Dark City is one of my favourite films and to this day remains largely forgotten and under-appreciated. Released in 1998 just one year before turn of the century megahit The Matrix, Dark City features a similar plot centred on a protagonist discovering that reality around him is fake and that he is being manipulated by malevolent beings who seek to control and exploit humanity.
Whilst The Matrix is inspired by cyberpunk and creates a digital retelling of age old Christian, Platonic and Hindu myths and parables (as well as much more), Dark City is far more inspired by film noir and German Expressionism, whilst also incorporating some existentialist and gnostic themes of its own.
This is a beautifully crafted film featuring fantastic imagery and cinematography with intricate set design reminiscent of Metropolis and Brazil. This is a really dark movie that you kind of have to watch with the lights out. Dark City indeed.
The film has a strong cast with Rufus Sewel taking the lead role as John Murdoch, a man whose life is spiralling out of control after he wakes up with amnesia and believes he has been framed for a series of gruesome murders. Meanwhile he is being contacted by a mysterious doctor Schreber played by Kiefer Sutherland. He seeks out his wife, a classically noir looking singer (Jennifer Connelly), whilst being tracked down by an inspector played by (William Hurt). Together they begin to question the world around them.
John Murdoch is a sympathetic and understandably slightly unhinged character whose journey to unravel the conspiracy behind the Dark City and his bizarre memories is classic surrealist sci-fi that incorporates many subtle and sophisticated metaphors in both the films visuals and soundtrack that provide clues to the films complex plot and themes. The film isn’t action packed, but does weave a tense thriller with an excellent central mystery and finishes in an apocalyptic and world-changing climax with striking visual effects.
It’s been praised by many critics since release but failed to capture the imagination of the masses and so remains a hidden gem, a thinking man’s cult classic that has a lot to analyse and appreciate. Check it out if you haven’t already.
Over the past decade, Marvel have taken characters formally thought of as B-list superheroes like Iron Man, Thor and Captain America and turned them into household names and guaranteed money at the box office. Can they do it again with Ant-Man? Yes. Yes they can.
The movie’s success hinges largely on its main actor, and fortunately Paul Rudd nails it. In a potentially very silly film, Rudd needs to succeed and thankfully he is very funny, sympathetic and sincere. Unlike the standard trope of an orphan with murdered parents who becomes an unlikely hero through some life altering event; Scott Lang is a talented but misguided man who is actually selected for the job by the man who designed the Ant Man suit, Hank Pym (played really well by Michael Douglas). In the film’s opening quarter, he is a down on his luck ex con that is trying to turn his life around for his daughter, but struggling to make ends meet.
He’s given a shot at redemption by Dr Pym, an amazing scientist, who wants to stop his revolutionary technology being militarized. Marvel has stated before that each film they do is in a different genre. Captain America was like an old war movie, The Winter Soldier was an espionage/spy thriller, and Guardians was a space opera. Ant-Man is very much a heist movie, and the heist scenes themselves are brilliantly done and very fun to watch. The uniqueness of Ant-Man’s abilities make for some very interesting opportunities for action sequences and thankfully the whole team behind the movie from the director to the special effects guys have seized every chance to make this a fantastic spectacle, with some of the most intricately designed and well thought-out action scenes in any superhero film that feature a creativity that put most generic action movie car chases and gun fights to shame.
Every time we go into the micro world of the Ant-Man suit, it’s a really memorable and special scene, with sequences just as good if not better than the best of Toy Story, The Borrowers, A Bugs Life, Mousetrap, Small Soldiers, Honey, I shrunk the Kids and other micro-world/toy type films. The sets are excellently crafted and there are a lot of physical props too which goes a long way towards making things appear believable. The Ant-Man suit itself is a really well made and sturdy looking costume. When Paul Rudd holds it in his hands it feels like a very real and genuine part of the world that they could have just done in CGI, but instead it’s actually right there and has a nice tactile quality that helps the other scenes seem real. Not all the CGI is convincing, such as the ants themselves, but that doesn’t really take away from the imaginative action scenes.
The movie is very self-aware and knows how ridiculous its premise must seem, even compared to other superhero films and director Peyton Reed has to be given credit for taking this seriously. “Is it too late to change the name?” Asks Scott Lang. This film has many really amusing, cheeky moments but fortunately the humour is content enough to be amusing, and doesn’t go too far trying to be hilarious, or veer into straight up comedy. Again, a lot of this comes from the great set designs and props.
