Surveying the Carnage: Issue #5, Summer, 2005 Vol. 1, No. 5 The 100 Years War Between Mars & Earth http://www.somefantastic.us/ By Matthew Appleton ISSN # 1555-2241

This is part one of a two-part article examining H. G. Wells’ The War of

Features the Worlds and subsequent adaptations, tributes & works inspired by it. Surveying the Carnage: The 100 1 Years War Between Mars & Earth, It started innocently enough. Once I found out that Steven by Matthew Appleton Spielberg was producing a new movie adaptation of H. G. Wells’ “Sith Happens”: The Political 12 The War of the Worlds, I decided to reread the original as a way to Lessons of the Star Wars Prequels, by Greg Saunders prepare for the film. Nothing unusual there—I’ve prepped in such a manner countless times over the years for sci-fi films Book Reviews ranging from the truly dreadful Battlefield Earth to the really in- Christopher Stasheff’s St. Vidicon to 15 teresting, although heavily flawed, Minority Report. However, the Rescue, reviewed by along the way I somehow decided that I wanted to really delve Christopher Garcia into the many different facets of the Wells classic, and check out Fourth Planet from the Sun: Tales of 29 as many as possible before the release of Spielberg’s new take on Mars from the Magazine of Fantasy the novel. I thought that all I would really need to worry about and Science Fiction, edited by Gordon Van Gelder, reviewed by was the original work by Wells, the Orson Welles’ 1938 radio Jessica Darago dramatization, George Pal’s 1953 movie adaptation and the War of the Worlds: Global Dispatches anthology of short stories edited DVD Reviews by Kevin J. Anderson. Given the consistent popularity of the Lemony Snicket’s A Series of 17 novel over the past 100 years, I knew the existence of other, less Unfortunate Events, reviewed by widely known adaptations was a certainty, but I didn’t think I’d Caroline-Isabelle Caron encounter that many. Donnie Darko: The Director’s Cut, 20 I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I should’ve had reviewed by Richard Fuller some notion when I noticed the wide array of options available Dawn of the Dead (2004), reviewed 23 for someone interested in just the original novel, many of which by Matthew Appleton offering a little something unique to accompany the text. Pen- Finding Neverland, reviewed by 25 guin Classics offers an edition with a forward written by Brian Edna Stumpf Aldiss while the Modern Library Classics edition offers an intro- Spaceballs (Collector’s Edition), 27 duction by Arthur C. Clarke. In addition, the New York Review reviewed by Caroline-Isabelle Caron of Books reissued a 1960 edition that features illustrations by

Edward Gorey, and for the younger crowd HarperCollins put out a new edition that comes with a 3-D puzzle of a Martian tri- pod on the back. This is just a sampling of the many different Bylined articles are the copyright of the credited authors. All other written content is © 2005 by editions put into print as the release of the Spielberg version Matthew Appleton, except where otherwise grew nearer. noted. All rights reserved. For more information, please visit the website. Here then is my journey into the many different variations on the Martian invasion of Earth, which invariably fails every

“Everyone understands that when you wave the white flag you want to be friends!” – Salvatore, just before the Martians fry him with a heat ray in the 1953 movie adaptation of War of the Worlds.

time. With the exception of the Spielberg film, I Another thing, almost a throwaway, that attempted to review each item in chronological struck me in the opening chapters was a sugges- order, and along the way I discovered each work tion by one of the soldiers to build a trench to get brought something unique to the narrative. closer to the Martians in the pit. He suggests this as a safer way of getting closer to engage in com- I. The War of the Worlds, by H. G. Wells bat and avoid the heat rays, but his comrades dismiss the idea with a quick joke. In a study The original. The alpha and the omega. Nearly guide to The War of the Worlds he has posted 100 years after its initial publication it still packs online, Paul Brians points out that the Martian an amazing wallop. From a literary theory per- black smoke is frequently cited as prophetic of gas spective, I don’t know if there’s much I can add to warfare in World War I. Yet, Brians makes no the discussion that hasn’t already been said. (Read mention of the trench idea, which became the Adam Roberts’ Science Fiction for other signature aspect of World a summarization of some key War I, and was used precisely interpretations of the novel.) for the very reason suggested in However, from my American, the novel, with the only differ- early 21st century perspective, a ence that soldiers were protect- number of issues in the novel ing themselves from machine really resonated with me. gun fire rather than heat rays. The first thing that struck me Much like the trench sugges- about reading the novel was that tion, the red Martian weed is an it offered amazing insights into item whose symbolic signifi- late 19th century England in much cance altered in the years since the same way a Jane Austin novel Wells wrote the novel. When the transports readers back to early narrator first observes it, he 19th century England. While many states, “I noticed floating down items about the narrative work in the stream a number of red this manner, it was the relatively masses, some many feet across. I slow response to the landing of did not know what these were— the first cylinder that really there was no time for scrutiny— grabbed my attention. In today’s highly connected and I put a more horrible interpretation on them society with the internet and 24-hour news televi- than they deserved” (Wells, 479). Indeed, in the sion networks, it’s difficult to imagine the news of a context of the novel, they are nothing more than a Martian invasion spreading as slowly as it initially crude effort at terraforming on the part of the Mar- does in Wells’ novel. So much of what happens in tians, but given what we now know about how the period after the first cylinders land—including human activity inadvertently allows non-native people guffawing at the notion of an invasion and species to migrate, it just as easily could’ve been carrying on as if nothing is happening—is possible an accidental import, such as spores in the Martian precisely because of the amount of time it takes to supply air getting loose on Earth. Today, non- disseminate accurate information and to muster a native species invasion is so common that one military response. While the initial news coverage Washington Post reporter recently stated, “the Po- of the 9/11 attacks showed us that getting correct tomac has been so altered by man that it has be- information quickly and avoiding speculation is come the underwater equivalent of the Star Wars still a very real issue even today, it’s certain that a alien bar” (Fahrenthold), and that prevalence similar invasion today would receive a much faster, made it easy for me to draw the connection when better coordinated response. reading about the Martian vegetation. Although

Some Fantastic 2 Summer, 2005

Wells had the Martians bring the seed stock along, has bought his birthright of the earth,” (Wells, 528) we certainly now know such a proactive approach meaning that we acquired some defenses against isn’t necessary. them. Yet, in the years since War of the Worlds first After the narrator further explored and pon- appeared, the battle between humankind and bac- tificated about the new alien landscape, Wells goes teria underwent profound changes. With the ad- off on one of his didactic rants. Through an artil- vent of a myriad of antibiotics developed during lery gunner who managed to survive the carnage the 20th century, numerous debilitating conditions inflicted upon his unit by the Martians, we learn lost their effectiveness when treated quickly about the lifestyle of many of the time: enough. However, thanks to growing microbioti- cal resistance to these drugs, we are finding it “They haven’t any spirit in them— harder to kill them before they can seriously harm no proud dreams, and no proud lusts… us, and it’s looking more and more like bacteria I’ve seen hundreds of ‘em, bit of break- will once again become a serious concern to our fast in hand, running wild and shining general well being. to catch their little season-ticket train, Again, an incident that occurred while reading for fear they’d get dismissed if they did- the book—this time another in a series of ear infec- n’t; working at businesses they were tions in my 21-month-old son—brought this to my afraid to take the trouble to understand; attention. Unfortunately, he is allergic to the most skedaddling back for fear they wouldn’t common antibiotics used for treating such infec- be in time for dinner; keeping indoors tions, and the bacteria that cause the infections after dinner for fear of the back streets, have grown resistant to the medications initially and sleeping with the wives they mar- prescribed to him. As noted by Bob Harris, a ried, not because they wanted them, but writer, commentator and comedian, in his blog: because they had a bit of money that would make for safety in their one little “I once read that the majority by miserable skedaddle through the world. weight of living matter on Earth is bacte- Lives insured and a bit invested for fear ria, and probably has been and will be for of accidents.” (Wells, 515-516) millions of years. In a sense, this is really their planet, and we’re just an interesting It’s an old sentiment—one I’m sure was ex- (and still possibly unsuccessful, if you fol- pressed before Wells did so, though I cannot read- low the news) evolutionary sideshow.” ily point to an example—that continues to get ech- (Harris) oed to this day. In a much more succinct manner, Gaff in the movie Blade Runner said very much the Much like the Martian invaders, as a species, we’re same thing at the end of the movie: “It’s too bad totally at the mercy of bacteria. While the waning she won’t live! But then again, who does?” This of the era of antibiotics won’t destroy humankind, sentiment also formed a large part of the basis for unless a new method of attack is soon found dis- the movie Shaun of the Dead, in which our hero eases such as tuberculosis will certainly start leads a very zombie-like existence until the actu- claiming more lives once again. ally undead force him to take action and take con- trol of his devoid, meandering life. II. The 1938 Mercury Theater Adaptation of The Shortly after this rant we find out that bacteria War of the Worlds have done in the Martians and the gunner’s plans to save humanity from them are now moot. While What’s so amazing about this adaptation is bacteria aren’t exactly humanity’s friends, Wells that how true it is to the spirit of the original story, sermonizes, “By the toll of a billion deaths man even though the method of narration is radically

Some Fantastic 3 Summer, 2005

altered. Instead of conveying the story through roles, and the sound effects, when they’re used, are one man’s observations, experiences and insights, remarkably realistic. Additionally, many listeners Orson Welles and Howard Koch (the man who surely remembered the horrors of World War I, and actually wrote the original radio script) tell the the Martians’ use of gas warfare must have seemed story through a series of news bulletins that inter- horribly plausible. Beyond that, some of the pro- rupt “regularly scheduled” programming. Over 65 duction is just amazing; when the first part ends years later it’s easy to see how this style of per- just before the commercial break, with one plaintive formance caused panic in the estimated 1 million voice from a lone radio broadcaster begging for a listeners who tuned in after Welles’ announcement response from anyone at all, you can feel the hair on CBS radio that the Mercury Theater was per- on your arms rise—even when you know it’s just a forming a dramatization. dramatization. It’s just that powerful. It’s very easy However, anyone who missed the introduction to see how so many got lost in the story, thus not but listened closely to the action in the first part of listening critically and growing panicked. the broadcast could easily pick up clues that the Interestingly, the second part of the perform- action is not real. Events unfold much faster than ance becomes a much more straightforward real time allows: within 40 minutes, the first cylin- dramatization of the novel. We find that Professor der hits the earth, the Martians Pearson (voiced by Welles), who use the heat ray on the first to survived the Martian attack upon investigate, the New Jersey “mi- the first responders to Grovers litia” responds with over 7,000 Mill, escaped further attacks by troops and artillery before the holing up in a farmhouse while newly-constructed Marian tri- the Martians attacked New Jer- pod quickly decimates them, and sey. When he’s able to leave and six tripods (three of which arrive find out what has happened, from Virginia) descend upon we’re treated to a couple scenes New York City. In addition, very recognizable from Wells’ when the time is given, it does novel: he encounters an artillery- not correspond to the actual time man ranting about the lazy lives during the original broadcast. people led and his plans to help Notably, within the first few humanity survive, leaves him for minutes of the broadcast, which started at 8:00 PM New York, “anxious to know the fate of the great EST, we are told that the first cylinder hit Grovers city.” When he arrives there he witnesses birds Mill, NJ at around 8:50 PM. Furthermore, the radio and dogs picking over the Martian carrion. All of program that gets interrupted by the radio news this is very faithful to the second part of Wells’ reports actually changes; when the program starts, work, even if it has been transported from Eng- we’re listening to Ramón Raquello and his orches- land to New Jersey. tra from Meridian Room in the Hotel Park Plaza in The broadcast continues to fascinate as a his- downtown New York, but before the first half torical piece. Today radio is rarely used as a dra- hour is up we’ve switched to Bobby Millette and matic medium, so it’s interesting to listen to how his orchestra from Hotel Martinet in Brooklyn. It one man attempted to find a new way to exploit it certainly seems odd that the “program” would in a time before television and when motion pic- change without any sort of announcement from tures where still almost exclusively in black and the network. white. Welles showed that a well-executed radio Still, the fact that people just didn’t catch these telecast presented in an incredibly realistic mode clues says a lot about the effectiveness of this per- could entertain and excite people as easily as any formance. All the actors wonderfully voice their other form of entertainment.

