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Top 10 Robots in Movies

traviswoods — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 15:00:31 +0000

Robots! Despite cinema telling us over and over that once we build them, they’ll become our mechanized overlords, hell-bent on wiping out humanity — we can’t shake them. It’d still be really cool to have them around to do the dishes, our homework, vacuum, and pay our bills now and again. Right? Our fascination with robots have long been a subject of film, and here at ScreenCrave, we’ve decided to put together a list of our 10 favorite machines. From murderously insane cyborgs, to robotic friends, to well…more murderously insane cyborgs, it’s a grouping of our favorite humanoid creatures.

Note to nitpickers: Before you complain about certain absences, please note that Hal 9000 is a computer, not a robot; Data is primarily a TV show character; and the Transformers…well, those movies are terrible. They won’t be on here.

Check out our list below… (Warning, movie spoilers ahead!)

10. Ash (Alien, 1979)

It takes an amazing and threatening performance to be memorable in an Alien film, when you’re not playing an alien. That’s exactly what Ian Holm did in the science fiction classic. He created a character who at first seems like an ineffectual snob that later reveals himself as a murderous android! He was determined to sacrifice his human crew members in order to bring a dangerous alien species to Earth for study. Aside from his psycho methods, he also bleeds a milky white goo, and that’s just spooky.

9. WALL-E (WALL-E, 2008)

This is a robot that’s designed to make your eyes wet, forcing you to shout there’s just something wrong with your contact lens. WALL-E is the star of the 2008 Pixar animated film of the same name. He’s a garbage disposal robot left behind on an abandoned and uninhabitable future Earth. Within the 98 minute feature, we discover that WALL-E’s developed sentience, a heart of gold (no, not literally), falls in love with another robot, and pretty much saves humanity. Not bad for a guy whose look rips off the bot from Short Circuit.

8. Robocop (Robocop – Robocop 3, 1987 – 1993)

OK, it’s a cop who was killed, then had his face and memories grafted to robot body that stomps around, taking a bite out of Detroit crime. He also finds time to wipe out the greedy corporate overlords who created him. Do I really need to say anything else to justify Robocop’s placement on this list?

7. T-1000 (Terminator 2: Judgment Day, 1991)

The T-1000 is a cold killing machine sent from the future to murder a boy. The year’s 1991, and the kid will grow up to become the leader a resistance against the machines. Therefore, the T-1000 would have made it onto this list by that fact alone. Director James Cameron came up with the idea of a machine comprised solely of liquid metal (meaning it’s a big pile of shiny goo that can replicate anyone/anything it touches) and made it totally believable. However, it’s Robert Patrick’s hyper-precise, blankly menacing performance that truly makes this robot memorable.

6. The Iron Giant (The Iron Giant, 1999)

A 50 foot metal eating robot, the Iron Giant is without doubt the greatest animated robot of all time. A tribute to the metal machines of Cold War-era cinema, the Iron Giant is a walking destroyer of words, who with the help of a young boy’s friendship and some Superman comics, learns the value of heroism over destruction.

5. Robby the Robot (Forbidden Plant, 1956)

Remember Shakespeare’s The Tempest? It’s about a deposed Duke/magician who lives on a deserted island with his daughter, a monster, and an angelic spirit. Now imagine that story being retold as a 1950s sci-fi film, set on a distant planet, and Ariel the spirit is now Robby the Robot. Seriously. Guided by Asimov’s Three Law’s of Robotics (don’t injure a human through action/inaction, obey all human orders that don’t lead to human harm, and protect its own existence as long as humans are not harmed), Robby has appeared in numerous sci-fi films and TV shows, remaining one of the most strangely memorable bots in pop culture.

4. Gort (The Day the Earth Stood Still, 1951)

As a 7” tall robot sent by aliens to wipe out humanity (if we don’t start behaving ourselves), Gort may be the most instantly recognizable of all “classic” film robots. Also gals, he is the reason sci-fi nerds will whisper “Klaatu barada nikto” to you and hope that it has an effect.

3. Roy Batty (Blade Runner, 1982)

One of the most powerful, intelligent and dangerous replicants (androids built to serve humanity) in the future of Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner is Roy Batty. He rebels against his human masters after he discovers his built in life span of only a few years. Wholly sentient, he returns to Los Angeles to find the man who created him and demand, simply, more time. When he discovers that he cannot extend his life, he elects to “revel in his own time.” And that’s when the madness really begins.

2. The Terminator (The Terminator – Terminator: Salvation, 1984 – 2009)

Built by SkyNet, a self-aware missile defense system of the future convinced that the destruction of humanity is the way to go, The Terminator is a mass-produced cyborg designed for one thing: killing us. In the first Terminator film, one model is sent back in time to kill Sarah Conner, whose son John, will one day lead a resistance against the machines. Portrayed by Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Terminator is a brutal killer, who’ll stop at nothing to find and kill its target. However, in the first sequel, a Terminator model is reprogrammed by John in the future, and sent back to save him as a child. Now programmed to protect and learn, the Terminator not only rescues John, but over the course of a few days, learns the value of human life. (And then two more sequels showed up that sucked. The less said of those, the better).

