The Way of Things

Just got back from seeing the movie "Mirror Mask" in The City, and I was pleasantly surprised. Usually when you see a movie that's lauded for it's effects, you don't expect much in terms ofd acting or storytelling.

I know, Neil Gaiman wrote it, but I've never been a big fan of his work in the comics. I don't dislike it, it's just not my genre, so I didn't quite know what to expect.

Essentially it's a coming of age movie, and one girl's attempt to make sense of a life-changing event. Much like the movie Gremlins was about adolescence. You have these cute, cuddly creatures, that turn into these obnoxious beasties on you when you don't expect it. THis tale was better told, though I didn't like a few parts of the overall arc. I liked that she made her peace with her place in the Order of Things, because that's what maturing is all about; separation, then integration when you've defined yourself.

I liked several themes and a lot of the effects were consistent and not too gratuitous. When building a world, things need to fit into the rules of whatever ecosystem you set up, and that's a hard trick to pull; especially without having to explicitly tell the audience what those rules are. The Toy Story movies are a good example for that; they never said why the toys could only come alive when no none was around, or that they had to; they just did, and they did it consistently with the only exception being acknowledged as breaking the Rules.

I recommend seeing Mirror MAsk on the big screen, preferably in a theater that's not a big metroplex.