Aaron Hatch

Aaron Hatch

I'm majoring in Graphic Design at Fitchburg State University. My favorite topics to talk about are movies, animation and comics.

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Latest Articles

Film
47

“Original” Films in Hollywood: Deconstructing the Backlash Against American Cinema

"Why are there no more original movies"? To be honest, asking this question is starting to get repetitive. Yet because...

Aaron Hatch

Film
49

The Marvel Cinematic Villains: What Makes a Memorable Antagonist?

(There will be spoilers for some of the Marvel Cinematic Universe films and Marvel's Netflix series, so read with caution)...

Aaron Hatch

Film
35

Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance): Deep Longing and Superheroes

Everyone wants to feel important in some way, and the interactions with family and friends help mold our future importance. However,...

Aaron Hatch

Film
49

Black Widow: Audiences’ Expectations for Female Superheroes

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has changed the way we look at comic book movies and Hollywood blockbusters in general. That...

Aaron Hatch

Comics
100

Women in Refrigerators: Killing Females in Comics

Why does death occur in so many stories? When used as a storytelling method, death is not entirely necessary because...

Aaron Hatch

Film
124

The Work of Quentin Tarantino: Quality Over Quantity

There is no simple answer when one asks what makes a great director. It can be an array of different...

Aaron Hatch

Arts
44

Christopher Lee: The Legacy of a Fascinating Man

On June 7th of this year, the beloved actor and musician Christopher Lee died at the age of 93. The...

Aaron Hatch

Film
57

One Hour Photo: Viewing Humanity Through a Camera Lens

It is safe to say that there will never be an actor, quite like the beloved Robin Williams. While he...

Aaron Hatch

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Latest Topics

2
film
pain and gain
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Do People Over-Hate on Michael Bay?

Why do fanboys lose their shit when it comes to the director Michael Bay? Sure, the Transformer movies only get worse with each installment, as the films are filled with overblown explosions and offensively annoying characters. He did also direct Pearl Harbor, which was very historically inaccurate and had very uninteresting lead characters. He is hardly a perfect director, but has the hate for Michael Bay gone too far? His film Pain and Gain was hardly a masterpiece, but it was still an entertaining film, where he makes his character intentionally dislikable as appose to unintentionally dislikable. Yet it seems a lot of people wrote the movie off as crap without even seeing it. Have we, in a way, made Michael Bay into a scapegoat? Have we piled everything people hate in films now-a-days, like over using CGI or the overabundance of sequels, on this one director, who probably isn't really a bad person in real life? Is Michael Bay really one of the worst directors of all time?

  • Have you seen his films? Have you seen what he can be like in the public sphere? I think there is evidence to suggest that he's what you would call "a boy in a man's body": where his fascination with certain things is both immature and childish. And his reputation both on and off set, as far as I'm aware, is not on good terms. You've basically sealed his fate with your own description, because all of his movies are pop-corn munchers for audiences who don't want a lot of substance. His depiction of women in his films is degrading and far more 1-dimentional than other directors have been known to do. His propensity for explosions errs on the side of ridiculous. And there's just not a lot to respect about the guy. Honestly, I'd be more comfortable defending M. Knight Shayamalan than Michael Bay, because at least Shayamalan is a personable fellow in his interviews, and he seems entirely sincere with what he believes regarding his work. Despite this, I do not think Michael Bay is to blame for movies being the way they are today. I think he is more-so a product of the current big-budget hollywood culture, and he has developed his "style" in a way that reflects the interests of investors and produces who think that what he does will bring in the most box office returns. Besides, we could just as easily argue that Adam Sandler is the crux of Hollywood garbage. Michael Bay just uses more effects. – Jonathan Leiter 9 years ago
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  • The dislike for Michael Bay, insofar as it pertains to his films, is completely justified, because after he created Pearl Harbor, his films have been generally declining in quality, particularly in plot, and writing quality. In this respect, he is quite similar to M. Night Shyamalan. – JDJankowski 9 years ago
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  • I somewhat know T.J. Miller, who was in his latest Transformers film, and from what he's said, Michael Bay is very immature. When they were in Florida for press purposes, I believe, he spent many of his nights out getting prostitutes for the cast-- most of whom did not want them. He spent most of his time partying, and there's nothing wrong with that, he has just not grown up. I think one of the Bad Boys movies is actually decent, but that does not excuse everything else he's done. Not a quality director, to say the least. – Kendall 9 years ago
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7
comics
Write this topic

The Difficulty of Writing Superman

While Superman has become an icon around the world, writers are put in a difficult spot when writing the character. How do make Superman relatable when he is impervious to anything, or anyone? What made some of the well known Superman stories so good, and how have they integrated the character into our modern times? Maybe what makes him an interesting character in not what he is weak to, but instead, what he symbolizes as a superhero.

