The Salvation Updates.............

So here it is....more Salvation updates from the TerminatorFiles .....the lineup of machines have been more or less confirmed and seem impressive, though some aspects of it still don't make sense.

A Termicycle???! I wonder how that one's gonna work...a quad or even a trike would make sense, but how the heck is this gonna balance itself should it stop moving? Balance is dependant on motion for a two-wheeler, and whether its AI powered or not, I don't think the laws of Physics are gonna dictate otherwise. Regardless, I hope they crank up the juice a li'l on this one with some shit-blowing firepower.

And we are back on this page with more updates on the T-600. Everyone's anticipating this one, but should the released footage be right and McG be taken seriously, we are looking at an 8-feet tall walking Panzer-tank wannabe behemoth, hardly an infiltrator. How can u possibly pass something of that kinda size off for human?? And I don't see the need for having rubber skins over that endo, since noone in the Resistance would buy that shit anyway. Just stick to the endos McG and it'll be realistic. I wonder how those dudes in the Resistance would react anyway if one of these comes up against them. I'd piss in my pants for sure. Not forgetting the mini-gun that it wields around 24/7. Recall Columbu in T1 and the near-annihiliation of one Resistance Camp. The 600 was relentless and unstoppable in that one scene and novelization of that scene dictates that it was never stopped at all! Freaky mo-fo. If you don't recall the first movie well, just check out the scene I've uploaded below. Scenes like this really differentiated the first and second instalments..the first being extremely dark, on par with a psycho-thriller/horror flick and the 2nd being kiddo-friendly a la TMNT style.

I am on the hunt for better footage on the HKs and aerostats. Will put these up as soon as I acquire them.

And so whats the scoop on Kickinger? Thats been subject to plenty of debates as well, Well, for the record, I guess there is a universal consensus amongst the Terminator fandom that Kickinger will be essaying the 800, though opinions are divided as to whether it was the very same machine that tracked Sarah in T1 or just another one off the assembly line (college room-mate as Uncle Bob would have it in T2 3D). We might have another revival of the Ah-nuld days with Kickinger. Lets not forget that Ah-nuld was a nobody till he played the 800 in the first movie. Kickinger's career is bound to take off with this one.

More updates as and when I get them :)

*peace*

Blind Faith by Ben Elton....

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The upcoming Salvation......

The world as seen through the eyes of the second Messiah, John Connor. If mankind were to head towards an apocalyptic path as the first JC had prophesized, relinquish control over the globe as we now posess over to our creations, and should we take the path envisioned by the other JC (Cameron who created this franchise with his vision of a metallic endoskeletion), this is the world we'd be seeing in the near future. I present you some preliminary photocaps from the future as Terminator Salvation the fourth instalment in the franchise and the flagship of the new trilogy (4,5,6 - the Messiah series) would have it......

1. Fancy not being killed outright but being' harvested' for bio-experiments conducted by Skynet later. Reese spoke about these and the Auschwitz/Dachau worthy concentration camps of the future.
2. So here we are, witnessing the zoo of the future, one with humans on the other side of the fence and a T-600 looking on as a spectator/guard. The predecessor model to the T-800 series, this one is known for being larger and nastier, armed with a minigun on one arm. As Reese put it in the first movie, this one had a rubbery skin exterior which made it ineffective for infiltration mission, but as we saw in the same film, this has enough firepower to annihiliate an entire colony (recall Franco Columbu's cameo in the 1st. I hope he is brought back for the 4th.)
3. Evil arises out of the water...Having seen this numerous times before (LOTR, PoTC), we have evil arising in the form of an advanced hydrobot, Skynet's guardians of the waters. Pressures of drowning, strong currents, and a heavy dose of firepower from the Hydrobot..think you can make it??
4. The T-600 again. Being an earlier model to the T-800, this one is gonna feature prominently in the film, which follows up on the events shortly after judgement day. Probably by this time, the earlier T-1s we saw in the 3rd movie were ady phased out, the T-600 having greater intelligence, agility and dexterity.
5. The essential man for the occasion, the Chosen one, the Messiah, J.C (ring any bells?). But well, thats John Connor, the only character I've ever heard of having an entire movie revolving around him without even being in the film (hell he wasn't even in-utero! His conception was like shortly before the film even ended)

*peace*

Of the Rise of the Machines.........

