My Immense Love For “The Iron Giant”

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“You are who you choose to be.”

Director Brad Bird’s “The Iron Giant” didn’t make much of a ripple when it premiered almost fifteen years ago. But ever since I sat down to watch it on a borrowed VHS, I haven’t stopped coming back to his science fiction animated film. I probably continue coming back to “The Iron Giant” because not only does it delve in themes of friendship, but it’s also about mortality, and the inherent violent nature of humanity.

<!–more–>Surely, the iron giant that crash lands on Earth is a monster sent to wreak havoc on our planet, but that’s only by the design of another species altogether. We’re never clued in to what kind of alien species built the Iron Giant, and what it had planned for us. All we know is that the Iron Giant crash lands from another planet, and is lucky enough to meet Hogarth Hughes.

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The Fab Four & The Fab Foul

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You can’t just put any band on a film and expect laughs. And chemistry and appeal. That’s what happened to “Spice World.”

The directors and creators behind it seemed to basically assume, “Hell, this band is popular, they’re a pop band, they have massive appeal with the male audience, they make catchy music, and they’re British, so they’ll be perfect equivalents to The Beatles.”

And… well… if you saw the movie, you’ll know that the logic behind that theory was slightly eschew.

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Our 25 Favorite “The Beatles” Songs of All Time

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It’s been almost thirty five years since John Lennon was murdered outside his home, and though his death was tragic and inhuman, Lennon’s spirit and artistic influence has lived on for decades. Lennon was a voice for peace and rallying people to think outside the box and question the status quo, and his influence began with his work in the Beatles as one of the most iconic, if not the most iconic rock band in music history. In celebration of Lennon’s memory, here are twenty five of the best The Beatles songs we’ve ever heard. I’d like to thank you on behalf of Cinema Crazed, and I hope I passed the audition.

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Five Great Paul Walker (1973-2013) Performances

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I can’t say I was the biggest fan of Paul Walker’s acting, but despite his shaky career there was no doubting he was a man of great presence. He had good looks, charisma, and charm, and he was one of the few American heart throbs who kept away from the tabloids to maintain his own life.

So far the public has come to know Paul Walker, an activist, spiritualist, and man who placed his job as a father over the job as an actor and performer. Paul Walker died at the much too early age of 40, and he’s being mourned as someone who still had a long way to show us what he could accomplish as an actor. And I’m sure he had so many more things he wanted to accomplish as a father, and friend to many people in his world.

Here are five great roles featuring Paul Walker in his all too brief acting career, may he rest in peace.

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Creature Crypt, Week Four: The Gillman; The Headless Horseman

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“Creature Crypt” is a four part weekly column that spotlights two creatures from our childhood that made us in to rabid horror fans. These are the creatures that scared us, wowed us, made us cry, and made us hope they weren’t under our bed.

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Return of the Horror Anthology

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Anthologies have always been a favorite of mine. They’re usually a very entertaining source of storytelling that works more toward the horror genre, providing films like “Black Sabbath” and the series “The Twilight Zone.” Both genre fixtures changed my view of horror and storytelling altogether. After the eighties boom of anthology series and films, the anthology unfortunately peaked after “Tales from the Crypt” ended and suffered a sad death. The occasional gem like “Campfire Tales” popped up directly to video, while shows like “Night Visions” and “Ghost Stories” brought excellent horror entertainment only to be cancelled and tucked away in to obscurity.

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Creature Crypt, Week Three: The Shadow Man; Looney Tunes’ Monsters

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“Creature Crypt” is a four part weekly column that spotlights two creatures from our childhood that made us in to rabid horror fans. These are the creatures that scared us, wowed us, made us cry, and made us hope they weren’t under our bed.

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