Tag Archives: pandora

Borderlands

Posted on by

Vampire Owl: When was the last time you went near the border?

Vampire Bat: You mean near the werewolf territory.

Vampire Owl: No, the zombie lands on the other side.

Vampire Bat: When did we begin to check the wastelands?

Vampire Owl: I believe that there is something more than the walking dead there.

Vampire Bat: I am sure that the movie is not referring to such borders.

Vampire Owl: Are we going for interplanetary borders then?

Vampire Bat: That has always been a better choice, for they are more open.

Vampire Owl: I have heard about those space vampires.

Vampire Bat: The space does have its own variety of blood-drinking species.

[Gets a blackcurrant shake and three cups of black tea].

What is the movie about? :: It is said that a long time ago, the whole of galaxy was ruled by an alien race known as Eridians, whose power and technology were far beyond the understanding of human race. But human beings were able to find some part of this science and use it to their advantage, thus becoming the reason for bettering their world and making themselves scientifically advanced enough to make an impact in their world above other species. But the best of such scientific knowledge was hidden in a vault in a planet known as Pandora. Corporations, criminals and treasure hunters who made peace impossible in the planet and nearby have been killing each other in an attempt to find the secret vault for no success in the end. Then there was the prophecy about a daughter of Eiridia who would restore peace. More people have died searching for this than all the wars which had occurred in the past. There is almost nothing good happening in the one prosperous planet with enough natural beauty to inspire enough tourists from Earth. But the only tourism event happening there might be a treasure hunt for vault.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: Tiny Tina (Ariana Greenblatt) who is the daughter of Deukalian Atlas (Edgar Ramírez), the richest man around, and one of the most powerful corporate magnates in the galaxy, gets kidnapped by a rogue soldier Roland Greaves (Kevin Hart) and a psychopath Krieg (Florian Munteanu) who is released at the same time by accident. Despite the soldiers trying their best, the group of three manages to get out of the area and travel to the wastelands of Pandora where they do not come in the areas under scan. The job is given to a legendary bounty hunter Lilith (Cate Blanchett) who is almost ready to retire, but the offer is a little too much for her to reject. She is considered the best with a great history of bounty hunting by too many people to avoid her as an option, even though troops of Atlas are also after the kid. As she lands on Pandora to search for the missing girl, she comes across Claptrap (Jack Black), a robot that says that it was programmed a long time ago to assist her. With the help of the robot, she finally traces the location of Tina and embarks on the journey.

And what does this world bring in between all the chaos and destruction? :: There, she finds out that Tina was not really kidnapped, but had decided to escape with the rogue soldier and the psycho intentionally to avoid her father. She attacks Lilith with her two friends, and it is then that the troops sent by Atlas Corporation reaches the same area and attacks all of them. This leads to the strange new team of the teenage runaway girl, rogue soldier, bounty hunter, psychopath and the old robot escaping from there, with the soldier team known as Crimson Lance on their trail. It is discovered that Tina was not human or the corporate daughter as everyone had thought – she was a genetically engineered alien created with the biological parts taken from the Eridians, the ancient race that once lived and bettered Pandora. She was created through experiments by Atlas so that she can open the vault where lost civilization’s advanced science and technology are kept. Atlas Corporation intends to rule the world with the new advanced weapons they intend to gain. Can the one strange team stop him in time? Or will the gates to unlimited technology be opened to a greedy villain who would become invincible?

The defence of Borderlands :: There is some nice world detail that we see here, even though not perfect, there is something to watch out for at every corner here. Ariana Greenblatt adds more to the fun than the others here. The funny side mostly works in this movie, unlike those movies with ridiculous jokes like Deadpool and its strange relations. The battle scenes are truly exciting, and the detailing on small things will catch our attention. A good science fiction movie comes first out of the world where it is set, and this one wins there, and takes it to the side of action, where it secures another win for most of the time. There is also the reminder that this is from a game, with some fine weapons being shown, and explosions as well as stylish chases all around. The post-apocalyptic feeling is also present, like in Mad Max: Fury Road, but this one is surely the much lighter version, without that eternal depression of world going out of hand with no chance for a return. This feels mostly because of the knowledge about the existence of an alien life which would mean more than just giving up for humanity.

