Sunday, August 17, 2008

2001 (Sort Of)

Hello, friends and moviegoers, and welcome back to another week at the Comfy Chair Cinema.

We here at the Comfy Chair have been mulling over this week's feature, "2001 (Sort Of)," for quite a while. For a couple of reasons. First, we've been wanting to do a sort of movie parody, something not from our own minds, and second, because the film "2001: A Space Odyssey" has been a film that has perplexed the Comfy Chair for a long time. The Comfy Chair saw this film in the theater when it was released, when the Comfy Chair was just a small girl.

No offense meant, or maybe a little, but we here at the Cinema have never understood this film, never liked it, and never seen its greatness. But that's just us. If someone asked us to describe the movie, here's what we'd say:

"Well, it starts with some apes, a bone turns into a spaceship, a computer sings 'Bicycle Built for Two' and kills a man, there's a light show, and an old man turns into a baby."

If, many years from now, someone asks you what "2001 (Sort Of)" is about, you can answer the same way.

This week's movie features more stop-motion photography (our longest segment yet), and something completely new for us - location shooting. What the people in our little town must have thought of the Comfy Chair.

So sit back, get a nice snack in the lobby, and join us for "2001 (Sort Of)."

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Double Feature!

The Script Ohio

Hello, cinema fans, and welcome back to another week at the Comfy Chair Cinema.

Ahh, marching bands. As you all know, we here at the Comfy Chair Cinema love our marching bands. And where marching bands are concerned, nothing has ever or will ever beat the grand tradition of Ohio State University's "Script Ohio." For the uninitiated, the band spells out "Ohio" not by all heading to their assigned spots on the field, but by banding together to actually write it out in cursive. I can't imagine there's anyone out there who hasn't seen it, but just in case, here you go.

We at the Comfy Chair have toyed with the idea of the Script Ohio more than once. When we made "Kisses Regiment" lo those many months ago, we wanted to incorporate script into the mix. It was quickly realized that with our small knowledge of stop-motion that would take upwards of 15 years, and so we just doffed our caps to the OSU band in the dotting of the i.

Then it was Mr M's idea to forge ahead with a stop-motion Script Ohio using pennies, he was keen to help, then he too realized it was just too big an undertaking.

But Mr M had a contingency plan!

He himself volunteered to star in this week's movie, which is a rendering of the Script Ohio like you've never seen before.

So sit back, grab a snack and a drink (sold in the lobby at a nominal fee), and enjoy "The Script Ohio." And please, I beseech you. You will not want to miss the entry below this one, the second part of our double feature - "The Script Ohio: The Outtakes." You'll be sorry if you do.


Bonus Feature: Script Ohio - The Outtakes

Ah, the fun we here at the Comfy Chair Cinema have making movies. This week was no exception. Have a peek at three outtakes from the above "Script Ohio" movie.


Sunday, August 3, 2008

Rubber Stamp Fun

Hello, cinophiles, and welcome to yet another week at the Comfy Chair Cinema.

This week's feature was a lot of fun to make. It was hard, and messy (upon the Comfy Chair Cinema home and upon our actual person), and made us learn a new technique. Double speeding. Only double speeding still made "Rubber Stamp Fun" over 10 minutes long and pretty draggy in spots, and so we here at the Comfy Chair learned double double speeding.

It also gave us a chance to use the groovy new tripod given to us by Mr M for playing in his clarinet recital. And it is for that purpose you will hear clarinet music as the soundtrack.

The letters and all the rubber stamps used in the first segment are homemade. The rest are store bought, years and years ago, back when we here at the Comfy Chair actually had time to do things like play with rubber stamps.

Sit back, grab a snack and a drink (sold in the lobby at a nominal fee, please try the popcorn), and enjoy "Rubber Stamp Fun."