Page 357: On Science Fiction

Once, my cousin told me why she never liked SciFi movies: because it’s so far from reality. She can’t enjoy Star Wars, she thought Matrix was a “so-so”, and she rolled her eyes when I told her how good District 9 was.

But I understood her reason, because she’s right. Yes, it’s far from reality, hasn’t happened, or may never happen. But that’s the most enticing part of SciFi, IMHO. To see something different and wonderful that comes from ideas and imagination. It feels good to be an escapist once in a while, right? Haha. It was my dad who’s “responsible” for my fondness for this genre and made me a nerd. I still remember when I was a kid, he used to wake me up in the middle of the night to watch The X-Files and other alien movies. And then it became our thing, not just to watch SciFi series or movies, but also talk about UFO sightings and the idea of other entities from other planets.

Anyway, I watched Alien: Covenant a few days ago. And spoiler alert: it was goooood! I think it takes the franchise to the next level, because this part of the prequel series not only tells about the history of xenomorph (and brought it back to the screen. Yass!), but also intrigues questions about creation and existence. And what I love most about this franchise is that the lead characters that slayed those creatures were women! I find it empowering.

image courtesy: here

Since we’re talking about SciFi movies, I’m going to share a list of my favorite ones (as usual, I’m gonna pretend that I have many regular visitors. Ha). And no, I didn’t rank them.

Paul

A comedy about obnoxious alien named Paul who tried to find a way back to his planet. If you love Simon Pegg, you should watch this. Not a fan of SciFi? Well, I’m gonna say, watch it anyway. To quote Paul, “sometimes, you just gotta roll the dice”

LIFE

It’s intense and there are interesting lines about the joy of running away from earth, reality, and crazy things that people do to each other.

Arrival

This one is also on a list of movies I watched more than one time and I wouldn’t mind to watch it again. Maybe because of the opening and ending scenes. And oh that beautiful song! This movie isn’t just about the encounter with some alien race, but also about connections, loneliness,

and that thing called “fate”. I interpreted some part had message about the inevitable pain in life. That although some pain is inevitable, the beautiful moment is worth the pain.

The thing (1982 film)

If you haven't seen it, I’d rather not tell you what is about. Just like Old Boy, I want you to be surprised :D

Flight of the Navigator

I remembered days after I watched this movie, all I wished was the same exact spaceship will come to me and I can ride it. And by wished, I meant imagined it. Well, although I didn’t want to end like that boy, but..when I was a kid, that spaceship was all I wanted to be.

Star Wars

Yes, I love Star Wars.

Yes, I think Episode IV, V, VII are better than I, II, III.

Yes, Episode VII and Rogue One were great.

Yes, I still want Darth Maul’s double bladed light saber.

Aliens (1986)

It's a love child of action, adventure, intensity and imagination. It’s extremely good.

Star Trek and Star Trek: Into the Darkness

If you’re into SciFi, it’s not hard to love J.J. Abrams. I’ve been his huge fan since I saw his name appeared on Fringe, my forever SciFi TV series. I love X-Files too, but to me, Fringe is better. The story is good, many quotable dialogues and oh man..Walter Bishop! You can’t hate this mad scientist. You just can’t. Seriously, you can’t. You can be mad at him, maybe, but not too long. Eventually, you just wanna hug him and say “it’s ok, walter. Everything’s gonna be okay. You did mistakes, but you have a good heart, you’ll be loved”. Ok, Back to Star Trek. J.J Abrams directed these two, and they’re far from disappointing. I didn’t really enjoy Star Trek beyond, though. But he didn’t direct it, so, I still love him.

10 Cloverfield Lane

This movie is an example that you don’t have to invest all of your money on CGI to create a good SciFi movie. Yes, it has good special effect, but only like a few minutes. The script and acting were already strong enough.

2001: A Space Odyssey

Stole this from Wikipedia: It deals with the themes of existentialism, human evolution, technology, artificial intelligence, and extraterrestrial life. It is noted for its scientifically accurate depiction of space flight, pioneering special effects, and ambiguous imagery.

And just like Arrival, I’ve seen it more than one time and I wouldn’t mind to watch it again.

District 9

To quote James Rocchi from Common Sense Media:

 "District 9" is a rarity -- a lower-budget science-fiction film with amazing effects, thrilling action, and, most importantly, emotional and intellectual depth.
And I couldn't agree more.

So what’s your favorite SciFi movie(s)? Any recommendations of movies I should watch? :)