It’s Wednesday again, time for our regularly scheduled open discussion post!
As usual – talk about whatever you like as long as it’s related to movies, TV or Screen Rant itself. I would suggest however that there are more than enough Transformers discussions going on elsewhere. 
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My bad memory films is all of my ex wives favorites I can’t stand any of them. Some of them I used to like, but they just remind me of her so I can’t stand them any more. Right now also any romantic comedy that comes out lol. I’m not bitter though.
I can’t believe Public Enemies escaped my notice until an article mentioned it here. Is that movie not getting enough attention?
Kahless, the ending of 2001 is pretty abstract, didn’t need a sequel, and I like to pretend 2010, 2061 and 3001 never happened! Kubrick had bought a pile of Arthur C Clarke’s short stories with a view to making “the proverbial good science fiction movie”, picked one called The Sentinel and reworked 2001 from that. Clarke wrote the novelisation based on his and Kubrick’s screenplay. The only real differences are that the Discovery goes to Saturn instead of Jupiter, and the final scenes are described in detail rather than suggested. The Bowman/Star-Child returns to Earth and sets off those orbiting bombs shown briefly but never explained in the movie after the “bone toss” jumpcut.
Clarke said the “stargate” sequence was the equivalent of putting a Neanderthal in the back of a car and driving him through Las Vegas at night, if that helps at all! The hotel room was a construct lifted from Bowman’s mind, and his aging was a symbolic way of depicting the death/cosmic rebirth cycle.
Kubrick was a very episodic filmmaker (build enough episodes, fit them together and you’ve got a movie), and nowhere is this more apparent than on 2001, which is composed of four parts that can seem strangely disconnected from each other.
To me it has almost more resonance now than when it came out in ‘68, and it’s possible to see better some of the wry observations Kubrick was making. The characters are essentially characterless. Heywood Floyd is a bland bureaucrat (you can see why they went with his total opposite Roy Scheider as Floyd in 2010), Bowman and Poole are essentially button-pushers, not Buck Rogers, or even Scott Carpenter. Obsessed with the “how” but not the “why” of their jobs.
Contrast this with the stuggle for survival of the Dawn Of Man opening. The first use of the first tool – to murder, no less – has led to this, in all its complacency and even a little smugness. And notice what’s being eaten: from hunted raw flesh to Floyd’s square faux-sandwiches (”What’s that, chicken?” “Something like that. Tastes the same anyway…”) and a kind of beige mush you might feed babies. The only danger Bowman (even the name’s symbolic) has to face is burning his fingers on the tray. His older version is the only one eating what you might call a decent meal, but that wine glass is so easily broken…
Ironically, HAL is the most human character in the movie. His problem is that he can’t reconcile keeping the mission’s true nature a secret from Bowman and Poole, and begins to develop paranoia and neurosis. Beginning with cutting communication with Earth and culminating with murdering the crew. An act of desperation and cold, logical survival.
I think Kubrick picked up and played on Clarke’s weakness: great ideas, ropey characterisation. Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood were intentionally directed to underplay their roles, and even vaguely resemble each other. Compare Clarke’s Rendezvous With Rama to Greg Bear’s ostensibly similar Eon: a stuffed dummy next to an Olympic athlete.
I always saw 2001 and Tarkovsky’s original Solaris as two sides of the same coin. Both ask the same question: how will we as a species deal with contact with a truly alien intelligence? There’s a line in the Solaris remake where the suicidal Gibarian sums it up: “We take off into the cosmos ready for anything. Solitude, hardship, exhaustion. Death. We’re proud of ourselves, but when you think about it our enthusiasm’s a sham. We don’t want other worlds, we want mirrors.”
There’s no other movie that captures simultaneously both the awesome spectacle of what might be out there AND the crushing mundanity of day-to-day space flight.
Greg Bear’s Eon, now that’d make an incredible film!
Public Enemies was pretty good. I did notice some striking similarities to “Heat”, but overall it was a well done film…
Vic when will we get a review of Public Enemies?
@gottarhyme
They are from LA right? That means they are required by some unwritten law to be a-holes and to be selfish, lol. Ok, 790 lives in California, I better say just kidding before he gets pissed at me for saying that, lol.
But seriously, any of my friends or I, if you were to invite any of us into your home, you wouldn’t have to pay for anything while we are there.
I don’t know about buying you a bottle of wine as thanks though since I don’t drink and won’t know which brand of wine means “Thank you” and which means “here’s some crap, drink and suffer” so I’ll leave that to others…
My friends just helped me move without asking for payment or even a return favor. And even though I’m dead broke right now, I bought everyone dinner and of course if they ever need my help for anything I’m there. It’s always good to be kind to others, unless they are a-holes, then I’m not afraid to be a sarcastic a-hole right back, lol.
My friends went and saw Transformers, I was working so I couldn’t join them (thankfully), and they told me it sucked. So good thing I saved my money. We were supposed to go the night before when I was actually able to join them, but thankfully they didn’t plan ahead enough to buy tickets ahead of time so by the time we got there tickets were all sold out, lol. I think I pretended to be disappointed, even though I sighed of relief inside, lol.
Living in LA is a career choice. That and I’m hoping to survive Judgment Day and join up with the resistance under John Connor.
