Stargate Universe - is good Sci-Fi now dead?

[blasterman]

Since Avatar's plot is basically just a vehicle for special effects in 3D, watching the movie like this on TV is pretty useless for me.

Pretty much it. Lux loves this film for some unknown reason while I found it conceptually stagnant and a welfare project for Cameron's CGI team. It was like watching a live action version of the front of a 'Yes' album and only lacked Kevin Costner in a buffalo hunt. The most effective part of the film is the fact it's replay value is for parents to use in their mini-vans to keep their 10 year olds busy on trips to the mall. Also note how all the aliens looked alike in this film with the same skin rendering and such. Since there was no technological concept in 'Avatard' I also don't call it Sci-Fi.

The thought transference technology was covered in a much better film made earlier, 'SleepDealers', so it wasn't Cameron's invention.

Last good tv show that figured out a complex character development which did not detract from the Sci-Fi theme was BSG.

BSG degenerated into nothing more than soap opera after it's first couple of seasons and didn't present any arguable technological concepts after that. After 'Razor' and the discovery of the Pegasus, it was kind of down hill. However, Grace Park getting accosted increased ratings, so the writers went that route long exhausted on ideas. Watch something like '33-minutes' which was one of the best episodes in the first season compared to anything in the later seasons and it's night and day.

SGU started this way, but improved as the other comments here also support, so I'm not sure what Lux is watching, other than 10' blue aliens in Ferngully and Sigourney Weaver's terrible acting.

It is ignorant to think that 3D is gone after Avatar's monumental success

If anybody here cares what you think is 'ignorant' I'd be shocked, but the link I provided pretty much proves what the industry thinks of the future of 3D, at least in a theatrical sense. Also, bored husbands buying 3D TVs on their credit card at Best Buy don't impress me in terms of demographics because consumer trends are transient. Especially when the set is going to be spend most of it's time struggling with broadband connection speed and variable compression rates. Broadcasters are doing everything they can to keep the audience watching commercials and not resorting to Hulu, NetFlix etc., so for the moment 3D is it. You can otherwise keep the BR player, Blockbuster stock, and I'll be more concerned with the data infrastructure situation in the U.S. which is the real thing holding things back.

Also, anybody want to take bets on how soon 'Falling Skies' get's cancelled? 10 minutes of that and I was outta there. Nice to know that the ED-209from 'Robocop' is alive and well, but now working for aliens and not politicians in detroit. Along with the CGI mesh for the 'skitters' that Spielberg yanked from 'Super-8'.

 

[LuxLuthor]

I love all Sci-Fi. SGU's failure and plummeting ratings was not a matter of people being burned out from earlier SG series. Rather, it was the high percentage of irrelevant soap-opera stories (mostly using the telepathic stones), that had no practical relevance to the Destiny adventure. In addition, there was inadequate episode time to delve into both worlds--especially when they highlighted home relationships for so many of the key characters. You would just start getting into an interesting sci-fi theme, events or conflicts developing in Destiny's world, and the idiot writers would whisk you away to some high school teen inadequacy, taking care of a hospitalized mother, cheating on the abandoned wife, glossing over a complex "I miss you" lesbian relationship, or incomplete story lines of various earth invasions. The writers and producers ignored the feedback from numerous fan groups, and rode the ratings into the crater of cancellation. It's a shame because it could have been a great series running many years.

 

[LuxLuthor]

As I said earlier, and in the previous Avatar thread, the staggering box office and repeat viewings stand on their own merit. Tomatoes backs up the reality. It continues to be quite humorous watching the desperately histrionic variations of "your mom wears army boots" attempting to discredit Avatar. :hahaha:

Obviously, there is a segment that adores shows with ratings in the toilet, tossed upon the trash heap of irrelevant obscurity. Enjoy those reruns of SGU ! Thank God it was put out of its misery.

 

[Mjolnir]

Pretty much it. Lux loves this film for some unknown reason while I found it conceptually stagnant and a welfare project for Cameron's CGI team. It was like watching a live action version of the front of a 'Yes' album and only lacked Kevin Costner in a buffalo hunt. The most effective part of the film is the fact it's replay value is for parents to use in their mini-vans to keep their 10 year olds busy on trips to the mall. Also note how all the aliens looked alike in this film with the same skin rendering and such. Since there was no technological concept in 'Avatard' I also don't call it Sci-Fi.

The thought transference technology was covered in a much better film made earlier, 'SleepDealers', so it wasn't Cameron's invention.



BSG degenerated into nothing more than soap opera after it's first couple of seasons and didn't present any arguable technological concepts after that. After 'Razor' and the discovery of the Pegasus, it was kind of down hill. However, Grace Park getting accosted increased ratings, so the writers went that route long exhausted on ideas. Watch something like '33-minutes' which was one of the best episodes in the first season compared to anything in the later seasons and it's night and day.

SGU started this way, but improved as the other comments here also support, so I'm not sure what Lux is watching, other than 10' blue aliens in Ferngully and Sigourney Weaver's terrible acting.



If anybody here cares what you think is 'ignorant' I'd be shocked, but the link I provided pretty much proves what the industry thinks of the future of 3D, at least in a theatrical sense. Also, bored husbands buying 3D TVs on their credit card at Best Buy don't impress me in terms of demographics because consumer trends are transient. Especially when the set is going to be spend most of it's time struggling with broadband connection speed and variable compression rates. Broadcasters are doing everything they can to keep the audience watching commercials and not resorting to Hulu, NetFlix etc., so for the moment 3D is it. You can otherwise keep the BR player, Blockbuster stock, and I'll be more concerned with the data infrastructure situation in the U.S. which is the real thing holding things back.

