ZMAN738

*This Post Contains Possible Spoilers*. The SFC loves to make we SF viewers wait. Happened with all of their popular shows over the last few years like Farscape as an example. With Battlestar Galactica however the SFC have given us "Webisodes" to help fill the gap during the hiatus.

*The Resistance* webisodes between S4.0-S.4.5 filled in a lot of story arc dealing with the Cylon occupation of New Caprica that played out during S-4. The writers used flashbacks to the webisodes to add depth to the ongoing story during the regular series run. Same here with the *Face of the Enemy* webisodes as we again flash back to NC and the relationship between Lt. Gaeta & Caprica 8 aka Lt. Sharon 'Athena' Agathon aboard the lost Raptor or another 8 as I've kinda lost track of which is which at this point. Bottom line is we have, at least, some BSG to watch and as events have proved in the past we can expect these webisodes to play a part with the final conclusion of the series.

This is the truth of the matter. We, as Americans, are living far beyond our means. Don't blame Me, You or Curly Sue but we are in a "Black Hole". Our 9 TRILLION National Debt will kill the U.S. economy in just a few short years if we do not, now, as a Nation, start to take preventive action to avoid the meltdown. Social Security and Medi-care will suck up huge resources from the Federal budget, as the film suggests. Our Chinese Masters may soon call "All In" as they say in poker. Should we call the bluff and re-allocate monetary resources away from "Intitlements," which suck up large amounts of money, we still will be at a disadvantage in the long run. We need now to cut the fat from the bone if we are serious about surviving, as a Nation, the next 20 years.

Personally I really enjoyed *Children of Dune*. First the major issue about the faithfulness to the books. To quote director Greg Yaitanes; "Try not to get hung up on such details as whether the twins are too old or too young, the eyes are too blue or not blue enough, or that the book says this and we did that. You'll end up robbing yourself of a great experience. The Dune universe is so wonderful because of how human and real its characters are. To not respect that would be the worst offense any of us could make." He's got that straight. This is an adaptation not a re-creation. The screenplay by John Harrison managed to fit in enough of Frank Herbert's vision to remain true to the spirit of the epic Dune saga.

The entire cast, Alec Newman [Paul Muad'Dib], Daniela Amavia [Alia Atreides], Julie Cox [Princess Irulan], Barbaroa Kodetova [Chani], James McAvoy [Leto II], Jessica Brooks [Ghanima], Susan Sarandon [Wensicia Corrino], Alice Krige [Reverend Mother Jessica Atreides], Edward Atterton [Duncan Idaho], Ian McNeice [Baron Harkonnen], Steven Berkoff [Stilgar], P.H. Moriarty [Gurney] and Johathan Bruun [Farad'n Corrino] gave me characters I could relate to as well as care about over the course of the miniseries. I especially enjoyed watching Alice Krige because her ability to convey depth of emotion with facial expressions is a well developed art.

The CGI effects were fantastic. Sharp & crisp. The best I've seen done on television and the use of computer generated 3-D backgrounds added so much stature to the sets. CoD was far superior to *Dune* which used mat backgrounds in terms of it's visuals. The movement of CGI objects like Thopters around CG backgrounds and the use of shadow rendering to add realism were absolutely first rate. As an example the shots of the Thopter landing at the Royal Palace in Arrakeem where the ships shadow moves across buildings then follows it down to the landing pad brought a big smile and a sigh...wow! CoD won an Emmy Award in 2003 (Special Visual Effects for a Miniseries, Movie or Special).

The costumes by Academy Award winner Theodor Pistek and his son Jan were outstanding. A visual feast for the eyes & the heart. The wedding scene at the Royal Palace was as worthy as any major motion picture costume drama and should have earned another Emmy in the costuming category.

The cinematography by Arthur Reinhart was stunning. The use of High Definition digital cameras instead of standard 35mm film and being shot in 16:9 true LBX format also made it look like a feature film rather that a TV miniseries (the DVD looks great as well). The use of lighting during camera pans over actors faces or on shots as characters moved across sets was again vary well used.

The music score by Brian Tyler was at times dark and moody, then majestic, adding to the grandeur of many of the key scenes where the score helped lift one's feelings to the level of emotion being presented by the actors as the story unfolded on the screen. The background soundtrack as the camera followed characters though the zocalo's of Arrakeem or the desert sietche's added a mystical quality where one could almost smell the food cooking or the incense like fragrance of the Spice Melange.

Overall *Children of Dune* has to rate with the best mini-series' that have ever been produced over the years and may even set a new standard for work being done for television with it's quality production. A 9 out of 10.

OK, Versus has a plot, sort of. Something to do with a 500 year old vendetta passed on somehow to the current players and a girl who may represent some form of savior or an ancient princess whose sacrifice can open the 444th portal to the "other side"? If I sound ambiguous that's because the story is. Must have been the Forest of Resurrection playing tricks. Maybe just the spirit of the battle was passed on? Or maybe that spirit makes these men who they are? Or maybe I was a few cards short of a full deck at the post bar late Friday night screening? No matter. Much like any of the HK Kung-Fu flicks the story is almost always secondary to the action. Same with Versus.

