What Movie/Tv Show did you Watch today?

Frood

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I'm curious. What do you think of as genuine science fiction? I ask because sf goes all over the spectrum now. So what constitutes genuine in the eyes of a hardcore fan?

Excellent question, Lotes (and get ready for some prattle)!

I've been a lifelong science fiction fan and am old enough to have been around when the social/speculative British "New Wave" sci fi invasion first reached our shores in the late 60's and made a splash throughout the 70's and beyond. Still, like many teenagers, I cut my teeth on the wonder-filled, if hopelessly naive and rudimentary, fiction of the masters of the Golden Age... Asimov, Heinlein, van Vogt, Clarke, etc. (and I still read these folks today, mostly for their retro charm).

This being said, science fiction literature first grabbed me by the lapels and shook me hard when I read New Wave works by Delany, Silverberg, Ellison, Ballard, Brunner, Sturgeon, and other Moorcocks.

I then jumped in with both feet into the feminist sci fi of the Seventies, more attuned as it was to my own questioning of gender as a social construct. Here, Ursula LeGuin's The Left Hand of Darkness remains, to my mind, a crowning achievement of science fiction, even though science and technology take a back seat in that story to the human element. It's also during this period that I discovered authors such as Marge Piercy and Margaret Atwood, who tend to work at the edges of the genre.

Then came my infatuation in the Eighties with all things cyberpunk... Gibson, Rucker, Sterling, etc. It was short-lived, though. So much else was going as the genre matured and as it began to both gain a certain literary respectability and to "infect" mainstream lit (something I attribute, in large part, to the popularity of so many blockbuster science fiction films).

Then the genre exploded, creating for itself myriad micro-niches. And I devoured it all. I still do.

It would be easier for me to tell you what I think science fiction isn't rather than what I think it is.

Science fiction isn't "sword and sorcery" high fantasy (a genre I nevertheless appreciate when it's done well); it isn't horror (except when that horror is the result of science or technology run amok rather than supernatural in origin); and it isn't crime fiction, even when it's Noir.

Here's a list of genres (sub-genres, really), along with an example of each, that I believe exemplify great science fiction.

- Hard science fiction: SeveNeves, by Neal Stephenson
- Space Opera: The Skylark of Space, by Doc Smith
- "Classic" science fiction: A Mission of Gravity, by Hal Clement
- Military science fiction: The Forever War, by Joe Haldeman
- "New Wave" science fiction: Barefoot in the Head, by Brian Aldiss
- Feminist science fiction: The Female Man, by Joanna Russ
- Ecological science fiction: Grass, by Sheri Tepper
- Cyberpunk: Mona Lisa Overdrive, by William Gibson
- Steampunk: Infernal Devices, by K.W. Jeter
- Dieselpunk: Farthing, by Jo Walton
- Nanopunk: Blood Music, by Greg Bear
- Biopunk: Schismatrix, by Bruce Sterling (you should check out O Último Ruivo, by Clayton De La Vie, if you want to brush up on your Portuguese, Lotes)
- Alternate history: The Man in the High Castle, by Philip K. Dick
- The "New Space Opera": Consider Phlebas, by Iain M. Banks
- The "New Weird": The Reach Trilogy, by Jeff Vandermeer, of which the first volume, Annihilation, was recently made into an excellent movie (and you should definitely check out works by China Miéville, an author I believe would be right up your political alley; his best, I think, is Perdido Street Station [and its sequels]).

I like my science fiction hard, accurate, speculative, and awe-inducing. As such, I'm no big fan of some of the sub-genres listed above (although I do still read them, just to stretch my literary horizons). The tech has to be believable, the science real (or at least possible), the story plausible, and the social and psychological effects of all these have to ring true. Plus, if the stakes are cosmic (or at least world-shattering), then all the better.

Aristotle is said to have claimed that "all philosophy begins in wonder." I think good science fiction is a great vessel for philosophy. It's a literature that, when done right, gets you to ponder. Or it should, in my view.

