[OT] Dark Star (1974) - the platinum age of movies

[Walter Bright]

Nick Sabalausky wrote:
> I don't really see that. To me, the original trilogy at least, seemed like 
> action flicks in sci-fi clothing (Nothing wrong with that!) Now the 
> Battlestar Galactica remake, the V remake, and Stargate Universe, *those* 
> are soap operas pretending to be sci-fi. And that goes triple for Craprica.

So many people like BG that I keep giving it a try, and keep turning it off.

> I really miss the sci-fi from around 1990-2005 (approx). I know a lot of 
> people would probably consider this heresy, but to me, that's the golden age 
> of science fiction. All of the Berman-era Star Treks (none of this JJ Abrams 
> nonsense), the Stargate movie, Stargate SG-1 (even Atlantis was at least 
> ok), Babylon 5 (no spoilers! I still haven't gotten around to the last 
> season and a half), The Fifth Element, Farscape, Firefly (although that was 
> really more space western than sci-fi). Lots of great stuff.

Please don't overlook 2001 or Colossus.


> But now sci-fi is mostly just soap operas with shitty camera work, and a few 
> well-intended-but-ultimately-mediocre attempts like Warehouse 13, the 
> revived Doctor Who, and Sanctuary (really more of an off-brand X-Men than 
> sci-fi though - and I'm not much one for western comics). Eureka's about the 
> only really good one on (although it still has just a touch more soap-drama 
> than I would like, and sometimes it feels like Carter is the only one really 
> carrying the show). So aside from that one, I usually just watch anime 
> instead.

Real sci-fi is based on a "what if X" and then a story is built around it. 2001 
is what if we find an artifact on the moon? Colossus is what if a defense 
computer becomes sentient? Soap operas, horse operas, etc., aren't really sci-fi 
even if they are in spaceships. Monster movies are sci-fi, but the genre is so 
tired (something is killing the crew one by one!) that I really don't want to 
see another one.

Is Star Wars sci-fi? I'd say not, because spaceships are the setting, but have 
nothing to do with the plot which you could transfer wholesale to a western or 
an eastern. The fact that entire sequences seem to be lifted directly from "633 
Squadron" also argues that it is not sci-fi.

BTW, watch "Primer". That's some really good sci-fi. No special effects, no 
budget, just exploring the amazing consequences of a simple idea.