Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow!

[losthellhound]

I'm not making that title up.. thats a real one

I saw a preview for this movie last night.. And, it looks just cheesy enough to be really good. Take a great cast, weave a cheesy "war of the worlds" plot.. Throw in giant robots, flying machines, and a brave flying ace (Sky captain himself) and no doubt they will save the day

(Angelina Jolie looks very good in a uniform and an eye-patch)

http://www.apple.com/trailers/paramo...ain_large.html

http://www.skycaptain.com/home.html

[moonstrucksoul]

i thought the movie looked interesting enough, but the title was just too much. and yeah, Jolie looks really hot with the eye patch.

[JohnnyRoyale]

Isn't that the Stargate SG1 music?

[Asuka{eve}]

I dont like the enemy flying enemy machines.

[seretogis]

Originally posted by JohnnyRoyale
Isn't that the Stargate SG1 music?

I noticed the same thing.

[Lebell]

I am interested enough to see what the reviews are.

I will say that it has a funky look that is appealing, the hotness of AJ not withstanding

[phredgreen]

it has just enough kitsch appeal to make me wanna go watch it, but if they kill the appeal in the sure to come tv commercials, i may just wait til video. so far, they have my attention.

[ForgottenKnight]

I saw the preview in the theatures and thought it looked pretty good. It reminded me of Tom Paris' holosuite program "The Adventures of Captain Proton" in Star Trek Voyager.

[losthellhound]

Originally posted by NiceGuy
I saw the preview in the theatures and thought it looked pretty good. It reminded me of Tom Paris' holosuite program "The Adventures of Captain Proton" in Star Trek Voyager.

My thoughts exactly

[Rodney]

I spent much of my teen years in the '70s working in a pizza restaurant that continuously showed old movie serials for free. I probably saw "Flash Gordon," "Buck Rogers" and the Commando Cody serials a dozen times each. So the trailer to "Sky Captain" really interests me.

What's unusual about this flick is that it has a first-time director, and that just about all the sets as well as special effects were generated. The actors did all their work in front of blue screens. The cost was a "mere" $70 million, but it would have cost twice as much if they'd actually had to build something outside of the computer. Plus, I think that in visuals they've made a leap that fuses the comic book/animation reality with live action footage -- the film looks like neither one nor the other, but like a ultra-real animated comic novel. Even if the script is crap, I'm ready for this.

[Fremen]

Originally posted by Rodney
I spent much of my teen years in the '70s working in a pizza restaurant that continuously showed old movie serials for free. I probably saw "Flash Gordon," "Buck Rogers" and the Commando Cody serials a dozen times each. So the trailer to "Sky Captain" really interests me.

What's unusual about this flick is that it has a first-time director, and that just about all the sets as well as special effects were generated. The actors did all their work in front of blue screens. The cost was a "mere" $70 million, but it would have cost twice as much if they'd actually had to build something outside of the computer. Plus, I think that in visuals they've made a leap that fuses the comic book/animation reality with live action footage -- the film looks like neither one nor the other, but like a ultra-real animated comic novel. Even if the script is crap, I'm ready for this.

Good thing I refreshed the page before I posted.
Rodney, it sounds like you had some cool teenage years.
I had heard of the first two serials you mentioned but not Commando Cody.
What were his adventures about?


Here's what I wrote before I saw Rodneys' informative post.

This movie looks like it's based on early 20th Century sci-fi movies.
Serials, cliffhangers and the like.
That's why the seemingly over-the-top title.

It looks good to me, so far.

We shall see.

Here's a synopsis of the movie and some background on the writer, director. Also, miniatures of the three posters.

http://filmforce.ign.com/articles/50...html?fromint=1

First Look: Sky Captain Posters
Three character-themed teaser posters for Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow.

March 18, 2004 - Today, for your viewing pleasure, we have an exclusive first look at three new character-themed teaser posters for Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. The stylized posters – we dig the Machine Age motif – feature the film's three main characters: flying ace Sky Captain (Jude Law), reporter Polly Perkins (Gwyneth Paltrow) and pilot Franky Cook (Angelina Jolie).


The film was written and directed by industry newbie Kerry Conran, a CalArts grad. Conran shot the entire picture against bluescreen and wrote his own software to create the film's unique visuals. He says, "The whole movie is a special effect, even a scene with two people sitting in a room. Really, it's a live-action cartoon."

