alphaprior Reviews

The Ark (2023– )

Another shallow boring disaster show.

[2/10 · 17 February 2023]

All new series and movies nowdays play around the same theme.

Dystopian, violent, dark, some disaster happened or coming.

This one balances between disaster and happy shallow and boring characters.

The cast is way too young and can't stand to watch immature children playing the saviors of humanity.

Producers think they can attract young audience with young actors terribly wrong. Always fails. At the end they are gonna cast kids.

In my 20s I was enjoying sci-fi series where no one was my age and didn't care as long they were good actors and good story.

Some were dark some were positive and inspiring.

This one has neither it's extremelly stupid in every way.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2022– )

A positive tune but shallow stories.

[7/10 · 20 May 2022]

At last a series with no darkness or violence, I'm sick of the negative theme on all series and movies nowdays.

ST: Strange New Worlds has the a positive as it should for a Star Trek series opposed to dark theme of Discovery and Picard.

Picture is great, main actors very good, getting too close on characters too early it's weird and boring, I don't care to find their stories at least not yet.

Biggest issue though is that the stories lack of depth.

They are shallow, too easy and short.

Not emotional or intriguing just meh... I don't expect this to change unless they put some good educated writers that can really write.

Star Trek: Picard (2020–2023)

Nothing Star Trek

[6/10 · 21 April 2022]

Another Star Trek series or movie that doesn't even try to be like Star Trek.

There is nothing in this show that feels like Star Trek.

Picard? No, he is not Picard he is Patrick Stewart playing a role that has nothing to do with unforgettable Picard. And his exceptional quotes.

It's a world where Federation has lost it way and Picard goes rogue at his old age to find answers for... no one knows anymore at season 2.

Many inconsistencies based on original stories and events of Star Trek TNG.

It's a big fail and it hurts to see Patrick Stewart and Jeri Ryan being part of this.

All modern Star Trek shows and movies today are an insult to previous series that were promoting ideals. Today it's just noise and when they try to add some value they fail miserable because it's sp fake and bad written.

Foundation (2021– )

Another one nothing special.

[7/10 · 25 September 2021]

Having watched the trailers I was not expecting much.

After watching the first 2 episodes it is what I expected and less.

Despite being written by Isaac Asimov they story and atmosphere resembles very much to today's recipe for most series and movies. I haven't read the book but as others say there is only little resemblance for an unfilmable story.

What I like: Definitely the visual effects and scenes, spaceship, star bridge, city, cool techs.

Unfortunatelly what I dislike are a lot more.

Another dark, dystopian, heavy and slow tv series. Like everything else today. Storytelling and characters are very shallow.

No time to learn enough and connect with characters and their story.

Confusing jumps from present and past 35years apart.

Casting: I don't like at all when I don't like a face especially for the main roles I won't like the whole thing. The only likeable actor is Raych.

The emperor's eyebrows... ugh.

And damn so easy predicable evil and shallow, like so many other series and movies nowdays! They all are so alike. Mindless vilains.

Engineering: Some pretty stupid ideas. While the spaceship was visual stunning having the passengers positioned in circle around main drive black hole like is mindblowing stupid!

Star Bridge: the concept of a tethered space station has been around for aroung for long time but what's the purpose of wasting so many resources building a very thick, huge and long tether from a planet to space?

Spending 14hrs travelling from space station to planet while they could just land with a spaceship for a fraction of that time.

And no time to enjoy the marvels of this sci-fi world quickly everything goes bad and good guys are exiled at least not executed.

Barely after they start their slow and long trip to outskirts of the empre another twist for worse ending.

How someone can enjoy this?

I have to admit series is spectacular from visual pespective and I want to see where the story goes but I don't have high hopes, looks pretty grim.

Farscape (1999–2003)

Nice atmosphere, lovely characters funny, strange untill things go all wrong.

[7/10 · 22 September 2021]

Being hard sci-fi fan I have watched most sci-fi series and movies.

This one is another favorite but it's at the bottom of my list.

Why I like it? Because of the characters friends that become like a family love and care each other even Rygel!

The concept of a living ship and the Pilot is very interesting.

Why I don't like it.

The hardships they go through they seem to have no end almost every episode seem to be another disaster, a crazy adventure, bad guys, ugly and creepy aliens. Never ends, there are only moments for charactes to take a breath, to talk, fell in love with each other etc. During those crazy situations.

And so many creepy and horrible things happen to them some too sickening.

First 2 seasons were great some adventure, you get connected with characters and from 3rd to the end things go bad, really bad.

