Day: January 20th, Movie: 20

I’ve been scheduling the films that I will watch for Genre-ary Sci-Fi DailyView, and I had to delay watching this movie, The Hidden, a couple of times. There was no specific reason that sticks out in my memory outside of fitting in on the schedule. Tonight we the time to finally watch the film. I had it rented on Vudu to watch the film.

Kyle MacLachlan played FBI Agent Lloyd Gallagher, who came to Los Angeles in search of a killer who had killed his partner. He teamed up with police detective Tom Beck (Michael Nouri) to try and catch the killer, but everything started to become strange as we learn about the extra-terrestrial danger threatening the people.

I’m leaving a lot out of the film synopsis on purpose because I feel like some of the best parts of the film is not really knowing what you are watching. I’ll just say that there are some weird things happening.

Kyle MacLachlan playing an oddball FBI Agent? I wonder if this was one of the reasons why David Lynch eventually cast him as Agent Dale Cooper in Twin Peaks. Despite this character being clearly different than Agent Cooper, I can definitely see some similarities to how MacLachlan played them.

The sci-fi aspects of the film were well done and had some creepy moments. It had a campy feel to it and the story was surprisingly bright. I do have to say that I was not in love with the ending of the film. It did not take the safe way, but I’m not sure how I felt about it.

The Hidden was a decent film with an actor that I really enjoy. The story was fun though I am unsure about the wrap up.

Day: January 19th, Movie: 19

You could tell this movie was made in the 1980s.

While it did feel a little dated, and the film was much like a ton of other family friendly, action-adventure movies from the time frame, Batteries Not Included, from Amblin Entertainment, was a fun watch and had a couple of surprisingly deeper moments.

According to IMDB, “A group of tenants in an apartment block are being forced to move out so that it can be demolished. The tenants are reluctant to move, so the developers hire a local gang to ‘persuade’ them to leave. Fortunately, visiting alien mechanical life-forms come to town. When they befriend the tenants, the aliens use their extraterrestrial abilities to defeat the developers”

The older couple who worked in the café in the building, Frank and Faye, were played by Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy. This is one of the reasons why the film is able to succeed. You have to classic actors in the lead roles and you can make many stories watchable. They were even given a pretty surprisingly deep storyline to add to the trouble they faced with the developers. Frank and Faye had a child who had died and Faye was in denial, going as far as calling one of the gang members by their son’s name. It was an unexpected piece to the script that did to need to be included, but made the film for me.

The little robotic aliens were cute and helpful. I did not relate to them as much as I had done with other stranded aliens such as E.T. The lack of a speaking character did limit what could be done with the robots.

The cast included other stars such as Dennis Boutsikaris, Frank McRae, Elizabeth Peña, Doris Belack, Michael Carmine, John Pankow, Tom Aldridge, Wendy Schaal, MacIntyre Dixon, and Michael Greene.

Produced by Steven Spielberg, Batteries Not Included was much like a lot of Spielberg’s early films. It was a fine story with a few very notable moments and scenes. There was some good humor and Cronyn and Tandy were very charming and entertaining.

Day: January 18th, Movie: 18

Pedro Pascal is hot right now. Not only is he about to appear in the third season in The Mandalorian, but he is starring in HBO Max’s new video game drama, The Last of Us. Tonight, I watched Prospect, a sci-fi film on Hulu, for the Genre-ary Sci-Fi DailyView.

According the IMDB, “A teenage girl (Sophie Thatcher) and her father (Jay Duplass) travel to a remote alien moon, aiming to strike it rich. They’ve secured a contract to harvest a large deposit of the elusive gems hidden in the depths of the moon’s toxic forest. But there are others roving the wilderness and the job quickly devolves into a fight to survive. Forced to contend not only with the forest’s other ruthless inhabitants, but with her own father’s greed-addled judgment, the girl finds she must carve her own path to escape.”

There are some interesting moments between Sophie Thatcher and Pedro Pascal. The interactions with these two characters are one of the stronger aspects of the movie. Admittedly, their relationship was a little unwieldly to start with considering the circumstances. The partnership of necessity felt a little rushed, though it also provided us with some solid work,

The science fiction parts of the film worked well and I did like the fact that the typical alien lifeforms were kept to a minimum. When Pedro Pascal joined the film, things picked up drastically. The initial scene with Pascal and Duplass was fire and led to a situation where Thatcher had to work with Pascal.

Pascal with a younger character, almost the young cub mentality, seems to be one of his specialties.

There was one particularly brutal scene about midway through the film that was unexpected and was difficult to think about as I watched it. There was a THUD at the end of the scene that was especially troublesome.

