The 2nd Science Fiction Hall of Fame

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Women will be your undoing, Pépé
I am enjoying these comparative reviews, @Siddon
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Women will be your undoing, Pépé



Turbo Kid

Apple: Feel the wrath of Mr. Gnome! Do you feel it? The wrath of Mr. Gnome!

Following @John-Conner's sagely advice in his, along with others' reviews, I turned my Movie Critic Off and enjoyed the fun silliness of this film.
And like others, it was easy to see a number of Tip of the Hats to a lot of 80's B-Flick Sci Fi's as well as just 80's cheesiness in general. Music included! Which, I gotta say, they pulled it off rather nicely.
Making absolutely sure NOT to take the movie seriously, I was in the proper state of mind to enjoy the cornball dialogues, the hammy acting and, I swear, the spraying hose of water-downed blood during the fight scenes.
Even the BMX bikes made me chuckle watching the "high speed" pursuits or Skeletron when he was in the striding pose of his bike. Kind of made me think of Monty Python's Holy Grail when they used coconut shells to impersonate the sound of horses, sans horses. It had the same tongue-in-cheek effect.

Along with others, I kept getting flashbacks to other movies; the most common would be Mad Max since there were SO MANY copycats of it back in the day. I would also add Cherry 2000 with the small aspect of The Kid looking for a new body for Apple. Whom, yes, I also got a kick out of this Friend Robot's child-like awe and rambunctiousness. Laurence Leboeuf did a really good job playing her.
Another person, who had a pretty cool style but never got to speak is the lady in the above image played by Orphée Ladouceur-Nguyen. She kind of reminded me of a lower budget, more sedate rendition of Lee-Anne Liebenberg's Viper from Doomsday.

A film I'd seriously consider should we ever do a Post-Apocylptic Hall of Fame. lol

Anyway, for the variety of Sci-Fi this was a great little addition to the party. Nicely chosen, Cosmic!



28 days...6 hours...42 minutes...12 seconds
Minority Report




Where's My Minority Report!!?!?!?!?!?!?!

An entertaining sci-fi action film starring one of the biggest movie stars, a legend and an up and coming actor. Spielberg crafts a movie with entertaining thrills with thought provoking ideas and has a success on his hands.

People do indeed claim that the ending is more or less a dream. I kind of like that theory, it fits within the story as Cruise mentions how the criminals dream when they are put in those status tubes. So it would make sense he would dream up his own rescue as things do seems to become a lot easier and go his way. While it works within the story, it doesn't work within Spielberg's film wheelhouse. He prefers the happy ending over the depressing one. So this fan theory must remain a 'fan theory'.

The action set pieces are really good, but I do notice some awkward wirework, especially during the jetpack sequences. The look of the film has this oversaturated feel, feels like they want it to feel futuristic. You get use to it.

Watching it this time around hit me a little harder with the disappearance of his son. The marital break-up because Tom reminds her of their son is depressing. Makes you think about how a film doesn't change, but how you perceive it does.
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Suspect's Reviews



Women will be your undoing, Pépé
Minority Report




Watching it this time around hit me a little harder with the disappearance of his son. The marital break-up because Tom reminds her of their son is depressing. Makes you think about how a film doesn't change, but how you perceive it does.
Oh, so true.



I am enjoying these comparative reviews, @Siddon

Yeah I don't know if I can do another one with what I've got left with the three Halls
  • Attack of the Block, Aliens, Turbo Kid
  • The Unknown, The Man Who Laughs, Sadie Thompson, Pandora's Box
  • Godfather, Open Range, The Virgin Spring, Return to Paradise, Angel Face



Women will be your undoing, Pépé
Yeah I don't know if I can do another one with what I've got left with the three Halls
  • Attack of the Block, Aliens, Turbo Kid
  • The Unknown, The Man Who Laughs, Sadie Thompson, Pandora's Box
  • Godfather, Open Range, The Virgin Spring, Return to Paradise, Angel Face
yeah, those would be a HUUUGE stretch



2022 Mofo Fantasy Football Champ
Gattaca



I had seen this twice previously but I think I got the most out if it with this watch. Technically it is a real sound movie, looks great, sounds great and is well acted for the most part.

I really thought Ethan Hawke did really well and I did enjoy Uma Thurman.

The story was decent yet I wished I cared for it more. I think that is the part that really has me not loving it. It's not that there's anything wrong with it but rather that I didn't find it overwhelmingly engaging.

I did like it more than the other two times though. Definitely a solid entry.