Some Fantastic 4 Summer, 2005

III. War of the Worlds (1953), directed by Byron role women play in monster films (despite her Haskin M.A. in library sciences) and that the Martians, when they do appear on screen, are rather laugh- I would guess that until the recent release of able. The movie would’ve been much better with- the Spielberg adaptation, this is the version that out their comical appearance. most Americans are familiar with. Certainly, some The Martian issue aside, Pal obviously under- of the images from the movie, especially the look stood that working in a primarily visual medium of the Martian saucers and the destruction of meant reworking elements of the story. Even with iconoclastic structures in the early-1950s Los An- Ray Harryhausen’s best work, tripods would’ve geles skyline, are now indelibly etched in our col- looked clunky at best. So, the Martians now ap- lective consciousness. Yet, I hadn’t seen the movie pear to fly in what look like flying saucers, but in a since my teenage years, and when I started view- nod to the original tripods that Wells imagined, ing it I was nearly completely derailed by the Dr. Forrester speculates that rays, “probably some name of the hero of the film: Dr. Clayton Forrester. sort of magnetic flux,” keep the saucers afloat. In- Those unfamiliar with the show deed, as he makes his specula- may not know this, but that name tion, we get a close-up of a saucer also belongs to the head mad sci- that shows three tiny jets of entist in the first seven seasons of sparks emanating in three differ- Mystery Science Theater 3000. In all ent directions from below. It’s the my years of watching and loving only time we see this level of de- the program I didn’t once make tail during the movie, but the ref- the connection. However, this erence to Well’s original design is sudden realization actually clear. The black smoke that fig- caused me to stop the film and ures so prominently in the novel regroup—through no fault of the and in Welles’ adaptation is gone, movie, I kept waiting for Mike (or most likely because Pal didn’t Joel) and bots to appear on the have an effective way to film it as bottom of the screen and start Wells described it. The other ma- eviscerating the film. jor change concerning the Mar- That’s actually not very fair. tian craft is the heat ray. Again, George Pal’s production is one of the needs of film conflicted with the few sci-fi films of its era to stand up well over an invisible, soundless heat ray in much the same the years. Surely the nearly $1 million budget— way soundless explosions in space conflict with which undoubtedly went mostly to the special audience expectations. Thus, we now hear and see effects—helped, but Pal really made sure that the the rays as they wreck havoc upon humankind. movie held up well on its own terms. At 85 min- This revision of the Martian ships necessitated utes in length, Pal kept out unnecessary padding another notable change in the story involving the and kept moving the story at a fast pace. The rela- damage inflicted upon the aliens. Clearly, if the tively brief playing time also ensured that much of Martians could completely withstand the effects of Wells’ social pontificating in the second half of the an atomic bomb then there’s no way that any sort novel never made it into the film, but who really of weapon developed by humankind could harm wants to watch actors wax poetic upon societal ills their ships. Therefore, the writers removed the when they came to see stuff get blown up? How- scene where the military managed to destroy a ever, the movie is not without a few minor flaws, sole vessel. Interestingly, this change unwittingly most notably that Sylvia Van Buren, Dr. Forres- gave birth to a cliché about alien invaders. For ex- ter’s love interest, is reduced to the stereotypical ample, in Independence Day—which is actually

Some Fantastic 5 Summer, 2005

something of an adaptation as well, given that them. There’s very little talk of religion for much humanity defeats otherwise nearly indestructible of the rest of the movie, and it’s during this time aliens thanks to a manmade computer virus—the that the Martians begin their relentless advance. alien ships also completely withstand a nuclear The Martian attack only begins faltering once it bomb explosion. It comes as no surprise that Tim attacks the church Dr. Forrester and Ms. Van Bu- Burton chose to satirize this in Mars Attacks! by ren huddle inside together. The Martians can cer- having the Martians not only survive such a blast, tainly kill the pious, but they cannot destroy the but also by harvesting and then inhaling the gases foundations of God’s institutions. As if to empha- produced by the explosion in much the same way size the power of God and its importance in ele- kids inhale helium from balloons to make their vating the Americans over the Soviets/Martians, voices pitch higher. the audience is treated to more than just a recita- The other really noticeable change—aside tion of Wells’ “God’s wisdom” line—which Welles from the fact that the Martians are finally invading was content to leave unadorned in his adapta- all of the Earth simultaneously rather than just one tion—we also hear the peeling of church bells and portion of it—is the elevation of the stories’ reli- a singing chorus of “Amens.” gious element. Although Wells called bacteria “the humblest things that God, in his wisdom, has put IV. Jeff Wayne’s Musical Version of The War of upon his Earth” (Wells, 528) in the novel, religion the Worlds (1978) overall plays a small role in the events of the book. However, the Cold War called for a greater impor- If there’s one thing I can certainly say about tance of God’s role—our open faith in God gave Jeff Wayne’s musical adaptation of Wells’ novel: it many Americans a sense of moral superiority that is by far the most unique version of the story. As further elevated the United States over the Soviet far as I know there aren’t any other musical ver- Union. Remember, this was the period when Con- sions of The War of the Worlds, and even if others gress passed legislation inserting the words “un- exist, I doubt that they became the launching point der God” into the Pledge of Allegiance. Peter for a video game and a CGI-animated feature film. Nichols, in his entry on the movie in The Encyclo- But I’m getting just a little ahead of myself. pedia of Science Fiction wrote: Over two years in the making, Jeff Wayne’s Musical Version of The War of the Worlds (yes, that is “The dazed conservatism of the hu- the complete title) lies somewhere between a tra- man response to the Martians is true to ditional musical soundtrack and music inspired by Wells, as is the subtext suggesting that a the text, ala Johan De Meij’s Lord of the Rings; Sym- retreat into religious piety is also an in- phonie No. 1. A few of the songs are traditional pop adequate answer, though here Pal has it compositions, but the rest is mostly instrumental, both ways.” (Nicholls) accompanied by first-person story narration per- formed predominantly by Richard Burton. Justin I don’t know if I agree; Nicholls argument Hayward of The Moody Blues also handles a large works if you accept that the Pastor’s attempt to amount of the lead vocals on the album— communicate with the Martians only represents presumably in part because of his voice was so such a retreat. If you take the Martians as symbol- easily associated with the otherworldly sound of izing the Soviet Union—i.e., the red menace from his band. the red planet—then we have a parable for Ameri- The album has since sold over 13 million cop- can beliefs in the cold war. The military only starts ies worldwide and spawned one international hit, attacking the Martians—representative of the So- “Forever Autumn.” And I never heard of it until viet antagonism to religion—when they ruthlessly starting on this little project, although that’s most kill an unarmed priest trying to peacefully engage likely due to my age (I was six when it was re-

Some Fantastic 6 Summer, 2005

leased) and the fact it sold less than 500,000 copies Wayne’s score wonderfully enhances Burton’s in the U.S. narration, filling in details in a way that the spo- Overall, Wayne’s musical is an interesting ex- ken word can never match. This is most evident in periment. As can be expected, he made changes to “The Red Weed (Part One),” in which the music the story, most notably combining the two story conveys how utterly changed the landscape is arcs from the novel into one comprehensive narra- now that the Martian weed devours it. The music, tive. However, unlike Welles or Pal, Wayne kept virtually all synthesized, is simultaneously both the narrative in Victorian England, opting for a discomforting and serene. more faithful rendition, at At the climax of the least on the surface level. story, “Dead London,” After starting the album Wayne convincingly ties in virtually the same man- together all the movements ner as the other adapta- and themes from the album tions—i.e., “No one would to evoke the desolation of have believed, in the last the deserted city and mir- years of the nineteenth cen- roring it with the death tury…”—the album opens throes of the invaders. Their with “Eve of War,” a basi- now heavily distorted cries cally instrumental piece of “Ulla” actually sound with a chorus sung by Hay- painful and almost make ward that establishes a few you feel some pity for the of the important musical invaders. When the last of themes of the album. It’s a them dies, he wonderfully combination of synthesiz- transitions into a celebration ers, orchestral arrangement and a very disco-like of the Martians defeat, effectively morphing some beat. The sound is very cosmic in its reach and it of the music associated with them into the stirring does convey the vastness of space between the two triumphal sound that ends the main narrative. planets, as well as sheer alienness of the Martians, Interestingly, the album’s conclusion ends whose musical representation doesn’t follow the differently than the Welles or Pal versions. Most same rhythms, cadences or moirés conventionally notably, Wayne removes God from the equation. used in orchestral or pop music. While the rise of secularism during the 20th cen- With the album’s second and third tracks, tury certainly made this an acceptable notion in “Horsell Common and the Heat Ray” and “The 1978, the fact is that Wayne’s adaptation retains Artilleryman and the Fighting Machine,” Wayne the original late 19th century setting, and during establishes the rest of the musical themes used in that period of time the notion of not giving God the album. The noise of a heavily distorted guitar his proper credit was unthinkable—that’s the becomes the sound of the death ray and we’re in- very reason why Wells, a secularist, wrote it. troduced to the Martian cry of “Ulla,” which Aside from that, given how famous the “God, in represents the one audible communication they his wisdom” line is, its absence in of itself is make. Wayne makes effective use of this cry, and somewhat jarring. if you listen carefully to the recording, you can Yet, Wayne manages to incorporate an ele- actually hear the cry become more distorted as the ment tossed aside by Welles and Pal. Those two album progresses, thus clearly giving the sense of adaptations completely did away with the por- the Martians losing battle with bacterial infection. tion of Wells’ epilogue where the narrator con- Overall, the album effectively evokes the shift- siders the possibility of another attack and what ing of emotions and actions throughout the story. the future holds for humankind. Rather than just

Some Fantastic 7 Summer, 2005

let the narrator rap philosophical, Wayne in- the look and feel for this movie. Clearly, he plans cludes as the final track a fictional landing of on competing with Spielberg’s film. NASA probes on Mars which ends with an ap- parently new attack by the Martians that leaves V. The War of the Worlds, directed by Steven NASA mission control searching for contact from Spielberg (2005) other monitoring stations across the world in much the same manner that the radio operator What a fascinating mess. A couple days after does at the end of the first part of Welles’ version. watching the movie, I recalled something Spiel- Yet, there’s something rather unsatisfying about berg said in an interview on the Dark Horizons it—”Epilogue (Part 2) (NASA)” is almost as website: clunky as its name, and the final effect, com- pleted by the resurgence of a couple musical “Science fiction to me is a vacation. themes associated with the Martians, is almost It’s a vacation away from all rules of nar- farcical rather than chilling. rative logic. It’s a vacation away from But the final sounds from the recording do physics, basic physics and physical sci- not mark the end of Wayne’s adaptation. The al- ence. You can leave all the rules behind bum is packaged with full-color illustrations that and just kind of fly. As a race human be- supplement the narrative, and at the end of 1998, ings can’t fly so we envy the birds. Science it became the basis of a video game that pitted fiction gives you a chance to soar. That’s metal-covered lorries (among other devices) why I keep coming back to science fiction against the Martian tripods. Last month, a seven- because there are absolutely no limits to disc collector’s edition of the album hit stores where the imagination can go. Now the alongside a newly remastered SACD two-disc challenge of science fiction is that to tell a set, which actually debuted at number nine on credible science fiction story you have to the British charts during the week of June 20. then turn around and impose certain lim- Furthermore, according to the official website, its on yourself. You can’t let the story get www.thewaroftheworlds.com, Wayne has se- too fantastic.” (Fischer) cured the funding to create a CGI-animated fea- ture film based on his reinterpretation of Wells’ Clearly, he doesn’t fully understand science fic- novel, and the artwork originally packaged with tion; conversely, his track record shows that he the album apparently will provide the basis for understands what makes good movies. His adap-

Goats: The Comic Strip by Jonathan Rosenberg

goats: the comic strip apr 24, 2002 http://www.goats.com [email protected] ©2002 jonathan rosenberg. all rights reserved

