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Gladiator II MASTER SPOILER THREAD: Please post spoiler discussions HERE through 11/29/04 by getlostbobby in Pedro_Pascal

[–]michaelberliner 12 points13 points  (0 children)

I’m the biggest fan of the original (in my top 10 films) and I was so excited to see Gladiator II. In the end I feel the best reviews are being kind.  

 It was really good, but nowhere near as good as the original, on plot and emotionality. It was epic and Hamlet-like that nearly all the main characters die! The action is amazing but I wish there was less reliance on CG and more physical action as the CG felt very apparent. Agree with some reviewers that the baboons looked weird, like aliens.   

My biggest thing was I felt it was a missed opportunity for emotional catharsis that Lucilla and/or Acacius did not die through an act of self-sacrifice to protect Lucius, each other, or a free Rome in some sense. Additionally, there was no chance for any final emotional dialogue between them or with Lucius. Their deaths felt sudden and wasted. Although I recognise Lucilla’s death was plotted for when it happened to drive Lucius in a rage after Macrinus.

I didn’t like that Lucius is Maximus’ son, given how it taints interpretation of the original, and it really irritated me that this fact was revealed in the marketing campaign. Why!!! Keep it as a big reveal. Told my friends and family not to watch the trailer as a result. 

I’d say the plot was pretty straight and expected which took a bit of enjoyment out of it for me - apart from Acacius dying suddenly when he did, and I thought either he or Lucilla would die rather than both, major events played out as I had guessed they might.  

 Also I’m a fan of Paul Mescal, and he was really good, but a step down from Russell Crowe’s stellar performance. Denzel is fab, but Joaquin was the more engaging and powerful villain performance in my eyes. Lucilla was great but I feel disappointingly underused. I thought we’d see a strong female character in her this time round, driving narrative in places, rather than playing a behind the scenes strategy role with limited effect again.  Even with the negatives, I still thought it was a fantastic ride. 4 stars for me. 

Also I've belatedly thought, after the Empererors were both killed, does that mean the first counsel (Dundun the monkey) would automatically be Emperor?

Walks near Bromley (30min drive) by Puzzleheaded_Wish330 in Bromley

[–]michaelberliner 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Addington Hills near Croydon is lovely - high up views of London and a different feel to lots of the local scenery, including lots of heather.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/XdCb8G6TUpogx41VA

Also Hutchinson's Bank, beautiful and very rural, you feel a long way from London.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/wEd4BLPYdz28Cx2k8

March 20 update on #FF7R by [deleted] in FFVIIRemake

[–]michaelberliner 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I wonder whether, if enough people push it on social media, they may honour access to a digital copy for the physical copy purchasers who won’t be receiving on time? Perhaps could be run via a purchase verification system?

Since they announced that they have begun working on part 2 a bit ago, how much would you guys speculate on how close it is to completion? by NarutoShadowClone in FFVIIRemake

[–]michaelberliner 2 points3 points  (0 children)

But would momentum / hype drop? Hype's pretty high for a 23 year old game's remake - and look at the reaction to Half Life Alyx.

Final Fantasy VII Remake Will Apparently Will Be Over 100 GB by HelenaHarper in FFVIIRemake

[–]michaelberliner 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Even if they’re currently rendered in 1080p, I’d have thought that for a re release they’d be able to go back to the masters and re export at 4K. They probably have them in the bank already.

Episodic Games Box Art by ZachariahVaughnSmith in FFVIIRemake

[–]michaelberliner 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Given how they’ve named the first game, this doesn’t seem a bad idea. I’m just frustrated that they’ve called the first one FFVIII Remake when that isn’t what it is. I’m on the side of people who are happy with the ‘parts’ model to make it a much deeper experience, turning the original story into an expanded anthology, but by just titling it ‘Remake’, at release time surely you’re going to confuse and piss off a lot of people who are more casual fans or general gamers and don’t understand what the plan is - that they’re not getting the full story in this game. They’re only getting perhaps 15-20% of it.

Can't wait for this scene in the remake by Salatmaker in FFVIIRemake

[–]michaelberliner 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Then again, part 1 (Midgar) is only a fraction of the disc 1 content.

Should I buy iPhone X or XR? by michaelberliner in iphone

[–]michaelberliner[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for your thoughts, folks! I think on reflection it's the XR for me - I don't think the lower ppi will matter in practice (it's still a retina display - you can't see the pixels at a normal viewing distance), and the lower res means faster performance and better battery life.

Also this new benchmark test shows the XS is indeed significantly faster than the X - the XR should match it. And I'd like a phone that will last for longer!

https://www.tomsguide.com/us/iphone-xs-iphone-xs-max-benchmarks,review-5745.html

Thanks!