ALL SCI-FI

[Bud Brewster]

Looking for a movie with giant monsters that fight giant robots piloted by two people whose brains are linked?

Boy, you certainly don't think small, do you?

Lucky for you, this one fits the bill.

This movie is a ton of fun with some left over, and it made a tidy profit for the film makers, earning back its budget ($190 million) and another $221 million as well. Not a bad haul indeed.

If I had to name something about this movie that might need altering, it would be to dial it back a few notches: making everything just a bit less large, less loud, less fast, and less visually cluttered.

Movies have been heavily influenced by the explosion of video games, so their pacing and scope exceeds the speed limit with wild abandon. I can't speak for all those bright young minds born in the 21st century, but for those of us who remember b&w TVs and Floyd the barber, movies don't have to contain five edits in the time it takes us to scratch our noses!

Hey, maybe they'll start offering altered editions of movies for various age groups — differently edited versions of the film, designed for the viewing tastes of target audiences.

Sound crazy? Heck, we've already got "theatrical versions" and "special editions" and "director's cuts". If Hollywood decides that their multimillion-dollar movies will turn a better profit if they don't keep trying to make them be one-size-fits-all, this idea just might take off!
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Bud Brewster]

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This is a nice trailer, with just a few of the "slide show" fades-in/outs, but not too many. And the quick shots of the spectacular scenes aren't too quick, the way they are in many trailers for movies like this.

_________Pacific Rim - Official Main Trailer [HD]


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

[Bud Brewster]

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IMDB has 62 trivia items for this movie. Here’s a few of the ones I found the most interesting, in the blue text.
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~ Approximately a hundred Kaijus and a hundred Jaegers were designed, but only a fraction of them appeared in the film. Every week, the filmmakers held a vote for their favorites.

Note from me: My God, I would have loved being one of the folks doing the designs! That's what I do just for fun!













~ According to Travis Beacham, in an earlier version of the script Mako and Raleigh spoke two different languages for a majority of the film. After connecting as pilots, they slowly began to understand one another, and before the end they heard each other speaking in their own respective languages. The only remnant of a language barrier is when Raleigh speaks to Mako in Japanese, and she is surprised he knows her home language.

Note from me: I love this concept. It really takes advantage of the "shared mind" idea.

~ When little Mako is in the alleyway, every object on the set was rigged to the same hydraulic system. Whenever the giant monster was to take a step, everything bounced or shook in unison, including the puddles.

Note from me: This is impressive. They went to a lot of trouble and expense to make a single scene realistic and believable.

~ Visual effects supervisor John Knoll and director Guillermo del Toro spent several weeks discussing the physics of the giant characters and went into very specific detail, such as how the air displacement from a Jaeger moving between skyscrapers would shake the building's windows.

Note from me: This is very impressive. Even when I was just a wee lad in the 1950s I could tell the difference between an FX that convinced the audience that the miniatures was supposed to be massive things, like avalanches and tidal waves. Harryhausen understood the importance of this, and his FX always got it right.

~ Though the giant monsters were always intended to be computer generated, all of their designs were expanded from the notion that they could be "worn a

Note from me: Being no fan of Japanese monster movies using men in suits, I appreciate the dramatic improvement in the physical appearance of these CGI versions.

~ One of the art directors said this is the first time they dressed a set using forklifts and jackhammers. Much of the set is made with real materials, unlike most sets.

Note from me: The next time I watch my DVD I won't assume that a lot of lightweight materials like plastic were made to look like heavier materials.

~ The movie is dedicated to the memory of "monster masters" Ray Harryhausen, stop-motion animator for movies like The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958), and Ishirô Honda, director of Godzilla (1954) and many other kaiju features. Honda was born on May 7, 1911. Harryhausen died on May 7, 2013.

Note from me: I always gratifies me when filmmakers appreciate the masters who came before them.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Bud Brewster]

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Doesn't anybody want to discuss this movie? If we'd seen it when we were kids it would have knocked our white cotton socks right across the room!

So, are we bored with science fiction in our old age? Or is our interest sci-fi movies confined to the ones we have nostalgic feelings for?
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Gord Green]

This was just a gol durned, rip roaring, no holds barred, teeth busting, brain jarring, good for nothin bing bang nostril snortin, go fer yer guns winner take all rootin' tootin'shootin' slug fest!

And a heck of a lotta fun!
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There comes a time, thief, when gold loses its lustre, and the gems cease to sparkle, and the throne room becomes a prison; and all that is left is a father's love for his child.

[Bud Brewster]

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Gordo, you seem to be the only All Sci-Fi member who isn't so overwhelmed by the awesome nature of this movie — not to mention the dazzling literary footwork of my well-crafted post above — that he hasn't felt comfortable about offering his own thoughts on this subject!

Please understand, folks — I spend hours drafting posts like the one I wrote above. It's how I occupy my days.

And since I'm a published writer, I literally slave over ever paragraph, every sentence, and ever word of what I add to All Sci-Fi!

The point is . . . I love every minute of it!

However, all I really expect from the members of All Sci-Fi are their honest opinions on the subjects we discuss.

In other words, please don't feel like you have to create long, verbose posts like I do! Just tell us what you've learned, what you feel, and what you think about the subjects we discuss!
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)