When you copy many sources it’s research – or today’s Scroll.
(1) Exhibit #27,837 that science fiction fandom has gone mainstream:
Sasquan is in Alaska Airlines magazine, the copies distributed on Horizon flights! Online at http://t.co/GLFdHSMIac . Bottom of page 9.
— sasquansf (@sasquansf) August 17, 2015
(2) The renovated Clifton’s Brookdale Cafeteria, where LASFS once met, reopens September 17.
Clifton’s Cafeteria after the remodel.
In its prime [in the 1930s] the Brookdale served close to 10,000 people a day, and Clinton went on to open ten more cafeterias, among them the Polynesian-themed Pacific Seas, where a two-story waterfall greeted customers at the entrance and every 20 minutes rain fell over the mezzanine. Clinton’s wondrous environments are said to have inspired everyone from Walt Disney to writer Ray Bradbury, animation pioneer Ray Harryhausen, and Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, who gathered at the Brookdale for meetings of the newly formed Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society.
“This is a total playground,” Meieran told me, digging into a crumbling box of old metal nameplates he had just discovered in a corner. “When I get into a project, I love to tear it apart. The first night I get a screwdriver and a hammer and I start opening things.”
Linda Dishman, executive director of the Los Angeles Conservancy, consulted with Meieran on how to overhaul the building while being mindful of its history. “You want somebody who respects what it is—you don’t want somebody who is going to strip that away,” she says. “But then you don’t want somebody to go ‘Clifton’s crazy,’ either. Andrew did a fabulous job. He took spaces that had not been included in the restaurant and made them into a Clifton’s for this century.”
(3) And when they weren’t at Clifton’s, Joseph Hawkins has a theory about how some LASFSians were spending their time. This theory has been around for awhile, but Hawkins’ version sounds nicer than Laney’s.
The stories and commentary in these journals served as incubators for ideas that would lead to political organizing decades later. Sci-fi allowed readers to safely engage with thoughts about alien races with mixed genders or finding love despite their differences. In the 1930s, these messages were actually more overt; by the McCarthy era, the culture’s atmosphere had stifled messages about gay or lesbian themes.
“You have to read between the lines,” Hawkins said. Publications like Weird Tales or other “creature magazines” often featured monsters carrying off nude women — and were being illustrated by female artists. The same was true for some illustrations featuring men. Considering the artists’ sexual backgrounds lends a different context to who these clichéd monsters represented — one that says more about life on Earth than anywhere else.
In the days before the Internet, sci-fi magazines also served as an early precursor to discussion forums. Readers traded letters about space exploration as well as changes in society. They even trolled one another, igniting epic arguments about politics and other subjects.
The readers in these circles include a who’s who of classic sci-fi: Ray Bradbury, Robert Heinlein and the omni-present L. Ron Hubbard were all highly active. So was superfan Forrest Ackerman, publisher of Famous Monsters of Filmland.
But just like Internet forums, most people wrote using nom de plumes, allowing them to express a side of themselves that was often kept hidden. Kepner himself had about 14 different pseudonyms ranging from esoteric references to unprintable humor.
Some gay and lesbian writers had entire alter egos to go with their names. One of those writers was “Lisa Ben” — an anagram of “lesbian” — who worked as a Warner Bros. secretary and used company equipment to print the first lesbian zine in the United States. But she also was known as Tigrina the Devil Doll, a kind of proto-Catwoman with her own handmade costume.
All those pseudonyms make for intensive detective work. Hawkins and others at ONE Archives have had to sleuth out who is who and what the relationships were between everyone. Those skills are vital to archival research, he said, and have helped to uncover unexpected connections between sci-fi and LGBT communities across the country, and even internationally.
(4) Nancy Kress, guest blogging at Women in Science Fiction, talks about the ultimate sources of stories in “Why This? Why There? Why Now? Or Why I Wrote Crossfire. Maybe”.
So what does all this have to do with science fiction, and specifically with my novel Crossfire? SF writers may name the inspiration for their works (AI research, the battle for Iwo Jima, Star Trek, a dream about ghosts), but that only identifies the rocks and beaches on the surface. Most fiction comes from shifting tectonic plates far underground, throwing up fire and lava from everything the writer has ever experienced. This is what gives fiction depth (and scholars something to write about). Sometimes, even the author is surprised by what emerges from his or her keyboard.
(5) Earl Hamner fans have created a Change.org petition calling for him to receive Kennedy Center honors.
