Posted on 02/19/2008 11:03:14 AM PST by rjp2005
Where have all the sci-fi films gone?
Those simple, thought-provoking speculative tales about how people respond to something new, what kind of moral choices they make, keeping traditions in the face of technological change. Essentially, the kind of films that were thought provoking and story/character driven - Day the Earth Stood Still, Planet of Apes, 12 Monkeys, Minority Report (more action though but good), etc.
The "Superhero and Fantasy Genre Craze" since Spiderman and LOTR has really eaten up a lot of support for original sci-fi works to film...
For 2008, we have two horror/slasher types "I Am Legend" (Omega Man remake) and "Death Race" (revisiting the 70's version), another superhero film in "Jumper", "Iron Man", which could be a treat, and maybe the only true sci-fi attempt, "Babylon A.D.". There was also "Sunshine", a late 90's disaster film leftover, possibly funded by Global Warming-mongers ;)
Yesssss!!!!!
Yeah, I have not seen an episode in over ten years. I remember it was looking pretty dated the last time I saw it. I suspect it would look just a notch up from
Plan 9” at this point...
One of my favorite lines:
Death. Destruction. Disease. Horror. That’s what war is all about. That’s what makes it a thing to be avoided.
—Captain James T. Kirk, “A Taste of Armageddon,” “Star Trek”
My son and I love the tv series, Dr. Who and a spinoff series called Torchwood. That’s about as scifi as I get.
You might enjoy this: http://www.sccs.swarthmore.edu/users/01/kyla/quotations/k.html
just search “Captain James T. Kirk” to get to his quotes. Some pretty good stuff their actually. I was surprised.
Now I have the Secret Agent Man theme stuck in my mind.
I agree about skipping the first couple chapters for the sequel. Movies are better skipping right to the action. Things really got moving when they thought that not only was there a danger of the Moties escaping; it might already be too late!
I thought it very interesting also that the Moties didn’t miss a trick and LIED to the Empire of Man about the data on the protostar, making them think it was not going to spark up for many thousands of years, KNOWING it would make the blockade useless.
One of the other things I liked about the Moties is that in many ways they were MORE inventive and industrious and smarter than humans. They could speak and understand our language perfectly (although they had a special caste just for that purpose); while we needed computers to decipher any language of theirs. They were also far less idealistic than us, considering any idealism “Crazy Eddie”; and they were the ultimate fatalists. ‘Yes this path will lead us to destruction, but any other choice is Crazy Eddie.”
WONDERFUL Science Fiction, the best and most alien aliens EVER, and a great story with good characters on top of all that.
Only if they first shoot the guy that made the so-called "Isaac Asimov's Nightfall" movie. It was quite probably the worst adaptation of any written story to the silver screen.
(Ever read Spell My Name With an 'S'?)...
Heh, we do rent the “legal stuff” from Netflix. It lets me maintain my daughter’s anime addiciton too.
I had to buy both those old movies in order to satisfy my vague childhood memories of them and fill in some gaps. With “Gulliver” you can really see the “proto-anime” style whereas “Pinocchio” has more of a 50’s look. What’s not to love about a Martian turtle? ;-)
I have to be honest, I prefer subs to dubs. There’s nothing wrong with dubs and their accuracy is getting a LOT better (”Last Exile” comes to mind), so it’s becoming less of an issue. The Bleach dubs are pretty good, too.
I second that
I've bought from them before and their prices are very good.
I just wish there was less of a bottleneck between the time anime is released in Japan and it's arrival in the US. It would also be helpful if there was a dedicated Anime Channel (I know, AC went to VOD only) on DirecTV rather than wait for stuff to trickle through Adult Swim.
I try to buy the DVD's of anime we like and I'm sensitive to the trouble downloading and bittorrent files is giving studios like Gonzo, etc. The last thing I want is for them to go under!
I think “Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind” counts as a great science fiction movie.
It’s widely praised, but not generally thought of as a sci-fi movie. It’s about a fictional technology and the effect it has on people’s lives. That’s science fiction.
That was actually a movie I caught on TV one Saturday afternoon as a kid, and I loved it!
A similar, underrated one with Dennis Quaid and Louis Gossett Jr. is "Enemy Mine." Lousy soundtrack, fun SF movie.
I saw it at the Hollywood Egyptian theater. As we were leaving I turned around and shoved my open hand at the face of the guy behind me and screamed YEAGHH!
Poor kid visibly blanched (he was black) and squeaked dddon't dddooo that mmmman!
I'm evil that way...
Please! My nerves!
There are lots of books with the potential to make great movies, but I'm not sure if I'd want Hollywood to touch them. Examples: Any Miles Vorkosigan book by Lois McMaster Bujold and the Kris Longknife series by Mike Shepherd (aka Mike Moscoe).
I can think of one big exception to the "great book = bad movie" trend. The BBC made Terry Pratchett's "Hogfather" into a miniseries that was AWESOME. The actors were all great picks (with Terry doing a cameo as the toy store owner) and the actress who played Susan was perfect. My only minor disappointment was that Death wasn't voiced by Christopher Lee, who did the VA for the animated "Soul Music."
I think it's available for sale now; it was on BBC America around Thanksgiving last year. It was an incredibly well-done adaptation.
Asimov was truly a genius, Spell my name with an S, good story of some pure
energy beings that change Earths fate to avoid nuclear distruction on a bet
then remove the change when they fear the Rector will notice the class 3 change
Long time ago read,would like to find a copy
FatherofFive ~ One of the best ever.
Yes! That could make a Great movie!
Asimov was even a better scientist and philosopher. My son is in his 4th year of a doctor of pharmacy degree and he refers to Asimovs science essays to get A’s on his papers.
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