A24 releases a series of spectacular new images promoting the critically acclaimed film civil war.
There's just one problem. Well, probably more than one. Or nothing, depending on your point of view. Let me explain.
The marketing art (below) posted on Instagram teases the post-apocalyptic landscape of a major U.S. city torn apart by conflict. The Sphere was wrecked in smoldering Las Vegas. There is a floating artillery unit on a lake outside of Los Angeles. There are also troops outside San Francisco. Tourist boats carrying refugees are moored in the Chicago River. Every scene suggests an epic struggle in an iconic location.
exclude …These scenes aren't actually in the movie. Some wonder if this campaign is giving potential moviegoers false expectations about what they'll actually see in the movie. civil war A24 was the most expensive film ever made, costing approximately $50 million. However, the visuals make the film look like it was made with twice its budget.
“Nothing like that happens in the movie,” one reader wrote on A24's Instagram post. “I don't understand this campaign. You're selling a movie that doesn't exist and it's very strange. I love A24 with all my heart but I'm so confused by what happened with this movie.”
Another potential problem is that because the images are generated by AI, there are some noticeable mistakes in geography and landmarks, creating a bit of an “uncanny valley” oddity. is. For example, the two Marina Towers buildings in Chicago are on opposite sides of the river rather than on the same side in the poster. Meanwhile, shots of the wreckage in Miami show a car with three doors. Some believe that the giant swan on the Los Angeles lake is a similar failure of AI, but it was probably intended as a paddle steamer. However, it doesn't look like a paddle steamer.
“I know how the movie industry feels about the use of AI-generated content,” one reader wrote. “And the backlash was [to AI generated stills featured in the horror film] Until late at night with the devil It was more than enough to make it clear to everyone that “we don't want this.” How stupid of the marketing team to even think this is acceptable. We are doing everything we can to combat the pressure to open Pandora's Box with this shit, and yet you are willfully ignoring everyone's concerns on this issue. ”
Officials close to the film said the images help imagine the impact the film's fictional war would have across the country. A source said, “These are AI images inspired by movies.'' “To be clear, these are not movie posters, just Instagram images. The whole movie is a big 'what if', so we're trying to transform that idea into a movie with social and dystopian realism.” We wanted to continue with the strong images of iconic landmarks. ”
Recent Until late at night with the devil Controversy seems like the closest comparison, albeit a fairly imperfect one. For the IFC Films/Shudder release, AI was used to create several title cards for his 1970s late-night talk show that appear in the film. This usage received strong backlash on social media. The film's directors, Cameron and Colin Cairns, defended its use, saying: The images we further edited will eventually appear in the film as very short interstitials. ”
Either way, this marketing effort is sure to create a buzz online. civil war We are entering our second weekend. The film, written by writer and director Alex Garland, significantly exceeded expectations and set a record debut for the studio with $25.7 million. After some debate over the film's political nature, exit polls showed that the number of moviegoers who identified as liberals and conservatives was equal.
Ironically, previously civil warGarland is perhaps best known for his 2014 directorial debut. Ex MachinaA movie that warns of the dangers of AI.