Archive for the ‘sci-fi’ Category

‘Keep Watching the Skies!’

OK, OK, I promise that I am not going to do every genre of film, up to and including 10 Best Films Involving Otters, but such was the pleasing reaction to my previous list, 10 Best Horror Films, I decided that there was still room to include an appreciation of the genre that is (unless, of course, you count comedy) the nearest to the macabre, namely one that frequently produces films, such as Alien (1979) and John Carpenter’s The Thing (1982), that can safely be labelled as ‘crossovers’. Fair enough? It might just be me, but I think that this list may produce a few more squabbles than its predecessor. Over to you, Gentle Reader(s)…

Read the rest of this entry »

Hail to The King, baby

Don Coscarelli, the director who brought us The Beastmaster (1982) and Phantasm (1979) is not a name that would immediately leap to mind should someone mention ‘cult classic’. Phantasm, while original and oddly engaging in its time, was hardly a cult classic. Popular, yes – and certainly better than a lot of the dross around at the end of the 70s – but I wonder how many fans of the original Phantasm have watched what is probably, nay, certainly Coscarelli’s best feature to date?

Read the rest of this entry »

Tight, bright

Thanks to our new friendship with distributor Paradiso Films, we’ll be bringing you even more movie reviews. The first from them is one that hasn’t been hyped much, but is still worth a look - Hunter Prey (2009). Be sure to check out Paradiso’s web site too.

Read the rest of this entry »

Perchance to dream

Cinema has enjoyed a fertile (if occasionally vexed) relationship with the world of dreams – from Hitchcock’s collaboration with Salvador Dali in Spellbound (1945), to the more recent Abre Los Ojos (1997) and remake Vanilla Sky (2001), the fascination with what dreams may come, what they may mean and their relationship with what we describe as ‘reality’, has held audiences in thrall.

Read the rest of this entry »

Boxing clever

From the mind of one of the most influential sci-fi/horror authors of our time, Richard Matheson (Duel, I Am Legend, Hell House) comes The Box (2009), adapted by Richard Kelly (Donnie Darko (2001)) from Matheson’s short story, Button, Button.

Read the rest of this entry »

No trouble with Harry

When the chance for a chat with one of Belgium’s finest directors, Harry Kümel, presented itself during the Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFFF) 2010, you can be sure that Picturenose’s James Drew (JD) didn’t miss his opportunity to meet the man behind two of the most acclaimed cult horror/sci-fi/fantasy features ever made, Les lèvres rouges (Daughters of Darkness) (1971) and Malpertuis (The Legend of Doom House) (1971).

Read the rest of this entry »

Gods and monsters

Picturenose had the pleasure of meeting renowned Antwerp-born director Harry Kümel during BIFFF 2010 - a little background then on Malpertuis (The Legend of Doom House) (1971), a film which, along with Kümel’s Les lèvres rouges (Daughters of Darkness) (1971), resulted in the director quickly being labelled a master of fantasy and horror.

Read the rest of this entry »

Sharp-fisted fella

Prequels, eh? We all know that The Godfather Part II (1974) by and large started the ball rolling, with its look at the early life of Brando’s Vito Corleone, as played by Robert De Niro in the second film. However, that is one of the best films ever made (it was the first and thus far only sequel/prequel to win the Best Picture Oscar) – X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009), surprisingly enough, is not quite in the same league.

Read the rest of this entry »

Bay rocks?

Picture the scene. The remains of a particularly spicy fajita meal on the table, a cold beer, and an unwillingness to change channels. OK, apart from the fajitas, this is pretty much every evening for me. Last night, however, was different.  I had seen the trailers on the telly for the past week, and have to admit that I was intrigued by The Island (2005).

Read the rest of this entry »

Now then – John Carpenter’s The Thing (1982), itself a remake of the Christian Nyby/Howard Hawks/Orson Welles (?) 1951 classic, The Thing From Another World (both of which are adaptations of John W.Campbell’s original short story, Who Goes There?) is perhaps the finest horror-science fiction film ever made. Carpenter’s movie, although it fared badly with critics and at the box office on its original release, has nevertheless gained an enormous cult following over the years, and is now rightly regarded as the classic that it so clearly is. Guess what? There is a ‘companion piece’ prequel on the way – how scared should we be?

Read the rest of this entry »