Masters of Science Fiction: Volume One
By Robert Bell

Fans of science fiction will be pleased to know that the Masters of Science Fiction anthology is focused primarily on the investigation of the “what ifs?” from a moral and philosophical perspective. On the downside, the production values are similar to more familiar sci-fi entries such as Babylon 5 and Farscape, in addition to featuring episodes comprised entirely of awkward exposition and amusingly glib insights and character responses. The biggest culprits being episodes entitled “The Awakening” and “Watchbird.” “Awakening” features Terry O’Quinn (Lost, The Cutting Edge) as a military Major brought out of retirement to investigate alien creatures that have come to Earth and placed several humans under a hypnotic spell with a message of peace. When the aliens begin to appear by the dozens around the world asking all military powers to disarm their weaponry, it is only the U.S. who defends its right to bear arms. While it’s certainly topical and politically correct to mock trigger-happy Americans, it isn’t particularly accurate given current cultural and ideological climates on a global scale. There are other credos far more likely to resist notions of world peace through inherent misanthropy but those observations would likely be perceived as racist or xenophobic where insulting Americans is perfectly kosher. “Watchbird” makes similarly surface observations about the nature of criminal justice being carried out by artificial intelligence. The episode features Sean Astin (The Lord of the Rings, Toy Soldiers) as a scientific genius with a tortured past who develops “watchbirds” who essentially fly around the country killing criminals based on intent rather than action. The standard problems arise as discussed through endless exposition without any effort placed into obvious resolutions. On the upside, this particular episode features some unintentional hilarity, with Astin giving an amusing “WTF?” performance, in addition to having a dramatic suicidal moment that involves an enormous wedgie. It’s almost impossible to take a person seriously who has six inches of pant material up their ass crack. Thankfully the anthology has stronger episodes to balance the scales, like “Jerry Was a Man,” which is based on a Robert Heinlein short story and features Anne Heche (The Juror, Men in Trees) as a very well to do woman who decides to buy herself an anthropoid named Jerry, built to detect mines. It’s slightly more insightful than Spielberg’s poo-fest A.I. in the suggestion that humanity is defined through dishonesty and amoral personal preservation, in addition to poking some light jabs at the North American judicial system and celebrities with “causes.” Also, the inclusion of a miniature pachyderm with the capacity to read and write certainly doesn’t hurt the entertainment factor. While this isn’t a fantastic or particularly memorable anthology, it is definitely engaging and occasionally cheesy enough for a giggle. (Anchor Bay)
Daft Punk's Electroma - Dir. by Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel De Homem-Christo
Daft Punk have never tried to live up to expectations. They frustrate their fans with painfully large gaps between albums and instead of recording, dip their toes into other media, like filmmaking. While they may or may not be working on a follow-up to 2005’s Human After All, Thomas and Guy-M ...Read More
Stop-Loss - Dir. by Kimberly Peirce
Boys Don’t Cry director Kimberly Pierce ends her lengthy absence from filmmaking with this earnest mediation on the influence of war on those fighting it. An instant message discourse with her enlisted brother while he was stationed in Iraq inspired Pierce to research deeper into the war from ...Read More
10,000 B.C. - Dir. by Roland Emmerich
4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days - Dir. by Cristian Mungiu