Earl Hamner not only gave us The Waltons but he brought us Falcon Crest and several episodes of The Twilight Zone. He also brought us the animated adaption of Charlotte’s Web (1973 film). He produced great Novels like; Fifty Roads to Town (1953), Spencer’s Mountain (1961), You Can’t Get There From Here (1965), The Homecoming: A Novel About Spencer’s Mountain (1970), and Generous Women: An Appreciation (2006). He also gave us great TV movies like; Heidi (1969), Appalachian Autumn (1969), Aesop’s Fables (1971), The Homecoming (for CBS, 1971), Where the Lilies Bloom (1972), The Gift of Love: A Christmas Story (1983) and more! These are just some of the reasons Mr. Hamner should be an Honoree. We the undersigned call on you to honor Mr. Hamner in 2016 with this WAY OVER DUE recognition!
Go to the Kennedy Center Website and submit Earl’s name directly to them for 2016. Do this even if you have already signed the petition and/or if you submitted for 2015. Look for the button that says “Recommend an Honor“. Click that button and fill out the form.
Join our Facebook Group: Make Earl Hamner Jr a 2016 Kennedy Center Honoree
(6) Keith Kato, President of The Heinlein Society, participated in the latest Take Me To Your Reader Podcast.
Seth was lucky enough to get Keith Kato of the Heinlein Society on the phone to chat about the Society, R.A.H. himself, his work, rumors of future adaptations, and even some tidbits about Predestination, which the Pounders discussed earlier in 2015 and is probably still their favorite episode.
(7) Vox Day in “Negotiation” lists whose skulls “we would be willing to accept in order to bring about a rapprochement in science fiction.”
I believe it is a priori apparent that their skulls would be of far more utility to mankind if they were helping satiate the thirst of the Dark Lord and his guests than any other purpose for which they might be currently used.
Of course you do.
(8) It’s Dave Freer’s turn at Mad Genius Club today – see how you score on “Quizz kid”.
10) Do you believe that comments that disagree with you should be censored, or disemvoweled? a) Yes. We’re protecting the freedom of speech and expressing tolerance. How can we do that if just any old redneck can say what he thinks? We’re looking for a vibrant diversity of opinion just like ours. You won’t get that if you let the scum talk. They need to be deprived of a platform, any platform! b) No. Give them a fair crack of the whip at least. Ask ‘em to be civil, maybe. And if they can’t be they can go and spout it somewhere else.
I believe in quoting exactly what they say. Which is why they can’t stand me.
(9) Have you heard? Someone filed a lawsuit against meal replacement company Soylent because it may contain ingredients it shouldn’t.
(10) What actual science fiction fan can’t think of an answer to this question?
https://twitter.com/TJaneBerry/status/633459482475925504
[Thanks to Jamoche, Michael J. Walsh, and John King Tarpinian for some of these stories. Title credit goes to File 770 contributing editor of the day Cubist.]
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RAH – Are you certain you want to accuse us of just ‘pretending’ to be offended by bigotry and also telling us that we are all part of a political movement without being aware of it… On the same page that you posted a claim that you don’t insult people? Seriously?
Forgot to click
@Richard Brandt
Basket Case forever taints my childhood love of silly putty. And the two sequels just get wierd. I never needed to see what happened when one stop-motion animated plasticine creature loved another stop- motion animated plasticine creature very much.
I am terrible at generating lists of movies I have loved, but will offer this:
Favorite Animated Movie: Paprika. Or Naüsica if the Valley of the Wind. But I think my fellow commentators would enjoy Paprika, which is about a technology that allows people to share dreams, intended for therapeutic purposes. It takes full advantage of the medium, and is drenched in a love of classic movies.
Kyra
That’s just not fair.
How can you possibly not rank ‘Let’s Face the Music and Dance’ in ‘Follow the Fleet’ (1936) as the almost perfect expression of foreshadowing what everyone with a brain, apart from Mr Chamberlain, knew was coming, as superior to Wizard of Oz.
WOZ was a nice film for nice people who didn’t want to think about nasty things…
I like Heinlein, but he has been dead for a generation, and his best work was based on the science of the ‘50s. It’s easier to enjoy hard science fiction if the science isn’t actually fossilized. Also, he was a lot more interested in writing about incest than I am in reading about it.
@Kyra
Love it!
Much more organized then I am capable of right now. Some other musicals off the top of my head that are comfort movies – Kiss Me Kate, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Calamity Jane (wait! – I see the theme here, I guess I just want Howard Keel to sing for me).
