Gemini Man (2019)

[BluBonnet]

Originally Posted by aiman04

But I thought it was clear to me that he just didn't care. He was raised to be a ruthless killing machine by his father.

Still doesn't add up, imho. Just because you're a ruthless killing machine doesn't mean you wouldn't wonder what's up when someone asks you to kill someone who's identical to you, just a few decades older.

Maybe he wouldn't necessarily be suspicious right away, but I would have imagined he'd ask at least a few mildly curious questions.

[Shingster]

He was raised by a white man, he thinks all black people look alike!

[BluBonnet]

Originally Posted by Shingster

He was raised by a white man, he thinks all black people look alike!

First off, it's not funny. I have friends who are transracial adoptees. Believe me, you do recognize people who share your heritage.

And I'm also pretty sure anyone who is not mentally incapacitated can recognize their own features as an older person.

It may not be a huge deal in the overall picture, but I did find myself feeling the story clearly didn't add up.

[Shingster]

Jesus christ. It's a dumb action film and the joke above is reference the stereotype that white people think all "insert non-caucasian ethnic type" "all look alike".

You must be an absolute joy to be around.

[BluBonnet]

Originally Posted by Shingster

Jesus christ. It's a dumb action film and the joke above is reference the stereotype that white people think all "insert non-caucasian ethnic type" "all look alike".

I understood full well what you were referencing, and I still feel it isn't funny. Just because you make a poor attempt at humor doesn't mean I don't appreciate a good joke.

Sorry, I know you must think I'm just awful.

[Shingster]

Not awful, just so tightly wound that you're happy to suck the humour out of life for yourself and everyone around you. But hey, that's Blu-ray.com. It's why I try not to joke to often and just stick to analysis. This isn't a well adjusted place

[BluBonnet]

Originally Posted by Shingster

It's why I try not to joke to often and just stick to analysis.

I know from personal experience that a joke like that would probably get some people very upset if someone told it IRL. I realize this and try to be sensitive around issues that people find offensive or borderline offensive. I wouldn't make a joke like, personally.

If you feel it's appropriate, fine, whatever, just don't get upset because I don't think it's funny.

[aiman04]

I really don’t understand this stuff. We have a lot of skin colors here in my country but no one really have an issue with it. It’s so diverse in Asia I guess we’re just color blind.

[BluBonnet]

Originally Posted by aiman04

I really don’t understand this stuff. We have a lot of skin colors here in my country but no one really have an issue with it. It’s so diverse in Asia I guess we’re just color blind.

If you live in the US long enough you learn that it's always best to try to exercise a little bit of caution and not inadvertently hurt the feelings of others around you, that way everybody gets along and things are better.

I also have international friends so I'm also aware how things can be different in other cultures, and that's also great.

Anyway back to Gemini Man, it had a lot of great locations, really loved the scenes in Belgium and Colombia and Budapest very much!

[Shingster]

Originally Posted by BluBonnet

I know from personal experience that a joke like that would probably get some people very upset if someone told it IRL. I realize this and try to be sensitive around issues that people find offensive or borderline offensive. I wouldn't make a joke like, personally.

If you feel it's appropriate, fine, whatever, just don't get upset because I don't think it's funny.

I've got absolutely no problem with you feeling the joke isn't funny, it's not exactly an example of sterling comedy... it's everything you stated after that which was ugly and offensive and designed to make me feel bad.

First up, I didn't make this comment about a real person, I made this comment about a dumb character in a dumb movie. I know the distinction and would never suggest that a real-life black person would ever - under ANY context - have a hard time distinguishing between members of their own race - and quite frankly the fact that I find myself explaining this is truly astounding.

Second up, the fact you found offense in a really stupid surreal gag about a fictional character, speaks volumes about your warped mentality. A rational person would assume the joker didn't have any harmful intent and just commented on how crap the gag was, he wouldn't add real-life social context for the sole reason of making someone else feel bad. That's a really low-down dirty thing to do. That's on you.

I will leave it there, you're not worth getting banned over.

[BluBonnet]

Originally Posted by Shingster

I've got absolutely no problem with you feeling the joke isn't funny, it's not exactly an example of sterling comedy...

