Posted on 12/29/2021 1:01:32 PM PST by Red Badger
Over the last year we have had long-awaited adaptions of classic science fiction and fantasy stories finally reach our screens, from Dune to Foundation to Wheel of Time. And the good times are set to continue with a tidal wave of big sci-fi and fantasy stories set to hit our screens in 2022.
This handpicked list of upcoming highlights doesn’t include a few big adaptations that we touched on in last year’s list but are still yet to reach our screens. So check our 2020 rundown for a look at titles including The Lord of the Rings, Sandman, Halo and The Last of Us.
Avatar 2 (December, cinemas) A recently released logo offering the only official look to date at the branding of the upcoming sequels A recently released logo offering the only official look to date at the branding of the upcoming sequels20th Century Studios/Avatar The success of Avatar feels like a distant memory from a time back in 2010 when 3D films still impressed and Marvel hadn’t taken over the world. As the years passed, James Cameron’s plans for one sequel expanded into four more films, which would be shot back to back.
We now know Cameron has already shot most of episodes two and three, with Avatar 2 rumored to explore ocean worlds of the planet Pandora. Love it or hate it you will be seeing a lot more of the Avatar world over the next few years, and James Cameron is such an obsessive innovator these films will at the very least be technologically impressive.
Kenobi (Disney+) Apart from a torrent of fan made posters we are yet to see any official images from the upcoming Kenobi series
(Excerpt) Read more at newatlas.com ...
“Friday” was one of my favorite Heinlein novels. That and Starship Troopers. The movie was just okay.
L
Mixed about it.
Crusade showed lots of promise but the suits ruined the series.
Avatar was woke bullshit, pretty CGI aside.
There is nothing original today
All movies are sequel/prequel/remakes of stuff that has gone before
Most is recycled trash .......
Falling Skies was actually pretty good. Came and w3nt, though. Someone should put the series in syndication.
Last time I was in a movie theater was to see the remake of True Grit.
There is absolutely NOTHING I am interested today from Hollywood.
I checked out our 6 plex theater and every screen had a superhero or a fantasy film for kids. Nothing for adults.
Give me some of the good old Epics! Bridge on the River Kwai, EL CID, 55 days at Peking, Lawrence of Arabia, Khartoum, ZULU and ZULU DAWN.
AS Siskel and Ebert said years ago, “The early movie makers were raised on Great Literature and made movies of Great Literature. Today’s movie makers were raised on comic books.”
I’ve learned to accept that any connection between a story’s source material and its adaptation into another medium is nearly always coincidental.
***.. Starship Troopers. The movie was just okay.***
A remake following the BOOK would be great! But how would you deliver the last line in the novel?
Sounds like Earth run by China.
When everything became science fiction, science fiction became nothing. Discuss and give examples.
The rest is same ol- same ol no plot, no character arc, no STORY.
And while I use to give a pass to movies as long as they had guns spaceships and explosions I have gotten picky in my old age.
My entertainment time is limited. I now expect guns spaceships explosions AND something that resembles a story line.
As for Avantar...I did not see it and was skeptical of it’s typical anti science anti modern world and living primitively is good plot.
But ironically the movie was banned in China because the people saw it as a protest against the rich government allied businessmen who would confiscate your ancestral home or farm so they could build on the land.
Lots of riots in China over these confiscations that never get in the western press,
Maybe it’s time to stop watching and just go back to good old fashioned reading. Adaptations have made us lazy. I’m trying to watch less and read more. Even books I read 50 years ago take on a whole new experience re-reading them in my old age!
Thanks, Red Badger. I’m looping in the movie ping list since I know we have a lot of sci-fi fans.
One timely heads up. A new year is upon is, and the first of the big festivals is Sundance (January 20-30), which is going hybrid this year. The major packages went on sale a couple of weeks ago, but single film tickets go on sale January 6 for both in-person and online screenings. (I took a flyer on a Day Pass for $100, which gave me four films, which all have to be on the same day, for online viewing. Soon I’ll be a Sundance veteran. Moving into sophisticated territory ....)
Tickets are limited and are on a first-come, first-served basis, and I have no idea about availability for any particular screening. I’m sure a lot of films are sold out by now so you probably don’t want a Day Pass, but it doesn’t hurt to check on the 6th and see if a single ticket is available for something you want to watch. If there’s an upcoming movie that has caught your eye, it’s fun to get a sneak preview.
Sci-fi fans may be interested in After Yang, an AI film written and directed by Kogonada (Columbus, 2017). It’s been on my watchlist since it was announced but has been one of the films caught in COVID limbo. It debuted to good reviews in Cannes and now it’s going to Sundance. There are no trailers yet, but here’s a review:
Since we’re on sci-fi: it’s not a Sundance selection, but Everything Everywhere All At Once also looked promising. Let’s just say that multiverse theory is relatively unexplored territory. It’s a comedy so everything will depend on pacing and whether the jokes land. I’ve not seen any reviews yet; I saw the trailer yesterday when I went to see Drive My Car (recommended if you like slow, thoughtful films; the critics are going nuts over it, which is what tempted me into the theater, and the critics have good reason). All I know about it is the trailer: https://letterboxd.com/film/everything-everywhere-all-at-once/trailer/
I’m watching Invasion on Apple TV and it’s got some moments, but it’s slow, slow, slow.
I always wanted them to do a movie based on The Stainless Steel Rat books. They were a fun read when I was a kid.
Other successful low budgets: Predator 1 and 2; Forbidden Planet; The Thing (original).
dark star
I’ve always wanted the Lensmen series brought to film or TV.
Probably couldn’t be done now, the required “wokeness” would make it hyper-boring.
All this proves that proper direction and mostly a good well acted story are far far more important than money or special effects.
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