However, I thought the choice of these characters having to wear these spacesuits, including the large helmets, was not the best choice. All we got was heavy breathing in them and they prevented some facial reactions. I understand the choice, but I would think that the film could have had a planet that had breathable oxygen just for the sake of the drama.

Prospect was fine. I loved Pedro Pascal, who seems to always be a special performer, and Sophie Thatcher was decent. The story may have been a touch slow and yet progressed quickly. I enjoyed watching this enough, but I probably will not remember much about it down the road.

Day: January 17th, Movie: 17

You’ve got to be kidding me.

When I was searching for possible sci-fi films, I came across Barbarella. I looked at Rotten Tomatoes scores to see if the films were worth watching. This had a 74% so I thought the odds of it being worthwhile increased.

You’ve got to be kidding me.

Barbarella started off with Jane Fonda floating around as if in zero gravity, slowly doing a striptease as words floated around her body to cover her nudity (at least partially). From that point on, I knew what kind of film this was going to be.

I could not believe that this was Jane Fonda. She was beautiful, no doubt, but Barbarella was not what I had expected. Full of sex and exotica, Barbarella was not the feminist hero that I thought she might. Barbarella was in traps and dangers constantly and required plenty of rescue.

Barbarella was sent by the Earth’s president to retrieve Durand Durand (Milo O’Shea) from the Tau Ceti planetary system. She then spends the film in all sorts of compromising situations, with all sort of people, including a blind angel Pygar (John Phillip Law) that does not make love, but is love..

Marcel Marceau was here too, playing Professor Ping.

I’m not sure that I have seen a film more campy than this one. It was like a weird, psychedelic dream (particularly a dream that might be had by a teen boy).

This is another film that I would pay good money to see the RiffTrax crew riff on. It is utterly ridiculous.

The soundtrack was fun and the costuming was actually pretty good. Even the special effects for 1968 are not bad. However, the story and characters are thin and lacking any real cohesiveness to them. It is fun at times. Stupid, stupid fun.

Barbarella seemingly has inspired countless of people. It is considered a cult film, which in this case means a bad one. It reminded me of films like The Room or Manos: Hands of Fate in its badness. Those might be considered cult films too.

Day: January 16th, Movie: 16

Movies dealing with potential outbreaks are very relevant these days, perhaps too relevant considering what the world has gone through over the last few years. However, space outbreaks are a whole different thing. The Andromeda Strain from 1971, based on a Michael Crichton novel, makes the sci-fi element of this potential outbreak feel very real world.

According to IMDB, “A team of top scientists work feverishly in a secret, state-of-the-art laboratory to discover what has killed the citizens of a small town and learn how this deadly contagion can be stopped.”

This film was very much of a science film, where the top scientists would go through their tests and experiments, talk about them and then move along. Because of that, a lot of the film was a slow burn. That is not a bad thing as the scientific scenes worked well here. The four scientists, played by Arthur Hill, James Olson, David Wayne and Kate Reid, were interesting enough to bring their personalities into the scenes and help amplify the anxiety.

The final half hour or so of The Andromeda Strain was exciting and paid off the previous acts of the film. There were some scenes filled with tension and nerve-rattling events that kept me on the edge of my seat. It was in stark contrast to the slower parts of the earlier scenes.

The film felt almost like a mystery, with the four scientists trying to discover what the Andromeda Strain was spread and how it might grow.

There is an intelligence about the film and I love how this is shown. Could it have been shortened a little bit? Yes, However, building the tension through the initial scenes is a wonderful way to tell the story.

Compelling. Creative. Complex. Contemplative. At times, confusing. The epic sci-fi film Cloud Atlas can be described in all of these ways. For nearly three hours, I watched this film from directors Tom Tyker, Lana and Lilly Wachowski and I was completely swept up into the majestic, mishmash mosaic.

A plot synopsis is defeating the purpose for Cloud Atlas. It covers six different stories from six different timelines, ranging from an 1800s ship to a futuristic yet primitive Hawaii. Each of the six tales have a shared link somewhere within, whether directly or subtly. This is a movie that demands your attention. Cloud Atlas is not a film that you can put on in the background and hope to understand what was happening. In fact, I am sure that there are thigs that even I missed and I was watching closely.

The film featured several actors playing multiple roles, led by Tom Hanks who played seven different characters. The range among Hanks’ characters was varied as possible as he was a horribly greedy doctor up to a man tormented by the voices in his head. The cast of actors playing multiple roles included Halle Berry, Hugo Weaving, Jim Broadbent, Hugh Grant, Susan Sarandon, Bae Doona, Keith David, Ben Whishaw, Jim Sturgess, Zhao Xun, David Gyasi and Robert Fyfe.

