MetaFilter posts tagged with scifi

I know what I like.

JoanArkham — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:36:35 -0800

The Greatest Velvet Paintings of Science Fiction Icons Previously. Previously, previously.

More than 50 years of the big red blobby thing

filthy light thief — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:46:20 -0800

What's 51 years old and made of silicone with red food dye? The Blob, best known for it's work in The Blob, an independent film released in 1958, with Steve McQueen's second movie role (following Never Love a Stranger, which was released earlier that same year). The movie has been considered the definitive '50s film about a town that won't listen to the kids until it's too late (as noted in a review for the Criterion laserdisc release), with a super-catchy theme song (extended single version and b-side Saturday Night in Tiajuana) that was Burt Bacharach's third US hit song. (See more: theatrical trailer, full film on Veoh, full film as YouTube playlist) Times change, and so do monsters, and things got a bit wacky in the 1970s, with Beware! The Blob (aka Son of Blob; wiki, trailer, full film). The sequel played more to the slapstick comedy than the sci-fi/horror spectrum of things. Thirty years after the original, The Blob was remade in 1988 (wiki, trailer, full film), and is supposedly being re-created by Rob Zombie, though his statement about reviving The Blob without "the big red blobby thing" has people asking, then why remake The Blob? (previous blobby goodness) The Blob was not intended to be about Communism, according to the film's producer, Jack Harris, when he was interviewed at BlobFest VIII in 2007. BlobFest started as a fundraiser in 1999 to restore The Colonial Theater, a prominent feature of the original film. Since the first fundraiser, the event has become an annual celebration of All Things The Blob, including a scream competition, run-out re-enactment, Shorty Film Contest, and more. For gobs more on (classic version of) The Blob, see TheBlobSite.

Battlestargate?

zarq — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 11:48:51 -0800

Stargate Universe ("SGU") premieres this evening in the US and Canada, on 10/6 in the UK and Ireland and in Australia on 10/9. Billed as "military scifi," the series is reportedly less campy than its predecessors and uses thematic elements which will seem familiar to Battlestar Galactica fans. Preview trailer. For US viewers, Hulu will be streaming the show a day after it airs. Reviews are mixed. Wikipedia.

The Jet-Propelled Couch

empath — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 00:15:53 -0800

In 1954, Harper's Magazine ran a story called the Jet-Propelled Couch (Part 2) about a government scientist who was forced to go into to treatment. His problem? He lived half his life on another planet:

“As I read about the adventures of Kirk Allen in these books the conviction began to grow on me that the stories were not only true to the very last detail but that they were about me. In some weird and inexplicable way I knew that what I was reading was my biography. Nothing in these books was unfamiliar to me: I recognized everything–the scenes, the people, the furnishings of rooms, the events, even the words that were spoken. My everyday life began to recede at this point. In fact, it became fiction–and, as it did, the books became my reality.”

Ever since the story was published, sci-fi fans have attempted to discover who Kirk Allen really was. One theory is that it was cleverly disguised Cordwainer Smith, others think there may have been a government physicist named John Carter, and some think he might have been more than one patient. Either way, it's a great story. [via] Bonus Linkage: Several Cordwainer Smith stories. A Princess of Mars

U.K. science fiction Golden Age?

zardoz — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 00:31:10 -0800

The stories of now. An essay by Kim Stanley Robinson on the remarkable pool of SF talent currently working in the U.K.

Stardate, uh, One

Scattercat — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 06:09:41 -0800

King of an Endless Sky is a new graphic story by Teetering Bulb, AKA Kurt Huggins and Zelda Devon. A new page every Thursday, published at Tor.com. Thus far, the gerbil empire has requested a gift from the newly-crowned Emperor Charlie the First. They want a moon.

Of course you are going to kill Hitler.

blahblahblah — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 21:12:36 -0800

Timelines: Time Travel in Popular Film and TV is a beautiful visualization of that most favored science fiction gimmick. For a more thorough, but less pretty, view of science fiction that messes with history, there is a chronology of when 1,800 different alternate history stories deviate from our own time line. Also, a brief look at the logic of time travel in science fiction, and how it should work.