In view of the upcoming Terminator Salvation, I have been revisiting the Terminator franchise quite abit of late, and I can't help but notice the extent to which the third instalment, Terminator 3 : Rise of the Machines keeps taking flak, that too for the most banal reasons!

1. In the first part, Rhys says that it was only him and the Terminator that came through before the machine was destroyed. How is it possible that T2 & T3 can exist? - Its true that Rhys mentioned this in the film. However lets not rule out the fact that since Rhys was no 2 right outta that time displacement field, right behind the 1st T-800, he would definitely have no way to be sure if any others came after him or not. Unless if he runs into them of course. Also, at the end of the 1st film, we know that the broken microchip and artifical intelligent limp were recovered from the wreckage of the 1st T-800. This accelerated the development of Skynet as pretty much everything was reverse engineered from there. This puts the 2nd movie in an alternate timeline, which had a possibly more intelligent and advanced Skynet which could have re-created the Time Displacement field.
2. T-800 was the model number of the Terminator in both the 1st and 2nd movies. So how is it T-850 in the third? - Again alternate timelines. The end of T2 saw the destruction of Cyberdyne which was supposed to be the ultimate annhiliation of Skynet in its infancy. However a parallel development by another wing of the US Military, has been running a parallel project led by Robert Brewster, involving the advancement of Automated intelligent robots as weapons systems. Skynet being developed from here takes over as a virus and ends up controlling all machines. This happens much later than the 1st supposed Judgement Day which was averted, Skynet becoming self-aware only much later. This was ensured in Part 2 by the 2nd T-800 when he self-terminates alongside the T-1000 in the liquid nitrogen to eliminate any evidence of artificial intelligence which could be used to develop Skyney in future. Hence, Judgement Day being postponed, we have an entirely new timeline in T3 with an entirely new set of machines developed for different environments, needs, stress and effeciency. The war could be fought in different ways in the different timelines. Probably the reason why Skynet had developed the T-X anti-terminator terminator model to take out other cybernetic organism while in the other timeline, there was no such insurance against a possible machine rebellion. Connor's cronies probably employed the re-programming of captured cyborgs alot more in this T3 timeline than in the other one.

To comprehend the films fully, you have to comprehend the theories on time displacement well. I'd update with the relevant links later. I do have my issues with the films though on one point. John Connor's age always remains an inconsistency.

*hasta la vista!!*

Aamir vs Cavite

"कौन कहता है, आदमी अपनी किस्मत ख़ुद लीकता है?"
With such a Ram Gopal Verma worthy opening line, one can only expect the movie to be delivered with a punch and perfection. A racy thriller that'd keep you at the edge of your seat. Go get the beers and the chips!!!!
Aamir had hardly any semblence to an Aamir in its beginning stages. A not well-known director, hardly known newface (the wives might know him...he was yr stud in the soapies), no advertizing whatsoever and an uber low budget. U'd seriously think twice before even suggesting this movie out for a group outing.

Before the critics start their flaming lambo shit over here by citing the ever so ubiquitous connection with Cavite, lemme assure you that the produces of said Pinoy film have seen Aamir and given it a clean billing, saying that there is no relations whatsoever with their film Cavite. Sounds hard to believe I know, but hey, what the fuck is the big deal if some random dude sitting in India happens to tap into the frequency of some Pinoy monk in deep thought and stumbles upon the same idea at the time?! Big feckin' deal!!

To be save and retain that element of suspense and NOT give away the plot, I shall minimize what I'm saying here about the movie. Its the more 'Phonebook' styled psychological thriller, taking place over a few hours, a helpless situation basically with several philosophical and moral backgrounds to it. It leads us to think certainly. In addition to newface Rajeev Khandelwal, Anurag Kashyap has showed us another protagonist, always featured everywhere in Bollywood but never utilized well. And thats the city of Mumbai. Filmed in the most squalid locales in Mumbai, amidst the filth and stench, and showcasing the obvious discomfort of फिरांगी doctor forced into these places. We can feel the emotions he is going through during the course of the film. That was a stellar output by our director AK here.
The ending will shock you. Be certain to expect twists you never thought u'd expect.

