The Wachowskis Returning to Sci-Fi with Jupiter Ascending - Part 1

[bullets]

They were really obsessed with getting someone from BlackSwan weren't they? I know the V for Vendetta connection but still that's amusing to me.

It does seem like that, haha. They have been trying with Portman for some time though. She was also being courted for Cloud Atlas.

 

[bullets]

Portman is done with Marvel.

That may change if the rumors of Branagh returning are true. I'm also on team Sif though.

 

[I SEE SPIDEY]

It does seem like that, haha. They have been trying with Portman for some time though. She was also being courted for Cloud Atlas.

Oh I didn't know (or don't remember) about them wanting her for Cloud Atlas.

Portman is done with Marvel.

I suspect that but I'd like some confirmation in the form of a cast list without her on it.

 

[dude stannis]

Natalie Portman actually pitched Cloud Atlas to the Wachowskis on the set of V For Vendetta and I do recall she was originally cast to play Jupiter.

Naturally, Portman's disassociation with Marvel is indeed unconfirmed. Plus money talks and even if there was trouble, minds change.

 

[Serpico Jones]

She's not under contract for the third Thor?

 

[TheVileOne]

Signing a deal for three films doesn't guarantee they will appear in three.

 

[dude stannis]

I wouldn't take contracts as a guarantee of anything. Hollywood contracts are probably as legally binding as the ones you see on WWE.

 

[I SEE SPIDEY]

Yep I'm sure Terrence Howard signed on for more than one film as well and yet he only played in one film.

 

[max314]

I've heard it being called everything from "One of the worst movies ever made!" to "The second coming of Star Wars!"

If anything, this has further piqued my curiosity. It would appear that "No-one can be told what Jupiter Ascending is -- you have to see it for yourself"

However, there is at least one thing that is certain from the reviews: if you are ever considering seeing Jupiter Ascending at any point in your life, then YOU HAVE TO SEE IT ON THE BIG SCREEN!! Even if you dislike the film, it would seem that this is the only way to guarantee value for your money.

I'm hoping to see the film sometime this week.

This movie was AWESOME.
Seriously, 9/10 for me - and on repeat viewings when I own it, it might get higher.

I will say though, I'm convinced that you're either a Wachowski person or you're not, and if you are, this movie is a geek-fest to the nth degree and it's totally up your alley. If you hated The Matrix Sequels, if you hated Speed Racer, if you hated Cloud Atlas, this is absolutely NOT for you. But, personally being a huge fan of all those movies, I loved every single minute of Jupiter Ascending.

So, it really comes down to this: If you don't like the Post-1999 films that the Wachowskis have offered, avoid this like the plague. But, for MY money, I was in total heaven from start to finish. I absolutely loved it.

It's a similar situation I've had with Blackhat - you're either a Michael Mann person or you're not, and since I am, that movie is a masterpiece to me.

So, basically, it's bazonkers!

I had expected Jupiter Ascending to be a return to the more mainstream era of pre-Reloaded Wachowski, but I guess I'll just have to make do with yet another genre-defying masterpiece.

Oh well.

...

 

[I SEE SPIDEY]

Guess I was wrong about it not hitting 18mil because the studio are estimating a 19 million opening weekend.

Yikes that's a bad opening. Now to see if it hit it out of the park internationally. I expect it to at least do as good as the 211million John Carter did. Personally I'm expecting more.

 

[Greens]

What a mess of a movie. I can't say I'm disappointed as that is exactly what I expected.

I was actually down with this movie for a little bit. It was silly and heightened but everything through and including chase through the streets of Chicago really worked for me.

From there though its just an endless line of people explaining to Jupiter exactly who they are and what their intents are.

Jupiter is written to aggressively do nothing. At any opportunity that she is given to be an active agent in her own story, she chooses to do nothing. They even have a moment in which they try to play off of that and finally have her make a decision but she just re-damselizes her self.

Other than the aforementioned Chicago chase, the action in this movie is pretty bad, which is disheartening to see from the Wachowskis. The editing of this film makes no sense, as if in several scenes someone suddenly hit a skip ahead button on a DVD.

There is one fight scene that starts and then without warning just cuts to the end of the fight.

Channing Tatum I actually thought did an okay job with what he was given. I don't think at all that he was "miscast". Kunis though cannot carry this movie. Its not all her fault as she's not given much good to work with but she still seems to flounder.

This movie and its trailers lay out one its own essential problems. Jupiter herself says "I'm not special. I haven't done anything." to which Sean Bean (who has jackall to do in this movie btw) replies "Its not what you do. Its what you are." Constantly they emphasize that Jupiter doesn't have to do anything except merely exist in order to be special. Even Luke skywalker had useful skills and had to train to achieve his destiny.

There are some interesting designs but a lot of it comes off as either rehashes of ships from the matrix or costumes and locations from The Phantom Menace. All in all this movie owes a great debt to movies from 1999.

Your review seems to be the consensus. Max has already decided it's a genre-defying masterpiece, though.

 

[Pfeiffer-Pfan]

This thread has been so damn entertaining... Thanks Max!

 

[Snow Queen]

This thread has been so damn entertaining... Thanks Max!

You learn so much in this thread, don't you?

 

[bullets]

Your review seems to be the consensus. Max has already decided it's a genre-defying masterpiece, though.

Long before the film was released.

 

[I SEE SPIDEY]

It's not even genre defying at all.

 

[max314]

Max has already decided it's a genre-defying masterpiece, though.

"Decided"?

No.

"Hoping" more like.

 

[sycore]

Jupiter Acending crushed SpongeBob in the international market. These film are not made for the American market anymore. American audience want sequels and YA adaptions. Sci-Fi is for the foreign market. When a excellent original sci-fi move like Edge of Tomorrow can barely break 100 million in the USA and then goes on to make almost 300 million internationally, that tells you all you need to know.

Domestic: $19,000,000 36.9% + Foreign: $32,500,000 63.1% = Worldwide: $51,500,000

 

[Pfeiffer-Pfan]

Spongebob hasn't even opened in alot of major markets. It's far too early to say it's been crushed.

 

[I SEE SPIDEY]

Exactly there is no comparison. Furthermore I'm not sure if that's even a good number for Jupiter Ascending. I know it was released in a lot of places though.

 

[Lily Adler]

Portman is done with Marvel.

More like Marvel is done with her. Jane was the only thing that kept her career afloat.

 

[Pfeiffer-Pfan]

Why... what happened between Marvel and Portman?

 

[Nonsuch]

More like Marvel is done with her. Jane was the only thing that kept her career afloat.

LOL, no. Everything about her demeanour in Thor 2 suggested that she wanted out, and every rumour about her involvement backs that impression up. They literally made her sleep for a significant chunk of the film, and you can tell that the part bores her (it's hardly a stretch). Like most actors she's clearly more interested in her smaller, more personal projects and developing herself as a director.

But to return to the topic at hand, I saw Jupiter Ascending yesterday and really enjoyed it. It's deeply flawed but it was refreshingly fun and pulp-y, and it made a nice change from the formula blockbusters that dominate the box office. Eddie Redmayne's performance is truly something else - he's on the same level as Jeremy Irons in Dungeons and Dragons.

 

[Venomfan]

man there are quite a few people who signed up just to post in this thread.

 

[flickchick85]

LOL, no. Everything about her demeanour in Thor 2 suggested that she wanted out

True, her face during Frigga's funeral basically screamed, "Take me with yooouuu!!"

 

[The Shape]

man there are quite a few people who signed up just to post in this thread.

Strange, isn't it?