Spoiler: The story is set in late-1930s New York City and follows Polly Perkins (Paltrow), a crack reporter working on a story about numerous world-famous scientists who have mysteriously gone missing. Suddenly, all heck breaks loose and strange flying machines threaten Manhattan while gigantic walking robots trample city blocks. To get to the bottom of it all, Polly joins forces with her old flame and sometime adversary Capt. Joseph Sullivan (Jude Law), known as Sky Captain. He commands the Flying Legion, battling bad guys in his Warhawk P-40. Dashing, huh? Sky and Polly fly to a remote part of Nepal (think Shangri-La) to track down the crazed mastermind Dr. Totenkopf, who wants to destroy the world.
Jolie plays Capt. Franky Cook, an associate of Sky Captain and Giovanni Ribisi stars as Sky's gadget-apt buddy, Dex. Bai Ling also has a small role in the film.

Click on the pics to see the larger poster. (opens in a new window)
<a href="http://ffmedia.ign.com/filmforce/image/GWYNETH_72DPI_600w_1079647867.jpeg" target=_blank"><img src="http://ffmedia.ign.com/filmforce/image/SM_GWYNETH_72DPI_600w_1079647842.jpeg" ></a> <a href="http://ffmedia.ign.com/filmforce/image/JUDE_72DPI_600w_1079647975.jpeg" target=_blank"><img src="http://ffmedia.ign.com/filmforce/image/SM_JUDE_72DPI_600w_1079647953.jpeg" ></a> <a href="http://ffmedia.ign.com/filmforce/image/ANGELINA_72DPI_600w_1079648045.jpeg" target=_blank"><img src="http://ffmedia.ign.com/filmforce/image/SM_ANGELINA_72DPI_600w_1079648020.jpeg" ></a>

[Reese]

I like the fact that the entire movie was shot on blue screen. The only thing that isn't computer generated is the characters. I don't know how good it'll be but I'm looking forward to it.

[Rodney]

Originally posted by Fremen

Rodney, it sounds like you had some cool teenage years.

They had their moments.

I had heard of the first two serials you mentioned but not Commando Cody.
What were his adventures about?

You've probably seen some bits of the serials and not realized it. Commando Cody, aka the Rocketman, is the flying man in coveralls with a silver helmet/mask that looks like an old radio, and a couple of knobs on his chest. There were several Republic serials starring this flying hero in the early/mid 50s; although the name of the character, the name of his alter ego, and even the backstory changes from serial to serial, the costume stays the same.

These serials include "King of the Rocket Men" (aka "Lost Planet Airmen," "Radar Men from the Moon" (aka "Retik the Moon Menace"), "Zombies of the Stratosphere," and at least one other. These ultra-low-budget serials put the "cheese" in "cheesey:" for example, the sky is always blue in "outer space," and the evil alien invader's mega-death-machine is an old truck under a plywood shell with lightning bolts painted down each side. But they could be a great deal of fun. If you really want to know more:

http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/G...622/ccsmou.htm

Commando Cody is at least a partial inspiration for the Rocketeer comic books and movie of the '90s.

[Rodney]

One other thing: drawing on the idea (apparently acknowleged by the director) that "Sky Captain" is actually a sort of live-action cartoon, I do want to say that certain shots and features in the trailer reminded me a great deal of the Max Fleisher Superman cartoons from the early '40s. The Fleisher Supermans were very realistic, in a blocky, expressionist sort of way, "lit" like noir movies with lots of shadows and direct light sources animated in, and a lot of dim, low-light scenes. The scene in the trailer where a line of cops in semi-silhouette raise Thompson guns to shoot down the sky invaders is right out of "Mechanical Monsters," as are the giant robots in Sky Captain. I'm not claiming plagiarism, just homage. If you've never seen the Fleisher Superman cartoons, they're really worth a look. Much superior to all the other Superman TV cartoons that came after. I've got some on VHS, and I think they're on DVD also.

[queedo]

I think it looks like a cool film.

[pocon1]

I just don't care for Jude Law, so it is hard to get excited for this movie.

[Fremen]

Originally posted by Rodney
You've probably seen some bits of the serials and not realized it. Commando Cody, aka the Rocketman, is the flying man in coveralls with a silver helmet/mask that looks like an old radio, and a couple of knobs on his chest. There were several Republic serials starring this flying hero in the early/mid 50s; although the name of the character, the name of his alter ego, and even the backstory changes from serial to serial, the costume stays the same.

These serials include "King of the Rocket Men" (aka "Lost Planet Airmen," "Radar Men from the Moon" (aka "Retik the Moon Menace"), "Zombies of the Stratosphere," and at least one other. These ultra-low-budget serials put the "cheese" in "cheesey:" for example, the sky is always blue in "outer space," and the evil alien invader's mega-death-machine is an old truck under a plywood shell with lightning bolts painted down each side. But they could be a great deal of fun. If you really want to know more:

http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/G...622/ccsmou.htm

Commando Cody is at least a partial inspiration for the Rocketeer comic books and movie of the '90s.

You're right, I have seen clips of him flying around. It was like he was on a zip line.
I remember thinking, "He sure is flying in a straight line.".
I'm gonna have to check these out.
Thanks, Rodney.

