Hello Beauty Besties, and welcome back to "Movies and the Beast".
As you may have understood, today we won't be talking about a movie, but videogames instead.
Then you will ask: "Alfred, why talking about a videogame in a cinema rubric? What for?
Well, how you're right.
Infact, I would like to explain my attempt with this little premise.
I'm talking to all the videogamers around the world of every age,
but expecially the ones of the 90's/91's class.
Do you remember the very firts videogames?
"Super Mario", "Sonic", "Crash Bandicoot", "Spyro" and stuff like that.
I mean, videogames of those old consolles.
There, just where the graphics was a very lacking element, almost sinful,
it used to give you the chance to see what the videogames effectively was. More:
it was giving you the chance to figure out what would be happening around the plot and the story,
in this little pixels graphics or a graphics from consolles that, those times, due to technology
or due to the choice to upgrade step by step, was anyway poor.
Anyway, the paradox was that, if the graphics was in the background, almost mediocre, the fun was guaranteed.
Going ahead, from PS2 the fun was growing for a very little, but it was present.
From PS3, what do I tell ya, you know what happened...
there had been a lot of... "Cinematography", it's the only word I can think about, within the game.
It's no more a game where you just play and imagine how will it be, also scenarios, going ahead,
everything is slammed in your face
due to these scenes where you just have to grab a popcorn or chips bowl, a cola bottle and enjoy the show.
The videogames I will speak about will be the ones in the category: "Videogames". Just it.
So, a game made to have fun, to entertain
and give you the chance to imagine, even if everyone knows the story of this daily videogame
"Crash Bandicoot", but the "N Sane Trilogy", the PS4 remake.
Everybody knows the story, there's nothing to imagine about.
There will hardly exist other videogames that give you the chance to, at least figure out or
a nice dream about scenarios, going ahead.
Now, end of the premise and let's talk about "Crash Bandicoot N Sane Trilogy".
I repeat: it's a remake for PS4, with a better graphics identical both on the cutscenes and on the game itself,
and I do not approve so much this point, since to me there has to be a difference between the cutscene
- so the "cinema" section and the videogame, so the "entertainment",
but these are details.
Naughty Dog's leaders... Naughty Dog has failed, as I suppose, so I don't know
the producers of this "N Sane Trilogy", but they have been smart:
instead creating a reboot like "Crash Bandicoot" PS2 titles
where they upset look and origins of each character, included the two masks, Aku Aku and Uka Uka,
here they choose to realize an elementar remake with a reinvented graphics.
So, the game system is the same of the old 90's game. Levels too.
Pattern and sprite... oh well, sprite, sprite are made with this 3D graphics,
but it's the same of the Naughty Dog's game.
So Alfred, why are you talking about this videogame, you'll be asking.
I won't make a list of the five points as I do with every good or bad movie
but I'll tell my instant views, since I don't have a PS4 and I do not intend to buy it at least at the moment,
even when it'll arrive "Kingdom Hearts 3" - other game born as a jewel and become a trash, I'll review it.
So I specify: I have not played to "N Sane Trilogy" but I've seen the entire gameplay on YouTube,
so the graphic has chanceg, I won't ever repeat again,
the scenes have been modified a bit, it's cleat that in a scene with old graphics and a PS4 graphic
there has to be a little change, for example a comic scene they could afford,
as example Crash that awakens with a jumpscare, hits against the door, it opens and Coco grabs him in.
That wasn't in the first ones, but as I said: details.
A point I dit not approve, surely with a long story of contracts and copyright
- better not talking about that, because thanks to a contract today I'm without a drummer for my band -
so there had been contracts and copyright legal battles that have limited or forbidden
cutscenes or better, audio files of the Naughty Dog's games,
so they had to change old voice actors with new ones.
We won't have Clancy Brown here, the great Clancy Brown, the mighty villain in "Highlander", dubbing Cortex
but this aLex Lang. The same thing for the other ones, so the voice acting change,
both in original and in italian language, particularly in italian, I did not approve.
Italian voice actors of the firts title, or better from the second one, since the first was dubbed in native tongue,
here is also translated in italian.
Italian voice actors from "Crash Bandicoot 2" to the latest PS2 videogames,
I mean the game where Cortex is dubbed by Mago Forrest (italian comedian),
these voice actors just disappeared in the void.
