Let's talk about special effects

How important are special effects to you?

  • They are absolutely VITAL

    Votes: 2 11.8%

  • Meh, not very important

    Votes: 3 17.6%

  • Depends on the story

    Votes: 12 70.6%
  • Total voters
    17
  • Poll closed .
Anyanka Bunny Slayer

Anyanka Bunny Slayer

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Black Thorn
Tron: Legacy is an eight year old film...I know. But right now, I'm watching it for the first time (no kidding) and I'm blown away by the gorgeousness of the CGI. The story sucks ass 😂 but my God, this film is beautiful.


The original Tron was considered ground-breaking...even Time magazine had a cover story on it, back in 1982. (Some of you might find this hard to believe, but in those days, even the best computer graphics people could NOT create a realistic-looking human being)

Also, the original Tron was blessed by the presence of David Warner, who played the bad guy (of course) and his digitised voice was used for the MCP (Master Control Program). And yay, we have Jeff Bridges as well. 😘


I'm a huge fan of sci-fi and great special effects....story is important, of course. But a few well-placed FX always enhances everything. I'm a total sci-fi nerd, and I'm proud of it. 😛

Thoughts?
 
Wolf of Wall Street has some great special effects. Cant believe that the "new" Tron is eight years old already.
 
Always been more of a 'story person', I guess.
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It depends on the story. I love good CGI in things like the "Jurassic Park" and "Star Wars" franchises, and the MCU and DCEU would be lost without it, but the special effects have to actually advance the story. Just wrecking a building or having a dinosaur stroll across the set for no other reason but that it looks cool doesn't impress me all that much.
 
Well, I enjoyed James Cameron's Avatar just because of the spectacle. I thought it looked amazing. lol

So sure, good CGI and special effects are something I really appreciate and love.
But in the end I don't think you can beat a good story...

/SK
 
Story is important, special effects are extra. Good special effects can improve on a good story, but it won't save a a bad story, IMO.

But then I have a good imagination which probably comes from reading so much. The special effects on a live stage in a school play is enough for me.
 
Depends on the story, special effects tend to bore me and/or take me out of the story.
 
Taake said:
Depends on the story, special effects tend to bore me and/or take me out of the story.
Click to expand...
The best special effects are the ones you don't see. I mentioned Wolf of Wall Street earlier but if you want something more recent look at those amazing special effects in I, Tonya. Special effects were critical in telling that story.

edit: Here, for your reference

and that doesn't even show how the made the triple axel happen
 
Spanky said:
The best special effects are the ones you don't see. I mentioned Wolf of Wall Street earlier but if you want something more recent look at those amazing special effects in I, Tonya. Special effects were critical in telling that story.

edit: Here, for your reference
Click to expand...

Yeah, I guess I tend more to think of flashy stuff a la superhero Movies that you see really clearly when I think special effects. The I, Tonya ones are amazing work. I haven't seen it so I just thought it was Margot Robbie doing all the skating
 
@Taake
Here's a little one on Wolf of Wall Street

Movies would be lost without special effects.
 
I love old physical special effects and learning how they did it. My favourite effects are body horror stuff, like in The Thing, or exploding heads, Scanners style.
 
Spanky said:
Movies would be lost without special effects.
Click to expand...

That I know. I don't think we work with a single one that doesn't have them (so much green-screen work these days). I just don't think about them as such when they're more subtle and more about creating a visual rather than being a central point of the plot/story. It can't look like special effects, to be more precise, for me to not be bothered by them.
 
Great CGI can't save a film from itself. BvS had great CGI but was pretty unwatchable. Same with Last Jedi. But I can still love old films with CGI that does not hold up over the years like Spider-Man 2, which was good, but doesn't hold up too well now.

Terminator 2 holds up brilliantly. Which is insane considering it was made in 1991. It should not still look that good.
 
Bluebird said:
I love old physical special effects and learning how they did it. My favourite effects are body horror stuff, like in The Thing, or exploding heads, Scanners style.
Click to expand...
Practical effects like in The Thing are so fantastic - it blows my mind when they show how they do them.

Spanky said:
@Taake
Here's a little one on Wolf of Wall Street

Movies would be lost without special effects.
Click to expand...

I love videos like that. Really shows you the small details of work that go into making a scene set somewhere else, or adding more people. I remember watching one about the movie Black Swan, which also has some incredible effects. That I, Tonya video is great too. I mean as much as we want to believe that Natalie Portman & Margot Robbie are doing the ballet/skating.... it's not possible to get to that level of skill after a few months of training. It's just not. Effects do an excellent job to help you believe though, and as long as the effects are believeable, they're good effects. As you said, the best ones are the ones you don't see.

Great effects can't save a dud movie though. Transformers has some good practical & CGI effects, but the movies are literally brain-numbingly bad!
 
they're rated as top worst but I gotta say I dig this kind of movies, the worst the special effects the better lmao
 
Ray Harryhausen was a MASTER of stop motion animation. Watch Kali as she dances so fluidly! And her neck is so flexible. This is GORGEOUS!

 
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