This film also benefits from good supporting characters, something Marvel’s breakout success Iron Man mostly lacked. Michael Douglas as Hank Pym and his badass daughter played by Evangeline Lilly are great, and feel very realistic, never going over the top. A lot of the humour comes from Scott’s former heist team, especially Michael Pena, who gets most of the laughs. By far the most unexpected highlight is Scott’s daughter, who is really cute and funny, but never annoying as a lot of child characters tend to be. The film really strides when it is showcasing its own kooky humour, a lot like Guardians.
Corey Stoll has a difficult job to pull off as the villain Darren Cross, but the writing and performance are strong enough to pull through. Unfortunately this is a relatively unmemorable villain who just sort of has to be there in order to give Ant-Man a reason to exist in the first place; but he is skilfully written – just enough of a psychopath to be a threat, but just restrained enough to not seem ridiculous, and that goes for the movie as a whole as well as it manages to be action packed and really entertaining without ever getting too stupid or carried away with itself. This movie knows how to keep it small, in more ways than one, and doesn’t feel the need to go out of its way to prove its importance. Scott Lang suggests they call the Avengers, but Hank Pym convinces him that things need to be kept quiet, and whilst there is a satisfying climax and final heist scene, the movie doesn’t end with massive city-wide carnage (“dropping cities out of the sky”) and doesn’t go for the world-changing events that the Avengers have to deal with. This is a great little origin story for Ant-Man and packed full of imagination and creativity. Marvel have done it again and taken an underdog story and made Ant-Man a force to be reckoned with that will no doubt gain huge success. I can’t wait to see Paul Rudd’s Scott Lang crossover into other Marvel titles. One of the best films this summer.
The 2000s were all about the gritty reboot. So we got quite a few of our favourite franchises granted new entries that were darker and grittier than before. Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines featured a John Connor who was a drug addict on the run and oh by the way, you can’t stop Judgement Day and the future is already set in stone. It was an all right action movie but was basically the same thing but with a female terminator. Terminator Salvation took things even further, with a gruff looking Christian Bale fighting a desperate battle in a grimdark post-apocalyptic wasteland with lots of humans captured and enslaved by Skynet. It was a decent action film and it was good to finally get a film set after Judgement Day so we could see the war against the machines, but there weren’t any purple lasers so I was left a little disappointed. Jurassic Park 3 was less about the park and more of a survival horror that was rated PG. The Dark Knight trilogy made us all take Batman as seriously as any sombre crime drama and the Bourne movies made spy thrillers realistic. Predators was a decent and thankfully violent addition to the Predator series. Even Harry Potter got darker as it went along.
Recently however, this trend has reversed. Seeing the incredible success that Marvel have achieved with their formula of fun and tongue in cheek action movies, many other studios are following suit. Jurassic World came back to big success, with a fun movie that recaptures much of the spirit of the original. Star Wars is set to return at the end of the year, and from all the hype around the film’s production, it looks to return to classic space opera and practical special effects. Star Trek has also been rebooted with mostly fun, goofy adventures in space. Apparently Alien is coming back too, and is ignoring everything but the first two films, just like the film in question: Terminator Genysis. Because it’s running alongside these trends, Genysis feels like a lowest common denominator film callously crafted to fit this new blockbuster formula.
Ignoring the dark tone of the previous two sequels, and in fact ignoring their continuity in the canon completely; this film sets out to be another fun, nostalgic action movie. The trailers seemed to scream “Hey! Remember that scene you enjoyed from the first or second movie? Here it is again! Only the actors are different and lol Arnold’s old now.” And if you did see the trailers, you should know that this is pretty much exactly what you get: a nostalgic rehash of the first two films (the only ones most would consider classics), but with more CGI, worse performances, and way too much time travel jargon to try and justify the whole thing. It’s all very retro with the pew pew purple lasers and scenes recreated sometimes wholesale from the first two films.
This time around, Sarah Connor knows Kyle Reese is coming and has been preparing for years. The set-up is the exact same as the first film, only this time Kyle Reese is the fish out of water, and finds himself a little unnecessary to Sarah, the woman he’s supposed to be trying to protect. The movie actually recreates some of his scenes from the first film, with Reese arriving naked in that cool lightning ball thingy from the originals and being hunted down by the liquid metal Terminator cop from Terminator 2.
In this film, it’s Sarah Connor who saves him, and Reese discovers that there’s been a Terminator protecting her all this time. I kid you not; she refers to this Terminator as “pops”. Not once, but many times throughout the movie. For real. The Terminator is played by old Arnold, whose organic skin has aged around him even as his metal skeleton is still deadly as ever. Fair enough, this is an easy sci-fi hand wave I can get behind, and way simpler and easier than the rest of the time travel stuff that comes later. “Old but not obsolete.” He says. They could explore what being raised by a machine has done to her over the years, but they actually don’t delve that deeply into it.
