I’ve got to admit, Jonah Hex doesn’t look half bad — even if Megan Fox is in it. Agree?
Monthly Archive for April, 2010
Step 1: Don’t be a Loser, Part I. After watching this stylized comic-book action flick and admitting you thoroughly enjoyed yourself, you won’t feel like a Loser at all.
Step 2: Don’t be a Loser, Part II. Based on a comic-book, The Losers revolves around an elite U.S. Special Forces unit – with nicknames like Clay (Jeffery Dean Morgan), Jensen (Chris Evans), Roque (Idris Elba), Pooch (Columbus Short) and Cougar (Óscar Jaenada) – who all have special skills and are, of course, far from being losers. When a mission in Bolivia goes wrong, they find themselves on the short end of the stick and are presumed dead. Which is a good thing, cause when they decide to go after the ruthless dude (Jason Patric), who orchestrated the lethal betrayal against them, they are going need all the cover they can get – which includes the help of a sexy and beautiful operative named Aisha (Zoe Saldana), who may or may not be a femme fatale. So, the guys remain deep undercover while tracking the heavily-guarded dude, hell bent on embroiling the world in a new high-tech global war.
Step 3: Don’t act like a Loser. The boys are great together. They’ve got that camaraderie one needs to make a movie like this work. Morgan (Watchmen) is scruffy and sexy, the real leader; Elba (Obsessed) plays the disgruntled grumbler; Short (This Christmas) is the badass driver/mechanic, who’s also the only family man; Spanish actor Jaenada is the strong, silent and deadly-with-the-sniper-rifle type; and there’s Evans (Fantastic Four), the snarky comic relief egghead who nearly steals the show. It’s going to be good fun seeing him play Captain America. As for the female of the group, Saldana is really making a name for herself as a kick-ass heroine with Star Trek, Avatar and now this. She makes it believable. Patric goes a tad over the top with his bad guy, but it’s nice to see him onscreen again.
Step 4: Don’t direct like a Loser. Stomp the Yard‘s Sylvain White tries his hand at full-blown action, and while he falls into some of the same footsteps of other gritty and campy actioners (Joe Carnahan’s Smokin’ Aces comes to mind), he makes The Losers his own. There’s the right combo of slow-mo kill shots, fast cuts and up close, shaky documentary style camera angles — the key to all action movies these days.
Level of difficulty in watching The Losers: Totally easy. Let’s hope The A-Team is just as good because it looks like it’s basically the same movie.
Here’s a new and improved trailer for “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse” — a vampire battle is imminent:
by Robert Sims, Special to TheMovieKit.com
Who said heroes aren’t made? In Kick-Ass, the eponymous costumed crusader isn’t an invincible super-powered being but a physically meek and emotionally vulnerable teenage wallflower trying to make sense of his life and the world he lives in. He’s especially prone to getting his ass kicked by the very crooks he seeks to put behind bars. But he soldiers on in an effort learn more than
His partners in keeping the streets include the vigilante Big Daddy and his daughter Hit-Girl, an 11-year-old lethal weapon with a dirty mouth. Together they fight to take down a mobster, whose son pretends to be the superhero Red Mist in an effort to stop those intent on harming his father.
Behind the masks of Kick-Ass, Red Mist and Hit-Girl are, respectively, British newcomer Aaron Johnson, Superbad’s Christopher Mintz-Plasse, and 13-year-old Chloë Grace Moretz of (500) Days of Summer. This dynamic trio attended SXSW— along with director Matthew Vaughn and Kick-Ass comic-book co-creator Mark Millar — in advance of the superhero satire’s April 16 opening to discuss being onscreen crime-busters, their costumes, and the training required to vanquish a small army.
Step 1: Find the Right Kick-Ass
Matthew Vaughn: “I’m an English director, [Millar’s] a Scottish writer. I was worried we would do a Mary Poppins and have a Dick van Dyke version of an American kid. I just felt I needed an American to help me make sure — I’m not a teenager, either — so I wanted a teenage American boy. But we couldn’t find one. It’s sound crazy. Five hundreds kid I auditioned. I think a lot of the kids wanted to be famous and not interested in having any acting technique.”
Step 2: Accept Your Mission
Aaron Johnson: “When you’re growing up, you always want to be Batman, Spider-Man. This was a fantastic opportunity, to be put a twist on [it].”
Step 3: Find the Right Red Mist
Step 4: Understand that the Costume Makes the Superhero
Christopher Mintz-Plasse: “That was the most badass I’ve ever felt [putting on the Red Mist costume for the first time].”
