1024 – The Golden Compass (2007)

timespace coordinates:  parallel universe – Victorian Jordan College in Oxford >  retrofuturistic London > experimental station Bolvanga – far North

The Golden Compass is a 2007 fantasy adventure film based on Northern Lights, the first novel in Philip Pullman’s trilogy His Dark Materials. Written and directed by Chris Weitz, it stars Nicole Kidman, Dakota Blue Richards, Daniel Craig, Sam Elliott, Eva Green, and Ian McKellen.

The film depicts the adventures of Lyra Belacqua, an orphan living in a parallel universe where a dogmatic ruling power called the Magisterium opposes free inquiry. Children in that universe are being kidnapped by an unknown group called the Gobblers who are supported by the Magisterium. Lyra joins a tribe of sea-farers on a trip to the far North, the land of the armoured polar bears, in search of the missing children.

Before its release, the film received criticism from secularist organisations and fans of the His Dark Materials trilogy for the dilution of elements of the story which were critical of religion, as well as from some religious organisations for the source material’s anti-religious themes. The studio ordered significant changes late in post-production, which Weitz later called a “terrible” experience. Although the film’s visual effects won both a BAFTA and an Academy Award, critical reception was mixed and revenue lower than anticipated.  The film trilogy has not been continued, prompting actor Sam Elliott to blame censorship and the Catholic Church. (wiki)

Video game  The game was released prior to the film and features a slightly different sequence of events towards the end of the story, as well as additional footage at the end of the game not seen in the film. (playthrough)

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Controversies   /  Cancelled sequels 

imdb   /   His Dark Materials (TV Series 2019– )

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1754 – La Belle Sauvage (2017 novel)

1793 – The Secret Commonwealth (The Book of Dust #2 – 2019)

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1023 – Slaughterhouse Rulez (2018)

timespace coordinates: 2010’s British boarding school

imdb   /   rt

1022 – Dead Cells (2017 video game)

Dead Cells is a roguelike–metroidvania video game developed and published by Motion Twin. Following about a year in early access, Dead Cells was released for Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on August 7, 2018.

In the game, the player takes the role of a slime-like creature that takes control of a corpse in a dungeon, through which they must fight their way out. The player gains various weapons, treasure and other tools through exploration of the procedurally-generated levels to fight undead creatures within it. At times, the player may gain “cells”, a type of in-game currency that can be used to purchase permanent upgrades or unlock new items for the player if they reach the vendor between each level. Dead Cells uses a permadeath system, causing the player to lose all cells and other currencies or items upon each instance of death.

The plot of Dead Cells is minimalistic, only giving bits of information to the player. Taking place on an unnamed island, the player character is referred to as the Prisoner, a humanoid with a pile of gelee or plantmatter in place of a head. The Prisoner is immortal, as every time he dies his “head” manages to lurch its way back to the starting prison. According to a guard, the Prisoner is said to have been executed for some crime, but the nature of the crime is never specified.

Every time the Prisoner dies, the island reconfigures itself, which serves as an explanation for the rogue-like mechanics. In the game, the reason for this is specified as the island being a living organism that evolves over time. In the end, he kills the Hand of the King and stabs the real king only to explode and wind up back at the start like nothing happened. (wiki)

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS (MINIMUM): OS: Windows 7+ / Processor: Intel i5+ / Memory: 2 GB RAM / Graphics: Nvidia 450 GTS / Radeon HD 5750 or better / Storage: 500 MB available space / Additional Notes: DirectX 9.1+ or OpenGL 3.2+

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Easter Eggs and References 

steam   /   dead-cells.com

1021 – Starchaser: The Legend of Orin (1985)

timespace coordinates: distant future – subterranean Mine-World / planet Trinia

Starchaser: The Legend of Orin is a 1985 animated science fantasy film directed and produced by Steven Hahn, and written by Jeffrey Scott. It was originally released in 3D by Atlantic Releasing. Starchaser: The Legend of Orin was one of the first animated movies to mix traditional and computer animation, as well as one of the first to be released in 3D.

imdb

1020

1019 – Perfect Blue (1997)

timespace coordinates: 90s Japan

Perfect Blue (パーフェクトブルー Pāfekuto Burū) is a 1997 Japanese animated psychological horror film directed by Satoshi Kon (in his directorial debut) and written by Sadayuki Murai. It is based on the novel Perfect Blue: Complete Metamorphosis (パーフェクト・ブルー　完全変態 Pāfekuto Burū: Kanzen Hentai) by Yoshikazu Takeuchi.

The film follows Mima Kirigoe, the member of a Japanese idol group who retires from music to pursue an acting career. As she becomes a victim of stalking, she starts to lose her perception of reality and fiction. Like much of Kon’s later work, such as Paprika, the film deals with the blurring of the lines between fantasy and reality in contemporary Japan. (wiki)

Perfect Blue is an apocalyptic slasher, the ultimate crystallization of everything we came to fear about the internet before it became synonymous with living. ( Full Review…)

imdb   /   rt   /  Legacy

1018 – Green Book (2018)

timespace coordinates: a tour of the Deep South, 1962

Green Book is a 2018 American biographical comedy-drama film directed by Peter Farrelly. Set in 1962, the film is inspired by the true story of a tour of the Deep South by Jamaican–American classical and jazz pianist Don Shirley (Mahershala Ali) and Italian-American bouncer Tony Vallelonga (Viggo Mortensen) who served as Shirley’s driver and bodyguard.

The film was written by Farrelly, Brian Hayes Currie and Vallelonga’s son, Nick Vallelonga, based on interviews with his father and Shirley, as well as letters his father wrote to his mother. The film is named after The Negro Motorist Green Book, a mid-20th century guidebook for African-American travelers written by Victor Hugo Green, to help them find motels and restaurants that would accept them at a time of widespread racial segregation and sunset towns. (wiki)

imdb   /   controversies