Oh dear. Sorry Brendon, I don't share your love for Zemeckis at all, but even putting that aside, I have to agree with some of those who saw the earlier preview footage and say that this looks like a dodgy cut-scene from a video game. Motion capture is looking increasingly like a dead end to me, at least in the hands of such an inherently conservative director as Zemeckis.
I'm certainly full of reservations about this technology myself. But I don't understand, just speaking for myself, why you see Zemeckis as 'inherently conservative'.
Monster House seems to have indicated (one of) the best path(s) forward for performance capture.
To be honest it probably just comes down to personal taste, but while Zemeckis always seems determined to try out new technologies, I'm not convinced they suit the films they serve. Are the splicing scenes in Forrest Gump really so much more impressive than those in Zelig, for example? You may disagree, but I think the effects in Zelig have actually aged better.
Using motion capture when actors and make-up could work just as well seems to defeat the purpose (as an aside: I agree that Monster House shows one way forward; you couldn't make that with flesh and blood kids and brick and mortar sets), but then I've never had the impression that Zemeckis is a great director of actors. I like the thought of someone with the imagination of, say, Terry Gilliam being let loose with motion capture; Robert Zemeckis, not so much.
Having said all that - and having followed your script excerpts - I'm willing to bet that the biggest problem with Beowulf will be that PG-13 rating. Whichever bright spark insisted on that might well have cut this film off at the knees already.
Question: If Zemeckis isn't a great director of actors, and if he makes films using contemporary mediums and changes the original epic poem of "Beowulf" in the name of “much-needed context,” doesn't all that point to non-traditional methods, i.e. the opposite of conservative? Beowulf has a brief encounter with Grendel’s mother (A.J. wearing nothing but swamp mist) and sires Grendel. Why does the director think a father-son relationship adds “much-needed context” to an ancient tale of killing a monster for glory’s sake? I think the film will be really cool either way but it is definitely not conservative nor is the director. I don't get the personal taste argument but seriously I am just trying to understand. Have a great day.
See a nice, short, sharp burst of new Beowulf in small, medium, large or 480p, 720p and 1080p Quicktime.
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Oh dear. Sorry Brendon, I don't share your love for Zemeckis at all, but even putting that aside, I have to agree with some of those who saw the earlier preview footage and say that this looks like a dodgy cut-scene from a video game. Motion capture is looking increasingly like a dead end to me, at least in the hands of such an inherently conservative director as Zemeckis.
I'm certainly full of reservations about this technology myself. But I don't understand, just speaking for myself, why you see Zemeckis as 'inherently conservative'.
Monster House seems to have indicated (one of) the best path(s) forward for performance capture.
To be honest it probably just comes down to personal taste, but while Zemeckis always seems determined to try out new technologies, I'm not convinced they suit the films they serve. Are the splicing scenes in Forrest Gump really so much more impressive than those in Zelig, for example? You may disagree, but I think the effects in Zelig have actually aged better.
Using motion capture when actors and make-up could work just as well seems to defeat the purpose (as an aside: I agree that Monster House shows one way forward; you couldn't make that with flesh and blood kids and brick and mortar sets), but then I've never had the impression that Zemeckis is a great director of actors. I like the thought of someone with the imagination of, say, Terry Gilliam being let loose with motion capture; Robert Zemeckis, not so much.
Having said all that - and having followed your script excerpts - I'm willing to bet that the biggest problem with Beowulf will be that PG-13 rating. Whichever bright spark insisted on that might well have cut this film off at the knees already.
Question: If Zemeckis isn't a great director of actors, and if he makes films using contemporary mediums and changes the original epic poem of "Beowulf" in the name of “much-needed context,” doesn't all that point to non-traditional methods, i.e. the opposite of conservative? Beowulf has a brief encounter with Grendel’s mother (A.J. wearing nothing but swamp mist) and sires Grendel. Why does the director think a father-son relationship adds “much-needed context” to an ancient tale of killing a monster for glory’s sake? I think the film will be really cool either way but it is definitely not conservative nor is the director. I don't get the personal taste argument but seriously I am just trying to understand. Have a great day.
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