# #+AUTHOR: Michał Sapka #+URL: https://michal.sapka.me/blog/ #+STARTUP: show2levels indent logdone #+HUGO_BASE_DIR: ~/sites/site-crys-brainrot/ #+HUGO_WEIGHT: auto #+HUGO_SECTION: * jBrain rot :@brainrot: :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot" :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-r img-c rating image :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :image_dir "screenshots" :image_max_width 765 :END: ** DONE Brain Rots CLOSED: [2024-05-24 Fri 16:22] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: brain-rot/_index :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: recent-updates menu all-content :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-fooo" :END: Hello. My name is Michał, and this website is dedicated to my reviews of books, movies, and games. I try not to spoil things, as why would you read a thing about a thing from me /instead/ of experiencing the thing? Instead the articles here show what I thought about a given piece, how I felt and if I think it's good. Enjoy! #+attr_shortcode: "brainrot" #+begin_recent-updates Latest: #+end_recent-updates *** Table of Contents #+attr_shortcode: "brain-rot" #+begin_menu Dune #+end_menu #+attr_shortcode: "brainrot" #+begin_all-content All Titles #+end_all-content ** Dune :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: american-scifi/dune :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: :primary_menu "brain-rot-dune" :END: *** DONE Dune: Part One (2021) CLOSED: [2024-04-13 Sat 21:33] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: part-one-2021 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My review of an adaptation of the first part of an amazing book :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-c :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-dune" :parent "denis-movies" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :aliases '(/brain-rot/dune/part-one-2021) :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 4.75 :END: I'd like to call myself a Dune fan, but I am not. I have finished my Dune adventure on /Heretics/ and only now am I planning to finish the saga[fn:witcher] Though, I think this still puts me well above most people calling themselves fans now. I loved eveything I've read, but I have never reached the end. /Dune: Part 1/ is the second movie based on the 1956 Frank Herbert's classic SciFi epic. Well, it is not. It is the third attempt to show the first half of the book. There was the David Lynch verion (which I adore) and there was a TV Series. There were also games, but only two of those have any resemblance to the plot of the book. So yeah, Dune was considered impossible to transfer to any other medium. Sadly, I still have to agree. I think everybody (and their dogs) know what /Dune/ is about but: /Dune/ is a story of distant future, where all powerful houses rule the known universe. The technological progress was halted thousands of years ago, after a thinking machines raged a war against humanity. After their defeat it was forbidden to create such machines. Arrakis (aka Dune) is a sand planet, the only known source of /Spice/ - a narcotic allowing humans to traverse time, and therefore spaceflight. Spaceships are operated by mutated humans, who after exposure to Spice can see into the future and steer the ships. Now, the Emperor orders the control of the planet to be shifted to th House of Atreides. The previous stewards, House of Harkonen will not make it any easier. Ignoring the mutants, this sounds like a run-of-the-mill SF series. But /Dune/ It is also story of social engineering spanning millennia, of false prophets, and a million other crazy things. The first book keeps it /almost/ sane, but there is a significant dictionary attached, and the first time reader will need to use it extensively. Later the saga goes completely off the rails. We'll get back to this. Note, that /Frank Herbert/ wrote only the first few books. After his death, his son - /Brian Herbet/ took over and wrote dozens of other ones. The quality differs significantly, as I've been told. I've read the /Houses/ trilogy, and it was quite nice. Now that we've got the introduction out of the way, let's go to the movie. Let me start with saying that I adore it. It's not what I'd want (as the young vloggers say "hear me out face value it's as close to perfect SF movie as they go. /Dune: Part 1/ is directed by Denis Vileneuve, who previously directed some of the greatest SF movies of this century - /Arrival/ and /Blade Runner 2049/. His other movies are also amazing (I can't recommend /Enemy/ enough), so I was pretty stoked when it was announced that he will direct /Dune/. I am no longer a movie buff[fn:critic], but he may very well be my favorite living director. Technically, I can not find any fault with the movie. The story makes sense (I'll return to Lynch in a second), which by itself is an achievement. The acting is superb, and works as a reminder that TV series are still not on the level of the greatest movies. The special effects are astounding[fn:ornitopter]. The music is, for the most part, at least great. I hated the main theme with screaming lady. Music is supposed to work with the movie, not to hide it with loud noises! But that's the only thing I disliked. #+attr_shortcode: "dune-part1-001.webp" "https://movie-screencaps.com/dune-2021/" #+begin_img-c Jessicas portrayal is amazing. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "dune-part1-002.webp" "https://movie-screencaps.com/dune-2021/" #+begin_img-c ALL costumes are amazing #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "dune-part1-003.webp" "https://movie-screencaps.com/dune-2021/" #+begin_img-c CGI is amazing. The movie looks amazing. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "dune-part1-004.webp" "https://movie-screencaps.com/dune-2021/" #+begin_img-c Have mentioned how amazing this movie looks? #+end_img-c I loved the tempo of this movie, as I never enjoyed action-packed shoot fests of the /other franchise dominating cinema for decades/. Everything is slow - the actors speak slowly, the scene have time to breath, the camera is moving on a low gear. Even things fall down slowly! This adds an amazing dream-like feeling to most scenes. Sometimes I felt like I'm watching a /Tarkovsky/ movie and not a big budget Hollywood blockbuster. And this the greatest and worst thing here. It's meditative. You feel like yoy are in a trance. You fully buy accept you see here. But the world of Dune is weird. It is full of things that make you go "huh?". It has mutants who traverse time, but it also got mutants who are computers. There are reanimated corpses, living furniture, hollow planets, vision quests. Denis omitted everything that was not essential to the plot, and what he left, he grounded in reality by omitting the /wtf/. There are not even the crazy names! Some strange things he left, but they are shown without explanation. It's just there, without any context. But, to be fair - context would only add confusion. But this is where /Lynchs/ version shines. It makes little sense, it is rushed - sure. But it conveys how twisted the world is. It's not a trace, it's a full on narcotic trip straight out of some hippie story. And this is why I don't think that this movie is a /great/ adaptation of Dune. It is a /great/ movie on its own. It perfectly adapts the adaptable and pretends that there is nothing else. It makes /Dune: Part 1/ the hit that it is, and it allowed us to get /Part 2/. But since making this move appeal to mass audience is not my problem, I'd like to see the full picture. It'd also like to see the world less cold. The architecture is devoid of heart, it's brutalistic. It looks amazing (I think I mentioned that), but the crazy colors and abstract layouts we see in Lynch version is something else. It's a Vileneuve style. It looks exactly like his previous movies - it's controlled, clean, /cold/. As much as I loved it in his other works, I'm not sure if it fits the degenerate houses we meet. But that's just me. As it stands, this is a groundbreaking movie which makes me want more. Not only more of /Dune/ but more of serious, intelligent SciFi movies. We had those and may get more! It's better in any conceivable way compared to all previous attempts at adapting the source material, and I think all my nitpicks are kina moot. It fits 2024 esthetic and it's crazy intelligent. Highest recommendation from me. 4.75/4 And, hey! Sardukars no longer look like welders! [fn:witcher] Right after finishing the Witcher saga. [fn:critic] not to brag, but I was a semiprofessional film critic during college years. I had a press pass and all! [fn:ornitopter] Ornititopthers look just like in the /Dune/ game! This strangely works with how believable everything is. All flying ships have this strange physics, which I have hard time explaining. They are not like you X-Wings, but they fit the world. *** DONE Dune: Part Two (2024) CLOSED: [2024-04-16 Tue 16:44] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: part-two-2024 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My review of an adaptation of the second part of an amazing book :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-c :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-dune" :parent "denis-movies" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :aliases '(/brain-rot/dune/part-two-2024) :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 4.75 :END: It's here, it's finally here. /Dune/ joins the very small club of SciFi books with amazing adaptations. When /Part One/ hit the screens, people were amazed that it was so good. Now, with /Part Two/, we hear that it's even better than the first one! But I was very skeptical. The trailers seemed to indicate a train wreck. They were full of explosions, angry screaming guys and the taglines about war. Dune was never /about/ war. War was in there, but it was never the point. But cinema, SciFi especially, loves special effects, and big-booms are amongst the most used. I dislike a lot of SciFi movies from the USA, as the (so called) spectacle is all there is[fn:iron]. But what the hell, I chose an IMAX experience nevertheless. The first /Dune/ was breathtaking, so why not? And then the movie started, and my worries were replaced with anger. What the hell is this? Soldier banter? Puppy-eyes? Joking? It's a SciFi war movie. There are preparing for the /specle/ /Dirty Fremen Dozen/! /Independence Day of Arrakis/! #+attr_shortcode: "dune-part2-001.jpg" #+begin_img-c Arrakis 90210 #+end_img-c But, just as the action moved to Giedi Prime, the movie completely transformed. What was mediocre, became absolutely marvelous! Now, after seeing and rethinking the movie, it makes sense. It's a not /sequel/ to /Dune/, but /part two/. It doesn't start in act 1, as that was in the last movie. The first chunk of this movie is a cool-down after the ending in of /Part One/. Both /Dune/ movies should be treated as one long movie. Much more than Kill Bill, as we have no clear /ending/ between the two. /Part One/ ends with finishing of the Harkonen attack plot, which only ignites events of this movie. And looking at it as one one big movie, I have to say: wow! They made some changes to Herbert's text, but I like them. Fremen are no longer a singular force that Paul uses. The movie version of them is divided, having different cultures. Maybe it's too black and white, but it's a nice change. Similarly, Chani become a multidimensional character. And while yes, Jessicas portrayal makes Chanis character shine much less, it's still a great change. But the way Rebecca Ferguson plays Jessica is nothing short of wonder. She starts scared, but loyal to both, Paul and Bene Gesserit. After becoming the reverent mother however she becomes menacing. With this comes another change - Alia is not born here. She is talking with her mother telepathically, but at the end of the movie she is still to be born[fn:prochoice]. That's a dangerous change, but it works perfectly because the tone Jessica uses when talking with her - calm, silent, almost a whisper, yet still menacing. I can not stress it enough - Rebecca is perfect here. But the biggest change is the introduction of scenes from /Dune Messiah/. You see, /Dune/ was often seen as a savior story. Paul was to be the good guy, who comes and saves the day. This is as far from what Frank Herbert envisioned as possible, so he wrote a short sequel book. This movie vision introduces plot points and scenes taken directly from that book, so the meaning behing the story is much more obvious. I think it's a good change, as we already see folks arguing against /Dune/ due to this misconception. This way it defends itself. #+attr_shortcode: "dune-part2-002.jpg" #+begin_img-c Jessica in all of her glory #+end_img-c Luckily, this movie is much weirder than /Part One/. While last time Dennis omitted a lot, here he shows more /things/[fn:chairdog], but still there is no context. We see the finger of the Baron, but we never learn what actually is there. It comes as an Easter Egg for old time fans, which is nice as it takes nothing from the story. But then there is Geidi Prime which is monochromatic, empty and cold - in the scariest way. I'd love to see more of this side the world, but we got it spot on. And Fayd? Where Lynch gave us half-naked Sting, Austin Butler is a psychopath. This is the Beast we all deserve! This is the stuff nightmares are made of. I am happy to report that this is not a war movie. It's /Dune/ full of plots within plots, mysticism and (lastly) war. Unfortunately, once again I am not happy with the music. While most of the tracks are good (or great), the main theme is even worse than last time. It's now layered over a lot more noise, making it this much more annoying. It decreased my enjoyment of many of the greatest scenes. Luckily, there is also new theme so this screaming woman may not follow us into the third movie. So, /Dune Part II/ is an excellent movie, but /Dune/ the complete story is a marvel. It's the greatest thing I've seen in American SciFi in a very long time. It's what it should be. While not flawless, it's as close to what I'd imagine as a /perfect/ /Dune/ as it comes. The movie gets a 4.75 from me (same as the first one), but looking at both /Dunes/ as a single movie? Then it goes to a 5. I don't think we will get anywhere close to this level of quality anytime soon. What /Baldurs Gate III/ made for cRPG, /Dune/ makes to /SciFi cinema/. And, I love that Christofer Walken is once again in the Dune universe. He warned us about the Worm years ago. #+attr_shortcode: "dune-part2-003.webp" #+begin_img-c Fayd in all of his glory #+end_img-c [fn:iron] I still remember how bored I was when I watched /Iron Man 3/. The last decade of the movie runtime was filled with a non-stop battle. The movie stopped and all was left was CGI. [fn:chairdog] No chairdogs though [fn:prochoice] Kinda fitting. /Arrival/ had a very similar take on what a human is. ** ** Patlabor :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: