Author Topic: Independence Day: Resurgence  (Read 22042 times)

Offline Star One

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Independence Day: Resurgence
« on: 12/16/2015 07:05 pm »
The return of more really hokey science and Jeff Goldblum to summer blockbusters.

« Last Edit: 12/16/2015 07:08 pm by Star One »

Offline Kansan52

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #1 on: 12/16/2015 07:27 pm »
Is it OK that I am anxious more hokey science and Jeff Goldblum?

The http://www.warof1996.com/ web site mentioned at the end of the trailer is fun.
« Last Edit: 12/16/2015 07:36 pm by Kansan52 »

Offline NovaSilisko

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #2 on: 12/16/2015 07:44 pm »
Hmm. Giant spaceship on fire outside the atmosphere, with smoke billowing along behind.  :P

Offline Eagandale4114

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #3 on: 12/16/2015 07:46 pm »
AKA XCOM: The Movie. Found this cool mashup.

Offline Stan-1967

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #4 on: 12/16/2015 09:06 pm »
So the original movie was OK-ish until the hokey earth language computer virus ( was it in C++ or Fortran?  Mac or PC?)  just happens to be compatible with the alien server & then saves the day by rendering all their defenses meaningless.   

So I'm speculating what is the latest fad idea that the writers of this inane script will use to defeat an enemy that has planetary sized invasion craft setting down on the surface of our planet? 

1.  Secret DARPA labs unleash the singularity and we surpass them.
2. Mark Zuckerberg invents ESP technology that 9 billion Facebook users download into their cortex, and we overwhelm their minds with comments on last nights "The Worlds got talent" competition
3.  Bob Zubrin pilots an advanced fighter craft from the MARS contingent of the Earth Defense Force into the Alien craft at relativistic speeds. ( powered by a Gigawatt alien generator harnessed to a VASIMR rocket )
4.  President Trump sells them Uranus on a 1,000,000 yr lease with no immediate downpayment

Offline Star One

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #5 on: 12/16/2015 09:11 pm »

So the original movie was OK-ish until the hokey earth language computer virus ( was it in C++ or Fortran?  Mac or PC?)  just happens to be compatible with the alien server & then saves the day by rendering all their defenses meaningless.   

So I'm speculating what is the latest fad idea that the writers of this inane script will use to defeat an enemy that has planetary sized invasion craft setting down on the surface of our planet? 

1.  Secret DARPA labs unleash the singularity and we surpass them.
2. Mark Zuckerberg invents ESP technology that 9 billion Facebook users download into their cortex, and we overwhelm their minds with comments on last nights "The Worlds got talent" competition
3.  Bob Zubrin pilots an advanced fighter craft from the MARS contingent of the Earth Defense Force into the Alien craft at relativistic speeds. ( powered by a Gigawatt alien generator harnessed to a VASIMR rocket )
4.  President Trump sells them Uranus on a 1,000,000 yr lease with no immediate downpayment

5. They hack the aliens wifi.

Offline Stan-1967

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #6 on: 12/16/2015 09:24 pm »

So the original movie was OK-ish until the hokey earth language computer virus ( was it in C++ or Fortran?  Mac or PC?)  just happens to be compatible with the alien server & then saves the day by rendering all their defenses meaningless.   

So I'm speculating what is the latest fad idea that the writers of this inane script will use to defeat an enemy that has planetary sized invasion craft setting down on the surface of our planet? 

1.  Secret DARPA labs unleash the singularity and we surpass them.
2. Mark Zuckerberg invents ESP technology that 9 billion Facebook users download into their cortex, and we overwhelm their minds with comments on last nights "The Worlds got talent" competition
3.  Bob Zubrin pilots an advanced fighter craft from the MARS contingent of the Earth Defense Force into the Alien craft at relativistic speeds. ( powered by a Gigawatt alien generator harnessed to a VASIMR rocket )
4.  President Trump sells them Uranus on a 1,000,000 yr lease with no immediate downpayment

5. They hack the aliens wifi.

6.  After further consideration, I'm going with the idea that we discover the aliens are a slave class that have been denied sex ( their version of it anyways ) for a gazillion years.   The Japanese save the day with alien sex robots made in China, funded by Wall Street hedge fund managers with interests in the plastics and electronics industry. Once the aliens get their tentacles on the robots, they loose any desire to fight.   It's an interplanetary flip floppy of "NO SEX WITH ROBOTS"!


