The Cyberpunk Week, Day 6: WarGames [1983] (sci-fi, thriller, adventure, comedy)

Studio: MGM,
Director: John Badham,
Screenplay: Lawrence Lasker, Walter F. Parkes, Walon Green,
Genre: Sci-Fi, Thriller, Adventure, Comedy,
Starring: Matthew Broderick, Dabney Coleman, John Wood, Ally Sheedy, Barry Corbin

For the Cyberpunk Week, one important thing I would've liked to do is to bring some veriety to the reviews. We have covered an action-packed movie, a film noir, an anime film noir, an independent arthouse thriller, and finally, an action-packed anime. This time I'll try to bring you something different again.


Take your pick.

Unlike both Blade Runner (which has become a cult classic long after its release) and Nemesis (which sadly doesn't seem to be considered a cult classic at all), the 1983's John Badham classic was a big commercial blockbuster that not only didn't bomb at the box office, but also has 97% 'Fresh' at Rotten Tomatoes and 7.0 on IMDB, was nominated for three Oscars and got four stars from Roger Ebert, but what's most important to us, it did an incredible job of capturing and reflecting the 80-s pop culture and injecting one notable character to the modern urban mythology: The Hacker.


The most hideous one ever. ^_^.

This is David Lightman, played by then-unknown Matthew 'That's a lot of fish' Broderick. To tell you the truth, he's really good in this role, being a stereotypical geek who is so perfectly represented, that nowadays this movie feels even like a documentary at times. David is a socially awkward schoolboy who likes comic books, pizza, and kicking everybody's ass at videogames. He fails to establish any connection with his parents who are genuinely afraid of his obsession with computers. Turns out, David happens to have this weird 'modem' thingy that allows him to use phone lines to connect to some sort of a global network and, uhh... That's right, folks - this movie also happened to introduce the internet to the masses.


While you are bothered by your 'likes' on Facebook, this guy is hacking into the friggin' Pentagon.

One day, awkwardly trying to pick up on his pretty schoolmate, Jennifer, David manages to break into a secret network hosted by NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) and activate Joshua - an artificial intelligence operating the latest Pentagon invention, WOPR (War Operation Plan Response), which is a sort of a digital advisor for the measures to be undertaken in case of prospected World War III (remember, the movie was made and took place in 1983). Thinking that it's only a videogame, David triggers the wrong gears within Joshua's mind, unknowingly making him schedule the launch of real nuclear missiles as a means of response to the virtual Soviet attack.


Creepy. I guess, that's what the PlayStation Network's central server looks like...

Once this happens, movie starts following the classic formula - the kid is suspected to be a Russian spy, gets captured by the authorities, makes a daring escape to finally settle down the score - all using his wits and skills accumulated by sitting at his computer and gaining some smoking experience points in electronics. Halfway through the movie, Joshua's creator shows up, Dr Stephen Falken. He reveals the full backstory behind the creation of Joshua and plays a key role in one of the most thrilling non-violent finales ever put on film.


The NORAD interior.

A bit of trivia for you: I actually saw this movie rather recently, but before that, I've read David Bishof's novelization, and it was so fascinating that I've managed to chew the whole book in one single day! I was really gripped by all this 'good old days' atmosphere - Hell, I did have a ZX Spectrum - not to mention the expanded plot and dialogue. Compared to the book, the only thing I didn't quite like in the movie is Falken's portrayal. I don't mean the acting itself, as John Wood is fantastic in this role, but rather the writing. He had a lot of very interesting monologues in the novel, however in the movie it's more substituted by him just grinning in fascination with his own work.


Now that's some HDTV for ya.

From the technical standpoint, WarGames still holds up today, in my opinion. The sinister black coffin-shaped WOPR mainframe, the old arcades, David's computer, this old atmosphere of dial-up connections and jerking the floppy drive to improve reading of the diskettes, while looking at the text console; the NORAD interiors were decorated so thoroughly that there was no necessity for post-production at all, and the movie has even received a special Academy Award for that. The action scenes are okay, too, though it's not an action movie in the usual sense - it'd rather be ranked along with the likes of Back To The Future, The Fugitive or maybe even some of the Hitchcock's mistaken identity thrillers. And do I have to mention that Ally Sheedy is hot as shit in her role of David's love interest?


