In this issue, Ethan, Aaron, and Shea take on Quantum Leap in We Make It. After that, Shea takes a crack at Characterizing the Unbreakable universe. Finally, we wrap things up with a Confessions of a Movie Snob on Tron Legacy.
About Quantum Leap
Quantum Leap is an American television series that was broadcast on NBC from March 26, 1989 to May 5, 1993, for a total of five seasons. The series was created byDonald Bellisario, and starred Scott Bakula as Dr. Sam Beckett, a physicist who becomes lost in time following a time travel experiment, temporarily taking the places of other people to “put right what once went wrong”. Dean Stockwell co-starred as Al Calavicci, Sam’s womanizing, cigar-smoking sidekick and best friend, who appeared as a hologram that only Sam could see and hear. The series featured a mix of comedy, drama and melodrama, social commentary, nostalgia and science fiction, which won it a broad range of fans. One of its trademarks is that at the end of each episode, Sam “leaps” into the setting for the next episode, usually uttering a dismayed “Oh, boy!”
Despite struggling on Friday nights at 9 PM in its brief first season, NBC surprisingly renewed the series because of its impressive 18-49 demographics. The series was moved to Wednesdays at 10 PM where it flourished against other fan-favorite series, Wiseguy and China Beach. It was moved twice away from Wednesdays (to Fridays at 8 PM in the fall of 1990 and to Tuesdays at 8 PM in the fall of 1992) where it floundered. The series finale aired in its successful Wednesday 10 PM slot in May 1993.
About Unbreakable
Unbreakable is a 2000 superhero drama film written, produced, and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. The film stars Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson, and Robin Wright Penn. Unbreakable tells the story of Philadelphia security guard, David Dunn, who slowly discovers that he is a superhero. The film is a study on the dimensions of comic books; it explores the analogies between the real world and the mythology of superheroes.
Shyamalan conceived the idea for Unbreakable to parallel a comic book’s traditional three-part story structure. After he decided to settle on the origin story aspect of his outline, Shyamalan began to write the screenplay as a spec script with Bruce Willis already set to star in the film and Samuel L. Jackson in mind to portray Elijah Price. Filming for Unbreakable began in April 2000 and finished that following July. Unbreakable received generally positive reviews with critics noting its weaker ending compared with Shyamalan’s previous film, The Sixth Sense. The film has grossed approximately $250 million.
About Tron Legacy
Tron: Legacy is a 2010 American science fiction film produced by Walt Disney Pictures, released on December 16, 2010 in Australia and December 17, 2010 in North America and Europe. It is a sequel to the 1982 film Tron. Joseph Kosinski makes his feature film directorial debut with Tron: Legacy, while the previous film’s director,Steven Lisberger, returns as a producer. Jeff Bridges reprises his roles as Kevin Flynn and Clu, while Bruce Boxleitner reprises his roles as Alan Bradley and Tron. Garrett Hedlund portrays Flynn’s adult son, Sam. The other cast members include Olivia Wilde, Beau Garrett, Michael Sheen, and James Frain. The film’s soundtrack was composed by the electronic music duo Daft Punk. Yates Whittle and Addison Teague were responsible for the film’s sound editing, which was nominated for an Academy Award.
