Mass Effect 2 (2010)

Well I did promise my review of the worthy sequel to Mass Effect before long so here it is. What can I say about a game that is by many gamer’s standards one of the best computer games ever made. I suppose I could just agree and say well yep it pretty much is, this game is fucking awesome and like Mass Effect is one of the best computer games ever made. The same game engine was used though with significant updates which improve the quality of the graphics, improving the quality of the graphics over a game where they were already pretty much shit hot I might add. Once again Bioware hit the nail on the head with this one and it does in some ways feel like ‘The Empire Strikes Back’ of the Mass Effect saga. If the third instalment is to be ‘Return of the Jedi’ then hopefully it will round off this series of games with a suitably epic finale. I’m reserving judgment on that game and praying to the God I don’t believe in that they don’t fuck it up which seems from some of the chatter on the Internet to be a distinct possibility. But in comparing this instalment to ‘Empire’ I think I’m doing it justice because this game is much darker than the first. The main character dies at the beginning of the game only to be resurrected by the Nazis of the future and their xenophobic leader – the illusive man. Throughout the game, characters from the first instalment question your loyalties and motives whilst you serve the purposes of the sinister Cerberus organisation. But it seems no other organisation in the game will head Shepherd’s warnings leaving you with no other choice than to work for the bad guys. To this end you must assemble the meanest squad of assassins, convicts, lunatics, thieves and lowlifes the galaxy can muster and then attempt a suicide mission beyond a mass relay no one has before returned from.

So the only game I can really compare this one to is the first. Like the first, the graphics and score are amazing and add a deep overall atmosphere to the game. Combine this with the excellent scripting and voice acting which has 546 characters speaking 31,000 lines of dialogue or around 10,000 more than Mass Effect. You would expect a deeper and more complex plot than the first to unfold because of this, but paradoxically this doesn’t seem to be the case. This is probably my biggest gripe with the game – it doesn’t expand on the Mass Effect universe nearly as much as the first and this was a little disappointing. True we get to see things that were hinted at in the first game such as the war-torn Krogan homeworld and the Quarian Flotilla and these are things we really wanted to see but we are denied the deeply complex political intrigue of the first. I suspect that the third game is where this series will really shine because we’ll get to see all of the home worlds of the major races and this will in many ways complete the picture of the ME universe. This game did streamline the RPG mechanics considerably, in fact mostly to the point of just getting rid of them altogether. This does make the game easier to play but I think the cutbacks were a little excessive and some are likely to be reintroduced in the third. The main focus of the plot of this game is on the characters of the team you build and helping them all fix qualms in their lives before undertaking the suicide mission. Failure to complete their loyalty missions results in their deaths on the suicide mission, and failure to complete any of the the loyalty missions results in your own upon completing the game. This will probably make it a little weird in how your decisions are supposed to carry over to the third. Oh yes, forgot to mention that, all the decisions you make in the first game have an effect on the characters in this one. Some of the main decisions from the first have a serious effect on how aliens view humanity – such as whether you decided to save the council or not. Either way though the ruling council still wants nothing to do with you since you’re a member of Cerberus so it becomes obvious that the outcome of many decisions wont become obvious until the final chapter. And this is my ultimate gripe with this instalment, much of it felt unnecessary, you thwart a reaper plot but so what, they’ll be here en-masse in the third game, felt too much like a filler episode.

Ultimately though, these complaints are largely trivial. You still have a massive universe to explore and although the missions are linear, the order to approach them isn’t giving the game a hybrid sandbox feel. The vistas are impressive and for the most part superior to the excellent first. The same moral shades of grey in your decision making exists and the game is just as absorbing as its predecessor. Stars Martin Sheen, Carrie Anne-Moss, Tricia Helfer, Claudia Black and Adam Baldwin amongst others. An excellent and worthy sequel which I liked probably a little more than the first.

Twin Films–The Definitive List Part #5

The Day After (1983) Vs Threads (1984)

These two are quite possibly the earliest examples of twin films I have come across as it seems to be a phenomenon that didn’t really kick off until the late 80s. Both films are about communities dealing with the aftermath of a nuclear war and both were made around the same time comfortably qualifying them for twin film status. Now given the grim subject matter, you'd think you couldn't best the Day After which puts a pretty fine point on how fucked we'd all be but Threads somehow manages to be a notch darker still by pointing out how truly fucked we'd all be. It's been a long time since I've seen either but I remember the documentary style and general narrative of Threads being somewhat comparable to The War Game (1965) which was banned for 20 years. The Day After despite being dark didn't descend into the absolute hopelessness that Threads dared to portray, although everything was a mess - The Day After seemed to offer the hope that some form of civilisation could conceivably emerge from the chaos. Threads definitely did not offer this and the last scene of that film said it all really. I should also mention Testament (1983) which is another film released around the same time dealing with the same theme.

