Anchorhead

ChainsawAsh said:

I'm not giving up.  I'm just starting to get nervous.

Which I don't think is a bad thing - I never had blind faith that Nolan could do no wrong.  Lots of pre-release Dark Knight stuff made me nervous, too.

Well put.  Being concerned with the characters, the story, and the costumes is not the same as giving up or hate. 

Since the Nolan MO is to viral pre-hype a film for a full year before it's release, we can expect a great deal of discussion about all of this because we're going to have so damn long to do so.

Which, by the way, went a long way toward my disappointment with Dark Knight.  By the time it was finally released, I was so worn out on it all that I didn't even go see it in the theater.  I hope that isn't the case again, but the multi-villain story alone may do that for me. 

RedFive said:

How many times do I need the goddamn train engineer to remind me that he's "about to crash into the building any minute!" 

As many times as I have to listen to Dark Knight gushers repeat the line  "some people just want to watch the world burn" and then proceed to tell me how profound that is.

The flopped version looks better to me.  A little less polished.  Looks more Tatooine and less Cloud City.

Man, speaking of losing interest;

Again with the middle of the day stuff.  And quite frankly, that shot looks ridiculous.  I'm a straight man and even I'm insulted by the soft porn vibe.  I expect more out of Nolan.  Maybe I shouldn't.

DuracellEnergizer said:

I'm rapidly losing interest in the Nolanverse, to be quite frank. His attempt to make Batman and his world more realistic is like spiking the punch with water.

Well put.  The Burton films are a mess as far as villains and cartoonishness go, but I prefer the visual darkness. That said; Returns was a one-time-only for me. It was just too stupid and way too Burton.

Even though I like Batman Begins a lot, I prefer the depth that Keaton brings to Bruce Wayne.  I also prefer the Batman suit of Keaton.  I'm not a fan of the Armored Batman.  The Schumaker films don't even warrant a mention.  They're shit.

The Nolan Batsuit is starting to head into Schumaker territory.  Way too sculpted.

CP3S said:

Anchorhead, you've made my day! I've really been wanting to see this, but have been expecting it will suck. Hearing you say it is good just made me really excited about it.

Ziggy Stardust said:

I'm glad to hear it.

Especially coming from you.

Well, I really hope you guys don't hate it.  I don't want to be responsible for you guys losing ten bucks.  It may not be everyone's idea of the origin, but it works very well for me.  They took time to set it up so that it can easily work with the original film, which goes a long way for credibility in my book.

Remember, this is very much a Batman Begins type origin story - a lot of groundwork is being laid for future stories.  It's not a typical Planet Of The Apes film where the apes are sitting around discussing politics and science. 

It's more of a cerebral story than an action story, which is what reminds me of Batman Begins - what traumatic events in a person's life make them who they are. For Bruce Wayne, it was the death of his parents.  For Caesar it was something else. 

*************spoiler-ish below***************

A large portion of the film seems to parallel the true story of a chimpanzee named Nim. I didn't see anything in the credits mentioning it, nor have the director or writers referenced it in any interviews I've read, but it definitely has an element of Nim's life in it. I would be very surprised if the writers weren't aware of what happened to Nim and incorporated some of that into this film.

Ziggy Stardust said:

Man, when I see a picture of 2001, I feel like watching it.

I'm the same way.  I'm immediately transported back into the film, as though I never left.

ChainsawAsh said:

Wow, I'm actually getting nervous about the quality of TDKR.  I didn't think that would happen after the first two.  I'm getting Spider-Man 3 and X-Men: The Last Stand vibes...

I'm feeling the same thing.  I really like Begins, but didn't care too much for DK.  It got too busy and too light (day time, non-Gotham).  Batman has started to morph into Invincible Man instead of brooding vigilante.

captainsolo said:

What happened to Batman wearing light materials that would tear under stress? To me that would be more interesting and realistic than a dude in body armor that happens to have pointy ears.......

 

With the Nolan-verse it's the character's spirit and escapist element of being a vigilante that gets dropped along with the Gothic gloom. And try as I do, I still can't see this as Batman. It's just a guy growling in some body armor. Then he sits around and "thinks/broods". Then the plot becomes overcomplicated twists and turns involving elements of the criminal underworld being manipulated by the arch villains and vice versa.