Some Fantastic 8 Summer, 2005

tation of War of the Worlds exists at the nexus when danger is literally footsteps away. Impres- where these two conflicting modes of understand- sively, the tripods’ incredibly fluid gait and in- ing converge. credibly long and nubile tentacles are more men- Strictly as a science fiction film, it’s a failure. acing than anything I ever imagined. Wisely, While good sci-fi productions can get away with Spielberg also keeps their actual screen time, as some gaffs—think of the battery explanation in well as the battle sequences, to a minimum, thus The Matrix—a few in this movie loom too large. making them that stand out visually that much The aliens use electromagnetic pulses (EMPs) to more. Just as impressive is the portion of the disable just about all the electrical devises in the farmhouse basement scene which comes directly areas where they land, yet videocameras continue from Pal’s release; during it, Spielberg effectively to work after the aliens set off the EMPs. Along the conveys terror felt by the characters as they avoid same vein, a car mechanic is able to restore a mi- the aliens and the scope they use to examine the nivan to running order just by replacing the sole- remains of the farmhouse before they enter it. noids. While they certainly would fail due to an As an adaptation of Wells’ book, Spielberg’s EMP, just about every automotive engine made in movie is certainly intriguing. Like the other adap- the past 15 years incorporates computer chip tech- tations mentioned thus far, the film opens with a nology—clearly just replacing the solenoids slight variation on the “No one would have be- shouldn’t get a car in running order. lieved, in the last years of the nineteenth cen- Just as puzzling is the Martian weapon that tury…” line, this time stating “the early years of instantly vaporizes humans but amazingly leaves the twenty-first century.” As already noted, the their clothing intact. Spielberg must have his rea- aliens return to the tripods, and as a result Spiel- son for this, but even in the post-9/11 context— berg brought back elements lost in Pal’s version. more on that later—it makes no sense. Then there Aliens capture humans with long, incredibly dex- is the issue of just why the alien tripods emerge terous tentacles, stored in cages attached to the from underground. The characters in the movie machine and are later used as food, with their speculate that the aliens buried the machines blood sucked out directly in the manner described countless millennia ago and then transported into by Wells. The red weed makes its return and even them when they were ready to attack. This seems provides foreshadowing for the end of the invad- absolutely incredulous, and given the size and ers. For a moment early in the film, it even looked location of the machines you’d think that someone like Spielberg actually had the tripods emit the would’ve accidentally stumbled across one of black, smoky gas to kill humans, but in the end it them at some point. However, it is possible that was literally nothing more than exhaust. these ruminations were entirely wrong, and that To be sure, Spielberg also makes changes, just there’s a rational explanation that Spielberg just as his predecessors did. Again, the story is moved didn’t divulge to the audience. Or maybe not—see forward to the present, which allows him to tap interview quote above. into America’s post-9/11 anxieties. The Ogilvy, Yet, Spielberg also shows that he understands curate and nameless artillery gunner characters how to make a movie—in particular the visuals, are unseemly merged into one character for a which are downright breathtaking. While Pal’s rather long farm house scene, and his demise is version depicted masses trying to flee the carnage very different than how Wells wrote it. In an ap- wrought by the invaders, compared to Spielberg’s parent nod to the Welles radio broadcast, the ac- vision of chaotic flight their march was rather or- tion starts in a New Jersey suburb of New York ganized and orderly—in Pal’s version the true City, but just like Pal, Spielberg makes it clear that barbarism and inhumanity only came when the this is a worldwide event. However, the invaders last to flee truly got desperate. Spielberg shows are never called Martians, as there are no indica- that anyone is capable of it at anytime, not just tions whatsoever that they invaders came from

Some Fantastic 9 Summer, 2005

there. (At least Spielberg partially understands defensive shields also return, but thankfully that plausibility is still important to sci-fi, and in there are no attempts to take down the aliens 21st century America, an invasion from Mars is with nuclear weapons. Maybe the point parodied highly implausible.) in Mars Attacks! finally sunk through the mili- Because he felt that the Welles and Pal pro- tary’s consciousness. ductions very much reflected the global uncertain- Interestingly, the other major change Spiel- ties of their times, Spielberg made this version re- berg made to the story is the one that gives this flect the post-9/11 world Americans inhabit (Mi- adaptation its truly interesting segments. This ska). Although the invasion actually starts in the time, the protagonist, Ray, is a divorced, self- Ukraine, no one pays attention to the news broad- absorbed dockworker from New Jersey. He shows casts in the background, so nearly everyone is very little interest in his children’s lives and they shocked by the weather disturbances caused by resent the fact that they have to visit him almost as the entry of the alien invaders, thus echoing the much as it inconveniences him. When the attack appalling lack of knowledge starts, he must find a way to many Americans have about the protect his family and actually rest of the world. When the at- act like their father. Along the tack commences, humans are way, he needs to figure out quickly vaporized, leaving only how to actually communicate a fine ash—an eerie reminder of with them and then earn their the lack of identifiable remains trust and respect. It’s a rough for many victims of the Twin journey—one that he doesn’t Towers attack. Shortly thereaf- realize he’s actually making ter, one of the characters asks if until over halfway through the the terrorists are striking again. film. The conflicts and emotions Comparatively, these are in- are far more palpable than any credibly subtle compared to of the others that take place in what comes later. During the the movie first night after the attacks, Ray In the end though, it never Ferrier (played by Tom Cruise) quite congeals. While his lack and his children sleep in the of understanding about what basement of his ex-wife’s house. makes good sci-fi certainly Hours after falling asleep, an hampered the film, Spielberg’s airplane crashes into their house, and even more biggest problem is that he tried to do too much. amazingly they survive! Later when continuing to His use of the red weed is a prime example of this. flee among thousands of others, we see walls When we see the weed dying, it takes less than a where people have posted pictures of lost loved minute before we see the same thing happening to ones, asking for help in finding them. the invaders, making its inclusion feel like a rush Not content to play upon America’s 9/11 ex- job. By trying to recreate post-9/11 America, to periences, Spielberg also takes the time to refer- ratchet up the terror and to make overlong hom- ence Pal’s production. In addition to the before- ages to Pal’s adaptation—the farmhouse scene mentioned farmhouse scene—which includes the took nearly 20 minutes—he took his attention off severing of the visual scope with an axe—at the of the heart of the movie, which is learning to be- end of the movie Spielberg also recreates one of come a father. More troubling was the fact that the iconic images of the 1953 film by showing a Spielberg seems incapable of making a movie hand emerge from the opening of an alien craft without incorporating some sort of happy ending, just before it dies. The bell jar shaped, invisible and the family reunion scene that closes the movie

Some Fantastic 10 Summer, 2005

is downright unbelievable. Finding a way to end BobHarris.com, June 10, 2005. the movie with the alien dying in a fashion similar http://www.bobharris.com/content/view/559/1/ to the 1953 version would’ve actually been prefer- (June 24, 2005). able and kept in line with the homages to Pal. Holmsten, Brian & Alex Lubertozzi (editors). The Sadly, this happy ending also eliminated any War of The Worlds. Sourcebooks: Naperville, chance that Spielberg, like Wayne, would incorpo- IL, 2005. rate the possibility of another attack. Independence Day. Dir. Roland Emmerich. 20th Century Fox, 1996. Next issue: War of the Worlds: Global Dis- Mars Attacks! Dir. Tim Burton. Warner Bros., 1996. patches & some less widely known works inspired by Miska, Brad. “On-Set Interview: Tom Cruise & Ste- H.G. Wells’ classic novel. ven Spielberg for ‘War of the Worlds’,” Dark Horizons, February 11, 2005. Sources http://www.darkhorizons.com/ Brians, Paul, “Study Guide for H. G. Wells: The news05/warworlds.php (July 11, 2005). War of the Worlds,” Course Materials for the Nicholls, Peter. “The War of the Worlds.” The Ency- Study of Science Fiction, June 13, 1995. clopedia of Science Fiction. 1995 (revised 3rd edi- http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~brians/science_fict tion). p. 1300. ion/warofworlds.html (June 3, 2005). Roberts, Adam. Science Fiction. New York, NY: Fahrenthold, David A. “In River of Many Aliens, Routledge, 2000. Snakehead Looms as Threat,” The Washington The War of the Worlds. Dir. Byron Haskin. Para- Post, June 3, 2005. mount Pictures, 1953. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp- The War of the Worlds. Dir. Stephen Spielberg. Para- dyn/content/article/2005/05/28/AR20050528010 mount Pictures, 2005. 79.html (May 29, 2005). Wells, H. G. The H. G. Wells Reader. Philadelphia, Fischer, Paul. “Interview: Tom Cruise & Steven PA: Courage Books, 1996. Spielberg for ‘War of the Worlds’,” Dark Horizons, June 23, 2005. Matthew Appleton is the Editor of Some Fantastic http://www.darkhorizons.com/news05/war1.php and lives in Alexandria, VA with his wife, son and two (July 11, 2005). cats that sometimes act like they are the advance scout- Harris, Bob. “Attack Of The Arm-Eating Night ing party for an alien invasion force. Spider Golf Ball Rationalizations,”

Goats: The Comic Strip by Jonathan Rosenberg

goats: the comic strip apr 26, 2002 http://www.goats.com [email protected] ©2002 jonathan rosenberg. all rights reserved

Some Fantastic 11 Summer, 2005

“Sith Happens”: The Political Lessons of the Star Wars Prequels By Greg Saunders

For the past six years, George Lucas—who once de- conflict between science and religion were tackled fended his films by saying, “Why is the public so stu- with a knowing wink to the audience. Indeed, pid? That’s not my fault.”—has been busy construct- back in May it was hard to watch the ludicrous ing a political epic that’s as subversive and timely as evolution hearings in Kansas without recalling the last year’s blockbuster Fahrenheit 9/11. The only ques- first film’s pivotal trial scene between Charlton tion is... will anyone notice? Heston’s stranded human Taylor and the ape leader Dr. Zaius: Science fiction has always been fertile ground for metaphorical examination of societal ills. In the “Learned Judges: My case is simple. It fifties and sixties, Rod Serling’s Twilight Zone is based on our first Article of Faith: that scripts confronted nuclear war, racism, and com- the Almighty created the ape in his own munist witch-hunts with a frankness that garnered image; that He gave him a soul and a critical acclaim and numerous awards. Yet, these mind; that He set him apart from the topics remained forbidden to standard television beasts of the jungle, and made him the dramas. After an exhaustive fight with network lord of the planet. brass over a teleplay based on the slaying of civil These sacred truths are self-evident. rights martyr Emmett Till, Serling leapt into the The proper study of apes is apes. But cer- world of fantasy remarking, “You know, you can tain young cynics have chosen to study put these words into the mouth of a Martian and man—yes, perverted scientists who ad- get away with it.” (Neary) vance on insidious theory called ‘evolu- A few years later, the Planet of the Apes series tion.’ replaced the Martians with grown men in monkey There is a conspiracy afoot to under- suits, but kept the Twilight Zone’s fondness for mine the very cornerstone of our Faith.” subtle editorializing. In a genre known for little more than mindless eye candy, topics as timely as These days, it’s hard to remember a time when anti-war protests, animal rights, race riots, and the the big and small screens were a haven for social

Some Fantastic 12 Summer, 2005

commentary disguised in space suits and cheap “Turmoil has engulfed the Galactic prosthetics. When the original Star Wars hit thea- Republic. The taxation of trade routes to ters, audiences embraced what they saw as a sim- outlying star systems is in dispute. ple morality play. To deflect criticism, Lucas hid Hoping to resolve the matter with a the film’s vagueness and shallowness behind a blockade of deadly battleships, the greedy “hero myth” concept he borrowed from theolo- Trade Federation has stopped all shipping gian Joseph Campbell, but whatever depth the to the small planet of Naboo.” films may have contained was lost on an audience that was more interested in lasers and robots than That’s right. This interstellar swashbuckling mediations on mythological archetypes. epic begins with a disagreement over taxes. As the By the time the third film in the series, Return film’s title implies, the leader of the “greedy Trade of the Jedi, was released, there was a growing con- Federation” is the mysterious Darth Sidious, a sensus that Lucas had lost his Midas touch. With robe-wearing baddie who’s obviously destined to the teddy bear like Ewoks in tow, it seemed clear be the emperor of the original films. Though never that the “space opera” auteur has given in to the explicitly mentioned in the film, it’s pretty clear marketing dark side. Spin-off cartoons and TV that this goofy-named villain is also the alter ego movies squeezed the last drops of goodwill that of Galactic Senator Palpatine from Naboo. That’s the franchise had built up from its first installment right. There’s a “Galactic Senate.” and its superior sequel. George Lucas was more Under the guidance of Sidious/Palpatine, the interested in making kiddie movies now. Trade Federation invades the planet of Naboo and This suspicion seemed to be confirmed after holds its people hostage, which leads us to our Lucas reemerged with 1999’s The Phantom Menace, first look at what C-Span would be like in outer the first new Star Wars movie in 15 years. Pre- space. In an effort to persuade the Republic to sumably about the origins of bad guy Darth Va- send help, Naboo’s leader Queen Amidala pleads der, the film was much more a showcase for the with the legislature, only to have the motion ta- retarded antics of a frog-creature named Jar-Jar bled under “Section 523A.” Out of desperation, Binks than any examination of the “dark side”. Amidala (under the guidance of Sen. Palpatine) Add to this scatological humor that would make calls for the ouster of the Supreme Chancellor, Shrek blush and a fifteen-minute racing sequence which eventually leads to the election of Senator cum videogame commercial, it’s easy to see why Palpatine to be the new leader of the Republic on a so many fans were ready to declare the Star Wars “sympathy vote.” franchise dead. Whew! Are you still with me? Anyone expect- But a funny thing happened on the way to ing to see the transition from Republic to Empire Mos Eisley. While the gaudy special effects, to be a non-stop battle between the forces of good wooden acting, and amateurish dialogue dis- and evil would have to deal with a few hours of tracted audiences, George Lucas was busy con- legislative deal-making first. Is it any wonder why structing a political parable about the death of a democracy. As if to make the point that world- shattering crises rarely announce them- selves, the chain of events that would lead to the end of the Lucas’ fictional democracy is set off by an innocuous trade dispute. As the opening crawl of the Phantom Menace explains:

