The Gold Knight

Dark Knight: Batman at the Oscars

Written by James A. Molnar | The Gold Knight | jmolnar@toledofreepress.com

The Caped Crusader may be adept at saving those in peril, but Batman has quite a sordid past with the Oscars.

Granted, the movies themselves have run the gamut from terrible to good to brilliant.

Batman’s first Oscar came in 1989 when Tim Burton’s “Batman” won an Academy Award for Art Direction, its sole nomination that year. The film, starring Michael Keaton, Jack Nicholson and Kim Basinger, was critically lauded for its visuals and panned for its story. It was the No. 1 movie at the box office that year. The next Batman film to do so would be “The Dark Knight” in 2008.

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The only acting Academy Award nomination — and win — given to a Batman movie was presented posthumously to Heath Ledger for his supporting performance as the Joker in “The Dark Knight.”

Critics and fans alike were shocked when the Christopher Nolan sequel did not receive a Best Picture nomination in 2009 for the 81st Academy Awards. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which puts on the Oscars, later expanded the category to include more than five nominees with the hope of including more popular films.

This expansion could prove lucrative for director Nolan and his final Batman movie in the trilogy, “The Dark Knight Rises,” out nationwide July 20. Nolan’s most recent film, “Inception,” received critical acclaim and eight nominations, including Best Picture, and four Oscar statuettes. Nolan, however, was shut out of the Best Director race. One of his go-to cinematographers, Wally Pfister, won the Oscar in his category.

Nominations are not announced until Jan. 15, 2013, and there is still a barrage of movies to be released in this calendar year. But if “The Dark Knight Rises” is critically acclaimed and well-received, Academy members may just give Batman his due.

Oscar nominations:

“Batman” 1989 (62nd Oscars):

Art Direction (winner)

“Batman Returns” 1992 (65th):

Makeup, Visual Effects, Cinematography, Sound, Sound Effects Editing

“Batman Begins” 2005 (78th)

Cinematography (Wally Pfister)

The Dark Knight” 2008 (81st)

Supporting Actor (Heath Ledger, winner), Art Direction, Cinematography (Wally Pfister), Film Editing, Makeup, Sound Editing (winner), Sound Mixing, Visual Effects

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On the web and on air: Look for Film Editor James A. Molnar’s full review of “The Dark Knight Rises” at 12:01 a.m. Friday on www.toledofreepress.com/movies. He will also discuss the film on “WNWO Today” around 5:50 a.m. Friday on NBC 24.

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Forget ‘Inception’; please bring back Roy Rogers

Written by Guest Author | | GuestAuthor@toledofreepress.com

Guest column by Thomas G. Kress

As I approach my 80th birthday I am more and more filled with a yearning for the “good old days.” One of the fondest memories of my youth was spending a Saturday afternoon at the movies.  For the 14-cent admission price, I enjoyed a feature movie (usually very old), an exciting cowboy movie (usually starring Roy Rogers), a cartoon (often featuring Porky Pig), an exciting chapter of a serial (my favorite was Flash Gordon) and a newsreel.  I must admit that I usually went to the lobby during the newsreel to invest in a nickel box of popcorn (freshly popped).

In today’s world, I fork over roughly 100 times the admission price of the “good old days” for the dubious privilege of being bombarded with special visual effects, deafening sound and interminable use of the f-word.  Even if I was a masochist, I would rather choose my punishment by opting to go to a rock concert.  My unhappiness with the experience is further exacerbated by the criminal cost of a box of popcorn (not freshly popped).

Back in the “good old days,” movies provided relaxation, entertainment and even enjoyment. By combining the above-described overkill of sight and sound with inane plots that defy all logic, most of today’s movies seem bent on producing a state of physical and mental exhaustion in their audiences.

A recent example of an inane plot inflicting cruel and inhuman punishment on its audience is the movie “Inception.” A better title would be “Deception.” Delving into the world of dreams, subconscious and unconscious is not my idea of entertainment. Sitting through “Inception” was, for me, like spending more than two hours in a dentist’s chair. I do not enjoy watching a scene while trying to discern whether the action is really happening, whether it is a figment of one of the character’s imagination or whether it is taking place in some third world drummed up by the director.

