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Unbreakable (2000)

 
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Bud Brewster
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 11:50 am    Post subject: Unbreakable (2000) Reply with quote




First of all, a quick comment about the casting of Bruce Willis as a man who discovers that he is — for reasons unknown — far less prone to injury than the average person. Or even the above average person. Or even Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Okay, now think about the "Die Hard" movies and everything John McClane experiences and survives.

Just a thought, folks.

I really like this movie's unique way of taking the "superpower" concept and examining it in a gritty, real-world manner. Not only is the concept brilliant and fascinating, M. Night Shyamalan's think-outside-the-box style of directing is without equal. He presents story elements in a manner like no other director ever has — or at least not in the same frequent and consistent degree.

The internal struggle which Bruce Willis' character experiences while trying to accept his special physical nature is completely devoid of the typical (beloved) Hollywood heroism. He doesn't make speeches about the great responsibility that comes with great power, he doesn't square his shoulders and preach about his duty to mankind.

He just silently submits to the moral imperative of delivering justice when faced with monumental injustice.

And yet, even the grim struggle between Willis and the unnamed murderer/rapist in the climax is absolutely devoid of any flashy fighting techniques, incredible stunts, or shocking final death blows delivered to the villain.

I'm tempted to say that the battle is a metaphor for what we all face in real life — the frustrating and protracted struggle we endure daily as we meet the challenges of life, desperately hoping they won't defeat us.

Naw, that's too intellectual. Let's just say it was a great way to present a climactic battle in a different kind of superhero movie.

PS: I wonder what the M stands for.
Confused
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orzel-w
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 12:48 pm    Post subject: Re: Unbreakable (2000) Reply with quote

Bud Brewster wrote:
PS: I wonder what the M stands for. Confused

I'm guessing, "Mid"?
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Bud Brewster
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 1:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hmmm. It's got a definite ring to it. I like it. Cool
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
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Bud Brewster
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PostPosted: Tue Jun 07, 2016 9:28 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

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Awesome movie. The trailer certainly puts me in the mood to watch it.

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____________________ Unbreakable - Trailer


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)


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Bud Brewster
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PostPosted: Sun Oct 23, 2016 3:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

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Just to demonstrate the unusual way M. Night Shyamalan thinks, consider this trivia items from IMDB.
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The film is derived from the first third of the original script. M. Night Shyamalan felt no connection to the last two thirds of the text and decided to discard them.
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Odd to think that this well-made movie is one-third of a complete script. The story seems complete, with a very satisfying ending. I wonder what the other two-thirds were about?

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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)


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Bud Brewster
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PostPosted: Mon Apr 24, 2017 3:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

________________________________

IMDB only has a few trivia items I found interesting. Here they are.
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Of all the films he's made, this is M. Night Shyamalan's personal favorite.

Note from me: I'd pick Signs as the best one, with The Sixth Sence and Unbreakable tied for second.

Charlayne Woodard, who plays the mother to Samuel L. Jackson's character, is actually almost a full five years younger than her on-screen son.

Note from me: This seems to be fairly common in Hollywood. The makeup guys can cause a middle-aged lady look like an old lady, and a middle-age man look like a young man, so that the middle-age woman can play the middle-aged man's mother.

Here's the weird part: If the makeup guys made 'em both look young, could they start dating and end up on the cover of People magazine as a hot new Hollywood couple? Shocked

Since the release of Split (2016), it has been confirmed by M. Night Shyamalan that they happen in the same universe. He also stated that he intends to make a third movie with characters from both films.

Note from me: Based on the fact that Shyamalan's movies have been less impressive for me after the first three, I don't have a lot of confidence in his ability combine this film with his more recent ones. The guys has kind of lost his mojo . . .

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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)


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Gord Green
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PostPosted: Tue Apr 25, 2017 8:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

As an example of life imitating art when it comes to Super Heroes ; Take the recent case of Actor Tom Hardy (Bane, from the Batman trilogy).

As reported on Yahoo:

This might be a case of life imitating art. According to an eyewitness account in the U.K.’s the Sun, Hollywood hunk Tom Hardy single-handedly caught a thief after an action-movie-style chase in London. The 39-year-old Batman villain ran after a crook who crashed a stolen moped into a Mercedes and fled.

Hardy allegedly vaulted over walls as he chased down the thief until he finally caught him by grabbing his neck. Like a pro, the star then hauled the man to a nearby bus stop and proceeded to pat him down, checking for hidden weapons. Like a movie star, once the deed was done, Hardy announced, “I caught the c***.” How … cinematic.

“It was mental — like he’d switched to superhero mode in an action movie,” recalled 22-year-old Arun Pullen, who witnessed the heroic feat. “Two boys on the nicked moped had jumped a red light and smashed into a car.” One of the boys was apprehended within moments, but the other made a run for it. “Tom must have been walking down the road. He went off like a shot in pursuit and looked furious. If the kid had been dumb enough to resist, I reckon Tom would have given him a good hiding.”

