Daft Punk Tron Legacy soundtrack tops iTunes

Daft Punk’s soundtrack for Tron Legacy is number one this week on iTunes. If you like electronica music, you will love their music and this album – the music worked really well with all the action in Tron Legacy. Daft Punk also appears in the movie as the DJs during the club scene.

The song that was playing when Sam first entered the club is called End of Line, the song during the fight scene is Derezzed, and  the song when Flynn arrives is Fall.

You can listen to 30-second samples of the soundtrack’s songs on iTunes or on Amazon.com. You can view more information about the soundtrack at www.tronsoundtrack.com.

Tron Legacy fact: The Soundtrack

Tron Legacy fact #5

Music duo Daft Punk wrote and performed the soundtrack. They also have cameos in the movies, playing the masked DJs.  Click to view the Tron Soundtrack site where you can listen to the movie soundtrack, download tracks, buy posters, and more.

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* Tron * Director: Joseph Kosinski * Starring: Jeff Bridges, Garrett Hedlund, Olivia Wilde, Bruce Boxleitner * Writers: Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis (screenplay) *  Time: 127 minutes * Rated PG * Action/Sci Fi/Thriller * Trailers *

Inception Film Locations

Where were the scenes in Inception filmed? Christopher Nolan decided to film Inception in a wide variety of global locations. Following are descriptions of what scenes were filmed in which cities around the world. Click the links for more details about the locations. Yes, there are spoilers if you haven’t already seen Inception.

Tokyo, Japan

The scene where Saito sits in the helicopter and offers the job to Cobb (while Arthur tries to talk Cobb out of it) was filmed on top of a skyscraper in Tokyo.

Cardington, England

As I mentioned in a previous posting, sets were built in a converted airplane hangar in Cardington to film scenes of the hotel bar, the rotating hotel corridor, the hotel room, and the elevator shaft.

Other Locations in England

They filmed the scene where Miles introduces Cobb to Ariadne in the Flaxman Gallery at the University College London. They filmed Yusuf’s pharmacy at the Farmiloe Building. The scene with Arthur and Ariadne discussing the Penrose steps was filmed at a former gaming company.

Paris, France

The scene where Cobb is explaining things to Ariadne while they sit at sidewalk cafe was actually filmed at a small bakery in Paris. Here’s a map of Paris.

Tangier, Morocco

The Mombassa scenes were actually filmed in Tangier. This is where Cobb meets up with forger Eames and they go to meet Yusuf the chemist. The scene of Cobb running through the streets and alleys was shot here  in the Grand Souk section. The riot scene that happens at the beginning of the movie was also shot in Morocco.

Los Angeles, California

The scenes of the interior rooms of Saito’s castle were shot on sets built on a soundstage. The castle is also where the water comes flooding through the windows toward the end of a dream while Cobb stands there, watching the water come crashing down.

The car chase scenes during the rainstorm were also filmed in L.A. The rain was created by spray heads that were rigged to the tops of buildings. This is also where one of the most amazing scenes of the movie was shot – the freight train coming down the middle of the street, knocking cars out of the way.  Los Angeles is also where the scenes of the team riding around in the white van were shot.

Other Los Angeles Locations

A warehouse in L.A. was used as the team’s Paris workshop. In addition, they built parts of the exterior of Saito’s castle in a water tank at Universal Studios, the San Pedro harbor, and in Palos Verdes.

Calgary, Canada

Filming was done at a closed ski resort named Fortress Mountain on a mountain near Banff. Most of the outdoor action sequences in Calgary were shot with handheld cameras and the actors and cameramen alike had to do extensive skiing which, in the case of Tom Hardy, involved taking ski lessons before filming began. Aerial scenes were shot from a helicopter.

Here’s a video showing clips from the movie, including the locations. I think I got them right…

Song in video clip: Dream within a Dream from Inception Soundtrack by Hans Zimmer

Tron Legacy – Daft Punk

Daft Punk consists of French musicians Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter and is known for house, techno, and electro music. They have also been known to wear masks to hide their faces during public appearances and photo shoots.