The dynamic between the three of them is what keeps the action train rolling, as they try to once again stop Skynet from nuking everyone in judgement day. Unfortunately, the two main stars in this film: Emlia Clarke and Jai Courtney are just kind of weak, they aren’t terrible and do a decent enough job, but they lack the believability of their predecessors in the same roles. Jai Courtney is a serviceable actor but doesn’t have the kind of desperation that made Michael Biehn’s Kyle Reese so great in The Terminator. I also had trouble believing Emilia Clarke as the tough as nails Sarah Connor. I like Emilia Clarke as the Khaleesi, but I feel that she is just too pretty and effeminate (almost baby-faced) to play such a strong and jaded character. I hope it doesn’t make me a misogynist who can’t accept a character who’s both feminine and strong, but it’s hard to pretend I wasn’t trying to suspend disbelief throughout the performance, especially considering that I know she’s actually British and putting on an American accent. If you want a real throwback to tough female characters like Sarah Connor, Charlize Theron’s Furiosa from Mad Max: Fury Road is a much better bet.
What hurts these two the most is that they are clearly good actors struggling through a very poor script. A lot of scenes feature way too much sci-fi exposition to try and justify the time travel shenanigans going on, and some of the dialogue is just fucking crap. I found myself rolling my eyes throughout many of the scenes, and trying not to cringe in others. As mentioned earlier, this film is going for a much lighter and funnier tone than its predecessors, but a lot of the jokes fall flat and some of the forced humour is just awful. The fact that a lot of the film is a re-tread of scenes we’ve already seen before, makes it all the worse, because it feels like Terminator is almost becoming a parody of itself. Whilst the first film was a genuinely brutal, relentless action film and the second one of the best popcorn blockbusters ever, the sequels seemed to go with what whatever was popular at the time. Terminator 3 was a generic action movie trying to be a bit more modern and cool than its precursors, whilst Salvation was a dreary post-apocalyptic mess; and Genysis is a goofy, post-modern resequelboot that unfortunately fails to be as funny or original as the Avengers or the new Star Trek films.
On a positive note, Arnold is still just Arnold. Unfortunately he’s sort of relegated to comic relief here, and the jokes mostly suck. If you loved Terminator 2, and think Arnold talking in a monotone voice and not understanding human emotions is hilarious, then you might like this. But the mostly silent, relentless assassin from the first film is my favourite version, and seeing Arnold crack an awkward grin after being taught to smile by Sarah Connor to help him fit in more just felt like a big step down for this once mighty series.
As far as the action goes, it’s all fairly standard stuff and features tons of gunfire and explosions, and plenty of up close and personal encounters with the liquid terminator and his cool blades he makes out of his arms. Unfortunately there’s a ton of clichés as the protagonists are always given just enough time to escape, and the super strong metal Terminators just tossing people into walls instead of say, instantly crushing their windpipe (to be fair though, this has always been a problem with the series). It’s one chase scene after another, but the escapes always seem inevitable and the danger rarely seems as real as it could be – and do we really need yet another scene featuring the Golden Gate Bridge getting wrecked? Towards the end, it seemed obvious that the Terminators would never get the heroes, no matter how hard they tried.
The film tries to do new stuff with Skynet. Stupidly, they blew their load prematurely in the trailers, which give away the majority of what’s going on. Jason Clarke gives the most enjoyable performance of the film as John Connor, and makes for a slimy, dastardly villain. However, he’s kind of creepy and unnerving from the very beginning, so it seems kind of telegraphed (or it would be if the trailers didn’t give it away anyway.) The rest of the film and it’s crappy dialogue and funny tone make this feel like a YA version of Terminator, especially the kind of forced, inevitable romance between the two lead actors that we can all see coming. This film felt totally unnecessary and completely predictable; with some honestly pretty embarrassingly bad scenes. I went into the theatre wanting to like this, but perhaps it was best to leave this venerable series alone for good. Probably the worst Terminator sequel yet; I won’t be buying the DVD for my collection any time soon.
Holy shit! What a ride! George Miller returns to the trilogy he created 30 years later to give us what is not only a legitimate Mad Max film, but one that might be the best of them all.
