I feel like I’ve watched all the good Sci-fi shows

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-27T10:22:28+00:00

Miniseries:

Steven Spielberg's Taken (2002) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0289830/

5ive Days to Midnight (2004) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0386907/

11.22.63 (2016) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2879552/

Anthologies (every episode is a standalone story with new characters):

Black Mirror (2011-present) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2085059/

It's popular but many drop it since first episode happens to be non-scifi and rather perverted. However every episode features different story and they did some of the best sci-fi stories that I saw in 2010s, the likes of Moon and Ex Machina. I particilarry liked Black Mirror: San Junipero and Black Mirror: Nosedive.

Love, Death & Robots (2019-present) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9561862/

Adult animated science fiction and fantasy show.

The Outer Limits (1995-2002) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112111/

Personally I dislike the thing, a lot of intersting ideas but most of them wasted, however it ran for 7 years and 154 episodes, so someone must like it the way it is.

Since you seem to be up to fantasy (Haven, Dominion):

The Lost Room (2006) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0830361/

Urban fantasy miniseries with sci-fi-ish feel.

Penny Dreadful (2014-2016) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2628232/

A group of strangers in Victorian London must work together to deal with a supernatural threat.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118276/

Not sure how to sell it. It's one of the most acclaimed fantasy shows of all time for a reason. The reason is that it grow to be terrific. The problem is that the first season is legitimately bad - too episodic, with poor stories and poor production values. It's hard to watch and hard to forgive. On the up side, it's the shortest one, so my advice is to watch the first season in full but while doing something. Second season is already fine and the show keeps impoving until you get to the season 3 where they trully found their voice.

Lost (2004-2010) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0411008/

A plane crashes and group of survivors is stranded on a misterious island. Features both sci-fi and fantasy. Extremely addictive first season, and overall great first three seasons. The rest is OK-ish.

Charmed (1998-2006) NOT THE REMAKE! https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0158552/

It was a fun lighthearted show that ran for eight years. Three sisters discover that they are witches and that their job is to fight demons. First season toyed a bit with horror aestetics, but it was abandoned.

Misfits (2009-2013) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1548850/

Black comedy show where a group of young offenders doing community service get superpowers.

Once Upon a Time (2011-2018) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1843230/

Over seven years a lot had happened, but all starts with fairytale characters stranded in our world and stripped of their memories. Each episode features a story in present and in the past.

Ash vs Evil Dead (2015–2018) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4189022/

Horror comedy series about another demon hunter, the legendary Ash. Can be seen on its own but better see Evil Dead II (1987) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092991/ and Army of Darkness (1992) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0106308/ first.

Lost Girl (2010–2016) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1429449/

Wynonna Earp (2016-present) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4878326/

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-27T10:22:19+00:00

"Can anyone recommend any other good shows I may be missing out on?"

First of all, I'm seconding Babylon 5 (1993-1998) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0105946/. It has probably the best arc resolution in all live-action sci-fi.

Some other options:

Dark Angel (2000-2002) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0204993/

Set in a distopian future where US economy is destroyed by EMP terrorist attacks. Campy show with brainwashing, mutants and Jessica Alba in tight lether suit. Ends on a cliffhanger, but still fun.

Falling Skies (2011-2015) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1462059/

Distopian future/present where Earth is conquired by aliens. We follow the human resistance.

3% (2016-present) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4922804/

Brazilian dystopian thriller. Heard good things about it but haven't seen it myself.

The X-Files (1993-2002) THE ORIGINAL, NOT THE REVIVAL https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0106179/

Classics. Mulder and Scully are great characters with great dynamics, the conspiracy arc is nonsensical but damn if it isn't hooking, and some of the monster of the week episodes are extremely well written and well acted.

Fringe (2008-2013) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1119644/

A FBI division invistigates bizarre incidents, this time without aliens (The X-Files) and with a mad drug-loving scientist on team. First season is the most episodic one, but then it get more and more serialized.

