Is the Scifi genre officially dead?

[zanos]

For the past decade I can't honestly think of more than two original scifi films that wasn't a sequel or an adaptation of a book and actually became notable films. Even the 90's only had a handful at best. During the 80's you had classics like Back to the Future, Weird Science, The Last Starfighter, E.T., Tron, Ghostbusters, Starman, Terminator, Cocoon, Mad Max, Escape from New York, Invaders from Mars, Short Circuit and Robocop. If you're looking for something even remotely original from Hollywood in the genre of scifi today you can just forget it.

 

[SuperFerret]

If you're looking for something original, you can just forget it. There are no original concepts left, just interesting ways to use what's been done before.

 

[Galactus]

Well, scifi isn't exactly the only genre with a lack of originality. But at least we have James Cameron's Avatar coming up. And Christpher Nolan's scifi-movie. And maybe Steven Spielberg's Interstellar

 

[Batspider77]

a little Movie called Avatar will be a Original Sci-Fi Movie.....let´s see how this turns out.

 

[Silvermoth]

I would completely despair of sci fi in the 21st centuary if it wasn't for "Sunshine" and "Children of Men"

 

[CelticPredator]

a little Movie called Avatar will be a Original Sci-Fi Movie.....let´s see how this turns out.

I have a feeling its going to be one of 3 things...

1: It will suck. Hardcore.

2: It will suck, and be super preachy about the keeping the world clean and all that.

or 3: It can kick ass. But still be uber preachy...

Yeah, I have little faith in this movie. And Aliens is my all time favorite movie.

 

[odiin]

Sci Fi is a nerd thing, and nerd things have ALWAYS been about sequels. Keep the sequels coming, I say.

 

[Eggyman]

Sci Fi is a nerd thing, and nerd things have ALWAYS been about sequels. Keep the sequels coming, I say.

Can you please shut up and log off.

I have hopes that it'll pick up soon. There seems to be a stirring interest again. Everything works in cycles.

 

[BloodyWolverine]

Um what do people think some comic book films or even Transformers is. Sci-FI is hardly dead. With The Green Lantern coming up some day id say no. We have Star Trek this year. Terminator 4, Transformers 2, Race To Witch Mountain. Dragon Ball Evolution, Watchman. Guys scf-fi is part of comics in a way.

 

[dude stannis]

It's on life support. When brilliant films like Sunshine and Children of Men flop, the hope starts to wane.

Let's have a looksee into the future:

Terminator Salvation. No matter how many good things we keep hearing about it, five letters and two digits hang tight around this film's neck like a noose: MCG PG-13. These two factors can totally bury the film.

The Surrogates. Johnathan Mostow is a solid director. But the writers have a mixed bag of success.They have a crap film (Catwoman), a decent film (Terminator 3) and a great film (The Game) on their resume's. It's a total crap shoot at this point. On the other hand it mixes Philip K Dick with Bruce Willis Alchoholic Cop, how can that not be awesome?

Avatar. We know jack all except Cambo hasn't made a feature film in 12 years and a feature film that didn't suck in 15. From the period of 1984 to 1994 Cameron was god. But that was a long time ago. From what I've seen form him Sam Worthington is no Schwarzenegger or Beihn either.

Christopher Nolan's Inception. No doubt this will be the most cerebral of the lot. Hopefully if it's a cerebral 2001: A Space Odesseyesque "thinking movie", then Nolan is the man to deliver. However if it's an action movie, I'll be dissapointed, Nolan is a stingy ****er when it comes to action. But this the second safest bet of the lot.

Steven Speilberg's Interstallar. Is this even happening?

Ridley Scott's Brave New World/Forever War/Chronicles of Ripley. These are the guaranteed classics. Scott just needs to get off his old ass and hurry the hell up with them!

 

[BloodyWolverine]

Why do people forget Star Trek. Sure i get the Terminator thing but theres no more sci-fi movie then to go where no man has gone before.

