Tag science-fiction

‘Andor’ Season Two – It’s big, it’s ambitious…and it’s slow.

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The second season of Disney’s acclaimed Star Wars show has now concluded, and I must say it was one of the most visually-impressive productions I have ever seen. Some serious money had been thrown at this project – around three hundred million dollars (US) by all accounts – and this was evident judging by the enormous sets and state-of-the-art special effects.

Before I go any further, I should point out that there may be some ‘slight’ spoilers ahead, but I won’t give anything major away.

Whilst the show is named after Cassian Andor, played by Diego Luna, it features an ensemble cast with a lot of time allowed for these characters to develop and explore their own places within the Star Wars universe. At the helm of this series is showrunner Tony Gilroy, whose attention-to-detail and amazing vision is evident in every episode.

This season was laid out in a rather unique style, with four chapters containing three episodes each. There was a time jump of one year from one story arc to the next – for example, week one gave us episodes one to three, before the second week aired parts four to six – and was set one year later. Twelve episodes in total covered the four-year period leading up to the events of ‘Rogue One’.

The new season kicks off in style with Cassian stealing a prototype Imperial Tie Fighter from a military base, and immediately the size of the outrageous visual effects budget is obvious. However, once this explosive sequence had concluded, the pacing began to drag and what took place in the first three episodes could have been told within half of that screen time.

I’m not being overly critical here, as the plot is moving and things are happening. It’s just that it felt to me like we were spending too much time admiring the scenery – even though it was quite impressive – with characters having deep conversations back and forth and situations lingering far longer than what was necessary.

For example, Cassian spends most of the first two episodes with a rebel cell who ambush him when he drops off the stolen tie fighter at an arranged rendezvous point. This entire sequence could have – and should have – been cut from the show completely. In fact, the first chapter felt like I was watching the fifth day of a test cricket match destined to be a draw – the skill and technique were all there, but few players were troubling the scorers.

As the timeline of the season moved a year forward through episodes four to six, I felt that the pacing dropped even further. Again, whilst things were definitely in motion, the show spent too much time looking at itself in the mirror – for lack of a better term – when it needed to be pressing onward. Again, the aesthetics of the show and the sharpness of the dialogue are not being questioned here – it’s just that what happened over these three episodes (4-6) could have easily been compressed into two.

Where was the show most sluggish? Well, over the course of the first half of the season I would have to say that the wedding of Mon Mothma’s daughter was the worst offender. Whilst there were some good moments within – particularly the fate of Mon’s friend Tay Kolma – it took up way too much time and I don’t think that the erratic dancing scene worked as well as it should have. I’m sure bigger Star Wars fans than I would argue otherwise.

The narrative involving the insurgents on the planet Ghorman was another part of the show that was slow-building and a little tedious – although the payoff in episode eight ended up being exceptional. These local rebels had an axe to grind with the Empire – and with good reason – but I felt that there were too many ‘secret town meetings’ and on a personal note I’m not sure that modelling everything about them on the French Resistance was necessary.

The story arc of week three, being episodes seven to nine, was when ‘Andor’ really kicked into gear and rewarded its fan base with some truly brilliant storytelling and execution. Episode eight was as gripping as anything I have seen before in Star Wars, but by golly it took a while to get there!

I was hoping that this momentum would carry through to the final three episodes, and it did to a certain degree – with the action taking a backseat and more thrilling and psychological elements coming to the fore. The game of cat-and-mouse between the ISB (Imperial Security Bureau) and the Coruscant-based rebels was enthralling to say the least, and the fates of agent Dedra Meero and the elusive Luthen Rael reached satisfying conclusions that were consistent with the Star Wars narrative moving forward.

I should also add that the performances of both Denise Gough as the overly-ambitious Dedra and Stellan Skarsgard as the rebel spy/antiques dealer Luthen were outstanding across both seasons of ‘Andor’. Some Star Wars fans are claiming that Luthen Rael is by far the best character created in the Disney era to date, which is a fair call – but I personally would go with Baylan Skoll from ‘Ahsoka’.

A welcome addition to the show was Director Orson Krennic – played by Ben Mendelsohn – who was of course a main antagonist in ‘Rogue One‘. In fact, the inner-workings of the Galactic Empire were brilliantly unveiled during this season, and was the most in-depth exploration that Star Wars fans have seen to date.

Another returning character was K2SO, and we get to see his origin story during the last few episodes of the series. He delivered some great lines here, just as he did in ‘Rogue One‘.

I didn’t pick up on the casting change for Bail Organa right away either, as I was waiting for Jimmy Smits to appear and wondered at first who Benjamin Bratt’s character was supposed to be. I can assure you it only took a few minutes for it to click, and to be honest I thought Bratt did a pretty good job.