Perhaps it is just the mental sloth of old age, but I go to a movie to be entertained, not to play three-dimensional chess in a dream world. It may be my conservative accounting background which causes me to expect one and one to add up to two most, if not all, of the time.  Further, I do not like leaving the theater in such a state of confusion that I cannot find my car in the parking lot.

My wife and I often go to the movies as part of a “date day.” This usually involves seeing a movie followed by a restaurant meal accompanied by a glass of wine.  While we dine, we discuss the movie. After viewing “Inception,” we were so confused we could barely cope with the menu, much less carry on a meaningful discussion.

I am not really advocating a return to Roy Rogers films. However, I must admit I could better relate to Roy’s horse, Trigger, than I can to a computer-generated creature with one eye, four arms, a bad case of psoriasis and an ear-piercing roar.

I respect and encourage the right of directors to produce movies that make us think as they entertain us. However, I may be just an old curmudgeon, but when I shell out big money, I expect the experience to be at least modestly enjoyable.

Thomas G. Kress lives in Rossford.

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The Gold Knight: Top 10 of 2010

Written by James A. Molnar | The Gold Knight | jmolnar@toledofreepress.com

Taking a break from covering the Oscars, I sat down and figured out my favorite movies from 2010. While some movies are among the top contenders for Oscar gold, others are simply excellent films.

10. “Secretariat”

Make fun of me all you want: This is the feel-good movie of the year. Diane Lane is exquisite and charming. (Oscar possibility: Costume Design and Sound categories)

9. “Moon”

The 2009 space-age sci-fi movie from director Duncan Jones left an impact when I saw it in April. (No Oscar possibility)

8. “Shutter Island”

This Martin Scorsese mystery stands out for its beautiful cinematography, editing and story. The haunting score is the perfect mélange of modern classical music. (Possibility: Art Direction, Cinematography, Film Editing and Sound categories)

7. “The Kids Are All Right”

Annette Bening and Julianne Moore are perfect in one of the year’s most sincere stories. (Possibility: Picture, Bening for Actress, Mark Ruffalo for Supporting Actor, Original Screenplay and Film Editing)

6. “Inception”

Christopher Nolan has earned the Oscar for Original Screenplay. He spent 10 years perfecting this ultimate heist movie. Breathtaking visuals. Mind-bending story. Superb acting. Haunting soundtrack. (Possibility: Nolan for Director and Original Screenplay, Art Direction, Film Editing, Sound categories and Visual Effects)

5. “127 Hours”

This is an extraordinary story of a man put in extraordinary circumstances. Director Danny Boyle perfectly captures the raw energy and emotion of desperation onscreen. (Possibility: Picture, James Franco for Actor, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Film Editing, Original Score, Original Song and Sound categories)

4. “The King’s Speech”

This is a sophisticated story of a man who needs to overcome the barriers he has built for himself. Tom Hooper’s direction is remarkable. (Possibility: Picture, Colin Firth for Actor, Geoffrey Rush for Supp. Actor, Helena Bonham Carter for Supp. Actress, Hooper for Director, Original Screenplay, Art Direction, Cinematography and Costume Design)

3. “Black Swan”

Watching this modern, fantastical thriller was intoxicating. This is a movie where every element worked perfectly together. I cannot remember a film that left me so euphoric. (Possibility: Picture, Natalie Portman for Actress, Barbara Hershey and Mila Kunis for Supp. Actress, Darren Aronofsky for Director, Original Screenplay, Art Direction, Cinematography and Film Editing)

2. “Toy Story 3”

The raw emotion elicited from this film is gobsmacking. Pixar has the unique ability to create a surreal experience with characters we love. The toys could be nominated for best acting. (Possibility: Picture, Animated Feature, Adapted Screenplay, Original Song and Sound categories)

1. “The Social Network”

Its high-energy, fast-paced nature makes this film easy to watch and love. Screenwriter Aaron Sorkin and director David Fincher brilliantly deliver an atypical movie-going experience. (Possibility: Picture, Jesse Eisenberg for Actor, Fincher for Director, Sorkin for Adapted Screenplay, Film Editing and Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross for Original Score)

Nominations for the 83rd Academy Awards will be announced Tuesday, Jan. 25 around 8:30 a.m.