Smashing all expectations, this visceral and intense blockbuster is not only one of the best action movies in recent memory but may go on to be considered amongst the best of all time. Believe the hype. With the power of a bigger budget behind him, it seems that Miller has finally crafted the film he has been dreaming about all these years, with Mad Max: Fury Road taking audiences to a desert dystopia in a vaguely defined and brilliantly realized near (or far?) future in which our hero Mad Max finds himself a man on the run, “reduced to a single instinct: survive”.
Max is played by Tom Hardy, who imitates Mel Gibson’s unhinged performance, replete with a lot of mumbling, non-verbal communication and crazy eyes. His performance is actually very subtle and a world away from the traditional blockbuster hero spouting one-liners for the trailer and in truth Max has become so broken over the course of the series that there isn’t much personality left. He even has his face obscured by a mask for much of the films first act, so kudos to Hardy for taking on this role. What the film lacks in a traditional, sympathetic protagonist it makes up for in the characters that surround Max, who is more like a conduit for the audiences view into this world. The film is in fact far more about Charlize Theron’s character, named Furiosa. Whilst Max may give his name to the title, this is Furiosa’s film, and it follows her attempts to rescue a group of sex-slave brides under the domination of warlord Immortan Joe (played by Hugh Keays-Byrne – who also played villain of the first film). The film has been described by many as “feminist” and it’s hard to ignore the obvious gender connotations. Charlize Theron is brilliant. Tough but vulnerable, jaded yet hopeful, vicious but ethical; Furiosa is the breakout star of this film and the most important woman in science fiction since Sigourney Weaver’s Ellen Ripley and Linda Hamilton’s Sarah Connor.
Max is mostly just caught up in Furiosa’s attempt to escape Immortan Joe’s kingdom with the brides and find the mythical green place amongst the wasteland. This gives the plot its main arch and the film essentially consists almost entirely of a marathon car chase, as if George Miller filmed Speed whilst stuck in the outback on acid. For those that like practical effects, this is the most important film of the decade, featuring tons of real cars in fantastic chase sequences and amazingly choreographed stunts. It would be a crying shame if the future DVD release didn’t feature a big documentary on how all this was done. There are very few obvious CGI moments, and the vehicular carnage amongst Australia’s scorching wastelands is a gift to petrol heads everywhere. The orange deserts (filmed in Namibia) are as beautiful as they are brutal. I felt very thirsty throughout the whole movie, and not just because I was hungover. The designs in the film are bristling with detail, and every set and prop has a fantastic dieselpunk, ramshackle style that really brings this D.I.Y dystopia to life. There are plenty of little world building details that are never explicitly explained but add a brilliant backdrop to the action in a way that is reminiscent of Star Wars. The film’s setting is perfect, and has just enough dirt and grit to complement the film’s bleak tone, but just enough silliness in some of the characters and costumes to put the “Mad” in Mad Max. The guitar that shoots flames is a particular highlight, and despite how it sounds doesn’t detract from the intensity and immediacy of the conflict.
Tom Holkenborg’s relentless soundtrack punctuates the chaos like a mad drummer leading a grindcore band, and even Verdi’s Requiem– Dies Irae is featured (and totally fits!). Nicholas Hoult gives a great performance and is in danger of stealing some of the scenes, whilst a brilliant stunt cast of maniacs keep the madness and the action going whilst looking like professional wrestlers who’ve raided the local hardware store. It’s a hell of a ride and a sight to behold, definitely a step above and beyond the usual popcorn flick.
Despite all the sound and the fury, there a lot of subtle moments that really go a long way to making this a quality film and the movie repeatedly subverts audience expectations by avoiding the standard Hollywood clichés and ends up being satisfyingly refreshing as a result. Were this simply a dumb action movie, it would still go down as one of the most exhilarating and intense films in the genre, but the film has many understated messages about nature, religion and most explicitly gender that are just begging to be analysed in the future.
It’s a spectacular production that has clearly had a ton of thought and effort put into it and totally deserves the rave reviews that have been coming non-stop. Almost bursting at the seams with originality and creativity, the film avoids the usual check-list for blockbuster plot points and predictable, forced drama and instead pummels the viewer with relentless violence and thrilling stunts whilst managing to be clever and surprising in all the best ways. Truly a great effort that will be talked about for years to come. Unless Star Wars smashes it in December, this is film of the year material right now. Seriously. What a rush!
Over the past few weeks we’ve had a lot of full trailers released, here’s the ones that caught my attention:
Terminator Genysis
I’ll start with the most disappointing. Just like in Terminator Salvation they’ve given away half the plot and what seems to be the main twist already. I’m seriously beginning to consider just watching teasers and skipping full trailers because of this sort of thing. It looks to be a fairly cheesy revisit of Terminator 2. At least it’ll be fairly entertaining, I guess.
