The Best Sci-Fi Movies of 2008

This wasn't just the year that science fiction dominated the movies — it also featured an amazing diversity of SF stories. Here's our list of the greatest films of 2008.
BEST:

10. Let The Right One In-This intense, beautiful Swedish movie about a 12-year-old boy's relationship with a vampire did the near-impossible: it almost made us forget the blah Twilight.

9. Teeth. This year saw a boomlet in feminist horror movies, between this film and Zombie Strippers.

8. Speed Racer. Pretty much everyone hates this movie except us — Entertainment Weekly listed it twice on its year's worst lists, even as the mag praised the bland Benjamin Button. But we really did love this film.

7. Cloverfield. Of all the movies on this year's "best" list, this is the one I can least imagine wanting to watch more than once. But that's okay, because the one time you watch it, you'll be blown away.

6. Sleep Dealer. We called it one of the best small-budget science fiction movies in years, in our review back in October. Set in a future where Mexicans do menial labor in the U.S.via telepresence, Dealer is a commentary on immigration and racism.

5. Iron Man. This movie exceeded our expectations, delivering a mind-expanding story of the military-industrial complex instead of just a superhero punch-em-up.

4. City Of Ember. It could have been just another young-people-discover-their-world-is-a-lie movie, but instead it becomes a post-apocalyptic masterpiece.

3. Synecdoche, NY. Charlie Kaufman gave us Being John Malkovitch and Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind, but this is probably his weirdest, most surreal movie.

2. The Dark Knight. This movie got us so worked up, we reviewed it twice. Sure, it was too long — and did the Joker really have to put explosives in the hospital and the boats?

1. Wall-E The only movie in years that I've wanted to watch again, right away. If I hadn't been starving and late for dinner, I would have watched it two or three times in one sitting. The first half hour, featuring the cute-bot in the post-apocalyptic abandoned Earth, is poetic and slapsticky.
By Charlie Jane Anders

Whoopi Goldberg

according to Variety, Whoopi Goldberg will be producing and starring in a new SciFi webseries for Fearnet.com called Stream where she will play a woman facing up to her fears.

Supernatural: Family Remains Promo Pics

New episodes are still a few weeks off but there’s plenty to look forward to in the coming weeks. Jensen Ackles will be out and about promoting My Bloody Valentine 3-D which opens on January 16th. Look for him on Jimmy Kimmel on January 8th and I hear there may be a red carpet premiere in Hollywood that same night.

Cancelled Sci-Fi Series- The Dresden File ( Good Show) 3 Great Episodes

Birds of a Feather
The Dresden Files
Season 1 : Ep. 1|43:42|
A 10-year-old boy comes to Dresden claiming that monsters are after him. Dresden dismisses the boy's fears – until he belatedly realizes the kid is right.



The Boone Identity
The Dresden Files
Season 1 : Ep. 2|42:42|
The ghost of a murdered girl can't rest until justice is brought to her killer – except he's already dead.




Hair of the Dog
The Dresden Files
Season 1 : Ep. 3|42:42|
When Detective Murphy asks Dresden to help her with a series of ritualistic slayings, he discovers that werewolves are involved.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine Movie Trailer |02:22|In theaters May 01, 2009| Wolverine seeks revenge for the death of his girlfriend and enters the mutant

Fringe: Episode 1- The Pilot

Legends of The Seekers Prophecy/Destiny

Prophecy/Destiny
Legend of the Seeker|Action and Adventure
Season 1 : Ep. 1|1:28:42|

Serenity- First Episode Season 1: Epsode 1 1:26:42

Chuck: Chuck Versus Santa Claus

Dollhouse's Dushku Reveals Roles

Eliza Dushku revealed a few of the personas her character will take on in Fox's upcoming SF drama Dollhouse, including one in which she'll do a bit of singing.

"I had to sing a few episodes ago, yeah," Dushku said on the red carpet for the Video Game Awards on Dec. 14. "And I had to lay down a track, so we'll see how it turns out [laughs]. We'll see if a musical is a good idea after that episode airs."

The last time I spoke to Dushku, she said that she'd love to be in a Joss Whedon musical, a la Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.

In her Dollhouse ep, she said she sang "a cappella." "I was auditioning to be a backup singer for a big pop star in one episode," she said. "So it was like a gospel song I did."

Dushku's character, Echo, is a person whose mind is wiped and programmed with different personas by a top-secret underground agency, which then sends her on various missions.

Dushku said her favorite persona so far was a killer. "I like the assassin chick that I just did," she said. "She has a lot of layers. Hyper-intelligent, and I also got to beat up a big 6-foot, 5-inch stunt guy."