1. R2-D2 (Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope – Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, 1977 – 2005)

Come on, how could R2 not be number one? Somehow managing to talk to everyone in the Star Wars franchise by saying “bee boo baah buuh beee booo bee” or screaming “whaaaaaaaaaa!” whenever something goes wrong, R2 somehow manages not be annoying; rather, in the increasingly ridiculous films, it eventually becomes one of the most likeable, and surrounded by wooden performances — human characters in the entire franchise.

What are your favorite cinematic robots?

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Night at the Museum Barely Tops DVD Charts

Krystal Clark — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 01:10:59 +0000

Last week, two big budget sequels hit DVD shelves. Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian went toe to toe with Terminator Salvation and guess who came out on top? Night at the Museum barely topped the DVD charts for the most sales last week, while McG‘s Terminator flick came in at number one in another format.

Night at the Museum debuted at number one on the Nielsen VideoScan First Alert sales chart for the week ending in December 6th. It also went on to dominate the weekly rentals chart, while Terminator Salvation finished a distant second. The good news is that TS did find itself at the top of one chart and that was for Blu-rays. It outsold Night at the Museum by a margin of nearly 3 to 1, which means McG’s Blu-ray extras came in handy. Overall, home entertainment sales are showing a major increase thanks to the holiday season.

Night at the Museum is a safer PG alternative as compared to the heavy action sequences shown in Terminator Salvation. The success of the Blu-ray discs shouldn’t come as a surprise because lately all the good extras are being put in the format. It’s another attempt to force consumers into buying a player, and investing in the technology. As for Salvation, there was a lot footage missing from the movie that fans wanted to see, including a certain topless scene that featured Moon Bloodgood. Why am I not surprised by that?

Which DVD did you pick up last week? Night at the Museum or Terminator Salvation?

Source: Yahoo

James Cameron Responds to Terminator Salvation

Krystal Clark — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 22:53:40 +0000

Earlier this year everyone was up in arms over Terminator Salvation and how it didn’t fit in with James Cameron‘s vision. We all wanted to know what Cameron thought about the sequel but he kept pressing that he was too busy to see the movie. But now, with Avatar finished he had no more excuses and finally admitted to watching the movie. So the big question is, what did he think?

MTV recently caught up with Cameron while promoting Avatar and he revealed that he saw Terminator Salvation recently, but it was completely by accident.

“I have seen it, and unfortunately I saw it the wrong way, on cable at the hotel, while I was working, over three nights because I don’t have much time,” Cameron said. “It’s better than I thought it was going to be.”

It sounds like someone’s expectations were pretty low. Maybe the rest of the general population should have followed his lead? He did go on to give McG and company some praise for their efforts, so it wasn’t a complete backhanded compliment to their work. Especially since one of the main stars of TS is Sam Worthington, who’s also featured in Avatar.

“It’s actually quite reverential to the mythos of the ‘Terminator’ world,” he said. “I think McG and the writers tried hard to keep reacquainting you with some of those ideas in the story that they were weaving. So actually I thought it was pretty cool. I did feel that it sort of lacked Je ne sais quoi. Although I love Sam [Worthington] in it. “

In other words, it was OK, but could have been better. Cameron will be up for his own judgment day (pun intended) when Avatar hits theaters on December 18th. That’s when we’ll see if his movie lacks any Je ne sais quoi.

What do you think of Cameron’s response to seeing Terminator Salvation?

Terminator Salvation DVD Rated R!

Krystal Clark — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 01:26:52 +0000

So many people complained about Terminator Salvation’s PG-13 rating and said it was the reason for the films mediocre box office performance. Well, now it’s really judgment day! We all get the chance to see if the unedited material would have made a difference. According to /Film, the Director’s Cut of the upcoming DVD will be rated R.

It appears that the upcoming Director’s Cut of the DVD will be rated R for “some violence” and “brief nudity.” What could the footage entail? According to the site McG stated the following info back in May:

Director McG only cut one shot in Terminator Salvation to earn the PG-13 rating. The quick cut involved featuring Sam Worthington’s character Marcus “stabbing a screwdriver through the shoulder” of a thug. McG claims that in the end the Moon Bloodgood shot “felt more like a gratuitous moment of a girl taking her top off in an action picture, and I didn’t want that to convolute the story or the characters.”

