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first?
by ian216a
Feb 26th, 2008
09:26:07 AM
i don't care.
Fuck Tarsem Singh
by SpencerTrilby
Feb 26th, 2008
09:26:41 AM
this arrogant slack.

That being said, it looks cool.

Looks great but...
by TroutMaskReplicant
Feb 26th, 2008
09:29:29 AM
Hmmmmmm. Check out the pedigree of the script. I just saw "The Cell" for the first time recently. They should use it as a teaching aid in film classes. And not for good reasons.
Can't Wait
by red_weed
Feb 26th, 2008
09:37:13 AM
I have been waiting to see this for god knows how long. Look the cell has some problems but I thought it was an interesting first feature and you can't deny that his visual style is striking. I just hope he's managed to create interesting characters and story to inhabit the amazing worlds he creates.
Theres nothing wrong with a film filled with beautiful images...
by SydBarretsMyDad
Feb 26th, 2008
09:47:57 AM
...and little script. Look at Koyaanisqatsi...and yes, i had to google how to spell that. Anyway, this trailer is filled with striking images and if theres more, ill sit there and watch them.
Magnificent Roger Ebert
by DerLanghaarige
Feb 26th, 2008
09:51:59 AM
Anybody remembers The Magnificent Muttley?
SydBarretsMyDad
by EvilGeek1
Feb 26th, 2008
09:52:29 AM
Nice example. I loved Naqoyqatsi myself, but I have a soft spot for Philip Glass.
Pushing Daisies!
by mithrandir16
Feb 26th, 2008
09:53:25 AM
It does look a little like a perfume ad, but I'm intrigued.
Tarsem? Who gives a frack!
by Motoko Kusanagi
Feb 26th, 2008
09:56:04 AM
He sucks.

Btw, that moron who compared this to KOYAANISQATSI should be bitch-slapped. Twice.

The Cell, Tarsem & The Fall
by JaPra
Feb 26th, 2008
10:02:32 AM
First of all, in terms of The Cell, if anyone has bothered to watch the film with Tarsem's commentary they will know right away that Tarsem believed the story was in and of itself, boring and stereotypical.

That being said, Tarsem then approached the film in a way that 'Style was the Substance.' It's almost all he could do with a story like that.

I am not at all saying that The Cell was flawless, however, as a work of visual art, it's in a class of its own.

The Fall looks breathtaking. Tarsem tells stories utilizing the landscape, much like his Asian contemporaries. Admittedly I believe that the visuals should compliment the story, but at the same time, films like Baraka & Koyaanisqatsi are a testament to the visual holding its own.

I laud the return of Tarsem, we need more of his work in the world today.

Tarsem is a painter using the moving image as his canvass. There is no one in the world today with his singular vision and approach.
Looks amazing
by Bobo_Vision
Feb 26th, 2008
10:02:38 AM
Looks to be another work of art, and the type of story suited to him. Tarsem needs to work more often.
Bitch slap my unwiped ass
by SydBarretsMyDad
Feb 26th, 2008
10:12:58 AM
I didnt compare the two films, I havent even SEEN this film. I was clearly saying that a film filled with images has value. It was a small paragraph. Next time ill spell phonetically to help you understand. You doosh-bag.
The Cell
by D o o d
Feb 26th, 2008
10:14:15 AM
was the biggest pile of bollox I'd ever seen. I bought it cause peeps were raving about it. It's just a hollow shell wrapped up in cinematography. I appreciate good cinematography but I can't stand being bored to death. I think this Tarsim fella should stick to commercials.
Wow!
by Turd Furgusen
Feb 26th, 2008
10:25:27 AM
Talk about a visual feast!

The story would have to be pretty good to get me in the theater. I liked the Cell ok, just glad I didn't spend the cash to see it.

