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Film review: Skyline

Online Editor — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 16:34:12 +0000

Skyline is The Brothers Strauses’ second film, since their 2007
effort Alien vs Predator: Requiem. Keeping with similar storylines of
popular alien invasion films such as Cloverfield, District 9 and last
year’s phenomenally successful Monsters, we see a modern city taken
over by strange and gargantuan creatures from outer space.
Jarrod and Elaine, played by Eric Balfour and Scottie Thompson
respectively, arrive in Los Angeles to stay with a friend, Terry, a
prominent entrepreneur played by Scrubs’ Donald Faison. Overnight,
aliens arrive in mass numbers possessing spectacular and evanescent
blue lights, attracting humans to their vessels and swallowing them
up. Jarrod, Elaine and Terry battle to live through this ordeal with
other survivors, while the outside world tries to combat with these
mysterious and apocalyptic extraterrestrials.
Within the first twenty minutes of Skyline it already feels like a
film that you’ve witnessed before. As mentioned, since the release of
J.J. Abrams produced, monster movie Cloverfield released back in the
summer of 2008 there has been a spate of alien invasion films filled
with jaw-dropping special effects and visceral action scenes. Skyline
has many of these and the SFX are undeniably impressive. Most
memorable is a nuclear missile ploughing into one of the
extraterrestrial space ships and leaving most of modern day L.A
destroyed.
As with many a blockbuster made these days far more is concentrated
on the aesthetics of the film and less on the character build up and
storyline. In fact, for some peculiar reason Skyline’s final act
continues into the end credits, which, is a vain attempt at trying to
push for some sort of sequel or continuation in a supposed franchise.
However while more successful films in this popular sub-genre have
used unknown actors to add fresh incentive to the verisimilitude of
their films, the makers of this film have used actors straight from
American television which lessens the film’s realism and
believability.
It comes as no surprise that Colin and Greg Strause, the brothers who
co-directed Skyline, have a background in special effects (and aliens)
which have propelled them both into the director’s chair, or two man
couch if you will. Their debut was the Aliens vs Predator sequel, AVP:
Requiem which was released in winter 2007. They both set up their own
visual effects company Hydraulx which was founded in 2002 and has gone
to provide effects for films such as 300, The Curious Case of Benjamin
Button and Avatar. Greg won a BAFTA for The Day After Tomorrow. The
Strauses’ therefore put all their background knowledge of visual
effects into Skyline culminating in over 800 effects shots in the
whole film. While this is indeed impressive it is at the same time
underwhelming. In the first act, when we are introduced to an array of
beautiful and extraordinary blue lights coming from the aliens, the
result is stimulating and visually arresting. Yet by the end of the
film the effects have been over worked and by the final act the film
feels numb and limps to a poor conclusion.
What is impressive about the film is its success financially: The
Brothers Strause and Hydraulx were able to make the film with a
production budget of $10 million and the film resonated with audiences
on it’s release in America in November 2010, bringing in $21 million
dollars domestically and $43 million in the foreign market. The
Strauses’ have cleverly thought about how to appeal to audiences,
selling it on being a high concept film, rather than a character
driven piece.
So Federico Fellini this is not, but Skyline clearly has a following
and will fit nicely into a TV channel’s schedule, post-pub on a Friday
night. Despite this, Skyline doesn’t hit the highs other films grouped
in its sub-genre, and its lack of flesh and emotion pays its price
after 90 minutes of messy, unapologetic and high octane action.

Skyline is released on DVD on the 21st March.

Sam Langan

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Up

Online Editor — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 16:57:19 +0000

The acclaimed, Oscar nominated animation from writer/director Pete Docter is now out on DVD after its massive success at the box office last year.

Up is one of those films that tugs at the heartstrings from the off. The film begins with a summary of the life of lead character, Carl Fredricksen (voiced by seasoned pro Edward Asner), starting with his first encounter with childhood sweet-heart Ellie before leading on to his apt misadventure with a young wilderness explorer. Their adventure sees them fly away to the jungles of South America where they comes across Dug the Golden Retriever (voiced by Bob Peterson) and Kevin the giant bird.