Let’s see – Some Like it Hot ? Lili (not to be confused with Darling Lili – which is a completely different thing). I still like Guys and Dolls as well. Jailhouse Rock. Conflicted feelings about Gigi and My Fair Lady. I was always impressed in Camelot by the way Lancelot sang the entire way from France to King Arthur’s court.
Best Musical where the leads really probably shouldn’t have been trying to sing – Paint Your Wagon.
Oh, oh Fiddler on the Roof!
I am no good at this – I like too many movies.
Not a musical, but is anyone else amused by Zorro the Gay Blade ?
What, you didn’t see the flying monkeys in formation as a reference to the Condor Legion?
@Kyra:
You are a genius.
I look forward to your answer to the *second* question.
> “WOZ was a nice film for nice people who didn’t want to think about nasty things…”
When I said, ‘I don’t think anyone will object if I hand this one to The Wizard of Oz’, I forgot one crucial thing.
This is the internet. There is *always* someone who will object. 🙂
Surely this should be the next tag line for File770
@Elisa:
Ahhh, yes, “Paint Your Wagon” …
Clint Eastwood … SINGS*!
Lee Marvin … SINGS*!
There is … A PLOT*!
Which has nothing to do with the original Broadway musical, apparently, which was completely rewritten, keeping only the songs for the film version.
Which may be why there is the baffling number where Clint Eastwood sings* “I Talk To The Trees” for no clear reason.
.
.
.
.
.
*Well, sort of. It really has to be seen to be believed.
@Peace – Yes, yes it does. The mind reels.
Camelot — accept only the ORIGINAL BROADWAY CAST. The movie version was abominable.
Richard Harris could sing but he’s not the equal of Richard Burton, Franco Nero will NEVER be Robert Goulet much less Lancelot…and Vanessa Redgrave instead of Julie Andrews? (They’d have done better with Petula Clark even…) Pity the production company was too damn cheap to use the best.
The fact that I grew up with the original Camelot constantly on the stereo probably influences me…
Will
I must confess that it passed me by.
Damn these people who insist on inserting subliminal political messages in innocent movies about a young girl and her dear friends*; is there no end to their villainy?
*I mean the friends in the film, not the Friends of Dorothy groups, just in case you are wondering…
Favorite Musical: Singing in the Rain (RunnerUp: Swing Time for the dance)
Favorite Science Fiction Movie: Bladerunner
Favorite (Non-animated) Fantasy Movie: LadyHawke (I admit it’s been a while)
Favorite Horror Movie: Horror movies give me nightmares, so NO. (There’s some Twilight Zone and Night Gallery episodes that still haunt me. Earwigs!)
Favorite Cop Movie: Die Hard
Favorite Comedy: His Girl Friday . . . no, wait . . . Bringing Up Baby . . . no, wait . . . Arsenic and Old Lace . . .
Favorite Western: The Shootist
Favorite Movie About School: Clueless
Favorite Super-Hero Movie: Superman (Reeves)
Favorite Civil War Movie: Glory (Loving that Lion in Winter snuck in here, because oh, yes)
Favorite World War I Movie: Lawrence of Arabia (Runners up: The African Queen, Gallipoli)
Favorite World War II Movie: impossible to choose, too many great movies.
Favorite POW War Movie: The Great Escape
Favorite War Movie: Henry V
Favorite Movie No One Else Seems to Like: Undercover Blues (ducks)
Favorite Spy Movie: Sneakers
Favorite Caper: To Catch a Thief
Favorite King Arthur Related Movie: Camelot
Favorite Movie Adapted from a Book: The English Patient
Favorite Low Budget Movie: Tremors
Favorite Romance: Roman Holiday (Runners Up: Persuasion, Before Sunset, It Happened One Night . . .)
I’m loving seeing all the lists. Yeah, I could go on about musicals alone. Loved Lili.
This also made me remember when I was a theater manager way back in the mists of time. One very memorable night I was the manager on duty for a midnight showing of Pink Floyd’s: The Wall. I had just closed the box office and wandered into the theater just to check things out. I looked up at the screen and, um, there were these long slow panning shots of rocks.
Huh? I looked around and the, um, slightly altered perception of the crowd in the theater hadn’t noticed anything wrong … yet.
I ran up to the projection booth totally panicked – the film cases said “The Wall” – the leaders and tails on all the rolls said “The Wall” – I quizzed the projectionist – she had never seen the movie before and wasn’t a Floyd fan but after quizzing her on what she saw when she tested the rolls earlier, this was absolutely *not* The Wall. It was Pink Floyd Live at Pompeii.
