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what happened to my show?
Dec. 26th, 2009 12:52 amSpoilers. OMG spoilers. ( Doctor Who: EoT pt 1 )
Dec. 26th, 2009
Saw Avatar today - exceptionally pretty movie with very cliche writing and some unfortunate choices re: race, but... what can I say, I'm weak against the pretty. I liked it.
I have to say, however, that it was paired with a collection of the most consistently horrifying trailers that I've ever had the misfortune to see. Clash of the Titans? Looks awful despite being based on one of the most delightfully campy movies ever, which had special effects by one of the biggest names in the history of SFX, and starring Liam Neeson, whom I adore, and being based on Greek myth, which I love. And yet, it looks awful. However, when you compare it to the next trailer we saw, it looks like material for my favorite movie of next year. This would be unbelievable, if the next trailer hadn't been Prince of Persia. Look, I realize the video games are pretty cool - I've watched The Boy and a friend of mine both play them, and they look like huge fun. But... let's just say that if you want to talk about bad racial politics, forget about Avatar and take a look at this piece of crap. Then there was Salt, another vehicle for Angelina Jolie, and... some horrifying piece of crap with Cameron Diaz and Tom Cruise, which managed to make all the others look like something I might want to see, after all. Yeah. Next year is not going to be a good year for movies, it looks like.
Anyway... I don't actually have a whole hell of a lot to say about Avatar apart from it being very very pretty and totally living up to my usual high expectations for special effects by WETA. People who are saying that it's going to revolutionize movies, or that it's unbelievably unique or anything... eh. I think we all know we're living in the last days when sci-fi and fantasy will be performed by actors in makeup as opposed to actors using motion-capture technology. I may not like that - despite my love for CGI, I love makeup and animatronic features too much to approve of CGI taking over the field - but that's the way the industry's been moving, and I can't blame them for that. Particularly not now that CGI has so clearly come into its own. And I admit, motion-capture makes me a lot less afraid of CGI - before motion-capture tech started to be used, a lot of people predicted that CGI would be used to replace actors, particularly in sci-fi. I think that would be a monumentally bad idea. Characters would lose their humanity, their soul. And motion-capture is showing us how we can avoid that - that CGI should enhance an actor's performance, not replace it. As long as they stay on that route, I suppose I'll get used to the idea.
I have to say, however, that it was paired with a collection of the most consistently horrifying trailers that I've ever had the misfortune to see. Clash of the Titans? Looks awful despite being based on one of the most delightfully campy movies ever, which had special effects by one of the biggest names in the history of SFX, and starring Liam Neeson, whom I adore, and being based on Greek myth, which I love. And yet, it looks awful. However, when you compare it to the next trailer we saw, it looks like material for my favorite movie of next year. This would be unbelievable, if the next trailer hadn't been Prince of Persia. Look, I realize the video games are pretty cool - I've watched The Boy and a friend of mine both play them, and they look like huge fun. But... let's just say that if you want to talk about bad racial politics, forget about Avatar and take a look at this piece of crap. Then there was Salt, another vehicle for Angelina Jolie, and... some horrifying piece of crap with Cameron Diaz and Tom Cruise, which managed to make all the others look like something I might want to see, after all. Yeah. Next year is not going to be a good year for movies, it looks like.
Anyway... I don't actually have a whole hell of a lot to say about Avatar apart from it being very very pretty and totally living up to my usual high expectations for special effects by WETA. People who are saying that it's going to revolutionize movies, or that it's unbelievably unique or anything... eh. I think we all know we're living in the last days when sci-fi and fantasy will be performed by actors in makeup as opposed to actors using motion-capture technology. I may not like that - despite my love for CGI, I love makeup and animatronic features too much to approve of CGI taking over the field - but that's the way the industry's been moving, and I can't blame them for that. Particularly not now that CGI has so clearly come into its own. And I admit, motion-capture makes me a lot less afraid of CGI - before motion-capture tech started to be used, a lot of people predicted that CGI would be used to replace actors, particularly in sci-fi. I think that would be a monumentally bad idea. Characters would lose their humanity, their soul. And motion-capture is showing us how we can avoid that - that CGI should enhance an actor's performance, not replace it. As long as they stay on that route, I suppose I'll get used to the idea.