Hard as it seems to believe, one man portrayed—on book covers, magazine covers, and comics—many of the seminal figures in genre, like Doc Savage, The Avenger, and Conan. Michael Stradford’s brought him back to public notice with several books… check it out!
Looking for a Halloween movie? How ‘bout a 3-D Halloween movie? Well, skip these ones; Steve will tell you why.
For his pre-Halloween pleasure, Steve watches two new horror movies and finds them lacking. Because this review’s full of spoilers, please see the films before reading the review.
George Miller has turned away from Mad Max to a different kind of fantasy. Tilda Swinton and Idris Elba really shine in this “Arabian Nights/Scheherazade” story. I think you’ll like it.
Back in May a new SF series called Night Sky premiered, with terrific actors Sissy Spacek and J.K. Simmons. But Amazon nixed a second season. Have you seen it? Can you explain why Amazon killed it? I can’t.
A new movie streams on Sunday Sept. 20; it’s about a Mars mission full of human-android conflict? There are no startling revelations or new thoughts, but it’s a fairly pleasant way to pass an evening.
Steve’s been really taken by two new things: the new Stallone movie Samaritan, and the new Amazon series The Man Who Fell to Earth, with Chiwetel Ejiofor. You may not agree, but you have to watch them before you’re entitled to my… er, your opinion.
Netflix has released a new vampire movie starriing multiple-award winner Jamie Foxx as a vamp hunter. While it breaks no new ground, it has a great bit part by Snoop Dogg as a “cowboy” vamp hunter. Fairly gory, not exactly family fare, but watchable. Also, check out TV series “Moonhaven” and upcoming movie “Slumberland.”
Back in the late 1950s-early 1960s, when I was but a lad, I was taken by the (written) works of John Wyndham. This is the latest adaptation of his 1957 book, and it’s not bad at all.
The newest film in the multi-movie Predator sequence stars only Indigenous actors and could be considered either a prequel or sequel to the other Predator movies. It may not be a great movie, but it’s certainly a watchable one. It’s on Hulu, if you’re interested.
This week Steve talks about (not really reviewing per se) a bunch of recent TV shows and movies, and touches on what he likes or doesn’t like about them. You may disagree, but that’s okay.
Steve reviews a couple of movies from 1980 and 1984 that both deal with time travel and the U.S. Navy. He says he’s seen better—but he’s also seen a lot worse.
In the tradition of trying to remake even movies that did “pretty well,” (i.e., made some money), Hollywood has redone Firestarter. Did they do it well? Heck, no. When remakes are retconned, the story usually suffers; this one’s no exception.
Steve attempts to find out why “Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City” has been panned by almost all who’ve seen it. Maybe the director has something to do with it.
This week Steve reviews the new book Baldemar, by Matthew Hughes—a wonderful Vancian fantasy set on Vance’s own Dying Earth, about a wizard’s henchman. Steve liked it and thinks you will too!
In this week’s column (“It’s been a long time coming…”—CSN), Steve reviews the Jan.-Feb. 2022 F&SF. He says it’s a big issue, full of good SF and Fantasy; and he says goodbye to a good writer.
This week Steve examines the new TV series Peacemaker, based not on the comic, but on the DC movie character. He finds it strangely attractive.
For the 8th year of 9 in a row, Steve does his annual recap of what he posted in the last year. (Obviously, he didn’t do this his first year.) If you managed to miss any of his drivel…erm, deathless prose, this is where you can catch up, with direct links.
This week, Steve takes a back seat to his guest reviewer, a writer named D.G. Valdron, who has a very articulate opinion on whether Marvel’s The Eternals is worth your money and/or attention.
It’s post-New Year’s, and for the first column and review of 2022, Steve would like to bring you his final review for 2021 of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. (He liked it!)
It’s the end of another year. Where do we want to be by this time next year? Have we learned anything? Have we become better people? Steve tries to make some serious points about being a fan.
Steve reviews an overlooked SF action movie from 2016. He finds it surprisingly good, with an all-star cast. Why did he overlook it? Who knows; maybe it was the movie poster.
Steve decides to review a “golden oldie” book instead of a movie this time. Does it hold up, fifty or so years later? Read it and find out!
Is Steve getting jaded? He reviews two 2021 movies, finding them both disappointingly “same old same-old.” See for yourself.
Not really a genre movie, this week Steve reviews a Norwegian movie with hints of Tarantino and Ritchie, which is probably close enough to qualify. The humour is dark and mostly subtle. What do *you* think?
Nicolas Cage likes weird movies. Prisoners of the Ghostland is one such; but the weirdness comes at a price. There’s not that much plot, and it drags in the middle. But it’s sort of stylish. Steve liked it.
They’re running and rerunning movies on Steve’s TV. He’s already reviewed this one online, so why not edit and rerun the review? Go for it!
Steve reviews one of the better Halloween movies he’s seen, even though it’s an oldie. Korea is becoming a terrific place for genre movies, it seems.
Steve reviews the Sept./Oct. issue of the Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, finding it excellent. What’s it all about, Alfie? Could it be monsters and aliens and dragons, oh, my?
This week Steve talks about live-action Superman portrayals. Who did he like? Whose movies are or were best? If you don’t agree with him, let him know!
Steve has been an active fan since the 1970s, when he founded the Palouse Empire Science Fiction Association (PESFA) and the more-or-less late MosCon in Pullman, WA and Moscow, ID, though he started reading SF/F in the early-to-mid 1950s, when he was just a sprat. He moved to Canada in 1985 and quickly became involved with chairing or helping run Canadian cons, including ConText (’89 and ’81) and VCON. As a fan, he’s published a Hugo-nominated (one nomination) fanzine, New Venture, and he’s founded two writing groups (Writers’ Bloc and Writers of the Lost, Ink). He’s emceed and auctioned art at many West Coast and Northwest conventions including one Westercon. As a writer, he’s published a couple of books and a number of short stories (including one in Compostella [Tesseracts 20], and has collaborated with his two-time Aurora-winning wife Lynne Taylor Fahnestalk on a number of art projects. As of this writing he’s the proofreader for R. Graeme Cameron’s Polar Borealis and Rhea Rose’s Polar Starlight publications. He’s been writing for Amazing Stories off and on since the early 1980s. His column can be found on Amazing Stories most Fridays.
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