jeudi 31 décembre 2015
Into the Badlands: Season 1 Review
AMC's dystopian future series kicks ass but rarely takes names.
Warning: Full spoilers for Into the Badlands: Season 1 follow.
On a very surface level, Into the Badlands' first six episodes were enjoyable to watch, if not appointment television. As I mentioned in one of my early episode reviews, AMC's fusion-future setting and story elements felt like a first-year film student had made them, and that didn't really change over the course of Season 1. Usually, the world-building felt like it was stitched together from other, better universes, creating a mismatched patchwork. The acting here was also hit-or-miss, which didn't help things.
Granted, some characters and story elements would come to play off each other in fun or interesting ways. Daniel Wu as Sunny, for instance, turned out to be a strong, compelling lead, and his character's internal struggle was a constant high point in the series -- especially as it pertained to his Baron master Quinn (Marton Csokas), Colt apprentice M.K. (Aramis Knight) and secret paramour Veil (Madeleine Mantock).
Likewise, the rival Baron Widow (Emily Beecham) and her daughter Tilda (Ally Ioannides) made good foils for the previously mentioned characters. Tilda's arc in particular also had shades of Sunny's, which showed that each side of the fight had its own flaws.
Alas, for every good character there was also a dud -- pretty much all of Quinn's family, for example. In almost every single episode, Ryder (Oliver Stark), Lydia (Orla Brady), Jade (Sarah Bolger) and, by extension, Quinn almost always bogged down the main story with extraneous subplots like Ryder's coma, Jade and Lydia fighting over Quinn, and Jade and Ryder's love affair. That's not to mention Csokas' jarringly hammy portrayal of Quinn, which, again, took me out of the story more than a few times. To the series' detriment, it presumed we cared about any of these characters when they themselves never proved why we should care about them.
Marton Csokas as Quinn in Into the Badlands
As a result, much of the overarching narrative got pushed aside or drawn out to the point of tedium. Despite the show's numerous MacGuffins -- the pendant, the compass, the book and even M.K. himself -- none of them really shed any light on the mysterious Azra and what lies beyond the Badlands. Ultimately, we knew about as much about those things as we did at the end of the first episode. If anything, said plot coupons gave us more questions than answers. Luckily, the finale offered a few clues as to where they might be going with things like M.K.'s powers and the Abbots.
But let's talk about the thing that really worked in Into the Badlands: the action sequences. While the story and character elements were indeed a mixed bag, the fight scenes were consistently awesome and made the series worth watching week to week. From Sunny's first skirmish with the bandits to his final showdown with the Abbots -- and everything in between -- this show put its money where its mouth was when it came to delivering top-notch action in a stylistic way. I just wish the framework surrounding that had been a bit more engaging.
The Verdict
If nothing else, Into the Badlands' first season featured some of the most brutal and beautiful fight scenes in recent memory -- especially on TV -- with Daniel Wu's Sunny taking point on most of them. Also, the series has set up a good mystery that will hopefully pay off in some respects as the show goes on. Unfortunately, many characters and storylines failed to deliver, often dragging episodes down and getting lost in their humdrum universe. Quinn's whole family was a major problem in this regard. That said, AMC's latest series was still fun to watch (more often than not), despite its notable flaws.
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mercredi 30 décembre 2015
Superman Annual #3 Review
A new dawn for Superman?
DC has made no secret of the fact that Superman will be regaining his lost powers and returning to some semblance of normalcy in early 2016. And really, did anyone expect the current status quo to last forever? But before then, the de-powered, wayward Superman must face one last challenge in the form of Vandal Savage. This issue sets the stage for "Savage Dawn," a major Superman crossover that will unite most of the franchise for the next three months. And if this issue is any indication, there's plenty to look forward to.
This issue offers one overarching story that's split along two fronts. In the present, Clark continues to wrestle with his diminished capabilities and his inability to find a solution. In the past, various segments explore the life and times of Vandal Savage, ranging from his transformative experience 50,000 years ago to key encounters with historical figures. Along the way, Savage's origin is reworked to more closely tie him with Superman and set the stage for the conflict to come.
Despite the long, long list of creators involved with this issue, the end product is surprisingly cohesive. Greg Pak, Aron Kuder, Pete Tomasi and Gene Luen Yang all collaborate on the script, achieving a pretty consistent voice throughout the several dozen pages. This issue is most successful when it comes to fleshing out the early years of Vandal Savage and painting him not as a remorseless tyrant so much as a man denied power and respect as a youth and now determined to seize as much of it as he can across the ages. The writers tend to go a little overboard when it comes to portraying Clark's desperation and helplessness over his current de-powered state. Superman is ta more fundamentally hopeful and optimistic a character than portrayed here, but the same could be said for many comics over the past few months. The god news is that the writers are able to build a deeper source of personal conflict for Clark and pave the way for a Superman/Vandal Savage showdown.
This issue features a great many pencillers, inkers and colorists alongside the various writers. Here to, the book is able to maintain a certain cohesion despite having so many cooks in the kitchen. It helps that such a stark contrast is drawn between the past and present-day segments. Inker Bil Sienkiewicz slathers his pages in heavy blacks, an effect that's more surreal and moody than grim and gritty. Meanwhile, a more sleek and classical superhero style is employed for the flashback scenes. I have to wonder if the two styles wouldn't have been better off being flip-flopped, but the visuals are eye-catching all the same.
The concern with this issue is how well it actually represents the Superman/Vandal Savage conflict to come. The Superman franchise (especially in recent years) has a bad habit of taking solid concepts and running them into the ground with bloated, convoluted crossovers. Look no further than the "Doomed" crossover or even the execution of Superman's new status quo this year. This annual offers a solid foundation on which to build, but can this crossover succeed where others have failed? We'll see?
