Stories from the Calindratem

As a nerd I love a good scifi movie and a good movie is not necessarily a big blockbuster. I stumbled over the Australian movie "Occupation Rainfall" because it has two of my favourite actors in it Daniel Gillies and Jason Isaacs.  Since I knew that this wasn't a Hollywood movie, I expected some nice entertainment but nothing huge in the sense of production value but I couldn't have been more mistaken. The special effects are fantastic and don't have to shy away from the comparison with big movies. The only thing that really bothered me in the technical department was the sound. I might have been due to the fact that I watched the original version on the German DVD of this movie and that they didn't put too much effort into the disc, but it was impossible to watch the movie with a fixed sound setting. I had to constantly readjusted the setting during the movie, which seriously diminished the experience.   The movie is a continuation of "Occupation...

Having been a nerd for the longest part of my life, I have seen plenty of science fiction, mystery and fantasy movies, but I have to admit I was rarely as blown away as after watching The OA. This show leaves you gasping for air due to its incredible level of creativity.  Usually I start these articles with a brief synopsis of the show or movie and this is were is begins to get tricky with The OA already, as it is almost impossible to describe the fantastic premise of the show. It begins with a young woman being found, after having been missing for seven years. When she went missing she was blind and now her sight has been restored. What follows is an incredible journey of mysteries, abduction and near death experiences. Without giving away anymore of the story it is probably the most creative story telling in television. The revelations over the course of the show have to be compared to the end of "The Sixth Sense" when the audience learns that Bruce Willis' character wa...

Villains with certain redeeming qualities always make the most interesting characters. In the Star Trek universe this assertion probably applies to Captain Gabriel Lorca from Star Trek Discovery, who was brought to life brilliantly by Jason Isaacs.  It is already doubtful is Captain Lorca is a pure villain, considering he is from the mirror universe, were very different moral standards apply. By Terran standards he might just be a man with ambitions gunning for a promotion. In season two and three it became obvious that the prime universe had a positive influence on Emperor Georgiou. Is it possible that this had also happened to Captain Lorca? Is he truly the absolute villain or is he in the end just someone who couldn't escape the culture he was brought up in?  Here are seven reasons, that might indicate that Captain Lorca has some redeeming qualities:  1. He wants to save the miners on Corvan 2 Of course you can argue that the only reason he wants to save them is to ens...

"Star Trek Discovery" has polarized Trekkies all over the world, because it is setting itself apart from the established style of Star Trek shows. The question is: Do we want a new type of Star Trek show or is the consistency of the previous shows part of its appeal?  Discovery is set approximately 10 years before the events of the original show, in a time, when Klingons were still somewhat a mystery and a huge threat. The Federation was still in its early days.  The story revolves around a female, human officer, Michael Burnham, who grew up on Vulcan.  While her character is interesting it is also one of the parts that sets the show apart from its predecessors. Most Star Trek show are usually mainly ensemble shows, that take turns focusing on the various team members. Discovery deviates significantly from the concept, mainly focusing on Burnham and giving the other members of the team much less space for character development. The result is that whenever a member of the ...