The natural assumption here is that the boobs are back and so is Marcus’s screwdriver scene. I find it weird that those are the only two instances that they’re referring to in terms of missing footage. When I watched the film there were a couple of jump cuts that I thought didn’t fit. When Marcus submerged from the mud, was there a naked shot missing from somewhere? What about the alternate ending I kept hearing about that ends in nothing but bloodshed?

What’s so sad is that this sounds like home entertainment marketing through and through. I doubt if a few scenes here or there will improve the overall story of the film, which in my opinion was pretty weak. What do you think?

Are you interested in buying the R-rated cut of Terminator Salvation? Do you think it will make a difference?

Sam Worthington Defends Avatar and Terminator

Krystal Clark — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 15:25:08 +0000

Sam Worthington has had the unfortunate pleasure of being a part of two highly scrutinized projects. Avatar‘s teaser trailer was released last week to an onslaught of negative reviews, and this summer’s Terminator Salvation didn’t fare much better. Worthington is still filming his Greek epic Clash of the Titans, and managed to catch wind of the recent trailer reactions while on set. Find out what he had to say below.

According to HitFlix, Worthington spoke to a small group of reporters, and responded to the harsh criticism his work has taken over the past few months.

“I read all what was said yesterday about the trailer. I can see their point, but as I said, it’s not meant to be built for an Apple Mac, it’s built for IMAX, it’s built for 3D, that’s what he’s designed it for. He’s designed it to bring people back to the cinema. It’s interesting that he’s released that trailer, Jim’s gone and done that, and the next day, he shows it on IMAX. It’s one extreme to the other. We get the criticism and then we get the rave reviews of what it really looks like in its own formula. That’s obviously going to get people to think and go, ‘Damn right! I’m going to go and see this at the cinema.’ Jim has always said to me that he wants to bring people back to the movies, and he’s a smart enough man for that to be tactical.”

I have to agree with his point about seeing the footage in a theater. I even addressed this issue in our James Cameron’s Avatar Trailer: What Went Wrong post. I think the overall consensus is that the look doesn’t transfer well on to a computer monitor in comparison to a big screen laced with 3-D. The underwhelming result of our official Avatar Trailer Poll was proof of that!

Speaking of one extreme to another, the actor also discussed Terminator Salvation. This was a film that carried a huge weight on its shoulders in terms of mythology and a built in fan base. Worthington acknowledged that there were some things that stood out in the fourth film that he didn’t pick up on, until he started reading fan discussions on the internet.

“We just have try and do the best character we can do at that time. And I can nitpick with the best of them, man, and go down the list of things I saw on IMDB where they found holes in it and go, ‘You are f***ing right. If there was a big ten-ton robot coming outside that gas station, surely we would f***ing hear it!’ And I missed that! So I go, ‘I gotta be a bit better when I’m looking through my scripts!’ So that kind of raises my games a bit, cause I feel like an idiot for not saying it to McG.”

At least he noticed the same plot holes we did. I mean come on? Thanks for not making me feel insane Sam. There was an entire article written about the lack of common sense that took place in that film. Worthington will have plenty of time to regain some fan allegiance once the promotion for Avatar hits full swing in the upcoming months. Over at Empire, he will appear on the cover of the latest issue of the magazine, where they will debut a new behind the scenes photo (above) from the film.

What do you think of Worthington’s response to Avatar and Terminator? Do you agree with him?

McG Admits Terminator Salvation Didn’t Satisfy Fans

Krystal Clark — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 17:50:23 +0000

After this summer’s lukewarm response to Terminator Salvation, fans began to wonder what could be done to repair the franchise. A fifth Terminator is already in the works, but will it be able to save us from the blunders us its predecessor? IGN recently spoke with director McG about the fourth and fifth installment of the series to let us in on what went wrong, and what he’s learned for the next go around.

McG was brutally honest when he was asked about the mediocre critical and commercial reception of Terminator Salvation.

I think the film missed some of the fun that Jim [Cameron] brought to the early pictures. We wanted to be very, very nose to the grindstone and really establish credibility and it worked in many ways and it was unsuccessful in other ways, because it wasn’t a unanimous world of “(Expletive) yeah, we love Terminator Salvation.” There were plenty of people who kicked us in the ass over it.

When it comes to the fans, the director understands that he may have faltered in his delivery of the fourth film. He stated, “Clearly I didn’t do a good enough job on that picture and I didn’t satisfy the fan base to the degree that I would expect to satisfy them.” I agree with that whole heartily being a die hard Terminator fan myself. Now that he knows where he went wrong the first time around, there’s room for improvement. With the upcoming sequel, McG already has some aces up his sleeve.

“The idea is to play with one of the tried and true rules of the franchise – time travel. And introduce it in this picture. I don’t want to share too much, but let’s just say it’s very, very likely that John Connor is going to end up running through rooms like this where he knows something that none of us know.”

