August 11, 2008 - 2:54 am - Posted by Administrator
At the turn of the millennium, we all felt like we were on the verge of something big. And we were… the dawn of a new era in science fiction. In 1999, The Matrix became the first movie to encapsulate the concept of cyber-punk virtual reality and display it in a slick motion picture geared for a broad audience. The natural downside of such a large audience is the audible murmur from too-hip-for-the-room haters, sci-fi purists, and nerds. However, The Matrix’s gigantic audience and box office totals don’t lie… it was the first movie of it’s kind.
The Matrix really became a coming-out party for the Wachowski Brothers as a directing duo, and the signature role Keanu Reeves was looking for when he starred in Johnny Mnemonic. Second time’s the charm I guess.
Torn from the pages of a comic, The Matrix is the story of Neo. He’s a corporate grunt in a nothing job with a one bedroom apartment. Or is he? Through a series of encounters with strangers, Neo (Reeves) is tempted to test the boundaries of the reality he’s been living. A choice - the blue pill or the red pill?
Neo’s choice leads him to an awakening that first-time viewers are not prepared for. I distinctly remember my roomate saying as we walked out of the theatre “Dude, when he woke up in that pod… I was not ready for that!”
The most-intriguing plot point of the Matrix storyline is that physics do not apply. When you’re immersed in a computer-generated world, anything is possible. And of course that point lends itself to a visually flashy and action-packed film. Bullets by the bucketful, martial arts up your ass. Carrie-Ann Moss co-stars as Trinity, a bad-ass chick in latex and Neo’s love interest. Laurence Fishburne is the guru–Morpheus, the man with the answers, and the cool shades.
Morpheus sends Neo on a sort of vision quest to fulfill his destiny. Much like the Star Wars series, the story touches on spiritual themes when Neo visits “The Oracle”. And his battles with Hugo Weaving’s Agent Smith are some of the greatest fight scenes ever choreographed. Weaving’s speech patterns and teeth-baring grimace nearly steal the show.
Not since The Road Warrior (Mad Max 2) has a movie so singlehandedly defined it’s genre. The styles worn by the actors have saturated pop culture, the special effects have been mimicked but rarely equalled, and the concept of virtual reality or synthetic immersion has now been fully crystallized in the film-going consciousness.
***** Five Stars
Posted in 1999, Artificial Intelligence, Environmental Disaster, Five Star Rating, Post-Apocalypse, Robots/Cyborgs, The Future, Virtual Reality | No Comments »
December 16, 2007 - 11:07 pm - Posted by Administrator
The cycle of family-oriented, adventurous science fiction movies that began with Star Wars in 1977 hit it’s pinnacle five years later when Steven Spielberg unleashed the movie that would be the biggest family sci-fi adventure ever–E.T. The Extraterrestrial.
An obvious contrast to the space-gallantry theme of the Star Wars films and Alien, E.T. is the tale of an extraterrestrial on a visit to Earth who is mistakenly left behind. Soon he makes friends with a 10 year old boy, Elliot (Henry Thomas), and his little sister Gertie (Drew Barrymore). The relationship grows between Elliot and his newfound friend as they search for a way to “phone home”. Soon, they find themselves pursued by the government.
Spielberg has a grasp of family and the humor found in mundane life at home. The portrayal of family life with Elliot, Gertie, and Mom Mary (Dee Wallace) is somehow reminiscent of Richard Dreyfus’ family in Close Encounters… it speaks to you, and somehow you yearn for it. I remember watching E.T. and being envious of Elliot and the idyllic life he led in his California cul-de-sac. For the record, if you can make your audience feel that way, it’s a difference of like, a hundred million dollars. Maybe more.
At any rate, for those of us who love big budget blockbuster science fiction movies at the box office every fourth of July, we all owe a huge ‘thank you’ to the financial success of E.T.–once the box office returns came in, the tally ensured that science fiction would never again be considered an inferior genre, unfit for full support from the studios.
Someday when I retire from writing this blog, there will be less than twenty flicks with a five star rating.
***** Five Stars
Posted in 1982, Alien Contact, Five Star Rating | No Comments »
December 15, 2007 - 3:13 am - Posted by Administrator
Imagine for a minute, Ellen Ripley, the baddest chick in the whole goddamn galaxy, played by… Meryl Streep?!?
It almost happened. Producers Gordon Carrol and David Giler were actually considering Streep for the part of Ripley. Luckily for movie fans, Streep passed on what she said was after all “only a horror film”. The Producers then settled on Sigourney Weaver.
In retrospect the choice seems clear. Lieutenant Ellen Ripley can only be portrayed by Sigourney. And the concept is simple. The Nostromo, a civilian mining vessel, has been contaminated by an unknown alien organism which grows exponentially over several days and has acid for blood. The Alien goes on a killing spree, striking from the shadows.
Many have called Alien a gothic horror film first, and a science fiction picture second. In this reviewer’s opinion, the fact that it’s both is what amazes. Without sacrificing anything, Director Ridley Scott entrances with realistic sets, special effects, and story detail that paint a rich picture of the Weyland-Yutani space mining industry in the coming century, and simultaneously horrifies with glimpses of an H.R. Giger-designed alien terror never before realized onscreen. Alien has consistently ranked in the top five of hundreds of Halloween scary movie lists.
An oustanding supporting cast including John Hurt as Kane (whose death scene is one of the great horror moments), Tom Skerritt as Dallas, Veronica Cartwright as Lambert, and Yaphet Kotto as Parker, are all stalked to their deaths by the increasingly menacing alien. Soon, Ripley and the Nostromo’s cat Jonesy find themselves the only survivors, and they’re forced to flee for their lives.
Alien has become a cultural phenomenon, spawning five sequels to date. It influenced a whole generation of science fiction movies to come, including Outland (1981), and Predator (1987). And oh yeah, it won an Oscar. It’s good.
Turn up the surround sound, turn off the lights, and watch. I wish I could get that feeling again.
***** Five Stars
Posted in 1979, Alien Contact, Alien Invasion, Artificial Intelligence, Five Star Rating, Suspended Animation, The Future | No Comments »
