Denis Villenueve. A solid lineup. A different take on first contact. I loved Sicario but went in expecting a cerebral epic sci-fi.
That was a mistake.
Good things:
- Some really nice visual scenes
- Interesting aliens Calligraphy aliens!
- Clear theme of communication is omnipresent
- A neat score that might be awesome in a different movieBad things:
- The acting
- The lack of emotional reaction to ALIENS! The students asking to turn on the TV, all of the main characters
- Lack of useful characters Only the aliens and Louise actually did anything the entire movie.
- Supporting characters are very stupid in an attempt to foil the main character slightly
- Very clumsy exposition. Genre-typical news reports, voice-overs, dumb characters asking stupid questions.
- Very slow pacing. This worked in parts of Sicario, but didn't work in this movie because there was no tension. The main characters never seemed remotely threatened.
- Lousie showing up at school thinking everyone will be there after aliens arrive and there's a state of emergency
- Why can't you translate alien language like you can translate Farsi. This is a paraphrase but in the spirit of what Colonel Weber was saying.
- Useless love interest when the costars have no chemistry.
- Ultrasecure military base lets someone steal a ton of explosives and put it in an ALIEN SPACECRAFT without anyone noticing.
- Many unbelievable plot points
- Poor dialogue Let's make a baby - real quote
- Poor handling of the major plot points Looking through time seems to undermine the fact that the aliens need help. Why did one have to die if they could see the future? Why did only one die when they were right next to each other?
- Very heavy handed moral messaging that didn't align with the rest of the movie.
- Why couldn't Ian also see into the future as he studied the language, or any of the others?Overall extremely disappointing. I'm honestly surprised critics or general moviegoers like this. The premise was very good. It's a real shame the execution failed so miserably.
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@jared looking at your list it seems to me that you have missed or misunderstood some things but most importantly non linear time, from your comment
Poor handling of the major plot points Looking through time seems to undermine the fact that the aliens need help. Why did one have to die if they could see the future? Why did only one die when they were right next to each other?
This is what I took from it baring in mind I've only seen it once;
Giving humanity the ability to experience time non linearly is the absolute key to humans being able to help the aliens and doesn't undermine anything. It's that ability that shows us 'now' what we need to do to help them in 3000 years so that we can actually do it in the first place. They help us to help them by showing us what we do to help them. Its a paradox just like when Louise experiences talking to the Chinese General and then uses that information to get him to stand down. The aliens teach Louise the ability, or at least gives her everything she needs to learn (the information dump on the wall) which she gives in detail to the world through her book years later.
Why did Abbot (or Costello?) have to die? Because he did die. It happened. You seem to be confusing experiencing time non linearly with something analogous to time travel in that you can change the future. You can't and that conceit is pervasive through the film. He died because he did, just like Hannah. Knowing it can't change it. Why did only one die? Bad luck. How does someone survive anything from a car accident to an earthquake when the person next to them doesn't.
In terms of 'seeing the future' it doesn't make you omnipotent and all knowing. Non linear time puts in to question the notion of 'now' and our path is strewn with paradox particularly when 'now' is a moment that you are experiencing another point in time. You can't change the future but a paradox can be the cause what does happen for example the Chinese General
The alien who survived the blast was only aware of the event to come moments before it happened and knocked on the wall in an attempt to alert what was about to happen and then did a dump of knowledge before knocking them down the shaft and containing the blast. That alien didn't necessarily see the explosion as an event, he could have experienced a moment far ahead of that and it was the fact that the other alien died in the explosion is where he got the knowledge of the event. That is assuming the one that knocked is the one that survived, it could easily have been the one that died that knocked who potentially has always known that he died then. Just like Louise with Hannah. Paradox.
In terms of other things.
The 'useless love interest' was key to the understanding of everything for both Louise and the audience. They have 'no chemistry' because they aren't a love interest in the story and at no point linearly are they portrayed as one. It's not until well after the events of the aliens leaving does anything spark between them. Portraying them that way also keeps the reveal that he is the husband/father. For me the "Lets make a baby" line rings completely true, but I have children.