Huge internal debate – I finally decided that I had in all good conscience that I had to stop the movie and explain to a theater full of generally stoned people what had happened and offer a refund. Some people were angry but overall surprisingly few people took me up on it. Very nerve wracking night.
Almost as bad as the night I was managing a midnight showing of Rock Horror and two completely different and competing casts showed up to fight it out.
ETA: Apparently the last theater that had the reels decided too keep them and substituted Live at Pompeii under the impression that somehow no one would notice. Twits
@Lori Coulson:
I agree completely. The Broadway cast was (so I am informed) brilliant. The Broadway soundtrack was magnificent. The film version was quite a shock after that.
No offense to Vanessa Redgrave, but her singing, an octave lower and considerably slower than the incandescent, incomparable, brisk and lively Julie Andrews, left her sounding like she was on Valium.
“It’s mad, it’s gay, the lusty month of May” should not sound like a very slow torch song.
@Will R. Yes, I’ve seen “The Core” — it’s one of my favorite silly disaster movies.
Hello? I thought I just posted something but it didn’t turn up.
When I tried again I got a message that it was a duplicate post.
Have posts been turned off while Mike Glyer is in transit?
(So this is kind of a test post.)
ETA: Huh. Mysterious.
@Elisa Live at Pompeii is a classic disaster movie of a kind.
@Lori I really enjoyed the spirit of it. They didn’t let the special effects budget stand in their way.
This was the post that got misposted somehow (It needs some change or the program still says it’s a duplicate):
@Lori Coulson:
I agree completely. The Broadway cast was (so I am informed) brilliant. The Broadway soundtrack was magnificent. The film version was quite a shock after that.
No offense to Vanessa Redgrave, but her singing, an octave lower and considerably slower than the incandescent, incomparable, brisk and lively Julie Andrews, left her sounding like she was on Valium.
“It’s mad, it’s gay, the lusty month of May” should not sound like a very slow torch song.
@Will R.
OMG yes! The feeling I had in the theater was akin to Towering Inferno or that one where the boat flipped over – Poseidon Adventure.
Having to watch Live at Pompeii through after dealing with the disaster was, if anything, rather worse.
Well poop, for some strange reason I can’t post the post agreeing about how much better the Broadway cast was than the movie cast of “Camelot.”
@PIMMN – Maybe there was a Word of Power in it? ie, Marmot, Red Sea Pedestrian, If More Than Four Hours Seek Medical Advice, etc?
@elisa Yeah, that was kind of their most spaced-out. I think it was one of the inspirations for Spinal Tap.
Aha, the light dawns. I used the brand name of a controlled substance.
One more try, lightly edited:
@Lori Coulson:
I agree completely. The Broadway cast was (so I am informed) brilliant. The Broadway soundtrack was magnificent. The film version was quite a shock after that.
No offense to Vanessa Redgrave, but her singing, an octave lower and considerably slower than the incandescent, incomparable, brisk and lively Julie Andrews, left her sounding like she was stoned.
“It’s mad, it’s gay, the lusty month of May” should not sound like a torch song.
Oh yeah. The stonehenge thing.
I am amazed that anyone stayed awake long enough to to remember to spoof it.
Favorite Musical: Wizard of Oz
Favorite (Non-animated) Fantasy Movie: Pan’s Labyrinth
Favorite Horror Movie: 28 Days Later
Favorite Comedy: High Heels
Favorite Western: True Grit
Favorite Super-Hero Movie: Superman (Christopher Reeve, accept no substitutes.)
Favorite Civil War Movie: The General
Favorite WWII Movie: The English Patient
Favorite Movie Adapted from a Book: A Patch of Blue
Favorite Movie Adapted From a Comic: Ghost World
Favorite Christmas Movie: Mr. Magoo version of A Christmas Carol
Favorite Low Budget Movie: Tremors
Favorite Modern Noir: Chinatown (does the Seventies still count as Modern?)
Favourite Asian Martial Arts Movie: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
That’s not exactly unique to creationists. I mean, there’s general agreement here that the puppies are lying about their motives. It’s just, you know. We have pretty good reason to think that, whereas Creationists (and RAH), uh. Not so much.
Peace, there are clips from Camelot the stage version:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtjNdTT-kPU
and from The Ed Sullivan Show:
http://www.edsullivan.com/artists/camelot
Even in black and white, the difference is astounding.
@Peace: I’m going to ask you straight out, and I’d appreciate a straight answer. Should “It’s mad, it’s gay, the lusty month of May” sound like a torch song or not?
