Sky Captain And The World Of Tomorrow
As a critic and overall fan of movies in general, I have NO problem with the idea of using an abundance of CGI to create worlds and images that normally wouldnāt be possible in cinema. However, that visual flair should always be coupled with little things like story, characterization, and good quotable dialogue, and unfortunately we donāt get that in this 2004 production that was heavily hyped upon release and yet bombed completely. First-time(?) director Kerry Conran was obviously going for an Indy Jones-style tribute to the old action adventure serials of the 1930s, done up with impeccable sepia tones and featuring attention to detail to match, but the story is literally so bad and generic, the characters so bland and nondescript, and the action and technology on display so stupid and ridiculous, that it all adds up to nearly a total failure. It certainly starts at the top with the casting: Jude Law may very well be a fine dramatic actor when the opportunity arises, but cast in the lead role here as the Sky Captain, definitively proves that he is NO action hero, remaining cold and humorless throughout the proceedings, and delivers his one liners in a dry, flat tone of voice that alienates the viewer more than helps us relate to him; Gwyneth Paltrow as the love interest certainly LOOKS beautiful, but her character is such a second rate wannabe Lois Lane type that thereās nothing there for her to work with outside of the occasional surprised look on her face; Giovanni Ribisi tries his best as the whiz-kid sidekick, but sadly fails to make much of an impression (itās also bizarre that Sky Captainās base seems to have hundreds of technicians and assistants working there, yet Ribisi is the only one of any value); and then when Angelina Jolie comes onscreen as the old flame of the hero who is also an air base commander, with her eyepatch, butch appearance, and her haughty British accent (along with her usual smugness), the movie just collapses entirely under the weight of its own irredeemable bullshit. Worse still is the fact that the apparent villain (called Dr. Totenkopf), who is built up so heavily that we know his appearance will be special, turns out to be a total cheat, being nothing more than long-dead legendary actor Laurence Olivier appearing in the form of a hologram using old archive footage. Also, the dialogue is flat and totally generic, with motifs being established (like Paltrow having enough film in her camera) that donāt add anything to the story and other bits (āSheās some kind of girlā spoken in reference to Jolie) absolutely cringe-inducing. Interludes are thrown in at such places as Shangri-La that turn out to be absolutely pointless, and the whole thing feels like a big mess concocted by someone who really doesnāt know how to tell a proper story. Overall, a movie that might have some great visuals, though with everything else is as lifeless as the actor playing the main villainā¦
4/10