Up is a really wonderful story with some funny dogs providing belly laughs. This film is well suited to youngsters and adults alike as it has very broad appeal with such a touching, yet at times outrageous plot.

The DVD has a special short film ‘Dug’s Special Mission’, as well as commentary, a documentary and an alternate scene.

Even if you do not particularly like animated films, this one should still do the trick. And if you do, then you will love it, as this is undoubtedly one of the greatest animations of all time: an instant classic.

Andrew M. Ward

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Your House, My House, Art House, Now

Online Editor — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 10:11:32 +0000

—From Lynch to Linklater, not all cinema is about red carpets and box office hits. Tanya Haider compels the masses to explore the world of Art House and Independant film-making

There is the sound of the running bus outside my window. But it is a rollercoaster. There is the yellow of my 60 watt bulb inside my room. But it is a fairy. There is red paint dripping from the side of my table. And it is blood. The random, the questionable, and the unimaginable dream right here in our very own town, Hull Screen gives you Art House Cinema, Independent Film. In a nutshell, expand your horizons and experiment, you will surely be amazed. There is a cluster of words from which I will feed, from which you will eat, and here I am, your messenger of Art in motion.
Look, let’s get right down to it; if I was Godzilla, I know you’d be listening. So why not just pretend? My fellow students, my dear accomplished younglings, I have something for you. It’s called imagination and I know you have it too. I would like your undivided attention because if you don’t listen to me I will step on your house. Yes, that was a Godzilla reference. You have all gone to the cinema, be it to fly from one
building to another like Spiderman or to squish your toes into Sarah Jessica Parker’s impossibly high heels during Sex and the City. But hold on, one second, what if you were up there on that screen telling the world about yourself? The truth of you, your own personal truth. What if you could show your own interpretation of the world, your own personal expansion of any form of distorted, illusionary, dreamlike moment you
cannot seem to let go off? Here, I do not speak of the rich and the famous; I do not speak of Hollywood. I speak of Art. The core. The movement and the visualization. Have you guys ever seen a film called Pan’s Labyrinth? Have you even heard of Four Eyed Monsters? You might have come across Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind; you may have seen Requiem for a Dream. Just to get an idea of what I am rambling on about,
watch them. Now.
I want to shove something in all your faces, because as fellow students I have definite faith in all of your capabilities. Let’s face it, if all of us took one day out of the month to go to a cinema that would show us more than the glitz and glamour of Hollywood, we could change in a really big way. As a community, as a mass. We are our own freethinkers today and I cannot emphasize enough just how much of an impact an Art film can have on all of you. You know why? Because above everything else, it is about you. It leaves behind everything plastic and puts forth an issue, a moment, a transformation that could leave you speechless. It changes you. Imagine watching something that would completely change your outlook on the world, that
would make you question everything – that would basically wake you the hell up! Rather than hearing about Lindsay Lohan’s drug disaster or Britney’s latest haircut, you should put your valuable time to good use and consider something that would leave you breathless. The other day I spoke to a very interesting lady, her name is Susan Harr and she runs our very own Independent Film Cinema Hull Screen (www.friendsofhullscreen.co.uk). That’s right folks, right here in Hull; we can all get together and make
an active difference in our own lives. Remember to aim big we have to start small, and what better way then to save our own local hub of artistic integrity? Hull Screen has seen better days and to appeal to you and to us all, Susan Harr and her associates have been fighting to give us the best of all kinds of cinema. This includes promoting viewings of the best films out there today, which Susan and I agreed are of the alternative kind. You can find all the information you need on their website and trust me, once you get involved, you will not be disappointed!
They need members and we need quality film, we should blend that in to a creative cookie-dough that will continue baking for years after we’re done. Now that is a goal we should all think about. So go on, leave your student house or room, take your friends with you and all of you together, start living, start creating for I believe you are what art is. You plus You equals Art. And you are everything. And everything is Art.

Tanya Haider

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