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Awix (3310 KP) rated Them! (1954) in Movies
Feb 19, 2018 (Updated Feb 19, 2018)
Granddaddy of atomic bug movies works incredibly hard to stay credible as a drama; mostly succeeds. Government agents discover giant mutant ants on the rampage; can they contain the threat and keep the secret until the ants can be destroyed? Not quite documentary-style realism, but close enough; hard edged, takes itself impressively seriously.
Notable for featuring some relatively famous faces early in their careers - also for its use of full-scale ant puppets rather than animation or trick photography. Atom-fear angle is underplayed for the most part; this still stands up well as an SF thriller. The climax, with machine guns and flamethrowers battling snapping mandibles and exoskeletal monsters in the sewers under Los Angeles, was surely an influence on Aliens.
Notable for featuring some relatively famous faces early in their careers - also for its use of full-scale ant puppets rather than animation or trick photography. Atom-fear angle is underplayed for the most part; this still stands up well as an SF thriller. The climax, with machine guns and flamethrowers battling snapping mandibles and exoskeletal monsters in the sewers under Los Angeles, was surely an influence on Aliens.
TC
The Complete Scarlet Traces Vol. 2
Book
The brand new series of Scarlet Traces continues the story of HG Wells' classic SF The War Of The...
Neuromancer
7.3
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The sky above the port was the colour of television, tuned to a dead channel. William Gibson...
Awix (3310 KP) rated The Matrix (1999) in Movies
Jul 14, 2019 (Updated Aug 11, 2019)
Age shall not diminish, nor dubious sequels reduce the magic of the Wachowskis' visionary blend of philosophical SF and hyperkinetic martial arts action. Arguably the origin of the current superhero movie, as uncertain hero Neo undergoes the conceptual breakthrough to end all conceptual breakthroughs, learns to access his inner potential, and discovers that black never goes out of fashion.
The script is still a marvel of economy and wit, the ideas underpinning it fascinating, and the action sequences, when they arrive, are phenomenal. Obviously a film of its time (the pseudo-1999 setting now feels a little quaint), but absolutely timeless in the way the very best films are. One of those movies it is almost impossible to change without making it worse.
The script is still a marvel of economy and wit, the ideas underpinning it fascinating, and the action sequences, when they arrive, are phenomenal. Obviously a film of its time (the pseudo-1999 setting now feels a little quaint), but absolutely timeless in the way the very best films are. One of those movies it is almost impossible to change without making it worse.
Awix (3310 KP) rated The Terminator (1984) in Movies
Feb 18, 2018 (Updated Feb 18, 2018)
Undoubted leader of the pack when it comes to post-punk low-budget SF movies is, let's be honest, highly derivative, but makes up for this with sheer inventiveness and economical storytelling; unusually grim tone helps, too.
Future warriors from post-apocalyptic future arrive in 1984 Los Angeles; one is intent on killing hapless young waitress, the other seeks to protect her. Time travel plot is cleverly retooled as the basis of gritty action thriller; performances are much better than you might expect, too - you can't imagine anyone being more perfectly suited to their role than Arnold Schwarzenegger is here (and I don't say that very often). Every other film and TV series in this particular franchise ultimately does nothing but diffuse the impact of this brilliant movie.
Future warriors from post-apocalyptic future arrive in 1984 Los Angeles; one is intent on killing hapless young waitress, the other seeks to protect her. Time travel plot is cleverly retooled as the basis of gritty action thriller; performances are much better than you might expect, too - you can't imagine anyone being more perfectly suited to their role than Arnold Schwarzenegger is here (and I don't say that very often). Every other film and TV series in this particular franchise ultimately does nothing but diffuse the impact of this brilliant movie.
Awix (3310 KP) rated Downsizing (2017) in Movies
Feb 13, 2018 (Updated Mar 30, 2018)
Rather charming SF comedy-drama in which Matt Damon has himself shrunk down to ickle-wickle size in the hopes of starting a new and idyllic life but discovers things are not so straightforward.
Ignore the deeply suspect science (even Ant-Man was more accurate) and the lack of strict narrative control and this is a thoughtful and quietly rather witty film that's more interested in exploring the ramifications of its central idea than hitting particular plot points. Eventually reveals itself to be something of a meditation on what it means to live well; poses many questions, doesn't thrust particular solutions upon the audience.
