I’m starting fresh here on the site, so let me introduce myself to any who might happen along this path. My name is Suzan Troutt, alias Jade Smith(my pseudonym when writing dark fiction tales).
I’m currently at work on National Novel Writing month, having been roped into said franchise by another writer(and longtime friend). I couldn’t say no to the challenge, and now I find myself knee-deep in science fiction. I have never written sci-fi, only read it. The experience is scary to say the least. Technical! Difficult! But I’m loving it, and the goal-setting of NanoWriMo is getting results.
If you are interested in checking out my published works, head over to the link list and click on Fear and Trembling Magazine.
I will(when November is over, probably)be sharing some art and poetry and fiction links here, and if I find any writing advice out there I will pass it along. Hey, I’m learning as I go.

I picked up this short novella with no real idea of its content. I don’t know what I was expecting, but I hadn’t anticipated this dystopian novel of unmatched bleakness.

Equality 7-2521 is the protagonist of this story, in a primitive society of the future where individuality is a crime, and men live only to serve the common good, as dictated by a shadowy council of leaders. In Equality 7-2521 we find a man in whom individuality has neither been bred out, nor quenched; unlike his docile and spiritless ‘brothers.’ However, Equality 7-2521 recognises his uniqueness only as a sin against the collective, having no concept of ego.

The story is narrated by Equality 7-2521, in the form of a secret memorandem written in stolen moments. The language employed is utilitarian and colourless, reflecting the unambiguous and serviceable creeds by which the community lives; the only language Equality 7-2521 knows.

What impressed me most was the author’s success in reducing her characters to self-similar drones, without capacity for original thought. In other dystopian novels which I have read the potential has remained, oppressed, but in tact. I also waited in vain for the emergence of those who are more equal than others, but removal of identity is complete, and the system is perfectly collective, and self-replicates without obvious advantage to those who rise to leadership positions.

This is collectivism taken to the absolute extreme, and at the time of writing would have served as a polemic against communist ideals.

As the story follows Equality 7-2521’s struggle to find a workable concept of self it becomes clear that this self-awareness will manifest as a religion.

“As the flames rose, a thing happened which no eyes saw but ours, else we would not be living today. Perhaps it had only seemed to us. But it seemed to us that the eyes of the Transgressor had chose us from the crowd and were looking straight upon us. There was only joy in them, and pride, a pride holier than it is fit for human pride to be.”

Having taken apart collectivism Ayn Rand finally introduces Objectivism, a philosophy and movement of her own design. (I might add that I have spent nearly as much time reading/thinking about the implications of Anthem as it took to read it!) I have read that Ayn Rand was anti-religion too, so maybe I missed something there, but I definitely got the impression that Objectivism in this context equated to a worship of self or ego.

I wonder why this book is not mentioned in the same breath as 1984, Brave New World, or Fahrenheit 451, et al. Perhaps Ayn Rand pushed her dystopia beyond the limits which people are prepared to entertain, but I enjoyed the extremity of her world, a mental exercise which left the reader with plenty to ponder. Although I cannot agree entirely with Ayn Rand’s philosophy, it certainly gave rise to some intriguing lines of speculation.

“The Surrogates” is a true new Sci-Fi classic. It combines real science predicts where it is going and combines it with a moral message. Its a good concept, exaggerated version of what internet is going to lead to in the future. you know, being someone you’re not and getting away with it.

Moreover this movie pretty much does take to an extreme what happens already when we play a video game or watch a movie. People, myself included, simply cannot accept the fact that life is, for the most part, nothing more than routine. We are born, go to school, get a job, have kids, grow old and die. We all are nothing more than little gears in a much, much larger engine called society, dreaming about the day when we will actually mater; realizing that day will never come.

Status: Série em andamento, desde 25 de setembro, 2006.
Genêro: Drama, Sci-FI
Tema: Super-heróis