Daft Punk recorded the soundtrack for Tron Legacy and the music has proven so popular that a website was created so fans could hear the soundtrack. When you visit the Tron soundtrack page, click the logo in the middle of the screen for more information.

Daft Punk also has a cameo in Tron Legacy, playing  a couple of MP3s. Look for them during a club scene in the game.

Here’s Daft Punk performing “Stronger” with Kayne West during the 2008 Grammy Awards.  This song samples Daft Punk’s song “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger.” Scroll to 2:48 if you want to specifically see Daft punk doing their thing. Their sound and their look = perfect for Tron.

You can learn more about on the Daft Punk official website or on Wikipedia.

The magic of the spinning corridor and 9 other Inception resources

Want to know how they filmed that spinning corridor scene in Inception?  Here’s what I found out.  Also, here are several other great Inception resources I have come across – sites, articles, notes, videos – that I thought you might like.  Enjoy!

1. The official Inception web site is pretty cool and has a lot of great info.  You can skip past the trailer to enter the main site. Look closely on the left side of the screen and click the Menu.
2. This link on the official Warner Brothers site provides production notes about Inception including how writer/director Christopher Nolan pulled his team together, where and how filming took place, and details about all the major characters and the actors who played them.
3. The 5 Levels of Inception by Matt Sinopoli and Josh Tyler provides a great explanation of each of the levels, including who was dreaming, who was there, and what the goal was of each level.
4. Chris Corbould is the mastermind behind the spinning corridor and other cool moves in Inception. Wired magazine’s Behind the Special Effects of Inception article by Kevin Maher describes how Corbould did it.
5. In Dissecting Inception: Six Interpretations and Five Plot Holes, Peter Hall provides his opinion of what really happened and describes some holes he feels exist in the story.
6. Here is the kick ass Inception soundtrack by Hans Zimmer.  Listen to it while you’re working to make your job at least sound epic.
7. In The Neuroscience of Inception, Jonah Lehrer explains how the very act of watching Inception affects the brain similar to the way a dream does: “…a process in which your senses are hyperactive and yet your self-awareness is strangely diminished.”
8. The company Double Negative was involved in creating the effects for Inception.  Here is Double Negative’s full project list and here is a showreel of their best work.
9. This is a fun video on YouTube that shows Toy Story 3: Inception.
10. Here is some B-roll behind the scenes footage from the movie:

Movie Review: WALL-E

Earth is overrun with garbage and is uninhabitable.  WALL-E’s job is to compact garbage and stack it into towers (WALL-E = Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class).  He spends his night finding uses for interesting items he finds during the day and watching the musical, “Hello Dolly.”  Even though he is a robot, the monotony, isolation, and loneliness show on his little robot face.

Then, a visitor.  EVE is left there by a spacecraft, apparently on a scouting mission, but what is she looking for? WALL-E’s attempts to befriend her are futile – she’s on a mission! EVE spots one of WALL-E’s finds and that’s when the real adventure begins.

Fast forward to The Axiom: Weeble-like people in a uniform, commercialized world, drinking their meals in a cup (which look curiously like Slurpees – Yay!).  This is a world where everyone and everything literally stays within the lines (ON the line, to be exact). WALL-E becomes an unlikely hero for those who choose to not stay on the line.

This movie is well done: touching, funny with a clever plot, and it is a great movie to watch with your kids.  They will love the pretty colors and the slapstick comedy (WALL-E and other characters fall and bump into things a lot).  Plus, there’s an interesting enough storyline and humor (and pretty colors) to keep the adults interested.

After seeing this movie, I regret having not seen it in a theatre – watching the DVD at home did not do the amazing visuals justice. It’s Pixar, so I expected superior graphics and they did not disappoint.  I really can’t say enough about the animation – the space scenes were particularly spectacular. At the beginning of the movie, there’s not much dialogue, which made the soundtrack all the more important.  Most of the music is by Thomas Newman and it is at times sweeping, whimsical, airy, and jazzy. Well done!

Voice actors include Ben Burtt, Jeff Garlin, and Fred Willard. I highly recommend this movie and give it four Slurpees out of five.

* WALL-E * Director: Andrew Stanton * Rated: G * Time: 98 minutes * Soundtrack * Trailer *