The Green Lantern Movie Flip Clock - The Bomba Alarm Clock

[Mackey]

view the video on YouTube

Thanks to RetroFlip who first pointed out this movie flip clock and gave me the heads up when it showed up on ebay (got it for 9.99).

You're looking at my newly acquired "movie" flip clock - The Bomba Alarm Clock - A clock that came out in 2007 and appeared in the 2011 Ryan Reynolds movie, "The Green Lantern."

The Green Lantern is one of those movies that you're evidently supposed to hate. Green Lantern is an American superhero film based on the DC Comics character. The film stars include Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively who are married now and have three children together and are expecting their fourth - one good thing that came out of this movie.

From what I understand, critics felt the movie's comedic elements were out of place, purists of the Green Lantern genre did not appreciate its departure from cannon, and the CGI was not the best - in particular the Green Lantern's suit but especially his mask - both which appeared automatically when needed. In the movie it's made worse because Ryan Reynolds mentions how he feels the mask is "cool."
The thing about the Green Lantern is that in the comments of most YouTube videos discussing the movie you'll find several people stating that they really liked the movie. I


You can see the clock in the movie well only once (although it appears at a distance a few times) at about 6 mins 47 seconds. The following is a movie clip showing the clock.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1q7grQ9REfg

I recently watched the movie for the first time ... it's definitely watchable. I've seem much worse.

Of course, you'll find that Ryan Reynolds often jokes about how terrible the movie was. In Dead Pool he states "Please don't make the super suit green ... or animated." And in the post credits of Deadpool 2, DealPool goes back in time and shoots Ryan Reynolds in the head when he's going over the Green Lantern script.



The Bomba Alarm Clock. It was reportedly designed by a Dutch designer, who made several steampunk looking clocks, Wil Van Den Bos. On an ebay listing a seller indicated that he felt the clock was modeled after a Polish designed electromechanical machine: the Bomba. This device, in essence a type of mechanical computer, was used to help crack the German Enigma machine - ultimately leading to the shortening of World War II. In looking at images of these type of devices, there does definitely seem to be an influence here. I've sent a message out to the designer to ask - maybe he'll respond.



I would probably not have gotten this clock unless it was a movie clock. The motor makes some noise evidently from the rotor impacting the first gear. Lubrication helped but did not eliminate the noise. The ebay seller I mentioned above, has a clock currently up for sale that is evidently making noise too.

So there is.

When I talk about this clock the song "La Bomba" plays in my head. I like the Los Lobos version.

[Performa]

I know I've "seen" the Green Lantern movie, but could not tell you anything about it beyond that Ryan Reynolds is in it, and he fights a space monster at one point. I didn't realize there had been a flip clock in it at all- definitely a neat choice on the part of the producers. It's certainly a distinctive piece that stands apart from the rest too!

[RetroFlip]

Interesting how they have a motor to ring a bell for the alarm, I was curious how they had it set up inside.