There's enough Star Wars-y shit out there to slake any old thirst for adventure and escape, but good science fiction makes you question the nature of your own self and of your society, along with Life, the Universe and Everything.

This work really affected my perceptions:

Screenshot-20220105-200734-Chrome.jpg
 

Frood

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Around that time I was captivated by a number of Hermann Hesse novels....Magistar Ludi (The Glass Bead Game - being the most memorable)...

It was a weird combination of historical and science fiction.... almost an Outlander feel to it but a real mind fucker....
 

RANCIDMILKO ™ ®©

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For some reason my smart TV keyboard only let's me type 1 letter and then the pop-up keyboard goes down and I have to wait 2 seconds before I can type another letter and it and it's very tiring and frustrating and it makes me Agro but at the moment I'm using my voice thing on my phone these devices drive me nuts
Smart TVs are a pain in the ass, it's better to get one of them TV boxes. I have one from Xiaomi, it lets me use a mouse to type, it also has bluetooth and I can cast videos from my cellphone without any hassle

Smart TVs tend to be buggy as hell, their wifi constantly goes out, they're slow and have very little storage space.
 

RANCIDMILKO ™ ®©

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Right now I'm watching The Witcher on Netflix. Their first season was much better, but at least they're keeping it real and if you're a fan of their games, the series won't let you down, they haven't changed it too much

I wish they had found an actress that was as stunning as the character they had in Witcher 3 to interpret Yennefer

5p8XWNC.jpeg
 

Frood

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For some reason my smart TV keyboard only let's me type 1 letter and then the pop-up keyboard goes down and I have to wait 2 seconds before I can type another letter and it and it's very tiring and frustrating and it makes me Agro but at the moment I'm using my voice thing on my phone these devices drive me nuts
Smart TVs are a pain in the ass, it's better to get one of them TV boxes. I have one from Xiaomi, it lets me use a mouse to type, it also has bluetooth and I can cast videos from my cellphone without any hassle

Smart TVs tend to be buggy as hell, their wifi constantly goes out, they're slow and have very little storage space.

I kept our dumb TV and port it to a computer with hdmi....

No mic, no video, no IP...

We're investing by not spending....
 

RANCIDMILKO ™ ®©

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For some reason my smart TV keyboard only let's me type 1 letter and then the pop-up keyboard goes down and I have to wait 2 seconds before I can type another letter and it and it's very tiring and frustrating and it makes me Agro but at the moment I'm using my voice thing on my phone these devices drive me nuts
Smart TVs are a pain in the ass, it's better to get one of them TV boxes. I have one from Xiaomi, it lets me use a mouse to type, it also has bluetooth and I can cast videos from my cellphone without any hassle

Smart TVs tend to be buggy as hell, their wifi constantly goes out, they're slow and have very little storage space.

I kept our dumb TV and port it to a computer with hdmi....

No mic, no video, no IP...

We're investing by not spending....
I still have a dumb TV, a plasma one actually, the image is better than LCD and LED, at least I think so

I'll admit I'll be probably getting a 4k this year, though.

I've been waiting for the plasma to die, the remote control hasn't worked for years no, but the TV box solved that, I only need to shut the TV on and off manually now.
 

Frood

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For some reason my smart TV keyboard only let's me type 1 letter and then the pop-up keyboard goes down and I have to wait 2 seconds before I can type another letter and it and it's very tiring and frustrating and it makes me Agro but at the moment I'm using my voice thing on my phone these devices drive me nuts
Smart TVs are a pain in the ass, it's better to get one of them TV boxes. I have one from Xiaomi, it lets me use a mouse to type, it also has bluetooth and I can cast videos from my cellphone without any hassle

Smart TVs tend to be buggy as hell, their wifi constantly goes out, they're slow and have very little storage space.

I kept our dumb TV and port it to a computer with hdmi....

No mic, no video, no IP...