The Verdict
Whether "Savage Dawn" will ultimately succeed where previous Superman crossovers have struggled remains to be sen. But at least this storyline is of to a good start. This issue offers a compelling look at the origins of Vandal Savage and the conflict that will soon pit him against Superman.
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Justice League #47 Review
The final battle looms large.
Justice League's "The Darksed War" has been a great read so far, but this storyline has definitely lost some momentum in recent months between the delays, the shift to a series of tie-in issues, and the generally sluggish pace of Act 2. Issue #47 brings artist Jason Fabok back into the fold and kicks off the story's third and final act. That helps pick up the slack a bit, but the series still struggles to regain its momentum and recapture the magic of the early months of The Darkseid War.
Wonder Woman remains front and center in this issue as she leads her new allies on a mission to break the Crime Syndicate out of prison and enlist their aid against the Anti-Monitor. Unfortunately, that about sums up the events of this issue. Early on, the worst problem this storyline dealt with was the fact that Geoff Johns had an excess of story material to juggle. Now, the conflict is feeling a bit thin as Johns continues to move pieces across the board. It's certainly intriguing to see the Justice League and Crime Syndicate forced into an alliance, but this issue doesn't have a chance to capitalize on the resulting character dynamics.
It's also disappointing how the various godly transformations of earlier chapters are being capitalized upon. Johns focuses a significant amount of attention on Superman's role as the god of power. All that really amounts to is your standard battle with a brainwashed hero, with the predictable resolution. Johns handles the Superman/Wonder Woman dynamic well. In general Diana has been the stand-out character of this storyline. But their clash doesn't seem to add much to the larger conflict. That space might have been better devoted to characters who do seem fundamentally altered, like Batman or Lex Luthor. Or maybe to fleshing out villains like Grail or the Anti-Monitor. The latter in particular could really benefit from more back-story and a greater sense of context to his actions.
But if nothing else, its great to have Fabok back on the series. His style packs in all the raw power and precise line-work you'd expect from such a massive superhero epic. Under his hand, this truly does feel like a story about gods and heroes becoming gods. However, Fabok's knack for generating a dark, foreboding sense of mood is every bit as important. Tonally, this storyline is as bleak as anything Johns has crafted on the book (even Forever Evil). Fabok's style is crucial in blending the darkness with the larger-than-life characters and battles.
The Verdict
The final leg of The Darkseid War has begun, but Justice League is still struggling to regain the momentum it had in the early chapters. This issue reads mostly like setup for bigger and better things to come, and the solid characterization can only do so much to make up for the sluggish pace. But at least the series continues to look great, with Jason Fabok delivering more of the refined, powerful work he's become known for.
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Check Out IKEA's 3D Printed Meatballs
Goodbye, Swedish meatballs.
IKEA thinks we'll be eating 3D printed meatballs in the "not so distant future." Space10, IKEA's green-living design lab, is looking for "Tomorrow's Meatball," a healthy and sustainable meatball that'll satiate our "unsustainable appetite for meat."
We have an increasing demand for food, Space10 says. That demand is creating serious problems for our planet—it's impacting global warming, wasting water, destroying forests, and causing soil erosion. The United Nations states that our food demand will increase by 70% within the next 35 years—and so, we "need to be smarter and more efficient about the way we produce our food."
This means being open to eating stuff we haven't considered before—like artificial meat grown in a lab, algae, bugs, and 3D printed meatballs.
“We used the meatball's shape and size as a canvas for future foods scenarios, because we wanted to visualize complicated research in a simple, fun and familiar way. There’s hardly any culture that does not cook meatballs—from the Swedish meatball, to Italian/American spaghetti meatballs to spiced up Middle Eastern kofta,” says Kaave Pour from Space10, one of the project's founders.
3D printed meatballs are made from proteins from alage, beet leaves, or insects.
This isn't the first time we've seen 3D printed food. IGN staff ate 3D printed pizza at CES 2015, and we reported that German candy company Katjes is 3D printing gummy candy in some of their cafes.
What do you think? Would you eat a 3D printed meatball made from insect protein? Check out Space10's website to see more of their innovative meatballs.
Nicole is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @sweetpotatoes.
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The Shannara Chronicles: Series Premiere Review
The quest to save the Ellcrys begins.
Debuting January 5th, The Shannara Chronicles' two-part premiere is fantasy for a tween generation, for all the good and bad that comes along with that. It's a reinvention of the Terry Brooks novel and that isn't going to please purists, but some of the more interesting elements of the two-hour episode involve deviating from the source material.
It's a good thing "Chosen" is two hours long, because it needs both of them to find its groove. The series introduces Amberle immediately, showing us a strong elf princess who isn't afraid to subvert gender norms. In the opening sequence of the series, Amberle decides to run a gauntlet to prove she is worthy of being one of seven elven Chosen who have the honor of serving the magical tree the Ellcrys. No woman has been a Chosen as long as memory serves, so simply participating -- and, of course, eventually earning the honor -- is a major shock to the Elven world.
It doesn't take long for Amberle to be swayed from her path. The Ellcrys -- a tree which has protected the Elven people from the demons held captive inside another realm called The Forbidding for so long that the story has become fairy tale -- has a pivotal role for the princess to play. It grants her visions of the end of days, and -- more importantly -- of her killing her boyfriend Lorin, and so she quickly shirks her once-in-a-generation duties and runs for the hills.
Meanwhile a Druid named Allanon (Manu Bennet) reawakens from a 30-year slumber at the summoning of the Ellcrys. It so happens that his reemergence coincides with the death of Will Ohmsford's mother, who tells him to seek out "the Druid." (For you Shannara die-hards out there, this series shortens the timeline so that Wil is Shea's son instead of his grandson. The repercussions of tweaking Shea's story remain to be seen -- but yes, Flick is still in the series.) Wil's mother gifts her son with the magical Elfstones of Shannara before her death, but he quickly loses them to a seductive Rover named Eretria. His path crosses with Allanon's, and they get swept away on an adventure that involves finding Amberle, reseeding the Ellcrys and rescuing the world as we know it.