I knew it wouldn’t be too far behind. Time travel always rears it’s ugly head in these films. Will I finally get to see Christian Bale naked in an energy ball? I’ll take that as a consolation for T4. It appears that McG is trying to go back to the root of the series. He’s not James Cameron and he never will be, but at least he’s admitting his faults.

What can be added or changed to make Terminator 5 better than Termiantor Salvation?

Why Terminator Salvation Isn’t a Terminator Film

Krystal Clark — Wed, 27 May 2009 17:00:46 +0000

Don’t let the title fool you. The sole purpose of this article isn’t to bash the latest installment of the Terminator film franchise. My goal is to actually do the opposite. I’ve seen Terminator Salvation and read some critic and fan reviews, and I’ve noticed several concerns regarding the film’s placement in the series. The biggest complaint is that it isn’t a worthy successor to the the other films. With that being said, I can understand your frustration. I don’t think Salvation is a bad movie, I actually think it’s a great action flick. It’s just that it’s not supposed to be your typical action film, it’s supposed to be Terminator, so why doesn’t it fit with the rest of the series?

Enter at your own risk. SPOILERS ahead.

Protagonist/Antagonist: This is the basic good versus evil element that is usually displayed as the protector going toe to toe with the assassin. In the Terminator world John Connor is always at the epicenter of conflict. The machines have been trying to take him out since before he was conceived. His protector is always someone who is in some shape or fashion inferior to his assassin, but are diligent in their duty. In the first film Kyle Reese is a human going up against a machine. In T2: Judgment Day, the original Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger) goes up against Robert Patrick’s slicker and more advanced T-1000. T3: Rise of the Machines pits the T-800 against Kristanna Loken’s faster and stronger TX model. But in Terminator Salvation that match up doesn’t exist. It’s not John Connor versus Marcus Wright. If anything its the humans versus Skynet. There’s no main Terminator to fear. There’s just a random one Marcus fights at the end, and Arnold’s CGI cameo that Connor fights while in Skynet headquarters. Where’s the payoff?

No John Connor love. For the first time in the franchise I wasn’t rooting for John Connor. I know it sounds like blasphemy, but a lot of people have been complaining about his lack of character development. I agree that his arc in this film was unclear, but the guy’s had three previous installments surrounding his story. I think we know more about him than he does. Unfortunately, with all the build up that we’ve been given of what John Connor would become, he’s kind of a let down. He wasn’t bad ass or memorable in anyway. All we know is that Michael Ironside (the Resistance general in the sub) hates him, and considers him some kind of a “rebel.”

Who’s the real hero here? We have been taught throughout the entire series that John Connor is the savior of mankind’s future, yet once again his life lies in the hands of a machine. Not only does Marcus save his life multiple times, but he sacrifices himself so that John can live. Throughout all the promotions for the film they kept trying to set it up as if Marcus was this cyborg who couldn’t be trusted. They made it seem as if there was going to be a match up between Christian Bale and Sam Worthington. In reality it was more of Marcus busting his ass to help John, Kyle, Blair, the little mute girl and everybody else. I found myself drawn much more to him than Connor, and that’s just not right.

The good with the bad. Even though there were several basic Terminator themes missing from this film, McG did try to pay homage to the previous films by adding little things here and there. I loved the opening and closing credits with the Terminator score, it really got me into an epic train of thought. The usage of the Guns & Roses song from T2, and the infamous line that John recited when Kate asked him what she should tell his men while leaving for his mission. He simply replied, “Tell them, I’ll be back.”

Overall I think that McG tried to do something different with the franchise, but he ended up straying too far from the source material. I think he made a great summer action film. It’s enjoyable, and entertaining, but it’s not Terminator. You have John Connor, you have Skynet, but you’re missing the main villain. Marcus Wright doesn’t fit the bill. If anything he’s a kick ass anti-hero. The film is entitled Terminator Salvation, but who’s really the savior?

What did you think of Terminator Salvation? Does it fit in with the previous film installments?

Weekend Box Office: Sad Day For Action Flicks

Mali Elfman — Tue, 26 May 2009 18:30:23 +0000

Who would have thought? Here is my theory as to why Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian beat out Terminator: Salvation at the box office. I’m blaming it on X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