Tomorrowland
It looks goofy. It looks inventive. It looks entertaining enough. It might get a bit lost amongst all the other blockbusters being released though.
Ant-Man
Definitely more promising than the teasers, now I’m finally excited to see what looks to be another underdog film from Marvel featuring a hero we’ve never seen before. I’m also looking forward to seeing Evangeline Lilly.
Fantastic Four
With the goofy 2000s movies largely considered a failure this reboot takes the fantastic four a little more seriously. It has a darker colour scheme and is rumoured to feature some dark body horror scenes. Still not sure if this will be a flop or not.
Jurassic World
Again a little too much revealed here but it’s not so bad. We get the understanding of what the plot is like for sure but there’s plenty room for more. It’s now confirmed that Chris Pratt is indeed training raptors, which is either awesome or stupid depending on what kind of film you’re hoping for.
Star Wars: Rebels
What a trailer! Now this is how its done. Plenty of action but little idea of major plot points; mostly focusing on returning clone wars characters. There are many beloved characters from the Clone Wars that appear here including Ahsoka and my personal favourite Captain Rex.
Call of Duty: Blacks Ops 3
Damn, Call of Duty gets more and more cyberpunk with each release, and they’ve gone full Deus Ex with this trailer. I haven’t even played Advanced Warfare yet, but I gotta admit all this sci-fi stuff in the series lately has me more interested in Cod than I have been in a long time. No gameplay footage yet, but you should know what to expect by now.
Batman v Superman
I’m actually one of those nutters that really enjoyed Man of Steel, so I’ve been looking forward to seeing where the franchise will go next. I was hoping for a Superman 2 before Justice League, but it looks like DC are way too anxious to get their own multi-hero films going, and so they are throwing in Batman straight away. Are they getting ahead of themselves? Hopefully this film gives enough screen time to both characters in order to properly develop this world. The trailer looks interesting but we still don’t know what the main film will be about other than this superhero match-up. Do Batman and Superman really need to fight each other? They’re just going to become good friends at the end in prep for the inevitable Justice League film, right? The writers have a tough job on this one but I hope it works out for the best.
Star Wars Episode 7
Yes I’ve saved the best for last. Not much to say about this. It’s perfect.
Some other films from 2014 that were surprising, noteworthy or just solidly entertaining.
Predestination
Though it may be slow and tedious at times this film offers one of the most unique depictions of time travel of any movie in recent memory and is worth seeing for that alone. I can’t elaborate much without spoiling the plot so go see it. It’s also quite stylishly noir, if you’re into that kind of thing.
Robocop
A surprisingly watchable remake that may the lack the true depth and nuances of the original classic, but nonetheless is a genuinely entertaining action movie that contains at least a little bit of the satire that made the original a classic. I just wonder why it needed to be called Robocop and why it didn’t get an R rating. Still, not a complete disaster and worth a watch.
Big Hero 6
Disney’s most contemporary movie features a bunch of wiz kids creating crazy futuristic tech whilst using modern slang and taking selfies. Pretty good, though it may seem dated by the end of the decade, as opposed to Disney’s more timeless films. It’s a colourful and energetic film that has fun and heart. Cool new Fall Out Boy songs on the soundtrack.
Automata
Antonio Banderas stars as a man tasked with investigating malfunctioning robots. What he finds is a spark of self-awareness that has runaway effects and will change the world forever. This film got smashed by critics, which I think is wholly unfair. Not only does it resist Hollywood clichés and inclinations for violence and action above substance, it actually benefits from its relatively low budget and creates a more quiet and thoughtful sci-fi movie, and offers a refreshing take on artificial intelligence, in which for once the robots don’t try to wipe out humanity for no good reason as soon as their brains are switched on. If anything the plot is similar to Blade Runner and though the film is not of the best quality all round, it has some good, challenging moments that go deeper than the average action flick, a lot like Neil Blomkamp’s films. Antonio Banderas is also quite relatable and does a good job of carrying the movie. Perhaps this is what I, Robot should have been.
Only Lovers Left Alive
A film about two aging hipster vampires that like to collect antiques and generally mope around. An interesting look at vampires that features no horror and instead focuses on the malaise and cynicism that ensues from endless immortality. Stylish and sensual with great chemistry between Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston. Probably not for everyone but definitely worth a look for vampire aficionados as well and anyone into weird and unique filmmaking.
