Episode 103: If I Were a Carpenter: The Films of John Carpenter

In this episode we celebrate and explore the films of legendary film-maker, John Carpenter! Carpenter is such a unique director, a man who has always done things his own way, with a real talent for story-telling. The Planet 8 crew will start by discussing Carpenter's early life and how he became a film-maker.

We move on to a discussion of the qualities that define John Carpenter's style. Obviously we'll talk about his work with his film soundtracks, but there are so many other aspects to a "John Carpenter film" - the 'slow burn' or building of suspense, his use of unusual camera angles or long takes, his distrust of authority figures, and so much more.

As we go through Carpenter's style, we'll talk about his films, lingering on some of our favorites, including The Thing (we dedicated a whole episode to it -you can hear it here),  Halloween, The Fog, Escape from New York, They Live, and Big Trouble in Little China. But we also talk about some of his films that aren't on our favorites list too, just to balance things out.

Without a doubt, Carpenter has an impressive and varied portfolio that includes some real classics. If all he had ever done was make The Thing, he would be a master, but he's made so many films that exhibit incredible skill and style. He's truly an amazing film-maker.

For the Sensor Sweep this week, we sadly note the passing of Nichelle Nichols, famed for her portrayal of Lieutenant Uhura on the original Star Trek. Nichols was 89. Beyond the impact she had in her role as one of the very first African American women on TV who wasn't in a subservient role, Nichols went on to work with NASA to recruit women and people of color into the astronaut corps. A constant presence on the convention circuit, she was known for her warmth and beautiful smile. She will be greatly missed.

That's it for this go round. Please share your thoughts with us on anything we talked about -or forgot to talk about!

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Are you crazy, is that your problem?

Episode 24: Something about The Thing

No fewer than three major science fiction films have sprung from the original novella "Who Goes There?" by legendary science fiction author/editor John Campbell. And all three have been titled "The Thing" - well, the first one was actually titled "The Thing from Another World," but most fans just refer to it as "the original Thing." All three have similarities - the remote, icy outpost, the dangerous alien loose among an isolated group of people, a heightened sense of paranoia and suspense. But they have their differences, particularly between the first film and the later two.

Join the Planet 8 crew of Larry, Bob, and Karen as they discuss each film, what they enjoy about each one, what they think makes each one stand out, and their first experiences with each. The films are:

• The Thing from Another World, 1951
• The Thing, 1982
• The Thing, 2011

What's the thing about The Thing? It's got a certain special something...

We'll focus mostly on the 1951 and 1982 films. Both had excellent casts, ensembles that worked well together and really sold the story, despite how fantastic it might seem.

We'll also look at the effects, the limitations of the '51 film (and poor James Arness in gobs of make-up), and the insane practical effects of Rob Bottin in the '82 version.

The third film (2011) was actually a prequel to the '82 version. It covered a lot of ground concerning what happened at the Norwegian camp before the start of the previous film. Was it successful? The crew has differing opinions on that.

Just for fun, we also speculate on how the Planet 8 team would react to an invasion by the Thing. Who would survive? And who would decide to wipe out the team to protect humanity?

As an added treat, Larry and Bob interview science fiction and fantasy artist extraordinaire, Bob Eggleton. Mr. Eggleton is  illustrating a new version of Who Goes There -a novel-length version that's never been published before. It's going to be part of a book called Frozen Hell, which will also include a number of short stories by other authors continuing the story of The Thing. The book is a kickstarter project assembled by John Gregory Betancourt, who manages Campbell's literary estate. You can learn more at the kickstarter page here.  Mr. Eggleton shares news about this project, as well as his own personal thoughts on the Thing films.

Bob Eggleton and friend

And for the Sensor Sweep -completely off-topic -Engineer Bob talks about the new BluRay for Tetsujin 28 -aka Gigantor. It's a great anime series that you should definitely check out if you're not already a fan! You can find it at Amazon and other locations where videos are sold.

That's all the things we have to talk about this time, friends. You can comment here, or go to our other hangouts:

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Thanks for Listening!