The claws of flaw :: The movie should have taken itself more seriously, and we feel the silliness a little too much in between. The main character should have been younger and got someone other than Cate Blanchett to play it, as we get the feeling of having the suitable one for the tale of such a past. The twist used in the movie seems to be rather too comfortable and safe for anyone’s liking too, and it is something about which one feels the need to bother less. The colours of the movie could have been reduced a little bit outside and used more inside the alien world within the portal, as we have too much of an opposite. Jamie Lee Curtis surely feels to have been more wasted than anyone in this particular role. The villain could have also had more to do in the earlier and middle stages of the movie. There could have been more of a journey of a mystery adventure which the movie leaves behind. As the movie came when my gaming times had mostly reached the beginning of the end stages, I could not really comment on a game – movie comparison, but positive reviews in that case were not found.

How it finishes :: As this movie is based on a computer game, the negative reviews were always expected. But like Until Dawn, Need for Speed, Hitman, Doom, Silent Hill, Resident Evil, Warcraft, Mortal Kombat and others, this keeps the gaming side moving well to the cinematic world. I would love to see Mass Effect game made into movie, and it would have similar settings, but considering its capabilities as a game itself, there would be a big movie, with the looks of Jupiter Ascending, but that one would satisfy more critics. For now, for some simple entertainment during the weekends, this is the kind of movie that we would want to watch. Let us not go through too many of those negative reviews, as there are so many positives about this movie, which comes back every time we feel that there would be a problem. Maybe, a sequel could do this one a lot of good, with a lot of worlds to explore in a Star Trek or Star Wars model. Then we go back to the game and come back again to enjoy this.

Release date: 9th August 2024
Running time: 101 minutes
Directed by: Eli Roth
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jack Black, Edgar Ramírez, Ariana Greenblatt, Florian Munteanu, Gina Gershon, Jamie Lee Curtis

<<< Click here to go to the previous review.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Warriors of Future

Posted on by

Vampire Owl: I don’t know these warriors at all.

Vampire Bat: They are from the future. We belong to the past.

Vampire Owl: Eternity is not something of the past.

Vampire Bat: The quality of eternity is that it always begins in a past.

Vampire Owl: We do not always sit in a future to see it.

Vampire Bat: We are currently in a future of that eternity’s past.

Vampire Owl: Why do you sound like parts of an X-Men movie?

Vampire Bat: You could also ask your Frankenstein for answers.

Vampire Owl: Doctor Frankenstein do not answer to speculations.

Vampire Bat: Well, it is because he is not a real doctor at all.

[Gets a chicken puffs and three cups of Munnar tea].

What is the movie about? :: The story moves to a world in crisis in a distant future. Humans have been fighting each other for years without thinking about the consequences of their actions, and the invention of battle robots which were made specifically for combat and mass destruction made things even worse. There have been countries going against each other and people against their own kind. Humans never learned their lessons, and people had to pay the price for the non-stop wars which led to devastation of environment with polluted air and water, as well as devastated ecological balance. Earth has turned not suitable for living for most creatures, and it particularly affected the health of humans. The newly born children had terrible diseases, and some of them barely lived past a few years. Then, the governments all around the world wishes to fix things, and built machines called Skynets to purify the air. These Skynets do manage to bring fresh air to some sectors of the major cities, but in a restricted manner. Then on one day, a giant meteorite falls into one of those sectors, and a giant plant begins to emerge out of it.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: The plant would wreak havoc everywhere whenever it comes into contact with water, and scientists called it Pandora after the box from the Greek myth. The plant has the power to reclaim environment and get Earth to its previous state, but it only goes on destroying cities as it grows when it comes into contact with water. Scientists feel that there should be some method through which it could be made useful to humanity, instead of causing chaos, but that seems to be hope against all hope. Pandora’s growth has been proportional to the amount of rain it gets. It absorbs pollutants, then releases hydrogen, and the new idea of the scientists is to use a virus to alter Pandora. If the plant can be stopped from growing using the virus before the next thunderstorm, it could actually save a lot of lives, as the air will be purified, and the plant would not grow to take over anything more. But the mission is a very difficult one, as nobody knows how exactly the alien plant would reach to the humans coming near it with machines and trying to drop a virus which it would consider harmful.

And what more can happen in this future world of chaos and destruction? :: There could be side-effects to the initial Plan A, and Plan B is not something positive, as there would be massive destruction all around. The only backup plan is to destroy the whole plant from a distance along with the many people and structures which surround it. The number of corpses would then be more than anyone could have seen before from a single event. Usually, people would not keep such a plan at all with lives at stake. But there are people who wishes to keep the Skynets working instead of Pandora replacing the machines. They would want to keep their prized possession at the top. So, not everyone wants this mission to be successful, and with some possibility of chaos around, can the mission be successful quickly enough and save lives? Are the troops which were sent for the purpose experienced enough, and are their gadgets good enough to serve the objective well enough? As the plant also has its own defense mechanisms, things might not be that easy as healing a random plant with a medicine. So what kind of a future are we looking at as far as humanity is concerned?