With the show featuring an extensive cast, I would be here all day if I wrote about every character and actor, so I will briefly add only a few more worthy mentions. Forest Whitaker returns as rebel outcast and extremist Saw Gerrera, Elizabeth Dulau stands out as Luthen’s assistant Kleya – with an enlarged role for this season, Kyle Soller is back as the weedy but sinister Syril Karn, and Anton Lesser portrays the cunning Major Partagaz.

The character development in this show is well above anything we have seen from Disney Star Wars, and the work here makes Rey, Finn and Poe from the sequel trilogy come across as cardboard cutouts. Mind you, it wouldn’t take much for that to happen.

The other outstanding attributes of ‘Andor’ are the visuals and art direction, which surpass even the Original Trilogy at times. As I mentioned earlier, a huge slice of the series’ budget must have been spent on special effects and physical sets. In all honesty, this would have to be one of the most eye-catching shows I have ever watched, with the attention-to-detail – right down to the pressing of buttons on control panels – being on a scale rarely seen these days.

However, I felt that these strengths fed directly into the moments when this show was at its weakest. By this I mean that the breathtaking settings and complex events taking place throughout the galaxy – often at the same time – were not easily whisked along by those in control. Instead, the narrative appeared stuck at times within certain scenes, and felt like it was lingering there far longer than was required and not propelling the story forward at a reasonable pace.

The first half of the season – comprising of episodes one to six – was painfully slow. This was a shame because there were brilliant moments taking place, but a lot of the effect was wasted when these scenes overstayed their welcome. Again, I refer specifically to Cassian’s run-in with the rebel crew during the first two episodes and the excessive drama surrounding the wedding of Mon Mothma’s daughter.

Quite simply, it took too many episodes to arrive at where the show needed to be – which is a fair criticism considering we already knew the fate of Cassian Andor before the series began, and all jeopardy concerning this character was off the board.

But I cannot dislike this show, no matter how much the pacing frustrated me. There are simply too many moments of brilliance contained within; whether it be the clever writing, the artistic and exceptional direction, or the aesthetics of this excellent production – right down to the smallest detail.

In a few months from now I might sit down and watch it all over again and see if I feel differently about it. I do recall enjoying the first season a lot more second time around, so perhaps the slow progression of the story might not bother me as much after another viewing.

I’m going to give this season a mark of eight out of ten, with the pacing issues costing it a perfect score.

‘Andor’ – Season Two is currently streaming on Disney Plus.

Photos and screenshots courtesy of Disney and Lucasfilm.

‘Soldier’ – The 1998 Kurt Russell cult-classic.

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I will put this out there right away; this film was panned by critics and seriously bombed at the box office when it was released in 1998.

Directed by Paul W.S. Anderson (Mortal Kombat, Event Horizon, Resident Evil), the movie is based around the genetically modified – but ageing – futuristic soldier Sgt Todd 3465 (played by Russell) who is literally dumped like unwanted garbage onto a distant planet inhabited by scavengers and refugees.

I thought the film was okay when I first watched it around twenty-five years ago. The cast was pretty good – with Gary Busey and Jason Isaacs starring alongside Russell – and the special effects and battle scenes were more-than-passable.

Kurt Russell was in amazing shape for this film, as the requirements of his character dictated. Over his career, he would have been in decent condition for some of his roles – Snake Plissken in ‘Escape From New York’ springs to mind – but his physique in this movie is on another level. Check out the screenshots below.

But perhaps what is most intriguing about ‘Soldier’ are the references to ‘Blade Runner’, posing the question: – Are these two films set in the same cinematic universe?

I know this discussion is old hat for science-fiction aficionados, but I shall continue to present some evidence for those unaware of the possible connection.

The first thing I will point out is that David Peoples – the writer of ‘Soldier’ – also co-wrote the screenplay for ‘Blade Runner’. With that in mind, let’s move on to the film itself and see where the crossovers take place.

If you follow the arrows in the above capture you will note ‘Nexus’, ‘Tannhauser Gate’ and ‘Shoulder of Orion’ – and for most sci-fi fans, there is no explanation required here.

But for those unaware; the term ‘Nexus’ is used in ‘Blade Runner’ to categorise a series of replicants and the two places named are mentioned in Roy Batty’s famous monologue at the end of the film – which is one of the greatest passages in cinema history.

In this screenshot, you can see what looks like a ‘spinner’ from ‘Blade Runner’ among the rest of the garbage on the planet Arcadia 234.

There is also a conversation that takes place between the two settlers Mace and Sandra (played by Sean Pertwee and Connie Nielsen) who shelter Sgt Todd in their home. Once again, ‘Tannhauser Gate’ is mentioned.

However, if you once again look at Todd’s military record and focus on where the arrow is, you will see four references to characters Kurt Russell has played in other movies. In my opinion, this comedic touch all but removes any seriousness with the connections to ‘Blade Runner’.