  • Perhaps both sides are a factor here. What makes Superman relatable to me is what he is weak too. Superman is impervious to anything but magic and kryptonite and the DC universe is rife with magic. In fact, Captain Marvel could probably go toe to toe with Superman and survive and the Batman has proven capable too. Superman gets hard to write when he has no weakness at all because everyone, both the writer and the reader, know he will pull out fine. Of course, even with his weakness, we know that and that's where the symbolism comes in. As a superhero, and as a human, Clark Kent. – SpectreWriter 9 years ago
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  • Another point I'd like to add about the difficulty is how people view him. Many people see Superman as an alien like God because of the powers that he has, despite the notion that they're powers to us, but not to him and other kryptonians. Another aspect that people believe he's Superman before Clark Kent just because he's from another planet, making it harder to relate to him when they see him as an alien. While others like myself, see Superman as human despite his origin because of how he was raised on earth. He lived his life among humans, all of his values were taught by his loving adoptive family, and he became Superman as a way that people can have someone to inspire them as he's the symbol of hope. With that, Superman is the disguise for Clark so he can use his powers for the greater good and help those in need no matter the situation. He's Clark Kent before Superman, the problem though is that the different viewpoints affect the writing so Superman's character is not only difficult, but also inconsistent since everyone has a different viewpoint for how Superman should be portrayed. – MajoraChaLa 9 years ago
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  • It's nearly impossible to make Superman relatable. I feel like for whatever reason we are bored by his perfection, but also unwilling to see him become more human and flawed. We see idealism in him, just think of songs that have lines like "I'm no Superman" or "Isn't there a Superman to sweep me off my feet". He's become far more of an icon than a character, and people don't like their icons messed with. This backs writers into the corner of balancing the way the world wants him to be and writing him in a way that will actually be interesting. – SomeOtherAmazon 9 years ago
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  • I see the point of what you're trying to do here, but I think it might be hard to talk about the character in a vacuum here. There have been good runs on Superman: maybe refocus to think about particular creative approaches to Superman that you think worked or didn't, and try to draw your lessons from that? So, I really liked Steven Seagle's run a few years back, and am enjoying the new books from Pak and Kuder and Gene Yang. Maybe you could isolate particular runs and build an essay from that? – MattDube 9 years ago
    1
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5
film
Alan Rickman
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Looking Back on Alan Rickman's Filmography

With the tragic passing of the British actor Alan Rickman, it seems right to look back on his impressive career. His role as Professor Snape in the Harry Potter franchise is one of his most memorable roles and for good reason. There are also roles like Hans Gruber in Die hard, Alexander Dane in Galaxy Quest, The Sherif of Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Judge Turpin in Sweeney Todd, and much more.

  • Whoever takes this on will be brave. The standard will be high to do him justice. When paying tribute it will be difficult not to insert opinion so I am cautioning the writer against that from the start. I recomend testimony from actors he worked with. – Christen Mandracchia 9 years ago
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  • This an article that should be written. I agree with Christen Mandracchia though, in that it will be a tough article to write. Rickman played so many roles that touched so many people. I also agree that it will be difficult to remain unbiased, but a tribute to his work would be appropriate. – sophiacatherine 9 years ago
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  • Aaron has been able to produce a great article on the legacy that had belonged to Christopher Lee, and I am certain if willing, he can do so again. – N.D. Storlid 9 years ago
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  • An incredibly important article to write and one that does carry a burden to do justice for his contribution to the film industry. Particular mention should also be made to his work as a director and his most recently released film 'A Little Chaos' – Jacqueline Wallace 9 years ago
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1
Published
tv
John Oliver
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Political Comedians: Do We Trust Them More Than Actual Politicians

Some of the most well known political comedians in North America are John Stewart, Stephen Colbert, John Oliver, and more recently Trevor Noah. These four have a great knack for political humor, but they will also come out of character when a real issue like a tragic shooting incident occurs in the news. So why do people rely on these political comedians when it comes to their daily news as opposed to actual news sources like CNN? Could it be because they are addressing issues that are often overlook or ignored in our country? Is there more sense of honesty because they are comedically addressing issues intend of mindless ranting like other political programs?

