3.75/5 (Good)
They Shall Have Stars (1956) is the first of James Blish’s famous Cities in Flight novels (note: the series was not released according to its internal chronology — the third volume, Earthman Come Home was published first in 1955). Continue reading
8/10 (Very Good)
The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant (1972) is by far my favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder film I’ve seen and like all of his films, an acquired taste. I’ve not always appreciated his works — I barely tolerated The Merchant of Four Seasons and managed to watch only half of The Marriage of Maria Braun (I did enjoy Veronika Voss). However, Continue reading
7/10 (Good)
On strong recommendation from my sister I finally got around to seeing this unusual Colombian film. I have to admit, I know very little about Spanish language cinema (especially from the Americas). Regardless, I found The Wind Journeys a fascinating experience — one Continue reading
7/10 (Good)
Damn the Defiant! isn’t the best naval action film out there however it’s definitely an under appreciated good film. That said, I have a weakness for the subject matter since I grew up on C. S. Forester’s Hornblower and Alexander Kent’s Captain Bolitho books (i.e Napoleonic era valiant British officers fighting the evil Frenchies!). Thus, Continue reading
9/10 (Masterpiece)
Werner Herzog’s masterpiece, Fitzcarraldo (1982), has long been one of my favorite films. It’s one of the few films I’ve seen more than once (with friends, family, and with my cat). Every time, I’m blown away by its sheer audacity and raw power. This is entirely due to Herzog’s rather mono-thematic view of the world (MAN MUST Continue reading
4.75/5 (Very Good)
A generation ship! Science run amok! A brilliant work from the late 50s which must be read! Brian Aldiss’ Non-Stop (published in the U.S. as Starship) is a relentlessly dark science fiction novel written in response to Robert Heinlein’s revolutionary yet ultimately unsatisfying Orphans of Continue reading
2/5 (Bad)
I’ve had John Brunner’s The Wrong End of Time (1971) for five years sitting in the to read pile — I’ve managed to get through around thirty pages the four times I’ve tried to read it over the years. However, I’ve finally got around to finishing it. And, well, it falls woefully short of any sort of greatness — especially Continue reading
7.5/10 (Good)
The pseudo-documentary (docudrama) The Battle of Culloden––made for BBC Television––was the first feature film by the soon to be famous (in somewhat esoteric circles) radical pacifist Continue reading
7.5/10 (Good)
While ambling aimlessly on youtube looking for interesting short films, I discovered this forgotten gem by Hilary Harris. I’d never heard of this filmmaker nor are most of his films listed on Internet Movie Database (besides his oscar winning short subject documentary, ‘Seawards the Continue reading
Science Fiction and Other Suspect Ruminations 