Also, anybody want to take bets on how soon 'Falling Skies' get's cancelled? 10 minutes of that and I was outta there. Nice to know that the ED-209from 'Robocop' is alive and well, but now working for aliens and not politicians in detroit. Along with the CGI mesh for the 'skitters' that Spielberg yanked from 'Super-8'.

Wow, do you like ANYTHING? I thought Falling skies was watchable. The acting was somewhat bland, but that can improve. The CGI effects were better than some other shows (namely a lot of the BBC shows like Merlin), and weren't as distracting as they could have been. Given that not many people in America like Scifi these days, I thinkyou are setting the bar way too high.

Lux, did you stop watching SGU after season 1? I agree with you about the soap opera crap with the communication stones in the first season (and the constant bickering among the crew), but in the second season they started to move on from that and the crew actually started to get along a bit better. I agree that after the first season I wanted it cancelled, but towards the end I felt that it was getting a bit better.

 

[EZO]

The best Sci-Fi movie for me personally is Blade Runner on BluRay, followed by the first Matrix.

It's all your fault, Lux!...but thanks!

After I read your post yesterday I went out to do some work on my property and while doing so I got to thinking, well, just what do I think of as the BEST Sci-Fi movie? Well, yeah, Blade Runner is right up near the top of the list as is the first Matrix. But then I thought back on the absolute landmark Sci-Fi films I've seen over the years that have profoundly affected me in one way or the other, especially as a kid and in my younger years. One of them, Forbidden Planet might be the one on the very top of my list. Yeah, that's it, I thought. To this day it holds up well, even the special effects and it had ALL the elements and then some. Have we ever seen anything as imaginative as the monster from the id, or as cool a piece of technology and comic relief as Robby the Robot? Gene Roddenberry even acknowledged this film's influence on his creation of Star Trek and it is easy to see the parallels. But then 2001: A Space Odyssey came to mind; I mean, if that one's not up near the top of the list then nothing is...and then...Oh, what about the first Alien....and Aliens, etc. I realized there were just too many, "best ones". So here is my personal list, and each for it's own reasons. Some have flaws or lack certain polish by today's standards but they are true classics and achievements and they along with all those paperback novels and comic books made me the sci-fi fan I am today.

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
Alien (1979)
Aliens (1986)
Forbidden Planet (1956)
Metropolis(1927)
Silent Running (1972)
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
Planet of the Apes (1968)
War of the Worlds (1953)
Things to Come (1936)
RoboCop (1987)
Predator (1987)
District 9 (2009)
Moon (2009)
Matrix (1999)
Blade Runner (1982)

P.S. The above list is in no particular order.

P.P.S Looking at my list again I notice that three of the titles were made into recent remakes. I loved Tim Burton's Planet of the Apes. It was VERY well done, but it's not on the "best" list. The same with War of the Worlds (2005) (well, Spielberg knows how to make a movie at least) and The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008) (Which I thought sucked, Big Time. How could they even THINK of messing with a classic such as this?)

 

[beerwax]

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[EZO]

Wait, Wait!.... I forgot one! .........Mars Needs Women (1967)

plot synopsis: Tommy Kirk leads his fellow Martians to Earth on an interplanetary quest for females.

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Obviously, CPFers will note the very cool Martian flashlight! This one was made for TV so maybe good Sci-Fi really is now dead?
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[EZO]

Sorry, I somehow hit reply with quote instead of edit but I meant to add this movie still to the previous post. I guess I'll put it here.

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[LuxLuthor]

Well if you are going for lists, there are many out there, and many opinions and preferences.

http://home.austarnet.com.au/petersykes/topscifi/lists_film.html
http://www.imdb.com/chart/scifi
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_films_considered_the_best#Science_fiction
http://totalscifionline.com/features/3809-the-100-greatest-sci-fi-movies
http://www.guardian.co.uk/life/news/page/0,12983,1290764,00.html
http://movies.ign.com/articles/677/677739p5.html

 

[EZO]

Well if you are going for lists, there are many out there, and many opinions and preferences.

I know! After I posted to the thread I thought, uh-oh, I hope I haven't just unintentionally launched a list posting frenzy! I know there are many out there but this was just a personal one that came to mind as I thought about it. Everyone has their personal faves like beerwax mentions but for me there are only a select few that rise to a level above rest. For example, I really enjoyed The Fifth Element. It was entertaining and had some wonderful visuals and effects but at least to me it was not intellectually stimulating or thought provoking. It was more campy and humorous. The Star Wars films are often on these lists too, but again, for me, even though I love them they don't strike me as having the kind of intellectually stimulating substance or that certain "something" of the films that stay with me throughout the years. Many I see on these "best lists" feel similar in that way for me for one reason or another, but of course we all have our preferences and that's what makes the world such an interesting place.

 

[beerwax]

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[EZO]

Rise of the Planet of the Apes - This looks like it could be good. We'll have to wait and see I guess.

Trailer
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[martha99]

Hello,
I thank the person who posted the info regarding season 2 of SG-Universe, because I gave up in season 1 also - for much the same reasons.

Then the thread goes on to movie lists and Avatar discussions: I thought the plot was quite predictable and old-fashioned. But having said that, I loved the way it was interwoven with the idea of a global energy matrix and the power of humans working together for the greater good. The 3D visuals were great at the Imax too!