Dat hair! *_*

There was a direct-to-video sequel which I'm hesitant to see, and an okay videogame for the PC and PlayStation. It didn't follow the movie at all though, implying that WOPR's plan was successful, and mankind has united in a war against Joshua's robotic minions. Despite the facepalm-inducing plot, it's a pretty decent RTS-shooter, though.


Ugh... okay.

I won't lie: WarGames may seem real outdated and hilarious to some people nowadays, but if you are not one of them, then this movie is real fun and interesting to watch - like I said, it has a documental quality, serving as great tribute to the iron age of internet and a very important film in the history of IT, because it spoke to the mainstream audience, bringing the computers and hackers into pop culture and coining several well-known terms, such as 'firewall' and 'wardialing'. Even the word 'DefCon' (Defense Condition, a governmental version of the infamous Doomsday Clock prominently featured in the plot) became a meme of sorts, as one of the first hacker conventions was named after it. All in all, I highly recommend WarGames - if not for the cinematography, then at least for its historical value. You gotta respect the genre's Grandfather, cyberpunks!

The Cyberpunk Week, Day 5: Cyber City Oedo 808 [1990-1991] (anime, action, thriller, obviously cyberpunk)

Studio: Madhouse,
Director: Yoshiaki Kawajiri,
Screenplay: Akinori Endo, Jyuzo Mutsuki (story),
Genre: Anime, Action, Thriller, Obviously Cyberpunk,
Starring: Hiroya Ishimaru, Tesshō Genda, Kaneto Shiozawa, Norio Wakamoto, Kyousei Tukui

When it comes to anime, I usually prefer the classic period of late 80-s until the beginning of 2000-s. There were so many awesome movies and TV shows to even count, and naturally, my most favorite anime of all time was also released during that timespan. You might think that I'm talking about GiTS, judging from that big epic post I've rolled out on Day 3. But nope, as much as I adore GiTS, Akira, Jin Roh - you know, the dark, mature stuff - there's one little OVA that has a very special place in my heart. Behold:



I'm pretty sure you've never heard of it before, but I swear it's one of the best animated sci-fi films out there. Well, it may lack the technical sophistication of GiTS, darkness of Akira or social commentary of Serial Experiments Lain (by the way, I'm not a fan of the latter), but as a work of visual media, it delivers one hell of a pleasure. I first saw it late at night on our local television, while I was eight-something years old. Never before and after was I so speechless about any movie - after all, before that I've been raised on Disney, and now, all of a sudden there comes this violent, badass Japanese cartoon, darker than anything I could even imagine at the time. After that night I was never the same again, getting hooked up on anime for life. So one thing can be said for sure - unlike Blade Runner and GiTS, Cyber City Oedo has a serious nostalgic quality to me.


But let's put nostalgia aside for a bit and talk about the movie. It's the year 2808, the city of Oedo - basically, rebranded Tokyo with the Homen feudal system in effect. The police force is now hiring its top operatives from among the dangerous convicts, the ones who were supposed to be crushed by the system, and instead got employed by it. Their payment is measured in reduction of their suspension periods. And of couse, this is where our main characters show up:


Sengoku (center), a near-psychotic fellow sworn to kill enough criminals to get finally released. During his off-duty time, he pursues a relationship with one of the Police's secretaries (which appears to be mutual, weird as it is) and drinks his ass off. However, there's an annoying robot named Varsus that is responsible for storing Sengoku's weapons and preventing his partner from getting too wasted. At first, the latter may seem a dumb and obnoxious unsophisticated nature, but by the end of the first episode you can see that Sengoku does have a code of honor... of sorts.


Gogul (left), a classic 90-s hacker with mohawk and stuff, who's also skilled with firearms. No defense mechanism can stand against him, and at one point of backstory, he was even able to hold hostage the government's satellite codes - now that's some balls. He also likes reading Dostoyevskiy, as he can be seen with 'Crime and Punishment' (well, more accurately, "НАКЗАНИЕ ДОСТЕВСБАГО") at the beginning of the first episode.


