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Blade Runner (1997)
A Blade Runner game, not yet ready for retirement.
A faithful adaptation of the original Blade Runner dystopia is presented by this computer adventure game of the '90s. The plot unravels in parallel to the 1982 film's time window. The protagonist is a Blade Runner that retires genetically altered humans called replicants who rebelled and came to LA from an off-world colony in the not-too-far distant year of 2019. While the story unfolds, he meets persons from the movie that are represented by pre-rendered 3D graphics, expressing themselves through the voice-over of the corresponding real actors. The game design is similar to the point-and-click infamous adventure game genre that prevailed in the '90s.
One of the strongest aspects of the game is the faithful representation of the dystopia that made the original film a cult classic. The combination of technological advancements with the depletion of natural resources is portrayed by a film-noir mood, where the constant rain falling, the dark and the low quality of life of most people that are unable to escape to off-world colonies, is the status quo of LA.
The professional voice acting is another strong aspect that was not for granted in the computer games of the '90s. In this game, it assists to the unfolding of the character development that makes the players assimilate the mood of the dystopia in all its essence.
Even though the production could not acquire the rights to use the original sound score by Vangelis, there is a remake of some central sound segments by another artist. The sound quality cannot come close to the original, but it is enough to depict the original soundscape.
The story is strong and could as well as be a sequel to the movie. Most concepts are explored here like the replicant nature, the longing for lifespan extension, revenge instincts, and betrayal. Multiple plot paths exist as well, which is another strong aspect. The main character that follows the player commands is able to respond differently to the game events. That way its character development is an ongoing process that leads to different plot paths. As a rule, good behaviour leads to happier ending.
On the contrary, there are bad aspects as well that steal away some of the game's glory. There is no actual riddle-solving. The plot develops while the main character talks to everybody and collects all the available things. You can finish the whole game that easily! There is no ability to combine clues, come to conclusions and crossover that way the plot-scenes.
The travelling from a place to another one takes time and becomes a boring procedure. Most places must be visited many times to get all the clues which is tiresome.
The actors that do not participate in the movie mostly perform cartoonish voice-overs. This is unprofessional and bad for the mood and the audience of this game, which is quite advanced. Also, the protagonist does not express all the aspects of his character and becomes boring in his acting.
This is a recommended adventure game to play and was a commercial success back in its day. There is also a new unofficial installer that makes the game playable on modern Windows 10 systems. Scoring 07/10.
Tex Murphy: Overseer (1998)
What would a combination of Blade Runner with true detective stories, be like?
This is the third game of the series that follows exactly the same vein as its predecessors, Under The Killing Moon and The Pandora Directive of the mid '90s. The first two obscure games that introduced the character and the concept in the late/early '80s/'90s, underwent the technical limitations of the era, making it hard for their users to absorb the environment and the tale in all its essence. After that period's limitations of computing resources, like the ability to process graphics are gone, this series launched a new era of adventure games relying on the combination of Full Motion Video along with 3D graphics. The result is some impressive tales that stood the test of time.
The main Tex Murphy character is an old-fashioned goofy detective that is obliged to live in the 21st century where income and social inequalities raise issues that the conventional political spectrum is unable to confront efficiently. He started his detective career acting by the book, and later, ignoring all the established rules. He likes self-sarcasm, doing silly mistakes, and expresses inconsistent behaviour (this is also due to the capability the users have dictating his responses, while he communicates with other people). Even though his human vulnerabilities are abundant, he is very likeable as a character by the audience (game players) to an extent where the latter feel like living the story through his eyes, under intense feelings. This is part of the series success. The plot starts with Tex being hired to prove that a suicide is actually a homicide. He finds himself in between a ring of conspirators whose goal is the world domination with a far-right agenda.
What distinguishes this environment from other detective stories, is the similarity to the great Blade Runner dystopia. Remember, we have a post-apocalyptic era where social and income inequalities are dominant. The natural resources of the planet are almost depleted, and the rainy and dark environment is a stable factor that creates a film-noir mood. There are mutants that emerged from the WWIII and are considered by many as a by-product. Even the police department considers them of lower importance in its investigative duties.