IMDB Rating: The Day After 6.9, Threads 8.0
Verdict: Pretty harrowing films on both counts given that this could realistically happen. Threads bests the Day After. Similarity Rating 8/10

Gone in 60 Seconds (2000) The Fast and the Furious (2001)

Perhaps I'm stretching it again with these two but they do have a very similar feel in a fast cars and nitrous oxide sort of way. Maybe they shouldn't qualify because Gone in 60 seconds is a remake and The Fast and The Furious came out over a year later. In any case I've decided to twin them because of the similarities - criminal gangs with supercars, police hot on their tails and at the end for one reason or another the police officer pursuing them decides to let the criminal go because of mixed loyalties. True the plots of these films aren't that much alike - in 60 Seconds the objective is to steal 50 cars in one night whilst in Fast and the Furious, the objective is for an undercover cop to infiltrate a gang of street racers who are suspected of stealing expensive electronic equipment. The common theme remains though - criminal gangs and fast cars.

IMDB Rating: Gone in 60 Seconds 6.1, The Fast and the Furious 6.1
Verdict: Think I preferred The Fast and the Furious more which may explain the soon to be 5 sequels. Similarity Rating 5/10.

No Strings Attached (2011) Vs Friends with Benefits (2011)

Two romantic comedies released relatively close together that both offer a commentary on the 'fuck buddy' theme and how it leads to complications. It's almost cliché so it's maybe not majorly surprising that films with this theme would turn up at some point, but weeks apart? Chic Geek will disagree with me here but Friends with Benefits has to be a better film because it stars Mila Kunis whilst No Strings Attached stars Natalie Portman. Sorry but there is no contest here, Mila Kunis is more attractive by a country mile and it therefore stands to reason that Friends with Benefits is a better film.

IMDB Rating: No Strings Attached 6.2, Friends with Benefits 6.8
Verdict: Even IMDB agrees with me. Similarity Rating 7/10

End of Days (1999) Vs Stigmata (1999)

Two films which dealt with Christian mythology and deeply religious themes released in the same year just months apart. One stars Arnold Schwarzenegger in a fist fight with Satan and the other features an atheist showing signs of the stigmata - both highly likely occurrences in my opinion. I watched Stigmata once at the cinema and End of Days in bits and pieces and didn't particularly enjoy either film. Both star Gabriel Bryne in a major role, so I'm guessing it must have been confusing when trying to remember his lines that year.

IMDB Rating: End of Days 5.5, Stigmata 6.1
Verdict: Stigmata I would say but neither is particularly great. Similarity rating 6/10.

1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992) and Christopher Columbus: The Discovery (1992)

It's not surprising that 2 films about Christopher Columbus were released in 1992, after all it was the 500 year anniversary of the voyage and movie studios naturally decided it was cash in time. So these films are really twins to the letter since they're both biopics about Columbus released at exactly the same time and are about the same voyage. Never seen either one but every list I've seen twins them. The Discovery stars Marlon Brando, Tom Selleck and a very young Catherine Zeta-Jones whilst Conquest of paradise stars Gérard Depardieu as Columbus and Sigourney Weaver as Queen Isabella. Whilst Discovery concentrates more on the voyage itself, 1492 deals with the effect the discovery of the new world had on the native Americans. 1492 also features a fantastic soundtrack by Vangelis who has a nasty habit of composing music that becomes far more memorable than the film it scores.

IMDB Rating: 1492: Conquest of Paradise 6.3, Christopher Columbus: The Discovery 4.4
Verdict: I'm gonna go with IMDB on this and say that 1492 is a reasonable film whilst Discovery is shocking. Similarity rating 8/10.

Madagascar (2005) and The Wild (2006)

Kids films frequently make this list much to my chagrin because I've never usually seen any of them. I think the chic geek should offer some input on these as he has children and has consequently been forced to endure watching films that no sane male would ever consider watching. 

So anyway both films star a troop of animals in a New York zoo that for one reason or another go to Africa  and find that the wild isn't all it's cracked up to be. They're both computer animated kids flicks, that's it. Twin films in every sense.

