Welcome to The Cantina Bar and Grill: Off-topic chat served up here

[Nelsmom]

But I still haven't heard much about this years bunch of Sci-fi/Fantasy movies.  Has anyone seen any and what did you think of them.  It is hard for my son to sit through a movie in a theather because of the crowds so I'm looking for some to get him for Christmas.

Toni 

[paulgoatallen]

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Nelsmom wrote:

But I still haven't heard much about this years bunch of Sci-fi/Fantasy movies.  Has anyone seen any and what did you think of them.  It is hard for my son to sit through a movie in a theather because of the crowds so I'm looking for some to get him for Christmas.

Toni 

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Toni:

I've been overall disappointed by the SF movies released in the last few years. It's all flash and no substance (for the most part).  You should get your son some of the "classics" – Soylent Green, Silent Running, The Omega Man, Logan's Run, THX 1138, the list goes on and on...

Paul 

[Nelsmom]

Paul,

The problem is that he already has those so I'm stuck with the new ones.  I know that they aren't as good as the ones you mentioned but if it's Sci-fi/Fantasy he will watch it over and over and over.  So I still need help.

Toni

[Nadine]

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Nelsmom wrote:

Paul,

The problem is that he already has those so I'm stuck with the new ones.  I know that they aren't as good as the ones you mentioned but if it's Sci-fi/Fantasy he will watch it over and over and over.  So I still need help.

Toni

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I found this list, Toni, but I have a suspicion that he probably has all of them; These are the Film Critics Awards.

http://www.filmcritic.com/misc/emporium.nsf/reviews/filmcritic.coms-Top-50-Sci-Fi-and-Fantasy-Films

For some reason it is a slow load so wait for the page to come up.

Some of these are pretty expensive. I noticed that Metropolis is selling for almost $28! 

[Nelsmom]

Nadine,

Thanks but he does have those and all the Star Trek movies.  I don't know what I'm going to get him.

Toni

[Nadine]

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Nelsmom wrote:

Nadine,

Thanks but he does have those and all the Star Trek movies. I don't know what I'm going to get him.

Toni

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You do have a tough task, Toni. I found this current list but I have no idea if they are very good. None look too exciting to me.

2007/2008

I think Paul is right -- there is much in the offering for the recent year.

Message Edited by Nadine on 09-19-2008 09:56 PM

[TiggerBear]

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Jon_B wrote:

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TiggerBear wrote:

Anyone else think it's ironic that Phillip K. DIck movies are little like the novels and although his books are good. The little similar movies are great.

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I think sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.  Blade Runner was great.  But Minority Report was also very different from the original short story, and I thought in that case Dick's short story was much better than the film.  And one of the best PKD movies, in my opinion, is A Scanner Darkly, and that one was almost identical to the book except for one relatively minor change towards the end.  

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Oh the problems of Minority Report were mostly bad casting decisions. The paradox logic foul up was in Mr. Dick's book too. So you can't blame the screen writer. And I definately agree on A Scanner Darkly. An excellent translation and honerable homage committed right after Mr. Dick died.

[TiggerBear]

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Nelsmom wrote:

But I still haven't heard much about this years bunch of Sci-fi/Fantasy movies.  Has anyone seen any and what did you think of them.  It is hard for my son to sit through a movie in a theather because of the crowds so I'm looking for some to get him for Christmas.

Toni 

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Recent good one's

"Sunshine" bad title good movie

"Babalon AD" tranlation of "Babalon Babies" no it's not acurate to the book. They stripped out most of the eastern european politics and military quasi technical jargon the book drownds in. (chuckle) it's for the better really.

"Casshern"  it's Japanese and REALLY really good

most sci/fi being currently realeased are comic book movies or remakes

[Nelsmom]

Thanks TiggerBear,

I will check them out and see if he would like them.  I'm hoping to find a copy of Starship Trooper3  he has the other two.  Also has anyone seen the new Mummy movie and how is it?

Toni

[TiggerBear]

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Nelsmom wrote:

Thanks TiggerBear,

I will check them out and see if he would like them.  I'm hoping to find a copy of Starship Trooper3  he has the other two.  Also has anyone seen the new Mummy movie and how is it?

Toni

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Oh ho ho ST3 cheesy sci/fi, but the special effects are good.