They kill sweet and wish Zhaan to replace her with annoying and useless Jool, then they add an ugly old lady and Sikozu that falls in love with creepy Scorpius, most sickening villain I couldn't stand to watch especially his teeth.

Series lost it's way having no direction after season 2, kliing Zhaan a basic character and loved by many, 2 John Chrictons, 2 different crews Moya and Talyn. Adding too many new characters, and new storylines messed up everything. I hated psycho stuff going in John Chricton's brain with Scorpius, I did not care to find about Scorpius past, I really hated the old and disgusting old lady. Aeryn becoming Scorpius like... too much crazy stuff that made me lose interest.

Mission to Mars (2000)

A good one with it's flaws.

[7/10 · 12 July 2021]

I don't think it deserves a 7 nor a 6 though if I could I would rate at 6.7.

I have this movie in my library and I've seen it several times.

Being a hard sci-fi fan this one is one of my favs but I do recognize some serious fails.

What I like is that it's based more on a scientific base rather fantasy like characters, tech, or superhero crap.

Some spoilers from now on.

Movie starts with a an american BBQ party of astronauts that will fly to Mars the next day. All Americans, dialogues are shallow and stupid.

Are these people scientists or a joke?

Super annoying music and finally party ends. And next scene is on a space station. One with spinning ring. Yet inside everything is flat.

So they are not in the ring but the central part of the station and they have artificial gravity. It's a 2000 movie and in 2021 artificial gravity is only a dream untill some time in far far future.

And btw... what they need the spinning ring for? Well it just looks cool I guess. Of course again everything is American the station and everyone.

No international station somehow US alone have the economic power to send missions to Mars and build space stations in the future.

We move to scene where they go to investigate the "face".

Everyone, literally everyone! Every member of the mission abandons the base and go on a mission to happilly explore the mysterious face.

In real life this would never happen. Most crew would stay in base while 2 or 3 would go to investigate.

And now everyone is in front of a mountain that starts to go crazy and extremely dangerous. Do they run? No they just watch untill it's too late to escape and being torn in pieces.

And just one poor guy survives alone on Mars with no way to contact Earth. Despite numerous satellites around the planet. Somehow the "face" blocks communcation and fried all tech.

And we have the rescue mission. A rescue mission that goes disaster mission. More like the "Gravity" movie where everything goes wrong everyone dies. Here it's not that extreme but Hollywood is always too dramatic, avoiding reality and logic.

Astronauts are higly trained professionals they would be able to avoid a disaster the ship would not explode because they would not miss the leak.

And finally Woody would not die because all 3 astronauts together could rescue him.

There are some other minor fails throught the movie but those were the most serious.

At least the rest of the movie get better and fascinating.

The opening of the door to the "face" is like an opening to the future, to a new world. And it is. Humans face for the first time an alien being, even as a hologram.

A presentation of our solar system's history that looks magically beautiful and fascinatiing. The demise of Mars and Martians and the seeding of the Earth. Yet it doesn't explain why they didn't go live on Earth and they just sent the seeds of life. Instead they travelled back to their original galaxy.

The end of course is most rewarding. Jim with no fear decides to board the alien ship, to go and meet our brothers in stars.

Surely a fascinating movie with it's serious flaws.

Away (2020)

Too much drama, little sci-fi, unproffessional astronauts

[5/10 · 5 September 2020]

The story is mainly drama, crew relationships, family, emotional problems and few disasters. Like it's always necessary to add drama and disasters in space missions. Astronauts are problematic people with nervous breakdowns that would never pass even the entry tests. They become hostile, blame each other or themselves for all kind of problems they face in the 10 episode mission. Story jumps from spaceship to earth every while to show what's happens at home, mostly in one american family (obviously). There are also some background stories from the past to get know the crew better. But while it might be a little interesting it's too much, too long most of the story is about relationships rather the mission. and becomes irritating. I started skipping forward it and move to the next space scene. It's a series for a mission to Mars but it doesn't feel like it just drama in space how people react being away from home and family. Perhaps that's why they gave this title AWAY otherwise they would give a more inspring sci-fi title.

The little sci-fi part of the series is full of disasters like nothing can go right, the producers love to put disasters in movies eg. Gravity, Interstellar same here, but they overdo it. If there was much less drama I would put a 6 or 7, but the thing became boring and made me skip many scenes so it's just a 5.

Firefly (2002–2003)

Stupid western in space!

