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Post by gopher in heat on May 22, 2011 15:31:42 GMT -5
Does anyone else get a bit annoyed by the fact that the house in the beginning of P2 isn't the same as Mike and Jody's house in P1? I'm also a bit bothered that all of a sudden it's supposed to be Reggie's house, when clearly in P1 it's the same house Mike and Jody lived in. The interior is also completely different, aside from a similar looking fireplace.
I mean I guess I can sort of understand the theory that since the events in P1 were possibly all in Mike's head, that certain aspects of his life were sort of molded together, thus explaining why the houses are suddenly different, but honestly I think it was more along the lines of not caring enough to pay attention to detail.
Not a huge issue, just one of those things that take me out of it momentarily and wish that a bit more effort had gone into the opening sequence to help make the transition between films seamless.
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Post by vivalabeck on May 22, 2011 17:50:44 GMT -5
I used to wonder the same thing, but honestly I don't think it's meant to be the Pearson house. We really don't see much of it at the end of P1, but I noticed a few differences from how it appeared in earlier scenes. The placement of the staircase in relation to the fireplace, for example. They def coulda done a better job recreating it for P2 tho, such as the missing rocking chair next to Reggie. But I suppose this becomes a moot point in a film where they are recasting lead roles and such. I think it would have been much cooler and more meaningful if it HAD been Mike & Jody's house, since that was such a central location in the original movie. Part of the reason for the change might be because the house they used for the exterior shots was a real house that was scheduled for demolition. There are tons of continuity errors in the series if you look for them, but I guess it's all just a dream anyway, so it don't have to make sense.
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Post by gopher in heat on May 22, 2011 18:20:41 GMT -5
You're right, it's not supposed to be the Pearson house--not at the beginning of P2 anyway. I think it's quite clear at the end of P1 that it's the Pearson home. It's the exact same setting as when Mike, Reggie, and Jody are talking about what they need to do.
You're right, the staircase is different, and many other things. It's just an annoyance, and like I said it's not a major problem for me.
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Post by postmortem on May 22, 2011 18:24:24 GMT -5
This is a insightful topic! And the funny thing is that back in 1987 as I tromped into the house on San Jose Street in Chatsworth and saw them getting the dwarves all ready in Reggie's kitchen, I was thinking the same thing! The fireplace brought a grin to my face, but the huge living room and spiral staircase felt... wrong. Here's how I rationalized it to myself then: Mike's bedroom at the end of the film (plywood walls and Tiffany lamp) is most definitely NOT his bedroom earlier in the film (moonscape wallpaper, etc.). It always seemed to me that Michael awakens in Reggie's home, not the old Pearson home. Of course, this isn't entirely true because the leopard print pillow case is in the "new" bed at the end--as well as in Mike's old bedroom. Maybe he took the pillow with him for sentimental reasons! lollol The fireplace that is in the Pearson house (for the "snag that Tall Dude speech) is--we assume--the same one Reg and Mike are by at the end of the film (kind of hard to see in the darkness there). And yet, it make's sense that Reggie would have taken Mike into his own home and that the Pearson residence would have been sold off after Jody's death since there was no adult left to manage the estate (Michael would have gone to a guardian--either his Aunt or Reggie). And, finally, the very fabric of reality has changed by the end of "Phantasm." Jody is dead now and buried at Morningside--which now looks like a memorial park and not a creepy old cemetery. Reggie doesn't remember anything about Mike's "nightmare." Even the Tall Man is different--he got a haircut! lollol So a few differences in local would make a warped kind of sense. Realistically, they probably couldn't get rights to return to the old location from P1. Or maybe didn't even try because the residence on San Jose was extremely close to the warehouse. It does bring a grin to my face that questions spinning around in my head 24 years ago (!!!) are making the rounds here (finally) online.
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Post by gopher in heat on May 22, 2011 20:24:01 GMT -5
Excellent rationalization Kristen. Good point especially about the change of the way the cemetery looks.
I can buy that, but it still sort of bothers me. Mainly because for all intents and purposes, I do believe it WAS the Pearson home at the end of P1, and it was changed for P2 for whatever reason.
If we're going with the whole theory of things being different--the fabric of reality for Mike altering because of a dream--couldn't it be possible that the Pearson house in P1 was really Reggie's house all along, and that Mike was only perceiving it as his own? To me it would make more sense in that maybe Jody was more of an apparition within the home, aiding in Mike's loose grip on reality vs dream. Let's not forget that many of the scenes featuring Jody only have Mike in them (not all, but still). Maybe it could be more that Mike was "dreaming" Jody was there the whole time.
In any event, I'm veering off topic a bit haha. I just wish they'd gone the extra mile to secure the same shooting location for that opening sequence.
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Post by postmortem on May 22, 2011 21:24:39 GMT -5
The script doesn't help either:
"ESTABLISHING SHOT - THE 2-STORY COUNTRY HOUSE IN SILHOUETTE, a very TALL MAN, reed thin, and wearing a black suit, slowly approaches the moonlit house."
lollol
Whose house?
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