This time last week I finished Night Sessions by Ken MacLeod - a futuristic thriller set in Edinburgh and New Zealand. It was a fun read with lots of very interesting ideas about robots and religion but none of them were fully explored in my view.
However, that is not what I want to talk about today. I want to talk about the locations - but not the two previously mentioned. No I want to talk about the place where the final confrontation happens. The book's heroes - The Lothian and Borders police - sent a civilian, undercover, into the baddies meeting place. So where are these world threatening baddies hiding out, I hear you ask? Linlithgow!!!
Now for those who don't know the place - for haven't bothered to click through to the Wikipedia Article - Linlithgow is my home town. It is small (a population of 13,400) and very little happens. Most exciting things to happen over the past five years are the announcement that Scotty from Star Trek was from Linlithgow (He is due to be born in the town in 2222) and Linlithgow Rose winning the Scottish Junior Cup.
Yet, the idea of world threatening terrorists hiding out in my sleepy home town is not that surprising...if you know the history of Linlithgow. In 1570, James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray, became the first ever person to be assassinated by a firearm. Ironicly the assassination took place just outside the old Linlithgow Sherrif Court. Let's hope, however, let's hope that it is only fictional terrorists that decide to base themselves in my home town!
Friday 5 March 2010
Tuesday 23 February 2010
Films that will never happen #1
The other week I finished reading White Jazz by James Ellroy. It goes without saying it was amazing – who I personally believe Ellroy is the greatest living author – but it was also a little bit sad. Back in 2006 Warner Independent Pictures announced they were making a film of White Jazz. It was going to be directed by Joe Carnahan, director of Narc, Smoking Aces and the New A-Team film, with George Clooney and Chris Pine starring.
However, as of writing this movie is no longer in production. It's stars have moved on. Chris Pine moved onto Star Trek and the promise of being the next big thing in Hollywood while George Clooney left because other films got in the way.
The thing is that, I believe, both of these guys would have been fantastic. George Clooney would have easily carried the film in the role of David Klein. He has both the naturnal charm that the character has but would have also stretched Clooney given the way that the character develops.
Along side this, I believe that Chris Pine would have been amazing as Junior Stemmons. He would have done the collapsing and maddness of the character really well.
The other sad thing is that a couple of the most important characters didn't even make the script. Thanks to a rights issue, Dudley Smith and Ed Exley would not be in the film, as the makers of L.A. Confidential were looking to make a sequal to the Oscar winning movie. Joe Carnahan said that Ed Exley had been replaced by a doppelganger who has all of Exley's traits and speech patterns. (I would reference this but the only evidence is wikipedia who's own reference link no longer exists!)
All this means that Guy Pearce won't be back. He IS Ed Exley as far as I'm concerned. His presence in White Jazz would have only improved the movie.
The other issue is a bigger one though. I don't know how you would film White Jazz without Dudley Smith. He is the godfather-esque villian of not only the book but three quarters of the L.A. Quartet. Now I assume that they had a villian in line to replace him but it wouldn't be the same. White Jazz is all about Exley getting his revenge/justice on Smith for all the things he did in L.A. Confidential - although it isn't obvious for a lot of the book.
This new villian, like the rest of this film, will never see the light of day. As James Ellroy says, "All movie adaptations of my books are dead." Let's hope someone can bring new life to these amazing books!
However, as of writing this movie is no longer in production. It's stars have moved on. Chris Pine moved onto Star Trek and the promise of being the next big thing in Hollywood while George Clooney left because other films got in the way.
The thing is that, I believe, both of these guys would have been fantastic. George Clooney would have easily carried the film in the role of David Klein. He has both the naturnal charm that the character has but would have also stretched Clooney given the way that the character develops.
Along side this, I believe that Chris Pine would have been amazing as Junior Stemmons. He would have done the collapsing and maddness of the character really well.
The other sad thing is that a couple of the most important characters didn't even make the script. Thanks to a rights issue, Dudley Smith and Ed Exley would not be in the film, as the makers of L.A. Confidential were looking to make a sequal to the Oscar winning movie. Joe Carnahan said that Ed Exley had been replaced by a doppelganger who has all of Exley's traits and speech patterns. (I would reference this but the only evidence is wikipedia who's own reference link no longer exists!)
All this means that Guy Pearce won't be back. He IS Ed Exley as far as I'm concerned. His presence in White Jazz would have only improved the movie.
The other issue is a bigger one though. I don't know how you would film White Jazz without Dudley Smith. He is the godfather-esque villian of not only the book but three quarters of the L.A. Quartet. Now I assume that they had a villian in line to replace him but it wouldn't be the same. White Jazz is all about Exley getting his revenge/justice on Smith for all the things he did in L.A. Confidential - although it isn't obvious for a lot of the book.
This new villian, like the rest of this film, will never see the light of day. As James Ellroy says, "All movie adaptations of my books are dead." Let's hope someone can bring new life to these amazing books!
Monday 4 January 2010
Avatar
The film of 2009 will be Avatar. It isn't the best movie of the year but will probably be the biggest. It is already the second highest grossing movie after Cameron's own Titanic . Over the last 12 months James Cameron - the director of Avatar - has been building the film up as a game changer. The Jazz Singer of 3D cinema. Well it ain't!
That doesn't mean it ain't a good film. It is very enjoyable and looks amazing. Cameron has certainly created an alien world, that doesn't look like a quarry in Wales! In fact it looks beautiful, which leads me onto the Jazz Singer point.
