murfSTUFF

So after that wizarding craziness from July, I figure we take a look at Fantasy’s cousin: Science Fiction. Now, for all my general geekery, Sci-Fi has never been my particularly favorite genre. That’s not to say I don’t enjoy it, but I never really go out of my way to embrace it either. Or at least not the “space opera” style of Sci-Fi. Star Trek has never been my thing at all. Sometimes however, I find the gems that I do like. So what Sci-Fi does murf enjoy? Only time and space can tell. Or at least this list.

Back to the Future

To me, Back to the Future is the quintessential time travel story. It is the tale of a fish-out-of-water, his crazy scientist friend and the havoc they’ve accidentally wreaked on the timestream. What makes BttF great is that is does time travel and covers the requisite paradox angle without making your head pop-off in confusion. They cover multiple time-lines, minor butterfly effect bits and other general loopy time stuff. I remember watching Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure and wondering how they kept finding handy things in the jailbreak sequence (via predestination paradox it seems), but I never had any trouble understanding that Marty faded away because he intervened in his own history. In addition to all the time-travel, it’s just plain fun. The climax at the clock tower is a classic scene and even though you’ve seen it hundreds of times, it still gets you on the edge of your seat.

WALL•E

An epic tale of robots in love. WALL•E is a film that uses a sci-fi base to tell a love story. Sure there are robots. Sure there is a giant cruise ship in space. What makes WALL•E great is that is doesn’t need to revel in its sci-fi basis. It tells a universal story of love, triumph, failure and the drive to succeed. It is heartwarming and endearing. Often times, you use sci-fi to tell stories of fantastic worlds and tales, much in the same fantasy does. But WALL•E‘s story could have just as easily been modern, used humans, been fantasy, been anything really. Where it truly shines forth is that as the story unfolds, you begin to not notice the backdrop in which in rests. You become invested in the characters and their struggles. That is the hallmark of a good film, sci-fi or otherwise. It just so happens that this one has a sci-fi flare.

The Fifth Element

Some movies are just fun. The Fifth Element isn’t groundbreaking, it didn’t make history or anything else. It was however colorful, over-the-top and an all around good time. The story isn’t that great either, but its the cast that makes it shine. With Bruce Willis playing up his gruff to perfection as Corbin, Ian Holm as the priest, Milla Jovovich as a smoking hot ass-kicking red-head, Gary Oldman being generally awesome and the most perfectly tailored role for Chris Tucker ever. They make it exciting and entertaining all around. Its not of those heady films that makes you wonder about our place in the universe. It’s just a fun adventure in the future and through space. It’s a great movie to turn your brain off and have some fun.

Jurassic Park

You can’t do a Sci-Fi list without getting some Speilberg into it. Just impossible. Of all Speilberg’s sci-fi romps from E.T. to Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Jurassic Park is easily my favorite. For me, I imagine it very much like seeing Star Wars in 1977. It was a film that changed the game. The iconic opening shot of Star Wars with Star Destroyer chasing the Frigate was one of those moments when you saw it, you knew nothing would be the same. To me, that is the brachiosaurus scene. Plus I was about 10ish when the film came out, and what 10 year old boy wouldn’t love to see realistic dinosaurs on a movie screen? It was amazing. It’s not the best film by any means, but carries itself with a heavy air and still stands a cultural stone even 18 years later. It was at the forefront of the CGI revolution and it looks amazing even after all the recent advancements in that technology.

Ghostbusters

Some may argue if Ghostbusters is Sci-Fi or not, and that’s justifiable as it deals in both science and the supernatural. I say it is because it deals with supernatural with a scientific eye. Ghostbusters is easily one of my favorite franchises of all time. It is inventive, original and just plain fun. The concept of 3 out-of-work scientists who start a sort paranormal pest control business based on their research is brilliant. It brings a blue-collar flare to the show and is better off for it. We may not understand all the technical details that Ray and Egon spout, but you can get the general idea of exterminators. And the fact they treat the ghosts and occurrences with scientific scrutiny is even better. They aren’t just schmoes running around looking for ghosts. They’ve got science and data to back them up.  Besides without Ghostbusters, there would not be an army of scientists who would get a chance to say “Back off man. I’m a scientist.” And that would just be a shame. They deserve that.

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