Films

One of the themes I will be exploring over the next few weeks is apocalypse prediction movies, and while it may seem logical to start with the biggest one, at least from the recent past, I’m instead going to start with an astronomical flare (pun unfortunately intended). 2012: Supernova is our first entry in a cavalcade … Read more

Warning: since this movie isn’t even out in theaters yet, it should go without saying that thar be SPOILERS ahead. Until the last few paragraph, there are only minor spoilers that don’t give away any plot elements, but if you’re the sort of person who likes to go into a movie completely blind, stop now. … Read more

Sci-Fi went through a major transformation in the late 1960s, from the camp (e.g., Robinson Crusoe on Mars) to the distopian, beginning with 1968’s Planet of the Apes. This distopian phase lasted until 1977 with the release of Star Wars, which caught everyone by surprise, and the studios scrambled to come up with their own … Read more

So far, everything we’ve discussed is firmly in our Solar System. Time for a change. Supernova is more of a thriller that happens to be set in space, but with a name like Supernova I think it’s still fair game.  The story begins on a medical rescue vessel–a space ambulance. They hang out in space waiting for … Read more

(Note: If you haven’t read my Red Planet commentary, please do so before reading this one.) Ahhhh, the vision of the future from 2000. Internal combustion engines are dead and the space program is alive. Mission to Mars, I just can’t quit you. When we get our first glimpse of Mars in this film, we … Read more