*peace*

The Shootout vs The Mission

A controversial chapter in the history of Mumbai which had a chilling aftermath to the whole incident. The Anti-Terrorist Squad responsible for the encounter killing of Maya Mahindra Dolas and the brains behind the Operation, AA Khan had to take loads of heat from the press and the Human Rights activists. The Press accusing Khan of being on the payroll of Dawood Ibrahim even. This film was a new landmark in Indian film making history. Apoorva so effectively fleshed out each and every character after studying the plot at length, interviewing experts on the subject even to the point of getting AA Khan to play a pivotal role in the film. Vivek Oberoi was a true professional in his gearing up for Dolas. He established contact with the man's previous associates, interviewed them and even lived amongst them for abit to re-enact the भाई-गिरी part well. Apart frlm his immediate associates, I suppose the only other person to know Maya Dolas well on the inside was Vivek Oberoi. His research was that thorough. And watching him on the siver screen, spouting Mumbai filth and dressed to play the part, it was virtually impossible to visualize Vivek as an actor in any other role. And the lines too...man! "बोल सुननेका वक्त गया है, अभी करने का टाइम है ", "वह गली दोनों तरफ़ भी खोलती है खान ", "अभी तू इधर आने का और कैसा भी करके अपने बच्चे लोगों को इधर से निकालने का, समझा क्या?", "अभी बोला तो अभियीच" ! Man that was just done to perfection!

Now when the same team, comprising of the Lakhias, Oberoi, Shetty, Ahluwalia team up together with Zayed Khan and Niketan Dheer for Mission Istaanbul, u expect something to surpass the orbit of Shootout and hit Mars. But Mars bars is all I got. Dudes, seriously, what the fuck were u guys smoking!?!?

Vivek as Maya was fresh, and thats cos noone expected such a stellar portrayal from him. Like I said earlier, he took Vivek out of the equation and all that we saw on screen was Dolas. But I did have some preconceived notion as to how he would essay Rizwan Khan. Firstly, I hit bulls eye with that and secondly, I saw no Khan, only Oberoi prancing about as a Turk commando. There was a hugeish hype about having tanks and heavy duty artillery...where were they!?! The 8th storey jump sequence that was so hyped amounted to be nothing. I'd choose the sky diving sequence in Don anyday!

Lakhia had promised this film would showcase the beauty and capture the essence of Istanbul in his defence, when he was facing the brickbats for making 5 separate visits to the city. And what exactly did u showcase Lakhia? Anything so outstanding u showed us in Istanbul that couldnt have been done in your Mumbai studios or even in Delhi? Heck, just shoot the damn thing in Malaysia if u need a foreign locale and call it Mission KL or something! And keep that extra cash u save for better effects and maybe better actors! I wonder what he exactly achieved by having Shriya Saran in the lead. Just cos she starred against Rajnikanth does NOT mean she is a good actress.

Mission Istaanbul, sadly, is a dud...I'd recommend this on the dvd editions or pay-per-view. Just don't end up watching it in the cinema. You'd hardly have missed much and u'd be thanking me for saving u your 12 bucks.

*peace*

Of Science and Man..........

