2012 in Movies!

I have a confession to make… I love lists.

That’s a confession that I think I’ve made before, but it’s also one I haven’t been able to come to grips with. If I’m piddling around the internet and see something like, The 8 Types of Cabbage most similar to Lettuce when eaten raw…. Well, let’s just say that would work a lot better than promises of porn to get me to click a link.

I don’t make lists as often as I want to, but now, with all these year-end lists coming out, I feel like I have permission, at least for the next week or so.

So, right off the bat, here’s a list…

THE 10 BEST SPEC FIC MOVIES OF THE YEAR (That’s the year I saw them, maybe not the year they were released).

Chronicle

10) Chronicle: I honestly almost forgot about this movie when compiling this list. I don’t think it’s much of secret that expectations have a great deal to do with how much anyone enjoys a movie. This flick came out of left-field and stunned me with its story and fx – this was a theatrical release done on a shoestring budget – that’s saying a lot for something so fx heavy.

9) The Dark Knight Rises: This movie disappoints me only in that I would have expected this to be in my top 2 or 3 at the beginning of the year. It was still really good, but I felt it was a bit… I don’t know, it just didn’t move me the way the The Dark Knight did.

8) Seeking a Friend for the End of the World: A giant asteroid is coming to kill us all in a few weeks and there is

nothing to be done except sit and wait for it. Lonely guy Steve Carrell and wacky neighbor team up to avoid being alone. I loved it the dark humor that riddled the movie, as well as the emotional baggage that Carrell didn’t want to have to deal with. Very touching, if a bit sad.

7) Attack the Block: I may have seen this in 2011. As I get older I find that anything I’ve experienced in the past 3 years all feels like the last year to me. I almost put Moon on this list before I checked and saw it came out in 2009… is that right? 2009! Wow. Anyway, this is about some street punks (kids) dealing with an alien invasion. Also, they’re British. Awesome movie.

6) Wreck-it-Ralph: A movie about video game characters that was pretty good until the final act. When it became much better than expected. At first I was turned off because I wanted to see much more game hopping by the main character – but once I realized that wasn’t going to happen I ended up getting swept up by the story.

5) The Hobbit: One of the few movies I actually reviewed, albeit poorly, on the blog. In a word: Awesome. In a few more words: Awesome, but 45 minutes longer than really necessary.

4) The Cabin in the Woods: Another one that kind of hit me out of nowhere. I don’t really watch horror-y movies. But along with Tucker & Dale vs Evil, I thought this brilliantly told a story that toys with our expectations.  

3) The Avengers: This is probably the most fanboyish movie in the history of the world for me. I didn’t even bother dreaming of this movie being made when I was a kid because I knew it would have been impossible. I swear – if I ever get my hands on a time machine I am showing this to the 13 year old version of me. Causality be damned.

2) The Amazing-Spider Man: I was not looking forward to this movie at all. I saw it reluctantly because somebody (whose opinion I respected) said it was really good. I am not one of those people that has a problem with a movie deviating from the source material when the final product is great. Well, that's mostly true, but I did hear some rumblings from some quarters about changes - I'm not too sure what they are though, as Spider-Man has bee retconned so much I don't know what is official and what isn't. All that said, this really made an impression on me.  This was, honestly, maybe my favorite superhero movie of all time. It wasn’t quite perfect, but it was close.

1) Looper: This might be the most logically consistent time travel movie I’ve ever seen. Maybe. Bill and Ted did it pretty well too. Regardless, that means I’m going to have to learn the name of the little kid from Third Rock from the Sun, because he was in several of my favorite movies this year (aside from this and Batman, he starred in the excellent chase movie, Premium Rush – which would be in my top 5 non-spec fic movies of the year, if I created such a list).

THREE MOVIES THAT GOT A LOT OF GRIEF – but I thought were really entertaining:

3) Wrath of the Titans: It did kinda suck, but I was never bored. And that means something to me. That was one movie that felt epic, but just couldn’t quite get the drama part to work as well as the action and fx… I thought it was way better than Clash of the Titans that came out a few years ago. Very watchable.

2) John Carter: Besides being stunned at the production budget (about 20 times than Chronicle – No. 10 on my top 10 of the year), which was twice as high as it should have been (if I were a studio auditor, I’d be peeking my head into the accounting for this flick) I thought it was a pretty fun movie. Working from 100 year old books and trying to make it a modern sci fi movie for the masses was a tough undertaking. It didn’t quite work, but it almost did.

1) Underworld Awakening: I hated the third installment of this series, the straight to video one that took place entirely in the middle ages, but this one I got because the missus wanted to watch a movie and sent me to redbox with the instruction to not come back empty handed. I came back with this, and kept being amazed that I was interested. The series as a whole seems to keep setting up these characters that serve as prophesied messiahs or ultimate creatures, and then once they arrive, they get pushed to the side. The boytoy werewolf/vampire hybrid from the first two movies is the most bizarre example of a super powerful being that keeps getting captured and is always in need of a rescue. This time around it’s the little girl that fills this role. All that said though, this movie was a rollercoaster that I enjoyed.

