[quote=“NinerAdvocate, post:45, topic:27675”]Oblivion
I finally saw it tonight. Killed the lights and afforded it the full- on home theater/blu ray and 7.1 surround sound treatment. No distractions.
It is a stunningly beautiful movie. The visuals, the M83 score/soundtrack, and oh my Olga Kurylenko. The story is also solid, with some criticisms.
First the story - I had read reviews and in retrospect, am very dissatisfied with and let down by the ones which stated knee jerk “derivative” criticisms. Yes, there are elements from many other sci fi stalwarts in the story, but from the basis of sci fi storytelling, this story is tight, cohesive, adroit telling of multiple story elements. It is very satisfying from that standpoint. The languid pacing in the beginning is entirely intentional, and I completely agree with it. The reveal elements of the story are very well done with great pacing without excessive spoon feeding. I really only have two criticisms of the storytelling:
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The action sequences. :sigh: there’s some kind of syfy original movie like desperation in some of them. For this story, most of them are not needed, and not in this level of detail. In layman’s terms - the movie was trying too hard here to appease the lowest denominator of the audience.
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The movie suffered from the studio’s (hellbent) “PG-13” treatment. In attempting to win a more universal audience rating, the film lost out on its potential to explore the evolving humanity of the Jack & Vick characters (and to a lesser extent, the Scavs). Concentrating on more adult themes would have added additional emotional depth that the movie was missing. Case in point - spoiler Vick - the real one, as we learn during the flight recorded playback, but hinted at by the body language of her clone, desperately wants Jack, but is denied him. She is a fragile character, and he is one of the things she clings to for stability. More raw emotion - including a more explicit sex scene with Jack, would have been an excellent opportunity to convey that /spoiler.
But back to the visuals - the director and cinematographer (are they one and the same? haven’t checked the credits) exploited the beauty of Iceland to show a stunning post apocalyptic earth. This is a movie that demands HD.
The soundtrack from M83 is epic - that word gets overused nowadays, but the breadth of emotion in the score deserves that description. I particularly like Track 2 - “waking up”. It sets your pulse pounding and is a perfect match for the slow build emotional barrage of the movie.
Finally, a purely personal preference - While Andrea Riseborough shined as Vick, I am an absolute sucker for beauties like Olga Kurylenko. I was particularly moved by how beautiful she is without makeup (something I always prefer to see). I remember her as the only redeeming factor from Quantum of Solace. She is an absolutely stunning woman, and for a change, not just the latest 20 year fad (IIRC she’s 34). Riseborough was the better actress, but I could watch Olga all day.
In any case - this movie did not deserve to get panned as hard as it did. It’s not without flaws, but it is a much better movie than the reviews say.
8/10[/quote]
I too watched this last night. Went to redbox and got the blue-ray also. I agree with just about everything you said. This is one that’s worth the extra 30cents or whatever to watch on blue-ray vs. regular DVD. Visually stunning.