Mt. Holz Science Fiction Society
03/06/20 -- Vol. 38, No. 36, Whole Number 2109
Co-Editor: Mark Leeper, *mleeper@optonline.net *
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Topics:
Mini-Reviews (Part 4) (ABOMINABLE, AMERICAN FACTORY,
I LOST MY BODY) film reviews by Mark R. Leeper)
Novella Reviews ("Exit Strategy: The Murderbot Diaries" and
"Come Tumbling Down") (reviews by Joe Karpierz)
THE INVISIBLE MAN (2020) (film comments by Evelyn C. Leeper,
with spoilers)
THE SHOCK OF THE OLD (TECHNOLOGY AND GLOBAL HISTORY SINCE
1900) by David Edgerton (book review
by Gregory Frederick)
This Week's Reading (Plato, FOUNDATION'S EDGE) (book comments
by Evelyn C. Leeper)
===================================================================
TOPIC: Mini-Reviews, Part 4 (film reviews by Mark R. Leeper)
More mini-reviews:
ABOMINABLE: If this film had been released something like seven to
ten years earlier than it was it might have been considerably a
reasonably good animated and it would have showcased some recent
animation technology. It could have had some reasonably current
social messages for its audience. The figures would have had some
impressive visual surface textures for its characters. That was
then. This is now. ABOMINABLE builds more character in its
figures than most animation, but the creature seems like a ball
removed from a long-hair cat, not really cute, just homely. Three
teenagers decide to try to reunite the creature with its family.
Rating: +1 (-4 to +4).
AMERICAN FACTORY: When a director films a documentary it often
seems to go in unexpected directions. That is just part of the
game. In this case the film covers what happens when Chinese
company Fuyao and General open a factory in Moraine, Ohio. They
run it with Fuyao's managing and with General Motors management.
The workers start out very positive on the each company's
cooperation with the other. Just how the two companies work
together is the subject of the film. The subject matter is
serious, but the style is familiar. It is very much the sort of
story Michael Moore would have told but with more humor in the
telling. Rating: high +1 (-4 to +4)
I LOST MY BODY: In a French animated feature of feature-length a
young boy loses his hand in a horrifying tools shop accident. We
see in a flashback what led up to the incident. The style--
particularly the visual style--is enigmatic and surreal. Often the
weird images seem to be heavily influenced by Bill Plympton and his
Plymptoons. It is often hard to follow what is happening,
especially so when we see through the eye of a fly and we see its
connection with metaphysics. Jeremy Clapinis, the lead actor,
directs. The boy finds as he loses his hand he gains
understanding. Rating +2 (-4 to +4)
[-mrl]
===================================================================
TOPIC: Comments on the 1944 Retro Hugo Nominations in the Dramatic
Presentation Category (Supplement) (comments by Evelyn C. Leeper)
After Mark published his overview of 1944 candidates for the Retro
Hugo for Best Dramatic Presentation, Cora Buhlert pointed us to a
spreadsheet that containing several presentations Mark missed; we
also had input from Nicholas Whyte. Some are very short films
(e.g., Warner Brothers cartoons) or radio programs, and Mark was
concentrating on what were considered at the time feature films.
Mark is currently tied up on other projects, but I have decided to
jump in and comment on the new additions to the list (feature films
only). And here they are.
Long Form:
BETWEEN TWO WORLDS: This is one of those English fantasy films so
popular in this period: not the high fantasy of elves and dragons,
but the "Twilight Zone" sort of fantasy where ordinary people end
up in a weird situation. In fact, the "Twilight Zone" episode
"Passage on the 'Lady Anne'" bears more than a passing resemblance
to this one. In this one, ten people find themselves on a
steamship--somehow--that is going ... somewhere. They are
supposedly a cross-section of society (including Americans), and we
are given ample opportunity to like the likeable ones and dislike
the others. Not *quite* as talky and preachy as THEY CAME TO A
CITY, but of the same ilk.
