what Dave thinks about movies, books and everything
There’s a controversy in this year’s Hugo award nominations that seems unprecedented. Because a small number of people generally nominate, and anyone who purchases a $40 Worldcon membership can nominate, that leads to the ease with which the system can be overthrown. In other words, a group of people working together can get books they […]
On this list under “best of the best” and “honourable mentions” I’m only going to mention movies I’ve seen more than once. More than once usually means 2 or 3 times — even the Star Trek movies, which I’ve seen more than any others, I’ve probably seen no more than 7 or 8 times. Then […]
These days I don’t often watch a bad movie all the way to the end, but there was a time when I did. I’m sure I’ve seen other terrible movies in my life, but these are the ones that stick out in my mind as being shockingly horrible. Worst of the Worst The Man Who […]
{4.5/5} “There is no such thing as an ending, just a place where you leave the story.” The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, released in 2015 The hotel is full, and Sonny has plans to expand to a second location — he and Sunaina also have plans to get married. Meanwhile Madge can’t decide between […]
{4.5/5} “One desperate attempt after another to find something in common with someone else and then cling. ‘Hey, you have ten fingers, I have ten fingers, let’s be friends. We’ll make rules and slogans. Then if we find someone with nine fingers, we can beat the crap out of them.’” Dead Like Me season 1, […]
{4.5/5} “Rob reached out to comfort her, then remembered it was forbidden and drew back. If not for the surveillance, Rob would have reached under the silver cover and taken her hand, cold and stiff as it would have been.” Love Minus Eighty by Will McIntosh, published in 2013 In the future death is not […]
{4.5/5} “You can’t battle life… You have to learn to treat it like a waltz and your problems are your partner. Step lightly, try to keep time with the music and smile.” Star Trek: The Next Generation — Immortal Coil by Jeffrey Lang, published in 2002 The Enterprise is called to the Daystrom Institute on […]
{5/5} “Each of us, I thought, could do little to change the course of things — indeed, anything we tried was likely to be so uncontrolled as to inflict more damage than benefit — and yet, conversely, we should not allow the huge panorama about us, the immensity of the Multiplicity of Histories, to overwhelm us. The […]
{3.5/5} Star Trek: Heart of the Sun by Pamela Sargent & George Zebrowski, published in 1997 The Enterprise has been travelling to a few far flung planets whose databases fell victim to a virus. The last on the list, Tyrtaeus, proves to be a bit of a chore — the people aren’t particularly welcoming to […]
{4.5/5} “It’s like a mirage. From the distance, you look like a painter, but up close there is not much there.” Big Eyes, released in 2014 Margaret paints pictures of children with big eyes. Initially when her husband Walter takes credit for the paintings she goes along with it. But she regrets that decision every […]