Online DaveS

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #7 on: 12/17/2015 12:41 am »
So the original movie was OK-ish until the hokey earth language computer virus ( was it in C++ or Fortran?  Mac or PC?)  just happens to be compatible with the alien server & then saves the day by rendering all their defenses meaningless.
Remember, we had access to their technology in the form of the crashed fighter/attacker. Not only that, we had cracked their own codes that was broadcast using our own satellites (remember the countdown to first wave of attacks?). So we had access to alot of stuff that could prove useful. The aliens never expected that their own technology would be used against them. That's why they never got suspicious why the 50 year F/A showed up all of a sudden. The virus itself was probably very simple, just few lines of code to deactivate the shields and most likely to avoid detection, a self-contained timer to execute the shield off command.

And as to the whole argument of "they had no anti-virus program". An anti-virus program is only as good as its latest virus definition update. This was a brand-new virus not seen in the wild ever so there was no defense against it. That is why it is so important to have your anti-virus program updated because new viruses appear all the time.

The counter-offensive plan was to upload the shields off command, launch a tactical nuclear missile to cripple or disable the mothership in order to confuse the destroyers. The crippling of the mothership would have served as a decoy action to prevent them from resetting the shields. The destroyers would probably have stopped while new orders were being issued. All the while the shields remained inactive and our attacks got them before they could get us. Something that was not taken in account was the density of the hulls of the destroyers that would be so hard to penetrate using regular ordnance.
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Offline QuantumG

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #8 on: 12/17/2015 01:00 am »
In the book (yes, there's books) they took days to develop the virus and tested it on the 50 year old fighter. They even mention that it's not very good because they couldn't bring in the experts they wanted. When you watch a movie you get iconography from the era to explain complex concepts to lay audiences in an affordable way. The alternative is boring narrative exposition.
Human spaceflight is basically just LARPing now.

Offline JamesG123

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #9 on: 12/17/2015 01:04 am »
you guys are overthinking it.  It will be a good popcorn aliuns shoot'em up movie, just like the first one.

I guess this is why they couldn't get Goldblum for "Jurassic World"...

Offline Darkseraph

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #10 on: 12/17/2015 01:05 am »
Looking forward to it. Just for the fun factor, not the scientific merit. I wouldn't poke holes in the science displayed films like this anymore than Lord of the Rings. :P
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Offline Ronpur50

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #11 on: 12/17/2015 01:16 am »
I was reading up on some back story for this movie.  In the last 20 years, the world has taken the captured alien tech and reverse engineered it.  We now have Earth Defense Force with bases on the moon and Mars.  And fighter aircraft with alien-derived tech. 

http://www.warof1996.com/

Offline JamesG123

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #12 on: 12/17/2015 02:13 am »
Of course they do.  Unless it only makes it to syndicated TV, then the whole world conveniently forgets the aliun invasion or it has no effect on the world or its technology.  That save a ton of money on sets, props, and effects.

Offline su27k

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #13 on: 12/18/2015 03:37 am »
So the original movie was OK-ish until the hokey earth language computer virus ( was it in C++ or Fortran?  Mac or PC?)  just happens to be compatible with the alien server & then saves the day by rendering all their defenses meaningless.   

You can cross-compile against the alien platform on our computer, if you know their computer architecture. It's no different from how we can compile an iphone app on Mac, even though Mac and iphone uses different processor architectures. The high level languages (C++ or Fortran) doesn't matter much in this case, it's the compiler that does the magic.

Offline notsorandom

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #14 on: 12/18/2015 03:58 pm »
So the original movie was OK-ish until the hokey earth language computer virus ( was it in C++ or Fortran?  Mac or PC?)  just happens to be compatible with the alien server & then saves the day by rendering all their defenses meaningless.   

You can cross-compile against the alien platform on our computer, if you know their computer architecture. It's no different from how we can compile an iphone app on Mac, even though Mac and iphone uses different processor architectures. The high level languages (C++ or Fortran) doesn't matter much in this case, it's the compiler that does the magic.
Who is to say that our computers aren't alien computers? The craft they flew up to the mother ship to upload the virus crashed at Roswell. Based on the automatic docking with the mother ship one would expect that alien fighter ships had a computers of their own that were meant to interface with the mother ship. Dr. Okun and his pals had plenty of time to study the thing at Area 51. They got it flying after all. They could have figured out how to build computers from that craft and then some how that technology spread to the public. Those who think an alien spaceship really did crash at Roswell often point to all the technology developed since then as proof that a UFO crashed and that we reverse engineered it. In reality its not a good argument but it could work in the movie.

