Vortices of Extelligence

It started with an Arthur C. Clarke night on Wednesday - first Kubrick's masterpiece 2001: A Space Odyssey, and then Peter Hyams's 2010: The Year We Make Contact. Although 2010 was filmed much later, with much better technology and somewhat more realistic-looking props, it still feels like a sequel - and not to disparage Hyams's directing, but for me, 2001 will always carry a much stronger impact. Even the musical ouvertures actually serve a purpose - not to mention the silent close-ups of Hal. Or maybe this was because I'd read the 2001 book much earlier than the sequels, as one of my first encounters with science fiction. And if you've read the books, and you don't like them, well, "it could only be attributable to human error" :P

Yesterday, it was time to move on to another universe - or was it really another one? Well, Battlestar Galactica might be set in the same universe as the monoliths, but I think it's highly unlikely. Still, it was amazing, and it just served as yet another reminder that cinema and even special effects did not begin with computer graphics. If I'd not read about the "problem" of the Cylonians' chrome armor 'reflecting every single stage-light' in the film-making notes, I'd never have noticed - it blended wonderfully in the environment!

And tonight, I think I'll top it all off with yet another look at Escape from L.A.. Okay, so it's not taken any Oscars for deep plot or character development or whatnot, but it's still a movie that I can watch any time, any number of times. Back in '97, I saw it five or six times within two weeks - about as many times as HBO would run it... And Snake's theme in the soundtrack is a killer in its own right, too :)