Awesome Science Fiction

The latest trailer for Jupiter Ascending elaborates on the movie’s plot: Earth is but one of countless planets that have been given life by an ancient alien race, who eventually come back to harvest that life to sustain their own.

(NSFW: Language) 1A4STUDIO sums up Kubrick’s masterful, if at times bewildering classic science fiction film. If you don’t have the attention span to watch the 2.5+ hour original, this one’s for you. Needs more HAL 9000.

Kai Zammit’s sci-fi film envisions a not-too-distant future London in which police officers are now “Peacekeepers” – who deal out justice in the streets. While it owes a debt to Dredd, Robocop, and Almost Human, it stands on its own.

Musician Bill Ruppert demonstrates how to reproduce Vangelis’ epic theme music from Blade Runner using nothing more than an electric guitar and Electro-Harmonix‘ effect pedals. It’s the kettledrum part that really gets us.

A team of robotic beings land on a desolate planet to use its scant resources, but not before leaving a wonderful gift.  Richard Mans’ Abiogenesis is a unique and beautiful short film.

In the critically acclaimed sci-fi drama Coherence, a group of people are at their friend’s house when the power goes out after a comet sighting. They look around for help, only to find an exact replica of their friend’s house down the road.

Autómata is set in a bleak future where humans are relying increasingly on robots to survive. Antonio Banderas plays an insurance investigator for a robot company who finds out that their “products” might soon become their masters.

Marcus Alqueres‘ short sci-fi film envisions a world in which pro football players have been replaced with robots, amid concerns about player safety. The pre-order link on the NF7 website has us hoping there’s a video game in store.

(NSFW, Gore) A day before his scheduled death, destiny intervenes with an android’s fate. Old timers should be able to recognize the film’s inspiration, but in case you don’t, go ahead and watch the film anyway. Then read this.

Ethan Hawke plays a time traveling law enforcer in Predestination. Adapted from Robert Heinlein’s short story All You Zombies, the film sees the hero hunting down the one criminal that always manages to elude him.

The spice is life. Thug Notes latest book lesson does its best to explain Frank Hebert’s science fiction epic, providing a short attention-span summary of the sometimes convoluted read. We love how he calls the Bene Gesserit “fine bitties.”

Director George Metaxas proves a good story and creativity trump slick production values in this amusing paper-cut stop-motion film about two passengers trapped on a doomed space station after they miss the chance to evacuate.

(NSFW: Language) A man is just about to get lucky when his future self pops in, warning him to stay away from his date. Bo Mirosseni and Elisha Yaffe’s short slightly overextends itself, but it’s still fun to watch.

Four years after a viral drug nearly eradicated humans and increased the intelligence of apes, the surviving men want revenge. Gun-wielding primates riding horses? It’s not a Skyrim mod, it’s Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.

“When people are given the freedom to choose, they choose wrong.” A young man learns that the utopia he lives in is actually a regulated purgatory, thanks to Father Comstock the Human Exposition the Giver.

While Gravity was widely praised for its accurate depiction of space, and despite enjoying the movie, Neil deGrasse Tyson has identified many flaws. Cinema Sins cataloged them with the help of the celebrity astrophysicist himself.

(NSFW: Language) A mercenary company’s accountant looks at the video log of a missing rookie. Ferand Peek’s riveting short plays like a series pilot. More please! Pay what you want for a 1080p stream or download here.

Almost two years in the making, this live-action fan tribute trailer for AKIRA does a great job capturing the spirit of Katsuhiro Otomo’s classic anime film. And if you’re in the mood for AKIRA fan trailers, you must watch this.

(Gore) Set in a new Ice Age, Snowpiercer sees an elite few ruling over the mass of surviving humans aboard a massive train. Even in our last hours, humanity will find a way to be a bunch of a-holes. U.S. premiere on 6/27.

Despite attempts to reach a peaceful end to the conflict with Caesar and his brethren, balance between man and primate is not to be, and two species are brought to the brink of war. And the apes have been working on their vocabulary.

Another short film made for Bombay Sapphire. A spaceship has an emergency time travel setting that lets its passengers go back three minutes and send a message to their past selves, so they can change the future. It works. Kind of.

(NSFW: Language) A man is eager to absolve his father, who was found guilty of causing “The Rot” – a microscopic fungus that destroyed all of the paper on Earth. An adaptation of Ken MacLeod’s short story The Surface of Last Scattering.

Scarlett Johansson plays Lucy, a drug mule for the mob. A mysterious drug planted inside her body leaks into her system, giving her supernatural abilities. Written and directed by Luc Besson (The Fifth Element, Nikita).