Dear Merrick,
by God's Brother
Feb 26th, 2008
10:37:14 AM
Thank you for restraining yourself from even thinking of somehow using the term "embiggen" in directing readers towards a larger version of the trailer you've posted above. It really means a lot to me, and countless others, I'm sure. Yours, God's Brother (PS- if you respond by insisting that it's a "perfectly cromulent" word, I will hunt you down and carve the nose right off your face)
Wow - that looks Badass- and its seems to be an original
by Jugdish
Feb 26th, 2008
10:45:03 AM
A film that actually is not a remake !!!!
Wow - that looks Badass- and its seems to be an original
by Jugdish
Feb 26th, 2008
10:45:06 AM
A film that actually is not a remake !!!!
The Cell was a joke
by Coenbro
Feb 26th, 2008
10:54:18 AM
I don't care how good it looked, the story was the biggest pile of crap I have ever seen. It seems to me that if they did any sort of police work (instead of the whole going-into-the-bad-guys-mind-t hing) they would have found his next victim. Where was she? Oh, on a farm where the killer used to work. You didn't check that place out? As for this trailer, looks very cool. But will the story suck as well. "There were five of them. The indian, the ex-slave, the explosive expert, charles darwin, and the masked bandit." Charles Darwin. What the hell is that about? I laughed until I cried at that line. I imagine it will look cool and suck at the same time. Just what I would expect from so-called "acclaimed filmmaker" Tarsem,
"The Cell...as a work of visual art, (is) in a class of its own.
by President Evil
Feb 26th, 2008
11:02:07 AM
Yeah...except for the fact that Tarsem admitted he stole most of the striking visuals from the work of The Brothers Quay, who actually ARE in a class all their own.
stories
by mutombo
Feb 26th, 2008
11:09:05 AM
in film are told by visuals in movies as much as sentences tell stories in books. Yet amongst groups of literary people, aiming solely for getting the point across using the simplest words possible in literary art stops making it art; it would become simple 'propaganda'. In film however we often use the saying 'style over substance' when the aesthetics draw too much attention on itself. I don't agree with the naysayers about the Cell, every scene is almost like a breathing hieronymosch bosch painting and even though the story might've been written by a philip k dick-gone wrong, the balance between aethetics and substance is absolutely fine by me.
Art?
by TroutMaskReplicant
Feb 26th, 2008
11:09:50 AM
Haha. I'm a so called "pretentious conceptual artist" and even I think the cell was empty of anything but imagery and misdirected actors. With enough money you can make all kinds of visual images, doesn't make it good.
The Adventures of Chanel von Munchausen
by Jonah Echo
Feb 26th, 2008
11:17:01 AM
or perhaps "Charles Darwin: Evolution of Bad-Ass". Either way, it "looks" interesting. I almost walked out of the Cell though, until someone(honestly) pulled the fire alarm and mercifully required us all to exit the theater. There were interesting images in the Cell but they were all lifted other places. Many shots were exact compositions from painter Od Nurdum. Still, that was one movie, that was screwed from the get-go by the script. This has potential, but one can still tell this is the Cell director, albeit with potentially better material. Instead of the visual bile that made up most of the Cell, this seems to have the fairy-tale look of those initial scenes in the Cell with Lopez visiting the child's dream and trying to save him from Mokiloch, or whatever that manifestation was. Of course if it goes wrong, maybe we will have more of this to look forward to: http://www.aintitcool.com/node /6727
has it got mark e. smith in it?
by foree forehead
Feb 26th, 2008
11:23:10 AM
well does it-eh?
I saw this at TIFF in '06...
by BrooseTheScharuk
Feb 26th, 2008
12:14:27 PM
...and apparently, I wasn't the only one. It's been covered on this site, actually. This review basically sums up my feelings as well, including the stuff about The Cell. http://www.aintitcool.com/node /24449
To what standard are people holding "The Cell" to?
by Bobo_Vision
Feb 26th, 2008
12:22:07 PM
Seriously, there are a lot of bad films made, a lot of remakes, a lot of sequels...and I just don't see "The Cell" belonging to that heap of bad films. And since it was Tarsem's first film, its not like he has a previous filmography to compare it to, so I'm not sure why those who are critical of it seem to be judging it by such a high standard? Maybe they heard far too much praise before seeing it and were disappointed, but I knew little about it beforehand, and found it surprisingly good. I wouldn't buy the DVD and watch it repeatedly, but its the type of movie I might re-watch in a few years.
Bobo
