Science
Fiction meets Comedy
by
Kristin Battestella
From
all out parody to quirkiness and cosmic puns, each of these retro,
recent, or blockbuster science fiction tales provide an element of
humorous entertainment.
Return of the Killer Tomatoes – It's tomato prohibition in this
1988 sequel to Attack of the Killer Tomatoes starring
Anthony Starke (The Magnificent Seven), George
Clooney (Michael Clayton),
and John Astin (The Addams Family). Self-aware
late night movie hosts almost air Big Breasted Girls Go to
the Beach and Take Their Tops Off
instead, adding then PG-13 saucy to the MST3King
itself meta before it was meta. The secret word of the day is “the,”
creating an impossible drinking game to match the preposterous
Professor Gangreen mad science, lab experiments, tomato tests, and
pizzas with some, umm, interesting topping combinations sans
tomatoes. The younger generation rolls their eyes at elders treating
The Great Tomato war as some St. Crispin's Day glory, flashbacks
captioned as “New York City” have San Francisco trolley cars, and
call ins ask why they keep showing scenes from the first movie. There
are world domination plans to place plants from within the police
right up to president, and bad special effects, red lights, green
glows, a fuzzy friendly tomato, and a snake named Larry join the
handsome assistant Igor. Reporters shame and berate witnesses on the
air yet everyone wants to be on camera, and romantic interludes on
the beach get ruined by a mime as the fourth wall is often broken
thanks to tomato bootleggers, Valerian root powder, and inquires on
if it's too late to have a movie chase. Let's yell “Tomato!” in a
crowded restaurant and point at the “tomato lover” because
tomatoes are evil – a good tomato is a squashed tomato! The within
within life imitating art comes to a head with behind the scenes
interruptions; they are out of money so the cast and crew are now
incorporating product placement right down to the cereal box between
the two shot conversation. Rednecks with beer, ninjas in black
fighting cowboys in white hats, and “Vigilance is the Price of
Freedom. Report any suspicious vegetable activity.” Uncle Sam
posters escalate to luxury construction at the toxic waste dump,
prison escapes for golfing White House aides, Soylent Green
homages, and an interactive
Frankenstein. Once the
stars ask if they have enough money to finish this turkey, the
product placement begats celebrity spoofs, music knockoffs, and
killer countdowns with a scoreboard and referee. Fortunately, a page
from the script is handy to write a note on asking for help and
shootouts result in ketchup. Layered dialogue and visual gags send up
everything possible in every scene, requiring multiple viewings for
all the laugh at its corny self in on the joke ridiculous. While
certainly endearing for those who loved this then, today this remains
an enjoyable eighties comedy that's surprisingly intelligent and
ahead of its time.
Space Station 76 – Patrick Wilson (Bone Tomahawk), Liv
Tyler (Lord of the Rings), Matt Bomer (White Collar),
and more are all aboard for this 2014 retro futuristic seventies
wink, and we immediately feel the groovy thanks to the deliberately
old fashioned space shuttles, colorful special effects, bright white
corridors, and spinning station design. Rather than psychedelic in
your face weird, the flashing lights, lasers, and saucy visions are
pleasing to today's HD eye. Vintage panels, knobs, analog gizmos, mid
century plastics, viewfinders, cigarettes, ash trays, wild wallpaper,
and roller skates accent the rec room luaus and awkward cafeterias as
the interconnected relationships, hidden sexuality, and affairs leave
plenty of foots in people's mouths. Between the undefined jobs the
crew does poorly, bored housewives, lingering hippie mentalities,
waterbeds, and confined interiors a lot can happen. Our incoming
career oriented female officer doesn't fit in and can see the going
through the motions situations. There are children on board, however
the vain and manipulative parents are more interested in Valium, porn
magazines, and robots because it's easier to interact with machinery
and automation than build healthy relationships. Some remember
growing up on earth and doing things for oneself versus space-bound
reliance, but the should be idyllic futuristic bliss only creates an
inability to cope. One can't even kill himself by dropping the retro
radio into the bathtub because the system corrects the overloaded
circuits. Naturalistic conversations provide annoyed, off the cuff
sardonic socializing attempts while subtle humor – like using the
arboretum to grow pot and a robotic hand getting stuck gripping a
boob – alleviates any potential tenderness. The ironic, feel good
classic soundtrack matches anti-gravity moments enjoying the space
faring circumstances, but arguments and lies lead to contrived
Christmas parties, stranded consequences, and embarrassing secrets.
