komodo-dragon-attack

edited April 2013 in News Posts: 57
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/11/komodo-dragon-attack-indonesia_n_3058773.html?utm_hp_ref=world

Just like the baddie gets it in Skyfall
Yikes!!!
Life immitating art...or.... is it the other way around?
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Comments

  • Posts: 61
    The other way around for sure! Skyfall is the first bond motion picture you can truly call ART! Here here for Sam Mendez and EON!
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    Posts: 17,800
    One of those attack ME & I'll get a freakin' trophy for my irritation!
    Never attack a bigger animal with your FACE. :))
  • JRRJRR
    edited April 2013 Posts: 74
    It is amazing to think that this brave woman shares space with, and at times faces these majestic and powerful creatures just as a matter of her daily reality..

    I don’t know about you, but if I met with the modern day equivalent of a dinosaur on my way to work, it may just put me off leaving the house; in fact I wouldn’t without some form of tranquilliser to render it unconscious whilst I needed to be close proximity.

    She is busily making brooms from coconut trees, which I would imagine takes some level of skill and concentration and is then forced into fighting one of these creatures off, survives the traumatic experience, with the humbling notion, and main concern of getting back to making her daily living.

    Sorry to facetious on this occasion, but maybe those bad guys in the Chinese casino, Komodo dragon pit featured in Skyfall, just needed a bit of her winning spirit and maybe a coconut tree broomstick to survive, instead of succumbing to the relatives of those prehistoric walking nightmares.

    On a more sincere note, she is incredible and I have more than admiration for anyone facing that kind of daily danger.
  • edited April 2013 Posts: 57
    JRR if you think that is daily danger try walking a day in my shoes. You might die falling out of bed b/c I have Palsy and if I did I wouldn't be able to get back up and probably starve on the floor of my city apartment.

    I will happily take on a wave of komodo dragons if it means I could have my legs back for a day. But we all face different struggles don't we?

    Sorry if I sound harsh but you need to be grateful for what you have everyday. Cherish it and live live lifwife
  • JRRJRR
    edited April 2013 Posts: 74
    Life is a wonderful thing, I agree with you, it does need to be cherished, enjoying the privilege of being here on earth should not be taken for granted... I hope that being online in and keeping in the good company of this forums fun debate lightens your day and keeps your spirits high.

    Have a good one, as we like to say.
  • TheWizardOfIceTheWizardOfIce 'One of the Internet's more toxic individuals'
    Posts: 9,117
    JRR if you think that is daily danger try walking a day in my shoes. You might die falling out of bed b/c I have Palsy and if I did I wouldn't be able to get back up and probably starve on the floor of my city apartment.

    I will happily take on a wave of komodo dragons if it means I could have my legs back for a day. But we all face different struggles don't we?

    Sorry if I sound harsh but you need to be grateful for what you have everyday. Cherish it and live live lifwife

    Don't forget to mention you are blind again as well Touchmybuttons.
  • Posts: 15,123
    This is fascinating. I always thought that the Komodo dragons attacking the Triad in Skyfall was far fetched and probably inaccurate. Guess I was wrong.
  • SandySandy Somewhere in Europe
    Posts: 4,012
    Ludovico wrote:
    This is fascinating. I always thought that the Komodo dragons attacking the Triad in Skyfall was far fetched and probably inaccurate. Guess I was wrong.

    Definitely not far fetched! They are not the sort of animals to be underestimated.
  • Posts: 15,123
    Sandy wrote:
    Ludovico wrote:
    This is fascinating. I always thought that the Komodo dragons attacking the Triad in Skyfall was far fetched and probably inaccurate. Guess I was wrong.

    Definitely not far fetched! They are not the sort of animals to be underestimated.

    I used to think they were like big iguanas.
  • TheWizardOfIceTheWizardOfIce 'One of the Internet's more toxic individuals'
    Posts: 9,117
    Ludovico wrote:
    Sandy wrote:
    Ludovico wrote:
    This is fascinating. I always thought that the Komodo dragons attacking the Triad in Skyfall was far fetched and probably inaccurate. Guess I was wrong.

    Definitely not far fetched! They are not the sort of animals to be underestimated.

    I used to think they were like big iguanas.

    I saw one walk across a road in Thailand about 10 metres ahead of me once and nearly had a heart attack - they are big buggers!