Offline Stan-1967

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #15 on: 12/18/2015 04:58 pm »
Well it is a given that every persons standard for "suspending disbelief" is different, but I really tripped at that point in the movie.  YES is was still fun and everything, ( pass the popcorn) I just had to do a mid movie mental reframe into the comedy genre, which was fortunate for me, as it prepared me the remaining final scenes:

Alcoholic ex Vietnam pilot recruited out of refugee camp to fly an F-18 straight up the nearly undefended single point of catastrophic failure weapons system/power source at terminate his flight in a near tail slide stall condition while flipping off the aliens and getting revenge for his past uhmmm.....alien violations

A small tactical nuke destroying the mothership that was supposedly 1/4 the size of the moon.   What type of wimpy ships do these aliens build?   Heck, even Battlestar Galactica can withstand multiple nuke strikes from the Cylons.  What is with these ID4 aliens?  How have they mastered interstellar flight, but keep building structures with single point catastrophic failure modes?

Don't get me too wrong, some parts work out pretty good after explanation, and make for some fun.   I almost lost that suspension of disbelief early on when  Will Smith was living with ( and planning to marry) the Jasmine stripper/single mom character.   Who in their right mind would wife up a stripper/single mom?   Those type of women steal my loose cash, furniture, TV's, then they just vanish right when the rent is due.   Then I remind myself he is a Marine, not Air Force or Navy, so my brain can let that one go.

Off to stand in line for STAR WARS tickets this afternoon!!!





Online DaveS

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #16 on: 04/22/2016 03:42 pm »
Latest official trailer which confirms a few things (size of the new ship, Okun's return and the arrival of one if not the largerst aliens ever):

And FYI: The ID4 Mother ship size was 550 km from fore to aft. The related moon stuff mentioned was it's mass, not the size.

« Last Edit: 04/22/2016 03:44 pm by DaveS »
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Offline Star One

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Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #17 on: 04/22/2016 05:06 pm »
One thing they didn't really show in the trailer is supposed to be alien ground troops that they couldn't really do with the SFX in the first one.
« Last Edit: 04/22/2016 05:07 pm by Star One »

Offline mike robel

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #18 on: 04/22/2016 06:33 pm »
I am looking forward to this film.  I long theorized the sequel would be named "Thanksgiving:  the Invasion" and that we would face a ground invasion and defeat them for Thanksgiving.

Offline IRobot

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #19 on: 04/22/2016 06:45 pm »
From a musician perspective, these movies are getting worst and worst. It is just some rhythm adjusted to each scene, no progression, no melody. Where is John Williams?

Offline savuporo

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #20 on: 04/22/2016 07:11 pm »
I am looking forward to this film.  I long theorized the sequel would be named "Thanksgiving:  the Invasion" and that we would face a ground invasion and defeat them for Thanksgiving.
Taking bets on the aliens win ending
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Offline kch

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #21 on: 04/22/2016 07:17 pm »
I am looking forward to this film.  I long theorized the sequel would be named "Thanksgiving:  the Invasion" and that we would face a ground invasion and defeat them for Thanksgiving.

The way I heard it, they *were* considering it, but the first script turned out to be a real turkey, and they put it back in the freezer.  Apparently, there was also some discussion as to whether the invaders should be coarsely or finely ground ... ;D


From a musician perspective, these movies are getting worst and worst. It is just some rhythm adjusted to each scene, no progression, no melody. Where is John Williams?

One might hope he's hard at work on the score for Star Wars VIII ... :)
« Last Edit: 04/22/2016 07:33 pm by kch »

Offline pippin

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #22 on: 04/22/2016 10:15 pm »
June 24th, isn't that the new Independence Day for the UK?

Offline sanman

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #23 on: 04/23/2016 09:02 am »
The original movie was just an updated retelling of the old War of the Worlds martian invasion.

Offline su27k

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #24 on: 04/23/2016 12:32 pm »
A small tactical nuke destroying the mothership that was supposedly 1/4 the size of the moon.   What type of wimpy ships do these aliens build?   Heck, even Battlestar Galactica can withstand multiple nuke strikes from the Cylons.  What is with these ID4 aliens?  How have they mastered interstellar flight, but keep building structures with single point catastrophic failure modes?

Adama used the exact same tactic to destroy a basestar, so yeah lighting up a nuke inside your ship can do bad things...