A rational person would assume the joker didn't have any harmful intent and just commented on how crap the gag was

I did assume you didn't have any harmful intent, and would have just left it at that if you had dropped the issue after I told you I felt that it wasn't really funny.

So, as far as Gemini Man is concerned, it's going to lose nearly all of the premium screens next weekend because Maleficent and Zombieland 2 will get them... Wouldn't be surprised if GM drops by more than 50% on the second weekend

[jetthead]

Originally Posted by aiman04

I really don’t understand this stuff. We have a lot of skin colors here in my country but no one really have an issue with it. It’s so diverse in Asia I guess we’re just color blind.

Our civil war may have ended back in 1865 but there is a segment of the population that still believes things like intelligence is based on skin color. It seems that race will always be an issue to some degree in the USA.

[ImBlu_DaBaDee]

Just got out and I must say I love the look of High Frame Rate 3D! So crisp and buttery smooth, although I wouldn’t want all films to look this way.

As for the movie proper, it was ok. If it wasn’t headlined by Will Smith and Mary Elizabeth Winstead it would have been much worse because the script was truly atrocious. So clichéd and tired, with scene after scene of “tell, don’t show” exposition. But the leads definitely elevate the material through their strong performances and the movie looked very very pretty. I would say quality wise this was more like a 3 but the experience of watching it was more like a 7 so I’ll split the difference.

5/10

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by aiman04

I like the HFR, I will only buy this on blu-ray if they have it on HFR 2D.

PS: Why are they still using AVC codec on blu-rays, why not move to HEVC already? The specs is not for 4k only.

Because they (as in, the BDA) can't just drop it in overnight, they would need to update the 'regular' 1080p BD specs in order to include HEVC but they would then face the situation of having a 'regular' 1080p disc that doesn't actually work in many existing players - because they don't do HEVC as it's outside the BD spec they were created with - and adding an entirely new compression codec into a standalone desktop player via firmware just isn't gonna happen. Nah, regular BD's specs are set in stone from here on out.

You mention "HFR 2D" as well but regular Blu-ray tops out at 1080p24, 1080i50 and 1080i60. I suppose they could do a 60i encode but you'd be throwing away half the temporal resolution of a 60p version in order to do it, so I reckon that the regular 1080p Blu-ray will be in 1080p24. UHD Blu should be in 4K60 with an HEVC encode though, and while they could do a 1080p60 HEVC version on UHD disc it would be formatted for that spec, i.e. it would not play on a standalone BD player at all which brings me back around to my first point there. It would also require HDCP 2.2 copy protection in the HDMI chain as a minimum, which many non-UHD players and TVs won't carry.

[aiman04]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

Because they (as in, the BDA) can't just drop it in overnight, they would need to update the 'regular' 1080p BD specs in order to include HEVC but they would then face the situation of having a 'regular' 1080p disc that doesn't actually work in many existing players - because they don't do HEVC as it's outside the BD spec they were created with - and adding an entirely new compression codec into a standalone desktop player via firmware just isn't gonna happen. Nah, regular BD's specs are set in stone from here on out.

You mention "HFR 2D" as well but regular Blu-ray tops out at 1080p24, 1080i50 and 1080i60. I suppose they could do a 60i encode but you'd be throwing away half the temporal resolution of a 60p version in order to do it, so I reckon that the regular 1080p Blu-ray will be in 1080p24. UHD Blu should be in 4K60 with an HEVC encode though, and while they could do a 1080p60 HEVC version on UHD disc it would be formatted for that spec, i.e. it would not play on a standalone BD player at all which brings me back around to my first point there. It would also require HDCP 2.2 copy protection in the HDMI chain as a minimum, which many non-UHD players and TVs won't carry.

Thanks, I thought a simple firmware update should get the regular blu-ray players to support HEVC.

In that case I might get the 4k disc when it's dirt cheap, or even used. But I hate 3D even in HFR so I'll be turning that off.