Jim Broadbent stood out the most for me, especially as Timothy Cavendish. His expressive nature and facial expressions fit beautifully in with the movie was telling and he was, at many times, geniusly funny.

The narrative structure was unlike any film I have ever seen and its very nature will cause many people to be lost. Seeing the different stories all intertwined in the film was an amazing achievement in editing and direction. The soundtrack was a fantastic addition to the film and the use of the “Cloud Atlas” music piece was a rich moment from the story.

There were plenty of exciting and dramatic moments and several of intense hilarity as well. Easily my favorite moment in the film was when Tom Hanks’ character, author Dermot Hoggins took a book critic and tossed him off the roof of a building during a launch party.

Admittedly, I did have a bit of a struggle with the movie at the very beginning. I had trouble getting into the stories at first, but as the film progressed, I found myself engaged in every one and fascinated with the ideas and the acting presented by the talented cast. This feels like a film you would gather something new from after every subsequent viewings.

I had been extremely excited when I scheduled this movie among the Genre-ary Sci-Fi DailyView because it was a film that I had never seen, despite hearing about and I have usually enjoyed Tom Hanks films. This exceeded my expectations. I was not ready for the sweeping epic that Cloud Atlas was and was a masterpiece of technical and storytelling it truly is. It is my current favorite film among the Genre-ary. It may not be for everybody, but I found this to be exceptional.

Day: January 14th, Movie: 14

During my search for potential Genre-ary Sci-Fi DailyView films, I found this on Hulu and it piqued my curiosity. Peter Dinklage is a solid actor and a good post apocalyptic story is always a fun time. You know what I mean…

Well, I Think We’re Alone Now is nothing really special. It is an okay film that banks on the strength of its main lead actors to carry it through. It just felt as if the promise of potential was unfulfilled.

Del (Peter Dinklage) was a sole survivor of a small town after a worldwide pandemic wiped out human life. Del believed he was alone and went about his life, clearing out houses and burying the dead. One night, Del saw fireworks and realized that there maybe someone else out there. The next day, he discovered Grace (Elle Fanning) unconscious in her car. He first does not want her around, but she sticks with him and they bond.

While both Peter Dinklage and Elle Fanning are excellent actors and they do good work here, I did not get the romantic feel between them. For most of the film, it felt like they were just two people who were lonely and who spent time together. The romance felt pushed.

The story took a strange turn in the third act which also felt tagged on. There were some interesting ideas introduced, but it seemed like a different movie. Honestly, I found the last part of the movie to be potentially intriguing, but rushed because it showed up at the end and did not have a ton of development throughout. It did not fit into the tale that they were spinning. I did enjoy the arrival of Paul Giamatti though.

This was not the worst film I have seen, but there really isn’t that much here to really remember. I believe that there are better post apocalyptic films that take more risks and are more entertaining. This has two great actors in an average film.

Day: January 13, Movie: 13

This film is destined to be done by RiffTrax. I’m actually surprised that it hasn’t been done yet.

This thing was just unbelievably bad, in just about every aspects of filmmaking. The acting, the special effects, the story, editing… everything.

According to IMDB, “A delicious, mysterious goo that oozes from the earth is marketed as the newest dessert sensation, but the tasty treat rots more than teeth when zombie-like snackers who only want to consume more of the strange substance at any cost begin infesting the world.“

This started immediately. An old man found this bubbling white substance coming from the earth and, this guy, as anyone would, thought it was a good idea to taste it. I know that this was the first thought I had. This was just the start of the ridiculousness that was The Stuff.

Michael Moriarty played David, a former FBI agent who became involved in the case. Moriarty was giving the worst accent (or best Benoit Blanc imitation) I have ever heard. The film also featured Garrett Morris, Paul Sorvino and Danny Aiello. Obviously, someone had pictures worthy of blackmail to get these serious actors to participate in this stupid movie.

I believe there was some intention for this to be a satire dealing with the consumerism of the American public, but that does not come past the idiotic story.

There was a scene where Jason (Scott Bloom), a kid who had seen the Stuff moving in his refrigerator one night, and was running from his family who was trying to get him hooked on the substance as well, jumped into a car with total stranger David, who pulled up and yelled at the boy to get in. Jason did not even wonder if this was a good idea. Perhaps there were less dangers back in the 80s.

When I saw Abe Vigoda and Clara Peller (Where’s the Beef?) cameo, it was well past knowing what I was watching.

The thing is… the movie was kind of entertaining because it was so bad. This would be the perfect RiffTrax film. I sure hope they come across it. Meanwhile, this was terrible.

Day: January 12th, Movie: 12

This film, which I had never seen before, led to a long running TV show based on it, but I had not watched it either. However, i was aware of Stargate. The TV show featured Richard Dean Anderson (MacGyver himself). However, I was not aware of the original film cast which was one of the reasons I was attracted to this film.

