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Mt. Holz Science Fiction Society
Club Notice - 06/11/93 -- Vol. 11, No. 50
MEETINGS UPCOMING:
Unless otherwise stated, all meetings are in Holmdel 4N-509
Wednesdays at noon.
_D_A_T_E _T_O_P_I_C
06/23 CHINA MOUNTAIN ZHANG by Maureen McHugh
(Non-European Futures)
07/14 SIGHT OF PROTEUS by Charles Sheffield (Human Metamorphosis)
08/04 Hugo Short Story Nominees
08/25 CONSIDER PHLEBAS by Iain Banks
(Space Opera with a Knife Twist)
09/15 WORLD AT THE END OF TIME by Frederik Pohl
(Modern Stapledonian Fiction)
Outside events:
07/31 Deadline for Hugo Ballots to be postmarked
The Science Fiction Association of Bergen County meets on the second
Saturday of every month in Upper Saddle River; call 201-933-2724 for
details. The New Jersey Science Fiction Society meets on the third
Saturday of every month in Belleville; call 201-432-5965 for details.
HO Chair: John Jetzt HO 1E-525 908-834-1563 holly!jetzt
LZ Chair: Rob Mitchell HO 1C-523 908-834-1267 holly!jrrt
MT Chair: Mark Leeper MT 3D-441 908-957-5619 mtgzfs3!leeper
HO Librarian: Nick Sauer HO 4F-427 908-949-7076 homxc!11366ns
LZ Librarian: Lance Larsen LZ 3L-312 908-576-3346 quartet!lfl
MT Librarian: Mark Leeper MT 3D-441 908-957-5619 mtgzfs3!leeper
Factotum: Evelyn Leeper MT 1F-329 908-957-2070 mtgpfs1!ecl
All material copyright by author unless otherwise noted.
1. There are two good books on film that are handy quick
references. One is by Leonard Maltin; one is by Steven Scheuer.
Each rates films on a scale of one to four stars. My ratings don't
correlate perfectly with theirs, but we are close. I am not
certain, but I think our next film festival will be our first 16-
star film festival. Both films get the highest possible rating
from both critics. On June 10 at 7 PM (*SHARP!*), we will show:
THE MT VOID Page 2
Peter O'Toole Henry II Films
BECKET (1964) dir. by Peter Glenville
THE LION IN WINTER (1968) dir. by Anthony Harvey
_B_e_c_k_e_t is the retelling of Henry's relationship with Thomas a
Becket (Richard Burton), once a close friend, whom he installed as
the Archbishop of Canterbury, an action he later grew to regret.
_T_h_e _L_i_o_n _i_n _W_i_n_t_e_r by James Goldman, based on Goldman's own play,
tells the story of the fierce battles between Henry and his wife,
Eleanor of Aquitaine (played by Katharine Hepburn), with the fate
of England in the balance. Superbly scripted, acted, and scored,
many people I know consider this one of their favorite films. Also
starring are Anthony Hopkins, Nigel Terry (who played Arthur in
_E_x_c_a_l_i_b_u_r), and Timothy Dalton (who is the latest James Bond).
Please be ON TIME. This is 4 hours and 43 minutes of great cinema.
2. It has been announced that _B_a_b_y_l_o_n _5 will indeed be a television
series starting January, 1994. It certainly looked like it could
make intelligent television science fiction and the visuals were
just stunning. I look forward to the series.
3. ClariNet Communications is offering for sale _H_u_g_o _a_n_d _N_e_b_u_l_a
_A_n_t_h_o_l_o_g_y _1_9_9_3, a CD-ROM containing all the Hugo-nominated fiction,
all the Nebula-nominated short fiction, the Hugo-nominated artworks
and portfolios of the Hugo-nominated artists, samples of Hugo-
nominated fan writing, fanzines, and fan art, author photos and
bibliographies, audio selections of author readings, hypertext
edition of _A _F_i_r_e _U_p_o_n _t_h_e _D_e_e_p with Vinge's own annotations,
science fiction databases, and more. It requires MS-Windows and
costs $29.95. Contact ClariNet regarding Mac and DOS availability,
and availability via floppy disks, networks, or modems. ClariNet
can be reached at info-sf@clarinet.com: 408-296-0366: FAX 408-296-
1668: P. O. Box 1479, Cupertino CA 95015; MODEM 408-296-3733
LOGIN: sf.