I saw this film at the first annual Idaho Int'l Film Festival on the big screen and let me tell you it was a blast watching the midnight showing with an audience. Versus is just plain fun. We laughed out loud over a dozen times and cheered on the heros in battle. There are many hilarious scenes such as one zombie throwing another whose hand has been chopped off a hand he picks up off the ground and the second zombie laments; "But I'm right handed". It's like watching 4 genre movies all at once. If you like Kung-Fu, stylish gun play, well choreographed sword fights, zombies, lots of zombies who fight back and won't take no for an answer even after being shot 12 times or having parts of their bodies lopped off then you'll love this movie.

The direction as well as the camera work are first rate often using the rotating technique moving around the characters posing getting ready to fight with dizzying effect before they spring into action settled in but a few short blows by the master swordsman. There's also those long pan-in shots until only the actors eyes fill the entire screen showing the steely resolve that no words could ever convey. Great stuff.

I have to comment that Versus must be seen in a theater with a Dolby, THX, or better sound system if possible because the sound effects as well as the music score are half the fun. There was more than one time I jumped at a sound edit. It was like stepping off the curb and turning your head for that spilt second just in time to see the speeding truck hit you...IMPACT! Also during the 500 year ago Samurai sword fight scenes the traditional Japanese music soundtrack added so much atmosphere along with the scenery it was breathtaking. The violence, while graphic, does not have the gratuitous nature common of Hollywood films. The editing gives one more the "sense" of the violence that the "seeing" of it while working with the sound effects to create the intended visual impact during the fight scenes.

Director Ryuhei Kitamura comments; "This type of film shall be known as 'Freefall Ultra-Violence Non-Stop Entertainment Action'". Works for me. A 7 out of 10 based on it's pure entertainment value.

That's one of Bud's (Harry Dean Stanton in one of his best roles) eternal truths. Along with a host of other gems he uses while training Otto (Emilio Estevez) in the code of the Repo-man. Another is; Bud: "You ain't no communist are you?" Otto: "Hell no!" Bud: "That's good, I don't let no communists ride in my car, no christians either". Or, Bud: "You gotta dress real square, like a cop, 'cause if they think your a cop they'll think your packin' something".

Made in 1984 while the punk scene was dying this punk rock metaphor points out everything wrong with the straight life as well as everything right in a cult film. Otto and his friends spend their time slam dancing to hard-core music and guzzling "beer" or doing crime just for the hell of it. Punks were the ultimate anti-conformists in the late '70's and early 80's. They rebel against the establishment purely because it exists, looking at society and seeing nothing worthwhile. Nothing to relate to has led them to this way of life. That blandness of society is shown through the use of generic brand products everywhere in the film, a joke within the joke. I loved it when Otto opens the fridge at his stoned out (another inside joke about the failed 60's lifestyle) parents pad and starts eating a can of "food". One has but to remember the line in Iggy Pop's classic opening title track, "Looking for the joke with a microscope", then you'll get it.

I saw Repo Man in '84 while living in San Francisco based on the bands who were chosen for the soundtrack, many of whom were playing around town at the time. That soundtrack sounds as good today as it did then, buy it if you can find it. The "B" story, or was that the "A" story? of what was in the trunk of the '64 Malibu was again a play upon the whole government conspiracy theory thing and this way before the X-Files. I along with my fellow audience members danced out of the theater laughing our butt's off we had such a great time. Later with some new found friends setting in a local bar across the street we started speaking some of the lines over again setting off a new round of laughter as we remembered those scenes. Otto; "I ain't gonna be no stinking repo-man". Marlene hands Otto some cash; "To late kid, you already are". Intense, an 8 out of 10.

*This Post Contains Spoilers*

While better than Battlefield Earth, no wait...while every bit as bad as *BE* thankfully this was a made for TV film shown on the TBS cable network which should save it from making the top 250 worst films on the database. I was so glad I taped it which saved some time but still it was a major disappointment. Produced by none other that Mel Gibson & Jet Li, which led me to expect something entertaining, I can't imagine that they ever read the lame script before putting their names and money behind this dog.

Speaking of the script, now many times can one stand Billy Zane delivering his never ending cascade of condescending dialogue to the rest of the cast about how they were the saviors of the known universe against all evil and so on and so forth ad nauseam?, most of which takes place in a kind of sacred pool none the less. I guess setting in the pool was supposed to add a mystic flavor to those scenes but I kept asking myself, "what's to point"? The *impact* lines were even worse as they were so obvious that I had to laugh out loud more that once! All those bad guys dressed in all black was another good joke. This would have been a great comedy if only they were not trying to be so bloody serious all the time.