Offline Ben the Space Brit

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #25 on: 04/23/2016 02:52 pm »
I strongly approve of the cynical meta-observation made Dr David Levinson (Jeff Goldblum) in the trailer: "They always get the landmarks!"
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Offline Archibald

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #26 on: 04/24/2016 10:58 am »
It really can't be worse than the first - unless of course they put Michael Bay at the controls (btw, the F-18s are gone )
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Offline Star One

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #27 on: 04/24/2016 08:40 pm »
There could be more films in the franchise.

http://www.slashfilm.com/independence-day-sequels/

Offline Tomness

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #28 on: 04/25/2016 04:17 am »
There could be more films in the franchise.

http://www.slashfilm.com/independence-day-sequels/

I wonder if any sequels will be Stargate Reboot?

Offline MATTBLAK

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #29 on: 04/25/2016 05:15 am »
From a musician perspective, these movies are getting worst and worst. It is just some rhythm adjusted to each scene, no progression, no melody. Where is John Williams?

Thank you for saying it! Although, Mr Williams is over 80 now and is still a too-busy man. Cherish him and his work while you still can.
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Offline The Amazing Catstronaut

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #30 on: 04/25/2016 08:47 am »
From a musician perspective, these movies are getting worst and worst. It is just some rhythm adjusted to each scene, no progression, no melody. Where is John Williams?

As another musician, I can assure you that's always how it's been in hollywood movies. Its been formulaic ever since the days of silent movies, when the formula was necessary to make the plot comprehensible.  :P


Movie soundtracks are divided between supposedly "epic", big string ostinato laden monstrosities, marches, tremolo strings and brass (JW loves that), choral music for moments of intense drama. Crucially music in film is not meant to be ostentatious when it's in support of the art,  it's meant to substantiate a sense of scene. That's why any cold war movie will use neoclassical ballet or Russian folk to symbolise Russians, Sci fi movies will employ the dominant electronic styles of the time the movie is produced, feel good dance movies will usually emulate or employ the music of prevailing pop artists.

Then there's that one-shot piano note you heard at the beginning of the Star Wars seven trailer. Harmony is often relatively consistent, chords play an important role at making panning shots look awesome instead of some tawdry drone or helicopter footage.

As for John williams - he made a frickin' two note motif famous. Film music is only exceptional artistry in its context most of the time.

That said, there are forever exceptions to the rule. Arthouse movies will have different sounds, and usually the further you stray from popcorn movies the closer you will get to a sound which doesn't follow the established conventions of cinema music. It's there to suck you in - it's not there to make you care about the music. The music is a pillar that props the atmosphere up - but you don't go to the Parthenon just to stare at one pillar.

Remember, you're not necessarily composing when you write film music. You're illustrating. That's a profession with even more skill requirements than pure composition in of itself.

« Last Edit: 04/25/2016 08:51 am by The Amazing Catstronaut »
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Offline SimonFD

Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #31 on: 04/25/2016 09:03 am »

Alcoholic ex Vietnam pilot recruited out of refugee camp to fly an F-18 straight up the nearly undefended single point of catastrophic failure weapons system/power source at terminate his flight in a near tail slide stall condition while flipping off the aliens and getting revenge for his past uhmmm.....alien violations


I believe the first version had him flying his bi-plane, not an F-18. This kind of explains the "sorry I'm late, Mr. President" line and the fact that the progress vertically in the final moments is more bi-plane like than F-18.
They obviously cut and pasted an F-18 over the bi-plane footage. They also obviously thought this new version more believable  :o  ;D
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Offline Ben the Space Brit

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #32 on: 04/25/2016 03:26 pm »
@The Amazing Catstronaut,

I'm just thinking how John Williams' Arrival at the Island is an absolute and essential part of the big reveal of the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park to the point where music like it became essentially identified with dinosaurs in movies.
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Offline sanman

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #33 on: 04/25/2016 09:29 pm »
The original movie only had special FX going for it, and now that people are generally used to high-quality FX for anything on the big screen, as well as having seen gobs of other alien invasion movies, I doubt that this one will make as big a splash as the first one did. The market is too crowded with big, world-ending apocalyptic ultimate battle movies, so that it's hard to stand out anymore.




Offline Bob Shaw

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #34 on: 04/25/2016 09:41 pm »
I hope the Earth is totally destroyed, so that they can't make a third film. The first one made Gravity seem realistic!