Enredo: à medida que um eclipse cobre com sua sombra todo o globo terrestre, pessoas de diferentes partes do mundo descobrem que possuem poderes especiais. A relação entre elas é um cientista indiano que defende a tese de que um próximo passo na evolução humana já está sendo dado, com o surgimento espontâneo de seres com habilidades especiais. Ele é assassinado em Nova Iorque investigando este fato, e o seriado se inicia com seu filho, um professor de genética (Sendhil Ramamurthy) sendo avisado de sua morte e tentando descobrir o que aconteceu com o pai, que sempre dizia estar sendo perseguido. Enquanto isso, os personagens da série começam a descobrir seus super poderes. Um jovem sonhador (Milo Ventimiglia) tenta convencer seu irmão político (Adrian Pasdar) que ele pode voar. Uma líder de torcida (Hayden Panettiere) descobre ser totalmente indestrutível. Uma stripper (Ali Larter), lutando para sustentar seu filho (Noah Gray-Cabey), começa a perceber que possui uma outra personalidade capaz de produzir uma força sobrenatural oculta. Um presidiário fugitivo (Leonard Roberts) misteriosamente descobre que pode atravessar objetos e pessoas. Um talentoso artista (Santiago Cabrera), cujo o vício pelas drogas está destruindo sua vida e sua relação com a namorada (Tawny Cypress), pode pintar o futuro. Um policial azarado (Greg Grunberg) consegue ouvir o pensamento das pessoas. No Japão, um jovem (Masi Oka) descobre que pode parar o tempo. E os seus destinos são nada menos do que salvar o mundo.

Episódios

Last night I watched Ink, a intriquing new fantasy by Jamin Winans which was recently released on dvd and brought to mind films like Donnie Darko, Brazil and Dark City. I really wasn’t sure what to expect but I was pleasantly surprised by it’s truely unique story and visuals.

The basic premise of Ink is that when we sleep at night there are two forces that may visit us, the one who bring us good dreams and of course the ones who deliver nightmares. These forces are often at odds with each other and are ultimately trying to influence our every move in life. Both sides when entering our world are invisible to us and one character, Ink is on a mission for the dark ones to steal the soul of a young girl  to gain acceptance into their ranks. The forces of good known as the Storytellers  fight to stop this from happening while trying to wake her dead beat dad from his meaningless & mundane daily conciousness to save his daughters soul on the other side.

This movie’s powerful plot, excellent visuals and haunting score  keep you in a state constant melancholy. At times there are even some impressive action sequences as well. One particularly is the first big battle in the little girl’s house which brilliantly shows how these beings exist in the real waking world. Almost every scene is this film is hazy and emotional on some level as if the whole experience is in fact a dream itself. The acting unfortunately varies a bit, though there are still some strong perfomances here. However at times the good acting can make the bad look a whole lot worse. Particularly from a character named Jacob, a pathfinder who can alter real life events and wears electrical tape over his eyes (though he does cause a pretty magnificent chain reaction scene) .

For a $250,000 budget this indie film definately delivers the goods. The CG is used tastefully and the films overall look is impressive. Every now then however some scenes creep into the movie that sadly reflect it’s lower budget. The hugley deformed main character Ink is well done also, even if at times I was certain his gigantic quivering prosthetic nose was going to drop from his face. I think anyone going into this film should not expect The Matrix (even though I did notice a little influence) but more so a heartfelt adult fantasy that will leave you pondering the power of your own dreams…

wiki:

Nirvana is a science fiction film, produced in Italy in 1997 by director Gabriele Salvatores, starring Christopher Lambert, Diego Abatantuono and Stefania Rocca. It was screened out of competition at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival.

Nirvana is one of the rare Italian science fiction films to use extensive computer generated special effects. The director, Gabriele Salvatores, shot the movie mainly in “Portello” the old Alfa Romeo assembly plant in Milan. The whole place was converted in this sci-fi set where many ethnic sides of the city are shown. From the Indian to the Japanese to the Chinese, the movie moves around the dynamic and the futuristic realms that the future created.

The storyline itself exemplifies several main themes of cyberpunk, such as the Philip K. Dick quote “Living and unliving things are exchanging properties”, meaning computers are becoming human, and humans are becoming less so, both by the influence of technology.

Despite a poor box office reception amidst accusations of weak plotting and simplistic rendering of the main themes, Nirvana has achieved something of a cult status, especially in Europe. The title of the film is key to understanding its comparison of reincarnation with being endlessly reborn in a video game.

here is the only version of the original trailer that i found, it’s in french but the movies is in english

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE TORRENT

James Cameron was on 60 minutes last night talking about his sci-fi epic, Avatar. Here is the segment with lots of clips from the film and behind the scenes stuff.

