Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow
3.5/4
Starring: Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow, Giovanni Ribisi, Angelina Jolie, Bai Ling, Michael Gambon, Laurence Olivier
Rated PG for Sequences of Stylized Sci-Fi Violence and Brief Mild Language
I can't believe it's taken me this long to review "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow." I've seen it many times and I always have a ball watching it. It's certainly not flawless, but it's definitely a lot of fun.
Kerry Conran's debut feature is a love letter to those old serials that were popular in the 1930's. The handsome and tough but vulnerable hero, the plucky heroine, the genius inventor, and the megalomaniacal villain. You won't find brooding, tragic heroes or aliens or alternate dimensions here. Conran keeps everything simple and innocent.
Polly Perkins (Paltrow) is reporter chasing down a story of some missing scientists. While she's chasing down a crucial lead, the city comes under attack but a bunch of flying machines. Fortunately, hero-for-hire Joe "Sky Captain" Sullivan (Law) comes to the rescue. The two of them will have to put aside their past romance to track down a mad scientist intending to end the world.
There's nothing truly original about this movie, but that's not the point. This is a good old-fashioned adventure. From the ground up (the film was shot almost entirely on blue screen, save for the actors and a few props), this is meant to be an old fashioned comic book come to life. Cast a classic movie hero and dame and you wouldn't tell the difference. The images are faded and desaturated to emulate film of the time period. Aside from the fact that the actors are well known, the effect is almost entirely convincing (the special effects are a pretty big giveaway). Interestingly enough, Steven Sodebergh used the same filming equipment and sets to make "The Good German" seem like a Bogart movie, but the effect was muted because he used modern filming techniques to tell the story (a messy script and a miscast Tobey Maguire didn't help either).
If the performances were at the the same level, the film would be a masterpiece. Sadly, even with Jude Law and Gwyneth Paltrow as the leads, they aren't. Surprisingly, Law and Paltrow are a little weak (and this isn't their first time working together, either. They both starred in Law's breakout role, "The Talented Mr. Ripley," also playing lovers). Law is uneven. Usually, he's effective as the heroic Joe, but there are times when he seems miscast. Paltrow doesn't seem to be invested in her role very much (when she's running underfoot of machines the size of skyscrapers, she doesn't seem to be freaked out at all). Angelina Jolie is perfectly cast as Joe's old war buddy, Franky. Giovanni Ribisi and Michael Gambon provide solid support. And Laurence Olivier appears on screen using archive footage. It's done tastefully (it's purposefully jerky to the point where you can't even see his lips move), so it's not "grave robbery."
Kerry Conran got his job after his short film caught the eye of producer Jon Avnet, who then approached him with the goal of turning it into a feature film. Avnet's eyes were right on the money...at least creatively. As good as this film is, and it is very good, it didn't do well at the box office. What a shame. This movie is a lot of fun.
Starring: Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow, Giovanni Ribisi, Angelina Jolie, Bai Ling, Michael Gambon, Laurence Olivier
Rated PG for Sequences of Stylized Sci-Fi Violence and Brief Mild Language
I can't believe it's taken me this long to review "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow." I've seen it many times and I always have a ball watching it. It's certainly not flawless, but it's definitely a lot of fun.
Kerry Conran's debut feature is a love letter to those old serials that were popular in the 1930's. The handsome and tough but vulnerable hero, the plucky heroine, the genius inventor, and the megalomaniacal villain. You won't find brooding, tragic heroes or aliens or alternate dimensions here. Conran keeps everything simple and innocent.
Polly Perkins (Paltrow) is reporter chasing down a story of some missing scientists. While she's chasing down a crucial lead, the city comes under attack but a bunch of flying machines. Fortunately, hero-for-hire Joe "Sky Captain" Sullivan (Law) comes to the rescue. The two of them will have to put aside their past romance to track down a mad scientist intending to end the world.
There's nothing truly original about this movie, but that's not the point. This is a good old-fashioned adventure. From the ground up (the film was shot almost entirely on blue screen, save for the actors and a few props), this is meant to be an old fashioned comic book come to life. Cast a classic movie hero and dame and you wouldn't tell the difference. The images are faded and desaturated to emulate film of the time period. Aside from the fact that the actors are well known, the effect is almost entirely convincing (the special effects are a pretty big giveaway). Interestingly enough, Steven Sodebergh used the same filming equipment and sets to make "The Good German" seem like a Bogart movie, but the effect was muted because he used modern filming techniques to tell the story (a messy script and a miscast Tobey Maguire didn't help either).
If the performances were at the the same level, the film would be a masterpiece. Sadly, even with Jude Law and Gwyneth Paltrow as the leads, they aren't. Surprisingly, Law and Paltrow are a little weak (and this isn't their first time working together, either. They both starred in Law's breakout role, "The Talented Mr. Ripley," also playing lovers). Law is uneven. Usually, he's effective as the heroic Joe, but there are times when he seems miscast. Paltrow doesn't seem to be invested in her role very much (when she's running underfoot of machines the size of skyscrapers, she doesn't seem to be freaked out at all). Angelina Jolie is perfectly cast as Joe's old war buddy, Franky. Giovanni Ribisi and Michael Gambon provide solid support. And Laurence Olivier appears on screen using archive footage. It's done tastefully (it's purposefully jerky to the point where you can't even see his lips move), so it's not "grave robbery."
Kerry Conran got his job after his short film caught the eye of producer Jon Avnet, who then approached him with the goal of turning it into a feature film. Avnet's eyes were right on the money...at least creatively. As good as this film is, and it is very good, it didn't do well at the box office. What a shame. This movie is a lot of fun.
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