A Few Changes.

After a hectic vote in which literally thousands* of votes were cast, we are changing our original and admittedly confusing name to “Science Fiction and Fantasy Enthusiasts”. There. Hard to confuse that one, right? (he grins, hopefully). Thanks to the hard work and dedication of Nik Butler, stuff has been set up, and stuff transferred. Our new URL is:

www.sciencefictionandfantasyenthusiasts.com

Posts will henceforth be made on the new site, and hopefully we can get on with celebrating the stuff we love

Cheers,

Andy Remic.

* a lie

A question of Ethics for Enthusiasts.

We ran a short poll among the core writers and contributors on this blog and the results are in for 27 Votes. As you can see from the poll the popular choice is Enthusiasts.  Thanks to those who took part I guess we are the Enthusiastic after all.

Alasdair Stuart’s Review: The Abyss

The self-proclaimed King of the World is making his way back to mainstream cinema.  After over a decade working as a documentarian on subjects ranging from the Titanic to the tomb of Jesus, Cameron is set to return later this year with Avatar, a film whose technically and physically demanding shoot has been the subject of huge amounts of speculation.  The film is said to be technically, extraordinary, rewriting the cinematic grammar of science fiction in much the same way Cameron has done twice before, with Aliens and The Terminator movies.

However with its demanding shoot and cutting edge filming techniques, Avatar seems closer to The Abyss, a Cameron movie that’s been largely overlooked.  Which is a surprise as the simple act of shooting The Abyss was a Herculean undertaking, involving re-fitting a half-constructed nuclear power station to become a huge water tank.  The cast and crew were under water for hours at a time and frequently had to spend up to twelve hours in decompression chambers, and the shoot was so difficult that Ed Harris refused to talk about it for years after filming.  Acknowledging this, on completion, the cast and crew were all given t-shirts bearing the caption:

LIFE’S ABYSS AND THEN WE DIVE.

But despite, or perhaps because of this pressure, it’s the Cameron movie I keep coming back to.  I’d even argue it’s his best and certainly his most personal work.  Cameron’s background as a special effects technician has shown throughout his career and there are few directors better at shifting the focus of action from epic scale to individual people and back again, especially here.  He’s as comfortable with quiet, personal character moments as he is with massive set pieces and the skill with which the two are nested within one another here is never less than impressive.

The crane crash sequence is particularly impressive as Cameron throws the focus around at tremendous speed but with absolute discipline.  We follow the Benthic Explorer, the Deepcore II’s support ship as it battles high seas and loses the crane carrying the Deepcore’s umbilical.  The action then cuts to the seabed as the crew frantically try and unbuckle the cable as the crane crashes down on them, fail, are dragged over the lip of the Marianas Trench and come to rest, only to be forced to battle hull leaks and fires at multiple locations.  It’s an almost balletic sequence, each section building on the last and each driving home how fragile, how alone the Deepcore II crew are and how, in a second, the crew’s safe environment can become a roiling, chaotic death trap.  The fact that the Deepcore II looks and feels utterly convincing only helps ramp up the tension.  This rig is these people’s home and it‘s critically damaged almost before the film is halfway through.

But for all the undoubted technical skill on display here, it’s Cameron the scriptwriter who most impresses.  The Abyss is a Russian doll of plots, each presenting a canvas for the other plot lines to play out across and each successively tighter in focus.

The largest sees Cameron borrow a trick from 2010, and use a fictionalized version of the Cuban Missile Crisis as both the catalyst for the story and a means of providing it with extra historical weight.  The accidental crash of a US nuclear submarine not only brings the Deepcore II crew into the incident but also brings the Cold War into the spotlight.  By doing this, Cameron establishes an instant intellectual connection with the Cuban Missile Crisis and its potential consequences, in turn raising the dramatic and emotional stakes of what is, superficially, a summer blockbuster filled with empty spectacle.