THE CANTERVILLE GHOST: Based on the Oscar Wilde story, this suffers
from too much "thee" and "thou" and "yea" and heavy under-cranking
in the first scene, and one wonders how the Allies won the war if
American soldiers were this wacky. Then again, this is in keeping
with other American comedies during the war--the soldiers seem a
cross between Abbott and Costello, and the Marx Brothers. (I
suppose the idea is to downplay the fact that these soldiers are
supposed to go out and kill people, and make them just like the
friendly neighbor back home.) Charles Laughton is a bit over the
top (but he always is) and Una O'Conner is way over the top (but
she always is). And while the curse will be lifted when a
Canterville has to do something brave while wearing the signet
ring, no one thinks to give the ring to Margaret O'Brien, who keeps
doing brave things. Still it's more enjoyable than something like
THEY CAME TO A CITY or the many low-budget horror films Mark
covered in his article.
Short Form:
COBRA WOMAN: Maria Montez, Jon Hall, Sabu, Lon Chaney (Jr.), Jack
Pierce, Vera West, ... in Technicolor, no less. Clearly designed
as a (low-budget) adventure romance, it has no real fantasy
elements--it doesn't even seem to be a lost race story.
THE HALFWAY HOUSE: (We were unable to find a copy of this.)
IT HAPPENED TOMORROW: Not quite along the lines of BETWEEN TWO
WORLDS and THEY CAME TO A CITY, this is another fantasy that is
similar to a "Twilight Zone" episode--in this case, "Printer's
Devil". Larry Stevens is a reporter who gets copies of the next
day's newspapers, but when he tries to act on the advance
information, things don't turn out as he hoped. (No surprise
there.) There is also a romance, and a lot of comedy, but
altogether it is nothing special.
THE PHANTOM: (We were unable to find a copy of this.)
THEY CAME TO A CITY: Like BETWEEN TWO WORLDS, this is one of those
English "Twilight Zone" fantasy films of the period. The best
known is probably DEAD OF NIGHT, but there are enough that someone
should write a book about them (and probably has). In this one,
nine dissatisfied people are transported from their ordinary lives
to ... someplace, and someplace with very striking art direction
(by Michael Relph, who also did the art direction for DEAD OF
NIGHT). The "Twilight Zone" episode this evoked for me was "Five
Characters in Search of an Exit". THEY CAME TO A CITY is very
talky--Lord, is it talky!--being not much more than a filmed stage
play, and extremely heavy on its socialist message, but still worth
watching. As noted above, very similar to BETWEEN TWO WORLDS, but
much more stylized and artificial. (By the rules, this could be
relocated into Long Form.)
TIME FLIES: Though this is claimed by some to be the first film
with a time machine, there is apparently an earlier Hungarian film.
However, since the latter is basically unavailable, this should be
recognized as the first widely seen. That said, Mark observed it
was more on the level of a "Carry On" film that a serious look at
time travel. It is mildly amusing, full of puns and the like, but
not Hugo material. (By the rules, this could be relocated into
Long Form.)
THE TOWER OF THE SEVEN HUNCHBACKS: The only fantasy content in this
Spanish film is a ghost that wants the main character to protect
his daughter from a gang of hunchbacks. The main story involves
this gang counterfeiting money in an underground city built by Jews
who were hiding there after the Expulsion. The latter idea may be
more bizarre than the ghost, and the set design is more interesting
than the plot. (By the rules, this could be relocated into Long
Form.)
WHILE NERO FIDDLED (a.k.a. FIDDLERS THREE): Not the 1948 Three
Stooges movie. (We were unable to find a copy of this.)