Ah, but this was advertised a Kung-Fu action movie right? You know you are in trouble when a lot of the fighting and even some of the students in training scenes are shot in a blurry slo-motion that does not quite focus on the actor making the moves. The only good Kung-Fu moves were performed by actors behind an opaque screen so one could see that they were not the main characters yet we were to believe that they were. It had wire work too. Yuen Wo Ping (Wing Chun, The Matrix & Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) the Master of this technique would hang his head in shame at it's use here it was so poorly executed. Was there any ever any doubt who would win in the end? Let's just hope this was not the pilot for a new series. It's been said that CTHD would start a new interest in, as well as a bunch of American made knock-off's of, Hong Kong style martial arts action films. I can only hope for better than this in the future. Rating: 2/10

Director Ang Lee has elevated the *Martial Arts* film genre to an entirely new level. Using the tried and true story of revenge common to all HK Kung-Fu films as the basis he has created a masterpiece!

Everything about, "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", works to perfection. As Master Li (Yun-Fat Chow) says, "The sword is but a piece of steel, mastery comes from the arm that wields it". And use the *Green Destiny* they will! Skill without knowledge is the lesson here. This is both then an action film as well as a spiritual journey as the characters develop their relationships to each other and to the *art* they seek to master. Li Mu Bai & Yu Shu Lien, they share a love tempered by the ways of honor, bound by the old traditions of Wudan. Lo (bandit) & Jen (princess) find a new love unbound by tradition even though they come from different sides of the *tracks* as the story goes.

Thus Jen must find a balance between *skill* and *Wisdom* to become a Wudan Master.

This story is a wondrous adventure, covering a landscape beautifully filmed by Peter Pau. The costumes by Timmy Yip are all first rate as is the set direction. The martial arts choreography by Woo-Ping Yuen is without equal and to answer a question about cultural differences between *West & East*, re: flying.....what's the difference between flying over rooftops and Hercules picking up a 10 ton stone and tossing it 15 meters? We deal with mythos here where logic gives way to imagination.

The only question I ask myself when leaving the theater is, "was I entertained?". In the case of CTHD it went far beyond being entertained to a magnificent cinematographic experience.

Thank you, Ang Lee, cast & crew.

These humps ain't your classy wise guy types ala "The Godfather" series or "Casino", just workin' stiff's on either side of the law in New York's underbelly. Make no mistake, director Philip D'Antoni shows we viewers a slice of life from the 'hood, C.1973 you ain't gonna see from any tour bus and that's why the film works, (well for me at least). The entire cast and crew as well as the locations portray the look and feel of a real NYC "cop's & robber's" tale which seemed more like Scorsese's "Mean Streets" (1973) or "Taxi Driver" (1976), which were both better films, than some of the more recent glitsy gangster movies.

All 3 films deliver us into a world better viewed from the comfort of an easy chair than standing on a street corner in "their" world.

As to the 11 min. "Car Chase" scene. Great work as it had me griping the edge of my chair! It owes more to "Bullitt" (1968) than The French Connection I think. Also Bill Hickman was the wheelman in both films and both used tight close-us of the action putting us into the drivers POV adding realism and tension to the shots. All things considered I give this film a 6 for even though dated, it still gives us a view of life we, I'm sure, would rather not experience first hand. BTW, To see the more modern version of the "Car Chase" don't miss John Frankenheimer's "Ronin" (1998). Two pulse pounding chases await you.

ST:OS was a ground-breaking event in television history. It came along at a time when we were all looking for something *far-out*, to get away from Nixon and the VietNam conflict. It was 60's stylish, with those mini-skirts and strange creatures from far away worlds. At the time it was *state of the art* for F/X, remember now, that was over 30 years ago!

Then ST:TNG came along in 1987, 10 years later, WOW, not at all like STOS, sure same named ship, universe, Warp Drive and all that but STNG was way ahead of STOS. Better actors, stories and the new character's, Picard, Number One (Riker), Troi, Dr. Crusher, Worf, Data, LaForge, and all the others who made up the cast over 8 seasons, were people we came to know and love each week. At the time this was the best Sci-Fi on TV. The F/X was great and as TV go's some stories were better than others but i still watched every one, some many times in repeat over the years.

Of course this is all *Pre-Babylon-5*. B-5 has set the standard now by which all others will be judged in terms of excellence of television programing, category: Sci-Fi, IMHO.

Goran Gajic did a masterful job with this episode of Babylon-5. "And all my Dreams torn Asunder". It was a key ep. in the 5 year story arc. The remaining forces of darkness are still with us here. Yes, the Shadow/Vorlon war is over(gone beyond the rim), yet, their dark servants still have a part in the story as we see in this ep. JMS said: "It's all in the writing" No, I say: "The director makes it all *happen*". The Director gives the story *life*, working with the writer's POV, giving the actors room to make the story work. Lines, action, expressions, movements all are controlled by the director, lighting, scene shots as well. This was a great ep. (imho) because Goran made it one. ZimQ'Tar