  • Intersting topic, but a crucial factor in this discussion is the fact that most of what these political comedians say is scripted. They are likely very intelligent people in their own right, but on shows like The Daily Show et al. they're simply charismatic frontmen for teams of behind-the-scenes writers. – Ali Van Houten 9 years ago
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  • Great topic, especially considering Jon Stewart (be careful of spelling) has made a few references that more young people watched his show than real news. I second Van Houten's suggestions and will also add that you should include a brief section of Barry Crimmins to show the "under-the-radar" comedian trying to make real change. The recent documentary "Call Me Lucky" highlights when he had an honest moment on stage to discuss his molestation. I'd also like to pose a few other questions: Do people watch the show to reconfirm their cynicism or liberal leanings? Do people watch the show as a form of couch-activism? Are they not watching the news, but reading it, especially from BBC news, Think-Progress, and other non-televised or podcasted sources? – Michael J. Berntsen 9 years ago
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1
film
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Inconsistency in Time Travel Movies

It is true when they say no film is perfect, and time travel movies are no exception. No matter how hard a writer tries, there will always be a plot hole in a time travel movie because the genre itself can get very complicated. This does not mean that the movie is bad, just take the Back to the Future trilogy for example. While there are some inconsistency when regarding the time travel, it almost does not matter because how fun and well written the films are. Then we get a film like Terminator Genisys, a movie that it is bad because not only does it ruin the first two Terminator movies, but the time travel makes absolutely no sense; it makes someones head hurt after a while. So the question is: can bad time travel logic ruin a film?

  • Can you be more specific about each? What plot holes are you referring to in BTTF? What plot holes are you referring to in Terminator Genisys? The answers will be good starting points for your topic's discussion. – conorsmall 9 years ago
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  • I think that bad time travel logic can contribute to a film being bad, but not necessarily ruin it on its own. As you said, there are examples of questionable time travel logic in movies that are generally considered great. You mentioned Back to the Future, but my mind instantly goes to Looper. Rian Johnson's 2012 sci-fi film plays with so many convoluted and dizzying aspects of time travel, and with how dense the film is some of the obvious plot holes get lost in the fold. Including, but certainly not limited to, the fact that Old Joe (Bruce Willis) came from a future where Young Joe (Joseph Gordon Levitt) kills his future self and rides off into a drug-enduced retirement. However, the second that Old Joe stops Young Joe from killing him, he creates an alternate timeline where both exist. When Young Joe shoots himself, Old Joe should not die, because he comes from a different timeline altogether. Does this plot hole ruin the movie? No, because it is masterfully directed to the point where Johnson was able to make a movie where it looked like Bruce Willis is trying to act for the first time in the last decade. Bad time travel logic can further hurt a movie that is already doomed by poor story, underwhelming direction and bad acting. It in and of itself cannot ruin a movie, though. – KJarboe 9 years ago
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  • I love this kind of discussion and would have approved if the button was there. All I can say is that if you can find any plot holes in Primar I would be surprised. – Lazarinth 9 years ago
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4
anime
Mushi-shi
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The Best Mushi-shi Episodes

Mushi-shi is a very atmospheric anime with great story telling and fascinating philosophy behind it. Mushi-shi is more calming then most phycological anime, as the show does not want to scare watchers, but to bring them on a spiritual journey. There are many great episodes following our protagonist Ginko. Some examples are Raindrops and Rainbows, One-Night Bridge, Cotton Changeling, Shrine in the Sea and many more.

  • Obviously specific episodes will need to be mentioned. However, you mentioned that Mushi-shi is "more calming then most physiological anime". It would be a good idea to compare these specific episodes to other animes in order to reflect Mushi-shi's uniqueness. – Ryan Errington 9 years ago
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1
film
The Graduate
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The Broad Definition of Comedy

What makes a comedy great? Some would say that a good comedy is based on how many times you or a crowd of people burst out laughing. That is not necessarily the case, as films like Birdman and The Graduate are loved by many, but both are not really laugh out lout funny. They have comedic elements, but the reason people love these films is for their drama, more than the comedy. What should constitute for a comedy, and how broad can the genre be?