THE THREE WORST MOVIES OF THE YEAR in Spec Fic:

3) Total Recall: I really wanted to like this movie. It was beautiful to watch - the actors and the scenery - but I had such a hard time sitting through this. I was bored, I didn’t care who lived or died, and I didn’t find anything at all that improved on the Arnold Schwarzenegger version from 20+ years ago.  And I would point out that it was a remake of THAT movie, not the Philip K Dick story. I found that even more bizarre. Who made that decision?

2) Dark Shadows: The most bored I have been watching a movie all year. I found almost nothing about this movie worth watching. Was it really about a 200 year old vampire trying to reopen an old fishing cannery?

1) Battleship: Look, I honestly thought the movie was okay. Really. What makes me get all shaky and angry about this is that somewhere, a studio head decided they had to have a tentpole movie for the summer. It threw a quarter of a billion dollars into a project and swore that they had to make it something amazing. Instead of finding a worthy project (either from the literary world or a something original) the braintrust decided to make something had to have been an SNL skit at one time and turn it into this. I swear, I think we’re on our way to seeing a 300 million dollar ‘Tic Tac Toe: The Movie’ within a decade – hell, maybe before then.

AND THE BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT OF THE YEAR:

Prometheus: I had pretty high expectations for this, fueled mostly by Michael Offutt’s marketing machine. When it finally arrived I was awed by the beauty of this movie. I was so awed, in fact, that I really loved it while I was in the theater. I did have issues as I watched, like the map maker guy that got lost, along with the biologist that decided to play with the alien thing as soon as he discovered it. My wife is fond of saying that any movie that requires the characters to be morons in order for it to make sense is probably not a very good movie. I tend to disagree, as I like Dumb and Dumber quite a bit, but I’m guessing that this is more the type of thing she was talking about. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that this was one of the most poorly constructed stories I’ve ever seen on film. It’s a mess from very beginning and only gets worse. Very Disappointed.

And there it is. The year in movies.  I think I’ll put another post up soon with another list. Because I’m all about indulgence right now.

The 10 Greatest Science Fiction Books of All Time! (or at least the 10 best on my bookshelf)

Hello all, I know, I know. I promised more posts coming soon over a month ago and haven't quite fulfilled that promise. What can I say? I've been doing other things. However, I thought I would go back to my roots a bit and come up with a list. Lists are everywhere now. The 10 best this, the 10 worst that. The 7 things you should eat, read, buy, hate, etc. I'm drowning in them.

So guess what? When I saw this list I just couldn't take it anymore.

I got the sneaking suspicion that the author just went down their bookshelf and said "ok, I've got an article to write on the 100 greatest books of all time. I'll just start at the top of my shelf, work my way down, and be done in a 15 minutes" and went on to other things. Ha, I can do that. So I did. Now presented to you, wonderful reader, are the 10 greatest science fiction books of all time - which all, quite conveniently, happen to be on my bookshelf.

Honorable Mention: Star Maker, by Olaf Stapledon

Guilty perhaps of having one of the worst covers in the world right now.

My edition is only a few years older and is way cooler, my scanner is down so I took a quick pic with my phone for proof.
Ahh, can you see the beauty there? at least you get a sense of the wonder that the book is all about. The newer cover reminds me of The Running Man (the Arnold flick from the 80's). No effort at all on that one. Ugh.

Regardless, the book is awesome more for its influence than anything else, I don't know if Arthur C Clarke or any of his ilk ever would have come if it weren't for this book. I dare anyone to show me a book that is more epic in scope. Can't be done.

Honorable Mention #2: Also, I have to throw in a token nod to Star Trek novelizations. The Next Generation novels to be exact. As a yougster I read quite a bit, Clan of the Cave Bear, Millennium, Riverworld, Foundation, along with many others. But during my teenage years it all stopped, I did other things and didn't feel like I had time to read. I did take notice however, when Star Trek The Next Generation hit the airwaves. I watched and adored all the original shows and was chomping at the bit to get my fix. When I went away to college the first time the show was really just hitting it's peak (I could be mistaken, but Riker ordering the Enterprise to fire on the recently Borgified Picard was the last episode I saw before I was wisked away to college life).

I stayed with the show through it's run and I found my 20+ episodes a year was no longer enough. I picked up a copy of novelization number 26.