Toledo Free Press Star Lead Designer James A. Molnar blogs about all things Oscar at TheGoldKnight.com. His column will appear online and in print periodically.

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Pop Goes the Culture

McGinnis: 2010’s summer movie season failed to impress

Written by Jeff McGinnis | | jmcginnis@toledofreepress.com

Another summer movie season is about to come to a close. Instead of ending with a bang, the 2010 edition is collapsing over the finish line like a dehydrated marathon runner. Film fans were left with two great movies to add to their memories — “Toy Story 3” and “Inception” — and a lot of mediocre-to-bad ones to forget as swiftly as possible.

Financially, there was even less for Hollywood to brag about, as only eleven movies made over $100 million at the box office, fewer than the previous summer. This despite the fact that, according to BoxOfficeMojo.com, the average ticket price was almost 50 cents up from 2009.

The biggest hits made impressive money. “Toy Story 3” earned more than $400 million, with second place “Iron Man 2” pulling in $312 million. Four other movies easily broke the $200 million dollar barrier. But beyond that, pickings are depressingly slim. The story of summer 2010 breaks down like this:

May: “Iron Man 2” kicks off the summer with a bang, grossing more than $128 million in a virtually unchallenged opening weekend. But there’s no denying it isn’t as good as its predecessor, and it falls significantly in the weeks that follow. Russell Crowe’s “Robin Hood” offers no challenge the following week, despite “IM2”’s tumble to $52 million.

“Shrek Forever After” then wins its opening weekend with $70 million, and the following week as well, but will finish as the lowest-grossing “Shrek” ever. Memorial Day openers “Sex and the City 2” and “Prince of Persia” both make surprisingly few waves.

June: “Shrek” wins its third week in a row, more because of weak competition (“Get Him to the Greek,” “Killers”) than its own box office clout. Things get shaken up a bit when “The Karate Kid” bows to a surprisingly robust $55 million, easily trouncing Fox’s “A-Team” remake.

The next week sees the arrival of “Toy Story 3,” and the game changes. Heralded by critics and audiences alike, the third installment in Pixar’s landmark animated film series opens to $110 million, doubling the opening take of “Toy Story 2.” It wins its second weekend with a gross of $60 million, as well, against the relatively weak competition of “Grown Ups” and “Knight and Day.”

July: The summer’s big July 4 battle didn’t turn out to be much of a fight. The third installment of the wildly successful “Twilight” series, “Eclipse,” opened on Wednesday and would gross more than $157 million by Sunday. Its competition, M. Night Shyamalan’s “The Last Airbender,” made nearly $100 million less in the same span. But all was not all wine and roses for the sparkly vampires: The final box office take for “Eclipse” was $295 million, meaning it made more than half its total gross in that opening salvo, then faded quickly.

It faded quickly enough, in fact, that it easily lost the next weekend to animated comedy “Despicable Me,” which bowed to more than $57 million. Then, the next weekend saw the arrival of “Inception,” which earned $62 million, an impressive haul for a live-action film without an existing franchise. (Disney’s live-action contender, “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice,” was dead out of the starting gate in the same week.) “Inception” would win the next two weekends, too, outpacing Angelina Jolie’s “Salt” the first week, and Steve Carell’s “Dinner for Schmucks” in the second, to close out the month.

August: “Inception” would finally be dethroned from the box office crown in its fourth weekend, losing to Will Ferrell’s “The Other Guys,” which opened with $35 million, though the former champ would hang on in second place. This past weekend saw “The Expendables” take the crown, earning $35 million, with Julia Roberts’s “Eat Pray Love” a solid second.

It may seem early to call the movie season a wrap, but looking ahead to future weeks makes it clear the summer is really over. Is anyone expecting “Nanny McPhee Returns” or “Piranha 3D” to pack ‘em in the theaters? So, we’re left to look at a disappointing and disheartening season of a few hits and a whole lot of misses, movies that were phenoms one week and gone the next.

