Cloverfield

In the realm of novelty movie genres, found footage is probably one of the most famous, and also one of the most divisive. People are always kinda torn on whether or not they like this style. On one hand, it provides and interesting change of pace from typically movies and allows for some cool tricks. It also gives some better insight into the characters involved, seeing them from an up close personal space. On the other hand, found footage movies are typically shaky and can easily cause viewers to get motion sickness. The reason I bring this up is because these were some of the comments surrounding J.J. Abrams' 2008 sci-fi film, Cloverfield.

This movie revolves around the idea of a group of friends trying to escape New York as a giant monster starts wreaking havoc on the city. This style of filming was used before, in movies such as The Blair Witch Project, and has since been used many times, like in the Paranormal Activity series of movies. However, when this movie first came out, it kickstarted the trend. It was really interesting to see how the characters react in the situation and every little nuance of their personality that gets caught on camera. Another nice touch is how they used the effect of stopping recording, as periodically, seeing how the camera guy is recording over another characters video which gives some background to the movie, it switches between the present with the monster and the past with the boyfriend and girlfriend on their date. The main criticism is, of course, the shaky camera, as it made seeing what was going on difficult and did make some movie goers motion sick.

Overall it was a solid and enjoyable flick that gives a new perspective to the millions of people running from the monster instead of the heroes fighting it off.

"It only cost how much to make?" : Primer

This week I had the pleasure of viewing the science fiction drama film, Primer, directed, written, and produced by Shane Carruth. By my roommate's request, I went in with no knowledge of what the film was about, besides the fact that "the movie is insane" and that it has a cult following. Oh, and that it only had a $7,000 budget. Oh, AND there was a crew of only 5 people...

The opening scene was as visually appealing as any other multi-million dollar movie you'd see on the big screen, and as I soon found out, so was the rest of it. The cinematography was flawless, the editing seamless, and the dialogue more intriguingly confusing than anything else I've ever seen (a lot of mathematical discussion that wasn't dummied down for the audience). I would definitely consider the movie experimental in the way it was shot and in the plot line itself. For instance there are several points during the film where there are some rather jarring cuts which help show the disorientation that the characters are feeling when they are inside the time machine and directly after they time travel. That brings me to the plot: a few engineers accidentally find a way to make a time machine (keep in mind the $7000 budget here), and it looks absolutely realistic. Definitely check this movie out!

Knock, knock. Who's there? Doctor.

Doctor who to be precise. Doctor Who has been a sci-fi phenomenon for over fifty years. The show originated in 1963 and run through 1989, totaling twenty six series (in the UK series = seasons). Then the show was revived in 2005 and is currently on its seventh series. In total there have been eleven doctors, the most current doctor is played by Matthew Smith.

The protagonist, the Doctor is the last of the Time Lords, an alien race, who travels through time and space in his TARDIS (Time and Relative Dimension in Space). Along his many journeys and adventures, the Doctor meets many companions that then travel along with him throughout the universe and time. Besides companions, the Doctor also aquires many enemies. Enemy number one are the Daleks, an genetically altered (can only feel hate) alien race that fought against the Time Lords in the Last Great Time War (in which both the Dalek and Time Lord races were wiped out). The Daleks were able to repopulate and still try purging the rest of the universe of a non-Dalek race. 

  Doctor Who will have you on the edge of your seat, laughing along with the characters, and routing for the Doctor.

An Unearthly Child, a.k.a. Ha ha! More Doctor Who!

Oh hi, everyone. You thought that Doctor Who was over, right? You figured that since series 6 ended two weeks ago, I'd be done talking about the series? No. You're wrong. Go fly into the Time Vortex. And while you're there, say hi to the Bad Wolf for me.