This, from its start, shows some big changes from Brooks' "The Elfstones of Shannara," which serves as the basis for MTV's The Shannara Chronicles. So is the series itself a deviation from the network's typical fare, which has only ventured as far fantasy as its reimagining of Teen Wolf. In the world of The Shannara Chronicles, there are elves and druids and gnomes and trolls and demons. If that's immediately an off-putting sentiment, The Shannara Chronicles doesn't do much to win you to the side of fantasy.
What it does do is try to win over its target audience with sexy young stars wearing slinky, modern outfits in a world that has been updated to the post-apocalyptic phase of pop culture. Brooks' Shannara series takes place millennia after a holocaust destroyed the world as we know it, and The Shannara Chronicles takes nods from other similar genre fare like The Hunger Games, The 100 and The Mortal Instruments in its costuming choices and setting. The heavy incorporation of the ruins of old humans is one of the more interesting and promising elements of the premiere; there are ruins of helicopters and ships and other man-made creations scattered throughout the land, and some major characters question what the lives of old humans would have been.
It's in the fantasy elements of the story that The Shannara Chronicles is most lacking; not because it doesn't revel in its fantastic roots, but because it flourishes in the spectacle of them. Game of Thrones is inarguably the most successful fantasy adaptation on television, and it is so because it is rooted in the reality of its world. The Shannara Chronicles can't help but show off how cool its various magical storylines are, and in doing so it shows off its shortcomings. Its characters are fairly weak, with the exception of Manu Bennet's Allanon, though its setting is gorgeous.
And goodness is this show gorgeous. Credit the beautiful backdrop of New Zealand for making this one of the most beautiful shows to watch on TV. From the Elven kingdom of Arborlon to the Dagda Mor's demon outpost to everywhere Allanon and Wil travel in between, the vistas on this show are breathtaking. This is why it's easy to say The Shannara Chronicles is the best-looking fantasy series on TV.
But with all the money invested in the show's look, it felt like the biggest shortcoming is delivering a solid story. This is something that could change in only one episode; The 100, for all that it's developed into one of the best sci-fi shows on the air, had a fairly by-the-numbers CW start.
Of everything, Bennet is the high point of the two hour premiere. I'm pretty sure he could have chemistry with a rock, and every scene that he's in pops. The chemistry is sadly lacking in the love triangle that is established in the two-part premiere. Wil is a bit of an idiot in the way he never was in the books, and while Amberle and Eretria are both strong, willful characters, you never get the sense that they're more than that. The Shannara Chronicles wins points for adding in some new females to the mix like Commander Tilton (Emilia Burns), but it also takes several steps back for aging down (at least looks-wise) Elf princes Arion and Ander and adding the fantasy equivalent of high school parties to pander to its tween audience. While the bitchiness in Amberle and Eretria's first meeting is a fun seed to set, the sense of talking down to a younger audience is going to lose a lot of the people who spent decades waiting for this adaptation to be made.
The Verdict
If The Shannara Chronicles allows its characters to shed their stereotypical casings and evolve quickly, if it allows is storytelling to stop reveling in its fantasy spectacle and ground itself in something real, and if it allows itself to become something greater than just a new genre for a blossoming network to explore, then it could become something a lot better than what it delivered in its two-hour series premiere. Until then, we'll be waiting.
The Shannara Chronicles premieres January 5th on MTV.
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Injustice: Year Four Annual #1 Review
The year of the villains begins.
DC is trying something a little different for the latest Injustice Annual. Whereas these issues tend to focus on small standalone stories that don't really fit into the series' overarching narrative, this issue is more or less a prologue for Injustice: Year Five. The scope is bigger, but what really sells this story is the return of writer Tom Taylor and his top-notch brand of storytelling.
Not to diminish the solid work Brian Buccellato has been doing since taking the reins of the series, but Injustice is at its best with Taylor at the helm. His flair for engaging characterization and crafting big, cinematic moments gave Injustice a distinctive voice and appeal amid DC's many other superhero books. Taylor's work has lost none of its charm in his absence. This issue is a fun read, but also suitably dark and dramatic considering how far along the Injustice timeline is now and how close Superman is to becoming the complete and total despot he is in the game.
This issue sets up the "year of the villains" status quo that will be driving Injustice: Year Five throughout 2016. However, the story hinges largely on a DC hero that hasn't played any sort of role in the Injustice conflict before now. That fact is really at the emotional core of Taylor's script, as he explores a character who has always looked out for number one finally making a selfless sacrifice for someone else. Whether you're attached to this character already or have no exposure to this mystery protagonist, Taylor does an excellent job of fleshing out their past, their connection to the Superman/Batman war and building towards the epic finale.
Injustice always looks its best when Bruno Redondo is providing the art, so it should come as no surprise that this issue is a looker. Redondo's sleek, expressive style is a perfect complement to Taylor's script, whether the focus is on character interaction or huge moments of spectacle. One of the benefits to Redondo's style is that it generally looks great regardless of whether Redondo is working solo. So the fact that later pages feature Redondo's layouts being finished by either Rafa Sandoval or Jordi Tarragona makes little difference on the final product.
The Verdict
If you weren't excited for the upcoming Injustice: Year Five, you very well might be after reading this annual. This issue deftly sets up that last major conflict while also delivering a fun but dramatic story centered around a very unlikely hero in the Injustice universe. He and Bruno Redondo continue to weave DC magic together, and it's a shame his return to the Injustice franchise won't last beyond this issue.
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Here's How Scientists Want to Recycle Space Junk
Any other ideas?