And finally, Benten (right), a bishounen who relies mostly on Ninjitsu and acrobatics. Despite having the most tender side of all the trio, contrary to the likes of Tuxedo Mask or say, the cast of Weiss Kreuz, he's still as much badass as his teammates. Also, according to the third episode, Benten is no stranger to Oedo's hookers, which clearly identifies him as a guy fore some doubting viewers. Finally, he has one of the coolest weapons ever invented - a molecule-thin thread that can cut through pretty much anything. His hobby is astrology, and that's where his 'The stars are not aligned tonight. That's a bad omen' catchphrase comes from.


Each of them has an imprisonment term occupying 300-something years, so when the police chief Hashegawa offers our heroes a chance to redeem their past shenanigans, all three eagerly accept. The twist in this case is their explosive collars that can be triggered anytime by the superior, forcing our heroes to be good boys all the way.


Despite some occurrences of crossover, each episode of the OVA is dedicated exclusively to one of the main characters. In Sengoku's segment, an unknown hacker captures and holds hostage 50,000 civilians in Oedo's tallest building. The police suspects that it's somehow connectted to death of the skyscraper's original architect, so our heroes are sent to investigate.

Gogul's deal is a distress call from his ex-lover, who asks him for help, only for a horrifying military project to be uncovered. The hacker has to stand against a cybermechanical abomination named Molcos and bring it down for good.

As for Benten, he gets assigned to a series of strange murders caused by a creature that can be best described as... vampire. All the victims were found with tooth marks on their necks, as well as their blood partially drained. Vampires and cyberpunk - isn't this the best combination ever? Unlike the first two dark, gritty and bloody episodes, this one is more romantic in approach, leading to a great bittersweet ending.


Cyber City Oero is one of the earlier works of Yoshiaki Kawajiri, probably my most favorite anime director. He later went on to make such classics as Demon City Shinjuku, Ninja Scroll, Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust and Highlander: Vengeance. All his trademark elements are present here: fast, hard-hitting slam-bang-in-your-face action, curvy females, dark backgrounds, detailed character designs and loads of attention to atmosphere. There's blood all over the place, you can clearly see all the inventive futuristic ways of people and things hurting each other, though it does go a little over the top at some points - most notably, during Gogul's segment. Also, the animation is top notch, the plot is gripping, and the protagonists are likable, no matter how ass they can get at times.


One thing that needs to be addressed is the English localisation. While the voices are okay, the dubbing itself is done adequately, with all the slang, swearing and such. But the main difference between the English and Japanese versions is the music. In the original, we get a decent electronic soundtrack by Kazz Toyama, though the main selling points for it are the opening and closing songs, 'Burning World' and 'I May Be In Love With You'. However in the English version, the score was completely rewritten by Rory McFarlane in a more heavy metal oriented style. The credit songs are instrumental now, though, but still as catchy as their original counterparts. So take your pick, as both versions are equally strong and worth a watch.


Despite its obscurity, Cyber City Oedo 808 seems to be well popular and respected in the cyberpunk circles. It's real funny how IMDB has no less than two questions in their FAQ, asking if this anime is as good as its reputation goes. Thankfully, the folks who answered these questions, assured everybody that yes, it is a good movie that deserves much wider acclaim than just being a cult classic. There was also a videogame released, for the PC Engine CD, no less, however only in Japan. That's sad, as the anime was popular enough in the US, so I can't see a problem with releasing the game for TurboGrafx-16. From what I can gather looking at the screenshots, it's sort of a mix between Snatcher's visual novel style, and overhead adventure not unlike Shadowrun for Sega Genesis.


While Cyber City Oedo doesn't really raise any mind-boggling dilemmas of human existence, it really does excel in atmosphere and presentation. All the traditional cyberpunk ingredients are prominent here - high tech, low life, the police serving as your mega-corporation, the contrast of slums littered with junk and the glamorous skyscraper that reaches into space. You know, they say that cyberpunk is a likeable kind of future where nobody wants to live - that's this anime. Before I start repeating myself, I'd like to point out that Cyber City was one of the things that shaped my tastes and artistic preferences for life, as I rank it no lower than Star Wars or Tim Burton's Batman duology in this regard. All these beautiful movies have arrived just in right time at the right place, making yours truly the one who am I today. I can't be not biased when judging such things, but if you, too, saw Cyber City Oedo 808 when you were a child, you will understand me. These are the three 40-minute episodes larger than life!

