Daybreakers (2009) – The Spierig Brothers

The next entry in the vampire section of DK Canada’s very entertaining Monsters in the Movies book is a but of a unique tale. Set in the far future of 2019, vampires are the dominant life form on the planet after a virus has swept the world. Humans are dying out, and those that aren’t…

The Little Vampire (2000) – Uli Edel

Even family films get into the vampire act as I learn with the next stop in DK Canada’s Monsters in the Movies, the coffee table tome by legendary director John Landis. That film is The Little Vampire, based on the book by Angela Sommer-Bodenburg. Starring Jonathan Lipnicki, following his endearing turn in Jerry Maguire, the…

Star Trek: Strangers from the Sky (1987) – Margaret Wander Bonanno

This week’s visit to the Book Shelf brings me the second Giant Star Trek novel from Pocket Books, and gives us a a different look at the first contact between Humans and Vulcans, a plot point that would later be visited in Star Trek: First Contact, though it could be argued that this book complements…

Doctor Who (Peter Capaldi) – The Zygon Inversion, and Sleep No More

Peter Harness and Steven Moffat pen the conclusion to the story begun last week in The Zygon Invasion, airing on 7 November, 2015, the episode left the Doctor (Capaldi) in a precarious predicament, the Zygon replacement of Clara (Jenna Coleman) had just launched a rocket at the President of Earth’s (the Doctor) plane – with…

Seven Fallen Feathers (2017) – Tanya Talaga

Seven Fallen Feathers is a defining book. It is a haunting, distressing and angering discourse on racism and loss in Northern Ontario, and across Canada. Talaga, a dedicated and insightful journalist turns her investigative eye, shining it like a spotlight onto a piece of Canadian life that many of us are loathe to discuss, accept,…

Doctor Who (Matt Smith) – Cold Blood, and Vincent and the Doctor

Rory (Arthur Darvill), Amy (Karen Gillan) and the Doctor (Smith) have their hands full this week as we dive into the second part of the Silurian story that started last week with The Hungry Earth. Cold Blood was written by Chris Chibnall and first aired on 29 May, 2010. The Time Lord is going underground…

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014) – Matt Reeves

  It’s back to the Apes saga as I dive into the most recent sequel as I continue my way through the Sci-Fi Chronicles. Set a decade or two after the previous film, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and Caesar (mo-capped by Andy Serkis) is leading a growing nation of evolved apes. But…

Planet of the Apes (2001) – Tim Burton

  It’s time for a different vision of Planet of the Apes, as I continue my exploration of the series as I delve into the Sci-Fi Chronicles book. This time around, Tim Burton directs an all-star cast including Tim Roth, Helena Bonham-Carter, Mark Wahlberg, Kris Kristofferson, Michael Clarke Duncan, Paul Giamatti, David Warner and Estella…

Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973) – J. Lee Thompson

  After the darkness of Conquest, the final film in the original Apes series is a little more family-friendly, and is my next stop in the Sci-Fi Chronicles book. Caesar (Roddy McDowall) is trying to keep his people safe, as he rules the apes, after the consequences of the war that was hinted at during…

Doctor Who (Tom Baker) – The Sontaran Experiment

  This week we take on the shortest Doctor Who story in the 1970s. This two-parter was written by Bob Baker and Dave Martin and aired from 22 February to 1 March, 1975. Tying in with the previous story, The Ark in Space, the Doctor (Tom Baker), Sarah-Jane (Elisabeth Sladen) and Harry (Ian Marter) transmit down to the Earth…