What was the hardest? "A serious, professional woman with an up-do," Dushku said. "That's hard for me. Joss is like, 'I know you by now. Your comfort zone lies in your hair. I can throw you off a building or hit you with a car or make you fight seven guys, but you get uncomfortable if I put your hair in an up-do.' That's kind of insane and kind of hilarious."

Dollhouse premieres on Feb. 13 and will air Fridays at 9 p.m. ET/PT. --Jenna Busc

The Spirit SCI FI Wire Exclusive SCI FI Wire talks to the cast of "The Spirit."

http://video.scifi.com/player/?id=897281

George Lucas Finally Relents, Signs Off on Star Wars Musical

You'd have to be an idiot not to have seen this one coming: George Lucas, beloved director and ever-watchful protector of the Star Wars brand, has officially given his blessing to Star Wars: A Musical Journey, a stage production featuring dancing Stormtroopers and singing Wookies, according to E! Online. The show will play London's O2 arena next April with a European tour supposedly in the works. There's currently no word on a Broadway run, but, given the available theater space and the recession-proof appeal of completely ridiculous nonsense (admittedly, we would probably pay money to see this), you'd have to expect that one is definitely inevitable. SW: AMJ will reportedly condense the boring, convoluted plots of all six Star Wars films down into a snappy, concise two hours, which actually makes us think that it could be sort of good, provided they focus primarily on the two non-shitty movies.

Would you believe that something like this has actually been attempted before? It's true! Talented super-nerd Timothy Edward Smith wrote a Star Wars musical in 1999 and posted MP3s of all the songs on his official Website — which, of course, has inspired tons of insane YouTube tribute videos like this one:


DeathStar Battle - Remake

Top 10 SF & F Books

1.Eclipse (Twilight 3)
2.Breaking Dawn (Twilight 4)
3.The Tales of Beedle the Bard
4.New Moon (Twilight 2)
5.Twilight
6.The Shack
7.The Twilight Saga: Slipcased
8.Sookie Stackhouse Boxed Set
9.The Host
10.Twilight: The Complete Illustrated Movie Companion

THE TOP 5 SCI-FI MOVIES

Join The Fun; Stargate: The New Era

Doctor Who - A tribute to the BBC's best sci-fi show

Jennifer Connolly Goes Sci-Fi

Shanks Digs In Grand Canyon

Former Stargate SG-1 star Michael Shanks heads the cast of SCI FI's original movie The Lost Treasure of the Grand Canyon, but the actor told SCI FI Wire that he never quite made it to the Arizona landmark. Oddly enough, he pretty much ended up ... home.

In the period adventure/fantasy movie, Shanks plays Jacob Thain, an archaeolgist who joins the search for Dr. Samuel Jordon (Duncan Fraser), a fellow archaeologist who's gone missing in the Grand Canyon while searching for an ancient civilization. The rescue expedition, led by Dr. Jordon's daughter, Susan (Shannen Doherty), crosses through a wall that's protected by evil spirits, among them a winged serpent, as well as Aztec warriors with a habit of sacrificing humans. Below is an edited version of an interview with Shanks. The Lost Treasure of the Grand Canyon airs Dec. 20 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.

How did this film come about?

Shanks: This period piece was brought forward, and we were going to film it in the Grand Canyon. I thought that would be very cool. I'd only ever done one period piece in my entire career, and the prospect of going to the Grand Canyon was pretty neat. And it was a fun adventure story, from what I read, with interesting visuals, with the archaelogy and the mythology, and the wardrobe was neat. It was more about the discovery and the journey, and it was an interesting character. I was daunted by playing yet another archaeologist, but, at the same time, this character was very different in a lot of ways [from Stargate's Daniel Jackson].

This story continues below the image.



Michael Shanks is Jacob Thain, and Shannen Doherty is Susan Jordon.

He's very formal, soft-spoken and shy around Doherty's character.

Shanks: He was a bit of a throwback to the early days of playing Daniel Jackson on Stargate, but I enjoyed it, because the way it was written and the way I wrapped my head around it is that he's a very reluctant hero. And there were differences even between this character and the early Daniel Jackson. So that made it interesting.

But you actually never shot in the Grand Canyon, right?

Shanks: Right. We shot in the town that I grew up in, Kamloops, British Columbia. So all those outdoor locations were in this town that I literally spent my life in from age 12 to, I think, 19. I grew up in this town. I hadn't been back there in seven or eight years, so it was quite a strange thing to go back there to film a movie, for sure. --Ian Spelling

Official Terminator Salvation (2009) HQ Trailer 2

Watch A New Knowing Trailer!

Carlyle to star in Stargate show

Robert Carlyle is best known for Trainspotting and The Full Monty

Actor Robert Carlyle has been signed up to star as the lead in Sci Fi Channel's new series Stargate Universe.