Vaughn: “Come on, that’s not true. You complained you looked liked Michael Jackson in Thriller.”
Mintz-Plasse: “When we first made the costume it was red on the sleeves and black here [pointing to his chest]. Then you came in and said, ‘It looks like Michael Jackson.’ We completely juggled it and reversed the colors around and it turned out to be really good.”
Johnson: “And you padded him up with muscles and that sort of thing.”
Vaughn: “My 7 year old fits into his costume.”
Mintz-Plasse: “The very first costume, I looked like the Michelin Man because there was fake muscle padding all over. I looked kinda bulky walking around this [arms bent at his hips] feeling very uncomfortable. I’m glad we got rid of that.”
Step 5: Train, Train, Train
Chloë Grace Moretz: “Two months before the movie started…I started training for Hit-Girl. I knew I was going to be really physical, but I never knew it was going to be this physical until I went to this place and did basic training, how to take apart your gun, how to put it back together, don’t point it where you’re not going to shoot it, keep your finger on the trigger …”
Johnson: “Basically she became a marine.”
Moretz: “I did more training that was more technical with the bow staff and the saw.”
Aaron Johnson: “She’s a terrorist now.”
Moretz: “They made me do a thousand crunches a night.”
Vaughn: “In my defense there are no such thing as an 11-year-old stunt girl. We had no choice.”
Moretz: “This man, he pushed me to the limit.”
Vaughn: “But it was worth it.”
Moretz: “But in a good way. I loved it. What would I do without Hit-Girl?”
Step 6: Don’t Faint at the Sight of Nicolas Cage, as Big Daddy, Shooting His Preteen Onscreen Daughter
Millar: “That was the first day of shooting, and I remember they had a stunt child do that fall, and I remember thinking, ‘What kind of parent allows their kid to be a stunt child?’”
Step 7: Go [Adam] West
Vaughn: “When we did the first costume fitting, Nic starts running lines. I was pretty impressed as the costume fitting was six weeks before we shot and he knew all his lines already and he started it he was telling me he with the Adam West style, before we get sued. Performance started and I just encouraged it. I thought it was very funny and I wasn’t sure whether he was going to do it on the day of filming but we went with it. The only thing about Dark Knight that drove me nuts was the stupid voice when Christian Bale spoke, so it was a little bit like we’ll have a silly voice as well but we’ll do it in a way that’s actually meant to be silly.”
Moretz: “My dad’s a big comic guy and he had to tell me who [Adam West] was.”
by Robert Sims, Special Contributor to TheMovieKit
Step 1: Don’t go in expecting the next Spider-Man. Kick-Ass may not deconstruct the superhero mythos in the same solemn manner as last year’s Watchmen, but by simultaneously spoofing and paying tribute to the crime-busting activities of costumed crusaders, it offers a fresh take on a well-worn genre.
Step 2: Forget about reading every issue of the Mark Millar-penned, John Romita Jr.-illustrated Marvel comic book. You don’t need to go into Kick-Ass knowing every little detail about this non-superpowered superhero’s mythology, especially as the third act deviates from events depicted in later issues of series. Your lack of familiarity with Kick-Ass will make the experience of watching director Matthew Vaughn’s playful origin story all the more enjoyable. The high school student behind the mask is Dave Lizewski (Aaron Johnson), the geek every bully loves to pick on and every girl thinks is gay. How Dave adopts his alter ego is relatively simple: he just decides to become a superhero out of “optimism and naivety.” He has no powers, which is evident the first time tries to stop a crime in progress. He’s busted up so badly that his nerve endings are messed up, so he can barely feel pain. A good thing, too, as the beatings continue. Still, Kick-Ass willingly unites with compatriots Big Daddy (Nicolas Cage) and Hit Girl (Chloë Moretz—yes, (500) Days of Summer’s little sister!) to take down New York City crime kingpin Frank D’Amico (Sherlock Holmes’ villain du jour Mark Strong).
