The BIg Year - Trailer

revs · **Posted:** Sep 07 5:50 am

Thanks to Ann Nightingale for posting this on the VI Birds group.

I've been waiting patiently for this film since i heard they were making it.
Having read the book (it was one of the first "Big Year" books i ever read) it was certainly the fuel i needed to go out and find others.

I think it opens Oct 14th or something close to that date.

Admin · **Posted:** Sep 07 7:39 am

Thanks for the news Paul. I might go see this one.

Kevin

Wetlander · **Posted:** Sep 08 7:52 pm

Paul, I've been waiting for this one as well, with mixed feelings.

The word is not much birding and lots of dumb slapstick... but I'll still see it, it's a movie about Birders!!!

I don't mind Wilson or Black, and I still love Steve Martin even though his movies have sucked for years... :lol:

revs · **Posted:** Sep 08 8:08 pm

After viewing the trailer i too am hoping for the best but you are right, they do seem to be playing the comedy angle over everything else, fingers crossed :wink:

featherweight · **Posted:** Sep 08 8:23 pm

I'm also looking forward to seeing it, I loved the book and I want to see how the birds look - they were all done with computer graphics.

Canuck4everr · **Joined:** Aug 11 4:16 pm **Posts:** 197

Owen , jack and steve are on the Ellen degeneres today talking about the movie , funny stuff . Should be on at 4pm again today .

Sherms · **Posted:** Oct 15 10:13 am

Looks like some critics are giving low reviews for the movie. They don't seem to understand the premises of "The Big Year". They seem to think that the movie needs to explain more about why someone would want to see so many birds or to do a Big Year. I'm not too sure I could explain why I would want to see every bird in the world myself.

Any insight from anyone else?

Sherman

birdterp · **Joined:** Feb 23 11:22 pm **Posts:** 73

I went and saw the movie last night. I saw the less than glowing review in the Sun, and kept my expectations down. Maybe that was why I was pleasantly surprised. (Not that I expect it to win any academy award nominations.)

If you do go to see it, you need to be clear that it isn't a re-telling of the book. It is inspired by the book. Names have been changed and so have some of the plot details. On the other hand, the Xantu's in Gibsons really happened.
I think I recognized the viewing tower at Vaseaux Lake standing in for Arizona, and Richmond's Aberdeen mall amongst the scenes shot in BC. Richard Canning's 'Birds of Southwestern BC' also makes it into the background of one scene.

I would have liked a little more time spent explaining the significance of some of the birds and of the feat itself. On the other hand, that may have decreased the mass appeal of the movie (yes, my non-birding wife enjoyed it - no she hasn't changed her mind about going to Attu). And at the very least I'd say that birders come off less crazy in this movie than the dog enthusiasts in "Best of Show", but maybe I'm biased.

juncadee · **Posted:** Oct 19 11:35 pm

I saw the movie last night too! (at Tinseltown)
I was too pleasantly surprised. The characters were over-simplified and some of the "action" scenes a little forced but the story clipped along at a good pace and I enjoyed Jack Black and Steve Martin. If you have a non-birding partner, he/she is probably used to indulging your bird obsession, and this movie will not be too difficult for them - my boyfriend quite enjoyed it. Even though I have read the book I was still held in suspense, "who's gonna win?"

I also enjoyed picking out the Vancouver locales. See if you can spot the Vancouver Airport and Pacific Central train station. And an extra bonus, the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen garden, which amused me to realize was only about a block from where I was sitting at that moment.

I'm glad I went.

katherine · **Joined:** Jan 18 6:32 pm **Posts:** 267

I picked up the book from the library yesterday! I look forward to reading it.

Pandamon · **Joined:** Jan 23 6:57 pm **Posts:** 17

from review on New York Times:

"Seeing as many things with feathers as possible within a single 12-month span is the obsession that unites — and also divides — Brad Harris, Kenny Bostick and Stu Preissler. Each one, for his own reasons, is trying to do a big year, to attain the summit of the birding subculture by logging more sightings than anyone else."

http://movies.nytimes.com/2011/10/14/movies/the-big-year-with-owen-wilson-and-steve-martin-review.html

Sherms · **Posted:** Oct 29 10:56 pm

Just went to see the movie and I thought it was entertaining to watch. Maybe it was because of some of the familiar locations. There were some pretty funny scenes.

I felt sad for Owen Wilsons character. Hope no one ends up like him.

Sherman

revs · **Posted:** Feb 04 6:39 pm

Better late than never, actually i finally saw it last night for the first time, the "extended version"

It was better than i thought it would be, but it could have been so much better.
Seeing birding portrayed on the big screen like this was kind of bizarre, i don't know why.

The BIg Year - Trailer

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