An Indie sci-fi film on the precipice of where we might be heading, Creep Box, written and directed by Patrick Biesemans (and based upon his own short from 2022), ruminates on a hybrid artificial intelligence that is both intriguing and terrifying. Following Caul (Geoffrey Cantor), a PHD in psychology and parapsychology at HDTH Corp, he is currently working on a sleek black tech box... a device that can be used to collect the memories of the dead, which are then fused with an A.I. that can utilize the past of the deceased to not only communicate with loved ones, but also gather information that could lead to solving crimes of those who have been murdered.
It is rare to find a character so iconic that by simply uttering their last name, everyone is on point. One such case is Uhura. Brought to vivid life on the original Star Trek series (1966-1969) by the great Nichelle Nichols who developed an engaging, multi-faceted and wholly inspiring persona at a time when African American women were portrayed as maids or in other lowly servile positions on television. The fourth most powerful person on the USS Enterprise, Nichols was a part of a multicultural cast that was more than unusual for the era. The crew was comprised of African American, Asian American, Scottish, Russian (during The Cold War), half-alien, and white – symbolic that in the future, we, as human beings, would be able to come together to achieve something special, or as it was so aptly put: “Space: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the Starship, Enterprise. Its five year mission: to explore strange new worlds; to seek out new life and new civilizations; to boldly go where no man has gone before”.
Uttered in the opening narration, the oft quoted line “the rules are simple: once you go in, you don’t come out” is in many ways symbolic of how John Carpenter’s 1981 motion picture Escape From New York has ensnared a passionate cult following. Set in a dystopic America in 1997, the crime rate has risen by four hundred percent, and the island of Manhattan has become an Alcatraz of sorts, only infinitely more secure and bizarrely intense. Surrounded by a behemoth of a wall and patrolled by the United States Police Force, all bridges leading out of the city are mined, making for a doom laden locale that has a semblance of inescapability. Carpenter carefully transports us into this eerie world at the movie’s opening, providing us with an eagle-eyed perspective of Manhattan and its near impenetrable defences.
One of my favourite films as a young boy – wholly capturing my imagination, was the 1960 George Pal directed sci-fi adventure The Time Machine, based on the 1895 novel of the same name by iconic author H.G. Wells. It is this movie that has possibly fuelled my intrigue with clocks, pocket watches and other time oriented things (motion pictures definitely fit within this grouping). Set at the turn of the twentieth century, specifically on two days, December 31st, 1899/ January 5th, 1900, H. George Wells (Rod Taylor) is an inventor and time enthusiast, a peculiar fellow who has changed quite a bit in a short amount of time – at least according to his friends. Disenchanted by the warmongering of the British government (the Boer War) and the ways in which technology has been used to improve the efficiency of killing, the inventor looks to the future for hope in humanity.
Firing on all cylinders once again, writer/director James Gunn brings another entertaining, comedic, dramatic and all around fun feature with his 2017 Marvel sequel Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Though it doesn’t capture the pure lightening in a bottle/giddy exuberance that the first one brought fans (though it is rare to find a sequel that can be as original, unique and exciting), this more than serviceable sequel has plenty to offer. Bringing the same entertaining mix of soulful characters, sharp dialogue, quirky humour, and surprising emotional heft, it also adds some new personas, small twists and important revelations that fill in many teasers put out there three years ago with the first volume. Many terms and words immediately come to mind after watching this second feature: dissension amongst the ranks, internalizing pain, sacrifice, family, dancing and. . . David Hasselhoff???
Many of you have probably heard of, and may be watching, HBO’s stellar hit show, Westworld. An intriguing premise to say the least, quite a few people do not realize that it is actually based on a 1973 movie of the same name, written and directed by famed novelist Michael Crichton – his first foray into the world of film making. Set in the not so distant future, this sci fi flick is infused with a classic western twist, as guests head to an amusement park to live out their fantasies in one of three worlds (Roman World, Medieval World and of course, Westworld). With a hint of being a precursor to a dystopic world, we are introduced to our two leads, first time attendee Peter Martin (Richard Benjamin) and his more experienced friend – at least, in relation to the very realistic park, John Blane (James Brolin), in a spacious, futuristic plane on their way to the locale.
We like to think of things in our lives as fitting into a nice square box. Everything has an order, with the structured days of the week to our routines fitting into this comforting perspective. We do not want to think of life as being random, chaotic and lacking a straightforward linear form – as it reminds us that things are not truly in our control. It is this linear way of thinking that is questioned in the 2016 cerebral science fiction film Arrival. Eric Heisserer adapts the text "The Story of Your Life" (written by Ted Chiang), placing it in the hands of talented French Canadian director Denis Villeneuve. Having a twofold narrative, the main portion follows the landing of twelve spacecrafts in random places around the world. With people beginning to panic and riot (as no indication has been made, either peaceful or otherwise), the government attempts to make some sense out of the unorthodox and exceptional arrival. Colonel Weber (Forest Whitaker) reaches out to linguist Dr. Louise Banks (Amy Adams), a woman with immense knowledge of numerous dialects and written languages (and military clearance to boot). She leads a team along with physicist Ian Donnelly (Jeremy Renner), the Colonel, and several other military men who will record the data after they enter the hull of the dark, kidney-shaped foreign craft located in Montana.