Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow
March 2005 Reviewed by: Vince Hanada Format: DVD	(all ratings out of 5): Overall Enjoyment Picture Quality Packaged Extras Sound Quality

Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow is the most unique DVD that I have seen in a long time. It is the creation of a first-time filmmaker, Kerry Conran, and can best be described as a comic book come to life.

Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow is set primarily in New York City in the 1930s. At the beginning of the movie, we see a reporter, Polly Perkins (Gwenyth Paltrow), investigating a plot of the mysterious Dr. Totenkopf to kill the world’s leading scientists. Suddenly, huge flying robots invade New York City. Their reason for destroying much of the city is not immediately apparent. Sky Captain Joe Sullivan (Jude Law) saves New York from these robots with his fighter plane. Polly Perkins then collaborates with Sky Captain, her ex-flame, and travels the world to find the elusive Totenkopf and unravel his diabolical scheme.

I enjoyed Sky Captain for many different reasons. First, I found the story to be charming. There was enough intrigue early on, with doses of humor and plenty of action along the way. Second, the visual effects were stunning. This movie was shot entirely in front of a blue screen, with minimal props. The environments in which the actors interacted were entirely computer generated in post-production. This allowed Conran to control the vintage comic-book appearance of the movie completely. The picture quality transferred well to DVD, including a soft-filter effect at times, which further enhanced the 1930s art-deco look.

I thought the acting was excellent, which kept this movie from becoming just a visual-effects feast. I enjoyed the chemistry between Law and Paltrow, with their constant bickering throughout. Giovanni Ribisi was also fine as Dex, the brainy sidekick. But the actress who stole the show was Angelina Jolie as Franky, the military colleague of Sky Captain. Sporting a mischievous grin and eye patch, Jolie was fascinating to watch.

The soundtrack of the Sky Captain DVD is extremely good, with ample use of surrounds and deep bass. Every stomp of the robots through New York City was wall-shaking through my subwoofer. As well, the airplane chase sequences through the streets of New York were easy to follow as the sound panned smoothly from the front speakers to the surrounds. The extras have some particularly good documentaries on the creation of the movie and the original six-minute short that Conran produced to sell his movie idea to producers and investors.

Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow is enthusiastically recommended. It will have greatest appeal to those who won’t take the plot too seriously, who enjoy old movies, and who remember a good Saturday-afternoon matinee.

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