Check out: Alita, but beware the sci-fi deja vu
OPINION: At some point, Hollywood, in theory, had to run out of ideas.
That film about superheroes? Done that, ad infinitum. That live action remake of a beloved cartoon classic? Tick, but worry not, we've got a few of those left to go.
That sci-fi story about a robot becoming human? Yeah, we've done that a few times now, but let's blast it one more time with state of the art graphics, from New Zealand's finest.
This is the very real problem facing Alita: Battle Angel - a feeling of deja vu.
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* Alita: Battle Angel: James Cameron and Weta Digital's jaw-dropping collaboration
* Bird Box: Netflix's thrilling premise let down by deja vu, hokey ending
* Weta Digital wizardry showcased in action-packed new Alita: Battle Angel trailer
* Why we still care about the original Blade Runner 35 years later
The adaptation of Japanese manga Gunnm, the Robert Rodriguez directed love story Alita is a stunning piece of visual world-building.
With an opening reminiscent of District 9's spaceships-in-the-sky setting, the film feels like WETA Digital's gone into overdrive, its seamless integration of technology into human lives and vistas leaping off the screen.
And yet, as James Cameron's two-decades-in-the-making piece continues, it starts to feel very familiar, and also, bizarrely, ends up feeling two decades too late.
Anchored by a Pinocchio-esque turn from a humane Christoph Waltz as a doctor who fixes cyborgs, and from Bird Box's Rosa Salazar as the robot-with-amnesia Alita, it's less whether androids dream of electric sheep, more a case of androids - and audiences - suffering from a recurring dream.
All the pieces are ripped from sci-fi tropes, the societal ideas torn from last year's Mortal Engines, and also the mistrust of a cyborg lead from the Ghost In The Shell remake.
It's a frustration and a pity, because Alita: Battle Angel is a sumptuous feast for the eyes, but even with a love story central to proceedings, it's an emotionally hollow one for the soul; and its conclusion, which hints at more, makes the previous 145 minutes feel incomplete and low stakes.
Far Cry: New Dawn (consoles, PC) doesn't mess with the formula of previous Far Cry games. But the day-glo covered proceedings make this Far Cry 5 spin-off as pertinent as any other of the entrants.
Criminally overlooked at the cinema, American Animals is the thrillingly-executed story of a true life heist. Slippery and delirious, it's a riot that's infinitely better than any Ocean's 11 film.
IF YOU HAVE A MOMENT THIS WEEKEND
There's no denying the gaming industry is getting bigger.
After DJ Marshmello's in-game concert in Fortnite, and free-to-play shooter Apex Legends scoring millions of users in its launch, it appears everyone's taking note.
But a growing trend is getting Hollywood directors to help launch them.
The latest to be snared in the net, and a perfect symbiosis, is South African director Neill Blomkamp and upcoming EA game Anthem.
Blomkamp has just delivered a short film, Anthem Conviction, set decades before the events within the game with the help of his production house. The director gained notoriety for his short film Alive in Joburg, which went on to form District 9, trialled CHAPPIE as a short and has already got some form in the gaming world, having made a short film based on XBox franchise, Halo.
His Anthem Conviction announcement earlier this week sent the internet into meltdown and this back to basics approach and embracing of creating a world around a new IP. This creativity shows the studio's getting more serious about its games as a whole, rather than just a smash'n'grab run for cash.
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