Gattaca

The story was decent yet I wished I cared for it more. I think that is the part that really has me not loving it. It's not that there's anything wrong with it but rather that I didn't find it overwhelmingly engaging...
Pathos, it's lacking clear pathos...It's a very cold film both in it's emotions & in the way the characters conduct themselves. It's even cold in the film's color tones and set designs. I think it's brilliantly focused on detached idealism...the end scene with Ethan Hawke and the other astronauts up in space while wearing business suits, seals the ultimate act of coldness in Gattaca.



Coherence

This had an interesting start but a disappointing finish and end result. The screenplay is pretty atrocious, the acting ranging from excellent to horrible. There is not much that I remember from this movie, not a scene or quote that sticks out... my favorite movies have entire scenes that can stand alone. This is just a mesh of frantic arguing and bad-paced camera work.




Speaking of Gattaca we did a really interesting podcast on this film not too long ago!

The conversation itself is pretty great, I think: both guests did a fantastic job. The first voice you'll hear is that of Slappydavis, who's a newer member I know from another site. The other non-me voice is bluedeed, who you'll remember from our last podcast.



The best way to get it is to subscribe with iTunes. The next best is to plug the podcast feed into your RSS reader, or to download it with this link. Or you can just listen with this embedded player:




movies can be okay...
Turbo Kid (2015)


This was a mixed bag for me, only because I expected it to be more fun than it ended up being. First of all, it took a little while for me to get comfortable with where the movie was going. And although I did end up going along with this fun tale, it wasn't anything special nor engaging. In fact, the only distinctive aspect about Turbo Kid is how much it was able to achieve with its extremely low budget.

Don't get me wrong though, the film has a few fun, hilarious, and over-the-top scenes and moments that work very well. However, everything else is just...alright. The acting is acceptable but definitely not good enough. Most of the effects are expectedly bad, and sometimes that works for the film's advantage. Some of the action sequences are so poorly choreographed that they feel nonchalant (That 3 vs. 3 arena fight was pretty awesome though). The accompanying music is downright annoying; it actually might be my least favorite thing about the movie. Most of the jokes are cheesy and corny, and the only thing that saves the characters that are spouting such dialogue from being completely unlikeable is the fact that they're such nice and sweet people (I'm mainly talking about the two main characters here).

Despite all of the negativity above, this was overall a positive experience. It's a fun and harmless flick that has its fair share of troubles, but still manages to be enjoyable all the way throughout.
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"A film has to be a dialogue, not a monologue — a dialogue to provoke in the viewer his own thoughts, his own feelings. And if a film is a dialogue, then it’s a good film; if it’s not a dialogue, it’s a bad film."
- Michael "Gloomy Old Fart" Haneke



Deja Vu



A re-watch for me. I originally remember thinking it was ok. Nothing special. But second time around I just couldn't get into it. The premise and science behind it is so ridiculous that it spoils the whole film. It's odd because when you think of some science fiction plots they are far more bizarre – but I think because this technology supposedly happens in our world on earth it became just too much for my belief systems to suspend! Denzel is Denzel and the film actually looks incredible. I watched a 1080p blu ray on a 4kTV and whoever did the transfer to the Blu Ray did a remarkable job. There are fun bits and great action bits. But at the end of the day I just could not get on board with the fundamentals of the film unfortunately.




Minority Report



I’ve seen this a fair few times now. Cruise and Farrell put on a decent show but Max von Sydow steals it as the memorable Lamarr Burgess. Similar to Déjà vu – the technology that is used to fight crime on earth is quite fanciful. But I think minority report deals with it better in that it makes it way more interesting – the eye scanning, the little spider bots and the pre cogs – they are a lot more developed in terms of plot than déjà vu and make for a more exciting sci fi world, to be expected really from Phillip K Dick. I agree with other reviews here about the special effects – they are dated and look a bit washed out – but that shouldn’t be held as a negative, as the film is now 17 years old. The action is fast when it gets going and there is development to a lot of the characters. It’s a decent fun watch at the end of the day. Perhaps a tiny bit overlong.




Attack the Block

This was a decent flick that I couldn’t get into that much. For me, none of the characters were very likable and interesting, except for the nurse lady. I did like the main characters transformation into a better person, but I hated the ending and really thought it should have been different. Anyways, a good film technically wise with some great horror comedy elements.... just missing the story aspects I would have liked.