Step 3: Avoid Kick-Ass if you faint at the sight of blood. The film isn’t for your 6-year-old who’s just discovered Iron Man. Working from a script co-written with Kick-Ass’s creators, Vaughn can’t help but stay true to the comic book’s generous helping of graphic violence. And there’s no interest in playing by the usual PG-13 comic-book film rules,either. For example, Kick-Ass’s idea of father-daughter bonding involves Cage firing couple rounds at a bulletproof-vested Moretz so she knows how it feels to be shot. How sweet. Cage, as you may already suspect, storms through Kick-Ass like a psychotic version of the smiling and devoted 1950s TV dad. He also does a hilarious job of channeling Adam West when in costume (his resembles Batman’s, Hit Girl’s resembles Batgirl’s). Cage, though, doesn’t perpetrate much of the violence in Kick-Ass. That task is given to Moretz. It’s impossible not to be both impressed and disturbed that this angel-faced cutie could cause as much harm and damage as Arnie, Bruce or Sly combined. This is in stark contrast to Johnson, who is more human punch bag than one-man army. You get to the point where you wince when Johnson takes a beating. Superbad’s Christopher Mintz-Plasse is all mouth and little action by design, but that’s OK. His Red Mist—a rail-thin superhero sidekick created for nefarious reasons—is mostly there for comic relief.
Step 4: No need to stress out pondering this question Dave asks himself: “How come no one’s never wanted to be a superhero?” D’oh. We can’t leap tall buildings in a single bound. We feel pain. We die. The self-aware Kick-Ass doesn’t treat its superheroes as superbeings—one protagonist dies a horrible death—but Vaughn et al. do dissect the question Dave poses to the point of redundancy. Also, there are times when you feel Kick-Ass thinks it’s a little more clever and radical than it is. But you forgive Kick-Ass for its arrogant streak because of its switchblade-sharp wit and unwillingness to compromise.
Level of difficulty in watching Kick-Ass: Like your superheroes to save the day PG-13 style? Stick to Spider-Man and Fantastic Four. Kick-Ass lives up to its name, even if its superhero rarely does.
By Robert Sims, Special to TheMovieKit.com
The world hasn’t known a superhero like Kick-Ass.He can’t fly. He can’t climb walls. He can’t turn invisible.
What can he do? Throw a punch. Just about.
High school geek Dave Lizewski (Aaron Johnson) may not possess any superpowers, but that doesn’t stop him from fighting crime. Night after night, though, his costumed alter ego and YouTube star Kick Ass is more likely to end up bruised and bloodied than the crooks and thugs he hunts. So he teams up with two other masked crusaders — Big Daddy (Nicolas Cage) and his sweet but deadly 11-year-old daughter Hit-Girl (Chloë Grace Moretz) — to bring down mobster Frank D’Amico (Mark Strong). Throw in D’Amico’s son Chris (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), who takes on the persona of Red Mist to deceive and defeat his father’s enemies, and Kick-Ass lives up to its name time and time again.
Both a celebration and spoof of the superhero genre, Kick-Ass is the creator of two comic-book icons, Wanted writer Mark Millar and illustrator John Romita Jr. They had barely started work on the Marvel-published series when Layer Cake and Stardust director Matthew Vaughn decided to give Kick-Ass the Spider-Man treatment.
In advance of Kick-Ass’s April 16 opening, the British director, the Scottish writer and the American illustrator premiered their cheerfully violent and decidedly unconventional superhero saga at SXSW. The day after the premiere, the three gathered—along with most of the cast — to discuss the origin of Kick-Ass, the differences between the comic book and the film, and the reaction to Moretz playing a foul-mouthed one-preteen army.
Step 1: Unleash Your Inner Superhero
Mark Millar: “It was very autobiographical. Like when I was 15 my best friend and I were reading Frank Miller comics like Batman: Year One… We were so into it we should have been studying for our O Levels, our exams, at the time. We said, ‘Let’s start going to the gym, let’s start learning karate, and let’s start being superheroes.’ It was that pathetic. We were five years too old to be doing this. And we really got into it. The story is really about what would have happened if we hadn’t come to our senses, that we had actually gone out and done this. It’s funny, because the character I created is called Mr. Danger, and I thought it was a cool look and design. My friend’s idea was Batman. It was Batman’s exact costume. I said, ‘You haven’t put a lot of thought into this at all. If D.C. gets wind of this you’re fucked.’ He was like, ‘They’ll never know. They don’t know who’s under the mask.’ And it was a good point.”