I agree with all of these points.  It's looking more and more like Begins will comprise the Nolan Batman for me.

Ziggy Stardust said:

It's a prequel to Planet of the Apes and a remake of Conquest.

That makes no sense.

It makes no sense because that's not really the case.  Part of it shares a skeletal arc with Conquest, but not nearly enough to be considered a remake.   However, it can most definitely be a prequel to the 1968 film. 

No spoilers.

Loved it.  I've never made any secret of the fact that I'm a Planet Of The Apes nerd.  I probably watch the original twice a year and the score is a regular listen as well.   That said, it's the only one I care to own.  The others from the original franchise are guilty pleasures if they come on cable, with the only exception being Beneath - that one I can't stand.  I think the Burton remake is terrible.  The whole thing is just more of Burton's single-note style of film making. Burton Aesthetic first, story second.

This new one, an origin story, was really done well.  It's an origin story in the truest sense of the phrase. I found it interesting and really felt for the main character, Caesar. It really is a very Caesar-centric film, which made it for me.

Which brings me to my only criticism of the film - Franco.  His character is fine, as is the story around him.  What jumped out at me after about thirty minutes is his lack of depth or range.  He's little more than a script reader. However, because the story isn't really about his character, per se, I really didn't care.   Same for Freda Pinto.  She's window dressing with what I would guess is maybe 10 minutes of screen time total.

The CGI wasn't glaring at all and it never took me out of the movie.  I was more interested in the story and Caesar.  To Planet Of The Apes nerds, there are a few references back to the original (some obvious, some subtle) and I thought they were all done either interestingly or tastefully.   The film ends leaving a clear opening for a second film.  Speaking of which, stay for the titles because a sequel question is answered during them. 

In closing:  Later this year, my Planet Of The Apes DVD collection will double in size. I give Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes an easy 5 out of 5 chocolate chip cookies.

TV's Frink said:

 spaceberg,

Actual LOL

;-)

Star Wars1977   Perfect.

Empire Strikes Back  While I'm not really a fan of the movie anymore, I do recognize the superb production value.  I also like a few parts of the film and think they more than hold their own in the world of Star Wars.  The Dagobah sequence is interesting and done very well.  My favorite parts of the film, however, are the outside scenes during the Cloud City portion - approach & landing and Luke hanging under the city.  Regardless of story, the aesthetics of the shots (oranges, reds, warmth, darkness, etc) are worth watching.  Best single moment of the film - Luke hanging under the city.

Return Of The Jedi  The beginning of the end for me, but I gave it a partial solely for slave Leia and the Redwood Forest speeder chase.

xhonzi said:

Anchorhead said:

Anyway, in answer to your question;  Novels, with a side of newspaper strips, makes up the EU I have any interest in.

 Give him time.  ;)

;-)     True. 

Just a few years ago I was sworn off anything post-1980 - and had been since the time when Return was still in the theaters.  Decades go by with me digging my heels in, I stumble upon this board, meet all these fellow nerds and......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXdhKyIEQpM

DuracellEnergizer said:

I have a question, Anchorhead. Do you have any interest in exploring the comics side of the EU, or are you strictly going for the novels?

I'm really just interested in the novels. I very much prefer that depth-of-story that novels provide.  I've seen some comics that seemed interesting for their stories, but I'm not really a comic book guy.  Even when I was a kid it was only a peripheral interest. 

That said;  There is one exception.  The newspaper strips from the late 70s\early 80s are an everyday read for me.  I really like those.  One of the members here has an excellent site devoted to their history & preservation.  

http://dailysw.blogspot.com/

In fact, I'm pretty sure the two lesser Star Wars nerds in my office are tired of me sending them the strip every morning, along with my commentary.  ;-)

Anyway, in answer to your question;  Novels, with a side of newspaper strips, makes up the EU I have any interest in.

I was watching the game and they stopped it in the 5th to make the switch and call him back to the dugout.  It was surreal to see him running in and then  hugging the guys goodbye on the bench.  No announcement had been made, but we didn't need one.  We knew what had just happened.

At least he's going somewhere where he has a real chance to go the World Series.  You guys will probably be able to put some ground between yourselves and the Braves.  They've got a big hole in their line-up speed-wise & stolen base-wise.  Plus they need a center fielde....

oh wait.

;-)

Bingowings said:

Tone is something Lucas doesn't usually do well.