@ Ken J
I am moving into a new house in a week or so, can I borrow your friends?
@Stephen
Ask and you shall receive. Public Enemies review is up.
Vic
@kenJ I know not all Americans are like that.
Thanks to everyone for their sympathy about my bad house guests.
BTW, I have had other people from the States come and stay, and they were fantastic…I think that this lady and her teenage friend were just weirdoes. I do intend to email them…maybe I should warn others about them on facebook? *evil grin*
Swine flu nearly killed me, too. I still can’t talk! Oh well, stuck in bed, watching old movies. Could be worse!
Anyway…back to film…
Other bad memory movies…’Cousin,Cousine’ I took a guy, who tried to kiss me throughout the whole movie, and the subtitles were hard enough to follow! LOL!
@Gottarhyme, swine flu. Did your “guests” have it ???
No good deed , holly crapoli…
@790: Yes, they went to Melbourne first (The Swine Flu capital of Australia) then they arrived here sick, but refused to see a Doctor. It did not stop them at all! They had no consideration for anyone but themselves!
After 5 days, they left, and I, along with my daughter, became ill. We went and got tested, and sure enough, swine flu. We are in quarantine until Monday.
Gottarhyme, that really sucks. The good news is that your ok and now won’t need the vaccine… (People don’t take the vaccine)
I would seriously reccomend to everyone not to use air travel unless needed right now. (12 Monkey’s is coming true)
Don’t worry about the “monster’s that came and wouldn’t leave for 5 days while they watched oz cable” they will get there’s !!! Gottarhyme!!!
I wish you and your daughter a speedy recovery !!!!
Maybe they have done this in comics or elsewhere but i’d like to see a battle between…”The Dark Knight and The Iron Knight” (batman vs iron man). They’re both rich no power humans, very tech savy and somewhat just somewhat similar in where they stand as heroes in both Marvel and DC. Does anyone know if they have fought before…?
No offensive Jago but why would you want to see Batman and Ironman fight each other,,,, I don’t get that ???
@gottarhyme
Sorry to hear about the swine flu though, but don’t worry, it seems to have a mortality rate equal to or lower than the regular flu, so you and your daughter should be fine.
@zibe
You wish, lol, they helped me with everything from moving the big furniture, all the little stuff, even help keep my cat calm while i drove her to the new house, lol, she hates car rides, she freaks out…
@ 790 and Ken J Awwww, thanks guys. The Doctor told me that I am lucky I got the Swine flu now, in point of fact…apparently the Spanish flu was initially ‘mild’ in the first wave, but then it mutated, and killed people.
‘Twelve Monkeys’ indeed…
My daughter is fine. A week off school!
Although the coughing, vomiting, Diarroreah, muscle aches and fever weren’t much fun! Feeling better now. Just have no voice!
@790
why not…? thats the real question… i mean to me it would be real interesting just because they seem like if they switched placed from marvel to dc they would be that… batman would be iron man and vice versa… but maybe that’s just me. We all have things we want… you wanted a better T4 right? and i would like to see this…
Its just that they’re both good guys,,,, Jago,,,,
Good to hear you’re feeling better, your daughter might like it that you have no voice to yell at her, lol. Just kidding.
LOL! This reminds me of the episode of ‘Angel’ when the question was:
In a fight, who would win? Cavemen or astronauts?
I reckon cavemen…
Who would win in a fight between Batman and Ironman? Or Wolverine and Optimus Prime? Superman and Wonderwoman? Buffy and Hellboy? OK, now I’m getting silly.
Must be the pills…
Sorry to hear about the terrible guests Gottarhyme. I make it a policy to spend my money when I’m staying at someones place. I even buy them food while I’m there so I’m putting them out as little as possible. Hell I buy my friends food and other things just when we are hanging out let alone when I’m staying there.
Hey Daniel, thanks. I was really looking forward to having them. I love visitors. A New York Cab Driver came and stayed with me last year, he was great! I have no idea what was wrong with these people.
I think most ‘normal’ people would at least buy their host dinner, or at least pay for their own food while they’re here! *shrugs* Well, I decorated the guest room, it looks great now.
My family hope I’ve learned my lesson. LOL! Laugh? I nearly did!
@790
there are sooooooooo many writers in the world or people who claim to be… i’m pretty sure someone could write up something for them to have a reason to fight. If they have been able to make batman vs superman why not that… and those were both good guys.
I was reading that Staples Center here in LA is going to charge fans of Micheal Jackson $25 bucks to attend the memorial next monday. Interesting as Staples center is owned by AEG, the same group of lowlife scum that was behind the “This is It” tour.
The greed and evil that surrounded this guy is amazing…
Anyone interested in Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs? Bueller? I’ve ‘reviewed’ it with my son: http://www.youtube.com/gabndad
It was Canada Day yesterday, but happy 4th to you all!
Finally a 4th of July weekend without a fricken Will Smith film…
El Ron must be spinning in his grave.
@790: Or a Tom Cruise one! LOL!
Hey, thats right, Happy 4th of July, Americans!
Is that Guy Fawkes night? What is the meaning behind that holiday?
Gottarhyme, Guy Fawkes night is when the English put an effigy of Edward Woodward in a wicker barrel and roll him down a hill on fire. It’s the only way to ensure a bountiful harvest, y’know…
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