I think we all are painfully aware that movies lack a lot of originality. It seems that studios are less inclined to invest in projects that don't have some franchise associated with them. The sad part is that most of my film investments this summer are not with original films, but with Star Trek: Into Darkness and now, The Man of Steel. The Man of Steel is Warner … [Read more...] about Speculative Fiction Friday: The Man of Steel
Speculative Fiction
Review of DawnSinger by Janalyn Voigt
This is not Speculative Fiction Friday as yet, but I honestly believe that there needs to be more Christian speculative fiction and fantasy. I discovered DawnSinger, and I believe that what we have here is something that can compete with J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis. One of the reasons that I don't read many fantasy books is that they tend to fall into conventions. I … [Read more...] about Review of DawnSinger by Janalyn Voigt
Speculative Fiction Friday Inception: Yeah, I figure I should
I figured that it was about time that I wrote an article on a relatively recent film that has now become a classic. Inception is one of those films that is speculative fiction, but it tones down a lot of speculative fiction elements for the sake of its story so much that there are times when I forget it is supposed to be speculative fiction. Not that the film doesn't have a … [Read more...] about Speculative Fiction Friday Inception: Yeah, I figure I should
Speculative Fiction Friday: Star Trek, Into Darkness
I realize that I don't review speculative films that are recent, and I suppose that whatever hype this film has will soon be discontinued by whatever new summer movie that is coming out, which will be that new Superman flick. I'm going to start this article by just saying that I didn't really like this film. This isn't to say that I absolutely hated this film, any more … [Read more...] about Speculative Fiction Friday: Star Trek, Into Darkness
Speculative Fiction Friday: The Cabin in the Woods
Most people would call The Cabin in the Woods a horror film, but there is enough far out elements to classify it as speculative fiction. I realize that is a spoiler, but I would have to say that The Cabin in the Woods is more a parody of horror films. As a Christian, I don't think I can really recommend horror movies. In many cases, I put them on a level a little above … [Read more...] about Speculative Fiction Friday: The Cabin in the Woods
You can learn a lot from watching Prophets of Science Fiction
I realize that it is not Speculative Fiction Friday yet, but this week, I have devoted a lot of spare time watching all 8 episodes of the Science Channel's Prophets of Science Fiction. Some of you might think it is a little bit arrogant to call speculative fiction authors prophets, and I will have to say there are aspects of this show that are a little bit … [Read more...] about You can learn a lot from watching Prophets of Science Fiction
Speculative Fiction Friday: Total Recall, the 2012 Colin Farrell version
Last summer, When I heard that they had made a new version of Total Recall, my first thought was "why"? I then did a video search of scenes from the original 1990 version with Arnold Schwarzenegger, and I can see the reasoning. The original 1990 version looks very dated now. It looks like a lot of early nineties TV shows, like Babylon 5, and looks far too...colorful. … [Read more...] about Speculative Fiction Friday: Total Recall, the 2012 Colin Farrell version
Speculative Fiction Friday: Idiocracy
Idiocracy is one of those films that uses a lot of conventions seen in most speculative fiction films, but I wouldn't necessarily give it a label of speculative fiction. Granted, it has special effects, takes place in the future, but it is a successful satire of where we could be headed. I must say that I disagree with the basic premise of Idiocracy. At the beginning, … [Read more...] about Speculative Fiction Friday: Idiocracy
Speculative Fiction Friday: John Dies at the End
This next film is one that I have to admit I am not certain whether to classify as speculative fiction. If I had to put it in a classification, I suppose I would not use "Comedy". Perhaps I could call it "drug-influenced", or maybe go so far as "spirit-influenced". As you might know, I don't really like reviewing things that have a bad spirit to them, but if you reviewing … [Read more...] about Speculative Fiction Friday: John Dies at the End
Speculative Fiction Friday: Continuum
Normally, I like to review films on Speculative Fiction Friday, but I found a science-fiction series called Continuum that is worth a look. Netflix currently has the 10 episodes of the first season, and it is worth watching. Continuum is about time travel, and yes, this is something that has been done to death. When I did a search of shows that involve time travel, I … [Read more...] about Speculative Fiction Friday: Continuum
Speculative Fiction Friday: The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai, Across the 8th Dimension!
It is interesting that some of the first speculative fiction films were very escapist, from Flash Gordon to other serialized spaghetti sci-fi. I'm not certain whether or not The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai was supposed to restart that trend in speculative fiction films, but it did not succeed. You would think that with a title like this, the film would have been fodder … [Read more...] about Speculative Fiction Friday: The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai, Across the 8th Dimension!
Speculative Fiction Friday: Speed Racer
Lately, I have been watching these videos from the Nostalgia Critic. If you aren't familiar with him, you can find him on over 300 videos on YouTube, and he really gives bad movies a roast that most of them richly deserve. I really admire Doug Walker's very animated style that reminds me of "Weird-Al" Yankovic. I have decided to sort of do the opposite this time, as I want … [Read more...] about Speculative Fiction Friday: Speed Racer
Speculative Fiction Friday: Pi
One of the reasons why I like watching speculative fiction films is that they are often not afraid to be different. I wouldn't say that Pi is speculative fiction, but it is certainly one of the most unique films that I have seen. The film is by Darren Aronofsky, who has made a lot interesting films over the years. I have not seen Requiem for a Dream, which I believe is a … [Read more...] about Speculative Fiction Friday: Pi
Speculative Fiction Friday: Big Fish, and why we need to be more open-minded
Just to be clear, calling the film Big Fish science-fiction, fantasy, or any type of speculative fiction is an insult. The problem is, we always have to put some genre label on a film. I personally know people who won't watch anything with a Sci-Fi/Fantasy label, and they would be sadly missing out on Big Fish. Big Fish is sort of a departure for director Tim Burton, who … [Read more...] about Speculative Fiction Friday: Big Fish, and why we need to be more open-minded
Speculative Fiction Friday: The Hunger Games
Normally, I like to report on speculative fiction films that are obscure, but The Hunger Games has gone rather mainstream. I was always surprised when this book became a huge phenomenon. If you aren't familiar with The Hunger Games, it has a dark premise for a book targeted for younger readers. It takes place in a world where some great war has occurred, and the rest of … [Read more...] about Speculative Fiction Friday: The Hunger Games