Anatomy of a bad SF movie: Precisely what made it fail?
POSTED BY: chrisisall
UPDATED: Wednesday, November 10, 2010 01:40
VIEWED: 14308
PAGE 8 of 11
Quote:I bought it on DVD recently, and yeah, I really like it. The book it's based on made the script decent, and what was left after the filtering came through, not perfectly, but enough.
Originally posted by GWEK:
On the other hand, I think THE POSTMAN is actually very under-rated. I'm not saying that it's brilliant, but it's pretty compelling.
The laughing Chrisisall
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:Quote:Holy Cow, I did not know that!
Originally posted by Storymark:
Waterworld ... dialog is written by Joss.
Yeah, he was the on-set script doctor, served much the same role there as he did on Speed.
It's funny, another writer whom I'm net-friends with, Pete Briggs (co-writer of the first Hellboy) met with the director of Waterworld, and pointed out that there's not enough water on the planet, even if all the ice melted, to totally submerge everything. He did not get a second meeting....
"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."
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Quote:
Originally posted by GWEK:
On the other hand, I think THE POSTMAN is actually very under-rated. I'm not saying that it's brilliant, but it's pretty compelling. That, actually, is why I was willing to give WATERWORLD another chance.
www.stillflying.net: "Here's how it might have been..."
I can't say I recall it that well, having not seen it since the theatre, but Costner is a far better director than Reynolds, so I can believe it.
"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."
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Quote:LOL, SO, is THIS the piece of crap movie that YOU like, Story? YOUR guilty pleasure?
Originally posted by Storymark:
Waterworld gets a bad rep from fanboys, but it has it's moments, made decent money, got decent reviews
The enjoyable cinematic dregs that make YOU like the rest of us?
Just a regular schlep?
COOL!
The laughing Chrisisall
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Quote:"Don't complicate major motion picture production with simple physical realities" is the message here, I believe.
Originally posted by Storymark:
It's funny, another writer whom I'm net-friends with, Pete Briggs (co-writer of the first Hellboy) met with the director of Waterworld, and pointed out that there's not enough water on the planet, even if all the ice melted, to totally submerge everything. He did not get a second meeting....
The laughing Chrisisall
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Case # 13:
(Maybe not the right picture)
The Island
Apparent Causes of Suckitude-
A) Logan's Run much, Mr. Bay?
B) Scarlett not naked?
C) Ummm... what was the point?
Analysis:
A- Shamelessly copying s**t is the sincerest form of flattery.
B- Major FAIL.
C- That we need to mindlessly go to & rent stupid movies to fuel the sagging economy-? That set-pieces make a film? That millions of dollars can be spent on this kind of crap instead of planning a manned Mars mission?
Bay delivers- to the wrong address.
Next case............
The laughing Chrisisall
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:Quote:"Don't complicate major motion picture production with simple physical realities" is the message here, I believe.
Originally posted by Storymark:
It's funny, another writer whom I'm net-friends with, Pete Briggs (co-writer of the first Hellboy) met with the director of Waterworld, and pointed out that there's not enough water on the planet, even if all the ice melted, to totally submerge everything. He did not get a second meeting....
That's actually a GOOD lesson, I think. As long as you don't go too far, it's far more important to remain internally consistent than consistent with the real world. People don't want to pay money to see the real world--they want to pay to see ENTERTAINMENT.
Exhibit A: ARMAGEDDON vs DEEP IMPACT.
Same concept, but addressed in two completely different ways. DEEP IMPACT attempts to incorporate a modicum of reasonable science--and suffers for it. ARMAGEDDON, on the other hand, is basically trailer park trash saving the world using comic physics--and is by and large considered to be a much better movie because of the result.
I'm sure someone COULD do an excellent, completely-scientifically-sound movie about an asteroid/meteor crashing into Earth, but would it be as entertaining as Bruce Willis yelling "I will dig that hole! I will make eight hundred feet!!!"
I think not!
www.stillflying.net: "Here's how it might have been..."
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Quote:I actually quite liked this effort. As for the scientific advisor, try Professor Brian Cox, one of the worlds leading Particle Physicists.If you bother with the DVD Extras, he does actually say that the basic premise is bunkum, but in the interests of entertainment he gave himself a little poetic license.
Originally posted by chrisisall:
Case#12:
Sunshine
Apparent Causes of Suckitude-
A) So, re-start the Sun, eh? Is that like blowing on the embers of a dwindling camp fire? In a nucular way, I mean?
B) Alien much, Mr. Boyle?
C) Don't most folk COOK TO DEATH in unshielded Solar radiation?
Analysis:
A- The director clearly hired the science advisers from Rolland Emmerich's team for this flick.
B- Yeah, this was obviously a BLINDING re-make of the Ridley Scott classic.
C- Statistics reveal that one person in a googleplex will not die in this way, but instead go nutz & get real strong & look gross. That must have been The One...
So, yet ANOTHER pretty waste of time. *yawn* I was terrified beyond the capacity for rational thought.
Next case....??
The laughing Chrisisall
Peacekeeper---keeping order in every verse!!!
NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
Case # 13:
(Maybe not the right picture)
The Island
Apparent Causes of Suckitude-
A) Logan's Run much, Mr. Bay?
B) Scarlett not naked?
C) Ummm... what was the point?
Analysis:
A- Shamelessly copying s**t is the sincerest form of flattery.
B- Major FAIL.
C- That we need to mindlessly go to & rent stupid movies to fuel the sagging economy-? That set-pieces make a film? That millions of dollars can be spent on this kind of crap instead of planning a manned Mars mission?
Bay delivers- to the wrong address.
I liked The Island. Had some good actors in it including Steve Buscemi and Ewan McGregor. Scarlett really didn't need to be naked in it, as her form-fitting jumpsuit was quite enough to satisfy any man's purient interest. I thought the story was interesting too, and likely not too far off from the realities of the near future.
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Quote:
Originally posted by GWEK:
I'm sure someone COULD do an excellent, completely-scientifically-sound movie about an asteroid/meteor crashing into Earth, but would it be as entertaining as Bruce Willis yelling "I will dig that hole! I will make eight hundred feet!!!"
I think not!
RIGHT ON!!!
(I'm just a little emotional right now, ok? Ya'll throwing all this stuff at me, man! Look, I mean, after this is over, can I like get a hug from you or something?)
The laughing Chrisisall
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME