There have been many times in my movie geekdom when I am in public and recognize the location as the set of a film.
For instance, I live in Hamilton Ontario Canada, and the train station scene in X-Men was filmed at the old train station which is now Liuna Station. Or the various scenes in Niagara Falls from Whole Nine Yards.
But sometimes our favourite stars never stepped foot on those iconic locales. This is done through the magic of Chroma Key screens or green/blue screens.
Its amazing to see how seamlessly they can fit these scenes into a film. But it also makes it that much worse when they do it wrong. It just yanks you out of the film and reminds you that those people really are not where they say they are.
What is the worst chroma key effects you have seen in recent films?
I went to see Memoirs of a Geisha once. At one time I say to my friend, great special effects, and he said ha ha very funny, I turn to him and say, you think those rooftops and buildings are real? That blew his mind.
Most of the time people dont recognize that they are looking at CG cars, or buildings or a digitaly inserted background. But when they know the movie is a CG extravaganza. They roll their eyes and moan faaaake.
That Ugly Betty part blew my mind! I didn’t know a Tv show could do that, and I wouldn’t think of Ugly Betty as being that much of a special effect show.
Dragonball Evolution was horrible all around. Which would include Chroma Key.
It’s cheaper and easier logisticly wise to film it like this, instead of hauling a whole film-crew on location, getting permits, paying insane amounts of cash to be able to film in said locations.
This way they can use stock footage and do this cheaply.
Hollywood almost never films anymore in New York or Paris because it costs to much.
Prauge often doubles for Paris, and then they just digtaly insert the Eiffel Tower.
i think i hate green screen more now… i mean, i can understand scenes where they really do need green screen, like the scene with the boat on fire, but a lot of these scenes were just people walking down the street
G.I. Joe: when that “wooden” Duke gets into Joe headquarters and they go from level to level in the elevator. CHEESY!
Batman Begins: 3rd act when Bats and Liam are fighting on the Train.. and Bats is hanging on by his Bat Claw thinga-majig.
CHEESY AS HELL
everything the “Spirit”
One of the worst ones that I saw recently was in the show Heroes in season 2 episode 6 when Peter and Caitlin find themselves in future New York the city background is so poorly chroma keyed my brother and I started groaning as soon as we saw it.