SF at the movies - January '10

Slipping in at the last possible moment, here are the Sci-Fi releases that were out in January.

Daybreakers

Released 06/01/10









I had high hopes for this one and while it didn't disappoint, it wasn't all I felt it could have been either. The movie takes the usual 'vampires have mutated from humans' plot (see my earlier post on vamps) and extends it to the point where most of the population are vampires, meaning they are short on their key food source - human blood. In danger of devolving or dying out they have to find an alternative. A vampire scientist teams up with the few remaining humans to find another solution. Great plot, and the cast didn't let it down but it still relied on spooky things going 'raa!' and excessive violence when it could have focused more on resolving the storyline.

The Road

Released 08/01/10









A superb film. I was wondering if Viggo Mortensen's career had died after LotR but he is most definitely back with this astounding performance. The setting is your average post-apocalyptic world with broken buildings, dirt everywhere and crazy people. This is merely backdrop however for the journey a man must take to try and find a better life for his son. On the way they have to contend with the elements and a lack of food, as well as how to deal with the often savage people they meet. It is a deep exploration of morality as the father teaches the son to do what's right while being faced with how far he has to go to protect him and prepare him for life in a broken world. My words don't do it justice - if you can, see it.

The Book of Eli

Released 15/01/10









Another post-apocalyptic tale, this one more of an action thriller than the other. The world's gone to pot but one dude has a book which apparently has the power to either save humanity, or grant incredible power to whoever possesses it. A gang leader is very interested in the book and not so he can save humanity, thankfully the guy who's got it is Denzel Washington and he can kick some ass to make sure it gets to the right hands. I'm probably not doing it justice and it looks good, but I think I've had my dose of post-apocalyptic for this month.

And that's it, so basically January is a month for the end of the world - let's see what Feb brings!