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David Spates Special effects aren't
When my parents took me to see Star Wars
in 1977, I remember how amazed I was at what I was seeing on
the screen. The beginning of the movie starts with this giant
wedge-shaped spaceship flying overhead in pursuit of a smaller
ship, with both ships blasting away at one another with their
lasers. The ship appears immense on the screen -- it just keeps
going and going and going. Now, granted, I was only 7 years old
and didn't know much about anything, but I couldn't fathom how
that scene was created to look so real. Later, during the pinnacle of the Star
Wars frenzy, there was a television special about how George
Lucas and his special effects crew created the shot. They used
incredibly detailed models for the spaceships -- spaceships that
in reality could fit on top of a desk. I was impressed. The next
time I saw Star Wars in the theater, I was even more impressed
with the opening scene after learning how it was created. That was nearly 24 years ago. In a galaxy
far, far away. Now, we have computer-generated special effects
that can create shots much more detailed and impressive. Well,
I for one am not impressed. Not anymore, anyway. I've reached the point that nothing I see
in terms of special effects is, well, special. With the right
hardware and software packages, almost anything can be
filmed. What's the fun in that? How can anyone expect me to get
excited over a special effect shot in the latest blockbuster
movie when I can see the same glitzy special effect shot in a
Budweiser commercial? The special effects just aren't special
anymore. When computer-generated special effects first
hit the scene a few years ago, I was impressed like most everyone
else was. The world of television and movies suddenly opened
wide with options that a director never had at his disposal before.
He could create scenes that would have been too costly or simply
impossible to create without the help of computers. A good example
is Titanic. Shots of the ship sailing on the open water
would have been very difficult to convincingly film, but with
computers it's very doable. With enough time, RAM and talent,
the shots looked perfect. Now "impossible" scenes are commonplace
on television and in the movies. What would have once caused
audiences to shake their heads in disbelief now go practically
unnoticed because the audiences have been there, done that and
bought the T-shirt. In a matter of just a few years, the audiences'
threshold for amazement has skyrocketed to the point that I don't
know if we'll ever be truly amazed at what we see again. I suppose the next big film-making technical
advancement will be the point at which directors won't even need
to have actors on the sets. The characters will be 100 percent
digital and controlled with the click of a mouse. Who knows,
maybe soon we'll see Harrison Ford starring in the same movie
with Charlie Chaplin and Marilyn Monroe. Probably the only way that people will be impressed with what they see on television or at the movies is if the director and producer take a fraction of the time they spend planning special effect shots and actually develop plots. Sure, there have been some recent movies with wonderfully creative and intriguing scripts, but those certainly are the exceptions. A movie with a good story? Now that would be a special effect. |