There's a lot of junk in space—almost 500,000 pieces of it, according to NASA. The space junk isn't just floating around, either. It's moving at speeds up to 17,500 miles per hour, which is fast enough for even a small piece to cause major damage to satellites and spacecrafts.
NASA currently tracks space junk in efforts to prevent collisions, but one research lab from Tsinghua University in Beijing, China, wants to create a spacecraft that takes in space junk and uses it as fuel. They want to capture debris and grind it into a useable, ion-charged powder, producing a thrust as it ejected from the spacecraft. The trust is used to maneuver the vehicle and to continue collecting more space junk.
This system, however, doesn't power the ship. The researchers say they'll look into powering the ship with solar or nuclear power.
Space junk can be natural—meteoroids—or man-made. Man-made debris is stuff like "nonfunctional spacecrafts, abandoned launch vehicle stages, mission-related debris, and fragmentation debris," NASA says. This means the kind of fuel the Chinese spacecraft takes in will differ depending on its material, varying the amount of power it generates.
Nicole is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow her on Twitter.
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mardi 29 décembre 2015
The Expanse: "CQB" Review
Strap yourself in tight. This is one action-packed ride.
Warning: Full spoilers for the episode below.
“CQB” rounds out the mystery of who or what destroyed the Canterbury and introduces a new mystery group that seems to want everyone to believe that Mars was behind it. Most of the episode takes place on the Martian warship Donnager and events pick up right where they left off last week with Jim Holden on the bridge.
I have to say the design work on the Martian ship is exceptionally well done. The bridge layout is sparse and functional. It’s a rather small bridge when you consider the size of the ship and there are no exterior windows but when you consider it they really don’t need a large size or windows since all of their navigation and weapons are done on computer terminals. There is one large curved display that they are using that I wouldn’t mind having for my entertainment setup.
There is a considerable use of red in their design philosophy, which is appropriate as they represent the Red Planet. The red visors on the Martian battle suits looked fantastic as did the rest of the armor. Visually this show has been great so far but the work on the Martian ship and in particular some of the set pieces this week, stood out. They may have burned their budget on some of the stuff they did here, especially in the hangar bay sequence, but it was worth it even if we are saddled with a bottle episode somewhere down the line.
Another great visual moment was the death of Shed Garvey who had his head blown off by a projectile that ripped straight through the hull. The entire sequence was beautifully handled with his head gone and the blood being slowly sucked through the hull breach into the vacuum of space. It’s just phenomenal to watch. Watching all that blood come splashing down with the engines are restored was nasty but the whole thing was worth it. It’s just a beautiful scene. If you’re going to be killed off on TV, that’s the way you want to go.
The suspense during the entire Donnager fight with the mystery ship was top notch. It really starts with the arrogance of the captain who thinks they are going to wipe the floor with their unknown enemy. Holden isn’t so sure but considering he doesn’t seem to have any combat experience, well, it was hard not to believe what the captain was saying.
Things fall apart quickly for the Donnager and her crew and everything culminates in boarding parties from the mystery ships landing. Well, at least we know they’re human. At least I think their human. That one guy’s arm did seem to heal a wound unexpectedly fast. It took Holden by surprise but the Martians referred to it simply as advanced tech.
The hangar bay sequence leading straight up to the escape was another fantastic moment. The bit with Holden using inertia to propel himself and Naomi into the corvette was well thought out. Alex was a lot of fun too adding some comic relief, which the series could use a bit more of at times. A bit of levity during a heavy action sequence can work well and I thought Alex’s moments did that without becoming annoying or overbearing.
While most of the action takes place on the Donnager, there were a few scenes on Ceres station with Miller continuing his quest to find Julie Mao. I’m not sure what a ‘sneakshot club’ is exactly but Miller seemed to have found himself in one during this episode. That lead to his discovery that the body they found isn’t Bizi Betiko as they originally thought.
What I loved about the mystery body was that it gave some insight into what body modification may entail 200 years from now. Having extra memory storage in your leg could come in handy I guess but it seems to be more of a criminal activity used by data brokers in the future.
It was really surprising that Havelock survived his attack from the end of last week’s episode. I imagine he’s going to pull through at this point but maybe Miller should keep better tabs on his constantly disappearing partner.
We’re introduced to a new set piece and a new character this week. Fred Johnson (The Walking Dead's Chad Coleman) is revealed to have heavy ties to the OPA and this seems to make his Mormon friend a little nervous considering all the nasty stuff they’ve been doing back on Ceres station. Johnson makes it clear that the OPA is an upstanding organization and makes comparisons between the OPA’s issues and that of organized religions in Earth’s history.
As a complete aside, and I’m not sure it means anything yet, but the Mormons commissioning the construction of a generation ship so they can leave the for another solar system, which will take about 100 years, is a great built of world building. Will they call it Planet Mormon? I looked this up but the ship is named the Nauvoo in reference to Nauvoo, Illinois, which is the home of a temple built by Mormon settlers. Are all the major religions eyeing their own extra-solar planet? Do all the major religions still hold the same power 200 years from now?
The Verdict
“CQB” is action packed and full of suspense. It also highlights the beautifully designed look of the Martian fleet ships and uniforms. This is a great looking series and with four episode in the bag the story is shaping up quite nicely with a new mystery enemy to keep us hooked until next week.
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Can You Really Be Allergic to Wi-Fi?
Can you really be allergic to wi-fi? The condition is sometimes called electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS), and the symptoms range from fatigue and physical pain to rashes and eye discomfort.
The discussion of electromagnetic hypersensitivity came back into public consciousness after a 15 year old girl from the UK committed suicide, with her mother citing a rare wi-fi allergy as the cause. Though her family had taken wi-fi out of their home, the signals at school were keeping her ill, her mother says.