[-ecl]
===================================================================
TOPIC: Novella Reviews ("Exit Strategy: The Murderbot Diaries" and
"Come Tumbling Down") (reviews by Joe Karpierz)
EXIT STRATEGY: THE MURDERBOT DIARIES by Martha Wells (copyright
2018, Tor.com, ASIN: B078X1N8VF)
"Exit Strategy", the fourth novella in "The Murderbot Diaries",
brings to a close (well, sort of) the chronicles of the Murderbot,
part human, part machine, and trying to find its place in the
galaxy. "The Murderbot Diaries" have been wildly popular and
successful, with both the first ("All Systems Red") and second
("Artificial Condition") entries winning Best Novella Hugos. The
stories are well written in a clear, concise, and easy to read
manner that can--and should--be read on multiple levels. "Exit
Strategy" follows that formula.
The plot is basic. The Murderbot has evidence that will bring
GrayCris Corporation down. GrayCris is the outfit that tried to
murder one Dr. Mensah in the opening installment. Dr. Mensah is
the closest thing the Murderbot has to a friend, and so the
Murderbot plans to bring that evidence to Dr. Mensah so that
GrayCris can be shut down and the Murderbot can ride off into the
sunset.
We all know it can't be that easy.
As with the other three installments in the series, "Exit Strategy"
is exciting and interesting. The Murderbot is always conflicted,
and here it's no different. The Murderbot has to reconcile its
feelings about people in general with its feelings, if any, about
Dr. Mensah. It's a nice, fun read. If you've read the first
three, read this one. If you haven't read any of them, I recommend
that you go do so.
But.
In the first paragraph, I said that "Exit Strategy" "brings a close
(well, sort of) to the chronicles of the Murderbot". I say "sort
of" because NETWORK EFFECT, a full length Murderbot novel, is
coming out later this year. You see, you just can't get enough of
a good thing.
I like "The Murderbot Diaries". It's well-written adventure
fiction that has a message that doesn't hit me over the head. It's
interesting and fun. The four-novella set tells a nice story. But
it should stop here. What I fear is going to happen is that Wells
will continue to write Murderbot stories until people get tired of
them. There is no beginning, middle, and end to the Murderbot
story. Well, there was, but now it keeps going. People want to
know what happened to the Murderbot after "Exit Strategy". People
*always* want to know what happens to their favorite characters
once a story is done, and they clamor for more. More is not always
better. Eventually the great stuff becomes good stuff becomes
mediocre stuff becomes bad or uninteresting stuff (see Orson Scott
Card's "Ender" Series--and yes, I have an Ender book on my stack
waiting to be read and reviewed--and the "Dune" series (and I have
three of those waiting to be read)).
Stop now, so our memories of the Murderbot will be fond ones.
COME TUMBLING DOWN by Seanan McGuire (copyright 2020, Tor.com,
ASIN: B07QFKY2PX)
"Come Tumbling Down" is the latest installment in Seanan McGuires
Wayward Children series, and it's a good one. In a sense, it's a
direct sequel to "Down Among the Sticks and Bones", the second
Wayward Children book, and my favorite of the first four. It's not
clear to me whether the new entry is better than "Bones", but it
certainly is better than the other three books in the series.
Sisters Jack and Jill were last seen leaving Eleanor West's School
for Wayward Children. This is nothing unusual--children leave the
school all the time, either by going back to their birth home or
going back to the world they visited when their door opened for
them. In this case, they were leaving for the Moors, their new
home on the other side of the door. The local area is precariously
balanced between the scientist and the vampire. When Jack and Jill
went back, however, Jill was dead because she was killed by Jack.
One thing that we know to be true. Once you go to your final home,
you never come back to the school. Well, not any more. It seems
things have gotten a little bit out of control in the Moors, and
Jack comes back--sort of--in an effort to enlist help to get things
straightened out.
As has been the case with the first four entries in the series, the
story is about family, friends, and identity, and that a person
needs to be who they need to be. This is a terrific entry in the
series. I've read this is supposed to be an eight-book series, so
I hope McGuire finds room for one more adventure with Jack and
Jill. The opening is certainly there for it.