[Included on this CD are my Boskone 29 convention report and my
book review of Kim Stanley Robinson's _R_e_m_a_k_i_n_g _H_i_s_t_o_r_y. It is
unclear at this time what, if any, payment I will be getting, but
just so this is not construed as a commercial announcement, I want
to say that my royalties will be donated to the George Alex
Effinger Medical Fund. -ecl]
Mark Leeper
MT 3D-441 908-957-5619
...mtgzfs3!leeper
It is impossible to imagine the universe run by a wise,
just and omnipotent God, but it is quite easy to
imagine it run by a board of gods. If such a board
actually exists it operates precisely like the board of
a corporation that is losing money.
-- H. L. Mencken
Five-Minute Retrospective of SF
by Connie Willis
(presented at the 1993 Nebula Awards banquet)
"You see, I had this space suit."
"I took nothing with me, not even a coat."
"And _f_i_v_e! And _f_o_u_r! And _t_h_r_e_e! And _t_w_o! And--" Castor's chant
was blanked out by the blazing "white noise" of the jet...
"Gosh," I said. "What I wouldn't give to go with them? What
wouldn't I give?"
Dominic Flandry
Gulliver Foyle
Lazarus Long
Rick Deckard
Willy McGilly
Paul Muad'Dib
John Grimes
Susan Calvin
Teela Brown
Roger Torraway
Nicholas van Rijn
Harrison Bergeron
Valentine Michael Smith
And you--with your aftershave lotion and your little red car,
pushing papers across a desk all day and chasing tail all night--
tell me, just how the hell do you think you would look to Tiglath-
Pileser, say, or Attila the Hun?
"_I _k_n_o_w where _I came from--but _w_h_e_r_e _d_i_d _a_l_l _y_o_u _z_o_m_b_i_e_s _c_o_m_e _f_r_o_m?"
First Law: A robot may not injure a human being or, through
inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
Ralph 124C41+
Radius
Robbie
Rachael
Helen O'Loy
St. Aquin
Sigfrid von Shrink
HAL
He doesn't know which one of us I am these days...
Dr. Strauss says I shud rite down what I think and evrey thing that
happins to me from now on.
5-Min Retrospective of SF April 18, 1993 Page 2
_I _d_i_d_n'_t _d_o _a_n_y_t_h_i_n_g _t_o _d_i_e _f_o_r -- _I _d_i_d_n'_t _d_o _a_n_y_t_h_i_n_g--
"Who Goes There?"
the People
the Underground
the Overlords
the Kwisatz Haderach
the Lensman
the Gray Mouser
the Heechee
the Bodysnatchers
the Triffids
the Taurans
the Martians
"I said, where do you think you're going?"
"For a drink of water."
"But you're not thirsty."
And then he perceived that, very slowly, the circular top of the
cylinder was rotating on its body.
"It's a cookbook," he said.
"I said, where do you think you're going?"
Barsoom
Vulcan
Arrakis
Alpha Ralpha Boulevard
Perelandra
Pern
Leaving the village behind, we followed the heady sweeps of road up
onto a land of slowglass.
Titan
Trantor
Terminal Beach
Majipoor
Marsport
Murdstone
the Milky Way
"Stars--all the stars--we didn't know at all."
After a while, he touched the sky with one hand.
Overhead, without any fuss, the stars were going out.
"I make you great. I give you the stars."
Four Films
A film review by Mark R. Leeper
Copyright 1993 Mark R. Leeper
One of the things I like to do occasionally in my film reviews
is to make reference to some very good film that I doubt most of my
readers have heard of and that I would like to call some attention
to. There are a lot of decent films, and a handful of very good
ones, that at this point may exist only in the film libraries of
obscure television stations, and when these few prints disappear the
films will be gone. I would like to generate some interest in four
of these films, if not to help save them, at least to alert people
that if you do get a chance to see these films, it is a rare chance
and you should give them a try.
Of course, there are a lot of obscure films that are showing up
on videotape today, many of them very poorly-made films, and it is
ironic that some terrific films are being over-looked, but in each
case I think I can understand why some producer would think the film
would not sell well on tape. There are three science fiction films
and one horror film. However, none of the film has special effects.
Particularly for science fiction, people have come to expect visual
effects. I guess they feel that if they do not really enjoy the
story then at least there will be something interesting to watch.
These films are just actors in front of a camera, perhaps with a
very rudimentary make-up effect thrown in (but very little). Three
of the films are in black and white and unfortunately that is also
considered to be a strike against a film. I still recommend these
films highly to watch for.
