Film Review—Snowpiercer

An attempt by present day scientists to counteract global warming backfires, leading to a catastrophic ice age that renders the world uninhabitable and wipes out most of the human population. The only survivors are aboard the Snowpiercer, a train powered by perpetual motion that endures the cold by its constant motion. Within is a tiered society, with the poorest in the tail and the elite in the front. Frustrated by the deplorable conditions a revolution towards the front of the train ensues, leading to losses on both sides and revelations about the full sacrifices of the train.

The cloistered setting within the train breathes life into the dystopian genre, which has received a great deal of use and abuse over the last few years. The refreshing style is furthered by the juxtaposition of the ever moving train against the social stasis of its inhabitants. No matter how far the revolt progresses through the different compartments of the train, no matter how much truth is revealed, they cannot escape the ‘iron box’ and the realities of life and the train cannot be altered. And this reality brings into play the balance of life and resources, stability and variability, order and chaos, reliance and freedom.

Evocative and alluring, Snowpiercer makes a solid, satisfying, and energizing contribution to the dystopian film catalogue.

Andreas

Book Review—Neuromancer by William Gibson

Case is a former computer hacker who stole from his boss and had his central nervous system corrupted by mycotoxin as punishment. Unable to enter the computer matrix that was his source of income and his preferred habitat, he has resorted to hustling in Chiba City, Japan, in the near future where he hopes the black clinics will be able to heal his nervous system so that he can once again enter cyberspace. His hopes are seemingly met when a potential new employer offers to have him healed in exchange for his services.

Neuromancer not only put Gibson on the map but also sparked the cyberpunk subculture in literature, its mix of “high tech and low life” inspiring a host of other writers and film makers. This mingling is most effectively executed with the two worlds Gibson creates. First is the 'real world', a menagerie of the damaged and the predatory, with these often being indistinguishable. This is contrasted with the high tech dream scape of the cyber world where the clutches of the real world are challenged and transformed. But those that traverse the landscapes of this world are the real energy of the novel. These are the new romantics, who bring new life through the electrical impulses of cyberspace and extend these visions into warped reality.

A seminal mindbender, Neuromancer is a world warping thrill ride.
Andreas

Film Review—Guardians of the Galaxy

The least anticipated but arguably the most enjoyable entry in Marvel’s Cinematic Universe. Guardians of the Galaxy features Peter Quill (AKA Star-Lord) a half-human half-alien  thief, Gamora, the personal assassin of an intergalactic warlord, Drax the Destroyer, a warrior vigilante, and bounty hunters Rocket, a raccoon-like alien experiment, and Groot, a sentient tree-like humanoid. This rag tag group must team up to stop an evil Kree zealot from destroying the planet Xandar. Make sense? No? That’s absolutely fine, as the franchise as a whole and this entry in particular is about having a great deal of nerdy fun.

It does suffer from many of the follies inherent in comic book films, most notably a ridiculous two-dimensional villain, predictable plot, and chance occurrences up the galactic wazoo. But it is fun, has perfectly executed humour, enough references and Easter eggs to keep the fan boys entertained for several hours, and a killer sound track.

Andreas

Film Review - Under The Skin by Jonathan Glazer

A voluptuous woman (Scarlett Johannson) drives through the streets of Glasgow and lures single men with the promise of stimulation and instead giving oblivion. She is an alien temptress, and these men become the life source for her and the black, featureless beings of her kin. But soon her prey becomes her fascination, her voyeurism luring her into the human world. 

It is reminiscent of 2001: A Space Odyssey with its minimal dialogue and cinematic artifice. But where 2001 gained its detachment through the grandeur of the cosmos, Under the skin utilizes the minuscule and the mundane: the crawling of insects, the ambiance of everyday life, the bubbles of humanity in crowded cities. Trading the communion of her void for the anonymity of our world, the temptress becomes prey to discovery, fear, and isolation. Very unsettling. 
Andreas

Film Review – Edge of Tomorrow by Doug Liman

Also known as Live. Die. Repeat. and dubbed by many critics as Groundhog Day mixed with Independence Day. This action flick sees the earth being invaded by Mimics, part organic, part mechanical tentacled aliens with the ability to manipulate time. Major William Cage (Tom Cruise), a US Army PR man, is unwillingly signed up for front line battle and killed. But instead of dying Cage finds himself reliving the day's events on loop, soon discovering that this ability can lead to the downfall of the Mimics.

