Get Lost in Space

Written by Jon Williams

I’m admittedly late to the party on this one, but I finally got around to watching Gravity recently. I wanted to see it in theaters, and now I’m even more irritated with myself that I didn’t. In HD on a big-screen television, the film looked utterly incredible…I can only imagine how breathtaking and immersive it was on a giant silver screen. All the technical awards and accolades the film won for its production and presentation were well-deserved.

Of course, humanity facing adversity in the course of space exploration is a plot device that has been explored time and time again (with Interstellar being the most recent example). The movie Gravity most reminded me of in that regard was Apollo 13, the dramatization of the ill-fated 1970 NASA mission to the moon. Although Apollo 13 was based on a true story, boiled down, both films have similar plots: a group of astronauts go into space on a mission that is soon marred by catastrophe and they have to attempt to return to Earth under increasingly harrowing circumstances. Interestingly, both films feature Ed Harris (voice only in Gravity), who also stars in another acclaimed movie about astronauts, 1983’s The Right Stuff.

Another film along somewhat similar lines is on the horizon. The Martian, starring Matt Damon, is slated for a November 25 release into theaters. Based on the popular novel of the same name by Andy Weir, it’s not about an alien from the Red Planet, but rather about an astronaut abandoned there after an accident leads the rest of his crew to assume he is dead. Actually only mildly injured, he must then use what few supplies he has available in an attempt to survive long enough for a rescue mission to be mounted from Earth. This brings to mind, to a certain extent, the sci-fi classic Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein, about a human born on Mars coming to Earth for the first time (although I suppose that’s actually the exact opposite of space exploration).

Some movies play on our fears of finding hostile (or at the very least dangerous) alien life on our forays into space. The successful Alien franchise has been built on this premise, and a new Alien film by District 9’s Neill Blomkamp is in the works. Then there’s Apollo 18, a found-footage film that posits one more crewed moon landing after the Apollo 17 mission, one that found a very good reason why no one has landed on the moon since. Another in this vein is Europa Report, in which a crew is sent to explore the possibility of water and life on one of Jupiter’s moons.

Of course, this barely scratches the surface when it comes to tales of humans venturing into space. There’s much more to explore, including the wide range of Star Trek shows and movies, Moon, starring Sam Rockwell and Kevin Spacey, and, of course, 2001 and 2010. So tell us about some of your favorites, or what’s popular with your patrons, in the comments section below.

Hot This Week: February 23

The box office blockbuster Gone Girl proves to be just as big a hit on DVD and Blu-ray. Still in theaters, Fifty Shades of Grey propels its soundtrack to the top of this week's music chart, while Beck's win at the Grammys brings his album back onto the list. The top two fiction titles stay strong from last week, joined by new audiobooks from J.D. Robb, Anne Tyler, Jonathan Kellerman, and Alex Berenson. Three new non-fiction titles debut this week, including Cary Elwes's account of the making of the movie The Princess Bride.

DVD

1. Gone Girl
2. John Wick
3. Fury
4. Addicted
5. The Maze Runner
6. Predestination
7. The Judge
8. The Equalizer
9. A Walk Among the Tombstones
10. This Is Where I Leave You

CD

1. Fifty Shades of Grey Soundtrack
2. Sam Smith, In the Lonely Hour
3. Ed Sheeran, X
4. Taylor Swift, 1989
5. Meghan Trainor, Title
6. NOW That's What I Call Music 53
7. Beck, Morning Phase
8. 2015 Grammy Nominees
9. Maroon 5, V
10. Hozier, Hozier

Fiction

1. The Girl on the Train, Paula Hawkins
2. All the Light We Cannot See, Anthony Doerr
3. Obsession in Death, J.D. Robb
4. A Spool of Blue Thread, Anne Tyler
5. The Nightingale, Kristin Hannah
6. Trigger Warning, Neil Gaiman
7. Motive, Jonathan Kellerman
8. Private Vegas, James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
9. Gray Mountain, John Grisham
10. Twelve Days, Alex Berenson 

Non-Fiction

1. Being Mortal, Atul Gawande
2. Killing Patton, Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard
3. Believer, David Axelrod
4. Yes Please, Amy Poehler
5. What If?, Randall Munroe
6. Sapiens, Yuval Noah Harari
7. As You Wish, Cary Elwes and Joe Layden
8. The Reaper, Nicholas Irving and Gary Brozek 
9. God, Guns, Grits and Gravy, Mike Huckabee
10. Ghettoside, Jill Leovy

Hot This Week: February 16

Looks like Valentine's Day put everyone in the mood for new music, as four new titles grace the chart, including a new album of original music from the legendary Bob Dylan. It's the same story in fiction, with names like Kristin Hannah and Neil Gaiman joining the list. In non-fiction, two different titles about the workings of the brain make their debuts.

