5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
07-13-12 | 10:06 AM
#451
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Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
Who should get more blame? The person that hires someone with no knowledge and doesn't require them to do a little research or the person making the film that doesn't bother doing any research?
07-13-12 | 10:33 AM
#452
Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
I just can't bring myself to do that if it's something I've purchased. I'll suffer through to the end *once* and vow to never watch it again.
I thought Phantom from Space wasn't too bad, although those other 3... phew! Watching Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet and Voyage to the Planet of Prehistoric Women back to back made me appreciate Prehistoric Planet a bit more but they have me wanting to see Planeta Bur, the Soviet film Corman chopped up to make them. There's a release from someone called "Video Dimensions" that looks to be a pretty good copy. At least the stills on amazon have good color and appear to be WS - but the description doesn't mention that and it's a bit more than I typically like to spend. I like many of the early foreign SF efforts so we'll see...
Yeah, those scenes with Beaty and the animals *are* amazing.
Rocky Jones is better viewed as the TV episodes. Even then you *really* need to get into the mindset of a 50s 8-10 year old male to fully enjoy them. There's a "Classic Sci-Fi TV - 150 Episodes" set from Mill Creek that has 23 of the 39 episodes in good transfers. If you enjoy vintage Sci-Fi TV fare that set has *lots* of entertainment value with mostly good to very good transfers. It also has 3 full serials, Phantom Empire, Radar Men From the Moon, and Undersea Kingdom with very good transfers.
I agree on all of those. I've had The DEFA Sci-Fi Collection in my "wishlist" for a while simply to get a copy of Silent Star, the film that was recut and dubbed to make First Spaceship on Venus. Image has a good quality WS, although *not* anamorphic, version of First Spaceship. It's not "great" but it's far superior to all those faded FS versions floating around. Both Image and Legend have good copies of Phantom Planet. The Legend one has both B/W and a colorized one. They did a good job on the color although I typically watch the B/W.
I thought Phantom from Space wasn't too bad, although those other 3... phew! Watching Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet and Voyage to the Planet of Prehistoric Women back to back made me appreciate Prehistoric Planet a bit more but they have me wanting to see Planeta Bur, the Soviet film Corman chopped up to make them. There's a release from someone called "Video Dimensions" that looks to be a pretty good copy. At least the stills on amazon have good color and appear to be WS - but the description doesn't mention that and it's a bit more than I typically like to spend. I like many of the early foreign SF efforts so we'll see...
Yeah, those scenes with Beaty and the animals *are* amazing.
Rocky Jones is better viewed as the TV episodes. Even then you *really* need to get into the mindset of a 50s 8-10 year old male to fully enjoy them. There's a "Classic Sci-Fi TV - 150 Episodes" set from Mill Creek that has 23 of the 39 episodes in good transfers. If you enjoy vintage Sci-Fi TV fare that set has *lots* of entertainment value with mostly good to very good transfers. It also has 3 full serials, Phantom Empire, Radar Men From the Moon, and Undersea Kingdom with very good transfers.
I agree on all of those. I've had The DEFA Sci-Fi Collection in my "wishlist" for a while simply to get a copy of Silent Star, the film that was recut and dubbed to make First Spaceship on Venus. Image has a good quality WS, although *not* anamorphic, version of First Spaceship. It's not "great" but it's far superior to all those faded FS versions floating around. Both Image and Legend have good copies of Phantom Planet. The Legend one has both B/W and a colorized one. They did a good job on the color although I typically watch the B/W.
07-13-12 | 10:37 AM
#453
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Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
For my wildcard, I just finished Friday the 13th: Part 3. While I didn't like it, it was a little better than the second one for me. Some fun non-spoiler facts I found out after reading:
- Originally filmed and released in 3D (figured this out with the way some of the scenes were shot)
- Some of the deaths were edited to avoid an "X" rating
- Budget was $4mm and grossed $37mm domestically - not too shabby for Paramount
- Originally filmed and released in 3D (figured this out with the way some of the scenes were shot)
- Some of the deaths were edited to avoid an "X" rating
- Budget was $4mm and grossed $37mm domestically - not too shabby for Paramount
07-13-12 | 12:59 PM
#454
Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
No problem! BUT... in spite of a "review" on amazon, all three films are presented with a non-anamorphic 1.78:1 image that puts the subtitles in the black bar at the bottom of the image so that you can't zoom without cropping off the subtitles. That's part of why I've held off so far - hoping for a anamorphic update release.
07-13-12 | 01:34 PM
#455
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Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
Deepstar Six as Giant Critters or Prehistoric?