    Slowly as a carnivorous mammal stalking it’s pray, Cass began to turn her head towards the right a moment that seem to take forever. As the distortions hasten from the corners of her eyes, they began to clear as she started to study the whole area. Cass focused her clear blue eyes on the innocuous pile of roots surmounted by shrapnel torn trunk nothing stirred. Everything seemed to be perfectly right, that spot was the only hiding place available to the sniper, he must have settled there after they had move in otherwise they all would be dead by now.
   At that moment, a minute blur of movement fixed her eyes into a killer stare. It was so evanesced that many a specialist would have miss it, but it riveted Cass to attention. The stare stayed, not a blink, a movement, the realization of what she had just seen kept her motionless. Protruding from the tangle of roots was the tip of an amphibian’s rifle; the barrel was screened well amongst that mass. It had been wrapped with bark and smeared with mud to break the stark outline and this technique would prevent reflection of light off metal, nevertheless the deadly square mouth of the muzzle was uncovered.
   Slowly the minutes ticked by, Cass watched the tip of the barrel, but it did not move again. This situation she and the others found themselves in was going to be difficult, this sniper was patience and processed the stillness to go with it.
    Unbearable minutes crept by without any break in the heavy air of tension. Vasrac like the others, Rowe and Owain dared not to move. His rifle was in the firing position and he was aiming the muzzle towards his own line. Through the raised sight he pinpointed the position of that shot the amphibian had taken.
   He stared through the sight willing Grey to try the dummy `droid again. “Come on try Toby again,” Vasrac was almost muttering to himself. He witness the sniper take out the `droid with it’s first shot so he thought he had a good idea where it was; behind Moongazer, which side he was unsure of. Lutron knew that if the amphibian fell for the maintenance `droid again he would have the time to turn and fire. Which side of Owain he would decide when he pulled the trigger and he was banking on Cass or Rowe had pinned him by now. Vasrac did not like the idea of turning and firing wildly, but their options were running out, and this sniper was not going anywhere.

CRYDAW   Call of the Blue Stone   Page 37

All Material is Registered with The Writers Guild of America, west, Inc.
All material is owned by the Author and can not be used, or copied without permission.

Status: Série em andamento, desde 16 de outubro, 2001
Gênero: Drama, Sci-Fi
Tema: Família

Enredo: Smallville é baseada na história do mais conhecido super-herói da DC Comics de todos os tempos, o popular personagem Superman. A série mostra a vida do adolescente Clark Kent, que vive e cresce em Smallville. O seriado mostra como Clark lida com os problemas enfrentados durante a adolescência de qualquer humano comum, somando-se ao fato de, enquanto isso, manifestar novos poderes anormais, o que traz o lado dramático ao formato desejado pelos produtores: mostrar a vulnerabilidade de um pseudo-humano enquanto ele é completamente invulnerável. A idéia geral no seriado é a de que Clark seja assim, uma pessoa também vulnerável, principalmente quando está próximo das pedras de Kryptonita (pedaços radioativos de seu planeta-natal) e dos problemas emocionais com os outros personagens.

Episódios

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IMDB link  http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1327701/

IMDB ratings  (awaiting 5 votes)

Release Date : 21 November 2009 (USA)

Genre : Sci-Fi

Plot : Against the staunch protests of his closest allies,Gwen (Galadriel Stineman) and Kevin (Nathan Keyes),super-powered teenage hero Ben (Ryan Kelley) joins forces with his mysterious old friend Elena (Alyssa Diaz) to investigate and defeat an unstoppable threat known as the alien swarm. Produced by the Cartoon Network, this live-action adventure movie features awesome motorcycle chases and exciting battle scenes.

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I Was a Teenage Frankenstein is a film starring Whit Bissell, Phyllis Coates and Gary Conway released by American International Pictures (AIP) in November 1957. It is the sequel or, rather, follow-up to AIP’s box-office hit I Was a Teenage Werewolf released less than five months earlier. It was filmed in black and white, with the ending in color for a vivid effect.

Tagline:  Body of a boy! Mind of a monster! Soul of an unearthly thing!

American International Pictures released this film to many drive-in theaters on a double bill with Blood of Dracula (1957) with the tag line: “Warning! Can You Take It? Fiendish! Frenzied! Frightening! It Will Haunt You For Days Afterwards!”

Amazon Specials!

i’m a little late getting this review out.  but hey, i been busy.  i just now got around to seeing this film and i can honestly say it didn’t suck.  it’s way better than the day after tomorrow.  which did suck and was the last movie by director roland emmerich.  wait, i take that back.  his last movie was 10,000 BC.  which also sucked.  but anyway…

they should have named this film 20012: an apocaliptic odyssy.

this thing is not really strong in the story department, but these catastrophe films rarely are.  not enough time for any good plot when all you are doing is trying to run from the destruction of the earth.  the special effects are what this film is all about.  but you also have some very likeable actors to make this thing run along quite smoothly.

who doesn’t love john cusack?  and everyone loves danny glover.  amanda peete is great.  the chick that plays danny glover’s first daughter is super hot and reminds me of thandie newton.  oh wait, that’s because it is thandie newton.  and even though i can’t pronounce his name, chiwetel ejiofor is one of my favs.  he plays the role of the scientist.

and it is great to look at.  watching the ocean roll over the himilayas is pretty awesome.  as is all the destruction.

bottom line this is a big budget hollywood blockbuster type of disaster film.  with a special appearance by woody harrelson.  and it flows along nicely as i’ve just said.  it doesn’t seem near as long as it’s 2 hour and 45 minute run time.  just go easy on the large soda or you might miss seeing hawaii as a giant volcano.

i’m probably not going to run out and buy this when it comes out on dvd like i did star trek last week, but this is a very enjoyable movie perfect for the big screen.

three popcorn tubs out of five.

