Picking up where the first film left off – with the strange Predalien bursting into existence, this ill-advised sequel continues to pair up two of the greatest movie monster creations against one another, with humanity stuck between them, and because of the terrible way it’s handled, no one can be bothered to care. Unfortunately, for…
Tag: special effects
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016) – Gareth Edwards
Rogue One is The Dirty Dozen of Star Wars films, it succeeds beyond all expectation, introducing new characters, fleshing out events we know had to happen, but had only imagined until now. Gareth Edwards directs a fantastic cast including Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Donnie Yen, Ben Mendelsohn, Mads Mikkelsen, Forest Whitaker and Alan Tudyk…
Galaxy of Terror (1981) – Bruce D. Clark
The next stop for me in the Sci-Fi Chronicles book is the works of James Cameron, and this is where he got some of his start (and where a behind the scenes worker, Bill Paxton, also did some work) as the film’s production designer. Cameron did some special effects work for this Roger Corman produced B-movie (something…
633 Squadron (1964) -Walter Grauman
Cliff Robertson leads the lucky 633 Squadron in this World War II melodrama that is the next recommendation from my screening of The Dam Busters for the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book. The actual aerial photography of the film is stunning, above and around England, while the rotoscope work behind the cast…
Star Trek: The Original Series (1966) -The Conscience of the King and Balance of Terror
Captain’s Log: Stardate 2817.6 The Conscience of the King, taken from a line in Hamlet (the series has a wonderful relationship with the Bard), was a bit of a murder mystery that didn’t quite engage with me when I was younger, but has grown on me since. Written by Barry Trivers, this had an original…
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie (1995) – Bryan Spicer
I never quite got into the Power Rangers, nor understood the appeal, but they are my next stop in the Sci-Fi Chronicles book. I never really saw much of the television show, and anything I did see, seemed fairly low-end, but the film tries to embrace a big budget theatrical look with a Point Break…
The Dam Busters (1955) – Michael Anderson
As I return to the war genre I plunge into the events of World War II and the creation of a ‘bouncing bomb’ that would help the Allies against the Nazis. The film is based on two books, one by Paul Brickhill about the creation of the weapon, and the other by Guy Gibson about…
Doctor Who (Colin Baker) – The Mysterious Planet
Season 23 gets underway this week with the season long story, Trial of a Time Lord. The first instalment, The Mysterious Planet, was written by Robert Holmes and aired from 6 to 27 September, 1986. The stories reverted back to twenty-five minute long episodes, and found the Doctor (Baker) being uncontrollably summoned to present themselves…
Ghosts of Mars (2001) – John Carpenter
Natasha Henstridge leads a bit of a cult cast in the next John Carpenter film up for a look-see in the Sci-Fi Chronicles book. In a bit of an iffy film, and one that saw Carpenter at his most burnt out on the Hollywood scene, Henstridge stars as Lt. Melanie Ballard, a Mars police officer…
TIFF Bell Lightbox Celebrates 50 Years of Star Trek
Space, the final frontier… Star Trek has been a part of my life for a long time, wait until you see the posts that are coming up next Wednesday if you don’t believe me! The iconic series has transcended geekdom and become a mainstream touchstone, even those who have never seen the show are aware…
The Mind Reels 