The Martian
- Impenitent
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The Martian
I am very, very excited about this.
Mornings wouldn't suck so badly if they came later in the day.
- Primula Baggins
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Re: The Martian
It definitely looks like they did a great job. I'm excited, too, because it's a brilliant story. It's written kind of dryly and not very visually, and that the story is still so gripping says a lot for it. From the trailer, the character and the story seem intact, which is vital. This movie has the potential to fill in precisely what was missing for me: strong visuals and emotion.
“There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
Re: The Martian
I have a hunch this movie will flop, both with critics and movie goers. Some of Matt Damon's lines from the trailer are truly atrocious ("In your face, Neil Armstrong!";"...science the shit out of this."). Who talks/writes like that besides bad pop-science writers on the Internet? I might be mistaken however and this film could still turn out to be good. The premise is full of potential and it is Ridley Scott, after all.
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- Primula Baggins
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Re: The Martian
The character is an out-and-out geek, not a strong silent hero, so the lines fit, in my view. The book and (from what I can see) the movie depend entirely on the fact that the character describes everything that happens to him verbally—the book, at least the part set on Mars, is largely a transcribed set of recordings, and we see him making recordings in the trailer. And his self-narration does include some geekiness and some goofy humor—because it's the character in his own words. And I remember a couple of points in the book where it's very clear that the lightness is helping him stay sane and hold off the fear.
“There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
- JewelSong
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Re: The Martian
Well, I just bought the book on Amazon...they had it on special for Kindle for $1.99. I'd like to read it before I see the movie and it sounds like a great read for a long plane ride.
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Re: The Martian
I hope you enjoy it, Jewel!
“There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
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Re: The Martian
I bought the ebook a week ago, at full price. Ah well.
Mornings wouldn't suck so badly if they came later in the day.
Re: The Martian
I bought the ebook a couple of years ago, Impy, and also at full price! And then tore through it in record speed. It's not fancy wordsmithery or anything, but it sure does hold a person's attention (and make that person hold her breath).
“Wilbur never forgot Charlotte. Although he loved her children and grandchildren dearly, none of the new spiders ever quite took her place in his heart. She was in a class by herself. It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer. Charlotte was both.” E. B. White, who must have had vison in mind. There's a reason why we kept putting the extra i in her name in our minds!
- axordil
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Re: The Martian
One can tell a lot about a person's tastes by their reaction to The Martian. A number of people I know elsewhere thought it was slow, or couldn't get into the details, or otherwise failed to connect with it. It seems to be a litmus test for action-oriented vs. science-oriented SF readers.
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Re: The Martian
I might put it as action-oriented versus ideas-oriented. The Martian is an example of how a book can be oriented toward ideas and still tell a gripping story.
I'm using "ideas" in the sense of "cool concepts and speculation and imagination" rather than "profound exploration of what it means to be human."
I'm using "ideas" in the sense of "cool concepts and speculation and imagination" rather than "profound exploration of what it means to be human."
“There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
- axordil
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Re: The Martian
Wait, doesn't "cool concepts and speculation and imagination" mean "science?"
- Primula Baggins
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Re: The Martian
A subset, I'd say, but you have a point.
“There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
Re: The Martian
It appears my hunch was wrong: 33/34 positive reviews so far.
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_martian/
Personally, I still have my doubts about whether I will see it or not.
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_martian/
Personally, I still have my doubts about whether I will see it or not.
- Impenitent
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Re: The Martian
I'm more excited about this one than I was for The Hobbit.
*runs from thread, ducking the rotten tomatoes*
*runs from thread, ducking the rotten tomatoes*
Mornings wouldn't suck so badly if they came later in the day.
Re: The Martian
Metacritic is, as usual, a bit more cautious with a current good-not-great 76 based on 11 reviews.
http://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-mar ... ic-reviews
http://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-mar ... ic-reviews
I wanna love somebody but I don't know how
I wanna throw my body in the river and drown
-The Decemberists
I wanna throw my body in the river and drown
-The Decemberists
Re: The Martian
I'm ready! Bring on this Mars, I say!
“Wilbur never forgot Charlotte. Although he loved her children and grandchildren dearly, none of the new spiders ever quite took her place in his heart. She was in a class by herself. It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer. Charlotte was both.” E. B. White, who must have had vison in mind. There's a reason why we kept putting the extra i in her name in our minds!
Re: The Martian
* Runs with Impish *Impenitent wrote:I'm more excited about this one than I was for The Hobbit.
*runs from thread, ducking the rotten tomatoes*
From what I've seen so far, my only complaint about this movie is that Sebastian Stan is not in the main role.
If there was anything that depressed him more than his own cynicism, it was that quite often it still wasn't as cynical as real life.
Terry Pratchett, Guards! Guards!
Terry Pratchett, Guards! Guards!
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Re: The Martian
This is about the book (The Martian, not The Hobbit) - we don't have a discussion thread for it and it's not worth starting one for my intended comment. I want to say...
Hidden text.
Mornings wouldn't suck so badly if they came later in the day.
Re: The Martian
Neil deGrasse Tyson twitted this: "Evidence that the @MartianMovie is fantasy: All who make important decisions are scientifically literate."
If there was anything that depressed him more than his own cynicism, it was that quite often it still wasn't as cynical as real life.
Terry Pratchett, Guards! Guards!
Terry Pratchett, Guards! Guards!
- Primula Baggins
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Re: The Martian
Totally.
I hope to see this soon. My son will be seeing it tomorrow while I'm busy elsewhere.
I hope to see this soon. My son will be seeing it tomorrow while I'm busy elsewhere.
“There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King