anime/patlabor :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: :primary_menu "brain-rot-patlabor" :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-patlabor" :END: *** DONE Mobile Police Patlabor: The Early Days (1989) CLOSED: [2024-05-06 Mon 22:38] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: mobile-police-patlabor-the-early-days :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My review of the OAV :EXPORT_HUGO_WEIGHT: 10 :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU_OVERRIDE: :post " OAV series" :parent "mtimeline" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 3.75 :END: /Mobile Police Patlabor/ is a 7 episodes long OAV series which serves as an introduction to the more widely known movies. The subtitle (/The Early Days/) says it all, as it depicts the humble beginnings of Special Vehicles Unit 2 (SV2), which we will follow in the later installments. Think: the first few episodes of /The Wire/. We see how they are preparing their base of operation, how they receive their Labors, and so on. And that's pretty much all that's here. No grand ideas (like in /Movie Two/), not even an attempt at those. All we see is how the Unit starts and their first few cases. It's only this, but it never sets up itself to be anything more. Not everything needs to be full of difficult questions and even harder answers. /Early Days/ on its own is cool if you're deeply into Mecha, but I am not. For me, this OAV is /only/ an addition to the Movies. But it changed how I look at the first movie. I was not sure what it actually was all about. Was it pro-technology? Was it a warning? Well, the opening here is a love song sung by one of the pilots towards her Patlabor (named Alfons). Yep, it seems Patlabor was techno-fetishist all along. Nothing here prepares us for /Movie 2/, but it makes the first movie better. #+attr_shortcode: 3.75 "patlabor-early-days.jpg" #+begin_rating Cover #+end_rating The seven episodes here are, in order: - the start of SV2, and we get to know Noa (who is one of the main characters in /Movie 1/), - mission to protect the mayor, - underwater monster story (sic!), - hostage situation, - ghost story (sic! again) while the unit is on vacation (with mandatory hot spring scenes), - the plot of second movie, but without the smart parts, - a long chase scene. It's all light-hearted and more often than not a bit goofy. Technically, this is a very pretty anime, The movies follow the style we see here, with bigger budgets though. But what we see here is a great, old-school animation. OAVs tend to look better than TV series, and this one is no exception. My gripes with the OAV are more with my expectations than with the /Early Days/ themselves. It fulfills its aspiration to be a nice, short series. Nothing here even points towards bigger ambitions. But I saw it after /Palabor 2: Movie/ which was intelligent up to a fault. And even though I deeply enjoyed every minute, it's not what I came for. So, if you liked /Movie 1/ and want more - sure, this series gets my thumbs up (and therefore rating). But if the /Movie 2/ floored you but left hungry, don't expect this series to come anywhere that level of ambition nor quality. #+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-early-days-1.jpg" "https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0160423/mediaviewer/rm3156868353/" #+begin_img-c We've got regular mecha fights! #+end_img-c *** DONE Patlabor: The Movie (1989) CLOSED: [2024-04-11 Thu 21:01] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: patlabor-the-movie :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract The proto-GITS is still very nice! :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :aliases '(/blog/patlabor-the-movie //brain-rot/patlabor/patlabor-the-movie //brain-rot/anime/patlabor-the-movie/) :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU_OVERRIDE: :parent "mtimeline" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 3.75 :END: There was a time when /Patlabor/ was an established name. It was huge, it had /Mamoru Oshii/.Now, sadly, it's mostly forgotten. /Patlabor: The Movie/ is the first from the universe. I'll cover the following two soon, as thiis is my rewatch after decades. #+attr_shortcode: 3.75 "patlabor-1-movie.jpg" #+begin_rating Cover #+end_rating The story takes place in the distant future of 1999. Manual labor is aided by Labors, huge exoskeletons. Tokyo is undergoing a huge project, where old suburbs are demolished and artificial island are created on the coast. Some Labors are going berserk, destroying everything on their paths despite being unmanned. Let's start with the visual feast. The movie looks stunning! Yes, later movies from IG top what we see here, and sometimes the faces may look weird. It's not perfect. But if we would simply tell ourselves that this style of animations is the peak and let's just try to maintain the quality, I'd be more than happy. The way this 35-year-old movie looks is a testament to the power of manual drawings. The design, the camera work, the coloring - I loved every second. Another cute thing I've noticed: /The Movie/ is an Oshii-type of movie. It came in this short period, where /anime/ was treating western culture as something alien and cool. We're seeing this in Jin-Roh, Evangelion, GITS, and many others. Here we've got the Bible. But this also shows the biggest problem of /Patlabor: The Movie/: it is shallow. On surface level, we've got everything one could ever want: Unabomber-style genius on a quest to stop progress at all cost. We're seeing how /old/ is discarded in the name of progress. We've also got a huge computer system which is maintained without deep understanding of how it works. Basically, 1999 is like 2024. But none of this is really developed. The main characters never stop and think, that maybe the world is not going the best route? Eiichi Hoba, the aforementioned Unabomber, is just a plot device: the viewer is also never confronted with his viewpoint. As it stands, /The Movie's/ story is disjointed: on one side we've got the real and interesting question. On the other, no one looks for answers and just accepts the risks of unconstrained growth. But maybe this was the point? We're seeing the same today: the world is ending, and most people are racing to be the last one to shut down the lights. It is scary how believable this is. Even the main threat is solved by a software rollback... /Patlabor: The Movie/ is good on its own, but it suffers from being the proto Ghost in the Shell. It's not near as good, nor is it as good as its sequel. But taking it at face value is really solid. I had huge fun rewatching it, but left unsatisfied for sophisticated sociopsychological treat Oshii is known for. My rating is 3.75/5 #+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-movie-1-0001.jpg" #+begin_img-c Sucide is painless... #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-movie-1-0002.jpg" #+begin_img-c ...It brings on many changes #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-movie-1-0003.jpg" #+begin_img-c For a mecha anime, we've got a lot of people talking in different rooms #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-movie-1-0004.jpg" #+begin_img-c Hav I mentioned thast this movie looks stunning? #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-movie-1-0005.jpg" #+begin_img-c S-T-U-N-N-I-N-G #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-movie-1-0006.jpg" #+begin_img-c It always amazes me how many anime shows older guys in their undergarments. I get, that Japan gets extremely hot during summer, but is it real that frequent? #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-movie-1-0008.jpg" #+begin_img-c One of many GITS-style scenes. #+end_img-c *** DONE Patlabor 2: The Movie (1993) CLOSED: [2024-04-26 Fri 22:08] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: patlabor-2-the-movie :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My review of a masterpiece :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU_OVERRIDE: :parent "mtimeline" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 5 :END: Ok, this one is a difficult movie to write about. For a /gajin/ it may come as a visually beautiful, but very convoluted movie. But inside, it's deeply rooted in Japan's history and one needs to understand a few facts before truly appreciating it. So, before talking about the movie, allow me to take a brief jump into history territory. #+attr_shortcode: 5 "patlabor-2-movie.jpg" #+begin_rating Cover #+end_rating After loosing World War II, Japan was under the USA's occupation. Their post-war constitution ha a very important "Article 9" under which Japan was allowed to have defense military force, but it was to be never deployed on foreign soil. After few changes, the defense force became Japanese Self-Defense Force, the /JSDF/. Decades pass and the population kind of forgot about the WWII. Mind you, Nagasaki and Hiroshima lives in their mindset, but war becomes something that was in the past. In June 1992, the National Diet passed a UN Peacekeeping Cooperation Law which permitted the JSDF to participate in UN medicalonal Diet passed a UN Peacekeeping Cooperation Law which permitted the JSDF to participate in UN medical, refugee repatriation, logistical support, infrastructural reconstruction, election-monitoring, and policing operations under strictly limited conditions[fn:wiki]. Amongst part of Japanese population it was seen as a dangerous precedence. JSDF was, in fact, deployed on foreign soil. Both creators of /Patlbor/, Mamoru Oshii and Kazunori Itō were vocal opponents of this decision. /Patlabor 2: The Movie/ should be seen as their manifesto. So, knowing this I have to say: /Patlabor 2: The Movie/ is amongst the greatest movies I've ever seen. I always say that for me, SciFi for SciFi sake is boring; it can be elevated by using the setting as a mean to tell a human story. What's more, I like SciFi movies that are not action-fests. And for both of those measures /Patlabor 2: The Movie/ *excels* all expectations. It is also a huge step-up from /Patlabor: The Movie/. While that one had huge potential, but came out lacking in both, substance and form, the /2/ is a gigantic step. There were only 4 years between release dates, but I am floored. Ok, back to the movie itself. It's 2002, 3 years after the events of /Patlabor: The Movie/. Yokohama Bay Bridge is destroyed by a missile shot from a variation of F-16 Fighter. JASDF (Japan Air Self-Defense Force) is blamed for the attack, and a result JSDF is ready to deploy forces all over Tokyo. Japan is close to martial law. #+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-2-movie-0001.jpg" #+begin_img-c Don't get used to the old main characters. They are barerly here. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-2-movie-0002.jpg" #+begin_img-c Even the trickiest of perspectives are spot on. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-2-movie-0003.jpg" #+begin_img-c Not much for mecha fans, but quite a lot for aviation fans. #+end_img-c One thing to get straight of the way: there's not much of Labors here to be seen. I think there are more shots of fighters and tanks, than there are of the mechs. This /not/ a mecha anime even though it is set in a mecha world. It's also not an action movie, as most of the scenes are two/three people talking. /P2TM/ requires significant attention, as it's all about those dialogues. The message is more said than shown and it may be not to your liking. Anime is mostly known for imaginative fight scenes and fan service. This not that kind of movie. It's slow and methodical. But there are action scenes, and they are glorious. /PTM/ was looking great; /P2TM/ sets incredible standards that are often unmatched even today. I found it interesting, that the first portion of the movie uses very small color palette - everything is overblown, like in full sun, or lighted by fluorescent lamp. People look more like cyborgs than living things. Then, when authors start conveying their message, it all changes - the palette broadens and characters even get some tam. Subtle and effective. The city look incredible, the machines look amazing and characters no longer have perspective problems (like they had in /PTM/). Overall, the presentation is perfect. Unfortunately the style here seems mostly abandoned. It's /distinctly/ Oshii and /Production IG/. Anime no longer looks like this movie. The only nitpick I can find when it comes to the visual aspect is that in a few scenes the snow looks bad. That's all. #+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-2-movie-0004.jpg" #+begin_img-c This made me feel things. I'd give a lot for such audio setup. It even has a great CD transport! #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-2-movie-0005.jpg" #+begin_img-c Basset, reporting in. #+end_img-c The music is great. It's not /Ghost in the Shell/ but Kenji Kawaii is a master of his craft. The only negative I can find is the main villain. He is absent from most of his movie and his motivations are hidden until the very last few scenes. His work is ever-present, but he is not here... which is fitting. Oshii said that the "evil" character here is himself. Everything the villain say is what the director thinks. /Patlabor 2: The Movie/ is a masterpiece. Oshii is one of the most brilliant directors in history, and this movie is one of his magnum opuses[fn:osh]. It's not only something *every* fan of anime should watch but everyone who enjoys cinematography. It's smart, beautiful and haunting. It is also a very strong anti-war manifest. It dares to put a mirror in front of our faces and /as of this/ type of movie, I fail to find any real flaw. #+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-2-movie-0006.jpg" #+begin_img-c There's some eye candy here. