The Shape of Things to Come

[Ralph]

War of the Worlds (2005)

I wasn't quite sure what to make of this. It scores some pluses but as many minuses too which kind of even out for me and leave an overall neutral effect.

It seems to have been filmed in the style of live action which I think works well. Having the sfx not quite in your face is good and I reckon works well.

On the downside I wasn't quite sure what to make of Tom Cruise's acting on this - I think it's just a tad OTT at times. That ending is just so cheesy and classic hollywood The americanisation of the story as per the original was a missed opportunity to give it it's proper setting....The original "Time Machine" worked particularly well because of it's setting, why couldn't they have set this in victorian times also - I think the combination of that era with the effects would have been good.

Like Planet of the Apes, The Time Machine and now this remake I think they've all been missed opportunities to do something special with classic material. On these first two I think it was tough to follow genuinely classic movies. WOTW had plenty of scope for improvement but has been missed unfortunately.

My overall score is 6.5/10 as it still offers much entertainment.

[Wayne]

I was very sceptical about this movie before i saw it, but i ended up mostly liking it. I'm not a particular fan of Tom Cruise, although i do own 2 films with him in (this & 'Interview with the Vampire') because i like the source material.
I agree that it's a mix of good & naff bits, especially that awful ending, (the kid would've been blown to smithereens in an explosion of that scale!) But for me, the good bits outweigh the bad. The tripods themselves are fantastic, & sheer scale of destruction is very well realized. I also liked the twist of them collecting up all the humans as fodder, & i thought the basement scene where the 'eye' is looking around for them was very well done.
I'd say 7/10, possibly even 7.5/10 was a fair score for this.

[Ralph]

Yes the basement scene is very good I would agree - still I think a victorian setting would have worked better with the sfx.

Meantime what of KK?

[Wayne]

KK?

A Victorian setting would've been alright, too, But think this story works well in a contemporary setting. Probably more so than something like 'The Time Machine'. Although, i've never seen the re-make.

Talking of re-makes has reminded me that i've still got the re-make of 'Village of the Damned' to watch that i got cheap on dvd last month.
I would make a worthy addition to this thread, so i might give it an outing tomorrow, Although i'm reasonably familiar with it having seen it on TV twice.

[Ralph]

For KK - see the last page

Meantime VOTD remake - never seen it - I got put off I'm sure by bad reviews on release.

[Wayne]

For KK - see the last page

Ah! I didn't see that. I'll come back to it in a minute.

Meantime VOTD remake - never seen it - I got put off I'm sure by bad reviews on release.

I don't like to let media reviews influence me. I'd rather make my own mind up. (It's that old chesnut, again)
Seriously though, i think it's pretty good all in all. Not something i would've bought at normal dvd price, but for 3.99 it's acceptable. I'd give it a 6.5 or 7/10 from memory, but i'll decide for sure when i've watched it again.

[Wayne]

King Kong (1976)

Thanks to Wayne I gave this a viewing. I'd only ever seen bits of this on TV having never watched it all the way through.

I think it suffers from the fact that it was an effects movie and these are now looking a bit tatty at the edges. Inevitably movies like this fall down over time where the effects dominate over the acting and storyline - they just can't sustain the test of time. I found myself losing interest at times but a young Jessica Lange helps compensate for the plodding story.

Jaws, another "creature feature" made the year before while having a now somewhat dodgy shark in the closing stages still holds up well as the effects enhance rather than dominate.

It seemed to take a while to get going which I understand is similiar for the 2005 version. I'm not sure how this movie fared on release, I have a suspicion it probably had a tough ride as I don't remember it getting a big premier showing on terrestial TV.

I'd say it's a 5/10.

I'll give it a break before I try the 2005 version and see if it's any better of just a CGI extravaganza.

Just a further thought - KK climbs the World Trade Centre this time... it's strange to see the WTC so majorly featured like this.

I think the difference for me is that there's some nostalgia attached to this version, because i went to see it at the flix with my Dad when it came, & i really liked it.
Jonno thinks this is heresy because i'm not overly bothered about the original 1933 film, which despite being a fantastic acheivement for the time, still comes over a bit comical to me.
I never really noticed the effects looking dodgy when i bought the dvd & watched it. I love the bit where he's crashing through the forest & banging the big gates down!
As for the 'effects movie' thing & comparisons to 'Jaws'. King Kong never was much of an actual story in the first place, so in that sense i agree with you. It's definitely the original 'creature feature', but there's not really that much to it in terms of plotlines/story. It is a very visual concept.
I think the reason 'Jaws' works better, is not only because it's more 3 dimensional, especially because of the characters/performances, but also because it was definitely an '18', film & has a much more serious, grimmer edge to it. In that sense, i wouldn't really compare it to 'King Kong', which is basically an escapist fantasy/adventure that any kid could watch.
And if you think this version is long winded! I recommend that you skip the first hour of the 2005 version altogether! It takes that long before anything happens!
But i enjoy the 1976 version, & i'd happily give it a 7/10.

