Movie Review: The Replacement Killers (1998)

The Replacement Killers is a sound action movie, about as sound as can be, really, completely rounded, and lean. Nothing is out of place; it hits all the right buttons, at all the right times, and clocks out sometime under an hour and a half, the ideal length for an action movie, I believe. Even the generically obligatory romantic subplot is all but eliminated by pacing. Now, I generally prefer martial arts films to these assassins-with-a-heart-of-gold-for-hire parables, but I can always appreciate a slick machine like this one, even if it swaps out the kung-fu ballet for bullets. Chow Yun-Fat is an inscrutable, mute hitman, who balks on assignment when he realizes the cop he's been sent to kill has a loving family, much like his own. His failure to complete this assignment means his employer now has to hire replacements to take out the cop and him, so Yun-Fat locates a document forger, played by Mira Sorvino, to help him get a passport and get out of the country. Of course, she becomes a target as well, just as soon as Yun-Fat walks through her door. Thankfully, though, she is more than capable of protecting herself, and she doesn't need to be babysat as the two of them dodge bullets around town, gradually learning to trust each other. True, the shootouts do get a bit ridiculous, in terms of the number of bullets fired as well as the often acrobatic way in which those bullets are discharged, but every action is clearly laid out and more than competently filmed, and that's all I ask.

Code Redd Net Home Video Presents... CRN Podcast DX!

Remember our fancy schmancy YouTube channel? Ok, sometimes we forget about it too, but that's going to change. We just uploaded our first video in many months, this one a video supplement to the first episode of the CRN Podcast. Enjoy, and don't forget to subscribe and leave us lots of feedback so we can get better at this kind of thing.

007 Legends OHMSS

I had a feeling about this one, and today IGN confirmed that the underestimated On Her Majesty's Secret Service will be included in the upcoming 007 Legends. Of course, this time Daniel Craig will substitute for George Lazenby. No video to show, though, only these screens:

So we know we'll get to play through parts of Skyfall, Moonraker, and now OHMSS. What other classic 007 films do you think will be featured?

Highlights from E3: Assassin's Creed III

After being in the Holy Land during the Crusades and Renaissance Italy, Assassin's Creed III takes things to the American colonies in the late 1770s. I'm excited to see how this piece of historical fiction coincides with actual events, as I am more familiar with this era than the previous two. Also, one of the things I especially like is the fact that the title character is Native American. With the mystique and combat possibilities that Native American folklore could offer in a video game I am baffled as to why I haven't seen more major games featuring them.

Another thing that I would like to see is naval combat with this era's technology. Good thing this game has that as well:

Full disclosure here: I have actually only played the first Assassin's Creed and it was immensely enjoyable (except for the sitting through cut scenes). Fortunately, it also offers offline players with the curse of completionism that ability to do just that. Unfortunately, the tougher achievements have to do with finding hidden objects that are randomly planted in large environments, which is not always my idea of fun. What was fun, however, was the fact that it combined stealth, parkour, and interesting environments with a great presentation. So, I know I like the first game.

I feel as though my limited exposure leaves me unable to make comments about the series as a whole. However, this one looks good. It is scheduled to be available October 30, 2012.

Movie Review: Prometheus (2012)

I don't like the phrase "spiritual prequel," one of the more flippantly used terms to describe Prometheus. Evidently, Prometheus is a "spiritual prequel" to the Alien films, according to fans, and, least important of all, director Ridley Scott himself. But what does the spirit of the thing matter? So much of Prometheus directly evokes Alien (not necessarily in plot, for that would be too literal, but in cinematic style and context) that any critical notion of "spirit" is worthless. Prometheus is a prequel, no two ways about it, and it's a fine film in its own right.

When scientists discover ancient cave drawings depicting extra-terrestrial visitors imploring them to to trek across the galaxy for a visit, a corporation sponsors the trip and off they go. Several of the scientists believe that these mysterious beings know, or are directly responsible for, the origins of humanity. The rest of the ship's crew, made up of pilots, geologists, robots, mercenaries, and other contracted employees, remain more sceptical. The plot unfolds in a slow-burning, but never outrightly boring, fashion. There's plenty of darkness to explore on the remote planet, as well as on the ship, and the sense of breathless terror in the last half of the film is so much more rewarding for having been built up and delayed. Of course, all this reminds one of Alien, from the characters to the camera movements, from its narrative structure to the themes explored, and even the opening credits, and that's a very good film to be reminded of. Prometheus is just as tensely plotted, and just as beautifully shot, as Alien.

Our Third Podcast, Still On iTunes!

This week we bring you the third episode of the CRN Podcast, embedded below for you convience, and subtitled "Rumble in Vancouver," for our own amusement.

