Why So Blu?

SDCC 2011 – Relativity Media: Immortals

Saturday was another busy day for San Diego Comic Con.  Unfortunately I was not able to attend the panel in Hall H for Francis Ford Coppola’s new film Twixt, which I have heard was one of the more interesting panels at Comic Con.  However, right after I caught a glimpse of Coppola, I did manage to get seated for the panel that followed afterward, which is the new Greek Myth-themed action epic, Immortals.  While some may be interested (or disinterested) because of its at-first-glance similarities to 300, I have been intrigued by this film due to director Tarsem Singh, who has a unique visual style.  I’ll admit that I was also really hoping to see star Mickey Rourke at the panel as well, but unfortunately he was a no show.  That said, audiences still got to witness a pretty killer panel, as we were treated to some very cool clips from the film and some insight about the production.

As I said, Immortals is the upcoming fantasy epic, set within the realms of Greek mythology.  Here is what Comic Con’s programming had to say about the film and the panel:

Relativity Media: Immortals— Visionary director Tarsem Singh transports viewers in this epic tale of treachery, vengeance, and destiny in this stylish and visually spectacular 3D action adventure. The brutal and bloodthirsty King Hyperion and his murderous Heraklion (Mickey Rourke) rampage across Greece in search of the long lost Bow of Epirus. With the invincible Bow, the king will be able to overthrow the Gods of Olympus and become the undisputed master of his world. As village after village is obliterated, a stonemason named Theseus vows to avenge his mother, who was killed in one of Hyperion’s brutal raids. When Theseus meets the Sybelline Oracle Phaedra, her disturbing visions of the young man’s future convince her that he is the key to stopping the destruction. With her help, Theseus assembles a small band of followers and embraces his destiny in a final, desperate battle for the future of humanity. Stars Henry Cavill, Stephen Dorff, Freida Pinto, Luke Evans, Kellan Lutz will participate in this panel alongside producers Gianni Nunnari and Mark Canton and director Tarsem Singh.

I have also already stated that director Tarsem Singh was a large reason behind my anticipation for Immortals.  For those not familiar with this man, Tarsem is an award winning commercial and music video director, who has gone on to direct a couple theatrical films as well.  These films include The Cell and The Fall.  Both films have very striking imagery, but I particularly enjoy The Fall, which was shot in over 20 different countries, financed mostly by Tarsem, himself, and contains no CGI, despite the surreal look of the film.  Getting a chance to see what Tarsem can do with a big budget studio film, while still being allowed to embrace his own stylistic qualities is quite intriguing to me.  It was noted by Tarsem that the trailers for the film may be pushing a film slightly different than the actual product, as he believes the film has a darker tone than is suggested.  The producers on the panel certainly seemed to be quite pleased with what Tarsem had to offer, as they referred to the look of the film as if it were in “Tarsem Vision”.

Shortly after the panel began, we were shown a new, extended and very R-rated trailer in 3D.  In my notes I put, “very cool and bloody,” which is certainly the reaction that still comes to mind.  I don’t like to keep pointing back to 300 (a film I do like a lot), but fans of it will certainly feel right at home with Immortals and fans of epic fantasy action or Greek Myth stories should feel the same as well.  Knowing that the film was shot with 3D cameras, I was impressed with the imagery that I saw, which did a lot to expand the depth of field and play around with the massive scope that this film presents, such as massive tidal waves or Theseus using his magical bow.

While Mickey Rourke was not present, it was cool to see the rest of the cast on the panel.  In particular, future Man of Steel star, Henry Cavill (the lead in Immortals) was present, showing enough enthusiasm about this film, while keeping a tight lid about anything Superman related.  It did not hurt to see the beautiful Freida Pinto fielding questions about the film as well.  Not being knowledgeable at all about Twilight, I am not sure what to say about the presence of Kellan Lutz, beyond the fact that the ladies in the crowd certainly seemed to love him.  Overall, aside from Stephen Dorff, who seemed to be too overwhelmed by Comic Con’s Hall H to get more involved on a fun level, the panel seemed to be having a lot of fun together.

Aside from the basic panel Q&A, the other big thing that happened at this panel was the large action sequence, which was shown twice (mainly because it’s awesome).  This seen featured a handful of the gods in this film entering a massive room and facing off against a bunch of mud covered creatures.  Lots of action ensued, with many forms of weapons-based fighting and dismemberment.  It was an impressive sequence that appropriately showed off the stylized blood-letting that is going to be seen by all upon this film’s November release.  The action was reminiscent of other action spectacles, such as (once again) 300 as well as the video game series God of War of all things, but still had a slick and striking feel of its own.  There was a sense of scale, which was quite impressive, as were the additional details about Tarsems’s way of building scenes, which very much involved practical sets and not just CG backgrounds.  The whole sequence was quite impressive and has me more excited for the film’s eventual release.

Immortals arrives in theaters on 11-11-11

Immortals Trailer: