Absolutely Alien

Eccentric Aliens

This is usually the time of year when I allow my hopes to rise...maybe there will be a new film this summer with an interesting alien.

I like to think that science fiction, as a literary genre, should never take itself too seriously, so I allowed myself to momentarily become intrigued by the idea of a movie (Absolutely Anything) that has Terry Jones, Terry Gilliam, John Cleese and Eric Idle as a group of aliens who come to Earth.

Sadly, as far as I can tell, this movie should have been called Monty Python Remakes Bruce Almighty. It looks like Absolutely Anything is not really science fiction, just a vehicle for some skits like "The Ministry of silly dog walks" and other Python leftovers that have been pulled out of a desk drawer in order to raise some ca$h. Full title: "Put $ome Recognizable Name$ in Big Print and you can $ell Absolutely Anything". [update 2017: I saw this movie and wish I had not...I'm not into silly penis jokes and other lame jokes that should have been left in that desk drawer.]

Retrofuturism

Tomorrowland

My current writing obsession, the Exode Trilogy, is two thirds a time travel story, so I've been having fun imagining how time travel was used to construct the world as we know it. For example, I've decided that aliens had to "invent Carl Sagan" in order for we Earthlings to have a future among the stars.

I briefly allowed myself to fantasize that George Clooney might be looking up at an alien spaceship (see the poster to the left), but apparently Tomorrowland has nothing to do with aliens. [2017 update: I watched this movie. I wish it has been edited down to just the fun 30 minutes. Ya, no aliens.]

Before Tomorrowland

I don't know if it is a joke by marketing people, but Before Tomorrowland is being described as a prequel to Tomorrowland.

First Contact
The Exode Trilogy takes place in the Exodemic Fictional Universe where aliens have been visiting Earth for billions of years. A few special Earthlings know about the aliens, but whenever they try to spread the word, one of two things happens: 1) they get taken away from Earth so that they cannot "spill the beans" or 2) everyone thinks that their stories about "ancient aliens" are nothing more than science fiction. In the Exode Trilogy, even Isaac Asimov gets abducted by aliens.

What if the best thing about
your movie is its tag-line?

SETI
Thoughts of Contact began dancing in my mind when I read that Lazer Team is a science fiction story based on the idea that some Earthlings receive a message from aliens. However, Lazer Team is apparently like Absolutely Anything, just a comedy film that uses a few Sci Fi themes to launch a movie about dudes with technology-boosted superpowers...or something.

My fantasy mashup movie: Spark Sighting. (poster to left)

My Search for Interesting Hollywood Aliens continues.

SIHA 2014 
SIHA 2015