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PS2 Review: Red Faction II (2002)

At least TimeSplitters 2 (also released in 2002) had variety; Red Faction II is all action, all explosions, all the time, and generally to its detriment. Admittedly, this all-thrills approach is fun for a while, but after a few hours things start to get tedious. In a genre as staid as the first-person shooter, where all you do is shoot things with slightly different arsenals, even a modicum of variety is incalculably valuable. Red Faction II ignores basic, even fleeting, stealth combat in favor of complete demolition. Not surprisingly, you play as an explosive expert named Alias, teamed up with a band of genetically-enhanced super soldiers, on loan to the rebellious Red Faction. Though the single-player campaign is remarkably short, I enjoyed the way in which your surroundings can be manipulated. More often than not, you need to use your expertise in explosives to progress in the missions, the most obvious example being the dynamiting of barricades or walls. Too often what you need to do next feels rather forced, but seeing these obstacles crumble so realistically is enjoyable. And it's always a treat to hear the voice-talents of Jason Statham. I also enjoy the multiple endings available to you, all based on your heroics throughout the game, such as completing optional objectives and sparing the lives of innocent civilians. However, these endings are not diverse enough to justify slogging through the game again. Thankfully, though, multiplayer fares much better. You and your pals can skirmish with up to 6 bots on over 30 (admittedly small) maps. These bots can be customized and saved onto a memory card; they can be named, given specific attributes such as agility and accuracy, and fitted with a substantial selection of character skins. The game will even track their stats as they develop as players. Certainly, this is a very unique feature, especially for those of us who enjoy bot deathmatches. If you can find it cheap enough, I'd recommended it for the bot customization alone. Just don't expect to come back to it as much as you would for TimeSplitters 2.

Highlights Not From E3: Rainbow 6: Patriots

Rainbow 6: Patriots was not actually present at E3 this year. According to this article, it was because Ubisoft wanted to create focus around their other developments. But the video below, which curiously displays "not actual gameplay footage" in the bottom right corner, is what is currently available as far as gameplay previews go:



 Also out at the moment is this trailer:


I hope you found the first video as disturbing as I did, lest we all become irrevocably desensitized to violence. But anyway, one of the features I find worth commenting on is the apparent ability to see through cars. This felt a bit out of place for Hitman: Absolution; it should have no place in a franchise built upon simulating hostage rescue combat. I haven't particularly liked it when Rainbow Six has taken more arcade-like turns in the past. The Clancy name to me should represent attempts at authentic realism, as Tom himself goes into painstaking detail regarding the technical specifications of aircraft, tanks, submarines, firearms, etc. in his books.


And how about the small bit of plot revealed?


Striking a cord with recent US political and economic turmoil, the legendary counter-terror squad Rainbow 6 returns to fight a new homegrown enemy: the fundamentalist "True Patriots," an organization whose diabolical pursuit for vigilante justice is anything but patriotic.

Shown in both of these videos are armed men strapping C4 to bankers who have apparently accepted government bailouts. I find it interesting that in this, as well as the other new Tom Clancy title, Splinter Cell: Blacklist, the antagonists have understandable grievances with U.S. government policy, but choose to address them through violent means. Perhaps even more interesting is the American player's ability to empathize in this case, as while they may not have experienced a foreign army creating bases within their borders, they have experienced being under a government that will distribute taxpayer money to failing banks. I think this presents an interesting ethical dilemma. No doubt that in your gaming career you have vanquished thousands of terrorists, yet it seldom seems like the reasons they decided to become terrorists is adequately addressed. You have simply had an enemy placed before you who was labeled as a terrorist and were ordered to kill him. I like the idea that this game is taking terrorist motivations seriously (though it would have been more interesting if they had created bad guys with whom it was easier to sympathize; ones that only attacked those individuals with whom they have particular grievances instead of mass murdering civilians. I would love to see something that has the player really question the orders he or she receives). Beyond that, they haven't given us much gameplay to see, but possibly some ethical quandaries one might face when we see this come out next spring.

Movie Review: Ong-Bak (2003)

I don't know if there's ever been a martial arts film that circumvents its own narrative with the same energy as Ong-Bak. Sure, there's a story here, about the theft of a sacred statue and a young man's quest to return the totem to his village, but whatever the reason we are given for Tony Jaa's acrobatics, those reasons are quickly erased by the presentation of his considerable choreographed skills. You don't need to know why Jaa is fighting so-and-so; all you need to know is how he's fighting so-and-so. He communicates the importance of the contest, indeed tells the entire story of the contest, with his body alone. In that sense, the cinematography during the fight scenes, cinematography which stays a fair distance away from Jaa and rarely moves in for a close-up, provides him with the appropriate means to put his dance on display. Context is everything; because the camera generally keeps his entire body in frame, you don't miss the sum of his movements. Jaa thrives on the realism of his presentation, much like any professional athlete worthy of awe, and any overtly artificial technique, such as rapid editing or close-ups, would simply hack him to pieces, and we would not see the chemistry between him, his opponent, his surroundings, and his own body. It's significant that Ong-Bak makes liberal use of replays to show us the same stunts from different angles, and in slow-mo. Such replays break up the narrative, stalling the story so we can have another look at Jaa's latest feat of daring-do. The story practically evaporates in these moments. Ong-Bak is like an early Jackie Chan film, where his rare physical talents are showcased, rather than his reputation; and even though Jaa is not yet on the same level as Chan in communicating the psychology of his fights, they may be equals in raw athletic prowess.