But before I go off on that, let’s look at the numbers…

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian | New | Weekend Gross $53,500,000 | Average Per Theater $13,062 | Total Gross $53,500,000 | Production Cost $150 | Week 1
Terminator: Salvation | New | Weekend Gross $43,010,000 | Average Per Theater $12,184 $56,382,000 | Production Cost $200 | Week 1
Star Trek | LW 2 | Weekend Gross $22,783,000 | Average Per Theater $5,621 | Total Gross $184,417,000| Week 3
Angels & Demons | LW 1 | Weekend Gross $21,800,000 | Average Per Theater $6,181 | Total Gross $81,911,000 | Production Cost $150 | Week 2
Dance Flick | New | Weekend Gross $10,734,000 | Average Per Theater $4,381 | Total Gross $10,734,000 | Production Cost $25 | Week 1
X-Men Origins: Wolverine | LW 3 | Weekend Gross $7,950,000 | Average Per Theater $2,498 | Total Gross $163,204,000 | Production Cost $150| Week 4
Ghosts of Girlfriends Past | LW 4 | Weekend Gross $3,810,00 | Average Per Theater $1,690 | Total Gross $45,948,000 | Week 4
Obsessed | LW 5 | Weekend Gross $1,975,000 | Average Per Theater $1,232 | Total Gross $65,883,000 | Production Cost $20 | Week 5
Monsters Vs. Aliens | LW 7 | Weekend Gross $1,417,000 | Average Per Theater $988 | Total Gross $193,063,000 | Production Cost $175 | Week 9
17 Again | LW 6 | Weekend Gross $1,010,000 | Average Per Theater $912 | Total Gross $60,319,000 | Week 6

Wolverine has soured audience’s appetite for upcoming action flicks. The advertising for Wolverine was so good and the film was so bad, that now people are afraid to walk into theaters which promise the moon and give them a few rocks. People were spoiled with last summer’s The Dark Knight and Iron Man and, therefore, were hopeful when Wolverine rolled around. But, after Wolverine was one big slap in the face to paying customers, people are now more scared to walk into the dark of a theater. And for the few who braved the big screen the following weekend, they were subjected to a kick the balls, also known as Angels and Demons.

So was Terminator good? No. But that’s not the reason for it’s poor numbers. Blame it on Wolverine!

What do you think?

Terminator: Salvation Movie Review

Laura Aguirre — Sun, 24 May 2009 19:00:43 +0000

McG‘s Terminator: Salvation, is the type of film that keeps you asking, what is next? From each scene, to the film as a whole, there was never a point where I felt anything was concluded. It seemed like the film was more concentrated on setting you up for a series than actually producing one solid piece of work. The film stars Christian Bale as John Connor, the leader of the humans who are trying to resist the Skynet terminators, but focuses more on the new Schwarzenegger of this generation, Marcus Wright, (Sam Worthington).

After being dead for fifteen years, Wright wakes up in 2018 to a world of chaos, and nothing like the one he left behind. Shortly after being out in this new world, Wright is heroically saved by teenager Kyle Reese (Anton Yelchin), the future father of Connor. Reese carries with him an adorable little girl as a side kick, but this tiny character is so flat that her contribution doesn’t add the very least bit of emotion to the film. Instead she makes the film seem unrealistic because Reese and Wright develop an affection for her that involves [them] saving her life more than once.

However, Terminator, has its great moment; those moments of hope. Every night, Connor gives a heartfelt speech through a radio with hope of someone hearing it, and while giving his speech, there is a montage showing people all around the world listening to Connor’s words of hope. Kudos to the editors, the montage added sentimental value to the film unlike Reese’s sidekick.

Even though Christian Bale stars, he is no star as John Connor. He yells too many times, and his voice is like his Batman voice, which is not good for the film because I kept thinking of him as Batman from The Dark Knight. His co-star Sam Worthington, gives a performance some what worthy of being seen. His character is well developed, and his actions are believable; he makes you care for him and what he might do next. Moon Bloodgood is also a great asset to the film. She isn’t heartless like other tough women in thriller films; but both tough and sentimental at the same time.

Terminator becomes predictable and at times, down right cheesy. After meeting Wright, Connor decides that he is the enemy, and tells his wife, “I thought I knew the enemy, but after seeing that, I feel like I don’t know them at all.” Shouldn’t he be ready for the unexpected? After all, he is the leader of the resistance, why is he being so vulnerable? But don’t let Christian Bale’s weak dialogue keep you from seeing the film, Terminator is an action film, filmed at its best. This is not cookie cutter cinematography. The camera movements are descriptive and help us to understand what the characters are experiencing. The fight scenes keep the camera up close, making you feel as if you are are part of the scene itself. And the sounds are the real thing: The explosions, the helicopters, and clashing buildings are all impressively delivered.

And to all of those Terminator fans, the new director does include that beloved old line: “Come with me if you want to live.”

The film is worth a watch, preferably if you are not a fan. It won’t be necessary to watch the first three Terminator movies to understand McG’s new version, but to fans the film may come as a disappointment. The film dedicates more time to the development of character relationships than the actual goal of the film, which is to destroy Skynet and save all of the prisoners inside (which eventually does happen). But if you are looking for a great action film, then simply sit, don’t think, and let your eyes enjoy Terminator for what it will be; another film with spectacular action shots.

Box Office Update: Night at the Museum Leads the Way!

