Top 10 sci-fi films since 2000

This is a guest post by Patrick Temple Hickey, author of The Nostradamus Code.

Arrival (2016)

Directed by Denis Villeneuve -- A mind-bending, time-warping adaptation of Ted Chiang’s The Story Of Your Life with an emotional impact that transcends genres. All bodes well for Villeneuve’s Blade Runner 2049 to be released in the fall. Can’t wait.

Caturday Movies - Chatty Catties

Have you ever imagined a reality where cats could talk? Wouldn't that be awesome?

But what if your cat tells you he doesn't understand what your date sees in you and that you have a drinking problem? Would you still think talking cats are cool?

The American indie comedy Chatty Catties takes place in such universe. At the center of the film is the tabby cat Leonard (voice of deaf actor John Autry II). His "relationship" with Shelby (Megan Hensley) isn't exactly fulfilling. She's a borderline alcoholic who whines all the time and is on the brink of losing her job. But then Shelby starts dating Nate (Matthew Grathwol), and the world seems a better place again, not because Shelby becomes emotionally stable, but because Nate is everything Leonard ever wished for in a human.

Can blockbuster movies influence novels?

This is a guest post by Jennifer Chase, author of the novel Dead Cold

I love movies. What else can I say? I have always enjoyed all genres of movies—with my preference for the mystery, suspense, and thriller flicks of course. There was no doubt that my movie enthusiasm (specifically the 1980s action films like Die Hard, Lethal Weapon, Terminator, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Predator, Rambo, and many more) helped to shape my novel writing style. I wrote more than a dozen screenplays before writing my first novel, Compulsion.

Can you pass this extremely difficult horror movie quiz?

Do you think you can ace this extremely difficult horror movie trivia quiz? Test yourself with these 20 questions.

Caturday Movies - Kitten Instinct

Dinosaur meets cat in Kitten Instinct

This week's Caturday Movie is Kitten Instinct, a Belgian short film about a Tyrannosaurus Rex who dreams about a cute little kitten. The dream ushers in a new phase of his life. Determined to recover the kitten, the dinosaur abandons his daily routine of hunting, eating and sleeping, and sets out to explore the world around him.

Celluloid Diaries had a chat with Liesbeth Eeckman about the similarities between cats and dinosaurs, her main inspirations, the biggest challenges while making her short film, and, of course, her own cat, Sputnik.

Also, she makes her film available to readers of Celluloid Diaries until August 31.

These lamps are a must-have for VHS fans

Do you feel nostalgic when it comes to VHS cassettes? I for one am still fond of these tapes and I have a huge collection I will never get rid of. One look at them brings back instant childhood memories.

As soon as I saw these decorative lamps made from old VHS tapes, I knew they were a must-have. If you have any VHS addicts among your friends, know that these VHS lamps would make great presents.

Caturday Movies - The Uninvited

This week's Caturday Movie is brought to you by Justine Coote from The Overlook Theater and was previously published in the book When Animals Attack: The 70 Best Horror Movies with Killer Animals.

For a monster kid like myself, meeting legendary writer/director Greydon Clark was like meeting Alfred Hitchcock. Although Clark is not as well known or praised for his cinematic achievements, he has left his mark in film history and has inspired countless generations of grindhouse enthusiasts, creature feature kids, and independent filmmakers. Sitting with Mr. Clark at Monsterpalooza, I experienced his love of the genre first hand as we went from discussing his film It Came Without Warning (1980), which was admittedly the inspiration for the film Predator (1987), to one of Greydon’s lesser known creations, Uninvited (1988).

Filming locations - Devil's Nightmare

Devil's Nightmare is a Belgian/Italian horror movie released in 1971. Directed by Jean Brismée, it tells the story of seven tourists who become lost during a trip in Europe. A strange man by the roadside shows them the way, but as it's too late to catch the ferry, they are then directed to a castle where they can spend the night. There, they meet a succubus (Erika Blanc) who kills them because they represent the seven sins.

In Belgium, where the film was shot and released under the French title La plus longue nuit du diable, hardly anyone knows of its existence. However, it was quite successful in Italy. Since then, it has been released under an array of different titles, so you may also know it as The Devil Walks at Midnight, Nightmare of Terror, Vampire Playgirls, Castle of Death, La terrificante notte del demonio, Au service du diable, etc.

This strange mix between The Pit and the Pendulum and the Euro trash films of Jess Franco and Jean Rollin, was almost entirely shot in and around a castle in Belgium: Château d'Antoing or Castle of the Princes of De Ligne, which was first mentioned in the 12th century but rebuilt by architect Clement Parent in neo-Gothic style in the 19th century. It's one of the country's most beautiful castles, so whether you've seen the film or not, it's worth a visit when you're in South West Belgium or one of the neighboring cities in France.

Caturday Movies - Strays

This week's Caturday Movie is brought to you by Daniel Alves from The Overlook Theater and was previously published in When Animals Attack: The 70 Best Horror Movies with Killer Animals.

For reasons that now escape me, the theme we decided to go for that night was animal attacks; out of several options, we chose Strays, a film that we believed would follow the slasher formula (as do many animal attack films). It became apparent almost immediately that this film would be an entirely different “animal.”

The film opens with a crazy cat lady being killed by what seems to be a giant cat. We’re then introduced to our victims: a professional couple with a young daughter. This initially perplexed me since a good slasher needs at least five potential victims, and those victims generally do not include children. However, we soon see that the couple is buying the home of the crazy cat lady from the opening. A young couple with a small child buying a suspicious new home; this isn’t a slasher movie; it’s a haunted house film! The creators of this movie decided to take a haunted house narrative but replaced ghosts with feral cats. Fortunately, it’s a very good haunted house movie. The formula usually has a shocking/mysterious intro, some jump scares or deaths of minor characters to keep up suspense, and then the supernatural force reveals itself for the climax. Most of the story, however, is about the victim’s day to day life while the ghost gears up for act three. The key to a successful haunted house story is to make that day to day almost as, if not more, interesting than the supernatural action, and Strays delivers.

Should you watch Spider-Man: Homecoming?

Do we need a new Spider-Man reboot? Sony and Marvel announced from the beginning they weren't planning on doing another origin story, yet we all expect the typical superhero plot with a myriad of Marvel characters thrown into the mix. Instead, 36-year-old director Jon Watts surprises us and opts for a mix between a John Hughes movie and Kick-Ass.