My Movie Report Card - A Look Back The 2013 Sci-Fi Films I Saw and My Grades For Them

My 2013 Sci-Fi Movie Report Card

It was a great year for science fiction in the theaters and on television.  I spent a lot of time at the movies this year, the most I have since I closed my theater.  I liked most of what I saw and loved some of what I saw.  So I thought I would recount the movies I saw in the theaters and a few on television and assign grades to them.   I also took the time to compile the ratings from Rotten Tomatoes and IMDB just to see how I stacked up against them.  I think the results are interesting.  You may agree or disagree with my grades, and please feel free to feed back to me on Facebook, Twitter, or G+ if you wish.  I would love to know what you think, one way or the other.  So here are my grades of the films I saw.  In each the title is also a link to my review of the film in question.

After Earth

Tomatometer: 11%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience: 38%

IMDB: 5/10

My Grade: A-

I enjoyed this movie quite a bit.  One thing that helped my enjoyment of this movie was reading the prequel book After Earth: A Perfect Beast by Michael Jan Friedman, Robert Greenberger, and Peter David.  While others have mentioned that they don’t like Jaden Smith, I had no problem with her performance.  The scenery for this film was breathtaking and the story was solid.   It is a fun movie, but I would have liked to see more action from Will Smith, whom I have come to respect as an outstanding actor.

Elysium

Tomatometer: 69%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience: 62%

IMDB: 6.8/10

My Grade: A

An action packed film with a decent story and a few surprises.  It centered around the state of health care in the future, with the haves versus the have-nots.  The story was solid, and action was nonstop, and the performances of the actors were well done.  While the main character, portrayed by Matt Damon, wound up sacrificing himself in the end, it was satisfying to see that his sacrifice was not in vain, and the poor downtrodden did finally prevail.

Ender’s Game

Tomatometer: 61%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience: 74%

IMDB: 7.2/10

My Grade: A+

I read the book in preparation for seeing this film and was impressed that the film actually was the book.  I completely recognized the characters in the film and thought they were played excellently by the actors.  The parts of the book that weren’t in the film didn’t affect the film at all and so it wound up being Ender’s story.  The visual effects were outstanding and on a large scale.  For me, it was superior in every way, and it was a film that I was able to take my family to.  It was great to see Harrison Ford back as well.

Europa Report

Tomatometer: 79%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience: 59%

IMDB: 6.5/10

My Grade: B

A found footage style film, which I am not a big fan of, was a decent film with no big named actors.  I was not able to watch this in the theater because it was held to a limited release; too bad too because I would have loved to see this on the big screen.  The visuals were incredible.  I found the story a bit hard to follow at times not understanding where some of the dialog was relevant to the film.  I was also a little taken aback when I learned that there are giant luminescent squid on Jupiter’s moon, Europa.  In order to see this, I bought it on BluRay, so I will be seeing it again to see if the parts that didn’t fit for me will become a little more clear.

Gravity

Tomatometer: 97%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience: 85%

IMDB: 8.4/10

My Grade: A+

From the first time I saw the trailer for this film, I knew that I had to see it.  The plot wasn’t all that remarkable; just a rehash of a theme of survival of a single person, but it was done well.  Were there plot holes?  Oh yeah, there were plot holes big enough to fly the ISS through.  But despite the inconsistencies with physical science and orbital mechanics, this was still a great film and one of the best of the year as far as I was concerned.  One didn’t have to be a sci-fi fan to appreciate it.  The visuals were absolutely stunning.  Sandra Bullock and George Clooney played their parts as astronauts well.  I am looking forward to getting this on BluRay when it is released, the sooner the better.

Invasion Roswell

Tomatometer: N/A

Rotten Tomatoes Audience: N/A

IMDB: 4.2/10

My Grade: C

SyFy advertised the heck out of this movie for its television release.  I just had to give it a look.  This was an unintentionally comical movie that surprisingly held my attention for two hours.  I laughed most of the way through it because it reminded me of the films that they used to poke fun at on the Mystery Science Theater 3000 television show.  I could actually imagine Mike and the robots comments.  One of Syfy’s big selling points was that Denise Crosby was the star.  I suppose that they were hoping to get us Trekkies watching because of this, and it worked, at least in my case.  Crosby actually played a very small part in the film.  For me, I thought this movie was so bad, it was good, or at least it was entertaining for its high level of stupidity.

Iron Man 3

Tomatometer: 78%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience: 80%

IMDB: 7.4/10

My Grade: D

I am not a fan of the Iron Man film franchise to begin with, but of the three Iron Man films, I didn’t like this one the most.  Yes, I know I am in the minority, and I’m okay with that.  For me, this film was not as much about Iron Man as it was a two-hour Robert Downey Jr. running stand-up comedy act.  It was nothing but a string of lame jokes and backhanded remarks that did nothing to add to the story.  I didn’t care about the characters, and I didn’t care about the story.  Add to that the way they destroyed one of the best characters of Marveldom (the Mandarin), and demolished another one of the coolest characters, War Machine (changing him into Iron Patriot), left me cold.  The two things that were good and saved this from me giving a grade of ‘F’ was that the visuals were good, and that Tony Stark decided to hang up the armor at the end.  I hope it stays that way, because I am hanging up on this franchise until some major changes are made.