Stargate Universe will be the third instalment in the sci-fi franchise, following on from SG-1 and Atlantis.

Production is expected to start in February in Vancouver in time for a summer release, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Mark Stern of the Sci-Fi Channel said Carlyle "brings a depth, intelligence and complexity to his roles".

Stargate Universe follows a group of soldiers, scientists and civilians left to fend for themselves when forced through a stargate after their hidden base comes under attack.

The survivors, who emerge aboard an ancient ship missing in the far reaches of space, are led by Dr David Rush, played by Carlyle.

Scottish-born Carlyle is best known for his roles in Trainspotting and The Full Monty.

He recently starred opposite Kiefer Sutherland in 24: Redemption, a stand-alone movie-length episode in the 24 franchise.

David Tennant To Leave Doctor Who

David Tennant has announced that he will leave the award-winning BBC One drama Doctor Who when he has completed the filming of four special episodes which will be screened in 2009 and early in 2010.

David Tennant first appeared as The Doctor in 2005 and has gone on to star in three series and three Christmas specials as the tenth incarnation of the Time Lord.

The BBC has confirmed that David will continue to play The Doctor in the four specials that will make up the 2009 series before a new Doctor takes over for Series 5.

Tennant will also star in the Doctor Who Christmas special, titled The Next Doctor, this year.

David Tennant comments: "I've had the most brilliant, bewildering and life-changing time working on Doctor Who.

"I have loved every day of it.. It would be very easy to cling on to the Tardis console forever and I fear that if I don't take a deep breath and make the decision to move on now, then I simply never will. You would be prising the Tardis key out of my cold dead hand.

"This show has been so special to me, I don't want to outstay my welcome.

"This is all a long way off, of course. I'm not quitting, I'm back in Cardiff in January to film four special episodes which will take Doctor Who all the way through 2009.

"I'm still the Doctor all next year but when the time finally comes I'll be honoured to hand on the best job in the world to the next lucky git — whoever that may be.

"I'd always thought the time to leave would be in conjunction with Russell T Davies and Julie Gardner who have been such a huge part of it all for me.

"Steven Moffat is the most brilliant and exciting writer, the only possible successor to Russell and it was sorely tempting to be part of his amazing new plans for the show. I will be there, glued to my TV when his stories begin in 2010.

"I feel very privileged to have been part of this incredible phenomenon, and whilst I'm looking forward to new challenges I know I'll always be very proud to be the Tenth Doctor."

Russell T Davies, Executive Producer of Doctor Who, comments: "I've been lucky and honoured to work with David over the past few years — and it's not over yet, the Tenth Doctor still has five spectacular hours left!

"After which, I might drop an anvil on his head. Or maybe a piano. A radioactive piano.

"But we're planning the most enormous and spectacular ending, so keep watching!"

David expands upon his decision in a taped interview which can be found at bbc.co.uk/doctorwho.

Doctor Who returns to our screens on BBC this Christmas. The Next Doctor starring David Tennant, David Morrissey and Dervla Kirwan will be screened on 25 December 2008 on BBC One.

Majel Roddenberry, "First Lady of Star Trek," Dies at 76

• Dec 18, 2008 07:49 PM

Majel Barrett Roddenberry

An era has ended for Star Trek. Majel Barrett Roddenberry, the widow of the franchise's creator, Gene Roddenberry, has died. She was 76 and was suffering from leukemia.

Majel Roddenberry was an actress and appeared in many of the Star Trek TV shows and films. She died at her Bel-Air home, the AP reports, with friends and her son, Eugene Roddenberry Jr., at her side. Gene Roddenberry passed away in 1991.

"My mother truly acknowledged and appreciated the fact that Star Trek fans played a vital role in keeping the Roddenberry dream alive for the past 42 years," her son said, in a statement on the Roddenberry Productions website. "It was her love for the fans, and their love in return, that kept her going for so long after my father passed away."

To many of those fans, Majel Roddenberry was known as the "First Lady of Star Trek." She had roles in many of the Trek productions, starting with the part of "Number One" in the original series' pilot, "The Cage," which never aired. Her other roles included Nurse Christine Chapel in the original Star Trek, Lwaxana Troi in Star Trek: The Next Generation and the voice of the USS Enterprise computer in most of the spin-offs of the series.

Most recently, she recorded the Enterprise computer's voice for J.J. Abrams' forthcoming Trek movie.

Star Trek (2009) Trailer [Quantum of Solace]

New Star Trek Trailer - Includes Old Spock

Star Trek (2009) Trailer [High Quality/HD]

Stargate Atlantis Season 5 Episode 16

Deadalus vs Wraith cruiser ship (Stargate Atlantis Season 5 ep 1

Amanda Tapping Q&A - Part 2

David Hewlett Q&A Part 2 Stargate Atlantis