And if you can tolerate the actress change the new mummy isn't bad.

[werecat]

It is a good movie but because they replaced the original actress(Rachel Wise) Eve, with another the chemistry between Rick and Eve is not there at all. So some scenes are kind of lame.

[Nelsmom]

Thanks TiggerBear and Werecat,  It definiately gives me something to consider.  I can't get him much but movies are something he can enjoy for a long time.  Also a lot of things can get broken really fast.  He does take good care of his movies.

Toni

[Nadine]

Science Fiction as Literature 

I was wondering what Science Fiction would actually be consider good literature? I came across this statement which specifies a very limited number:

"The only science fiction novels I'm aware of that could stand on their own as a literary achievement is Stanislaw Lem's Solaris and Ursula K. Le Guin's The Left Hand of Darkness. Some others are serviceable and worthwhile, like Dan Simmons Hyperion, Frank Herbert's Dune, Robert Heinleins Stranger in a Strange Land, William Gibson's Neuromancer, Walter Michael Millers A Canticle for Leibowitz, and Philip K. Dick's better novels."

The writer did not specify Dick's better novels. What do you think of this list and what might you add?

[Nelsmom]

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Nadine wrote:

Science Fiction as Literature 

I was wondering what Science Fiction would actually be consider good literature? I came across this statement which specifies a very limited number:

"The only science fiction novels I'm aware of that could stand on their own as a literary achievement is Stanislaw Lem's Solaris and Ursula K. Le Guin's The Left Hand of Darkness. Some others are serviceable and worthwhile, like Dan Simmons Hyperion, Frank Herbert's Dune, Robert Heinleins Stranger in a Strange Land, William Gibson's Neuromancer, Walter Michael Millers A Canticle for Leibowitz, and Philip K. Dick's better novels."

The writer did not specify Dick's better novels. What do you think of this list and what might you add?

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I think that a lot of Science Fiction is good literature.  I would definitely say Ann McCaffrey's books and Andre Norton's bookis would.  Both wrote other genre's than Science Fiction/Fantasy.  Issac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke are a couple of more.  Some people have a very limited definition of good literature.

Toni

[TiggerBear]

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Nelsmom wrote:

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Nadine wrote:

Science Fiction as Literature 

I was wondering what Science Fiction would actually be consider good literature? I came across this statement which specifies a very limited number:

"The only science fiction novels I'm aware of that could stand on their own as a literary achievement is Stanislaw Lem's Solaris and Ursula K. Le Guin's The Left Hand of Darkness. Some others are serviceable and worthwhile, like Dan Simmons Hyperion, Frank Herbert's Dune, Robert Heinleins Stranger in a Strange Land, William Gibson's Neuromancer, Walter Michael Millers A Canticle for Leibowitz, and Philip K. Dick's better novels."

The writer did not specify Dick's better novels. What do you think of this list and what might you add?

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I think that a lot of Science Fiction is good literature.  I would definitely say Ann McCaffrey's books and Andre Norton's bookis would.  Both wrote other genre's than Science Fiction/Fantasy.  Issac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke are a couple of more.  Some people have a very limited definition of good literature.

Toni

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Hear Hear!

[paulgoatallen]

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Nadine wrote:

Science Fiction as Literature 

I was wondering what Science Fiction would actually be consider good literature? I came across this statement which specifies a very limited number:

"The only science fiction novels I'm aware of that could stand on their own as a literary achievement is Stanislaw Lem's Solaris and Ursula K. Le Guin's The Left Hand of Darkness. Some others are serviceable and worthwhile, like Dan Simmons Hyperion, Frank Herbert's Dune, Robert Heinleins Stranger in a Strange Land, William Gibson's Neuromancer, Walter Michael Millers A Canticle for Leibowitz, and Philip K. Dick's better novels."

The writer did not specify Dick's better novels. What do you think of this list and what might you add?

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Nadine:

Just curious – who exactly wrote that?  

Paul 

[Nadine]

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paulgoatallen wrote:

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Nadine wrote:

Science Fiction as Literature

I was wondering what Science Fiction would actually be consider good literature? I came across this statement which specifies a very limited number:

"The only science fiction novels I'm aware of that could stand on their own as a literary achievement is Stanislaw Lem's Solaris and Ursula K. Le Guin's The Left Hand of Darkness. Some others are serviceable and worthwhile, like Dan Simmons Hyperion, Frank Herbert's Dune, Robert Heinleins Stranger in a Strange Land, William Gibson's Neuromancer, Walter Michael Millers A Canticle for Leibowitz, and Philip K. Dick's better novels."