Some Fantastic 13 Summer, 2005

audiences tuned out this portion of the film? Hell, rage to their political advantage would make Ma- I almost fell asleep typing this stuff. chiavelli proud. But the portrayal of Palpatine does stand in With the 2002 entry in the franchise, Attack of contrast to the earlier films’ lack of ambiguity. the Clones, Lucas took things a step further. Hav- While a coup of some sort would have been a ing already shown how a Senator from a tiny quick and easy way to explain away the origins of planet snuck his way into the Supreme Chancel- the Empire, this Senator is playing by grifter’s lorship, the second episode concerns Palpatine’s rules. Why steal something when you can trick consolidation of power by, once again, manufac- them into giving it away? Through a manufac- turing a crisis and taking advantage of the ensuing tured crisis for which he’s responsible, this Senator fear and confusion. The convoluted scenario in- from a tiny planet was able to undermine confi- volving a clone army isn’t really worth trying to dence in the duly-elected leader and take the posi- unravel here, but suffice it to say that the ensuing tion for himself. war provides the perfect excuse for an “emergency This may seem ludicrous to some, but the par- powers” resolution, via the easily manipulated allels to local politics are all too real. Residents of Senator Jar-Jar Binks. (At the time the movie came California lived through a phony crisis of their out, our President, a former drunk who’s unable own a few years ago thanks to the deregulation to speak in complete sentences, was still basking schemes of former Republican Governor Pete Wil- in his post 9/11 afterglow. So the notion that the son and the President’s buddies at Enron. In the man-child Jar-Jar would go into politics isn’t that months following the California power crisis, the farfetched). public campaign to undermine sitting Governor Once again, an analogous situation can be Gray Davis’ leadership gained steam in large part found in our recent history. In the aftermath of the to the financial support of state GOP leaders like 9/11 attacks, the Congress hastily approved a Darrel Issa and aided by a public gullible enough laundry list of Bush Administration requests un- to believe that California’s woes were the fault of der the Orwellian name The USA PATRIOT Act. Davis (who warned about an impending crisis for The common thread holding the proposals to- months prior to the rolling blackouts that domi- gether was a lot more about consolidating power nated the headlines). within the executive branch than effectiveness in In the end, Davis was recalled and replaced fighting terrorists. (Forgive me if I missed the part by Pete Wilson’s handpicked successor, actor Ar- of the 9/11 Commission report that concerned nold Schwarzenegger. When it was revealed that what Mohammed Atta was reading at the library.) Schwarzenegger met with Enron executives dur- The debate is still raging about the effectiveness of ing the height of the crisis, the final piece of the these “emergency powers”, but the fact that the puzzle fell into place. While it’s not quite as Act itself was printed in the middle of the night straightforward as the one-man scenario in Lu- and passed before anyone had a chance to read it cas’ film, the way the perpetrators of these twin does raise some disturbing questions about the catastrophes were able to turn the public’s out- motives of those involved. Though the terrorist attacks on New York and the Pentagon obviously weren’t work of evil Republi- cans hiding in the shadows, the eagerness of the ruling party to exploit the fear and confusion of the American public should serve as a wakeup call. As Lucas put it in an interview with Time magazine to promote Clones, the de-

Some Fantastic 14 Summer, 2005

struction of democratic governments is almost final installment in the series, in which Lucas’ fic- always an inside: tional despot takes a lesson from Joseph Stalin and goes on a bloody purge of his political enemies. But “All democracies turn into dictator- I guess that all depends on whether or not there’s ships—but not by coup. The people give another runaway bride or vegetative woman in their democracy to a dictator, whether it’s Florida to distract us. Julius Caesar or Napoleon or Adolf Hitler. Ultimately, the general population goes Sources: along with the idea...How does a good Corliss, Richard & Jess Cagle, “Dark Victory,” person go bad, and how does a democracy Time, Apr. 20, 2002. http://www.time.com/time become a dictatorship? It isn’t that the /sampler/article/0,8599,232440,00.html (May Empire conquered the Republic, it’s that 20, 2005). the Empire is the Republic.” (Corliss) Neary, Lynn, “The Twilight Zone: Present at the Creation,” NPR, Sept. 16, 2002. That’s the lesson hidden within the new Star http://www.npr.org/programs/morning/ Wars films. Despite what we want to believe about features/patc/twilightzone/ (May 24, 2005). the strength of our own democracy, most despots Planet of the Apes. Dir. Franklin J. Schaffner. 20th don’t seize power; they convince the public to give Century Fox, 1968. it to them. It’s understandable that audiences ha- Star Wars: Episode I, The Phantom Menace. Dir. ven’t responded to the political themes in these George Lucas. Lucasfilm Ltd., 1999. films. After all, these are the same people who are Star Wars: Episode II, Attack of the Clones. Dir. too busy following the ins and outs of the Michael George Lucas. Lucasfilm Ltd., 2002. Jackson trial to pay attention to more boring stuff Star Wars: Episode III, Revenge of the Sith. Dir. like the Bush Administration coddling human George Lucas. Lucasfilm Ltd., 2005. rights abusers while extolling the praises of democ- racy abroad, the gradual shifting of the tax burden Greg Saunders hosts The Talent Show blog at onto the backs of the poor and middle class, or the http://www.thetalentshow.org/ and also appears on looming healthcare crisis. Is it any wonder that they Tom Tomorrow’s This Modern World blog at tune out the interstellar Senate hearings while wait- http://www.thismodernworld.com/. This article origi- ing for another fart joke or light saber fight? Per- nally appeared on The Talent Show in a slightly dif- haps fans will finally start paying attention with the ferent form on May 17, 2005.

Book Review: St. Vidicon to the Rescue, by Christopher Stasheff By Christopher Garcia

Oh, sweet St. Vidicon, please let my word or even Spider Robinson have received over the processing program defeat the best efforts of Fina- years. He’s best known for his Warlock series of gle and allow me to send my review of Christo- novels, in one of which, The Warlock Unlocked, he pher Stasheff’s novel on your after-life and times introduces his readers to St. Vidicon. to the good people at Some Fantastic. St. Vidicon, who I always want to say is actu- OK, with that required piece of Post-Modernist ally St. Vicodin, is the monk who served as the humor out of the way, I can proceed. Chris Stasheff trouble-shooter for the Vatican in a period where has been around for just about as long as there have folks are fleeing the Catholic Church in favor of been people looking for good-humored sf. He’s Reverend Sun’s. The Pope makes a deal to get on never really gotten the attention that Bobby Aspirin the air in most of the major countries in the world

Some Fantastic 15 Summer, 2005

and make his case. A resistor goes bad and then dealt with St. Vidicon’s adventures with gremlins Father Vidicon grabs both ends and allows the and other beasties. The writing of St. Vidicon’s broadcast to be completed, saving the Catholic missions is decidedly Old World, with ‘hast’s and Church and becoming a Martyr at the same time. ‘thou’s and ‘doth’s popping up all over. There is a This gets him named St. Vidicon and he is made bit of that in the Tony stories, but not nearly to the the patron saint of Computers and High-Tech. same level. This mythos is great, and as I understand it, As St. Vidicon helps Tony with his love life, we has been introduced in the Warlock series and a are in the most interesting portion of the story. couple of other stories before. Vidicon is interesting, far more so That’s the easy stuff—the things than Tony. I wanted more of Vidi- that are already fully-grown and con and his adventures and less of ready to head out on their horse Tony. Tony’s character is interest- into the fields of Readership. The ing, but once he gets into the world rest of the story is a bit tougher. that Vidicon lives in, he loses a lot Tony Ricci is a tech who can fix of his strength as a personality. just about anything. He’s also a The writing here is very guy who is lonely and a HUGE good, and for some reason I got geek. We’re talking about the type the feeling that Stasheff was an of person who could actually give Englishman writing in America, a tour of a Computer History Mu- though it turns out that is not the seum; he’s that big a loser (or so case. He’s just an American who says the guy who works at a has obviously read his Pratchett, Computer History Museum). He Adams and all those other great St. Vidicon to the Rescue goes to a job at a company that by Christopher Stasheff comedic writers. Then again, he has been having a very structured ISBN: 0-44101-271-X was producing material like this problem that they couldn’t solve. Publisher: Ace; New York, NY before any of those guys I men- Release date: March, 2005 Tony comes in and quickly gets a $6.99, 320 pages, paperback. tioned, so maybe it’s just a funny handle on it. He also meets a gor- guy voice that I associate with geous doll of a woman who is a the British Isles. tech-nut too and seems more than a little inter- One of the other issues I had was that it was ested in good ole Tony. really a book of vignettes set together and strung The love story aspect is good, and at times ac- through with the love story. That sort of disjoint- tually carries along what I found to be an other- edness bugged me, as the individual stories wise dull real world. The real interest in this one is ranged from great to OK, but the through line the world that comes to Tony through the com- was weak save for the Sandy/Tony relationship puter screen. That very structured problem turns stuff. I might have liked this better as a series of out to be the Gospel of St. Vidicon as he struggles short stories, that were separate, but as a novel, I against Finagle and other lesser imps of techno- was a little disappointed. logical chaos. The tales told of St. Vicodin... I mean I’ll say this for St. Vidicon to the Rescue: it’s a St. Vidicon’s adventures are what really drive the cute little story. It’s not great, it’s not something story ahead. After St. Vidicon brings Tony in to his that would make me want to go and buy every role of solving people’s technological issues, he book by Stasheff and read them without getting gains the ability to intervene in various ways by out of my chair, but it is worth reading if you’ve becoming small and actually fixing problems like got time on your hands. It’s a good train book, as stopped sparkers and the like. This was actually I discovered on a trip to San Francisco. It’s enter- not as entertaining as the portions of the story that taining enough that you lose track of the tedium

Some Fantastic 16 Summer, 2005

of the trip and not overly taxing. The laughs are Christopher J. Garcia edits The Drink Tank on just big enough that you’ll get one or two crazy eFanzines.com and is a writer, filmmaker and histo- looks from those around you, but it’s not so up- rian from San Jose, CA. He has had work appear a roarious that you’ll get taken in as a mad man. bunch of places a bunch of times and he is damn So, thank you, St. Vidicon, for allowing me to proud of it. make it through this review without a disk crash.

DVD Review: Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events By Caroline-Isabelle Caron

I never in my life thought I’d ever write this: I Voilet the 14-year-old inventor (Emily Browning), liked the movie better than the books. Lemony Klauss the 12-year-old bookworm (Liam Aiken), Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events is better and baby Sunny the biter (Kara and Shelby Hoff- paced and more detailed than Daniel Handler’s man), are presented playing on their favorite beach, (a.k.a. Lemony Snicket) first three books in the deserted under a think fog. They are met by Mr. series, adapted by Robert Gordon (screenplay) and Poe (Timothy Spall), a family friend and banker, Brad Silberling (director). By no means a perfect who comes to announce that their parents have movie, it nevertheless solves many of the inherent died in the terrible fire that has destroyed their problems of the novels, particularly in character house. Left with nothing but the family fortune Vio- development and in some of the plot devices. let will inherit upon her majority, they are to be Granted, the Lemony given over to their closest Snicket books are youth living relative (meaning literature and as such can- the one that lives the clos- not bare the same depth est…) their “Dear Uncle than an adult novel. Nev- Olaf”, of whom they have ertheless, if anything, J.K. never heard. Rowling has taught us We then meet Count that a youth novel need Olaf (Jim Carrey) and his not be simplistic, repeti- theatre troop—composed tive or caricatural, all of of a bald man (Luis Guz- which these novels are, to mán), a hook-handed man the point of being tedious. (Jamie Harris), a person of On the other hand, the movie is most entertaining. undeterminable gender (Craig Ferguson), and two Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events white-faced women (the hilarious Jennifer Coolidge opens with a delightfully animated sequence, the and Jane Adams). Olaf proves abusive and his fake beginning of a movie about the cutest “Little house filthy. The children are forced to execute an Elf”. The sequence is cut short by the voice of Lem- inordinate amount of chores for Olaf and him min- ony Snicket (Jude Law) who informs us to leave the ions. The group soon hires Justice Strauss (Cath- theatre at once if we do not wish to witness the sad erine O’Hara as good as usual), who is naively story of the Baudelaire children. Just like in the sucked into the evil plan to marry Violet to Olaf so books, Snicket acts as the narrator, his comments he can get his hands of the Baudelaire money. This just as depressed and hopeless. We are then intro- plot defeated, we follow the children as they are duced to the Baudelaire children, in much the same sent to live with their distant Uncle Monty Mont- manner as in the first pages of The Bad Beginning. gomery (Bill Connolly), the herpetologist from The