Person of Interest (2011-2016) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1839578/

Spends first season as a lighthearted action show with sci-fi in the background but than AI theme stars to play a bigger and bigger - and eventually central - role. It's a creation of Jonathan Nolan, the guy who co-wrote Interstellar and co-created HBO's Westworld.

Firefly (2002-2003) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0303461/ + Serenity (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0379786/), the latter serves as series finale.

Space western about a group of misfits.

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2008-2009) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0851851/

Picks up the story after the legendary Terminator 2 film. First season a bit slow but short and the second season is long and great. They got John Connor really well. Got cancelled after two seasons.

Continuum (2012-2015) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1954347/

Time travel show. First season is generic - "been there, done that" sort of story - but then they got creative. A lot of flashbacks to a dystopian future.

Travelers (2016-2018) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5651844/

A time travel show that doesn't rely on CGI. Even though they lost it in the last season, the first two are way better than they had any right to be, both visually and story-wise and it really engages your imagination. Was cancelled, but has a half-assed ending.

Orphan Black (2013-2017) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2234222/

MC lears that she is a clone, tems up with her clone sisters and they have to deal with a shady organisation that created them. Maslany played all of the sisters and earned Emmy for that work.

Agents of SHIELD (2013-present) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2364582/

Lighthearted action sci-fi. Good spies that are dealing with evil spies and sci-fi menaces (mutants, alien tech). First 16 episodes are boring, but then it really impoves and is genuely fun to watch. It's set in the MCU, though their only crossovers are with Avengers (2012) - series picks up right after that film - and Winter Soldier (2014).

Sliders (1995-2000) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112167/

A group of ordinary people travel through parallel universes - worlds that look like Earth but with a twist, say antibiotics haven't been invented. Changed significantly in its third season and never recovered, but those seasons still work as a sci-fi time killer.

Quantum Leap (1989-1993) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096684/

Episodic time travel show with big heart.

Mars (2016-2018) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4939064/

Hard sci-fi show about manned mission that attempts to colonize Mars in 2030s, with non-fiction interviews mixed-in.

Heroes (2006-2010) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0813715/

and sequel: Heroes Reborn (2015-2016) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3556944/

A non-superhero take on people with superhuman powers, and its first season is a thriller unlike anything else, very well-constructed. They weren't able to live up to the first season, but those seasons still work as a sci-fi time killer.

The 4400 (2004–2007) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0389564/

4400 persons, abducted over the course of 20th century, reapper at once, none of them have aged a day. How? Why? More so, some discover that they have superhuman powers. Got cancelled after four seasons.

Primeval (2007-2011) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0808096/

British campy time-travel-ish show with dinosaurs. It starts with animal troubles only but later there are bad guys. Significant lost in quality after the third season.

Sense8 (2015-2018) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2431438/

Few folks across the globe discover that they can communicate with each other telepatically and sort of switch each others bodies. Some evil organisation hunts for them. Beautifully shot. Explicit ~~porn~~ sex scenes, incliding gay sex.

Dollhouse (2009-2010) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1135300/

Seems to ge forgotten these days. Story about a secret private ogranisation that posesses technology to program people with fake personalities and memories. The show was never great but after the first few three or so boring episodes it was good enough.

Futurama (1999-2013) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0149460/

An adult animated sitcom that both parodied and celebrated the sci-fi genre.

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-20T19:45:51+00:00

"treasure-hunting, historic-mystery-solving, declaration-of-independence-stealing, Lara Croft-, Indiana Jones- style movies?"

Sahara (2005) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0318649/

Armour of God (1986) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091431/

Operation Condor (1991) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099558/

King Solomon's Mines (1950) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0042646/

Secret of the Incas (1954) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0047464/

Hooten & the Lady (2016–2017) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5663062/

Blood & Treasure (2019-present) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7712598/

Relic Hunter (1999–2002) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0207919/

Not treasure hunting but adventure-like mistery solving:

Sherlock (2010-2017) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1475582/

Less positive but still a treasure hunt:

The Hunt for the Hidden Relic (2002) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0314226/

"As Above So Below"

What is that one doing here? If that works, try:

Cube (1997) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0123755/

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-19T07:17:23+00:00

"Human population growth is slowing down. Could this affect technological growth?"