The writer did not specify Dick's better novels. What do you think of this list and what might you add?

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Nadine:

Just curious – who exactly wrote that?

Paul

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I don't know who wrote it. It was someone's blog and I didn't see a name anywhere. This is the link:

http://jseliger.wordpress.com/2008/06/02/day-of-the-triffids/

I took the quote above from the first paragraph.

[Chomp]

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Nadine wrote:

Science Fiction as Literature 

I was wondering what Science Fiction would actually be consider good literature? I came across this statement which specifies a very limited number:

"The only science fiction novels I'm aware of that could stand on their own as a literary achievement is Stanislaw Lem's Solaris and Ursula K. Le Guin's The Left Hand of Darkness. Some others are serviceable and worthwhile, like Dan Simmons Hyperion, Frank Herbert's Dune, Robert Heinleins Stranger in a Strange Land, William Gibson's Neuromancer, Walter Michael Millers A Canticle for Leibowitz, and Philip K. Dick's better novels."

The writer did not specify Dick's better novels. What do you think of this list and what might you add?

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Nadine and all,

I am not familiar with the author of the post on that blog, but what I am assuming they mean is the academic defintion of literary merit. Whether or not one agrees with that point of view (some people see "academic" as elitist), there is a particular approach to evaluating texts seen as standard. However, even from that approach that is a small list. Interestingly, though, in a college course I had on SF and Fantasy lit a few years ago we did read Solaris, Left Hand, Canticle, and Ubik (PKD).

Toni, aren't the authors you mention specifically fantasy writers rather than SF? The guy in that blog did specify SF lit in his sweeping (and very limiting) statement. 

Carol

[Nelsmom]

Carol,

I guess that you could call them fantasy writers but Anne McCaffrey also wrote some general fiction like The Lady and A Stitch In Snow.  But she also wrote some that had some based on Science like The Brainship series.  I could add some Science Fiction authors like Greg Bear, David Brin, Frank Herbert.  I know that his definition of literature was narrow I was just saying what I thought.

[Nadine]

I have noticed that a short list of quality SF books is emerging here--which makes things a bit simpler for a newcomer like me. Solaris seems to show up quite often. But as I look into these books I am amazed at the number of quality SF films that have been made -- some sometimes better or a work of art in their own right.

 Hint: Hey Paul, how about a movie of the month!

 Solaris seems to have two interesting movies to its credit. neither is fast paced -- more of the 2001 variety -- so they might not appeal to the usual SF action/special effects-oriented audience. they are both seem to be heavy on the psychological and philosophical issues. The classic seems to be Andrei Tarkovsky's Russian (very long and very expensive) version and then an American version was released in 2002.

Solaris Tarkovsky

 

 

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Chomp wrote:

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Nadine wrote:

Science Fiction as Literature 

I was wondering what Science Fiction would actually be consider good literature? I came across this statement which specifies a very limited number:

"The only science fiction novels I'm aware of that could stand on their own as a literary achievement is Stanislaw Lem's Solaris and Ursula K. Le Guin's The Left Hand of Darkness. Some others are serviceable and worthwhile, like Dan Simmons Hyperion, Frank Herbert's Dune, Robert Heinleins Stranger in a Strange Land, William Gibson's Neuromancer, Walter Michael Millers A Canticle for Leibowitz, and Philip K. Dick's better novels."

The writer did not specify Dick's better novels. What do you think of this list and what might you add?

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Nadine and all,

I am not familiar with the author of the post on that blog, but what I am assuming they mean is the academic defintion of literary merit. Whether or not one agrees with that point of view (some people see "academic" as elitist), there is a particular approach to evaluating texts seen as standard. However, even from that approach that is a small list. Interestingly, though, in a college course I had on SF and Fantasy lit a few years ago we did read Solaris, Left Hand, Canticle, and Ubik (PKD).

Toni, aren't the authors you mention specifically fantasy writers rather than SF? The guy in that blog did specify SF lit in his sweeping (and very limiting) statement. 

Carol

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