The Last Days On Mars

Tomatometer: 20%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience: 29%

IMDB: 5.5/10

My Grade: C+

Fine performances from a good cast, good sets, and good locations couldn’t make up for a weak story and script.  Films using the subject of Mars haven’t been very great movies in the past and this one is not an exception.  What starts out as an interesting film soon deteriorates into a sci-fi/horror version of a zombie apocalypse on the Red Planet.

Man Of Steel

Tomatometer: 56%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience: 76%

IMDB: 7.4/10

My Grade: A+

In the review of this film, I called this the best superhero film I have ever seen, and that still holds up.  This reboot of the superman story had everything I want to see in a film.  Great characters, great writing, great story, and great filming.  But what stole the show for me was Michael Shannon’s portrayal as General Zod.  He was incredible as the single minded guardian of the people of Krypton.  In previous incarnations, Zod was just evil, but in this movie, he was a character trying to fulfill his role in his society.  Some have complained that Superman killed Zod, which goes against what Superman stands for, but in my estimation, Superman had no choice in the matter.  I am eager to see the next installment of this saga that includes an aging Batman, and perhaps even Wonder Woman.

Oblivion

Tomatometer: 54%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience: 61%

IMDB: 7/10

My Grade: A

Not a very fast moving film, but one that challenges one to think a bit.  I thought this was one of Tom Cruse’s best films.  It was an original story and the ending was somewhat reminiscent of the ending of Logan’s Run.  I liked the vehicles and the scenery and the surprises that were in this film.

Pacific Rim

Tomatometer: 72%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience: 78%

IMDB: 7.1/10

My Grade: B+

This was a visual effects romp that didn’t pretend to be anything more than it was, just a fun film with robots fighting monsters.  There were lots of cool moments during battle scenes.  This film didn’t require its audience to think, and was nothing but action from beginning to end.  There was really no hard hitting story, nor was there much character development, it was just a good sci-fi/action film, as it was apparently intended to be.

Star Trek: Into Darkness

Tomatometer: 87%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience: 90%

IMDB: 7.9/10

My Grade: A-

While I thought Into Darkness was a great film, I didn’t think it was a great Star Trek film.  What I wanted was a new and fresh Trek story from JJ Abrams.  After all, he did what I though was an awesome job of creating an alternate timeline for the franchise, I wanted and was expecting a new story, but instead we get a retelling of TWOK.  I have a few nit-picky problems with Into Darkness which I covered in my review on the blog.  I am very comfortable with the actors playing the classic Enterprise crew, and I thought Benedict Cumberbatch did a fine job portraying Kahn, but I didn’t care for the look of the new Klingons.  I am relieved to learn that JJ will not be directing the next film, and am likewise relieved that there will be a new writing team.  Perhaps we will finally get something new.

Thor: The Dark World

Tomatometer: 65%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience: 83%

IMDB: 7.6/10

My Grade: A+

Marvel did this one right.  For me, at least, Tom Hiddleston as Loki stole the show.  One doesn’t know whether he is an ally or a foe, but he and Thor have some fantastic exchanges or dialog.  This film had everything that one might want from a marvel film and was the most like seeing a comic book come to the big screen as one can get.  It had action, it had some humor, and the actors were perfect for their roles.  Outstanding in all aspects in my opinion.

A Look Ahead…

So what does the sci-fi movie landscape look like to the upcoming year?  I don’t think it will be as strong as last year.  I have compiled a list of films that are slated for release in 2014 and based on the previews that are available, give them a yes, I will see them in the theater, no I will not see them in the theater, or maybe I will.  Here it is with the trailers, where available…

I, Frankenstein – January 24^th – Maybe

 

RoboCop – February 12^th – No

 

Mr. Peabody and Sherman – March 7^th – No

 

Divergent – March 21^st – No

Noah – March 28^th – Yes

Captain America: Winter Soldier – April 4^th – Yes

Transcendence – April 18^th – Maybe

Godzilla – May 16^th – Maybe

X-Men: Days of Future Past – May 23^rd – Yes

Edge of Tomorrow – June 16^th – Maybe

Transformers: Age of Extinction – June 27^th – No

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes – July 11^th – Yes

Jupiter Ascending – July 18^th – Maybe

Guardians of the Galaxy – August 1^st – Maybe

The Giver – August 15^th – Maybe

Resident Evil 6 – September 12^th – No

The Maze Runner – September 19^th – No

 Sorry, I couldn't find an official trailer.

Interstellar – November 7^th – Maybe

 Sorry, I couldn't find an official trailer.

Tomorrow Land – December 12^th – Maybe

 Sorry, I couldn't find an official trailer.

Left Behind – No Date Given – No

 Sorry, I couldn't find an official trailer.

Well, there it is…

QaplaH’!

Thor: The Dark World - Marvel Gets This One Very Right!