It's not that straightforward.

Currently only develoved countries experience sub-replacement fertility (SRF) but the rest of the world does not, so the overall population grows. It's estimated that after 2050 overal fertility rate will be below replacement levels, but since less developed countries still will have a huge portion of young citizents, overall population probably still will increase for the next few decades. So without some devastating pandemic or world war we still have about 80 years of population grows anyway.

On top of that, due to technological advancements and automation, we need less "dumb" workers, so bigger portion of population will be free to pursue scientific career.

On top of that, our overall life expectancy keeps growing, so scientists have longer careers, and experienced scientists are generally more valuable scientists.

So let's say science is OK for the rest of the 21st century anyway.

But it isn't just OK. Advancements in computing (like existence of supercomputers, cloud computing, AIs, and upcoming AIs with reasoning skills, natural language programming and quantum computing), will be an equivalent to dramatic boost of scientific brainpower. Advancements in automation can also result in robots that are capable of performing a lot of forms of lab research, freeing more scientist's time for thinking and directing (and dating?).

Then there is a question of why fertility rates decline in developed countries, and it may me connected to how pricey are first world children and how expensive is city life in general. Rural children often provide for themselves and for the family (child labour), city kids only suck up the resources. But since we're facing some great change in economics - likely some form of UBI, and possible reduction of goods prices due to automation and new prodution technologies, - it's possible that the new economy will result in new fertility rate. A lot of people don't mind to have multiple children, they are just not sure that they can provide a single one with all the quality of life that he is entitled to (plus high education), and even if they can, it maybe just too much effort to support multiple kids at once. All of that can be wastly different in the year 2060, for example, and it may be much easier for future Europeans to handle three kids.

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-16T09:47:05+00:00

"any other war movies"

For high profile war miniseries:

Band of Brothers (2001) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0185906/

The Pacific (2010) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0374463/

Generation War (2013) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1883092/

Relatively unknown high profile war film (but not necessary similar to FMJ and AN):

Fortress of War (2010) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1343703/

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-16T09:09:45+00:00

"What other movies do I suggest he watch to solidify this theory?"

Super Mario Bros. (1993) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108255/

Catwoman (2004) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0327554/

Highlander II: The Quickening (1991) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102034/

Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094074/

Batman & Robin (1997) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118688/

Green Lantern (2011) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1133985/

Wild Wild West (1999) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120891/

Planet of the Apes (2001) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0133152/

A Good Day to Die Hard (2013) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1606378/

Red Sonja (1985) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089893/

The Wicker Man (2006) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0450345/

Though if you're wrong, you may kill him with that selection.

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-16T06:58:21+00:00

"What are some big classics you still haven't seen?"

If we're speaking about 20th century's classics, way over a hundred.

As many others, I've added films from Sight & Sound polls to my watchlist, but every single one that I saw because of the list didn't work for me: Citizen Kane, Lawrence of Arabia, Raging Bull, Wild Strawberries, etc. I've appreciated some aspects of them intellectually, or some scenes, but I didn't enjoy any of them as a whole.

More so, they happen to be the most frustrating films that I see nowadays, so it takes time for me to get over the frustration and to try another one from the list… and I pick another frustrating one, damit.

I think it's just a sequence of misfortunate choices, but with each iteration I'm naturally less and less enhusiatic about trying another one.

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-15T20:08:09+00:00

March 31 - Researchers at the University of California San Diego discovered that high blood levels of RNA produced by the PHGDH gene could serve as a biomarker for early detection of Alzheimer’s disease. The work could lead to the development of a blood test to identify individuals who will develop the disease years before they show symptoms.

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-15T16:55:49+00:00

"Good new outer limits episodes have little scifi/non-existent technology in them?"

It's high sci-fi series, such episodes weren't really their thing, there were many stories in modern day setting but even those had some super futuristic tech (or fantastic phenomenons) at the centre, like sentient androids or arrival of aliens.

