Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow
Review by Lando da Pimp
When I first saw the trailer for Sky Captain I instantly
came to the realization that I needed to see this film.
Unfortunately I never made it to the theaters. When I received
the DVD for the film I instantly loaded into the DVD player
and gazed in awe at how beautiful stunning this film is.
The Story
The film opens with a stunning sequence of a zeppelin floating
in the sky during a winter evening docking at the Empire
State Building. On the blimp is a scientist with a warning
to his former co-worker Dr. Jenkins that he is in danger.
Jenkins contacts the Chronicle reporter Polly Perkins played
by Gwyneth Paltrow. Polly is a hard-nosed, aggressive reporter
who constantly puts her life in danger in pursuit of a story.
She is a very similar to the Lois Lane character, the archetype
of the damsel in distress.
Polly secretly meets with Dr. Jenkins at the theater during
a showing of the Wizard of Oz. This is a nice inclusion
into the film there is a similar scene from the Wizard of
Oz at the end of the film. Jenkins informs Polly that he
is in danger and that he is the last of the eleven scientists
that have gone missing at the hands of the mad scientist
Totenkoph.
At
that moment enormous robots attack New York City with little
opposition from the police. Unable to stop these massive
machines, the police contact Sky Captain (portrayed by Jude
Law) who swoops in to the city in his outfitted P-40. With
a few “unique toys” Sky Captain easily stops
the robots from destroying New York City.
Returning to the base Sky Captain, with the help of his friend Dex, (played
by Giovanni Ribisi) are attempting to solve the mystery
of these robots. Polly intrudes onto the base with a deal
to Sky Captain that she will provide information to help
solve this mystery if she can have the story. It becomes
clear that Sky Captain and Polly have a past as she calls
him by his real name, Joseph Sullivan. Polly and Sky captain
agree to an alliance to stop Totenkoph and discover what
he is planning.
At that point the invaders return attacking the Sky Captains
base and abducting Dex who was tracking where these machines
originate. Dex leaves a map of his findings for Sky Captain
and with a series of clues travel around the globe searching
for Totenkoph. Following clues eventually leads Sky Captain
to his lair where we discover Totenkoph’s ultimate
plan that can destroy Earth!
Bonus
Materials
A series of great featurettes Brave New World and The Art
of World of Tomorrow go into the making of this amazing
film. A lot of information is provided including how Kerry
Conran developed this film on his own with a six minute
short that is also included on this DVD. Two different commentaries
by producer Jon Avnet and writer and director Kerry Conran
are also available.
Parting Thoughts
After viewing this film I wish I had experienced it in the
theaters. This is a great movie that’s story resembles
the old 30’s and 40’s Saturday morning serials
that inspired George Lucas to write Star Wars. The characters
of Sky Captain remind me of the love / hate relationship
of Indiana Jones and Marian from Raiders of the Lost Ark.
I loved Paltrow’s portrayal of Polly but I’m
not sold on Jude Law. He did a good job, but I had a hard
time accepting him as the swashbuckling hero Sky Captain.
The story, while good, plays second to the visuals of this
film. Kerry has taken the look of a period science fiction
serial and improved upon its effects making gorgeous a work
of art.
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow is available to purchase
at Amazon.com
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