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Joined: Thu Feb 10, 2011 3:25 pm Posts: 7381 Location: Detroit
Re: Sci-fi films
toothaction wrote:
Had my own look at Ex Machina tonight. I'll spare you my numerous thoughts on the picture, but I do have one related question: How long ago did the glass cage trope begin? Machina had the third one I've seen this week. Is there a cage zero?
Although variations on the experiment have played out in uncountable scripts, many involving the visual trope that I'm talking about, I was just asking about the onscreen usage of characters trapped behind glass - Silence of the Lambs, every damn Marvel film, that one episode of the Twilight Zone, etc. Standard examples - https://www.google.com/search?q=glass+p ... 0&bih=935#
Thanks for the link, though - that article was a fun read.
Not great, not terrible. Decent. Its kind of a combination of a typical teen wild bash movie and a time distortion sci-fi flick. I enjoyed it up until the end. I did not hate the end, but I thought they missed some opportunities to do it better.
Not great, not terrible. Decent. Its kind of a combination of a typical teen wild bash movie and a time distortion sci-fi flick. I enjoyed it up until the end. I did not hate the end, but I thought they missed some opportunities to do it better.
I watched this a year or so ago and it enjoyed it. I was blazing through sci-fi flicks at the time, and this was one of the better ones I caught. Like you say, it's not great, but it's not a monumental waste of time either.
Tue Dec 01, 2015 9:36 pm
Kingboy D
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Joined: Tue May 06, 2008 4:46 pm Posts: 981 Location: Sunny South Florida
Re: Sci-fi films
Lttr Prssd wrote:
I watched this a year or so ago and it enjoyed it. I was blazing through sci-fi flicks at the time, and this was one of the better ones I caught. Like you say, it's not great, but it's not a monumental waste of time either.
I just would have preferred that they made the ending much darker. If they went to the trouble of having that final scene in the pool house (with eye gouging and all), then in the end, perhaps only the originals lived or something similar, so a bunch of them end up dead when everything finally coincides. When all of them are back alive, just emotionally scarred, that was such a let down and too happy of an ending.
Joined: Sun Oct 16, 2005 8:25 pm Posts: 597 Location: Fresno, CA
Re: Sci-fi films
Been looking forward to this since I first discovered it was being made.
Mon Dec 14, 2015 10:20 pm
Dean
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Joined: Sun Feb 18, 2007 9:53 pm Posts: 6232 Location: 415
Re: Sci-fi films
Lttr Prssd wrote:
Been looking forward to this since I first discovered it was being made.
Same here, as a longtime J.G. Ballard fan and one who loved Wheatley's prior films, I can hardly wait. I hadn't seen the trailer before, so thanks. I love that a viewer could see it and not even realize what it is.
Here's hoping more of Ballard's classic works will be well-made as films.
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Tue Dec 15, 2015 1:27 am
Lttr Prssd
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Joined: Sun Oct 16, 2005 8:25 pm Posts: 597 Location: Fresno, CA
Re: Sci-fi films
I think the trailer just came out.
Toothaction and I had discussed this project in another thread about films (probably the Horror Movies thread) in regard to the similarities between High-Rise and Cronenberg's Shivers. Now this film is being touted as Cronenbergesque. Of course, there won't be any parasites in this movie, but it's an interesting circle.
Tue Dec 15, 2015 10:59 am
petitetoilonrouge
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Joined: Sat Jan 31, 2009 9:53 pm Posts: 3621 Location: Where moose are lords.
Re: Sci-fi films
I watched the trailer and have indeed no idea what to expect (except that... things go wrong?). Should I look deeper or stay spoiler-free?
Joined: Thu Feb 10, 2011 3:25 pm Posts: 7381 Location: Detroit
Re: Sci-fi films
^ If you've made it this far into the century without knowing the book then BY GOD keep those blinders on! The story will be waiting for you after you soak up Wheatley's take.
Still need to get around to reading Altered Carbon! Too many books to read, not enough time!
