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Two films science fiction fans should enjoy

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jritzmann said:
My fav real sci-fi of all time? Blade Runner...
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:cool:

The DVD release never did it justice - but keep your eyes peeled for the super-duper 'final cut' coming out this year in HD!

FOUR versions of the film are to be included in the release, plus the usual DVD extras.

A cinema release is possible too.
 
I wondered if Rick would be posting.

I don't think I've ever seen Blade Runner. I've definitely heard of it, but never watched it. I might in the future.
 
A.LeClair said:
I wondered if Rick would be posting.

I don't think I've ever seen Blade Runner. I've definitely heard of it, but never watched it. I might in the future.
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I very misunderstood film - takes several viewings to appreciate it.
 
I'm transferring files to another pc and watched Empire Strikes Back today on cable. Life saver since nothing else on I liked. Both times I turned on CNN they were dealing with Britney Spear's shaved head and reporting on her tattoos. And they make fun of our interest....

I downloaded Bladerunner. Might watch it soon. Think one of the reasons I never saw it was because it was R. I was very young when it came out. I played a Bladerunner PC game though.
 
I'll toss in a vote for Dark City as well - a great flick full of spooky noir-ish goodness. Some other "science fiction" movies I've liked have been The Matrix, The Thirteenth Floor, and eXistenZ. I also wanted to like Contact, but I didn't feel nearly fulfilled enough at the end.

David was right in recommending The Fountain - it's a well-made flick and the special effects were great. I believe reading that they went with microphotography of chemical reactions for those space scenes as opposed to using CGI, so that it would last the test of time.

Would you guys regard the recent Children of Men as falling within the science fiction genre? If so, that's probably the film I've enjoyed the most out of the current crop of movies that I've seen.
 
Just purchased the unrated version of Feast and really enjoyed it. I don't know why this title is considered science fiction when it seems to have all the trappings of a typical horror film. Lots of blood, hungry monsters terrorizing victims trapped in an isolated location....
I understand the movie was created through Project Greenlight with a miniscule budget. It certainly doesn't look like a grinder, though. Beautiful cinematography, fine performances...everything is there. My only complaint is that the gore seems a bit overdone in some scenes. If you enjoy horror/sci-fi films of a classic bent, you'll want this one for your collection. Just don't let the kids watch it.
 
Ok, finally watched all of Blade Runner. I had seen parts before.


Anyone explain the end to me please? He finds a little tin foil animal which one of the replicas make early in the movie if I remember correctly. He picks it up then has a recollection of something he recently heard, "Too bad she won't live, but then again, who does?". He smiles and nods and leaves. I didn't get it.

Do replicas have a history of being loose cannons? I was wondering why they were being hunted.
 
David Biedny said:
Watch "The Fountain". A genius film seen by hundreds last year. Lucas couldn't make something this meaningful if his life depended on it.

dB
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i tend to agree with you David! I had been a big fan of Aronofsky ever since i saw his first movie Pi! Though The Fountain didn't appeal to a lotta ppl, i loved it from the very first scene! Aronofsky is one guy who can get fantastic visuals done without having to rely on top notch special effects squad! there was an article in Wired Mag about the special effects in the movie which was really impressive!
 
Question 1: Can anyone explain to me why Keanu has to get his spooge all over every single cyberpunk movie out there? THAT is a conspiracy I want to get to the bottom of.

Question 2: I keep hearing rumours of an Ender's Game movie, can anyone confirm it?
 
I really enjoyed Minority Report. I thought it was one of the best sci fi movies out there. It was also based on one of Phillip K Dick's stories.

Blade runner is up there too in my opinion. I can't believe how amazing it still looks even today. I have the director's cut version on my dvd, but I think the theatrical one is better. They're supposed to release the 2007 edition soon that supposedly will have all versions including some new additional re-mastered cuts.
 
I saw "Idiocracy" the other day. It's certainly an interesting vision of the future. Check it out if you feel like a chuckle.
 
A.LeClair said:
All these Blade Runner fans and no one is willing to explain the tin foil animal ending to me!?
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Okay - are you sitting comfortably? Okay, here goes...

...in the Director's Cut, Deckard (Harrison Ford) is shown sitting at his piano. He's been drinking and nods off into a dream about a Unicorn...

...at the end of the film Gaff (the character with the hat and the stick) leaves a tinfoil unicorn for Deckard to find.

This shows that Gaff knew what Deckard had been dreaming about and therefore implies that Deckard is also a Replicant - in the movie, the latest Replicants have implanted memories to enable them to handle emotions...

BUT, there has always been a MASSIVE debate between fans about whether Deckard is human or not. Ridley Scott (the Director) has gone on record as saying that he wanted Deckard to be a Replicant and that is why he inserted the unicorn scene.

Harrison Ford disagreed with Ridley and always thought Deckard should be human.

Philip K Dick, always said that Deckard was human in the original book "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep"...

...luckily the film is ambiguous enough to allow both possibilities.

Personally, I think the revelation that the main hero is non-human is the ultimate twist. After all, the whole movie is asking "what makes us human" and the very fact that you assume that Deckard is human right until the end, really pushes the point.
 
Rick Deckard said:
Okay - are you sitting comfortably? Okay, here goes...

...in the Director's Cut, Deckard (Harrison Ford) is shown sitting at his piano. He's been drinking and nods off into a dream about a Unicorn...

...at the end of the film Gaff (the character with the hat and the stick) leaves a tinfoil unicorn for Deckard to find.

This shows that Gaff knew what Deckard had been dreaming about and therefore implies that Deckard is also a Replicant - in the movie, the latest Replicants have implanted memories to enable them to handle emotions...

BUT, there has always been a MASSIVE debate between fans about whether Deckard is human or not. Ridley Scott (the Director) has gone on record as saying that he wanted Deckard to be a Replicant and that is why he inserted the unicorn scene.

Harrison Ford disagreed with Ridley and always thought Deckard should be human.

Philip K Dick, always said that Deckard was human in the original book "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep"...

...luckily the film is ambiguous enough to allow both possibilities.

Personally, I think the revelation that the main hero is non-human is the ultimate twist. After all, the whole movie is asking "what makes us human" and the very fact that you assume that Deckard is human right until the end, really pushes the point.
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Thanks for the explanation. I thought of you when replying to this thread. I figured you'd know:)

I did wonder if Deck was a replicant at times in the movie. Besides the end where he was hanging from a ledge and pulled himself up with broken fingers, (far fetched unless he's a rep) he seemed weaker than other reps.

He seemed ok with the fact he is a replica which is a little surprising.

A prequel might be good. Wonder why no sequels or prequels were made. The movie did really well it seems.
 
A.LeClair said:
A prequel might be good. Wonder why no sequels or prequels were made. The movie did really well it seems.
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When it was released in 1982 it was panned by the critics and bombed at the box office - it made it's money back on VHS and DVD sales and the Director's cut released in 1992.

It's essentially an 'art' film and was released to an audience who had recently seen Harrison as 'Han Solo' in 'Star Wars' and 'Indiana Jones' in 'Raiders of the Lost Ark', so most were less-than-impressed by the slow pace of the movie and the lack of any real 'action'...personally, I think it's Harrison's best performance.

I recommend "Future Noir: The Making of Blade Runner" by Paul M Sammon - the making of the film has at least as much drama as the story in finished product...

...the sacking of the Director *before* the film was finished should give you an indication of how 'difficult' it was to make.
 
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