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timespace coordinates: Hungarian village, 12 August 1945
1945 is a 2017 Hungarian drama film directed by Ferenc Török and co-written by Török and Gábor T. Szántó.
On a sweltering August day in 1945, villagers prepare for the wedding of the town clerk’s son. Meanwhile, two Orthodox Jews arrive at the village train station with mysterious boxes labeled “fragrances.” (rt)
timespace coordinates: 1933 San Francisco / 1869 Texas
The Lone Ranger is a 2013 American western action comedy directed by Gore Verbinski from a screenplay written by Justin Haythe, Ted Elliott, and Terry Rossio. Based on the radio series of the same name, the film stars Johnny Depp as Tonto, the narrator of the events, and Armie Hammer as John Reid, the Lone Ranger. It relates Tonto’s memories of the duo’s earliest efforts to subdue local villainy and bring justice to the American Old West. It is the first theatrical film featuring the Lone Ranger and Tonto characters in the more than 32 years following William A. Fraker‘s 1981 film, The Legend of the Lone Ranger.
Johnny Depp’s make-up and costume were inspired by artist Kirby Sattler’s painting “I am Crow.”
The film was originally supposed to have a plot focusing more on supernatural elements and Native American mysticism. This mainly would’ve taken the form of werewolves, which would’ve explained the silver bullets. However, this draft was supposedly part of the initial 250 million dollar proposal that Disney quickly cancelled after John Carter (2012) underperformed. When the project was revamped to meet Disney’s approval, it came more in line with the current script. (read more: Trivia)
“nature is indeed out of balance”
timespace coordinates: 20th century Snowy, Sleep-Walking Winnipeg
My Winnipeg is a 2007 film directed and written by Guy Maddin with dialogue by George Toles. Described by Maddin as a “docu-fantasia,” that melds “personal history, civic tragedy, and mystical hypothesizing,” the film is a surrealist mockumentary about Winnipeg, Maddin’s home town. A New York Times article described the film’s unconventional take on the documentary style by noting that it “skates along an icy edge between dreams and lucidity, fact and fiction, cinema and psychotherapy.”
Maddin also released a book titled My Winnipeg (Coach House Books, 2009). Maddin’s book contains the film’s narration as a main text surrounded by annotations, including outtakes, marginal notes and digressions, production stills, family photos, and miscellaneous material. The book contains a “Winnipeg Map” by artist Marcel Dzama featuring such fictional attractions as “The Giant Squid of the Red [River],” various poster designs for the film, and short articles about working with Maddin by Andy Smetanka, Darcy Fehr, and Caelum Vatnsdal. Maddin also includes an angry e-mail from an ex-girlfriend, collages and notebooks pages, and an X-ray of the dog Spanky from the film. The book also includes an interview with Maddin’s mother Herdis, conducted by Ann Savage, and an interview with Maddin conducted by Michael Ondaatje. Maddin’s publisher offers the book with or without a DVD of the film, distributed by Seville Pictures.
Priest is a 2011 American post-apocalyptic dystopian science fiction action horror film starring Paul Bettany as the title character. The film, directed by Scott Stewart, is loosely based on the Korean comic (Manhwa) of the same name by Hyung Min-woo. In an alternate world, humanity and vampires have warred for centuries. After the last Vampire War, a veteran Warrior Priest (Bettany) lives in obscurity with other humans inside one of the Church’s walled cities. When the Priest’s niece (Lily Collins) is kidnapped by vampires, the Priest breaks his vows to hunt them down. He is accompanied by the niece’s boyfriend Hicks (Cam Gigandet), who is a wasteland sheriff, and a former Warrior Priestess (Maggie Q). (wiki)
spacetime coordinates: 2046 – 1960s Hong Kong – Singapore
Paragraph 201 in the Passengers’ Guide warns that Area 1224- 1225 is especially cold. The train heating won’t be strong enough. Passengers are advised to hug each other to keep warm.
2046 is a 2004 Hong Kong romantic drama film written and directed by Wong Kar-wai. It is a loose sequel to Wong’s films Days of Being Wild (1990) and In the Mood for Love (2000). It follows the aftermath of Chow Mo-wan’s unconsummated affair with Su Li-zhen in 1960s Hong Kong but also includes some science fiction elements and makes frequent references to the date of December 24 or Christmas Eve, on which many significant events in the film occur.
The main character (Tony Leung) writes science fiction stories, in which 2046 is a popular year and place to which people travel through time. The stories are titled 2046 and later 2047 (a collaboration with Faye Wong’s character). The year 2046 has its own significance for Hong Kong. It is 49 years after the handover of Hong Kong by the British on 1 July 1997. At the time of handover, the Mainland government promised fifty years of self-regulation for the former British colony. The year 2046 references the moment before Hong Kong’s special, self-regulated status ends.
The title may also be a reference to the Twilight Zone episode “The Lonely“, about a man sentenced to solitary confinement on a distant asteroid beginning in the year 2046. The isolated inmate falls in love with a gynoid that was delivered to keep him company. This plot structure parallels some of the science fiction motifs in Wong’s 2046. (wiki)
spacetime coordinates: 1863 Russian Alaska // 1866 Manchester – London
Steamboy (Japanese: スチームボーイ Hepburn: Suchīmubōi) is a 2004 Japanese animated steampunk action film produced by Sunrise, directed and co-written by Katsuhiro Otomo, his second major anime release, following Akira. The film was released in Japan on July 17, 2004. Steamboy is one of the most expensive Japanese animated movies made to date. Additionally, the film was in production for ten years and utilized more than 180,000 drawings and 440 CG cuts.
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