Electromagnetic hypersensitivity is disputed, though scientists don't question the reality of the sufferer's symptoms—the symptoms are just not that of a wi-fi allergy. Researches say that these symptoms are usually "very generalized, meaning they could have many causes," and the World Health Organization notes that "EHS is not a medical diagnosis."
“People who say they have EHS are clearly ill,” Dr. James Rubin, the author of a 2009 review on EHS, told Live Science. “But the science suggests that it isn’t [electromagnetic signaling] that is causing the illness."
Rubin's report concluded that the symptoms of EHS were unable to be replicated during controlled experiments, throughout multiple attempts.
In other wi-fi news, one waste management company in New York City has started installing garage cans that provide free wi-fi access.
Nicole is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @sweetpotatoes.
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2015's Biggest Box Office Flops
Not every movie can be The Force Awakens.
Even as Star Wars: The Force Awakens shatters records across the globe, it wasn’t all glory for the 2015 box office. There were plenty of films – some highly anticipated, others dead on arrival – that didn’t quite justify their worth in the eyes of movie-goers.
With 2015 winding down, we thought we’d take a look back on the biggest flops of the year (box office data as of December 16):
Production Budget: $37 million
Box Office: $21.1 million (domestic); $26.3 million (worldwide total)
Cameron Crowe’s Aloha will probably best be remembered as the movie that controversially casted Emma Stone as a one-quarter Hawaiian woman. The film's impressive A-list cast also includes Rachel McAdams, Bill Murray, Alec Baldwin, and Bradley Cooper (fresh off his turn in the acclaimed American Sniper). It’s got a fairly dense (sometimes incomprehensible) story about a defense contractor sent to Hawaii to oversee a new project, while falling in love with the Air Force officer that is assigned to oversee him. Whitewashing controversy aside, Aloha is an inconsistent and bland effort that our review said was “more Elizabethtown, less Jerry Maguire.”
Production Budget: $70 million
Box Office: $8 million (domestic); $19.6 million (worldwide total)
Michael Mann’s tech-crime thriller starring Chris Hemsworth was one of 2015’s first box office flops, debuting against American Sniper and landing at a measly #10 on its opening weekend. Pretty much dead on arrival, the story of an imprisoned hacker released to help the authorities stop a global tech catastrophe didn’t fare well with critics either. Our 5.4/10 review said “If there’s one thing that Blackhat demonstrates it’s that Michael Mann has nothing left to say.”
Production Budget: $50 million
Box Office: $1.2 million domestic; $13 million (worldwide total)
A grim thriller peppered with A-list Hollywood talent like Tom Hardy and Gary Oldman, Child 44 is the tale of an exiled Soviet soldier tasked with hunting down a serial child killer. It’s a serious affair that our review said “captures the dreary atmosphere of Stalin-era Russia quite nicely,” and as far as movies of these sort go, is adequate. But therein lies its problem: it should be much better than it is given the talent involved. Quality aside, neither Hardy nor Oldman could draw ticket-buyers, as Child 44 bombed big at the box office, totaling a mere $13 million worldwide on a budget of $50 million.
Crimson Peak
Production Budget: $55 million
Box Office: $31.1 million (domestic); $74 million (worldwide)
Another under-performing but well-reviewed Guillermo del Toro genre flick, the gothic horror Crimson Peak struggled to find is footing despite a holiday-appropriate release right before Halloween. Perhaps the confusion about what the movie was supposed to be impacted its box office; it’s more of a throwback to the gothic romances of old than it is an out-and-out horror movie. Whatever the case, Crimson Peak wasn’t able to capture the international market that was Pacific Rim’s saving grace, and bowed at a fraction of its predecessor’s worldwide gross.
Fantastic Four
Production Budget: $120 million
Box Office: $56.1 million (domestic); $168 million (worldwide total)
2015’s Fantastic Four is a classic case of the making of the film being far more interesting than the film itself. The troubled production suffered its share of problems, from director Josh Trank’s reported erratic behavior on set, to painfully obvious reshoots, to the blame game that followed in the wake of its dismal reception. Standing at a truly rotten 10% on Rotten Tomatoes, the intended reinvigoration of the Fantastic Four wound up only souring the Fox franchise further. Our own review stated: “Aesthetically drab and dramatically inert, this reboot of Fantastic Four manages to actually make the previous two FF movies seem better in hindsight.” Fantastic Four did manage to make back its production budget, but when marketing is thrown into the cost, its losses stand at around $80 million.
The Gunman
Production Budget: $40 million
Box Office: $10.7 million (domestic); $13.6 million (worldwide total)
Despite an impressive cast boasting Sean Penn, Idris Elba, and Javier Bardem, The Gunman – directed by Taken’s Pierre Morel – failed to make an impression in 2015. Penn stars as a retired black-ops merc that finds himself the target of a hit squad seeking retribution for an assassination he performed years earlier. While we thought the movie was “Okay” with a score of 6.8, The Gunman lost big at the box office, falling short of its $40 million budget by more than half.
Hot Tub Time Machine 2
Production Budget: $14 million
Box Office: $12.3 million (domestic); $13.1 million (worldwide total)
The fact that a movie called Hot Tub Time Machine – starring John Cusack, no less – made enough money to warrant a sequel is amazing in and of itself. The fact that the original movie was actually pretty good is even crazier. Unfortunately, HTTM 2 is a failure on all accounts, its lack of Cusack removing the cohesiveness of the first film and its general lack of laughs and innovation making it insufferable. While not as big a flop as some other movies on this list, HTTM 2 still lost money and – as one of IGN’s worst-reviewed movies of 2015 – lost two hours we can never get back.