Transhumanism (sometimes symbolized by >H or H+),[1] a term often used as a synonym for "human enhancement", is an international, intellectual and cultural movement supporting the use of science and technology to enhance human mental and physical abilities and aptitudes, and overcome what it regards as undesirable and unnecessary aspects of the human condition, such as disability, suffering, disease, aging, and involuntary death. Transhumanist thinkers study the possibilities and consequences of developing and using human enhancement techniques and other emerging technologies for these purposes. Possible dangers, as well as benefits, of powerful new technologies that might radically change the conditions of human life are also of concern to the transhumanist movement. - wikipedia.
This was the next development in Science I was talking about the other day. Having more detractors than supporters, critics like to call this the world's most dangerous idea. By this a person achieves posthuman status, a state which is termed by experts as one whose basic capacities so radically those of present humans as to be no longer unambigously human by our current standards. Sounds familiar? Why do I keep thinking of the T-800 at this point?
The difference between the posthuman and other hypothetical sophisticated non-humans is that a posthuman was once a human, either in its lifetime or in the lifetimes of some or all of its direct ancestors. As such, a prerequisite for a posthuman is a transhuman, the point at which the human being begins surpassing his or her own limitations, but is still recognisable as a human person or similar. Posthumans could be a symbiosis of human and artificial intelligence, or uploaded consciousnesses, or the result of making many smaller but cumulatively profound technological augmentations to a biological human, i.e. a cyborg. Some examples of the latter are redesigning the human organism using advanced nanotechnology or radical enhancement using some combination of technologies such as genetic engineering, psychopharmacology, life extension therapies, neural interfaces, advanced information management tools, memory enhancing drugs, wearable or implanted computers, and cognitive techniques. In other words, we have to perfect transhumanism first before we could get to this stage, since the biological form is still at the centre stage and the study of human enhancements would be essential.
Question is, are the detractors entirely wrong in their citations of possible hazards and disasters that could envelop the earth should this take off. Numerous reasons are cited, some being social, ethical, moral issues...a variety of 'em all from varying standpoints. There was this interesting film I once saw in Tamil, titled 'Nalaiya Manithan'. Probably a rip off from the Terminator series, we have a dude who was resurrected through a new-age drug yet to be tested and ends up becoming an unstoppable psychotic killer on a muderous spree.
Well the 'woods' always like to play this up by portraying superhuman status to equate killing in Columbia high school. But we can't simply ignore the dangers now, can we?

*peace*

Terminator Salvation 1st Look

Terminator Salvation..... and just another sexy chica -- no relation to this

That's just me, messing around with the fonts a wee-bit over there. I have been on the wait for the next instalment to the Terminator series and finally its hit the news. Expected date of release on the 22nd May 2009, a day before the Terminatrix in my family was born. This has Bale in the lead, which is a good thing since Bale's been ridin' ski-hi since the success of The Dark Knight (though imho, all kudos should go to Ledger who lived and croaked in the role). Bale stars for the first time as the Christ of the Terminator Series, the Messiah, John Connor, who is leading the human resistance against SkyNet. A new beefcake, who looks to me like a slightly lousy clone of Ah-nuld is the T-800, since the Governator is kinda busy with his appointment at present. Good choice nonetheless. I didnt bother much with the rest of the cast, but it seems to me that this one features alot more H-K patrols, the T-600 series, of which we only had a brief stint by Franco Columbu in the 1st part, more air recon-bots and wayyy more CGI. Opinions are divided across the Net, imdb posters are increasingly skeptical as well since hardcore fans have an issue with T3 still. T3 killed off the whole series many say, but to me, I found it a decent film, not on par with the first two, but definitely a good film in its own right. For one, I found the introduction of an entirely different alternate timeline was good, in this timeline, SkyNet develops the T-X, which seemed way more advanced than the 2nd film's shapeshifting T-1000. In addition to being able to form complex machinery, this T-X had the power to exert control over other machines via the injection of nanites into their circuitry. Just the shapeshifting element was compromized abit though, since the T-X, unlike the purely liquid metal typed T-1000, had a liquid metal exterior with an armored chassis on the inside, somewhat similiar to the T-800 endoskeleton. The action sequences were well done too and Claire Danes was good as Brewster. Hats off to Kristanna Loken too. I have been in love ever since her role as Taja in the Mortal Kombat Conquest tv series. Just Nick Stahl was wayyy off the mark. Imagine the critical character being essayed by a colossal fuckup.

We can only hope the makers of Terminator Salvation take a look at where T3 went wrong and try avoiding the same mistakes. The trailers and promos are available on youtube. I had seen some of those and I must admit, they loook gooooddd!!!! Can't wait for the 22nd May next year!

"
Set in post-apocalyptic 2018, John Connor (Christian Bale), the man fated to be the leader of the human resistance against Skynet and its army of Terminators, and the future he was raised to believe in is altered in part by the appearance of Marcus Wright (Sam Worthington), a stranger whose last memory is of being on death row. Connor must decide whether Marcus has been sent from the future, or rescued from the past. As Skynet prepares its final onslaught, Connor and Marcus both embark on an odyssey that takes them into the heart of Skynet's operations, where they find out a terrible secret that may lead to the possible annihilation of mankind.[1]
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*peace*