Dance

M3GAN (2022)

M3gan poster


When I was a child I had a toy bear that when you pulled the string on its back said “I will protect you and keep you safe from harm”. Looking back the tone and timbre of his voice would not be out of place in any of these mechanical horror films of today.
He didn’t have a name, maybe Brown Bear and he didn’t walk or talk but in 2023 we now have M3gan. She can walk, talk and actually protect………by any means.
The timing of this film couldn’t be more apt coming in the shadow of OpenAI’s bursting forth onto the mainstream stage at the end of 2022 into 2023.

It’s a tale as old as tech or as the ChatGPT version of Public Enemy might call it Fear of a Tech Planet. New technology, change, fear, embracing and relying on new technologies and worst case scenarios are rife for dramatisation and what better way to update the Chucky/Annabelle crossed with Ex Machina than for Blumhouse to bring us M3gan (Model 3 Generative Android), the latest in toy manufacturing.

Model 3 Generative ANdroid


When Gemma’s (Allison Williams) sister and brother in law are killed in a freak traffic accident she is left as guardian to their only child, Cady (Violet McGraw) . Gemma works at Funki, a toy company, and is developing a lifesize doll that has artificial intelligence and is designed to look after the child it is assigned to/paired with and provides companionship to said child. M3gan is paired with Cady in its beta state as it is still being worked on and in development, one of its remits is to protect Cady and being equipped to self-improve and adapt to new situations, M3gan starts to act independently. Anything or anyone who appears to be a threat to Cady, M3Gan deals with, the neighbours dog for starters.

M3gan and friends


There is an uncanny valley effect here, the facial design of M3gan seems to be a combination of CGI and makeup and as such looks very creepy, unsettling and unreal. The actress playing M3gan (Amie Donald) does a great physical job as does the voice artist (Jenna Davis).

M3gan


One of the things that make great horror films is the amount of investment in the telling the story as truthfully as possible that the actors can and Allison Williams and Violet McGraw commit fully. Their relationship feels grounded in reality as they face the challenges of their situation.

M3gan dancing


This is a fun ride that is not as high brow as Alex Garland’s brilliant Ex Machina nor as B movie as Tom Holland’s (not Spidey) Child’s Play so it sits somewhere in the entertainment middle and is a welcome addition to the ‘horror’ genre. New Zealander Gerard Johnstone directs this film to box office success and he is currently in talks to direct the sequel M3gan 2.0. If you wanna know how successful the film has been check out the M3gan sketch from Saturday Night Live starring Aubrey Plaza and the viral TikTok dances. M3gan has arrived.

Blumhouse released one of my favourite horrors last year with The Black Phone and the first ‘horror film’ I have seen in 2023 is also one of theirs, may they all be as fun as this one.

See it….if you dare.

“I’ll protect you and keep you safe from harm.”

TERRARIUM-A Dance Piece

terrarium2Terrarium

All art is subjective. This is a major part of both its beauty and its appeal and also the cause of many disagreements. Art has the capability of bringing us together as well as dividing us..

Everyone has their own personal different prism of experience and thus filters through their individual lenses.

I like it.
I don’t like it.
It becomes very polarised as too many things in today’s society are.

Where is the grey?
It exists, people.

Can we escape our limiting and limited understanding?
How open are we able to be?
How do we deal with the various challenges of life?

Israeli born dancer and choreographer Omer Backley-Astrachan creates Terrarium, a contemporary dance piece with collaborators and dancers:
Allie Graham, Jess Goodfellow, Renata Commisso, Sharon Backley-Astrachan.

It is described as “A series of short stories, each delves into a different aspect of life, love and death.”

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Contemporary dance is the perfect example of subjectivity in action as there is rarely dialogue and the audience has to translate what we see and hear in this expression of dance. It can be seen as an insight into the human condition but equally it could be some flexible dancers making a series of random shapes.

I am by no means an expert but I have seen many dance shows over the years and contemporary dance seems to be the most dividing.
Audiences in general usually want a nice bow to tie it off and put it into a context that is easily understood. It is easy to be perceived as pretentious or failing.

This is not the case with Terrarium.
It is a piece that evokes thought and has moments of wonder and emotion.
What I love about this world is the infinite possibilities and the many ways the art can be processed.

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The piece, which is still in the work in progress stage, begins with the 4 dancers standing in a line facing the audience with one hand on hip and staring out whilst baroque music plays. This opening is striking and gently confronting.

Inviting an audience to a work in progress showing is massively useful for the artists and incredibly interesting and a wonderful sneak peak into the process that is rarely seen by the public outside of the rehearsal rooms.

A great example of this is watching the wonderful, genius English comedian story-teller, Daniel Kitson. He has been putting on ‘work in progress’ shows for years before he finalises the piece and I have seen both his WIP and the finished performance of several of his shows. I enjoyed the WIP pieces more than the end product (although the end product is still incredible). The insight into the process of the artist is like sneaking a peek behind the curtain of the method of the artist. Seeing the wizard. It’s a privilege to be part of the development of the piece.

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There are interesting uses of ‘tableau vivant’ (living pictures) during the piece and this adds to its power. Statues and movement. The stop and the start. As I said before, it can be confronting but there is nothing more brave for a performer than standing still and looking straight at an audience. Direct connection. This opening tableau brought to mind Stanley Kubrick’s magnificent Barry Lyndon.

There is a moment halfway through the piece when one of the dancers stands centre stage, whilst the other 3 retreat to the darkness of side stage, and she sings; a line and then silence and then repeat. There is space and silence here juxtaposed with the sound of the voice singing. This puts the audience into the place of uncertainty and is again brave and the purpose of true art.
Try, experiment and be not afraid of failure, it is an integral part of the journey.

The four dancers are talented and give emotional performances. The blending of movement and feeling works a treat.

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Ephemeral and difficult to categorise, Terrarium show us emotions and moments as opposed to traditional story-telling, this allows (as it should be) the audience to interpret the art without being hand-held through the performance.

According to the choreographer Omer, the work takes short stories with subjects including what it means to be foreign and lonely and creates with the wonderful dancers a piece that will stay with you, whether you ‘understand’ it or not.

Terrarium premiered as part of The Flying Nun by BrandX in Darlinghurst, Sydney in March 2019.

I look forward to seeing the growth of this interesting piece.