Welcome Guest [Log In] [Register]
Speculative biology is simultaneously a science and form of art in which one speculates on the possibilities of life and evolution. What could the world look like if dinosaurs had never gone extinct? What could alien lifeforms look like? What kinds of plants and animals might exist in the far future? These questions and more are tackled by speculative biologists, and the Speculative Evolution welcomes all relevant ideas, inquiries, and world-building projects alike. With a member base comprising users from across the world, our community is the largest and longest-running place of gathering for speculative biologists on the web.

While unregistered users are able to browse the forum on a basic level, registering an account provides additional forum access not visible to guests as well as the ability to join in discussions and contribute yourself! Registration is free and instantaneous.

Join our community today!

Username:   Password:
Add Reply
Anomalisa
Topic Started: Jan 6 2016, 01:30 PM (984 Views)
Scrublord
Member Avatar
Father Pellegrini
 *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
Well, it's done pretty well in its limited release, and it's going to be expanding this weekend.
As for the plot itself, it's about a down-on-his-luck self-help book writer who feels cursed by the mundanity of his everyday life until he meets a woman who he feels may give him a chance to escape from this.
My Projects:
The Neozoic Redux
Valhalla--Take Three!
The Big One



Deviantart Account: http://elsqiubbonator.deviantart.com

In the end, the best advice I could give you would be to do your project in a way that feels natural to you, rather than trying to imitate some geek with a laptop in Colorado.
--Heteromorph
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Flisch
Member Avatar
Superhuman
 *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
Scrublord
Jan 6 2016, 01:30 PM
Anomalisa, directed by Charlie Kaufman, is by many critic's standards, the best movie of 2015--by which I mean it's gotten better review than Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Inside Out, or even Mad Max: Fury Road.

Better than The Force Awakens and Mad Max? Well, it doesn't even take a good movie to achieve that. (Inside Out is an awesome movie though.)

Scrublord
Jan 6 2016, 01:30 PM
And it is done completely in stop-motion animation.

This is actually what rubs me the wrong way the most.

Why did they make it into stop-motion? Now don't get me wrong, making stop-motion movies isn't inherently a bad thing, it's just that the way the movie is made it would have worked just as well if it was real actors. Heck, they didn't even use the stop-motion to set a certain style, because they still tried to make everything look about as real as possible, including the facial expressions and body language. What's the point here? If they wanted to make a stop-motion movie why not do something you can't do with real actors?

This reeks pretty much of "doing this differently just for the sake of doing things differently". It's like they knew nobody would even care about the movie if it was done in a mundane way, so they added "a cool twist" to the whole thing that really comes off as an unnecessary gimmick, just to get someone, anyone interested in the movie.

Again, I don't mind the movie plot itself OR the fact that it's stop-motion, but I don't like the thing it represents. Namely doing things differently just for the attention grabbing.
We have a discord. If you want to join, simply message me, Icthyander or Sphenodon.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
LittleLazyLass
Member Avatar
Proud quilt in a bag

Quote:
 
Why did they make it into stop-motion? Now don't get me wrong, making stop-motion movies isn't inherently a bad thing, it's just that the way the movie is made it would have worked just as well if it was real actors. Heck, they didn't even use the stop-motion to set a certain style, because they still tried to make everything look about as real as possible, including the facial expressions and body language. What's the point here? If they wanted to make a stop-motion movie why not do something you can't do with real actors?
But why does "real actors" have to be the default? Why does there have to be "a point" if it's not real actors?
totally not British, b-baka!
Posted Image You like me (Unlike)
I don't even really like this song that much but the title is pretty relatable sometimes, I guess.
Me
What, you want me to tell you what these mean?
Read First
Words Maybe
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Scrublord
Member Avatar
Father Pellegrini
 *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
According to what's printed to the movie's poster it's going to be released "everywhere in January." Other sites, like this one say it's going to get a wider release this weekend, but I haven't been able to find any official proof of that exact statement. Your thoughts?
My Projects:
The Neozoic Redux
Valhalla--Take Three!
The Big One



Deviantart Account: http://elsqiubbonator.deviantart.com

In the end, the best advice I could give you would be to do your project in a way that feels natural to you, rather than trying to imitate some geek with a laptop in Colorado.
--Heteromorph
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Flisch
Member Avatar
Superhuman
 *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
Myo
Jan 9 2016, 10:13 AM
Quote:
 
Why did they make it into stop-motion? Now don't get me wrong, making stop-motion movies isn't inherently a bad thing, it's just that the way the movie is made it would have worked just as well if it was real actors. Heck, they didn't even use the stop-motion to set a certain style, because they still tried to make everything look about as real as possible, including the facial expressions and body language. What's the point here? If they wanted to make a stop-motion movie why not do something you can't do with real actors?
But why does "real actors" have to be the default? Why does there have to be "a point" if it's not real actors?
It's not about the default, it's about the fact that the movie tries to emulate real actors with stop motion. They do not embrace the stop-motion as "their" thing to do things you couldn't do with real actors. In fact they do the reverse, they are trying hard to make it look as real as possible, even down to the eye movements and everything. It's a stop-motion movie by execution, not by design. By design it is a life-action movie, without the live actors.
We have a discord. If you want to join, simply message me, Icthyander or Sphenodon.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Scrublord
Member Avatar
Father Pellegrini
 *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
That may be true, but that doesn't mean it's a "bad" movie. It just means it's a bold experiment by an eccentric pioneer.

