An interesting mix of retro and futuristic designs,
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow shows us a world that might have been. Reporter
Polly Perkins (Gwyneth Paltrow) is hot on the trail of the enigmatic Dr.
Totenkopf, who is rumored to have created a doomsday device. Enlisting the help of ace pilot
and former flame Sky Captain (Jude Law, who is also one of the film’s
producers), she travels the world, trying to get to the bottom of the mystery before it’s
too late for humankind.
Sky Captain, by first-time director
and screenwriter Kerry Conran, is the realization of a dream ten years
in the making. From 1994-1998, Conran spent every spare moment on a six-minute computer-generated
film which became the basis of Sky Captain. The feature-length film has the distinction
of being the first film to be shot entirely against blue screen with all backgrounds supplied
by computers. But while you have to admire Conran’s determination, the finished film
is one of extremes. The computer-generated imagery is truly amazing, credibly inserting
live actors into a world with the look and feel of 40s films like Citizen Kane.
However, the acting, even with dependable actors like Law, Paltrow and Angelina
Jolie, is uninspired, probably due in part to the silly things they are given to
say. The story also has no depth (and at times is just plain silly), nor do the characters.
So while Sky Captain may take us into a visually-stunning “world of tomorrow”,
I doubt its director will have much of a future.
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