The moment I heard that TechCrunch was sponsoring a pre-screening of Iron Man, I knew it was a must-see. Tropophilia-favorite blog Gizmodo lovingly titled its review of the film “126 Minutes of Gadget Porn“. I saw it on Saturday night, and I’m afraid that I too was filled with a deep technolust. What self-respecting geek wouldn’t want a suit of armor that enabled him to fly and kill bad guys? I mean, come on.
If you had trouble following some of the concepts I was talking about when I wrote about augmented reality a few months ago, you need look no further than the “heads-up display” inside Iron Man’s helmet. Check out this short clip from the movie. Imagine looking at anything, anywhere, and seeing computer-fed, real-time information layered on top of and around it. It’s coming - first to our vehicles, and later to our glasses. There’s too much other gadgety goodness to mention, but pay special attention to the technology around Stark’s home. All of it is believable to this geek’s eye. Well done, Industrial Light & Magic. Well done.
For the most part, Iron Man was able to avoid following a too-familiar formula in recreating the Marvel comic on the big screen. Robert Downey, Jr. was a brilliant choice for Tony Stark, both of them being somewhat cocky rich dudes who head down the road of reform after nearly getting themselves killed. I liked that even though he decides to consult his moral compass and do battle on the side of good, Stark loses neither his snarky sense of humor nor his arrogance. Sometimes his disregard for the opinions of everyone else becomes annoying, but mostly it helps to keep him from becoming the overly-dramatic “with great power comes great responsibility” stereotype that he could easily have become.
I’ve had another red bundle of Netflix joy buried in my mail pile for well over a week. So last night as I did some ironing, I popped Helvetica into my MacBook and away I went into the world of typography; a world that I had previously never given two seconds of thought to, but now have come to appreciate as one of the great underrated artistic mediums.
I can’t remember exactly how I first learned about Helvetica. I remember reading brief reviews about the film right when it came out, but I guess I saw it mentioned recently on some blog… or maybe Netflix recommended it to me.
I have to admit that I did get a little bored at times, but that could just as well be due to me sometimes concentrating more on the wrinkles in my shirts than on the images and words in the movie. Even though I was giving it less than 100% of my attention, I can definitely say the film was particularly well made.
The history of Helvetica was fairly intriguing, as was the way in which the filmmakers transitioned from interview to interview with examples of the typeface in everyday life.
It really is amazing how ubiquitous this one font is. Seriously. It’s everywhere. Even our Tropophilia logo above is composed in a variation called “Helvetica Neue UltraLight.”
But what was even more fascinating to me was the way in which the various typographers described their personal attitudes both towards Helvetica and their chosen profession. Some were in love with the font. They praised its perfection, or its simplicity, or its boldness. Others associated it with globalization, with over-standardization, even with the Vietnam War. Others said it was overused and has become dull, while others say that it’s undergoing a revival. Some say it’s timeless, others say its time has come and gone. Who knew all this controversy existed over a font?
I saw an ad for the film while browsing the web a few weeks ago, and I almost scrolled right by. I usually don’t pay attention to web ads, let alone click on them, but I took the bait on this one upon seeing Ron Howard’s name attached to it. The film had received several honors and awards, but it was the enticing trailer that finally won me over.
And, as I’ve noted before, I’m a sucker for pretty much everything related to space. So I queued it up on Netflix and waited patiently.
A week or so later, the mailman brought me my little red envelope. I bought some beer, gathered some friends, and settled in to be entertained. I was not entertained. I was spellbound.
Late last night or early this morning we surpassed 10,000 visitors to this site since our launch in January. I’d call that a decent first 7 months. Thanks so much for reading, commenting, and spreading the word about Tropophilia. We’ll try our best to keep you coming back. -T
Put a little happy in your day. Here is the NYT write-up on him. Make sure to watch the vid in high quality. Thanks to Hank for pointing me to this! - J
Brian Greene calls attention to the transformative, inspirational effect that science can have on our lives if we only take the time to explore and understand it. Money quote: “The wonder of the cosmos transcends everything that divides us.” Check it out. - J
Disclaimer:All content found on Tropophilia represents the thoughts and positions of its authors alone, and does not seek to represent those of their employers.
