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kuwdora · 1 year

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Top 5 Most Underrated SF shows/movies you think everyone should watch and why

Top five most underrated SF shows/movies you think everyone should watch, and why :) --from destina

Okay a million years ago (more like 2 and a half months) destina asked me about my top 5 most underrated SF shows/movies I think everyone should watch. I have three shows and two films that I’ve really enjoyed over the last few years and I'll try to break down why I'm loving them.

This gets kind of long so I'll put it under a cut. The shows/films include: Moonhaven (AMC), Avenue 5 (HBO), Humans (AMC/BBC), Life (2017) and Prospect (2018).

Moonhaven is a new AMC show (1 season, 6 episodes) that is rather high concept on the sociological side of the scifi spectrum. They’ve built a utopia on the moon, guided by an AI that has spent a century learning from the human colony there in order to learn how to build better technology and solve the environmental/social ills on earth. This colony of humans have been cut off from the Earth and they’re about to send their first batch of humans and tech back to the planet when there’s a Murder that happens.

The main character is Bella Sway who is a cargo pilot/smuggler and who is also a war vet of sorts who gets accused of committing a crime while she’s on the moon and there’s a lot of mystery/intrigue to unravel.

Now this is very very serious and interesting set-up but what the trailers for this show did not highlight is how strange and wacky the character dynamics are. Because you’ve had a socially isolated human colony (Mooners) now interacting with a bunch of Earthers and— it’s hilarious and strange and eerie. Most of the time the Earther characters are baffled as fuck by the mooners who sound like they’re in a group therapy session that’s performing on stage. The mooners have high emotional IQs and love art and culture and are so touchy feely that the contrast with the hardened Earthers is amazing.

The show also is filmed in Ireland so you get to see some new filming locations that you don’t ordinarily catch in genre shows. AND of course has Dominic Monaghan who looks like he’s having the time of his life.

Emma McDonald plays Bella Sway and she brings such an incredible amount of nuance and depth to her character that 6 episodes just haven’t been enough for me and I’m really excited to see more. I try not to get my hopes up with new scifi shows these days because it’s too easy to get my heart broken but I have REALLY enjoyed this show. It’s doing a lot of interesting thematic exploration about nature vs nurture and the role of technology in people’s lives and how different groups of people see the purpose of technology differently.

It has SO MUCH WORLDBUILDING - including polyamory and partner dynamics within a family, fascinating birth/death rituals that have evolved on the moon, and some rather questionable ways mooners have altered child-rearing responsibilities to circumvent tribalism and prevent violence in their society.

What the trailer and reviews for this show mostly fail to capture is also just how fucking funny and strange the cultural differences are between the Mooners/Earthers. The Mooners LOVE to dance out their feelings.

There’s a conspiracy plotline that I’m not sure how it’s going to shake out but I’m really gnashing my teeth happily on these characters, the worldbuilding, and the technology.

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Avenue 5 is an HBO scifi/comedy (2 seasons, somewhat cancelled but maybe not cancelled according to some sources, seems to be a bit of a Schrödinger Cancellation) I am not sure I really recommend for most people because it is hilarious in that dark satire kind of way that not everyone wants to stomach (for good reasons). It’s by the same fellow who wrote/produced Veep so the humor is dark. I described Ave 5 as looking at our current dystopia through an un-funhouse mirror and laughing in horror.

The premise of the show is a space cruise gets thrown off course and it’s going to take years to get back to earth and the ship is full of tourists and incompetent people running the ship. It also features Ethan Phillips playing an obnoxious Martian astronaut character in a GIANT NOD to the hilarity of Star Trek Voyager.

The biggest (and most delightful) surprise of the show is Hugh Laurie’s character is queer and poly (he had two partners back on Earth). The show veers into shenanigans throuple territory (that I 100% need to write some fic for because the show is reasonably cancelled and I need MORE).

This show has some of the most hilarious and obscene dialogue that I’ve heard in years. I love it and have watched every episode several times because humanity is terrible and I kind of like laughing at their pain and awfulness rather than the real world. It’s extremely self-aware and has Lenora Crichlow (of Being Human UK!!!!) and Hugh Laurie being ABSOLUTE TOP OF THEIR FUCKING GAME.

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Humans (UK) is the AMC/BBC take on the Swedish show with the same name. On the surface this is a “we’ve created robots to do all of our work for us” premise (they’re called Synths here) and features a Colin Morgan as a scruffy fellow on-the-run with his fellow Synths that he was raised with as a child because his dad programmed the Synths with intelligence. This also has GEMMA CHAN!!!!!! As one of the main leads and she is EXQUISITE as Mia.