[Ralph]

I think the 1933 version is a classic but I would only watch the highlights as I recall it bein g a bit dull until he hits the big apple.

On the effects, well I'm usually accepting on this except for movies that make it the focus. There are many that work well such as the hand scenes.

I guess KK is escapist fantasy which is not usually my thing so that doesn't help and there's no nostalgia factor for me on this one.

Yes I'll brace myself for the first hour on the 05 version when I catch it.

Still I was pleased to check it out!

[Wayne]

Yes I'll brace myself for the first hour on the 05 version when I catch it.

I'm not joking! It's takes 'em an hour to even get to the island!

And there's one CGI related scene that really bugs me, but i'll wait until you've watched it.

[Wayne]

Seriously though, i think it's pretty good all in all. Not something i would've bought at normal dvd price, but for 3.99 it's acceptable. I'd give it a 6.5 or 7/10 from memory, but i'll decide for sure when i've watched it again.

I watched the Village of the Damned re-make again this morning, & i've decided it's worth a 7/10.
True, it doesn't have the atmosphere of the original British film, but it's still a fairly faithful adaptation of Whyndam's novel. The scenes in particular where everyone is knocked out are very good, & perhaps a tad more effective than the original, even.
The children themselves are somehow not quite as eerie as the original, but both Chris Reeve & Kirstie Alley give credible performances, & the famous climactic scene is well realized. Definitely worth getting for 3.99.

This afternoon, i'm going to try out an SF film that Mac sent me, called: 'Millenium'.

[Wayne]

This afternoon, i'm going to try out an SF film that Mac sent me, called: 'Millenium'.

Well, i wasn't sure what to make of this one!
It starts out as what seems to be a bog standard plane crash drama, & then we learn of the intervention time travellers from the future who whilst juggling with the timelines, are abducting humans from the past & transporting them to the future to restore a dying human race. Or something.
It does get quite interesting for a short while, but it's let down by some awful effects/masks/costumes that make Buck Rogers seem like quality. And then Cheryl Ladd & Kris Kristofferson (who gives a truly dire, wooden performance) sidetrack the movie into the realms of romantic drama.
I honestly couldn't rate it higher than 4/10. Sorry again, Mac!

[Ralph]

I see KK 2005 is 3 hours long - so is the "2 hour" version really good once you get there? What rating would you give for the 2 hours?

[Wayne]

so is the "2 hour" version really good once you get there? What rating would you give for the 2 hours?

Hmmm......... I would say: 'watchable to good', as opposed to 'really good'. For the 2hrs: 6.5/10. For the film as a whole: 6/10. I've only got it because it was a freebie. I'd say it was definitely worth watching. It's a bit like the 2005 'War of the Worlds', in that there's some really good bits, & some really naff bits.

[Ralph]

THX 1138 (1971)

Plot summary from IMDB:

"The human race has been relocated to a underground city located beneath the Earth's surface. In the underground city, the population are entertained by holographic TV which broadcasts sex and violence and robotic police force enforces the law. In the underground city, society controls all life, all citizens are drugged to control their emotions and their behavior and sex is a crime. Factory worker THX-1138 stops taking the drugs and he breaks the law when he finds himself falling in love with his room-mate LUH 3417 and is imprisoned when LUH 3417 is pregnant. Escaping from jail with illegal programmer SEN 5241 and a hologram named SRT, THX 1138 goes in search of LUH 3417 and escape to the surface, whilst being pursued by robotic policemen."

This is one of those movies which I would think gets better with more viewings - at first I found it just plain weird but in retrospect I think it creates an interesting and unusual futuristic atmosphere.

You would certainly need to be a fan of 2001 to like this and also certainly appreciate the likes of Bladerunner. It's certainly not a typical George Lucas production. For now I'd give it 6/10.

[Wayne]

Minority Report. (2002)

Tom Cruise is back again, in a film which a mate of mine recorded off tv recently, & gave it me to see.
Quite an impressive Sci-Fi based movie. One of Speilberg's better efforts IMO, as this film doesn't really flag at all during it's 2hr journey. It's a futuristic, high concept film based on a story by Sci-Fi writer, Phillip K. Dick, which sees Cruise playing a 'pre-crime' cop called Anderton, in part of a set up which uses 3 geneticly enhanced humans with pregonitive powers to see into the minds of people who are about to commit murder.
When the most powerful of the 'Pre-cogs' called Agatha, sees a future Anderton committing murder, he becomes embroiled in a complex web of deceit, which develops into a story with loads of twists & turns that keep you guessing right until the end, with some good action sequences along the way.
I'm generally not really a Tom Cruise fan, but i thought he did well in this film, & it was also a pleasure to see veteran actor Max Von Sydow playing a good part in this high energy, Sci-Fi based thriller. 7.5/10.

