Director Week: Stanley Kubrick

Howdy folks. Well I was going through my archives and believe me, combing through more than 1000 entries from my work at epinions.com to writing RottenReelz, there is quite a few write-ups to contend with. One thing that did surprise me that I have not done a Stanley Kubrick Week. One of the most bizarre and abstract films with fish eye lens, to dolly work and wide pan zooms to the scale model works. Our director's humble beginnings starts with leaving the Bronx (No Tolberone??) and moving to Pasadena California where his grades did not pick up or improved. Our young genius is bored until introduced to chess. A game he excels at and gives him a parable to life, film and actors later in his life.

THIS IS SPARTA!!!!  Oh wait, that's not right!

Becoming a staff photographer for Look Magazine at age 17, he discovers his true love, documentaries, the ability to capture life brings him to make the film Fear and Desire. With the mixed reviews, Kubrick is not detoured from film and moves to making The Killing that gives Hollywood a view at his work and decrees he will direct Paths of Glory. With his own sense of style, motif and reasoning the films he chose to do would always hit certain censorship and taboos that made the world uncomfortable with his vision.

Many people including Stephen King did not care for the take that Kubrick had for The Shining. Nearly all of his movies have a narration at some point but unlike some directors (UWE BOLL, I AM TALKING TO YOU!!!) the narrative does not dominate the film. Every one of his movies have all been made from a novel and always have some sort of dark side of humanity and in fact dehumanizes the characters with humor, violence or verbal comments. So grab your bowler hats and prepare yourselves for the Ultra, Ultra Violence!!!

Pleas begin docking procedures... the HAL 9000 awaits to probe you.

Misleading Titles Week: Total Recall 2 a.k.a. Minority Report

A fine greetings to you all still reading this blog and on to Day 4 of Misleading Titles Week. Today's cinematic creation would be construed as an "A" List film due to its director, budget and big names attached to it. However, even with an surefire hit can come lost in translation, a foreign production distribution confused on the film or multiple working titles can be drafted on the script itself waiting to acquire the rights to existing intelligent property. The film today is based loosely on the short story written by the late Science Fiction author Phillip K. Dick (Do Androids Dream of Electronic Sheep, Total Recall, Paycheck, Screamers and A Scanner Darkly) directed by Steven Spielberg (Jaws, Raiders of the Lost Ark, E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, The Color Purple, Jurassic Park and Schindler's List) so how could there be confusion? This is Total Recall 2 a.k.a. Second Sight a.k.a. Minority Report

Yes these close-ups are necessary. DO NOT QUESTION IT!

The year is 2054 and Washington D.C. Is virtually crime free thanks to the combined efforts of a squad of specialized police known as "PreCrime", an experimental police force that utilizes three precognitive psychics to capture potential crime of murders. Their visions of the future are recorded to determine who, what and why before it comes to light and the crime is stopped before it ever starts. While a blessing in theory to stop the loss of life before it happens, the argument becomes how can you violate laws and rights of citizens that have not committed a crime. Chief Judge Anderton (Tom Cruise of Top Gun, A Few Good Men, Mission: Impossible, Jerry Maguire and Jack Reacher) stands by this program as a necessity to avoid the pain and loss of others as murder is an unnatural death. Anderton while a respected officer of the law has been secretly taking illegal drugs since the disappearance of his son to numb the pain and eventually be divorced by his wife Lara (Kathryn Morris of A.I. Artificial Intelligence, Cold Case, Paycheck, The Sweeter Side of Life and The Coin).

Sheesh, he's surfing torture porn again.

Before the program is officially signed off on and made nation-wide, U.S. Department of Justice Danny Witwer (Colin Farrell of American Outlaws, Phone Booth, The Recruit, S.W.A.T. , Alexander, Horrible Bosses and Fright Night) demands with accordance with the law, a full shakedown of this system. The concern of any bugs in the program need to be cleared. During the review the precogs predict a murder of one Leo Crow within 36 hours and his killer will be Anderton? Anderton not having a clue who Crow is and believing that Witwer tampered with the precogs hightails it out of the building with Witwer demanding a manhunt after Anderton.

