Favorite Sci Fi Movies of the past 10 years

What makes a good sci-fi movie? That is a question I have been asking myself since a coworker of mine said that Star Trek Into Darkness was everything he wanted in a sci-fi movie.  Since I did not like the movie as much as he did it got me thinking what do I like in a sci-fi movie.  As I was thinking of some of my favorite sci-fi movies of recent years I realized that two movies coming out this year are from directors whose previous movies are some of my recent favorites.  Gravity is directed by Alfonso Cuaron who also directed Children of Men and Elysium is directed by Neill Blomkamp  who also directed District 9.  Children of Men and District 9 are easily my two favorite movies of the past 10 years. So I decided to make a list of my 5 favorite sci-fi movies of the past 10 years and see what they have in common.  In making this list I did not include any comic book movies like Iron Man or The Avengers even though they are technically sci-fi in my mind a comic book movie is something completely different.  Here is the list.

1.      Children of Men (2006)- A post-apocalyptic movie that never really explains what happens but thrusts you into the dark world.  While some movies unanswered questions are frustrating this one does it in a way that works.  After I saw it in the theaters I didn’t know what to think, but the more I thought about it the more I liked it.  Why did humans stop having babies? What will happened now that a baby has been born? Who knows.  But the movie is brilliantly written and it got a well deserve Oscar nomination. 

2.     District 9 (2009)- This movie came out of nowhere and blew me away.  The movie felt new and original and at the same time had everything you would expect in an alien invasion movie.  It is a throwback to when sci-fi movies where metaphors for societal issues but updated with some amazing action.   

3.     Inception (2010)- One of the most original stories in a long time.  Love him or hate him but Christopher Nolan knows how to craft a fun movie with twists and turns that under further scrutiny maybe doesn’t make a lot of sense but it is fun to go on the ride.  Here he gets some incredible acting from Leonardo DiCaprio and Joseph Gordon Levitt and it just keeps you on the edge of your seat once it gets going.  Of course the ending is frustrating but I like that it leaves the viewer to come up with their own theories. 

4.     Attack the Block (2011)- Ever wonder what would happen if an alien invaded the hood?  Well this movie hilariously explores that idea.  It is one of the few sci-fi movies to combine humor with great action.  The movie feels really low budget but the aliens look awesome and scary. 

5.     Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)-Wasn’t sure what to expect from this prequel but it captured everything that was great about the first and still felt fresh. 

Honorable Mentions go to -Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), Moon (2009), Primer (2004)

Based on that list what does that tell me.  Well first off besides Rise of the Planet of the Apes none of them are sequels or prequels and  Children of Men is based on a book but the rest are purely original works.  Also, they all have action and a adventure mixed with a little humor.  But, I think what I like most about these movies and sci-fi in general is that they take an out of the world idea to expose truths of our society.  District 9 is probably the best example of this.  It takes place in South Africa and is about having aliens quarantined in a specific area.  It doesn't take much to realize that this movie is exploring  themes of apartheid and racism while having giant spaceships and crazy gadgets.  Afterward it leaves you thinking.  Not only can they be great fun but they can make you think.  Don’t get me wrong I like movies like Transformers because it is a lot of fun to watch giant robots fight each other but it doesn't compare to a movie that can explore complex situations at the same time.  I look at classic sci-fi from the 50’s like The Day the Earth Stood Still that was clearly about the dangers of nuclear war but at the same time it was just a fun movie.  Now just because you have a message in your movie doesn't mean it works for me either.  Avatar felt like the message was too in your face and the characters we too clichéd. 

So what do I think was lacking in  Star Trek Into Darkness?  It had the action and comedy but it didn't make me think.  It was mindless fun but not enough to get on my list.

What are your thoughts?  What movies do you think belongs on the list? I know I left off some pretty popular ones like Avatar, Looper, Wall-E, and Prometheus.

New Home Movie Releases 7/16/13

42




Evil Dead




Bullet to the Head




Erased



Black Sabbath (with Boris Karloff)




Oogieloves in the Big Balloon Adventure

Box Office Wrap Up 7/12-7/14

Box Office Wrap Up- A lot to talk about this morning so a bit of a long post.

Well this weekend was a strange one for box office watchers.  Going into it no one knew what was going to happen.  Pretty much the only thing people could agree on was that Despicable Me 2 would come out in front making it the 4^th weekend in a row that a toon held the top spot.  The two new releases had two different target audiences and no one was really sure which would draw the bigger crowd.  Could the big budget action flick Pacific Rim take second or would Adam Sandler’s first sequel get the silver.  It was a tough call. 

The Questions?

Big action movies are usually bigger in the summer and this summer has seen it fair share so the question was were people fatigued with action.  Last weekend proved that not even Jonny Depp could open an action movie and the weekend before Channing Tatum and Jamie Foxx failed to ignite box office fire.  So how as a movie like Pacific Rim with no Hollywood stars going to do?  The stars of the movie were the special effects and that was how it was advertised.  Reviews were mostly good but would the fanboy turnout be enough? 

I have to admit I never saw Grown Ups and didn’t see anything appealing about Grown Ups 2 so I had very little expectations for the movie.  Live action Adam Sandler movies have been pretty bad lately and none of his movies have made very much money.  So I guess he decided to do a sequel to the last movie that was a hit for him.  With Grown Ups 2 most of the cast of the first one is reunited and ready for more antics.  Could Adam Sandler reverse the trend and prove he is still loved by millions? 

The Answers.

The answer surprised me. It turns out that people still love Adam Sandler and Grown Ups 2 finished right behind Despicable Me 2 with and incredible $42 million.  Pacific Rim had to settle for the bronze with an impressive but not stellar $38.3 million.  A $38 million opening is not bad by any means but when you have a $200 million budget you hope to do better.  But they sold people on the graphics and 3D screens made up 50% of the ticket purchases which is better than any other 3D movie this summer.  

The Consequences?

So what does it mean when two sequels are one and two and an original movie comes in third?  First results is expect more sequels.  Every summer people complain about the number of sequel, prequels, remakes and reboots that come out. But those are the movies that make money.  This summer only one original movie opened at number 1 and that was The Purge.  Every other movie has some kind of built in audience.  Not to say a movie with no built in audience can’t do well.  Now You See Me has been the sleeper hit of the summer and The Heat has done very well but the biggest difference is the budget.  I think the lesson learned is don’t spend large amounts of money on an original movie.  But I think the success of sequels this summer will only prove to Hollywood that is the way to go.  The big question now is will Adam Sandler decide to do more sequels? 

The Top 10 for the Weekend

1.  Despicable Me 2    $44.7 million

2.  Grown Ups 2    $42.5 million

3.  Pacific Rim   $38.3 million

4.  The Heat   $14 million

5. The Lone Ranger   $11.1 million

6. Monsters University  $10.6 million

7.  World War Z   $9.4 million

8.  White House Down  $6.15 million

9. Kevin Hart: Let Me Explain  $5 million

10. Man of Steel  $4.8 million

Just for the record here are the movies that topped the charts so far this summer.

5/3-5/5         Iron Man 3

5/10-5/12    Iron Man 3

5/17-5/19   Star Trek Into Darkness

5/24-5/27   Fast and Furious 6

5/31-6/2     Fast and Furious 6

6/7-6/9       The Purge

6/14-6/16  Man of Steel

6/21-6/23  Monsters University

6/28-6/30  Monsters University

7/5-7/7       Despicable Me 2

7/12-7/14  Despicable Me 2