In the Heart of the Sea
Production Budget: $100 million
Box Office: $13.5 million (domestic); $54.5 million (worldwide total)
Much like other renditions of classic novels that have a place on this list – Pan and Victor Frankenstein – In the Heart of the Sea looks at a literary classic from a new perspective. Based on the non-fiction book of the same name, Ron Howard’s In the Heart of the Sea is the tale that inspired Herman Melville to write Moby-Dick, but unfortunately the result is quite dull. Our review called it “uninspired” and the box office numbers seem to indicate that the audience agreed. Perhaps a more straight-forward, big budget rendition of Moby-Dick itself would have proven more lucrative.
Jem and the Holograms
Production Budget: $5 million
Box Office: $2.2 million (domestic); $2.3 million (worldwide total)
The big screen debut of Jem, Kimber, and Aja has the unfortunate distinction of being the worst box office opening of 2015, debuting at just $1.4 million in more than 2,000 theaters. Universal opted to pull the movie from theaters entirely just two weeks later. Based on the memorable glam-rock cartoon of the 1980s, the marketing of the film made it seem like a far cry from the series we remembered, perhaps negatively impacting the nostalgia factor that would’ve brought people to the theater. Our review was more favorable than most (the film holds a 19% on Rotten Tomatoes), but still said that Jem and the Holograms was “not the adaptation fans were hoping for.”
Jupiter Ascending
Production Budget: $176 million
Box Office: $47.4 million (domestic); $183.9 (worldwide total)
While The Wachowskis' latest box office spectacle barely squeaked by into the black, its reputation as one of the most incoherent sci-fi movies ever made is perhaps even more damaging than its financial disappointments. While the movie can certainly be enjoyed for its massive scale, big ideas, and its swinging-for-the-fences mentality (in fact, our review of the movie was relatively positive), it’s still a hard pill to swallow knowing that where once The Wachowskis delivered The Matrix, we’ve only gotten a series of increasingly disappointing visual spectacles for the last ten years.
The Last Witch Hunter
Production Budget: $90 million
Box Office: $27.3 million (domestic); $108.2 million (worldwide total)
IGN’s review of the Vin Diesel vehicle The Last Witch Hunter proclaimed it was “like a cheesy, bargain bin graphic novel come to life.” After starring in Furious 8, one of the year’s biggest hits, Diesel slummed it in this D&D-lite yarn with paper-thin characters and less-than-stellar special effects. Maybe if The Last Witch Hunter had been a SyFy original it would’ve fared better – or would have at least been forgiven for its shortcomings – but as is, it’s a painfully mediocre affair.
Production Budget: $60 million
Box Office: $7.7 million (domestic); $47.3 million (worldwide total)
Based on a series of novels written by Kyril Bonfiglioli starring the titular character, Johnny Depp’s latest eccentric caricature failed to captivate. Charlie Mortdecai is a pompous art dealer enlisted by MI-5 to recover a precious painting that may be a map to hidden Nazi treasures. Unfortunately, Mortdecai grows old quickly. Our review likened it to “a three-minute SNL sketch unfurled into a feature-length snooze” and based on the poor box office return, it seems that audiences agreed.
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lundi 28 décembre 2015
The Best-Reviewed Movies of 2015
From emotions to fury roads to wars among the stars.
There were many films that came out in 2015 that IGN reviewed, as superheroes fought dangerous enemies and emotions taught us the range of our feelings and beloved franchises came back, better and more relevant than ever. But of those many movies that hit theaters, these 10 are the ones that we considered the best of the best.
You'll see some overlap with IGN's Best Movie of 2015 nominees, as these films listed below are our 10 best-reviewed movies of the past year. From returning to a galaxy far, far away to an inside look into one of the 21st century's best innovators, here are the projects that got our ringing endorsement.
Inside Out - 9.5
VERDICT:
Pixar has never been so formally and visually inventive and rarely so funny as they are here. Perhaps lacking the sledgehammer tear duct attack of Up, it’s also an exceptionally poignant and thoughtful look at developing and understanding our feelings. It’s also simply enormous fun. Consider next year’s Animated Feature Oscar race over and Pixar firmly back on track. - Leigh Singer
The Hateful Eight - 9.5
VERDICT:
Armed with vicious humor and an intense story, Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight is as brutal in its insights into race relations and human nature as it is in its depiction of violence and the Wild West. - Jim Vejvoda
Mad Max: Fury Road - 9.2
VERDICT:
The over-the-top stunts and eccentric characters and designs are all hugely important to Fury Road, as are the troubled figures like Max himself and Furiosa, but it’s the overriding sense of the film’s uniqueness, its striving to be something more than just another action movie, that is most impressive. Mad Max: Fury Road is a one of a kind. Like the world it creates, it is a thing of beautiful brutality. - Scott Collura
The Revenant - 9.0
VERDICT:
A stunning-looking and daring filmmaking endeavor, The Revenant brings one of the Old West's greatest legends to cinematic life with utter ferocity and complete conviction from its cast. - Jim Vejvoda
Ex Machina - 9.0
VERDICT:
It may be a cautionary tale that combines smart sci-fi with unsettling horror, but the most disturbing aspect of Ex Machina is the plausibility of the storyline, with it easy to imagine events like this playing out in the real world. Anchored by three dazzling central performances, it’s a stunning directorial debut from Alex Garland that’s essential viewing for anyone with even a passing interest in where technology is taking us. - Chris Tilly
Kingsman: Secret Service - 9.0
VERDICT:
Kingsman: The Secret Service is a spy movie made by James Bond devotees who know the genre so well that they can have a good time with it while also paying it respect -- and taking it to someplace new entirely. The secret is out: Kingsman is pretty great. - Scott Collura
Steve Jobs - 9.0
VERDICT:
Neither hagiography nor hatchet job, Steve Jobs is a dazzling artistic interpretation of one of the modern techno-giants and a terrific piece of filmmaking, led by a never-better Michael Fassbender in the lead role. It’s The Social Network 2.0 and one of the year’s best films. - Leigh Singer
Star Wars: The Force Awakens - 8.8
VERDICT:
Star Wars: The Force Awakens is the movie it was promised to be, with great new characters, a respect for the original trilogy and a strong understanding of what makes this franchise click with fans. The new additions to the Star Wars universe work best, though there is some over-reliance on tying things to and making nods to the classic Star Wars films. Overall, this is a great way to reboot the franchise and open the world up for a new generation of fans. - Terri Schwartz
Magic Mike XXL - 8.8
VERDICT:
Magic Mike XXL is a trusty physical performance vehicle that rarely stalls, and when it does sputter you know that its going to kick into high gear again. Not every character is equal in ability, but every character gets equal amount of screen time. Magic Mike XXL is giving in that way. It’s female worship that’s fun for both genders—as long as the only explosion you need comes from a whip cream canister. - Brian Formo
Pitch Perfect 2 - 8.8
VERDICT:
Pitch Perfect 2 embraces all the things that made the original so great while also building on them, like adding harmony to a melody. In addition to balancing a huge ensemble cast, director Elizabeth Banks captures just the right amount of heart and humor for the sequel. While some of the story beats get repetitive, the sequel toys with fan-favorite moments in new and unique ways (like the Riff-Off, for example). In the end, Pitch Perfect 2 hits all the same high notes the original did, and arguably goes a half step higher. - Max Nicholson
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Michael Fassbender Has Finally Played Assassin's Creed
"We’re working hard to make this something special."