Some Fantastic 17 Summer, 2005

Reptile Room, who is then murdered by Olaf mim- often seen as inflicting violence on the children. icking as a newly hired research assistant. The chil- We see him push Aunt Josephine in eel-infested dren then go live with their equally distant Aunt waters to her certain death. There is nothing good Josephine Anwhistle (a perfectly hysterical Meryl in Olaf, and that is all there is to him. He has no Streep), a multiphobic grammarian who falls under other significant character distinction. Carrey’s the charms of the disguised Olaf, as in The Wide Olaf is equally evil, but much less blatantly vio- Window. Let me also mention the striking perform- lent. For instance, he does not shout for all the ances of Cedric the Entertainer as The Detective world to hear that he will kill the Baudelaire chil- (who proves he can actually act) and of the uncred- dren, goading Mr. Poe and the police, as he does ited Dustin Hoffman in the role of at the end of The Wide Window. The Critic, the latter appearing Rather his threats are understated because his grand daughters play and whispered, and they are also Sunny. In the Marvelous Marriage so elaborate as to inevitably fail. sequence, the two men are simply He is seen abandoning Josephine hilarious and the DVD extras Dis- alone in a raft to be attacked by mal Deletions and Obnoxious Out- the killer eels, but he does not ac- takes prove that much of their per- tually kill her. Carrey’s Olaf is formance was improvised and that also quite a pathetic actor, which sadly most of it ended up on the give him a strangely clownesque cutting room floor. quality that gives him depth. As The plot follows closely the unbelievable as it may seem, Car- general outline of the three first rey brings detail and subtlety to a Lemony Snicket books, though character that otherwise would be many parts of books two and DVD Release Date: April, 2005 completely one-faceted. The same three were streamlined or simply Starring: Jim Carrey, Jude can be said of his theatre troop, rewritten. Indeed, The Reptile Law, Liam Aiken, Emily Brown- which only serves as décor in the ing, Kara Hoffman, Shelby Room and The Wide Window both Hoffman, and Catherine O’Hara books, but who is here brought to have rather tedious plots, some- Director: Brad Silberling life, even with very little dialogue. times quite repetitive, where the Screenwriter: Robert Gordon They too are pathetic and clown- Baudelaire children have to cir- Rated: PG like. They seem to follow Olaf as Studio: Paramount Home Video cumvent not only Olaf’s attempts Special Features: Commentary one would follow a charismatic on their lives, but also the sheer tracks by Brad Silberling, Lem- leader, rather than because they stupidity of most of the adult ony Snicket and Brad Silberling; too are evil, as it is in the books. Bad Beginnings (3 Featurettes); characters. In the books, the main Deleted Scenes and Outtakes. Only the hook-handed man seems reason why Olaf and his minions as bad as Olaf, but only because of constantly get away is not that his role in the marriage plot and they are cleverer than the good guys; it’s because the investigation of Uncle Monty’s death. the good guys are inane! In the movie, the adult The children and all the other characters are characters appear to be naïve, but not retarded, as depicted much as they are on the book covers, in they are too self-involved to realize the children equally gloomy décors. The movie’s sets, props are in danger. They are thwarted by Olaf and his and costumes are a clever mix of fin-de-siècle and troop because they cannot believe someone can be 1940s, emphasizing the darkness of the plot. Rick as evil as he his. Strangely enough, Olaf is actually Heinrichs surpassed himself in this movie. He un- here a more subtle and multifaceted character than derstood how this look was clearly intended by in the novels. In the later, Olaf is simply evil: he is Brett Helquist himself, as so many of his charac- violent, cunning, murderous and proud or it. He is ters refer back to authors and personalities of the

Some Fantastic 18 Summer, 2005

period, such as Poe and Baudelaire, to name only Olaf, where we can watch Carrey’s screen tests two. Nevertheless, the look of the movie is side by side. In collaboration, Carrey and Silber- strangely mid-1990s, as it appeared in Smashing ling put weeks of work in the constitution of Olaf. Pumpkins (Tonight, Tonight) or Nine Inch Nails Silberling’s director commentary goes even farther (The Perfect Drug) music videos. It is a fake fin-de- in explaining this collaboration as well as much of siècle, setting the movie as a clear and undeniable the movies cinematics. fiction. This look is also marvelously rendered in The result is a movie where Carrey overshad- the animated end credits, and in the DVD menus. ows everything and everyone, to the point of be- The end credits in particular are simply amazing ing his usually annoying self. This said, Carrey’s and are a notable example of the recent trend to tendency to overact serves Olaf quite well. In the fill end credits with as much content as the movie end, one can only be impressed by Carrey’s work itself, trying (unfortunately in vain) to keep the here, but we are left wishing that as much work audience in their seats past “The End”. In this case had been put in the other characters, especially the the 10 minute-long credits are even more luscious children. Indeed, it becomes rapidly clear that the and detailed than in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of latter were born out of Silberling’s reading of the Azhkaban, which is saying books only. Though this is much. The menus are by no means a problem, simply marvelous. The no matter how competent ubiquitous eye icon even the young actors prove allows one to change the themselves to be, the chil- animation in the back- dren’s lack of character ground. development outside of For all its many char- the books leaves them a acters and settings, Lem- little flat. Yet, the high- ony Snicket’s A Series of light of the DVD is a di- Unfortunate Events re- rect result of Carrey’s and mains before anything Silberling’s collaborative else a Jim Carrey vector. Although in principal a work. In Brad Silberling and the Real Lemony Snicket movie about the woes of the Baudelaire children Commentary, an unrecognizable and uncredited being tossed from one foster parent to another Carrey poses as Snicket, brought to a screening of while being chased by Olaf, the movie’s screen- the movie under false pretenses by a remarkably play and all the DVD extras clearly show that Car- sneaky Silberling. For the duration of the movie, rey is at the heart of every scene, and the character Snicket bemoans Hollywood, the movie’s exis- of Count Olaf the product of the greatest effort. An tence, its scenes, the poor actors who have com- entire section of DVD extras, entitled Bad Begin- promised their careers by acting in the movie, and nings, show the elaborate work done by Carrey of course his books. This commentary track is hi- and Silberling. In The Making of a Bad Actor, we larious and both men manage a wonderful acting follow them as they build the character of Olaf, in performance where Silberling only breaks into look and in background, fleshing out not only Olaf quiet laughter once at Snicket’s remarks. The DVD “au naturel” but also his performances as Olaf’s is worth watching just for this track. alter egos, Stephano the mock-herpetologist and Captain Sham. Going much farther than simple Caroline-Isabelle Caron is an Assistant Professor at the costume tests, we witness the creation of the char- Department of History at Queen’s University in Kingston, acter’s self-descriptions, background stories, and Ontario. Her research focuses on North American popular mannerisms. This is especially clear in Interactive culture, primarily among French-speakers.

Some Fantastic 19 Summer, 2005

DVD Review: Donnie Darko: The Director’s Cut By Richard Fuller

Donnie Darko: The Director’s Cut (DD), a debut caught for these actions, he could go to jail again? feature film by writer-director Richard Kelly, is a During their first meeting, Frank tells Donnie jigsaw collection of genres with some of the pieces the world will end in 28 days, 6 hours, 42 minutes, missing, I think. Maybe that’s why the movie is 12 seconds. While most specific about when, Frank addictive to its fans. Call it The Director’s Cult. is vague about how the world will end. Donnie’s life Deeply troubled 16-year-old Donnie (Jake could have ended if he weren’t outside because of Gyllenhaal) is the main character in Donnie Darko, a Frank: an airplane engine falls onto his room! Are title so self-conscious it seems to stare into a mir- you in an Airplane! disaster genre? ror—like the movie itself. Regarding Kelly’s love of comics, the movie’s Several genres arise when Donnie meets a giant other characters, as in many comic books, are good- rabbit named Frank (James Duval) about 11-plus ies or baddies. Some of the latter are close to being minutes into the movie. Frank’s mask has skullish flat, cartoonish caricatures but the movie is so well teeth. Is he related to the Grim Reaper, making this cast that most of the performances are “round.” Horror? Back from the Kelly says his picture dead, making it a Ghost is about possibilities, flick? Near the film’s end, which seems to mean Donnie shoots and kills a questioning everything: young kid named Frank, the rigid foolishness of who’s wearing a Hallow- some high school teachers, een rabbit costume. A the meaning (if any) of life Darko Film Noir? When and death, the probability rabbit Frank appears in that we all die alone, the the movie’s present, he possibility of God, the has time-traveled from his cruelly indifferent acci- death into the past, making dents that take lives, the this Science Fiction/Fan- difficulty of trying to over- tasy. Why isn’t Frank after revenge, making this come mental illness even with the aid of a compas- Science Fiction/Crime? sionate therapist, the possibility of time travel. In his comments on DD, Kelly often refers to As you’ll perceive from the above list, Donnie comic books: Donnie’s last name suggests a super- Darko is multi-layered. hero; an eye filling the screen is a comic book im- Near the film’s end, Donnie knows he’s going age. For me, Donnie’s last name is a pun-ny com- to die because he’s chosen to do so—alone—and ment on his criminal acts: he’s accidentally burned he’s laughing because “there will be so much to look down an empty house and served time in jail. That forward to.” God? big eye is a cliché meaning you’re about to “enter” Why does he joyously commit suicide? One, to a character’s mind. save the life of his true-love Gretchen (Jena Kelly says, “There’s nothing evil about the rab- Malone). The rabbit is involved because Frank was bit at all.” But Frank tells Donnie to ax a water driving the car that ran over and killed Gretchen. main, which floods his high school. He burns down Donnie shoots Frank, without his rabbit mask of the house of a self-help guru, which is bad and course, in the right eye with his father’s pistol. good: the guru is involved in a kiddie porn ring. Two—this is visually confusing and how would Did Frank enter the guru’s eyeball and into his evil Donnie know it’s happening?—he will also save the mind? And did Frank consider that if Donnie’s lives of his mother and young sister on an airplane.

Some Fantastic 20 Summer, 2005

You’re inside the plane staring at mother and Samantha (Daveigh Chase) and mother Rose daughter when a storm starts to shake it apart. (Mary McDonnell). Biker enters the house and Then the movie cuts to a shot of a stormy sky. Miles goes to the refrigerator with a note on it: “Where is in the distance you see a tiny speck falling down- Donnie?” Later, his mother asks Donnie where he ward. The plane? One of its engines? Kelly’s shoot- goes at night. (To meet a rabbit who asks if he be- ing script indicates it’s an engine. But I defy anyone lieves in time travel!) He’s seeing a therapist for to say for sure what that falling speck is onscreen. $200 an hour. Sane news? He has a smart, loving That storm looks as scary as household. Are you in an arche- the one in The Wizard of Oz. In his typal “healing” family flick? shooting script, Kelly calls it a Ghostly Rabbit. Title on the Time Portal. How are you sup- screen: October 2, 1988. (You see a posed to know that? Looks like a number of title dates throughout storm to my wide-open non-comic the movie as you countdown to book eyes. the world’s end.) Thunder. A Kelly says, “Life is arche- voiceover says, “Wake up.” types.” My dictionary defines ar- Donnie gets up and goes outside to chetype: “An original model or type meet the rabbit. In this meeting after which other similar things are between the two, Frank is an ar- patterned.” Most of the actors in chetypal Good rabbit because this movie are so original that their Donnie is asleep on a golf course performances in other movies do when that airplane engine falls on DVD Release Date: April, 2005 not seem modeled on their charac- Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, his room. Later, the archetypal ters in DD. Kelly’s comment Holmes Osborne, Maggie family stays in a hotel where Dad doesn’t apply to his movie. Gyllenhaal, Daveigh Chase, says to Mom about their son, Let’s look at the movie’s main Mary McDonnell, James Duval “Somebody was watching over Director: Richard Kelly storylines and see if there are any Screenwriter: Richard Kelly him.” Does he mean God? Is that archetypes: Rated: R rabbit an archetypal Christ? Does Preface. As the film begins, you Studio: Fox Home Entertainment Donnie crucify him? Special Features: Commentary hear thunder but see no evidence by writer-director Richard Kelly High School. A school bus ap- of a storm. Or a Time Portal! and director Kevin Smith; pears to be on its side (symbolic!) Shooting script says it’s 11am. Production diary with optional as Donnie and his two buddies commentary by director of pho- Looks about 6am to my eyes. A tography Steven Poster; get out and the bus seems to tilt boy (Donnie of course) is asleep in Featurettes: “They Made Me Do upright. There’s a cross atop the a road, his bicycle by the road’s It Too: The Cult of Donnie school but it’s not Catholic. The edge. The boy awakes and gets up. Darko,” Storyboard-to-screen goodie teachers are couple Karen featurette; “#1 Fan: A Darko- Family. As the boy rides his mentary”; Director’s cut theatri- (Drew Barrymore, a key producer bike, you hear a song, “Don’t ask cal trailer in getting the movie made) and me what you know is true...” Kenneth (Noah Wyle). A Graham Kelly says, “songs are part of the Greene story Karen teaches is a dialogue” and admits, “I pay too much attention preview of the school’s punk baddie breaking into to the lyrics.” I hate “editorializing” songs and a woman’s house. Teaching that story also gets want to mute them. The kid bikes past a sign— Karen fired. Baddie teacher Kitty Farmer (Beth ”Middlesex Halloween Carnival Oct 26th-30th”— Grant) inspires Donnie to tell her to shove an item and into a suburban yard. You see his father Eddie up her anus. Donnie publicly calls her self-help (Holmes Osborne), older sister Elizabeth (Maggie lecture friend Jim Cunningham (Patrick Swazye) Gyllenhaal, Jake’s real sister), younger sister an anti-Christ and burns down his home. After

