Summer Sci-Fi Challenge 09 - Discussion Thread

[cardsfan111]

Another "ruling" request - I picked up Lady in the Water at Big Lots and it appears to be somewhat sci-fi. Neither imdb or the allmovie site specifically say so, though the latter indicated some supernatural drama. So for anyone who has seen the movie, would this one count?

[Trevor]

Originally Posted by Corey31

For my Checklist

I Am Legend, Post-Apocalyptic, Mutant, neither or both?

Definitely both.

[chris_sc77]

Originally Posted by cardsfan111

Another "ruling" request - I picked up Lady in the Water at Big Lots and it appears to be somewhat sci-fi. Neither imdb or the allmovie site specifically say so, though the latter indicated some supernatural drama. So for anyone who has seen the movie, would this one count?

No. It has Fantasy elements but nothing that can at all be considered Sci-FI. It would not count if we are going by the rules.

[cardsfan111]

Originally Posted by chris_sc77

No. It has Fantasy elements but nothing that can at all be considered Sci-FI. It would not count if we are going by the rules.

Thanks, Chris. I hadn't watched it yet, but was trying to line up what I was going to watch by going through my unwatched pile.


On another note, I was scanning the list thread to see what everyone else was watching and I noticed NoirFan has his list dated 4/1, 4/2, 4/3... Some kind of sci-fi significance or is it April where you live?

[Mister Peepers]

Originally Posted by Trevor

Definitely both.

I didn't use mutant for it because it was a disease people caught. On the other hand, the virus mutated so I guess that was the mutant.

I just watched X-Men instead for my mutant fix.

[NoirFan]

Originally Posted by cardsfan111

On another note, I was scanning the list thread to see what everyone else was watching and I noticed NoirFan has his list dated 4/1, 4/2, 4/3... Some kind of sci-fi significance or is it April where you live?

I'm using the WABAC machine, actually.

[cardsfan111]

Originally Posted by NoirFan

I'm using the WABAC machine, actually.

If it's good enough for you and Mr. Peabody, it's good enough for me!


You have me thinking....I have a Best of Mr. Peabody DVD, I think. With the time travel element it might fit in well this month. Didn't find it on imdb, though it did pull up that apparently they're working on a movie with Mr. Peabody and Sherman....interesting.

[Dimension X]

On July 20 TCM will be celebrating the 40th Anniversary of the first moon landing. Buzz Aldrin will guest host the evening movies with Robert Osborne.

Here's the schedule for that day:

20 Monday

6:00 AM They Came From Beyond Space (1967)
Scientists investigating a meteor shower uncover an alien invasion. Cast: Robert Hutton, Jennifer Jayne, Zia Mohyeddin. Dir: Freddie Francis. C-85 mins, TV-PG, Letterbox Format

7:30 AM From The Earth To The Moon (1958)
Lifelong rivals collaborate on a 19th-century moon rocket. Cast: Joseph Cotten, George Sanders, Henry Daniell. Dir: Byron Haskin. C-100 mins, TV-G, CC

9:30 AM First Men in the Moon (1964)
A scientist's experimental space craft puts him in the path of an intergalactic invasion. Cast: Edward Judd, Martha Hyer, Lionel Jeffries. Dir: Nathan Juran. C-103 mins, TV-PG, CC, Letterbox Format

11:30 AM Twelve to the Moon (1960)
An international team boards a spaceship to the moon. Cast: Michi Kobi, Tom Conway, John Wengraf. Dir: David Bradley. BW-74 mins, TV-PG

1:00 PM Destination Moon (1950)
A crusading scientist defies the government to launch an expedition to the moon. Cast: Warner Anderson, Tom Powers, Dick Wesson. Dir: Irving Pichel. C-90 mins, TV-G

3:00 PM Mouse On The Moon, The (1963)
A small European nation launches a space program using the local wine as rocket fuel. Cast: Margaret Rutherford, Ron Moody, Terry-Thomas. Dir: Richard Lester. C-85 mins, TV-G, CC, Letterbox Format

4:30 PM Have Rocket, Will Travel (1959)
Three janitors stumble onto the formula for rocket fuel. Cast: The Three Stooges, Jerome Cowan, Robert Colbert. Dir: David Lowell Rich. BW-76 mins, TV-PG, Letterbox Format

6:00 PM Moon Pilot (1962)
An astronaut dodges secret agents and a beautiful spy before his first moon trip. Cast: Tom Tryon, Brian Keith, Dany Saval. Dir: James Neilson. C-98 mins, , CC, Letterbox Format

8:00 PM Trip to the Moon, A (1902)
In this silent film, a group of scientists ride to the moon in a cannon shell. Cast: Georges Melies, Henri Delannoy, Bleuette Bernon. Dir: Georges Melies. BW-14 mins, TV-G