They are stuck with where and who they are, and somehow have to make
the best of it. Although this might have been interesting as a
series, the refreshing R zany but not laugh out loud doesn't overstay
its welcome. I'm surprised this movie isn't more popular, as other
comedy science fiction shows are full blown sends ups, but here the
quirky framework anchors serious, well done characterizations. Rather
than making fun of the era, the kitschy innuendo helps create a façade for the interpersonal issues, jobs over emotions, and
loneliness. This is a touching little film with bemusing nostalgia
and social commentary, but labeling this a comedy isn't quite fair
once the drama hits too close to home, for we too have technology
replacing human interaction and it is far from perfect.
Thor: Ragnarok – Taika
Waititi (What We Do in the
Shadows) directs
the titular Chris
Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston (Only Lovers Left Alive), and
Tessa Thompson (Westworld)
in this 2017 Marvel sequel exploding with eighties sci-fi homage,
edgy rock tunes, retro video tours, Willy Wonka notes, flashy colors,
and intergalactic flair. Unlike the morose fantasy of Thor:
The Dark World;
industrial
trash, damaged spaceships, and beer are rough and wild – matching
the caged and chained Thor as he waxes on his
heroic status, the new lack thereof, fiery attacks, and lightning
displays. Asgard is in peril, but dramatic choirs and rewritten odes
starring Matt Damon (Interstellar)
and the delightful Anthony Hopkins (Hannibal)
as Loki pretending to be Odin lead to Norway goodbyes, somber
conversations, and family regrets. Thanks to trailer giveaways and
obvious foreshadowing, there aren't many surprises, but the locales
proceed quest-style with friends or enemies along the way including
Benedict Cumberbatch's (Sherlock)
Doctor Strange and the scene chewing Cate Blanchett (Elizabeth)
as the unleashed Hela, Goddess of Death. Visual tricks, sight gags,
and umbrella disguises accent the superhero send up as Thor is
dragged by his cape and put in his place. Mark Ruffalo's (The
Normal Heart) gladiator
Hulk and the campy Grandmaster Jeff Goldblum (Independence
Day) add personal banter,
self-aware charm, and even flirtatiousness thanks to hot tubs and
green butt shots. The battle action CGI can be busy, herky jerky
messy where you can't see anything, however unique Valkyrie
flashbacks, mystical elements, and slow motion superhero cool moments
set off the hidden Asgard history, giant wolves, and undead lairs.
Unfortunately, it gets a little old when there's a quip, humorous
aside, and lighthearted tension breaker interrupting every serious
scene. Asgardians are literally being butchered while we're being
told to laugh with distracting, gif-able wisecracks. This uneven back
and forth between the violence and the refreshing reboot undercuts
Hela's threats – leaving us to wonder if we even need the eponymous
destruction when this could just be about The Revengers and their
baggage escaping Sakaar, cool cool. After spending most of the time
here mocking the previous Thor
films,
the end heroics are ironically played straight and the characters
remain more important than the action. While the
irreverent attitudes and flippant comedy in the wrong places could
have chilled, this doesn't follow typical Marvel patterns. Thor
needed
to change it up, and the entertainment moves fast for fans
as well as viewers looking for something different.
For
some ~ serious science fiction discussion ~ also consider two Great
Courses programs How Science Shapes Science Fiction and
How Great Science Fiction Works. I
was too busy paying attention and didn't take notes!
The
Last Starfighter
Cate Blanchett (Lord of the Rings, The Aviator, 
After seeing the Peter Jackson’s extended Lord of The Rings film trilogy, I finally yearn for more Middle-Earth. I dug out my thrift copy of the first installment, The Fellowship of the Ring. Those millions of fans worldwide were correct. So far for round one, the print has surpassed the film. In fact, I also recently saw the 1978 woefully bad cartoon version of The Lord of the Rings. Although it cuts off abruptly halfway through the story, some details in the cartoon are actually truer to The Fellowship of the Ring, and some details animated were dropped from Peter Jackson’s films altogether.
