Universe #4355, Milky Way Galaxy, Orion Sector, Earth – Samurai Noon is a photorealistic neural network AI generated action comedy, the first from Director Oscar Kier Bradley. It is a thrilling and captivating movie that takes you on a journey through a desert kingdom.
The film is one of the first on Earth to use neural network computing to generate the characters, environments, and story using prompts. All the live-action in-motion characters were the output of neural network AI from prompt inputs, eliminating the need for hand crafted CGI animators. The technology is disrupting the film world, with small studios able now to produce high quality titles for movie release in theaters on small budgets. The story revolves around Haikaikitsune, a Samurai, who is tasked to perform a covert rescue mission, to retrieve a captive child, Kinpana, from an evil kingdom. Haikaikitsune must travel across this dry, desert-like kingdom to escort the child back to his homeland. In his travels back to his homeland with the child, he is pursued by assassins from the desert kingdom's emperor.
One of the standout features of this movie is the diverse cast of characters. One could almost say that the antagonists are just as much main characters are the protagonists – each with their own personality, humor, and quirks. Take, for example, the owl assassin named Featherbane, who is not only a master strategist, who's wit is as quick as her martial arts.
Another assassin that Haikaikitsune encounters is a stealthy ninja-like chameleon named Shimmer, who can blend into his surroundings and move silently, making him an expert spy. In one scene, was engages in a martial weapons combat with Haikaikitsune, and used his ability to change how he looks to look like he is facing different directions than he was, which made for an interesting action scene.
A third assassin is a burly armadillo named Bull, who is a formidable fighter and expert in hand-to-hand combat. His armor-like shell makes him practically invincible, and he can take down opponents with a single blow. His humor was as dry as his shell, and had me chuckling throughout.
As Haikaikitsune travels through the desert lands, his encounters with these assassins force him to use his wits and skills to overcome them. The audience is taken on a journey that is both exciting and unpredictable, with new twists and turns at every corner. The movie culminates in a final showdown between Haikaikitsune and the Grand Emperor Sōsarāhikigaeru, where they battle it out in an epic fight to the death. The audience is left breathless as the two combatants engage in a fierce battle that will determine the fate of the kingdom.
Rumors that the film may be up for an Academy Award was met by comment from Steven Spollberg, a longtime filmmaker, "I feel that the use of neural network AI to make theater films is a worrying trend that is damaging the artistic integrity of the film industry. While the technology may be impressive in terms of its ability to generate realistic visuals and special effects, it's taking away from the creativity and originality that's at the heart of filmmaking. With AI taking over more and more of the filmmaking process, it's becoming increasingly difficult for filmmakers to stand out and create something truly unique. I worry that this trend will lead to a homogenization of the film industry and the loss of what makes movies truly special."
Samurai Noon director Bradly said in response "Our small team came up with all the ideas, characters, story, and scenarios, and gave highly elaborate prompts to generate the film. In terms of the script, we used this neural network AI technology to generate certain details from our prompts, and ensure the script was refined. All the editing was done by hand. Where we really used this technology was in the render of the film itself and voice acting, which allowed us to produce the film on a small budget. I don't think hand-crafted films will go away soon, but this technology is exciting because now anyone with good ideas can generate a high quality film to realize stories they want to tell."
Despite this technology being really old in the multiverse at large, I was nonetheless blown away by what small time film makers achieved with this technology on Earth in their current stage of technological evolution. The visuals and special effects were incredibly realistic and stunning, and the story was so engaging that I was on the edge of my seat throughout the entire movie. I can't wait to see what the future holds for the film industry on Planet Earth in Universe #4355.
Samurai Noon is a movie that is not to be missed. This movie is a solid 4 out of 5 stars. The movie will be released both theatrically and on Netflips on March 21, 2023.