(Sorry, couldn’t resist. Rogue multi-posts released from moderation tickle my funny bone for some reason.)
Lusty Month of May probably can best be described as a “patter” song — humorous with cunning punning, and requires a very light, rapid delivery. It really requires a coloratura soprano, not a mezzo (hell, in my book Redgrave’s an alto, so really out of her league here).
I’m the loyal opposition. I fell in love with Richard Harris when I was young because of Camelot. Though I get it’s not really possible to compare with Julie Andrews. But at the time, I didn’t have the comparison and so the movie stood alone.
@Peace:
Well poop…
Salty language like that will get you a reputation as a hothead.
Oops, forgot:
Best WWI movie: The African Queen.
Sweet, try listening to the original Broadway cast album. Harris is lovely, but he hasn’t the depth of delivery that Burton (the Welshman) does.
OK, so the next one is … Favorite Science Fiction Movie. Well, that shouldn’t start to get hard until the 70’s, at least.
For the 1920’s the winner for me is METROPOLIS. Nothing else even comes close.
The 1930’s is the heydey of James Whale, and I’ll give it to THE INVISIBLE MAN. (Although I actually don’t think much of his Frankenstein movies.)
I actually couldn’t think of anything I liked from the 1940’s. (Huh. I love lots of 40’s films. But Huston and Hitchcock and Wilder and so on weren’t doing sci-fi or musicals, I guess.)
The 1950’s nets us The Day the Earth Stood Still and the original Invasion of the Body Snatchers, both fine movies. I was strongly considering the excellent Alec Guinness film The Man in the White Suit here, but in the end I have to give it to FORBIDDEN PLANET.
The French have a strong showing in the 1960’s. La Jetée, Je T’aime Je T’aime, and especially Alphaville. But none of them quite win it for me. Fantastic Voyage feels a little dated to me now. But I’m finding I maintain a surprising degree of affection for PLANET OF THE APES.
The 1970’s. Er. A Clockwork Orange. Solaris. Sleeper. The Man Who Fell to Earth. The remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Alien. And Star Wars. Um. Agh! I know I’m kind of supposed to give this one to Star Wars, right? But, Solaris! And Alien! But. Well. All right. STAR WARS. You monsters.
The 1980’s. Last decade gave us Star Wars vs. Alien, this one gives us The Empire Strikes Back vs. Aliens. Double agh! But also both Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. Triple agh! Oh, and Tron. And The Abyss and The Terminator and The Thing. And The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension. And Back to the Future. And Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure. And Airplane II. And Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. And Repo Man! And Blade Runner! And Brazil! I’m … out of aghs. (At least I’ve already listed movies I like a lot better than E.T. or Dune or RoboCop, or this might start to get *hard*.) Man, what was going on in the 80’s? I think it comes down to Aliens, Brazil, and Empire Strikes Back, though, and ummmmmmmmmmmm … BRAZIL and-I-run-to-the-next-decade-before-I-change-my-mind.
The 1990’s are a little gentler on my psyche, but not much. It helps that I’m not actually the biggest fan of either The Matrix or Terminator II. But 12 Monkeys, Star Trek: First Contact, and Dark City are pretty high up on my list. Galaxy Quest is actually a pretty strong contender, as is The Iron Giant. But I think it’s going to come down to either The City of Lost Children or Ghost in the Shell for me. Ummmmmmmmmm … THE CITY OF LOST CHILDREN moving-on-moving-on.
The 2000’s. Donnie Darko was good. So was Solaris (yes, the Soderbergh one, and yes, I liked it.) I strongly considered Minority Report here. But then I remembered Wall-E. But then I remembered ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND.
Recent films. Inception was good. Her was neat. The World’s End was fun. I really liked Coherence. But I loved loved loved Under The Skin. And I loved loved loved Mad Max: Fury Road. And I’m going to give it to, er. Um. Gah. UNDER THE SKIN.
So … Metropolis, The Invisible Man, Forbidden Planet, Planet of the Apes, Star Wars, Brazil, The City of Lost Children, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and Under the Skin. Take the top half, Metropolis, Star Wars, Brazil, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Coming down to Brazil vs. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind for me here …
BRAZIL.
My favorite sci-fi film for at *least* the next thirty seconds.
Kyra –
Return to Oz is for people who don’t mind some nastiness.
I quite love a large number of the films that have made it onto many of the lists posted. Each time I read a list and see a new one and go AHA, yep, love that.
Or did love it obsessively earlier on even if I haven’t watched it in a few years.
