Anatomy of a bad SF movie: Precisely what made it fail?
POSTED BY: chrisisall
UPDATED: Wednesday, November 10, 2010 01:40
VIEWED: 14308
PAGE 1 of 11
Case #1:
Robocop 3
Apparent Causes of Suckitude-
A) Peter Weller did not reprise the roll.
B) The movie 'looked' different.
C) The final fight was l*a*m*e.
Analysis:
A- Weller was doing 'Naked Lunch' at the time. Robert Burke did a fine job interpreting the role, he looked right in the suit & had the robo-moves down well. Replacing an actor in a movie series is never easy.
B- A budget slashed from the get-go makes things difficult. The DOP had to set up shots & lighting quickly as a result, so the movie lost some of that bigger-than-life cinematic look.
C- It appears to me that the final fight was filmed in its entirety, but it was expected that a second unit with stunt peeps would shoot pick up shots to make it more intense & exciting. It's my theory that with money & time running out, they went with what had shot with the principle actors as a last minute decision (I can find no documentation to back this up, but judging as an amateur film-maker, this seems to be THE ONLY excuse for that slow-motion mess). Again, mainly a budget issue.
In the end, it had Basil Poledouris music, a tight script, and a breathless pace, three things its predecessor DIDN'T have.
So, be kind to this dud. It's really not as bad as it seems IMO.
You got a case for us?
The laughing Chrisisall
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Case #2:
Matrix Revolutions
Apparent causes of Suckitude-
A) It's long, and it SEEMS that way.
B) The digital animation looks... digital.
C) "No, no, kill you all! Die! Make you suffer!"
Analysis:
A- It wallows in its own self-importance.
Post 9-11, the 'Matrix' game changed. The enemy of humanity (The Machines) morphed into an understandable menace we could come to terms with to support our mutual existence. What a nice real-world message, but one that has no place in an action-adventure-SF where the WORLD has been ENSLAVED by silicon chips!!!
And the endless battles....*yawn*
B- Comic books should look like comic books, not Epic SF flicks.
C- When trying to be all Shakespearian & Neo-biblical & important, remember to kill most of the main characters- it make peeps cry.
Or feel CHEATED of a good story.
Feel bad when Wash died? Think if Joss went where MR went!!!
So, Matrix Revolutions certainly WAS epic, but was it entertaining? Or merely psuedo-philosophical & visually tiring? An individual call, I guess.
Next case... ?
The laughing Chrisisall
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Case #3:
Superman IV: The Quest For Peace
Apparent causes of Suckitude-
A) No real epic quality to this Man of Steel entry.
B) How the bad guy (Nuclear Man) was ultimately vanquished.
C) Mark Pillow (Nuclear Man)'s hair.
Analysis:
A- Virtually no budget to this flick assured its lameness; a Superman movie DEMANDS the bucks to deliver on a grand scale. Cheap sets, cheap director, cheap FX...
B- Oh, and cheap writers.
C- I blame this on society.
So, a good idea and a villain with a bad hair week does not a good movie make, clearly.
Next case?
The laughing Chrisisall
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Case#4:
I Am Legend
Apparent causes of Suckitude-
A) The 'infected' are, like, animals... that can set effective traps???
B) Was there a musical score? I don't remember...
C) Was there a meaning or point to the story? I must have missed it...
Analysis:
A- The director's needs for the particular scenes superseded the need for an internal logic. Plus: Why wasn't Neville better armed in his ride & home? With ANYTHING at your disposal & all...
B- JAMES NEWTON HOWARD usually delivers, but either they didn't use much, or the MOVIE distracted...
C- No, we didn't miss it; it wasn't there. The book was about fitting in (or not) in a world radically changed. The Omega Man was a straight up social commentary with a classic Christ-sacrifice ending (Thank you, Charlton Heston)- this was just a mish-mash of both, with a dumb finale (they should have at least gone with the alternate ending; it was less offensive).
So, GREAT FX, we all like Will, but a big *meh*
Next case (someone else for a change)?
The laughing Chrisisall
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Case #5:
Robocop 2
Apparent causes of Suckitude-
A) It's long, and it SEEMS that way.
B) What is the message?
C) Where is the Robotheme from the first film??
Analysis:
A- What a script nightmare. Frank Miller's was essentially shredded & reworked to come up with this mess. Not that his was any better
http://www.stomptokyo.com/scott/blog/C4482399/E20060427223748/index.ht
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B- Message? Life sucks? Peeps are mean by nature? WTF?
C- Missing entirely, and replaced by a generic Star Trek IV-ish score.
So, nice FX, and a very mean & looong movie. Oooops!
Next case?
The laughing Chrisisall
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Nice work, but don't forget about:
1.Star Wars Prequels(1999-2005)
^I'm still crying myself to sleep
2.Battlefield Earth(2000)
^Travolta, WTF man?
3.Star Trek:Nemesis(2002)
^Just another epidoe of ST:TNG
4.Alien Ressurection(1997)
^I know this inspired Firefly, but still sucked
5.Avatar(2009)
^Pocahontas in space, but worse dialogue
6.Lost In Space(1998)
^I'm not even gonna try
(((tO sPARK tHE mOVEMENT)))
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Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
Case #2:
So, Matrix Revolutions certainly WAS epic, but was it entertaining?
I certainly think so.
I think both Matrix sequels made the mistake (from a business perspective) of not giving the audience the movie they wanted to see, but they are ambitious and make an effort at being more than just flashy action flicks.
It's funny, but people complain about everything in Hollywood being repetitive.... but look what happens when someone tries something different - people freak, and flock to the generic stuff again.
It's not the funnest flick out there, but it's not bad. Certainly not on the level of shittiness of the other flicks mentioned on this list.
"I thoroughly disapprove of duels. If a man should challenge me, I would take him kindly and forgivingly by the hand and lead him to a quiet place and kill him."
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I Am Legend
For me, the biggest fail of 'I Am Legend' was the use of CG infected. It just looked bad, fake. Why couldn't they have just used real actors? Take '28 Weeks Later', (a great, great movie), they used real actors, not CG, and it was infinitely better than 'Legend'. So basically, sometimes, CG just sucks.
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Quote:It was the change in direction the movies took from the first. In the first flick, Neo died, and Trinity held on to the end, and Neo came back.
Originally posted by Storymark:
It's funny, but people complain about everything in Hollywood being repetitive.... but look what happens when someone tries something different - people freak, and flock to the generic stuff again.
THAT makes it seem like a fantasy quality is being weaved into the fabric of the story.
THEN, Trinity dies, AND Neo dies, and we have a frikin' Greek Tragedy in place of an adventure SF film.
Sorry, that's NOT what the first movie implied from a film-making standpoint.
The laughing Chrisisall
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Quote:Yes, it was cartoon time, once again.
Originally posted by Mutt999:
I Am Legend
For me, the biggest fail of 'I Am Legend' was the use of CG infected.
The laughing Chrisisall
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