Well cast, full of ideas, made me think differently about the world (for a while, anyway). Meanders about a bit but is never actually dull.
Ignore the deeply suspect science (even Ant-Man was more accurate) and the lack of strict narrative control and this is a thoughtful and quietly rather witty film that's more interested in exploring the ramifications of its central idea than hitting particular plot points. Eventually reveals itself to be something of a meditation on what it means to live well; poses many questions, doesn't thrust particular solutions upon the audience.
Well cast, full of ideas, made me think differently about the world (for a while, anyway). Meanders about a bit but is never actually dull.
Awix (3310 KP) rated Ikarie XB-1 (1963) in Movies
Jun 23, 2019 (Updated Jun 23, 2019)
One of those movies which has clearly been influential but remains relatively little-seen, certainly in the original version. XB-1 and its crew (mostly good-looking young people, a few rugged old character actors, and a fairly dreadful robot prop) blast off for Alpha Centauri but must come to terms with the strains of long-haul spaceflight and various dangers (radiation, dangerous derelicts, and so on).
Arguably the missing link between Forbidden Planet and 2001: A Space Odyssey (yes, that's a bold claim), with a strange mixture of pulp SF tropes but also downbeat psychological realism. Notably good and interesting sets, photography, and a memorable avant-garde musical score too. The story is a bit episodic and not exactly pacey, but the rest of the film makes up for this.
Arguably the missing link between Forbidden Planet and 2001: A Space Odyssey (yes, that's a bold claim), with a strange mixture of pulp SF tropes but also downbeat psychological realism. Notably good and interesting sets, photography, and a memorable avant-garde musical score too. The story is a bit episodic and not exactly pacey, but the rest of the film makes up for this.
Grunt Hero
Book
It is a time for heroes, for killers, for Grunts. In this thrilling conclusion to the breakout...
Awix (3310 KP) rated Planet of Dinosaurs (1977) in Movies
May 24, 2019 (Updated May 24, 2019)
A great title goes to waste in this low-budget SF knock-off. Spaceship gets into trouble; the crew are alarmed to realise that the planet they crash-land on is inhabited solely by dinosaurs; the viewer will be alarmed to realise the film is inhabited solely by people who can't act, and the script is cobblers too.
Not even any fun as a dodgy exploitation movie; the chamois-leather bikinis promised by the poster never materialise and we are left with a bunch of dull characters in velour outfits and adult-movie moustaches (the men are even worse) being snippy with each other. The dinosaur animation is actually astonishingly good, certainly the best thing about this movie; whether it's a good enough reason to sit through the rest of it is a question each of us must answer for him or herself.
Not even any fun as a dodgy exploitation movie; the chamois-leather bikinis promised by the poster never materialise and we are left with a bunch of dull characters in velour outfits and adult-movie moustaches (the men are even worse) being snippy with each other. The dinosaur animation is actually astonishingly good, certainly the best thing about this movie; whether it's a good enough reason to sit through the rest of it is a question each of us must answer for him or herself.
Awix (3310 KP) rated Star Trek: Discovery - Season 1 in TV
Feb 16, 2018 (Updated Feb 16, 2018)
Not as we have known it
Knockabout SF action series that's strong on bonkers pulp fiction ideas - mushroom-powered star drives, evil duplicates, 'species reassignment surgery', and so on - but less impressive when it comes to narrative cohesion or actually resembling anything previously released under the Star Trek banner.
Theses could and probably have been written about the myriad ways in which Discovery cheerfully ignores or rewrites continuity from previous series and movies; a more serious problem is the generally dark tone, emphasis on military conflict, and absence of humanistic optimism. Effects are okay; Doug Jones is the best thing in it as peril-averse first officer, though pushed hard by Jason Isaacs as loose-cannon captain of the ship. Not actively bad on its own terms, I expect, but very disappointing as an actual piece of Star Trek.
Theses could and probably have been written about the myriad ways in which Discovery cheerfully ignores or rewrites continuity from previous series and movies; a more serious problem is the generally dark tone, emphasis on military conflict, and absence of humanistic optimism. Effects are okay; Doug Jones is the best thing in it as peril-averse first officer, though pushed hard by Jason Isaacs as loose-cannon captain of the ship. Not actively bad on its own terms, I expect, but very disappointing as an actual piece of Star Trek.