Best Star trek ?

Tomorrow People was about the limit of my memory! I like the sound of Tin Man, Carnival always looked interesting. There was a Walt Disney film called "Something Wicked this way comes" which was about s very eerie travelling fairground - very dark and adult for Disney, shame they never did more, very twilight zone...

Re StarTrek - I thought it was just me that couldn't stand Tasha Yar!... Did she get eaten by a tar monster or was that just wishful thinking....

 

I quite like Sci-Fi so long as it doesn't disappear up it's own whatsit and get over-geeky.

I bought the DVD set of Firefly when on a weekend in London having heard nothing about it - then I ended up watching the whole thing, extras and the lot over a week - loved it.

Was then gutted to hear no more. Delighted when they decided to make a film. Hoped that it would lead to the series returning, but wranglings over ownership rights etc mean not happening.

I have never seen other Joss Whelen stuff, but this is so strong a series, I bought the set for 2 other friends as surprises to arrive in the post. & I have the cinema poster on my office (at home) wall.

"They aim to misbehave"

I think seeing the series (in correct order) before the film works best TBH. Either way though, best Sci-fi IMO, by quite some way.

 

Nope, she did indeed She was very irritating and brought nothing to the crew (other than being pretty hot!) IMO, Worf was a much better security officer.

For me it's TNG all the way, it's the series I grew up with and it just got better and better. It started out a little stuffy and Picard was a bit of an arse at first if I'm honest but he soon mellowed and became the type of guy I'd like to work for and a fantastic leader. I also find the Federation ships beautifully designed and technology well thought out to the point of publishing technical manuals to explain it all - and no I don't own one, that's too far even for me!

I've also become so au fait with the ships and techology that I find it very hard to watch anything else without thinking "that's been ripped off ST, and that, and that...." To quote the great philosopher Eminem "I'm Slim Shady, yes I'm the real Shady. All you other Slim Shadys are just imitating"

 

next generation improved rapidly (i hate to say it) after Gene Roddenberrys death. Although he may have created the show, his own slightly narrow vision of the future was holding it back.

The fact that in his vision, the women still wear short skirts shows that he's not quite as forward thinking as he would like us to have believed.

When berman and pillar took over in the 90's the show went from strength to strength, and from season 4 onwards some of the best eposides ever to have come out of the franchise were created.

 

Hi Samantha

Joss Whelon ,has a new show coming soon called Doll house . I am not sure about this . The premise that a secret group(legal or illegal ?) recruit people for a period of time ,who allow themselves to be changed for different missions . Some sort of mind alteration takes place and they could then be used to assinate or act out some ones fantasy . I suspect this will be cancelled not long after it starts . I liked Serenity ,but i was a bit bored by Firefly first time round . I will re-explore it as i think i was wrong about the show . I am not a big fan of westerns and one set in space ,did not excite me that much.

Hi RDD , love the ships and stuff too,as i said earlier on ,as a kid i loved building models of this stuff and i still do from time to time .

Hi SMEago ,i remember the Tommorow People fondly but in hind sight it wasn't overall that good IMHO. A few stories were good but overall not great . I missed Carnival ,but i know of it ,worth exploring anybody ?

Regards D Louth

 

firefly is one of the funniest, sweetest, and nicely put together little shows ive ever had the pleasure to enjoy. Its such a shame it only lastest one season. But therein lies its charm i guess.

 

Anybody remember The Strangerers? I wish that had lasted longer. The first few episodes were hilarious!

 

Inspired by this thread, I've searched out the DVDs of TNG complete series. Should keep me busy for the next 6 months or so

I'll definitely be looking out for Firefly too - never even heard of that, but enjoyed Buffy so I'll give it a pop

 

Still like Blade Runner after all of these years...

Bought the mutli-disc Blu-ray version and it does still hold up.

The original short story is still more interesting, but I don't think it would have translated well on the big screen. Funny how Edward James Olmos made it into this one as well.

The missus remarked about how "buff" Harrison Ford looked when he dunked his head into the sink filled with ice water.

