MOOOON!

I forgot to mention that last night my dad and I watched Duncan Jones's movie "Moon" starring Sam Rockwell.  Duncan Jones, for the record, is David Bowie's son, so I found it very interesting that Ziggy Stardust's offspring has created one of the best science fiction movies of the past decade.

I love it when a science fiction movie comes along that is about ideas, and not about action. I think if you wanted to screen a double bill of thought-provoking sci-fi cinema, "Moon" would go nicely with "Gattaca".

I won't give away anything about "Moon", except that you should try to see it if you can.  I bought it on blu-ray a week ago, and the image quality is astounding.

But I think the most interesting aspect of the film is its treatment of technology. Traditionally in cinema, humanity's relationship with machines and so-called artificial intelligences is generally viewed with animosity and skepticism.  The increased presence of technology is viewed as a dehumanizing aspect of our progress.  Inevitably, artificial intelligences usually end up turning against us, and wind up being our downfall.  "Moon" doesn't seem to fall into that easy trap, and I think paints a picture of technology and robotics that is more copacetic with our own experiences from today.  Again, if you were to want to screen this movie with another sci-fi movie, "2001: A Space Odyssey" would be another good choice, as the comparison between the two I think would end up shocking the audience.

Later tonight I'm hoping to find time to watch Wim Wenders's 1988 film "Wings of Desire", which I picked up on blu-ray at the same time as "Moon".