[MifuneFan]

Just came back from seeing this in 120fps HFR 3D. I believe my theater was just one of 14 in the country that had it in 120. For the most part I was really impressed with the HFR format. it takes a little getting used to, but once my brain sort of adapted to it, it worked quite well. The HFR provided an unbelievably detailed, and realistic picture, with stunning colors and probably the best 3D I've ever seen. 3D is one of those thing that I tend to get used to quickly, and the effect wears off, but it was very effective for the whole film this time. The few underwater scenes, especially, were absolutely amazing with this presentation. It made me think how well it could be used for a franchise like Aquaman, or something. I still would consider this to be experimental only though. Scenes still look unnaturally sped up at times, and it's certainly not what I'd consider the future of film.

As for the movie itself, perhaps it was my lower expectations going in, but I actually thought it was pretty good. It's perhaps nothing we haven't seen before in some shape or form, but I still found it entertaining, and was never bored. The movie does have some super clunky dialogue, though every now and then it churns out some solid one-liner gems. The entire premise, combined with the cheesy dialogue, makes this feel like a Nicholas Cage vehicle. I say that almost lovingly, as I do adore Cage's performances, even when he's in a terrible film.

Part of the issue with this film is that the premise just doesn't have any sort of "wow" factor to it. Apparently Gemini Man was in development since the late 90's and that definitely shows. The story line completely feels like something inspired by the hot headlines of that era, when the cloning of a sheep was major news, and there was a huge concern over human cloning. Fast-forward some 25 years later, and the notion of human cloning just doesn't have the same impact it may have had back then. I liken it to Gattaca in this regard. Gattaca was a brilliant movie, well ahead of its time, but had it been released now, people wouldn't look at the premise of children being designed as something unrealistic, and well out of reach.

Despite the limitations in its story, I do feel like the movie benefited greatly from being delayed till now. Say what you will, but I think Will Smith was absolutely the perfect casting for this role. More than any other action star (or star in general maybe), we got to know him really well as a young adult, so it really gave a sense of familiarity in seeing a young and old version of the Smith that I really don't think you could get from many, if any other major stars today. The technology to reproduce a younger Smith is of course another plus for having it made now than in the past. While I do feel like the CGI wasn't always that convincing, there are definitely times when my brain was "tricked" by it. I still think they did a pretty admirable job nonetheless, given that it's an entirely CGI character.

The rest of the cast was very good too. Mary Elizabeth Winstead was so damn dreamy (as always). She hasn't been in many action roles as extensive as this before, but she was able to be a complete bad ass, while somehow also being cute as hell the whole time. She also had great chemistry with Smith's older self too. Benedict Wong, like his role in the MCU, plays a solid side character, with decent comic relief. I also thought Clive Owen made for a pretty believable villain too.

Gemini Man as a regular movie would be nothing special. A cheesy popcorn flick that would be quickly forgotten. It's probably still that, but the HFR 3D definitely enhanced my experience of it greatly. I actually feel like this was the closest film to mimicking a video game. Many of the action sequences, if not the entire movie, feels like one very long video game cut-scene. The exotic and colorful locales of Colombia, and the beautiful architecture and catacombs in Budapest really makes it feel like it was inspired directly by the Uncharted franchise. Uncharted, being another project that's been stuck in development hell, could perhaps benefit from using HFR too. Overall, I guess you could say I'm sold on using HFR..in a limited capacity. I don't feel like filmmakers have truly found that "sweet spot" as far as framerate goes, but with technology always improving, I definitely want to see ambitious directors like Ang Lee continuing to try it.

Story - 3/5
HFR/3D presentation - 4/5

Overall: 3.5/5 (rounded to 4 for the poll)

[jbloggs]

Saw it in 2D iMax. Great action entertainer and enjoyed it for what it was

[D00mM4r1n3]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

Just came back from seeing this in 120fps HFR 3D. I believe my theater was just one of 14 in the country that had it in 120.

[Show spoiler]For the most part I was really impressed with the HFR format. it takes a little getting used to, but once my brain sort of adapted to it, it worked quite well. The HFR provided an unbelievably detailed, and realistic picture, with stunning colors and probably the best 3D I've ever seen. 3D is one of those thing that I tend to get used to quickly, and the effect wears off, but it was very effective for the whole film this time. The few underwater scenes, especially, were absolutely amazing with this presentation. It made me think how well it could be used for a franchise like Aquaman, or something. I still would consider this to be experimental only though. Scenes still look unnaturally sped up at times, and it's certainly not what I'd consider the future of film.

