Of Spiders and Grunge

MATINEE: One of the activities on our recent trip to Bend was CJ and Annabelle were treated to an afternoon matinee with Nonnie. They chose to check out the new Spider-Man movie.  Following is Annabelle's review of the movie. ...

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is a stellarly animated movie focusing on Miles Morales, a young teen who has to become the successor to his universe's Spider-Man after said hero's death. The bad news for Miles is that Spider-Man got mixed up in a dimensional portal just moments before his death, which caused Spider-Man's equivalents from 5 other parallel dimensions to be sucked into the main one. Between his newfound powers, other Spider-Men, and the dimensional portal now threatening the city, Miles must learn how to harness his new powers quickly and get the others home. 

The movie features some of the most stunning animation I've ever seen in movies. It's an expert blend between 3d and 2d, using a lower framerate to further it's "comic book coming to life" feel. It uses Ben-Day dots, which are usually associated with pop art, for most of its visual effects and shading. 

This movie, in terms of plot execution and visual style, is a huge step from Sony Picture's last animated film; the near-universally hated Emoji Movie. As of now, it's "Certified Fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes, with a 97% approval rating. The movie still hasn't made much profit in the theater, so I strongly urge any fan of superhero movies - and even non-fans - to go see it while it's running. The only warning I can think of is the fact that much of the intro, some plot elements, and the outro include flashing lights which may strain some people's eyes. If this doesn't bother you, it's a must-watch.

Here's a trailer for the movie. ... 


MAKING A LIST:  Recently, CJ took it upon himself to come up with a list of his favorite grunge albums for each year between 1985 and now. He does share it with a little caveat, however, noting, "some of these were reluctant choices, e.g. Stone Temple Pilot's No. 4 and Shangri-La Dee Da (which are almost post-grunge albums)."

1985: Green River — Come On Down

1986: Melvins — Six Songs

1987: Melvins — Gluey Porch Treatments

1988: Mudhoney — Superfuzz Bigmuff

1989: Nirvana — Bleach

1990: Alice in Chains (AiC) — Facelift

1991: Nirvana — Nevermind

1992: Nirvana — Incesticide

1993: Nirvana — In Utero

1994: Nirvana — MTV Unplugged in New York

1995: AiC — Alice in Chains

1996: Nirvana — From the Muddy Banks of the Wishkah

1997: Melvins — Honky

1998: Jerry Cantrell — Boggy Depot

1999: Stone Temple Pilots (STP) — No. 4

2000: AiC — Live

2001: STP — Shangri-La Dee Da

2002: Jerry Cantrell — Degradation Trip Volumes 1 & 2

2003: Pearl Jam — Lost Dogs

2004: Nirvana — With the Lights Out

2005: Nirvana — Sliver: The Best of the Box

2006: Pearl Jam — Pearl Jam

2007: Pearl Jam — Live at the Gorge 05/06

2008: Mudhoney — The Lucky Ones

2009: Nirvana — Live at Reading

2010: STP — Stone Temple Pilots

2011: Soundgarden — Live on I-5

2012: Soundgarden — King Animal

2013: AiC — The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here

2014: Soundgarden — Echo of Miles

2015: Kurt Cobain — Montage of Heck

2016: Mother Love Bone — On Earth As It Is

2017: Pearl Jam — Let's Play Two

2018: AiC — Rainier Fog