What We Do in The Shadows
Surprisingly funny mockumentary from New Zealand of all places. Consistently delights and entertains, in fact it may go down as one of the best horror comedies ever made, but I’ll let you be the judge as it deserves more recognition.
Fury
A wild ride of a war movie showcasing the insane brutality of WWII style combat. Brad Pitt adorned the posters for this film but it’s a strong ensemble cast that makes this one work, featuring solid performances from Logan Lerman, Jon Bernthal, Michael Pena and err…Shia Labeouf – who’s totally different to the nerdy kid in Transformers. If anything this film goes almost too far with its brutality, and it’s ferocious battle scenes sometimes feel like something out of a comic book or graphic novel. Whilst it lacks much in the way of subtlety, it makes up for it with a compelling cast and tense, hard-hitting tank action. Definitely one of the most noteworthy war films in recent years.
The greatest cyberpunk film of all time has received a rerelease in British cinemas over the past week, and seeing it on the big screen inspired me to write a short review. Though it was a slow burner that was largely unappreciated upon its initial release, Ridley Scott’s masterpiece has since become one of the most revered and analysed science-fiction films in history and has been praised for its narrative depth, strong symbolism and amazing visuals that still hold up today.
It’s the kind of film a viewer can watch a hundred times and still notice something new, whether it be the intricate sets and costume designs or the film’s layered metaphors and complex themes. For a film made amongst the cheesy action films of the eighties, Blade Runner is not only masterfully realized but a very sombre and introspective film that forgoes blockbuster clichés and pays homage to film noir in its dark and brooding style. Released in ’82, it has more in common with 70s filmmaking and the new Hollywood Era than the blockbusters that were to come. Like Empire Strikes Back, this is a serious film in which arguably – the bad guys win. One thing that was particularly clear to me on my most recent viewing is just how much of an antihero Deckard really is and how the “villains” of the piece – the criminal runaway androids – are really the heroes. Deckard methodically hunts them down, whilst they attempt to live off the grid and stay alive. He hardly feels good about it, but he does it all the same. The scene in which he chases down Zhora is particularly harrowing. She attacks him first, but only to give her time to run for her life through crowded streets whilst he gives pursuit, all the way he takes aim at her terrified face until he finally catches her and terminates her.
Deckard’s narrative is what happens when the villain’s henchman gets his own movie. We get to see the stark and miserable world of violence he is coerced into, the grim acts he must undertake to complete his mission as glorified executioner/hitman and the gritty underworld he must trudge through during his investigations; and his lingering regret about what he does. It’s easy to forget amidst the rain, the neon signs and the violent confrontations that Deckard is essentially tasked with killing these androids for their crimes of simply existing, that is to say “retiring” them since they are past their point of usefulness for the Tyrell corporation and the exploitative system that created them as slaves.
The real hero is Roy Batty. An iconic performance by Rutger Hauer, he spends the film trying to save himself and his friends from their premature death and discover the mystery of his creation. His salvation comes when he decides to save Deckard in the film’s climax. When seeing Deckard desperately running for his life, he sees himself – helpless, about to die and struggling to hold on. With his final choice to save Deckard, he transcends his bleak existence and achieves something outside of himself. The film begins with man taking pity on machines, but ends with the machines taking pity on man.
By the end of the film the line between the real and the recreation are blurred. We are presented with a world in which everything is simulacra, hence the constant imagery of toys, manikins, dolls, photos and video screens. Even if Deckard isn’t a replicant, he certainly gets treated like one. Almost everyone in the film ends up a victim in some way. Even Tyrell himself could be a replicant, for all we know (wouldn’t that be just like Philip K. Dick?).
It’s kind of fitting that there are now so many cuts of the film available. Like the film’s protagonist, the movie itself is nebulous and hard to define. Which cut is the “real” cut: the original theatrical release? The one Ridley Scott currently considers the final version? None of them – or all of them? It’s a film that can be endlessly revisited and one of my all-time favourites.
It’s been confirmed recently that the Alien franchise is due for another entry, this time directed by none other than Neil Blomkamp, who is clearly on his way to the sci-fi halls of fame. So far his films have been pretty solid, so this is a good choice. He definitely knows what he’s doing, though I kind of hope that the film isn’t shot entirely in his signature found footage/documentary style.
Will this be a film in the same continuity, or some sort of re-imagining? There’s talk of including Sigourney Weaver once more, which is understandable as she is the face of the franchise, but I can’t help but think it’s time to take the universe to new territory. The film will be produced by Ridley Scott’s production company Scott Free. Prometheus 2 is still in the works, so it seems that we will get two semi-connected universes.
