Friday, June 20, 2008

Eclipse

Authors: Marcus Dennis
Location: N/A

"Eclipse”

Directed by Steven Spielberg
Written by Eric Roth and Paul Haggis
Cinematography by Thierry Arbogast (Leon, The Fifth Element)
Makeup by The Weta Workshop
Visual Effects by Industrial Lights and Magic
Score by John Williams

Principal Cast:

Ed Harris-Jonathan Hammel
Jack Nicholson-William Stokely
Nicolas Cage-Raymond
George Clooney-John Tyler
Ron Perlman-Deacon Fearonone
Vin Diesel-Akril Fearonone
Kimberly Elise-Elizabeth

Tagline: "Their are no winners in war"

Synopsis: In an alternate galaxy, there are two main worlds: Earth & Erigold. An alien species known as Lackins resides on Erigold. Humans and Lackins have co-existed and lived together on their respected planets for years. However, during the last decade, animosity between the two species has started to rise, because of Earth’s bullying of Erigold’s government. The tension potboils over when a group of Lackin terrorists murder over a hundred humans. This causes immediate tension between the two governments. Earth’s secretary of defense launches an attack on a city in Lackin. This results in an all-out galactic war. Erigold’s ruler is Deacon Fearonone (Ron Perlman). He is honorable, but sometimes soft. His second-in-command is his younger brother, Akril (Vin Diesel). Akril is violent and believes that humans are an inferior species. He tries to force his views on Deacon, but his brother will not listen. Akril longs for the day that Lackins rule the galaxy as a dictatorship.

Earth’s ruler is Jonathan Hammel (Ed Harris). He is very peaceful and detests war. His secretary of defense is Williams Stokely (Jack Nicholson). William is a violent man who, like Akril, detests the opposite species. After a group of terrorists (Lead by Peter Saarsgard) murder hundreds of Humans. William goes behind Jonathan’s back and launches an attack on a city in Lackins. Deacon chalks this up as a misunderstanding and refuses to launch war. In a fit of anger, his brother Akril murders him and assumes command of Lackins. He then launches a full-scale attack on Earth and takes over it’s most beloved city, New York. Williams & Jonathan must put aside their personal differences and save Earth from annihilation.

Raymond (Nicolas Cage) and Elizabeth (Kimberly Elise) love each other, like any other couple. Their only problem is that Elizabeth comes from a wealthy Lackin family and Raymond is a struggling human actor. Their relationship is mildly hectic because of this, but their love for each other is immense. During the war, they question whether they’re species will affect the world’s views on their relationship. John Tyler (George Clooney) spearheads the team assigned to take back New York. This battle will decide the fate of the universe.

What the press would say:

This epic masterpiece directed by the master of atmosphere, Steven Spielberg, will no doubt be the frontrunner at the Oscars. The makeup, done by the same company who perfected “The Lord of the Rings Trilogy” completely masks the actors and aids them into becoming a character. The visual effects are so realistic that many viewers cried in theatres during the destruction of New York. Ron Perlman and Vin Diesel give great performances as brothers who trying to convert the others to do what they think is right. Vin Diesel really surprises here with this aggressive, yet emotional performance. Jack Nicholson takes his usual tough guy performance to another level. His intensity and fearness works great with Ed Harris’ calmness, sensitivity, and patience. Nicolas Cage and Kimberly Elise give the best performances in the entire film as mismatched lovers whose love is tested during war. With battle scenes that can scare a viewer and a commanding score by the legendary John Williams, Eclipse will definitely take the Golden Man.

Best Picture
Best Director: Steven Spielberg
Best Orig. Screenplay: Paul Haggis & Eric Roth
Best Actor: Vin Diesel
Best Supporting Actor: Nicolas Cage
Best Supporting Actor: Jack Nicholson
Best Supporting Actress: Kimberly Elise
Best Cinematography
Best Art Direction
Best Makeup
Best Sound
Best Editing
Best Sound Editing
Best Visual Effects
Best Score: John Williams

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