brad peyton – Movies of the Soul

Vampire Owl: I have known others with the name Atlas before.

Vampire Bat: I believe that it was Cloud Atlas.

Vampire Owl: So, you feel that there is nothing common among the two.

Vampire Bat: There should be a little bit of future related things in both.

Vampire Owl: A world of future never gets old in the past or present.

Vampire Bat: Well, the future does seem to be very much different than what we thought many years ago.

Vampire Owl: Yes, third world war is too late in human world.

Vampire Bat: And the space colonization has been delayed too much.

Vampire Owl: What about time travel? I believe that there was going to be a time machine with a rage of 10000 BC to 12000 AD.

Vampire Bat: Well, we do not even have teleportation yet.

[Gets some Paneer 65 and three cups of orange tea].

What is the movie about? :: It is the year 2043, and humanoid artificial intelligence terrorist Harlan Shepherd (Simu Liu) leads a war of machines against humans, which leaves about three million people dead, proving the scientist who adopted him as his son, and the founder of the programme Val Shepherd (Lana Parrilla) wrong in her theories and expectations about a better future with Artificial Intelligence. The group of machines seem to be too powerful a force to counter for any nation and its military power. An apocalyptic event which soon lead to the extinction of humanity seems imminent, with Harlan having full access to all machines and controlling all similar forces. There are talks around and the military forces of the world join together to form a group known as International Coalition of Nations (ICN), and this leads to the humans finally winning many battles against Harlan much to the dismay of the machines. This forces him to escape Earth and locate himself in outer space, with a promise to come back and finish what he had started with determination.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: After twenty-eight years pass without the machines making any direct battles with humans, Atlas Maru Shepherd (Jennifer Lopez), an analyst, the daughter of Harlan’s designer, has been hunting for a chance to find the escaped machines who are responsible for that near-apocalyptic event. After one of Harlan’s AI agents is captured and interrogated by her using special techniques, she finds out that Harlan can be found on a planet in the Andromeda Galaxy. As she provides this information to the others, keeps insisting that she should come along and face Harlan, something which she has wanted to do for a very long time. The military hopes to use AI-assisted giant robots known as ARCs which connect to human rangers through a neural link, but Atlas in not ready for the same as she distrusts all kinds of Artificial Intelligence. But Harlan’s drones attack their spaceship just before entering the planet’s atmosphere, and Atlas is forced to enter an ARC herself and falls right on to the planet’s surface.

And what more can happen between humans and machines now? :: Atlas is not happy about her situation within a machine, but she manages to gain basic control of the ARC despite her distrust of the Artificial Intelligence who introduces itself as Smith in a very friendly manner. As they move, the two combine forces and soon find the rest of the rangers dead, and somehow manages to escape to escape from the humanoids chasing them despite the link between her and the machine being weak. She reluctantly agrees to directly interface her mind with Smith, allowing for greater control of the ARC. This allows them to move on with a hope to escape, as finding and defeating Harlan seems to be almost impossible now as she is no monster hunter and the enemy is too strong. But is there still a chance to stop Harlan, and should they take it instead of going through the route to the escape pod? Is there something they can do, and is there a chance that Harlan will directly come to get them? Is Harlan actually a villain or is there something more to him than what meets the eye?

The defence of Atlas :: The biggest advantage of this movie is its stunning visuals with some fine Computer-Generated Imagery and visual effects that elevates this movie so much that people would have wanted to watch the same on the big screen. The spaceships, visuals of space and the planet in Proxima Centauri, along with the stylish AI machines are joy to watch, often reminding one of some computer games – remembering MissionForce: CyberStorm of 1996. Then we know Pacific Rim and its sequel. The messages of Artificial Intelligence and trust, along with the idea about human future being devastation does keep all the thinking going forward. All the action makes things more interesting, and the alien planet is something that everyone would look forward to. Jennifer Lopez mostly manages to handle this quite well, even though the role would have suited a newer, younger or lesser-known actress better with the tale seemingly going in that path. There are no unnecessary complications of science here though, and without an Interstellar-kind of scientific overdose, the move scores more on the true science-fiction and not that science-reality mode that keeps the viewers struggling. The Mech-AI and bonding feels nice too.

The claws of flaw :: The movie not having a younger main character to suit the situation more does hurt it at times, and there are moments when it seems to go into a silly mode. There is too much focus on one character even when this is about saving the world. It does not feel appropriate to see that the most trained leader of the rangers and his fully matched AI companion falls too easily while the analyst gets to defeat advanced Artificial Intelligence humanoids with powerful weapons with ease – it is quite the disgrace to the soldiers and their battle-hardened commander intending on saving the world. Somehow, their only duty seems to be focused on keeping the seemingly useless emotionally struggling elder lady who might be mostly out control, safe at all times. In that case, they should have kept her back home, as she is nowhere close to as guide as she claimed to be with the Artificial Intelligence leader, with her missing out on the most predictable part of the movie. The basic idea about Artificial Intelligence seems to be overused, even though we do not come to know that it is what we are dealing with, until the movie is somewhat closer to its end.

How it finishes :: Atlas could have surely been a better movie with less predictability, with more of a consideration on its basic strengths, but it remains an entertainer, and for that much there is no doubt. The repetition itself holds it down, but the same seems to be the one thing that would drive movies like this forever. The film was surely not well-received by the critics and Jennifer Lopez was even nominated for the Worst Actress category at the Golden Raspberry Awards – but you know that critics often make no sense, as they recently did with Madame Web, and we know that even the best movies do not make money, like John Carter. This movie could have at least received some accolades for its graphics and visuals, for the settings in space need not always be this good, and not all science fiction are spectacles of this quality, not even those much-famed superhero movies of Marvel. You watch this one for the beauty on the screen and another world of future with an emotional and classic touch. Well, you need movies like these at regular intervals to keep the love for science fiction going, and not those silly stuff which deviates from the genre’s core.

Release date: 24th May 2024 (Netflix)
Running time: 120 minutes
Directed by: Brad Peyton
Starring: Jennifer Lopez, Simu Liu, Sterling K Brown, Mark Strong, Gregory James Cohan, Abraham Popoola, Lana Parrilla

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@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

What is Journey 2: The Mysterious Island? :: It is a sequel to Journey to the Center of the Earth which had Brendan Fraser in the lead with the comparatively less known Anita Briem along with Josh Hutcherson. It was based on the nineteenth-century novel of the same name by Jules Verne and had great special effects and CGI which could have been great in 3D or may be 4D. I couldn’t watch that one in 3D, but did manage to watch its sequel in its full power, and managed to watch it so many more times on television, thanks to Star Movies, or was it HBO? This sequel is based on another Jules Verne novel, this time The Mysterious Island. Well, who better than Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson to replace Brendan Fraser? Both are my favourite actors indeed, and that makes this a special series for me, and I have to say that I liked the sequel better than the original, just by a slight margin. Michael Caine and Vanessa Hudgens are two great additions to the franchise.

The Setting :: The movie is loosely based on the novel, which I had read in its abridged form long ago. This version of the original classic has a grown-up Sean Anderson (Josh Hutcherson), years after the incident which involved his journey to the centre of the Earth with his uncle Trevor Anderson (Brendan Fraser). Just like Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne is the guide in the first movie, Jules Verne’s The Mysterious Island is the guide this time. The journey continues to be personal, and through the new world, they will find new relationships and also strengthens what all were weak and struggling. There is a lot of potential for using the best CGI and all the special effects, and with the movie being released in 3D, there is a lot in store for the viewers here, even as the chance to watch it on the big screen has disappeared. It should still look pretty nice with a good cable connection and an LED television.