For the record, and for those who aren’t movie buffs, I will explain exactly where these tongue-in-cheek commendation names originated from: – Russell played Gabriel Cash in ‘Tango and Cash’, Snake Plissken in ‘Escape from New York’ and ‘Escape from LA’, Jack O’Neil in ‘Stargate’, and R. J MacReady in ‘The Thing’ (but spelled incorrectly in the screenshot).

In one last piece of trivia regarding ‘Soldier’ – Kurt Russell’s son Wyatt played the twelve-year-old version of Todd 3465 in the movie.

My understanding is that ‘Soldier’ has become a little more appreciated over the years, which is good to know as it is a fairly solid sci-fi flick – and definitely worth watching.

It’s good value just for Kurt Russell alone, but looking back I have to say that this movie has more of a ‘Pitch Black’ or ‘Riddick’ vibe to it – and not so much ‘Blade Runner’.

As far as the action sequences are concerned, the combat scenes, firefights and explosions are right up there – a lot better than what we see today and less reliant on CGI effects.

I would have given this film a solid pass mark when it first came out, but now I’ve upped the score to a 3.5 out of 5.

See the official trailer below, courtesy of Rotten Tomatoes Classic Trailers YouTube Channel.

Screenshots and photos courtesy of Morgan Creek Productions and People.com

‘The Final Programme’ – Mind-bending 1970’s Sci-Fi.

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‘The Final Programme’ is a 1973 British science fiction film based on the 1968 novel of the same name by Michael Moorcock. It follows the story of scientist/playboy Jerry Cornelius at a time when the world is about to end, and the race is on to prevent the apocalypse by creating a new Messiah in a laboratory using a super computer.

While the movie is crazy and nonsensical at times, the cinematography – location shoots and studio sets – is of a very high quality and the imagery throughout the film is quite unique.

The movie stars Jon Finch as the main character Jerry Cornelius and was directed by Robert Fuest. You may recognise a few other actors in the film such as Sterling Hayden, Sarah Douglas (who would later star as Ursa in ‘Superman II’), Patrick Magee (who portrayed the writer in ‘A Clockwork Orange’) and Derrick O’Connor (who played the South African henchman Pieter Vorstedt in ‘Lethal Weapon II’).

Without spoiling the film, I will simply show a few screenshots highlighting the weird yet impressive locations and camera work. Note the incredible sets for both the bizarre pinball parlour and the snazzy interior of the Cornelius mansion.

The third act of the film takes place in Turkey and then in a secret lab in Lapland. Again, the visuals are outstanding, even if the plot is a little wacky!

This movie is not everyone’s cup of tea, but if you appreciate quirky early seventies British fantasy/science fiction then you will take a lot of enjoyment from this film.

Screenshots courtesy of Goodtimes Enterprises.

‘Sci-Fi Now’ – A childhood classic returns!

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I would have been six or seven years old when I was given this science fiction book in the late 1970’s, and it became one of my most prized possessions, until I sadly misplaced the item during the early 90’s.

Now after a thirty year gap, it only recently occurred to me that I should try eBay to see if anyone was selling this masterpiece, and sure enough there were many copies available – for a fraction of the price I was expecting.

What blew me away as a kid were the photos within, with many screenshots representing a number of weird and quirky movies and television shows that came out between 1968 and 1978. Some of these images remained burned into my memory over forty years later; a selection of which are featured below – straight out of the book.

It was through this publication that I learned about ‘A Clockwork Orange’ as there were a handful of pictures scattered across the pages, such as the one shown here. I was instantly curious about this film, and would eventually get to watch it in 1994 – sixteen years later.

This weird character is from the short-lived TV series ‘Logan’s Run’. I’m certain this scene is part of a dream sequence, and the evil-looking villain is a ‘carousel guard’.

This photo is from the 1977 film ‘The Island of Doctor Moreau’.

This is not an actual scene from the movie it is supposed to represent, but it looks great anyway. The film is ‘Warlords of Atlantis‘ from 1978.

I remember this image used to scare the life out of me, and it is from the 1972 film ‘Horror Express’ starring Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing and Telly Savalas.

This capture is from ‘The Green Slime’ (1968) and I remember it being a pretty cool B-grade science fiction movie.

Last but not least, the book contained a few images from the 1973 British film ‘The Final Programme’. The sets were truly bizarre, as seen in the photo above, which made it appear even more intriguing to me.

‘Sci-Fi Now’ was released in 1978 and was written by Alan Frank. The book is definitely worth adding to your collection if you are a 1970’s science fiction aficionado, even if it is a little ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’ heavy at times.

I managed to pick up a near-mint copy of the book for AU$15 from eBay, but the average price should be around the $20-$25 mark.