IMDB Rating: Madagascar 6.7, The Wild 5.3
Verdict: Madagascar is superior according to the consensus held by adults crazy enough to watch it. Similarity Rating 8/10

Capote (2005) Vs Infamous (2006)

Want to know how similar these two are? Consider this conversation that actually took place between screenwriter Douglas McGrath and film producer Bingham Ray regarding McGrath's screenplay for Infamous:
McGrath: Good news, I finished my script!
Ray: I know, I've got it on my desk!
McGrath: Uh, no you don’t, because I have it on my desk.
Ray: No, it's right here, Capote by Dan...
McGrath later commented “It’s very strange, I mean, generally I have my finger on whatever the opposite of the Zeitgeist is. What are the chances of two scripts about Truman Capote going out at the same time?” This would kind of lend credence to the idea that the collective unconscious stumbles across at least some of these ideas at the same time. Both films focus on the life on journalist Truman Capote who whilst researching his novel 'In Cold Blood' develops a friendship with one of the killers Perry Smith leading him to become conflicted in wanting execution for the prisoner - the only sort of closure which will do his book justice. It seems a little eerie that two films about a relatively obscure subject matter landed on Ray's desk at exactly the same time.

IMDB Rating: Capote 7.5, Infamous 7.1
Verdict: After 2 years of working on his script, McGrath has never seen the TOM (The Other Movie) which the voters on IMDB have rated as a slightly better film. I'd cry, I really would. Similarity Rating 9/10

The Cave (2005) Vs The Descent (2005)

What can be said about these, well both are horror films, both about a group of potholers exploring a cave system and both films feature monsters or flesh eating predators of some description, oh and both were released at the same time. Did I miss anything? Ok, so they were directed by completely different studios in completely different countries but the similarity of the plots might lead someone to believe that both films were working from the same brief. Neither film features anyone fantastically famous, the cave has Lena Headey who is vaguely noteworthy but from all counts is a terrible film. The Descent on the other hand is supposed to be a fairly decent horror film that is well worth watching. I've never seen either because horror films aren't really my cup of tea and tend to have a bore me to death kind of effect but I think given some of the reviews I've read, Descent might be worth a watch.

IMDB Rating: The Cave 4.8, The Descent 7.4
Verdict: The Descent has it. Similarity Rating 7/10

Jurassic Park (1993) Vs Carnosaur (1993)

I feel guilty listing these as twins because I feel that a twin film should be roughly equal in box-office stature or at least budgetarily comparable to its twin which is clearly not the case here. Both films are about the resurrection of dinosaurs from ancient DNA or in Carnosaur, a mishmash of the DNA of modern organisms to resurrect them which I suppose is vaguely plausible on some level. Jurassic Park was a critical and commercial success and one of the biggest blockbusters of all time, Carnosaur was none of these things. Jurassic Park starred Sam Neill (Awesome), Jeff Goldblum (Awesome) and was directed by Steven Spielberg (Douche) whilst Carnosaur had nothing comparable in terms of casting or directorship. Nevertheless I've twinned them because of the dinosaur resurrection theme.

IMDB Rating: Jurassic Park 7.9, Carnosaur 3.3
Verdict: Would probably be stating the obvious. Similarity Rating 5/10.

STILL MORE TO COME IN PART 6!

Pink Mountaintops - While you were dreaming

Twin Films: The Definitive List Part #4

It has occurred to me that a few more twin films have popped up on cinema screens in the last few months which has prompted me to write another article on the subject. There are also several more that I’ve been made aware of recently so it’s only fair that they too should make the list. Further explanations for this phenomenon include two studios wanting to capitalise on a current trend and word of mouth spreading to other studios about the plot of a film subsequently leading to a duplicate. So far in attempting to build a replete list of these films, there are more than a few which stretch the boundaries of what can be considered a little and also quite a few that I’ve never seen so can’t offer any kind of comment on how similar they might be unless they are obviously similar from the synopsis alone. I’m still in two minds over whether to include these in the list or just stick to the obvious ones.

