SYNOPSIS:
400 years in the future, when disease has wiped out the majority
of the earth's population except for one walled, protected city-state:
Bregna, ruled by a congress of scientists. The story centers
on Aeon Flux, the top operative in the underground Monican rebellion,
led by the Handler. When Aeon is sent on a mission to kill a
government leader, she uncovers a world of secrets....
MOVIE
REVIEW :
Let’s
be straightforward with this review and tell you that it deserves
three stars, no matter how many unkind writeups about the
movie you have read before this. And we are even going to
be so organized and analytical that we will tell you which
areas each of these three stars go to. Now, that would be
something the people of the future will be proud of.
How apt
this is, because the story is set 400 years in the future,
and it sure isn’t a happy place. No one smiles because
a disease has wiped out almost everyone on Earth. The rest
of the people live in this walled up area, and there are people
who are unhappy with the state. So, enter Aeon Flux the assassin,
who goes on a mission to kill some big shot in the government.
Along the way, she discovers some conspiracy that will has
affected humankind. Or something like that.
Who cares
about the storyline, when the visuals are so stunningly futuristic?
Yes, that is where we are awarding the first star to. Shot
in location in Berlin, Germany, the 92-minute movie provides
us with a glimpse of what a terribly cold world we might be
living in 400 years down the road.
The chilly
feel of the architecture is nicely complemented with the beautiful
wardrobe worn by the cast. And that’s where the second
star goes to. Charlize Theron, who plays the titular assassin,
must be one happy girl during the shoot, because of the gorgeously
ultramodern clothes she gets to wear. The movie is like one
lavish fashion show, complete with a cool synthesizer soundtrack
packaged with Theron’s beautiful sashays across the
screen.
And where
does the third star go to? Well, some may not see this as
a compliment, but the third and final star awarded to this
movie is how it manages to make established movie stars look
ridiculously silly.
First,
we have Theron (Oscar winner for her performance in 2004’s
Monster), who slinks and crawls around in her skintight outfit.
Next, we have Frances McDormand (Oscar winner for her supporting
role in 1996’s Fargo) who sports a absurdly orange hairdo
while spouting self-important dialogue which makes no sense
whatsoever. Third, we have Sophie Okonedo (nominee for Best
Supporting Actress for her role as Tatiana Rusesabagina in
2004’s Hotel Rwanda), who has hands for feet. Yes, she
walks with her hands. Enough said.
This sheer
amusement prompted us to review this movie with lightheartedness,
and award it with a passing mark of three stars. The world
is already such a grim place, and there was no slight indication
of any happy character in the movie. So, why would we make
our lives more miserable by picking out all the wrong things
about it? Besides, you have probably read them about from
many other sources.
Yes,
this movie left us suitably amused, but we sure hope that
the world would not look like that in 400 years time.
SPECIAL
FEATURES :
Surprisingly, there is quite a fair bit of extra
features on this Code 3 DVD. Now, if only the movie had been
better, it would make this disc a must-have for a serious
DVD collector.
Commentary by Charlize Theron and producer Gail Hurd
– Kudos to the DVD producers who managed to get Theron
to give a full-length commentary about the movie. She talks
about her experiences acting in front of green screens, while
Hurd talks about the locations they shot at. Not terribly
exciting, but still worth a listen.
Commentary by co-screenwriters Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi
– These two men talk about their struggles
trying to adapt this MTV series to screen, and are often amusing
with each other. Interesting to hear how these two screenwriters
conceptualized and adapted the series for the big screen.
Creating a World: Aeon Flux – In this 20-minute
feature, you will hear producers, screenwriters, the series
creator and graphic artists talk about how the movie was visualized
on the screen. Actual footages of the MTV Aeon Flux series
are also included in this feature, and you’d realize
Ms Flux isn’t as babelicious as Ms Theron.
The locations of Aeon Flux – The 14-minute
feature includes interviews with the movie’s director,
producers and technicians about how they chose Berlin, Germany
for the movie’s main location shoots. The team had wanted
to choose Brasilia, but due to logistic problems, they ended
up in Berlin, and uncovered some stunning architecture dating
back to before the World War II era.
The
stunts of Aeon Flux – Theron demonstrates her
ability to twist and turn in the most agile and beautiful
manner in this 9-minute feature. For the role, the former
dancer went through some serious gymnastics training, and
some of the shots featuring her doing her training do look
terribly painful to us.
The costume design workshop of Aeon Flux
– The costume designers of the movie tell us how the
striking and dazzling wardrobe were conceptualized in this
13-minute feature. For a futuristic film like this, it is
very interesting to see what kind of materials these people
were inspired by.
The craft of the set photographer on Aeon Flux –
In this brief 3-minute feature, the still photographer talks
about some really technical stuff about his camera equipment,
and certain choices and decisions he made for the pictures
taken on the set.
Trailers
– Other than a trailer for the movie, Paramount’s
summer blockbuster for 2006 Mission Impossible: 3 is also
included on the disc.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
The visual transfer for this
DVD is clear and stunning, and makes the already beautiful
images even more beautiful. Audio options include English
and Thai 5.2 Dolby.
MOVIE
RATING:
DVD
RATING :
Review
by John Li
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