The defence of Warriors of Future :: Here is another Chinese movie which gets the science fiction and apocalyptic world closer to an enjoyable reality. Russian films have also come close to making such things happen, and here we see a visual treat of a future world plagued by pollution and an alien plant which grows without limits. The idea has been nicely put into picture, and the action sequences are really good. The creatures are well-detailed and so are the robots. There are deviations from the usual pictures of monsters in armour and skin nicely brought to light here. The Skynet and Pandora visuals are nicely created to bring the special feel of the environment. The performances are really good, and the leading cast seems to be wisely chosen to keep the seriousness alive even while adding some nice humour here and there. They have nicely contributed to being part of a science fiction action thriller set in the distant future with the right elements. The high box-office collections of the movie are a reminder that it would have been a fine spectacle on the big screen in Hong Kong, as we find the visual strength to be worth watching in the theatres.

The claws of flaw :: This movie was supposed to release three years earlier, and if that had happened the visual effects would have been even further ahead – it still remains a visual effect treat as of now. One can feel that there is some inspiration taken from other works here too. This journey feels like the return to a zombie-infested world like in Peninsula or Army of the Dead to do the near impossible task. The world, even though not explored from everyman’s point of view, can be a part of the list of our favourite ones from fiction. The alien creatures could have been more terrifying in appearance rather than having similarities with a few that we already know to be scarier. We could have also had more alien attacks, even though not in the mode as explored in the Alien franchise. The robots could have had some more battles in the earlier stages of the movie, as the early war is not that much shown with all the devastation which occurred to Earth’s flora and fauna. The movie could actually have a sequel too, as the tree still remains a mystery, and more could follow it.

How it finishes :: Warriors of Future makes another interesting piece of science fiction from China like The Wandering Earth which had raised the level of the possibility of an apocalyptic scenario to something very interesting as well as divergent in nature – with films like The Soul bringing even more divergence. The movie here, despite having some similarities with other titles, do have the divergence of its own. Outside Hollywood, Russia also had so much of entertaining science fiction ideas with movies like Superdeep, Coma, Sputnik and The Blackout. During these days, science fiction needs to have its divergence from all languages and cultures, and this film takes another fine step towards it. At the same time, we see another warning against wars and weapons of mass destruction as well as the actions against environment. Then you have the science fiction entertainment with an apocalyptic scenario right here. We keep watching some fine horror and science fiction from all around the world, and they make us feel like that is the closest to truth and a probable future that we can get.

Release date: 25th August 2022 (China); 2nd December 2022 (Netflix)
Running time: 99 minutes
Directed by: Ng Yuen-fai
Starring: Louis Koo, Sean Lau, Carina Lau, Philip Keung, Tse Kwan-ho, Nick Cheung, Janice Wu, Wan Guopeng as Connor Kwon, Eddy Ko, Sakurako Okubo

<<< Click here to go to the previous review.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Avatar 2

Posted on by

Vampire Owl: Do you remember when we watched the first film?

Vampire Bat: That was too long ago for anything to be remembered.

Vampire Owl: Yet, it was like the first of its kind during old days.

Vampire Bat: Too many movies are first of their type.

Vampire Owl: Well, in that case, I have never really liked the second film of any franchise.

Vampire Bat: The lack of such a unique feeling will be evident.

Vampire Owl: Even the corona virus pandemic seems to be lacking in the same thing.

Vampire Bat: I have often liked the third and fourth movies better.

Vampire Owl: We can wait for that to happen after watching this.

Vampire Bat: I wonder how much of an infinity of films we will need to watch further sequels for a film which ended so well with the first one.

[Gets a vegetable samosa and three cups of Munnar tea].

