Science Fiction

Midnight Special

  • Title: Midnight Special
  • IMDb: link

Midnight SpecialWriter/director Jeff Nichols‘ latest is an unusual movie more likely to appeal to sci-fi nerds than the general public. Midnight Special is a good science fiction movie with two major flaws which keep it from becoming the great science fiction movie that starts out with so much promise during its first half-hour.

Without preamble or set-up, we’re thrown into the middle of the action involving the abduction of a young boy named Alton Meyer (Jaeden Lieberher) from a religious cult by Alton’s biological father Roy (Michael Shannon) and Roy’s childhood friend Lucas (Joel Edgerton). It doesn’t take long us to suspect that Alton is no ordinary boy and why the cult, the United States Government, and Roy all have very different plans for Alton and his unique gifts.

A common problem in films like this is when they remind the audience of better films from which they borrow story elements. And Midnight Special borrows heavily. Although not in their class, Midnight Special will remind you of movies such as Close Encounters of the Third Kind, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Starman, and countless others.

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Star Wars #17

Star Wars #17After dropping Aphra off at Sunspot Prison, Leia and Stana Starros run into a bit of trouble when a madman with his own droid asassins shows up and takes over the prison determined to exact a far more brutal form of justice on the inmates.

Trapped in with prisoners, Leia and Starros are forced to make hard decisions on what they will need to do to survive and who they are willing to trust in order to do so.

The other storyline is a bit more lighthearted as Luke wrangles up some smuggling business for the Millennium Falcon after Han loses Rebellion credits while gambling. The ship’s captain is not pleased with the deal Luke makes (only half of the 10,000 credits Han expected), nor the cargo (a herd of skittish Nerfs) or how it brings Imperial TIE Fighters after them.

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Star Wars Rebels – Twilight of the Apprentice

  • Title: Star Wars Rebels – Twilight of the Apprentice
  • wiki: link

“Once you start down the dark path, forever will you dominate your destiny.”

Star Wars Rebels - Twilight of the Apprentice

Star Wars Rebels follows up one of its weakest episodes with one of its strongest. The series closes out its Second Season with an hour-long episode featuring familiar faces and a reunion we’ve waited for all year long. The episode begins with Kanan (Freddie Prinze Jr.), Ezra (Taylor Gray), and Ahsoka (Ashley Eckstein) travelling to the forbidden planet of Malachor in search of answers about the Sith. Temporarily separated from his friends as they hunt a new Inquisitor (Robbie Daymond), Ezra makes a new acquaintance in a former Sith Lord with plenty of anger towards his old masters.

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Star Wars Rebels – The Mystery of Chopper Base

  • Title: Star Wars Rebels – The Mystery of Chopper Base
  • wiki: link

Star Wars Rebels - The Mystery of Chopper Base

The final episode before the Second Season finale is a horror tale as the Rebellion discovers their new base is infested with Krykna Spiders who begin attacking members of the team including Rex (Dee Bradley Baker). To save their friend, the crew of the Ghost heads into the underground tunnels where they will fight to stay alive. Other than the creatures themselves, “The Mystery of Chopper Base” isn’t that memorable. More filler than anything else, it is largely disconnected from the season’s major storlyines except for Kanan (Freddie Prinze Jr.) and Ezra‘s (Taylor Gray) increased training regimen and Hera (Vanessa Marshall) fearing what will happen to the man she loves once he leaves with his apprentice and Ahsoka (Ashley Eckstein) to confront the Sith.

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Star Wars Rebels – The Forgotten Droid

  • Title: Star Wars Rebels – The Forgotten Droid
  • wiki: link

Star Wars Rebels - The Forgotten Droid

A Chopper episode? With the show gearing up for a face-off between the Jedi and Sith it may seem an odd idea to center an entire episode on the one character who can’t speak, but it turns out “The Forgotten Droid” is actuall pretty good. Accidentally left behind on one of the Rebels‘ missions when the droid decides to leave the ship to steal himself a new leg, Chopper gets his own adventure as he stows away aboard an Imperial vessel. Aboard Chopper causes havoc for the Imperials while making the acquaintance of a protocol droid. Despite its nature, AP-5 decides to help Chopper get back to his friends and save the Rebel Fleet from an Imperial trap.

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