Planet Earth (2006)
An unusual earth documentary that deserves its prime time
There aren't many earth/animal documentaries that keep the interest at that high level! This is a top production that can be considered as part of earth's inheritance for the next centuries to come. The quality of images and camerawork is amazing. Drones must have come in handy for that reason, too. As the earth progresses, depletion of the natural resources is a fact (bear in mind the imminent Blade Runner dystopia!) which threatens survival of most species, even humanity. For that reason, this documentary gets more added value since it shows the abundance of flora and fauna at the peak level of earth's evolution.
We see in action some species that really rely on others to survive. The "big fish eats the small" gets a literal meaning here. If the latter distinct, the former follow suit, too! Also, it's impressive how long some animals can stay alive until they find water or their next food (a living creature for that matter, mostly). The evolution ideas hold strong here making the animals adapt to their environment nicely.
The tricks some species like the cave worms devise to find food are extraordinary. It's difficult to believe they have the ability and the instincts to setup such traps for the insects to fall into and become their prey. This is the case with the sticky strings and the glowing light to attract the insects.
The narration is well written and executed. It is the cohesive substance between the audience and the content of the documentary, actually an integral part of it. It keeps the audience in a state of curiosity and triggers the interest about what's next. There are also some minor issues. The script is not delving deeper into some explanations. I guess it's difficult to find the right balance between the scientific content and the understanding ability of the main target audience.
08/10 is nice.
Interstellar (2014)
The most "down-to-earth" space travel.
Interstellar is part of the latest generation sci-fi cinema that exploits some concepts of cosmology like the wormholes and blackholes. These became well-known due to the work of scientists like Stephen Hawking. Though it is difficult for most viewers to understand the mechanics of a multi-dimensional timespace, in this movie the elaboration on the topic and its presentation are meticulously approached, for making it quite apprehensible.
The earth is at the point where the depletion of natural resources is imminent and there is need for migration to exoplanets for the survival of the human species. This state of the earth creates a feeling of melancholia and fear about the foreseeable future that is conveyed properly to the audience. This dystopia is a key factor for the movie's success.
Instead of the scientific scope, the relation of the main character (former scientist and current farmer) to his daughter (future scientist) is developed with intimate approach and it is described by deep human feelings. This connection creates a perfect balance to the scientific side of the movie, making it attractive to a wider audience and contributing that way to its final success.
There are some moments that may initially seem not to be based on reality (more likely being paranormal) like the attempt from the father to communicate with his daughter behind the bookshelf. The good point is that scenes such as this, are explained in a scientifically consistent manner at the end.
10/10. Get the 4K physical medium version (more bitrate usually equals better a/v quality).
Blade Runner 2049 (2017)
Will bio-engineered humans take over the future?
This is the sequel to a cult classic of the early '80s. It is the next phase of a dystopia that was created on earth due to the depletion of natural resources. Bio-engineered humans developed to a level where they can now reproduce themselves, instead of just providing slave labour. What established Blade Runner among hard core fans is the artistic perspective this dystopia is based upon. It creates vivid and mixed human responses including fear for the future, sadness for the current quality of life and short-term hope, according to the technological advancements like the flying cars or the ability to enable the space travel.
The main evil character is Wallace (played by Jared Leto), a man that tries to re-enable the ability of replicants to reproduce themselves just like normal human beings. The actor is very successful in his role due to the devotion he showed. His words contain poetic expressions for communicating the views about replicants and their purpose, to the audience. This is a peak moment for the story since this psychic person is a fundamental aspect of the story. While trying to be more realistic, he didn't protect himself from exaggerations though. He blinded himself for a short period of time just to get a better understanding of his role. This is a false reaction since the main purpose of an actor is to emulate a different personality, not to try becoming one. He has no real experience in this state (as a blind man), so he has more chances to behave inconsistently.
