Spring is around the corner and the gaming news keeps pouring in. This week was a big one, with silly Star Wars memes about a Chilean beer ad, Fortnite leaks, Persona 3 Reload DLC news, and a huge, new conspiracy theory running rampant throuhg the industry.
Plot: A young woman’s fateful decision in 1960s China reverberates across space and time into the present day. When the laws of nature inexplicably unravel before their eyes, a close-knit group of brilliant scientists join forces with an unorthodox detective to confront the greatest threat in humanity’s history.
Review: As soon as it was announced that Game of Thrones showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff were developing 3 Body Problem alongside Alexander Woo, I grabbed the novel and read it. The dense first entry in Liu Cixin’s trilogy was a fascinating look at science fiction from a Chinese vantage point with heavy political implications from the nation’s storied history. In translating the book for the screen, 3 Body Problem incorporates many of the cultural elements from the novel into a global and diverse narrative that sets the table for an ongoing series about humanity fighting against an extraterrestrial foe. With a cast comprised of Game of Thrones veterans alongside rising stars Eiza Gonzalez, Jovan Adepo, and Jess Hong, 3 Body Problem is a huge investment for Netflix as well as a massive gamble for Weiss and Benioff. The resulting series is a bold experiment that is unfortunately a misguided one. Nihilistic, depressing, and far too heavy-handed, 3 Body Problem is a series that starts strong and completely falls apart by the final episode.
Set primarily in the present day, 3 Body Problem opens with a flashback to the Chinese Cultural Revolution in the 1960s. A shocking opening sequence, this sets the tone for a series that is heavy on technology and science in equal measure with philosophical thoughts of humanity and our place in the cosmos. Shifting from China-set flashbacks to contemporary sequences in Europe and around the planet, the series focuses on a group of college classmates who have various careers in academia and the private sector. All brilliant in their own right, Saul Durand (Jovan Adepo) and Jin Cheng (Jess Hong) work as scientists, Auggie Salazar (Eiza Gonzalez) works privately after developing a revolutionary technology, Jack Rooney (John Bradley) owns a massive candy company, and Will Downing (Alex Sharp) teaches. When one of their close friends dies, the group is drawn together in mourning. At the same time, Auggie begins to see a countdown in her vision which connects to a mysterious virtual reality headset many of them had delivered. It is within this VR space that they and many other scientists are introduced to the titular conundrum.
As the series progresses and the threat embodied by the warrior Sophon (Sea Shimooka) begins to unfold, the massive conspiracy connects the scientists with British detective Da Shi (Benedict Wong), philanthropist Mike Evans (Jonathan Pryce), and the mother of one of the friends, Ye Wenjie (Rosalind Chao). The truth also brings in Wade (Liam Cunningham), a brutal and adept leader who spearheads humanity’s response. It is difficult to discuss exactly what the big reveal is without spoiling the majority of 3 Body Problem, but it is a sprawling and existence-shattering twist that sets up the main narrative of the series. To date, all trailers hint at what this big twist is without revealing what viewers are in store for and it is how audiences react to this that will determine how much they are willing to invest in the series. I will go as far as to say you will need to invest in multiple episodes before the truth is unveiled. Once it is, the tone of the series shifts significantly. By plotting out the existential quandary the characters face, the series risks alienating its audience by taking on a nihilistic and negative tone which it is unable to transform into a celebratory and triumphant message.
The problem could also be how unlikeable many of the characters are. Eiza Gonzalez is positioned in the marketing as the star of 3 Body Problem but she is closer to the third or fourth lead in the series after Jovan Adepo, Jess Hong, and Rosalind Chao. Gonzalez is unconvincing as a brilliant scientist but manages to convey the weight of what her knowledge means for humanity. Hong is stellar as the most pivotal character in the series as she must balance the two extreme sides of the divide presented by the antagonists. Jovan Adepo takes on a more important role later in the series as elements from the second novel, The Dark Forest, are weaved in to prepare for the expected second season. The breakout role in this series belongs to Alex Sharp whose character, Will Downing, will be the most sympathetic and relatable. John Bradley, Benedict Wong, and Jonathan Pryce, the biggest names in the cast, are relegated to supporting roles. While good, they never really seem to be important to the plot. The best character is Rosalind Chao as Ye Wenjie. Chao has appeared in so many projects over the years and proves how talented of an actor she is with a character that may be the most controversial once audiences see the full season with Game of Thrones favorite Liam Cunningham running a close second.
D.B. Weiss and David Benioff assembled a solid team of writers and directors for 3 Body Problem, themselves scripting three episodes together and a fourth alongside Alexander Woo. Woo wrote two episodes solo while Rose Cartwright and Madhuri Shekar tackled the remaining two. Directors include Derek Tsang on the first two episodes, John Carter‘s Andrew Stanton on the third, Mikie Spiro (The Plot Against America) on the next three, and Jeremy Podeswa on the final two. Podeswa is known for helming some of the most memorable Game of Thrones episodes and is one of multiple collaborators from that series, including composer Ramin Djawadi. With producers including Rosamund Pike, Rian Johnson, and Brad Pitt, 3 Body Problem should have been a slam dunk, but it lacks virtually everything that made Game of Thrones so engaging. There is little sexy about this series and the intricate plot overwhelms the characters and their motivations. There is also the heavy dose of Chinese history that will be unfamiliar to Western audiences but adds to the brutally negative tone of the entire plot.
