Godzilla 2014: Rumors, Pix and filming

Discussion in 'Science Fiction & Fantasy' started by Gojira, Mar 3, 2013.

  1. Christopher

    Christopher Writer Admiral

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    ^But that's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about the way Hollywood editors today are so obsessed with relentless, nonstop pacing that they'll ruthlessly cut out scenes that are thematically or emotionally important to the story. One of the worst examples is in Star Trek: Nemesis. There was a major early scene in which Picard and Data discussed questions of mortality, humanity, and sacrifice that were absolutely vital as groundwork for Data's choices later in the film. Data's character arc doesn't really make sense without it. But because it was a slow dialogue scene, they cut it, while they left in a totally gratuitous dune-buggy chase that could've been omitted without having any impact on the story. Because speed and intensity have become the all-consuming obsession of Hollywood editors to the exclusion of every other priority.

    Heck, there was even a part in Generations where Picard's greeting of "Lursa, B'Etor" to the Duras sisters is trimmed to "Lurs-or" because the editors didn't think the audience had the patience to sit through four syllables of introduction instead of two. And that was the only time the characters' names were even given onscreen in the film!
     
  2. JD

    JD Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Yeah, it feels like some of the big action movies end up cutting out all of the characterization and backstory. I guess this is just another case of entertainment execs thinking that their audiences are all complete idiots who have no patience for anything that isn't a fight scene or an explosion.
     
  3. Triple-F

    Triple-F Lieutenant Commander Red Shirt

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    Exhibit one…

    http://www.trekbbs.com/showthread.php?t=244924

    Sorry, just read that thread just before this one, and couldn’t help notice the overlap in the subject of what makes a good action/monster movie. Personally I like the sound of the new movie as it seems to tease the viewer before delivering the money shot of the big confrontation, and takes it time in doing it. If it is like that and takes an hour or two to get there, great.
     
  4. sojourner

    sojourner Admiral In Memoriam

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    Damn, Chiiler channel had some Godzilla movies on today. Unfortunately the listings are wrong. I was hoping to get the 2002 Godzilla VS Mechagodzilla as listed, but it's the 1974 version.
     
  5. SG-17

    SG-17 Commodore Commodore

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    Apparently Godzilla beat Winter Soldier by $2 million ($38 mil compared to $36 mil) on Opening Day (Friday) revenue in the US. I don't know if they count Thursday preview showings in this.

    This is great news for a sequel. After an absence of 10 years and an even longer one in the public's eye in America, I've forgotten how big of a name Godzilla actually is. Then again you can see him everywhere in the general lexicon of American English.
     
  6. Awesome Possum

    Awesome Possum Moddin' Admiral

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    I saw it today. The human characters are a little underwritten, but that's almost tradition for the series since the star is Godzilla. But he does not disappoint.

    I hope it does well and the sequels feature some of the other Toho monsters. I think the director mentioned that he would like to remake Destroy All Monsters as a sequel.
     
  7. publiusr

    publiusr Admiral Admiral

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    Some thoughts on the movie

    Nice review here:
    http://up-ship.com/blog/?p=24639

    So, I went and saw “Godzilla” today. It was… ok. It was not what I’d hoped, where Godzila would have been some Lovecraftian horror from beyond, but instead… big lizard. So if you like movies about giant monsters beating the tar out of each other, this is your lucky day.

    My response:

    That was what I was expecting--that may be "Into the Storm" aka Black Sky
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Into_the_Storm_(2014_film)
    The events in Call of Cthulhu took place around March 22nd 1925
    http://americanliterature.com/author/h-p-lovecraft/short-story/the-call-of-cthulhu

    Guess what else took place around that time? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tri-State_Tornado
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_P._Grazulis

    I'm convinced HPL was influenced by Tri-State. The Tuscaloosa-Birmingham tornado of 2011 even had tentacles: http://www.stormtrack.org/forum/archive/index.php/t-27601.html

    There is nothing more baleful than a siren as a tornado moves towards your home. You feel stalked. It is an invisible thing made of ropy vortices that spring to life from the ether, seeking to destroy. Children are encouraged by parents to be silent--else the storm "hears" them, and turn.