Some Fantastic 21 Summer, 2005

Donnie breaks a water pipe, feces are found in Donnie Darko the movie is schizophrenic with too Kitty Farmer’s office! Considering the cross atop many non-cohesive genres. However, the dialogue the school, is this a “holy shit” pun by Kelly? and acting by everyone in the movie is sanely Guess this storyline is about archetypal Goodies memorable. And the improvs are great. Mary versus Baddies. McDonnell added her character’s constant drinking Grandma Death. Donnie’s father almost hits because of her troubled son. When she tells her an old woman—kids call her Grandma Death husband that Donnie called her a bitch, Holmes (Patience Cleveland)—crossing the road to her Osborne says she’s not a bitch, improvising, empty mailbox. She whispers something in “You’re bitching.” Brilliant! Jake Gyllenhaal appar- Donnie’s ear. (You later learn she said everyone ently mimicked Richard Kelly for the character of dies alone.) Donnie’s teacher Kenneth says she Donnie. Perfect! was a nun named Roberta Sparrow, taught at his About the genres being pieces from jigsaws school and wrote a book called The Philosophy of that don’t fit together: DD cultists don’t care, as Time Travel. That book becomes a “character” as you’ll see in the DVD’s trivial pursuit of fans and a you see excerpts from it onscreen. You suspect junkie who made a home move about wanting to Donnie will time travel but you don’t guess it’s to be Donnie and ends up kissing Kelly on the cheek. save lives by committing suicide. She also warns Holy mush! A good extra for admirers of the that the storm—a Time Portal?—is coming. She movie’s actors is by cinematographer Steven Poster and Frank both know the end is coming? In a annotating the film’s shoot. A curio extra has Rich- way, when Frank swings his car to avoid hitting ard Kelly and Kevin Smith (Clerks, Dogma, etc) talk- Grandma Death and kills Gretchen, Grandma is ing to each other during the running of the movie. also responsible for Gretchen’s death. This isn’t They don’t say much specifically about the picture archetypal. It’s confusing. Kelly is trying to tie up but do add curious asides. For instance, Donnie’s all the loose ends. But Frank and Grandma Death sister Elizabeth is dating Frank. The real guy not the don’t “tie up.” rabbit. Anyone who figures that out should get the Dr. Lilian Thurman. When Donnie mentions Sherlock Holmes Award. meeting a new friend named Frank, his therapist In spite of my problems with what DD is really (Katharine Ross) wonders if he’s real or imagi- about, I enjoyed revisiting the movie several times nary. In the movie he’s both: real when Donnie and give it the Harvey Award. Harvey (1950) is shoots him, imaginary when Donnie pokes his about James Stewart’s relationship with a rabbit bathroom mirror and Frank appears. Is he who’s several inches taller than Frank. And invisi- Donnie’s “murdered” side? Are you into The Three ble. Richard Kelly deserves this award because he Face of Donnie and multiple personalities? The very bravely shows his rabbit. therapist also talks with Donnie about God, finally Kelly’s at work on a new movie. I hope he deciding Donnie is an agnostic. Near the end, avoids the sophomore jinx. But please: keep won- when his therapist says Donnie can stop taking his derful composers Michael Andrews and Mike medicine because it’s placebos, the implication is Bauer and cinematographer Stephen Poster, and that he isn’t mentally ill. Why, then, does she talk send any songs to a planet far, far away with no to Donnie’s parents about increasing his medi- reverse time travel! cine? Is the therapist lying to all of them? Donnie lied by omission to his therapist about finding his Richard Fuller was Philadelphia Magazine’s father’s gun. Is the archetypal patient-therapist film critic for over twenty years. He was The Phila- relationship in this movie one of lies? delphia Inquirer’s book columnist and reviewer for “I couldn’t figure out,” says Richard Kelly, over thirty years. He also taught film and review- “what all this meant.” writing courses at several universities. What it all means to me, a non-therapist, is that

Some Fantastic 22 Summer, 2005

DVD Review: Dawn of the Dead: Unrated Director’s Cut (2004) By Matthew Appleton

Last year on my birthday, my wife and I went movie starts by introducing us to Ana (Sarah Polley), to see the new Dawn of the Dead at the theater. It a nurse who is ending her shift at the hospital and was a rare night out after the birth of our son five heading home. As she’s finishing her duties and months earlier, and having grown up watching the making sure that the nurse relieving her is brought various Dead films, she was in- up to speed, we’re given the first of credibly interested in seeing a new a few of clues that something un- version of the George Romero usual is going on. A man bit in a classic. Yet, despite knowing barfight is now unexplainably in ahead of time that these were not the ICU, and on her drive home, the shuffling, almost comical zom- Ana bypasses radio stations giving bies we’ve grown up watching, we news updates she has no interest in were both shaken by the experi- listening to. Most disconcerting, ence. Later I would realize that while showering with her husband, what we experienced was unadul- she misses a special news an- terated shock. nouncement airing on TV—a news

Given the success of the first announcement that the audience Resident Evil film and 28 Days DVD Release Date: Feb., 2005 doesn’t get to witness either. Later, even one of Romero’s zom- Starring: Sarah Polley, Ving When she wakes up the fol- Rhames, Mekhi Phifer, Jake bies eventually would have came Weber, Ty Burrell, Michael Kelly lowing morning, hell literally up with the idea to remake one of Director: Zack Snyder breaks loose. A neighbor’s daugh- the Dead films with the new breed Screenwriter: James Gunn ter, whom she is friendly with, Rated: Unrated (original re- unleashed in those two films. In attacks Ana and her husband, kill- lease rated R) fact, from a purely self- Studio: Universal Studios ing him in the process. When he preservation standpoint—the Special Features: Commentary suddenly revives after her futile Christian theological aspect is cer- by Zack Snyder and Producer efforts to save his life, she finds Eric Newman; Director’s Cut tainly more troubling—zombies with nine additional minutes of herself under attack from him. always struck me as the Washing- footage; Featurettes: “The Lost She’s able to eventually flee the ton Generals of the horror world. Tape: Andy’s Terrifying Last scene in her car, but not without Days Revealed,” “Raising the How inept did you really have to Dead”—turning actors into un- witnessing other disturbing gro- be in order to succumb to them? dead killers, “Attack of the Liv- tesque acts of violence being The only way someone intelligent ing Dead”—a look at the most committed by zombies and by memorable zombie kills, “Split- becomes zombie cuisine is in a humans who are just trying to ting Headaches: Anatomy of situation where you’re completely Exploding Heads,” “Special save their own lives. At a couple overrun and trapped by them. Bulletin: We Interrupt This Pro- points during the carnage, the However, just making the gram!”—complete news cover- skyline of the city comes into age of the attacks; Undead (de- zombies a far greater threat wasn’t leted) scenes. view. Fires rage throughout the enough for the producers of this city, which is obviously in utter edition of Dawn of the Dead. The shock from which chaos. Clearly, the end times arrived overnight; neither of us recovered comes at the beginning of the it’s quite possibly the most effective piece of movie film. Unlike the original film, which takes place in a making I’ve ever seen when it comes to depicting world where the zombie infestation is an ongoing such a collapse of civilization. problem, the opening sequence of Dawn of Dead Eventually, Ana meets up with other survivors shows us the world as it starts falling apart. The who are fleeing for their lives. She finds out from a

Some Fantastic 23 Summer, 2005

few of them that the zombies overran the locations walk the earth” line from a new, inflammatory per- broadcast as government safe zones over the radio, spective. Luda’s previously mentioned pregnancy and immediately they bicker over the best thing to parallels that of the female protagonist in the origi- do as a group. Kenneth (Ving Rhames), a police nal, but she ends up bitten, which carries great im- officer, wants to head for Ft. Pastor—a nearby mili- plications for their child. The living still experience tary installation announced as a safe zone to look issues in regard to accepting the zombies are not for his brother—while Andre (Mekhi Phifer) and their loved ones anymore, but unlike in Romero’s Michael (Jake Weber) want to head over to a nearby original version, the emotional implications of mall, thinking it might be safe. Seeing there’s no watching a loved one become something else are way he can make it to his brother on his own, Ken- much more fully explored. We’re also finally neth joins them, Ana and Andre’s pregnant wife, treated to a scene where the zombies finally over- Luda on their way to the mall. After breaking in, run the mall. they reseal the doors and eventually find them- In the end, they are not forced out of the mall selves trapped inside with a small security contin- they way the survivors of Romero’s 1978 original gent as well as a few were. Instead, they other latecomers realize that they just whom they manage to exist in a self-made allow inside while prison and come to holding back the the conclusion that horde of zombies that this is not the way has congregated out- they want to keep side. living. Unfortunately, On its surface, the a mercy/rescue mis- film shares the same sion they undertake basic plot as George for Andy, another Romero’s 1978 camp classic. However, differences survivor in a gun shop across from the mall, goes abound. Writer James Gunn (no relation to the sf awry, thus causing them to flee the mall before author/critic) has removed much of the social they’re truly ready. commentary found in the original screenplay. In- Overall, the film is a very solid production. stead, we get a larger number of survivors and The picture works effectively as a horror film that much of the drama comes from the interaction of conveys the horror of its protagonists effectively. these people, whose wide variety of personalities Because we get to know and understand the pro- frequently and violently clashes. Furthermore, the tagonists of the film, we’re better able to empa- restructured plot makes this movie a self-contained thize with them. While a few of the minor charac- event, unlike the original, which clearly takes place ters are strictly stock, they survive their purpose in the world where Night of the Living Dead took well, helping to make the point about how diffi- place. As a result, the group of survivors in this cult it is to accept death, especially when they’re mall is not aware of how the disease animating the not inanimate. Even more important in a movie dead spreads, and their ability to ascertain this and such as this, with one major exception most of the act accordingly becomes a plot-point for the film. characters really don’t do anything stupid per se, Yet, many elements from the original find their and even that exception wasn’t lethal to the group way into this version, albeit in a mutated fashion. as a whole. They make understandable mistakes, Ken Foree, who starred as one of the survivors in but nothing that makes you want to scream at the the original version, returns in a cameo as a funda- screen, “What the hell are you doing!?” mentalist televangelist, delivering his famous However, you can voice that sentiment when “When there is no more room in hell, the dead will watching the “Special Bulletin: We Interrupt This

Some Fantastic 24 Summer, 2005

Program!” featurette. As one of the two featurettes was found by survivors after the end of the un- specifically designed as supplemental material to dead epidemic that at some indeterminate point the story, I expected this series of news broadcasts after the events of this film the menace is no more, to at least come close to the quality of the movie which infers a limited timespan in which a sequel itself—especially when considering how well can take place. news snippets were used in the movie. Sadly, it The rest of the special features are the garden looks like it was done on an even cheaper budget variety you’d expect to find in a production such than the original Night of the Living Dead and is so as this. The makers show what went into the zom- amateurish that it’s not even worth a second look. bie makeup and the special effects behind some of It’s a shame because it contains a few more other- the more spectacular “kills,” and we get to see wise nicely done homages to Romero’s original some deleted—the main menu calls them “un- Dawn of the Dead were thrown into this piece, and dead”—scenes that were rightfully left on the cut- it could’ve been so much better. ting room floor. As can be expected, director Zach Thankfully, “The Lost Tape: Andy’s Terrify- Snyder offers up a few insightful comments in his ing Last Days Revealed” makes up for the disap- commentary track, but strangely he occasionally pointment of “Special Bulletin.” Here, we can ex- mocks his own film. The other “nuts and bolts” pect amateurish production because the tape is special features will probably only appeal to those nothing more than Andy speaking to his video- who enjoy these types of things in the first place. camera at various times during the unfolding of In all, this edition of Dawn of the Dead is a the movie. It’s a nice insight into his character as keeper. While it lacks the biting social conscious- we really don’t get to know much about him since ness of the original, it nonetheless is an excellent he is cut off from the rest of the survivors until the pastiche for the MTV generation. On a final note, very end, yet still comes across as rather likeable make sure you watch the credits once they start in his limited exposure. Interestingly, thanks to the rolling; that is unless like Steven Spielberg you timestamp we know that one month passes during prefer to keep the ending as upbeat as possible (at the course of the movie, and that because the tape least as possible as it can be at that point).