[-jak]
===================================================================
TOPIC: THE INVISIBLE MAN (2020) (film comments by Evelyn C. Leeper,
with spoilers)
THE INVISIBLE MAN does not credit H. G. Wells anywhere, other than
naming its main character Griffin. This is just as well, since it
has nothing to do with the Wells novel, other than that they both
have an invisible man.
Wells's novel is about how a normal man who is doing research to
improve the world ends up corrupted by the power invisibility
brings. The movie's invisible man is a psychopath before he even
becomes invisible. In the Wells novel, there is some suggestion it
may be the chemical involved that makes Griffin insane. In the
film, it's a suit that makes him invisible, not a chemical, but
he's already insane anyway.
And the movie telegraphs almost everything important. There are
many instances of "James Bond" syndrome; in a James Bond film, when
Bond is shown some device, you know it will be important later.
And Cecilia is apparently every man's victim: her husband controls
and abuses her, her brother-in-law manipulates her, her male friend
refuses to believe her, and her prospective employer comes on to
her in her job interview.
And far too much of the film consists of people being savagely
attacked by the invisible man. [-ecl]
===================================================================
TOPIC: THE SHOCK OF THE OLD (TECHNOLOGY AND GLOBAL HISTORY SINCE
1900) by David Edgerton (book review by Gregory Frederick)
This history book puts forth the idea that though technology and
invention has expanded and grown in the last hundred years there is
still a dependence on old technology for many years. An example
includes the following: by 1920 half of all farms in the US mid-
west had cars, and telephones. But only 10% of these farms had
tractors, running water, or electric lights. Those farmers where
still using horses to do farm work, and did not have indoor
plumbing. And another example is that during WWII the German army,
which many would think was highly mechanized, actually had a very
large amount of their soldiers and equipment moved by horses.
Total amount of horses in the German army in 1945 was around 1.2
million. An Air Force bomber, the B-52, which was first made in
the early 1950's was still in use to fight in today's modern
warfare. Though this is an interesting book with an original
perspective on the history of technology, the author can be hard to
follow and his writing is too wordy. [-gf]
===================================================================
TOPIC: This Week's Reading (book comments by Evelyn C. Leeper)
For the philosophers among you, I have just discovered the
following two BBC adaptations of Plato by Jonathan Miller:
"The Drinking Party" (from "The Symposium"):
*https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Al9u1lal6KY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Al9u1lal6KY*
"The Death of Socrates" (from the "Phaedo"):
*https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6y7_0KuT5E
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6y7_0KuT5E*
FOUNDATION'S EDGE by Isaac Asimov (ISBN 978-0-553-29338-8) is the
fourth book in the "Foundation" series, or (alternatively) the
sequel to the "Foundation Trilogy". (One story is that the
publisher was originally going to label it "The Fourth Book in the
Foundation Trilogy", though he later claimed it was intended as a
joke, and they decided people would not get it.) Written over
thirty years after the original trilogy, there are noticeable
differences.
First, there are more women and they have more central roles. The
trilogy had only four women characters: Bayta Darrell, Arkady
Darrell, Lady Callia, and Mrs. Palver, and the last three appear
only in the third volume. Of course, the attempts to increase the
role of women in this novel often consist of throw-away lines, such
as "Palver's wife had been a speaker in her own right," while Preem
Palver himself gets a lot of mentions as a major historical
character. And though there is a woman mayor, sexism is still
alive and well. When Trevize meets Bliss, he says, "She's only a
girl," and thinks "it was irritating, though, to have them send a
girl. They might have sent a military officer, for instance, and
given us a sense of some value, so to speak. Just a girl?" Given
that Bliss is treated as an object of sexual attraction, either
these characters are pedophiles, or "girl" here is just a
disparaging term for "woman". And one major female character
decides she is happy just being a helpmate to a man, when it is
clear she could be so much more.
(Is it just me, or does Harla Branno appear to be modeled on Golda
Meir?)
