Top 100 Sci-Fi Movies of the 20th Century!!! Part 4 No. 79 - 73

  I received this issue of Remind, or what Alison calls "my old people magazine," which ranks the top 100 Science Fiction movies of the 20th century.

Remind does have many pop culture stories, focusing primarily on the 1950s through the 1990s, although there are some references to earlier decades. Each issue focuses on different topics, such as country music, westerns, where are they now issues, and much more. I enjoy it, as I love pop history. They also have puzzles and a monthly guide to what's on TCM (Turner Classic Movies).

I thought it would be fun to review the movies on the list in reverse order and share my thoughts. The magazine's ranking of the movies is not mine.  

I won't go into detailed reviews, but I will share the IMDb ranking and my own on a 1 to 10 scale.

79)

Creature from the Black Lagoon

Year: 1954  IMDb: 6.9 Tom: 6  Had I seen before?   No  Service found on: Flixhouse

Bits of  this seemed familiar, but I don't recall seeing it in it's entirety. This is not so much one of those movies about how humankind has caused mutations with their destructive acitivity, but more about our encroachment into areas where we're not supposed to be treading too hard. The creature is a predator, true, but it's mostly defending its territory, and all its moves are met with hostility. The overall feel is kinda retro, but I think it's underwater photography was actually ahead for its time.

78)

 

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Year: 1931  IMDb: 7.6 Tom: 7  Had I seen before? No Service found on: Classic Movies & TV

This is a great rendering of this classic tale, really quite sharp and dramitic.  Fredric March is incredible, winning his first Best Picture Oscar for his performance. It does back away from some of the seedier aspects of Hyde's personality. The ending does not quite lead up to the impact you would expect, but I find that true in a lot of movies. The monster is actually more vulnerable than you would expect.

77)

 

The Time Machine

Year: 1960  IMDb: 7.5 Tom: 8 Had I seen before? Yes  Service found on: Classic Movies & TV

My favorite author when I was young was H. G. Wells, so much so that in 7th grade I was determined that my writing career would use the pen name T. M. Strait.  Some of my love for his works came from his books and stories, but it also came from the movies. And one of the best was this 1960 adaption of The Time Machine.  Done with special effects flair by Director George Pal, and with the gifted Rod Taylor in the lead role, it was one of the first time travel movies I saw that really felt like a journey to the future.  Moving from 1899 with stops during the 20th Century, and then sweeping some 800,000 years into the future, reflecting an exaggeration of the social trends we see presently. 

76)

 

Night of the Comet

Year: 1984  IMDb: 6.3 Tom: 7 Had I seen before? Unsure  Service found on: MGM+

Maybe I've seen this before.  All I can say for sure is that this time it stood out to me more than I was expecting.  Valley girls surviving a horrible apocalypse brought on by a closely passing comet?  Sounds weird, but it was more quirky than stupid.  

75)

 The Truman Show

Year: 1998  IMDb: 8.0 Tom: 8 Had I seen before? Yes  Service found on: Library Rental

Some movies don't age well.  This isn't one of them. It's theme, of our lives being more and more turned into a reality show, is more relevant than ever. And the special effects used still hold up.  Jim Carrey gives one of his strongest performances. I think more and more of us are questioning whether what's happening around us is real, or whether we are stuck in the Matrix.

74)

 

   Gattaca

Year: 1997  IMDb: 7.7 Tom: 7 Had I seen before? Yes  Service found on: Library Rental

I liked this pretty well, but I wanted to like it more. It reflects a near futire where most people are genetically engineered at the time of conception. Those who aren't are considered inferior.  Discrimantion against them isn't official but it exists nonetheless.  This centers around a character who is not genetically engineered (refereed to as in-valids) and tries to pass by disguising himself as someone is engineered but disabled by an accident.   My hesitation on the movie is that the character really wanted to go to Titan, and I REALLY wanted to see that happen, but the movie ended before it transpired. Another important by-product of this movie is Maya Hawke (Stranger Things) - it's where Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman met and began their relationship.

73)

 

Barbarella

Year: 1968  IMDb: 5.9 Tom: 6 Had I seen before? No  Service found on: Prime Rental

Yowza! Is this movie weird! The plot kept making me feel like I needed a drug check.  Hard to follow, but it was fun.  Not quite the X-rated romp some are led to believe, it's actually rated PG.  It seems maybe a little bit much for that rating, but it's not a raunchfest either.  Jane Fonda is beautiful and enthusiastic in the part, if not a shining beacon of acting ability (which she would prove to be in later films).  The chief antagonist is named Durand-Durand, and yes, that is the inspiration for the band named Duran-Duran!  Girls on film!

As an added feature, I would like to keep a running list of those movies I have rated 8 or higher.

90) Akira 8

89) Cocoon 9

88) They Live 9

84) Face Off 8

77) The Time Machine 8

75) The Truman Show 8

Next up? We go on a Quest of the Galaxy, a couple of time romps, and a movie featuring the greatest superhero of all time.

Until next time!

