Directors SciFi Draft (1 Viewer)

[Justin_S]

Well, first I find almost all of the characters in the films to be utterly annoying, and not one bit likable. I also think the films' so called adventures are all unexciting, overly silly, and quite yawn inducing. I also think the dialogue in all of the films is very poor, but I could easily get past that if the films were the least bit compelling or entertaining, but they're not. In my eyes, they are overrated and overdone to the nth degree, and I think they are nothing more than a total waste of time and money. I also personally think Lucas is a hack. All just my opinion of course.

 

[ChuckDeLa]

Jeff Gross -
The Matrix
Gattaca :b
Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan
Terminator 2
Minority Report
The Thing :b
Seconds :b
Dr. Strangelove
Strange Days :b
Jurassic Park :b

JenB -
The Empire Strikes Back
Star Wars
Return of the Jedi
Back to the Future
Superman
Star Trek III: The Search for Spock
TRON
Starman :b
Galaxy Quest
Flash Gordon (1980)


Jeff - I know how much Jen loves the SW trilogy, but picking all three of them kinda rubs me the wrong way. I'm not saying she picked those films just to "win", because I know those are her favorites. I just prefer a list with a little more variety. Plus I hate BTTF.

 

[Gabe D]

Jeff

 

[Ric Bagoly]

JenB

 

[JenB]

I love Jeff's list too but I will vote for me, JenB because I really love all the movies on my list and consider them all very good science fiction choices. :alien:

 

[Jeff Gross]

Jeff wins.

I'm giving Chris a win over Rich since Rich is MIA with only 4 movies on his list.

NEXT MATCHUP

2. ChuckDeLa
2001: A Space Odyssey
Aliens
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
The Terminator
The Time Machine (1960)
Fantastic Planet
Donnie Darko
Sleeper
The Incredible Shrinking Man
Repo Man

VS

5. Chris Richard
Blade Runner
Twelve Monkeys
Equilibrium
The Andromeda Strain
Logan's Run
Star Trek: Generations
The Handmaid's Tale
City of Lost Children
Omega Men
Silent Running

 

[ChuckDeLa]

Blade Runner
Twelve Monkeys
Equilibrium :b
The Andromeda Strain :b
Logan's Run
Star Trek: Generations
The Handmaid's Tale
City of Lost Children (beautiful design & photography though)
Omega Men :b
Silent Running :b

Chris's first two picks are excellent. But I vote for myself.

 

[Walter Kittel]

Copying my previous comments about Chuck's list -

ChuckDeLa
2001: A Space Odyssey - Great pick!
Aliens - Great action movie disguised as SF. Has all the window dressing, but that's about it.
Close Encounters of the Third Kind - Okay, but not really my cup of tea. Decent from an SF standpoint.
The Terminator - Pretty solid SF conceptually, despite a preponderance towards action.
The Time Machine (1960) - One of the classics.
Fantastic Planet - Never viewed.
Donnie Darko - Great sleeper pick.
Sleeper - Eh...
The Incredible Shrinking Man - Another classic.
Repo Man - Not really SF, but fun

My take on Chris' list...

Chris Richard
Blade Runner - Storyline doesn't do justice to the concept of the question of replicant rights, but very strong from a production standpoint, this combined with some memorable dialog redeems the film's 'search and destroy' storyline. Good pick!
Twelve Monkeys - Time travel and apocalyptic circumstances are two of the staples of SF. Being sourced from the wonderful La Jetee doesn't hurt.
Equilibrium - Haven't seen.
The Andromeda Strain - One of the great classics, and a good example of 'true' SF in cinema.
Logan's Run - Dated, but nostalgic choice.
Star Trek: Generations - One of the weaker Trek films, see my other comments about Star Trek.
The Handmaid's Tale - Haven't viewed. But the storyline, from what I've read sounds like legitimate SF.
City of Lost Children - Don't remember much except for the cinematography and production values. Is this fantasy or SF? I honestly don't remember.
Omega Man - Solid 'last survivor' SF which fits into the alternative reality niche.
Silent Running - Good choice, and raises the interesting question of commercial vs. environmental concerns.

Really, really close; but despite some films that are definitely not SF, I'll have to go with Chuck on the strength of 2001: A Space Odyssey, which trumps anything in Chris' list. ( If I'd viewed Equilibrium and The Handmaid's Tale this vote might have went the other way. )

- Walter.

