Moving pictures – Reviews (1)
These reviews have been sitting on my draft shelf now for over two months and I think I get them finally out here. The reviews are spoiler free if not marked otherwise.
Aeon Flux
Futuristic movie about a post-industrial society that lives in the only remaining city on Earth. It looks like paradise, but strange things happen and a group of resistance fighters is trying to assassinate the leader of the remains of the human race. Aeon Flux, part of the resistance, is assigned that task.
The special effects are very nice and the futuristic designs are grand – the viewer is really transported into the future. The characters are strong and deep; do not mistake this for a simple action movie. Most satisfying and surprising are the numerous plot twists – just when you think you’ve got things figured out, another angle to the story is introduced. Overall, this is a movie worth watching multiple times (and I watched it once twice during one day) and it raises some philosophical questions worth pondering.
A Killer Upstairs
That happens if you go for movies because you just like one of the actors. I watched it because Bruce Boxleitner played a detective who’s trying to solve a murder. Long story short: the plot was pretty obvious (at least after the first quarter of the movie), the actors were rather bad, the characters shallow … that’s really a movie you should pass up on. So, move along, not much to see here (literally).
Babylon 5 – In The Beginning
The prequel, if you will, to the five-year TV saga. The events of ITB are centered around the Earth-Minbari war – how it started, who played which role and how it was resolved eventually.
Of all the B5 movies I’ve watched so far I liked this one best. It’s fast, action packed, and brings together so many parts of the TV show that it is fun to watch and see all the familiar pieces fall into place. Since ITB is narrated from the point of view of Emperor Londo Mollari after …well, after all the bad things happened to Centauri Prime, a viewer who hasn’t seen the complete five year arc of Babylon 5 (the TV show) will be at a loss to understand the finer details of Londo’s portrayal and of the situation in the royal palace.
In The Beginning is a great movie to sum B5 up until a certain point, and it is especially satisfying to those who are familiar with the show in its entirety and understand the hints which are dropped all over the place.
Babylon 5 – The Lost Tales
Where to start. I’ve been looking forward to this movie for ages (read: the DVD has been sitting on my shelf for over a year now). Now that I have (almost [Batch will know what I mean]) finished my second complete run of the TV show I thought it was time to tackle it.
The special effects are breathtaking – seeing the station rendered with state of the art technology, seeing the starfuries revamped and the new Valen class ship; not to speak of the new hyper- and quadspace simulation. Wow! The movie is a visual treat and I think all die hard B5 fans will be moved by the new beauty of their beloved universe.
As for the story – or stories -: let’s just say I liked the second one, which focused on President Sheridan, a lot better than the first one. The story around Elizabeth Lochley seemed forced to me, it didn’t really flow and it seemed arbitrary. I couldn’t feel the character – or better: it seemed to me like the character was being dragged around without it really wanting it. Sheridan, on the other hand, was his old self – literally. Thoughtful, grouchy, decisive, passionate – it was 100 percent the character we’ve come to know and love during the five year run of the show.
As for the extras on the DVD: there are the production diaries of JMS (hilarious short video clips from the set during production), interviews with JMS, Bruce Boxleitner, Tracy Scoggins, and Peter Woodward; there’s also a segment where JMS answers some fan questions about himself, the production and stuff. And probably the most moving extra: two Memorials, for Andreas Katsulas (G’Kar) and Richard Biggs (Dr. Franklin), who both have passed beyond the Rim.
Overall: the DVD is a treat for fans, even though only half of it is great.
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