The trailers for 3 Body Problem position this series as a combination of the virtual reality world of The Matrix with a global conspiracy seemingly involving extraterrestrial beings. This is not untrue, but it makes it seem like a very different story than it actually is. The virtual reality sequences are well-made and visually impressive, but they are overall a minor component of the larger story. While David Benioff and D.B. Weiss were raked over the coals for changing elements when adapting George R. R. Martin’s fantasy saga, I hoped that they would alter a lot more of 3 Body Problem than they did. This series was likely doomed from the outset because of how flawed the source material was to begin with. I found it very hard to engage with this story, these characters, and this series. A misfire in every way, 3 Body Problem has some talented actors delivering some memorable moments, but none of it adds up to an experience that is satisfying, fulfilling, or even all that enjoyable.
3 Body Problem premieres on March 21st on Netflix.
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Chris Hemsworth doesn’t often play villains, but he’ll get to scratch that itch in a big way with Warlord Dementus in George Miller’s upcoming Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.
Hemsworth told Empire that Dementus is “a pretty horrible individual,” but like all great villains, he doesn’t think of himself that way. “Through the whole film we kept coming back to, ‘This is evil, but what is the intention behind it?’ It’s not just sadistic insanity,” Hemsworth said. “There is a real purpose, the wheels are turning, he’s plotting and planning and ten steps ahead of everyone else.” He added that the character even sees himself as a father figure to Furiosa (Anya Taylor-Joy): “I think there’s a paternal quality and nature to the relationship in his eyes. [Furiosa] would, I’m sure, argue to her death the complete opposite.“
Empire also dropped a new image from the film, featuring Warlord Dementus flanked by a variety of citizens of the wasteland.
Chris Hemsworth has stated that playing Dementus in Furiosa has been the best experience of his career. “I came into that film exhausted. I thought, ‘How am I going to get through this?’” Hemsworth said. “Week one of rehearsals with [Miller], all of a sudden it was this reigniting of my creative energy.” The actor said the production of Furiosa was “by far the best experience of my career, and something I feel the most proud of. It made me think, the work isn’t what’s exhausting it’s what kind of work it is, and how invested I am in it and if it is challenging in the right way.“
The official synopsis for Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga: “As the world fell, young Furiosa is snatched from the Green Place of Many Mothers and falls into the hands of a great Biker Horde led by the Warlord Dementus. Sweeping through the Wasteland they come across the Citadel presided over by the Immortan Joe. While the two Tyrants war for dominance, Furiosa must survive many trials as she puts together the means to find her way home.” The first reactions to a recent test screening of Furiosa were reportedly quite positive, and there have also been rumblings that we should be seeing a second trailer quite soon.
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga will hit theaters on May 24th.
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Road House director Doug Liman had previously declared that he would boycott the SXSW premiere of the reimagining, but according to Deadline, he’s changed his mind.
The outlet states that Doug Liman is in the Paramount Theatre right now, although not in any official capacity. He won’t be introducing Road House but will just be in the crowd watching. As Road House is destined for a streaming debut on Prime Video, this will be one of Liman’s only chances to see the movie in a packed theater.
Liman has stated that when the project began, it was meant to have a theatrical release, but that all changed when Amazon bought MGM. The streaming studio allegedly told Liman, “Make a great film and we will see what happens” regarding its release. When it was officially announced that Road House would stream exclusively on Prime Video, Liman was upset and announced that he would be boycotting the SXSW premiere.
“When Road House opens the SXSW film festival, I won’t be attending,” Liman said. “The movie is fantastic, maybe my best, and I’m sure it will bring the house down and possibly have the audience dancing in their seats during the end credits. But I will not be there. My plan had been to silently protest Amazon’s decision to stream a movie so clearly made for the big screen. But Amazon is hurting way more than just me and my film. If I don’t speak up about Amazon, who will? So here we go.“
Liman added, “Contrary to their public statements, Amazon has no interest in supporting cinemas. Amazon will exclusively stream Road House on Amazon Prime. Amazon asked me and the film community to trust them and their public statements about supporting cinemas, and then they turned around and are using Road House to sell plumbing fixtures.“
Jake Gyllenhaal, who stars in Road House, commented on Doug Liman’s boycott, saying that although he supported it, Amazon was always clear that the film would make a streaming debut. “I adore Doug’s tenacity, and I think he is advocating for filmmakers, and film in the cinema, and theatrical releases,” he said. “But, I mean, Amazon was always clear that it was streaming. I just want as many people to see it as possible. And I think we’re living in a world that’s changing in how we see and watch movies, and how they’re made. What’s clear to me, and what I loved so much, was [Liman’s] deep love for this movie, and his pride at how much he cares for it, how good he feels it is, and how much people should see it.“
Road House will debut on Prime Video on March 21st in more than 240 territories worldwide.