The basic weakness of this movie is the wooden way the actors play their parts. This can give the reason of the low financial earnings during the first availability to the public. Replicants are not robots, they are humans. There is no reason for them not to behave like typical human beings, showing feelings and vivid behaviour (bear in mind the first Blade Runner). The mechanical way the actors portray their roles (like 'K'), leaves the audience in a state where they cannot connect to the protagonists by observing their character development. For example, 'K' is a completely different character from the female hologram which is coded to show vivid human behaviour. They don't breathe the same way and this looks non-functional to the audience.
The complexity of the script and the long running time are not show-stopper factors. There are many successful movies that approach the 3-hour timestamp and are complex as well. The viewers don't get bored due to the duration, but they do so when there is no connection to the main characters. The so-called slow pace (have you seen European independent movies?) is not show-stopper either. It can be considered as part of the art. It leaves time to the viewer to assimilate the environment and become one with that.
Blade Runner (1982)
How the future looks like...
"Time enough"...
This is a sci-fi classic that stood the test of time. It became a classic due to the great representation of a dystopia, i.e., a projection of the future that creates mixed feelings. Great technological advancements, and on the other hand, misery and low quality of living (actually... survival). The wealthy people abandoned the earth for other planets due to the depletion of resources. It is inhabited now by the poor, what is today... the cultures of the developing world. The way this environment is depicted and the human responses it triggers, created a uniqueness that made the movie a cult classic.
The scenario is of lower importance. Eventhough it is strong, it is there just to exhibit this great dystopia. Most actors play their roles in a satisfying way. The fact that some of them play replicants (bio-engineered humans), doesn't deter them for portraying vivid human behaviour (like sarcasm, fear and protective instincts, among others). This is a key factor for the success of the movie, i.e., not behaving in a mechanical style that lacks human traits. They are still humans and this is connected to the audience in a great extent.
Another integral part of the movie's DNA is the soundtrack by Vangelis. The former is difficult to exist without the latter and vice versa. It adds a great soundscape to the environment that provokes a feeling of melancholy and paranoia. Consider as an example the death moment of the replicant leader. The electronics (mostly analogue synthesisers) of the early '80s are exploited to their limits providing a timeless experience.
There's no other movie or series that comes even close to this dystopia. All attempts have failed miserably. There's a surprising exception though which is a trilogy of computer adventure games of the '90s by the main title "Tex Murphy". Their representation of this environment is majestic.
..."Time to die"!
Troy: Fall of a City (2018)
Distortion of a wonderful tale.
Iliad is a perfect tale that survived through the last 3K years due to the promotion of some human values and traits that are eternal. It combines all the elements that intrigue passionate human responses. Having such a perfect tale as input is a blessing and leaves no space for alteration.
The creators of this series ignored the facts and altered the tale in a shameful and offending way that leaves no respect to the original. They made Greeks become the bad guys and Trojans the good ones. The facts that demonstrated the heroism and wisdom of Greeks have disappeared in a great extent. The creators took the side of Trojans. That would be defensible only in case they had respected the opponents. They did not.
The actors are mostly untalented and boring to their performance. Wrong actors play the wrong roles. This means that some character traits are downplayed and some other overpromoted.
The pace is slow and there is no actual character development. The true hero of the war was Achilles. They made him dislikeable with the audience being unable to connect to him. I prefer not to comment on the choice to be black. I have my thoughts for the reasons behind that decision, though.
There seems to be distance between the characters of Paris and Helen that are shown in the series. They don't fit together and they don't breathe the same way. They are different characters and I doubt they could ever come close to a relationship.
Agamemnon was a beloved king that united Greeks, something not many leaders could do. The creators chose to portray him as the evil leader lacking human values. The chosen actor is very weak even for the distorted role he had to play. Not a leader in any way.
Helen is not that pretty! However, Homer doesn't describe her at all. He leaves the reader alone to image her the way he/she wants. Also, the design of the trojan horse is ridiculous! It reminds me kindergarten work by kids.