[Weekly Update] Let's talk more about bad CGI

If I become exceptionally productive in the next few days, that's probably because the Quebec wild fire is making the air practically unbreathable here in Montreal. I can't go outside.

WEEKLY UPDATE

Hope you enjoy our last video on bad Hong Kong fight scenes ruined by CGI. As expected, all of the films mentioned have fans, and the reaction to the criticism is diverse. A lot of people enjoyed the films but realized just how dated everything is upon watching the video, while others think the CG was good for its time. What do you think?

Our next video will be very different. The visual will be mostly stock footage, while I share my thoughts on why the Chinese audience love Fast and Furious so much. I've written about this topic in a previous Weekly Update post, and the video will expand on it. Though my interpretation aligns with my friends', the video will also focus more on their opinions, rather than my own.

Afterward, we'll be talking about Ong-Bak, and the Switch. I might also add Ride On to the list, depending on how much I like or dislike the movie. I haven't seen the film, yet. Supposedly it's kinda cringy, but the cinematography looks fairly decent.

For the bonus video, I might just talk about Shaun the Sheep. This movie doesn't get nearly enough attention. It's so good!!

MEDIA TALK

So we talked about bad Hong Kong CGI, but Hong Kong is hardly the worst one, not even for its time. Indeed, around the same time, the Japanese film industry was obsessed with CGI as well. And in many ways, things looked way worse in Japan.

I still remember Returner (2002) and it's crappy and stiff looking aliens. Even for its time, it did not look good. Then again the entire movie didn't look all that great. It was a guilty pleasure of mine, but I'm scared to go back every time.

Even for higher budget productions like Godzilla Final Wars (2004) and Gamera 3 (1999), the CGI is at best serviceable and at worst distracting. That's not to mention the Miike movies, where CGI is used liberally and without any desire for realism. Prime example includes the Like a Dragon (2007) movie and the Ace Attorney (2012) movie.

That's the thing, though. It seems Japan just doesn't care much about realism in CGI. While Hong Kong and China managed to push through and finally create technically competent and realistic CGI, Japan continues to routinely make low budget CG movies with renders that can only be described as... passable. A lot of Capcom's own movies, such as Resident Evil Vendetta (2017) honestly don't look all that much better than real time renders on a PS5.

It's important to note that I'm referring to only the technical aspects of it, however. Many of these Japanese CG animations actually look good, not because the CGI is complex and advance, but because it has very strong art directions.

And here is the twist: Maybe Japan is onto something.

If we look back at the CGI in Kung Fu Hustle (2004), the effects aren't exactly realistic either. But just like many Japanese CG animations, KFH has very strong art directions that give room for the unrealistic effect. Not to mention, it fits the story and tone.

Around the 2000s, when CGI was everywhere, the phrase "Unnecessary CGI" was a common criticism, if I remember correctly. And I think maybe we should bring the phrase back. Does your CG serve your art directions, your story, and your tone? Maybe at the end, our problem isn't that the CG doesn't look realistic, but rather that it just doesn't fit the movie.

Anyway, that's the update for today! I'll do my best to get the video out in the next few days. See you soon!