Artificial Continuum
Showing posts with label Alex Kurtzman. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Alex Kurtzman. Show all posts
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Fringe: "Olivia"-Review

After a shocking and thought provoking season finale, Fringe has returned to television. The show that originally started as an uncreative X-files rip off has evolved ove the course of its second season into a mythologically driven and morally complex drama that is quickly becoming one of the best shows on television. This season opener is no different.
Last season Fringe ended its universe crossing arc with an incredibly unsettling twist. The Olivia we had come to know and love had been replaced by her alternate universe counterpart, leaving the series's central character locked away in a prison in an alternate universe.
The third season opener, simply titled Olivia, follows the show's title character as she attempts to escape her paranormal prison, while eluding the efforts of her captors. The concept is simple, but in classic Fringe fashion has more then its fair share of twists and turns. Olivia's plight and isolation is incredibly disturbing and surprisingly claustrophobic. The all encompasing isolation and the effects of her enemies experiments upon her create an unsettling predicament that builds to an incredible climax.
Anna Torv continues her string of excellent acting in this episode as Olivia. Although her character lacked depth in the first season of the series, Olivia has become a relatable and empathetic heroine that the audience has come to love. This makes her plight all the more disturbing and heart breaking. Torv alongside her coactor Joshua Noble also is tasked with playing two characters at the same time. Both succeed excellently. The contrast between Noble's sinister Walternate and his more childlike Walter is fascinating and an incredible acting achievement, making his recent Emmy snub all the more frustrating.
Also worth noting is Andre Royo's guest appearance as the cab driver Henry. While his appearance is brief, Henry is a scene stealer and soon becomes one of the most memorable and heartfelt guest appearances on the series.
The alternate universe continues to be fascinating to watch. The subtle differences between culture, technology, and character act almost as easter eggs for an increasingly vorocious fan base. For only appearing in three episodes, the alternate world feels incredibly detailed and fleshed out.
Olivia defies convention for some many ways in the series that at the end the audience feels as lost and hopeless as the cahracters. The rest of the season and even the future of the series feels incredibly uncertain, but at the same time incredibly intriguing.
Score: A
Last season Fringe ended its universe crossing arc with an incredibly unsettling twist. The Olivia we had come to know and love had been replaced by her alternate universe counterpart, leaving the series's central character locked away in a prison in an alternate universe.
The third season opener, simply titled Olivia, follows the show's title character as she attempts to escape her paranormal prison, while eluding the efforts of her captors. The concept is simple, but in classic Fringe fashion has more then its fair share of twists and turns. Olivia's plight and isolation is incredibly disturbing and surprisingly claustrophobic. The all encompasing isolation and the effects of her enemies experiments upon her create an unsettling predicament that builds to an incredible climax.
Anna Torv continues her string of excellent acting in this episode as Olivia. Although her character lacked depth in the first season of the series, Olivia has become a relatable and empathetic heroine that the audience has come to love. This makes her plight all the more disturbing and heart breaking. Torv alongside her coactor Joshua Noble also is tasked with playing two characters at the same time. Both succeed excellently. The contrast between Noble's sinister Walternate and his more childlike Walter is fascinating and an incredible acting achievement, making his recent Emmy snub all the more frustrating.
Also worth noting is Andre Royo's guest appearance as the cab driver Henry. While his appearance is brief, Henry is a scene stealer and soon becomes one of the most memorable and heartfelt guest appearances on the series.
The alternate universe continues to be fascinating to watch. The subtle differences between culture, technology, and character act almost as easter eggs for an increasingly vorocious fan base. For only appearing in three episodes, the alternate world feels incredibly detailed and fleshed out.
Olivia defies convention for some many ways in the series that at the end the audience feels as lost and hopeless as the cahracters. The rest of the season and even the future of the series feels incredibly uncertain, but at the same time incredibly intriguing.
Score: A
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Star Trek Writers Taking Inspiration From The Dark Knight

Although many would not pin it at first glance, there is quiet a bit in common between Batman Begins and the newest Star Trek reboot directed by JJ Abrams. Both are widely sucessful attempts at rebooting franchises that had previously gone stale, and lost their touch with a modern generation. These similarities have been noted by the people who made the 2009 Star Trek possible.
According to reports and interviews conducted by E! with executive producers Bryan Burk and Damon Lindelof, the creators have been looking at what made the Dark Knight such a success for their attempt at a sequel. Lindelof mentions that The Dark Knight managed to expand upon the sucess of Batman Begins but at the same time making it more emotional and thematic. Star Trek 2 is also planned to be an even bigger film then the first.
Star Trek 2 will be released June 29, 2012.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Harrison Ford Fights Some Aliens- Again

Yesterday ,rumors started that Harrison Ford, the famous movie actor that really should need no introduction, is going to star in Jon Favreau's (Iron Man, Zathura) sci-fi Western Cowboys and Aliens. However, today Favreau confirmed on his Twitter account that the prolific actor would be joining Daniel Craig and Olivia Wilde on the project.
Cowboys and Aliens, written by Damon Lindelof (Lost); Alex Kurtzman (Transformers); and Robert Orci (Fringe), is based off a graphic novel written by Fred Van Lente and Andrew Foley. The story follows a group of 1800's cowboys and Native Americans who find themselves facing an invasion from space.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Writers Leave Transformers Saga

Last week, director Michael Bay (Transformers, Armageddon) announced that work on the third Transformers movie had reached the planning phase, and that release was to be penned for summer of 2011. The move comes as no surprise seeing as Transformers, and its sequel Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen were both huge financial successes (the critical end is another story). However, two contributors to the series will not be returning for the third outing, writers Robert Orci and Alex Kurtzman. The writers, known for their work on J.J. Abram's Star Trek and Fringe, announced today that they will not be returning for the third installment. One might argue that this might be one of the best moves of their career seeing how panned the second installment was. In fact, it is hard at times to believe that the same people who write the complex and moving stories of Fringe and Star Trek are responsible for the same drivel that is the Transformers saga.
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