Gemini Man: Ang Lee Does Menahem Golan (in 3D+ HFR!)
In 2012, Peter Jackson introduced High Frame Rate to the world with The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. Presented at 48 frames per second, before it was released, it was hailed as the “future of cinema”, until people saw what it looked like. After two more failed experiments with The Hobbit, the format was considered dead until Ang Lee ramped it up with Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk in 120fps. Now, Ang Lee is back, to remind us how HFR was a mistake in Gemini Man in which he films two Will Smiths playing Henry Brogen, a retired assassin who faces with a younger clone of himself after that clone is sent to kill him for reasons that are still unknown to me.
As from the title and intro, I did see the movie in 3D+ HFR (60fps), and I have LOTS of things to say about HFR so I’ll sum it up in key points:
- It makes EVERYTHING look fake; the HFR experience wasn’t too bad this time around during talking sequences. I didn’t really notice it (and the native 3D is excellent), until the action sequences comes around. The assault of movement and the “smoothness” you get with 60fps makes everything too smooth, too fast and too weird that it, ultimately makes everything look fake. During the tight action sequences between Will Smith and Will Smith, I couldn’t comprehend what was happening, because the frame rate was so high that it made everything blurry and completely uncinematic. For reference, it reminded me of the video “Retard-Fu can Destroy Paper” in which you can watch today:
2. HFR makes for horrible cinematography, because the cameras are fixed: Many of the shots in the movie felt so unnaturally horrible, even in 3D. I get that the movie was shot in 3D, but the way that Ang Lee positions his cameras for 3D is absolutely horrendous. He needs to figure out a way to move away from the fixed cinematography so that nothing should look televisual. There are some talking sequences that are so horrible to look at that it almost looks like a Rooftop sequence from Tommy Wiseau’s The Room with the horrible green screen. I can’t really explain it, but it needs to be seen to be believed. One of the first sequences of the movie in which Henry talks to some old guy ( I don’t even know what his name is) about retiring (?). Look at the shot composition and the way each shot is framed. It’s so horrible you’d think it’s a blocked shot from The Room. The movements of the actors, sitting down and sat down, feel unnaturally fake and even more fake in HFR. And it’s like that for the whole movie. There are many scenes that feel The Asylum-like. When Henry sees Benedict Wong for the first time, the movements of the actors, dialogue and facial expressions look and feel so unnatural, HFR worsens everything about the sequence and the dramatic sequences just feel weird.
However, the 3D is excellent. Lee knows how to shoot in Native 3D brilliantly and the action sequences are enhanced by the format, if it was in 24fps. The 60fps just makes everything look so fucking weird.
Let’s stirp away the 60fps for one second and actively talk about Gemini Man. It sucks. Aside from two exciting action sequences; the motorcycle chase and the climax, the movie is absolutely terrible. Will Smith was bad for the first 45 minutes, until he decided to get his shit together after the first action sequence. Some of the CGI on young Will Smith does look pretty convincing, until the final scene. The final scene is so horrible in its de-aging/motion-capture technology that, yes, you know that the technology isn’t perfected. Nothing is perfected; the script is absolutely asinine. It has some of the most confusing plot of all 2019, some horrible supporting performances from Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Benedict Wong and Clive Owen who plays the clichéd, 90s manical Cannon Group villain straight out of Joseph Zito’s Invasion U.S.A. or any Menahem Golan action movie. I can’t really explain what’s wrong with Gemini Man, because it is a film that demands to be seen to be believed. Every script decision is absolutely baffling, some characters die like real pussies, some of the decisions characters make are absolutely eye-rolling. It’s a 90s script, infused with 21st century technology that isn’t even on the cusp of being perfected. Ang Lee would like audience members to think that HFR is the future, but it’s far from being the future. Stop pushing the format and continue to shoot in Native 3D in 24 frames per second thank you very much. It’s absolutely the worst movie of the year, and one of the worst action movies of the decade.
✯