Mali Elfman — Sun, 24 May 2009 00:00:17 +0000

Well I may have been wrong in my box office predictions. Night at the Museum managed to rally $15.3 million at the box office on Friday and Terminator Salvation only pulled in $13.4 million on Thursday.

Who will be the winner? We’ll see on Tuesday!

Box Office Predictions: Night at the Museum Vs. Terminator

Mali Elfman — Fri, 22 May 2009 16:30:17 +0000

This weekend Terminator Salvation and Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian are going to be battling it out at the box office, but who will bring in the most viewers and which one is actually worth seeing?

Terminator and Night at the Museum, both have their ups and downs. The big difference is that Terminator is a serious, end of the world film and Night at the Museum is about a fun romp through a museum.

So who will dominate the box office this weekend?

The first Night at the Museum film opened to $30,433,781 and went on to gross $574,480,841 worldwide, with the same Director Shawn Levy. Ben Stiller’s last film Tropic Thunder opened to $25,812,796 and grossed $188,072,649.

Terminator 3 opened to $44,041,440 and grossed $433,371,112 worldwide. McG’s last action packed movie Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle grossed $37,634,221 opening weekend and $259,175,788 worldwide.

So both have solid numbers to back a decent opening, but neither have ever reached the success that Star Trek and Wolverine have recently seen. Will they be able to do it?

Both films boost impressive casts. Night has Ben Stiller, Amy Adams, Owen Wilson, Hank Azaria, Robin Williams, Christopher Guest, Alain Chabat, Steve Coogan, Ricky Gervais, Bill Hader and Jon Bernthal. Terminator has Christian Bale, Sam Worthington, Anton Yelchin, Moon Bloodgood, Bryce Dallas Howard, Helenia Bonham Carter, and Common.

Although Terminator seems like an obvious pick, it is tricky because there is a lot of Sci-Fi competition for it to take on with films like Star Trek, Wolverine, and Angels and Demons all recently out in theaters.

I’m guessing that in the end, Terminator will probably win at the box office but not by much. Night at the Museum should come in a close second and Star Trek will hold a firm third position.

What do you think?

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Interview with McG for Terminator

Mali Elfman — Tue, 19 May 2009 21:00:51 +0000

McG‘s film, Terminator Salvation starring Christian Bale and Sam Worthington will be released in theaters this Friday, May 22nd. One thing is for sure, McG’s personality is just as big as his films. It’s not everyday that you hear a Director say: “I’ve got no business. I’m base packing a Dura-Flame,”(and yes he is referring to what you think he’s referring too), “I definitely hate myself, I can promise you that,” and “Who calls himself McG?” all in one interview. In fact, McG is possibly the most energetic and yet oddly masochistic Directors I’ve ever spoken to.

9/10 of the times, we show up to interview filmmakers and wait at least an hour for them to arrive. But as I walked over to where I would be doing the interview, there was McG standing in the hallway, 15 minutes early, by himself, waiting eagerly for the press to arrive.

McG is surprisingly self aware of who he is and who the public thinks he is. He’s not out to try and fool you, he’s only out to try to impress you and if very eager to do so. After this interview, I he’s impressed be a bit, but more than that, he’s fascinated me.

Check out what he had to say below…

How did you go from being the “Charlie’s Angels guy” to getting this film and were you afraid that you might be stereotyped?

McG: No, I mean, it’s the privilege of the public to put people in boxes, you take the body of material that anybody has been a part of and you draw conclusions, and who would ever guess that a guy that was on 21 Jump Street with a ridiculous name like Johnny Depp would go on to be one of the great entertainers of our time.

You’ve got to earn your stripes and pay your dues, and I’m certainly willing to earn mine, and fortunately I’m most comfortable in this genre. Ironically, these are the films that I grew up on. This was my film school, this was my passion, so I’m very comfortable working in this world and you just sort of take the good with the bad, you take your lumps along the way, and on this picture I tried to get away from being a cheerleader and really just let the film do the talking.

How do you approach the audience members who are so invested in these characters already?

It started at Comic-con some year and a half ago, over a year ago, and we just said “this is what the film is,” and we let it speak for itself, and you try to honor the fan base by making elegant choices. Stan Winston, certainly Christian Bale, everyone had to take a closer look. None of them were excited about the prospect of the “Charlie’s Angel’s guy” making a Terminator movie, and respectfully, why would they be? What have I done that would suggest I’m the right guy? So you take a step back, you work that much more diligently, and you let the film do the talking.

And what have you learned about yourself after making this?

McG: Well, I definitely hate myself, I can promise you that. But when you hate yourself I think it gives rise to a higher level of artistry.

Why would you hate yourself?