 

[dude stannis]

Why do people forget Star Trek. Sure i get the Terminator thing but theres no more sci-fi movie then to go where no man has gone before.

D'oh! You're totally right! Haven't been following Star Trek but I think it will do well.

 

[odiin]

Can you please shut up and log off.

I have hopes that it'll pick up soon. There seems to be a stirring interest again. Everything works in cycles.

If it weren't for sci fi sequels we wouldn't have Aliens, or Terminator 2, or The Wrath of Khan, or The Next Generation, or Deep Space 9, or The Empire Strikes back, or the new Battlestar Galactica, or Back to the Future 2 and 3, or Mad Max 2.

So yes, I will shut up and log off and watch all those wonderful movies and shows while you're busy complaining. The Sci Fi genre has alwasy been built off of franchises, and I hope it stays that way.

 

[Carmine Falcone]

Zowie Bowie's flick Moon with Sam Rockwell looks good.

 

[Eggyman]

If it weren't for sci fi sequels we wouldn't have Aliens, or Terminator 2, or The Wrath of Khan, or The Next Generation, or Deep Space 9, or The Empire Strikes back, or the new Battlestar Galactica, or Back to the Future 2 and 3, or Mad Max 2.

So yes, I will shut up and log off and watch all those wonderful movies and shows while you're busy complaining. The Sci Fi genre has alwasy been built off of franchises, and I hope it stays that way.

I was complaining? Really? Sh**, I better watch out for that. I didn't even know until you said. You've just mentioned some great sequels, congrats. The only 'new' thing you mentioned was Battlestar... new being the word I would stress because that is indeed the point of this thread: Scifi's current status.

And I was joking about you shutting up and logging off, hence the wink.

 

[bunk]

Sci-fi just really isn't that popular in the states. When they come out, they almost always make more internationally.

 

[odiin]

Battelstar Galactica isn't new. Reimagining or not it's still derivative of the 1978 show, which is my point: The sci fi genre is built upon the idea of franchises, and that's never going to change, people love being able to revist and build upon the already rich mythology.

 

[BloodyWolverine]

Eureka is a good little sci-fi show and sci-fi will never be dead cause of tv for people love sci-fi shows and i am sticking too the facts here. Comic book movies are more sci-fi then any other genra.

 

[TruerToTheCore]

Battelstar Galactica isn't new. Reimagining or not it's still derivative of the 1978 show, which is my point: The sci fi genre is built upon the idea of franchises, and that's never going to change, people love being able to revist and build upon the already rich mythology.

space opera. Not sci-fi as a whole.

And sci-fi is the genre with no limits at all so it will never die.

 

[Eggyman]

Battelstar Galactica isn't new. Reimagining or not it's still derivative of the 1978 show, which is my point: The sci fi genre is built upon the idea of franchises, and that's never going to change, people love being able to revist and build upon the already rich mythology.

Yeah, and often it doesn't work. I'll take some fresh ideas, thank you.

 

[Rac]

A lot these movies mentioned here are not original. T4, Star Trek and The Surrogates for example are based on something else.

For the past decade I can't honestly think of more than two original scifi films that wasn't a sequel or an adaptation of a book and actually became notable films.

eXistenZ (1999)
The Matrix (1999)
Pitch Black (2000) ("Originalness" is debatable.)
Cypher (2002) (Though this didn't become notable. Cult status.)
Equilibrium (2002) (Well yeah, not very original, but it's not based on anything. Just draw its inspiration from various books & films.)
Signs (2002) (Like it or not, it was original and became notable.)
The Island (2005) (It doesn't state to be based on anything, but everyone knows it's a Clonus rip-off/remake.)
Sunshine (2007)

It's All About Love (2003) was original, but it didn't become notable. Born to be a cult movie.

That's all I can think of now. Sure there were stuff like The Host, Nothing and Perfect Creature that dwell into the sci-fi genre, but I'm not really sure do they count.

