Bob Greenberger

In the days when I worked at Starlog, we got low pay and little in the way of benefits. Therefore, a real perk was getting your name added to the screening list. Given the number of movies we had to see for professional reasons, this saved us lots of money. And we got invited to all the other non-genre films, too.

At least once a week, if not more, we would meet at one of a handful of regular theatres around Manhattan, line-up and see a film. It became a regular habit, as we saw freelance writers, competitors, and people in and around the business. The people became my first real network of contacts in the business world and I was thrilled to attend. Deb would come when the movie appealed to her, but when she chose not to waste her time on true dreck; I had a number of friends willing to kill a few hours.

Over time, studios cut back because running these things got expensive. And after a few years, I migrated from Starlog to DC Comics. Many studios readily switched the address and I continued to attend. At the time, I was working on a number of media-related properties (i.e. Star Trek and V) so I justified my place on the list as professional.

It was still a lot of fun.

As with all things, one list cut me then another then another. It has been five years or so since I was last on anyone’s list and I have come to accept that. Still, I missed the camaraderie and thrill of seeing something before the buzz ruined surprises or spoiled the fun.

Last night, I went to a screening for Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. Ever since the first trailer hit, I have been looking forward to the film. Then, when I read how Kerry Conran has worked on this for eight years or more, starting with a tiny Apple Iic computer, I was impressed. His love for movie serials, pulp science fiction, comics and more showed in all the material we were shown in the months leading to the premier.

And just like in the past, I saw a ton of people I knew from around the industry. It felt good. I sat fairly close to the screen, a large bag of popcorn resting in my lap, the diet coke in the holder. The lights finally dimmer, the curtain rose and stirring score filled the room.

I wanted to love it. I really did. I liked it, though, and remain an admirer for someone living out his or her dream.

But the film is ultimately a disappointment. Yes, the movie harkens back to the thrills of the old movie serials and captures and idealized look at New York in 1939. We’re treated to a globetrotting story, a mysterious vile female, an even more mysterious and deadly mastermind, giant robots, flying airbases, etc. Still, everything felt flat. And the fault came from the story and the lack of characterization.

Kerry took the everything-and-the-kitchen sink approach to the script so we had robots, skybases, underground warriors, Shangri-La, rockets, explosions, betrayals, etc. But we moved from locale to locale without stopping to enjoy any of it. When Flash Gordon went to Mongo, he visited one bizarre locale after another, but they all felt as if they fit together. Here, it felt like pieces from various puzzles on the same table. And the exposition in this film was about as thin as the old-time serials although we expected better.

In the publicity, Conran likened the relationship between Sky Captain (Jude Law) and Polly Perkins (Gwyneth Paltrow) to the Gable-Lombard or Hepburn-Tracy relationships of films from that bygone era. Unfortunately, you get a few lines that genuinely make you laugh out loud, but the rest of the time it falls flat. Worse, you don’t understand their purpose, their backstory or what they see in one another. Giovanni Ribisi and Angelina Jolie are also underserved by the script, wasted characters (although I will admit Jolie looked amazing in her Wally Wood-inspired outfit).

The other selling point was the CGI and period look. In short doses, the hand-tinted feel to the photography is terrific. 1:45 worth, though, gets to be a bit much. Similarly, the CGI is terrific and consistent but there are times things looked too orderly, too neat or sterile and it took me out of the experience.

My brother (and Deb) doesn’t want to see the film because it has no appeal. When I equated it to the old serials, Neil shot back that Raiders of the Lost Ark also came from the same inspiration but that trailer made him want to see that film. And the chief difference was a certain level of energy to the filmmaking process but more importantly, to characters we came to enjoy. We fell in love with Marion and cheered when Indiana triumphed in the end. Here, we want to like Sky Captain but are given no reason why.

Ultimately, the film disappoints because it tries to hard and is too earnest and left its heart and soul trapped in the director’s imagination.