Sunday, August 24, 2014

Week of Williams.... Robin that is!- Creative Mastermind for Week 8/11 and 8/18: Robin Williams

Hello everybody and thank you for stopping by The Creative Cabana! I'm your host, Danielle and I am happy to be back at the The Creative Cabana after a rough and stressful week in the real world. Since my last post, which was just over a week ago (sadly), I have been very busy picking up extra hours at work, doing some volunteer projects, and this past Friday I had to have surgery for my wisdom teeth. It's been crazy and dare I say, a little bit painful. However, as I work my way through recovery I'm taking time to finish up a post that I intended to have published much earlier on. But they say better late than never so here goes...

This post is going to be a bit different than my traditional Creative Mastermind posts, because it's a partial tribute, partial recognition, and partial appreciation for the man I could easily call my favorite actor- the late and magnificent, Robin Williams. It's been a hard two weeks since his passing and I, like most of the world, still remain in shock over the news of his death. It's weird how we treat celebrity deaths, because it's not so much about the person who died anymore, it's how they died. Another great Hollywood legend passed away shortly after Williams, actress Lauren Bacall- but notice how she didn't get no where near as much attention as Williams did. I think the fact is, that everyone was caught off guard. I honestly don't think I've seen this much coverage of a celebrity death since Michael Jackson's passing back in 2009. I don't want to focus on Robin Williams' death though. I want to celebrate his life and success and share a few memories of him that make him a great Creative Mastermind.


I am a hard-core 90s child. I grew up with a lot of great nostalgic moments, several which involved Robin Williams. When I think back as far as I can to when I first became introduced to Williams, I'm torn between Aladdin and Mrs. Doubtfire. I can't remember which role I was exposed to first because growing up I didn't always catch on to movies or TV right away. I can remember though seeing these two films at a very young age and always laughing at scenes where Robin Williams shines. I suppose what made him stand out to me was his ability to change personalities so quickly. He always seemed to remind me of a little kid that was on a non-stop sugar rush. To help celebrate his obvious and amazing talent, I spent an entire week watching and reflecting on movies in which he left a strong impact on me. Want to see the list? well here we go:

1. Aladdin & Aladdin and the King of Thieves

Ok before you ask, if you didn't already know this- I'm not including "Return of Jafar" in this list because Williams was not involved in this movie with the role of the Genie. I am including the two films together simply for the sake of being in the same franchise. Ever since Aladdin came out in the early 1990s I've often said if Robin Williams could be animated as a cartoon character then the Genie is it. Disney animators have often said that Genie was created based off of Williams- actions, expressions, character, and personalities. It definitely shows. The clip here shows a few moments for "Aladdin and the King of Thieves" where Williams does some of his best jokes. 


2. Mrs. Doubtfire

This is probably my favorite role from Robin Williams as he portrays a kind, but "hip granny" who hatches up a plan to see his kids everyday while he and his wife go through a messy divorce. The character, Daniel Hillard, loves his children to death and decides he'll do anything to see them despite the objections of the loving, but work-obsessed mom played by Sally Fields. So when the Mom is hiring for a housekeeper to watch the kids, Robin Williams' character applies and gets the job disguised a loving British nanny. This movie hits all the right notes in terms of movie making- there's plenty of funny scenes, but there's also serious and sincere moments throughout the film. Sally Fields and Pierce Brosnan do a great job in their supporting roles and the children in this movie are to die for! It's a slam dunk cast. My favorite scene by far in this film is when a court social worker visits Mr. Hillard's apartment and he's still dressed as Mrs. Doubtfire. He's essentially playing two roles to confuse the social worker. I couldn't find a good clip to accurately show this scene- so the following clip is another favorite scene where Robin Williams just does an improv of several voices. Great stuff!


3. The Birdcage

This movie was hard for me to get into at first just because it was very confusing for me. I saw this movie when I was kid and was very confused by it because while it's a great comedy, there's many adult themes and other moral factors that, well children just don't understand at a young age. I saw this film when I got older and now that I understood the social environments being presented in The Birdcage, it made more sense. If you've never seen The Birdcage- you should, it's great. Robin Williams along with co-star Nathan Lane play a gay couple in South Beach, Florida who own a night-time drag club. When their son wants to marry his girlfriend from college, the men do everything they can to impress the girls' family who has a Republican senator for a father- yeah, this just begs for trouble. Both families go through a series of events involving relationships, scandals, and other humorous adventures all in the name of love, so that the children can get married. To see everything that makes this movie so great just watch this video featuring the best scenes of The Birdcage with Gloria Estefan's "Conga".