Android Emulators / PSX ISO's: Emulators

Android Emulators / PSX ISO's: Emulators: Emulators: -Gensoid (SEGA Genesis Emu) v2.4.3 (Latest) -GameBoid (GBA Emulator) v2.4.7 (Latest) -SNesoid (SNES Emulator) v2.2.4 (Latest) ...

Top 15 Power Armors - 5 To 1

First of all, let me apologize for one very nasty thing that I've let slip in the first part of this countdown. In the first Guyver movie, the main character is NOT played by Mark Hamill - it's just I've fallen to the oldest false advertising trick in the book, where the filmmakers cast a former star in a supporting role and place his name and face on the cover to get some bucks. I believe, my mistake can be somehow redeemed by the fact that I wrote this before watching the movie, so please accept my apologies - Mark Hamill technically is not the main star in The Guyver. Boo.

5. Power Armor MK2 (Fallout 2)


If you have this common sense thingy and not as hardcore as that guy who reached Ganon in The Legend Of Zelda without using the sword, chances are you were definitely wearing the Power Armor Mk. II by the end of Fallout 2, as well as any other Power Armor Mk. by the end of any other Fallout. That opening cutscene with a group of Enclave soldiers mowing down some civilians has cemented this particular suit as one of the series' trademark, not to mention portraying its wielders as badass motherfuckers... just as your character is supposed to become in the end.


There's a theory going on that the Enclave operatives undergo secret training in the Kerberos Panzer Corps.
4. Samus Aran's Power Suit (Metroid)


Yeah, yeah, by this time we all know that Samus is a woman - this plot twist is already as classic as the reveal of Luke Skywalker's daddy. Well, Ms Aran's Power Suit looks badass enough, but what sets it apart in terms of functionality are its expandable moveset and inventory, as well as the fact that it's surgically attached to Samus's body. You can't grow more balls than that.


One Girl in All the World by ~transfuse on deviantART
She is. ^___________^
3. The Space Marines (Warhammer 40,00)


The WH40K Space Marines are just like a meme in itself. They were the predecessors of the whole concept, and ever since then, everybody has tried very hard to copy their brutal over-the-top exterior and ridiculously overcompensating weaponry - just look at the Terrans from StarCraft! (trollface) And besides all that, there are several varieties of the Marines themselves, such as the twisted Chaos Marines and the vampiric Blood Angels, stars of Space Hulk. Every way you look at the WH40K infantry, every illustration or the tabletop piece is a work of art, as it should be.


Now let's just wait for Stephenie Meyer to defile that.
2. Alex 'RoboCop' Murphy (RoboCop)


RoboCop is a sci-fi classic. The first movie, directed by the old pervert Paul Verhoeven, portrayed a gritty and satirical image of Detroit being overrun by a classic evil mega-corporation named OCP. To contain the crazy urban violence going on, they create two ultimate weapons: a failed abortion that is ED-209, and then, RoboCop. Technically, he cannot be quite classified as wielder of power armor, since it's a replacement for his original body, not just protection. However, the movie and the character himself are so memorable that there unavoidably were numerous imitations and references to this bulletproof machine of vengeance in the popular culture.


NOT ANOTHER GLAMOURIZED REMAKE WITH JEREMY RENNER!!!
1. Everyone In The God Damn Unreal Franchise (well, the Unreal franchise)

...Just look:

Right-click and choose 'View Image'/'Open the image in a new tab' to view full sizes.
Is it me, or does Epic Games have some of the best costume designers on the planet? Damn, I suddenly want to beat the first Unreal again. Using the gamepad!

Honorable mention #1 - Master Chief (Halo)


Master Chief by !utilizator on deviantART
Now, let me make one thing perfectly clear: I don't like Halo. I don't think it's a great game series, let alone something mind-blowing or such. I've played the first game, it seemed so dated to me... But anyway, I don't like the fanboys to tear me to shreds for not including Master Chief in such a post. But to me personally, the main reason I'm listing him is that hilarious visor on his helmet! Like, what purpose does it have? To block the sun? It's as funny now as it ever was.

