Mr. Arkadin (1955) Screencaps

 

If I had to thank one thing for what social media is throwing at me nowadays for inspiration is old movies on FILMGRAB. They ultimately made me want to watch these movies entirely, and it's very useful.

I save them on my phone for study. 

Anyways today I got some incredible captures from a movie called Mr. Arkadin (1955). I haven't seen this one yet, apparently it's free to watch on YouTube for now at least, but I do know that it was directed by the famously recognizable Orson Welles. He's got talent and most of his films are unique and interesting to watch. 

Old cinema really had the most simple yet captivating screenplay and cinematography in my taste. The atmosphere in some of these camera shots are insane which is why I considered these films to be somewhat passable if there aren't any good characters or good stories in them.

Not to sound deeply passionate, but man, these people on screen are fresh. They have these serious, impartial facial expressions that I'm drawn to the most.

Now to be honest, I can't discuss the whole summary of the movie, but these scenes are kinda understandable. There's definitely a moody ambience to it, also the B&W perfectly works. 

Now I suppose that this must be Mr. Arkadin himself. He's cool. I like it.

These scenes below could be great for drawing live-action stills. 

Movie characters that have more maturity and authenticity is a treat. These people look distinctive, I wouldn't want everyone to look the same and basic. The top-hat guy looks fun to actually draw, the scene above is a piece of art. 

Maybe I'm missing out on feature films that have this similar vibe to this one. Not gonna lie, I have watched a few films related to this and they can be satisfying, it almost feels like a real event happening which obviously isn't the case but you can instantly feel it inside.

These old hollywood actors and movies made me understand what people like about more complex but observant filmmaking. 

Also mention, a ton of camera angles don't make the picture cinematic. It's definitely a choice if the subject matter is intense or captivating but it gets exhausting and distracting for a while. I still think I should check out Mr. Arkadin. I heard the story was good, especially when it comes to exploring new directors. I have mentioned that Welles is talented but I in fact never saw any of his films including Citizen Kane, maybe I'll watch that soon but for now as of writing this, it's my final post of 2025. Hope you all had a great year. I certainly have, and bring on 2026!

Merry Christmas! 🎄 (2025)

 

Merry Christmas! Can't believe I made it this far. I remember all my past christmases and them being wonderful. 

Of course I received gifts. I had some food, and listened to christmas oldies. 

First of all I got a cute item in my stocking. A Winnie The Pooh ornament, since I love the franchise. 

Here's a framed image of our savior Jesus Christ. Normally I'm cautious about what people do with him entertainment-wise but this is stellar artwork. I relate to this moment where he's sitting at peace viewing nature. Astounding.

A nice Bible Study Guide. I'll use this whenever I feel overwhelmed or needing more knowledge or something. It's really useful.

Got some more drawing sketchbooks as always. I have a new blog called SNG Drawing Blog. And I usually post whenever I draw something amusing. Feel free to check it out now if you want.

https://sngdrawingblog.blogspot.com/?m=1

A daily calendar featuring verses from The Bible. This is a great gift. I currently have a Touched By An Angel calendar with quotes from the show. It's fine but it's not always inspiring.

Sorry to any people who wear gloves, but I'm more into mittens. When I opened this gift, I thought these were oven gloves as a sign to start cooking now that I'm a young adult, but who knows when I'll start doing chores, LOL. 

I've been exploring different franchises just to see if they interest me or not. I actually have watched 2 Peanuts specials so far, but they're on Apple TV. I actually like these specials. They're simple and calm to watch. Especially enjoy Linus as a character, so having this as a collection of 6 timeless specials is awesome.

I wore this today and was so comfy. Bought it at JCPenney a few weeks ago, but I had to wait until Christmas to have it completely. 😆

I wash my hands ALL the time. Don't like to cause germs, so I received a few hand soap scents. 

Last year, my monthly calendar was focused on those vintage Disney illustrations so this year is paintings from incredibly talented artists like Claude Monet.

Finally, is the original A.A Milne books! The illustrations are absolutely amazing. I've been wanting to experience these books ever since I liked the Pooh movies.

Let me just say, since we're exactly one week away from the end of 2025, I hope you all had a great Christmas.

If you want to discover 2024's gifts here's the link.

https://sngexplorationblog.blogspot.com/2024/12/merry-christmas.html?m=1

Christmas with Robin Hood

 

Tomorrow is Christmas. So I thought maybe I should give you all a Christmas Eve gift. Robin Hood and his friends share their short lil' holiday story.

I bought Disney's Robin Hood on DVD a few days ago at Barnes & Noble, it's not as visually interesting than other classic Disney movies in terms of the bonus features, but I still love the actual movie and something about Robin Hood being in the tradition of the holidays fits impeccably in my opinion.

I captured all the pages so you can read it yourself. 

Fin

Anyways, hope you liked it. It was just a little treat especially if you like these characters. 

I'll be posting gifts tomorrow. Merry Christmas Eve. 🎄

1966 Grinch

 

2 days is officially Christmas. It's been busy for the past few days. But now I'm officially off for the holidays. I'll catch up watching some christmas classics. I already have watched a few over the years. 1947 Miracle on 34th Street, Charlie Brown Christmas, White Christmas, Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer, Elf, The Muppets and Mickey's Christmas Carol, Home Alone, and my personal favorite It's A Wonderful Life.

But now I'll focus on one I seemingly liked the more older I get. How The Grinch Stole Christmas (1966). 

I always had a soft spot for these colors, this is what got me into the cartoon in the first place. I grew up with alot of the Dr. Suess books, but not particuarly the Grinch. I guess I liked the Bright and Early Books because they had more variety, so this was possibly my first exposure to The Grinch ever.

I was mesmerized by the absolute creativity of Suess's works. The characters were fun to look at, and had interesting and distinctive designs. They were fun and cartoony when I was very young.

In the original book, the characters were not as colorful as in their following film counterparts. I personally do like the color schemes to the 1957 Grinch the best, but in terms of the aesthetic, characters designs and direction, it's easily the best version of The Grinch ever made.

The Grinch kinda creeped me out as a kid, it was mostly the animation that freaked me out the most. Back then I didn't know too much about animation from the theatrical era, so it was hard for me to get used to it.

This was directed by Chuck Jones, who was responsible working on the most famous and iconic Looney Tunes shorts of all time. His animation staff were masters. Since he's animated, he feels more alive to the situation making him more cynical and grouchy. I love this camera angle shot of Grinch tapping with his index finger.

This is easily one of Chuck Jones's best cartoons he made in the 60s. His artstyle was starting to become more familiar. 

Normally I find Christmas specials that average around 25-50 minutes results being interesting and cute, but for this film in particular it's one of my favorite Christmas films. There's so much focus without it being horribly fast-paced or boring. The song is really good, and the message is at it's finest. I love all of the characters, it's a timeless classic.