Tom Hardy seems to have just done his morning workout before the incident on April 24. (Photo: AKM-GSI)

When Pullen asked Hardy what happened, the Taboo star said he’d chased the kid through Pullen’s back garden and caught him around the block. “The route was like an assault course,” the witness added.

It seemed that that crook was surprised by this turn of events. “The kid looked wrecked and in shock,” Pullen added. “Tom Hardy’s clearly not a man you’d mess with. I think he even checked the kid’s ID before cops took over.” According to the witness, Hardy told onlookers, “This little s*** nicked something and now he’s got himself a ­broken leg.”

Both suspects were arrested on suspicion of theft and taking a vehicle without consent. Hardy’s camp has yet to comment on the incident — but it seems that Hardy can speak for himself.

https://www.yahoo.com/celebrity/tom-hardy-real-life-action-hero-catching-thief-172521425.html
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Bud Brewster
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PostPosted: Mon Jun 13, 2022 11:38 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

________________________________

Unbreakable presents us with a very different sort of "superhero" tale than the popular Marvel and DC characters. The story includes several important elements that set it apart from a traditional superhero story.

For example:

It denies the existence of real superheroes — those individuals who wear colorful costumes and use extra-normal abilities to fight injustice — but it glorifies comic books because of their artwork, their stories, and their commitment to justice and bravery. These "graphic novels" inspire millions, and they shape the morality of their readers.

Comic book superheroes are frequently mentioned in Unbreakable, and Samuel L. Jackson urges Bruce Willis to embrace his special powers and use them to actively battle injustice.

Bruce is reluctant to believe in his own special abilities, and he refuses to commit to actively fighting crime by using them. When he finally does accept his unique nature and he challenges a ruthless killer, he does so without a special costume or a flamboyant superhero name.

After saving the two children and killing the murderer, he's very concerned about the newspaper article that praises his heroism and pleads with the "good Samaritan" to come forward.

Bruce does NOT seek fame or publicity. In fact, just the opposite is true. He wants his "secret identity" to be his only identity. He doesn't even want his own son to think he's special in any way!






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My own humble novel, The Hero Experience, differs from Unbreakable in almost every way. Oddly enough, however, it differs from tradition superheroes stories just as much . . . but in different ways.

And yet, it has some noteworthy similarities too. Here's what I mean.

The Hero Experience also takes place in the real world, where superheroes are pure fiction. But it also glorifies comic books because of the way they inspire young readers by teaching them the important difference between right and wrong.






The main characters in The Hero Experience — four teenage boys in 1967 — idealize superheroes and yearn to prove that the bravery and commitment to justice which superheroes have can actually exists.

During the summer vacation before their senior year in high school, these average teenagers plan a harmless hoax to make one brief appearance as a bogus "superhero" group called the Bowmen, which they hope will result in a minor newspaper article that describes their heroic deeds!






In other words, they have no superpowers and no special training, but they hope to generate a little publicity for a mysterious group of "mask crime fighters" who have actually stopped a minor crime! No serious attempt to fight crime is attempted . . . the brief publicity which the event generates is their primary goal!

However, their first attempt to appear as the "Bowmen" is surprisingly successful, and as a result they make more attempts during the summer. The results vary wildly — from comic situations to genuine danger that threatens their lives!

And throughout the summer months, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution features articles which intrigue the public and feed the egos of these na??ve and foolish teenagers as they tempt fate by taking their own hoax more and more seriously!






As in Unbreakable, the climax in the novel is the big payoff!

Bruce uses his great strength to defeat the brutal murderer. In The Hero Experience, the idealistic teenagers pursue an actual murderer and chase him into the Hyatt Regency Atlanta after he eludes the police!






My point here, of course, is that the Bowmen suddenly find themselves acting like real superheroes in a spectacular setting — despite their complete lack of extraordinary abilities. Compare this to Bruce Willies, who finds himself acting like a real superhero who uses every ounce of his incredible strength in a grime and frightening situation . . . with his "kryptonite" (water) all around him!

I think Unbreakable and The Hero Expericence offer the polar opposites of the superhero genre. One story is about a man with extraordinary powers who denies them at first and then reluctantly uses them in a real emergency.

The other story is about four wide-eyed teenagers who desperately want to be superheroes and who accidentally find themselves in a situation which proves that their own bravery and determination turns them into the legendary characters they've idealized in comic books!


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If you haven't bothered to read the illustrated version of The Hero Expericence here on All Sci-Fi, I urge you to do so. It's a novel I've worked on since 1980, and I finally published it a few years ago. I think it would make a great motion picture, one which approaches the superhero genre in a unique manner, the way Unbreakable does.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)
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