[Ralph]

Escape From New York (1981)



"The year is 1997. Due to huge crime rates, the United States turns its once great city of New York into a maximum security prison where hardcore criminals are put for life. All the bridges leading into the city are mined, a large wall is built along the shoreline and a large police force army is based there to stop or kill any attempted escapees. En route to a conference, the President, on board Air Force One, is forced to eject in a pod when a female terrorist takes over the controls and crashes the plane into a building. A new prisoner, ex-soldier Snake Plissken is offered his freedom if he goes in, frees the President and finds a tape with important information for the conference. Snake agrees but to ensure his co-operation he is injected with a small but powerful explosive that will only be destroyed if his mission is successful. Snake must set out into the decaying city, filled with immoral criminals, and he must succeed - for his own life."

Again another movie where the World Trade Centre features as Snake lands his glider on top of one of the towers. I never realised how often the towers appear in american movies.

This movie has nostalgia elements for me having first seen it in my student days. Plus I generally like Kurt Russell in movies, his performance in this one is memorable as the cool Plisken. This one also features Lee Van Cleef who I enjoyed seeing back in a major movie after so many years since his career peaked in the Dollars movies. Also there's Harry Dean Stanton and Ernest Bornine and Donald Pleasance as the President.

The score's one of the highlights for me, again like Carpenter's score for the Thing it adds greatly to the atmosphere of a once great city reduced to anarchy ruled by the Duke of New York - his car adorned with lit chandeliers on the front wings

A variation on The Omega Man with the under seige feel.

I'd give this one 7/10.

[Ralph]

Village of the Damned and Minority Report sound like two I should check out sometime.

[Wayne]

I think i saw 'Escape From New York' once, way back when. It wasn't bad, as i recall.
I'm pretty sure i've never seen the THX one, though.

[Wayne]

Village of the Damned and Minority Report sound like two I should check out sometime.

I'll PM you, later.

[WhiteCrow]

War of the Worlds (2005)

Awful, awful film - Stephen Spielberg cannot resist reworking a couple of kids into the story.

And the change to the plot - "aliens are already here", with the tripods having been buried is silly, and an oh so obvious Scientology wet dream for Tom Cruise, who is surely now the most psychotic person on the planet.

[Jeff]

H.G. Wells' War of the Worlds - (not the Spielberg/Cruise version, and also not the Pendragon period piece version, but rather the Direct-to-DVD version starring C. Thomas Howell)

It wasn't too bad. I haven't seen the other versions yet, nor have I read the book, so I can't really make any comparisons, but for a direct to video movie I have to say it was pretty good. It didn't have the FX that I'm sure the Cruise version had, but the effects it did have weren't embarassing either, and were actually pretty good considering what the budget probably was. According to Wiki it deviated somewhat from the book in that the Martians were not tripods, but rather six legged insectoid replications of their true forms, and like the Spielberg version, this one took place in modern day. Still, apparently it did follow the book in a lot of the themes.

I'm not sure if it's availability outside of the US. Wiki says it had an alternate title of "Invasion", but I'm not sure if or where it was released with that title. It doesn't look to be available on Amazon.co.uk at all, but it isn't worth purchasing anyway. It's a renter, or something to watch off TV. I recorded it off the Sci-Fi channel here though, so perhaps they have rights to show it in the UK too? It's worth watching if it is on tv.

[Jeff]

BTW, if anyone hasn't seen Equilibrium with Christian Bale, I recommend it. It is a much better movie than the disappointment it became, because the production company decided not to promote it and didn't give it a wide release. It may not have become a huge blockbuster, but it certainly would have done better than it did if they had given it the promotion it deserved.

[Ralph]

Re WOTW :I've never heard of that Jeff I only thought there was only the two movies.

[Jeff]

Re WOTW :I've never heard of that Jeff I only thought there was only the two movies.

Apparently all three were released in June 2005. This one was directly released to DVD, and I have a feeling it was only released in Region 1, so I'm not surprised you've never heard of it.

Here's the wiki page for it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H.G._We...282005_film%29

[Jeff]

I just checked IMDB and it turns out 'Invasion' is the UK cable tv title...

edit - and here it is at Amazon after all... http://www.amazon.co.uk/Invasion-C-T...9262581&sr=1-1