Either way, the Xenomorph is one of the most recognisable creatures in Hollywood history with by far one of the best designs and the most venerable legacy. There’s plenty more that can be done with the material and lots more sci-fi horror that could be put to screen. Sigourney Weaver is one of my favourite actresses, so I hope she’s involved in some way if this does go through, and Blomkamp clearly understands the more subtle elements of crafting a film and could give us some truly unnerving scenes, weird sci-fi and a return to physical props and effects. I’m interested to see where Prometheus 2 will go, but this is a complete unknown that could lead to some great stuff in the coming years.
One of the most intriguing independent movies in my collection is 1997’s Cube. In the late 90s, there was a trend for stories with protagonists trapped in sci-fi environments. The Truman Show, The Thirteenth Floor, The Matrix, Dark City, Existenz, and probably more. Whilst the setting tended to be a virtual representation of our normal lives, albeit slightly off, Cube puts its own little spin on this and takes its protagonists and dumps them inside a literal death trap.
The characters wake up inside a mysterious cube, with no memory of how they got there. Together they discover that the cube has openings in the walls, ceilings and floors and that these lead to other cubes, as if they are inside some sort of giant Rubik’s cube. Even worse, the cube is booby-trapped with all sorts of nasty ways to kill and dismember them. It’s sort of like Saw before Saw was a thing. The movie shows us their attempts to escape the cube as they try and figure out what on earth is going on whilst slowly going nuts and turning on each other.
The film’s ingenious premise allowed it to be produced on a small budget, requiring only one or two rooms on the tiny set. The film’s strength it is relative “purity” and simplicity, in that we stay on one set the entire time – the cube, and we focus solely on the protagonist’s struggle with no subplots or distractions. The surreal surroundings allow for some very interesting philosophical speculations about the cube and its origins (with the cube being a metaphor for life, the universe, society etc.) Each of the characters has a different take on it, and their own motivation for survival, ranging from paranoid to idealistic to pure nihilistic fatalism. Fortunately, the film wisely doesn’t do much other than speculate and we don’t get much in the way of answers. There is however, a satisfying resolution to the films fantastically tense conundrums and the first watch is an especially tense thriller, whilst the clever construction and thought-provoking plot will bring you back for many more viewings. This is a fascinating success of small-budget movie-making and one of my favourite films.
In a world where trailers reveal nearly the whole movie, the promos for this new Disney feature have been refreshingly cryptic and short, leaving everyone wondering what it’s gonna be about.
Chappie
Neill Blomkamp has earned a nice reputation making relatively smart and realistic sci-fi. I’ve been following him since his fantastic short films that he produced himself so it’s always interesting to see what he can do with a bigger budget. Definitely more than just dumb blockbusters, these are always good and if Blomkamp can keep the roll going he will go down in sci-fi history forever as one of the most unique and talented filmmakers.
Spectre
I haven’t really been very into the new Daniel Craig style of Bond films. Even though I think they are technically very good, and probably the best films of the franchise, they aren’t the best James Bond films in my opinion, and are just a little too serious and dry for my liking. This one sees Bond going oldschool, with an old nemesis, the titular SPECTRE that many may remember from the older films. Hopefully it will be a bit less sombre than the new films and maybe include some cool gadgets like laser watches or jetpacks or something because come on its James Bond.
Ant Man
Many are saying that this could be the first Marvel movie in years to be a flop, or perhaps just not a huge blowout at the box office. The trailer is a little rough but I have faith that this will be at least worth a look.
Fantastic Four
More apprehensive than anticipatory for this one. The Fantastic Four have a bit of a bad reputation after the two mostly mediocre movies they had in the two thousands (they’re not that bad really but they’re not very good either.) Now that we are clearly in a different age of comic book movies does this team even fit into this world? By far the least cool and dorkiest of Marvel’s roster known to the average Joe, it’s difficult to see this movie being a triumph on the level of Avengers or even just a good movie. People have already taken issue with the casting, so it’s having trouble winning people over as it is. I’m more than willing to be blown away though, and I hope this reinstates the team as a force to be reckoned with rather than flops and gets forgotten, leaving the team relegated to comic books for another few years.