I watched and loved the original Swedish version but the British version did a fantastic job of building the family dynamics. It follows the Hawkins family who purchases a new Synth (Mia) and Mia has had her memory temporarily wiped to be in hiding so she doesn’t know who she is yet. The mystery in the beginning season is great but in the later seasons it really builds out the Hawkins mother/daughter relationship as well as letting Laura use her legal background to explore what kind of autonomy and protection she could advocate for Mia and her Synth family.

Mattie is a teenager who has an interest in programming and she’s adrift like many others her age who are facing a future with little job prospects and just getting yanked around by the world- and I just loved her arc in the show so much, especially as she gets involved with helping Mia and her family.

Colin Morgan is really great, too but I really fell in love with Gemma Chan’s depiction of Mia who slowly learns who she is and then is trying to find and keep her family safe while also protecting the Hawkins who are trying to help her.

I found this to be a very solid show — and one that I wish I had vidded already — with great character arcs and was very mindful in the way it was exploring these age-old questions about personhood and outsourcing work to machines and how you treat these machines.

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Life (2017) is a horror/thriller film inside a sci-fi setting. Scientists on the International Space station find a new life form that they picked up from Mars to study and Things Go Bad. Pretty great cast- Rebecca Ferguson, Hiroyuki Sanada, Ariyon Bakare along with — for some reason — Jake Gyllenhaal and Ryan Reynolds.

The life-and-death tension and anxiety of being trapped with something scary in the vacuum of space is spectacular. Really enjoyable film.

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Prospect (2018) is hands down one of my favorite indie scifi films. Low-budget, INCREDIBLE ACTING, masterful storytelling. The stakes are emotionally and physically high for our characters and had me on the edge of my seat the whole time.

The premise is a girl and her dad (Jay Duplass) go to a remote alien moon to try to mine some minerals to make it rich and start a new life. They get a contract that goes tits up in a bad way and end up face to face with the locals and scoundrels. INCLUDING PEDRO PASCAL. Pedro Pascal and Sophie Thatcher are the fucking stars of this and absolutely captivating. And yes this is part of the Pedro Pascal Multiverse Dad Canon so put it on your list to watch if you need more Dad Pascal.

This movie is INTENSE and raw and absolutely 10000% highest recommendation from me. The writing, the characters- the acting. The set/wardrobe design. A+++++

Everything about this movie is so detailed and internally consistent in a way that makes me wriggle with so much fucking joy.

I even trawled through YouTube to try and find out more about it and fell in love with a behind the scenes featurette. They filmed dust motes in a basement and transposed the dust over the outdoor scenes of the alien planet rather than doing CGI for it. And the work they spent designing the space suits is so great, too.

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#i will make a special follow up post to scream about For All Mankind cause that deserves its own post or additional note omg #meme #december posting meme #my posts #textpost #kuwdora recs #kuwdora watches #sci-fi tv and films

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humanoidhistory · 9 months

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Star Trek fan, 1984: “Star Trek is just something that people believe in. It gives you hope and promise. That’s why I believe in it.”

#star trek #tv #film #Star Trek day #sci-fi #scifi #fandom #history #DFW #texas

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the-watcher-in-the-sky · 10 months

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sahind · 6 months

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"I was able to touch you because we are connected by the Force. I drew on your link with the Force to become more solid, just as I draw on it now to become visible to you." [src]

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jamesusilljournal · 2 months

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Scavenger's Reign (2023)

#Scavenger's Reign #Cinematography #Sci Fi #TV #Science Fiction #Films

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thetheodispatch · 1 year

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Her (2013) dir. Spike Jonze

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oldshowbiz · 1 month

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The Love War (1970) is one of the most entertaining made-for-tv movies you'll ever see. Lloyd Bridges and Angie Dickinson in some evocative sci-fi action filmed entirely in the small town of Piru.

Piru, California is directly north of Los Angeles, within Los Angeles County, and it still looks just like this. It is basically a permanent, living, filming location.

Piru shows up in The Fugitive, The Invaders, Cannon, The Twilight Zone, The Immortal, Quinn Martin's Tales of the Unexpected, and the hippie movie Joshua's Castle (1972).

#piru #filming location #made for tv movie #late late show #evocative #angie dickinson #sci fi #lloyd bridges

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666frames · 5 months

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The Viewing (2022)

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mariocki · 5 months

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Michael Craze pops up as Vince Kelly, a teenage runaway from a borstal centre, in Gideon's Way: Boy With Gun (1.23, ITC, 1966)