07-13-12 | 05:56 PM
#456
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Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
No to Giant Critters, unless you find that there's other similar creatures and that is an abnormally large one.
Borderline on prehistoric. They don't really prove/show that it's something from prehistoric times but just claim the cave was sealed, only making it a possibly closed ecosystem where that particular type of creature may or may not have existed that far back.
That's just my take on it.
Borderline on prehistoric. They don't really prove/show that it's something from prehistoric times but just claim the cave was sealed, only making it a possibly closed ecosystem where that particular type of creature may or may not have existed that far back.
That's just my take on it.
07-13-12 | 06:16 PM
#457
Moderator
Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
so would Ice Age: Continental Drift count as fantasy? even though imdb doesn't list it as such, since
Spoiler:
07-13-12 | 06:18 PM
#458
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Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
For my wildcard, I just finished Friday the 13th: Part 3. While I didn't like it, it was a little better than the second one for me. Some fun non-spoiler facts I found out after reading:
- Originally filmed and released in 3D (figured this out with the way some of the scenes were shot)
- Some of the deaths were edited to avoid an "X" rating
- Budget was $4mm and grossed $37mm domestically - not too shabby for Paramount
- Originally filmed and released in 3D (figured this out with the way some of the scenes were shot)
- Some of the deaths were edited to avoid an "X" rating
- Budget was $4mm and grossed $37mm domestically - not too shabby for Paramount
07-13-12 | 08:12 PM
#459
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Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
I'd wouldn't because one scene doesn't necessarily make a film a certain genre. If we allowed such things, then any film that had a dream sequence where something fantastic happened, would then be labeled fantasy.
07-13-12 | 10:02 PM
#461
Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
^I'd think that all depends on just what you had to drink before the animals started talking...
07-14-12 | 12:03 AM
#462
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Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
Haven't been able to watch anything the last day or two. Decided to get one in tonight and had Them! available. I'm really enjoying it. Everyone is so serious in it. I love their protection glasses they wear during the sand storm. I'd have bought a pair of those for science classes during college!
It's interesting to see what people thought might be possible right after atomic bombs were discovered/used as it was such a new concept. From drop and cover info reels to movies about atomic mutant ants. Humans are always exploring concepts and ideas that are new and different. Makes me wonder what the next thing we'll have horror movies made of that relate to one.
It's interesting to see what people thought might be possible right after atomic bombs were discovered/used as it was such a new concept. From drop and cover info reels to movies about atomic mutant ants. Humans are always exploring concepts and ideas that are new and different. Makes me wonder what the next thing we'll have horror movies made of that relate to one.
07-14-12 | 12:45 AM
#463
DVD Talk Special Edition
Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
(Warning: spoilers ahead) I delved into my new Planet of the Apes box set. The first movie is such a classic, and while I have seen it several times, I had never watched the sequels.
I'm not quite sure what I think about Beneath the Planet of the Apes. My initial reaction was "what the fuck, Hollywood?" However, some of the concepts are terribly intriguing
Though dated, Escape from the Planet of the Apes was a step up from the first sequel.
I'm not quite sure what I think about Beneath the Planet of the Apes. My initial reaction was "what the fuck, Hollywood?" However, some of the concepts are terribly intriguing
Spoiler:
Though dated, Escape from the Planet of the Apes was a step up from the first sequel.
Spoiler:
07-14-12 | 03:46 AM
#465
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Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
Just saw Resident Evil: Afterlife. I remembered so little of Extinction that I was wondering if I had missed another film in between. 
Wikipedia is a wonderful thing, though. Action is still crazy over the top, and Milla Jovovich is still 
. My only disappointment was that the
OK, another disappointment: The shower scene was a total tease
Wikipedia is a wonderful thing, though. Action is still crazy over the top, and Milla Jovovich is still . My only disappointment was that the Spoiler:
OK, another disappointment: The shower scene was a total tease
Last edited by davidh777; 07-14-12 at 04:12 AM.
07-14-12 | 08:18 AM
#466
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Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
Had more free time yesterday so had time to take in a couple movies, and 3 Land of the Giants episodes. I watched Voyage to the Planet of Prehistoric Women, Kong Island, and finishing Disc 1 side A of Land of the Giants, I watched Ghost Town, Framed, and Underground. Nice to see the planet on Land of the Giants already being fleshed out with some interesting information in just the first 4 episodes.
07-14-12 | 08:41 AM
#467
Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
Today being Bastille Day, you might want to watch something with a "French connection."