McG: I just, you know – I’ve got a mirror, don’t I? I don’t know, it’s part of my own inner turmoil, and I don’t think we have enough time to get into that. Listen, I think Hollywood – for everything that Hollywood does wrong, Hollywood’s pretty great, I’m a child of a woman named Amy Pascal, she’s one of the most powerful people in Hollywood. You look at a dopey list of highest paid entertainers, a black woman is at the top. That’s pretty cool.

Can I ask you about that one shot that looks like one long tracking shot with Christian in the helicopter? It all looked like one shot, but hot many did it take?

McG: I’m very influenced by the Hitchcock picture Rope, where in that time they would run out of film in the mag and they’d move into somebody’s back full frame and that’s where they would hide their cut. And one of the things that we wanted to do in this picture is honor the audience and the passion by staging and blocking the picture in a way that wasn’t reliant upon cuts. I think cutting is a bit of a cheat, when say “there’s a bunch of cameras on the scene, then we’ll cut it together and we’re going to make it work in post.” (***SPOILER ALERT – Go to the next question to avoid spoiler***) We chose to go and scout the locations, we blocked the action very succinctly where you see him coming out of a hole, the camera swings around to see a transport ship of Skynet flying away, Christian runs over to a helicopter, and the pilot’s been killed, he gets in the helicopter to take off, all without a cut. The camera is now moving with him, the hole down below explodes, the helicopter crashes, he crawls out to see a mushroom cloud which is effectively the ashes of all the people he cares about, until he’s interrupted with the hand on the shoulder of a T600. No cuts, and we do that a great many times in the picture in the spirit of saying, ‘We honor you audience.’

The film is so rich and there’s so much going on, can you talk about any stuff that was shot that isn’t in the theatrical cut that we might see on the DVD?

McG: Yeah, but I have a very particular position about that, I always maintain that what is released is, indeed, the director’s cut. And shame on any director who doesn’t have the wherewithal to articulate why it’s critical that it’s in the film. Here’s an example, there was a topless scene with Moon that was designed to echo the Kelly McGillis/Harrison Ford scene in Witness. It was very innocent, they’re 30 meters away from each other, but at the end of the day we all looked at it and felt, oh that feels gratuitous and feels like we’re placating the genre, and it may give people a platform to stand on to take the film less seriously, and we don’t want that. So nobody pressured me to make that decision, I made that decision.

Is that going to be on the DVD

McG: I suspect it will be on the DVD, because Moon has a very sophisticated third wave feminist take on why she made that choice.

Is that because you had a female producer?

McG: No, I’m a big fan of strong female characters, Jim Cameron is a fan. I think the strongest female characters in history have got to be Ripley in the Alien pictures and certainly Sarah Connor. So I came from an empowered female position, and I think that the film tries to suggest that there’s no more ageism, there’s no more racism and there’s certainly no more sexism. Everything is ability based. You know how to fix a broken leg, go fix that broken leg. You know how to get the helicopter running, get it running. Nobody is hung up on the minutia and the ridiculousness of things that we’re hung up on today.

How many drafts did you go through before finally settling on this?

McG: I read a draft that John D. Brancato and Michael Ferris wrote and that’s the reason why I’m here. I remember talking to Jim Cameron about it. Why is this worth telling? I said “because it’s the future war and people are interested. I’m interested.” It’s not a contemporary movie with the machine coming back in time and chasing someone. This is that world that you’ve only ever given us a tiny glimpse of and therefore that’s the point of entry. He nodded and went “oh that’s cool.”

We went through a couple of writers. Christian and I were working very intimately. Christian had an excellent shorthand with Jonah Nolan. He did some production work while we were in New Mexico, and at the end of the day I think it’s the responsibility of me actually to be the arbiter of what goes in the film and what goes out. It’s always a team effort. There are a great many moving parts and that was the case in the writing of the script to say the least.

Can you talk a little about casting Christian? He was in one of the biggest franchises, Batman, and you’re asking him to do another franchise. Why him?

McG: That’s exactly why it was appealing because he’ll say to himself that he always likes a challenge. He says things like “Who calls himself McG? What are we out to do and why is this worthwhile?” He likes a challenge like the next guy. I went over to England and I saw him. I wanted him to play Marcus. He was more interested in playing Connor and we went about the business of working on the script. You got to understand, Christian Bale is so passionate about acting and about his craft. He has no entourage. He’s got no assistant standing out there in the hall. He drove here in a beat up pick-up truck. He is about the work. That’s who he is. And to work with an actor who’s that focused and that intense, I think, is to all of our benefit.

Do you think your use of practical effects in this film is going to possibly move the industry toward more organic productions of action films?

