Stalker

 It is classified as a science fiction film, but it is anything but that "Stalker" (1979) directed by Andrei Tarkovsky and starring Alexander Kadanovsky, Anatoly Solonitsyn, Nikolai Grinko among others.

Its the slowest science fiction movie that i have ever seen. The camera moves ever so slowly and with a purpose. The Stalker (Alexander Kadanosky) takes people to a distant place where ordinary laws of physics do not apply and it was probably a site where a meteorite once fell. That is called the Zone and it is a difficult path to traverse.

One can't go in a straight line and each step has to be carefully taken. The stalker takes two men - the Writer (Anatoly Solonitsyn) and the Professor (Nikolai Grinko) to the Zone. Inside the Zone there is a room where all your desires and wishes will be fulfilled. Its an allegorical film in the sense that to achieve such a state of consciousness that to achieve one's desires, a person has to pass through many obstacles and difficulties and hardship.

The script is intellectually challenging because a whole host of philosophical questions are thrown at the viewer. The camera work is absolutely astounding, the art design showing the ruins and remnants of an industrial building including dirty water is breathtaking and stark. Cinematography as usual is quite good. Andrei Tarkovsky's movies are difficult to follow yet there is something in it for the viewers, something deep and thoughtful that a viewer can relate to in his own life. IMDB 6/10 

Ad Astra

Ad Astra, a 2019 science fiction drama movie directed by James Grey and starring Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones, Liv Tylor, Donald Sutherland among others. It is more of a psychological drama movie rather than pure technology although there is a lot of science frontiers being broken down as shown in the movie, for eg. colonies in moon, Mars and space travel to Saturn, Jupiter & Neptune. Brad Pitt (Roy McBride) is the son of Clifford McBride (Tommy Lee Jones) who has gone away to space for 30 years in search of intelligent life on the universe, in the process he has travelled to Saturn, Jupiter and now stationed near Neptune. His space station has created some cosmic ray disturbances which has affected Earth also, so the son sets out to locate his dad in the vast universe, which takes 79 days from Mars itself. Lot of emotional tug of war between father and the son later, earth is safe from the cosmic disturbances and the power surges. The movie drags a bit in the middle especially when Brad is about to reach Neptune to find his dad after 3 decades. There is no emotional re-union sort of, the Dad has more or less lost his contact and interest in Earth. The movie was nominated to the Oscars in the sound mixing category. The special effects in the movie is quite extraordinary, it is in the human connect that the movie finds its weak spot. 
 

The Body Snatchers

Jack Finney has written this science fiction novel way back in 1955 and it has apparently been adapted into a movie four times already. The plot starts very well and is exciting. Dr. Miles Bennell comes across an unusual case which does not involve his speciality but for which he agrees to visit since it is from an old flame. People start acting weirdly in a small town off California. The phenomenon grows over. He then brings in his friend a psychologist to have a look over the case. His friend reasons it be a case of mass delusion which has happened before also. But apparently things take a turn for worse and then he and his flame is on the run from apparently alien like pods which impregnate humans and make them worthless. The start of the novel is quite good, but it drags on towards the middle and latter part of the novel. Finney's narration is quite good. Goodreads rating 2.5/5 

Children of the Thunder

Just got around to finish this book "Children of the Thunder" by John Brunner. It is a science fiction book and John Brunner takes a long time to get around to the story. It is about some kids who commit juvenile crime but of such proportions as to shock even the adult mind, crimes, such as running a prostitution racket, protection racket, murder etc. All these kids are ostensibly born out of surrogacy and there are doubts that all these kids might probably be from one donor. First there is an assumption of mind control in the sense that these kids have some kind of psychic power where they can read people's minds and they are brilliant but in a devious way. In between there are newspaper reports of some kind of catastrophe after another taking place somewhere in the world and there is also mention of a General Thrower who is a probably a menace to the society. Peter Levin is a science fiction writer who makes a living by digging up stories on calamities and Dr. Claudia is a science researcher from US who has developed the instinct that there is something violently wrong with these kids and could there be a connection between. Brunner has attempted to carve out a plausible story but it all ends up in one big disappointment, hence the 1 star.

Children of the Thunder

Just got around to finish this book "Children of the Thunder" by John Brunner. It is a science fiction book and John Brunner takes a long time to get around to the story. It is about some kids who commit juvenile crime but of such proportions as to shock even the adult mind, crimes, such as running a prostitution racket, protection racket, murder etc. All these kids are ostensibly born out of surrogacy and there are doubts that all these kids might probably be from one donor. First there is an assumption of mind control in the sense that these kids have some kind of psychic power where they can read people's minds and they are brilliant but in a devious way. In between there are newspaper reports of some kind of catastrophe after another taking place somewhere in the world and there is also mention of a General Thrower who is a probably a menace to the society. Peter Levin is a science fiction writer who makes a living by digging up stories on calamities and Dr. Claudia is a science researcher from US who has developed the instinct that there is something violently wrong with these kids and could there be a connection between. Brunner has attempted to carve out a plausible story but it all ends up in one big disappointment, hence the 1 star. 

Tyrannosaur Canyon

Just finished reading "Tyrannosaur Canyon" by Douglas Preston, a science fiction with murder, crime, action, etc. a fast moving, exciting book.