Radiation. We’ve all seen those Fifties movies. We know what radiation can do: make things bigger or smaller or smarter or more savage or whatever else the plot requires. And, hey, if there’s a hole in the ozone layer then we’ll be getting more radiation… What a great idea for a movie! Now, if you’re […]
Read more "Day of the Animals (1977)"Honorable Mention This is a beautiful example of the problematic relationship between horror and science fiction. Dr. Norman Boyle takes over the historical project he was working on with a colleague who just committed suicide after the murder of his mistress. Dr. Boyle and his family move into the house his colleague was living in […]
Read more "Quella villa accanto al cimitero [The House by the Cemetery] (1981)"As I’ve noted before, I have long had a certain affection for Russian Science Fiction film. And I’ve got to say that this has been a very good era for Russian SF Cinema. There has been a stream of interesting films, both big scale blockbusters like Attraction and the Inhabited Island (Dark Planet) films and a handful […]
Read more "Koma [Coma] (2019)"It’s a bad sign when the best thing about a movie is Burt Ward. He isn’t playing Robin to Adam West’s Batman this time, but instead he’s some sort of Alien Head Honcho, The Omnipresent Praxima. Which basically means he shows up once in a while and pontificates a bit. Meanwhile some guy named Tyrone […]
Read more "Alien Force (1996)"I was not at all ready for this one. I suspect some people would describe The Blackout as a Russian attempt at an American big budget blockbuster film. But Hollywood just doesn’t make films like this. I suppose one might compare it to Arrival, that least Hollywood of Hollywood Science Fiction Blockbusters, but this is something […]
Read more "Avanpost [The Blackout] (2019)"I love a good “B” Movie. Don’t get me wrong: a stunningly artistic film or an epoch-making drama is worth seeing any day. But a great “B” Movie is sheer, unadulterated fun. There are no epic themes, no great emotional truths, and no particular depth to cardboard characters. There’s just people killing robots. And most […]
Read more "Robot Riot (2020)"(aka Hellfire) I’ve given a lot of attention over the last few years to small films — whether SOV, DIY, or low budget Indies from dedicated creators and production companies — and to their special place in the film world. But I haven’t written much about the role played by small distribution companies who put […]
Read more "Primal Scream (1987)"Honorable Mention (Well it might be Science Fiction, if you stick around long enough. Wait and see) Kevin Smith made a Bigfoot film? Well…not quite. He only produced it. It is in his View Askew Universe, and was produced by View Askew Productions. Two of his friends, Malcolm Ingram and Matt Gissing, wrote and directed, […]
Read more "Drawing Flies (1996)"Roger Corman once claimed (on the cover of a book, even!) that he’d made a hundred films in Hollywood and never lost a dime. It’s really not that hard to believe: consider, for example, The Bees, his contribution to the Seventies wave of Killer Bee movies. Warner Brothers was afraid his little film would draw […]
Read more "The Bees (1978)"Occasionally a film comes along that reminds you that not all Italian films are made in Italy. But the middle of nowhere in Utah? At least when they made The Visitor (1979) in Atlanta they could take in a Basketball game or two. Despite the U.S. location we have an Italian team of writers and an Italian […]
Read more "Contamination .7 [The Crawlers] (1993)"