On the run and with security having its citizens retinal scans to confirm their whereabouts in the city, city official buildings and even apartment entry codes, Anderton goes underground, off the grid and even has a horrible black market operation to get replacement eyes allowing him to roam freely, giving him time to see if PreCrime is flawed as it appears to be. With his own team in hot pursuit of his springy, well-toned ass it is only matter of time for them to bump into each other. Will Anderton be able to reason with Washington? Is PreCrime a bust? Will there be couch leaping involved?

Okay, silliness aside I did want to point out a few things on the film. This sci-fi whodunnit film was originally supposed to be a sequel to Total Recall that writers Ronald Shusett and Gary Goldman took from the original story. With Speilberg and Cruise involved in two separate projects the script fell on the shelves and was up for a re-write John Cohen drafted as they did not feel Total Recall was the way to go. Taking away with the original setting in Mars and explaining psychics were created by the harsh environment and cheap domes had to be replaced with a simple mutation in the gene pool story arc.

With fine tuning and the use of this same named short story Minority Report, Speilberg approached scientists ranging from bio-medical research, car engineers, architects, virtual reality techs to create a city of the future in practical effects as well as CGI.

Spielberg's trusted cinematographer Janusz Kaminski (Schindler's List, Saving Private Ryan, Catch Me If You Can and War of the Worlds) bleached the film's negative in post-production to create that weird desaturated colors scheme almost giving it a film noir feel not dissimilar to Ridley Scott's Bladerunner. With a complex story, decent action and pretty impressive performances it was no wonder it was up for as many awards for the Oscars.

Is it me or is this TRON in traffic jam?

Season One Shows: Almost Human

Ah sci-fi cyberpunk. I will never tire of it in whatever form of media. Welcome back to Day 3 of Season One Shows. Not certain what it is about a sci-fi crime drama but it doesn't seem to get the love to last more than a handful of episodes. With the establishment of the evolution of technology and not enough morality to combat it cyber augmentation for limbs, bones and organs giving humans near immortality and enhanced, speed, agility and strength. To battle this, the police forms the necessary addition to the force. A combat android. This is Almost Human.

Okay buddy, here's your sex robot and he's fully capable in multiple techniques.

The year is 2048 and the full creation of mega corporations, fringe gangs, cyberpunks, combat droids, matrix hackers and hired guns roam the streets. Genetic manipulations, surgerical augments and cyberlink to the hypernet.

Similar to the worlds created by Issac Asimnov, Phillip K. Dick, William Gibson, William Shatner and such kindred worlds we follow Detective John Kennex (Karl Urban of Xena: Warrior Princess, Ghost Ship, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The Bourne Supremacy, The Chronicles of Riddick, Doom, RED and Dredd) a cop that commanded a squad two years prior to raid a vicious gang known only as The Syndicate but were outnumbered, outmaneuvered and outgunned. Kennex tried to save his partner's life but the android officer attached to Kennex's command drug him out instead of his partner due to the survival expectancy was higher for Kennex.

17 months later Kennex wakes from a coma to find he has a cybernetic leg to replace the damaged one and enormous gaps in his memory. Once released, Kennex chose to go to the black market and have his memory hacked to recall anything of that night, The Syndicate and how it all went horribly wrong, coupled with the fact his girlfriend Anna (Mekia Cox of I Kissed a Vampire, 90210, Crazy, Stupid, Love., Undercovers, Mob City and After Dark) had left him.

You broke our spoon quickly... No cuddling anymore?