DVD Review: Finding Neverland By Edna Stumpf

Return with me now to an innocent turn-of-the- Next morning in Kensington Gardens, as Mr. century time. Ladies and gentlemen wear evening Barry romps with his Newfoundland Porthos dress to the British theatre and do not encounter (Sophie), he meets a family of four young brothers torn tee shirts. Fairies are diminutive winged crea- and their widowed mother, Sylvia Llewelyn Da- tures that some claim to have sighted in their gar- vies (Joe Prospero, Nick Boud, Luke Spell, Freddie dens. Neverland is not a piece of real estate. Even as Highmore, Kate Winslet). They charm him, he a state of mind, it has not yet been located. charms them in return, and before you can say And Mr. James Barrie (Johnny Depp), gentle- “foreshadowing” he’s calling at their residence man playwright, has just had a flop. and introducing games of pirates and Red Indians. His producer Charles Frohman (Dustin Hoff- (Yes, there are still Red Indians. Sorry.) man) warns him to come up with a moneymaker. In the course of this admittedly obsessive rela- His ex-actress wife Mary (Radha Mitchell) gives tionship with Sylvia Davies and her brood, several him a stare a shade too cool for sympathy. When things happen to James Barrie. He, a man who will we visit their beservanted town house, we note never have children, nurtures someone else’s be- that they maintain separate bedrooms. reaved sons. He loses his wife to another man. He

Some Fantastic 25 Summer, 2005

infuriates and then wins over the formidable Da- point of the subject’s bittersweet triumph. As its vies grandmother. (Julie Christie plays the widow makers insist, it is not the biopic of a virtually for- of the novelist who invented Svengali—George du gotten West Ender but rather a celebration of Maurier—and skillfully displays a wary insight imagination when put into the service of love. into show-biz types.) To a great extent, the actors sell it. Depp, with Finally, James Barrie writes Peter Pan and his adolescent looks and his ability to talk just like makes it a hit by inviting twenty-five bedazzled anyone in the known world—in this case a literate orphans to opening night. And, by introducing dog Scot—is a convincing if cosmeticized incarnation costumes, flying apparatus and of Barrie. Dustin Hoffman finds fairies, he energizes and arguably comedy in the American Frohman, revolutionizes the proper old pro- playing him as a natural cynic scenium stage. prone to indulgence and waylaid The rest is history. Unfortu- by enchantment. Kate Winslet is nately, it’s a history that contains endearing as a beleaguered single Walt Disney. And Michael Jackson. mom bemused by an overqualified But that’s not important right babysitter. Radha Mitchell and now. After several wary viewings, Julie Christie, in two borderline I’ve fallen in love with Finding unsympathetic roles, succeed in Neverland. I was wary because, clueing the viewer in to the down- having written a thesis on the side of a youth obsession. (We first man, I know more about James see Mary Barrie as a social climber

Barrie than any normal person DVD Release Date: Mar., 2005 before coming to understand her should. Starring: Johnny Depp, Kate as a neglected wife. In a terrific Fact: there were five Davies Winslet, Julie Christie, Dustin visual bit, James and Mary simul- Hoffman, Radha Mitchell sons, not four. Fact: Arthur Davies Director: Marc Forster taneously open the doors to their did not die of cancer until well Screenwriter: David Magee adjacent rooms. Behind Mary’s we after Barrie had attached himself to Rated: PG see Edwardian furniture. Behind the family, and Davies wasn’t Studio: Miramax James’s opens a vista of an un- Special Features: Commentary crazy about him. Fact: having been by director Marc Forster, pro- known land.) traumatized by his older brother’s ducer Richard Gladstein and This is one of those “pres- death and his mother’s subsequent writer David Magee; Deleted tige” period pieces, heavy on cos- scenes with optional commen- breakdown, Barrie was emotion- tary by director, producer, and tume, intonation and character ally and physically arrested at an writer; Featurettes: “The Magic subtlety. And I might point out early age. He was sexually dys- of Finding Neverland” & “Creat- that a film so laden with produc- ing Neverland;” Outtakes from functional. He was no pederast, the film. tion values plays especially well but he wasn’t husband material. on DVD, where our curiosity as And—a fact disclosed during the to nuance and detail is indulged writer/director/producer conversation on this by behind-the-scenes lore. During a formal din- disc—there exists an exquisite engagement ring ner, for instance, explosive laughter was induced purchased by James Barrie for Sylvia Davies before from the child actors by the installation of a fart her death from tuberculosis. Just before her death. machine under the table. Now, aren’t you glad Do the psychological math on that one. you know that? None of these unhappy facts cripple the flight The special effects people (Gemma Jones is of Finding Neverland. In his screenplay, David listed as production designer) deserve special Magee deliberately truncated the original play by credit for understanding their role: inject interest Allan Knee (The Man Who Was Peter Pan) at the into the script by enhancing the theme. The play-

Some Fantastic 26 Summer, 2005

wright’s now-famous fantasies of walking the unhappy ghost. It’s a very psychologically acute plank and scrapping with Indians are done with a play. It’s never performed; the pain maturity delicate stylization until their apotheosis on an brings not being a moneymaking theme. actual London stage. From the “realism” of seeing There’s hardly anyone in the known world, actors do scenes in this play-within-a-movie we though, who hasn’t heard of Peter Pan. In this sen- move to the Davies drawing room, where Peter timental masterpiece—a contradiction in terms, if Pan is recreated as a we care—Barrie found gift for a dying the perfect people on woman. Neverland whom to lavish his suddenly becomes childish love and the literal, and Sylvia en- perfect vehicle in ters it as a queen. It’s a which to reveal his risky effect that might innermost obsession. have fallen flat, but it He wrote from his strikes an expert and wound, and he got his elegant balance. And wish. At least as long incidentally tears your as Americans search heart out. for the fountain of All of which re- youth, Peter Pan will turns us to the theme never die. of, well, the theme. Fact: more chil- As regards Peter Pan itself, Barrie would have no dren than we will ever track have been drawn into hesitation. Shameless showman that he was, he a lifelong enthusiasm for fantasy through their would lean hard on the innocence of youth, the exposure to Peter Pan. (Walt Disney, okay.) Fact: power of imagination, the importance of magic. James Barrie left all the proceeds of his famous The magic started coming apart for Barrie even as play to the Great Ormond Street Orphanage. Fact: Peter Pan sent his career past the first star to the there’s a statue of Peter Pan in Kensington Gar- right and straight on till morning. Sylvia died. dens. Barrie himself paid for it and the sophisti- Cramped by his playfellow-style devotion, the cates think it’s pretty funny. Fact: the kids love it. Davies boys pulled away. Three later died; two by suicide, one of which was Peter (the bitterest Edna Stumpf was a regular Philadelphia Inquirer brother, very remarkably played by Freddie book reviewer for over 25 years, often writing about Highmore). Barrie’s last play, Mary Rose, is about a science fiction. She also guest-lectured for science fic- young mother who is stolen by fairies and ends an tion film courses.

DVD Review: Spaceballs (Collector’s Edition) By Caroline-Isabelle Caron

In many May, 2005 movie magazine editions, very young, mustached Mel Brooks pointing up to among the numerous pages focusing on the release four white-lettered words: “The Revenge of the of Star Wars: Episode III, Revenge of the Sith, appeared Shtick.” Though in the works since 2002, MGM has a simple one-page add. On a burnt sienna back- decided the release the two-disc collector’s edition of ground, the mysterious silhouette of a large black Spaceballs in the midst of the Episode III hoopla. They helmeted head, behind which popped the head of a could not have chosen a more appropriate time.

Some Fantastic 27 Summer, 2005

Spaceballs tells the story of the evil schemes of This film has not aged a day! Even the special Dark Helmet (Rick Moranis), who helps planet effects have held up nicely to the nearly twenty- Spaceballs (Brooks plays President Skroob) steal years since the movie’s original release. The jokes planet Druidia’s air. It is up to the clueless rogue and the pacing still work. The movie’s critique of Lone Starr (Bill Pullman), the half-man, half-dog the genre and of over-merchandizing is as potent Barf (John Candy), the Druish Princess Vespa as ever. Indeed, the later theme underlines a ma- (Daphne Zuniga) and her android guardian Dot jority of scenes. President Skroob sleeps in a bed Matrix (voiced by Joan Rivers) to made with Spaceballs: the Sheet save the day. In the course of their and wipes his imposing (and adventures, they meet the evil sometimes misplaced) behind Pizza the Hut (voice by Dom De- with Spaceballs: the Toilet Paper. Luise), the everlasting know-it-all Not to mention Yogurt’s demon- Yogurt (Brooks again, who stration of Spaceballs: the Flame teaches Starr all about the powers Thrower (“The kids love this of the Schwartz), not to mention one.”) the hapless Colonel Sandurz As Yogurt wisely states: (George Wyner) and a ship full of “Merchandizing! That’s where the Assholes. Did I mention there was real money is made.” a circus? The DVD plays up this aspect Episode III has been out since DVD Release Date: May, 2005 marvelously. The menus recall the Starring: Bill Pullman, John May, and we are only now com- Candy, Rick Moranis, Mel movie’s best moments and add a ing out of the “we-will-inundate- Brooks, Daphne Zuniga couple of pee-pee-kaka jokes, as you-with-stuff” phase of the mer- Director: Mel Brooks also does the Winnebago Screenwriter: James Gunn chandizing of the movie. It is no dashboard easter egg. “Spaceballs: Rated: PG secret that George Lucas’s genius Studio: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer The Documentary” revisits the is as much in his cinematic vision Special Features: Commentary actors (Daphne Zuniga has not than in his foresight to secure all by Mel Brooks; Featurettes: gained a pound or a wrinkle!) as “Spaceballs: The Documen- merchandizing rights for the Star tary,” “John Candy: Comic they reminisce on shooting the Wars franchise in 1977. Compa- Spirit,” “In Conversation: Mel movie. “Spaceballs: The Trivia nies producing licensed products Brooks & Thomas Meehan,” Game” and “Spacequotes” re- “Spacequotes,” “Spaceballs: usually give over 12% profits to The Costume Gallery, “Space- mind us of just how many times the franchise owner… Over 150 balls: The Art Gallery;” Behind- we’ve seen this film (over 30 times companies have acquired mer- the-scenes photographs; Theat- for me). “Spaceballs: The Behind- rical trailer. chandizing licenses for the Episode the-Scenes Photos,” “Spaceballs: III in France alone, for instance. In The Costume Gallery” (designed North America we have seen Star Wars branding by no other than Donfled), and “Spaceballs: The on everything from Burger King to Pringles to Art Gallery,” confirm Brooks’s assertion that to M&M’s, and everything in between. Those of us spoof a genre, you have to produce a film of equal who have been alive since the early 1970s don’t quality than the best of the genre. remember a time when there was no constant An amazing amount of work was put in the movie merchandizing. No wonder Mel Brooks development and production of Spaceballs. Both thought something should be done about it! In the audio commentary by Brooks and the hilarious 1987, he released Spaceballs. Brooks had not “In Conversation: Mel Brooks and Thomas spoofed science fiction, having done horror, west- Meehan” (fellow script writer with the late Ronny ern, and silent movies already. Star Wars, Star Trek Graham). We are also reminded of just how totally and Planet of the Apes, beware! insane Brooks really is, and how even more decep-

Some Fantastic 28 Summer, 2005

tively insane Meehan is as well—he had a cameo and John Candy. Bring out tissues for “John in the movie that I had totally missed until this Candy: Comic Spirit.” This is a great DVD set, DVD released. We also recall the comic genius of well worth the money, well worth putting money both Ronny Graham (who also played the bishop) in Brooks’ pockets.

