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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: science fiction

science fiction stories: 30 news summaries

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Movie Review

 Don't Land On Planet 51 

Laugh-free sci-fi satire mediocre at best

Nov 20, 09 12:48 PM CST
(Newser) - It has a cool concept—a human is greeted with paranoia on an alien planet straight out of the '50s—but critics say Planet 51 never reaches orbit. Some reviews:
  • It’s a “bland, humor-free narrative,” with lame references to other movies instead of jokes, writes
... More »

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movie review • cartoon • Roger Ebert • science fiction • animated movie • Planet 51 • Planet 51 review

TV Review

 V's Great, If You 
 Like Aliens, Politics 

Obama parallels and standard plot bother some critics

Nov 3, 09 1:45 PM CST
(Newser) - Most critics agree that ABC’s much-hyped alien drama V is a well-made show with good acting. But does this remake of the 1983 miniseries feel original? Is it a conservative screed? Here’s what they’re saying:
  • Who cares if V is believable (it’s not)?
... More »

MORE ABOUT:
television • ABC • aliens • science fiction • television review

movie REVIEW

 Surrogates: 
 Silly But Suspenseful  

Bruce Willis, in weird wig, tops 'smart' sci-fi flick

Sep 25, 09 10:30 AM CDT
(Newser) - Critics are lukewarm about Surrogates, the new sci-fi flick starring a surprisingly hirsute Bruce Willis, in which humans command tricked-out robots who do their work and play for them.
  • It's a "preposterous movie that luxuriates in its own silliness," says Stephanie Zacharek of Salon. There's a "
... More »

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movie review • fantasy • robots • robot • science fiction • Bruce Willis • Surrogates • Jonathan Mostow

 Google Doodles
Latest Wells Tribute 

Crop circles, UFOs, invaders on logo honor British science fiction pioneer

Sep 22, 09 4:44 AM CDT
(Newser) - Google has confirmed what many had guessed—that its mysterious UFO-themed logos this month were a tribute to British science fiction writer HG Wells, the Telegraph reports. The latest logo, which features the Martian fighting machines from War of the Worlds, takes Googlers to a list of search results for... More »

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Google • UFO • aliens • science fiction • HG Wells

(Newser) - Smells like sci-fi spirit. A new line of aftershaves and perfumes is targeting the Star Trek fan base, reports the Daily Telegraph. Creator Genki Wear touts the "casual yet commanding" men's cologne Tiberius, branded after Captain Kirk's middle name, as a scent "difficult to define and impossible to... More »

MORE ABOUT:
science fiction • Star Trek • perfume • cologne

 Best 
 Sci-Fi 
 Languages 

Wired declares Klingon the king of sci-fi slang

Aug 26, 09 5:25 PM CDT
(Newser) - Creators of true geek art follow JRR Tolkien’s example and craft fictional languages to populate their worlds. Wired lists the best examples:
  1. Klingon. The Star Trek creation is the king of all sci-fi languages, with fully realized grammar and vocabulary.
  2. City Speak. Blade Runner’s vision of
... More »

MORE ABOUT:
film • list • fantasy • Star Wars • book • science fiction • J. R. R. Tolkien • movies

MOVIE REVIEW

 District 9 Is 'Magnificent Trash'


Aug 14, 09 6:17 AM CDT
(Newser) - The aliens are despised outsiders stranded in post-apartheid South Africa in District 9, a film whose mix of social commentary and blood-spattered B-movie standards makes it the sci-fi movie of the year, say critics.
  • Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: The movie is "a scathing social satire hidden inside
... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Peter Jackson • movie review • aliens • science fiction • Jay-ZTV • district9 • Neill Blomkamp

 100 Top Sci-Fi Flicks 


Aug 4, 09 6:00 PM CDT
(Newser) - Science fiction movies run the gamut from cerebral to "joyful space opera." The writers at Total Sci-Fi run down the 100 best; here's the top 10:
  1. Blade Runner: This "masterpiece," with standout performances from Harrison Ford and Rutger Hauer, is "backed up by a
... More »

MORE ABOUT:
entertainment • film • Arnold Schwarzenegger • The Day the Earth Stood Still • Star Wars • Blade Runner • science fiction • Harrison Ford • Solaris • 2001: A Space Odyssey • Planet of the Apes • E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial • Alien • Metropolis • Terminator • Rutger Hauer

tv review

Lost Ends Season 
 on Mysterious Note 


May 14, 09 10:33 AM CDT
(Newser) - Lost ended its next-to-last season last night with a blinding flash of nuclear energy and the fallout the series' fans have come to expect: more questions. Chief among them: When does the final season start? (Answer: Not until 2010.)
  • "Who is Jacob and what
... More »

MORE ABOUT:
entertainment • television • Lost • ABC • science fiction • TV series • Jay-ZTV

OPINION

 Original Trek Still The Best 


May 13, 09 11:36 AM CDT
(Newser) - It’s been a long time since James Kirk set out on his 5-year mission, and those early voyages may look cheesy, low-budget, or even sexist now. But “the original Star Trek still has a passion and vitality,” writes Andrew O’Hehir of Salon. “It stands... More »

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entertainment • television • science fiction • Star Trek • William Shatner • Leonard Nimoy • syndication • Gene Roddenberry

