short, isn't it?