The next story down from that addresses the empty spectacle head on, as Cameron builds an action movie that is arguably larger and more completely realized than any of his other work.  The crane sequence mentioned above, the bruising submarine chase and Bud’s final dive into the abyss are just three of the major action beats in a film that rarely pauses for breath.  Cameron has a rare fondness for practical effects work and the ease with which the film not only shifts scale but type of effect is never less than impressive.  The arrival at the USS Montana is a particular standout, the chunky, tough ‘pick up truck’ submarines of the Deepcore II crew dwarfed by the immense scale of the downed submarine.

The summer ‘tent pole’ movie in turn provides a unique spin to the science fiction plot.  Cameron is on record as saying that he wanted a very realistic, grounded approach to the fantastic in The Abyss and that’s exactly what is delivered.  The blue collar main characters, Bud in particular, bring a welcome cynicism to events and their realistic approach puts a different perspective on what is at heart nothing more than a first contact story and a relatively conventional one at that.

Until the water tentacle sequence, where everything changes.  As the aliens explore the rig and make contact with the crew, the accepted wisdom of special effects technology is shattered.  Cameron’s use of CGI, the first in a major film, is elegant and effective even today, using the relatively simple shapes and textures of the tentacle to side step technical problems.  It also fits, perfectly, with the rest of the film, a seamless integration of the unreal with the real, the alien with the mundane.  The process of evolution, the changes that would lead through Independence Day to films like The Matrix and Donnie Darko and revolutionize SF cinema, starts here.  The water tentacle isn’t just an alien artefact; it’s the shape of things to come, a moment of 21^st century cinema arriving a little early.

It also provides the backdrop to the final, central plot.  Cameron, for all his fascination with scale and technology, is passionately concerned with people and never more so than here.  The Abyss is a literal and psychological presence in the film, each character faced with the realization that they have stepped beyond the bounds of safety and human knowledge, and that they are staring at the unknown.  How they react to that knowledge is what drives the central conflicts of the film, and does so in a remarkably even handed way.

For Lindsey, the abyss is an open door, with the promise of boundless knowledge beyond it.  For Bud, it’s a problem at best and a threat at worst and for both of them, it’s a reminder that what they need most is not knowledge, or freedom, but each other.  Ed Harris and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio are on stunning form here and they have a quiet, unforced chemistry that is completely believable.  Whether it’s Lindsey telling a sleeping Bud to turn over and him obeying or the pair frantically brainstorming ways to save a freezing Lindsey’s life their relationship is realistic, plausible and frequently very moving.  They’re not perfect and they’re not heroes, they’re just the people who happened to be there, doing their best.

The rest of the cast are as naturalistic and impressive but the other stand out is Michael Biehn as Lt. Coffey.  Biehn is a Cameron alumnus and, in a kinder world, would have been catapulted to mainstream success in Cameron’s abandoned Spiderman movie.  Here, he plays Bud’s alter ego, a man as concerned with his job and his crew as Bud but lacking the human anchor Lindsey provides.  Coffey is a genuinely good man, the script takes great pains to point that out but for him, the abyss is where the monsters live and he finds himself unable to move beyond that belief or, in the end, the abyss itself.  Coffey is a tragic figure first and a villain second, the final casualty before the dawn of the new world waiting at the bottom of the old.

The Abyss is immensely ambitious and meticulously constructed, the four plots harnessed together to create an incredibly powerful piece of drama.  Its ambition outreaches its grasp in several places, most notably some of the final effects, but the film succeeds far more than it fails and fails bravely when it does.  It’s a film both powered by and about change and change for the better, a fiercely optimistic story that’s been unfairly overshadowed by its stable mates.  It’s Cameron’s best work and if Avatar is half as successful, then we’re in for something very, very special.

NEW AUTHORS JOINING SFFE

The following authors have joined our little merry band. They are:

PHILIP PALMER
STEVEN HUNT
DAVID B. COE
SAM STONE
KIM LAKIN-SMITH
JUSTINA ROBSON

M. E. Staton’s Review: One by Conrad Williams

One begins with a cataclysmic event. A world shattering event, literally. Richard Jane is a diver working in the North Sea when the world, as he knows it, ends. He manages to survive a boiling sea and a searing wind. He makes it back to the UK mainland only to find that the unimaginable has happened, something has burned the earth. Beyond his own survival there is only one thought in Jane’s mind. Find his son.