    The thing is they're aren't as 'famous' as crocs or sharks so along with the CGI some people could consider it far fetched.

    My only gripe with the sequence is that every shot was CGI. Why couldn't we have some shots of the real animal? Ok for the attack use CGI but not for everything.

    Just makes the LALD croc sequence look all the more impressive.
  • edited April 2013 Posts: 15,123
    Ludovico wrote:
    Sandy wrote:
    Ludovico wrote:
    This is fascinating. I always thought that the Komodo dragons attacking the Triad in Skyfall was far fetched and probably inaccurate. Guess I was wrong.

    Definitely not far fetched! They are not the sort of animals to be underestimated.

    I used to think they were like big iguanas.

    I saw one walk across a road in Thailand about 10 metres ahead of me once and nearly had a heart attack - they are big buggers!

    The thing is they're aren't as 'famous' as crocs or sharks so along with the CGI some people could consider it far fetched.

    My only gripe with the sequence is that every shot was CGI. Why couldn't we have some shots of the real animal? Ok for the attack use CGI but not for everything.

    Just makes the LALD croc sequence look all the more impressive.

    There might have been financial reasons for having CGIs there. It might also be more difficult now to use real animals due to laws on animal treatment in entertainment industry. I did not notice the CGI much, except during the actual attack. I thought it was far fetched because although physically threatening, I always thought they were not overly agressive animals. I am glad we got Bond being pit against animals again, in any case.
  • TheWizardOfIceTheWizardOfIce 'One of the Internet's more toxic individuals'
    Posts: 9,117
    Ludovico wrote:
    Ludovico wrote:
    Sandy wrote:
    Ludovico wrote:
    This is fascinating. I always thought that the Komodo dragons attacking the Triad in Skyfall was far fetched and probably inaccurate. Guess I was wrong.

    Definitely not far fetched! They are not the sort of animals to be underestimated.

    I used to think they were like big iguanas.

    I saw one walk across a road in Thailand about 10 metres ahead of me once and nearly had a heart attack - they are big buggers!

    The thing is they're aren't as 'famous' as crocs or sharks so along with the CGI some people could consider it far fetched.

    My only gripe with the sequence is that every shot was CGI. Why couldn't we have some shots of the real animal? Ok for the attack use CGI but not for everything.

    Just makes the LALD croc sequence look all the more impressive.

    There might have been financial reasons for having CGIs there. It might also be more difficult now to use real animals due to laws on animal treatment in entertainment industry. I did not notice the CGI much, except during the actual attack. I thought it was far fetched because although physically threatening, I always thought they were not overly agressive animals. I am glad we got Bond being pit against animals again, in any case.

    Yeah I guess you are right. They would never be allowed to get away with doing the Ross Kananga stunt across the backs these days but I dont see whats wrong with a few establishing shots with the real animals - except to save money.

    I agree though that I always thought they were reasonably docile as long as you kept your distance. I vaguely recall a Steve Irwin show once though with them and he did seem to give them more respect than usual so perhaps they are quite vicious?

    Any animal experts on here who can tell us?
  • edited April 2013 Posts: 4,622
    The komodo dragon fight is one of the hi-lites of the film IMO. Craig is at his best here. He fights well and also maintains a very glib Bond edge. Well done! I love the way the fight starts, taking down as many as possible, right off the bat, with the improvised briefcase "weapon." Nice little tip to LALD (the film) with the step-up on the dragon, pit escape. Deftly done-not gratuitous.
    Can'tmake sense of his "circle of life remark" though. "Put it all on red" is an obvious nod to Fleming. Both CR and DAF.
  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    edited April 2013 Posts: 12,480
    I thought "circle of life" was just his way of saying passing on good things to the next person (as he left her holding all that money) ... what goes around, comes around ...
  • Posts: 1,492
    I saw one walk across a road in Thailand about 10 metres ahead of me once and nearly had a heart attack - they are big buggers!

    That was probably a monitor lizard Wizard. Komodo dragons only live on the island of komodo in Indonesia. One of the islands near Bali.

    My only gripe with the sequence is that every shot was CGI. Why couldn't we have some shots of the real animal? Ok for the attack use CGI but not for everything.

    Just makes the LALD croc sequence look all the more impressive.