Zowie Bowie's flick Moon with Sam Rockwell looks good.

Indeed.

Also, Hunter Prey looks interesting.

 

[That-Guy]

I think that sci-fi is actually looking a lot more promising than it has in years, and Star Trek and Terminator Salvation will really kick it into high gear. Transformers, while not everyone's favorite movie, performed really well and the sequel is expected to as well.

As for original sci-fi movies... I think that the problem here is the budget. To make a really good sci-fi film you either need 1. an exceptionally talented director or 2. a HELL of a lot of money.

Sunshine was the most innovative sci-fi movie I've seen in since the first Matrix film. I'm not sure how much the production budget was, but I'm guessing it wasn't very much. But Danny Boyle is a genius, and the film was brilliant. Why it got no promotion is beyond me. I don't see why the studios (apparently) didn't feel it would appeal to mainstream audiences.

On the other hand, most sci-fi films look cheap because they don't have the talents of someone like Danny Boyle at the helm. The reason is, the studios don't want to take a risk on pumping a lot of money into something that isn't a surefire hit. An established property like Star Trek or Terminator isn't as risky because those franchises has a fanbase. And while there is always some fan backlash, the fact is, even the people who are set on hating it will probably still go see the movie.

 

[Doctor Jones]

It's on life support. When brilliant films like Sunshine and Children of Men flop, the hope starts to wane.

Let's have a looksee into the future:

Terminator Salvation. No matter how many good things we keep hearing about it, five letters and two digits hang tight around this film's neck like a noose: MCG PG-13. These two factors can totally bury the film.

The Surrogates. Johnathan Mostow is a solid director. But the writers have a mixed bag of success.They have a crap film (Catwoman), a decent film (Terminator 3) and a great film (The Game) on their resume's. It's a total crap shoot at this point. On the other hand it mixes Philip K Dick with Bruce Willis Alchoholic Cop, how can that not be awesome?

Avatar. We know jack all except Cambo hasn't made a feature film in 12 years and a feature film that didn't suck in 15. From the period of 1984 to 1994 Cameron was god. But that was a long time ago. From what I've seen form him Sam Worthington is no Schwarzenegger or Beihn either.

Christopher Nolan's Inception. No doubt this will be the most cerebral of the lot. Hopefully if it's a cerebral 2001: A Space Odesseyesque "thinking movie", then Nolan is the man to deliver. However if it's an action movie, I'll be dissapointed, Nolan is a stingy ****er when it comes to action. But this the second safest bet of the lot.

Steven Speilberg's Interstallar. Is this even happening?

Ridley Scott's Brave New World/Forever War/Chronicles of Ripley. These are the guaranteed classics. Scott just needs to get off his old ass and hurry the hell up with them!

It sepends what the story calls for. Don't have it rated R just for the sake of it.

 

[zanos]

If it weren't for sci fi sequels we wouldn't have Aliens, or Terminator 2, or The Wrath of Khan, or The Next Generation, or Deep Space 9, or The Empire Strikes back, or the new Battlestar Galactica, or Back to the Future 2 and 3, or Mad Max 2.

So yes, I will shut up and log off and watch all those wonderful movies and shows while you're busy complaining. The Sci Fi genre has alwasy been built off of franchises, and I hope it stays that way.

I see. So what fantastic franchises have been built off of interesting new scifi films from the 90s till now? I can think of three notable ones, MIB, Jurassic Park and the Matrix. Even if you were to argue over the quality of their sequels that's still just 3 franchises in 20 years and only two of those weren't based off an already established book. If your argument is that the scifi genre is built off of franchises and there's only been 3 well known scifi franchises in the last 20 years then my point has been made. Thank you.

 

[Brian Braddock]

Zowie Bowie's flick Moon with Sam Rockwell looks good.

Beat me to it.

Moon looks awesome; it has a retro 2001 meets Silent-Running vibe.