Back in the world, Kennex has been brought to active duty by his superior Captain Maladonado (Lili Taylor of Mystic Pizza, Say Anything..., Arizona Dream, Ready to Wear, Four Rooms, The Haunting, High Fidelity and Six Feet Under) who teams him with an identical logic based android MX-43 android as his partner/back-up. The MX-43 records Kennex's actions and deems he must alert the captain of his behavior so Kennex "accidentally" released him out of the moving vehicle. Given this loss of hardware, Kennex is issued an older model android call a DRN unit that is as close to humanity as possible. Called Dorian (Michael Ealy of Bad Company, 2 Fast 2 Furious, Sleeper Cell, Seven Pounds, The Good Wife, Underworld: Awakening and About Last Night), Kennex notes Dorian exhibits a unique personality, wit and even hints of sarcasm. Can these two be able to work together in spite of their differences? Is a budding bud cop story arc possible in this distant future?

A few comments about the show now. Reminiscent of shows like Alien Nation, Tek War and Total Recall 2070, this show has all the hallmarks human drama, humor, suspense and mystery. Giving the feel of a timeline all its own using slang, concepts and attitudes mirror the early 1990s and the current time. With a hybrid of CGI and prosthetic makeup this series gives sci-fi effects combined with cop drama/mystery. A nice use of narrative gives you almost a detective pulp novel from the 1930s with a view of a technophobe unable to fully except the new world and prefer simpler times.

I especially liked the Detective Valerie Stahl (Minka Kelly of Devil's Highway, State's Evidence, The Kingdom, Friday Night Lights, The Roommate, Charlie's Angels and The World Made Straight) character do to the genetic engineered creation. Unlike the Eugenics War characters of Star Trek like Khan, this young woman is sharp, keen and capable that moves with the grace of a dancer but the attitude of a warrior. Why would she ever go into law enforcement is as baffling as it is to her species of human known as Chromes. I assume that is based of the flawless skin aspect.

Writer J. H. Wyman (The Mexican, Keen Eddie, 13 Graves, Fringe, Dead Man Down and Warriors) working with along writer/director/producer J.J. Abrams (Regarding Henry, Armageddon, Joy Ride, Felicity, Mission: Impossible III, Alias, Lost and Undercovers) they manage to create a world with hope in sight versus the typical dystopian and bleak futures to the like of Minority Report or Bladerunner.

J. J. Abrams personally recommended Karl Urban for Kennex's role after working with him on Star Trek and Star Trek Into the Darkness. Not a bad plug there, huh?

I'll avenge you, man... guess I should have backed up better.

Sci-Fi Gems Week: Logan's Run

Heyas folks and welcome to Day 3 of Sci-Fi Gems Week. What say we head into a time of the year 2274, a society composed of young carefree people with all the comforts of automation, food replicators and rampant desires of the flesh? Sounds pretty decent overall; that is until you reach the age of 30 and you are fated to engage in the ceremony known as Carousel. So grab your flame pistol, your negligee toga and prepare to run. This is Logan’s Run.

Ugh, mall walking is still a thing??!!

Based very loosely on William F. Nolan’s novel of the same title, this utopia gives humans very little to do in the terms of work relations. Only a handful of men are selected to be Sandmen, a quasi-police force that ensures no one over the age of 30 skips out on the time of renewal. It is said at the age of 30 that your time is up and new life must begin to take the place that you left behind in order to keep population down and resources maintained and managed. According to their religious standing that has been founded God only knows when, these people have lived in harmony but unaware of their beginnings. The schools only teach so much and history is almost frowned upon. All knowledge of the Earth seems to be erased and no one would think of what is beyond the great domed city. The New You face lifts, tucks and sculpting for when you are tired of that appearance anymore comes in handy. To track their years of life, at birth they are fitted with a Lifeclock crystal in the palm of their hand that changes color as they approach their “Last Day.”

So yours is starchy and itchy, too?

