Good morning, and Happy Thursday, faithful readers!
It looks like this week is starting to wind down -- well, so far as the work week is concerned -- and that means that the weekend is quickly coming into reach, my friends. Hang in there. You've almost made it.
For those of you who may've missed yesterday's MainPage posts, please allow me to do a quick recap:
My thoughts on the fifth, fateful episode of Star Wars: Ahsoka -- pronounced 'meh-soka' around here -- are up for anyone interested. You can find the review right here.
Also, my thoughts on a Blumhouse chiller -- Unhuman (2022) -- entered the MainPage, and interested readers can find those right here.
I've been told that (cough cough) I need to engage in a bit more "promotion" around my critical opinion. (Well, maybe not "told" so much as "recommended.") So from time-to-time you might see me shucking such wares in these Daily announcements. Don't be offended. I know that regulars are well aware of where to find it and how to navigate the site. Still, a bit of extra attention and extra advertising occasionally isn't a bad thing. New readers are showing up damn near daily, and I suspect that may not be up on all of the ins-and-outs to this place. So there!
It looks like this week is starting to wind down -- well, so far as the work week is concerned -- and that means that the weekend is quickly coming into reach, my friends. Hang in there. You've almost made it.
For those of you who may've missed yesterday's MainPage posts, please allow me to do a quick recap:
My thoughts on the fifth, fateful episode of Star Wars: Ahsoka -- pronounced 'meh-soka' around here -- are up for anyone interested. You can find the review right here.
Also, my thoughts on a Blumhouse chiller -- Unhuman (2022) -- entered the MainPage, and interested readers can find those right here.
I've been told that (cough cough) I need to engage in a bit more "promotion" around my critical opinion. (Well, maybe not "told" so much as "recommended.") So from time-to-time you might see me shucking such wares in these Daily announcements. Don't be offended. I know that regulars are well aware of where to find it and how to navigate the site. Still, a bit of extra attention and extra advertising occasionally isn't a bad thing. New readers are showing up damn near daily, and I suspect that may not be up on all of the ins-and-outs to this place. So there!
All the way back in the year 1951 on this day, the good people of London, England were treated to the silver screen premiere of one of the more memorable Science Fiction yarns to emerge from the 50's: When Worlds Collide was produced by genre master George Pal, and it depicted our planet's last ditch attempt at survival in the face of certain destruction. Though I could be wrong on this point, I believe it probably was one of the screen's earliest incarnations of certain planetary gloom -- better known these days as an 'Extinction Level Event' (ELE) -- and I remember reading that it served as the inspiration behind the Steven Spielberg-produced Deep Impact (1998).
IMDB.com reports that Pal had intended a follow-up to this seminal film. Authors Edwin Balmer and Philip Wylie penned the 1933 novel that served as the foundation for the story; and they also scripted a 1934 sequel titled "After Worlds Collide." The central idea surrounding the follow-up -- so far as I can recall -- was that the Earthly survivors find that the world they rocketed to was actually already inhabited by another civilization; naturally, they now have to go about the business of diplomacy as this new world, too, is facing some dire circumstances, and various other countries from our world have also rocketed here, meaning former enemies might have to become allies in order to win the day. While it does sound a bit groundbreaking -- at least as much as the original -- the project just never came to fruition.
I've seen When Worlds Collide, and I like it, but it is a bit weighed down by the typical melodrama of features from the era. If you haven't had the opportunity and are a fan of 50's era stuff, then I encourage you to give it a look. Stylistically, it's very impressive.
IMDB.com reports that Pal had intended a follow-up to this seminal film. Authors Edwin Balmer and Philip Wylie penned the 1933 novel that served as the foundation for the story; and they also scripted a 1934 sequel titled "After Worlds Collide." The central idea surrounding the follow-up -- so far as I can recall -- was that the Earthly survivors find that the world they rocketed to was actually already inhabited by another civilization; naturally, they now have to go about the business of diplomacy as this new world, too, is facing some dire circumstances, and various other countries from our world have also rocketed here, meaning former enemies might have to become allies in order to win the day. While it does sound a bit groundbreaking -- at least as much as the original -- the project just never came to fruition.
