Its modelling is not particularly detailed and the use of materials dances on the vague line between a cartoon and a realistic computer animation. But its consistency makes the impression that it is grounded in artistic intention and not in accidental scheduling shortage. I think the result is a unique and phenomenal experience.
As an opening we see an inside view of an ancient cathedral. This is a rather strange choice for a cyberpunk setting. Well it tells us that humanity does not change and history remains the same all the time. Every cathedral has been built for generations and its stones were fastened by the blood of those generations. It is very similar to huge corporations and our everyday technical luxury.
After the opening picture we step inside the scene while it is indeterminate whether we stay inside the building or move out of it. We see a couple of old medical tools from the renaissance on a table and then the camera slowly moves from the tools, up to the physicians who examine a body. It is a clear reference to Rembrandt obviously.
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| Rembrandt: Anatomy Lesson 1632 |
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| Daedalus and Icarus fresco, villa imperiale, Pompeii |
However complex it is the angel becomes Icarus who wants to fly into the sun but his wings cannot stand the heat so he falls back to the earth.
Think about this dream for a second. The ancient desire of mankind is to become inhuman in a good sense and become something more than human like an angel. This dream goes back even beyond the middle ages. This attempt is something similar to the impossible ancient greek dream to reach the sun. And building cathedrals serves the same goal, to make people to be able to became more than ordinary people.
Science and technology serves the same goals. It wants us to be more and more powerful, this is again some kind of the wish to become gods but not by ethical means but by technical, practical means. I think this dream set is just a beautiful concept work so well done.
Some remarks about this and the cartoon impression. However I think that cartoon is still quite missing from 3D the cartoon taste in a realistic animation still gives the impression of incompleteness or roughness. So this is a delicate tool and I am not sure which side does it fall in this animation (a failure in render or a vague artistic concept). In the dream sequence this is quite understandable and afterwards the handling of light is still cartoonish however nice it is due to technical limitations. If conceptual it is too modest, if render mistake it needs some improvements still.
Still in the dream scene I miss some nice fire effects when the wings burn off the man. This is not a big deal since it is a dream anyway. Well it is hard to justify anything concerning a dream for it is a personal matter and in dreams anything is possible. So not a big deal whether it is a flaming wing or just burns off. However the dust render is beautiful in the beginning and the transformation from man to angel is again very smooth the lights near the sun become unrealistic. Of course one could say that nobody knows how do people look like so close to the sun, it still does not feel real. I would drop even more contrast and brightness to the face for this way it looks really cartoonish. (just around 0.54 when he screams towards the sun.) Maybe a shot from more distance could have done it, or some blurriness by the resonance of the camera, really hard to decide. But the render there is not perfect that is for sure. The fall is again not the nicest moment. He falls back like an automatic doll in pads. Dead body, open eyes and tiny movements at the legs. I think a turn of the body makes it more dynamic, or if dead-dropped then wide-open arms, more emphasis on the weaving hair (maybe a close-up instead of this far shot).
The next scene is again a perfect, timeless place. The contrast between the classic metaphor-myth and the futuristic hands in a poor twentieth century room is phenomenal. The script here is very good. After the long, silent dream the voice of the hero just elevates the atmosphere. After the poetic dream (which fits perfectly with the lost/augmented arms as a metaphor) there comes a nightmare, reality. It is again a nice contrast (with the calm motel room as well). Now this conflict is just hanging out of the smoothness of the clip. I mean this nightmare. I understand that one could reason that it is a nightmare that is why it is completely different. But well it seems as if they have put some gameplay into the cinematic. The renders are rough and the animation is lame. I do not understand this part of the trailer. Maybe it has exact match to the game so one can replay this part in the game and this all has some marketing purpose. Anyway after this there comes the great sentence and the great truth which is just great since this is a cyberpunk universe where everybody is a philosopher. I love that how he says that "if you want to make enemies try to change something" while he lights his cigar, we see the beautiful augmented arms reaching for the glass of alcohol (I could not read the name of it) over a huge gun. After that before he drinks from it the glass slowly cracks in his hand. It is a shame that the glass is not cracked later when he is sitting in the armchair but it is barely noticeable. And again a nice thing of rhythm that with the music the camera and the set starts to move (we see the big picture with the big truths as the birds fly away). Again there is some mess around the blinds and their shadows remaining in the room after the blinds are gone. But it is indeed a beautiful effect and it must have been hard to decide whether to lift the blinds or keep their shadows. Well this ambivalent render might not have been the best choice since this is not a dream any more.
We see the big innovations and after they are mentioned however they are quite out of context and this part have more underdeveloped scenes. It seems that the machine-gun hand is not shooting to anyone however it looks cool it hangs in the air. Again there are some render problems on the policeman and I don't understand the animation of the news-woman. Actually for the first time I thought she is a hologram or a robot in the context of the trailer which is possible but I think she is on that thin line where it depends on me whether I see a good robot or a bad human character. I think more emphasis on her robotness would have been an improvement to eliminate ambiguity. Still the development of the universe is great, the way how the scope broadens is magnificent. One small bit of lack of life in animation again at the street shot at 2.36 when Adam walks on the street he just moves unrealistically. I mean he is like a robot there, he is not looking anywhere and not going anywhere. It is a short shot but quite demolishing. Thank the maker, the next scene is again... well phenomenal! "These people Adam, they are like ghosts..."
To be continued...
Deus Ex - Human revolution trailer II. (Director Cut)
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