  • Interesting topic, yet very wide! You can think of comedy in terms of dark comedy, romantic comedy, children comedy, burlesque, silent comedy, family comedy, action comedy, social comedy, satires, pastiches, parodies.... To consider all these different aspects would be great (but very long so maybe choose to focus on one or two and try to narrow down the topic). – Rachel Elfassy Bitoun 9 years ago
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  • Sayign what makes it great is too broad. I would try to lower it to what makes a comedy critically successful (Birdman and The Graduate) or what makes a comedy succeed (like in the box office, so films like Anchorman), or what makes a comedy a staple of the genre (Monty Python and The Holy Grail). – Erin Derwin 9 years ago
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  • As Erin and Rachel said above, that's a monstrously wide topic. Consider homing in on one facet of, say, dramatic comedies, as you put it. That, or you'll write until you're dead and not run out of material. – Wordsmith123 9 years ago
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  • I have always considered the ones that make you laugh are the best comedies. However, in literature and film, this is not the case. In fact, if you want to stick to the ancient definition, anything with a happy ending can be considered a comedy. With that in mind, I would have to say this topic is far too broad. Something more specific can make for more focused and clear articles. – winbribach 9 years ago
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  • In order to class a show/movie as a comedy (at least in my head) it has to my me laugh of some level. I don't have to be on the floor holding my rips but, I should't be leaning back groaning every time the something that is meat to be amusing happens. – icysquirrel 9 years ago
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8
anime
cowboy bebop
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Dubs v.s Subs: The Never-Ending Debate Between Anime Fans

There are a ton of anime fans that state subtitles are the only true way to watch anime. True, it is more immersive to listen to a show in its original dialect. Because of this, any anime fans that actually likes watching dubbed animes as looked at like they have two heads. Why is there such a divide between fans of dubs and subs? While there're are certainly plenty of bad dubs, there are plenty of good ones like Cowboy Bebop, Fullmetal Alchemist, Trigun and more.

  • Make sure that whoever writes this talks about how many prefer dubs as they can focus on watching the show itself without having to focus on reading the text constantly just to understand what the characters are saying. Also that not everyone will think the original Japanese voice actor's performances fits the character they are playing. It comes down to preference, but unfortunately, some fans who prefer subs for the reason as stated, can be a bit elitist towards those who don't share their preference. – Ryan Walsh 9 years ago
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  • I'm fairly certain we had a topic like this submitted a while back, not quite sure what happened to it. I think cultural detachment is one reason why people prefer subs over dubs. When I watch a dub, I can get embarrassed for the voice actors for having to say such cheesy or awkward lines that don't transition overseas very well. And yet, from my experience of having lived in Japan for a little bit, I know that Japanese people feel the same way about originals, that anime can be awkward to watch at time. Since most sub watchers don't typically know the norms and structure of casual, everyday Japanese, watching sub can do away with some of the awkwardness. There's also the more obvious reason for watching subs: availability. Subs always are released before dubs, and there will always be more subs to watch than dubs at a given moment. I think more than elitism, availability is the reason most people watch subs. – Austin 9 years ago
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  • I usually just watch it without subtitles. Sometimes I watch dub because I find it interesting how the American voice actors adapt and such. – Akecha 9 years ago
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  • Honestly I don't think the argument between hardcore fans should be a versus of Dub vs Sub. I only watch dub because I can't handle reading lines off the screen fast enough, as embarrassing as it is, and find that if I can manage it I'm too absorbed in reading to watch what's going on. It's a language barrier. The real "hardcore fans" shouldn't be concerned with a few dialogue changes so much as actual plot changes. Manga vs Anime adaptation, now there is a battle! So much filler... – Slaidey 9 years ago
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  • I agree with Ryan. Dub-loving fans don't seem as elitist as the sub-loving fans. The fans who prefer subs are generally more elitist towards those who don't. This needs special emphasis in the article. And of course I'm one of those elitist sub-lovers... – Abhimanyu Shekhar 9 years ago
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  • Depends on how much attention you want to give the anime. You're probably going to focus more on an anime with subs because you actually have to pay attention enough read them to pick up what's going on. With dubs your eyes can wander a bit or even focus on other things while you're watching it because you can understand the dialogue. This theory of attention doubles for people who are so eager to watch an anime that they don't want wait long enough to what for the dub and there will be more focused on it as it comes out. On the other hand, there are also dyslexics out there or people who can't mentally focus on ready and visuals at the same time. – Lazarinth 9 years ago
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  • Dubbing is actually ruined anime quality as original speech lose to foreign speaker who try to imitate sound and speech in anime. Subtitled is less destructive as it only add few texts below screen and never obscure viewer who want to enjoy watch anime, while, original sound and speech is still intact. – manifest 9 years ago
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  • I mostly watch anime in the english subs. But some anime sound better with the english dubs, in my opinion. For example, I prefer Death Note in the English dubs. This is probably cause I watched it first, but I prefer the dub more than the sub. It's the same with Attack on Titan and Mirai Nikki (I prefer the Japanese name tho xD) – mekakushimegane 9 years ago
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  • I mostly watch anime with the subtitle in it because not all anime have the dubs. But I would still go for the subtitle, I'm kinda used to it. Also, I have watched anime where some of the characters don't match with their dubs which is a no-no. – bez 9 years ago
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  • In my experience, it's a bit of a toss up. Some of the "Legendary" anime (i.e. Cowboy Bebop, Ghost in Shell: Stand Alone Complex) have some phenomenal voice work and part of why it was so popular. Then there's anime like Great Teacher Onizuka where the English voice actors basically went ENTIRELY off the rails and made the work a lot more fun for us Westerners. Lastly, we have anime like Baccano! and Romeo X Juliet, which, arguably, have put a lot of work into their dubwork and should be listened to in English. On the other hand, there's works like Higurashi No Naku Koro Ni who just don't have that great a dub track, and there's a lot of shows that don't even make it stateside. It's kind of a very subjective topic. – Helmet 9 years ago
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  • I like the idea of addressing this topic because it is a relevant conversation that takes place between anime lovers. In my personal experience, I don't have a preferred choice over subbed v. dubbed. I've watched both and enjoyed both. When watching a dubbed anime, as people mentioned above, it is easier for non-Japanese speakers to concentrate on the action displayed on the screen as opposed to reading the subtitles. When watching a subbed anime, I personally like to listen to the language because I like the way it sounds. However, the debate over what is more "authentic" or whether one way is better than the other seems confusing if the anime altogether is interesting to watch, what does it matter what language it is in? When writing about this topic, it would be important to gauge both sides of the argument and their opinions. – ShelbyLee 9 years ago
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  • I generally watched subbed anime, though there are a few that are better dubbed. I feel like it's more genuine and like I can better feel how it's meant to come across when the cadence is right and we're not fitting the wrong amounts of words into places, but that's just my opinion. – nsiegel 9 years ago
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  • There's already an article written about this topic on the website. – Jordan 9 years ago
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Latest Comments

