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| Pictured: Eddie Redmayne - Dir. Lilly & Lana Wachowski - Director of Photography: Bill Pope, ASC - Production Designer: Hugh Bateup - Costume Designer: Kym Barrett - Senior Visual Effects Supervisor: Dan Glass |
The Wachowski Starship, as Lana & Lilly Wachowski once jokingly referred to themselves as, have been a source of disappointment for many after their stratospheric sophomore picture, The Matrix, was released; so many expected them to attain status among the cinematic greats after the sheer brilliance of the film, so many expected more classic works from the two. But... things did not go that way.
After two major let-downs in the form of two sequels to the original film (The Matrix Revolutions and The Matrix Reloaded), they released the anime-come-to-life, Speed Racer, which confounded audiences through its absolute audacity and overwhelming visuals, mixing highly stylized production design by Owen Paterson and eye-bleedingly colorful digital effects supervised by Dan Glass.
After that came Cloud Atlas (2012), a film I've not seen, co-directed by the sisters and Lola Rennt (Run Lola Run)'s Tom Tykwer, an equally confounding epic adapted from David Mitchell's novel, stretching over 3 hours and spanning thousands of years.
For many, the Wachowski Starship never truly lived up to their incredible second film. After Cloud Atlas, the two decided to turn some of the conventions they'd popularized on their heads. "It’s fine to have a male narrative told with females--" said Lana Wachowski in an interview with Toronto Sun. "--but we were, like, ‘Can we bring a different kind of female character like Dorothy or Alice? Characters who negotiate conflict and complex situations with intelligence and empathy'?"
When talking about Cloud Atlas, she remarked; "When we think of the movie we imagine we’ll be remembered for, I think it’s going to be Cloud Atlas because it touches people in a way most movies don’t. And that kind of impact endures whereas the coolness factor of Matrix will eventually wear off."
It's very clear how much the sisters' perception changed over time. It's not hard to see where the drive to invert the ideas behind The Matrix came from. In fact, Jupiter Ascending is what one could call a sort of counter to The Matrix. Its tone is less cool and more operatic, its color is less monochromatic and more saturated. Its protagonist is awkward in less of a quiet, shut-in sort of way and more of a near-constant "why did I say that?" embarrassment. She's small, unfit to fight, and consistently terrified.
She uses her mind rather than force to solve problems. She is a Chosen One in a sense, yes, but the Wachowskis show consistently that it is a title and nothing more. Her willpower does not grant her power greater than the other characters. It simply allows her to find ways out of terrible situations. It is, in some ways, a more mature film than The Matrix, showcasing, as Lana put it, a character who negotiates conflict and complex situations with intelligence and empathy.
Now, Jupiter Ascending has problems. In fact, despite being in a few ways more mature than their most iconic of films, it is also more childish in some, with a screenplay burdened by often underwhelming dialogue and even more underwhelming characters.
Whereas The Matrix's cool and steely demeanor supported its thinly drawn figures of stoicism, Jupiter Ascending's characters find themselves struggling under the bombastic tone it sets for itself, appearing much more bland than they should be (and possibly more than they really are) in such a colorful world.
And yet... the saving grace of film is really its honest-to-god, do-or-die, absolutely bananas sense of chaotic camp.
From the quite mad performance of Eddie Redmayne as Balem Abrasax, which sounds like something to the effect of Richard Harris playing Don Vito Corleone, to the opulent production design by Hugh Bateup, the world around the characters is dialed up to eleven, the mustache-twirling, sneering, smirking antagonists, the over-the-top, incredibly operatic score by Michael Giacchino (written before principal photography!), the utter ridiculousness of some of the film's points (bees can recognize royalty...?), the use of the classic "grey alien" and "winged reptilian" designs, the special effects prosthesis of Channing Tatum's Caine, the massive and beautifully ludicrous first act-ending setpiece named during production as "Fifty-two Part," it is totally unashamed in what it is and sets out to be, wearing its heart on its chest to deliver an incredibly genuine and sincere blockbuster the likes of which we'll probably never see again, to the delight of many who saw it and to the disappointment of some.
Its tone is unseen in today's landscape of bathos-laden superhero blockbusters. And while there is always room for those kinds of films, I cannot help but feel we're missing something in our big-budget fare not having the space for such over-the-top work like Jupiter Ascending. Perhaps the script is not the tightest, the characterization is not the most vivid, or the casting is not the sharpest all around (Mila Kunis gives off find everyman/everywoman vibes but does not gel as a leading lady). But make no mistake, this is a blockbuster with its tongue pulled away from its cheek, its boots planted firmly in the ground of sincerity and a true love and passion for its universe. It understands itself better than most blockbusters released these days.
Perhaps we don't need more of Jupiter Ascending, per say. But in the end, tonal variety is absolutely a good thing. If our film culture is going to be dominated by blockbusters, who's to say we don't need a little camp, a little chaos, a little cheesy goodness?
The film is not great in the traditional sense, no. But a film can be great in less obvious ways as well. Taken mechanically, the film doesn't work very well. But as an ambitious adventure with the spirit of a Saturday morning serial and some interesting ideas about consumerism, bureaucracy, and monarchism, its at least memorable in its intentions.
It has a beating heart unfound in the modern blockbuster landscape. It is truly sincere and deeply personal. How often do we get something like Jupiter Ascending?
The Wachowski Starship does indeed deserve to soar… even when their films do not always take off with the most grace.
- The Songbird
Perhaps we don't need more of Jupiter Ascending, per say. But in the end, tonal variety is absolutely a good thing. If our film culture is going to be dominated by blockbusters, who's to say we don't need a little camp, a little chaos, a little cheesy goodness?
The film is not great in the traditional sense, no. But a film can be great in less obvious ways as well. Taken mechanically, the film doesn't work very well. But as an ambitious adventure with the spirit of a Saturday morning serial and some interesting ideas about consumerism, bureaucracy, and monarchism, its at least memorable in its intentions.
It has a beating heart unfound in the modern blockbuster landscape. It is truly sincere and deeply personal. How often do we get something like Jupiter Ascending?
The Wachowski Starship does indeed deserve to soar… even when their films do not always take off with the most grace.
- The Songbird