I love James Spader. I love Kurt Russell. Both of them in the same movie made Stargate something that I was happy to include in the Genre-ary Sci-Fi DailyView.

After watching this on HBO Max, I have thoughts.

First, according to Rotten Tomatoes, “In modern-day Egypt, professor Daniel Jackson (James Spader) teams up with retired Army Col. Jack O’Neil (Kurt Russell) to unlock the code of an interstellar gateway to an ancient Egypt-like world. They arrive on a planet ruled by the despotic Ra (Jaye Davidson), who holds the key to the Earth travelers’ safe return. Now, in order to escape from their intergalactic purgatory, Jackson and O’Neil must convince the planet’s people that Ra must be overthrown.”

Stargate was fun, but it had several moments of real dumbness. Let me start with James Spader. He was great in the film as Daniel Jackson. He played the wonder of the situation beautifully and he made every scene better. Kurt Russell was fine, but I have seen him play this type of role before. However, he is Kurt Russell and he always is watchable. This is no exception.

The effects of the film were pretty decent. It was 1994 and this held up fairly well.

The premise behind the story was pretty good too. I really enjoyed the first act of the film as Daniel was trying to determine what the Stargate was and how it worked. This was definitely the best part of the film. When they went through the Stargate and wound up on the Egypt-like desert planet, things started to take steps backward.

The people they met on this planet were not very relatable. The problem with the language differences kept me from engaging them. Then, the villains were totally campy. They were dressed like Egyptian gods and that just did not work. Some of the dialogue needed to be better, especially in the second and third acts.

Despite the many troubles of the film, there was something fun about Stargate. Director Roland Emmerich is known for the big, dumb, epic films such as Independence Day, White House Down, and The Patriot. He was also responsible for Moonfall, Independence Day: Resurgence, and Godzilla (1998). Stargate falls in between these films. It’s dumb, but fun.

Day: January 11th, Movie: 11

This was another film that was filled with bizarre moments and a variety of tones. Slaughterhouse-Five is a comedy, a sci-fi film, a war movie and a drama. It is an odd mishmash of tones that do not always blend together well.

Billy Pilgrim (Michael Sacks) kicked off the movie writing a letter to a newspaper claiming to being “unstuck in time” and bouncing around his life span. He goes to his past as a young soldier behind enemy lines during World War II. He and a group of other Americans were captured and taken to the German city Dresden.

We also see Billy in a present day where he is married to his wife, Valencia (Sharon Gans) with a couple of adult children. Valencia died by accident after she was racing to the hospital to see Billy, who had been involved in a plane crash.

We also got a vision of Billy’s future and his death. Billy wound up on the planet Tralfamadore (which was a series of planets used in Kurt Vonnegut novels, of which this film was inspired).

I was never sure if I was supposed to laugh at some of the things that were happening or if I was supposed to be upset by them. The narrative structure of bouncing around the timeline was interesting and did remind me of the format of LOST episode The Constant (though the actual story of the TV show was different than Slaughterhouse-Five).

Michael Sacks did a great job as the main protagonist of this movie, having to display different times of the same character. He was able to create several distinct characters out of the same person. I thought that the rest of the cast was overacting or were not up to the lead performance.

Slaughterhouse-Five was a sci-fi war, dramady that just did not work together very well. It was fascinating at first, but the unstable tone caused me to feel put off by the movie.

Day: January 10th, Movie:10

I went to HBO Max tonight for the next film in the Genre-ary Sci-Fi DailyView. It was Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius. I had never watched an episode of the TV show, so I had no expectations coming in to Jimmy Neutron. Apparently, the TV series was the sequel to the film, which had received an Oscar nomination among

According to IMDB, “Jimmy Neutron is a boy genius and way ahead of his friends, but when it comes to being cool, he’s a little behind. All until one day when his parents, and parents all over Earth are kidnapped by aliens, it’s up to him to lead all the children of the world to rescue their parents.”

This movie was fun and silly. It had a good humor to it and the computer generated animation was decent. I was surprised when I heard Martin Short’s voice as one of the alien creatures.

Other voices in the film included Debi Derryberry, Patrick Stuart, Carolyn Lawrence, Rob Paulson, Frank Welker, Bob Goen, Mary Hart, Megan Cavanagh, Mark DeCarlo, Jeffrey Garcia, Crystal Scales, David L. Lander, Jim Cummings, Billy West, Kimberly Brooks, Candi Milo, and Dee Bradley Baker.

The tone of the movie was definitely for a younger audience, but I still found this entertaining. There was some clever writing and the story was simple but well done.