In praise of the sci-fi corridor

empath — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 17:01:28 -0800

In praise of the sci-fi corridor -- a geeky look at that staple of sci-fi movie sets - the corridor.

69 Must-See SciFi Sights in the U.S.

Four-Eyed Girl — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 10:51:50 -0800

SciFi Wire lists 68 science fiction sights that can be found in the U.S. The sights include the "Ghostbusters headquarters," Captain Kirk's future birthplace, and Mothman museum.

Cat food.

crossoverman — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 03:26:06 -0800

Welcome to District 9. Director Neill Blomkamp turns his sci-fi short "Alive in Joburg" into a full-length feature film - examining xenophobia in an allegory of Apartheid, set in a slum recalling District 6 of Cape Town in South Africa.

AVATAR we have a problem

philip-random — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 09:53:28 -0800

Meanwhile in Hollywoodland, the trailer for James Cameron's much anticipated AVATAR debuted online yesterday and ... ooops! The 7 Eeriest Parallels Between Avatar and Delgo. 10 movies AVATAR unfortunately resembles ... James Cameron’s Avatar is supposed to be like nothing we’ve ever seen before. So why does it look so familiar? One of the most disappointing things about the film’s promotion so far is how derivative the film looks in the trailer that debuted online today. And much of what we’re reminded of wasn’t even that great to begin with. Previously on MeFi.

Science Fiction VS Scifi

GavinR — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 03:34:03 -0800

Harlan Ellison tears up the debate and J. Michael Straczynski speaks up on the topic. Oh, yeah there is also Herb Solow as well and his wife Yvonne (WTF) speaking on the subject "Science Fiction" over "SciFi". None of them saw SyFy coming back in 1997, that's for sure! (SLYT) Also, here is the Newsweek article mentioned at the start of the segment.

Welcome to the Web Sanctom of Dr. Ronald Chevalier

Midnight Rambler — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 15:49:30 -0800

Partake of the bread in the hands of Dr. Ronald Chevalier, author of all 10 Cyborg Harpy Trilogies. Allow him to irrigate your barren earth with fresh dreams. Learn the Art of Relaxating, or how to explode a creative atomic bomb inside your mind. Do not overlook the sublime excerpt from him upcoming Cyborg Harpies audiobook. Or just see him in the new film Gentleman Broncos.

Sci Fi Songs

gemmy — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 14:47:37 -0800

John Anealio records songs inspired by science fiction and fantasy. Sing along about Cylons, Summer Glau (Firefly/Serenity), Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, and about how "George R.R. Martin is not your bitch" (previously).

END OF LINE.

Afroblanco — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 07:06:51 -0800

There's a new Tron movie coming out, and it promises to be kind of rad. In other news, the trailer seems to mash-up perfectly with Michael Jackson's Beat It. Yeah, I've been trying to stop re-posting Kottke, but this one was just so tasty and delicious I couldn't resist.

Greetings, prisoners of gravity. This is commander Rick.

aldurtregi — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 08:01:01 -0800

"Prisoners of Gravity was the most thoughtful and creative television program ever produced anywhere in the world about the literature of science fiction, and it was a substantial Canadian success story. In first-run, it was one of the most popular series on its originating network, TVOntario, lasting for five seasons and 139 installments." Here are a few of them, with more being added every now and then. Inspired by autodidact's comment, which reminded me that I had long ago planned a post based on the youtubed episodes linked above but never got around to it.

First, select your species to access the correct section of our website

scalefree — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 01:08:36 -0800

28 years ago they came to Earth. Explore the world of District 9. Consider a career with Multi-National United. Find out about enhancing your math skills with DNA from outer space. Play the game. And learn the truth behind the lies.

