There's something about Russian sci-fi movies that have been released in the past ten years or so. The special effects are almost on a par with Hollywood, in that they are very good. It is the story aspect where they still have to catch up. Movies like Nightwatch, Dark Planet, Guardians and Sputnik are visually spectacular with interesting concepts but the storylines feel so rushed, almost like afterthoughts, as if the FX were the main focus.
Coma (or Koma) to me fares slightly better in this regard. The effects are good and there is actually an interesting story that explains this weird and mind-bending/gravity-bending world. It could benefit from more polish and details are quickly glossed over but it's a good start from this director.
The hero of our story, an architect, wakes up one morning to find out his world is literally in bits and pieces, almost Escher-like with multiple surfaces and micro-gravity. To make matters worse, he's chased by this weird-looking apparition that I can only describe as similar to evaporating tar...if you can picture that in your mind.
The rest of the movie explains how everything became the way it is and if you aren't asking too many questions, you should be satisfied with the explanation, to a certain level, anyway.
There are comparisons to Matrix and Inception, and while perfectly reasonable, it's not a complete copy. In fact, I am actually disappointed that they didn't explore this broken world more. There was so much potential in seeing bits and pieces of recognisable cityscapes all jumbled up and jumping into space and landing on your feet sideways on a completely different part of the city (world?).
If you are a sci-fi fan, you should definitely give this movie a try. It's got potential, and if Hollywood ever decided to remake it, I am sure it would be a visual spectacle. I am glad I got to watch it.
Recommended, especially if you are a sci-fi fan looking for something different.
Coma (or Koma) to me fares slightly better in this regard. The effects are good and there is actually an interesting story that explains this weird and mind-bending/gravity-bending world. It could benefit from more polish and details are quickly glossed over but it's a good start from this director.
The hero of our story, an architect, wakes up one morning to find out his world is literally in bits and pieces, almost Escher-like with multiple surfaces and micro-gravity. To make matters worse, he's chased by this weird-looking apparition that I can only describe as similar to evaporating tar...if you can picture that in your mind.
The rest of the movie explains how everything became the way it is and if you aren't asking too many questions, you should be satisfied with the explanation, to a certain level, anyway.
There are comparisons to Matrix and Inception, and while perfectly reasonable, it's not a complete copy. In fact, I am actually disappointed that they didn't explore this broken world more. There was so much potential in seeing bits and pieces of recognisable cityscapes all jumbled up and jumping into space and landing on your feet sideways on a completely different part of the city (world?).
If you are a sci-fi fan, you should definitely give this movie a try. It's got potential, and if Hollywood ever decided to remake it, I am sure it would be a visual spectacle. I am glad I got to watch it.
Recommended, especially if you are a sci-fi fan looking for something different.