    It would have been too dangerous to do them for real. They treat everything alive as food. Therefore they would have gone for their handler, actors, cameraman. Their mouths contain bacteria which is poisonous. Their bite wont kill you immediately - but will wait for to collapse an hour later before eating you.
  • Posts: 15,123
    Boy, they seem more dangerous than crocs!
  • royale65royale65 Caustic misanthrope reporting for duty.
    Posts: 4,423



    Yeah I guess you are right. They would never be allowed to get away with doing the Ross Kananga stunt across the backs these days but I dont see whats wrong with a few establishing shots with the real animals - except to save money.

    I agree though that I always thought they were reasonably docile as long as you kept your distance. I vaguely recall a Steve Irwin show once though with them and he did seem to give them more respect than usual so perhaps they are quite vicious?

    Any animal experts on here who can tell us?

    They are very vicious. I remember the episode with Steve Irwin; he was following a Komodo Dragon, as he was showing it a lot of respect. The Komodo was lolling about quite aimlessly, and then Irwin got a cut on his leg; the Komodo turned on him in a flash, transformed from a big, listless lizard, into a terrifying beast. The Komodo has a blood lust; any scratch and they would turn, just like that. Luckily Irwin managed to get into the mangrove swamps, where the Komodo couldn't fit, otherwise he would be a dead duck.

    Fascinating, but very deadly.

  • Posts: 15,123
    I understand why they did not use real ones. Can they even live in captivity like crocodiles or bears?
  • samainsysamainsy Suspended
    Posts: 199
    Yeah but why keep them in a Casino?
  • royale65royale65 Caustic misanthrope reporting for duty.
    Posts: 4,423
    @saminsy - its like Caesar's Palace keeping tigers. Coz they have the dough and are decadent to display it.
  • Posts: 4,622
    I thought "circle of life" was just his way of saying passing on good things to the next person (as he left her holding all that money) ... what goes around, comes around ...
    That works. It was just a little throwaway line I guess.

  • TheWizardOfIceTheWizardOfIce 'One of the Internet's more toxic individuals'
    Posts: 9,117
    actonsteve wrote:
    My only gripe with the sequence is that every shot was CGI. Why couldn't we have some shots of the real animal? Ok for the attack use CGI but not for everything.

    Just makes the LALD croc sequence look all the more impressive.

    It would have been too dangerous to do them for real. They treat everything alive as food. Therefore they would have gone for their handler, actors, cameraman. Their mouths contain bacteria which is poisonous. Their bite wont kill you immediately - but will wait for to collapse an hour later before eating you.

    I'm not saying have Craig in amongst them but they managed plenty of shots in TB and LALD of the sharks and crocs up close to stuntmen if not actually Sean or Rog. Similiarly in Raiders they got Harrison alongside a Cobra (OK you can see the glass).

    The point is there are ways to do things without CGI. That was one of the most disappointing things about listening to the SF commentary - practically every single shot seemed to either have CGI or be done in the studio or both.

    M looking out of the window? Studio + CGI, Bond swimming in a rooftop hotel? Studio + CGI, the entire casino sequence? Studio + CGI, Silvas island? Studio + CGI, Shanghai? Apart from about 5 seconds of establishing shots on location and in Canary Wharf studio and CGI.

    Whatever happened to location scouting? Or imagine this: actually building it yourself (Piz Gloria!!).

    The amount of times during the Gassner, Babs and MGW commentary where they said 'that wouldve been difficult to do so we just did it with CGI in the studio.' was infuriating.

    It just displays a lack of imagination to me whereby in the olden days people would have to solve problems with creative thinking now you have the get out of jail free card of CGI and it seems so much less effort for people to play it than actually try and think their way around things.

    Tragic to think that in this day and age that the new Ken Adam will never get a chance to dsplay his ability because some guy will just draw it on a computer instead. The old Bond films are true relics in this sense. With the profits theyve creamed with SF how about they invest some in giving Craig a good old fashioned villains garagntuan lair - and do it for real as well.
  • Posts: 15,123
    Wasn't there still settings in CR and QOS? Regarding the komodo dragons, for technical and budgetary reasons I doubt they could have done with the real thing.
  • edited April 2013 Posts: 4,622
    The old Bond films are true relics in this sense. With the profits theyve creamed with SF how about they invest some in giving Craig a good old fashioned villains garagntuan lair - and do it for real as well.