Be Kind Rewind - Dir. by Michel Gondry
Bonneville - Dir. by Christopher N. Rowley
Brutal Massacre: A Comedy - Dir. by Steve Mena
Burn Notice: Season One
Californication: Season 1
Careless - Dir. by Peter Spears
City Of Men - Dir. by Paulo Morelli
Darfur Now - Dir. by Theodore Braun
Dirty Harry: Ultimate Collector’s Edition
Drillbit Taylor: Extended Survival Edition - Dir. by Steven Brill
Flawless - Dir. by Michael Radford
Fool's Gold - Dir. by Andy Tennant
Heathers: 20th High School Reunion Edition - Dir. by Michael Lehmann
Honeydripper - Dir. by John Sayles
Jericho: Season 2
John Adams - Dir. by Tom Hooper
Late Fragments - Dir. by Daryl Cloran, Anita Doran & Mateo Guez
Love Songs - Dir. by Christophe Honore
Mama's Boy - Dir. by Tim Hamilton
My Name is Juani - Dir. by Bigas Luna
On The Doll - Dir. by Thomas Mignone
Persepolis - Dir. by Vincent Parronaud and Marjane Satrapi
Popeye the Sailor: 1938-1940
Rails & Ties - Dir. by Alison Eastwood
Rescue Me: The Complete Fourth Season
Saving Grace: Season One
Seven Wonders of the Industrial World
Shutter - Dir. by Masayuki Ochiai
Smiley Face - Dir. by Greg Araki
Sunflower - Dir. by Zhang Yang
Superhero Movie - Dir. by Craig Mazin
The 4400: The Fourth Season
The Air I Breathe - Dir. by Jieho Lee
The BBC Natural History Collection
The Doors - The Doors: Classic Album
The Fantastic Four: The Complete First Season
The Flock - Dir. by Andrew Lau
The Other Boleyn Girl - Dir. by Justin Chadwick
The Rat Pack Ultimate Collectors Edition
The Ruins - Dir. by Carter Smith
The Spiderwick Chronicles - Dir. by Mark Waters
The Walker - Dir. by Paul Schrader
Under The Same Moon - Dir. by Patricia Riggen
Vince Vaughn's Wild West Comedy Show - Dir. by Ari Sandel
Waiter - Dir. by Alex van Warmerdam
Weeds: Season Three
Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins - Dir. by Malcolm D. Lee
Bayonetta [PS3 / Xbox 360]
"I've got a fever and the only cure is dead angels."
-Bayonetta

Ever since the Christmastime gaming deluge ended, I've been killing a lot of angels. Though God's messengers have been bad guys in other pop-cultural products ― His Dark Materials book trilogy, the pas... Full Review
Leif Vollebekk - Inland
Although he's a Montreal native, this debut album sparkles with many of the magical elements associated with Vollebekk's Scandinavian heritage. At times recalling Nick Drake's Bryter Layter in its fragility and subtle deployment of strings, but also the playfulness of fellow Montrealer Patric... Full Review
Lindstrøm Explores
Don't count on Norway's premier disco revivalist Hans-Peter Lindstrøm to ever turn in the same record twice. "All the artists and bands that I really like do surprising stuff every time, and I guess I just copy their way," he says from his Oslo home studio. "But it's also about not getting bored myself."... Read More
Social Networking
• Be our friend on MySpace
• Be our fan on Facebook
• Tweet us on twitter
Viewing the August 2008 Issue: • Contents Page • News • Click Hear • Articles --> On the Cover  •  Front Five  •  Points  •  Comics  •  Questionnaire  •  Release Dates  •  Research  •  Timeline  •  Conversations • Music Reviews --> Recently Reviewed  •  Aggressive Tendencies  •  Beats & Rhymes  •  Destination Out  •  Frequencies  •  Groove  •  No Future  •  Pop Rocks  •  Wood, Wires & Whiskey  •  Concert Reviews • Motion Reviews --> Recently Reviewed  •  Dvd Reviews  •  Film Reviews  •  Music DVD Reviews  •  Short Film Fest  •  Videogame Reviews • Music School --> Label Life  •  Where I play • Contests • Contact --> About Us  • Advertising  • Distribution  • Getting Reviewed  • Getting Published  • Letters To The Editor  • Partnerships  • Subscriptions • Exclaim! Radio --> Aggressive Tendencies Radio  • Beats & Rhymes Radio  • Destination Out Radio  • Frequencies Radio  • Groove Radio  • No Future Radio  • Pop Rocks Radio  • Wood, Wires & Whiskey Radio • Exclaim! TV • Home & Latest Issue • Browse Issues