Offline Oersted

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #35 on: 04/27/2016 05:57 pm »
Bigger isn't always better, that is for sure. This looks... not so good.

Offline JasonAW3

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #36 on: 04/27/2016 06:25 pm »
There could be more films in the franchise.

http://www.slashfilm.com/independence-day-sequels/

     Judging from what was said in the newest trailers, (ie. they basically have a ship that lands in the Atlantic and takes up the whole thing) I don't really see HOW the human race, let alone the Earth, could survive let alone recover, from such a massive intrusion.

     Personally, I found the city sized ships and the mother ship, (a quarter the size of the moon) to be an incredible stretch, but star ships large enough to be their own continents that can land on planets, maybe going a bit too far...
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Offline Archibald

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #37 on: 04/27/2016 07:01 pm »
I hope the Earth is totally destroyed, so that they can't make a third film. The first one made Gravity seem realistic!

HELL NO !! NEVER, EVER DARE TO COMPARE GRAVITY WITH INDEPENDANCE DAY !! COME ON !!

Otherwise I agree about the third movie. But you need to destroy Emmerich, not Earth.
« Last Edit: 04/27/2016 07:02 pm by Archibald »
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Offline The Amazing Catstronaut

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #38 on: 04/27/2016 09:25 pm »
@The Amazing Catstronaut,

I'm just thinking how John Williams' Arrival at the Island is an absolute and essential part of the big reveal of the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park to the point where music like it became essentially identified with dinosaurs in movies.

True - it was definitely iconic. Iconic soundtracks are hard to come by and tough to write - they need to perfectly summarise the scene, not just give a general impression of the atmosphere.
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Online DaveS

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #39 on: 05/05/2016 08:17 pm »
New video in the form of a special news report of "War of 1996":

"For Sardines, space is no problem!"
-1996 Astronaut class slogan

"We're rolling in the wrong direction but for the right reasons"
-USA engineer about the rollback of Discovery prior to the STS-114 Return To Flight mission

Offline Star One

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #41 on: 05/23/2016 09:01 pm »
From a musician perspective, these movies are getting worst and worst. It is just some rhythm adjusted to each scene, no progression, no melody. Where is John Williams?

As another musician, I can assure you that's always how it's been in hollywood movies. Its been formulaic ever since the days of silent movies, when the formula was necessary to make the plot comprehensible.  :P


Movie soundtracks are divided between supposedly "epic", big string ostinato laden monstrosities, marches, tremolo strings and brass (JW loves that), choral music for moments of intense drama. Crucially music in film is not meant to be ostentatious when it's in support of the art,  it's meant to substantiate a sense of scene. That's why any cold war movie will use neoclassical ballet or Russian folk to symbolise Russians, Sci fi movies will employ the dominant electronic styles of the time the movie is produced, feel good dance movies will usually emulate or employ the music of prevailing pop artists.

Then there's that one-shot piano note you heard at the beginning of the Star Wars seven trailer. Harmony is often relatively consistent, chords play an important role at making panning shots look awesome instead of some tawdry drone or helicopter footage.

As for John williams - he made a frickin' two note motif famous. Film music is only exceptional artistry in its context most of the time.

That said, there are forever exceptions to the rule. Arthouse movies will have different sounds, and usually the further you stray from popcorn movies the closer you will get to a sound which doesn't follow the established conventions of cinema music. It's there to suck you in - it's not there to make you care about the music. The music is a pillar that props the atmosphere up - but you don't go to the Parthenon just to stare at one pillar.

Remember, you're not necessarily composing when you write film music. You're illustrating. That's a profession with even more skill requirements than pure composition in of itself.

David Arnold was the composer for the first film. His music had memorable enough leifmotifs and kept the film moving along. He also did the original score for Stargate (a better work, if you ask me, musically) and several James Bond films. Arnold's work is this close to being at the caliber that made household names of the late, great James Horner (Star Trek II and III, Titanic, Apollo 13, et all), John Williams, and others.

A good score will save a lesser film in a little way. Daft Punk's score to Tron: Legacy helped salvage it, if only to buy the soundtrack. The soundtrack to The Martian by Harry Gregson-Williams was dastardly fun, mixing in disco with its unique tracks.

And I can't forget John Barry's whip-the-trumpeters-real-good power soundtrack, particularly the "Capture in Space" and "Blofeld" tracks of the Bond film "You Only Live Twice."