All is not lost for the year, of course. 2009’s biggest hit, “Avatar,” didn’t arrive until December. But the events of the past few months do lead one to wonder what in the coming months can shake the movies out of their current doldrums. Will “Harry Potter,” “Narnia” or “Tron” be able to spike interest and salvage 2010? And if not, what can?

E-mail Jeff at PopGoesJeff@gmail.com.

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Pop Goes the Culture

McGinnis: Another look at ‘Inception’

Written by Jeff McGinnis | | jmcginnis@toledofreepress.com

In its first weekend, Christopher Nolan’s film  “Inception” grossed an impressive $63 million, then won two more weekends in a row, an accomplishment almost unheard of in a summer of mainly “one weekend and done” grosses. “Inception” has never lost more than 35 percent of its viewers from week to week and $300 million in North America is within reach.

“Inception” is certain to reign supreme as one of the most talked-about movies of 2010. Here are just a few of the questions the movie inspires:

SPOLIER ALERT

1. Does the top fall?

No ending in modern cinema may be more debated than the final shot of “Inception,” which leaves its audience with the tantalizing question of whether the film is all a dream. Cobb, the hero played by Leonardo DiCaprio, absent-mindedly spins a top that serves as a “totem,” a verification that he is back in the real world. If it stops spinning, he knows everything is real. As he sees his children for the first time in years, the camera lingers on the top, which wavers, but does not quite fall. Then the movie cuts suddenly to black.

(The question of what Cobb’s totem really is has inspired much debate. A popular theory online is that Cobb’s wedding ring is his real totem — a ring which is noticably absent in that last scene, which seems to indicate that the reunion is, indeed, the real deal.)

Is he still trapped in a dream? Has the story we’ve seen been a tragedy, the machinations of a mind trying to cope and ultimately creating his own, false happy ending? Or does the top fall just after we, the viewer, can see it? There is no answer, of course. Just like the contents of the case in “Pulp Fiction,” Nolan gives his audience enough to allow them to make up their own minds, but tantalizes them with the

possibility that they’re wrong.

Does the top fall? You tell me.

2. Did Nolan rip off … Scrooge McDuck?

One of the most popular theories on the Web states that the plot of “Inception” is copied from a comic book starring Disney’s favorite cantankerous billionaire. In a May 2002 issue of “Uncle Scrooge,” the villainous Beagle Boys use an invention to invade Scrooge’s dreams, in an effort to learn the combination of his money bin (see a panel from the strip below). Donald goes in after to save him. People in the dream are woken up by falling off the edge of the dreamworld. In “Inception,” people are woken from deeper dream scapes through a different process called a “kick.”

So, did Nolan swipe the idea from here? Most probably not. Nolan has said in interviews that he’s been working on the concept since 1990, and has toiled on a script since 2000. Some may claim he’s just covering up, but which sounds more plausible: That a talented filmmaker happened to be working on a rough concept that was similar to this story, or that Nolan pored through back issues of Disney comics to inspire his magnum opus?

3. Is it Oscar time?

Two years ago, “The Dark Knight” was widely heralded as one of the best films of its year, but was denied a Best Picture nomination. As a perceived by-product of this, the Academy massively overhauled its voting process and widened the field to 10 films. In a year where so little has been outstanding (“Toy Story 3” is basically the only other great movie of the summer), a Best Picture nomination for “Inception” seems a certainty. But does it have a chance at winning? The odds against it are long, though the rest of the year does have a distinct lack of noteworthy contenders. Ask again in three months, and we’ll have a better idea.

4. What’s next?

For Nolan, next is the biggest assignment of all: the as-yet untitled third “Batman” movie. Heavy rumors have him casting one of his “Inception” actors — DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt or Tom Hardy — as the Riddler.

E-mail Jeff at PopGoesJeff@gmail.com.

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Lighting the Fuse

Deception

Written by Michael Miller | Editor in Chief | mmiller@toledofreepress.com

The Architect: Baldemar Velasquez

The Extractor: Joe McNamara

The Point Man: Adam Martinez

The Forger: D. Michael Collins

The Shade: George Sarantou

The Tourists: Michael Ashford, Wilma Brown, Phil Copeland, Mike Craig, Steve Steel, Lindsay Webb

The Mark: Political integrity

SCENE: Int. Toledo City Council Chambers. Velasquez, McNamara and Martinez huddle around a table stacked with file folders, newspaper clippings and photos.