Through a broken and battered landscape Richard Jane journeys along the A1 making his way to London. Encountering other survivors, some good and some not so good, all the while he is pursued by an unknown entity of whose motivations he is never certain. The first half of the book deals with Jane’s journey along the A1 as he tries to make sense of what has happened to the England he knew and to get to London and find his son no matter what obstacles arise. From the beginning Conrad Williams grabs the reader with his descriptive style. You are always reminded of the devastation that has been wrought by an unknown near extinction level event. The burnt and twisted landscape is ever present in your mind’s eye as you follow Jane and his companions through the tortured counties of Britain. The second half of the book is set some years ahead. Those who have survived in the London area have banded together in a sort of loose confederation of scavengers and protectors. They try to feed themselves, record what is happening to them and clear the dead. As if the total devastation of life as they knew it was not enough, a new terror walks the midnight streets. Skinners. Ruthless killers made out of the flesh of the dead, they hunt the survivors relentlessly turning what little hope for the future is left into blood and dust.

Readers will be surprised by some of the twists in the story and before you even begin, do not assume the Skinners are merely zombies. They are something even darker, more monstrous, and they are not mindless or shambling.  They are organised, they are bloodthirsty and they will jump off the page and get you if you’re not careful!

Williams’ storytelling is stellar throughout this novel. The writing never falters. His ability to paint a picture with words is undeniable. This is a real page turner. In fact, I read it in only a few days as it was too hard to put down, even for the few intervening hours at work I couldn’t wait to get back and find out what happened next. As you read, there is always a sense of danger, a persistent fear that plagues Richard Jane first on his long journey to London, and then in his struggle to survive the horror of his everyday existence in a nightmarish urban landscape. One single thought drives him from the beginning to the end, and it is always his son.

In my opinion this book is for anyone who enjoys good writing and loves to become immersed in a story. You don’t need to be a horror fan to love this book. Williams’ style is extremely rich, full of texture and always accessible. He has definitely ascended to the rank of master storyteller.

Sad News – David Eddings Dies, Aged 77

It’s with great sadness I heard the news of David Edding’s death. I loved many of his fantasy works, and especially his creation Sparhawk.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There’s a good piece on Mr Eddings over at SF Crowsnest – http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz14000.php

May David rest well in the Hall of Heroes!

Sharon Ring’s Review: How to Make Monsters, by Gary McMahon

A few weeks ago I got my first taste of Gary McMahon’s writing. Love Is In The Air, a short story, was featured in The Fourth Black Book of Horror from Mortbury Press. I was thoroughly impressed by this bizarre little tale and thought I’d have to get round to reading some more of Gary’s work at some point.

As fortune would have it, the magical world of the internet soon had me chatting to Mark Deniz, the owner and editor-in-chief of Morrigan Books. Shortly after that, I had a copy of Gary’s How To Make Monsters (published by Morrigan Books) sitting on my desk at the top of a tall pile of “books for review”. It didn’t take long for the numerous eyes on the book cover to lure me in to the world of McMahon. Once in, I was hooked.

I’ve read all the stories in this collection twice now and am already itching to read through them again. There’re fourteen stories in all, some of which you may have come across in other publications, many of which are brand new to this particular collection.

What Gary has done in this collection is outstanding story-telling. He has peeked into the darkest recesses of our lives, spotted the monsters that lurk there and dragged them out for examination under a harsh spotlight.
There is plenty within the pages of Gary’s book to make even the most hard-hearted horror reader squirm uneasily. Some stories hit harder than others, but as with any kind of story-telling, this depends on the reader as much as the author.

Now for the hard part, picking out a handful of stories from this exceptional collection.
First up is Pumpkin Night, a seemingly quiet tale of a grieving husband. As he carves a Halloween pumpkin, he begins to reminisce about his wife and their life together. With ritualistic precision he completes the carving, revealing the darker side of their marriage and his plans for the future. For the first few paragraphs of this story, I felt I was reading something almost gentle in tone. I was expecting a spooky twist, but certainly nothing like the gruesome revelations that ensued. This is definitely one to read by candlelight this coming Halloween.