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "patlabor-2-movie-0007.jpg" #+begin_img-c It's not there are no mechs here. They are, in very small doses. #+end_img-c [fn:wiki] Source: [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan_Self-Defense_Forces#Peacekeeping][Wikipedia]] [fn:osh] How many directors have achiever greatness on a few occasions? Oshii certainly did! ** Persona :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: modern-games/persona :END: *** DONE Persona 5: Strikers (2020) CLOSED: [2024-03-08 Fri 21:24] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: persona-5-strikers :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract A short review of SciFi classic :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-c :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-modern-games" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :aliases '(/blog/2024/persona-5-strikers/ /brain-rot/persona/persona-5-strikers/) :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 2 :END: /Persona 5/ took me close to a year... I think. It was a gigantic game with unbelievable amount of dialogue. It was also game I deeply enjoyed, despite not particularly liking anything about. The story was ok, the gameplay was ok, the RPG element was ok, the dating was ok. But, somehow, authors managed to join that into one freaking nice experience. /Persona 5: Strikers/ is none of those things. It's a linear button masher with characters I like. But it has /none/ of the good elements of /P5/. First, it's not an jRPG anymore. When fight starts, you are presented with dozens of enemies you need to fight in real time. Half of the time, I had no idea what was going on. Fights, for me, are terrible. Enemies were everywhere, and I had no /chance/ to control the battlefield. Lots of annoyances and finger pain, but no enjoyment. Just running into random spots, bashing melee attacks and checking for weakness from time to time. I play on easy and was tired of that very quickly, I can't imagine having any actual problems with this system you have no enjoyment with. #+attr_shortcode: "p5s-1.jpg" "https://nintendoeverything.com/persona-5-scramble-the-phantom-strikers-boxart-details-screenshots/" #+begin_img-c Guess the only way here is to shut my brain down, as it's useless in all this chaos. #+end_img-c The real-world activities are almost none-existent. I loved how the Phantom Thieves bonded and became friends. None of this here. You've got some dialogue, but no payoff. There is some stat related to bonding, but we all know each other. In P5 the single best part was learning about each other and seeing how their lives improve. None of that is here. Dating? None. And my chosen love interest from /P5/ doesn't even show up! Extracurricular activities are limited to finding stuff on maps. Getting to know Tokyo? Nope. Every few hours we move to a new city. Story? Well, I gave up before it started. After 10 hours, midway through the third jail I gave up. I had to guard Futaba /again/ and after a moment became so frustrated and bored, that I stopped playing. I give 2/5 for those 10 hours. Maybe it gets better later on, but I don't care enough. I dropped the game and will never return. ** Lawnmower Man :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: american-scifi/lawnmower-man :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-ascifi" :parent "lawnmower-man" :END: *** DONE Lawmower Man 2: Beyond Cyberspace (1996) CLOSED: [2024-02-23 Fri 20:29] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: lawmower-man-2-1996 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My mirco reviview of the sequeo to a vr killer thriller :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-c :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :aliases '(/blog/2024/lawmower-man-2-1996// brain-rot/lawnmower-man/lawmower-man-2-1996/) :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 3.75 :END: Fun fact: I remembered close to nothing about this movie back. When I was watching the first, everything seems familiar. Here? Not so much. Guess /Polsat/ consider the second one too expensive for regular broadcast. In /Lawnmawer Man[fn:reviewlm]/ we meet Jobe, now a genius being living in the cyberspace. But not so much, because in the first few minutes of /Lawmnower Man 2/ we learn that he has not left his meatsuit for the cyberspace. The explosion at the lab left him an amputee. But his talents are now in use of the Evil Corporation designing the future of cyberspace. Of course, Jobe wants the cyberspace for himself. The general plot seems similar to the first one, but they are very much different. The plot is much more complex, there are many more explosions and I think it makes much less sense than the first one. I would rate it at 2/5. But the biggest difference is that this movie is target towards certain audience. /Lawmower Man/ was a kid-friendly horror. /Lawmower Man 2/ is a kids' movie. They completely removed the part which tried to be scary. We've got bunch od kids (and a dog) fighting and winning against a grown-up. Yes, they get the help from an adult - the creator of cyberspace. But the main heroes are the kids. And the main target are the kids. #+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0002.jpg" #+begin_img-c Kids flying in cyberspace #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0012.jpg" #+begin_img-c And flying even more. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0003.jpg" #+begin_img-c Dog preparing to save a day... #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0004.jpg" #+begin_img-c And saving the day by inserting a CD in the drive. How can anyone consider this to be a movie for adoults? #+end_img-c I've read that the director was locked out of the editing room as he was trying to make a different movie. The producers said a firm "no" and made /Lawmower Man 2/ close to the likes of /Goonies/, /Explorers/ or /Flight of the Navigator/. It never reaches the coolness of those, but it tries. A lot of people on the interweb bash the movie on logical problems or being goofy. Yes - occasionally the plot makes so little sense that they needed to add voice over explaining why the hell the /gang/ is going where they are going. Yes, it has a dog who saves the day. 38 years old me was not amused, but the 10-year-old inside me screamed "yeah! Radical!". He was not doing well with being /modern/ back then as well. #+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0005.jpg" #+begin_img-c Her hair is the closest thing to a "scare" in the entire movie #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0006.jpg" #+begin_img-c This hippie is the inventor of VR. Tech geniuses leaving all the tech behind to live in the wild is now more real than ever #+end_img-c Jobe is being played by Matt Frewer, who quite often acts like Jim Carey, which is fitting. He is not the magical-killer he used to be. He is goofy. Even the music sounds like something Spielberg would use. There is no Pierce Brosnan here, as only Austin O'Brien returns from the first one, once again reprising the role of Peter Parkette. My biggest gripe is the special effect here. The movie takes place in the future, so we're no longer seeing green grass. The real world vibe is close to /Blade Runner/ or /Dark City/. I dig it! #+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0001.jpg" #+begin_img-c Cyberpunk! I'm pretty sure that almost all those scenes happened on the same crossroad. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0011.jpg" #+begin_img-c Almost Blade Runner. #+end_img-c But then there is the /cyberspace/. In /Lawmower Man/ we had amazing, early CGI closer to an acid trip than anything else. Here, the cyberspace looks like ours. They just added CGI here and there. It looks like an episode of /The Next Generation/, but without most of the campiness. For the most part it is competent, but there is no spark. It's not /cool/. #+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0010.jpg" #+begin_img-c Our first meeting with new Jobe in the cyberspace. Yes, this is VR-forest. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0007.jpg" #+begin_img-c Cyberspace here give more of FMV-game kind of vibe than I would have expected #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0008.jpg" #+begin_img-c The VR here more social than what Apple showed. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-2-1996-0009.jpg" #+begin_img-c Luckily, sometimes the VR almost delivers. #+end_img-c But the 10-year-old me would not care. He would rate it as 3.75/5 or "that was cool!". But he he wasn't picky at all. [fn:reviewlm] Vide: [[/blog/2024/lawmower-man-1229/][my review of Lawmower Man]]. *** DONE Lawnmower Man (1992) CLOSED: [2024-02-19 Mon 23:03] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: lawmower-man-1992 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My mirco reviview of a vr killer thriller :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-c :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :aliases '(/blog/2024/lawmower-man-1992/ brain-rot/lawnmower-man/lawmower-man-1992/) :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 3.0 :END: Back in the glorious 90s, when kids still enjoyed linear TV, we had /Polsat/. In the post-communist Poland, this was the first /western/ TV station. Filled with western movies, and western series[fn:series] Among those, there were constant replays of /The Lawnmower Man/[fn:trans] I watched it on every occasion and loved it. Now, 30 years later it is time for a rewatch. No cyberpunk deep dive can be considered a good one without /The Lawnmower Man/. /The Lawnmower Man/ is a movie about a disabled lawnmower man, Jobe, who, with the usage of virtual reality, becomes a genius. Soon after, an Evil Company, stars secretly giving him drugs contracted by the military. And as result, he starts exhibiting mind reading abilities and telekinesis (because, obviously, why not?). We've got the (popular at the time) subtext about the dangers of corporates who, without supervision, play God. Somehow we stopped doing that, and now we've got Altman killing humanity with the clap of happy crowd. /Lawmower Man/ is a movie about a great technology twisted by corporate overlords. Fitting. Jobe becomes a psychic, genius killer (like every mad genius), who decides to take over the cyberspace. #+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-1992-0001.jpg" #+begin_img-c Remember when huge companies were scary? #+end_img-c The movie was initially released as a /Stephen King/ movie. King, however, sued the producers, as the movie has nothing to do the short story of the same name. And he won, because it was based on original script called /CyberGod/. Damn, I miss /cyber/ sounding cool. They should have the original name, instead of forcing King on everyone. And yes, I know King was the king back then. #+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-1992-0002.jpg" #+begin_img-c That's one way to save your neck from Apple Vision #+end_img-c The movie is we have here is a much dumbed down version of /Flowers for Algeron/, which I intend to finally read. I don't think anyone ever called it a /good/ movie, and for a good reason. It's cool, it's got great cyberspace CGI, it's got Pierce Brosnan. It also has an opening scene with a monkey using a gun, so yeah. Story-wise is as straight forward as it gets. The first half is full of sweet shots of grass and sexualization of a lawnmower. And the most awkward sex scene I've seen in ages... or two. Then, through a heavy-handed comment about religion and corporations we go the killing part. This movie fails as horror (there is not even blood or any scare here), and fails as morality play (it's not smart enough). But it is a testament to the glorious time, when /cyberspace/ was magical and full of potential. We sure deserve more of that. #+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-1992-0006.jpg" #+begin_img-c The cyberspace we all need. #+end_img-c I give it a 3.0/5. I was *sure* the ending of this film was from the sequel. But nope - I don't remember anything from the second one. Therefore, see you on the other side, /Beyond Cyberspace/. If anything, it's a great movie to show everyone how amazing trackballs are. And we all know it is a fact. No one can tell me otherwise. #+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-1992-0004.jpg" #+begin_img-c The hidden star of the movie, right behind that hairy guy. Look at that keyboard! Look at how beige it is! #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "lawnmower-man-1992-0005.jpg" #+begin_img-c Cyber God indeed. #+end_img-c [fn:series] And Polish version of those. We had a great copy of /The Honeymooners/ named /Miodowe Lata/. The translation of the title is surprisingly spot-on. [fn:trans] Under an amazingly translated title, which would translate back as /The Lawmower Man of Minds/. Perfection. We knew /Dirty Dancing/ as /Spinning Sex/ and /Die Hard/ as /Glass Trap/. Those were simpler times. ** Dragon Ball :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: anime/dragon-ball :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-anime" :END: *** DONE Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero (2022) CLOSED: [2024-05-08 Wed 23:20] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: dragon-ball-super-super-hero-2022 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 1.25 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My mirco reviview of the 2022 Dragon Ball movie :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-c rating :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: :primary_menu "brain-rot-anime" :END: Even though I was raised on /Dragon Ball/ and I adore it up to this day, /Super/ was a huge letdown. It played as a washed-out version of /Z/ - there was no tension, the new characters were bland, and it was simply boring. The fact the only not-terrible part of the series was one huge tournament didn't help. Just give me an adventure! I also can not say I enjoyed Dragon Ball movies. There are a few enjoyable, but most of the time they are either bad or incredibly bad. They try to condense interesting story lines into a few dozen minutes, failing miserably. Say what you will about pacing, but Toriyama sure knew how to build tension over a hundred episode fight. And therefore we are here, the /Super Hero/ movie. It's the last Toryiama's Dragon Ball. I expected nothing and still left disappointed. The story exists, which is nice. We're after the last /Broly/ movie. Red Ribbon army still exists, and they want to take over the world again. Goku and Vegeta are training, so they won't help. It's all up to Picollo, Androids and the young Sayians to save the day. Who is the main enemy this time? A new Cell. Yes, Red Ribbon's latest acquaintance happens to be a genius capable of creating a better Cell, Cell Max. And this is where the good things about this movie end. Remember Cell's saga? It was long, it was interesting. It gave us Android 18. It was full of development, horror and surprises. None of this is present here. The new Cell looks worse than the original, doesn't have any forms nor any spoken lines. Moreover, the animation is terrible. Yes, CGI looks great when still, but when we start to see any fight it becomes unwatchable. It's the kind of CGI that is not bad per-se, but still obvious. It's clear that what we're seeing here is made by a soulless computer. They don't even try to hide it with constant camera shifts. CGI can look great, but here it looks lazy. #+attr_shortcode: 1.25 "db-superhero.jpg" #+begin_rating Cover #+end_rating So, wasted Cell and bad animation. Do we get anything instead? We do - a lot of fan service. We meet people from all other series and hear about even more. We see return of figting Gohan and a few thinks we've been waiting for since the 90s. It's fitting, as we're decades into Dragon Ball. The problem is that they are just there and if they weren't, there would be difference. Those cute scenes try to mask absence of anything new and interesting. Unfortunately, we also see Shenron. In the old series, every time he was summoned, it was a spectacle and a memorable moment. With