by Jonah Echo
Feb 26th, 2008
12:41:19 PM
I think some of it(at least on here) dates back to the movie's release, when several high profile critics were exclaiming it a landmark of imagination. In particular, Roger Ebert gave it 4 stars and later had it on his end of year list.I went to see the movie partly for the visuals and partly because Ebert(whose opinion I usually trust on films of that sort) raved about it. I saw Dark City based on his rave and the visuals and I was blown away. I went in with the Cell, thinking great critical reviews, awesome trailer and then...bam, the movie just felt like a loopy music video.If I had caught it on dvd, with no hype I might feel differently but I doubt it. However, after the initial weekend, when the guys from this site started reporting on it, there was vitrolic hatred voiced and if you follow the link above you will see a certain critic attacked Ebert personally. I think all of this has added to that impression of it being a super-horrible movie. I was bored by it, but I dont remember wanting to actually hurt the filmmaker.
Pain in the ass, indeed.
by gotilk
Feb 26th, 2008
12:50:26 PM
It was shot when he had spare time in locations where he was already on assignment doing commercials, from what I hear.. for the most part. Sounds like a labor of love and an example of how someone can make a visually brilliant film under the radar, guerrilla style, using resources you've hacked from other projects. Hell, I'd like to read more info about THAT aspect of the film more than I want to see the film itself. (although I WANT to see it)
Half Matthew Barney & Half Terry Gilliam
by Teddy Artery
Feb 26th, 2008
02:25:09 PM
...meh.
His production company is named after...
by Tourist
Feb 26th, 2008
02:41:43 PM
...a cricket term? Damn Indians. Looks really interesting. Another Big Fishian, Pans Labrynthian, Tidelandian sorta thing. Still, good chance to show off some great visuals. I don't get the hate for him personally, I thought he elevated The Cell from unwatchable junk to really great looking and engaging junk.
He also borrowed...
by Tourist
Feb 26th, 2008
02:45:55 PM
...Some stuff from Damien Hirst, for The Cell. Its what good directors do. Look around, find inspiration. Then get sued by Harlan Ellison.
Ebert....
by Tourist
Feb 26th, 2008
02:49:56 PM
...Has shit taste. Hes also a douche, if you read his reviews. Using him as a guide is gonna lead you into some bad flicks. The Cell and Dark City being among them. Now, neither film is "bad". In fact, both are quite striking on a production level. But both had shitty stories and acting and the fantastic visuals were heavily lifted from elsewhere, yet he raved about them as if they were the second coming.
Cell = Stupid Lopez Movie...
by Judge Briggs
Feb 26th, 2008
03:02:25 PM
Fell asleep myself. Why the fuck was Lopez in the movie?
looks great actually!
by Datascream
Feb 26th, 2008
03:10:11 PM
It's nice to see a visual director. And the acting seems pretty well done from what I see in the trailer. I'll see this. looks good
Tarsem didn't WRITE The Cell
by StovetopStuffin'
Feb 26th, 2008
03:11:12 PM
He directed it. I'm sure he was hired to do it, and took the job to break into movies. First time movie directors rarely get to pick the movies they want to do.
Looks better than Wild Things
by skywalkerfamily
Feb 26th, 2008
03:23:20 PM
That was terrible.
Jonah Echo
by Bobo_Vision
Feb 26th, 2008
03:29:33 PM
I too noticed that some of the style from "The Cell" was very much like a music video, and that was a bit distracting at times, but it was still well done. The same thing happens to me at times during Spike Jonze films in terms of style, but he's still a great director, and I think both of them, as they progress will get better at making the style much more uniform with all other elements of the film so that they blend seamlessly instead of taking you out of the film momentarily.
Agreed Bobo..
by Jonah Echo
Feb 26th, 2008
03:34:43 PM
It has also been 8 years since the Cell. I'm ready to give him another chance-heck, if this trailer came out a week after the Cell I would still be interested enough to check it out. Even the best directors can churn out trash. I watched Tideland for the first time the other day, and hated it but I look forward to Parnasus as much as any other project from him. Bring on The Fall. I think the thematic material will help too. The Cell just had a really icky, rather idiotic and contrived story. This definitely feels more childlike and magical.
i cringed...
by seekshelter
Feb 26th, 2008
04:15:55 PM
when he said...Explosives expert... and then Charles Darwin...
The only trouble with the visuals
by half vader
Feb 26th, 2008
04:16:47 PM
is that they're not his. Even Romanek, while using other artists' work to set the tone, still makes the thing his own.