Skyline (2010) Vs Battle: Los Angeles (2011)

Two films about aliens invading Los Angeles, both released within a year of each other, Hollywood surely not? Yep these two are twins, without a shadow of doubt. Both films are also repeatedly compared to video games, not only that but the same video games (Quake, Gears of War, Halo, Crysis etc) so I can only assume that was part of the twin films original brief that both scripts were based on. It’s difficult to know what else was in that brief since both films lack something often considered important in movies, a plot. In Battle: LA, we do have Aaron Eckhart’s chin which is good because I don’t think the human race would be safe without it. In Skyline, we have… some really famous people and a film which is undoubtedly one of the best films ever made, so much so that you should put your pristine movie reputation on it and tell us all that it’s going to be one of the best films ever. The major disparity between these two films is in the budget, Skyline had a budget of just $10 million whilst Battle: LA had a budget of $70 million and it really shows. In Skyline the digital effects are well done, but Battle: LA takes to computer gaming movie experience to a whole new level with the whole Cloverfield / Independence Day / Black Hawk Down hybrid thing that it had going for it.

IMDB Rating: Skyline 4.5, Battle: LA 5.9
Verdict: To get a film rated 4.5 on IMDB, you truly have to be an artist. Battle: LA for the win. Similarity Rating 8/10.

Melancholia (2011) Vs Another Earth (2011)

Well wouldn’t you know it, two invading planet films released just months apart. Eerie how similar the ideas that get made into movies at the same time are. So both films feature the sudden appearance of another planet right next to Earth and both are also used as a plot device in emotive family drama. I haven’t seen either film yet so can’t comment on the similarities beyond what I can garner from reading reviews and watching the trailers. But from all counts I think these two are correctly classified as twin films since the similarity of the concepts is very much in line with what you would expect. Beyond this though and from the reviews I’ve read, both films take their own very different philosophical routes with the ‘Nibiru’ concept given. Another Earth starts off with a sense of despair and builds to a hopeful ending whilst Melancholia takes the other road towards hopeless doom. Hopeless doom has to be for the win for sure and as I understand it DOOM is how the film ends and the director has made no secret of that fact. So aside from the films spinning off in different directions of their own, I’m reasonably sure that both will have their own charm and that in all likelihood I’ll enjoy both films. Melancholia has Kirsten Dunst which is automatically a win and big name stars such as John Hurt and Kiefer Sutherland which should drag in the numbers. Another Earth has unknown Brit Marling and William Mapother who played a character in Lost I really really hated but will probably nevertheless work its own magic on people.

IMDB Rating: Another Earth 6.9, Melancholia 7.9
Verdict: Too early to say, probably Melancholia is superior but Another Earth may have value of it’s own. Similarity Rating 8/10.

Entrapment (1999) Vs The Thomas Crown Affair (1999)

I just really never thought about these two films being twin films, never thought of them at the same time or in the same context until I came across an obscure site listing them as twin films. I’m still not 100% sure they should be listed as twin films but the similarities are obvious. Both films feature a master thief, both films also feature someone who is tasked with capturing that thief and in both films the person tasked with capturing that thief falls in love with said thief. Ah bollocks, ok they’re twins alright. So which is better? Well Zeta-Jones was the hot new commodity when Entrapment was first released but we never hear anything of her anymore. Rene Russo whilst no Zeta-Jones always makes a pretty good leading lady and has a decorous style of her own which very much compliments Pierce Brosnan’s Bond-esque debonair suave bastard billionaire playboy style. Sean Connery is amusing in Entrapment even if they did give him the most cliché name in the history of cinema, I mean Robert MacDougal lol. But really which is the better heist film? I’d have to say Entrapment just for the unrealistic antics around the Petronas towers. But which is the better film? Thomas Crown just because the story caught me more. Both films end in roughly the same place as well. Wonder how many more twins like this have slipped under the radar? Addendum: I’ve been told that these shouldn’t count because Thomas Crown is a remake but the similarities  between the two make me wonder if Entrapment isn’t also a loose remake. Possible?

IMDB Rating: Entrapment 6.1, The Thomas Crown Affair 6.7
Verdict: Entrapment is glitzier but Thomas Crown is a more down to earth, feel good affair which ultimately I preferred even over Catherine Zeta-Jones. Similarity rating 7/10

United 93 (2006) Vs World Trade Centre (2006)

2006 was the year Hollywood finally felt confident enough to approach 9/11 so it’s not surprising that a number of films about that came out this year. I’m not entirely sure they should be considered twin films but they obviously have a similar theme and were made by different studios, curiously enough around the same time. There is also another film in this mix – Flight 93 which from all counts is overly melodramatic and not a great film. I haven’t seen WTC so can’t offer an opinion on how good it might be, Hollywood has a tendency to overdo the melodrama sometimes, especially when a film is based on real life events and it’s not difficult to imagine that WTC might fall into this trap. United 93 refreshingly didn’t and was a well told recreation of the heroism and events that led to crash of flight 93, this film was especially gripping and has you rooting firmly for the passengers despite the fact you know what their ultimate fate is going to be.

