Return of the Dragon
Lysander Luddite writes: "More CG actors, this time of Bruce Lee in a film tentatively titled "Dragon Warrior" by Korean filmmaker Chul Shin. Wired has the details. Compare to an older Wired article when this type of thing was just beginning." There's a Reuters article too.
I can just imagine that what Hollywood wants is to be able to by the rights to the images of famous actors from their estates, so that they can pump out endless movies with familiar faces on the cheap. Just think of those commercials from a few years ago where bogart and wayne were seen to be pushing coca cola.
If they had a chance, they would likely jump at the chance. Never mind someone who looks like some celebrity, but isn't quite. I can just see the law suits now!
I recall some story on slash a while back about the chance of thise sort of thing happening down the road with digital actors on your computer desktop. (I think this was about using a gaming system as a movie production tool) A movie file then would in some way be sort of similar to a MIDI file, specifying the actors actions. There are obvious applications for all varieties of "Home Entertainment" projects (quit leering!)
"It is a greater offense to steal men's labor, than their clothes"
Luck favors the prepared, darling.
But I still don't think its right. I'm a huge Bruce Lee fan but it just doesn't seem right to resurrect him as a Digital Zombie. Are we going to see a film starring Bruce and his son Brandon (who was killed while filming The Crow)? I'd rather just enjoy the films he did make. There still isn't anyone who can move like he did.
Remember Lexington Green!
Shin is looking for an actor whose voice resembles Lee's voice to read his lines; he says it's a relatively simple task to digitally doctor the voice to make it a near-exact replica of Lee's voice.
...
Shin also has a short list of Asian martial arts performers who have learned to imitate Lee's moves very closely. He plans to film them using motion capture equipment that he can then incorporate into his digital Bruce Lee models -- giving fight sequences a natural flow.
so.. he's going to have a Lee talkalike and a Lee fightalike, and potentially a Lee lookalike (for wide shots and such). so why not just use them, and traditional photography, instead of trying to resurrect Bruce Himself through technology? Hell, Brandon Lee did an admirable job in his shot at it.
the result would likely be a better homage to Lee, and less the necropheliac masturbation that has been the result of similar efforts thus far.
let the dead stay dead, dammit. especially the dead guys we liked when they were alive.
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