reviews – The Oracle

Oracle staffer reviews iconic Studio Ghibli films

Becca Wu, In-Depth Editor — Sat, 13 Apr 2024 05:34:49 +0000

Remake vs. Original: Westworld

Joshua Yang, Forum Editor — Fri, 01 Nov 2019 18:49:10 +0000

Watching the 1973 movie “Westworld” and its 2016 television series remake is akin to watching two completely different works: while both begin with the same premise, what each adaptation of Michael Crichton’s novel chooses to do with this premise is radically different.

In the near future, humanity has constructed a series of amusement parks designed to resemble specific times and places—Westworld aims to be a perfect replica of the Wild West. Life-like robots, known as hosts, serve as actors in the park, and guests are allowed to freely abuse the hosts without suffering consequences. Each night, the robots are repaired and their memories are cleared, looping them into a day-by-day existence.

Both versions of “Westworld” begin by revealing that there have been increasing numbers of malfunctions among the robots. Spoilers—the hosts aren’t breaking down, but are in fact gaining sentience and seek revenge for the abuse they’ve suffered. By the third act, the hosts are in active rebellion, throwing the park into chaos.

Where the show and film differ is the time it takes to reach this point. It should be pointed out that some episodes of the 2016 show are longer than the entirety of the 1973 film (which runs just under 90 minutes). As such, it takes about an hour for the movie to show the robots in all-out revolution. It takes the show— spoilers!—an entire season.

Another trade-off for the extremely short length of the 1973 film is the simplicity of the plot. In essence, two protagonists are followed as they visit Westworld, hosts start malfunctioning, protagonists escape from evil robots, protagonists kill evil robots, roll credits.

Yet the storyline of the 2016 “Westworld” is nothing like that of its predecessor. To start, the story is told from the perspective of both the hosts and the guests, and neither side is portrayed as explicitly good or evil. The show also takes the idea of the hosts living in loops and expands upon the concept: multiple episodes feature the same scenes, with just enough difference to let the audience know something is changing, even if they can’t quite place their finger on it.

And that’s just the start of the mental focus required to enjoy this show. The question of what consciousness is exactly is raised frequently, and philosophical commentary is delivered with convincing gravity in monologues by Anthony Hopkins’ character. Confusion abounds: viewers can never be sure which characters are hosts and which are humans, because that’s the point of several plot twists. Oh, and did I mention the show’s narrative jumps between different timelines? At times, it feels like all the elements that define this show shouldn’t be possible, but they are, and are utilized well to pay off in a satisfying, and revelatory climax.

These two adaptations of Michael Crichton’s classic sci-fi novel are nearly unrecognizable as the same story save for the premise. The 1973 film shines through as a mindless, action-packed romp of an adventure. The 2016 show, though, is a masterpiece that forces viewers to keep up with a plot that always seems to be two steps ahead until the resoundingly brilliant conclusion.

iPhone 11 offers new features

Joshua Yang, Forum Editor — Fri, 04 Oct 2019 19:10:03 +0000

The iPhone 11 Pro, Apple’s newest flagship device, is now in stores, and many complaints have already arisen: the three camera setup is deeply controversial. Yes, I’ve seen the numerous mitosis memes flooding social media after the keynote, and, indeed, there’s plenty to be discussed about Apple’s design choice. We’ll save that part of the review for last.

The iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max serve as the successors to 2018’s iPhone XS and XS Max, respectively, with slightly improved screen brightness and processing speed under the
hood.

However, these upgrades aren’t very noticeable; outwardly—excluding the cameras—the iPhone 11 Pro is nearly indistinguishable from the iPhone XS. The two biggest improvements that Apple has chosen to focus on—battery life and camera quality—are what will determine whether the iPhone 11 Pro is worth its $1000+ price tag.

Apple itself claims the iPhone 11 Pro Max has an extra five hours of battery life compared to the iPhone XS Max due to a more efficient processor and display. I could not test this, though initial reports from reviewers certainly suggest that’s the case.

The more contentious issue remains: the cameras. As a disclaimer, the design is not as aesthetically unpleasing as some might think; in person, the cameras are complemented by a gorgeous matte finish that draws attention away from the camera setup.

The cameras are some of the best I’ve seen. The third added camera serves as an ultra wide camera, which allows for a much wider field of vision when shooting pictures. While it’s not perfect—the edges of the image are inevitably subject to a fisheye effect—simply having 0.5x zoom is invaluable to capturing a broader scene. On the other end of the zoom spectrum, a maximum of 10x zoom is possible; at that zoom, remarkably sharp image quality is still preserved.