4. Ferngully

Ok, I have to admit I honestly forgot that Robin Williams was in this movie until I started going through my collection of movies to write about for this post. Ferngully was one of those underrated 90s kids movies that encouraged children to save the rainforest. It is great movie? Well, it's ok... in my opinion, Robin Williams and Tim Curry make the movie enjoyable. Robin Williams plays a funny bat who escaped a testing lab and lands in Ferngully. He tells the tree fairies, the residents of the land known as Ferngully, about the destruction that humans cause to the environment. Williams' character "Batty" (yeah, real original) befriends one of the fairies and helps them to save Ferngully from an evil pollution monster known as Hexus played by Tim Curry. If you've seen Ferngully chances are there's two things you remember from this film. One you might remember Tim Curry singing about "Toxic Love" and you might remember Batty's Rap- sung by Robin Williams.

5. Flubber

Flubber is another underrated, but still pretty good Robin Williams delight. This was one of Disney's "lesser known" films because I think it didn't really generate a lot of interest at the time. Flubber was a remake of the classic film "The Absent-Minded Professor", in which a scientist accidentally creates this dysfunctional goo. The goo causes all kinds of mischief and crazy stunts. Robin Williams plays the scientist in this film and enjoys interacting with his creation. I have to be honest, I have not seen Flubber in YEARS! I remember watching it and thinking "yeah this movie is ok", but that was it. I recorded it off of Disney channel back when the world still used VHS tapes and until Netflix decides to add it to the collection, that tape as been my only window to this classic. If you've never seen Flubber, it's a good "kill some time" movie. I like the parts where Williams plays around with Flubber in multiple scenes. Without ruining too much of the movie for you, here's a scene with Flubber in full action:

6. Jumanji

Holy crap do I love this movie! When you think of a typical 90s kid, this has got to be one of the movies that comes to mind. When Jumanji first came out, I didn't really know what to make of it- fun, scary, strange, weird, and massive. For being a 90s film, Jumanji was actually a really well-made movie. It had great visuals, good storyline, excellent cast, and a great action adventure built into it. Jumanji is about a game that comes to life and makes the lives of people who play it a living nightmare. Robin Williams plays Alan Perish, a child who disappeared in the 60s after playing the game with his friend Sarah. In 1995, two children find the game and as they play a round they release Alan who was trapped in the world of Jumanji. Alan, Sarah, and the two children play the game in order to fix the mess the game has caused. Robin Williams is a little bit more serious in this film, but he still gets plenty of good laughs throughout the film. I like Williams' role in Jumanji as more of the heroic icon. He's smart, funny, brave, and learns some good lessons throughout the movie. I highly recommend Jumanji for anyone who seeks a movie with an adventure!



7. Hook

The last Robin Williams film I would like to recognize from my childhood is Hook. Unlike the others listed above, this is probably the one film I had literally only seen maybe once or twice. I remember watching it in school because it was movie many of the kids enjoyed and it followed along well with the original Peter Pan stories. In this version of the Peter Pan classic, Robin Williams portrays Peter as a grown-up adult with two children who are kidnapped by a vengeful Captain Hook. In order for Peter to save his kids, he must return to Neverland and remember who he once was. Very similar to Jumanji, I think Hook allowed Williams to have a slightly more serious role. Hook has its fun moments and lots of good laughs watching Williams act throughout the movie. I think what draws me to this film, is the different portrayal of Peter Pan. I mean it reminds me of the "What if?" scenerio. What if Peter grew up? What if Peter had kids? Those questions get answered and what better person to be Peter Pan than the everlasting child himself- remember, I said earlier that Robin Williams often reminded me of a child. Besides who else would better suited to say: "To die would be an awfully big adventure..."