This is part of the very first episode of the first serial of Doctor Who. Filmed in 1963, the entire episode was shot live to tape, which means that all of the visual effects happened during filming. Most of the scenes took place in the studio, including the TARDIS shots and the junkyard. This shows how possible -- if limited -- it is to film without fancy VFX, and provides insight on how to make something so practical look so good. Because there is no room for error, every shot, every movement, and every position has to be perfect. Sure, if you look closely in this episode, there are a few glitches here and there; but that's to be expected of a show that a) had a low budget, and b) was probably going to be canned anyway. (SPOILER: It wasn't.)

What really shines here is how different the story was in the beginning. In the latest series, the Eleventh Doctor was a bombastic young man who was friendly with his companions and had a legacy that nearly killed him. The First Doctor is an old man who would rather be alone than have stowaways, stumbles over his words, and tends to work in the shadows instead of run headlong into danger. We don't know much about the Doctor or his companions or his travels yet; but it's great to watch the story unfold from here. Of course, if you watch every single Who episode from this point, it might be a bit of a trauma.

Also, you'll start hearing the TARDIS sound whenever the wind blows. (It's not fun. I'm beginning to look like a crazy person.)

Next week, we'll take a look at something different. Maybe.

The Wedding Of River Song

That's it. That's the end. This is the end of the series. You can all stop groaning at me now. ...Nah, just kidding! I could throw 26 seasons of the classic Doctor episodes at you! Muwahahaha!

I'll skip the story for this blog post. If you want to know what happened, you'll have to watch. Of course, the acting on everyone's part was impeccable. I'd expect nothing less from a BBC show that's now entering it's 49th year.

What really stood out about this episode was how bizarre it was. Something is wrong with time, meaning that all of history is happening at once. The effects team needed to therefore find out how to put pterodactyls in a park in London. The set designers had to build a secret evil lair inside of the pyramids. Make up designers had to create a horde of the Silence using only prosthetics and body glue. So many intricate parts went into making this episode look as good as it was supposed to; but together they helped deliver a visually beautiful ending to this season.

Things to look out for as far as this episode goes: Dorium, who's all blue. The fight scene between the Ponds, Kovarian, and the Silence. Any scene where they aren't on Earth. The cinematography helps the effects as the effects help the final product. The best thing about high-profile big-budget sci-fi shows is that when they're done well, they're done really well, and everything clicks together in harmony.

Get psyched for Autumn 2012. I already am.

Night Terrors

Let's talk about what worked with this about. And really, there wasn't much that didn't work. So let's just talk about Night Terrors. This is not only classic sci-fi writing at its best, it's a wonderful piece of televised cinematography.

On the Mohs Scale of Science Fiction, which ranks believability on a scale from 1 to 6 (with 6 being the most believable science fiction,) this episode ranks a 4. Most good Doctor Who episodes fall in this category. A 4 on the scale means that there are only a few minor changes in reality that do not affect normal human life (or otherwise.) This ensures that the story won't be marred by wacky "facts", technobabble, or other elements that may confuse the viewers.

In Night Terrors, the story centers around a young child's fears and closet which he locks them away in. His plea of "Save me from the monsters" reaches the Doctor, Amy, and Rory, and the Doctor decides to make a "house call." But once they reach the child's flat, they realize that these fears are spiraling out of control, and that -- in true TARDIS fashion -- nothing is as it seems. The story is not too bizarre and not too boring; the resulting happy medium is just as exciting as it is creepy.

The cinematography really adds to this episode. The lighting is spot on, matching the scene of a child scared of the dark. Shots are blocked beautifully. The first shot after the intro of the TARDIS materializing in the puddle is perfect; CGI, color, and the atmosphere of the shot all work together. This theme continues throughout the episode. It keeps you on the edge of your seat; or, rather, behind your seat, as you might be cowering in fear of the dolls that turn you into one of them. As far as non-CGI makeup goes, the doll costumes were certainly effective at causing viewers to pee their pants.

This is a classic Who episode, hands down. Next week looks like a Doctor-lite episode set in a futuristic world. All I know from the preview is that Rory smashes the Mona Lisa over a robot. Nice.