Yep, I could have picked up any book, but this one was just published and I needed more Trek in my life. I don't recall much beyond the fact that Picard and a random Romulan were wondering around an abandoned world that was once populated by beings with amazing technology, of which the Romulans were trying to scavenge. As fuzzy as my memory is I'm surprised I got that much out of my head, the point is that I was hooked once again. I read as many TNG books I could handle and found that I got lucky with the one I selected, it was pretty good, many sucked. Hard.

Eventually though, I had to have more non ST related stuff, they glossed over what I thought were some of the more interesting portions of the stories they told. In a galaxy littered with the artifacts of long forgotten empires of glorious power and technology... why did they all disappear (I know, they all evolved to pure energy. I think something else was going on)?

The 80's and 90's were really a golden age for science fiction, especially space based sci-fi. I'm a sucker for first contact stories (you should read some of my fiction) and Big Dumb Objects (BDO's people), so the list I am about to provide you will have both those types of stories well represented. I haven't really connected with fantasy, steampunk, cyberpunk, or many of the other subgenres out there, I've tried, I really have. I just don't get it. So be warned, I'm biased and I don't care.

Number 10: Rendezvous with Rama, by Authur C. Clarke.

Big. Dumb. Object. I told you I loved them. This book is about one of those things just flying through the solar system and humans popping in to take a look. A tiny group of humans exploring a giant spaceship with no one on board. That's it. Awesome. Again, I can see its influence over and over again in the books I've read since. Including at least one other author that made this list.

Number 9: The Time Traveler's Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger

Just in case you thought this whole list would be nothing but aliens and spaceships I decided I would throw this in - just to prove I've got depth. My wife handed this over to me a few years ago and told me to read it. She never does that. Ever. I rolled my eyes and said "sure thing".

A few weeks later she asked about it and I thought I'd better get reading or risk her wrath (we were only dating at the time, but I knew I was going to ask her to marry me, so I thought I would prove my love by reading her crappy book). I started in and was swept away. By the end I was a weepy mess of a man who was holding his kleenex box close and praying for a miracle to save our hero. What a book. It changed my outlook on what a sci-fi story could be. That was a game changer for me.

I never saw the movie that came out based on the novel. I'm sure it was crappy. But the book was great. I wish the cover wasn't so feminine, it's embarrassing if you get caught reading it out in public, definitely should be read on the Kindle.

Oh, and it is science fiction, not fantasy. The time-traveling is biological in nature, they had a doctor and everything, that makes it sci-fi.

Number 8: Cryptonomicon, by Neal Stephenson

Bam! Why is this science-fiction? I have no idea. It's a WWII tale about cryptography interspersed with a modern story about... uh, cryptography, and treasure hunting. If feels like sci-fi but I can't figure out why its classified as such. Not much to say about it though, it's great. That 2 page digression about how to eat the perfect bowl of Captain Crunch cereal was pure genius.

When I finished the book I got the feeling that I just read history in the making. A cult like following did spring up around Neal after this. I get the vague feeling I'm not smart enough to appreciate it in all its geeky goodness, but if it can make #8 on my list I can't be too dumb.

Number 7: Hyperion, by Dan Simmons.

Don't have any idea what this one is about. A spiky guy that watches sailing ships on seas of wheat? Did I read it? Yep, I loved it. This book in particular is the stories of several (7 people maybe) that have to meet to try to avert the destruction of the universe or something. Anyhow, most of the novel is their backstories. Great writing here. I tried to read the sequels and couldn't get into them. This is the work of a master though and I encourage everyone to read it. So read it.

Number 6: Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card.

Sigh. I am so sick of this damn book. It's The DaVinci Code of science-fiction. The only thing that makes this different is that it's actually good, real good. If you say you are a fan of the genre and you haven't read this then you are a liar. Because this is required to join the club. Many think its sequel, Speaker for the Dead, is better, but I was never able to agree, as much as I liked Speaker it just didn't mean as much to me.

Anyhow, I hope to never speak of this book again. I am over saturated with it and am tired of seeing on every list out there. I even think this made the list of best cookbooks I saw recently. I know I'm part of the problem (So is the author, there must be 30 sequels, prequels, comics and other branch-off stories that he's produced in the past few years), but this is one of those novels that is worthy of the praise it gets.

Number 5: Doomday Book, by Connie Willis

Another tear jerking time travel book. What's up with me? The only books I've ever gotten the missus to read are this one and number 6. It's a story that should be crossing genres - she'd make a killing if this was ever put in the historical romance market (except for the lack of romance... but still). Oh well. I felt this one way deep in my gut as I read it. Before reading this I had never heard of Connie Willis and must confess I've never read anything else she's written since. I did go buy more of her books, I just never got around to reading them. I'll get to them.

Number 4, The Rookie, by Scott Sigler

Did I like this book? I have 3 copies... and they ain't cheap. The author self published this novel because no one wanted to take it on. What Publisher would turn down a NY Times bestselling author with a rabid fanbase eager to buy anything he puts out? Apparently, every Publisher.