Desi subiectul nu este foarte original, mi-a placut foarte mult filmul.

Despre ce e vorba, pe scurt: peste foarte multi ani vom juca jocuri gen Sims sau Counter Strike, numai ca in

locul jucatorilor virtuali vom avea oameni reali. Adica va exista un nou joc, Society, care seamana cu Sims, in care ai putere totala asupra unei persoane care si-a dat acordul sa fie controlat de altcineva. Sa fii “personaj” Society va fi unjob - ti se vor implanta niste celule in creier prin care sa poti fi controlat. Slayers este varianta noua a Counter Strike – detinutilor condamnati la moarte li se va da aceasta sansa: sa devina personaje Slayers, controlati in totalitate de altcineva, urmand ca dupa 30 de runde in care au supravietuit sa fie eliberati. Aceste jocuri au o popularitate uimitoare in intreaga lume, tocmai de aceea personajul lui Gerard Butler devine ceva mai mult decat un erou cand reuseste sa treaca de 26 de runde din Slayers, el fiind controlat de un pusti de 17 ani.

Ce m-a scandalizat total a fost simpla idee ca undeva in viitor oamenii vor ajunge atat de nepasatori incat sa isi lase viata in mainile unui necunoscut, sa scape de orice fel de responsabilitati, dar in acelasi timp sa piarda orice putere de decizie, puterea de reactie si chiar instinctul de conservare. Poate tocmai de asta mi-a placut filmul asa mult, pentru ca ilustreaza extrem de bine lumea spre care ne indreptam in mod periculos prin toata aceasta nebunie “2.0″.

“Gamer” e o combinatie de “Surrogates” si un film al carui nume nu reusesc deloc sa mi-l amintesc – l-am vazut in urma cu vreo doi ani si era vorba tot despre detinuti condamnati la moarte care fusesera lasati pe o insula pustie, iar cel care reusea sa supravietuiasca si sa-i omoare pe ceilalti era eliberat. Dar, repet, mi-a placut mult si chiar va recomand sa-l vizionati.

Good news, everyone!

We’ve got two new Futurama toys now added to the slowly-growing collection of figures from Toynami. Joining the already-released items are Hermes and Professor Farnsworth, both of whom include office accessories from Planet Express–Farnsworth even includes Leela’s beloved pet, Nibbler. The 6-inch figure line has already seen the release of Fry, Leela, Bender, Amy, Cloberella, Nudar, Captain Yesterday, Calculon, Zapp Brannigan and Kiff Kroker, some of whom might seem peculiar choices to have been released before these two staples of the Planet Express staff, but all is now right with the world.

In fact, while we’re talking about Futurama making things right with the world, let’s remember this summer’s awesome news that Futurama would be returning in 2010. It was made official, which delighted fans in June and then terrified them when the news broke that contract negotiations and a heavily reduced budget would mean they might need to recast the voice actors.

Fortunately, any fears were put aside following an explanation from cast member Maurice Lamarche later in the summer and now we need only sit back and wait for June 2010 to roll out with 26 new episodes of the show.

To learn more about the series’ triumphant return to TV, check out this article from Newsday, which is not only a crash course on the series, but gives fans a tantalizing tidbit about the potential name for the first new episode!

And finally, here’s a video compiled by a very awesome youtube user who has compiled every Futurama heading since the very beginning! Take a look:

Iya kalau dimensinya sudah begitu kecil, simpan di mana monitornya? Dimensinya tidak melebihi ukuran kuku ibu jari kita, tetapi memiliki resolusi hingga 800 x 600 piksel (SVGA)! Kecil-kecil, cabe rawit. Dengan bantuan suryakanta (kaca pembesar), citra diperbesar seolah-olah mata kita melihat sebuah gambar besar berukuran sekitar 30″. Hebat sekali. Monitor diaku produsennya, Kopin, sebagai yang terkecil di dunia.