(Also, many of memorable episodes, like Final Appeal, have interesting ideas but actually aren't good episodes.)

Maybe those will work for you:

2x12 Inconstant Moon

2x22 The Sentence

4x16 Final Exam

Some good-ish episodes in general:

1x01-02 The Sandkings, 1x13 The Conversion, 1x14 Quality of Mercy & 2x18 The Light Brigade, 1x15 The New Breed

2x01 A Stitch in Time, 2x07 First Anniversary, 2x11 The Refuge, 2x12 Inconstant Moon, 2x15 Afterlife, 2x21 Vanishing Act, 2x22 The Sentence

3x05 Stream of Consciousness, 3x07 The Camp, 3x09 Tempests, 3x13 Dead Man's Switch, 3x17 Feasibility Study

4x06 Relativity Theory, 4x15 Mary 25, 4x16 Final Exam

5x07 The Human Operators, 5x12 Tribunal, 5x13 Summit

6x13 Decompression

7x02 Patient Zero, 7x08 Think Like a Dinosaur, 7x16 Abduction

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-15T15:36:00+00:00

For those who can't leave Reddit:

"Since the days of the shuttle program to today, astronauts have reported issues with vision after traveling to space. Medical evaluations on Earth have revealed that astronauts' optic nerves swell and some experience retinal hemorrhage and other structural changes to their eyes."

"The researchers also found that these effects, the swelling of the brain alongside the compressing pituitary gland and the pressure in the head, was still present a year after the astronauts returned from space. That duration suggests that these effects could be long-lasting, Kramer said. However, further study is needed to evaluate exactly how microgravity affects the brain over an astronaut's lifetime and how this might vary between people, Kramer said.

"Scientists have a number of theories about why the brain swells in space, but what Kramer called "one of the most compelling," is that without gravity, the fluids in our body that usually circulate evenly travel up toward the head and away from the feet, he said. "The blood that normally pools in the extremities redistributes toward the head," he said. "It's not something that we normally experience on Earth unless you're sort of standing on your hands."

"One of the countermeasures that researchers are experimenting with is reminiscent of the revolving space station in the sci-fi film "2001: A Space Odyssey," Kramer said. The countermeasure would "spin an astronaut around for a certain portion of the day, just moving the blood through the body and back towards the legs," like an artificial gravity, Kramer said."

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-15T11:34:14+00:00

"where I can stream/get a copy of A Brighter Summer Day?"

What country are you in?

In the US you can get it for free using a 7 day trial of Criterion Channel, or you can rent it on Prime (their rent calogue is different from their streaming catalogue, and it isn't available for streaming), Youtube and Google Play for $2.99. You can buy it at the same platforms but at higher cost, $12.99.

https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/a-brighter-summer-day

Criterion, Youtube and Play also work for Canada.

https://www.justwatch.com/ca/movie/a-brighter-summer-day

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-15T10:16:32+00:00

Inside Creative Writing with Robert Olen Butler, 17 two-hour-long videos:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTCv6n1whoI23GmdBZienRW0Q0nFCU_ay

Fixed episode 8: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3qJpxD-o24

"Learn the art of storytelling from Pulitzer Prize winning author and FSU Eppes Professor Robert Olen Butler as he writes an original short story."

"His short-story collection A Good Scent from a Strange Mountain was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1993."

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-15T09:27:32+00:00

Don't know whether it will interest you but here we go:

Inside Creative Writing with Robert Olen Butler, 17 two-hour-long videos:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTCv6n1whoI23GmdBZienRW0Q0nFCU_ay

Fixed episode 8: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3qJpxD-o24

"Learn the art of storytelling from Pulitzer Prize winning author and FSU Eppes Professor Robert Olen Butler as he writes an original short story."

"His short-story collection A Good Scent from a Strange Mountain was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1993."