I watched the first four chapters of the "Mysterious Island" serial from 1951 this morning, without initially realizing that it had a French origin--based on a novel by French author Jules Verne. You can watch other Jules Verne film adaptations: 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA, JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH, THE FABULOUS WORLD OF JULES VERNE and the 1961 MYSTERIOUS ISLAND. There must be a million others. I want to dig out the 1929 version of MYSTERIOUS ISLAND, so I can watch something from the 1920s.
Godard's ALPHAVILLE (1965) is the one actual French sci-fi film in my collection, but I watched it for last year's challenge or the Criterion one.
There's also anything sci-fi by Luc Besson, THE FIFTH ELEMENT being the one I can think of that's suitable for this challenge. I know a sci-fi anime set in France--"Nadia, The Secret of Blue Water" (1990), which is also based, in part, on Verne.
What famous sci-fi films are set in France?
I watched the first four chapters of the "Mysterious Island" serial from 1951 this morning, without initially realizing that it had a French origin--based on a novel by French author Jules Verne. You can watch other Jules Verne film adaptations: 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA, JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH, THE FABULOUS WORLD OF JULES VERNE and the 1961 MYSTERIOUS ISLAND. There must be a million others. I want to dig out the 1929 version of MYSTERIOUS ISLAND, so I can watch something from the 1920s.
Godard's ALPHAVILLE (1965) is the one actual French sci-fi film in my collection, but I watched it for last year's challenge or the Criterion one.
There's also anything sci-fi by Luc Besson, THE FIFTH ELEMENT being the one I can think of that's suitable for this challenge. I know a sci-fi anime set in France--"Nadia, The Secret of Blue Water" (1990), which is also based, in part, on Verne.
What famous sci-fi films are set in France?
07-14-12 | 10:17 AM
#468
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Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
Was an uncut version ever released?
07-14-12 | 10:30 AM
#469
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07-14-12 | 11:36 AM
#470
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07-14-12 | 12:04 PM
#471
DVD Talk Special Edition
Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
Today being Bastille Day, you might want to watch something with a "French connection."
I watched the first four chapters of the "Mysterious Island" serial from 1951 this morning, without initially realizing that it had a French origin--based on a novel by French author Jules Verne. You can watch other Jules Verne film adaptations: 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA, JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH, THE FABULOUS WORLD OF JULES VERNE and the 1961 MYSTERIOUS ISLAND. There must be a million others. I want to dig out the 1929 version of MYSTERIOUS ISLAND, so I can watch something from the 1920s.
Godard's ALPHAVILLE (1965) is the one actual French sci-fi film in my collection, but I watched it for last year's challenge or the Criterion one.
There's also anything sci-fi by Luc Besson, THE FIFTH ELEMENT being the one I can think of that's suitable for this challenge. I know a sci-fi anime set in France--"Nadia, The Secret of Blue Water" (1990), which is also based, in part, on Verne.
What famous sci-fi films are set in France?
I watched the first four chapters of the "Mysterious Island" serial from 1951 this morning, without initially realizing that it had a French origin--based on a novel by French author Jules Verne. You can watch other Jules Verne film adaptations: 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA, JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH, THE FABULOUS WORLD OF JULES VERNE and the 1961 MYSTERIOUS ISLAND. There must be a million others. I want to dig out the 1929 version of MYSTERIOUS ISLAND, so I can watch something from the 1920s.
Godard's ALPHAVILLE (1965) is the one actual French sci-fi film in my collection, but I watched it for last year's challenge or the Criterion one.
There's also anything sci-fi by Luc Besson, THE FIFTH ELEMENT being the one I can think of that's suitable for this challenge. I know a sci-fi anime set in France--"Nadia, The Secret of Blue Water" (1990), which is also based, in part, on Verne.
What famous sci-fi films are set in France?
07-14-12 | 12:09 PM
#472
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Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
It's too bad the Adele Blanc-Sec film didn't get U.S. distribution
07-14-12 | 12:43 PM
#473
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Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
I'm starting a double feature of Battle Beneath the Earth and The Ultimate Warrior. I've seen Warrior but not the other one.
07-14-12 | 01:08 PM
#474
Re: 5th Annual Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Challenge Discussion Thread
Happy Bastille Day! This may be the day I rewatch some Méliès films! I am always captivated by the surreal beauty of his films. As for other French science fiction, the only thing I can think of is La Jetée, which is also in the Criterion Collection. Also, I know that a few of Buñuel's French films are classified as "fantasy" by IMBD.
I also forgot my favorite Truffaut film, FAHRENHEIT 451, which I should also watch as a tribute to the dear, recently departed Ray Bradbury.