I've seen When Worlds Collide, and I like it, but it is a bit weighed down by the typical melodrama of features from the era. If you haven't had the opportunity and are a fan of 50's era stuff, then I encourage you to give it a look. Stylistically, it's very impressive.
1990's Hardware -- for what it's worth -- remains a relatively divisive film. I've encounter folks online who unabashedly love it for what it is, and I've also come across an incredible number of viewers who think it's one of the screen's worst flicks ever. Because I've seen many, many, many Science Fiction and Fantasy films in this lifetime, I can assure you that -- no -- Hardware is far from the lowest of the low; but I, too, understand how its kinda/sorta cut-and-paste Horror premise, political representation, and (cough cough) cultural messaging might not be everyone's cup of tea. I'll happily admit that I like it quite a bit -- frankly, I think it's a very impressive B-Movie that deserves a bit of examination -- but as I always say "to each his own."
I do think that the biggest problem many have with it is the depiction of violence -- it does get gratutitous in a few spots -- but, again, I've seen far worse. And I have read that one of the problems that has always kept it from being viewed by a wider audiences is a rights issue I believe persists even to this day. Lastly, I know that (cough cough) the notorious Hollywood-heavyweight and sexual deviant Harvey Weinstein's association to the picture (he served as one of the producers) probably hasn't aged well in certain corners of our culture, and that may also keep some from searching it out. It is an idea that we've seen countless times before -- man versus machine -- and, yet, I'm still smitten with certain elements of the yarn. Dark, vicious, and a bit deviant, it makes for a curious experience.
I do think that the biggest problem many have with it is the depiction of violence -- it does get gratutitous in a few spots -- but, again, I've seen far worse. And I have read that one of the problems that has always kept it from being viewed by a wider audiences is a rights issue I believe persists even to this day. Lastly, I know that (cough cough) the notorious Hollywood-heavyweight and sexual deviant Harvey Weinstein's association to the picture (he served as one of the producers) probably hasn't aged well in certain corners of our culture, and that may also keep some from searching it out. It is an idea that we've seen countless times before -- man versus machine -- and, yet, I'm still smitten with certain elements of the yarn. Dark, vicious, and a bit deviant, it makes for a curious experience.
A franchise is born! On this day in all the way back in 2008 (according to some published accounts), the very first novel within the wider universe that became The Hunger Games was published. Suzanne Collin's tale of a dystopian future definitely created a sensation here and abroad, so much so that the rights were snatched up, and not one but a trilogy (and more) of big screen films were put on the drawing board. Having never the book -- though it has been recommended to me by a few folks -- I can't speak to it, but as a huge, huge, huge proponent of literacy (hence, I write, even in this space) I give kudos to any effort that puts a reader and a good book together. Well done, milady!
I won't bother you with my thoughts on the film franchise or the book series, but I will say that when it was first told to me I pointed out that it sounded incredibly like Koushun Takami's Battle Royale (1999) which also was made into a blockbuster flick in 2000. (Yes, yes, yes: I'm aware many in fandom have made that observation, so sue me.) However, I believe I'd heard that Collins was asked about that connection, and she insisted that she'd never heard of it. Stranger things have happened ...
Well, those are today's big hitters ... but I won't let you escape without this final link ...
I won't bother you with my thoughts on the film franchise or the book series, but I will say that when it was first told to me I pointed out that it sounded incredibly like Koushun Takami's Battle Royale (1999) which also was made into a blockbuster flick in 2000. (Yes, yes, yes: I'm aware many in fandom have made that observation, so sue me.) However, I believe I'd heard that Collins was asked about that connection, and she insisted that she'd never heard of it. Stranger things have happened ...
Well, those are today's big hitters ... but I won't let you escape without this final link ...
As always, thanks for reading ... thanks for sharing ... thanks for being a fan ... and live long and prosper!
-- EZ
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