My brain is refusing to make a list at this point, but saying, wow, I like being reminded of all those films I loved.
(I just skip the ones I don’t, hee).
Favorite one of the summer so far: MINIONS!Q!!11!!!!!
*hands all mah internets over to Kyra who wins the thread and the movie-talking about contest*
MaxL on August 18, 2015 at 6:16 pm said:
Agreed. I just figure it’s worth pointing out, is all. With any luck, RAH, or some of the Pups who are more susceptible to rational thought, might begin to think if my defense of the Pups requires me to make use of the same bullshit fallacy-ridden tactics as those religious zealots who want to teach the Book of Genesis in biology classes, maybe the Pups aren’t worth defending in the first place?
And if none of them answers the clue phone, well, it was still worth pointing out to the lurkers, eh wot?
Best western: tie between Dead Man and The Good, The Bad & The Ugly.
Best war movie: The Thin Red Line (the Malik version, although the original is also good).
Best movie ripped off by Hollywood into a drastically inferior remake: The Seven Samurai.
All-time favourites (honourable mentions): Casablanca, The Hustler, anything with Audrey Hepburn.
Actual all-time favourite: The Station Agent. Peter Dinklage at his best.
Sweet: Favorite Civil War Movie: Glory (Loving that Lion in Winter snuck in here, because oh, yes)
To be honest, if I’d remembered Glory I might not have given that answer, because for **American** Civil War dramas it is the best I’ve seen.
On that note, I did forget a horror movie I like better: the HP Lovecraft Appreciation Society rendition of the Call of Cthulhu, a 45 minute film in the style of silent-era German Expressionism. My only gripe as to its success is that all the actors move at the right speed…
@rrede “Favorite one of the summer so far: MINIONS!Q!!11!!!!!”
Papaguena?
I’m going to play the favorite movie game too! Unless otherwise stated, these all refer to the original films, not recent remakes.
Favorite Musical: not a huge fan (probably should consult Ms. Stankrom) West Side Story or Singing in the Rain.
Favorite Science Fiction Movie: Gonna go with the old stalwart… 2001.
Favorite Fantasy Movie: Red Dawn
Favorite Horror Movie: The Shining
Favorite Post-Apocalyptic Movie: Dawn of the Dead
Favorite Cop Movie: Die Hard?
Favorite Comedy: Big Lebowski.
Favorite Western: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
Favorite Courtroom Drama: My Cousin Vinny (stretching the definition of drama, but as a lawyer I appreciate that it is, surprisingly, one of the more accurate representations of the courtroom in film.)
Favorite Movie About School: If…
Favorite Super-Hero Movie: The Avengers
Favorite Animated Movie: Probably not the GOAT, but The Iron Giant is criminally underrated. Maybe… Grave of the Fireflies.
Favorite Civil War Movie: does the documentary Sherman’s March count?
Favorite World War I Movie: Paths of Glory (how many Kubrick films and my going to put on here?)
Favorite World War II Movie: From Here to Eternity.
Favorite POW War Movie: The Great Escape
Favorite Movie No One Else Seems to Like: Commando
Favorite Spy Movie: Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.
Favorite Bond Movie: Casino Royale (from the 2000s, though the one with Woody Allen ain’t bad either)
Favorite Ray Harryhausen Movie: not informed enough to cast a vote.
Favorite Giant Monster Movie: Not informed enough to cast a vote
Favorite King Arthur Related Movie: Excalibur, I suppose. Was The Sword and the Stone as good as the part of The Once and Future King it was based on?
Favorite Movie Adapted from a Book: I just watched Inherent Vice and very much enjoyed it but I’m almost certain it is not the best adaptation I’ve ever seen but I’m drawing a blank. I need to finish this post and go to bed.
Favorite Christmas Movie: Die Hard
Favorite Low Budget Movie: Pick an early John Carpenter film.
Favorite Movie of All Time: The Third Man.
I couldn’t possibly choose one favorite film, even for a particular category, but under the heading of Woefully Underrated, may I recommend The Rundown? It’s got Dwayne (The Rock) Johnson being funny, charming, and handsome; Seann William Scott being brashly personable; Rosario Dawson being smart and gritty (although it fails the Bechdel test); a great fight scene between Johnson and Ernie Reyes, Jr.; and Christopher Walken chewing ALLLLL the scenery he could reach.
@wanderfound Dead Man is gorgeous. So many shots that would be beautiful still images on their own.
No love for Dead Poets’ Society as Movie About School?
SLM: Good movie. Hadn’t thought of it.