Next up is Owed, a story of debt and revenge. Owed covers the depths and limits of what debt can do to people with financial worries. A single mother finds herself with only one option left to help clear her debt to a loan shark. What follows is truly unpleasant and it does not make for easy reading. Where McMahon leads this tale though, makes the disturbing narrative all the more poignant, when the mother finds help from a most unexpected source.

Last up is the final story in the collection, A Bit of the Dark. It’s the longest of the tales and is easily one of the most unnerving short stories I’ve read in a very long time. The narrative is centred on three characters; father, mother and son. They’ve come to visit the site of a freshly demolished orphanage where Frank (the father) spent some of his early years. They were not happy years, and Frank is hoping that after seeing the demolished building he can begin to close the door on the horrendous troubles he suffered there. Nothing is that easy though; father, mother and son are swiftly pulled into a frightening battle. This is a genuinely creepy and disturbing story, with some intense imagery that will cling to your mind long after you’ve put the book down. It’s also heart-breaking in places, I cried like a baby more than once.

Read this book. Be troubled by it. Be scared by it. Most of all, be safe in the knowledge that British horror writing is alive, kicking and screaming in the very capable hands of Gary McMahon.

David Keith’s Review: The Steel Remains, by Richard Morgan

It’s easy to get burned out on Fantasy novels where excessive world-building, impossible to pronounce names, too many characters, over reaching story lines and ridiculous page counts often prevail over smooth prose, tight plots and believable characterizations. That’s pretty much where I was when I picked up this novel on a whim. I hadn’t read anything by Morgan before and wanted to give him a chance – and I’m very glad I did.

“The Steel Remains” brings Fantasy into the 21st century. It’s as fresh a take on the genre as I’ve discovered. And refreshing it is. Modern dialogue, witty lines and great characters – lead by the ex-war hero, slightly over the hill, and uber-cool tough butch queer, Ringil – propel the novel from start to finish. Ringil is the fascinating and memorable anchor of the book. He’s a bloody, strong, flawed, brilliant and likeable creation. The supporting cast includes the drug-addicted lesbian Archeth and the jail-bait-chasing, hinterland barbarian clan lord, Egar the Dragonbane. It takes most of the novel to reunite the three old allies, but it’s worth the wait. Along the way, of course, there’s a quest as Ringil is recruited by his society mother to rescue a cousin from slavery. But that’s just the kick-off to wider and wilder events.

As I followed our heroes/anti-heroes deeper into the the twists and turns of the plot, I enjoyably discovered the Fantasy world they inhabit exists in a Science Fiction universe. While staying within the frame of sword-wielding Fantasy, Morgan masterfully meshes SciFi elements into the novel right alongside vengeful and petty gods; aliens from another world; and monsters fitting a horror novel. Fantasy prevails. This is a fantasy novel. The science fiction and horrific elements come along as an unexpected and well implemented bonus. This is an adult novel. There’s raunchy (and hot) explicit man on man sex. Foul language. Drug use. And I loved every bit of it.

While the story is mostly resolved by the end, there are enough small dangling threads that have me greatly and greedily awaiting the next novel in the projected trilogy. “The Steel Remains” is a gateway drug. It left me wanting more. More Richard Morgan novels. It’s also revitalized my interest in the Fantasy genre. For me this one certainly takes its place atop George R.R. Martins’ “A Game of Thrones”, Lynch’s “The Lies of Lock Lamora”, Erikson’s “Gardens of the Moon” and Rothfuss’ “The Name of the Wind” as one of the best reads in recent Fantasy. Beyond Highly Recommended.