Book Review: Fourth Planet from the Sun: Tales of Mars from the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, edited by Gordon Van Gelder By Jessica Darago

Until I was about 10 years old, and the hair- were already familiar to me—I was once a vora- pulling started in earnest, my big sister was my cious reader of Year’s Best anthologies and a sub- idol. She was largely responsible for my tastes in scriber to F&SF—but discovery and rediscovery movies, music, and fashion; that I allowed her to can be equal pleasures. give me not one but two disastrous haircuts over Van Gelder clearly understands this, as he the years is proof of my awe and devotion. And for begins the collection with a selection from Ray a brief time, she convinced me that we wanted to be Bradbury’s The Martian Chronicles, called “The Wil- astronauts. derness.” Simply put, if you’re picking up this It began with her 5th-grade science project on book, you’re already an sf reader, and if you’re an the birth and death of stars. Her eyes alight with sf reader, you’ve read some Bradbury. He’s Mars’ macabre glee, she glued a half-dozen spirals of sil- unofficial poet laureate, and his prose is like the ver glitter onto black construction paper as she de- folklore of a space program that never was. In this scribed to me the wonders and horrors of the black story he sings the story of the frontier bride: hole. That was her first obsession; shortly thereaf- ter, it was pulsars, quasars, and neutron stars, and “Is this how it was over a century ago, then on to nebulae. She was determined to visit she wondered, when the women, the night them all, until she discovered Mars. before, lay ready for sleep, or not ready, in It was the only one of her blazing trails I did the small towns of the East, and heard the not myself follow. No matter how long she chat- sound of horses in the night and the creak tered about faces and pyramids and canals and ter- of the Conestoga wagons ready to go, and raforming and a mere two-year round trip, I never the brooding of oxen under the trees, and understood what was so fascinating about that an- the cry of children already lonely before gry, dead, red rock. Give me the pale, barren their time? All the sounds of arrivals and beauty of Luna, the pointillist rings of Saturn, the departures into the deep forests and fields, mysterious Planet X. But Mars? What’s so fascinat- the blacksmiths working in their own red ing about Mars? hells through midnight? And the smell of That is one of the questions that the anthology bacons and hams ready for the journeying, Fourth Planet from the Sun: Tales of Mars from The and the heavy feel of the wagons like ships Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction tries to answer. foundering with goods...? And she de- Editor Gordon Van Gelder has collected a charming cided, as sleep assumed the dreaming for array of stories aimed to convince a skeptic like my- her, that yes, yes indeed, very much so, ir- self that Mars is the most fascinating object in our revocably, this was as it had always been solar system. Sinking into this volume’s depths, I and would forever continue to be.” could almost be persuaded. Many of the stories

Some Fantastic 29 Summer, 2005

Bradbury’s well-known, lyrical, yearning shape it into something of our own. Opinions vary voice telling a tale with roots as deep in America’s among the authors as to the wisdom of this idea. past as in its future, not only draws the reader in The more successful stories seem to be those that, with comforting familiarity, it also skillfully spins whether pro- or anti-colonization, treat the idea the thread that binds all of these tales of Mars to- very seriously, even if the final product isn’t serious gether. In the introduction, Van in tone. Aside from the Bradbury, Gelder says he chose these stories who like an old familiar song is to illustrate that “in the same way always welcome, outstanding that [Mars] reflects sunlight, it pieces include Alex Irvine’s “Pic- reflects humanity back at itself” tures from an Expedition,” a medi- and let the reader see “how our tation on the psychological toll perceptions and images of Mars exacted on the explorers, and John have changed over the last 50 Varley’s “In the Hall of the Mar- years.” What Van Gelder doesn’t tian Kings,” which suggests that seem to notice is that his collec- we could finally build Utopia, if tion evokes not just 50 but in fact the natives are willing to help. De- a thousand years of human ex- spite their common theme, there’s perience; what is chronicled here a wide variety of styles repre- is not the idea of exploration in sented here, from military SF to the 20th century but the entire Fourth Planet from the Sun: Burroughs-esque space fantasy. human history of voyaging, con- Tales of Mars from The Maga- Not everyone will like every piece zine of Fantasy & Science quest, and colonization. Fiction collected here, but everyone Here we encounter Martian edited by Gordon Van Gelder should find one story to love. civilizations dead (“Crime on ISBN: 1-56025-666-4 As for me, I think I under- Publisher: Thunder's Mouth Mars”), dying (“A Rose for Eccle- Press; New York, NY stand why my sister—always the siastes”), and all too vigorous Release date: March, 2005 alpha—was so entranced by the (“Purple Priestess of the Mad $15.95, 304 pages, dream of Mars. It’s not the planet trade paperback. Moon”). They are sometimes itself but the idea of humans upon friendly (“In the Hall of the Mar- it that captures our imagination. tian Kings”), sometimes hostile (“We Can Re- A fascination with the red planet isn’t about what member It for You Wholesale”), or at the very is, or even about what could be; it’s about what we least, mischievous (“The Great Martian Pyramid could make it into. Hoax”). Sometimes, the only enemy on Mars is another would-be conqueror (“Mars is Ours” & Jessica Darago spends 40 hours of her week trying “Hellas is Florida”). to make science—and scientists—make sense, but she But in all of these stories, humans, either by de- prefers the fictional variety of both. sign or by accident, have come to Mars to stay, to

Letters of Comment

Well done again! Probably my favorite issue so far, even family who is discovering a relative through is writing without one of my reviews appearing! and interactions. Having the ability to get an author on the phone and get the answer to a question about their I loved the article on my favorite author, Phillip Jose writing is one I don’t have, but could very much use. My Farmer. I’ve been a PJF fan for a good long time and it’s Dad met Phil at BayCon 1968, though he had not read a wonderful view from someone on the inside of the any of his books at that point. They chatted for a few

Some Fantastic 30 Summer, 2005

minutes and Pops says that he was a very nice guy who talked about history a lot. He also says that, having read all of PJF’s books since Editorial: and reading interviews and the like, that I’m a little too much like the guy. It’s odd that I also read an article in other Magazine called “Sci- Rockin’ the Suburbs ence Fiction Saved My Life,” in a fit of coincidence. I can’t wait to read any of those ancient stories from the Farmer file cabinet. Okay, just about every newspaper, magazine and sf-oriented website in the As big a comic fan as I am, I never got into Miller’s Batman. I don’t English speaking world ran articles about know why. I fell in love with the Batman Elseworlds titles, where the The War of the Worlds during the past Caped Crusader is thrown to a new time and place. The best of month or so, and that’s in addition to a these, Gotham By Gaslight, is my all-time, 100% Favorite Batman number of websites that are exclusively title. Miller did break ground, and his work in so many comics is top- devoted to it. So, am I really adding any- notch beyond belief. Miller’s take on the TV media is brutal and won- thing to the public discourse in the two- derful, though the way he makes Batman into a man possessed part article that opens this issue? I don’t wasn’t my cup of tea. know, but I thought that documenting my journey through the novel and the various I’ve read Wells and can say that his works, though they fall short of other works it inspired would make for being nearly as predictive as Verne’s, are wonderful and full of the joy something interesting. If nothing else, it’s of life that much SF from those days possessed. The Island of Dr. a little more in-depth than the usual article Moreau has been made into at least three films, and none of them released recently, and hopefully a little capture the book, but they all have strong places in my memory. I had more accessible than John Flynn’s new also forgotten that this was where Devo got “Are we not men?” from. book, War of the Worlds: From Wells to Spielberg—which I actually haven’t seen. There is so much that can be said about Eternal Sunshine of the If nothing else, it’s certainly been fun find- Spotless Mind. I’ve got half-a-mind to say them all, but that’d take up ing all the different ways people have rein- far too much space. The one thing that it had me thinking was the terpreted Wells’ classic work. script, full of powerful metaphors and brutal scenes of self-doubt, is Unfortunately, spending so much almost unfilmable if you read it. It’s got no way of presenting a sympa- time working on this project left me with thetic character that isn’t crazy and completely unreliable. Truth in the very little time to work on book reviews film is represented by a series of unraveled lies, most notably in the for this issue. I know this is getting to be relationship between the Good Doctor and Kirsten Dunst. Plus, Kate an old-hat discussion in my editorials, but Winslett is so amazingly radiant as the freak Clementine. I am still trying to find people interested in writing book and/or short fiction re- Jessica Darago’s “Quick Rant” was exactly the type of review I like to views. I know I’m not helping my own read. Angry and to the point. cause by spending some of my own pre- cious writing time on sci-fi instead of sf, Christopher Garcia but I’ll at least acknowledge that I under- The Drink Tank stand why it is so much easier to find [email protected] writers for the media-driven stuff. This issue also includes an essay concerning sci-fi and politics from a de- cidedly liberal slant—the second such Insightful review to Dark Knight Returns. I enjoy an "outside" perspec- article in Some Fantastic’s short exis- tive on comics from time to time to see if the forms and conventions tence. While my own political viewpoints of comics translate easily to other readers. You make a couple of certainly lean left, I don’t want anything allusions that I want to expand upon in your review, most notably that thinking that this is influencing my deci- Miller is "clearly not enamored" with Batman. On the contrary, he fol- sions on what gets printed. I’ll be more lowed up Dark Knight Returns with the critically acclaimed (and also than happy to run any intelligently written collected in trade paperback) Batman: Year One, with David Mazzuc- pieces linking sci-fi or sf to any other chelli providing art. This story allowed Miller to expand upon and reset political ideology. some of the Batman mythos. Amazing stuff. Nearly twenty years later By the time the next issue (our First (and the impetus for the reissue of DKR that your reviewed) Miller Anniversary Issue) hits the web, the released The Dark Knight Strikes Back! This is further exploration of Hugo Awards will have been handed out. Batman in his new world, and most importantly, his utter disdain for... Unfortunately, I am not a member of Superman. WorldCon so I cannot vote on them. In fact, I’ve never been an eligible voter, Your suggestion that Batman lacks any regard for his kid-sidekicks is off-base, in my opinion. What Batman values most is free will, and (continued next page) having learned the lesson of the death of a former sidekick, he still is willing to let free will reign. The fact that Superman has become a

Some Fantastic 31 Summer, 2005

puppet of the state only further embellishes his regard for free will. Editorial Lastly, Miller comes back "home" this fall with the release of All-Star (continued from page 31) Batman and Robin: The Boy Wonder, his collaboration with artist su- perstar Jim Lee, re-imagining Batman for a new generation. which is probably enough to get my membership in the Fanzine Editors Guild Again, kudos on the review. revoked, but thankfully it only exists in my head. One of the things I’m fond of Scott Millen saying in regards to politics is that people [email protected] who don’t vote shouldn’t complain about the final outcome, so I’m not going to Editor’s Note: I reread what I wrote about Batman’s sidekicks, and I voice my opinion on who should win stand by it. I don’t think I inferred he lacked any regard for the safety which award. It doesn’t help any that I’ve of the teenagers who fight beside him. Rather, what I was trying to only a few select items from the novel convey was that he didn’t take their safety seriously enough. On a and various short form lists, so there’s no couple different occasions the new Robin in The Dark Knight Returns way I can intelligently choose. ignores his orders to stay out of the way, even after he tells her that In light of that admission, I would he won’t let her continue as Robin if she disobeys him again. Al- certainly love to see some publisher though he’s not her father, he’s certainly a surrogate parental figure. If resume printing collections of Huge he doesn’t make good on his disciplinary threats, then there’s no way Award winning short stories. During my he’s reasonably going to keep her out of trouble. Yes, Dick Grayson’s teen and college years, I put together a death affected him greatly, but he continued to allow teenagers to act collection of hardcover editions of all the as his sidekicks and that’s still endangerment of minors—even if they editions that compiled the award- willingly go along with him. winning short fiction. However, the last such collection was The New Hugo Winners IV and was released in 1997.

Worse, it was only issued as a paper- back. I’d love to see some publishing house resume the series and do it in hardcover to boot. Admittedly, I don’t know a quarter of what’s necessary to put together new collections and bring the old ones back into print, but if the Editor ...... Matthew Appleton SFWA can continue to authorize yearly Copy Editor...... Cheryl Appleton Nebula Award collections and allow the Contributors: Danny Adams, Caroline-Isabelle Caron, Jessica Darago, reprints of the first two volumes of the Alex Esten, Dan Franzen, Christopher J. Garcia, Richard Fuller, Edna Science Fiction Hall of Fame series, Stumpf, Wendy Stengel. Masthead designed by Scott Millen. then surely there must be a way to bring the Hugo collections back. Some Fantastic is a quarterly, critical eZine with issues published in Janu- One last thought before wrapping ary, April, July and October. Special, unscheduled issues may also ap- things up. For those of you not fully ac- pear. All submissions and letters are welcome via snail mail or email at: quainted with fanzines—which Some Fantastic technically is—feedback to the Some Fantastic c/o Matthew Appleton editor is an important part of the culture. 4656 Southland Avenue Because this issue includes some Alexandria, VA 22312 changes to the layout of the contents [email protected] and editorial boxes, I’d appreciate thoughts on the changes as well as any- When making your submission, please make sure to include both your thing you have to say about the issue or snail mail and email addresses. Print copies are mailed to all those whose the ‘zine in general. Also, for those who work (regardless of length) appears in the given issue. are interested, a limited number of sad- Distribution is primarily via PDF and is free. However, if you wish to have a dle-bound print editions of all issues are copy mailed to you, please mail a check made out to “Matthew Appleton” now available for $5.00 each or “the for $5.00 or send “the usual” to the address above. Payment can also be usual.” All the necessary contact infor- made via PayPal to the email address above. Donations are welcome. This mation is just over to the right. is a non-profit venture. As always, thanks for downloading!

— Matthew

Some Fantastic 32 Summer, 2005