While Michael Fassbender is set to star as Callum Lynch in the upcoming Assassin's Creed move, it wasn't until recently that he finally played a game in the popular video game series it's adapted from.
"I hadn’t played it before these guys approached me," Fassbender admitted in an interview with EW, saying he's since played one of the titles "mainly to get an idea of the physicality of the character."
Fassbender went on to note that he's well aware of the passion that Assassin's Creed fans have for the franchise. As such, the studio is "striving to find something special" and deliver the historical accuracy and attention to detail that series veterans expect.
"We’re really trying to capitalize and feed on and enjoy the fun element," Fassbender added. "We’re working hard to make this something special."
With regard to what he learned from his time playing the game, Fassbender highlighted the physical component involved in navigating the world, noting "a lot of the stuff in the game is parkour."
Additionally, the actor spoke to the large amount of "close quarters fighting," noting that since the hero is equipped with blades on his wrists "it's about getting in close to the target."
Many of these feats Fassbender will be performing himself, jokingly saying he's "learned how to roly poly, tumble turn." On a more serious note, he said he's been doing "basic fight choreography stuff" as well as "some horse stuff."
Assassin's Creed opens in theaters next December and will tell an entirely new story set in Spain in the 15th Century, though it does feature a shared universe with the games. For a sneak peek at Callum Lynch's upcoming adventure, here's an early look at Fassbender in his Assassin's outfit.
Alex Osborn is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.
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The Most Epic Video Game Moments of 2015
Spoiler alert!
As 2015 draws to a close, we thought we'd look back on the moments that made our favorite video games of the year great.
From Bloodborne to Super Mario Maker, our standout moments ranged from exciting to sad, hilarious to downright scary. Read on for the most epic video game moments of 2015, but be warned... there are some major spoilers ahead!
Metal Gear Solid 5 - Escaping Sahelanthropus
Snake’s first encounter with Sahelanthropus, The Phantom Pain’s imposing bipedal tank developed by Huey Emmerich, occurs at the end of a long, grueling infiltration mission. Most games would have you go in guns blazing during a confrontation like this, but Metal Gear Solid isn’t most games. Instead, you’re left feeling small, vulnerable, and encumbered against this sinister new adversary, tasked with finding cover across Afghanistan’s rocky terrain to avoid its line of sight, and make it to the landing zone undetected. It’s a tense and terrifying sequence that makes your eventual final encounter with Sahelanthropus in a later mission that much more powerful. -Chloi
Destiny: The Taken King - When the Taken King Meets the Awoken Queen
Destiny: The Taken King was all about the ominous shadow on the horizon. The premise focused squarely on the inevitability of Oryx arriving to exact his horrific paternal vengeance. The build-up of Oryx’s terrible power was a thing of myth… until The Taken King met the Awoken Queen. The opening cinematic shows the epic moment when Oryx shrugs off Queen Mara Sov’s attacks, before leveling her entire armada, and his, in one blast of the Dreadnaught’s weapon. The destruction was so complete that it left a permanent hole in the rings of Saturn, and gave us the first taste of Oryx’s true power. -Brandin
Bloodborne - Beckoning the Blood Moon
Things aren’t exactly normal in Yharnam at the start of From Software’s twisted Souls follow-up, Bloodborne. While innocent townspeople take refuge indoors, all manner of half-men, half-beast, corrupt hunters, rabid dogs, werewolves, and deranged servants to the church run amok in the streets outside. It’s a bloody mess. But things don’t get really weird until you arrive in Byrgenwerth, take that leap of faith into the lake, and encounter your first Great One: Rom, the Vacuous Spider. Slaying Rom and her otherworldly spiderlings is a major turning point in the early hours of Bloodborne. You get your first glimpse of Yharnam, the Pthumerian Queen, the Blood Moon descends over the city, the Lesser Amygdala become tangible, and you realize for the first time the true weight of the cosmic horror hidden behind Bloodborne’s classically gothic facade. -Chloi
Halo 5: Guardians - Running down the Guardian
In Halo 5: Guardians' 13th mission, Genesis, Jameson Locke and Fireteam Osiris magnetize themselves to the body of a Guardian to keep from, well, plummeting to their doom on the planet below. What follows is an exhilarating sprint/fall down the body of a monolithic creature en route to the surface. It's a dizzying, brief bit of stunning spectacle and scale. It also shakes up the combat, giving you more room to pull of sweet headshots while airborne -- if you decide to fight at all, rather than blitzing by everyone on your way down. In a campaign that was mostly a letdown, this was an incredible, unforgettable moment that defined Halo 5's story. -Mitch
Fallout 4 - Fighting your first Death Claw
I knew that Fallout 4 was going to have power armor, and I knew it was going to have Deathclaws, but I didn’t expect the introduction of the two to come in barely an hour after the game started, and at the exact same time. Fallout 4’s Deathclaws are just as brutal, but significantly smarter than those in Fallout 3 – they strafe, and retreat, and seemingly hide on occasion, just to jump out again when it’s least convenient to you and start swiping at your back. Luckily, Fallout 4’s new power armor is the best equipped to deal with that, but maybe not entirely when you’re still getting used to the controls. You’re sitting on a roof, gloating about how easily you can mow down raiders, when a hulking deathclaw starts tearing up the street. It was an exciting, tense way to introduce both of those things, but also epic in how quickly it manages to remind you that, no matter how great your gear is, you’re never entirely safe in the Wasteland. Never get too cocky, Lone Wanderer. -Alanah