For those who don't know the Jazz Singer was the fist talkie (non-silent film) and showed the Hollywood that movies with sound were the way to go. Cameron claimed this film would do the same for 3D. It doesn't. In fact I think it shows the problems with 3D far more than the positives it brings to the cinema experience. As I said earlier Cameron creates a beautiful world that is dulled by the 30% colour loss that the 3D effect brings. It was often more enjoyable watching the film with the glass off, even though the image was out of focus. In fact I often forgot the movie was in 3D. You just don't notice it, or at least I didn't.
However, one thing Cameron does get right is CGI interaction. The human cast look like they belong in that world. Something that other CGI heavy films, like the Star Wars prequels, suffered from!
This leads me on nicely to my final point. In August 2009 Empire journalist Helen O'Hara posted a blog on the Empire website defending Avatar from some of the internet hate it was suffering six months before it was actually released! In the blog she stated that "If Cameron can deliver a truly, convincingly alien world, this is a step towards a Dune that nails it, towards a Forever War worth watching or towards seeing of the weirder Iain M. Banks onscreen - The Algebraist, say." Now I believe Cameron did create a truly convincing alien world and I hope Helen O'Hara's theory is correct because in many ways I don't think that Avatar is alien enough. While the planet looks beautiful and unique the alien creates that live on it don't. Yes the Na'vi are nine foot tall and blue but they still have two arms and two legs and look human. In fact Cameron had to cut a Na'vi sex scene to ensure a PG-13 rating in the states, which suggests that the censors thought they looked quite human! So when you compare the Na'vi to the Dwellers of Banks' The Algebraist - aliens that are described as looking like two discs, similar to a yo-yo, with various appendages at edges and hubs including two long spindle arms - then the Na'vi just look like slightly posher blue CGI versions of Spook's pointy ears from the orginal series of Star Trek.
And to make matters worse for Avatar examples, if not overly extreme versions, of truly alien looking aliens exist in movies like District 9 or Camerons' own Aliens and their budgets were alot smaller than Avatar's.
Perhaps Avatar is just the first step however. Instead of the giant leap Cameron seemed to be promising, perhaps it is no more than a small - but very important step - in a far longer process!
That doesn't mean it ain't a good film. It is very enjoyable and looks amazing. Cameron has certainly created an alien world, that doesn't look like a quarry in Wales! In fact it looks beautiful, which leads me onto the Jazz Singer point.
For those who don't know the Jazz Singer was the fist talkie (non-silent film) and showed the Hollywood that movies with sound were the way to go. Cameron claimed this film would do the same for 3D. It doesn't. In fact I think it shows the problems with 3D far more than the positives it brings to the cinema experience. As I said earlier Cameron creates a beautiful world that is dulled by the 30% colour loss that the 3D effect brings. It was often more enjoyable watching the film with the glass off, even though the image was out of focus. In fact I often forgot the movie was in 3D. You just don't notice it, or at least I didn't.
However, one thing Cameron does get right is CGI interaction. The human cast look like they belong in that world. Something that other CGI heavy films, like the Star Wars prequels, suffered from!
This leads me on nicely to my final point. In August 2009 Empire journalist Helen O'Hara posted a blog on the Empire website defending Avatar from some of the internet hate it was suffering six months before it was actually released! In the blog she stated that "If Cameron can deliver a truly, convincingly alien world, this is a step towards a Dune that nails it, towards a Forever War worth watching or towards seeing of the weirder Iain M. Banks onscreen - The Algebraist, say." Now I believe Cameron did create a truly convincing alien world and I hope Helen O'Hara's theory is correct because in many ways I don't think that Avatar is alien enough. While the planet looks beautiful and unique the alien creates that live on it don't. Yes the Na'vi are nine foot tall and blue but they still have two arms and two legs and look human. In fact Cameron had to cut a Na'vi sex scene to ensure a PG-13 rating in the states, which suggests that the censors thought they looked quite human! So when you compare the Na'vi to the Dwellers of Banks' The Algebraist - aliens that are described as looking like two discs, similar to a yo-yo, with various appendages at edges and hubs including two long spindle arms - then the Na'vi just look like slightly posher blue CGI versions of Spook's pointy ears from the orginal series of Star Trek.
And to make matters worse for Avatar examples, if not overly extreme versions, of truly alien looking aliens exist in movies like District 9 or Camerons' own Aliens and their budgets were alot smaller than Avatar's.
Perhaps Avatar is just the first step however. Instead of the giant leap Cameron seemed to be promising, perhaps it is no more than a small - but very important step - in a far longer process!
Wednesday 6 August 2008
First Post
When 2009 turned into 2010, I decided that now was as good as time as any to restart my blog. It has of course moved from Bebo to Blogger but apart from that nothing will change. I will still blog away on the random stuff that interests me - most likely films, books and the like!
Also I may well move over a couple of my favourite old blogs articles from Bebo. If nothing else it means I don't have to think of something new to write but something is still posted lol
Of course comments and suggestions are welcome. I'll try my best to answer them! Apart from that I hope you enjoy the blog!
Also I may well move over a couple of my favourite old blogs articles from Bebo. If nothing else it means I don't have to think of something new to write but something is still posted lol
Of course comments and suggestions are welcome. I'll try my best to answer them! Apart from that I hope you enjoy the blog!
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