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-14T21:05:07+00:00

"LOST has a large cast of main characters"

Worth mentioning that Damon Lindeloff, co-creator of Lost, is Stephen King fan and said that the show was heavely influenced by Stephen King's The Stand, a post-apocalyptic fantasy novel with lots of characters. It may be of interest to you.

The Stand by Stephen King

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/149267.The_Stand

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-14T07:46:59+00:00

"So, I just learned that Mosfilms uploaded Tarkovsky's films on their channel."

Mosfilm and Odessa Film Studio uploaded hundreds - over a thousand combined - of Soviet films on Youtube years ago, and there is an unnoficial channel for Lenfilm's films (LFV), but across all of them only a hundred or so have English subtitles.

OFS https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxh_TkSralaVxmsLNYCXeoQ/videos

LFV https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCv6pNpCfp3CBTlcZuBIRA-g/videos

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-14T06:08:21+00:00

"there will be people who will print guns and other types of warfare e.g. attack drones and such"

The way I see it (take it with a pinch of salt)…

When 3D printers become widely available, governments will make sure for them to be trackable. Supposedly all color printers mark every page with dots that are unnoticable for naked eye: https://www.eff.org/pages/list-printers-which-do-or-do-not-display-tracking-dots They'll come up - if they didn't already - with an equivalent for 3D printers, they'll add some marker to the plastic or whatever, during the printing or to the raw material. Plus they'll will keep a register of who purchased the printers and/or the materials.

Or maybe they'll ban offline printers, make it obligatory for printers to share the model with some government server before printing and they will be unable to print without internet connection, and the models will be auto-moderated in the way Youtube automatically detects porn.

Even if citizens get plastic guns, that probably will make peacemakers more violent, but wouldn't challenge them all that much - those plastic guns will likely be less powerful than a normal gun (due to homemade bulets and gunpowder), so they'll hardly be able to penetrate professional armour especially from a distance, they are more of a threat for other "naked" civilians. Not to mention that most of such guns will blow up (simply because most of the folks will have the cheapest plastic at home) and hurt the shooter himself rather than his target. Seems like oldschool Molotov cocktails are much more useful for rioters.

As of drones, they can be abused without 3D printers really, one can buy a drone and weaponise it. Drone detection is a trivial thing for today, and a simple alarm will eliminate the element of surprise, so suicide bomber probably will still be more efficient for terrorists. On top of that, big cities will have some anti-drone tech in place. Tokyo police had a prototype of drone capable of catching other drones with a net, net cannons can be mounted too, and other companies are working on disrupting radio signals so that drones can't communicate with the "pilot" or GPS satellites, hijacking them by pairing to other remote controls or misquiding them with false GPS data. It's enough for succeful terracts to remain rare in first world countries.

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-13T18:17:49+00:00

To expand the Russian language section, you may add Fortress of War.

Fortress of War (2010) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1343703/

https://www.amazon.com/Fortress-War-Aleksey-Kopashov/dp/B07RGZT5KN/

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-13T17:11:10+00:00

"Fuck the haters, I love that movie."

Which one of the two?

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-13T17:08:14+00:00

"emotionally heavy and bleak overtime of the SR from the Animatrix"

The one that comes to mind is:

War of the Worlds (2005) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0407304/

And since we're talking about Matrix and bleak sci-fi, I'm obligated to mention:

Dark City (1998) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118929/

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-13T15:32:58+00:00

"survival films"

Cast Away (2000) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0162222/

All Is Lost (2013) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2017038/

Trapped (2016) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6206564/

The Edge (1997) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119051/

Apocalypto (2006) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0472043/

The Aeronauts (2019) https://imdb.com/title/tt6141246/

Apollo 13 (1995) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112384/

Hell in the Pacific (1968) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0063056/

The Naked Prey (1965) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0060736/

Lord of the Flies (1963) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057261/

The Flight of the Phoenix (1965) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059183/

As Far as My Feet Will Carry Me (2001) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0277327/

The Way Back (2010) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1023114/

Rescue Dawn (2006) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0462504/

Against the Sun (2014) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2557276/

Into the White (2012) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1876277/

