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shazh
Reviews
The Man from Earth: Holocene (2017)
trys hard but lacks any depth
Holocene is a strange beast of a movie. It attempts to pick up 10 years after the first movie with almost the same cast albeit a new life for College Prof John Oldman as College Prof John Young. Spoiler Alert, The story has little where to go from the first movie, John is older visibly, for a 14K old man and logically is getting older when he shouldn't, I then expected a movie about the state of the planet and other reason that could account for the sudden ageing, alas in a reversal of the first film where intellectual reason and doubt was the topic of the day, the movie descends into a social media student farce surround 4 college students who "Believe" in John's story so much they not only break in to John's home, but knock him unconscious resulting in ridiculous scene of 1 of the students becoming convinced John is the antichrist tying him to cellar chair and stabbing him (Roman Spear style), while the other 3 bungle around the plot try to engage a doubting character from the first film to turn up at John's home for a tete ta tete. What started as an possible "Humans need to learn" story to goofy slapstick teen stalker movie, running around with mobiles in hand trying to get the scope of the millennium. The movie has been released on Bit Torrent as a donate to view honesty box affair. I've donated the price of a dvd rental...but if this is the best they can do, honestly....its probably better to keep your money in your pocket and wait till it hits 1.99 bargain box to watch.
The Fades: Episode #1.4 (2011)
Roller-coaster of Classic and Clever Horror
Episode 4 builds on the foundation of the 3 previous episodes, with twists, turns, double cross and a subtle reality check for those expecting just another Buffy clone. The acting was at times just breathtaking. If you want to see British TV at its very best. Fades is quickly becoming a UK TV classic before your very eyes. I just hope they don't stuff it up at the end. The plot moves forward at a pace in this episode, with sides being drawn and the sign of the battle to come, but equally showing the humanist side with the horror of war, through the medium of good verse evil but without the usual moralistic patter. No side. can take the moral high ground here. Who's to say the future is not the fades, as humanity dwindles. Who's to say that the rebirths are not the next step in the search for what we are. The religious overtones can be seen but also adapted to attempt to quantify what reality is itself, flesh ,spirit or just a re-jig of energy, here once before and here once again. In some ways it re- enforces all views with equal measure.
Battlestar Galactica (2004)
When TV SCIFI Grew Up !
I remember a series that was fresh to the TV that did for TV Scifi what Stars Wars did for Cinema SCIFI. BattleStar Galatica was that series.
In the UK we had DR Who, Space 1999 and Blakes 7 with cardboard sets, bad makeup and some awful stage acting but sometimes some of the best Scifi ever written. Made Douglas Adams et all very rich thank you very much.
BattleStar..flooded our screens with sfx, sound and colour that grabbed the attention, avid watching but lacking the subtle thoughts, yea ole formula executives filled their ratings pockets but let the true scifi go out the window and at times I cringed the same way The Hulk TV series made me cringe when it stole stock footage from The Duel.
Yet the original Battlestar won my heart but not my mind sadly. I shuffled back to my "City and the Stars" and waited for TV to catch up.
Years have past we have had all the Startreks, the Babylons and they pushed boundaries but never touched the Scifi soul where the story must pan out, loose ends are intended not because it must run to time. The truth must be told and viewer must feel better for watching as they would, by reading, sadly Startreks Babylons and even many a long tail SG1 never filled that void.
For a moment Red Dwarf of all things kicked Scifi up the behind and then back we fell, formula formula formula.
This year things have changed Battle Star has been reborn with not just sfx but it reads well too. I feel as the story, the acting and above all the writing, views well as it would read.
Drama from Scifi, wheres the novel !, as I feel I read this long ago, what a perfect memory to have and I feel this is just the beginning.
So say we all. (c) :)