I also watched "Sunshine" again and I suppose it does get a tad slow, but at least it isn't about galactic empires and little green muppets who can lift me in the air just by raising his hand.

I watched the entire Star Wars saga (which could be seen as a form of mental abuse) with my kids and they were bored out of their minds. They found Darth Vader funny and only liked the "silly robots who talk".

Empire is the only film that really stands on its own.

BG looks average in HD. It should look better but it doesn't. My Pioneer doesn't mince words with HD. The "remastered" Fifth Element pops. BG just sorta hangs out.

Anyone rushing to buy their tickets for the remake of "The Day the Earth Stood Still"?

Didn't think so.

 

For those who mentioned Carnivale, please give it a try - it was cancelled after only 2 of the proposed 6 seasons but what you get is very entertaining, if a little slow on pacing. Good acting all round though...

Expanding the boundaries of what is considered "sci-fi", I would also heartily recommend Eerie, Indiana and American Gothic.

American Gothic in particular is another short-lived series with an interesting concept that deserved a longer run...

 

This is another curse of the "Trekkie", I tend to find you either like one of the other and I must say that the only two films I've ever fallen asleep in the cinema during are Star Wars 5 & 6 (in their correct order) - I also fell alseep during 4 once at a mates house. I find them dull, tedious and far too long, but hey it's fine with me if people like them, I'm just a Trek man all the way :shame:

 

I Like the first three Star Wars movies but only the last of the more recent ones . I guess the first three were important bits of my child hood so i remember them fondly .

Watched a dvd yesterday night ,which i picked up in Zavi for £7 .
French film called Immortal . Its by Enki Bibal an artist who created three graphic novels related to the movie but not the same. Its a part live action part animation (like Sky Captain). This is one of the most visually exciting movies i have seen in years . It is a mix of Metropolis,5th Element,Stargate,Blade Runner and Akira. It is a bit frustrating in that the motives for two of the characters are never explained but its visuals make up for that . Picture quality is excellent as is the sound . Basically the Egyptian god Horus is allowed by Anubus and Bas to return to earth . The Earth they arrive to is twisted and perverse. Most humans have messed with themselves so much gentically that not one human in the present is that any more . However an accident allows a pure human from 30 years in the past to walk the earth again. He is a genetics protestor (terrorist)from the past and Horus needs his pure body for his mission on earth.

Most French films are a wee bit to up their own asses (even sci-fi) but this one isn't to bad in this respect. The story is intersesting but not perfect. Visually thought it is amazing. Worth a look IMHO.

Saw Contact to day again ,excellent film on every level . What do you guys think ?

Regards D Louth

 

Enjoyed reading this thread. Generally agree with a lot that's been said.

TNG best Trek - especially from season 3 onwards and 'Inner Light' is a lovely episode.

B5 was great, and mostly stands up fairly well to the passage of time - we recently watched it all again on DVD. I think the main problem with season 1 was a really really really wooden performance from the guy who played Sinclair. Things got much better once Sheridan arrived with a bit of charisma. I imagine Harlan Ellison's involvement helped a lot with the overall quality and SF cred.

I loved Firefly and still feel sad there's only 14 episodes. You can see the seeds of where a lot of the characters might have been going if there had been more. Great dialogue writing and especially great casting of the key roles - all the principles are just right imho and we especially liked Adam Baldwin as Jayne who is often hilarious and sometimes really poignant. Some of the stories have weaknesses but 'Out of Gas' is a classic of TV SF for me.

Then there's Battlestar Galactica, which has raised the bar so much I'm still in awe of it. Ron Moore said he wanted TV to finally take the genre seriously and I think it's achieved that on every level except perhaps finding a really big audience. As the end approaches I've been slightly nervous that they might go and spoil it all with a naff conclusion, but the jaw dropping mid season 4 'finale' has reassured me a lot. I thought the 'All Along the Watchtower' double episode at the end of season 3 was absolutely knock out. (Could Bob Dylan or Jimi Hendrix be the 12th Cylon???)