It is a Tom Cruise action flick, so you can expect fast talking, loud breathing, grinning laughter, and heavy handed romance. The most immediate comparison is Oblivion, another Cruise Sci-Fi venture, which, although enjoyable, was more Sci-fi pastiche than innovative action. But Edge of Tomorrow, with its well-paced plot, perfectly timed humour, and great balance between action and story, is worth viewing again, and again, and again... 
Andreas

Book Review - Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

This is a re-release of the acclaimed debut novel first published in 1977. It has been re-published to coincide with the film starring Harrison Ford. It is interesting to discover why he wrote the book and what he was thinking as described in an introduction by the author first published in 1991. The story is of gifted children drafted to BattleSchool for training and assessment in a desperate search for a supreme battle commander . The commander is needed to lead the Earth's forces in an interstellar war against 'the buggers', the insectoid race that came out of the stars in the first interstellar war. This story is deservedly a classic. It focuses on Ender Wiggin, a hugely intelligent 6 year old who is sent to Battle School after his brother Peter, fails as he is too nasty and his sister, Valentine, fails because she is too nice. Because of their genetic potential, their parents were given permission to breed a Third, in a world where 2 children is the maximum allowed. The result is Ender, who combines his siblings' traits. His growing up is a combination of developing knowledge & skills and of understanding the duality of his own personality. When he is first sent into space, "There were 19 other boys in his launch. They filed out of the bus and into the elevator. They talked and joked and bragged and laughed. Ender kept his silence. He noticed how Graff and the other officers were watching them. Analyzing. Everything we do means something, Ender realized. Them laughing. Me not laughing. He toyed with the idea of trying to be like the other boys. But he couldn't think of any jokes, and none of theirs seemed funny. Wherever their laughter came from, Ender couldn't find such a place in himself. He was afraid, and fear made him serious."  The children at BattleSchool face tough challenges to make sure they can do the job but is the price they pay too high? As with the best scifi, the underlying political realities are deftly inserted into the action so that no-one is in any doubt that the black and white areas in life are well and truly greyed out! The space tech is handled well and you can simply read this as a coming-of-age story with fight training. I really enjoyed this book.

Wendy

Speculative Fiction....more than the undead.

It can be easy to dismiss speculative fiction as purely asteroids and "zombie lit" and while there is an element of that (and that is OK and very enjoyable!), there is oh so much more.

Speculative fiction encompasses not just the bio-engineering fuelled post apocalyptic nightmare that is found in Justin Cronin's The Passage but also the laugh out laugh universe of Adams Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy and Asimov's robot riddled futures.

As a genre it is one I have returned to many times. In early high school while other young teenage girls were enjoying the Sweet Valley High Series (Bubblegum pulp) I was enamoured with Kelleher's Taronga, a post apocalyptic adventure set in Sydney's Zoo where the main character can communicate telepathically (thankyou to my high school English teacher for that one).

Later high school, saw my introduction to The Handmaids Tale, Atwoods exploration of female subjagation at the hands of a theocracy. Not only did it set of the biggest exam hissyfit in my academic life (I walked out as I hadn't prepared properly and didn't understand the question), it asked a 16 year old to examine doctorine, equal rights and the wisdom of using butter as moisturiser.


Over the ensuing decades (of which there have been a couple), I have enjoyed so many different sc-fi, paranormal, alternate history (some of the many genre's that seem to fit within this one) that it hard not to list them all. Sara Douglass and her twists on Greek mythology and time travel (The Troy Game) kept me thrilled right to the last page. Suzanne Collins Hunger Games made me cry (and quite possibly neglect my children "Shhhh, mummy's reading") and the Time Traveller's Wife was simply one of the best pieces of writing I have come across (just don't get me started on the movie).

Too many people presume that these books aren't literary, or are just for children. Other's think they should "grown up and read a proper book". I support wide reading.  I support reading outside your comfort zone. i also support reading whatever you like, and with so many different themes in speculative fiction, there is alot to like.

So give me vampires, zombies, robots and cyborgs, take me to worlds where war never happens or is never ending and let me indulge in my fantasies of what the world would be like if time travel was possible.
And don't ever tell me (or your kids, spouse or next door neighbour) , that what I read isn't educational, interesting or literary.

(Oh, and if you do enjoy "zombie lit" check out our blog supporting the Narella Zombie Apocalypse.! )

Narellan Zombie Apocalypse  - April 13 2013

Stacey