A sandman named Logan 5 (Michael York of The Three Musketeers, The Four Musketeers: Milady’s Revenge, Murder on the Orient Express, Seven Nights in Japan, The Island of Dr. Moreau, The Lady and the Highwayman, Night of the Fox and Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery) begins to wonder, to query about the meaning of life and the point of Carousel. His friend Francis 7 (Richard Jordan of The Yakuza, Rooster Cogburn, Alibis, Les Miserables, Dune and The Mean Season) warns him that such thinking undermines Carousel and all its teachings. They are force to chase a runner and terminate him. Logan fins a pendant in the shape of an ankh. By the by, booty calls are quite simplified as it would be bad manners to turn a person down. Logan selects a young girl for the evening, a one Jessica 6 (Jenny Aguttter of Walkabout, A War of Children, The Eagle Has Landed, The Man in the Iron Mask, Dominique, An American Werewolf in London and Love’s Labour’s Lost). As the two get cozy Logan notices that Jessica wear an ankh as well and questions its origin. He takes it to the main computer to verify it. The computer explains it belongs to an order known as Sanctuary. A haven for runners to flee to and hereby orders Logan to destroy Sanctuary. Moments later, his lifeclock starts flashing red a year too early forcing Logan to become a runner.

I had a few observations on the movie and wither or not it has stood the test of time. The exterior shots of the domed city is obviously forced perspective and scale models for walk ways, tram system and buildings. Obviously there is a far amount of blue screen being used for matted shots and the robot servitors look a bit hokey and those poor actors in the suits must have been broiling but I do not think that should derail you from the story. I don’t think it is the pinnacle or apex that science fiction has created but it should be considered at the very least of a view of what times are ahead. An alternative timeline for humanity if you will and that has always made for good sci-fi.

Apparently given this is 1976, bras were outlawed in this utopia and brother does that ever show. I guess the sexist pig producer came to the conclusion if babies are genetically engineered and raised by machines, then breast feeding and lack of offspring meant no sagging or gravity. Trust me, there was a pig with a cigar making this decision.

Well I am not a huge fan of werewolves.

Sci-Fi Gems Week: Rollerball

Welcome back fans of my garbled writing to Day 2 of Sci-Fi Gems Week. Harken in the blue box with the madman to 1975. A film about a dystopic future where corporations dominate the planet, and control access to all transports, housing, communications and even food based in the economic downpour. Without passion behind any potential up-rises the masses can be entertained in violence. This is Rollerball.

Yup, dig me.

In the far away time of 2018, a sport similar to Roller Derby in that both sports compete in a round track, Rollerball involves a dozen players with 9 in body armor and on roller skater with three cycles. A steel ball is shot out in the arena with an in and out zone, one of the team must grab the ball and fire it into the goal on the other side of the stadium. The skaters can use the momentum of the cycles to block, jab or slam into the other. Skaters can also use their own momentum and smack each other but there will be penalties and time lost on the clock. If a player is injured they can be rescued by medics or simply replaced by a substitute.

And the crowd goes wild!

Enter Johnathan E. (James Caan of El Dorado, The Godfather, Funny Lady, Hide in Plain Sight, Thief, Misery and For the Boys) the best Houston district er um I mean Rollerball team has to offer and the board of Energy Corporation are a bit antsy. Head chairman Mr. Bartholomew (John Houseman of The Paper Chase, Three Days of the Condor, St. Ives, Aspen, The Cheap Detective, The Fog and Noble House) afraid Johnathan is too easily recognizable, offering him stature above his station that he will encourage others to strive rather than remain corporate drones and tries to tempt Johnathan with a retirement package, funds, wenches and whatever else could appease him but they never bother to ask if John wants to retire. John keeps himself entertained with his corporate concubine Mackie (Pamela Hensley of Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze, Kingston: Confidential, The Six Million Dollar Man, Switch and The Nude Bomb) and explains skill and technique to rising, upcoming whipper snappers... I mean new Rollerball recruits. In spite of being treated like a conqueroring gladiator of old, John finds so much censoring on reading material, music, arts and even film. Puzzled by this, John does not know what to make of it and corporate sends him yet another concubine, Daphne (Barbara Trentham of The Possession of Joel Delaney, Rollerball, Sky Riders and Death Moon) with the object there being, "Too much energy? Pork away!"