Why Ian couldn't view time like that? Louise is a linguist and as such grasping a more concise, though limited understanding. By the time the aliens leave she is only just wrapping her head around it. We are also shown that in Ians work he is still focusing heavily on equations. The interactions we see with Ian and the aliens, Ian is essentially Louise's prop i.e. "Ian walks"
Ok that's way more on that than I thought I was going to write and proof reading paradox discussions tends to make you go in circles so I won't and hope it makes sense. It wasn't intended as condescending so I hope it didn't come across that way.
Anyway, it's just a difference of opinion/interpretation.
I really enjoyed the film and it's sparked a lot of interesting discussions in my circles both positive and negative. One of my friends that I thought would absolutely love it fell asleep.
Maybe what I have written is exactly how you saw everything too but still didn't like it, I don't know.
Shout by stormsm
If you're looking for an action and "turn brain off now" film, just don't watch it and spare us the 6-7 hearts review.
I for one, am very tired from 500$m crap like Indi Day and Marvel's poop. So I was very excited to watch this one.
This one is more like Spielberg's Encounters from the Third Kind. It's more about the characters in the film and the amazing journey they go through. It's mostly about the human behavior that will make you think.
While it's not an End of the World aliens movie like Battle: Los Angeles, it still offers great amount of military presence and plenty of stuff that's going on.
So if you actually want to care about an intelligent movie and use your head - go. Otherwise, go watch an X men.
Highly recommended for some audience 10/10.
2-feb-2017 edit: Just came out on Bluray and I saw it again. Definitely keeping my rating.
Watching again at July-2023, excited towards Dune II : Excellent. Excellent film. So called plot-holes listed here are negligible when the overall product is really thoughtful and masterfully crafted.loading replies
@stormsm I feel you on this subject but I don't think that this film is an intelligent movie. It is a well shot movie, so suspenseful and kinda thoughtful that what humans can do if they deal this situation. But the third act is a disappointment for me unfortunately. I care about "why they are here and what they are gonna do" thing but it didn't me satisfy. The film goes another subject.
Also, people can watch both Marvel movies and Sci-fi movies. If I can watch an X-Men movie, it doesn't mean that I cannot watch this movie. I see your point but there are other peoples like me takes this argument differently. Thanks...
Shout by stormsm
If you're looking for an action and "turn brain off now" film, just don't watch it and spare us the 6-7 hearts review.
I for one, am very tired from 500$m crap like Indi Day and Marvel's poop. So I was very excited to watch this one.
This one is more like Spielberg's Encounters from the Third Kind. It's more about the characters in the film and the amazing journey they go through. It's mostly about the human behavior that will make you think.
While it's not an End of the World aliens movie like Battle: Los Angeles, it still offers great amount of military presence and plenty of stuff that's going on.
So if you actually want to care about an intelligent movie and use your head - go. Otherwise, go watch an X men.
Highly recommended for some audience 10/10.
2-feb-2017 edit: Just came out on Bluray and I saw it again. Definitely keeping my rating.
Watching again at July-2023, excited towards Dune II : Excellent. Excellent film. So called plot-holes listed here are negligible when the overall product is really thoughtful and masterfully crafted.loading replies
@stormsm I absolutely loved this movie. Probably the best movie that I've watched this year. I just finished watching it for the second time (saw it opening weekend as well) and I loved the cinematography, all the subtleties, foreshadowing and masterful acting by Amy Adams. Knowing the big twist ahead of time (now), I was paying extra attention to all the hints and how the secret was revealed this time and was left in wonder all over again. And that final musical piece (Max Richter - On the Nature of Daylight)... Gives me the feels every time.
Review by Andrew Bloom
VIP9[9.0/10[ An incredibly tense hour of television. What's so impressive is that Better Call Saul accomplished this despite us knowing that, of course, Jimmy and Gus both survive. It comes down to such fantastic performances from everyone involved. You immediately buy how shaken and terrified Jimmy and Kim are, and how frightened even the normally steady Gus is at the point of Lalo's gun. Vince Gilligan's direction is outstanding, with a Hitchcockian flair for light and shadow that sets the foreboding mood of all these set pieces. And the score does the rest, helping the audience to feel the emotion of these scenes even if we rationally know the fates of several of those at the most risk.
