Gary Varner

Abstract flight in retro neon hyper warp space in the tunnel 3d illustration

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
April 22, 2024

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Arts and Culture, Dystopia, fiction, Gary Varner, Movies and TV, Science fiction}

Spaceman Review, Part 3

_{Sometimes you have to leave what you love to go on a mission} _{Gary Varner

April 22, 2024

9

Arts & Culture}

Last time, we talked about Jakub’s new buddy, a giant spider that may or may not be real. This potential hallucination wants to help the astronaut with his loneliness because his wife, Lenka, has left him. The trouble is that the spider’s idea of helping poor Jakub is forcing him to remember his past. The writer wanted to give Jakub a redemption arch using these flashbacks; however, the astronaut’s memories were shown in a disjointed order, confusing the story and making Lenka look very bad, which made her and Jakub’s relationship difficult to root for. The chaotic flashbacks, mixed with a variety of plot holes, made for a very irritating story. One of the most glaring plot holes arises when Read More ›

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
April 13, 2024

Categorized
Science Fiction

Tagged
Adam Sandler, Chopra Cloud, Jakub Prochazka, Lenka in Spaceman film, Spaceman (2024 film), Spaceman (2024) alternative approach, Spider in Spaceman film}

Spaceman: Along Came a Spider and Sat Down… Well, Maybe

_{The spider is an alien with a somewhat complex relationship to people and toilets} _{Gary Varner

April 13, 2024

7

Science Fiction}

Adam Sandler gives a marvelous performance at a key point, but the script doesn’t give a specific moment that tells the audience what changed his mind. Read More ›

astronaut in a ship with a giant spider in space

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
April 6, 2024

Categorized
Science Fiction

Tagged
Adam Sandler, Colby Day, Jaroslav Kalfař, Spaceman (2024 film), Spaceman of Bohemia (2017)}

Spaceman: World Is Ending. Worse, an Astronaut’s Wife Wants Out

_{It’s not clear just what role the threatening Chopra Cloud plays and that complexity dogs the story} _{Gary Varner

April 6, 2024

6

Science Fiction}

Netflix recently released a film called Spaceman, starring Adam Sandler. It’s… interesting. The first time I watched it, I hated it. The second time I watched it, I hated it less. I can appreciate what the movie was trying to do, and Adam Sandler puts on a fine performance… most of the time. But there were just too many plot holes and too much meaningless rhetoric for me to really enjoy the story. The movie is based on a 2017 novel, Spaceman of Bohemia by Czech author Jaroslav Kalfař. It begins with a Czech astronaut flying toward a mysterious, purple anomaly called the Chopra Cloud. The Cloud had appeared in the sky a few years previously, with no known reason. Read More ›

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
March 30, 2024

Categorized
Science Fiction

Tagged
Alia (Dune 1984), Baron (Dune: Part Two), Chani (Dune: Part Two), Dune Messiah (1969), Dune: Part Two (2024), Emperor (Dune: Part Two), Feyd-Rautha (Dune: Part Two), Fremen (Dune: Part Two), Gurney Hallack (Dune: Part Two), Irulan (Dune: Part Two), Jessica (Dune: Part Two), Paul Atreides (Dune: Part Two), Rabban (Dune: Part Two), Sandworm (Dune: Part Two), Sardaukar (Dune: Part Two), Shield Wall (Dune: Part Two)}

Dune, Part Two: A Good Movie But a Bad Set-Up for Part Three

_{When Paul avenges his father and settles an old feud, the threads of the story start to connect} _{Gary Varner

March 30, 2024

9

Science Fiction}

Last Saturday, we talked about how the writers did an excellent job setting up Feyd-Rautha as a worthy adversary for Paul. However, their decision to make Chani a skeptical antagonist—opposing the man she supposedly loves—has already created numerous problems for the story, and those problems continue to stack up. By the time we reach the conclusion of the film, I don’t know how the writers expect to create a Part Three that will be in any way, shape, or form consistent with the source material. In Part Two, Paul and the Fremen finally launch their final assault on the emperor. As in previous retellings of the story, Paul uses his father’s stash of atomic weapons to blow a hole in Read More ›

Dramatic sand storm in desert. Abstract background. Digital art.