8:15 PM For All Mankind (1989)
Documentary footage traces the progress of the Apollo missions. Cast: Jim Lovell, Russell Schweickart, Eugene Cernan narrate. Dir: Al Reinert. C-80 mins,

10:00 PM Right Stuff, The (1983)
The first astronauts fight for their place in space. Cast: Sam Shepard, Scott Glenn, Ed Harris. Dir: Philip Kaufman. C-193 mins, TV-MA, CC, Letterbox Format

1:30 AM Marooned (1969)
Three U.S. astronauts face a slow death when their rockets fail during a space voyage. Cast: Gregory Peck, Richard Crenna, David Janssen. Dir: John Sturges. C-129 mins, TV-PG, Letterbox Format

3:45 AM Capricorn One (1978)
The government fakes a Mars landing then sets out to kill the astronauts involved. Cast: Elliott Gould, James Brolin, Brenda Vaccaro. Dir: Peter Hyams. C-123 mins, TV-14, CC, Letterbox Format

http://www.tcm.com/thismonth/index/

I guess For All Mankind and The Right Stuff won't qualify for the challenge, but it'll still be interesting to hear what Aldrin has to say about those two films.

[Trevor]

^

Too early to set my DVR. Hopefully someone will bump this post closer to the 20th.

[Trevor]

How about a ruling on the various "Left Behind" sort of movies? I've looked a couple up, and at least one is listed as sci-fi, a couple more as fantasy/thriller or drama. I guess I think of all apocalyptic movies as sci-fi, but could see it argued otherwise.

[brainee]

Originally Posted by Trevor

How about a ruling on the various "Left Behind" sort of movies? I've looked a couple up, and at least one is listed as sci-fi, a couple more as fantasy/thriller or drama. I guess I think of all apocalyptic movies as sci-fi, but could see it argued otherwise.

Never heard of them. Are they any good? Reviews from mainstream sources seem kind of sketchy. I'd think as long as there's some scientific discussion to go along with the apocalypse it would be ok. So something like "The Rapture" I wouldn't consider sci-fi at all.

Does anyone have a problem with me listing "Splinter"? It's a creature-feature monster movie, though its never explicitly shown where it comes from (alien? mutant? experiment-gone-wrong?). One of the main characters is presented as a PhD candidate in biology, and he does a bit of scientific discussion of the monster (leading into how they can exploit its biology to defeat it). So its not really supernatural - just something new and freaky.

[Trevor]

I've only seen Left Behind, and it was quite mediocre. I have the two sequels, plan to watch them someday, but may wait since they aren't listed as sci-fi like Left Behind is.

Splinter looks pretty cool, and close enough to sci-fi for me. Never heard of it before, would you recommend a rental?

[Mister Peepers]

Originally Posted by Trevor

I guess I think of all apocalyptic movies as sci-fi, but could see it argued otherwise.

I wouldn't consider any of the Mad Max movies to be sci-fi.

I decided to break down and watch Independence Day today. Last time I watched it out of my own free will was the very first showing in my town. Super long line, free poster, and then I saw the movie. Could never understand the hype around it since we all thought it was mediocre at best.

edit: I guess in a way I could see Mad Max as sci-fi but at that point, I think stuff is starting to get stretched rather thin and would end up including a bunch of other stuff I wouldn't normally consider sci-fi.

[Boogie76]

To me the Mad Max movies are totally sci-fi. Granted they aren't involving space ships or time travel, but neither did much of Asimov's work and that is clearly sci-fi. I fail to see how Blade Runner could be sci-fi and Mad Max not.

[Mister Peepers]

Originally Posted by Boogie76

I fail to see how Blade Runner could be sci-fi and Mad Max not.

Blade Runner has androids. Mad Max is Earth after people got wiped out and are using primitive technology.

That's what I told myself at first. Then I reminded myself what the definition is http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sci-fi and realized I was looking at it wrong.

[Jeffy Pop]

Exactly. Mad Max is sci-fi all the way. With all of the weird rulings around here about what is/isn't science fiction, why wouldn'tMad Max be considered sci-fi?

[caligulathegod]

The day Mad Max doesn't get included in a Sci-fi challenge is the day I quit. It is Dystopian and the later ones are post-Apocalyptic.

We had a debate on Batman Begins and it was counted last year. Also, Monsters that aren't supernatural (like demons or vampires or werewolves) are usually Sci-Fi. If anything, they are related to Nature Gone Berserk (which should have been on the checklist, really). So Splinter, Creature From The Black Lagoon, Godzilla, etc. all count.

It really doesn't take much to make something Science Fiction. It doesn't need technology or aliens. Oft times the best SF is just cautionary tales or alternate timelines.