We're investing by not spending....
I still have a dumb TV, a plasma one actually, the image is better than LCD and LED, at least I think so

I'll admit I'll be probably getting a 4k this year, though.

I've been waiting for the plasma to die, the remote control hasn't worked for years no, but the TV box solved that, I only need to shut the TV on and off manually now.

I bought this TV in 2008 or 2009. We only use it to watch the odd movie or series on a bigger screen.

Our daughter was born in 2012. She never grew up with TV. ... only movies and series we thought she would like... and that's weeks or months between.

But I got her an extra Spotify account early on.... I kind of regret it but I cope.... she either is singing "sounds of silence" or "africa" by Toto, or weird shit she really can't carry a tune for... but I'm proud of her.

We watch shit on our phones... my daughter likes to lay on my shoulder and torso while asking me annoying questions about what's happening or what stuff means.

She's ace.... but I worry that we've not technologically prepared her sufficiently enough.

She has a laptop, tablet, and is full on into Minecraft.
 

RANCIDMILKO ™ ®©

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For some reason my smart TV keyboard only let's me type 1 letter and then the pop-up keyboard goes down and I have to wait 2 seconds before I can type another letter and it and it's very tiring and frustrating and it makes me Agro but at the moment I'm using my voice thing on my phone these devices drive me nuts
Smart TVs are a pain in the ass, it's better to get one of them TV boxes. I have one from Xiaomi, it lets me use a mouse to type, it also has bluetooth and I can cast videos from my cellphone without any hassle

Smart TVs tend to be buggy as hell, their wifi constantly goes out, they're slow and have very little storage space.

I kept our dumb TV and port it to a computer with hdmi....

No mic, no video, no IP...

We're investing by not spending....
I still have a dumb TV, a plasma one actually, the image is better than LCD and LED, at least I think so

I'll admit I'll be probably getting a 4k this year, though.

I've been waiting for the plasma to die, the remote control hasn't worked for years no, but the TV box solved that, I only need to shut the TV on and off manually now.

I bought this TV in 2008 or 2009. We only use it to watch the odd movie or series on a bigger screen.

Our daughter was born in 2012. She never grew up with TV. ... only movies and series we thought she would like... and that's weeks or months between.

But I got her an extra Spotify account early on.... I kind of regret it but I cope.... she either is singing "sounds of silence" or "africa" by Toto, or weird shit she really can't carry a tune for... but I'm proud of her.

We watch shit on our phones... my daughter likes to lay on my shoulder and torso while asking me annoying questions about what's happening or what stuff means.

She's ace.... but I worry that we've not technologically prepared her sufficiently enough.

She has a laptop, tablet, and is full on into Minecraft.

LOL it's like you were describing my daughter there, she's from 2007, same thing

She's spending her vacation here with me, she'll be back with her mom next week, bummer

When she was growing up I told her she should skip the new generation of singers and listen to old stuff. Her playlist is a lot like mine.

She was starting to watch libtard shit on youtube, so I was always policing her. Like some retarded fag here, Felipe Netto. I absolutely hate the disgusting queer, his videos are basically teaching kids to become commie abortionist faggots.

She loves Minecraft too, full of mods, so it's up to me to make that shit run on my PC, the last time I had to allocate 8 gigs to Java to be able to run it all.

And to think she liked to play Skyrim and Street Fighter when she was 7...
 

Frood

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"Calm the Phuhuk down!"

I love Guy Ritchie flicks.

I could never get into it.... like Alfred Hitchcock films or the Bowery Brothers films... people rave about them, but I just can't....

I've scoured the free internet every night since the start of this plandemic for free classic films from the 30's to the 60's, and I hate Hitchcock films.... hate the stuff from Bowery Inc.
 

Blurt

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I really enjoyed the French series, Les Revenants. Did you see that, @Blurt?

Nope, haven't scoped it out yet, Lotes. Haven't seen the eponymous source film either.