McG: Well I’m always using this example. I think the public has an intimate understanding of physics and I think filmmakers underestimate that. We all know what’s going to happen right there [demonstrates by dropping a pen on the table] and if I just said, we’ll do the CG pen, the audience would go, “something was off about that dopey CG pen” I also don’t like trying to get performance out of characters when I’m saying, “hey Christian, see that tennis ball? That’s a 7 foot robot trying to kill you and that green screen is ultimately going to be a post apocalyptic downtown Los Angeles.” That’s bullshit. I think that’s a cop out. You can’t reach your highest level of performance in the absence of a tactile environment. I think from a place of performance, from a place of feeling the heat, it’s in the interest of building everything, creating as much as you can in camera, and honoring the audience in that respect.

There are a lot of explosions in this movie which are really great. Is there ever this pressure in terms of how do you build a bigger explosion than the last?

McG: I really don’t. This film was always designed to work at a table read like this where you just read it. What I wanted to do is tell the becoming story of Connor. Here’s a guy who’s been in the mountain, there’s been radiation all around and he finally comes out and he says hey everybody, “I’ve got an idea how to win this thing.” Well what does the guy who spent 20 years in the Marines say to this kid saying I know what to do? “Shut the fuck up! You do what I tell you to do.” So we see the becoming of the Connor character. That’s what the movie’s about.

In regard to Marcus, I think it’s an allegory for what we’re experiencing today where if you have a bad heart, they’ll give you a new one. If you’re depressed, nobody says tell me about your mom and dad. They just say I’m going to manipulate your serotonin re-uptake inhibitors and you’re just going to feel better. We can clone a sheep and deconstruct the human genetic code and therefore, what is it that makes us human. Where does humanity lie? And the Marcus character is indeed a study of humanity and you may be able to put a few metal rods running through my body but at the end of the day I am a human being.

Has Jim Cameron seen the movie?

McG: I don’t believe he has seen the movie. I look forward to showing it to him. He was the first guy I talked to when I was considering making the movie. I went down there out of a position of respect to kiss the ring and told him what my intention was. He says he reserved the right to like or not like the movie. I said I reserve the right to like or not like Avatar and we both giggled and went on our way. But he told me that story and I’ve told it many times about his following the great Ridley Scott in the Alien picture and people said who’s this guy who made Piranha 2 think he’s doing following Ridley Scott. He thought I can honor the mythology and tell the story. I think we’re all glad that Aliens got made. Hopefully we’ve done our job and created a new idea in a world that he most certainly created.

Connor ends and goes through the film on such a note of intensity. Do you think it’s a challenge to craft an emotional arc for him in a sequel?

McG: I’ve reserved that for the sequel. This film is all about the burden of a destiny you don’t want. It’s not fun when somebody gets on the radio and says how many survivors are there? And I say one. Yet again one. Everybody died but me. I hate this curse of being the one who’s gotta always crawl out of there and carry the torch. That’s the burden of being the hero in this respect. In the next picture, we’re talking about exploring those more emotional arcs.

Where do you want to see future Terminators? Where do you want to see this story go?

McG: Well I wouldn’t be so bold as to say there’s going to be another one. I think it’s up to the people to see…

I’m just saying what if?

McG: I’ve arced out a second film and a third film. I’ve spoken at length to Rabinoff about it. I’ve talked to Amy Pascal down at Sony about it. We’ll see what the appetite is. If the people jump up and say we want more, we’re certainly going to be ready. There are a great many places to go in a world where what was once science fiction is now upon us.

Speaking of the big explosions and the summer movie, you had thrown down the gauntlet to Michael Bay for an explosion-measuring contest. I’m wondering if he has responded to that?

McG: It’s interesting because it’s the sort of thing that makes me never want to speak again because it was meant to be ironic. Somebody said whose robots are bigger? And I was thinking in my mind whose robots are bigger, that’s effectively like asking whose cock is bigger. So I responded well we can meet at the Spartacus steps at midnight and I thought it was painfully clear [raises his voice] I’M KIDDING! By the way, I’ve got a tiny Irish cock. I’ve got no business. I’m base packing a Dura-Flame. I know a guy who went to college with him. I can’t win that battle. So, it was meant to be ironic but the irony was lost in print so I’m done talking about such vulgar things.

How are things going with 20,000 Leagues?

McG: I think things are going well there. I’m also looking at Spring Awakening and then arguably an additional Terminator movie. It depends.

Pretty interesting huh?

ScreenCrave.com » terminator salvation

Top 10 Robots in Movies

10. Ash (Alien, 1979)

9. WALL-E (WALL-E, 2008)

8. Robocop (Robocop – Robocop 3, 1987 – 1993)

7. T-1000 (Terminator 2: Judgment Day, 1991)

6. The Iron Giant (The Iron Giant, 1999)

5. Robby the Robot (Forbidden Plant, 1956)

4. Gort (The Day the Earth Stood Still, 1951)

3. Roy Batty (Blade Runner, 1982)

2. The Terminator (The Terminator – Terminator: Salvation, 1984 – 2009)

1. R2-D2 (Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope – Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, 1977 – 2005)

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