Originally posted by Rodney
One other thing: drawing on the idea (apparently acknowleged by the director) that "Sky Captain" is actually a sort of live-action cartoon, I do want to say that certain shots and features in the trailer reminded me a great deal of the Max Fleisher Superman cartoons from the early '40s. The Fleisher Supermans were very realistic, in a blocky, expressionist sort of way, "lit" like noir movies with lots of shadows and direct light sources animated in, and a lot of dim, low-light scenes. The scene in the trailer where a line of cops in semi-silhouette raise Thompson guns to shoot down the sky invaders is right out of "Mechanical Monsters," as are the giant robots in Sky Captain. I'm not claiming plagiarism, just homage. If you've never seen the Fleisher Superman cartoons, they're really worth a look. Much superior to all the other Superman TV cartoons that came after. I've got some on VHS, and I think they're on DVD also.

I've seen a few of those on AMC or TCM, one.
I think you're right about their being better than later incarnations of Supes.
I remember one episode about a mad scientist that created these giant flying robots that broke into banks, and other treasure houses, and scooped all the loot up and flew back to his lair.
Lois hitches a ride to get the story and Superman flys to the rescue. (as usual)

I'm going to have to look at getting the dvd now that you jarred my memory.
Thanks.

[mirevolver]

It looks like all that classic 50's scifi, only with better special effects.

[Fire]

I started reading doc savage when I was a kid- The whole concept rocks- and with the cgi they should be able to do it right!

[Mr. Mojo]

Since i just finished playing Crimson Skies on the X-Box, I'm looking forward to this.

[Hrothgar]

I cringed during the trailer.

[PulpMind]

from the one trailer I've seen, it looks awesome!
almost all CGI at first, I even thought the actors were cgi because it all blended together so well....
though it looks like the film wil have more color than the preview sugests (and the b&w look was something I really liked in the preview) hmm...

[m0rpheus]

My reaction after seeing the trailer before Hellboy was that it looks like it will be either

a) Cheesy as hell but a whole lot of fun
or b) Cheesy as hell and really really dumb

I really dont see a middle ground for this one...
but I'm always up for some fromage so I'm sure I'll check it out.

[bltzkriegmcanon]

Originally posted by Hrothgar
I cringed during the trailer.

100% agreement.

[BuddyHawks]

It reminded me of 1) Tom Paris's Holodeck program,
2) Freedom Force for the PC

I look forward to it.

[Mr.Deflok]

It looks cheesily superiffic! I have a soft-spot for retro-ism.

[sadistikdreams]

Me and my dad were talking about it. We both saw the trailer with "Kill Bill"...

We both think it looks like "Crimson Skies", or at least a similar concept. I really looove alternate existanceseses of the 1920s-1950s... I can't wait till this comes out.

[holtmate]

I have been looking forward to this one for a while now. I like the film noir look, and it just looks like a good summer action film.

As for the previous mentions of Commando Cody, I remember him from MST3K - "Nipple nipple tweak tweak FLY!" and the classic "WINDOW!!!!"

[bltzkriegmcanon]

Time for an update: here's the newest trailer. I'm upgrading this from definitely going to suck to stands a chance of being cool.

[losthellhound]

Originally posted by bltzkriegmcanon
Time for an update: here's the newest trailer. I'm upgrading this from definitely going to suck to stands a chance of being cool.

I'll upgrade it from really cool.. to Wow, that looks kickass

[hilbert25]

I really like the look of the film. The CGI backgrounds give it a nice, cartoony feel and it has a kind of dreamy air about it.

[-Ever-]

I think it looks cool too, and I'm not one for potentially-cheesy films. I heard the creators speak at the Wired NextFest and they seemed to be really into it; at least putting heart into a film is better than some people seem to be doing these days.

[TheClarkster]

Originally posted by losthellhound
(Angelina Jolie looks very good in a uniform and an eye-patch)

My thoughts exactly. Movie looks rather cool to boot.

[Cynthetiq]

paramount is hoping to cash in on this flick... they haven't had a really good hit in a few years... hopefully this will bring them some good profits.

[SuperJay]

Just watched a really long and good trailer at the begining of Spider-man 2. I am really looking forward to this flick. I think that as long as you go in to the movie not expecting something that it isn't then you will enjoy it. It looks very fun.

[Church]

Originally posted by ForgottenKnight
I saw the preview in the theatures and thought it looked pretty good. It reminded me of Tom Paris' holosuite program "The Adventures of Captain Proton" in Star Trek Voyager.

Yeah, I noticed that but I was also thinking Crimson Skies.

[Moobie]

Damn, this movie looks really cool. There were parts that looked more like the animation that you'd find in cut scenes from video games than a movie though. But yeah like everyone's said if they can pull this off it could be really good.