And striking visuals are a wank if they don't support the tone in a descriptive way or give narrative information through those visuals.

I'll give him a second chance though - was he actually "acclaimed" for the Cell?!

Besides, Fincher and Jonze's names count for something I guess - it's not like Tarantino who'll whore his name out for some blow!

Adventures of the Baron Munchausen?
by Reverend Toast
Feb 26th, 2008
05:19:39 PM
Something about this reminds me of that Terry Gilliam flick.
PARADJANOV CALLED...
by elcapullo
Feb 26th, 2008
06:00:28 PM
...he says he wants his look back, especially the aesthetic he created in "The Color of Pommegranates"...of course you can say it's an homage rather than plagiarizing right?
The Cell was an awesome movie
by dr sauch
Feb 26th, 2008
06:36:46 PM
True story. Rent that shit. No seriously, its the kind of movie where you have to look for something OTHER than the story. Kind of like The Fountain. Anyway, stop hating, The Cell rules. But this may suck.
Charles Darwin as a badass?!
by SkinJob69
Feb 26th, 2008
07:00:44 PM
Odd but strangely intriguing
I HOPE
by BurgerTime
Feb 26th, 2008
07:21:33 PM
This has a good story and it's not just an excuse for a series of cool visuals. That would be all gong and no dinner, just like The Cell was.
Last words...
by TroutMaskReplicant
Feb 26th, 2008
07:29:59 PM
Last words...
by TroutMaskReplicant
Feb 26th, 2008
07:31:56 PM
Well the best way I see it it is, if you can't tell why films like 2001 and Eraserhead stare down sadly at the cell like elder gods, then I suppose your opinion isn't worth much to the so called "haters" anyway ;-)
Tarsem for The Hobbit
by Calico Pete
Feb 26th, 2008
09:57:36 PM
I've been waiting for The Fall since I first heard about it in '06. Whereas Del Toro is overhyped, Tarsem fits everything people say about Del Toro. In fact, New Line should look to him for The Hobbit. Well, him or Julie Taymor.
http://www.aintitcool.com/node/2 4449
by BrooseTheScharuk
Feb 26th, 2008
10:15:05 PM
As I mentioned earlier, there's already a review on AICN for this movie, from the 2006 Toronto film fest. I also saw this screening and felt pretty much the same as the reviewer. Especially about the girl's performance. The reviewer addresses some questions that people seem to have about story, quality of the movie as compared to the Cell, etc. And it's here on this very site! Now!! Has been for over a year!!! In fact, here's another from last October: http://www.aintitcool.com/?q=n ode/3459
Hey, BrucetheScharuk
by Bobo_Vision
Feb 26th, 2008
10:38:04 PM
Do you have any info on why there's been such a huge delay on the release if they were screening it back in 2006?
Not a fucking clue, Bobo...
by BrooseTheScharuk
Feb 26th, 2008
10:59:17 PM
...but at a guess, I'd say that it's just a tough one to market. It could easily be misconstrued as a bad kids' movie, as opposed to a great adult movie. I'm imagining a lot of blank faces when the lights come up in the executive screening rooms. Also, as reviewers have been saying, the little girl's performance is pretty much the antithesis of the patented precocious Hollywood child star song and dance. She's no Abikota Bresning, and I mean that in the most positive way.
huh
by slkboxrman
Feb 26th, 2008
11:37:24 PM
WTF was that ? i nearly cut my wrists watching that trailer
This Lee Pace fella seems pretty good
by IndustryKiller!
Feb 27th, 2008
12:13:00 AM
I've heard great things about him on Pushing Daisies and this is definitely a film I'm gonna check out.
Hey Calico Pete
by D o o d
Feb 27th, 2008
02:45:27 AM
Are you insane man..? Did you just compare Tamsin to Del Toro..? Dude look at Del Toros body of work and then look at Tasmins and you'll quickly see TRULY how rubbish Tamarind is. If you haven't seen Pans Labyrinth then I strongly recommend it. You Del Toro isn't just obsessed with Pop Video imagery, he actually wants to make a coherent film too. Oh by the way I just had a look at IMDB and it has Tarquim down to direct a movie called Unforgettable, I bet it's quite the opposite.
RE: Merrick...
by Mr. Gunderson
Feb 27th, 2008
02:49:36 AM
Am I the only one who feels that Merrick lives in a land without any enjoyment? "Indiana Jones"? Doesn't look like right! Another Bourne film? Shakey-cam sucks! The Fall? Tarsem bores me. These are just 3 among maaaaaany examples of things not being good enough for him. Do you enjoy films anymore, Merrick?
Couple questions...
by Crimson King
Feb 27th, 2008
04:57:31 AM
First off...what's the music used in the trailer? I recognize it, but I don't know what it is. Secondly...anybody know anything about this movie's U.S. theatrical distribution?
Ok, I figured out the music...
by Crimson King
Feb 27th, 2008
05:16:40 AM
It's Beethoven's Symphony No. 7 in A major.
Beethoven in A Major...
by D o o d
Feb 27th, 2008
07:00:45 AM
I don't know, that sounds dirty..!
I may see this
by Kloipy
Feb 27th, 2008
07:14:02 AM
only if for the beautiful shots
I hate the cell
by Lost Jarv
Feb 27th, 2008
08:10:36 AM
I only saw it because someone lied to me and told me that Lopez got her fun bags out.