Second, the names seem marginally less European. Although the
names in the trilogy are not names currently in use, there is
definitely a European structure to them. I am sure a linguist
could define it better, but I'll just give some examples that I
have made up. "Morven" has a European choice and arrangement of
consonants and vowels; no one would mistake it for, say, East
Asian. But "Fokihara" is clearly derived from Japanese, not from a
European language. So Mun Li Compor's middle name is more East
Asian than European, and Jogoroth Sobhaddartha's and Namarath
Godhisavatta's names are definitely South Asian. (And in passing,
I'll note that "Janov Pelorat" is almost definitely named after
Asimov's wife, "JANice asimOV".)
There is also more questioning of the validity of Salvor Hardin's
predictions after the Mule, and of the role of the Second
Foundation. The former is rather glossed over in the trilogy, with
the claim that after the Mule was gone, everything would return to
Hardin's predictions. As noted in FOUNDATION'S EDGE, though, once
the Mule has upset all of Hardin's predictions, there is no way for
everything to return to what it was. That would be as if someone
prevented World War II, but within a hundred years, everything
returned to what it was in our world: complete with the
geopolitical situation so obviously the result of the (non-
existent) war.
But one respect in which Asimov (or his characters) is sloppy is
that everyone talks about how it has been five centuries since Hari
Seldon, and hence the Interregnum is half over. But Seldon
predicted the fall of Trantor in three centuries and a thousand-
year Interregnum *after* that.
Someone refers to himself as a groundhog; did colonists really take
groundhogs throughout the galaxy?
Asimov seems of two (or more) minds regarding information
technology (and technology in general) in the future. One the one
hand, he seems to assume hard-copy books will be the standard: "He
had printouts in his possession which had been taken off
hyperradiational signals from as far away as Infia."
But he also says, "When one's home has a really excellent computer
capable of reaching other computers anywhere in the galaxy, one
scarcely needs to budge, you know," and, "My library. It's indexed
by subject matter and origin and I've gotten it all into one
wafer." And he refers to "fat computer-discs" (I have no idea what
he was thinking of). Admittedly, one can be connected to other
computers, etc., but still have to print out books--it just seems
very unlikely, and certainly by the 1980s, the concept of reading
books on a screen would be an obvious possibility for the near
future, let alone thousands of years in the future.
He seems to predict the idea of a GPS (and possibly even an
autonomous vehicle), though his character seems to worry that "the
computer [might not know] the one-way streets and the traffic
regulations." And there seem to be "plastic coffee containers" as
well.
Given how Asimov's technological assumptions for a society
thousands of years in the future are often somewhere in our past,
the claim that "however brilliant this semimythical science of
psychohistory must have been, it could not rise out of its roots.
It surely would not allow for *rapid* technological advance," seems
more than a bit ironic.
This is the book where Asimov decided he had to start tying all his
novels into a single "Future History". This may be a good idea
when one is just beginning, but his post hoc attempts to connect
his robot works and THE END OF ETERNITY with his "Foundation"
series are just clumsy. (I am reminded of the Showtime "Outer
Limits" series, which was an anthology series of unconnected
stories--except at the end of each season, they had an episode that
somehow tied them all together. It looked pretty silly, too.
(Even the "Foundation" series doesn't hang together, though it was
back in SECOND FOUNDATION that it really fell apart. In that book,
it seems to be vital that the existence of the Second Foundation is
a secret, yet in FOUNDATION, Hari Seldon reminds the viewers of its
existence every time he appears in the Time Vault. This continues
in this book as well.)
It is not a terrible book, and the discussion of possible futures
at the end is mildly intriguing. But it still has all the flaws of
the earlier works (long expositions, sexism, etc.), without the
excuse of them being typical of the time. [-ecl]
===================================================================
Mark Leeper
*mleeper@optonline.net *
A dog reflects the family life. Whoever saw a frisky dog
in a gloomy family, or a sad dog in a happy one?
Snarling people have snarling dogs, dangerous people have
dangerous ones.
--John Holmes