Return of the Tenctonese

PhoBWanKenobi — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 09:08:44 -0800

Alien Nation is being revived for the SyFy channel by Tim Minear, whose previous credits include Firefly and Angel. Alien Nation was a rare sort of science fiction television series—one that actually enjoyed a modicum of mainstream success. Based on a television movie by Rockne O’Bannon (who apparently really likes bald aliens), it blended elements of both police dramas and science fiction. It also included a nice dose of buddy comedy and racial allegory, and featured one of the most complex alien species (with some of the most elaborately detailed alien reproductive practices) ever featured on television. But, like other science fiction series with the misfortune to air on FOX, it was killed before its time, after only twenty two episodes. Thanks to the efforts of fans and show-runner Kenneth Johnson, it lived on in comic books, licensed novels, and, most recently, a series of made-for-TV movies.

When Steam Wasn't Punk.

The Whelk — Tue, 19 May 2009 11:41:54 -0800

The Brazen Android by William Douglas O'Connor, is a 19th century science fiction story based on the myth of the Brazen Head, a steam-powered head that told fortunes. It's available as an audio book from the Internet Archives. (Via)

Rules for Time Travelers

BitterOldPunk — Thu, 14 May 2009 10:07:57 -0800

Rules for Time Travelers [Spoiler? alert.]

We don't need another Neo

yeloson — Wed, 13 May 2009 11:06:11 -0800

There's been more and more rumblings lately about the inclusiveness (or lack thereof) of diversity in the circles of sci-fi and fantasy. Pam Nole's classic Shame essay hits a lot of points and while the Carl Brandon Society has been fighting the good fight for some time, more and more people are gathering their own projects, such as Transcriptase or Verb Noire to create spaces and publishing arenas less biased. Are these even necessary? It seems the fans think so.

Their names are WHAT and WHY and WHEN/and HOW and WHERE and WHO.

JHarris — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 12:37:40 -0800

Read all about it! Discover all the news! Read all about it! Track down all the clues!
With interesting people there's a mystery to be solved! An adventure is unfolding, so why not get involved? Come on and READ ALL ABOUT IT.
Young Chris is left an old coach house by his missing uncle. As he and his two friends fuddle with the lock, a strange figure watches. The kids do not yet know the building is the entrance to a mystery that spans time and space! Aided by Otto the IBM Selectric robot typewriter and Theta the spooky as hell talking viewscreen, they will find that the concerns of an alien tyrant reach into the government of their own town. (24 of 40 15-minute episodes, including the entire first season, of this early-80s TV Ontario-produced "educational" show are on YouTube.) Far from being mindless entertainment, Read All About It taught reading and critical thinking skills. But neither was it dry viewing; the story was weird and interesting, sometimes frightening, sci-fi in the tradition of Dr. Who. It was produced by TV Ontario public television and spread to various public TV outlets. It was written by Chris Endersby. I like to think of this show as a vaccine against stupid kids TV like Goosebumps. /notelitist My own memories of the show was that it was genuinely mysterious, filled with creepy atmosphere and unanswered questions. They do not make them like this any more. For various reasons, however, it looks like the show will never get released on DVD.

Watch the Skies! Science Fiction, the 1950s and Us

vronsky — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 18:05:25 -0800

Watch The Skies! Directors Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Ridley Scott and James Cameron discuss the science fiction movies of the 1950s that influenced them. 1::2::3::4::5::6:: 1 hour.

Nebula Best Short Story Nominees 2008

Artw — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 08:29:41 -0800

StarshipSofa has podcasted all of the Nebula Best Short Story Nominees for 2008, following on from podcasting all but one of the 2008 BSFA short story nominees. Previous StarshipSofa.

We Know You Are Out There

aheckler — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 09:33:35 -0800

We made a mistake. That is the simple, undeniable truth of the matter, however painful it might be. The flaw was not in our Observatories, for those machines were as perfect as we could make, and they showed us only the unfiltered light of truth. The flaw was not in the Predictor, for it is a device of pure, infallible logic, turning raw data into meaningful information without the taint of emotion or bias. No, the flaw was within us, the Orchestrators of this disaster, the sentients who thought themselves beyond such failings. We are responsible.