At this point, the main discussion surrounding director Ang Lee’s upcoming film, “Gemini Man,” is less about the content of the film and more about all the technological wizardry that went into its creation. Fans that just want to see Will Smith shoot guns and fight people will be pleased with the film regardless. However, if you’re looking for a film that pushes the limits of technology, then Lee thinks he’s made a film that will give discerning movie-goers something to marvel at.
Speaking at a recent screening of the film (via IndieWire), Lee went into great detail about what behind-the-scenes tricks went into making people believe there are two Will Smiths in “Gemini Man.” Of course, as we’ve covered already, the process of making a second Will Smith that is noticeably younger than the present-day actor didn’t just require de-aging. Instead, Lee says the film used motion capture, CGI, and previous Smith performances in other films to help fully realize the character of Junior in “Gemini Man.”
But for Lee, the real technical advances that the film shows off is in the way that it was shot, with the filmmaker utilizing 3D and a high frame rate of 120fps, to help bring a whole different level to the action that is in the film.
“If it’s a 2D movie, because it’s so strobey, the way to pump energy is horizontal speed, speed and quick cuts, people get used to that,” explained Lee. “[With 3D and 120fps] you get people excited, I think it’s the detail [you] get to see it. I think that’s a new kind of filmmaking, and I think it’s this kind of staging [frontal], in and out of the perspective, a first-person-third-person kind of exchange. It’s a different kind of language, involvement, for both the filmmaker and the viewer.”
And it’s for this reason that the filmmaker thinks that film fans should go out of their way to make sure they see “Gemini Man” in theaters in all its 3D and 120fps glory.
“The theatrical experience should be more than telling a story,” he said.
“Gemini Man” will arrive in theaters on October 11.