_T_h_e _M_i_n_d _B_e_n_d_e_r_s (1962) (directed by Basil Dearden)
This film combines Cold War thriller elements with science
fiction and a compelling human story. A scientist working on
sensory deprivation commits suicide and is discovered to have been
passing secrets to the Soviets. Was he to blame or could his mind
have been twisted while under the influence of the sensory
deprivation tank? The government decides to experiment to find out.
Another scientist working in the same field (played by Dirk Bogarde)
is very devoted to his wife and family. Can they change that in his
personality while he is in the tank? This film is well-acted,
enthralling, and atmospheric.
_U_n_e_a_r_t_h_l_y _S_t_r_a_n_g_e_r (1963) (directed by John Kirsh)
A secret project is working on space exploration right in the
heart of London. The approach to exploration is a novel one.
Rather than sending the whole human into space, they are working on
Four Films May 16, 1993 Page 2
a sort of technological out-of-body experience. Project your mind
to another planet and there have it take on physical
form ... invasion by mental projection. The rub is that scientists
on the project are being killed in some mysterious way involving
super-high energy. And the wives of some of the scientists seem to
have no background that project security can trace. The script is
tense and the acting is quite good, with a cast that includes John
Neville (_A _S_t_u_d_y _i_n _t_e_r_r_o_r, _T_h_e _A_d_v_e_n_t_u_r_e_s _o_f _B_a_r_o_n _M_u_n_c_h_a_u_s_e_n) and
Jean Marsh (_U_p_s_t_a_i_r_s, _D_o_w_n_s_t_a_i_r_s). (This film is so obscure that
Leonard Maltin's usually very complete _M_o_v_i_e _a_n_d _V_i_d_e_o _G_u_i_d_e
overlooks it.)
_D_a_r_k _I_n_t_r_u_d_e_r (1965) (directed by Harvey Hart)
This film is only 59 minutes long and originally was intended
as a television pilot, but was released to theaters to play with
films such as William Castle's _I _S_a_w _W_h_a_t _Y_o_u _D_i_d--which it far
out-classed. Leslie Nielson plays a detective in late 19th Century
San Francisco whose foppish appearance hides a man very
knowledgeable and adept in matters of the occult and the
supernatural. A series of unsolved murders and a friend's blackout
spells may be connected and have some occult significance. Mark
Richman and Werner Klemperer also star. The latter, best known as
the gullible commandant from _H_o_g_a_n'_s _H_e_r_o_e_s, does a terrific job in
a sinister role.
_Q_u_e_s_t _f_o_r _L_o_v_e (1971) (directed by Ralph Thomas)
This film is loosely adapted from the short story "Random
Quest" by John Wyndham. Colin Trafford (played by Tom Bell) is a
leading scientist at Britain Imperial Physical Institute when one of
his experiments goes wrong. Suddenly he finds himself in a parallel
London in a parallel Britain that has not been to war since the
Great War in the early part of the century. Trafford here is not a
physicist, but a popular playwright. He is also now married to a
beautiful woman (played by Joan Collins) whose life he has made
miserable with his selfish ways and his philandering. Can Colin
convince the world he is the playwright while convincing his new
wife that he is different? Then there are plot complications that
lead to a fast-paced climax across parallel worlds. Denholm Elliot
also stars in the story which is part science fiction adventure and
part love story.
Of these four films only the last is in color. At present, the
only one available on video, _U_n_e_a_r_t_h_l_y _S_t_r_a_n_g_e_r, is offered only by
a tiny specialty house, Sinister Cinema. Of the four, only _Q_u_e_s_t
_f_o_r _L_o_v_e has played on New York area television in the last fifteen
years. I would much like to get my hands on copies of _T_h_e _M_i_n_d
_B_e_n_d_e_r_s or _D_a_r_k _I_n_t_r_u_d_e_r.
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING
A film review by Mark R. Leeper
Copyright 1993 Mark R. Leeper
From Branagh and his wife comes _M_u_c_h _A_d_o,
The Shakespeare comedy of love and tricks.
Just sit and see the pleasant Tuscan view
As folks play out romantic politics.
Keanu Reeves seems vaguely out of place,
And Washington is not the usual hue
Don Pedro has been cast. But give some space
To Branagh while he does his _M_u_c_h _A_d_o.
With Branagh's hand this seems a modern play;
The pace is fast and Shakespeare pleases much.
His comedy still works for us today,
Uneven though it is with Keaton's touch.
In short I'd say this Branagh _M_u_c_h _A_d_o
To no surprise doth earn a high +2.
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