One of the fathers of science fiction has passed away. He was one of the very few science fiction authors to have actually written about things that eventually came into existence, surprisingly within his lifetime. After all, he was also a scientist, himself. The most notable of these is probably geostationary orbiting satellites. Perhaps more Clarke futurisms will come true in the years to come.

2001 is a film remembered by all, whether you are a science fiction fan or not. Clarke somehow outlived Kubrick, but the masterpiece of those two minds collaborating is one of the greatest movies ever made. But, everyone should definitely read the book, as there is so much more crammed in those pages… stuff that makes one gasp at the possibilities of our own creativity as men. Like the movie, Clarke’s stories, while possessing fantastic creations of science and physics, were more about how man evolves alongside technology and scientific discovery, and how society and morality adapts to the future.

If we have learned one thing from the history of invention and discovery, it is that, in the long run — and often in the short one — the most daring prophecies seem laughably conservative.

One of the best science fiction authors has passed. Yes, some do not consider him with the dreaded moniker “science fiction author”, but that is why he was so good. His imagined worlds and futures as breathing realities that he used to paint the actual novel. The novels weren’t really about the technology or shooting-spaceships-pew-pew.

They weren’t so much about “What if?”, but more of: “This is how it will be, how do we thrive in it?” Always with a dark whimsical slant.

- Be careful what you pretend to be because you are what you pretend to be.

- Life happens too fast for you ever to think about it. If you could just persuade people of this, but they insist on amassing information.

and the last thing I read on him, about dependence on oil and global warming and the end of the world.

“No. No. Because I’m eighty-three years old. The lying bastards! On the package Brown & Williamson promised to kill me. Instead, their cigarettes didn’t work. Now I’m forced to suffer leaders with names like Bush and Dick and, up until recently, ‘Colon.’”….

You join the long list of those people that will be missed. Goodbye Kurt.

It’s the week of dystopian movies for drzy. I just watched Children of Men tonight.

I am a tad biased, as my favorite type of books and films are social sci-fi of dystopian nature, but really most sci-fi films have a relatively bleak look at the future, even if it isn’t our own future. (or, even a long time ago… in a galaxy far far away) For the books there are many, but these type of films are few and far between. And pretty much all of the films are based on or influenced by a particular book anyways.

Anywho, the film was very good. I’m not a big fan of Clive, but he’s done a decent job in all the movies I’ve seen him in, including this one. I’ll try not to give out any spoilers here beyond what the trailers show. Man has somehow accidentally engineered fertility out of our human equation. In so doing, the world plunges into chaos, and those countries left standing become racist/nationalist to an extreme. There are rebel groups fighting the power, and there are people who are now considered subhuman that are herded into camps.

The characters in this movie are remarkably deep and original, especially considering their limited screen time. Michael Caine was awesome, as only he can be. Chiwetel Ejiofor I have a fondness for since Serenity, and he definitely does not disappoint. Julianne Moore was ok, but I’ve never thought she was that great. Even the side characters manage to have a distinct personalities rather than being Guard #1 or Police Officer #7. The characterization is the real triumph of the movie.

For those looking for an action film, you may want to skip the first half. Sure there is a bit, but most before the half is marked with philosophy and discovery. Things pick up towards the end in a stark turn towards all out war.

As with many of these films, there is no clear resolution at the end. The glimmer of hope just becomes a tad brighter.

I recommend it as worth the ticket price and maybe even worth a second viewing, if only because you are like me and had metalhead days that flattened your hearing, so that UK accents are harder for me to decipher. Much of the dialog is very good.

I also rewatched Dark City today which furthered my dystopian trend. And… I saw Rocky Balboa last night, which surprisingly was a good movie that was enjoyable.