Mark Smith’s Review: Star Trek 2009

Growing up on ‘The Next Generation’ and ‘Deep Space Nine’ series, I consider myself a casual fan of the ‘Trek franchise, only taking an interest in and watching the classic ‘Kirk’s-shirt-getting-ripped-somehow-every-damn-episode’ era of Star Trek from the ‘60s recently. This puts me at what I’d consider a ‘neutral’ member of the audience when weighing up the new summer blockbuster STAR TREK.As cheesy as it now seems to be a member of the “low-attention span, high special effects” orientated generation, there’s still that optimistic appeal that gets me only in a way that ‘Trek can.It was obscure, strange, and made the audience use what we have come to know as the “Star Trek logic”. Rather than feeding us a long tube of intricate explanation, it was fun and a little bit silly – unlike the newer Trek spin-offs, including the prequel series Enterprise (unfortunately cancelled after just three seasons). I’m not a fan of remakes. Slapping a logo on something is guaranteed to draw in more fans, but I feel that it’s sort of cheap on the creative side of storytelling. As well as using someone else’s old ideas, you have to remember how the fans might feel, stomping all over a beloved memory held dear. Why bother building up a new legacy with a perfectly good fanbase ready and waiting at the ticket line? So then, how was the movie?

Star Trek seems to have danced, back-flipped and twisted its way past the ‘red laser beams’ of hardcore Trekkie expectation & scrutiny, while looking damn good in the process. It impressed me, quite a lot. A spectacular action/adventure space flick in its own right first, then a ‘Trek film second. This said, it really did feel like it belonged as a part of the Star Trek continuum. JJ Abrams wasted no time in beaming the audience right into the pre-existing Trek universe. Subtle (and in-canon) in-jokes were woven into the plot and dialogue, and the classic catch phrases were in there too (“I’m givin’ her all she’s got, Cap’n!”).

Following the somewhat popular trend of the ‘origin story’, STAR TREK has the classic crew take to the helm for the first time, following Kirk and Spock’s childhood, and transition from cadet to Starfleet officers. Though it does serve as an origin story, the writers have cleverly avoided any constraints over continuity while simultaneously satisfying fan needs. The story isn’t hindered by the weight of carrying the origin for each member and rather, makes everything slide into place neatly as the story progresses. The twists are bold and ballsy, now unafraid to take drastic moves in storytelling giving the franchise a fresh new breath of relief, while at the same time satisfying the fans.The whole cast does a fantastic job on picking up the iconic roles from the original show, without making just a thin imitation. Rather, Pine, Quinto and the rest each give their own unique take on their roles, though the show really is stolen by Karl Urban, who was incredible in his portrayal as Doctor ‘Bones’ McCoy – eerily reminiscent of DeForest Kelley. The effects are spectacular, crowded and chaotic; you can look forward to some very engaging and cool looking space battles. Everything, even the look of the ship interior has an unmistakable feel to it as the classic Enterprise did back in the ‘60s but with a light modernised touch. Some fans will argue that the CGI has taken over from the plot, but to me they took nothing from the story, and I feel that they gave plenty of space between being in the background and letting the actors do their thing on the forefront.

For all the people who might complain about the little details or maybe how the story was unbelievable – nostalgia is getting in the way of your enjoyment of the film. The original series was fun and wacky. Sometimes the show would have asked you just to use that ‘Star Trek logic’. If anything, the movie retains more of the original spirit of the franchise than the new spin-offs. If you’re really that bitter about it, consider the last movie in the franchise, Star Trek: Nemesis. Sure, the film is more action orientated than ‘a reflection of contemporary concerns and ideals’ that Trek was most known for, as well as many other sci-fi stories. But if you really have a problem with it, come on. This is 2009, and asking for an exact replica of one of the original episodes just wouldn’t work. It’s not the 1960s.

If you’re a fan, you’ll know what I mean by ‘the trouble with things like Tribbles’. Would something like that make for good entertainment? I don’t think so – not these days at least. A good Sci-Fi film is all about spectacle and STAR TREK has plenty of it. The movie is exciting, engaging and smart. It retains everything about the old ways, and mixes it with something new.If you’re new to the whole Star Trek thing, you’ll enjoy the movie. If you’re a casual fan like I am, you’ll love it. I’m looking forward to a sequel already!

Launch Date.

SFFE goes “live” on 1st June 2009. Until that launch date, no new content will be posted.

We are also currently “processing” several new authors who have expressed interest in taking part in this project, and they are being checked for vitamin and mineral levels, and a willingness to work for cheese. Watch this space for regular updates. We are also experimenting with layout styles and colours, etc, so this may not be the finished look.

Andy Rem.