Portrait mode is similarly excellent; for the most part, the camera has no problem finding the foreground and background. What I find especially appealing, though, is that it is possible to manually adjust the level of blurriness in the background while editing the image, a feature that has been improved from previous iPhone models. Apple also claims a night mode has been added to vastly increase the lighting quality of nighttime shots, but I wasn’t able to test the feature out myself.

To me, the most appealing improvement to the camera is its ability to shoot 4K video at 60 frames per second. Even from my quick test in the Apple store, the video came out incredibly crisp with great image stabilization.

That’s not to say the iPhone 11 Pro does not have flaws: some apps still crashed (the FaceID demonstration app refused to open and froze for a few seconds) and FaceID itself, while taking less than a second, is still slower than a traditional fingerprint reader.

The iPhone 11 Pro is an incredible phone with possibly the best smartphone camera system ever. However, it comes at a hefty price tag: around $1000. To me, that price tag isn’t wholly justified just on the basis of superior cameras and battery capacity. The iPhone 11 Pro is exactly what its name entails: an extravagant, luxurious phone made for the professionals who require the highest specifications and are willing to pay a premium for it.

Joshua Yang’s Book Reviews

Joshua Yang, Forum Editor — Fri, 20 Sep 2019 18:35:07 +0000

11/22/63

“11/22/63” hardly fits into the genre Stephen King is most well-known for, yet this long, winding, sci-fi-historical mashup nevertheless showcases King as a versatile author capable of writing more than just horror fiction. “11/22/63” is first framed as a time travel story with an extremely simple premise: high school English teacher Jake Epping must travel to the date of President Kennedy’s assassination and prevent it from occurring. However, it is soon apparent that the bulk of the novel is dedicated to the years Epping lives through before 1963. Indeed, at times, the grim plot to avert the Kennedy assassination is almost completely ignored for a story brimming with heartfelt drama and charm. It’s at those moments that “11/22/63” truly shines.

A Farewell to Arms

The last words of Ernest Hemingway’s “A Farewell to Arms” are plain and simple: “After a while I went out and left the hospital and walked back to the hotel in the rain.” Outwardly, the words seem sloppy and poorly strung together with superfluous “ands” in defiance of conventional grammar. Yet by the end of all five sections of the novel, the final sentence resonates deeply and profoundly. In a way, the simplicity of Hemingway’s prose, especially in “A Farewell to Arms,” forms the appeal of this novel, which details the romance of an American ambulance driver and a British nurse in the Italian front of World War I. The emotional weight of the novel, combined with Hemingway’s prosaic descriptions of war, creates a beautifully gut-wrenching story.

The Alchemist

If the criteria to be considered a great work of literature is to be subtle yet complex, focused yet nuanced, “The Alchemist,” a novel by Paulo Coehlo, barely qualifies. The characters are simplistic, the language never overreaching; the plot, about a shepherd named Santiago in search of buried treasure, moves along at a steady, untroubled pace. Yet the true appeal of the novel lies in its deeply allegorical nature: central to Coehlo’s theme is a belief in the fulfillment of each person’s true purpose, a motif carried forth throughout the course of Santiago’s journey. The philosophical arguments made are admittedly laid bare for all to grasp, but maybe that’s the point: the accessible, easily understood nature of this novel is an accomplishment in and of itself.

When Breath Becomes Air

“When Breath Becomes Air” is the memoir of a brilliant doctor who is on the cusp of achieving all his dreams when he is diagnosed with terminal cancer. The memoir is a poignant reflection on the life of Dr. Paul Kalanthi. Part of it is autobiographical, yet interspersed throughout are philosophical musings and literary scraps collected from Kalanthi’s favorite authors. “When Breath Becomes Air,” then, isn’t a narrative of three decades of a life so much as it is a struggle to perfectly encapsulate one man’s philosophy about life and death in his final moments. Yes, this novel is heartbreaking and tears flow freely, but a certain solace is found in being able to understand Paul Kalanthi’s world, if for just a second. After all, that’s his legacy.

Of Mice and Men

Don’t be fooled by Steinbeck’s deceptively thin novella: “Of Mice and Men” possesses deep insights into human nature and a devastating yet all too inevitable ending. The story, which is set in California during the Great Depression, focuses on two migrant ranch hands, George and Lennie, who travel from in search of labor. George and Lennie have a seemingly impossible dream of purchasing their own land and dictating the course of their lives, yet a growing sense of dread develops as it becomes increasingly clear that their dream will never come to fruition. Indeed, the climax is entirely possible to anticipate, making it all the more heartbreaking.