So his 'tone shift' reshoots don't fill me with optimism.....

 

As it is now his reshoots this far down the line might now be seen as him meddling with what has now become someone else's work.

Those were my first thoughts exactly. 

It reminds me a lot of his go-off on Kershner - "you're ruining my movie" - and how he then re-edited Empire.  A cut that I believe was later scrapped because it didn't work.  I may be wrong.

TV's Frink said:

The story never even discussed the prospects.  That's not a good sign.

Well, they did say one of them has decent numbers - when he's healthy.  *%$#@!

This just in...

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20110731&content_id=22558026&vkey=news_atl&c_id=atl

Wow, it's like Christmas in July...... 

...minus all the good stuff about Christmas.

see you auntie said:

This was directed by Anthony Hemingway in the same manner as Richard Marquand directed Jedi.

Unfortunately, that's true.  Here is an excerpt from an Entertainment Weekly article addressing that very issue.

Lucas, who is also producing and financing, needs reshoots and must do them himself. According to two sources close to the project, Hemingway was hoping to stay on for the redos, but was already committed to direct episodes of David Simon's New Orleans series Treme for HBO. (Lucas wasn't willing to wait.)

Lucasfilm confirms the directorial shift, which FirstShowing.net broke, but denies any conflict with Hemingway, saying Lucas and producer Rick McCallum will oversee the reshoot — with Hemingway's approval

With Hemingway's approval.  Sure.

Bingowings said:

I thought, 'what next, Luke missing his grapple throw?'

Man, please don't get that one started ag.....   too late.

Let's see - we're the worst team in baseball, 22 games back, and playing just above 300  ball.  Man, things couldn't be worse.

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20110729&content_id=22477548&vkey=tradedeadline2011&c_id=mlb

Oh.  Turns out they can.

TV's Frink said:

Ha-ha, awesome reference for us oldsters!

It's who we are, man.  ;-)

I went from having only four EU novels that I read every year  - to exploring the minefield that is post-1990 EU.  Man, it's so convoluted I need a damn war room to plot my course...

American Hominid said:

The whole of SW history seems now to be increasingly embodied only in a struggle between the Jedi (paragons) versus Sith (always Evil - chaotic?  lawful?).  This also has the side effect of blowing the Force up to such a proportion that fewer stories can focus on non-explicitly-Force-using characters.

From what I've read in various publishers' summaries in my exploration of post-1980 EU, that seems to be it exactly.  Star Wars seems to have moved from Science Fiction to Fantasy.  It went from being Lord Of The Rings in space to being Harry Potter in space.  That's something I have zero interest in.

The Zahn novels, however, are very nice so far.  I've got my Star Wars reading cut out for me for quite a while.

American Hominid said:

another book you may like (it's one of my faves): The Illustrated Star Wars Universe.  It's from 1995.  It's set up almost like National Geographic, with profiles of the OT planets each told by different characters - an anthropologist who visits Tatooine, an Imperial scout who hates his assignment to Endor, a slimy political yes-man from Coruscant, a poet from Alderaan.  Throughout, there are pieces of art done for the films (concept design work by many artists), complimented by quite a few specially-done paintings of various planet/culture-related scenes by Ralph McQuarrie.

That sounds very interesting.  May have to look at that as a break between the Zahn series.  Man, and having illustrations by McQuarrie is icing on the cake.  He's been my mind's eye of Star Wars since the very beginning.

Ripplin said:

Cool! I have the whole Andy Griffith set. Such a great show.

Yeah, I'm a big TV show buyer myself.  I have full sets of M*A*S*H, Columbo, Northern Exposure, Frasier, and King Of Queens.  I only have the B&W years of Andy Griffith.  Other shows I watch regularly on Hulu are Mary Tyler Moore, Bewitched, and Bob Newhart.  I'll eventually buy those too.  Just haven't gotten around to it yet.

Hope you can get the Hulu site pulled up.  there is a ton of good stuff on there.

Ripplin said:

I really wish they'd play Columbo and The Rockford Files again.

They have the first three Rockford Files seasons on Hulu.

http://www.hulu.com/the-rockford-files

On days where I bring my lunch to work, I sometimes watch an episode of an old TV show on Hulu.  Other times I watch either M*A*S*H, Columbo, or Andy Griffith DVDs that I bring from home.