Highlights from E3: Hitman: Absolution

It's been a long time since a Hitman game has been released. I like what I see. Here is an entire level play-through which shows many of the new features and abilities of Agent 47:



One of the things I found very interesting about this second video is how it seems more like Splinter Cell than the new Blacklist does, particularly at 6:55. 47 has increased his acrobatic skills, apparently. Also, it looks like there is the ability to anticipate the paths of patrolling guards (as well as a sonar-like ability to spot them through walls). But what I really like about it is that it makes some elements of the series more realistic, such as disguises not simply being immunity from scrutiny (not that they ever were, but it is cool how even with the disguise, 47 will still attempt to hide his face). He still has the uncanny ability to change his clothes unhumanly quickly.

One of the things missing from the earlier Hitman games, until Blood Money came around, was that 47 lacked hand-to-hand combat options, something that seems necessary for any elite assassin to have (though my demo of Hitman 2 did give the player the ability to punch, but I'm not sure why it didn't make it into the final version, at least not without a cheat code). Absolution seems to contain plenty of it, as well as the ability to use objects in the environment as tools and weapons.

Overall, I think it's very promising, though I hope the "silent assassin" concept continues to thrive, as neither of these videos has guaranteed it. Maybe my anxiety comes from Splinter Cell's seeming abandonment of the concept of stealth, but I can rationally hope that Hitman doesn't go down the same path. I also hope that it continues to reward discretion in who is killed, as I believe the earlier games would not award a "Silent Assassin" rating if civilian casualties occurred (you can read about my angst with Splinter Cell: Conviction for not giving the option for non-lethal takedowns). But Hitman looks as good as ever. I hope you are as excited as I am! Expect to see it November 20th later this year.

Highlights from E3: Splinter Cell: Blacklist

So there's the trailer, here is a gameplay demonstration:


As you can see, it's very similar to Conviction, and continues to take the series into a more action, less stealth-oriented direction. Needless to say, this leaves a lot of fans displeased. But perhaps even more displeasing is the replacement of Michael Ironside as the voice of Sam Fisher. You can see a video of the new actor (as well as Ironside) here. What I'm wondering is what purpose Ironside is serving, since he appears to be working with Ubisoft in the link's video. A highly-rated YouTube comment from Lightning Spartan caught the sentiment of much of the fanbase:

What ever happened to, "They'd always wanted someone a little older, more professional, more experience, you know. Not some young goof ball that you see in your typical shooter". What they do to you Sam ? 

Also of concern (to me at least) is the premise of the story:

The United States has a military presence in two thirds of countries around the world. A group of 12 have had enough and initiate a terror ultimatum called the Blacklist - a deadly countdown of escalating terrorist attacks on U.S. interests. Sam Fisher is the leader of the newly formed 4th Echelon unit: a clandestine unit that answers solely to the President of the United States. Sam and his team must hunt down these terrorists by any means necessary, and stop the Blacklist countdown before it reaches zero. 

What I really liked about Conviction was how Sam was the rogue agent taking down Third Echelon and its new leadership, which essentially was partnered with the military-industrial complex and wanted to get the U.S. government involved in more foreign conflicts so that the artillery manufacturers, plane makers, ship builders, etc. would stand to profit from increased military spending. It was Sam against the Man. Inevitably, the U.S.'s overseas military involvement leaves many less than copacetic, as the story in Blacklist acknowledges. Now, Sam seems to be joining the Man and protecting the interests of the military-industrial complex. Again, a huge letdown.

Hopefully these problems can be addressed before the Spring 2013 release date (remember the redesign and long delay Conviction had because of it?). It actually looks like a fun game to play, just not Splinter Cell. I won't be so quick to say the series is dead, but many of the games' fans seem to think so.

Our Second Podcast, Now On iTunes!

Less than a week later, and we have a brand new episode of the CRN Podcast for you. This time we chart the development of James Bond video games, from N64's GoldenEye to the upcoming 007 Legends. Not only that, we can confirm that the CRN Podcast is now on the iTunes store. Just search for Code Redd Net or CRN Podcast and you should be able to listen, and hopefully subscribe, via iTunes.

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