    Yes, please, a big high-tech, escapist Ken Adam worthy lair, would be most welcome. Is Lewis Gilbert still around too? Might he want to come out of retirement to direct one more Bond? Please!!!!
    Or seeing as Mendes loves YOLT (the book) so much, or so he says, why not do-up Blofeld's castle and the Garden of Death with full-blown spectacle set-design, as only Bond films can, or used to do.
    We don't actually need Blofeld. He could be subbed for some other super-villain loon, with a toad mistress.
  • talos7talos7 New Orleans
    Posts: 8,216
    I love the Komodo scene. It has a pulp quality that goes back to Bond's origins.
  • Samuel001Samuel001 Moderator
    Posts: 13,355
    timmer wrote:
    The old Bond films are true relics in this sense. With the profits theyve creamed with SF how about they invest some in giving Craig a good old fashioned villains garagntuan lair - and do it for real as well.

    Yes, please, a big high-tech, escapist Ken Adam worthy lair, would be most welcome. Is Lewis Gilbert still around too? Might he want to come out of retirement to direct one more Bond? Please!!!!
    Or seeing as Mendes loves YOLT (the book) so much, or so he says, why not do-up Blofeld's castle and the Garden of Death with full-blown spectacle set-design, as only Bond films can, or used to do.
    We don't actually need Blofeld. He could be subbed for some other super-villain loon, with a toad mistress.

    Craig has said he'd love to do the submarine base of something like that, as long as it can work. I have faith this type of set will appear again one day. Before Skyfall he said:

    "I love the idea of putting Moneypenny in the film," he said "I’m dead keen to do it. And Q. But I work from the premise that there are millions and millions of people out there who never saw one of the earlier Bond movies. So they don’t understand the martini gag. Or the Moneypenny gag, which is a gag - it had ceased to be a character. So, let’s find out who she is. We can have fun doing that. And, don’t get me wrong, I’m up for a submarine base, as long as the gag works. The problem is that Austin Powers screwed everything up. He exploded the genre. Did I just say that? I did."

    http://www.mi6-hq.com/sections/articles/bond_23_report_may09.php3
  • Posts: 4,622
    I think Craig overthinks somewhat about whether people are familiar with the MP gag or martini gag etc. Who cares. None of us were familiar with such things when we first saw them either but we lapped it up anyway and asked for more.
    I don't share his Austin Powers concerns either. Bond was spoofed all through the sixties as well, but what separates Bond from the spoofers and even imitators, is that classic Bond manages to also mix palpable danger and suspense with the escapist fantasy. Serious actors like Connery have a way of grounding things. Craig could have the same effect. He is also a serious actor. Just act like its all quite real and dangerous.
    It is very encouraging though that he is open to a submarine base. We don't need a big spyfy escapist set-piece spectacle every film. That would be overkill. But once every few films would work just great.
    The komodo dragon pit, was a nice Bond-touch in SF though. Good to see SF at least coming around to embracing some of the more "benign bizarre" elements that typify the Fleming books and early films.
  • Posts: 15,123
    I am all for big headquarters, as long as they don't turn into downright scifi.
  • Posts: 4,622
    Spyfy is what Bond does well. Bond invented the genre.
  • Posts: 1,492
    actonsteve wrote:
    My only gripe with the sequence is that every shot was CGI. Why couldn't we have some shots of the real animal? Ok for the attack use CGI but not for everything.

    Just makes the LALD croc sequence look all the more impressive.

    It would have been too dangerous to do them for real. They treat everything alive as food. Therefore they would have gone for their handler, actors, cameraman. Their mouths contain bacteria which is poisonous. Their bite wont kill you immediately - but will wait for to collapse an hour later before eating you.

    I'm not saying have Craig in amongst them but they managed plenty of shots in TB and LALD of the sharks and crocs up close to stuntmen if not actually Sean or Rog. Similiarly in Raiders they got Harrison alongside a Cobra (OK you can see the glass).

    The point is there are ways to do things without CGI. That was one of the most disappointing things about listening to the SF commentary - practically every single shot seemed to either have CGI or be done in the studio or both.

    M looking out of the window? Studio + CGI, Bon
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