Tales from the Borderlands - Finger Gun Shootout
There are plenty of standout moments in Tales from the Borderlands, but the one to rule them all is the hilarious finger gun shootout from "Escape Plan Bravo." It starts with protagonist Rhys attempting to pass himself off as the president of Hyperion, which quickly escalates into a battle of opposable digits after angry employees confront "Vasquez" over an accounting issue. The unspoken agreement among the participants to treat the imaginary duel seriously is what makes this scene so great. The fire fight goes on until only the hero and a single oblivious janitor are left standing. It's definitely absurd, but the well-crafted choreography and sporadic commands that prompt you to react to increasingly ridiculous scenarios make this mission an absolute blast to play. -Meghan
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - The Bloody Baron
I don’t like The Witcher 3’s “Bloody” Baron. He’s coarse, brutish, weak-willed, and unable to keep his anger from hurting the people he loves. But it’s because of these flaws that he’s a believable character, and when he holds the twisted, writhing remains of the child he failed to protect from himself in his arms and recites an ancient rite in an attempt to lift its curse, something extraordinary happens: he shows true, unmistakable remorse for his actions. In a game filled with ancient race-wars, monstrous creatures, and enough blood and sex to fill a season of Game of Thrones, the most spectacular moment is a man realizing the weight of the unforgiveable things he’s done. -Vince
Mario Maker - Creating levels for our friends
Sometimes the most epic moments are the ones we create for ourselves. Few things were quite as satisfying this year as designing a marvelously obnoxious Mario Maker stage and then watching a friend try to cope with the abuse. Witnessing my friend Brian Altano wreaking vengeance on Jose Otero with his sadistic level designs had my laughing so hard I had to pause the video several times just to regain my composure. Watching their interactions inspired me to develop my own hell-in-the-clouds obstacle course for Daemon Hatfield, and seeing every insidious trap play out as he struggled through the gauntlet was one of the more rewarding experiences I’ve had with a game this year. I also found myself cheering inside as he adapted to every challenge, persevering through the onslaught and achieving a truly epic victory. -Jared
Call of Duty: Black Ops III - Trippy World War 2 sequence
Black Ops 3’s Demon Within mission continues the mind-bending aspects of the campaign with a trip into the nightmare world of soldier Sarah Hall. Inside Sarah’s mind, I had to fight my way through a World War II battle — the Siege of Bastogne — as the landscape changed and shifted Inception-style. It’s a fascinating sequence that harkens back to old Call of Duty campaigns, from World War II collectibles to taking down a German Tiger Tank. It’s also a critical point in unraveling the story, and seeing the darkest parts of Sarah’s mind was unforgettably impactful. -Kallie
Undertale - The Last Boss
No matter how you choose to play Undertale, the final fight will crush your heart and possibly leave you with nightmares. It depends on which ending you get, of course, but without too many spoilers, one of the concluding battles plays by its own rules in the most obscure ways and completely warps the structure of the typical boss fight. It's visually appalling and playing it feels impossible, but despite the utter insanity of it all, the final fight is awesome. -Miranda
These weren't the only awesome moments and amazing games 2015 had to offer, though. We weren’t able to cover them all, so don’t forget to share your most epic gaming moments from 2015 in the comments below.
Don't forget to also check out IGN's Best of 2015 nominations and put in your own vote for what made this year a great one for gaming.
Have a happy New Year!
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dimanche 27 décembre 2015
'Anti-Earthquake' Beds Swallow Sleepers Whole
Water and supplies included!
Imagine being woken up to an earthquake shaking everything around you, but to avoid any falling objects or debris, you lock yourself inside your earthquake-proof bed. How's that sound?
Well, Chinese inventor Wang Wenxi has designed such a bed with this exact purpose in mind. According to Gizmodo, Wenxi first received a patent for his creation back in 2010, but has been working on it over the years to provide more protection and to allow people to store any supplies/food they deem necessary.
There are several questions that need to be asked, however, such as how you trigger the bed to eat you. Or what if you don't sleep in the same position shown in the above video? What if you share the bed with someone else? The worst case scenarios have the potential to be very painful.
Furthermore, even before you're placed in a situation in which you may need to use the bed, how do you install it in your home? A bed built to protect people from any magnitude of earthquake could be expensive.
Of course, Wenxi's earthquake bed design isn't in production just yet, so there's still time to sort these issues out and, more importantly, to test them to see if they're truly safer for people. If proven so, it would certainly be a better alternative to simply hiding under the bed or in some other part of the house that wasn't made to withstand tremors.
Kyree is a freelance writer hoping he fits the role well. Follow and talk to him on Twitter @KyreeLeary.
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