Simply Everything

Alice in Wonderland

By Peter K. Lam

I went to watch “Alice in Wonderland” in IMAX 3-D today and it was ok. There was a lot of hype about how magnificent it was going to be but honestly it did not really live up to the hype. The story was not as layered as I thought it’d be and it seemed to be gear more toward children. The 3-D graphics was not really utilized either. It seemed to be used to add addition dimensions to the characters and scenery. There were no scenes where stuff was flying out at the viewers. The 3-D was really not necessary. It could be also that the film was not made specifically to be in 3-D. I didn’t watch “Avatar” in 3-D so I don’t really have a comparison of how “Alice in Wonderland” fared with “Avatar.”

The story was pretty basic as well although there were a few confusing parts. It’s not made clear from the beginning that this live action version is actually a sequel to the animated film. I went in thinking that this was a re-imaging. The audience finds out later that the movie takes place after animated version. It would’ve been a better movie if it had more symbolism and adult-like themes.

On a side note, 3-D is just a passing fad. The technology is still not efficient enough to go mainstream. It might never get to that point. Some movies are able to pull off 3-D while others cannot. Some just don’t make sense to be in 3-D. It doesn’t add that much to the movie-going experience. Since “Avatar” made 3-D a recent hot topic, it may stay in the public eye for a while but I predict that the hype will die down in the coming years.

By Peter K. Lam

Don't they look similar?

I finally got around to watching “Avatar” yesterday after it’s been out for several weeks. I didn’t really intend on watching it but after all the hype from friends and others who watched it, I felt that I should give it a try and watch it. I actually tried to watch “Avatar” some time in January but the theater I went to had water damage to the projectors  from the heavy rains we had. I wasn’t able to watch that day so I watched “Daybreakers” instead which was also an entertaining two hours. I went in to watch “Avatar” with no reservations about the movie at all. I didn’t read in depth reviews or followed up on the backstory. All I knew is that a lot of people went to watch it and it was breaking records left and right.

The concept of this movie is that humans from Earth landed on a planet called Pandora with the sole purpose of raping the planet of its natural resources. Unfortunately the humans are not  the only intelligent life on the planet. The indigenous natives, called the Na’vi, are very protective of the land and happen to live right on top of the largest quantity of the natural resources the humans are after. The humans developed avatar technology which basically allows humans to connect to a body created of human/Na’vi DNA. The intent was to use the avatar bodies to communicate and hopefully assimilate into the Na’vi society to help find a diplomatic way of moving the Na’vi to another location rather than starting an all out war.

The visual effects of the movie was pretty incredible. The avatars are CG but were modeled after the actors and used motion capture technology to create some of the action scenes. The CG was so very detailed that some of it looked pretty real. I watched this in 2D as well so I can only imagine how more incredible it looked in 3D. The world of Pandora is rich with color and life that you probably would’ve been full immersed in if you watch it in 3D.\

The story itself was slightly altered from the age old tale of humans using up natural resources with no regard to the harm they were doing to the ecosystem around them. Even so, this new take on that story was gripping enough to carry viewers all the way through.

One complaint I have about the movie is about the colonel character. He was ridiculously macho and was the most annoying of all the characters. Arrogant, barbaric, and inhuman, he was just hard to identify with. He wanted to destroy the Na’vi and did not care that he would annihilate them just as long as he gets the natural resources he’s after. The most ridiculous thing about this character is that he’s so “tough” that he seemed practically impervious to harm. His arm was on fire at one point which he had practically no reaction to. He also attempted to stop the escape of the rebel forces by bursting out into the hostile atmosphere without any oxygen. He held his breath for probably 5 minutes or so and used several kinds of weapons while pursuing the rebels which is not humanly possible. He was a highly exaggerated stock character of a typical soldier as seen in other films. In this case he seemed to be a direct copy of another soldier in the animated film called “Small Soliders.” Look at the picture and you’ll see the resemblance.

Other than that hiccup in the movie, “Avatar” was thoroughly enjoyable and promises to entertain. I watched the 2D version which was cool. I’m sure 3D would be just as good. It’s probably better for those who want to feel “apart” of Pandora.

SyFy's Caprica

By Peter K. Lam

The time is almost near… the premiere of SyFy’s “Caprica,” prequel series to the critically acclaimed series “Battlestar Galactica,” airs tomorrow night at 9 pm only on SyFy. I’ve been waiting for this day since I finished watching BSG almost three months ago. I’m watching BSG again with my brother this time since he has yet to watch it. All this time, my excitement for the prequel continues to build up.

“Caprica” is set fifty years before the events of BSG and before the two Cylon wars. The story will revolved two families, the Adamas and Graystone, as they struggle through the ethical ramifications of creating artificial life. The show tells the origin of the Cylons on the twelve colonies.

What I really hope for is that the show will reveal how the mechanical Cylons evolved into the humaniod versions. That is the most interesting part of the story for me. Creating machines is one thing, but having a machine become practically human is quite another. That facet of the entire saga has continued to draw me deeper into the story. It would be cool to have cameos of the twelve Cylon models from BSG at some point as well.

The pilot for “Caprica” has been out since the summer but I have yet to watch it. I don’t know if the series premiere tomorrow night will be the pilot or not. It might not be since the pilot has been out for so long. The series premiere may be a new episode entirely. I’m going to watch the “Caprica” pilot tonight or before the premiere tomorrow.

Be sure to become a fan of “Caprica” on Facebook to get more updates about the show. This is my first time watching a show like this live as oppose to on DVD. It’ll be interesting to see how it’s like to endure the commercial breaks and the week to week format of the show.