It's bad enough we didn't get a proper discussion on Fantasy, as promised. If we are going to even question stuff like Mad Max it means this is no longer fun and just about ego.

[brainee]

Originally Posted by Trevor

Splinter looks pretty cool, and close enough to sci-fi for me. Never heard of it before, would you recommend a rental?

It's ok. If the story sounds like something up your alley, I'd think you'd enjoy it. Like I mentioned in my list, it's an awfully slight movie. By that I mean it's really short, very few characters, one location, and not much in the way of plot. Though it's low budget - I imagine the filmmakers were trying not to exceed their capabilities. They put what little money they had into the right place (a decent looking monster). But it's fine for what it is.

[Boogie76]

Originally Posted by Mister Peepers

Blade Runner has androids. Mad Max is Earth after people got wiped out and are using primitive technology.

That's what I told myself at first. Then I reminded myself what the definition is http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sci-fi and realized I was looking at it wrong.

Fair enough. Besides, discussing what is and isn't sci-fi is half the fun of this challenge.

[Mister Peepers]

Originally Posted by caligulathegod

The day Mad Max doesn't get included in a Sci-fi challenge is the day I quit. It is Dystopian and the later ones are post-Apocalyptic.

We had a debate on Batman Begins and it was counted last year. Also, Monsters that aren't supernatural (like demons or vampires or werewolves) are usually Sci-Fi. If anything, they are related to Nature Gone Berserk (which should have been on the checklist, really). So Splinter, Creature From The Black Lagoon, Godzilla, etc. all count.

It really doesn't take much to make something Science Fiction. It doesn't need technology or aliens. Oft times the best SF is just cautionary tales or alternate timelines.

It's bad enough we didn't get a proper discussion on Fantasy, as promised. If we are going to even question stuff like Mad Max it means this is no longer fun and just about ego.

Then I stand corrected about True Blood and it sounds like Ghost Hunters should also count and also Batman Begins, which I could've sworn was allowed last time.

I honestly had a different definition of what sci-fi was and wasn't before the challenge started this year and didn't read last year's discussion thread. I also didn't realize we were going to discuss fantasy.

Since I blew it that way, would anyone really have any objections to allowing fantasy stuff? I'd still call it the sci-fi challenge but fantasy stuff would also be allowed?

I also plan to discuss how things will go for next year after this challenge ends to get some firm ideas. I never really thought about it before, but sci-fi really seems like the "and everything else goes here" genre.

edit: Something I want to avoid is having it just so broad that pretty much every movie in existence can be allowed since it fits under the sci-fi definition. Couldn't Red Dawn be argued as being sci-fi since it's something of an alternate reality? The problem with that is that the movie is basically an action movie. A restrictive rule would be to only allow stuff labeled sci-fi at allmovie and imdb, which is what I did last year at first but then it was not allowing some things that really fit.

Perhaps it would be better to allow movies where the predominant genre is sci-fi?

[Corey31]

Isn't the first line of telling if the film is eligible or not is if Sci-Fi is listed on IMDB? Mad Max and it's sequels have Sci-Fi listed as a genre so therefore should count no matter what.

[caligulathegod]

A quick check of Wikipedia says Red Dawn is an Alternate Timeline movie, which when that link is followed specifically says that Alternate Timeline is speculative fiction/Science Fiction. Hmmm.

[caligulathegod]

Originally Posted by Corey31

Isn't the first line of telling if the film is eligible or not is if Sci-Fi is listed on IMDB? Mad Max and it's sequels have Sci-Fi listed as a genre so therefore should count no matter what.

IMDB is definitely a reference. Where we got into trouble was when we considered it absolute. We found some glaring exceptions. Austin Powers films come to mind.

[caligulathegod]

I would just hope that even though a wide berth can be given in film selection, that the participants at least use some judgment in what they consider inclusive. Someone last year mentioned (facetiously) Seven Year Itch as "fantasy". If someone would want to include something like that then they kind of miss the point of a "Genre" challenge.

[Mister Peepers]

Originally Posted by caligulathegod

A quick check of Wikipedia says Red Dawn is an Alternate Timeline movie, which when that link is followed specifically says that Alternate Timeline is speculative fiction/Science Fiction. Hmmm.

I didn't check but in a way I'm glad that it is because I want to watch it. It just seems wrong to picture it in the sci-fi section at a video store.

On a side note, Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future really had some potential to be a good show if it wasn't focused on being a kids show. The second episode seemed like a good start for a man vs machine war in the future, similar to Terminator. It almost seemed like it was going to build up a pretty cool storyline but then it went downhill the next episode and just kept getting worse. Even though it's man vs the machines, the machine army decided to enlist humans to be officers.