Science fiction as a genre has always revolved around writers wrestling with cultural dilemmas, and few have been as compelling as robots. Are they going to obsolete humans? Is their dogged tenacity going to outstrip human potential? Are we going to be able to keep control? From horror tinged films like the chilling The Forbin Project to the more recent I, Robot to the apocryphal The Terminator series, robots are bad news for us humans….Read More
Review: The Magnificent Seven
Let’s get this out of the way first: The Magnificent Seven is a remake of an iconic 1960 Western of the same name and featuring splendid performances from Steve McQueen and Yul Brynner, among others. And that film is itself a retelling of a classic Akira Kurosawa film called Seven Samurai, which is eminently watchable with a powerful lead performance by the great Toshiro Mifune. Each brings its own sensibility to the core story of a…Read More
Review: Cowboys & Aliens
There’s something timeless about a good Western, even if the genre has generally fallen out of favor with modern filmgoers. Sprinkle in some scary aliens, stunning special effects, and a terrific cast and the mashup film Cowboys & Aliensturns out to be a terrific and highly entertaining summer tentpole adventure. Set in sparsely populated New Mexico around 1875, the film starts with bad hombre Jake Lonergan (Daniel Craig) waking up in the middle of nowhere,…Read More