January 3rd, 2008
Posted by
Ian W |
Action, Comic Book, Movie Reviews, Science Fiction |
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What better way to start a season of films based on comic books than with Richard Donner’s Superman? This is the yardstick by which all subsequent superhero movies have been measured (and usually found wanting), it’s also the one that provided the blueprint for doing it right -
- Take the subject seriously but not too seriously.
- Pepper the film with respected thespians.
- Stick closely to the source material (there’s a reason these characters have been around for decades).
Of course you can stick to those rules and still turn out a dub if you don’t have the secret ingredient that’ll make it all work. Superman’s secret ingredient is Christopher Reeve. In a film that features Marlon Brando, Trevor Howard, Glen Ford and Gene Hackman, it’s Reeve, an unknown at the time, who makes the biggest impression (particularly as Clark). The effects, which seemed so amazing when I first saw the film at the cinema aged 13, now seem dated but that just serves to focus the attention more on the performances.
It’s not perfect, the teenage Clark Kent section goes on a bit too long and we don’t see Sups until an hour into the film. I could also happily do without the “Can you read my mind” flying scene with Lois Lane, and while we’re on the subject of Lane, I’ve never seen what the attraction would be for Clark. Margot Kidder’s Lois is rude, arrogant and, lets be honest, not much of a looker. That Reeve makes us believe in this bizarre attraction, most memorably in the poignant finale, just emphasises how impressive he is.
December 31st, 2007
Posted by
Ian W |
Movie Reviews, Science Fiction |
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The final film in the DEFA science fiction box set is by far the worst. A spacecraft lands on an alien world in response to a distress signal but the inhabitants claim the message was only sent to test the transmitter. Before long the crew of the ship find that the real natives of the planet are being used as slaves to work in mines under the supervision of an alien race.
To call the film simplistic would be to understate matters. The evil aliens forcing the natives to work in the mines are the evil capitalists (to show how evil they are, they keep snakes as pets!) while the good aliens are the communists, come to save the poor downtrodden workers from oppression. The film has nothing more to offer than that jingoistic point of view and it gets tired long before the 90min running time has run its course.
In place of a more interesting plot we get some dance sequences, including one in the nude (though only in silhouette). Imagine Pan’s People in a musical episode of Doctor Who (original vintage, not the current series) but without the charismatic presence of the Doctor and you’ll have some idea of how tedious this was to sit through.
It’s hard to believe this was made only the year before Close Encounters of the Third Kind. It’s not just budget and language that set the films apart but ideals as well. Hollywood had got over it’s obsession with invading aliens/communists but on the other side of the Iron Curtain they were still pushing the same tired propaganda.
December 25th, 2007
Posted by
Ian W |
Animation, Movie Reviews, Science Fiction |
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I’ll keep this brief because it’s Christmas.
Philip K. Dick’s work is notoriously difficult to film, and while there have been some classic SF movies made from his stories (Blade Runner, Total Recall, Minority Report) none have really captured that essential Dickness.
Richard Linklater’s film puts an end to that. All the hallucinogenic paranoia of Dick’s book is translated to the screen, as are the weird and wonderful characters that people the Dickverse. The unique animation style, rotoscoping, adds to the surreal feel of the film. The scrambler suit’s that allow the undercover agents to keep their identity secret even from the people they work with are like nothing I’ve seen in an animated film before, or a live action one come to that.
Rather than distract from the actors performances the animation seems to enhance them. Keanu Reeves, as the undercover cop investigating himself, has never been better. Winona Ryder hasn’t been this good for a long time and Woody Harrelson adds a little humour as Reeves drug buddy. Best of all though is Robert Downey Jr. whose highly animated performance (pun intended) is a real treat.
A Scanner Darkly is a must see for Dick fans, particularly those disappointed with previous adaptations or for anyone who loves intelligent science fiction.
Next week: The last Animonday and my favourite animated film of all time.
December 24th, 2007
Posted by
Ian W |
Movie Reviews, Science Fiction |
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No doubt this Spanish production was hoping to cash in on Hollywood’s Red Planet and Mission to Mars, sadly for Stranded both of those films flopped. When the first manned mission to Mars results in a crashed ship the five survivors must try and find a way to survive on the hostile planet until a rescue mission can arrive. With rescue at least two years away it becomes clear that there is only enough food and air to save two of the crew with the others going for a last walk on the red planet.
For the first hour the film attempts a serious examination of the plight of the stranded astronauts before throwing an ancient Martian civilisation into the mix almost as an afterthought. While it almost feels like a different film, it’s this final third that is the most interesting part of the movie. Unfortunately it runs out of ideas, leaving one with the feeling that the ancient civilisation is there just to allow some of the crew a chance at survival and too pad the running time to feature length.
There are some familiar faces among the crew - Maria de Medeiros (Pulp Fiction), Joaquim de Almeida (Desperado) and Vincent Gallo as a sleazy engineer who sees imminent death as a chance to get laid. Rounding out the crew are Danel Aser and María Lidón who both give weak performances that suffer in comparison to the more seasoned pros they share screen time with. Lidón is also responsible for the rather dull narration, she’s just found an alien civilisation but from the excitement in her voice you’d think she’d discovered the local Sainsbury’s. Strangest casting goes to Johnny Ramone (of the Ramones) as the astronaut left aboard the orbiting section of the ship.
