One of the great joys of engaging with modern cinema is that we are given the chance to both relish in the work of the established masters, as well as find new talent that emerges, usually as a result of a wider set of stories being told by more diverse voices. One such example is…

Something that never fails to surprise me as a film lover is how, despite seemingly having told every kind of story, certain filmmakers still manage to find new ideas, even if it means working with more conventional material, and in the process finding unique ways to deliver them. Riley Stearns isn’t very well-known to those…

Science fiction is a genre that can either age spectacularly well, or be the subject of excruciating mockery, particularly those that take place in a realistic distance into the future. It all depends on whether the story they’re telling actually manages to be plausible enough for viewers to believe such events are possible, and the…

Over the past few months, I’ve been revisiting a range of classic science fiction films, particularly those produced in the 1950s. There’s something so special about these films, with their do-it-yourself approach to the most ambitious stories resulting in the kind of chaotic art that is both entertaining and utterly inspiring. It has all led…

There is a certain deranged pleasure that comes in watching films made many decades ago that supposedly predict a future we have already bypassed – while those set in the distant future tend to be quite compelling, the most fascinating are those that look slightly closer to reality, as is the case in 1. April…

Frank Herbert’s Dune has had a long and troubled journey to the screen – from the moment it was released in 1965, there have been various attempts to bring it to the screen. The well-documented efforts by revolutionary Chilean director and film iconoclast Alejandro Jodorowsky to adapt the novel after purchasing the rights failed (but…

At first glance, The Quatermass Xperiment may not appear to be anything particularly special. It seems like yet another low-budget science fiction film from the 1950s, which told bizarre tales of the unknown, interlaced with metacommentary surrounding the Cold War. However, a slightly deeper look will reveal how absolutely essential this film is, a vital…

Human nature is a strange concept – despite having been a subject of study since around the time we gained consciousness in the earliest days of the antiquity, no one has ever been able to offer a succinct and clear definition of what it means to be human, or why we are arguably the dominant…

The 1950s were filled to the brim with bizarre science fiction films, cheaply-produced works that could be easily accompanied with a more major production as part of the practice of double features and matinees – audiences just adored these kinds of films, despite their often jagged exterior. There were many that were highly influential and…

Steven Spielberg is the kind of director who, when he hits the mark, can legitimately make a case for one of the most captivating filmmakers of his generation, but can also be accused of insincerity when his work isn’t particularly strong, and clearly just the result of a small idea and a large budget. However,…