Earlier quoted context omitted.
My reaction when I watched it 20+ years ago: Hallucinogens were definitely involved.
> Hallucinogens were definitely involved. If these result in better movies: why not?
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Why are there no good dinosaur films?
241–250 of 485 posts
Re: Why are there no good dinosaur films?
#242Earlier quoted context omitted.
We also have the mix of both where they make an amazing show based on novels then ruin the entire world with terrible writing when the source material runs dry. Glares at Game of Thrones
GoT still blows me away. You had about as close to an infinite budget as you can get in television, access to some of the best writers on the planet, as well as general guidance from Martin, and yet somehow you end up with season 8 (and 7, and to a lesser extent 6). It wouldn’t surprise me if Winds of Winter never gets published due in part to the TV series’ writing, which is to me the biggest loss.
I think the hate that the last seasons get are mainly due to people's expectations of how the several arcs should "wrap up". I have yet to read any compelling argument or point of view why the last seasons were terrible. They were rushed, but that doesn't equate to bad.
Re: Why are there no good dinosaur films?
#243I still cannot understand how good movies with dinosaurs are so rare. There are dozens of great movies with zombies, and the concept is very simple: people running from the infected. Why running from dinosaurs is different?
I think this is a great question! There are also many good vampire movies. All I can think of is that zombies and vampires are so deeply engrained in our stories that they are merely part of the setting and the real movie is about something else. It's like saying why are there so many movies set in New York? If this theory is correct, then it also explains why we can have lots of alien invasion movies but only a coup…
I’d argue Zombies and Vampires are an archetypical trope of the human Shadow. The narcissist, the undead that consumes other humans.
Re: Why are there no good dinosaur films?
#244> As Brusatte notes, a lot of what we now know about dinosaurs has been naturally accumulative knowledge spanning decades of ongoing research. Yeah I've felt this. I'm old enough (41) that some of the things that I was taught as a child are no longer beloved to be true. Not sure if I should feel sad that it's happening so slowly, or happy that's happening at all. Or concerned that we have no first principles way of e…
Why does the pace of discovery matter at all? Fast or slow compared to what? What could you even do about it in any case?
> Why does the pace of discovery matter at all?
Because I'd rather not die from cancer than die from cancer. I can't comprehend you even ask.
Re: Why are there no good dinosaur films?
#245Earlier quoted context omitted.
> And, of course, they never even bothered to make sequels to The Matrix. Like you, this is the reality I choose to inhabit. The Matrix was an incredible film, still stands as an incredible film, but that sequel tease at the end? Should have been a tease, or perhaps a prompt, for the viewer’s imagination only. There are no sequels to The Matrix.
I'll just pop in here to mention another fantastic and curiously similar film that came out around the same time, but was completely overshadowed by The Matrix. Dark City. If you liked The Matrix, this is one you might really enjoy, and while I say it's similar, I only mean in a very essential way. The plot is its own very unique story aside from that.
I just recently watched it. Although the visuals may not match The Matrix, it was written very well. Found it pleasant.
Re: Why are there no good dinosaur films?
#246Earlier quoted context omitted.
My reaction when I watched it 20+ years ago: Hallucinogens were definitely involved.
> Hallucinogens were definitely involved. If these result in better movies: why not?
I didn't say "not". But I do have addiction in family and I wouldn't wish this on other families.
Re: Why are there no good dinosaur films?
#247For me only we have 3 Jurassic Park movies. The rest are like the joke in The Matrix resurrections : Capitalism grinding stuff to make more money.
Re: Why are there no good dinosaur films?
#248Earlier quoted context omitted.
Likewise, the highway chase in the first non-existent sequel is pretty epic.
Whether or not you enjoy the stories, the action scenes and visuals in the sequels were groundbreaking use of CGI in action films. Around the same time the LotR trilogy came out which did something similar. I rewatched the first one the other day and for the most part the visuals and CGI have held up over time, barely any "oh man this is bad CGI lmao" moments. Which somehow got worse with later films, e.g. the Hobbit…
I think the main trick is that they set out to make the best and most impressive movie(s) they could with every tool available -- practical effects, old-school camera angle tricks to make the hobbits look small, hordes of extras and well-crafted props, as well as groundbreaking CGI.
Same with Jurassic Park, come to think about it -- there's famously more animatronic dinosaurs in that movie than CGI.
As opposed to relying on one shiny new tool to take care of everything. I think with The Hobbit they got over-enamoured with the notion that you can do anything with CGI.
More recently, Andor is a good example with its mix of CGI and massive sets; The Mandalorian is a bad example with its over-reliance on the "Volume" LED stage.
Re: Why are there no good dinosaur films?
#249In the book I found the character of Ian Malcolm fascinating. He was the math guy, grounded in "chaos theory" which basically posited that things don't work out the way you plan. Jeff Goldblum's portrayal was pretty spot on for me - sure that it would all end in tears, and yet unwilling to leave simply because the opportunity to see his math play out in real life was irresistible. And his line in movie 2 (or 3?) Abou…
Ian Malcom was a cool nerd which was uncommon (and maybe still is)
Re: Why are there no good dinosaur films?
#250Earlier quoted context omitted.
GoT still blows me away. You had about as close to an infinite budget as you can get in television, access to some of the best writers on the planet, as well as general guidance from Martin, and yet somehow you end up with season 8 (and 7, and to a lesser extent 6). It wouldn’t surprise me if Winds of Winter never gets published due in part to the TV series’ writing, which is to me the biggest loss.
I think the hate that the last seasons get are mainly due to people's expectations of how the several arcs should "wrap up". I have yet to read any compelling argument or point of view why the last seasons were terrible. They were rushed, but that doesn't equate to bad.
For me, it was the appearance of plot armor (starting with the end of season 5) that ruined the show.
Up to that point, you had a sense that anyone could die, no matter how important.
Seasons 6+ are full of meh tropes like last-second reversals, people popping out of water when they evidently should've drowned, the impossibly bullshit "blind girl kills trained assassin" moment, the WWE style end of the walkers, etc.
To me, that's just bad. Not rushed.