each occurrence however the characters stop treating him as a force, but more of a goof ball. Yes, the first wish we see him fulfilling was creation of pantyhose, but it was part of the plot. Here? Here Bulma uses him for butt-lift and wrinkle removal, as he became useless. And this sadly summarizes all modern Dragon Ball. It's a low effort, forced return of an old legend. It should stay were it was. And this movie is one of the worst parts of /Super/. It's not *as* bad as Gohan's[fn:whistle] whistle-dance, but the fact that it's not the worst of DB doesn't save it from being a insulting goodbye to the Dragon Ball world. [fn:whistle] I've been told that /Dragon Ball Z Movie 4/ has its share of fans, but I've got no idea how. ** American SciFi :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: american-scifi :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-ascifi" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :primary_menu "brain-rot-ascifi" :END: *** DONE American SciFi CLOSED: [2024-04-14 Sun 20:59] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: _index :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: :primary_menu "brain-rot" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract Random SciFi from USA :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-r menu menu-info :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :menu_order name :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot" :weight 1000 :parent scifi :END: #+attr_shortcode: "brain-rot-ascifi" #+begin_menu Dune #+end_menu #+begin_menu-info sss #+end_menu-info *** DONE Hardware (1990) CLOSED: [2024-02-17 Sat 19:39] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: hardware-1990 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My mirco reviview of a killer-robot thriller :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-c :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :aliases '(/brain-rot/hardware-1990 /blog/2024/hardware-1990/) :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 3.5 :END: I ue my descend into American cyberpunk cinema[fn:cp]. I spent my formative years watching /Anime, art house/ and ignoring most of USA movies. This means I haven't watched a lot of the /cult/ movies out there. /Hardware/ is a 1990 movie about a killer robot in a post-nuclear world. Think of a mix of Terminator, Aliens and Short Circuit. I heard of this movie years ago, but it seemed to be noting more than a cash grab after the success of /Terminator/ - a movie which I don't partially enjoy. After watching, I have to say that there was a of true in this assumption. But somehow I ended enjoying /Hardware/ much more. Not that the story is better - if anything, it is much simpler, or just plain /simplistic/. Say what you will about /Terminator/, but the basic premise was great. /Hardware/ on the other hand doesn't offer a great idea. This is a straight movie about a killer robot. However, I enjoyed it more, as it is much closer to what /Alien[fn:alien]/ achieved The entire action is encapsulated in only a few, closed locations. Half of the runtime is spent in a single apartment, where the /Mark-13/ robot shows up from to time a try to murder someone. Much like the /Nostromo/! This allowed the movie to be *stunning* visually. I loved every frame here! I know that most of the effect is based on fog and lighting, but I dig it! Just take a look at the gallery below. Another thing which reminded me of /Alien/ is how they handled the special effects of the /monster/. We see very little of /Mark-13/ - he is often hard to see, covered in darkness. From time to time we see his movements, and well. Hiding him was clearly a good idea... just like with the /Xenomorph/. All in all, I enjoyed the movie. I'm not calling it one of my favorites, but I enjoyed every minute of its short runtime. I give it a =3.5/5=. #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0001.jpg" #+begin_img-c Red sky of postnuclear... summer? #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0002.jpg" #+begin_img-c The Nomad. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0003.jpg" #+begin_img-c Nomad searching the desert for stuff for sale. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0004.jpg" #+begin_img-c An ordinary store. Great vibes! Fun for the whole family. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0005.jpg" #+begin_img-c Same store, different view. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0006.jpg" #+begin_img-c The perfect glasses. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0007.jpg" #+begin_img-c Seems like somene realy liked Jin-Roh. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0008.jpg" #+begin_img-c What posses as art now. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0009.jpg" #+begin_img-c Computer we want but don't deserve. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0010.jpg" #+begin_img-c An art studio. Nothing out of the ordinary. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0011.jpg" #+begin_img-c Remember when spirituality was cool? #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0012.jpg" #+begin_img-c Let's give our murder-robot eyes from a camera lense. I'm sure no one will drop it. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0013.jpg" #+begin_img-c UI we all want. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0014.jpg" #+begin_img-c What lurks in the shadows. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0015.jpg" #+begin_img-c Yup, Jin-Roh. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0016.jpg" #+begin_img-c Yankee-Roh. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0017.jpg" #+begin_img-c With some striking shadows. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0018.jpg" #+begin_img-c I have become bread, the destroyer of worlds. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0019.jpg" #+begin_img-c Prelude... #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0020.jpg" #+begin_img-c And the (most likely) last usage of a refrigerator as a safe place which makes any sense in the history of cinema. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0021.jpg" #+begin_img-c Yup, a hand. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0022.jpg" #+begin_img-c Hold the presses! The glasses are back! I repeat: the glasses are back. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0023.jpg" #+begin_img-c Mark-13 in all of its glory. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0024.jpg" #+begin_img-c This is only a window, but what a window it is. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0025.jpg" #+begin_img-c They have not used Wilhelm's scream. What a wasted opportunity. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0026.jpg" #+begin_img-c In 2024 those are rookie number when it comes to unnecessary lights inside a computer. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0027.jpg" #+begin_img-c I am a sucker for this type of fish eye. Always reminds me of /City of Lost Children./ #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0028.jpg" #+begin_img-c It doesn't get more era-apporiate than this. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0029.jpg" #+begin_img-c Ok, it does. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0030.jpg" #+begin_img-c One of the few CGI moments here. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0031.jpg" #+begin_img-c And one of /many/ lighting shots. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0032.jpg" #+begin_img-c Look how black it is. Classy. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0033.jpg" #+begin_img-c But does it run Quake? #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "hardware-1990-0034.jpg" #+begin_img-c Back to the desert, like a fine sandwich. #+end_img-c And a few nice /gore/ sceenes which I won't show it. This is a family-friendly website! Links: - [[https://thetvdb.com/movies/hardware][Hardware on TVDB]] - [[https://www.theofficialrichardstanley.com/][Director's official website]] [fn:cp] I disagree with calling those movies "cyberpunk" as they lack the "punk" element... or most of "cyber". No one rebels against the system, no one enters the /cyberspace/. But following this definition, I am not sure if we can call any movie other than /Johny Menomic/ a /Cyberpunk/. Often we put all dark-sf into "cyberpunk" genre, which limits our ability to be pricks about it. [fn:alien] Aka "the clearly superior of the /Alien/ series" *** DONE Johnny Mnemonic (1995) CLOSED: [2024-06-11 Tue 15:52] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: johnny-mnemonic-1995 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My mirco reviview of the cyberpunk classic :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 4.0 :END: One plus of the linear-tv age of the past is that I've seen movies I would have no chance otherwise. Polish stations tried to put as many new blockbusters as possible. Other times they had to resort to movies of lesser fame, like the hero of the day - /Johnny Mnemonic/. Willian Gibson, the father of modern /Cyberpunk/ genre, doesn't have much luck when it comes to movies. /Neuromancer/ is finally getting an adaptation, but unfortunately it will be a TV show[fn:neurotv]. His /Aliens III/ script was rejected. At this moment, his only legacy in this medium is /Johnny Mnemonic/. Luckily, it's an awesome legacy! #+attr_shortcode: :file johny-mnemonic-1.jpg #+attr_shortcode: :alt Keanu Reeves in metal VR goggles grimming his teeth. The helmet covers most of his face. #+attr_shortcode: :source https://madmuseum.org/events/johnny-mnemonic #+attr_shortcode: :class centered #+begin_image This looks like something I want! Screw that plastic toy from Apple. #+end_image #+attr_shortcode: :file johny-mnemonic-2.jpg #+attr_shortcode: :alt A futurstic CGI city resembling cyberspace #+attr_shortcode: :source https://madmuseum.org/events/johnny-mnemonic #+attr_shortcode: :class centered #+begin_image This was the cyberspace we were promised. #+end_image The story is what he does best - a classic story in a cybernetic world. Johnny is a courier who smuggles information. The trick is that he is not smuggling them on tapes, but in his own brain. This time he overdid it and loaded too much data (320 gigs!) overflowing his capacity. He needs to get it out, and to do it /fast/. It won't be easy as the data is /hot/ and yakuza and gigantic corporation are trying to stop him. /Neuromancer/ is a heist story with a twist, /Johnny Mnemonic/ is a fugitive story with a twist. For what it's worth, I found the story to be great. There is nothing profound, nothing makes you scratch your head. It's story about a smuggler and the whole world trying to kill him. The worst aspect of this movie is the acting. It's Keanu Reeves at his most mediocre, single faced act. Even Takashi Kitano seems to be bored on set. I have no idea why, but *no* actor seems to be invested. #+attr_shortcode: 4.0 "johny-mnemonic.jpg" #+begin_rating Cover #+end_rating But everything else works. First, the movie looks great. All special effects are selling distopian vision of near future - be it the scenes of high raise buildings, slums, or of cyberspace. It all looks like one would expect (no sky /the color of TV turned to a dead channel/ though, which is a shame). Talking about cyberspace, when have we ruined the way we talked about computers? /Johnny.../ has all the Gibson's words, like Ice-breakers. It's magical and hypnotic. We live in world of his novels (with corporations being more powerful than nations, internet everywhere, or the destruction of environment) but this is what we lost? It's so dull and dry! I don't want App, I want "visual interface". I may be looking at this movie through rose-tainted cyber-visors, but I was expecting a terrible movie. I saw as a teen and loved it. But somehow, after all this years /Johnny Mnemonic/ holds up. It's not a big nor overly smart movie. It's a product of it's times but does it marvelously. I loved it. [fn:neurotv] It's a sign of the times. Platforms want to get as much from every license, a /Neuromancer/ is as hot as SciFi goes. This means that it will most likely be expanded into self-parody, with one unnecessary thread after another. And /Neuromaner/ is already structured as a *movie*! *** DONE Ghost in the Machine (1993) CLOSED: [2024-02-09 Fri 22:59] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: ghost-in-the-machine-1993 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My mirco reviview of a computer thriller :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-r :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :aliases '(/brain-rot/ghost-in-the-machine /blog/2024/ghost-in-the-machine/) :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 3.0 :END: Talk about a surprise! I was expecting a /schlock/, but I've seen a nice move. A dumb one, but still. The plot is the biggest problem: a serial killer has an MRI and due to electric storm gets his soul moved to computer network. With this, he becomes able to: - kill person by moving to a microwave and changing its settings, - kill a dog by arousing it with a TV program (using nothing by electric breakers), then hitting the dog with a VHS tape ejected from a VHS player which causes the animal to run towards the pool It makes as little sense in the context of the movie as it does here. But the acting is (at the very least) acceptable and the FX are better than they should - and there is a lot of them. Moreover, the camera work is crazy! The movie /looks/ better than it should. It seems that this dumb, little movie got more passion in it than the entire MCU combined. The problem is that I have no idea what was going on. People were dying, cool computer interfaces were shown, but the plot barely connected those scenes together. It's a classic thriller from early days of personal computing revolution. I enjoyed it a lot. It is not a /good/ movie, but it is enjoyable. I give it a =3.0/5.= links: - [[https://utf.thetvdb.com/movies/ghost-in-the-machine][Ghost in the Machine on TVDB]] *** DONE Colossus: The Forbin Project (1970) CLOSED: [2024-03-03 Sun 16:52] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: colossus-1970 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract A short review of SciFi classic :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-c :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :aliases '(/brain-rot/colosus-1970 /blog/2024/colossus-1970/) :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 4.25 :END: Finally, in my series of discovering the roots of cyberpunk in American Cyberpunk I've seen a real gem. /Colossus/ is a 1970 movie about a not-so-distant-future where Americans decide that it would be a great idea to give control of their military potential to a computer. On paper, it sounds great - a computer has no emotions, so it will not be stopped by petty things, like morality. Guess how well that turned out? Soon after switching on, Colossus learns about the existence of another such system - The Guardian, in the territory of CCCP. #+attr_shortcode: "colossus-1970-0001.jpg" #+begin_img-c The movie starts with sexy old-comp scenes. Fitting, as Control Data Corporation supplied close to 5 million USD in computer equipment. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "colossus-1970-0002.jpg" #+begin_img-c Sexy! Rest of the movie is not as sexy. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "colossus-1970-0003.jpg" #+begin_img-c Colossus in person. #+end_img-c And then this SciFi thriller stops being so /crazy-computer/ focused, and analyzes /crazy-human/ reaction. Colossus starts exhibiting features which were never implemented. It[fn:it] starts /demanding/ to be connected with the Guardian, so they can communicate. And the scientist decide that it would be a great idea. The computers start exchanging data and developing language. Still - looks cool, let's see what happens. Only after Colossus threatens humans with ICBMs, Forbin (Colossus's creator) starts thinking that maybe this wasn't the best idea. #+attr_shortcode: "colossus-1970-0004.jpg" #+begin_img-c At first Colossus communicates only via text. Funny, as those screens sound like matrix printers. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "colossus-1970-0005.jpg" #+begin_img-c This one as well. #+end_img-c #+attr_shortcode: "colossus-1970-0006.jpg" #+begin_img-c Because it has a printer! It took me half of the movie to get that. Guess I'm too millenial for that to be obvious. #+end_img-c The movie is often described as an evil-computer story. Colossus is never evil in the movie. It does exactly what it was designed to do - to act without mercy. The evil ones here are the humans who never stop and think that maybe we are on the verge of the end of humanity. So yeah, it's an movie about Altman. We may have destroyed the civilization, but at lest we made a cool program which does things. No one know what those things are, but those are details you should not worry about. Story wise, /Colossus: The Forbin Project/ holds splendidly. Yes, we've got casual alcoholism and the female character exists only to have sex with Forbin[fn:sex]. But the actual meat of the movie could be a base of an amazing movie today. The questions and subject are more relevant now that half a century ago. What was a huge /what-if/ scenario becomes a real /ok, but how do we stop it/. The Pentagon is already working on militarization of AI[fn:pent]. We're pretty much screwed already. The best SciFi is not about giant battles or space travel for space travel sake. It's always about humans, a warning for us. And the /best/ SciFi is a warning for the next generations, as the threads become more real as years go by. There is a moment in the movie, where the entire day of Forbin is planned and monitored by an AI. What was a horror story, is now what a lot of us /expect/. /Colossus/ in a movie version of earlier book of same. There are 2 more in the series, and (as I've been told), Aliens make an appearance later on. Maybe someday! As for the movie, I give it a 4.25/5. [fn:it] There's an interesting discussion about what pronoum to use - He or It. [fn:sex] It is a plot point! A terrible one, but still. [fn:pent] Vide: [[https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/3682355/pentagon-official-lays-out-dod-vision-for-ai/][Pentagon Official Lays Out DOD Vision for AI]]. Note, it's from the official website of US Department of Defense. *** DONE Dune CLOSED: [2024-04-14 Sun 18:10] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: _index :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: :primary_menu "brain-rot" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract The Dune series :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-r menu menu-info :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: american-scifi/dune :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU_OVERRIDE: :post "series" :END: #+attr_shortcode: "brain-rot-dune" #+begin_menu Dune #+end_menu *** DONE Running Man (1987) CLOSED: [2024-06-24 Mon 23:45] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: running-man-1987 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My review of the Schwarzenegger's classic :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :image covers/running-man.jpg :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 3.0 :END: I never got into 80s action packed ultra-manly movies. I was never fan of them, as action scenes bore me. There was, however, quite a few of them in SciFi setting so this site will force me to finally get to know them. So, /Running Man/ is a 1987 SciFi movie starring Arnold Schwarzenegger based on Stephen King's story. In the not-so-distant future of 2017 the world faced an economic cryis and America became a totalitarian state. Captain Ben Richards (played by Arnold) is a police officer who refuses to massacre unarmed civilians. He finds himself to be government's scapegoat and, as a result, is jailed. After a prison break, he is once again captured - but this time he is given a chance. If he participates in /Running Man/, an ultra-violent TV show, he may regain freedom. There is a /bit/ more to the story, but not much. What is there, however, was a surprise! There is a plot and there is commentary about risk of fascist state, of controlling crowds through entertainment, and about controlling the narrative by those in power. /Running Man/ is /1984/ if Orwell wasn't so talented. #+attr_shortcode: :file running-man-1.webp #+attr_shortcode: :alt Face of a white, bearded man lighting a cigarette #+attr_shortcode: :source https://wegotthiscovered.com/movies/this-one-would-be-a-big-dream-the-remake-of-the-only-stephen-king-and-arnold-schwarzenegger-team-up-edges-closer-to-reality/ #+attr_shortcode: :class centered #+begin_image Typical prison beard #+end_image #+attr_shortcode: :file running-man-2.webp #+attr_shortcode: :alt White man wearing a bright yellow, shining, one-piece suit #+attr_shortcode: :source https://wegotthiscovered.com/movies/this-one-would-be-a-big-dream-the-remake-of-the-only-stephen-king-and-arnold-schwarzenegger-team-up-edges-closer-to-reality/ #+attr_shortcode: :class centered #+begin_image The most offensive thing here are the costumes #+end_image The entire world building happens in the first half an hour of the movie. The rest is an hour-long series of Richard's fights against /stalkers/, professional killers who star in the show. And I *have* to be sincere here: I hated the second part much less than I anticipated. Yes, it's over-the top and mindless, but it has nice gore. #+attr_shortcode: 3.0 "running-man.jpg" #+begin_rating Cover #+end_rating But mostly because of the montage. I remember watching the second /Avengers/ and absolutely hating it. Most of the movie was random characters fighting without any order. One /cool/ scene after another. In /Running Man/, on the other hand, I was able to follow the plot of the fight. I knew not only what was going on, but I also had a vague understanding of where the fights were and where characters were in relations to another. So, this movie is not a completely mindless fight scene. I should have hated it (like the aforementioned /Avengers/), but I did not. I haven't /loved/ it, or even truly /liked it/. Furthermore, I don't feel like I lost anything by not watching it when it was played on repeat on TV. But it's not offensive[fn:off], it's not even boring. I /enjoyed/ it, but I will never watch it again. It's not one the great Schwarzenegger's movies. [fn:off] Enjoyment-wise. The movie is very offensive with its sexualization of women. But this very nicely matches the metaphor in the story. This, however, would not be made with modern sensitivity. *** DONE Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) CLOSED: [2024-07-21 Sun 22:22] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: invasion-of-the-body-snatchers-1956 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My review of a meh horror :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :image covers/invasion-of-the-body-snatchers-1956.jpg :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 3 :END: /Invasion of the Body Snatchers/ is a 1956 film about a town that's being attacked by aliens. However, the attack is not an all-out warfare, but instead slow replacement of town's folks. Everything that makes us individuals is removed, and all that's left is a souless husk. The body is replaced by a clone straight out of a pod, your memories are transferred - but your soul is gone. It can happen to you! #+attr_shortcode: 3 "invasion-of-the-body-snatchers-1956.jpg" #+begin_rating Cover #+end_rating Yeah, it's a /commie/ horror. Guess becoming part of a collective was the worst the authors could come out with. I have not read the book, but the film let me down. I saw it ages ago, and it was OK, but I remember very little. Now I know why - the film is extremely forgettable. The idea of being replaced by an identical clone, that /is/ you but at the same time it missing what makes you human is very cool - in a scary way. But the film does nothing with it. Everyone in the town is slowly being replaced by /pod people/ and only our main heroes are fighting for their individual selves. Even in the first act, where the replacement is just revealed, the characters don't show many emotions. Hey, let's put this strange body on our pool table. It will be good, don't worry about it. There is no suspense, nor are there any interesting reveals. /Invasion of the Body Snatchers/ is a very basic classic horror. It's not that it's old, as the same year we got /Forbidden Planet/ and /The Day the Earth Stood Still/ is 5 full years older. But somehow, this film became a classic with endless remakes. Technically, the movie is great - the acting, the effects. But story-wise nothing stands out, nothing stays with you. And I'm always in for the story! ** SciFi from the Eastern Block :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: eastern-block-scifi :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-ebscifi" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :primary_menu "brain-rot" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :menu_order name :END: *** DONE SciFi from the Eastern Block CLOSED: [2024-06-25 Tue 21:44] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: :primary_menu "brain-rot" :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: _index :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My reviews of SciFi from the post and current soviet countries :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: menu :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot" :weight 1020 :parent scifi :END: #+attr_shortcode: "brain-rot-ebscifi" #+begin_menu Dune #+end_menu *** DONE Dead Man's Lettes (aka Lettes from a Dead Man, 1986) CLOSED: [2024-06-25 Tue 22:56] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: dead-mans-letters-1986 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract A short review of SciFi classic :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :image covers/dead-mans-letters.jpg :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 5 :END: Let's get this right of the bat: /Dead Man's Letters/ is a masterpiece; one of the greatest movies I've ever witnessed. A Russian town after nuclear war. Professor Larsen, a Nobel Prize in Physics laureate, lives with his sick wife and few other survivors in the basement of a museum. For the next 88 mins you will witness pure, soul eating /bleakness/. Talking about the story doesn't make sense, as it's not the point. /Dead Man's Letters/ is very much akin to Tarkowsky's movies. It's poetry and meditation on human condition. There are long stretches of nothing but inner monologue of main character who /thinks/. Not much of /comment/, but rather a /study/. I don't think I've ever witnessed this type of movie outside Russian cinema. It's not Bunuel, it's not Kubrick - but at the same it's very much /this/ type of movie. More of an experience, than a 3 act story. #+attr_shortcode: 5 "dead-mans-letters.jpg" #+begin_rating Cover #+end_rating It's also one of the saddest movies I've experienced. No one is fighting for the future. They simply exist, waiting for the end. The only glimmer of hope is Larsen who thinks the was ended. But no one believes him. Maybe he even doesn't believe himself? The visual side very much reflects it. There are no real colors, everything is monochromatic but colorized. Just like in German Impressionism or /Stalker's/ scenes outside of The Zone. The movie is full of special effects, but none of them aim at wowing the viewer. You witness despair and the despair becomes part of you. Luckily, this is only 88 mins long - anything longer and it would be unbearable. #+attr_shortcode: :file dead-mans-letters-1.jpg #+attr_shortcode: :alt An old, white man wearing glasses. In sepia #+attr_shortcode: :source https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091759/mediaviewer/rm794067713 #+attr_shortcode: :class centered #+begin_image The "hero" #+end_image #+attr_shortcode: :file dead-mans-letters-2.jpg #+attr_shortcode: :alt Two characters sitting by a metallic table. On the left, an old man hiding his face in his hands. On the right a balding white man. The scene is blue. #+attr_shortcode: :source https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpreview.redd.it%2Fbyjma8jabmc61.jpg%3Fwidth%3D964%26format%3Dpjpg%26auto%3Dwebp%26s%3D02b9a40ac8c094bc25d79890adb64b07c86c26e5 #+attr_shortcode: :class centered #+begin_image You won't glimpse much happiness here. #+end_image The movie is a directorial debut of Konstantin Lopushansky and was co-written by Boris Strutsky. Strugatskys Brothers are one of the greatest writers of /intelligent/ (up to a fault) SciFi, and Borise's talent is clearly shown here. Just like in their books, the story is there as means to an end; a medium to discuss humanity. It's not an easy movie to watch. It requires focus, dedication and a lot of thinking. You will get lost in it, and the movie may stay with you for a while - even though it won't ever be pleasant. It's an unforgettable experience. Too bad it's not widely known in the west. Maybe it's simply too convoluted? Or maybe it's just too different. Anyway, a masterpiece. I encourage everyone to at least /try/ to experience it. ** European SciFi :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: european-scifi :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-eurocifi" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :primary_menu "brain-rot" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :menu_order name :END: *** DONE European Scici CLOSED: [2024-06-25 Tue 21:44] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: :primary_menu "brain-rot" :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: _index :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My reviews of SciFi from the post and European countries :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: menu :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot" :weight 1010 :parent scifi :END: #+attr_shortcode: "brain-rot-eurocifi" #+begin_menu Dune #+end_menu *** DONE Run Lola Run (1998) CLOSED: [2024-06-29 Sat 22:26] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: run-lola-run-1998 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract A short review of the German thriller :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :image covers/run-lola-run.jpg :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 3.75 :END: Sometimes you find SciFi in the worst places, like Disney. Sometimes you find it in a strange German techno thriller. The story of /Run Lola Run/ is one of the simplest I've ever witnessed: Lola's boyfriend, Manni, screwed delivery of 100000 Detche Marks (close to 83k Eur in 2024) and now his boss is going to kill him within 20 minutes. It is up to Lola to get the money, and then run as fast as she can to him - before he does anything stupid. #+attr_shortcode: 3.75 "run-lola-run.jpg" #+begin_rating Cover #+end_rating This does not sound /scifi/ but there is one element that convinces me: butterfly effect. The one from the mediocre Ashton Kutcher movie and a great movie from Kieslowski. We rarely speak of it today, but a few years ago it was quite popular. In /Run Lola Run/ we see different outcomes depending on a very slight changes. This, and Lola's /magical scream/ are the only fantastical elements here. Enough for me! The story is serviceable - it's not bad, but it's also not memorable. What is memorable is how the movie is made. #+attr_shortcode: :file run-lola-run-1.jpg #+attr_shortcode: :alt Red haied girl running on the left. A blurry building in the background #+attr_shortcode: :source https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/104-lola-rennt/images/backdrops #+attr_shortcode: :class centered #+begin_image There are quite a few running scenes here #+end_image There was this short period of time, when a few ultra-energetic movies were made. Think Pi, or Human Traffic. They seem more like something you would see on MTV than a full length movie. Lola runs, some powerfully techno music plays /loudly/ and that's basically it. We've got some breaks with dialogue, but most of the movie is pure, raw energy. Think /Mad Max/ has aggressive montage? Check again. #+attr_shortcode: :file run-lola-run-2.jpg #+attr_shortcode: :alt Two people poiting pistols: red haired girl and blond male #+attr_shortcode: :source https://www.justwatch.com/ca/movie/run-lola-run #+attr_shortcode: :class centered #+begin_image Unmistakable 90s #+end_image /Run Lola Run/ is a midbudget (low?) thriller with SciFi elements which is very much a forgotten genre. It's also very, deeply /european/, which I love[fn:pl]. It's an enjoyable, non-insulting ride. But it's a not lost classic. [fn:pl] Berlin, where action takes place, is so clean here. I say that as a Pole. Our cities back then were far from being nice to look at. It improved though! *** DONE Mars Express (2023) CLOSED: [2024-07-29 Mon 21:54] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: mars-express-2023 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My review :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :image covers/mars-express.jpg :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 4.75 :END: On the surface, /Mars Express/ is a detective story about a female detective and her robotic partner. We've seen a lot of those, but they were mostly terrible. /Mars Express/, on the other hand, is one of the greatest SciFi movies I've seen. It is often compared to /Blade Runner/ and /Ghost in the Shell/. And while yes, those are the two big titles /ME/ takes from - there is so much more here to marvel. I don't want to spoil the story, but let me tell you it's great. This /could have been/ another limited run TV series - but luckily, it is not. We've got 88 minutes of great SciFi detective work which has already gone to history as a modern classic. Enough said that it smart, makes sense and it's worth to experience without spoilers. #+attr_shortcode: 4.75 "mars-express.jpg" #+begin_rating Cover #+end_rating However, the biggest problem with /Mars Express/ is its older peers. This film takes from numerous other movies - not only the /big 2/, but also 2001, /Akira/, /Armitage III/, and even some Cronenberg. All of this works great - never have I felt that anything is a pointless reference[fn:marvel]. The director and writer duo - Laurent Sarfati and Jérémie Périn - blend all those ideas perfectly, each borrowed /thing/ is their own in the context of this film. But it also creates a lot of unexpected foreshadowing. Now, I did not expect the ending - the film had a chance to end 3 times before the credits rolled. There were moments where authors could call it a day and still have a great film. But the story continues, becoming better and better each time. As a whole, I left very much surprised. Yet, a lot of twist and turns came as "hey, I've seen that already". Sometimes in better form, most often in worse. However, if you are the kind of person who tries to guess what's going to happen[fn:flow], you may leave unchallenged. But you will still marvel at the animation. The French were always the champions of European animation, and this is another proof. /Mars Express/ is breathtaking. It looks 2D, and even when the CGI rears its ugly face, it's just for a brief moment. We're seeing clear inspiration from /Production IG/, which is the best kind of inspiration. Anime no longer looks as good as it looked when /Mamoru Oshii/ ruled the scene, and /Mars Express/ fill a huge void in my heart. Not only because the animation is spot on, but also because we rarely see such a vivid SciFi world. It's often just a steel wall here and there, a bit massive computer, maybe. But /Mars Express/ fills the world with believable nuances - the "Police" tape is holographic, the roads react in a cool way to accidents, and even the gadgets are cool. I could not smile wide enough to show how much I loved it. They could have just made the bare minimum (like it often is), but they went the extra mile. As it stands, /Mars Express/ is one of the greatest SciFi worlds I can remember. #+attr_shortcode: :file mars-express-1.jpg #+attr_shortcode: :alt On the left a woman is sitting on a table. Another woman is standing above her. #+attr_shortcode: :class centered #+begin_image It's not anime, but it's breathtaking #+end_image This is the film to see. I know there is another blockbuster in the cinema you may want to watch, but please - give /Mars Express/ a chance. It's not a modern film, it's not an action film (even if the action is 10/10). It's a smart story, like we used to experience 20 years ago. They don't make movies like this very often, and we are lucky to have it. [fn:marvel] Hello Marvel [fn:flow] I never understood that. When I watch a film, I try to go into a meditative state. I try not to think of the story as a jigsaw, but as an experience. ** Severance :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: american-scifi/severance :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-ascifi" :weight 99999999 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: :primary_menu "brain-rot" :END: *** DONE Severance (Season 1) CLOSED: [2024-04-24 Wed 22:26] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: season1 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract A short review of SciFi classic :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-r rating :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :aliases '(/brain-rot/tv/severance-season1//) :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 4.0 :END: Oh how I love SciFi without action scenes! Sevarance is a story based on a great premise: an all powerful company is able to sever a person into two. One gets to live outside the company clock; the other only in the office. Both share the same body, but are completely different and have their memories separated. #+attr_shortcode: 4.0 "severance-s1.jpg" #+begin_rating Cover #+end_rating Apple tried to position itself in a small niche of the wider streaming service pool. When Netflix and others produce one mediocre show after another, Apple is much slower and (seems to) focus on quality. It allows itself riskier productions. /Severance/ plays very much like an independent movie. It's minimal in presentation, I would even call it /cold/ as everything serves a goal. Most of the show happens either in a soulless office building, or in a few semi-empty locations. Somehow, for the first few episodes I had strong reminiscence of Shane Carruth's works. Those have close to nothing in common with /Severance/, but the feeling was there. And I love Curroths's works! The plot develops slowly and in an interesting way, everything points towards a great SciFi. I was heavily invested in the plot, wanting to know what was hidden underneath. Unfortunately, it's a typical modern TV series. Its runtime is expanded thin, we've got romance and unnecessary threads. Remember when they made three huge movies out of Hobbit? Yeah, it's the same here. What would have been an /amazing/ movie is a /good/ TV show. It's stretched /almost/ into a self-parody. They tried to have a mass appeal and with it, they lessen the story significantly. I think they had material for 2 hours movie, maybe a miniseries. But for multiple seasons? I sure hope to be wrong, but it seems that it will the same as it was with /Westworld/. Great start, but it's all downhill from here. The biggest offender here is the last episode which serves only the second season. Such high-addrenaline scene had no place in /this/ story. But hey, let's make people remember about that season 2 that we will make someday. For me /Severance/ is a perfect example of current TV drama state. You can clearly see that it was made with passion, it could have been great. But screw that, let's have it for four years. Fill her up, please. It's very good as a TV show nevertheless. ** Anime :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-anime" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: :primary_menu "brain-rot-anime" :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: anime :END: *** DONE Anime CLOSED: [2024-05-08 Wed 16:50] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: anime :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: _index :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: :primary_menu "brain-rot" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract Amime :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot" :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-r menu menu-info :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :menu_order name :END: #+attr_shortcode: "brain-rot-anime" #+begin_menu Dune #+end_menu *** DONE Attack on Titan (2013-2023) CLOSED: [2024-06-09 Sun 17:10] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: attack_on_titan_anime :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My review of the anime :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 3.5 :END: /Attack on Titan/ may very well be the defining anime of this decade. It started as a huge hit, then it faded into obscurity, just to return with a huge bang and end with huge disappointment. The premise is quite interesting: pre-industrial age; humanity is close to extension, locked behind gigantic walls. Outside lives the biggest threat man has ever faced - Titans. Race of gigantic, humanoid beasts whose only purpose in life is to attack and devour humans. We meet our main heroes - Eren, Mikasa, and Armin, just before the Titans breach one of the walls. The following 4 seasons differ in quality. The first one is interesting, but suffers from terrible narration where we are constantly interrupted by internal monologues. We either learn what we already know, or random ideas are thrown at us. The second one has no idea what it wants to be, and this is where viewership dropped sharply. Then came the third one. It seems to continue to downward trend from s2, but halfway through everything changes. Without spoiling anything, /AoT/ stops being dumb fun and seems to become an intelligent commentary on human condition. Before that, I was watching the series because I had nothing better to do. After /this/ scene I instantly became invested and shocked. Then the fourth came out, developing on what made the third great. I was close to calling this a great series, but unfortunately it's all thrown out the window with the 2.5 hours long finale, which is almost entirerly one, long fight. So much potential, such great buildup. All wasted in the name of a boring action scene. I don't remember when was the last time I felt so betrayed. The great part of /AoT/ takes a lot from history and great fiction like Dune. We're seeing great idea one after another. The story is full of interesting twists. By the end, it's all meaningless. #+attr_shortcode: 3.5 "attack-on-titan.jpg" #+begin_rating Cover #+end_rating Story-wise, the only two redeeming qualities of this series are personal journeys of Eren and Gabi (introduced in S4). Only their stories interest me. Not that there is anything bad about the rest of the characters, they are ok[fn:armin]. Run-of-the-mill anime characters. Yes, the series looks and sound pretty. It's full of nicely animated action scenes. But I can't stop comparing it to /Evangelion/. Both series start cool, but are not memorable. Then they develop into marvels, pure greatest. But /NGE/ never stopped being great. After it gained actual meat, it developed it culminating in the greatest movie I've ever experienced. Full of story, drama, meaning, and emotions. /AoT/ ends in /Iron Man 3/ - a prolonged, boring fight scene. And while the scenes shown during end credits return the series on its track, it changes nothing. They nicely connect and develop the great ideas behind the /golden era of AoT/, but they should not be the one good part! The ending should be it, as the way it happened is I wasted 2.5 hours filled with boredom. /AoT/ could have been great, but it is not. It's an ok action series with huge unresolved ambitions. If it was just a dumb action show, then ok - I would have some fun, then forget it. It would fail in comparison of other shows we see now, like Jujtsu Kaisen, but it would be very much ok. Unfortunately with added ambition, it ends in a huge disappointment. It was very close, everything was going great. And then it hits a wall. [fn:armin] Except of Armin who single handely ruins the first few seasons. He is the character who is able to calculate probability to 4 decimal places. I see this kind of characters all around modern anime, and every time I have to roll my eyes. Remember how /Big Bang Theory/ was often describes at how "dumb people think smart people are"? Yeah, that's Armin. The same kind of bullshit ruined shows like Kaji or Code Geass for me. *** DONE Patlabor CLOSED: [2024-04-26 Fri 19:11] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: _index :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract The Patlabor series :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-r menu menu-info :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: anime/patlabor :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU_OVERRIDE: :post "series" :END: Patlabor is one of forgotten great anime series of the past. Created by Headgear (Masami Yūki, Mamoru Oshii, Kazunori Itō, Yutaka Izubuchi, and Akemi Takada). In the not-to distant future humanity develops Labors, humanoid mechs, used in heavy construction. With their introduction a new type of crime starts showing up. To combat that, a dedicated police force called Patlabor is created. We've two separate timelimes: following the movies and following the TV series. #+attr_shortcode: "brain-rot-patlabor" #+begin_menu Patlabor #+end_menu ** Hacker movies :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-hackers" :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: hackers/ :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :menu_order name :END: *** DONE Hacker movies CLOSED: [2024-04-14 Sun 18:10] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: _index :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot" :weight 2000 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract Stories about hackers :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-r menu menu-info :END: #+attr_shortcode: "brain-rot-hackers" #+begin_menu Witcher #+end_menu *** DONE Sneakers (1992) CLOSED: [2024-07-29 Mon 21:12] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: sneakers-1992 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My review :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :image covers/sneakers.jpg :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 4 :END: /Sneakers/ is a 1992 movie starring a huge cast of brightest stars about penetrating testers hired by NSA to recover a Russian-founder black box codename "Setec Astronomy". Things get complicated and (as it was in the 90s) full of conspiracies. I watched this film /only/ because it is about hackers. And let me tell you, I did not leave disappointed. We sure got some red team hacking. Computers get hacked, doors get unlocked, cameras get taped. If this is all you want - sure, /Sneakers/ is great. All of those actions are believable, hackers are not the scum of the earth (as they tend to be in later movies) and it's just plain cool. What I was not expecting was a great plot! It's clear that the task is not what it seems. It's not X-Files level of conspiracy within conspiracy[fn:xf], but we've sure got some rollercoaster of those. It _is_ the 90s, so government are evil and private business is good, but even being raised on those ideas, I had a blast. Even after the /evil mastermind/ laves the shadow, it doesn't break anything. It may be a bit too-obvious, but what the hell. 80% of the story is great. #+attr_shortcode: 4 "sneakers.jpg" #+begin_rating Cover #+end_rating And the movie is simply beautiful. It has /that/ 90s look, which can not be reproduced with modern digital effects. But the camera work is stop-on. When I pressed "play" on this hacker movie, I was not expecting such A-game. But as the movie started to show its cast, it was obvious - this was to be a blockbuster. An /Ocean's 11/ for the cyberage. Just look at the poster - Robert Redford is here! But, for me, Dan Aykroyd and David Strathairn stole each scene they were in. Aykroyd played Mother, a young hacker and conspiracy theorist ("the moon landing was fake" kind of, not "Melissa Lavigne"), and Strathairn played Whistler, a deaf phreaker[fn:phreak]. Both played just the perfect amount of over-the-top characters - anything more, and they would be annoying. Everyone knew when to stop. All in all: great cast, beautiful cinematography and interesting story. And the hacking isn't brain rotting! #+attr_shortcode: :file sneakers-1.png #+attr_shortcode: :alt Blue computer screen reflecting in black glasses #+attr_shortcode: :class centered #+begin_image Monitors reflected on glasses can not be not cool #+end_image [fn:xf] But nothing is [fn:phreak] This movie is so old, that viewer is expected to know what a phreaker is! *** TODO Hackers (1995) There are movies which I absolutely despised when I first saw them. They were loud, abnoxious, made little sense. Some of them, with passing time, grew on me. Hackers is a 1995 movie about, well, hackers. We start with Dade, an 11 year old geek, being arrested for hacking and crashing over 1,5k computer systems. He is sentenced to the worst imaginable sentence - an judge impossed mandated ban on using computer system till he reaches 18 years of age. Somehow we don't care what happened during those years, as we jump 7 years in the future (which seem to be undefined "now" of 1990s). Dade is hacking once again, and as a result he joins a hacker group and becomes part of an conspiracy. Say what you will, /Hackers/ takes the hacker ethos pretty seriously and this is what espaced my teenage understanding. All main characters (using simply amazing handles, like Zero Cool or Cereal Killer) break into system for the fun of it. They are prosecuted by the govermnent and media portrayes them as dangerous individuals, but they are anything but malificicet. Now, the hacking scenes make close to zero sense - but that's hollywood for you. We haven't seen serious attempt at showing it before /Mr Robot/. Therefore, we can see past it. But can't see past the fashion. I have no idea /how/ anyone came with what we see here, but it's simply glorious. Just look! I refuse to believe, that this was not the official fashion of New York in the 90s. Also, the quotes. If there is a infinitelly quotable movie, it is Hackers. "/Hack the Planet/" or /"“There is no right and wrong. There's only fun and boring.”/ should be recognized by anyone working in IT. I may be wrong, but I think there are questions about /Hackers/ on CompTIA Security+ Unfornatelly, there is a story here and it's not good. The main villian is trying to get rich and put the blame on our hackers. The plan makes little sense, that's one thing. But everything about that particular screams /fake/. He has the most over the top quotes and reactions - even if he has the only hacker-worthy keyboard to be seen here. /Hackers/ is a fun little movie, with a huge soul. It's dumb, loud and over-stylized. But it's also one the few movies which show the soul of a hacker. I think everyone should see it at least once. #+begin_quote You wage wars, murder, cheat, lie to us and try to make us believe it's for our own good, yet we're the criminals. Yes, I am a criminal. My crime is that of curiosity. #+end_quote ** Fantasy :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-fantasy" :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: fantasy/ :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :menu_order name :END: ** Modern Games :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: modern-games/ :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: :primary_menu "brain-rot" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :menu_order name :END: *** DONE Modern Games (from 2007) CLOSED: [2024-04-14 Sun 18:10] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: :primary_menu "brain-rot" :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: _index :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My reviews of modern games :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-r menu menu-info :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot" :parent "cgames" :weight 300 :END: #+attr_shortcode: "brain-rot-modern-games" #+begin_menu Witcher #+end_menu ** Golden Age Games :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot" :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: golden-age-games/ :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :menu_order name :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :primary_menu "brain-rot-gg-games" :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-gg-games" :END: *** DONE Golden Age Games CLOSED: [2024-07-21 Sun 22:15] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTERH: :primary_menu "brain-rot" :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot" :parent "cgames" :weight 200 :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: _index :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My reviews of games form the Golden Age :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: img-r menu menu-info :END: #+attr_shortcode: "brain-rot-gg-games" #+begin_menu Witcher #+end_menu *** DONE Grim Fandango (1998, 2020) CLOSED: [2024-07-21 Sun 22:03] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: grim-fandango :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My review of the prequel :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :image covers/grim-fandango.jpg :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 5 :END: Content warning: I am extremely biased. Expect orgasmic sentences. There was no game company like LucasArts in their prime. Between shovelling Star Wars games, they were the kings of adventure gamers. They hired the best people, and they made the best games out there. And /Grim Fandango/ is the finest example. It is also my favourite game of all time. Manny Calavera is a salesman in a dead-end job. He has no chance for promotion, unless he scores big. And the odds are stacked up against him, as his boss despises him. All good clients go to Domino! Manny decides to play it all out and /steal/ a great client from Domino. The trick here is that Manny is a travel agent at the Department of Death, selling travel accommodation to recently deceased souls. #+attr_shortcode: 5 "grim-fandango.jpg" #+begin_rating Cover #+end_rating The list of negatives is very short: two puzzles (cat races and bone grinder) are very challenging to deduct, but they match the setting. A lot of adventure games fall into puzzles where the only way to solve them is by sheer luck, but it's not the case. It will take some time to piece things together, but after that, it all makes sense. I first played /Grim/ in 1999. The demo of the game, covering the first chapter, was added to a cover disc. I played it on a loop, and up to this day I can recite all the puzzles and their solutions in order which they need to be solved. /Grim Fandango/ is a 2,5D game, so the backgrounds are pre-rendered, but all characters are real-time 3D. And how glorious each of those dimensions is! The art style of the characters is inspired by Mexican day of the Dead puppets, called Calaveras (like the main character!). Since the hardware of the day was not ready for spheres, so the models are simplified. The backgrounds, on the other hand, are full of details. But above all, it is extremely atmospheric. Land of the Dead takes a lot from Noir cinematography, but makes all the scenes uniquely /Fandango/. And the music! The Mexican-jazz blend is fused with my soul. Often I simply listen to it, even close to 30 years after release. It hasn't aged a day, and it complements perfectly what we see. #+attr_shortcode: :file grim-fandango-1.png #+attr_shortcode: :alt A skeleton looking down from a balcony at racing stadium #+attr_shortcode: :class centered #+begin_image Cat Racing becomes a problem #+end_image The voice acting is /perfect/. Everyone did an astonishing job - be it Tony Plana as Manny ("Glottis, are you loco?"), Alan Blumenfeld as the demon driver ("Well, actually, it's mostly stock, with a few mods here and there...") to each passing characters in the smallest roles, like Milton James as a coroner ("We may have years, we may have hours, but sooner or later, we push up flowers"). Having a great script surely didn't make the job any more difficult, but they seem so real! It all comes the high point of the game, the second chapter. Here we spend some time in a port city, and oh what a city it is. Up to this day, I have not visited a virtual place I'd love to visit more than Rubacava. All the backgrounds, all the characters, all the puzzles. They blend perfectly in a Casablanca-esque story, like no other. Luckily, this is the longest chapter. After we leave the city, it never reaches the same level - but no other game did. Saying that "sorry, your other 3 chapters are not as good as the greatest part of a game I've ever witnesses" is something all other games can only dream off. They are still great, full of great locations and characters - just not /as/ great. And let's not forget the humour. It's a LucasArts game, after all! The game is hilarious, but in a way not many games tread. It treats the characters and the setting seriously! /Monkey Island/ is comical, but it never treats itself with any respect. /Grim/ is different, as it's full of love towards the inhabitants of Land of the Dead. #+attr_shortcode: :file grim-fandango-2.png #+attr_shortcode: :alt A morgue with deceased covered in flowers #+attr_shortcode: :class centered #+begin_image How to kill a dead person? Cover with flowers! #+end_image I have yet to encounter any game that has /this/ exact combination of atmosphere, lovable and respected characters, and this much humour. /Syberia 1/ is close - we visit desolated places inhabited by colourful characters, but it's treated with respect. You learn about then, like them, and want to help them. But it's not quite there. What Tim Shafer achieved with /Grim Fandango/ is nothing short of a miracle. It is a perfect game - at least in my book. So, of course, it flopped. It was too ambitious to fit a sensible budget, and it was released when adventure games fell out of fashion. Sort of like /Chinatown/ perfected Noir when Noir was a thing of the past. But, after the success of /Monkey Island/ remakes, /Grim Fandango/ got a chance to shine again in 2020. A remastered version with better shading and 3D models (but the same backgrounds) was released on every platform. It *is* a better version, so if it's still supported on your platform (screw you Apple), you can simply buy it and enjoy. And even though I prefer the original tank controls, this version can be even played with a point&click interface. Ending this review, where I simply say that /Grim Fandango/ is the greatest game I've ever played, I need to say that it's a game that does not need a sequel. Mind you, I'd buy anything that would allow me to spend even a minute longer with the characters, the story is finished. We get a /perfect/ ending when I always shed a tear. Adding anything to it, would only lessen it. Just like we don't need a /Casablanca 2/, we don't need a /Grim Fandango 2/. You don't reach such heights multiple times - everything needs to align. We are lucky to even have such a marvel, as /Grim/. ** Classic Games :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: classic-games/ :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER: :primary_menu "brain-rot" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :menu_order name :END: *** DONE Classic Games (up to 1995) CLOSED: [2024-04-14 Sun 