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
March 23, 2024

Categorized
Science Fiction

Tagged
Bene Gesserits (Dune: Part Two), Chani (Dune: Part Two), Feyd-Rautha (Dune: Part Two), Gurney Halleck (Dune: Part Two), Harkonnens (Dune), Jessica (Dune: Part Two), Kwisatz Haderach (Dune: Part Two), Paul Atreides (Dune: Part Two), Water of Life (Dune: Part Two)}

Dune, Part Two: At Last, Feyd-Rautha Becomes Relevant

_{The treatment of Feyd in this version is more satisfactory than in any previous one. We are prepared for Paul’s confrontation with him} _{Gary Varner

March 23, 2024

8

Science Fiction}

The portrayal of Chani in Part Two is, however, much harder to understand. If she doesn’t believe in the Bene Gesserit religion, why is she there on Arrakis? Read More ›

desert landscape with sand being shaped into sharp dunes by the wind.

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
March 16, 2024

Categorized
Science Fiction

Tagged
Bene Gesserits (Dune: Part Two), Chani (Dune: Part Two), Dune: Part Two (2024), Fremen (Dune: Part Two), Jessica (Dune: Part Two), Kwisatz Haderach (Dune: Part Two), Paul Atreides (Dune: Part Two), Reluctant hero trope (Dune: Part Two), Reverend Mother (Dune: Part Two), Sandworm (Dune: Part Two), Spacing Guild (Dune: Part Two), Water of Life (Dune: Part Two)}

Dune, Part Two: Paul Becomes a Hero — Very Reluctantly

_{Some departures from the book work better than others. The “reluctant hero” trope simplifies a complex political situation but at a cost} _{Gary Varner

March 16, 2024

8

Science Fiction}

Overall, Paul’s reluctance, in this version, to be the Fremen’s leader enables him to earn their respect over time while doing more ordinary tasks. Read More ›

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
March 9, 2024

Categorized
Science Fiction

Tagged
Alia (Dune: Part Two), Christopher Walken (Dune: Part Two), Dune Messiah (1969), Dune: Part Two (2024), Dune: Part Two alterations from novel, Dune: Part Two and proposed sequel, Emperor (Dune: Part Two), Irulan (Dune: Part Two), Jessica (Dune: Part Two), Kwisatz Haderach (Dune: Part Two), Reverend Mother (Dune: Part Two), Stilgar (Dune: Part Two), Water of Life (Dune: Part Two)}

Dune Part Two Succeeds Brilliantly — But Dooms Plans for Part III

_{The difficulty is that the changes made for the film have warped the core story so much that it’s going to be nearly impossible to follow the source material from here on out.} _{Gary Varner

March 9, 2024

8

Science Fiction}

For example, if the Bene Gesserits are the true power behind the throne, why do they need a Kwisatz Haderach to cement their power? Read More ›

dramatic sand storm in desert, background, digital art

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
March 2, 2024

Categorized
Science Fiction

Tagged
Alia (Dune), Alicia Witt (Alia in Dune), Arrakis (Dune), Baron (Dune), Bene Gesserits (Dune), David Lynch (Dune decisions), Defensive shields (Dune), Dule Leto (Dune), Dune (film 1984), Dune (film 2021), Dune (novel 1965), Emperor (Dune), Feyd Harkonnen (Dune), Fremen (Dune), Gom Jabbar (Dune), Harkonnens (Dune), Jessica (Dune), Kwisatz Haderach (Dune), Paul Atreides (Dune), Reverend Mother (Dune), Sardaukar (Dune), Spice (Dune), Weirding Module (Dune), Weirding Way (Dune)}

Dune 1984 Offers A Strong Finish to a Unique Adaptation

_{I’d go as far as to say that, while not all of David Lynch’s adaptations worked, the film is, overall, better than the book} _{Gary Varner

March 2, 2024

7

Science Fiction}

The rainstorm Lynch introduces at the end, implies, refreshingly, that there was more going on in Dune than just the plans of men. Read More ›

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
February 24, 2024

Categorized
Science Fiction

Tagged
Baron (Dune), Bene Gesserit (Dune), David Lynch, Dr. Kynes (Dune), Dr. Yueh (Dune), Duke Leto (Dune), Duncan Idaho (Dune), Dune (1984), Emperor (Dune), Fremen (Dune), Gom Jabbar Test (Dune), Gurney (Dune), Harkonnens (Dune), House Atreides (Dune), Jamis (Dune), Jessica (Dune), Paul Atreides (Dune), Reverend Mother (Dune), Sandworms (Dune), Sardaukar (Dune), Voice (Dune), Weirding Module (Dune)}

Dune (1984) vs the Classic Sci-Fi Novel: What Worked, What Didn’t

_{For some scenes, the film was an improvement on the book; for others, writer David Lynch might better have stuck with the original} _{Gary Varner