T. M. Strait (thanx, H. G. Wells!)

AOC '28

Pax America!

 April  1st, 2027

God Bless these United States of America!

God Bless Greenland, our 51st State! August 31, 2025!

God Bless Canada, our 52nd State! April 1, 2026!

God Bless the four Senators, 39 Canadian Congresspersons, and one Greenland Congressperson elected in the 2026 election.

God Bless the 2026 election, making it possible to add the following -

God Bless Puerto Rico, our 53rd State! April 1, 2027.

God Bless the District of Columbia, our 54th State, also on April 1, 2027.

Additionally, every territory and possession the US has in the Caribbean was incorporated into the State of Puerto Rico!

And every US territory and possession in the Pacific was incorporated into the State of Hawaii!

Territories and occupations are now rightfully considered backwards and barbaric, a throwback to a more exploitative time.

And now, with all these progressive voters, we will never have to suffer another fascist like Trump again!

HUZZAH!

* too bad, so sad. Even if the authoritarian dictatorship takes over Greenland/Canada/the Panama Canal/Gaza, he will never let them vote. None of us may ever get to vote again. Remember, Trump knows and has said that Musk is really good at getting into computers and voting systems. Good luck, America. You have surrendered your freedom to a monster.

Sinking Into the Sunset

 The blog slowly goes the way of the dinosaur.

It's not a popular way of correspondence anymore. At least for getting social media attention.

I see my view numbers plummeting. I might get a few more by linking to different social media sites.  
But it's not significant.

Does having a picture help? Marginally, but often not worth the time to find and add it to the post.

How about a family connection? Oh, it might boost it a bit.

The only things that seem to matter are accidentally using a commonly Googled phrase and having the post shared on more frequently visited sites. The blog story Authentic Frontier Gibberesh has received 114,000 views, over 100,000 more than its closest rival.

I'm beginning to understand that I might get a larger response if I posted directly on Facebook and other sites. Even if long, they might get more responses.

It's also a factor that many who are pro-conman either have been algorithmed out, or just scroll past. The people who often need to see them the most...don't. And in our divided media world, nothing I say or do would move them even if they accidentally saw it.

Look at the most recent scandal, Signalgate. The dictator-supporters are STILL, to this day, answering with...BUT HER EMAILS! Anything to not have to deal with the truth of what they have wrought.

It's hard to be optimistic. I'm not sure how we get out of this. Part of me (perhaps the largest part) feels like it's too late. So what if they wake up now? Elections are over in this country. They will either not exist, or be shams like they are in other dictatorial countries, like Hungary and Russia.

And yet...

...as we sink into the sunset, I an not ready to completely surrender. I see Independent Progressives on the horizon, like AOC and Jasmine Crockett, led by our modern day John the Baptist, Bernie Sanders, and I can only hope that when the sun finally rises again, they will be there to lead us to the promised land, a world of hope and freedom, a world where children do not starve, where minorites are not presecuted, where healthcare is a right and a living wage is sacred, where empathy and kindness dominate over intolrance and hate.

To the one or two dozen that actually read this, thank you. And I will try to do better by you with stronger themes and more cogent arguments.

The sun continues to set on democracy, but I will not go quietly into the night. I will continue to speak out through these dark and dangerous times. My voice may be diminished, my communication methods may not be hep and modern enough. But I will not stop.

Even if all I can do is scratch out a warning on a Guantanamo cell, I will do that rather than surrender.

I am not optimistic, but I am not silenced.

The sun sets.

But it also rises.

T. M. Strait

AOC '28.

Hello, USA! Welcome to (drumroll) ... the Axis of Evil!

 At least since World War II, the Axis of Evil has been used to identify a particular type of opposition. They represented the challenge of world powers, primarily democracies (of one stripe or another), standing up to authoritarian fascists who intended to subsume the world under their dictatorships. And, yes, it included a questionable alignment with an authoritarian communist power, Stalin. That alignment would not last long after the conclusion of the war.

Bushy Jr. revived the term during his administration to represent a new axis of evil centered around three countries that were promoting terrorism around the world - Iraq, Iran, and North Korea. All three represented brutal dictatorships of one kind or another - the theocratic madness of Iran, the despotic corruption of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, and the autocratic perversion of communism in North Korea. But all three represented authoritarian governments; whether they described themselves that way, they all had elements of fascism.

In more recent times many have talked about the Axis of Evil being China, Russia, and North Korea. Whatever the players composing it, it all runs to one thing - countries controlled by brutal dictators.

America has certainly not been perfect throughout its history. Often, it has joined in conflicts not just to defend democracy, but to acquire new territory, and sometimes to protect the interests of American corporate power. It's a complex history that would require many posts and much research.

Another significant thread of American military and diplomatic history has been the defense of democracy and the rights of the oppressed. In major conflicts, we have always sided against fascist and authoritarian dictators.

Until now.

We have clearly switched teams. We no longer speak out for the world's democracies. We no longer even pretend to stand up for people who are subject to tyranny.