Teknologi “meniadakan” monitor atau display saling berpacu; masing-masing produsen mengeluarkan teknologi unggulannya menampilkan gambar tanpa monitor! Lihat berikut ini, dan di bawahnya lagi…

Monitor ditanam di kacanya kaca mata! Tampilan dikendalikan oleh unit yang terpasang di gagang. Karena jaraknya dekat dengan retina mata, gambar diperbesar seperti diproyeksikan dari jarak 1 meter. Teknologi ini masih dikembangkan sehingga menu yang tampil dapat dipilih dengan mata terpusat ke satu titik tertentu di menu. Klik! (Dengan mengedipkan mata?)

Mau buka imel? Ingin tahu menu yang disuguhkan saat kita berdiri di depan sebuah restoran? Mencari alamat sebuah lokasi tetapi malu bertanya? Oke.

Terbayang sudah semua orang akan berkaca mata, berjalan, berhenti, berjalan, berhenti, sambil senyum-senyum sendiri, tahu-tahu bertumbukan dengan orang di depan! Terlalu asyik membaca. Hati-hati…

Kalau lensa kontak berfungsi memperbaiki kualitas penglihatan yang kurang baik, mengapa tidak menciptakan lensa kontak seperti monitor yang dapat menciptakan pemandangan lain sama sekali? Ada-ada saja, tetapi ada yang berpikir demikian. Meski masih dalam tahap konsep sudah dicobakan pada kelinci. Kelinci seharusnya ditanya dan menjawab, apa yang dia lihat?

Monitor atau display kian dekat saja ke mata, indera utama kita. Banyak pertanyaan perlu diajukan sebelum “monitor” benar-benar terpasang; komponen elektronika belum tentu kompatibel atau ramah dengan mata. Ada listriknya lagi!

Setiap obyek asing yang masuk ke dalam tubuh kita akan mendapat perlawanan sebelum akhirnya menyesuaikan.

Puncaknya adalah manfaat teknologi untuk tujuan mulia, kemanusiaan. Diharapkan nanti melalui monitor yang tertanam di dalam mata para penyandang cacat tuna netra, mereka pun berkesempatan bisa menyaksikan indahnya warna-warni alam ini… .

Semogalah demikian, terimakasih pencipta mata bionik, terimakasih teknologi.

Klip menarik tentang tren teknologi display bisa dilihat di sana dan di sini… sci-fi (science fiction) comes true?

Award Nominated interview with James Duval.

James Duval is an American actor, probably most famous for his roles in the Gregg Araki trilogy, Totally Fucked Up, The Doom Generation, and Nowhere, in addition to Frank in Donnie Darko, Miguel in Independence Day and Singh in Go. He also plays guitar in his band, Antoneus Maximus & The Nuthouze Band. I met and interviewed James at the MCM Expo at the Excell Centre in London where he was signing autographs and talking about his cult movie experience. This feature was broadcast on the Cult Friction programme on the 24th of May 2009

It was very dark, and Vincent Chase didn’t know whether he was awake or asleep. He was in a car, and it was moving fast, but that was all he could say for sure. In his dream (or what he thought must have been in his dream), he had been in the passenger seat of another car, somehow on I-95, his mother taking them to Florida, brother Johnny out cold in the back seat. They’d never had the money to take vacations, really, but that one time, somehow, his mom had pulled off. They drove through the night and once Vince had woken up and they were in another state one- he had never heard of before- and it felt like another world.

Time had always seemed like a flexible concept to Vincent Chase. His first year of stardom had seemed like a decade, with the parties and clubs every night, after the party a girl, maybe two, and the guys there in the morning when he woke up to start it all over again, The days just… flowed. And then, later, after the bad movies, and the bad women, and the bad business deals, when he had retreated into himself, and into his penthouse- he could have sworn ten years had passed the second the big heavy door clicked shut behind him. But now, with Mary, time seemed to have suddenly speeded up again, with her he was a frightened old man, and he was a child again, speeding southbound for the promised land. It was all very confusing.

“You awake, baby?” asked his mother, and Vince sped upward through the well of time, into the light, into consciousness, and he knew again that his mother was twenty years dead, and Johnny now too, and the person talking to him was the girl, Mary, in the driver’s seat. Whatever road they were on, there were no lights. Just the faint orange glow of the city, over the horizon in the rearview. Above the convertible, the dome of the stars offered their ancient benediction down to Vince, and the girl, and whatever else was still alive out here.

For a second Vincent Chase loses everything- he has no idea at all where he is, or even who he is: He is blessedly, blissfully, blank. And then it’s all back. The engine purrs as Mary downshifts and eases the big muscle car off the main road.

“Where are we?” asks Vince, and Mary, her voice as soothing and smooth as the one in Vince’s dream, replies, “Almost home.”