Fafhrd on 26/8/2009 at 03:05
Quote Posted by Adam Nuhfer
While you have your thoughts related to said flick, I have mine. I thought this thread was about each individuals thoughts related to
THEIR viewing experience.
Except your post wasn't subjective (Scots's on the other hand, for the most part, was. Hence me not calling HIM stupid). You created a whole laundry list of supposed plot holes that, had you been paying attention to the film and/or used logic, weren't. Thus: idiot. It's also poor form to edit a post nearly a week after making it to remove all evidence of that.
Taffer36 on 26/8/2009 at 03:54
Quote Posted by Scots Taffer
He's basically an unlikable racist prick for 90% of the movie and has one of those CHANGES OF HEART that helps the movie reach a logical conclusion.
Really? I actually find this interesting as I thought he turned from unlikable to good rather early on. Pretty much from the bit where
he's flipping out because they want him to test out the weaponry on the aliens, and onwards towards the media making a mockery of him and him trying to get to his wife, etc.Quote Posted by Adam Nuhfer
While you have your thoughts related to said flick, I have mine. I thought this thread was about each individuals thoughts related to
THEIR viewing experience.
Hey isn't this place a FORUM? You know, where we share our opinions and then analyze each others' opinions before trying to convince them of our opinion?
Scots Taffer on 26/8/2009 at 04:24
Quote Posted by Taffer36
Really? I actually find this interesting as I thought he turned from unlikable to good rather early on. Pretty much from the bit where
he's flipping out because they want him to test out the weaponry on the aliens, and onwards towards the media making a mockery of him and him trying to get to his wife, etc.He has no interest in helping the prawns escape their plight though, yes, he's unwilling to kill one of them but that only identifies him as a non-murderer. Not all racists would kill a black person, even under duress.
He flat out decks the prawn who's most able to help him in the closing act and is keen to separate the kid from its father and prevent all the prawns escaping their situation merely to fulfil his own needs - that's pretty selfish and hard to like.
The media making a mockery of him sort of further served to make him pathetic in the eyes of the audience and hence try to gain some foothold of sympathy, but the device used is comedic in nature and nullifies this effect somewhat.
Stitch on 26/8/2009 at 05:05
"in the eyes of the audience" lol
Scots Taffer on 26/8/2009 at 05:07
tell us how you really feel
Stitch on 26/8/2009 at 05:11
That movie rocked and you can't handle morally ambiguous protagonists!
Scots Taffer on 26/8/2009 at 05:20
Pffft, bullshit. I love a good morally ambiguous anti-hero in a story, see Michael Corleone for example. If you think the change of heart was anything other than "convenient", you're wrong. There wasn't sufficient character development to facilitate the conclusion.
Fafhrd on 26/8/2009 at 05:45
His change of heart isn't as significant as you seem to think it is, Scots. I'd understand your complaint if he'd gone from clocking Christopher with a pipe to actively organizing a full Prawn uprising in the space of five minutes, but all he's doing is protecting the guy who is his one chance of being with his wife again. He went from 'Prawns are disgusting, and the only reason we can't get rid of all of them is because there are international laws protecting them' racist to 'Hey, I've got a Prawn friend!' racist. Frankly, that seems like a pretty realistic arc for someone raised in an institutionally racist society to go through over the course of three days.
ZymeAddict on 26/8/2009 at 06:06
Quote Posted by Scots Taffer
He has no interest in helping the prawns escape their plight though, yes, he's unwilling to kill one of them but that only identifies him as a non-murderer. Not all racists would kill a black person, even under duress.
He flat out decks the prawn who's most able to help him in the closing act and is keen to separate the kid from its father and prevent all the prawns escaping their situation merely to fulfil his own needs - that's pretty selfish and hard to like.
I also don't think that scene was nearly as big an issue for his character arc as you are making it. [spoiler]Remember his situation and what Christopher just told him - that he is going to turn into an alien and there is essentially nothing he can do to stop it. Christopher might,
might, come back in three years and change him back, but Wikus has no real guarantee that this will actually happen.
Yes, what Wikus does is stupid, and somewhat goes against his new appreciation for the aliens, but given his extremely desperate circumstances I think his actions are allowable within the context of the story.[/spoiler]
Ko0K on 26/8/2009 at 07:46
So, yeah... I think it makes total sense for a desperate guy to 1) beat the crap out of the only guy possibly capable of helping him, 2) try his hand at piloting a vehicle without having any clue as to how to dock that thing, and 3) wander around the mile-wide alien ship hoping to find something he can't identify or operate (why, I wouldn't be surprised to see loot glint in the director's cut version). ...as opposed to, say, put a choke hold on the little one and force the dad to cooperate.
I mean, I can forgive some character inconsistencies effected by unintended plot holes, but in this case it seems pretty obvious to me that most of the character issues resulted from the director's attempt at forcing the audience to feel specific ways about the major characters at every turn. I'd think it's entirely possible that he stood in front of the screen with a bunch of cue cards at the premier.
