The Letters to the Editor department is intended to be a forum for our readers to express their own opinions and ideas. While we appreciate the many complimentary letters we receive each day, you won't find them on this page. Instead, you will find letters that go beyond or even contradict what we have written, letters that offer a different perspective and provide a different view of science fiction. If you would like to submit a letter, please use our feedback form or send a message to scifiweekly@scifi.com.
-- Craig E. Engler, Editor
Some questions about Prey
id anybody see Prey? Did anybody think it a bit dumb? Why should a new human species have to kill the rest of us off, except of course for the story line? If they were truly a new human species (superior?) why should they draw attention to themselves if they are afraid? Just sit back and breed, soon enough they will be us. If evolution is as claimed, the human race has already had its share of improvement as better humans come along and breed back into the race. If you want a good enemy, let's stick with something that would have a good reason to call attention to itself.
Bill Denby
bdenby@flash.net
The Postman is more American propaganda
have to disagree with your giving The Postman a B- as I felt this film deserved a C- rating at best. It was way too long and had to be the worst example of American propaganda since Independence Day. Remember that one?
Oh no! The bad old aliens are coming to get us whatever shall we do? Wait a minute we're saved! The Americans have a plan! Get real! Like the rest of us on the planet are all bumbling idiots. Actually that really annoyed me in Starship Troopers too, not to mention Space Above and Beyond. One thing I will say in the movie's favor was the locations were outstanding, the mine and the dam were really interesting to look at.
I shudder to think what the unedited version of the movie must have
run. When there's a great story to be told such as say Dances with Wolves or Titanic then three hours is acceptable but when there isn't such as here it's just poor filmmaking.
smccuaig@telusplanet.net
Alien Resurrection...who cares?
lien Resurrection was a waste of time. From beginning to end, I couldn't figure out what this film was trying to do. The occasional bits of humor never succeeded and whatever attempts at tension [there were] failed. What I was watching looked beautiful, don't get me wrong, but the content was substandard.
Once again, a situation where the characters (a group you couldn't care less about) must make it back to their spaceship before the unleashed aliens hunt them down and do unspeakable things with their cerebellums.
Again, there is not one character in this film that you care anything for. One is half-human and so separated from her humanity that there is no emotional attachment, one is an android and the rest are twisted criminals, savage military-types or corrupt scientists. Who cares?
And let's not overlook things like the fact that the characters hold their breath under water for what seems like an eternity, they go through all this effort of swimming and climbing when one of the characters suddenly appears beyond the door they were struggling so hard to get to, and what about the loss of life on Earth at the film's end? Did no one notice the magnitude of this enormous explosion? How many millions died?
I'm sorry, but in my opinion, this was an embarrassment of a film and yet again another example of the trend in Hollywood to dump a sh*t load of money into what amounts to a very poor film.
Joss Whedon should be slapped on the wrist for this script...
Scott Alan
sawoodard@earthlink.net
Where's the serious SF?
hy can't Hollywood bring the classics of science fiction to the big
screen? With the possible exceptions of Dune and Starship Troopers (both of which are engaging, but heavily flawed movies) the motion picture industry has virtually ignored science fiction as a serious genre. Hollywood has managed to successfully adapt numerous classics (Moby Dick, Gone with the Wind, The Grapes of Wrath, and countless remakes of Shakespeare, to name a few). But whatever happened to Foundation, The Stars My Destination, or Stranger in a Strange Land? A serious effort to adapt I, Robot failed after years in the hopper. Why? Instead we are fed movies, which, while superficially fun to watch, are just crap. Recent entries which come to mind are The Fifth Element, Alien Resurrection, The Postman, and Independence Day. (Good God, for the money they spent on ID4, we could have had Childhood's End!)
Chris Snider
chris@op9.com