Turbo Kid

There were some hilarious and breath taking moments in Turbo Kid, but other than those moments the film is just okay. It was a B-movie 80s spoof thing, I know, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it’s silliness. A lot of it just felt out of place and not even funny, like the umbrella “blood rain” part. The excessive gore always makes me roll my eyes too. Not horrible, but I won’t be revisiting it.



'Forbidden Planet' (1956)

Dir.: Fred M. Wilcox


I would never have watched this movie if it wasn't for this hall of fame - and that's precisely why I join them. Right from the off we're introduced to some lively little effects which I thought were a real treat considering this movie is what 63 years old? George J. Folsey did a great job in transporting us to the other worldly setting.



What follows is an interesting plot that was far more cerebral than I expected, with a key line delivered by Leslie Neilsen being "we are all monsters in our subconscious, that's why we have laws and religion".

The movie is quite funny at times, the highlight being Robbie the Robot saying "Sorry miss, I was giving myself an oil job" . Some critics have seen the movie as a retelling of Shakespeare's' The Tempest' in space but there is enough there to also see it as a standalone sci fi movie about the morals of man and intellectualism.

What stood out the most though was the amount of references that I recognised from more modern films. The language used - 'blaster, hyperdrive', 'dark force', plus the nods to monsters and AI taking over - I saw bits of Alien, Ex Machina and even Predator in this film. I have no idea if it was the first time this language had been used in film but there is huge lineage here that can't be traced back to Forbidden Planet - and in that respect it must be seen as a pioneering classic. Even Robbie the Robot reminded me of C3PO when he explained that he spoke English but was well versed in thousands of other languages. And I'm sure I've seen that opening credit style somewhere before:


The constant space music did get a bit jarring, and the middle section was at times a tiny bit off paced. But overall I really enjoyed it.

Very good nomination.




2022 Mofo Fantasy Football Champ
Aliens



I can totally see why people dig this movie. It's got great action, some cool acting, and has some wicked alien battles scenes all while having a nice story to it.

And I dug it pretty well too. The beginning came off as a bit tedious to me but once they start being in dangers way more often it really picks up. The scenes where they exterminate the aliens with fire really kick-ass and would be the battle highlight for me.

I enjoyed Sigourney Weaver's character Ripley, but my favorite in the film was Bill Paxton's role. I just got a nice laugh from his character and every scene that he was in is pure gold. Perhaps even my favorite performance of his ever.

Really liked the look of the Aliens and the sets of the film as well. They were very intricately well done as is most anything with James Cameron which is why it takes him so damn long to make a movie. I think this is better directed than Ridley Scott's Alien, although I really didn't mind that one either this film seemed to take it up a bit of a notch.

Overall I don't know what took me so long to see this film but I'm glad I did. This one will have a chance to do very well in this HOF.

+



28 days...6 hours...42 minutes...12 seconds
Videodrome


Long Live The New Flesh....

BANG.

Canadian icon David Cronenberg crafts a sadistic sex flick with body horror violence. Cronenberg excels at body horror more than any other filmmaker and the use of gooey practical effects propels the grotesque nature of this film to new heights.

Cronenberg usually manages to craft films that are so bizarre that if it came from any other filmmaker you'd think it was crazy. This story fits in his wheel-house perfectly.

A film that deservedly has cult following. One of Cronenberg's better films and a good performance from Woods make Videodrome a wonderful addition to this HoF.



Women will be your undoing, Pépé



Robinson Crusoe on Mars

I have actually attempted to write a review for this several times and even now I'm unsure if this will be a complete one.
Not so much that I am unable to express my thoughts, it is more that I seem to have very little, or more precisely, they seem a bit scattered. (More than usual, I mean) lol

While I did get a chuckle out of how he had to constantly open his helmet to record his "diary", it does seem a little too easy to critique such things in a film that, at it's core, was attempting to delve into the Loneliness of being stranded. As I imagine the actual original story does. Taking key notes from that story and putting it all in space. Which, in it's self seemed to aid and impede the pacing of the film. Giving it a depth, emotionally and psychologically while dragging things on as we feel the days slowly go by.
It's not an easy thing to pull off, so I will give them credit for the attempt.

There is also a part of me that wonders that, when I watched this, it was very soon after seeing Forbidden Planet and, much like in the 19th HoF after watching Tombstone a few days after Open Range, did it subconsciously deter the potential of enjoyment of this film? Since so much in Forbidden Planet worked and it felt like in RCoM had a bit of a clunking forward to it. IMO

Still, for what's it worth, it is a good participant in this HoF and adds to the great expanse of Sci-Fi films and stories presented here.