I think good soundtracks to space films are more rarefied than the space films themselves, sadly.
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"So you can find the pieces." -Jim, the Steely Eyed

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #42 on: 05/24/2016 12:26 am »
re: musical scores--to complement what was said before--they do make a difference, sometimes.  And sometimes, they make ALL the difference.

I can't imagine Babylon 5 without the wondrous soundtracks by Christopher Franke.  I would recommend watching B5 just for the music!

I recently paid Japanese entertainment content prices to purchase the 3 volumes of soundtracks for Space Battleship Yamato 2199.  IMHO, composer Akira Miyagawa did a great job updating and expanding the work that his father, Hiroshi Miyagawa, composed for the original SBY TV series back in 1974.  This is music that's stuck in my head since watching the show in syndication on American TV as a kid in 1979-80.

EDIT--SBY was syndicated in the USA as Star Blazers.  The dialog, narration, and opening and closing themes were dubbed into English.  Some content was edited for suitability for viewing by an American child audience.
« Last Edit: 05/27/2016 04:52 pm by zubenelgenubi »
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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #43 on: 06/06/2016 09:25 am »
New trailer. First good look at the "Giant Alien".
"For Sardines, space is no problem!"
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"We're rolling in the wrong direction but for the right reasons"
-USA engineer about the rollback of Discovery prior to the STS-114 Return To Flight mission

Offline saturnapollo

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #44 on: 06/20/2016 12:42 am »
Quote
Iconic soundtracks are hard to come by and tough to write - they need to perfectly summarise the scene, not just give a general impression of the atmosphere.

I think one of the best for that was Hans Zimmer's Iron Man.

Keith

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #45 on: 06/20/2016 11:18 pm »
For the sake of history, 20 years ago:

"For Sardines, space is no problem!"
-1996 Astronaut class slogan

"We're rolling in the wrong direction but for the right reasons"
-USA engineer about the rollback of Discovery prior to the STS-114 Return To Flight mission

Offline Star One

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #46 on: 06/25/2016 06:28 am »
Saw this yesterday and it's full of popcorn action scenes and cheesy dialogue, and is all the better for it. In other words it doesn't try to be anything more than it is an entertaining B movie. It's relatively short running time by modern standards means it doesn't outstay its welcome either.
« Last Edit: 06/25/2016 06:31 am by Star One »

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #47 on: 06/25/2016 07:14 am »
June 24th, isn't that the new Independence Day for the UK?

Nailed it.
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Offline pippin

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #48 on: 06/25/2016 09:19 am »
June 24th, isn't that the new Independence Day for the UK?

Nailed it.
Oh, my. At the time I actually thought it would just be a joke...

Offline jgoldader

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #49 on: 06/26/2016 01:12 am »
Took the kids to see it today.  None of the charm of the original. The script was... not so good.
Recovering astronomer

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #50 on: 06/26/2016 01:59 am »
I thought it was okay. It suffers from not having the charismatic Will Smith character (his character's son is amazingly bland), but benefits by not having the obnoxious Randy Quaid character. Many other characters return, some kids now adults. Too many loopy coincidences but nothing as preposterous as uploading a virus to defeat an alien computer system the first time around... this time, they actually have to outsmart the aliens... and do. There's a germ of a good idea here: mankind united in the wake of the 1996 alien invasion and reverse-engineered alien tech to build its defenses. In the hands of a better writer, this could really have been something. Instead, it's just a popcorn movie. A potentially interesting sequel is set up, but unless this movie does much better overseas than it seems to be doing in the US, that sequel's not going to happen.
« Last Edit: 06/26/2016 02:02 am by Thorny »

Offline Star One

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Re: Independence Day: Resurgence
« Reply #51 on: 06/26/2016 08:30 am »
I thought it was okay. It suffers from not having the charismatic Will Smith character (his character's son is amazingly bland), but benefits by not having the obnoxious Randy Quaid character. Many other characters return, some kids now adults. Too many loopy coincidences but nothing as preposterous as uploading a virus to defeat an alien computer system the first time around... this time, they actually have to outsmart the aliens... and do. There's a germ of a good idea here: mankind united in the wake of the 1996 alien invasion and reverse-engineered alien tech to build its defenses. In the hands of a better writer, this could really have been something. Instead, it's just a popcorn movie. A potentially interesting sequel is set up, but unless this movie does much better overseas than it seems to be doing in the US, that sequel's not going to happen.

At least the alien's seemed more intelligent this time.

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