What is the movie about? :: Years have passed since the first human attempt of colonising the planet of Pandora. As the natural resources of the Earth have been further depleted, leading to the planet’s near devastation, humans have been further trying to quickly colonize Pandora, and a newer and advanced base has been formed for the same purpose. The Resources Development Administration had been mining the mineral known as unobtanium on the planet, but now it has become about something more. Pandora continues to be dominated by the creatures known as Na’vi, who are 10-foot-tall blue-skinned humanoids who live in harmony with nature and considered the elements of the same as gods, particularly the Great Mother, also known as Eywa. But humans would care less about nature, as they have destroyed the same on their own planet, which could die soon enough, forcing a human exodus into this planet in the Alpha Centauri. As a technologically advanced race, humans could take on the indigenious species with brutal power.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) who had served for humans is now completely a part of Na’vi as the leader of the forest people known as the Omaticaya. He continues to be with Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) with whom he raises and guides children including the sons Neteyam (James Flatters) and Lo’ak (Britain Dalton), daughter Tuk (Trinity Jo-Li Bliss), adopted daughter Kiri (Sigourney Weaver) and a human boy named Spider (Jack Champion), the son of the human commander who was unable to be transported to Earth due to the young age. Spider is not particularly liked by anyone except Jake and his children, as everyone in the tribe including Neytiri are doubtful about him as he is a child of the enemy who can return at any moment. They keep preparing themselves for this return of a human military force, as a number of humans have returned and erected a separate camp on the planet, with advanced weapons and forces that are beyond their comprehension.

And what more is to follow further here? :: Na’vi faces the humans in occasional ambushes, but understands that something bigger is coming, which Jake feels is near impossible to stop with their natural weapons. The guerilla campaign against the RDA supply lines does not seem to be work with that much of an efficiency, and almost has one of Jake’s sons killed in action. Colonel Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang) returns after death as a Na’vi marine full of the memories of the dead colonel and seeks revenge with the support of a good number of similar Na’vi avatars created out of humans. They capture the children of Jake, who are freed except for Spider whom they take hostage. Even though he refuses to tell them anything about Jake even after torture, he helps Miles with the Na’vi culture and language, which Miles is quick to understand while deciding to care for the boy who is of his own blood in one way or the other. Jake who feels that Spider can lead the humans to their habitat, leaves for the far away islands where Metkayina reef people live in solidarity with the ocean and the creatures who live in the water. But would that keep them safe?

The defence of Avatar 2: The Way of Water :: Even though not as good as the first movie, there is still some fine visual beauty in store here too, especially in relation to the ocean and its alien creatures that make an impact. There is also the action that happens around, it is huge, even though there is the feeling of repetition that keeps happening at all times, making us feel that Marvel and DC can always do this better; even the visual splendour could be better achieved by them. The movie does choose family over everything else, which is a very good thing, even though not polished enough. As the predictability becomes more and more, the movie comes up with better visuals and some dialogues which seem to make up for it, even when we realize that there is not that much of an intellectual side behind it despite providing an early feeling of having it. As the scene does shift to the situation of fishermen who faces the people from outside, it reminds one of the protests called by the people of Vizhinjam near Trivandrum against an entity and similar fights by fishermen just like the tribal people against the multi-national corporations who form the new colonizers – well, the scientifically advanced and the rich always has the edge and can defeat the rest in one giant step.

The claws of flaw :: Avatar 2: The Way of Water is predictable from the early stages itself. It overdoes the family elements so much that one wonders if this will ever reach anywhere with the emotional side. The narrative remains weak, and the run-time is too much without enough content to support it except for the visuals, which are also not improvement from the first film which was ahead of its time with splendour on the big screen. Even among the visuals, there is not one moment that stands apart, and for the ocean and its beauty, there has been fantastic displays in films like Aquaman. This second movie often drags so much that one wonders if it is ever going to reach its final moments of fights. Focusing on alien family drama more than everything else hurts its capability to move forward towards the next movie in the franchise, especially when there are so many repetitive moments related to it. You just cannot talk about family so much that Fast and Furious franchise feels that it has not appreciated family enough; that would be too much to handle for anyone with some sanity left to see the irritating side.

How it finishes :: Being the second part of a movie that scored so well with the box-office as well as the critics required more – nowadays, even other industries can come up with films having big action sequences and grand events on the screen; this one could have been much more, and the second part of Avatar would get big collections, thanks to the fame of its predecessor. It has done well to be entertaining enough, but not by much. The movie franchise needs to remember that there is the requirement to raise the bar, or the third movie will struggle to keep the audience rushing to the theatres – after all, we can always have another corona virus pandemic too. Most of us have waited for too long for this movie, and what we receive is predictable stuff – not good news for any franchise, unless there are still addicted fans who wishes to keep going to Pandora without having a clear idea about how much such a world can provide. The endless opportunities of an alien world goes unnoticed here, and that is a side which requires further imagination. In this case, we know that science continues to be evil and destroy worlds as it has been doing for Earth.

Release date: 16th December 2022
Running time: 192 minutes
Directed by: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Cliff Curtis, Joel David Moore, CCH Pounder, Edie Falco, Jemaine Clement, Britain Dalton, Kate Winslet

<<< Click here to go to the previous review.

<<< Click here to go to the previous film watched in theatre.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.