Most of them were, I don't want to say that, but they were swain with a terrible diction.
But, despite this, you used to affectionate. So hearing these voices replaced by new and professional ones
and you arrive to feel this kind of nostalgia.
But I say that if do not like at all this new Cortex's voice actor, I can't say that about Uka Uka.
The italian voice is perfect. I still remember that swain voice in "CTR", totally without any kind of emotion,
and also in "Crash Bandicoot Warped", where he sounded, when angry, totally incomprehensible
something like the gorilla from "Who framed Roger Rabbit?".
Here I have to admit that really, really pissed off Uka Uka. The voice actor of this new Uka Uka
- that has a perfect design -
doesn't know that the calm is, always screaming, sounds like Hitler, but is a very good voice.
I said that, as well as other characters' CGI graphics, I like Uka Uka's sprite,
but I can't say the same about Cortex. Wanna know why? Because Cortex,
in each scene of this "N Sane Trilogy" is a ridiculed character.
Remember Cortex in "Crash Bandicoot 2" when, especially, he was laughing? He was creepy.
He did't make these stupid faces :D D: -.o like this new counterpart.
But, just due to that imperfect graphics, he was still creepy when he was laughing.
It just worked. He didn't do stupid faces, he laughed with angry eyes,
a well set voice that used to give you the feeling that something wasn't right, like in the third title.
Here instead he has been made too much harmless and not at all creepy.
Trust me guys: the Cortex in the first titles was, in his way, creepy.
At least before discovering that he was Uka Uka's henchman, so that if Cortex was the dumb Darth Vader,
Uka Uka was the pissed off Emperor.
Other details: Ripper Roo's laughter.
Why not use the Hyena's laughter from "Lady and the Tramp" used as a repertory file, they changed it.
This is a "no no", guys. It's still an iconic sound. Like I would make a "Final Fantasy XI" remake in a perfect CGI,
without Kefka's laughter. Ok, that was an 8bit FX sound, ok, but if I create a laughter different from that
[Kefka's laughter]
and give him a laughter identical to a Weasel from "Who framed Roger Rabbit?" or a Hyena from "The lion king"
people will feel like having been stabbed behind, betrayed.
Ah yes, almost forgot. I have to appreciate particularly the musics, that remained the same
but in a more realistic and rocking way! \m/ \m/
Cortex's theme for the entire life!
Now, let's say I'm closing.
I'm not narrating the three stories of "Crash Bandicoot".
First title, he turns against Cortex and has to save Tawna,
extremely sexy bandicoot that won't ever reappear again in other chapters.
"Crash 2" Cortex tries to persuade Crash in collecting for him gems and crystals in order to save the planet
when he just wanted to domain it. And "Crash 3" Uka Uka awakens
and so Crash, Coco and Aku Aku have to stop him.
I think they have been intelligent in doing just this remake, just the first three chapters,
because to me "Crash Bandicoot" ends properly on "Warped".
Leave out "CTR" and "Crash Bash", this one I don't like it, because I see them as not completely canonical.
Surely the story will go on, but is there some reason in Uka Uka's return and that in "CTR" he is a pacific referee?
Same thing in "Crash Bash". Why Aku Aku and Uka Uka can't fight due to the Ancients' will
when on the third title they was beating the hell out of them also killing Crash in he, poor fellow,
if he was standing in the middle.
So, remake, reboot, CGI or cheap CG I have to say it has been a resurrection of an ancient videogame
that has not to be forgotten and, despite other garbages like remake, reboot, spin-off
and other bullshits like that, both in cinema and videogames, and I'm not making names.
- cough cough!, "Resident Evil" -
it has been a smarter move and, at least, appreciated.
I close here.
I'm not sure to play this "N Sane Trilogy" since I don't have a PS4 and have no intention to buy one so soon,
but if some friend has it, I will surely have a game.
I say bye bye here, and I promise you that from the next review
I will do what I would had liked to do this week but I couldn't due to time, money and job
- now I work in a theatre -
I'm talking about reviews of many cool horror movies came out in the theatres or seen on Sky Ondemand.
Again, bye bye and see you soon on "Movies and the Beast" with other videogames reviews.
I won't make spoilers about the next videogame title, but I guarantee that the matrix is more or less
similar to the process adapted with, "N Sane Trilogy", even if it goes back about ten years.
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