What is it about? :: Sean Anderson (Josh Hutcherson) is back in action, as he tries to find his lost grandfather Alexander Anderson (Michael Caine) this time. With the help of his stepfather Hank Parsons (Dwayne Johnson), he deciphers the code which is supposed to have been sent by the grandfather even as he doesn’t get along with Hank much to the dismay of his mother Elizabeth (Kristin Davis). The stepfather and the son travel together to Palau according to the codes. There they assigns a helicopter guide Gabato (Luis Guzman) and his daughter Kailani (Vanessa Hudgens) who agrees to take them to the dangerous island for three thousand United States dollars. The helicopter is caught in a storm and they crash into the island. There they encounter strange animals until coming up against a giant lizard, from which the grandfather saves them. Now the question remains if they can get out of the island which is going to sink in two days. In the process, they will have to get the aid or avoid a good number of creatures.

The defence of Journey 2 :: The movie’s best advantage is its graphics, as it has created an outstanding 3D world which clearly makes a point that it is indeed a mysterious island, and not of this world, nor connected to any logical or scientific factors of modernity. It is indeed funnier, and has more beautiful world compared to the original. It is an adventure which is friendly enough for all ages, and therefore clearly suitable for family viewing. The movie’s theme of family is mostly worked out well too, with the father-son, father-daughter bonding often working quite well in the background. There are a few impressive dialogues which they drop in here and there. There is a very well created chase scene involving giant bees and huge birds, as well as nice sequences involving the sinking of an island and a submarine which all look beautiful in 3D. It can boast of a strong 3D adventure inside it, supported by a literary work which brings in nostalgia to the mind.

The claws of flaw :: The movies similarities to the original novel as well as its connection to its predecessor are limited. There is your typical lack of logic, but it is covered by the background book as well as the brilliant special effects in 3D which takes you to another world. There is no contribution from a horror side, but simple, non-threatening world, and that often adds to the better impression it creates for families. It might also have a little bit of emptiness in it considering such a marvelous world it created and how it has brought up so much less and ended in just one and half hours. We watched it on the same day as Agneepath, which meant that this felt much shorter, especially considering how much of a pathetic and long movie the Hritik Roshan starrer Bollywood movie was – it was the worst movie of 2012 indeed, and thanks to The Rock and his team that the day was saved and I didn’t watch many Hindi movies after that in the year.

Performers of the Soul :: Josh Hutcherson has his moments, especially with Vanessa Hudgens, but The Rock steals the show, just like he does in any wrestling ring. I would be surprised if there is a good number of people who won’t watch the movie just for the man. Yes, you have to love him – he sings “What a Wonderful World” and also teaches his stepson something on how to get the attention of the lady; the man scores with the funny moments really well, even as the muscles come to donate a lot to the score quite often. When Dwayne Johnson is not scoring, it is Michael Caine who takes the lead only to lose it to the magnificent screen presence of the former WWE champion, one of the most popular Wrestling superstars ever. Vanessa Hudgens is there for the looks, and her cute and charming presence catches your attention if not the beauty and the clothing. She never looked better – no not even in Springbreakers; that was too much of a gorgeous side. Kristin Davis has very little to do, that too in the real world, while Luis Guzman is quite funny throughout.

How it finishes :: The movie works mainly due to Dwayne Johnson and Michael Caine, and no surprises there. The movie is a fine mix of everything good and nothing unworthy of the family audience. It is not a classic movie which can justify the book on which it is based, but an entity which is of visual splendor, unlimited fun and awesome actors. There is absolutely no human character in the movie that you won’t like, and there is no real villain even in the form a creature of the mysterious island. It has taken out everything bad or evil from its core, and has filled it with more and more good and sweet things. Jules Verne won’t complaint about this though, neither will the authors of Treasure Island and Gulliver’s Travels – this indeed saves the world from the less interesting adaptation of the latter which was released in 2010. You can catch this one very often in the English movie channels; its quite a frequent visitor to the television, and if you have missed this one, you haven’t really been checking the channels enough.

Release date: 10th February 2012
Running time: 94 minutes
Directed by: Brad Peyton
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Josh Hutcherson, Vanessa Hudgens, Michael Caine, Luis Guzman, Kristin Davis