[2/10 · 31 July 2020]

Really I cannot undestand the high ratings. I've seen Serenity movie and I liked it was a good sci-fi movie a little creepy and weird but ok. I'm a hard sci-fi fan and I disliked Firefly because it was so shallow, unrealistic mess. Looks like wild west cowboys got spaceships! Old fashioned clothes, horses, backward worlds, ethics and values from past eras. Nobody says future would be an utopia but definely there won't be cowboys! Ugh... Then there is the team, unlike other spaceship series there was no family, everyone on his own. No connection except the married couple. Derelict ship, forsaken worlds so much garbage everywhere, low budget series with very little sci-fi elements. Kaylee was sweet, although too much sometimes.

ARQ (2016)

Boring low budget movie

[2/10 · 26 October 2019]

A repeating over and over story. It manages to keep you interested until you get tired and you wanna skip to the end. Finally the movie ends without ending the story just another repeat... absolute waste of time, another netflix crap.

La La Land (2016)

Such a disappointment, half baked, long and boring story of nothing....

[6/10 · 14 April 2017]

I give a 6 only because there were some bright moments and actors were good. But the story itself, seriously boring, nothing to keep you interested, romance? humor? drama? musical? a little from everything but not enough just bland. Choreography had nothing special nothing to impress while it's something to expect from a musical, and singing scenes? Boring with no essence, no weight, no magic... And there was no romance except some kissing and dancing. At some point you want to stop watching but hey it's La La Land I've been expecting this movie, it looked so positive and stylish compared to violent superhero junk that's so popular these days. Such a disappointment. A story who keeps you sad and bored, life is unfair.. but then hey something is going on they meet each other and... nah... oh wait maybe finally they... nah the end

Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (2015)

Repetition and shallow...

[5/10 · 4 April 2016]

OK I'll have to say first I enjoyed the movie but only because it was a big expensive production.

But the whole story is a repetition and a boring one. So shallow I felt nothing...

OK nobody expects deep drama from Star Wars but I could not bear some scenes too much excitement or anger for no reason at all!

Ohhh we beat them YEAH! Oh the rebel scums make me angry ARGHH I break everything! Like they were trying to make some scenes important only they were really awkward!

And most of all a continuous repetition, the whole story is a based on the last 3 Star Wars episodes and there are many scenes that refer to those episodes.

In short it was a movie with the actors of Star Wars, the spaceships and everything... even a very familiar story only it was not Star Wars. No soul nothing... pooof...

Jupiter Ascending (2015)

Visually stunning but lacking all the rest..

[6/10 · 2 May 2015]

A great review by cadillac20 says it all. But I add my comments.

The movie is not that terrible as some reviewers say giving a one point and calling it trash. Depends who you are, education, culture etc. Surely the higher the standards the lower you will rate this movie. Simply excluding the visuals I wouldn't give more than 3..

The concept is good, the story sucks, the characters are shallow and undeveloped, the world is stunning perhaps the best so far in all sci-fi movies and thats what it makes the movie watchable.

The main problem of this movie is the story it's so shallow, stupid and undeveloped, it jumps from one place to another non stop. Sometimes you get confused you are not sure what happened or why.

They tried to fit a lots of stuff in 2hrs where they needed a lot more time like 2-3 movies.

Acting is average or below bad actors and script/dialogs. Mila Kunis was expressionless, Channing Tatum could have been better given an opportunity. The other actors were average and some really bad. Only Sean Bean managed to work his role and make something better than the rest. Cardboard characters as someone said and I couldn't agree more. Shallow undeveloped like the story the jump from one point to another. Some important characters you would expect them to play a major role they appear only for few moments. Finally a villain or bad attempt of a villain, both acting and character get's killed and happy ending. Jupiter (Mila Kunis) rejects royalty and prefer to go back cleaning toilets and final scene surfing above skyscrapers along with her winged angel (Tatum). Uh some religious people would get annoyed by this scene.

Final comment is that even the story and characters suck if you are into sci-fi this is a must see movie because of the visuals and the worlds this movie puts you in.

Interstellar (2014)

Another pessimistic typical American movie

[5/10 · 9 February 2015]

I heard so much about this movie I expected something spectacular and ingenious. Instead it was another pessimistic movie where movie begins in a farm somewhere in US with drought and dust destroying everything.

Seems like there has been a world disaster (probably a world war) no explanations given everything is vague you have to guess something. Later in the movie we see the American flag on a base in another world where the humanity looks for a new start, obviously Americans only. An astronaut goes nuts creates a havoc and our hero falls into a black hole and instead becoming a spaghetti man and die he travels in a magical world where he can affect past or future. And of course he survives unspoiled.

Movie in general is boring, slow and sulky, the sad future scenario where earth is dying becomes tiresome and the plot sucks. And totally un-scientific.. shame..

Hollywood is going dumber and dumber over the years. Perhaps they should sell the studios to other countries with better cultural background and smarter people..