This was the first of three science fiction films directed by Hammer icon Terrence Fisher (see my review of Island of Terror), and by far the shortest, clocking in just under an hour. I have to (once again) confess a definite weakness for British SF from the Fifties and Sixties, particularly those that were to one […]
Read more "The Earth Dies Screaming (1964)"As Dr. Dinosaur would say, Crystals! Somehow it is hard to define where to file this one: It starts with flying vehicles battling each other, robot war machines – and, of course, that giant crystal from which the Lucian’s draw the magical power they use to defend the city against the onslaught. And don’t forget […]
Read more "Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV (2016)"I took a break from my burst of Soviet SF films over the weekend to watch yet another Chinese Tomb Raider movie with SF overtones (see my reviews for Time Raiders and Chronicles of the Ghostly Tribe). Well, maybe that doesn’t quite sum it up, but it certainly starts out that way, with a team of […]
Read more "Yi wan nian yi hou [10000 Years Later] (2015)"For no particular reason, I seem to have spent my weekend on a Soviet SF binge, watching this film, Moon Rainbow and Inhabited Island (made long after the fall of the wall). Although this one is supposedly a joint Soviet and Czech production, it is in Russian and some invented “primitive” language. In many respects, it […]
Read more "Podzemelye vedm [The Witches Cave] (1989)"This is a remarkably beautiful film. It is, of course, a Russian attempt at making the sort of big budget, big effects SF we’ve been making here in the US lately. And, again, of course, it should come as no surprise that it is quite different from the American product. Which is just fine in […]
Read more "Obitaemyy ostrov [Inhabited Island] (2009)"(Mild Spoilers ahead!) For no particular reason, I seem to have spent my weekend on a Soviet SF binge, watching this film, The Witches’ Cave and Inhabited Island (made long after the fall of the wall). First off, ignore the title. I know it sounds like the title of some Anime kiddie princess show with […]
Read more "Lunnaya raduga [Moon Rainbow] (1983)"Sometimes you just have to shake your head at the sinister evil plot. Okay, so you’re planning to prevent something…by causing it to happen? Ummmm….did I miss something here? At any rate, this one was put out by Arrowstorm, who have been making SF and fantasy films using Kickstarter campaigns. They’re basically a bunch of fanboys […]
Read more "Cyborg X (2016)"2009 was a very good year for Science Fiction. After a long drought in the theaters following the release of The Lord of the Rings, when the big studios instead turned their energies to making epic fantasies, SF finally found its way back. While it started with a slow trickle, thanks largely to the efforts of […]
Read more "Fissure (2009)"(Warning: Spoilers ahead!) And once again we have another Chinese tomb raider movie, in full Indiana Jones mode, with a decidedly science fictional edge to it – which, yes, is much like last year’s Chronicles of the Ghostly Tribe and the highly successful Mojin. As I noted in my review of that film, our neat categories of […]
Read more "Time Raiders [Wu Xie Xiao Ge] (2016)"There was a curious moment, re-watching this film after several years, when I looked at our animated heroes lined up for an important briefing and was irresistibly reminded of all those Filmation Children’s cartoons (remember He-Man, The Real Ghostbusters and the animated version of Star Trek?). I’m not sure entirely why: I think it was the […]
Read more "War of the Worlds: Goliath (2012)"
rivets on the poster 