With Rollerball to distract the masses, they cannot be able to question how badly they are getting screwed by the upper 1% so Johnathan's popularity must also go and with that it becomes a blood sport to the likes even the most hardcore Rollerball fan is stunned by. Will Johnathan come out on top or will he end up a broken man?

A few things to mention about this film now. This is another good example about well written Sci-fi, given the political and social commentary within the film. With a fraction of the budget of say 2001: A Space Odyssey you have a movie pointing out political agenda, class separation, power and greed satiring on the directionless society we have already become because we are too lazy or too self-indulgent to fix our own mistakes!!! Now, that being said on my ranty soapbox, I totally want a flame gun! You kids playing in my yard again?? PHOOOM!!!

So this patch will help me understand Windows 8??

Anti-Hero Week: Barb Wire

Greetings readers and welcome to Day 3 of Anti-Hero Week.  Normally I do not warn folks ahead of time of what they will be reading but yes today we are reviewing what most folks deem a turkey.   It is less than savory and has lifted a gorgeous story of many decades ago and as a whole the "writers" Ilene Chaiken and Chuck Pfarrer should be water boarded for, but again this is my humble opinion. Two talented writers think swapping genders in this time honored story Casablanca for a series of fist and gun fights isn't  a tremendous insult to Julius J. Epstein, Philip G. Epstein and Howard Koch that brought that flick the love it got.   With that in mind, this is Barb Wire.

Tee hee!

Alexander Willis: Add it to my tab, Miss Kopetski. Boom boom boom!
Barb Wire: Barbara Kopetski died in the war. I'm Barb Spoiler.





In 2017,  the United States is undergoing a second civil war, a state of emergency has been declared allowing a fascist regime to happen and civil liberties has been thrown to the four winds.  One city still neutral territory is Steel Harbor, home of Barb Wire (Pamela Anderson of Baywatch, Raw Justice, Naked Souls, V.I.P.,  Scary Movie 3, Stripperella, Stacked and Blonde and Blonder) owner of the bar Hammerhead and moonlights as a mercenary and bounty hunter which keeps her club flush and her staff in the greenbacks..  sorry Canadian is the coin of the realm.

Her only real friend is corrupt Chief of Police Willis (character actor Xander Berkeley of Terminator 2, Apollo 13, Heat, Apollo 11, Gattaca, Universal Soldier: The Return and CSI: Criminal Scene Investigation)  who enjoys her top shelf booze and company.  A defector of the American Congress, a Doctor Corrina Devonshire (Victoria Rowell of The Young and the Restless, Diagnosis Murder, The Distinguished Gentleman and Dumb & Dumber) developed a bio-weapon of untold destruction, burned her notes and destroyed the prototype virus but Congress can still get what is in her head.  She has to flee into Canada to avoid this ever happening again.

See anything you like

Her steadfast protector resistance fighter and former lover to Barb, Axel Hood (Temuera Morrison of Adventurer, Mauri, Once Were Warriors, The Island of Dr. Moreau, Star Wars: Episode II- Attack of the Clones, The Beautiful Country and Star Wars: Episode III- Revenge of the Sith) has his deal blown and he and "Cora D" are on the run in search of safe harbor until they can get her to Canada.  Will Barb once again take sides, sell out her former love or simply not care?

Now to the nitty gritty of this movie.  We open our film with a wet and wild dance number as our lead actress is topless and sprayed with hoses.  Yeah starting it off really classy.   When your sci-fi comic book hero starts off with a watery striptease, maybe the production has gone downhill.  Yes, we get it movie.  Pam is busty.   To be fair to Pam, her fight choreography was fair and damn did she learn firearms to the point she didn't even flinch when firing them but the character is over the top cheesecake for 12 year olds and even Anderson would state that Barb Wire is no role model.