Mad Max: Fury Road
Oh yeahhh. This year’s prize for most badass looking trailer definitely goes to this continuation of the post-apocalyptic series. Pleasingly for me, it’s not going to be a reboot or a remake but rather the long awaited fourth instalment in the series that has been in the works for decades but is only now seeing the light of day. Finally it seems Hollywood is learning that we don’t want reboots and origin stories every few years and just want to see more of the universes we all already know. The trailer looks damn good and this will hopefully be this year’s most pleasingly violent and visceral action flick with an intense visual style, just like some of the best action flicks in recent memory like Dredd and 300. Tom Hardy is a great casting choice and even the short footage we have seen so far has captured the look and feel of the series so well.
Terminator Genysis
Not so much excited for this one as I am curious. It looks like a pseudo remake of Terminator 2: the one everyone loves and remembers the most from this series. Will this film offer more than a nostalgia trip? At least the purple lasers are coming back.
Avengers: Age Of Ultron
The ultimate comic book dream team is back. We delve deeper into comic book lore with the new villain “Ultron”, and hopefully the Avengers are like a proper team now, as the first film was basically their origin story. Avengers: Assemble is one of the best blockbusters ever, so hopefully this will live up to expectations and be just as entertaining.
Jurassic World
Some good things about this film:
Dinosaurs are back on screen.
It’s not a reboot, but it does seem to be a “refresh” of the series, what with the title change and all.
Raptors are in it.
Chris Pratt’s in it.
That giant fish dinosaur’s in it (apparently it’s called a mosasaur).
It’s Jurassic Park.
Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens
Of course. How could it be anything else at number one? After finishing the saga on a fairly disappointing ending with the prequels, Lucas has now handed over the keys to the kingdom to Disney, who look like they are doing a much better job this time around. There’s almost too many things to list but a potentially new Sith lord, X-Wings, the Millenium Falcon, the reappearance of R2 and C-3PO, the return to the original rebels vs empire era and a focus on practical effects over CGI are the main things I’m looking forward to. Finally we get a continuation to the story rather than another prequel or reboot.
Negating the canon of the expanded universe lore of the novels and comics may have upset fans, but who can resist a new Star Wars in which we don’t know where the story is headed? Yes, it would have been nice to see Grand Admiral Thrawn on screen (who says he can’t be involved in some form anyway?) but I love that fact that unlike the prequels we are getting an entirely new set of characters whose destiny is completely unknown to us. We don’t even know what the film’s narrative will centre on – the remnants of the Empire? A new Sith threat? Or something else entirely, such as the Yuuzhan Vong? Book your tickets early folks, everyone’s going to have an opinion on this.
Runners up
The Good Dinosaur
Pixar have spent a long time messing about with this one and it’s finally due for release this year. We still don’t even have a trailer though so don’t hold your breath. Pixar doing dinosaurs is definitely something everyone wants to see though. Could this be the year of the dinosaur?
Crimson Peak
Del Toro always brings something great to everything he works on. Now for the first time in a while we get to see him unleashed with a full on horror film.
Minions
Interested to see how this one will play out. Whilst the Minions are by far the most popular thing about the Despicable Me series, it’s not always the best idea to try and make supporting characters take the lead role. I’m sure it will entertain kids but whether or not it will be a memorable film or just a marketing push to sell Minions lunchboxes and plush dolls remains to be seen.
Jupiter Ascending
I’m always happy to see more Space Opera on the big screen, and I’m always interested in a movie when the Wachowski name is attached. The trailer does look kind of like YA-in-space, but I’m looking forward to seeing what it’s all about.
The Spongebob Movie: Sponge out of Water
Yeah OK. I have the original Spongebob movie on DVD and I love the humour of the series. I’m not gonna deny that I kinda wanna see this. Maybe I’ll have to watch it online rather than show up to the cinema though.
The Martian
Another Sci-fi effort from Ridley Scott, this time based on a recent book that I have yet to read. Not sure whether to pick up the book or wait for the film to see what it’s all about but I’m always up for a Ridley Scott film, especially when he does sci-fi.
Ex Machina
Looks like another interesting sci-fi movie that heralds the coming singularity.
Macbeth
My personal favourite of Shakespeare’s plays is due for another cinematic entry, this time with Marion Cotillard and Michael Fassbender in the leading roles. Fassbender’s one of my favourite actors now, so it’ll be great to check this out on the big screen. Unfortunately there’s no release date yet, but hopefully it will be out within the year.
Dark City is one of my favourite films and to this day remains largely forgotten and under-appreciated. Released in 1998 just one year before turn of the century megahit The Matrix, Dark City features a similar plot centred on a protagonist discovering that reality around him is fake and that he is being manipulated by malevolent beings who seek to control and exploit humanity.
Badd Motivator 