#fave spotting #michael craze #ben jackson #doctor who #gideon's way #1966 #boy with gun #itc #a relatively rare fave spotting! outside of his DW work‚ Mike didn't make a huge amount of appearances in cult tv‚ at least not many that #survive or are easily seen; he'd previously starred in Target Luna‚ a completely lost serial‚ but didn't return when the show carried on as #Pathfinders in Space (oddly‚ perhaps because of a change of director‚ every single returning character was recast) and beyond #there were also episodes of Dixon pf Dock Green and Armchair Theatre but these are also in all likelihood lost tv; others‚ like an ep of #Hammer's sci fi anthology Journey to the Unknown‚ are frustratingly unavailable to the average viewer (I was really hoping Network would #do something with JttU after they announced an agreement with Hammer but alas it wasn't to be)#mike would have been about 22 when filming this ep (around May '65) but was still largely playing juvenile parts as here #(his age isn't given but as a borstal runaway he's clearly intended to be a teen); this aired in feb or march '66 in most regions‚ by which #time he had presumably been cast in DW (or very near to it; he'd debut in The War Machines in June of that year)#DW would act as a sort of transition for Craze from youth parts into adult roles (i mean Ben's own age is debatable but I'd say he's surely #meant to be at least 18?). there'd be some more guest spots and a few horror films to come (he was a regular collaborator with Norman #J. Warren) but he doesn't pop up with the regularity of many other Who companions so this was a lovely little surprise (zero memory of him #being in it from when i first watched years ago)

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thepalerimitation · 8 days

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Sci Fi/Noir/Indie Recs:

Sugar: A private eye must track down the daughter of a wealthy filmmaker, narrated through his wry, noir-obsessed, and truly romantic perspective.

Ohhhhhh myyyy gosh. I loved every moment and it felt like my brain was melting out of my ears. When will Apple make a bad sci fi show? It showed a beautiful balance of noir and modern, it was truly stunning to watch, and it made me bawl at the end. Colin Farrell is a gem and varied between the most darling man and the worst enemy to make.

Fast Color: In a world left in drought, the government pursues a woman whose seizures can cause earthquakes, while she flees from a power far stronger.

Gorgeous movie with excellent themes, it’s very emotional but I always love watching it. It’s one of those movies you can be really annoying about to all your friends who haven’t watched it.

After Yang: After a family’s robot shuts down, the father goes on a journey to repair it and discovers much more than he thought.

It’s an A24 film, so take a guess. It’s a wonderful movie, definitely a little weird and maybe not for everyone, but it’s such a good movie about adoption, family dynamics, and the value of life. I watched it at a very vulnerable time and I have to say, it made life seem much more worthwhile.

Person of Interest: An all-seeing machine can predict a person about to be involved in a violent crime, but is unable to determine if they’re victim or perpetrator. The machine’s creator and a retired CIA operative must attempt to prevent the crimes from happening in advance.

HELLO? The plot alone is just ridiculously clever and it’s soooooo…it’s sooooooo great. It starts out a little slow and there’s some flaws, but the characters and the plots throughout the show were just…true perfection. Peak sci fi crime.

#sci fi film #sugar tv show #fast color #after yang #person of interest #film review #film recommendations

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t4tmetalsonic · 2 months

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you. individual with masters degree on astrophysics. what are your thoughts on Christopher Nolan's hit film Interstellar

I liked it!! I'm always a slut for sci fi movies that have slow wide shots of space and futuristic/alien looking planets and ships (Blade Runner, Arrival and Dune come to mind as well).

The visuals of the black hole were incredible, the fact they created new CGI software just to get the physics behind it right too?? Good shit. Did you know 3 scientific papers were published as a result of this CGI bc it revealed new things abt black holes irl? We love to see it!!

I actually liked the ending too. We have no clue how it would be like inside a black hole so yeah why couldn't it take you back in time? And inside a bookshelf? Sure it was weird but like, that's the point!!

I alsoo rlly like that the effects were actually done FIRST and they filmed with the effects behind the actors rather than using green screens and adding them after. The TV show 1899 does something similar and I feel it's more effective with the lighting and looks more natural.

Overall, 8/10! I liked it a lot, the music is gorgeous (very important to me) and I would recommend it to others :]

#my 4th year project was actually about black holes but only using the basic schwarzschild and kerr models #the one in interstellar would have been a kerr black hole (rotating) but it also had an accretion disc #i was ignoring those existed skjhgdkfjg #also i love learning abt how they filmed movies and tv shows i find that so interesting #like the sandscreens and infra red cameras in dune. v cool #i just loooove sci fi movies tbh there should be more of them. in general #but like the specific ones i enjoy LOL #ANYWAY. THANK YOU FOR THE ASK!!!#fenn.post

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musesfromthefifthdimension · 5 days

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musesfromthefifthdimension - an rp sideblog with muses from old scifi, tv muses, and more. written by marker, follows from @markershub. contains the use of deceased faceclaims out of respect for their amazing portrayals. potential triggers tagged to the best of my ability.

reblog or follow if interested in interacting. / Please do not reblog this post if you are not a roleplay blog.

#twilight zone rp #mash rp #classic tv rp #classic film rp #gozilla rp #gojira rp #wolfenstein rp #monster rp #naoki urasawa rp #scifi rp #sci fi rp #fantasy rp #supernatural rp #godzilla minus one rp

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videoreligion · 1 month

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