I've blogged about the author before, Scott Sigler is a relentless self-promoter that has parlayed his efforts into mainstream success (most notably for Infected and Contagious, two alien invasion novels that no one seems to have figured out are sci-fi yet). When I was first exposed to him I actually passed on reading any of his work because I figured anyone who had to work that hard to promote himself can't be a very good writer - the work should stand on it's own.

Well, on a bored afternoon I decided to give him a shot. I downloaded the podcast version of this novel and before I knew I had to eat my words and join his legion of followers. That thousands of others have done the same as I have gives him the freedom to pursue some avenues of publishing that "real" publishers might be too nervous to try.

So we have a masterpiece that no one knows about. The self described mash-up of Any Given Sunday, Star Wars, and The Godfather is awesome on too many levels to fully describe. I get the feeling that Scott Sigler shares a lot of my sensibilities when it comes to storytelling. So of course I feel like this is what I would have written if I had the opportunity (or talent, skill, discipline, etc).

There are a few noticeable changes from the podcast version of this novel as it made its transition to the print version. All those F-bombs that made the story a bit too R-rated for a lot of kids were gone and in it's place is something that I feel just as good about given to my children or nephews as I would Ender's Game (damn, I thought I wasn't going to mention that book again).

All in all, this is a masterpiece and my favorite of all his work - given more time this may end up sliding up a bit. But right now number 4 feels about right. I'll come back in a few short years and see how I feel then.

Number 3: Manifold Space & Ring, by Stephen Baxter

How can 2 books fill one slot, 2 unrelated books at that? It's my list and I can do what I want, that's how. Stephen Baxter is the first non Star Trek related author I remember reading once I decided to branch out. I totally lucked into Ring. Baxter had a string of books that came out in the nineties that were each unbelievably fantastic in their right. In some ways these are stand ins for the author himself - Timelike Infinity, Manifold Time, Vacuum Diagrams, Voyage, Titan... this list just goes on and on. I didn't want one author to dominate the list so I crammed him in this slot instead.

His more recent works have disappointed me somewhat. His Weaver quadrilogy was a disaster in my opinion. Whatever spark he showed during that fantastic run in the nineties hasn't really carried over into the the naughties. I have high hopes for him in the coming decade though, ARK holds some promise and I'm ready for another round of greatness from him.

But Ring is a story about the end of the universe and the ragtag band of scientists who are determined to find out why all the stars are going out. Epic scale that approaches Olaf Stapledon. Many of Baxter's early novels were stand alone stories that took place in the same universe. He had carefully crafted a backstory for Ring that you wouldn't have been aware that you were studying if you read his previous novels. It was pure brilliance. My hat's off to you sir. Congratulations.

Manifold Space was part of a trilogy of books that all started with the same premise and same central cast of characters. I enjoyed Manifold Time a great deal, but Space was the true gem here. This trilogy was his look at the Fermi paradox and this book in particular is about what it would mean to live in a crowded universe. A very philosophical trilogy of books. Well deserving of any praises I can give.

Number 2: House of Suns, by Alastair Reynolds

It's so liberating to me to not feel like I have to pull out the classics for this list. Again though, this is a stand in for an entire body of work. Much like the British invasion of bands that rocked American girls in the 1960's, British Sci-fi authors rocked my world in the 90's.

House of Suns is a recent work by my favorite author, Alastair recently penned a million dollar contract with his publisher for 10 books and I feel like he's totally worth it. It's hard for me to pick a dud in his body of work. The guy is rock solid as a writer. He added something to the genre that I didn't realize it was missing, he has an admitted love for the mystery genre that clearly shows in how he constructs a story. His added mystery elements make for compelling novels.

House may well be my favorite - Like many great books, I don't think a blurb can do it justice. It's about.... um, just read it. Trust me.

And by the way, I mentioned other authors following the Rama template earlier, I think Reynolds' Pushing Ice is a descendant of that type story. Even the modern greats go back to the well for great stories.

Number 1: A Fire Upon the Deep, by Vernor Vinge

Damn straight. Is it really the best book of all time? Yes. How can I know that? I read it. And it's my list. You don't like it, go make your own, everyone else has.

Zones of thought as a concept made me scratch my head, but I've gone back to this book time and time again. I've never read a single book more (well, maybe Ring). I can't give you a synopsis because again, I don't think you would get it. It has space ships and aliens.... what more do you need?

There it is folks. A definitive list that you can use to weed out all the rest. A bit of space opera and perhaps a touch time travel heavy. But still, it makes me sad for the reality that I can only read them for the first time only once. There were many that I thought of adding, Ringworld (what really kicked off the BDO sub genre), Startide Rising (Space Opera), amongst others, and if I ever put up another list again, I'd probably change things around some.

Hope you enjoy.