February 24, 2024

7

Science Fiction}

Last time we talked about the opening of Dune 1984. The Hollywood Strike has delayed the sequel to the current remake till March but the classic is worth revisiting in the meantime, both for its successes and failures. The 1984 writer, David Lynch, made various changes to the story that gave the viewer a clearer understanding of what was going on than Frank Herbert’s classic 1965 novel did. After the first two scenes, which help establish the situation in the world of Dune, the Reverend Mother flies to Caladan to test Paul Atreides with the painful Gom Jabbar. I’ve agreed with his choices so far. His opening showed the viewer why the Reverend Mother chose to visit Paul when she Read More ›

Astronauts exploring an asteroid 3D rendering elements of this image furnished by NASA

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
February 17, 2024

Categorized
Science Fiction

Tagged
Bene Gesserit (Dune), Dune (1965), Dune (film 1984), Dune (film 2021), Frank Herbert, Gom Jabbar Test (Dune), Harkonnens (Dune), House Atreides (Dune), Infodump plot risks, Irulan (Dune), Jessica (Dune), Kwisatz Haderach (Dune), Paul Atreides (Dune), Reverend Mother (Dune), Sandworms (Dune), Shaddam Corrino IV (Dune), Spacing Guild (Dune), Water of Life (Dune)}

Where Did Dune 1984 Succeed? Where Did It Fail?

_{The Hollywood Strike postponed the release of the sequel to the new film version of Dune until March so, for now, let’s have another look at the 1984 version} _{Gary Varner

February 17, 2024

6

Science Fiction}

The decades-old film retelling relied on some risky techniques but they turned out better than we might have expected, given the scope of the plot. Read More ›

Quantum portal to a world of wonder and mystery, where the laws of nature are strange and unpredictable. wormhole, time travel illustration.

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
February 10, 2024

Categorized
Arts & Culture, Relationships, Science Fiction

Tagged
Alien 3 vs Alien Resurrection, Alien Resurrection Part 4, Betty (Alien Resurrection), Call (Alien Resurrection), Christie (Alien Resurrection), Hillard (Alien Resurrection), Johner (Alien Resurrection), Purvis (Alien Resurrection), Queen (Alien Resurrection), ripley, Ripley (Alien Resurrection), USM Auriga (Alien Resurrection 1997), Vriess (Alien Resurrection), Wren (Alien Resurrection)}

Alien Resurrection Part 4: The Good, the Bad, and the… Bizarre

_{In a single moment, Purvis becomes one of the most heroic characters in the entire franchise} _{Gary Varner

February 10, 2024

8

Arts & Culture, Relationships, Science Fiction}

Alien Resurrection might help you forget Alien 3, and that alone makes it worth watching. Read More ›

astronaut in space with stars and moon, spaceship under attack, 3d illustration

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
February 3, 2024

Categorized
Robotics, Science Fiction

Tagged
Call (robot in Alien Resurrection 1997), Robotics in film (endowing robots with sentience), USM Auriga (Alien Resurrection 1997), Xenomorphs (Alien Resurrection 1997)}

Alien Resurrection (1997) Part 3: Call Up the Reluctant Robot

_{Amid the harrowing crew escapes, Call survives being shot because she’s a robot. She somehow has sentience and hates being a robot} _{Gary Varner

February 3, 2024

8

Robotics, Science Fiction}

No one can pull ideals from a system of numbers. How could a robot decide what is objectively moral when all its decisions are based on a set of probabilities? Read More ›

Spooky silhouettes of aliens and bright light in background. 3D rendered illustration.

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
January 27, 2024

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
aliens, Arts and Culture, Dystopian, Gary Varner, Movies, ripley, Science fiction, tv}

Alien Resurrection, Part 2: Trying to Recover After a Retcon

_{The writers of the show never seemed to agree on how smart these aliens really are.} _{Gary Varner

January 27, 2024

8

Arts & Culture}

A problem for the franchise as a whole is that there’s been no consistent measurement for these creatures’ intelligence. Read More ›

Scary gray alien walks and looks blinking on a dark smoky background. UFO futuristic concept. 3D rendering.

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
January 20, 2024

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Alien, Arts and Culture, Films, horror, Movies, ripley, Sci Fi}

Alien Resurrection, Part 1: This Movie Pays for the Sins of the Last One

_{It's better than Aliens 3, but has a host of problems nonetheless.} _{Gary Varner

January 20, 2024

8

Arts & Culture}

Ripley remembers enough about her old life to have misgivings about the military raising the Alien Queen, but of course, she’s ignored, and the army moves on to the second phase of their plan. Read More ›

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
January 13, 2024

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Cinema, fiction, film, Movies and TV, Science fiction, Technology}

