Futuristic Films

A list of great sci-fi films worth seeing. 

BLADE RUNNER

Harrison Ford gives a superb performance (as usual) as Rick Deckard, a bounty hunter hired to "retire" androids that have escaped from Mars and come down to Earth. Based on the novel "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep," the movie is different enough from the book that it is worth experiencing both. A classic "Film Noir," this movie isn't action packed, but it does have its share of gun fights, chases and showdowns.

The book is widely studied for its insights into what truly makes a human being, and the issues in morality that come with man's growing ability to create and alter life.

THE CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK

This is the sequel to "Pitch Black," taking place five years after the escape from a dangerous night planet that almost claimed their lives. Despite his best efforts to evade them, the convicted criminal Riddick is hunted down by mercenaries looking to collect the bounty on his head. He decides the only way to earn his freedom is to kill the person responsible for that bounty.

When he traces the source, however, he finds himself face to face with a person whose life he saved... and that the entire universe may be destroyed without his help.

This is a rare case when the sequel trumps the original, with another surprising performance by Vin Diesel. The special effects and action sequences are spectacular. This movie is a must see for all sci-fi fans.

EVENT HORIZON
In the year 2040 a ship capable of bending space-time known as Event Horizon was sent on a top secret mission to explore a galaxy that no other spaceship could reach. Unfortunately, the spaceship went missing just beyond Neptune.

Seven years later a rescue team is sent out to investigate a distress signal sent seemingly by the Event Horizon, a ship that by this time had become famous for its disappearance. When they find it, though, the ship seems only to be manned by ghosts of the past.

Stasis Chambers

Event Horizon is a thriller that takes you inside some very compelling and realistic ships, with believable, if not too low-tech resources for the time period. However, some suspension of disbelief is required for this movie's presentation of dimensional travel.

PITCH BLACK

In a time of intergalactic space travel, a civilian transport ship goes down on a strange desert planet. In the midst of the crash, a convicted criminal escapes from his bonds... but there are more dangerous creatures to worry about. The savage aliens on this planet are creatures of darkness, and the world is about to fall into a state of total eclipse, plunging the world into shadow. It becomes a race against time to escape the planet, and the dangerous criminal Riddick may be their only hope.

Riddick's artificially enhanced eyesight allows him to see in perfect darkness, making him as much a creature of the night as the inhabitants of this dark world.

Vin Diesel gives an amazing performance in this movie, his portrayal of Riddick far surpassing his roles in other films... at least until the sequel.

(see "The Chronicles of Riddick")

THE RUNNING MAN
An Arnold Schwarzenegger action film. Ben Richards is a cop that is framed for a civilian massacre that he tried to prevent. A futuristic game show host played by Richard Dawson decides that Richards is the perfect man for his game show called "The Running Man." It is the most popular TV show of its time, where criminals run for their lives and are able to win prizes such as money, vacations, and full pardons. Richards soon finds out, however, that the game is a lot more difficult to survive than the audience is led to believe... in fact, no-one has ever made it out alive.

The Running Man's set is 40 square blocks of ruined city streets, through which men called Stalkers hunt and attempt to slay the convicted felons. The crowd is wild and bloodthirsty, each audience member cheering for their favorite Stalker.

The premise is exciting and the movie is very entertaining, despite Schwarzenegger's seemingly endless string of puns and weak witticisms. In the 70's and 80's it was popular among futurists to predict such violent blood sports as this arising in the future, as a drive was made toward extremes to produce ratings. That opinion seems to be declining, especially since the world of virtual reality seems much more likely to produce these extreme thrills people may look for in their future entertainment.

STAR TREK VII GENERATIONS
The Next Generation crew meets up with James T. Kirk in this movie to thwart a villain that plans on destroying a star, and all of the planets in its solar system so he can return to a temporal rift in which people only experience pure joy. Data struggles with his inability to understand basic human emotions, and has chief engineer Geordi install an emotion chip that he has trouble controlling.

One particular moment of interest is a battle between the Enterprise and an out-dated Klingon vessel that finds a way around the Enterprise's shield frequencies.

STAR TREK VIII FIRST CONTACT

Perhaps the most entertaining of the Star Trek movies, the Next Generation crew flies out of the gates with a massive battle between the Federation and the Borg, who mount an assault on Earth. Picard takes command of the Federation fleet and defeats the Borg offensive, but they manage to send an escape pod through a time warp in an effort to destroy humans in the mid 21st century by preventing them from reaching warp capability.

The Borg are a cyborg race that share only one mind.

The story is very well written, and the special effects are also excellent. Anyone who can endure a few jokes falling flat should love this movie.

STAR TREK X NEMESIS
Picard is cloned by Romulans, and his clone Shinzon is the new Praetor of the Romulans. Picard has to find a way to stop Shinzon from destroying the Enterprise with his vastly superior warship... but that's not all. Shinzon plans to use a powerful form of radiation to destroy Earth and cripple the Federation before engulfing the entire quadrant in all out war.

The Enterprise faces off against the Reman Scimitar

Picard isn't the only one who finds himself reflected in some kind of shadowed mirror, however. Data finds a prototype of himself called B4 that gives him some insight into what makes an individual.

STAR WARS (IV-VI)

It is hard to believe that anyone who has even the slightest interest in futurism hasn't seen these movies, but that doesn't mean I should leave them out of this section. A true timeless classic, the original trilogy is particularly good in the "digitally re-mastered" version. The story itself remains the same, but you get some neat new creatures thrown into the background.

STAR WARS (I-III)

These movies seem to have started off as George Lucas' attempt to fit as many CG special effects into one movie as possible. Episode one disappointed a lot of people, but if you are a skeptic and haven't seen the new ones, make an effort to see episode three. It ties in very well with the original trilogy (episodes 4-6) and was a pleasant surprise.

STARSHIP TROOPERS

The acting and writing of this movie are sub-par, but it is still worth watching because it gives an interesting perspective on the armed forces, war and politics in a futuristic setting, thanks to the well written book. After graduating from school, the main character Johnny Rico decides to join the armed forces to earn his citizenship and the right to vote. While enlisted, his home city of Buenos Aires is destroyed by a meteorite sent from the Bug planet of Klendathu. With his family and friends destroyed, he has nothing to do but seek vengeance.

This is a good movie (and a great book) to study:

• Propaganda and military recruitment
• Perspectives on voting and government control over the right to vote
• Euphemism and glorification of war