Bastards.

It basically just fits in with the rule: If JLo is in a film it will be shit.

The Cell was a flaming dog turd
by Kloipy
Feb 27th, 2008
09:29:40 AM
but I did like some of the imagery in the movie.
Losing My Religion Video
by BranMakMorn
Feb 27th, 2008
09:30:42 AM
also borrowed heavily from Carravagio, but I welcome homages by the likes of Tarsem. Sooner or later he'll get a compelling script that will match his visual talent.
Why is there any hope for this?
by Lost Jarv
Feb 27th, 2008
10:35:08 AM
It's a fucking mystery. Basically, you have a director that made 1 terrible, albeit pretty movie. And to make matters worse he obviouisly has no idea how to pick a project as he himself said The Cell bored him.

And this is supposed to be good?

Bran
by Jonah Echo
Feb 27th, 2008
10:38:00 AM
I agree. The Cell felt like a college student's final portfolio project.

Crack addled teacher: "Give your interpretations of 30 modern art pieces in a slideshow format that follows the narrative structure of Seven".

Student: Umm, ok. That sounds like it will be horrible, but I think I can salvage it with photoshop filters, quick-cuts and grunge music. Thank goodness Im brilliant."

But the reality of The Cell was that it was a piece of junk that never should have had a director better than say Brett Leonard or Stephen Hopkins or someone like that. Instead they got a guy who wanted to use striking polished images and was previously used to commercial work. The whole point of commercials are to objectify things and make them desirable. When he tried to make the inner-world of a serial killer's mind they best he got was Heironymous Bosch goes to Gap.

