Awful.
Sums it up really.
OK the CGI city was alright but it was overly-populated with random floating fish and other things. And as we floated through it too I was expecting any second to be engulfed in a lush electronic Vangelis score. No such luck! Yes I was having a Blade Runner moment. Because that was what the whole thing reminded me of - in spades. But bad Blade Runner.
The story was a mess. Almost impossible to follow at times and inexplicably populated throughout by Asian actors and Scarlett Johanssen. Or do I mean by actors and an Asian Scarlett Johanssen? No wonder Asian actors accused the filmmakers of whitewashing, by casting the admittedly excellent white actor as an Asian character. With a bit of eye make up.
OK Hollywood - if you're going to do that then don't. Rewrite it and make everyone American and make it a future American city (not future Japan). Or do the right thing and cast an Asian as the lead. It is not true that there aren't great Asian female actors. Try harder to find one next time! I do wonder what reaction (and backlash) there would have been had Ms Johanssen been cast as a black character and had brown makeup applied all over! I'm sure they wouldn't dare - but because the character is Asian they didn't care.
Putting that aside Ms Johanssen does her best with a lacklustre script. But put the best actors into a bad script and they will falter and so will the film (see Star Wars I, II & III). And, of course, you just can't generate sympathy for her character.
The film is considered to be a financial flop. I'm not surprised. Wait till it's on free-to-air telly - and then see if you can be bothered to get all the way through it.....
Sums it up really.
OK the CGI city was alright but it was overly-populated with random floating fish and other things. And as we floated through it too I was expecting any second to be engulfed in a lush electronic Vangelis score. No such luck! Yes I was having a Blade Runner moment. Because that was what the whole thing reminded me of - in spades. But bad Blade Runner.
The story was a mess. Almost impossible to follow at times and inexplicably populated throughout by Asian actors and Scarlett Johanssen. Or do I mean by actors and an Asian Scarlett Johanssen? No wonder Asian actors accused the filmmakers of whitewashing, by casting the admittedly excellent white actor as an Asian character. With a bit of eye make up.
OK Hollywood - if you're going to do that then don't. Rewrite it and make everyone American and make it a future American city (not future Japan). Or do the right thing and cast an Asian as the lead. It is not true that there aren't great Asian female actors. Try harder to find one next time! I do wonder what reaction (and backlash) there would have been had Ms Johanssen been cast as a black character and had brown makeup applied all over! I'm sure they wouldn't dare - but because the character is Asian they didn't care.
Putting that aside Ms Johanssen does her best with a lacklustre script. But put the best actors into a bad script and they will falter and so will the film (see Star Wars I, II & III). And, of course, you just can't generate sympathy for her character.
The film is considered to be a financial flop. I'm not surprised. Wait till it's on free-to-air telly - and then see if you can be bothered to get all the way through it.....