    Still, I thought the big Muto fight might be held off for the second movie

    A couple of things I noticed:

    The name Mothra could be seen at the bottom of a terrarium, made of two other words--we heard the 2001 (INTO THE INFINITE) theme during the H.A.L.O. insertion, and the kid with the blue cap harked back to one of the kaiju films told from a kids perspective.

    The audience seemed to be into it, like ID4. Rare enough.

    But really, if someone was opposed to nukes--they should have rooted for the Mutos to kill Godzilla.

    Then, the Mutos would have eaten Fukushima, Chernobyl, and Three Mile island, all the planets ICBMs (good) and all the other power plants (bad)--and best yet, would have EMP'ed all the teenage girls cell phones they use to drive each other to suicide.
    The result? A de-nuclearized planet where folks no longer trust microcircuits and everyone goes back to EMP resistant , rad hardened tech that can better survive another Carrington event from the Sun.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_storm_of_1859

    Then too, haven't the Japanese already compared Godzilla to Americans in being fat, overly violent, and against anything anti-nuclear? :)

    To be serious for a moment--I'm actually glad this didn't take the inevitable Captain Planet (LOOK WHAT WE EVIL AWFUL HUMANS DID) line, in showing Earth in a supposedly more radioactive era. The nuclear waste eating parasites (oh I wish that was real) looked to be in the skeleton of the kaiju known as Manda by the way.

    This film actually wasn't as anti-nuke as I was expecting.

    If you wanted dismal, keep everything in the Fukushima-town hot, show the Mutos as mutations (what I thought they were initially), and have big G show up to feed on them--then tear up the city shrugging off Davy Crockets, MXs, and the like.

     
  8. RAMA

    RAMA Admiral Admiral

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    So I saw it, and I enjoyed it very much. I liked how the monsters were a force of nature as the Japanese like to think of them. Also enjoyed how they have a "new" origin for the big fella and the MUTOs. I did wish the monsters were less "peripheral" than they were shown, but I understand the suspense they were trying to create. I'm still ranking this behind Pacific Rim as the 2nd best monster movie ever. Another interesting note..the Interstellar Movie trailer got applause before the movie!! I was shocked, that hardly ever happens.
     
  9. bigdaddy

    bigdaddy Vice Admiral Admiral

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    I almost understand making a movie a little shorter because studios want more money and you get that with more screenings. However Avatar made a ton of money and is rather slow at times and like 4 hours long. Just make the movie the director wants.
     
  10. Greg Cox

    Greg Cox Admiral Premium Member

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    And then, of course, there's Titanic . . .

    Meanwhile, the Washington Post just did a nice rundown on the books:

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/style-blog/wp/2014/05/19/godzilla-stomps-into-bookstores-too/.
     
    Last edited: May 19, 2014
  11. Chris_Johnston

    Chris_Johnston Captain Captain

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    Here we are, 4 days after the US release, and there's no "Grading & Discussion" thread, with the obligatory Poll?
    Odd, that.
     
  12. sojourner

    sojourner Admiral In Memoriam

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  13. Greg Cox

    Greg Cox Admiral Premium Member

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  14. bigdaddy

    bigdaddy Vice Admiral Admiral

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    The sequel was given the go yesterday. I don't have my glasses so it's hard to read if it was said yet. :lol:
     
  15. Chris_Johnston

    Chris_Johnston Captain Captain

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    Well, that one's not in the same format as the polls you usually put up when there's a new blockbuster rolling in.
     
  16. Christopher

    Christopher Writer Admiral

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    ^No, but it's become the de facto review thread at this point. Is it too late to edit it and insert a poll?
     
  17. sojourner

    sojourner Admiral In Memoriam

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    Meh, polls are over rated.
     
  18. Christopher

    Christopher Writer Admiral

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    We should do a poll to see how people rate polls. ;)
     
  19. Samurai8472

    Samurai8472 Vice Admiral Admiral

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    THEY WILL FIGHT..............but not in the same movie.


    http://www.superherohype.com/news/310587-comic-con-godzilla-sequel



     
  20. Christopher

    Christopher Writer Admiral

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    Wow, they must have confidence in the franchise if they're planning more than one sequel.

    I'm a bit worried about how they'll handle Mothra. She's always been a heroic kaiju, or at least one who was well-intentioned until humans got in her way. But with Godzilla as the heroic preserver of nature's balance in the Legendary series, what role does that leave for Mothra? Unless they're teaming up against King Ghidorah, the ultimate big bad.