Ok my friends, there you have it! My favorite Robin Williams movies all tied up into my own Creative Cabana tribute to a wonderful mastermind and talent. I cannot express in words how much I will miss this beautiful soul, not just for his laughs and talents. He was also a great human in general- he gave so much to support St. Jude's- a philanthropy which I have personally supported through involvement with Greek Life during my college career. Robin Williams was someone I really hoped to meet one day, for real. There will never be another one like him and I still cannot believe that we will never see his smiling face again until it is time for us to pass on. I pray everyday for his friends and family who struggle with his loss. All I can say is Thank You Mr. Williams, Thank You. Wherever you may be, I hope you have found peace and happiness far beyond what this world could provide.

*All thoughts and comments mentionned in this post are strictly of my own beliefs. These do not reflect those of Robin Williams, his family, friends, co-workers, or entertainment associates. I do not own any of the movies mentionned in this post. All films and clips used belong strictly to their respective filmmakers, and producers. Clips used were published on YouTube from other associate users and have legal right under the Fair Use Act. Images used in this post were gathered from Google Images Search Results. These photos belong to their respective photographers/creators and I take no ownership over these images. No Copyright Infringement Intended.

Wednesday, August 13, 2014

Creators Block, Paying Tribute, and More Housekeeping...


HOLY COW! I cannot believe it has been nearly two months, since my last post on The Creative Cabana. No, I didn't disappear off the face of the Earth and it's not that haven't been lazy. I've simply experienced a period of what I'm going to call "Creator's Block" and a case of poor time management. In any case, if you haven't been here in awhile (like me) or you are a new visitor... welcome to The Creative Cabana!  This is the place where creativity and fun thrive, and you get to embrace it all through my experiences. I have a few things I need to address first, so bear with me as we get through these items together.

Creator's Block
So in the time between now and my last post, I experienced something that I can't honestly say I've gone through before. I'm sure you've heard of the term "writer's block" in which a writer comes to a stopping point with no direction in sight. While there's plenty to write about here at The Creative Cabana, I've been trying to become more focused on creating things and then writing about them. I don't have access to a lot of the more advanced programs I'd like to use for things like photography, graphics, and multimedia production. So naturally, I have to get creative with the tools I have at hand. Since I wasn't getting that "light bulb turned on" idea, I decided to go off the grid for a little while until it came back on- although I didn't expect it to be for two months. However, I do have some great ideas in mind as we get into the "Back to School" season. I guess it's safe to say the light bulb as turned ON!

Paying Tribute
I find it ironic that the last time I posted on here was a dedication to the great Casey Kasem as we celebrated his life and mourned his passing. Here I am again honoring another great legend. I don't need to tell you how shocked I was when I heard the news of Robin Williams' death. In a way, I feel as though part of my childhood has died too. It sounds odd, and by now it probably sounds cliche too. I am a 90s child, so I grew up watching movies like Aladdin, Mrs. Doubtfire, and Jumanji. Robin Williams was flawless in every movie I had seen him in. Prior to his death, I was shocked to hear that a man who brought so much laughter and joy to others, couldn't see the happiness within himself. As part of the "Creative Mastermind" section, I would like to do a special article written and dedicated to Robin Williams. So be sure to check back for that post, as I hope to have it published before the end of the week.

More Housekeeping
My friends and fellow readers, I ask for your forgiveness and patience for not having posted on here as much I had intended to. There has been a lot going on in my personal life and these are things that sadly have no place or right to interfere with The Creative Cabana. When I started this blog it was intended to be an outlet for all of the creative skill that I have built up inside of me. I still want to do that and in order to accomplish this I'm going to become more organized and efficient by scheduling ahead of time when I can create these posts to avoid any further gaps in postings. That being said, since it's time for back-to-school I'm going to do a couple of crafty/graphic ideas to help you design a DIY Planner and also Classroom decorations for my teacher friends. It's going to be a great time to get your crafty cap on, so be sure to keep an eye out for those posts.

Whew! I think that's everything. Again, to all of my readers thanks for sticking with me during this crazy time as The Creative Cabana is making a fresh new come back! Remember you can always follow The Creative Cabana on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest for more creative awesomeness and stay updated. Until next time, peace out my friends!