Honorable mention #2 - Gordon Freeman (Half-Life)


Again, not much to say, despite me liking the source (no pun intended) game this time. Everybody's already made fun of Mr Freeman's vocal abilities, but what's even more funny is that his power suit literally speaks for the carrier. Now, how convenient is that?

The Cyberpunk Week, Day 4: Pi [1998] (mystery, thriller, arthouse)

Studio: Harvest Filmworks,
Director: Darren Aronofsky,
Screenplay: Darren Aronofsky,
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Arthouse,
Starring: Sean Gullette, Mark Margolis, Ben Shenkman, Pamela Hart, Stephen Pearlman, Samia Shoaib

After praising one obscure and two famous cyberpunk works, let's go back again to something obscure, but good. Pi happens to be the directorial debut of now-famous Darren Aronofsky, whom most of the viewers know by such works as The Fountain, Requiem For A Dream and Black Swan. It's not exactly a cyberpunk film in the classic sense, rather an experimental independent low-budget arthouse thriller with some sci-fi elements thrown in.


A genius tormented by his ingenuity.
Sean Gullette plays the role of Max Cohen, a mathematician unwillingly obsessed by discovering the entirety of Pi number. After several weeks of exhausting calculations and his computer literally burning out, he accidentally stumbles upon the treasure he was seeking, and afterwards gets followed by the Hasidic Jewish activists and the Wall Street stock keepers' agents - the former believe that true name of God is hidden within the Pi, and the latter want to use Max for predicting the stock market dynamics. How will he deal with all this mess and what will he have to sacrifice? Is the idea of gaining the ultimate knowledge of any sorts really all that exciting, and whether it makes sense to live your life further, knowing there's nothing more left to learn?


One of the few characters that Max consistently interacts with.
Max is neither a classic film noir (anti)hero, nor he is a classic dystopian punk. He's just a regular guy who happens to have extremely strong math skills which drive him insane, causing attacks of paranoia, terminal social awkwardness and hallucinations. And already living with all this shit in his mind, one day he discovers the most valuable sequence of digits in the Universe, printed right there on a sheet of paper, and things descend into madness even further.


A buildup to the most (in)famous scene.
As you can notice, the movie is shot in black and white, which is an interesting artistic decision. The cinematography really kicks ass, accurately portraying awkward, obsolete, rusty technology intermixed with dark and uninviting urban in- and exteriors. Some shots are slow and atmospheric, while others are full of fast editing and shaky cam, perfectly reflecting the paranoid atmosphere. Clint Mansell's harsh industrial soundtrack perfectly blends in the general structure, adding to the neurotic imagery.


This movie is arthouse, but coherent.
The actors do a real good job, too - aside of the main character, my faves are Sol Robeson, played by Mark Margolis, who is sort of a mentor to Max, giving him advice and hinting on the resolutions to tight situations, and for some reason, Pamela Hart as Marcy Dawson, the Wall Street agent. She's such a shark, offering her help to Max only to expose more evidence that they only need the numbers from him, not him.


And you say the Linux kernel recompilation is hard.
The icing on a cake is the low-tech machinery used by our hero for assistance in the research. It's just a mess of wires and smoking circuit boards, complete with the typewriter keyboard and prehistoric CRT monitor. It's so fascinating to watch Max wandering around this electronic monstrosity, fixing the wires and preparing to print black text on a blank sheet of paper, as if it was a sacred ritual of sorts. I wonder why everybody (at least in the mainstream media) hasn't gone often for this retro-decaying aesthetic, probably with the exceptions of Blade Runner, Brazil and A Detective Story from Animatrix.


Dat computah!
Overall, as far as independent movies go, Pi is a quality work, genuinely thrilling and very interesting to watch. The characters are fleshed out, the visual decisions are trying very hard to stay away from cliche, and it's just so memorable without just hammering the message into the viewer's head. It's very accepting and worth a watch any day by the 'serious' sci-fi fans - if you got the message, great; if not - it's either way a good movie with great storyline that can be followed just okay. No wonder why Pi is still regarded as one of Mr Aronofsky's strongest works, and in fact it's so well-known and demanded that it was even released on DVD in Russia and Ukraine - of course I had to grab a copy!