Step 2: Find the Right Sidekick
Millar: “About three years ago Matthew was going to be doing Thor, and it didn’t quite work out. He was just looking for a new project, and we have a mutual friend who thought, ‘You guys would get on well.’ We have a phone call that about lasted four hours. Normally, a first phone with someone, it’s a couple of minutes. But we talked all afternoon about these all geek things we were into, and we both thought it would be quite nice to work on something together. Matthew asked, ‘What have you got?’ He was looking at a few items, a few potential projects, and I had a thing called American Jesus which was a sequel to the Bible…. Matthew and I talked about that briefly, and I mentioned informally that I had started writing a thing called Kick-Ass, and I had only written two issues and I was working on the third. He said, ‘Can you send it down?’ He read it, he liked it, and he said, ‘Can you finish the third? I’d like to see it.’ I sent it down. He said, ‘Where’s the fourth?’ I said, “Can you give me a week?’ So I wrote it and sent it down, and he said, “Where’s the fifth one?’ I said, “I can’t do this.’ He said, “Do you mind if I move on from here?’ It’s weird, it was so informal, there were no agents [involved]…. It was just two mates sitting informally, saying, “Let’s do something together.’ So Matthew went off and did a draft of the screenplay, I had various notes, I had written a bit of issue six, and Matthew brought all this new stuff. It was really cool. The best bits, I nicked [stole] and then put back in the book, which was great. Before we knew it, a screenplay emerged. And Jane Goldman came in and did another draft—magnificent—we thought this is the Pulp Fiction of superhero movies. We thought was awesome, but everyone else thought it was shit. They hated it. Every studio knocked it back.”
Matthew Vaughn: “I wanted to make a post-modern superhero movie. After looking at Thor and X-Men 3, and all the other scripts I read, they all just felt, you could change the superhero characters and the film would be virtually identical. It was just a different baddie and a different goodie. I just wanted to try to create the feeling I had when I first saw the comic-book movie. I was like, ‘Wow!’ When I read the Kick-Ass one—I can’t even remember our phone call to be honest…”
Millar: “You may have hung up three hours earlier.”
Vaughn: “I might have, as you can tell by his long answers. But it just felt like the right time to do. I was getting bored of the Hollywood bullshit. I thought it was time to do something independent and different.”
Step 3: Don’t Be Watchman-Faithful to Your Source Material
Millar: “We had something hammered out but as I was writing the comic after Matthew had finished the screenplay I realized the episodic nature of comics means that I had an eight-act story really and there had to be reveals and twists that would have messed up the structure of the movie. So things like Big Daddy’s big reveal would have been awful in the movie if it had gone that way, so they kept the original back-story for Big Daddy… It’s only one page of the comic book but it turns everything on its head and would have just ruined the movie. Likewise, the jetpack scene wouldn’t have worked in the comic. In the movie, things were building up so much at that point you need some ‘Luke Skywalker blowing up the Death Star’ moment. It was only two or three real diversions it took but it was necessary. Whenever someone slavishly adapts a graphic novel it can be quite tedious. First and foremost, I think the guys were just trying to make a good movie.”
John Romita Jr.: “It’s a kinetic thing. With the comics, it’s stop action. So you can have them come up an elevator and still do it fine visually but you can’t that type of stop action with film. You have to have that kinetic movement. The jetpack had to be done that way.”
Step 4: Declare Your Independence
Vaughn: “All the studios said no. It was a totally independent film. We couldn’t get any of shall we say the more safe places of raising finances for movies. The studios that were intrigued by it said that, ‘We’ll do it if you get rid of Hit-Girl and it make it as a PG.’ I was like, ‘No.’ Luckily enough, I’m sorta connected to — I made a lot of independent films before I made studio movies so I raised the money. It was pretty easy. I was lucky.”
Romita Jr.: It’s got to be so satisfying, knowing that after it’s all said and done, they came crawling back to you. I think that’s fantastic. That’s a testament to Matthew.”
Vaughn: “They didn’t crawl, but …”
Step 5: Stare Down the Moral Majority
Vaughn: “As long as they’re not reporting that someone’s gone and copied what they do in the movie, I’ll be fine with them complaining and causing controversy. I personally feel — I’ve been asked this question a lot and I don’t want to answer it without sounding bored… I think it’s really important that if you’re going to criticism a movie, or say this is morally wrong, go see it and then I’ll listen to your opinion. If you haven’t seen it, I’m not really that interested. I’m not forcing someone to buy a ticket to this film.”
Step 6: It’s OK to Be Sensitive
Vaughn: “When Mark first saw the film, his first comment to me was, ‘You’ve gone and made a chick flick out of this film.’ I think he meant that. I think the difference between us is that he’s Scottish, so he’s a bit colder, I’m English and a bit warmer.”