MOVIE REVIEW

 Trek Lives Well, Should Prosper 

Abrams' bold reinvention of franchise will please both longtime fans and newbies

May 8, 09 7:12 AM CDT
(Newser) - JJ Abrams has boldly pulled off the almost impossible with his stellar reinvention of Star Trek and made a movie that will wow both newcomers and hardcore Trekkies, critics say.
  • Carrie Rickey, Philadelphia Inquirer: The prequel "is more exciting than the last four ST pictures put together,
... More »

MORE ABOUT:
entertainment • movie review • science fiction • Star Trek • movies • John Cho • JJ Abrams

Movie Review

 Critics Split on Battle for Terra 


May 1, 09 12:18 PM CDT
(Newser) - Battle for Terra has a nifty twist of a premise—it’s an alien movie in which humans are the evil invaders—but critics are split on how well it works. Here’s what they’re saying:
  • It’s a “work of art,” writes John Anderson
... More »

MORE ABOUT:
entertainment • animation • movie review • science fiction • Battle for Terra

MOVIE REVIEW

 Wolverine Lacks Claws 

Sharp performance from Jackman saves stale X-Men spinoff from total mediocrity

May 1, 09 7:44 AM CDT
(Newser) - A charismatic Hugh Jackman gamely slashes his way through X:Men Origins: Wolverine, say critics, but he's let down by a stale script and effects that fail to lift the movie above generic superhero fare.
  • Hollywood.com: The "action-filled spinoff delivers on the brawn but not the soul
... More »

MORE ABOUT:
entertainment • superhero • movie review • science fiction • Wolverine • X-Men • Hugh Jackman

Polish Meaning of New Name Embarrasses 'Syfy'

Slang for VD probably not what network had in mind for rebranding

Mar 20, 09 3:06 PM CDT
(Newser) - The much-maligned rebranding of the channel formerly known as Sci-Fi has yielded another embarrassment for the network. “Syfy”—the new name—is Polish slang for syphilis, Broadcasting & Cable reports. Native Poles, however, may be less offended by the name change than hard-core fans: Polish embassy officials say... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Poland • syphilis • science fiction • rebranding • slang • Polish

Movie Review

 Knowing Doesn't Add Up 


Mar 20, 09 12:52 PM CDT
(Newser) - The reviews are in, and it doesn’t look good for Knowing, Nicolas Cage’s predestination-driven sci-fi epic. Here’s what critics are saying:
  • It’s “laughably bad,” says Joe Neumanier of the New York Daily News, a pseudo-philosophical mess that “reaches for sci-fi
... More »

MORE ABOUT:
movie review • science fiction • movies • Nicholas Cage

OPINION

 Sci Fi to Syfy: 
 Worst Rebranding Ever? 

Channel's 'cutting-edge' new name ripped to shreds

Mar 17, 09 7:28 AM CDT
(Newser) - The Sci Fi channel's decision to change its name to "Syfy" is a blunder of galactic proportions, Linda Holmes reports for NPR. The channel says it wants to show that it's about more than just traditional science fiction, notes Holmes, and has evidently chosen to do so by picking... More »

MORE ABOUT:
television • cable TV • science fiction • rebranding • Sci-Fi Channel

OBITUARY

 Bob May, 
 Lost in Space 
 Robot, Dies 

Actor moved the suit, but never said "Danger, Will Robinson"

Jan 19, 09 2:37 PM CST
(Newser) - Bob May, famous for inhabiting the robot suit on 1960s sci-fi hit Lost in Space, has died at 69 of heart failure, the AP reports. “He always said he got the job because he fit in the robot suit,” a co-star said. May did not voice the robot—... More »

MORE ABOUT:
television • obituary • robot • science fiction • actor • Bob May • Lost in Space • stuntman

OBITUARY

 Sci-Fi Guru 
 Forrest Ackerman 
 Dead at 92 

Magazine editor coined term 'sci-fi'

Dec 6, 08 9:42 AM CST
(Newser) - Fright-film magazine writer and editor Forrest J Ackerman—credited with coining the term "sci-fi"—died this week of heart failure, the Los Angeles Times reports. He was 92. Ackerman introduced new generations to horror films with his magazine Famous Monsters of Filmland; he was also known for... More »

MORE ABOUT:
obituary • magazine • editor • writer • science fiction • horror flims

 Hollywood Remaking 
 Sci-Fi Classics 

New takes on Ghostbusters, Terminator among flicks already in production

Nov 27, 08 4:32 PM CST
(Newser) - Hollywood is looking backward with an eye on the future, reports the Los Angeles Times. Plans to launch remakes of 12 sci-fi flicks from the last millennium are already under way:
  • When Worlds Collide, an update of the apocalyptic 1951 film, will hit theaters next year with Steven Spielberg
... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Hollywood • Steven Spielberg • Arnold Schwarzenegger • list • Christian Bale • science fiction • Seth Rogen • movie remakes • Ghostbusters

appreciation

 Crichton Was Master Craftsman 


Nov 5, 08 5:30 PM CST
(Newser) - Michael Crichton's seemingly endless output may not be literature (a statement the late Crichton himself might take issue with), but don't discount the "fine craftsmanship" they entailed, writes Charles McGrath in the New York Times. From Andromeda Strain to Jurassic Park, his "intricately engineered entertainment systems" relied on... More »

MORE ABOUT:
obituary • author • book • science fiction • Michael Crichton

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