That opening in the Cell, I think, was a better indication of what he might be capable of and Im optimistic because the trailer above seems far more like that sequence.

If I drank enough absinthe....
by micturatingbenjamin
Feb 27th, 2008
12:35:32 PM
I would have written something like this...

The Indian, the Construction Worker, The Former Slave, The BDSM Nun, The Sailor, and Charles Durning...I mean, Charles Darwin. They unite to face a common enemy: Donnatella Versace.

So, when he got done pitching this in Hollywood, how long before the suits started laughing at him? My guess is they were polite and sent him on his way before they fucking laughed so hard they cried. This one goes on my, 'See it when the thing is on television' list.

the people in this talkback are stupid.
by RustyStardust
Feb 27th, 2008
03:18:12 PM
the film looks incredible. but, why throw pearls before swine i guess...
RustyStardust
by BrooseTheScharuk
Feb 27th, 2008
03:52:34 PM
Funny you should say that...I was thinking of that very term today while reading through this thread. Pearls before swine...And, as I've said twice already on here, I've SEEN The Fall. Loved it. Hated The Cell, though.
Broose
by lex romero
Feb 27th, 2008
07:09:07 PM
You've seen it? Could you give us a more in depth opinion? It looks fantastic from the trailer but i'm worried it's all style and no substance, is there an actual plot to it? Does it feel like a film? Or just a mashing together of lots of pretty scenes.
well the trailer made me want to see it
by BadMrWonka
Feb 27th, 2008
07:44:09 PM
so I guess it's effective in that sense. why the FUCK did they put in the line, "the story was just a trick...etc."???!?!? stop giving away so much! just pure dumb.
Sweet Jesus Christ...
by micturatingbenjamin
Feb 27th, 2008
07:52:01 PM
You know what? I'm vaguely insulted sir or ma'am at you insinuating that because I find overblown spectacle cinema not 'my cup o' tea' I'm a dumb guy.

This looks like something visually stunning and complicated, and won't make a nickel. The Cell was visually amazing and shallow, and this looks visually amazing and script-wise sounds like a fever dream. I'm not the guy who likes that kind of 'What Is It?' kind of flick. Fucking Cremaster with a script is what this is, right? Beautiful...

I'm not dumb because I find this annoying, I'm dumb because I took precious seconds to respond to your pretentious blather. So we swine will still make sure we define popular culture, while you guys still sit in obscurity mentally stroking it to these kinds of ego portraits of film.

We win, you lose, enjoy the other three guys at the theater nodding their heads and murmuring how they're so smart for watching some dense narrative, while I'll have fun watching Iron Man blow shit up.

"Country don't mean dumb."

--Stu Redman

"Fuck Art. Let's Dance."

Hey, Benjamin...
by Crimson King
Feb 28th, 2008
10:19:11 AM
Just because people are excited about a film like this doesn't automatically make them pretentious snobs. Personally, I think this film looks visually stunning. That, coupled with what little I know about the story, has me intrigued, and I would very much like to see this film. But let me tell you something....I'm DYING to see The Dark Knight, and Indy IV and Ironman. I don't watch a movie like The Fall just to make myself feel smart. I watch it because I'm genuinely interested in what this film might have to offer. See, as a film lover, I watch all kinds of films, from the heady arthouse stuff to the biggest summer blockbuster. So, as vaguely insulted as you get when people make generalizations, don't do the same when making your counterpoint. Frankly, it completely undermines your argument. Because, you see, I don't sit in obscurity mentally stroking it, nor do I sit in the theater nodding my head and murmuring how I'm so smart for watching certain kinds of films.
THE FALL was released in 2006
by livingwater
Feb 28th, 2008
02:18:45 PM
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt04 60791/ ....is this a re-release ?
I REALLY WANT TO SEE THIS NOW
by livingwater
Feb 28th, 2008
05:17:23 PM
cool !
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