Millar: “A lot of people think it’s quite a violent, dark cynical film, but when you look at it look at it the poster’s all primary colors and in a way it’s the most naïve and idealistic movie I’ve seen in years. It’s about a wee guy who every night could get killed. Spider-Man’s probably going to be all right. Superman’s fine. His movie sucked, but he’s fine. But Kick-Ass at any moment can take a bullet. Even one guy giving him a bad punch to his throat and he’s dead. And it’s so apparent when I was watching it last night [at SXSW] that when he was fighting those three guys outside the diner and you think there’s something so nice about it, that he’s waiting until the cops get there. It’s quite a sweet movie.”
Step 6: Appreciate Your Good Fortune
Millar: “I wrote a comic book about four years called Wanted that was an Angelina Jolie movie last year. What they did with that, the first 58 minutes was the book and then they did their own thing. For those who have seen the movie, it’s all that stuff with the Fate of Loom [Loom of Fate] or whatever. Then they went back to being the book again for the final 10 minutes. I thought that’s just what happens. The studio system, they chew your thing up and hopefully do a good job. Timur [Bekmambetov] luckily did but it could have gone so horribly wrong. First I first saw the script I went, ‘Oh, my God.’”
“To work out like that, with the first two books being turned into movies by two guys at the top of their game, it’s just incredible luck. I should have a whole bunch of shit movies before I got to one good one surely. So I’m really pleased. I’ve been kinda spoiled now… Because there’s good buzz on both movies, other books that I’ve done people are circling and talking to me about them. You just have to be careful. Once you have had two good guys work with you, you want to make sure the next guy’s good, too. You don’t want to just take the check. I don’t know where I’ll go from here. I’m not sure who else will meet this standard.”
I’m kinda liking the fact Mark Wahlberg is trying his hand at comedy. Of course, he’s mostly a straight guy — like he was in Date Night — but that works. Now he’s in the buddy cop comedy The Other Guys, with Will Ferrell, playing one half of a detective team who basically sits behind a desk, while the tough cops get all the big car chases. Watch this trailer, it’s hysterical:
Step 1. Definitely go on this Date. Pairing up Tina Fey and Steve Carell is pure genius, especially as a bored married couple looking to ignite that spark once again but getting too much fire than they bargained for.
Step 2. Don’t over complicate things. A good comedy usually starts with a basic premise – and Date Night is no exception. Fey and Carell play Claire and Phil Foster, a suburban New Jersey couple with kids, who have hit a stagnant, but not altogether uncomfortable point, in their marriage. Neither of them really see it as a major problem – until they see their friends break up for similar reasons. So, Phil decides he’s going to take Claire to the Big Apple for their weekly “date night,” to spice things up, and that’s where it all goes awry. First, they try to get into a trendy restaurant without a reservation, which ain’t happening. But rather than just go home, Phil is bound and determined to show Claire a good time and so claims the rezzie for the “Tripplehorns” when the couple is a no-show. “Who does that?,” the Fosters are continually asked throughout the movie. Then, in a classic case of mistaken identity, the Fosters are accosted by two dirty cops, roughed-up, shot at, escape and find themselves on the run through the streets of Manhattan, trying to unravel who the Tripplehorns are and why they are in deep doo-doo. And all the while, Claire and Phil examine their marriage and eventually appreciate the normality of it.
Step 3. Cut out the over-the-top silliness. Date Night could have easily become one ginormously ridiculous situation after another, but thankfully, it keeps the antics to a minimum. Not to say there aren’t a few roll-your-eyes moments, but Fey and Carrell sell this puppy like there’s no tomorrow. It’s like knowing you’re in good hands, with people you trust, knowing they are going to successfully guide through the movie, regardless of how crazy it gets. These two funny people are the best when they are in full banter mode, riffing off each other like the comic pros they are. I wonder what took them so long to make a movie together, but then I realized Fey really hasn’t been making movies for all that long. Now, I’m pretty sure they’re going to reprise the Fosters at some point. Although Carell and Fey are the main draw, there is a standout cameo by Mark Wahlberg, as Claire’s former real-estate client, who helps the Fosters out. He gets to play all hunky and suave with his shirt off. Comedy suits him.
Step 4. Put in a GREAT car chase. Director Shawn Levy (Night at the Museum 1&2) is quickly becoming one of the better and more serviceable comedic directors out there. He helms Date Night with confidence, keeping the pace steady, while allowing for the softer moments between Claire and Phil. Yet, Date Night has one really spectacular car chase sequence that screenwriter Josh Klausner should be commended for writing, and Levy for pulling it off. It is not only hilarious but incredibly inventive. Best I’ve seen in years.
