I've been debating doing another blog for a while, since my last one seemed to piss of he bunny herself, who seemed to take my rant in the first paragraph about the mods on the chat, and seemed to say that's all I said, despite mentioning a good mod by name(Again, Conn), something most people who rant about the chat won't. Hell, I even said I was rarely ever disappointed in the place, usually coming away with a good time when I log in, mostly because I know what I like, and that's what I go for, so I don't end up in an RP I can't stand...most of the time, and so only every once in a while have to say stop to the other person. Is the chat here perfect? Hell no! Is it a fun place to be, and an interesting meeting ground for people who want a good time? Hell YES!!! If you're looking for a fun role play, go on in and see if you can find someone who likes similar themes to you. Yeah, every once in a while you won't find anyone, but if you look hard enough, you almost always will. Those that don't either don't look very hard, or, like Lordrekot whom I mentioned previously, bitch too much about it when they don't, and turn everyone off them. Still, it's a great place, and I would recommend it.

Now then, as to this blog. I debated about a couple of subjects for this, from which SciFi Channel original series are flops, and which are awesome(Farscape is one of the greatest SciFi shows....ever!), to video games I like, to stuff more pertinant to the vore community, like which people are dicks to commission or trade with(You know who you are), and which are awesome(Blondevelvet, Mamabliss, or hell, anyone in my gallery). In the end though, I discarded most of these, mostly because for the SciFi thing, I know more than one person who likes the dull fest Battlestar Galactica, and then games and commissions are all too personal opinion. In the end though, after tonight going to Surrogates, I decided why not rant about that, as it definitely deserves a once over.

First off, I encourage you to go see the movie. It's a great action movie, with a unique premise, and its leading man if Bruce 'Yippie Ki Ya Motherfucker' Willis. The man is a great actor, and his movies continue to prove that a long as you've got a guy named Bruce getting the crap beat out of him, it's gonna be a hit with someone(Evil Dead series is proof of that if nothing else).

However! That is not to say the movie is without it's flaws, and for two major reasons, I feel it is worthy of talking about, mostly because one of those reasons directly relates to the majority here on Eka's, and the second I think, applies to the internet as a whole. So, let's jump right into this, and see if there's a shark somewhere under us.

My first major gripe with this movie is the looks of all the people. Mind you, I am aware that this is a Hollywood movie, and we're led to expect a certain look to it, but this is a future where you can look like anyone you want, and most people would indeed choose to just look like themselves in their prime, with a full head of hair(Seriously Bruce's hair is pathetic, and I think he looks better without anyway), and muscled gently, but not overmuch. This however, is only the majority. The furries would probably pic something a bit...furrier. After all, this is the ultimate expression of you, and while yes, most furries would have a Sur(The films nickname for Surrogates) for work and other business activity, we are clearly shown several recreation scenes where the people are just as human.

And hell, fuck the furries, what about scifi or fantasy people? Those are easier to pull off as most are human based, and not every one of them would require a separate unit for work and pleasure, as you could easily alter them a bit, or just add a bit of clothing to them that would hide those features you'd rather not show off to your boss. Also, about clothing, if these guys are completely not in their bodies, why are they all still clothed? Seriously, you'd expect some nudist trends from this, as much as furries and creatures of myth and scifi. In the end, most of these lack of things other than Hollywood's vision of perfect humanity can be attributed to the budget, which does sometimes dip a bit, but for the most part, is used well. Still, while most people are creatively bankrupt enough to go with the social norm for their Surs, I believe at least a minority would get really weird with it, especially for the party and club scenes we're introduced to.

All that being said, the movie could explain it away as the Surrogates are a recent trend, the movie saying they've only become really common over the last 7 years(15 years since their invention) from where the movie starts, so the trends haven't had time to branch out, but when I'm told in one scene that they can make the face look like anyone you want, I am simply reminded of the lost opportunities the movie presented to the cast, either pushed aside because of current social norms, or simply a budget that couldn't sustain it.

Then there's my second flaw with this movie, the premise that the Surrogates are a bad thing. This is, well, never really explained beyond one guy's marriage having a falling out because his wife won't get out of her Surrogate. This is because she thinks of herself as ugly, despite not really being, and because she works at a shop where she alter Surs, a sort of beauty parlor/mechanic shop. Other than them though, and a vocal minority who are completely against Surrogates, and who's only real claims to moral high ground seem to be shotguns and eating food they grow themselves. Seriously, their small garden couldn't feed a family of four for a month, let alone their community, so obviously they get supplies from outside.

This, I feel, is a shot at the internet itself, as a thing which is making us separate, while giving the illusion of being somewhere else...and it's BULLSHIT!!! I mean, seriously, the comparison is just barely there, seeing as how the internet only allows us to text back and forth, make porn pictures more readily available, and allow people to get specialized fetish sites, like this very one. Other than that though, the Surrogates are shown 1) Allowing police to track suspects more easily, 2) allow people to easily survive otherwise fatal accidents like a helicopter crash, and 3) fight wars without that whole death thing taking its toll on the troops. We clearly see all three of these in the film, and you know what, that's fucking awesome!

Seriously, there is no downside to these things, other than a bit of distance between your real body and the dangers of the real world. Mugging is unknown, after all, you can't really steal money in a world that seems to be completely digital, as we never see a single bill get passed around, and they make a point of telling us that the opening kill in the movie is the first true homicide seen in years, which I feel is a great thing. The movie destroys this though, as it rams down our throats the message that because one cop is frustrated in his relationship with his wife, the whole world is obviously made worse by these things, and it's...well I said it above.

And worst of all, is the epilogue telling us that when the Surrogates shut down, not one person was harmed. Mind you, we are aware that no one travels much anymore, as you can beam yourself into a Surrogate on some exotic beach for a rental price, and thus, there are probably no living people in airplanes that suddenly crash when the pilot at the helm falls over dead, but what about those on the ground below when it comes down in a fiery inferno? Or hell, what about tankers and boats at sea, suddenly rudderless, slamming into beaches and ports, spilling their loads, while also destroying any housing built nearby, causing both an economic as well as an ecological disaster.

Going a bit farther, we are clearly shown doctors have embraced the Surs just like everyone else, and in the U.S. alone, there's anywhere between 1000 and 100000 people in surgery at any one time, and since this was in the middle of the day that this happened, I'd assume the number was closer to the latter, with anyone on the table at the time, getting stabbed through some vital bit when the doctor suddenly fell over. Mind you, most surgeries are because of injury, and considering in this world few people are injured, it would reduce that number considerably, but I count that as another strike against the film as that's yet another good result from this stuff, destroyed because of this one guy.

Damn that was longer than I expected it to be, but it was nice to rant again. As stated, as an action movie, this one's okay, and probably the best you're going to find this month. That's not enough to excuse a piss poor plot though, which begins as a murder mystery, that ends with the murder and the guy who directly hired him dying, but really never giving us any info on if this was a full conspiracy, or just a one man crusade. And hell, the 'good guy' trying to bring down the Surrogates who just goes a bit kill crazy at the end and has to be put down, is not even that likable, considering he's a bloody hypocrite, and goes out of his way to show ways the Surrogates help him at least, while also saying their bad for people in general. Still, it's got a battered and beaten Bruce Willis in it, which is a good reason to go see any movie.0 Comments