My only mild beef is that Gus' survival feels like a bit of a cheat. It's still not clear to me why he did the gun in the superlab, and the dialogue kind of shrugs at the idea. Even in the dark, it seems like Lalo would have done better against Fring than he did. But details like Fring seeming to make one last desperate ploy to survive, still suffering wounds despite his body armor, and admitting he was over his skiis with this whole thing in the end helps make it passable. On a moment-to-moment basis, the scenes absolutely work, which covers for a lot.
What struck me the most is that closing image -- Howard and Lalo, two very different men, sharing the same fate and the same grave. It's a sign that the barrier between Jimmy's legal life and Saul's criminal life has been firmly shattered. Both lives, both worlds, are bound up in these deaths now, with the psychic weight hanging over Jimmy and Kim for the last five episodes. This never happened, but they, and Mike, will all still have to live with it. I can't wait to see how.
EDIT: If you'd like to read my usual, longer review of the episode, you can find it here --
https://thespool.net/reviews/tv-recap-better-call-saul-season-6-episode-8/loading replies
@andrewbloom Fring had planted the gun there for the same reason why he took his men and left the safe house in this episode: He knew that Lalo wanted the laundry, perhaps even more than he wanted him dead. And I thought that the gunfight was believable because Fring was a moving target in the dark, whereas Lalo was stationary and in a space that Fring was familiar with, to the extent that he had even measured steps from the open area to where the gun was hidden.
Am I the only one who is not liking this con story line thing? I don't know what it is but it just lost me..... It started out so so strong but this story line...
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@sithhomelander I do like it, but I feel maybe I'll come to appreciate it more once the show ends and I can benefit from hindsight without being so anxious to learn what happens next. I think it's understandable that some people dislike it though, it's such a break from the rest of the entire show haha, it's like its own sequel movie, there's a whole different vibe.
This is after watching the first two episodes:
This show is definitely in the running for most boring show 2021.
It is amazing though, post-apocalyptic scenes are hard to screw up with anything other than bad acting.
They managed to get decent actors, but the script is so bad, that it doesn't matter.Its not even that the characters are bad, but honestly - all the stuff that could be interesting ( like crossing lake michigan )we only get told about.
I'll give it one more episode, but if the tune doesn't change hard, I guess that will be it for me.
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@player8472 keep watching… It’s like good single malt you have to develop a taste fort and by the end of the first few rounds you won’t be able to go back.
Shout by stormsm
If you're looking for an action and "turn brain off now" film, just don't watch it and spare us the 6-7 hearts review.
I for one, am very tired from 500$m crap like Indi Day and Marvel's poop. So I was very excited to watch this one.
This one is more like Spielberg's Encounters from the Third Kind. It's more about the characters in the film and the amazing journey they go through. It's mostly about the human behavior that will make you think.
While it's not an End of the World aliens movie like Battle: Los Angeles, it still offers great amount of military presence and plenty of stuff that's going on.
So if you actually want to care about an intelligent movie and use your head - go. Otherwise, go watch an X men.
Highly recommended for some audience 10/10.
2-feb-2017 edit: Just came out on Bluray and I saw it again. Definitely keeping my rating.
Watching again at July-2023, excited towards Dune II : Excellent. Excellent film. So called plot-holes listed here are negligible when the overall product is really thoughtful and masterfully crafted.loading replies
@blakblu Umm you do know that "foreshadowing is a literary device by which an author hints what is to come" (as per Wikipedia), and not some kind of super power, right? I was specifically talking about the hints and cinematic techniques the director, Villeneuve, and the screen writer, Heisserer, were using to foreshadow the ending, not that I thought the humans were granted some amazing power of ''foreshadowing"!!! Please, learn the basics of Cinema/Literature 101 (or just attend a High School Literature class for more than 5 minutes) before attempting to troll others. Good lord...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreshadowing
I'm eagrly waiting for a great, thoughful sci-fi movie. Please tell me this one isn't just a dumb sci-fi action film, not to say pure dogsh*t like Indep day... anyone?!?
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@stormsm Definitely not a dumb action film
I'm eagrly waiting for a great, thoughful sci-fi movie. Please tell me this one isn't just a dumb sci-fi action film, not to say pure dogsh*t like Indep day... anyone?!?
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@stormsm I've seen it. It's a really good sci-fi movie. Way better than Independence Day, less action, more thoughtful dialogs and better special effects.