Velasquez: “Is inception possible? Can we break into the subconsciousness of City Council to implant a resolution to officially criticize Arizona’s immigration policy?”

Martinez: “Absolutely yes!”

McNamara: “We’ve tried twice and failed. To implant an idea, especially one founded on emotion instead of logic, we may have to repeatedly adapt and water down the idea.”

Velasquez: “What happened the first two times? The Lucas County Commissioners Extractor Team was able to make an official statement without any fuss.”

McNamara: “They have a lot of practice with implementing nonessential policy. Plus, there are only three of them. For us to implant this criticism into an official resolution, we will have to go at least seven layers deep. The first time we tried, the wording was so neophyte and reactionary, it read more like a high school debate response than official city business. Isn’t that right, Adam?”

Martinez: “Absolutely yes!”

McNamara: “The second time, we got as deep as six layers, but the projections of logic and sense stopped us cold. Mayor Bell had an opportunity to help us implant the idea, but he chose not to. At least we got to go in The Blade the next day and moan about Bell’s vote, didn’t we, Adam?”

Martinez: “Absolutely yes!”

McNamara spins a metal top on the table. It rotates rapidly, then wobbles and topples.

Velasquez: “What is that?”

McNamara: “It’s my totem. Trying to force through personal crusade resolutions that have failed twice, while ignoring the issues that are crushing Toledo, can be tiring and confusing. If I spin the totem and it falls, I know I’m not lost in the extraction or inception levels.”

CLOSE-UP: Camera focuses on top as it lies still.

Velasquez: “So what is the plan for the third attempt?”

McNamara: “We need to enter someone’s mind and engineer an epic flip-flop. If we can make that happen, we will be able to plant the resolution into official policy.”

Velasquez: “Who do we target?”

McNamara: “It needs to be a vocal opponent, so that when the flip-flop happens, the ‘change of heart’ will break the resistance of enough others to force this through.”

Velasquez: “Who is most susceptible?”

McNamara: “Maybe we can get you close enough to Collins to work on the language and implant the notion that a new, third draft is actually his idea. Do you agree, Adam?”

Martinez: “Absolutely yes!”

SCENE: Ext. Rainy day in Downtown Toledo. Velasquez, McNamara and Martinez drive a white van through the dreamscape in Collins’ mind. They pull into a deserted building (it doesn’t really matter which one. There are plenty to choose from). The three men drag the dreaming projection of Collins from the van.

McNamara: “What Arizona is doing is terrible. It’s racial profiling. We need to let Arizona know we don’t like it.”

Collins: “That has nothing to do with the governance of Toledo.”

McNamara: “But we don’t like it.”

Collins: “That would be an epic flip-flop. Why would I do that? The resolution is terrible. It says it does not ‘engage, discuss or express an opinion on the complex issues of immigration,’ so what is the point?”

McNamara: “That was two versions ago. The one you are going to fight for isn’t about Arizona.”

Collins: “I don’t know …”

Velasquez: “I represent a lot of voters who don’t like what Arizona is doing. A lot of voters in the South End. You serve part of the South End, right? Let’s work on the language and find a version you can present as yours.”

Collins: “How much time are we going to spend on this?”

McNamara: “In top-level real time, hours over the course of months. At this level, which represents the future development of Toledo, years of lost productivity are impacted.”

Collins: “What about Ludeman? Sarantou? Waniewski?”

McNamara: “Ludeman and Waniewski won’t lie down with us to dream and work on this. Sarantou is running for county commissioner against a woman named Contrada. We think he’ll switch.”

Collins: (looking at Velasquez): “How many voters?”

Velasquez: “A lot of voters.”

Collins: “And it doesn’t really do anything, right?”

Martinez: “Absolutely yes!”

McNamara: “He means no.”

Collins: “I’m going back to sleep. Wake me when it’s done.”