Aaron Hatch
Dec 5, 2016
Aaron Hatch

Thank you very much, Braden.

 The Grey: Battling Depression and Self-Worth
Aaron Hatch
Aug 16, 2016
Aaron Hatch

I’ve only know Brian K. Vaughun though Saga, but I am really fascinated in reading his other works after reading this, Pride of Baghdad particularly.

Also, Ghus is totally awesome 🙂

 Brian K. Vaughan's Characters: From Lost to Saga
Aaron Hatch
Jul 29, 2016
Aaron Hatch

A very well constructed article. It is totally okay for Miyazaki to have his personal opinion. I just think it worth saying he was not raised in a generation of Dragon Ball Z or Cowboy Bebop, therefore he would not have the same love the otaku crowd does. All that it comes down to is personal preference.

 A Response To Miyazaki: The Dark Side of Anime
Aaron Hatch
Jul 3, 2016
Aaron Hatch

Very well said. Thanks for reading 🙂

 "Original" Films in Hollywood: Deconstructing the Backlash Against American Cinema
Aaron Hatch
Jun 3, 2016
Aaron Hatch

Fantastic article on a fantastic movie. I’ve studied a lot about Bong Joon-Ho in my Asian Cinema class this spring, with his other films like The Host and Mother. He’s a very dark and inventive storyteller, and I’m glad his style of Korean filmmaking carried over to Snowpiercer.

 Snowpiercer and Social Revolution
Aaron Hatch
May 14, 2016
Aaron Hatch

You have a good point. Scenes in films like IB and Django and even Pulp Fiction can be every long. While I for the most part find it admirable from a storytelling standpoint, I can see why some audience can see it as unnecessarily long.

 The Work of Quentin Tarantino: Quality Over Quantity
Aaron Hatch
May 9, 2016
Aaron Hatch

Yep. This article sums up everything I love about the show, from the characters to the storytelling, Steven Universe is an important stepping stone when regarding children animation. Great in-depth article!

 Steven Universe: The Rise of Popularity in Internet Fandoms
Aaron Hatch
Mar 3, 2016
Aaron Hatch

I completely agree with you. No one would dare call Shakespeare an unoriginal storyteller, even though he too had inspiration for his works.

 "Original" Films in Hollywood: Deconstructing the Backlash Against American Cinema
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