Where is plot, Cameron? (thoughts about Alita: Battle Angel)

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guelder_rose

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#1 guelder_rose
Member since 2018 • 19 Posts

After watching this film I'm a bit disappointed. If you're going to watch it anyway, just don't read the topic as it may contain spoilers (hope you'll like the movie more then I did).

Graphics and shooting are fantastic, Alita looked like a real person with her expressive emotions and perfect skin. Also, the sound and light effects were where they had to be - some of them were totally unexpected, others scared me and made the film more atmospheric.

I didn't like the story though. It looked like a combination of different moments and nothing more. Also, what is wrong with Alita's flashbacks? They explain no so much and we can easily watch the film without them. Oh well, and some characters like Chiren and Vector... Their behavior reminded me the ordinary pattern which is suitable for a fairy tale, but not for serious cyberpunk world

Cried about the dog. The dog was the only thing that made me cry. Why it?

Anyway, sometimes I think I'm too critical. What do you think about Alita movie and its plot as well?

*Alita: What are you doing?

Hugo: I'm going to Zalem!

People in cinema: facepalm*

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mrbojangles25

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#2 mrbojangles25
Member since 2005 • 58159 Posts

Wasn't the dog sort of a critical plot device of the manga? A transformative moment for the main character?

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DEVILinIRON

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#3  Edited By DEVILinIRON
Member since 2006 • 8732 Posts

Yeah. As mr.bojangles25 mentioned, the story comes from a Japanese comic book series. I haven't seen the movie, so I don't know how dedicated dir. Robert Rodriguez and the producer James Cameron were to the source material. But from your bits of description, it sounds as if all of it came from the manga.

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guelder_rose

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#4  Edited By guelder_rose
Member since 2018 • 19 Posts

@DEVILinIRON: Yeah, I've read the manga and extremely liked it. Maybe, that's the real reason for my disappointment. Things in the manga didn't look so spontaneous.

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DEVILinIRON

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#5  Edited By DEVILinIRON
Member since 2006 • 8732 Posts

Ah. I see. I'll be watching it next week. So I hope I'm not disappointed.

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uninspiredcup

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#6 uninspiredcup
Member since 2013 • 58646 Posts

Wasn't keen on the way the character looked.

Why didn't they just make it animated from the start?

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Jag85

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#7 Jag85
Member since 2005 • 19379 Posts

Haven't watched the movie, but I liked the anime OVA I watched back in the 90s. The OVA left off on a cliffhanger though (and I suspect this movie might too).

I've been looking forward to this movie for a long time, since i heard Cameron was going to direct it over a decade ago. It's been in development hell for a long time.

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DEVILinIRON

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#8  Edited By DEVILinIRON
Member since 2006 • 8732 Posts

https://www.escapistmagazine.com/v2/2019/02/15/alita-battle-angel/

Sounds good enough for me.

*SPOILER*

Except I hate false endings. It sounds like there is more than three! :-(

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sakaiXx

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#9 sakaiXx
Member since 2013 • 15868 Posts

Iike Alita and think it should continue. I only wants to know what happens to Cirren. *spoilers her body was destroyed only leaving her brain, eyes and respiratory system. Alita clearly left her at her office to chase after her boy.

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deactivated-60113e7859d7d

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#10  Edited By deactivated-60113e7859d7d
Member since 2017 • 3808 Posts

I'm a fan of the manga. I have the boxset. Not interested in the movie. I dislike fanboys, who just consume everything related to the their fandoms, regardless of the quality. They complain and then pay to go watch it anyway. We have so many mediocre sequels, spinoffs and superhero movies now because of that. We had four Star Wars movies in two and a half years because these idiots gobble up any shit that's fed to them. No, I'm not gonna watch this just because it's Alita. I'm not giving James Cameron my money if he thinks these stupid anime eyes belong in a live action. I feel like he told Rodriguez to do this more to create buzz than for the sake of the movie. To make her stand out, which is so stupid. She looks like an alien in that world now. I doubt he even cares that much about Battle Angel Alita anymore. If he did, he wouldn't have handed the project away after two decades. If I watch this, I will rent it from Netflix DVD. That way, the creators won't get any of my money.

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jaydan

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#11 jaydan
Member since 2015 • 8360 Posts

I don't think I've ever once looked at James Cameron as an expert of plot. He's a pretty poor writer overall.

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one_plum

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#12 one_plum
Member since 2009 • 6816 Posts

Saw it in 3D. The visuals were nice and the world was presented beautifully. But I thought it was hard to follow the story and Alita seems to lack the character development to make her a memorable character.

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deactivated-5de67c4d9cb12

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#13  Edited By deactivated-5de67c4d9cb12
Member since 2019 • 392 Posts

I didn't hate the way Alita looked and actually got used to it in the first 15 minutes or so. Everything else was cringey nonsensical garbage. Though I did think the "race" toward the end was funny. Alita has this perfect god body and the bad guys thought a bunch of goons with junkyard bodies were going to be able to take her on. smh

The visual effects besides Alita's animation were terrible, along with the overall visual design, I'm especially thinking in comparison to how gorgeous Blade Runner 2049 looked. The costumes were hilariously lazy. They were trying to depict this futuristic dystopia but had extras dressed up with khaki pants and plaid button down shirts like they just walked off the street in 2019.

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Baconstrip78

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#14 Baconstrip78
Member since 2013 • 1851 Posts

Robert Rodriguez is a hack. Cameron was just a producer.