 

[Gabe D]

Chuck

 

[ErikG]

ChuckDeLa

2001: A Space Odyssey-- ugh
Aliens-- an all-time favorite
Close Encounters of the Third Kind--
The Terminator-- another all-time favorite
The Time Machine (1960)--
Fantastic Planet--haven't seen
Donnie Darko--
Sleep--haven't seen
The Incredible Shrinking Man--haven't seen
Repo Man--



Chris Richard

Blade Runner-- a favorite
Twelve Monkeys--
Equilibrium--haven't seen
The Andromeda Strain--even
Logan's Run--
Star Trek: Generations--
The Handmaid's Tale--haven't seen
City of Lost Children--haven't seen
Omega Men--
Silent Running--even

Chuck

 

[SteveGon]

Echoing what Walter said, I'll vote for Chuck.

Wish there was a faithful adaptation of I Am Legend... :frowning:

 

[Ric Bagoly]

ChuckDeLa

 

[Jeff Gross]

Chuck wins

NEXT MATCHUP

1. Jeff Gross
The Matrix
Gattaca
Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan
Terminator 2
Minority Report
The Thing
Seconds
Dr. Stangelove
Strange Days
Jurassic Park

VS

3. Justin_S
Dark City
Starship Troopers
Invasion Of The Body Snatchers (1978)
Total Recall
They Live
The Abyss
The Blob (1998)
Pitch Black
When Worlds Collide
Soylent Green

 

[SteveGon]

Justin in a close one.

 

[ChuckDeLa]

Jeff

 

[Walter Kittel]

My previous comments

Jeff Gross
The Matrix - Live action anime, with a mix of philosophy wrapped around an SF virtual reality core. Solid pick.
Gattaca - One of the best SF films of the '90s. Great choice.
Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan - Star Trek has always struck me as only being marginally about SF, but this is the best of the bunch.
Terminator 2 - Weaker from an SF standpoint than the superior original film, and really more of an action film than anything else, but some concepts carry forward from the original.
Minority Report - Depending upon your interpretation of the ending, a modern classic, or fumbled at the 5 yard line. Still, very solid and based upon work by Phillip K. Dick, which is always a good thing.
The Thing - The tension of the film tends to overshadow the SF aspects of the film, but a solid choice.
Seconds - Great film, beautiful cinematography, and an intriguing identity crisis.
Dr. Stangelove - SF Film - No. Darkest black comedy of all time - Yes.
Strange Days - Great character driven drama with some SF elements used to drive the narrative, and explore the mindset of the protagonist.
Jurassic Park - Adventure film driven by some SF content. Pretty fun though.

Thoughts on Justin's list

Justin_S
Dark City - Great pick, one of my favorites.
Starship Troopers - Less SF than Verhoeven's earlier Robocop, which at least considers Murphy's predicament in an SF fashion. SF window dressing to provide a stage for the film's satiric commentary and black comedy. Fun movie that I enjoy, but not SF.
Invasion Of The Body Snatchers (1978) - I usually don't care for remakes, but Kaufman did a nice job on this one. Suitably creepy and aided by a strong cast. Good pick.
Total Recall - Similar to Terminator in terms of action vs. SF - but a strong SF concept gives the film some punch. Another good pick.
They Live - Depending upon my mood - a) Extreme guilty pleasure. b) Crapfest. c) Brilliant satire on 80's materialism. I'll be generous and pick c) , since the film does do what SF is often called upon to do - hold a mirror up to society and comment upon contemporary social mores via metaphor.
The Abyss - More character study than SF content in this one, given that the nature of the aliens isn't really explored that much. Okay, but not strong SF.
The Blob (1998) - Pretty weak remake. Does have Shawnee Smith in it however.
Pitch Black - I've kind of cooled off on this one, and think that Twohy's earlier The Arrival is a stronger SF film - and one I almost picked. Still, not a bad choice.
When Worlds Collide - One of the classics of the '50. Another one that isn't in my top three, but pretty strong.
Soylent Green - Dystopian societies are another niche in SF, but I've never really cared for this film that much.

Another close round, but I'll have to go with Jeff.

- Walter.

 

[Angelo.M]

Can anyone vote?

If so...

Jeff Gross
The Matrix: cool
Gattaca: love this film
Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan: not a ST fan, but the best of those films by a long stretch
Terminator 2: not a fan; thought the original was enough
Minority Report: cool
The Thing: cool
Seconds: haven't seen
Dr. Stangelove: love this film, but is it sci-fi?
Strange Days: didn't like
Jurassic Park: not a fan

VS

Justin_S
Dark City: very cool
Starship Troopers: loved the book, and enjoyed the movie for different reasons (fun)
Invasion Of The Body Snatchers (1978): eh
Total Recall: like it in its day; hasn't aged well for me
They Live: haven't seen
The Abyss: cool
The Blob (1998): eh
Pitch Black: cool
When Worlds Collide: haven't seen
Soylent Green: "Soylent Green is still people!"

Jeff

 

[JenB]

Justin_S

 

[Ric Bagoly]

Jeff Gross

 

[Gabe D]

Justin_S