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  • Good Movie, Poor Titles

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    Helvetica  (2007)

    This movie exceeded my expectations.   I was expecting a bit more of a dry documentary (e.g. An Inconvenient Truth), but was pleasantly surprised.  This look at possibly the most important typeface in the modern world really opens your eyes to its ubiquitous presence.  You leave the theater saying to yourself "That's Helvetica, that's Helvetica, and that too!" as you look at signs, magazines, posters, and even products.  It was also very interesting to learn the 50 year history of the typeface and the logic behind it's creation.

    The only problem I noticed was with the titles that appeared throughout the film.  On a few notable occasions the titles would appear white on a very bright background or black on a dark background.   In one occasion, during an interview, a title appeared saying "[product] logo created by [person]" in black on a dark background for about two seconds.  I apologize for not remembering the product or the person credited in the title, but it was clearly misplaced as no logo was being shown, nor was that particular interview referencing a logo.   Hopefully they'll get these titles cleaned up before the limited release.   I found it quite amusing that a documentary of this subject matter would have such problems.

    Titles aside, I would recommend this movie to anyone that has any interest in graphic design or typography at all.   If you even have enough interest to be on the fence about it and not be sure if you'd like it or not, then you should definitely see it.


  • Not Just Another Asian Action Film

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    Exiled  (2006)

    I saw this movie during the SXSW Film Festival.   I didn't know much about it going in, but was pleasantly surprised.   I found it a little hard to follow the relationships between the characters at times, but it certainly didn't affect the enjoyment of the movie as a whole.   The overall style of the movie was a refreshing change.  It was done in a much more interesting manner than most American movies, without being just another Asian action film.   Plus, being set in Macau just before they returned to Chinese rule adds an extra bit of interest to the film.   I will probably watch it again when it comes out on DVD just to fill in the pieces I missed on my first viewing.

 

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