18:10] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: _index :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My reviews of classic games :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot" :parent "cgames" :weight 100 :EXPORT_HUGO_PAIRED_SHORTCODES: menu :END: #+attr_shortcode: "brain-rot-classic-games" #+begin_menu Witcher #+end_menu ** Yakuza :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: modern-games/yakuza :END: *** DONE Yakuza 0 (2015) CLOSED: [2024-06-12 Wed 19:32] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: yakuza-0 :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract My review of the prequel :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :primary_menu "brain-rot-modern-games" :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-modern-games" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 3.75 :END: I have terrible reflexes, and therefore I am very disappointed with modern gaming's obsession with action-oriented games. /Yakuza 0/ is a beat-em-up, so I should hate it. I partially do. As for the gameplay, I am not sold due to aforementioned problem. In /Yakuza 0/ you walk around the town and fight bad guys. We've got 3-D combat, combos, and quick time events. Most of the time, this was all I've got. A grueling mess of the type of gameplay I suck at horribly. Luckily, this is a very easy game, so on normal difficulty I had very little problems with just mushing around and winning. Then there's also a lot of additional content in the form of mini-games dressed as side quests. You can buy properties, watch porn movies, manage a bordello, help make a movie, play classic Sega games, became a pro at some strange form of RC car racing. But I don't care. My biggest issue with Japanese games is the sheer amount of random stuff you can do, but has no real impact on the game world. /Yakuza 0/ has a deep system for playing Shogi, as well as Dance Dance Revolution. I may be too old for this, or I have not enough time (nor mental capacity), but I never get any enjoyment from such activities. Make it integral to the main gameplay loop or don't bother. I will not learn complex mechanics for a /mini-game/. I barely have time to remember your combos! #+attr_shortcode: :file yakuza-0-2.jpg #+attr_shortcode: :alt Topless asian scraming in a dramatic pose #+attr_shortcode: :source https://www.rpgfan.com/game/yakuza-0/ #+attr_shortcode: :class centered #+begin_image Yakuza 0 can be over the top #+end_image #+attr_shortcode: :file yakuza-0-1.jpg #+attr_shortcode: :alt Asian man holdig a remote control car #+attr_shortcode: :source https://madmuseum.org/events/johnny-mnemonic #+attr_shortcode: :class centered #+begin_image It is also silly #+end_image As a gamey-game, /Yakuza 0/ is definitely not my type. It may be yours - and if you like /modern/ games, then it most likely is. But there is also the story and characters. Those are the real meat of the game for me, and they made it an /amazing/ experience. /Yakuza 0/ is a prequel of an already established series of games. We control two characters - Kazuma Kiryu and Goro Mojima. Kazuma wants to be a yakuza, but is presumed to be a killer of /civilian/, and as a result needs to leave the mafia. His mission is to find who framed him. Goro was a Yakuza, but due to mistakes of his past, he becomes a slave to a yakuza boss and needs to do his bidding. At the same time a gigantic plot to take over an empty plot of land in the middle of the city is established. Somewhere around middle point of the game, when all pieces started to fall on their places, I begun to be annoyed when they stopped the story for, well, game. /Yakuza 0/ is a weird. The main story is serious, but rarely becomes dark. It's engaging, emotional, deep. All side activities are silly. Somehow it fits together nicely, but I don't know. I'd rather this was a movie or a limited series. #+attr_shortcode: 3.75 "yakuza-0.jpg" #+begin_rating Cover #+end_rating Story-wise I have give my highest praises. The main plot is masterful, characters are amazing (voice acting is superb). Top bad I was thrown out of it in order to beat yet another group of thugs. I clocked at 34 hours completing a bit over 18% of the game, so I am not target audience. Still, the main plot pulled me back in. After I started completely ignoring all side-content, I begun to enjoy /Yakuza 0/ immensely. Yes, the final fight gave me thumb-blister[fn:qte], but after that we've got something like 26 ending scenes. Each more emotional than the other. I want to learn rest of the story of Goro and Kiryu, and therefore I'll continue playing other titles in the series. Too bad that there's a game attached. [fn:qte] And it still ended in a QTE. Shame. ** Monkey Island :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: classic-games/monkey-island :END: *** DONE Secret of Monkey Island, The (1990) CLOSED: [2022-05-04 Fri 22:26] :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_FILE_NAME: secret-of-monkey-island :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :abstract Secret of Monkey Island is a classic point-and-click adventure game. This is my short review. :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :aliases '(/2022/secret_of_monkey_island /articles/secret-of-monkey-island) :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :rating 4.75 :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-classic-games" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :image covers/secret-of-monkey-island.jpg :END: In preparation for /Return to Monkey Island/[fn:rtmi], I have decided to replay the first three classic games[fn:2023]. Frankly, I played only the third one as a child, soon after release. "The Secret of Monkey Island" came out right after Poland became an independent country again, and I was still in kindergarten. Three years later, I received my first computer - a (not so)powerful PC386. I was a kid back then, and I knew very little English. Certainly not enough to comprehend this game. My first play through was sometime around the year 2002. #+attr_shortcode: :file somi-splash.png #+attr_shortcode: :alt And island in the dark. A big stylized text with the title of the game occupies most of the screen. #+attr_shortcode: :class centered #+begin_image Title screen #+end_image [fn:rtmi] [[https://returntomonkeyisland.com/]["Return to Monkey Island" official webpage]] [fn:2023] update from 2023: this is still in progress. **** Running the game Running this 30-year-old game is amazingly easy, thanks to SummVM[fn:scvm]. Just download the emulator, find a copy of the game, and everything runs perfectly on any system. An updated version was released in 2009, but it was never released on Linux, and macOS/iOS versions are no longer working. You can also play in the browser via Internet Archive[fn:ia]. If you want the updated version, you can get it on GOG[fn:gog]. [fn:scvm] [[https://www.scummvm.org/][ScummVM website]] [fn:ia] [[https://archive.org/details/mnkyega]["The Secret of Monkey Island" on the Internet Archive]] [fn:gog] [[https://www.gog.com/game/the_secret_of_monkey_island_special_edition]["The Secret of Monkey Island" on GOG]] **** Playing the game /The Secret of Monkey Island/ is a pirate-themed adventure with lots of humor. The later games focused more on the funny aspect, but we have an interesting story here. Guybrush Threepwood lands on Mêlée Island, where he starts his quest to become a pirate. He will have to pass a test, find true love, and face a ghost pirate LeChuck. Some say that the idea for the game came from Disneyland's "Pirates of the Caribbean" ride. Some say the movie of the same name stole the idea from the game. The similarities are, for sure, not coincidental. And now, since LucasArts is part of Disney, it all made a giant circle. /The Secret of Monkey Island/ was one of the earliest examples of adventure gaming done right. You no longer need to guess and type which action the authors envisioned. Instead, the game can be completely operated using a Mouse, as simple verbs represent all actions. This interface has stood the test of time perfectly. I tried (and failed) playing the original Zork games despite the fantastic writing due to the text interpreter. Using the mouse is as simple as it gets. Pro hint: "." on the keyboard allows skipping dialogue lines in ScummVM. #+attr_shortcode: :file somi-lazypirates.gif #+attr_shortcode: :alt A group of pirates sitting on a barrel occupy left side of the screen. In center a short pirate stands. Bottom is occupied by UI with graphical buttons representing possible actions. #+attr_shortcode: :class centered #+begin_image Lazy pirates and the UI #+end_image The graphics aged, but it did it like a fine wine. The game was a marvel when it came out. LucasArts hired actual graphic artists to do computer games. This was still the wild west, and no one knew how to do it. Nowadays, a game can take up gigabytes, and no one bats an eye. LucasArts sold "Monkey Island" on floppies, and every bite counted. Everything we see or hear was a sacrifice of something else. Luckily, Ron Gilbert - the author and primary programmer on the team - was a legend. He created the Scumm engine, which allowed non-technical folks to create games (by writing scripts, not code), but he also managed to find a way to enable the designers to use dithering. You can listen more on YouTube - [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikaqus5_QIg][A five-hour chat with Ron Gilbert, the creator]] - [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ri4_3P2Oh14][A two-hour interview with Mark Ferrari, designer]] - [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GABrEdG8Ez4][A short one-hour-long interview with Dave Grossman, designer]] - [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzorEPK6khk][Another interview with Ron Gilbert, this time only 45 minutes long]] The graphical design is not only a technical marvel but a testament to design done right. The islands look great, and I really wanted to explore them. But the most significant thing is the idea that the game should not punish players for experimentation. Lucasarts biggest competitor back in those days, Sierra, always found creative and annoying ways to kill the player character. Did you go a pixel too far? You fell from a cliff. Have you met a monster you still lack the means of defeating? Time to die. Sometimes they even completely blocked their progress. For example, in the first "Space Quest," you are expected to find a pixel-wide item on the very first screen. If you skip it, the game won't tell you, and you can proceed. Then, a few hours later, you need to use that item however you can no longer access that location. And you are lucky if you even know about it. There was no internet back then to check the walkthrough! LucasArts also was guilty of this. For example, in the "Maniac Mansion," you could put a hamster into a microwave. Cooking a hamster seemed funny, but it also blocked the player from finishing the game. Ron Gilbert wrote a short manifesto where he stated that a game should not punish the player but rather encourage him to play. And so, "The Secret of Monkey Island" has no pitfalls. You are never in a position where your prior action blocks you from finishing the game. This has not aged a single day. And, since "The Secret..." is still one of the funniest games ever made, allowing the player to see the funny parts is what makes so many people play it after all those years. There are still some puzzles that are far from perfect. I solved Chicken with a Trolley puzzle solely because I remembered it after all those years - it's this bad. Moreover, I had to resort to a walkthrough because the solution was based on wordplay, which was far from natural for someone whose English is a second language. After I learned the solution, it made perfect sense. I have to give it to the authors. Everything in the game makes sense in the context of the game. But there were times I could not make head or tails, and I had to resort to the old "let's use everything on everything" strategy - and it's simply not fun to do so. On the other hand, "The Secret of Monkey Island" is also the home of one of the most fantastic puzzles I've ever witnessed - insult swordplay. You need to defeat pirates in a sword fight, but the fight is an insult-response loop instead of an action sequence. First, the pirate insults you, and you need to learn the proper response and use it, then you insult the pirate, and so on. After a few rounds, you either win and advance to another pirate or lose, but you learn some new insults and need to look for a pirate who will know how to reply. Ingenious! A cherry on top - this part was written by Orson Scott, the author of "Ender's game". #+attr_shortcode: :file somi-swordfight.jpg #+attr_shortcode: :alt Two pirates with swords aimed at each other. Bottom of the screen contains funny insults. #+attr_shortcode: :class centered #+begin_image Insult swordfighting #+end_image The game consists of four parts. Out of them, the first one is easily the most polished and exciting. Luckily, it also took roughly half the total playtime of my play through. The rest is still good (and the worst, I'd say, "Flight of the Amazon Queen" good), but the first few hours shine the most, and I am sure this is what most players remember. Overall, the game was great and (despite some shortcomings) is still extremely fun to play. I sure hope that "Return to Monkey Island" will keep the adventure/comedy ratio from this installment. And if you get stuck, remember that the "Universal Hint System"[fn:uhs] is the best way to get unstuck without getting a ready answer. [fn:uhs] [[https://www.uhs-hints.com/uhsweb/monkey.php]["The Secret of Monkey Island" on UHS]] **** Memories Emporium What I'll remember from the game? Mostly, the amazing world. Mêlée Island looks great and is full of rememberable characters - like the Voodoo Lady or lazy pirates training their pet rat for a circus. LucasArts has the gift of creating exceptional places. Their later game, "Grim Fandango," shows Rubacava. This is the one gaming place I simply return to from time to time, just to hang out there - but that's a story for a different time. They create a believable world inhabited but not completely sane people. Love it! I'll have to return here with my son when he is a bit older. The insult sword fighting. I guess I already remembered it as I say, "Well, you fight like a cow" from time to time. Guybrush. Since this is primarily an adventure story, he is fleshed out for an early 90s game. I really like the guy. He is quirky but also driven and a bit insane. Like every good heron should be. And he can hold his breath underwater for solid 10 minutes! Not bad for a 6 hour game. ** Chronicles of Amber :PROPERTIES: :EXPORT_HUGO_SECTION: fantasy/chronicles-of-amber/ :EXPORT_HUGO_MENU: :menu "brain-rot-fantasy-amber" :EXPORT_HUGO_CUSTOM_FRONT_MATTER+: :primary_menu "brain-rot-fantasy-amber" :END: * TODO - Moskwa - monkey 2 - poniedzialek zaczyna sie w... - internet's own boy -