Thor: The Dark World – 2013

Marvel pulls out all the stops on this sequel to the first Thor (2011).  The Dark World is a spectacular continuation to the Thor saga, as well as to the last film the God of Thunder appears in, Avengers (2012).

Dark World starts out with a history lesson.   Odin’s father, Bor fights a battle against the Dark Elf Malekith, who was intent on using a weapon called the Aether to bring darkness to the universe.   Bor defeats Maleketh and contains the Aether in a monolith.  With his weapon incapacitated, Maleketh, his most powerful warrior, Algrim, and several of the Dark Elves escape into suspended animation.

In modern day Asgard, Loki is imprisoned for his part in the events of the Avengers film.  At the same time, Thor leads a battle on Vanahiem to end a two year conflict and bring peace to the Nine Realms.  Meanwhile, Jane Foster has moved to London where she is investigating some strange phenomena that allows objects to disappear when dropped and the reappear repeatedly.  Jane is then teleported to another realm where she becomes infected by the Aether.

The phenomena that Jane was investigating turns out to be a rare convergence between the nine Realms that randomly opens portals allowing people and objects to pass between them.

Hemidal, the guardian of the main entrance to Asgard, alerts Thor that Jane has gone missing.  Thor finds Jane and brings her to Asgard where the Asgardian healers attempt to remove the Aether from her with no success due to powerful energy discharges from Jane whenever she is threatened.   With the return of the Aether, Malekith and his minions are reawakened and attack Asgard.  A battle ensues and Thor’s mother, Frigga is murdered.  Odin orders that no one is to enter or leave Asgard preventing Thor from going to seek revenge against Malekith.

Thor learns from Loki that there are other ways to get out of Asgard but only he knows them.  Reluctantly, Thor teams up with his brother and with the help of the Warriors Three, Thor, loki and Jane leave Asgard on a Dark Elf ship and arrive on Svartalfheim.  Loki tricks Malekith into removing the Aether from Jane, but is apparently killed in doing so.  Thor and Jane return to Earth to continue the battle with Malekith who intends to release the Aether at the center of the convergence between the Nine Realms in Grenwich.

While Thor and Malekith fight a battle that moves between the Nine realms, Jane and her team use their scientific equipment to destroy Malekith saving the universe from darkness.

There is more to the story, but you’ll have to see the film to get the big reveals that take place in the last few minutes of the movie.  Also, one should note that it is important when seeing The Dark World, one should stay through all of the closing credits as there are two “Easter eggs.”

Dark World is a slugfest of action from start to finish.  The two hours of the film went by like nothing.  One of the most endearing parts of this film as that one gets a sense, at least for most of the film, that Loki isn’t as evil as one might think.  He comes into his own as a character, and is someone that I came to care about.  Loki is also the source much of the humor in this film.  At one point, while leaving Asgard, Loki and Thor have a lengthy exchange in which Loki uses his powers of illusion to change himself and Thor into other characters.  This scene culminates with Loki changing himself into Captain America which had the audience in stitches (the house was packed, as one might expect).  It was a great cameo appearance from Chris Evans and added much to the movie because it was completely unexpected and totally off the wall.

Regular readers of this blog might recall that my main complaint for a previous Marvel film, Iron Man 3, was that it seemed like a running stand-up act for the main character.  In that film, the humor seemed forced and after a while I felt that the writers were beating me over the head with it.  Not so with Dark World; the humor in this movie is natural, fits in the story well, and is very reminiscent of how I remember it appearing in the comics I read as a young man.  Tom Hiddleston almost steals the show with his performance and is worth the price of the ticket alone.

The battle scenes are epic in proportion and are fast paced, but one can get a real sense of and appreciate how again, they are very much like what one would get if reading a comic.

I would also like to point out that there were two death scenes that I found very moving.  The first was the murder of Frigga.  While she acquitted herself well in battle, she was eventually overcome in front of her son.  Along with that was a traditional Viking funeral scene that would be worthy of a goddess and she went out with class.  I will miss her character in future films, even though she was not a major character.  Renee Russo was brilliant in this role.

Loki’s “death” scene was also quite poignant and was quite heroic for a character that has dangerous ambitions.  Hiddleston and Hemsworth played this scene perfectly.  I was also moved by this scene despite the fact that I knew that Loki cannot die because there is still so much of his story to be told.  And afterall, Loki is a trickster and wouldn’t do anything unless he benefits in some way, up to an including losing his life.  The last few minutes of the film will reveal what Loki’s real future might be as well as the future of Thor films.

Marvel Studios did this one right.  It is absolutely spectacular in every way a film should be.  Great acting, perfect casting, lots of action with a smattering of humor, and not a whole lot of mushy stuff (but there is a little of that too) all wrapped up in a great story.  Highest recommendations for Thor: The Dark World.

As a Star Trek fan, I would be remiss at not pointing out that along with Chris Hemsworth (Commander George Kirk of the USS Kelvin), another member of Trek alumni Alice Krige (Borg Queen, Star Trek: First Contact) appears briefly in two scenes as an Asgardian doctor.  It was good to see Krige back on the big screen.

Well, there it is…

Q’aplaH!