We are withdrawing our support of Ukraine. We are even pretending that Russia did not invade Ukraine and is not at fault in the conflict. We want Ukraine to end the contest by surrendering everything to Putin. We opposed a resolution at the UN condemning Russia for its actions in Ukraine, alongside Russia and North Korea.

Trump speaks out about his love of dictators almost every day. He also condemns and ridicules democracies every day. He talks about subsuming and controlling his neighbors. These include the Panama Canal, Greenland, and Canada. He wants to turn Gaza into a playland for billionaires. His treatment of Mexico is barbaric.

He does this not to forward democracy but to take over the resources of those countries and to use them to benefit himself and his billionaire buddies. It is a return to 19th-century colonialism, stripped of pretense of any moral basis.

At any given time, it's a real grab bag to see which dystopian novel whose path we are following most closely. The Handmaid's Tale was even money, but now 1984 is pulling into sight. In 1984, the world was divided among three dictatorial superpowers, constantly rewriting their history to keep their citizens in line, centering them on lotteries and entertainments, false cultural issues, and spying on each other.

Trump has decided that the Americas are HIS, to use and abuse however he wants. The tradeoff is to let the other big players have their own spheres of dominance - Russia dominating an increasing portion of Europe, and China taking back Taiwan and dominating Asia.

Questioning some of the US military/diplomatic decisions is one thing. It's another to see the US clearly and consistently aligning with evil, which authoritarian brutality is.

It breaks my heart.

We are no longer the good guys.

We are a primary player in the Axis of Evil.

Morgan in the Delayed Dawn

It is time for Morgan

For a walk through the Ley

It should be Dawn again

But it has been thrown into delay

What has transpired

Who has maligned

Where is the sky afired

How is the Dawn unfind

Who messed with time

The dark is pitch

No one can see her dress with lime

Morgan is ready to glitch

Time of daylight savings

It's a curse

The road's now invisible pavings

Whatever could be worse

The thing that's most foul

With the extension of dark

The monster's still on the prowl

And to Morgan it will hark

Because it wants her beating heart

In the palm of it's claw

To twist it apart

And chomp it in its maw

So Morgan will wait an hour

We're Flying!

 

Come fly to the world of pure imagination!

I did not intend to be in this show. But here I am. I got a text in mid-Febrauary asking if I could fill in as Grandpa Joe. I wasn't sure, but they sold me when they said I didn't have to dance.

Joining the cast? One of the best decisions of my theater career!

I highly encourage you to come out and see this big, fantastic, enjoyable show!

It may be the biggest cast I've performed in, with close to fifty performers! Community theater fills many vital functions, but one of its best is large productions where many people can experience what theater is like, and whole families can get involved! Like the amazing Mr. Salt and his Oompa Loopa daughter, Ross Bedford and Alary Bedford! Or the accomplished Mrs. Bucket, her son playing Charlie, and another son playing an Oompa Loompa, Angi Helms, and her two boys, Noah and Micah!

I'd love to brag on every member of this cast and crew - it really takes a village to make a production as outstanding as this one.

I do have to mention Taylor Hereford as the perfectly quintessential Willy Wonka. His performance is Broadway quality and is the second time he's played the character at WACT. 

And it's been hard for me to stay in character with Liv McConney and Gabrielle Walker playing Augusta Gloop and Mrs. Gloop. They are brilliantly funny!

Charlie, played by Noah Helms, proves that the W.C. Fields quote - "Never work with children or animals," is absolutely wrong*. Noah has been a joy to work with and a true star performer (in his first performance with lines!). I also want to thank those who have helped me onstage so much, including Cole Hendley and Angi Helms, Mr. & Mrs. Bucket, and the Choral Director, Kathy Cox, for helping keep this "man without rhythm" on track!

The director, Jenny Varnadore, has been very supportive and kind to me and everyone else. It's hard to keep a ship this big on course, but she has done so in first-rate fashion.

Please come out! This is not just to support one of the longest-running theater groups in Georgia but also because this is a darn fine show, and you will have a blast watching it!

The wonderful world of Willy Wonka awaits you!

*well, I'm still not sure about the animal part!

Speaking Out

 I know. I'm shallow.

I'm not speaking up much right now. Maybe a few memes here and there.  

I haven't given up. I need to prioritize the musical I'm in right now.

I'm not afraid to speak out. I need to keep my head as clear as possible when I'm performing. Otherwise, I'll go onstage too fired up about a political discussion and fail to concentrate on my part.

The good news is that I'm not the only one speaking out.

Thre are people I know, who've been on the right side, but have in the past not spoken up much, who are now speaking out. My Facebook feeds are full of people who are tired of keeping quiet.

Unfortunately, I don't know of many converts—people who were with the orange conman, at least for voting purposes, but who are now willing to speak out against him.

At any rate, this is just a personal note to tell my most dedicated blog readers I haven't surrendered. Come March 17th, I will be speaking out again.

Hopefully, we'll still have a country left!

T. M. Strait

AOC '28