I hadn’t been aware of this at all until just now, and I find it utterly silly and I am just in love with it.
There is a Russian film produced by the same guy who brought us Wanted and its called Black Lightning. Timur Bekmambetov calls this the Russian response to Transformers and Batman.
Check out the wicked poster that looks like Hayden Christiansen is staring in a futuristic Chitty Chitty Bang Bang/Flubber with a logo ripped off from Pixar’s Cars.
The movie is about a student from Moscow University who becomes the owner of a ordinary looking car. He finds out that the car is able to fly, and unexpectedly finds himself in a role as a defender of the city against evil doers.
The film was made on a budget of only $8 million dollars and it looks pretty damn good. It looks like it had to budget of at least $30 million.
Check out the trailer:
And while that gives you an idea of the visuals ($8 Million? So thats what a movie costs when you don’t cast a $20m actor huh?) and in case you didn’t speak Russian, here is the translation as provided by a Turkish Asian who seems to have translated it from Russian to Japanese to Hindi to English:
Dima: In this world nobody owes nobody nothing. But I’ll be saving this world, because it has … you.
Timur Bekmambetov presents…
Maxim: By the way, I forgot to introduce to you… Dmitriy. Mmm… My driver.
Nastya: Hello, driver.
Dima: When I’ll get the car, I’ll invite you to a date. Will you go?
Nastya: Listen, let’s go out of here.
Dima: But dessert?
Nastya: This is dessert.
Dima: Woo-hoo!
Maxim: Lure a waitress and take her for a drive on a tram. Nastya is mine. Did you get it?
Dima: Ok, Max. Clam up.
Maxim’s father: Beautiful girl, but she sits in the car to other one.
Nastya: You’ve saved my life. And behave like nothing happened.
Card: To Nastya from Maxim.
Maxim: Me?..
Maxim’s father: He’s by air and we’re by air.
Nastya: Look, he will come flying and save him.
Dima: He won’t come.
Dima: Who do you meet New Year with?
Nastya: You should understand me. He saved my life.
Dima: I say, do you love him?
Nastya: Max is Black Lightning.
Dima: No matter who you choose, I always be near.
Maxim’s Father: So, Black Lightning. One last exam is left.
You Must Rise. 31 December 2009. Happy New Film!
Looks like a pile of fun, and the girl is 4 kinds of cute.
I’d watch it if it was released here (dubbed or subbed)!
the movie is good worth a watch :)
The movie was a blast! Unlike the cheesy plots made by “business as usual” American movies, this one carves out its own originality and magnificent exploit of the characters involved!
A must see!
The logo is not Pixar rip-off, but is GAZ-21 logo with sligh changes to it…
lol what kind of crap is that? hilarious (more pathetic though)
and visuals? hu? ya well i don’t see anything worth more than 8 mio.
well wouldn’t watch stuff like that anyway.
It’s 9am EST. I’m gonna bet this is the dumbest thing I will see all day.
But Black Lightening is a DC Comics hero. Should Warner Bros. be filing a copyright infringement suit regarding the name of this film?
Black Lightning is only similar by name alone. They would have no grounds to challenge them as there are enough differences that no one would get the two confused.
Black Beauty is the name of both a horse and Green Hornet’s car… no conflict.
wtf this is crap at its highest moment!
The plot sounds really goofy. That said, I agree with those who’ve commented at the impressiveness the $8 seems to stretch. It is a shame that studios spend hundreds of millions making terrible films when they could split that in five and give five ideas and directions a shot, especially internationally. I’m sure some dreadful, POSs would get through and do poorly, but diversifying the risk and giving fresh ideas a shot is far more likely to deliver more great films, a la the summer’s alien surprise hit or this fall’s Paranormal (which I confess to not seeing).
Even stateside, a budget of 20-40 million can go a long way. Let’s hope studios figure it out. Make fun movies the American people want to see, be inventive, give new people a shot. It’d be better for the business and better for the audience.
The effects are impressive, especially for 8 million. The love triangle seems interesting. But I can’t get into flying cars. Like is that it, you just have a flying car? That’s not cool. I mean I’d take a flying car, but I wouldn’t feel like I could save the world because I had one.
Looks like a live action movie version of M.A.S.K. (Mobile Armored Strike Kommand). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M.A.S.K.
Anyone else besides me remember this old, but very awesome 1980’s cartoon and toy line? About a special team that had every day looking vehicles that could turn into heavy combat vehicles? Like a car that had a flying mode with rockets and guns on it, much like the ones in this trailer. I had some of the toys too.
Might rent this movie just because it reminds my of M.A.S.K., when it comes out.
I thought of MASK when I was writing this too.
MASK could make for a great film with new effects like Transformers. If anyone watched that horrible new version of Knight Rider, a car that transforms into another car would be neato! (The series sucked ass, but the car looked awesome)
I remember that show, I don’t actually remember watching it. But I do remember having a lunchbox, and some of the toys. One show I used to like when I was a kid was Jaycee and the Wheeled Warriors. That could be an awesome flick too!
the girl is cute. At the 50s mark she almost looks like a younger blond version of Angelina Jolie.
The logo definitely looks a Cars rip off…
Well the girl is also cute.
Idk what to say, lets see the reviews first.
31 Dec isn’t too far away
I’ve read it here and on other blogs. This is exactly what is wrong with Hollywood, and for that matter, the US. Its ‘bloated’ budgets have killed the dream. Eight million looks like thirty is right. Think of the new interesting movies we’d get to see if they split the budget of one financially risky film and gave it to five directors with story ideas they were passionate about. Studios used to put out 50 films a year. I wonder how many MGM will release in the next two…