I'm more of a science fiction and (occasional) high fantasy fan. Supernatural stuff doesn't appeal to me as much. Having said this, I do remain quasi-devoted to dark fantasy (what readers used to call "horror"), a genre that often bathes in supernatural elements.

I've seen all the flicks in the following clip and, with the exception of the more space-fantasy-ish Star Wars, I can wholeheartedly recommend them all. Smart science fiction is hard to dig up but it's well worth the effort.

 

Blurt

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"Calm the Phuhuk down!"

I love Guy Ritchie flicks.

I could never get into it.... like Alfred Hitchcock films or the Bowery Brothers films... people rave about them, but I just can't....

I've scoured the free internet every night since the start of this plandemic for free classic films from the 30's to the 60's, and I hate Hitchcock films.... hate the stuff from Bowery Inc.

I guess I have a spot of trouble with Hitch, too. I haven't seen many of his films so, when the opportunity presented itself for me to purchase a Blu-ray boxed set of his "best" on the cheap, I jumped on it. It's a bit of a slog, though, I'll admit. I've had the box for nearly two years now and I've only watched six or seven of the fifteen or so flicks. I'll persevere but, at this point, I guess it's more to round out my appreciation for the history of films than it is out of a need to be entertained.
 

Blurt

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I've scoured the free internet every night since the start of this plandemic for free classic films from the 30's to the 60's, and I hate Hitchcock films.... hate the stuff from Bowery Inc.

Funny you should mention that; I subscribe to the following YouTube channel that specializes in older (I guess copyright-expired) cheesy, corny, psychotronic cult classics. Last night I watched, for the first time, This Island Earth.

Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!
 

Frood

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I've scoured the free internet every night since the start of this plandemic for free classic films from the 30's to the 60's, and I hate Hitchcock films.... hate the stuff from Bowery Inc.

Funny you should mention that; I subscribe to the following YouTube channel that specializes in older (I guess copyright-expired) cheesy, corny, psychotronic cult classics. Last night I watched, for the first time, This Island Earth.

Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!

Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!

Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!
 

Frood

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I watched "High Tide at Noon" (Canadian)

"A Matter Of Life And Death { Stairway To Heaven }"

A trippy sci fi ww2 film about the afterlife.

(Last night)

I really hunt for old Westerns or war movies but if they're is anything I've seen before, I delve in black comedies or noire.

Can't stand that era's slapstick films....
 

Lily

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The newest Spiderman because my favorite little guy wanted to see it. It was goodish for the genre. At least I didn't fall asleep like I did for the latest 007 movie.
 

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The first two episodes of 100 Foot Wave on HBO. (Have you watched it, @Seamajor?) I think all extreme sports people are nut jobs, but this is well done, interesting, beautiful, and, well, it's about a town in Portugal. It gives a small flavor of how wonderful Portuguese people are.
 

Blurt

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The Suicide Squad

As a rule, I don't do DC/Marvel crap, but watching Margot Robbie gyrate, undulate, and rotate as she kills it in every one of her scenes is a guilty pleasure.
 

Lily

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The Suicide Squad

As a rule, I don't do DC/Marvel crap, but watching Margot Robbie gyrate, undulate, and rotate as she kills it in every one of her scenes is a guilty pleasure.

I have to admit, Margot Robbie is a compelling presence in anything I've seen her in...
 

Lokmar

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Right now I'm watching The Witcher on Netflix. Their first season was much better, but at least they're keeping it real and if you're a fan of their games, the series won't let you down, they haven't changed it too much

I wish they had found an actress that was as stunning as the character they had in Witcher 3 to interpret Yennefer

5p8XWNC.jpeg
Personally, I thought the unusual features of the Yennefer in the TV series enabled them to portray her both ugly and beautiful. At any rate, I really enjoy this show. Henry Cavil is awesome as Geralt! Was sad about Roach tho!
 

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I watched Sleepless in Seattle last night, I gotta tell you even though I have seen that final seen a couple times before, last night I just couldn't stop wondering what if Annie had turned out to be a Trannie?