It's tomorrow once more
'Sky Captain' and the world that sort-of never was
By Todd Leopold
CNN
 |  Gwyneth Paltrow and Jude Law star in "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow." |
| |
| | FACT BOX |  "Eye on Entertainment" talks about the weekend's happenings on CNN's "Live Today" between 10 a.m. and noon EST Thursday. |
|
(CNN) -- It was a glorious world: the World of Tomorrow.
"Underneath the clouds in the air/Rose the Trylon and the Perisphere," sang Aimee Mann in her song "Fifty Years After the Fair." "And that for me was the finest of scenes/That perfect world across the river in Queens."
The "perfect world" was the art deco, streamlined vision of the future at the 1939 New York World's Fair.
In the years to come, the fair proclaimed, there would be television! And superhighways! And direct-dial long-distance telephone calls! Not to mention happy farmers and workers, robot servants and -- of course -- international cooperation.
David Gelernter's immensely entertaining and thought-provoking book "1939: The Lost World of the Fair" travels that world in depth and despairs that -- if much of it came into being in the end -- it didn't happen in the optimistic way the fair proposed.
Indeed, the real world was on the cusp of eras then. The worst of the Great Depression was over, and Americans were full of hope for the future. But right around the corner was the carnage of World War II, which began a scant four months and one day after the fair opened on April 30, 1939.
Now a new movie, "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow," blends the look -- and some of the technology -- of the 1939 fair with the ominous war clouds to come, mixing in some science fiction, comic books, movie stock characters (the noble pilot, the hard-bitten woman reporter) and the latest in computer-generated artistry.
Eye on Entertainment spares a dime.
Eye-opener
Something about the art-deco look of the late '20s and 1930s still purrs "futuristic," even when the inventions pictured have come and gone.
It was a time when dirigibles, ungainly yet dramatic, were going to carry the public; the mast on the top of the Empire State Building was originally included to serve as an airship port. And clean lines and chrome were supposed to be the coming thing. Chrysler even introduced an aerodynamic car, the Airflow, in 1934. Alas, it flopped.
Movies reflected the appeal of the look.
"Metropolis," one of the most famous movie visions of the future, came out in 1927, but its style was informed by the minimalist Bauhaus architecture that would become popular in the coming years. "Things to Come" (1936), based on H.G. Wells' story of world war followed by scientific advance, took 1930s design to new levels.
Even "Brazil" (1985), Terry Gilliam's story of a surrealist dystopia, made use of pneumatic tubes and small black-and-white video screens (not to mention plenty of exposed ductwork) to emphasize its past-future imagery.
"Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow" makes the future look like the past in a number of ways. The film's creators -- after its actors performed against blue screens -- filled in the backgrounds with sepia-toned computer imagery. The actors wear period dress. And even the items that have yet to be invented, such as ray guns and birdlike planes, have the gleaming design elements of a Miami Beach townhouse.
But there are also nods to a world gone by. For example, Dex (Giovanni Ribisi), Sky Captain's sidekick, uses a compass, protractor and slide rule to work out navigational concerns. How quaint.
"Sky Captain" isn't just a triumph of design and technology, however. Early reviews have praised its script, acting and directing. "A living, breathing comic book," wrote one critic. "Say hello to the best film of 2004," noted another.
The film stars Jude Law as Joe "Sky Captain" Sullivan, Gwyneth Paltrow as intrepid reporter Polly Perkins and Angelina Jolie as Franky, leader of an all-woman flying squadron. It's director Kerry Conran's first major film, and he's been reaping plaudits -- including some for his brazen decision to cast the late Laurence Olivier in a key role with the help of technology.
"Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow" opens Friday.
On screen
In "Mr. 3000," a self-centered baseball player portrayed by Bernie Mac retires upon hitting that magic number of hits -- only to find, several years later, he's actually three hits short. So he gets back into shape, rejoins his old team, and you can probably guess the rest. With Angela Bassett and several ESPN employees. Opens Friday.When a faded British tennis star (Paul Bettany) meets an brash American (Kirsten Dunst) at Wimbledon, it's a love match. Get it? "Love" match? Maybe you'll be more entertained by the movie. "Wimbledon" opens Friday.The ads make "Silver City" appear to be about befuddled, dopey Colorado gubernatorial candidate Dickie Pilager (Chris Cooper), but writer-director John Sayles has bigger things on his mind -- such as the whole politico-media-industrial complex. Among the characters involved: an apathetic investigator (Danny Huston), a cynical reporter (Maria Bello), a conniving campaign manager (Richard Dreyfuss) and a craven real estate developer (David Clennon). Opens Friday in major cities.On the tube
"Survivor" travels to one of the world's youngest countries (24 years old this year) for "Survivor: Vanuatu." 8 p.m. ET Thursday, CBS."Everybody Loves Raymond" begins its last season at 9 p.m. ET Monday on CBS.Sound waves
The new album by Green Day, "American Idiot" (Warner Bros.), has been hailed by Newsweek as a masterpiece. Green Day? Masterpiece? It may just be true. The album comes out Tuesday. John Fogerty's first album in seven years, "Deja Vu All Over Again" (Geffen), comes out Tuesday.Elvis Costello's first album for Lost Highway Records -- the wonderful home of Lucinda Williams, Lyle Lovett and Ryan Adams -- is "The Delivery Man." The release date is Tuesday.Paging readers
We've all had to wade through turgid, politically correct (or elidingly incorrect) American history textbooks when we all know that real American history is a heck of a lot more interesting. (Did you know Richard Nixon won $10,000 playing poker during World War II? That an American U.N. ambassador once suggested the Arabs and Jews settle their differences "like good Christians"? All true.) To the rescue: "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Presents America (The Book)" (Warner Books). After all, when you want the news behind the news cater-cornered to the other news, "The Daily Show" is where to turn. Releases Tuesday. The most depressing book of the year, one with no hope and no joy (but excellent and precise use of English), comes out Tuesday: "The Grim Grotto" (HarperCollins), the latest in Lemony Snicket's "A Series of Unfortunate Events." If you're looking for fun and happiness, you'd do well to steer away from the Beaudelaire children ... but, as with viewing a car accident, it's hard to avert one's eyes. Video center
Listen to the fanfare and be prepared to complain about George Lucas' tweaks: The original "Star Wars" trilogy -- "Star Wars," "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Return of the Jedi" -- comes out Tuesday from 20th Century Fox Home Video. Lucas, unhappy with the puppets and some of the effects, has gone in with his digital eraser and thrown in some computer-generated imagery -- much to the chagrin of many fans who were perfectly happy with the originals.From CGI to shoestrings: a John Cassavetes DVD box, including "Shadows," "Faces," "A Woman Under the Influence," "The Killing of a Chinese Bookie" and "Opening Night," comes out Tuesday from the Criterion Collection.
