Scifi fans: what is your favorite CLASSIC SF movie ?

[GaryG]

For me there's something very special about 1950s scifi. Movie-makers knew how to create tension ... the actors were acting rather than wiggling their eyebrows
...

- The Fly (1958. Again superior to the remakes)

I generally agree with your points though think the break from the more melodramatic acting of the 50s to the more naturalistic kind in the 60s was a *good thing*. Always feel distanced from films like most of the ones you mentioned, as though I'm watching a rather stiff play rather than being in the film, really relating to the characters.

I don't think any of the remakes were really necessary accept maybe Body Snatchers... (both very good but from different angles) and The Fly. The original is ok but kind of daft (love Vincent Price but kind of cheesy here) whereas the remake is one of the finest 'body horror' movies ever, masterpiece imo.

[thecontrolcentre]

I just re-watched The Thing, remake of the 1950s classic The Thing from Outer Space. The remake is much scarier than the original.

[incubus]

But there are 3. Hopefully, you are referring to the John Carpenter one.

[GaryG]

But there are 3. Hopefully, you are referring to the John Carpenter one.

No, there are only two. Two. The 1950s one and the '82 one. Two. No others, ok?

[incubus]

(Cracks knuckles)

Got POTA cued up for next week. Pretty sure I have it memorized by now. Never gets old.

[Richard deHove]

I just re-watched The Thing, remake of the 1950s classic The Thing from Outer Space. The remake is much scarier than the original.

Scarier, yes. But I think they also changed the genre from sci-fi to horror.

[Frantz]

It's great to see Colossus getting a lot of respect here. It is my favorite as well.

If you want more in the dangerous AI vein, you could watch Colussus' sleazy, creepy cousin Demon Seed.

[thecontrolcentre]

But there are 3. Hopefully, you are referring to the John Carpenter one.

Yeah. The John Carpenter film. Which is the 3rd version? Never heard of one myself

[.jon]

Just watched Colossus yesterday, liked it. The first half was better than the rest. Set designers and carpenters had a field day in the intro!

[thecontrolcentre]

La Jetee (1962) is another good one ...

[incubus]

But there are 3. Hopefully, you are referring to the John Carpenter one.

Yeah. The John Carpenter film. Which is the 3rd version? Never heard of one myself

Well, there is the "original" that the John Carpenter was based off of. Then there is the remake. Horrid. It's basically an exact duplicate except not scary or original. The John Carpenter one is a classic. "3rd" might be ambitiously ambiguous, but still, you know what I mean.

[lotus2035]

Interstellar!

Just leaving this here for when the thread is bumped again in 2030.

[thecontrolcentre]

But there are 3. Hopefully, you are referring to the John Carpenter one.

Yeah. The John Carpenter film. Which is the 3rd version? Never heard of one myself

Well, there is the "original" that the John Carpenter was based off of. Then there is the remake. Horrid. It's basically an exact duplicate except not scary or original. The John Carpenter one is a classic. "3rd" might be ambitiously ambiguous, but still, you know what I mean.

I just did a search for it. Apparently its a prequel to the JC version. I'd never heard of it ...

[Aryaroman]

But there are 3. Hopefully, you are referring to the John Carpenter one.

Yeah. The John Carpenter film. Which is the 3rd version? Never heard of one myself

Well, there is the "original" that the John Carpenter was based off of. Then there is the remake. Horrid. It's basically an exact duplicate except not scary or original. The John Carpenter one is a classic. "3rd" might be ambitiously ambiguous, but still, you know what I mean.

I just did a search for it. Apparently its a prequel to the JC version. I'd never heard of it ...

It's not actually bad, if you can get over the fact that it's essentially a less stylish, bulky duplicate of the JC-version, like (sorry SW-haters... and fans?) Force Awakens build itself on the framework of A New Hope. I think mediocre is fair.
If you hadn't seen the original, you might even regard it as... well, pretty good and original horror flick, because it builds itself around the framework of a very good movie.

I think they mostly respected the original, by not radically altering what made the original work. If only the writing would have been more clever and the use of suspense, psychology and cast (Kurt... Keith Daivd... "drool") was anywhere near the original, it might have become a worthy sequel in it's own right.

But back to the subject. The original Alien might be my favorite sci-fi movie. Hard to decide. I'm a bit torn between that and (again, sorry...) the old Star Wars-trilogy...

[rp314]

Bertrand Tavernier's Death Watch from 1980; shot in and around Glasgow; based on a book by David G. Compton.



Although a good deal of interest for me has to do with Antoine Duhamel's Mahler and Stravinsky influenced soundtrack.