I
have recently seen two very good movies in my two favourite science fiction
tropes apocalypse and time-travel. Both
were vastly different in ambition and scope. Looper is an action adventure time-travel film while Melancholia is a quiet drama about the
end of the world.
have recently seen two very good movies in my two favourite science fiction
tropes apocalypse and time-travel. Both
were vastly different in ambition and scope. Looper is an action adventure time-travel film while Melancholia is a quiet drama about the
end of the world.
Looper
In
Looper time-travel is used by future criminal syndicates to send their victims
back to our near future where they are killed by hired assassins called Loopers. We are told at the start of the movie that victims
have to be sent back in time because it is impossible to secretly dispose of their
bodies in the future. Once I accepted that, I had no other problems with the
film’s mythology.
Looper time-travel is used by future criminal syndicates to send their victims
back to our near future where they are killed by hired assassins called Loopers. We are told at the start of the movie that victims
have to be sent back in time because it is impossible to secretly dispose of their
bodies in the future. Once I accepted that, I had no other problems with the
film’s mythology.
A
condition of becoming a Looper is that the criminal syndicate will track down
your future self and send it back for you to kill, and close the loop. But when
a Looper is confronted with his future self, he fails to kill him and his
future self escapes. The syndicate is
not happy.
condition of becoming a Looper is that the criminal syndicate will track down
your future self and send it back for you to kill, and close the loop. But when
a Looper is confronted with his future self, he fails to kill him and his
future self escapes. The syndicate is
not happy.
Looper,
was for me, a new and refreshing take on time-loops. It is a film that needs to
be thought about and requires a bit of concentration. It stars Bruce Willis and
that skinny guy from the low-brow Third Rock From the Sun, who surprised us by becoming
a reasonable man of action in Inception.
The film is long on suspense, so I doubt the current writers of Doctor Who would appreciate it.
was for me, a new and refreshing take on time-loops. It is a film that needs to
be thought about and requires a bit of concentration. It stars Bruce Willis and
that skinny guy from the low-brow Third Rock From the Sun, who surprised us by becoming
a reasonable man of action in Inception.
The film is long on suspense, so I doubt the current writers of Doctor Who would appreciate it.
I
would place it in the middle of the Bruce Willis science fiction film lexicon.
It is not as good as 12 Monkeys –
but what is? – or The Fifth Element,
but better than Surrogates and much
better than Armageddon – but what
isn’t?
would place it in the middle of the Bruce Willis science fiction film lexicon.
It is not as good as 12 Monkeys –
but what is? – or The Fifth Element,
but better than Surrogates and much
better than Armageddon – but what
isn’t?
Melancholia
Melancholia is also way better than Armageddon. Melancholia
takes place on a large British estate. A wedding is taking place, but the bride
doesn’t seem that interested in the whole thing. She is very melancholic. We
learn that a planet is approaching the Earth. We are asked to believe it came
from behind the sun so no one saw it until recently. But not to worry, scientists
know that it will miss the Earth. But the bride is not so sure.
takes place on a large British estate. A wedding is taking place, but the bride
doesn’t seem that interested in the whole thing. She is very melancholic. We
learn that a planet is approaching the Earth. We are asked to believe it came
from behind the sun so no one saw it until recently. But not to worry, scientists
know that it will miss the Earth. But the bride is not so sure.
The
film stars Kirsten Dunst and a Kiefer Sutherland and is directed by Lars Von
Trier, and filmed in shaky-cam. Kiefer must have given all his 24 man stuff to
the guy in Looper before he made this film because he is no man of action.
film stars Kirsten Dunst and a Kiefer Sutherland and is directed by Lars Von
Trier, and filmed in shaky-cam. Kiefer must have given all his 24 man stuff to
the guy in Looper before he made this film because he is no man of action.
Melancholia
is a completely different take on end of the world films that I have seen. Instead
of thrusting the end of the world in the viewer’s face, it leaves it sitting in
their peripheral vision for most of the film. There are no guns, no riots, no
looting, no violence, no religion, no hysterics, just people getting on with
their lives as the planet approaches. As
a writer, it really made me think about how people would react in so many different
and unpredictable ways if the world was coming to the end.
is a completely different take on end of the world films that I have seen. Instead
of thrusting the end of the world in the viewer’s face, it leaves it sitting in
their peripheral vision for most of the film. There are no guns, no riots, no
looting, no violence, no religion, no hysterics, just people getting on with
their lives as the planet approaches. As
a writer, it really made me think about how people would react in so many different
and unpredictable ways if the world was coming to the end.
I
really recommend both films. Melancholia is no longer on at the cinemas.
really recommend both films. Melancholia is no longer on at the cinemas.
And
speaking of depictions of the end of the world, the best apocalyptic dramatization
ever made returns on FX on Tuesday this week: The Walking Dead, series 3.
speaking of depictions of the end of the world, the best apocalyptic dramatization
ever made returns on FX on Tuesday this week: The Walking Dead, series 3.
0 Responses
I've been avoiding this post I have to admit as I don't wish to learn anything about Looper.
I skipped over it easy enough and will come back to it and I know you don't give spoilers, but I really do like to go in as 'cold' as possible.
Melancholia was an interesting film for sure. I think due to the lack of those things you mentioned made it all the more powerful. I wasn't sure what to make of it though i own it on dvd so I will revisit for sure.
Von Trier is such an interesting director. He can be unsettling, even annoying but his work is unlike any others. Not his best film but definitely worth a look.