FADE TO BLACK

SCENE: Int. Toledo City Council Chambers, Aug. 3, 2010. Resolution on Calling for Immigration Reform, Opposing Human Trafficking & Unscrupulous Employment passes without discussion. McNamara spins the top on the table. It rotates, rotates, rotates, rotates, wobbles, then

E-mail Michael S. Miller at mmiller@toledofreepress.com.

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Pop Goes the Culture

McGinnis: ‘Inception’ cements Nolan’s reputation

Written by Jeff McGinnis | | jmcginnis@toledofreepress.com

Some films benefit from repeat viewings. “Inception” demands them. This is one of the most straightforwardly complicated films you will ever see — a movie that revels in telling a fairly simple story with remarkable intricacy, involving layer after layer of detail in level after level of narrative. Whatever you do, do not walk in late. You’ll never be able to follow it. Heck, you might not be able to follow it even if you see the whole thing.

It also cemented director Christopher Nolan’s legacy as one of the most remarkable talents of this generation. Since his triumphant burst onto the scene with 2000’s “Memento,” Nolan has continuously turned out some of the most exciting and challenging works of any mainstream director.

Many of Nolan’s best films deal in a very nonlinear form of storytelling, constructed in a unique way for dramatic effect. “Memento” was told in reverse, giving us the end of the tale first, so we could understand the real climax was at the beginning. “The Prestige” jumped back and forth in its tale about feuding magicians, illustrating in narrative form the secretive nature of the world it depicted.

And with “Inception,” he has woven a tale that seems like a combination of both of those films, one that deals in varying levels of the subconscious, each with its own sense of time, all happening simultaneously. This isn’t just about people operating in a dream world, it’s about dreams within dreams, and even dreams beyond that. Compared to this, “The Matrix” is child’s play.

This paragraph will be my only attempt to deal with the film’s plot — any more and it would be unfair to the experience of seeing it unfold, and besides, I’m not sure how much I’m going to get right anyway. The movie stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Cobb, a specialist in “extraction,” a sort of mindcrime where a victim’s dreams are infiltrated to steal their prized secrets. A businessman played by Ken Watanabe approaches Cobb with a request to perform inception — the implanting of an idea into a subject’s mind. Everyone says it’s impossible, but, for reasons best left unsaid, Cobb is convinced to try.

The film takes the form of a heist caper, but one of the most involved you’ve ever seen. The movie’s first third or so takes a great deal of time establishing the rules and concepts behind mindcrime, and a protégé (played by the wonderful Ellen Page) is introduced as a focus for all the explanations. If there is a criticism to be leveled at the film, it is that much of its early dialogue feels more like exposition than actual conversation, but admittedly, without that the audience would be totally adrift.

Often one hears visuals described as “breathtaking,” but honestly, you’ve never seen anything like what “Inception” presents. The dream worlds the characters inhabit are easily influenced by suggestion and outside forces — when a dreamer is rocked in the real world, the dream world they’re in reflects the change.

This leads to remarkable scenes where gravity is constantly shifting, weather patterns change on a whim, and entire structures crumble without warning.

These are some of the most remarkable effects I’ve seen in years.

The cast must also be praised. This is one of Leonardo DiCaprio’s best performances. He continues his remarkable run as an actor who always seems to participate in fascinating material — though considering both Scorsese and Nolan want to work with him, that’s a natural by-product. His support staff not only includes Page but the excellent Joseph Gordon-Levitt (recovering nicely from “G.I. Joe”) and Nolan regular Michael Caine in a small but pivotal role.

Their victim is played by the awesome Cillian Murphy (“28 Days Later” and “Batman Begins”). And Oscar winner Marion Cotillard’s natural luminance helps contribute to her effectiveness as … but no, I’m not giving that away, either.

“Inception” is like nothing you have ever seen or will ever see again. In a summer where so little has been great, and even less has been challenging, here stands Nolan delivering a remarkable story that insists its audience keep up with it. It may be difficult to follow at times but like a complicated puzzle, the rewards of finding its solution are great, indeed, and it still leaves us with questions to debate for years to come.

This is a film that every moviegoer needs to experience.

E-mail Jeff at PopGoesJeff@gmail.com.

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