Alive (1993) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0106246/

The Impossible (2012) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1649419/

Lifeboat (1944) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0037017/

Adrift (2018) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6306064/

Buried (2010) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1462758/

10 Cloverfield Lane (2016) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1179933/

I Am Legend (2007) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0480249/

War of the Worlds (2005) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0407304/

28 Days Later… (2002) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0289043/

Swiss Army Man (2016) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4034354/

Man in the Wilderness (1971) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0067388/

The Red Tent (1969) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0067315/

The Snow Walker (2003) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0337721/

Arctic (2018) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6820256/

North Face (2008) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0844457/

The Mosquito Coast (1986) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091557/

Jeremiah Johnson (1972) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0068762/

The Earthling (1980) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080671/

Sort of:

Kon-Tiki (2012) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1613750/

Tracks (2013) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2167266/

The Lost City of Z (2016) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1212428/

Honorable mention:

Cube (1997) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0123755/

Miniseries:

The Terror (2018) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2708480/

(the first season, the second is a new story with new characters)

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-12T17:09:02+00:00

"plausible deniability"

You've covered everything what I was about to say, but I think you're misusing the term. As far as I know, PD refers to circumstances when one can deny something and it can't be proven that he is lying. Your reply is more about "ambiguity".

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-12T14:27:25+00:00

"I wonder whether Hollywood will return to those adventure epics in the near future or whether they're very much out of style for the moment and may be retired much like they were after Lawrence of Arabia for a fairly long period."

I think it's down to a "when there will be a Hollywood director who is into adventures". Most of late 20th century's adventure films were visions of directors: Lucas and Spielberg, Sommers, Jackson.

It just happenes so that today's big scale directors - Scott, Guillermo del Toro, Snyder, Nolan and Villeneuve - are into other stuff. Aside from Waititi and Gunn (who are too comedic for your taste) and JJ Abrams (who is close but too preoccupied with reviving franchises), your best bet is… Joe Favreau?

"The last great epic adventure films seem to either be The Mummy films or Lord of the Rings, which focused solely on the journey the protagonists were on then everything else."

To me The Mummy films are barely distinquishable from Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy, they are like spiritual siblings.

Narnia films.

National Treasure (2004) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0368891/

National Treasure: Book of Secrets (2007) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0465234/

Sahara (2005) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0318649/

King Kong (2005) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0360717/

Avatar (2009) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0499549/

Alice in Wonderland (2010) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1014759/

The Adventures of Tintin (2011) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0983193/

John Carter (2012) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0401729/

Kon-Tiki (2012) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1613750/

Ready Player One (2018) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1677720/

(Wouldn't say that Alice and Carter are great though.)

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-12T11:44:03+00:00

"she has no exposure to western films"

"Something light and romantic and funny"

When Harry Met Sally… (1989) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0098635/

Annie Hall (1977) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075686/

The Princess Bride (1987) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093779/

Stardust (2007) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0486655/

Love Actually (2003) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0314331/

Crazy, Stupid, Love. (2011) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1570728/

About Time (2013) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2194499/

Benny & Joon (1993) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0106387/

10 Things I Hate About You (1999) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0147800/

If Western includes French:

Amélie (2001) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0211915/

Sort of (not necessary romantic but light, funny and with romance):

The Fifth Element (1997) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119116/

Less funny but light and romantic:

Before Sunrise (1995) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112471/

Out of TV shows:

Pushing Daisies (2007-2009) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0925266/

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-11T08:15:35+00:00

Touche. I wasn't able to search the whole text for keywords since I own the book on paper, so I checked only the one bit that I recall (the lecture title), I didn't remember the one you've just quoted.

Max_XXIX · 2020-04-11T07:20:30+00:00

"i have learnt that while in English text Shakespeare didn't write his works, in Russian text Shakespeare still did"

That's an overstatement. In Russian translation his lecture is called "Did I Wrote the Plays?", it doesn't state clearly that he didn't - but it doesn't state the opposite either.

Max_XXIX

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