As for the movie itself, perhaps it was my lower expectations going in, but I actually thought it was pretty good. It's perhaps nothing we haven't seen before in some shape or form, but I still found it entertaining, and was never bored. The movie does have some super clunky dialogue, though every now and then it churns out some solid one-liner gems. The entire premise, combined with the cheesy dialogue, makes this feel like a Nicholas Cage vehicle. I say that almost lovingly, as I do adore Cage's performances, even when he's in a terrible film.

Part of the issue with this film is that the premise just doesn't have any sort of "wow" factor to it. Apparently Gemini Man was in development since the late 90's and that definitely shows. The story line completely feels like something inspired by the hot headlines of that era, when the cloning of a sheep was major news, and there was a huge concern over human cloning. Fast-forward some 25 years later, and the notion of human cloning just doesn't have the same impact it may have had back then. I liken it to Gattaca in this regard. Gattaca was a brilliant movie, well ahead of its time, but had it been released now, people wouldn't look at the premise of children being designed as something unrealistic, and well out of reach.

Despite the limitations in its story, I do feel like the movie benefited greatly from being delayed till now. Say what you will, but I think Will Smith was absolutely the perfect casting for this role. More than any other action star (or star in general maybe), we got to know him really well as a young adult, so it really gave a sense of familiarity in seeing a young and old version of the Smith that I really don't think you could get from many, if any other major stars today. The technology to reproduce a younger Smith is of course another plus for having it made now than in the past. While I do feel like the CGI wasn't always that convincing, there are definitely times when my brain was "tricked" by it. I still think they did a pretty admirable job nonetheless, given that it's an entirely CGI character.

The rest of the cast was very good too. Mary Elizabeth Winstead was so damn dreamy (as always). She hasn't been in many action roles as extensive as this before, but she was able to be a complete bad ass, while somehow also being cute as hell the whole time. She also had great chemistry with Smith's older self too. Benedict Wong, like his role in the MCU, plays a solid side character, with decent comic relief. I also thought Clive Owen made for a pretty believable villain too.

Gemini Man as a regular movie would be nothing special. A cheesy popcorn flick that would be quickly forgotten. It's probably still that, but the HFR 3D definitely enhanced my experience of it greatly. I actually feel like this was the closest film to mimicking a video game. Many of the action sequences, if not the entire movie, feels like one very long video game cut-scene. The exotic and colorful locales of Colombia, and the beautiful architecture and catacombs in Budapest really makes it feel like it was inspired directly by the Uncharted franchise. Uncharted, being another project that's been stuck in development hell, could perhaps benefit from using HFR too. Overall, I guess you could say I'm sold on using HFR..in a limited capacity. I don't feel like filmmakers have truly found that "sweet spot" as far as framerate goes, but with technology always improving, I definitely want to see ambitious directors like Ang Lee continuing to try it.

Story - 3/5
HFR/3D presentation - 4/5

Overall: 3.5/5 (rounded to 4 for the poll)

IIRC, Polygon had an article about how the movie was being released and said that the limited list of 14 theaters were a handful of AMC theaters showing it in 4K 3D 120FPS, while there were countless other theaters showing it in 2K 3D 120FPS. I saw it at Regal, so I assume it was in 2K, but the effect was still jaw dropping to look at.

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by D00mM4r1n3

IIRC, Polygon had an article about how the movie was being released and said that the limited list of 14 theaters were a handful of AMC theaters showing it in 4K 3D 120FPS, while there were countless other theaters showing it in 2K 3D 120FPS. I saw it at Regal, so I assume it was in 2K, but the effect was still jaw dropping to look at.

I think the 14 were the only ones showing it in 120fps, and I believe in 2K, while everything else that did HFR was at 60fps and in 4K.

[BluBonnet]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

I think the 14 were the only ones showing it in 120fps, and I believe in 2K, while everything else that did HFR was at 60fps and in 4K.

No I don't think anyone in the US is showing the 4k version of the movie....