Alien 3 Review, Part 4

_{Ripley's curtain call} _{Gary Varner

January 13, 2024

7

Arts & Culture}

In the third article, Ripley woke up in an all-male prison after surviving a shuttle crash. A parasitic alien tagged along and implanted an embryo in an inmate’s dog. The embryo breaks out of the animal and begins killing people until everyone figures out what’s going on, then they hatched one of the dumbest plans I’ve ever seen in cinema. After that, Ripley begins feeling sick. She goes to her still fully intact cryobed and scans herself. She finds that the parasitic alien has also planted an embryo inside her. The fact that Ripley had an embryo in her the entire time is ridiculous for a number of reasons. As I’ve mentioned in previous articles, her cryobed wasn’t broken, so Read More ›

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
January 6, 2024

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Alien, aliens, Gary Varner, James Cameron, Sci fi saturday, Science Fiction and Fantasy, Technology}

Alien 3 Review, Part 3

_{Aliens vs. Looney Tunes} _{Gary Varner

January 6, 2024

7

Arts & Culture}

In the previous reviews, we talked about how Ripley is once again the sole survivor. Her ship crashed because, somehow, the alien queen she killed in the second movie managed to lay an egg in the five minutes before it died. That egg hatched, attacked Ripley and the other’s cryobeds, and some of its acidic salvia melted its way into the ship’s wiring, causing the spacecraft to crash. To make the situation even more ridiculous, the escape shuttle the cryobeds were moved into crashed as well, and everyone expect Ripley was killed. Ripley wakes up in an all-male prison. Superintendent Harold Andrews is concerned for her safety, so he does his best to keep Ripley in the medical wing. Ripley Read More ›

ACT I, typed text on a vintage typewriter, screenplay title heading. On old paper with ink. writer's idea

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
December 23, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Alien, Arts and Culture, film, Movies and TV, Science fiction}

Alien 3 Review, Part 2

_{An attack on motherhood and logic} _{Gary Varner

December 23, 2023

7

Arts & Culture}

Last time, we began with the opening scene, and already, the entire franchise is ruined. In this review, we’ll discuss why. I would recommend reading the previous article for clarity, but for now, I’ll simply list the sequence of events. The alien queen, somehow, managed to lay an egg inside the room where the cryobeds were kept in spite of the fact that she’d never been outside the hull of the ship. The egg hatched and the parasitic alien damaged Newt’s cryobed, then for no apparent reason, abandoned its attempt to latch onto Newt, and latched onto Ripley instead. But here’s the thing. Ripley’s bed wasn’t damaged in anyway. So, how did it break into the bed? Both the ship Read More ›

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
December 16, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Alien 3, aliens, movie review, Sci fi saturday, Science fiction}

Alien 3 Review, Part 1

_{How to destroy a franchise in seven minutes} _{Gary Varner

December 16, 2023

8

Arts & Culture}

No sense in burying the lead. This one is awful. But it’s important to understand how and why it’s awful. Alien 3 manages to destroy the entire franchise with remarkable speed. I’ll explain how, as the reviews go on. We start off with a credit sequence, and already things feel off. Ripley and the surviving members of the previous film are still in their cryobeds, but something else is aboard the ship as well: an alien egg. This egg is seen hanging upside down, almost at eye level. Already, we have a plethora of problems, so let’s dive in, shall we? The previous movie, Aliens, established that it takes a queen to lay these eggs. Now, we don’t know exactly Read More ›

realistic render of the earth seen from space,visible lights of European cities at night.Elements of this image furnished by NASA. 3d rendering

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
December 11, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
aliens, Cinema, film, Gary Varner, James Cameron, Movies and TV}

Aliens Review, Part 1

_{I found Alien to be tolerable, but not worth the hype. So, who’s to say if the second movie will be any better?} _{Gary Varner

December 11, 2023

6

Arts & Culture}

Editor’s note: Parts one and two of this series have already been published here and here. The editor apologizes for the oversight and hopes you will enjoy this initial review and read the attending reviews as well. The first Alien film is considered a sci-fi classic, and Aliens, the sequel, is widely regarded as the best movie in the series. But personally, I found Alien to be tolerable, but not worth the hype. So, who’s to say if the second movie will be any better? It starts out with Ripley being found by a scavenger ship, where she is quickly taken back to earth and awakened from her cryosleep. Right away, we have a problem. One of “The Cooperation’s” big Read More ›

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Author
Gary Varner
Date
December 9, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Alien, Arts and Culture, Gary Varner, Movies and TV, Science fiction}

Alien Review, Part 3

_{So, what can be said about Alien? It’s okay.} _{Gary Varner

December 9, 2023

7

Arts & Culture}

There are a number of plot holes and contrivances that force the story along, but the movie is enjoyable as long as you don’t think too hard. Read More ›