IMDB Rating: United 93 7.8, World Trade Centre 6.1
Verdict: United 93 is an excellent film, doubtful that WTC is anywhere near as good based on IMDB ratings. Not really that similar but studios did release them around the same time. Similarity rating 5/10

Happy Feet (2005) Vs Surf’s Up (2007)

I find it cretinous having to include this on any list of films I write about but they are without dispute twin films, so like Finding Nemo, and Antz and a Bugs Life, I must include them if I am to do this list justice. So again not having seen either of these films, I promise you I haven’t! It’s difficult to really say how similar they are. Happy feet is about a penguin who can’t sing but can dance and Surf’s Up is about a penguin surfing championship. Both are animated feature films about penguins that were released around the same time consequently both are twin films. Happy Feet to its credit does seem to have some big names doing the voice acting including Elijah Wood, Brittany Murphy, Robin Williams, Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman and Hugo Weaving. Both films would also seem to be a cash in attempt on March of the Penguins which was released in 2005.

IMDB Rating: Happy Feet 6.6, Surf’s Up 6.9
Verdict:  Gotta be honest I don’t care although the ratings seem to suggest that Surf’s Up is slightly better. Similarity rating 7/10.

Green Street (2005) Vs Football Factory (2004)

I don’t know whether Green Street was an attempt to cash in on the success of the Football Factory or not. If it was, it wasn’t a very successful one. Although Green Street did pull in more cash than the Football Factory, it didn’t accomplish this feat by much. I’m not sure what the need was for two films about English football hooliganism and I’m not sure how the plot of Green Street even qualifies as remotely realistic. A Havard dropout joining the Chav underworld of football hooliganism. I mean you see some far fetched films come out of Hollywood about aliens and the end of the world but surely this is taking it too far? Also how the hell did such a low budget film as Green Street manage to get Elijah Wood in it? Elijah Wood and no-one else of note whatsoever. Both films also feature Millwall FC fans. Mysterious.

IMDB Rating: Football Factory 6.8, Green Street 7.5
Verdict: Green Street but Football Factory is a well made film as well. Similarity Rating 8/10.

Scary Movie (2000) Vs Shriek (2000)

I liked scary movie, it was a stupid but ultimately enjoyable film. It has to date spawned 3 sequels which were also insanely enjoyable in their own way. The fact I’ve never seen the film they were originally spoofing also doesn’t detract greatly from my general enjoyment of them since I pretty much get the idea. But really Scary Movie was hilarious – especially the scene where the serial killer gets stoned with his victims. It also features Anna Faris – the gorgeous dumb blonde who reminds me of someone who works at KFC. She seems to be pretty much typecast into this role which might explain her appearing in all of the three sequels and the fifth film which I believe is also on the cards. I’ve never seen Shriek and had previously believed it was a spoof of Scary movie – a spoof of a spoof before finding out that it was like Scary Movie, a spoof of Scream. This qualifies these films as twin movies since they were both released by different studios and are both parodies of the same original film. I’m not 100% confident as to how similar they actually are but I’m guessing pretty similar since I’ve seen them listed as twin films from other sources.

IMDB Rating: Scary Movie 6.0, Shriek 3.7
Verdict: Scary Movie by a country mile, any film which gets 3.7 on IMDB has to be truly shocking. Similarity rating 6/10.

Stir of Echoes (1999) Vs The Sixth Sense (1999)

Hadn’t really thought about these two as twins. Not entirely sure they qualify but people seem to draw a lot of parallels between the two, they were both released months apart and both feature a main character who can talk to the dead and must do so to solve a crime. I don’t remember Stir of Echoes spectacularly well since the last time I saw it was probably the year it came out, I watched it on a VHS rental from the shop, that’s how long ago it was. As I recall Kevin Bacon puts in a solid performance and the movie was really quite creepy. The Sixth Sense was the first time I watched it, similarly creepy and the twist ending was at the time something everyone raved about. It is also arguably the only decent film M. Night Shayamalan ever directed, took the box office to the cleaners and earned Shayamalan the coveted ‘Do what the fuck you like’ cheque which he subsequently bollocksed up with every film he made from that point onwards.

IMDB Rating: Stir of Echoes 7.0, The Sixth Sense 8.2
Verdict: Sixth Sense is better and had an original ending which has since been copied ad nauseum but Stir of Echoes is a gem of its own. Similarity rating 7/10.