Of course I could sit here comfortably dissecting every facet and nuance of the film but I would rather poke a little fun and talk about the goofs on film.   Saw the boom mic in Barb's bike helmet during her chatter with Big Fatso.   The crappy wooden table Barb is hiding behind for cover in gun play, the bullet marks made in the table switch sides in between shots.  Continuity no no!!!   Drinks keep refilling themselves between shots of Barb and her brother Charlie in different scenes more than four times.  Back to the hosing scene I swear there are shots during that sequence she is actually dry.   So like it or not, Barb Wire is an anti-hero.   Just needed an original script for the material.

Barb and her two besties... the guns, you pervs.

Anti-Hero Week: V for Vendetta

Good day and hello readers!  Welcome to Day 1 of Anti-Hero Week.  To start us off right how about a dystopian timeline under a white supremacist (No I don't mean Ron Paul won the elections) regime?  With anarchy in the streets of the United States, a pandemic called St. Mary's Virus raving the better portion of the known Europe, The UK is about the only still stable country ruled by fear and oppression.   Anything deemed unsavory by Norsefire was removed to concentration camps including homosexuals, racial minorities, free thinking leftists are all taken away within the first year of power.  This is V for Vendetta.

Now you have erred!

V: I told you, only truth.  For 20 years, I spoiled only this day. Nothing else existed...  until I saw you.  Then everything changed. I fell in love with you Evey.  And to think I no longer believed I could.


With oppression made to look like order, the tyrant leaders of Norsefire have a new problem to worry about.  On November 5th, a man in a outlandish black outfit wearing a Guy Fawkes (member of the Gunpowder Plot attempting to blow up House of Lords in 1605) mask calling himself V (Hugo Weaving of Sky Pirates, ...Almost, Proof, The Matrix, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Transformers and Captain America: The First Avenger) saves a young girl Evey (Natalie Portman of  Beautiful Girls, Garden State, Star Wars: Phantom Menace, Free Zone, No Strings Attached, Thor and Thor: The Dark World) from the Fingermen planning to violate her for being out after curfew .  Making his way into a private broadcast, he announces to the viewers of said channel that are watching to meet him in one year, on November 5, outside the Houses of Parliament of which he decrees he will destroy,  Norsefire's "Fingermen" secret police attempt to capture V but ultimately fail.

Is my nostril hair apparent???

Inspector Finch (Stephen Rea of  The Crying Game, Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles, The Last of the High Kings, The Musketeer, On the Edge, Bloom and Tara Road) has been assigned the dubious task of capturing and unmasking the vigilante known as V but must dig deep into investigation to find who this man is or was to have been made such a public enemy of the land.  As his investigations go further and more deaths attributed to V he finds his country is a much darker place than he could have imagined.

All hangs on the impending year as defacto dictator Adam Sutler (John Hurt of Alien, Nineteen Eighty-Four, Aria, Spaceballs, Wild Bill, Hellboy, The Oxford Murders and Doctor Who: Day of the Doctor) demanding order and that this masked social deviant will cause the downfall of their utopia.    Will the people rise up against this totalitarian state and have their freedom or will V's words fall on deaf ears?

A few points of difference from the source material vs the movie.
Graphic novelist Alan Moore (Swamp Thing, The Watchmen, V for Vendetta and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen) wrote this as he view the 1990's would become under the extreme views of Margret Thatcher's conservative being down on what she deemed subversive behavior.  in the graphic novel, the Norsefire was freely elected and bio-weapons were not plot based.  Fascism seems almost neutered in the film with the exception of the note by Valerie Page an actress incarcerated for being a lesbian.  Racial purity is not covered and is actually seems almost it was completely avoided.
 
The domino scene where V tips the black and red dominoes to for the large V involved 22,000 dominoes and took 4 professional assemblers 200 hours to set up.   During the fight sequence in Victoria Station, the stunt-men are moving in actual slow motion while Hugo Weaving's stunt double (David Leitch) moved in real time.  Shooting the whole scene in 60 frames per second gives the illusion V was a whirlwind among the grass.

This is not the masquerade ball?