Level of difficulty in watching Date Night: No sweat off my brow. Just knowing it’s Steve Carell and Tina Fey doing the funny stuff is enough.
Step 1: Training dragons never looked more fun. As the first animated gem of 2010, How to Train Your Dragon should see a clear path to an Oscar nomination.
Step 2: Cross it between the classic boy and his dog story and Dragonheart. HTYD does delight in so many ways. Told from the perspective of a young Viking named Hiccup (Jay Bruchel), we see how his remote seaside village is continually bombarded by various kinds of dragons. The village leader and Hiccup’s father, Stoick (Gerard Butler), rallies his fellow Vikings to hunt and kill as many of the beasts as they can, but the scrawny Hiccup doesn’t quite cut the mustard, much to his father’s chagrin.
Step 3: Use what you know. Instead, Hiccup decides to use his ingenuity and invents a contraption that will bring down the most feared – and most rare – dragon of all, the Night Fury. When it actually works, Hiccup follows its trail and discovers that the beast is just as frightened and vulnerable as he is – and extremely intelligent. And so they form a bond. Hiccup helps the dragon he names Toothless heal, while Toothless teaches Hiccup about a dragon’s true, definitely more kindhearted and loyal nature. Needless to say, there’s no way in hell Hiccup could ever kill one now, even though he’s in training to do so. And it’s going to take all of the young Viking’s courage to convince his dad dragons really aren’t the enemy at all.
Step 4: Fit the voice to the character. The vocal talent do a fine job bringing their animated characters to life. You can just see Bruchel’s (She’s Out of Your League) neurotic mannerisms in Hiccup, and Butler’s bravado in Stoick. Also good are America Ferrara as the tough Viking-in-training Astrid and Hiccup’s object of desire; Superbad buddies Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Jonah Hill as fellow Viking trainees; and Craig Ferguson as the gruff trainer Gobber.
Step 5: Use what you know, part II. Dreamworks Animation knows a thing or two about story without having to talk down to the kids or put in too many pop-culture references that can be annoying. But HTYD might be their best effort yet, since it combines the elements of a touching story with some heart-stopping visuals. Sure, every other movie made these days is in 3D, and while for some, nothing really is gained by the technology (Clash of the Titans, for example), others benefit greatly. HTYD fits in that latter category. The 3D animation absolutely dazzles – and gives the film a thrilling edge. The aerial sequences are as good – or better – than any live action shots, while the final climactic battle makes you grab the arms of your theater seat.
Level of difficulty in watching How to Train Your Dragon: Easy as soaring on the back of a dragon. HTYD is simply an entertaining adventure from start to finish.
By Robert Sims, Special to TheMovieKit.com
Step 1: Buy yourself a spacesuit. This “you are there” 3D IMAX spectacular rockets you to the outer edges of the universe. Narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio, Hubble 3D will leave you gasping at stunning footage shot thousands of miles about the Earth by various space shuttle crews and crystal-clear images captured 10-15 billion light years away by the orbiting space telescope.
Step 2: Avail yourself to the difficulties of working in space. Director Toni Myers chronicles the Herculean efforts of the seven-member crew of the space shuttle Atlantis in 2009 to repair the Hubble Space Telescope. We’re first introduced to the crew as they dive into four-story swimming pool practice the installation of a powerful new camera on a full-scale replica of Hubble. But whatever problems they endure underwater are nothing compared to those they encounter in a working environment 325 miles above the Earth with zero gravity and subzero temperature. As strange as this may sound, there is great tension to be found in even the simplest of tasks, from trying to unscrew a stuck bolt to removing a handle. It’s impossible not to come away with a respect and admiration for the crew as they spend nine days floating above Earth fixing a telescope that continues to unlock the secrets of the universe.
Step 3: Appreciate your place in the universe. You feel so small as Hubble 3D takes you through the countless of galaxies in our universe. And it makes you wonder what, if any, life is out there. Watching this in 3D clearly enhances the experience of getting up close and personal to dying stars and new galaxies. You feel like you are floating past these beautiful celestial wonders.
Step 4: Accept that you will leave Hubble 3D wanting more. No matter how intimate this guided tour is, you never feel you have seen as much as you could of the Carina Nebula or the end of the observable universe. Still, after sitting through Hubble 3D, you won’t look up at the stars again in the same way you did before.
Level of difficulty in watching Hubble 3D: Hate wearing 3D glasses? Don’t worry about it. Running just 45 minutes, this IMAX masterpiece offers a unique 3D experience that cannot be replicated by the likes of James Cameron.