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Angela Bassett made history when she became the first actor to be nominated for an Oscar in a Marvel Cinematic Universe movie for her role as Queen Ramonda in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. After taking home the Golden Globe and Critics Choice Awards for Best Supporting Actress, she was a favourite to win the Oscar as well, but the award went to Jamie Lee Curtis instead (Everything Everywhere All At Once), and Bassett was visibly disappointed.
While speaking with Oprah Winfrey, Angela Bassett confirmed that she was “gobsmacked” at the loss. “I was gobsmacked! I was,” she said. “I thought I handled it very well. That was my intention, to handle it very well. It was, of course, a supreme disappointment and disappointment is human. So I thought, yes, I was disappointed and I handled it like a human being.“
Bassett continued, saying that he needed to stay composed for herself and her children who were with her: “There are going to be these moments of disappointment that you’ll experience, but how do you handle yourself in the midst of them? We’re going to smile, we’re going to be gracious, we’re going to be kind, we’re going to party anyway.“
In addition to the Best Supporting Actress nomination, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever also picked up nominations for Best Original Song, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Visual Effects, and Best Costume Design, but would only win for Costume Design.
Angela Bassett can currently be seen starring alongside Millie Bobby Brown (Stranger Things) in Damsel, which is now streaming on Netflix. The fantasy movie stars Brown as a dutiful damsel who agrees to marry a handsome prince, only to find that the royal family has recruited her as a sacrifice to repay an ancient debut. She must rely on her wits and will to survive after being thrown into a cave with a fire-breathing dragon. Bassett plays Lady Bayford, the stepmother of Brown’s character. You can check out a review from our own Alex Maidy right here.
Do you think Angela Bassett should have won the Oscar for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever?
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You can’t keep the Dragon Warrior down; Kung Fu Panda 4 is off to a promising start at the box office as it has grossed $3.8 million in Thursday night previews. Not bad, Po. Not bad at all.
The box office projections for Kung Fu Panda 4 are shaping up to be the second-best opening weekend of the entire franchise with $52 million. That would help it take the number one spot from Dune: Part Two, which is expected to take in $41 million. The Thursday night preview number is also the best opening for a Dreamworks Animation title since How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, which opened to a $3 million preview take. Speaking of Dune: Part Two, the acclaimed sequel will finish the week with a domestic take of $111 million, putting it over the first movie’s entire domestic run of $108.8 million.
“After three death-defying adventures defeating world-class villains with his unmatched courage and mad martial arts skills, Po, the Dragon Warrior (Jack Black), is called upon by destiny to … give it a rest already. More specifically, he’s tapped to become the Spiritual Leader of the Valley of Peace,” reads the official Kung Fu Panda 4 synopsis. “That poses a couple of obvious problems. First, Po knows as much about spiritual leadership as he does about the paleo diet, and second, he needs to quickly find and train a new Dragon Warrior before he can assume his new lofty position.” The film also features the voices of Awkwafina as Zhen, a quick-witted thief; Viola Davis as Chameleon, a powerful sorceress; Dustin Hoffman as Kung Fu master Shifu; James Hong as Po’s adoptive father, Mr. Ping; Bryan Cranston as Po’s birth father, Li; Ian McShane as Tai Lung, Shifu’s former student and arch-nemesis; and Ke Huy Quan as Han, the leader of the Den of Thieves.
Our own Chris Bumbray recently caught a screening of the movie but doesn’t think that it lives up to the previous installments. That said, the children in the audience absolutely loved it. “The film is all about planting the seeds for a potentially new direction for the franchise, but again, after having seen this with a kiddie audience, I don’t think they want to see Po in the wise mentor role,” Bumbray wrote. “They want him leaping around yelling ‘ska-doosh.’ Kung Fu Panda 4 has enough of that to make it a fun enough romp for kids, but it can’t help but feel like this franchise’s moment has passed, and isn’t really strong enough material to sustain a spin-off.” You can check out the rest of Bumbray’s review right here.
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Sony is currently running a pretty awesome sale for a number of its first-party games, particularly those in the action genre. Whether you’re looking to check out Nathan Drake’s swan song in Uncharted 4, Sam Porter Bridges’ strange trip through the apocalypse in Death Stranding, or Kratos’ dramatic shift into sad dad…
Sony is currently running a pretty awesome sale for a number of its first-party games, particularly those in the action genre. Whether you’re looking to check out Nathan Drake’s swan song in Uncharted 4, Sam Porter Bridges’ strange trip through the apocalypse in Death Stranding, or Kratos’ dramatic shift into sad dad…
Electronic Arts has added nine classic games to Steam including Dungeon Keeper Gold, SimCity 3000, and WW2-era open-world action game The Saboteur, which had previously been delisted from Valve’s digital PC store, but is now back and on sale.
Electronic Arts has added nine classic games to Steam including Dungeon Keeper Gold, SimCity 3000, and WW2-era open-world action game The Saboteur, which had previously been delisted from Valve’s digital PC store, but is now back and on sale.