And by the way, have you been able to find out anything about its future expansion/ wide release?
My Projects:
The Neozoic Redux
Valhalla--Take Three!
The Big One



Deviantart Account: http://elsqiubbonator.deviantart.com

In the end, the best advice I could give you would be to do your project in a way that feels natural to you, rather than trying to imitate some geek with a laptop in Colorado.
--Heteromorph
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Kewkiez
Member Avatar
Endless Apoptosis
 *  *  *  *
Sylvan
Jan 6 2016, 01:32 PM
I hadn't even heard of it.
This.

Gonna look this up now though.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Flisch
Member Avatar
Superhuman
 *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
Scrublord
Jan 9 2016, 12:53 PM
That may be true, but that doesn't mean it's a "bad" movie.
I'm not questioning the quality of the movie. I'm putting the decision of making it stop-motion into question. To me it seems to be that they made it stop-motion entirely to make it avant-garde to distract from the fact that it's your typical run of the mill "some guy has a problem and we see his emotions blah blah blah" plot.
We have a discord. If you want to join, simply message me, Icthyander or Sphenodon.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Russwallac
Member Avatar
"Ta-da!"
 *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
Scrublord
Jan 9 2016, 12:57 AM
Well, it's done pretty well in its limited release, and it's going to be expanding this weekend.
As for the plot itself, it's about a down-on-his-luck self-help book writer who feels cursed by the mundanity of his everyday life until he meets a woman who he feels may give him a chance to escape from this.
I hate to say it, but this sounds like the plot of every award-bait movie ever.
"We've started a cult about a guy's liver, of course we're going to demand that you give us an incredibly scientific zombie apocalypse." -Nanotyranus

Posted Image
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Scrublord
Member Avatar
Father Pellegrini
 *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
True, that. But sometimes a generic story is a good way to test out a new technique. When Walt Disney made the first animated feature film, the story he chose was "Snow White and the Seven Dwarves"--a rather straightforward and simple story. But ultimately he was mostly interested in demonstrating what animation could do. And that's what I think the people behind "Anomalisa" are trying to do for stop-motion.
By the way, do you have any information on its upcoming expansion and release, 'cause I don't.
My Projects:
The Neozoic Redux
Valhalla--Take Three!
The Big One



Deviantart Account: http://elsqiubbonator.deviantart.com

In the end, the best advice I could give you would be to do your project in a way that feels natural to you, rather than trying to imitate some geek with a laptop in Colorado.
--Heteromorph
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Cephylus
Member Avatar
Torando of Terror
 *  *  *  *  *  *  *
Scrublord
Jan 6 2016, 04:31 PM
Because people talk about movies before they come out.
People talk about big-budget hollywood movies before they come out, but not about movies like this one.

And it's not even got a worldwide release yet. Why do you expect us to have seen or even heard of it?
Spoiler: click to toggle
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Scrublord
Member Avatar
Father Pellegrini
 *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
Do we know when it's getting one? The poster say "Everywhere January" but. . .
My Projects:
The Neozoic Redux
Valhalla--Take Three!
The Big One



Deviantart Account: http://elsqiubbonator.deviantart.com

In the end, the best advice I could give you would be to do your project in a way that feels natural to you, rather than trying to imitate some geek with a laptop in Colorado.
--Heteromorph
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Monster
Member Avatar
Space Oddity

From what I can find it isn't going to be released in the UK until March.

Quote:
 
I hate to say it, but this sounds like the plot of every award-bait movie ever.


It does sound very boring, but hopefully it is a new take on it; goodness knows we have enough "brooding self-absorbed man uses fun woman to escape his own insufferable boringness and insecurities" films already.Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (a previous Kaufman film) was a criticism of this - it essentially was that story and protagonists but it was aware of this and so it was something new. Often in this type of film there's a happy ending and the Sad Male character (who is always really a good guy) learns an important life lesson and it's all in good fun and everybody is OK in the end.
Spoiler: click to toggle


And the few reviews I skimmed imply the dude in Anomalisa is unlikable too so perhaps we'll get another dig at that the sad dude trope.
Flashlights, nightmares, sudden explosions.

'active'
{tumblr}
{Veles}
{10 Million Years of Rain]

Commissions: Open.



Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Scrublord
Member Avatar
Father Pellegrini
 *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
I've decided to bump this thread, for two reasons.
One is that this movie was nominated for a Best Animated Oscar. Now, say what you will about the Oscars being, as Kamineigh so eloquently puts it, "a massive circlejerk", but the fact remains that this is landmark event in the history of cinema as the first R-rated animated movie to be nominated for such an award.
The other is that I am curious about its release schedule. I've read a number of conflicting reports on whether it is going to get a wide release or not, and if so when that will be. So far, it's expanding very gradually, playing in 17 theaters as of today.
My Projects:
The Neozoic Redux
Valhalla--Take Three!
The Big One



Deviantart Account: http://elsqiubbonator.deviantart.com

In the end, the best advice I could give you would be to do your project in a way that feels natural to you, rather than trying to imitate some geek with a laptop in Colorado.
--Heteromorph
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
revin
Member Avatar
Leonardo da Vinci at his finest
 *  *  *  *  *  *
I'm still confused as to why it's experiencing such a limited release. Usually there's a few special viewings, and then it's released worldwide or at least nationwide all at once.
I tend to get dis– Hey, look, an elephant!
Potentially an elephant


Fire into Ice, a project about life on a rogue planet ejected from our own Solar System. Check it out!

My spec evo YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/speculativeevolution

With personal experience as a raven, I am a major proponent of conserving all corvid species at all costs. Save the endangered Mariana crow here.

Please don't click.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous)
DealsFor.me - The best sales, coupons, and discounts for you
Go to Next Page
« Previous Topic · General Discussion · Next Topic »
Add Reply