SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW

US, 2004, 106 minutes, Colour.
Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law, Giovanni Ribisi, Michael Gambon, Lin Bai, Omid Dgalili, Angelina Jolie, Laurence Olivier.
Directed by Kerry Conran.

A top cast led by Jude Law, Gwynneth Paltrow and Angelina Jolie (plus a credit to long dead, Sir Laurence Olivier, for his image and his voice!). The other stars are the computergraphic experts who have created a strange comic-book world of a yesterday that never was (and have called it the world of tomorrow).

This is one of those old-fashioned Boys Own Adventures (Updated to include equal Girls Own Adventures) which are larger than life, have intrepid characters who indulge in derring-do to put the world to rights.

Jude Law is the Sky Captain who, for those who remember, could be a brother to Biggles of yore. Gwynneth Paltrow is the kind of His Girl Friday reporter who won’t let go of a big story, especially when it looks like leading to the end of the world. Angelina Jolie is the stiff upper lip commander.

When robotic creatures appear in the skies at the end of the 1930s, we are transported into the world of the serials of those days, of Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers, and the kinds of mysterious mad scientists who operate from remote parts of the globe to further their experiments and to take over the world.

It is all visually striking and modernistic, but plot and character-wise, very oldfashioned.

1. The homage to the old serials and the adventure movies? A 21st century technological homage to these films?

2. The importance of the visual style, the use of colour, monochrome, drained colour? The computer-generated effects? The importance of design, the echoes of old science fiction, the films of H.G. Wells’ stories? New York City, memories of King Kong? The importance of the movies about flight, zeppelins, planes? The newspaper office, the laboratories? Nepal and the echoes of Lost Horizon? The scientific centres? Space and its effect?

3. The traditions of The Shape of Things to Come, King Kong, Lost Horizon, Flash Gordon and other adventures? The rousing score?

4. The familiarity of the plot, robot attacks on Earth? The developments of science? Conspiracy theories? Megalomaniac scientists? The 1930s, German scientists, technology, the development of weapons?

5. The movie villains, evil scientists? Playing God, creating an ark, the world to be destroyed? The control of the robots? Robot attacks? The robot assassin?

6. The hero, Captain Joe Sullivan, Jude Law’s screen presence? His abilities in the sky, his reliance on Dex and his scientific know-how? The past relationship with Polly, her work on the paper? Frankie as an ally and her support of the captain? The type of characters as stereotypes, the right type of character for this kind of artificial entertainment?

7. The zeppelin, the scientist and his fears, being pursued, the meeting with Polly at Radio City Music Hall, the laboratory, the phials, the set-up for the destruction of the scientists?

8. Polly, the tradition of the 1930s newspaper woman (The Front Page, His Girl Friday, Lois Lane)? Her relationship with the boss, dominating him? At Radio City, the discussion with the scientist, her being caught in the streets in the attack by the robots, her being saved, going to the laboratory, her alliance with Joe, not telling him the truth, wanting to share the adventures?

9. Dex and his abilities, the attacks, his tracking the planes, guiding Joe? His being abducted, in the space laboratory? The final rescue and his assisting Joe and Polly to destroy the robots?

10. The characters of Joe and Polly, in themselves, his rescuing her, their past? The flight, the shoot-out, going underwater, back to the headquarters, the abduction of Dex? The scientist, his explanations, the clues?

11. Going to Nepal, Dex’s map, the trek through the snow? Their helper, Kaji? The cave, the attack, their being locked in, Kaji rescuing them after the attempt to get out with the dynamite?

12. Dr Totenkopf? (Slang German for “deadhead”?) The discovery that he wanted to control the world, developing the robots and the serums? The German scientist? The discovery that he was dead, his appearances in hologram? Laurence Olivier and his appearance, voice? The plan to destroy the world, build the ark, rescue all the animals? The countdown and the split-second timing?

13. The finale, the robot assassin, the fight with Joe? Polly destroying her? The lift-off, the escape? The destruction of the laboratory?

14. Polly and the joke about her camera, taking a photo of Joe – and the finale with her keeping the cap on the lens?

15. Boys’ and Girls’ Own adventure story for the 21st century?