Amy goes to the movies (often)

Warning: This post will include spoilers for X-Men 3, Over the Hedge, and Serenity. Also, if you don't like movies, don't bother reading it.

I hate to pull an Andy Rooney and make that worn-out argument about how things aren't the way they used to be, but here goes. There was once a time of innocence when movie-makers and musicians at least attempted a thin veil of subterfuge when ripping off another artist's work. Take Vanilla Ice, for example. The classic Queen song Under Pressure goes "DO do do do-do-do doo do", while Ice Ice Baby clearly adds an extra "do". Or does it leave one out? I would have to listen to the song again to tell you, and frankly, it's just not worth the sacrifice. In other cases, the thievery was so blatant, it wasn't even considered stealing. Does anyone remember which network aired the "original" Amy Fisher story? In the end, it doesn't even matter.

I've gone to two movies recently, both with major potential, and have come away disappointed by the lack of originality. I took Amelie to see Over the Hedge a few weeks ago. I enjoyed it immensely, particularly the character of Hammy, a hyperactive squirrel that avoids caffeine until he needs it to save the day. Hammy was played by Steve Carell, who never fails to make me laugh. An added bonus was all the music by Ben Folds, whose songs I've enjoyed since he was in a three-man band called Ben Folds Five.

Last week, I was visiting my friend Nicole in North Carolina and watched a DVD of a movie called Hoodwinked that was apparently released while I was gone. It featured Ben Folds music and a hyperactive squirrel that avoids caffeine until he needs it to save the day. Could this really be a coincidence?

Maybe the makers of Over the Hedge saw the untapped potential of a fast-talking squirrel with a famous voice and just chose to take the idea and improve upon it. Inventors have always done that, so why shouldn't artists? I'll tell you why. Because inventors are limited by current knowledge and the laws of physics. You don't build a pod to transport someone from one side of the earth to the other without first trying it with electrons. (And making sure there's no fly in there with you.) Artists are limited only by their imaginations, so when they rip off other people, it seems to me they're not very creative to begin with.

My second disappointment was X-Men 3. I have always enjoyed the mythology of the X-Men movies, because it goes beyond big action sequences and explores interesting ideas about a future gone astray. This one fell flat in that regard. As my friend Greg pointed out, the mutants were so horrified by the idea of a "cure" for their mutation, but had no qualms about using it as a weapon when it got down to the fighting. Even worse was the exploration of the "evil" side of Jean Grey, a failed attempt to mimic Willow's downfall in Season 6 of Buffy. Who can save scary, veiny Jean from herself? The one who loves her more than anyone else, of course. I kept expecting Wolverine to break into a story about a yellow crayon. Instead, they go for another Buffy plotline - hearkening all the way back to Season 2, when Buffy, having cured Angel of his evil ways, kisses him goodbye and stabs him through the heart to save the world.

Don't get me wrong. I'm well aware that Joss Whedon doesn't always produce original ideas. Having recently seen "The Ghosts of Mars", I was disappointed to see that Whedon's "Reavers" from Firefly and Serenity had been done before. Usually, he at least admits it. Speaking of Serenity, I got the opportunity to see it for a second time. On Friday, Greg and I went to the National Theater to see Spamalot, an excellent revision of Monty Python's The Holy Grail with new musical numbers and characters. It was worth every penny (zero for me, thanks to Greg's dad). Afterward, we watched the Serenity DVD at Greg's place. He and his roommate Claudia have watched the movie an estimated 972 times. I got a lot more out of it on my second viewing, despite nearly drifting off to sleep a few times. Although I'm still disappointed that there wasn't more interplay between the characters I'd grown to love from the series, I do understand why Shepard and my precious Wash had to die. It did make the ending more exciting, because all bets were off at that point. Anyone could go next.

OK, I'm done playing Ebert for now. But I saw An Inconvenient Truth last night, so a review of that is forthcoming.