braunfan

I regret finally watching this. It may be the most soulless and tonally jarring movie I've ever watched. 55% of the dialogue is (not-so) witty quips, while the remainder is exposition with catchphrases spouted at random to fill in the gaps. There is an uncanny valley effect seeing characters engaged in "conversation" where everyone seems to respond with pre-programmed comebacks or unrelated narration. The formula here seems to be: fast-paced chases + fast-paced dialogue + callbacks = blockbuster hit! No need for subtle characterization that makes characters feel human (or alien), or building atmosphere with a sense of thematic purpose and letting the audience breathe it in. I know the problem isn't with the franchise itself, because I recently watched creators achieve these things with the Star Wars Visions short films like "The Village Bride" and "The Ninth Jedi", which were a wonder to behold.

Conclusion: There are thousands of movies more worth your time, and plenty of them within the Star Wars universe. Watch those instead.

Extremely creative and stylish fight scenes fulfill visually on top of a political war narrative that speaks deeply to anyone born in the last 40 years who've only known Forever War. A narrative that echoes the trauma and disillusionment of soldiers, scientists, and civilians in countries who participate in the wars on Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia, Yemen, and the cold wars against Russia, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Cuba, and more. At it's heart, Gen Lock is a cautionary tale about how fear, lies, and expecting the worst in others, often lead to war and senseless death... but a willingness to see beyond our individuality, to grasp hands with others and act in the interest of something bigger than ourselves, may just be the path to salvation.

Lucky for us, this series gives us an incredibly fun and diverse cast of main and secondary characters to root for as they attempt to cope with the seemingly hopeless dual cataclysms of war and ecological collapse. My personal favorite is the tech-savy and optimistic Cammie McCloud, voiced by Maisie Williams, who often acts as the charmingly sarcastic and foul-mouthed glue of the group. The interplay between all of the main characters is a joy to watch, and I can't recommend it enough.

Q: How does one justify living a cushioned life continuing to make cheap entertainment while the world noticeably collapses around you?

A: By making a piece of cheap entertainment, (generously described "art"), all about justifying the value of (cheap) entertainment in a world that has collapsed even more obviously and fantastically.

Station Eleven is an incredibly ham fisted meta-narrative for entertainment creators attempting to reconcile their cozy and less-than-useful roles in a collapsing, capitalist society.

Is there such a thing as a worthwhile and honest exploration of the meaning of art as distraction in a society with much more immediate struggles? Certainly. Such an honest exploration won't be found here, because this story exists to serve the egos of people who see themselves as artists.

There's no reason to explore how non-artists exist in an apocalypse because the people who create these kinds of narratives see themselves as main characters and everyone else exists simply to further their story. There's a scene perfectly emblematic of this where a main character has a passing interaction with a doorman of his wealthy brother's building (the brother is a pulitzer prize winning writer of course *wink*), and the doorman somehow knows the main character's name even though this character never bothers to introduce himself to this inconsequential doorman. One could argue this is sloppy writing, or is it also an accurate reflection of the expectation writers have that the world exists to serve them, while the idea of interacting with or examining these other lives is simply beyond their imagination.