For anyone reading/watching The Expanse, I just read this interview with half of James SA Corey. It's from a year and a half ago, but it's a really interesting interview that touches on MMORPG, George RR Martin, Star Wars, etc:
Joined: Sat Jan 31, 2009 9:53 pm Posts: 3621 Location: Where moose are lords.
Re: Sci-fi films
The Kovacs trilogy is great, definitely worth reading! His other stuff (Market Forces, 13 / Black Man), not so much. Thanks for the interview link, will definitely check it out.
Joined: Fri May 20, 2011 8:16 am Posts: 870 Location: New York
Re: Sci-fi films
Lttr Prssd wrote:
Not a Sci-Fi movie, of course, but rather about the "greatest" Sci-Fi movie never made, Jodorowsky's Dune is completely engrossing.
Finally saw this over the weekend.
Man, what a disappointment in the fact this movie wasn't made. It would have been incredible, at least based on the team that was assembled. It still could have been trippy. I really enjoyed the ship and building designs though. The Harkonnen planet would have been interesting to see.
Jodorowsky was entertaining as he told the story of this non-movie. One of my favorite parts was
near the end as the film showed this Dune's influence on other films, subtle and not-subtle.
Definitely worth checking out. Now I need to see his other works.
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Jodorowsky's El Topo is brilliant, although less metaphysical than Holy Mountain. For a real trip, track down/borrow/steal his comic work, in particular The Metabaron.
Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2013 9:58 pm Posts: 389 Location: Seattle, WA
Re: Sci-fi films
Can we talk about how Alien: Covenant is already off to a horrible start? From the screen writers, to the cast dropping out, etc... And to top it off this basically forced out the new Blomkamp movie and that is now canceled. I love Ridley Scott, but sometimes you need to let something die and hand it off to someone else.
Joined: Sat Jan 31, 2009 9:53 pm Posts: 3621 Location: Where moose are lords.
Re: Sci-fi films
---NT--- wrote:
For anyone reading/watching The Expanse, I just read this interview with half of James SA Corey. It's from a year and a half ago, but it's a really interesting interview that touches on MMORPG, George RR Martin, Star Wars, etc:
Also 8 episodes into the Expanse. The characters are very different from what I imagined from the books (they're all a lot older in my head!), but after a slow start, I'm definitely looking forward to tonight and the last 2 episodes! They did a great job with world-building and most details look neat (except the dim-lights, low-budget-so-let's-not-show-too-much trope, but I have to say it's not as omnipresent as in other series). The "smart phones", gravity effects, Belter patois...
Joined: Fri Jul 20, 2007 6:48 am Posts: 1700 Location: Los Angeles
Re: Sci-fi films
I've been enjoying the Expanse. There's a huge range in writing and acting. Sometimes really bad and sometimes pretty good. But an interesting story line that is getting better as it moves along.
Plus not much else on right now except... VENTURES BROS
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Also 8 episodes into the Expanse. The characters are very different from what I imagined from the books (they're all a lot older in my head!)
Totally! None of the characters fit my mental image in any way but the most basic and obvious - overall I think the casting is awful. But it's still fun to see a book series I enjoy done in another medium. I'll watch most sci fi, and while Expanse is no BSG it's still better than most.
Joined: Sat Jan 31, 2009 9:53 pm Posts: 3621 Location: Where moose are lords.
Re: Sci-fi films
Well I'm the oddball who to this day doesn't understand what the fuss about BSG was all about. It was dismal on all levels!
I've just trued two episodes of Minirity Report. Again, the background elements are well designed, but the acting+scenarios+premise are all awful and I'll stop there. I doubt it will be renewed anyway.
Joined: Fri May 20, 2011 8:16 am Posts: 870 Location: New York
Re: Sci-fi films
I enjoyed Continuum. There's some decent characters in it and it was a fun watch. I watched the first two seasons on Netflix and then loyally watched Seasons 3 and 4 on Syfy weekly. (Going from binge-mode to weekly was rough but that's true for any ongoing show.)
I'm up for talking more on it, but don't want to risk spoilers yet. Enjoy!
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