I've often found myself looking wistfully at favourite novels by the likes of Dan Simmons, Alastair Reynolds or especially Richard Morgan and wondering if Ron Moore has read them and might want to do something with them...

FWIW my favourite SF movies, some of which are probably for sentimental reasons:

Blade Runner
Alien
Serenity
Forbidden Planet
Screamers (though flawed, I really like it)
Silent Running
The Day the Earth Stood Still
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (the first one)
2001 (though it's a bit self-important)
2010
Solaris (the original is very long but brilliant, the Clooney version is pretty good too)
Star Trek: First Contact

Can anyone remember the name of the movie that was basically High Noon in space with Sean Connery?

Also I have very positive memories of a TV version of The Martian Chronicles from way back, which had Roddy MacDowel in the cast. Not sure what it would be like now - must see if there's a DVD release...

 

"Can anyone remember the name of the movie that was basically High Noon in space with Sean Connery?"

That would be "Outland"

 

Thank you!

 

Hi Hamilton

I agree with your post and a nice list of movies . Outland was an okay movie Sean Connery is good but its a bit of a dreary movie.

I loved the Martian Chronicles when it was on first time around,loved the music. Saw it on the sci-fi channel a few years ago and it stood up okay but the special effects let it down a bit. The Ray Bradbury theatre show has used a few of the bits from this book to put a one hour self contained story on . You know where it comes from(in context of the overall story) and these mostly sit well as a self contained episode.

Does anyone remember The Fantastic Journey? Starred the guy from Dallas(Sue Ellens Rodeo Lover Dusty). Set in a place where different time zones existed beside each other . somewhere in the Bermuda Triangle.

One of my fave older series is the Outer Limits . when i was a kid i used to sit up late to watch it . I bought the DVD box sets a few years ago and watched them. The quality of writing (including Harlan Ellison and other good sci-fi writters) puts it into a league of its own and i prefer it to the Twilight Zone . The recent remake while having a few good stories is'nt a patch on the original IMHO.

Regards D Louth

 

well my favourite sci fi movies are as follows:

-gatacca
-event horizon (scared the hell outta me)
-sunshine
-Star Trek (various, but in particular II, VI, first contact and insurrection)
-logans run (is it really sci fi?)
-the Matrix (as above)

Its an odd one, because i have a soft spot for a lot of the trek movies that would otherwise be dismissed as second rate. Generations ( number 7 technically) is one of my favourites, as i think its the nicest shot of all the trek movies, it has superb lighting, an excellent soundtrack, and it was quite a different approach to things. Seeing 10 forward lit only by sunlight, was quite an interesting look, with hard shadows. Its also IMHO a corking film.

Also insurrection, another odd numbered trek film that most would dismiss, is one of my absolute favourites of the bunch.

 

Anyone got any opinions on the new Trek movie due christmas this year.

I am not sure why they are doing this but we shall have to see ,when it comes .

Loguns run great book ,infact a series of books by William F Nolan
Loguns Run,Logans World and Loguns Search . I loved the film ,its look ,the quality acting ,Jenny aguter and Peter Ustinov .
Is it sci-fi ? Yes ,as what is in it is possible ,Star Wars would be more SCI-Fantasy .

I loved Event Horizon. The sound track is very effective in setting the mood and building the tension.

One movie that does not rate to highly but i would put in a list of faves is Dune. David Lynch's version is fabulous on every level ,both visually and in terms of special effects and just about every thing else. I know they messed with Frank Herberts story but i loved what they added ( the Dune purists are now coming to hang/shoot me). The special edition dvd is worth seeing (kicking around cheap now).

Regards D Louth

 

the new trek has been pushed back mate, they decided they would make more money with a release later in the year, so they are aiming for may now

dune... the only film where you pick it up and go... hmmmm whats this about..... so you watch it... and then go.... hmmmm what was that about

 

I think you'll find this applies to most David Lynch films

I recently re-watched Lost Highway, still confused afterwards but a bit of 'net searching and I now think I understand what's going on.

I still can't get my head around Eraserhead though...