DVD

1. John Wick
2. Fury
3. The Maze Runner
4. A Walk Among the Tombstones
5. Get on Up 
6. The Equalizer
7. The Judge
8. This Is Where I Leave You 
9. Annabelle
10. No Good Deed

CD

1. Taylor Swift, 1989
2. NOW That's What I Call Music 53
3. Ed Sheeran, X
4. Sam Smith, In the Lonely Hour
5. Fifth Harmony, Reflection
6. Meghan Trainor, Title
7. Bob Dylan, Shadows in the Night
8. Nicki Minaj, The Pinkprint
9. Maroon 5, V
10. Diana Krall, Wallflower

Fiction

1. The Girl on the Train, Paula Hawkins
2. All the Light We Cannot See, Anthony Doerr
3. The Nightingale, Kristin Hannah
4. Trigger Warning, Neil Gaiman
5. Private Vegas, James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
6. Gray Mountain, John Grisham
7. Crash & Burn, Lisa Gardner
8. Saint Odd, Dean Koontz
9. Funny Girl, Nick Hornby
10. The Boston Girl, Anita Diamant

Non-Fiction

1. Being Mortal, Atul Gawande
2. Killing Patton, Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard
3. Yes Please, Amy Poehler
4. What If?, Randall Munroe
5. Ghettoside, Jill Leovy
6. God, Guns, Grits and Gravy, Mike Huckabee
7. The Reaper, Nicholas Irving and Gary Brozek
8. Not That Kind of Girl, Lena Dunham
9. The Teenage Brain, Frances E. Jensen and Amy Ellis Nutt
10. The Brain's Way of Healing, Norman Doidge

2015 Looks to Be Banner Year for Movies

Written by Jon Williams

You’ve heard about it, and it’s finally here. Today, Fifty Shades of Grey opens in theaters, following months of anticipation and controversy. Based on the first of author E.L. James’s trilogy of novels, the film (itself the first of a trilogy) is expected to win the weekend’s box office handily, even against strong competition from Kingsman, another new release, plus holdovers SpongeBob and American Sniper.

Fifty Shades is the first really highly anticipated movie to open in 2015, but by no means is it the last. Looking at what’s in store for the year should have moviegoers feeling pretty excited. First up is a number of reboots, remakes, and reimaginings, including a live-action version of Cinderella, directed by Kenneth Branagh, hitting the screen one month from today. This summer, you can look for an update of the horror classic Poltergeist, as well as a new version of Fantastic Four, with Miles Teller, Kate Mara, Michael B. Jordan, and Jamie Bell as the titular superhero quartet. For Christmas, you can look forward to a remake of Point Break that features extreme sports in place of surfing in the original. And finally, if iconic characters are your thing, you won’t want to miss Mr. Holmes, which stars Sir Ian McKellan as the world’s most famous detective in his elder days and dealing with a failing memory. No U.S. release date has yet been announced, but it is expected to be out sometime this year.

If your favorite franchise isn’t getting a reboot, then chances are good that it’s getting a sequel, as there are a ton of those on tap for 2015. First on the docket is Insurgent, coming March 20, the second in the Divergent series based on the young adult novels by Veronica Ross. Staying in the dystopian future genre, this year will see the conclusion to the Hunger Games series, as Mockingjay Part 2 debuts in November. The summer a number of blockbusters will have viewers flocking to theaters for new installments of The Avengers (Age of Ultron), Jurassic Park (Jurassic World), and Terminator (Genisys). Daniel Craig takes another turn as super-spy James Bond in Spectre, the follow-up to Skyfall. There will also be new installments for The Fast and the Furious, Pitch Perfect, Ted, and Magic Mike as the year goes on. And in December, there’s that new Star Wars movie that has everyone all abuzz.

Of course, if original fare is more your cup of tea, there’s plenty to look forward to on that score as well. Later this month, Serena comes to the screen, starring Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence and based on the novel by Ron Rash. March 6 will see the release of Chappie, the story of a robot who gains intelligence and emotions, directed and written by Neill Blomkamp, known for District 9 and Elysium. Child 44, in theaters in April, tells a story of murder and intrigue in the Soviet Union, based on the bestselling novel by Tom Rob Smith. In May, look for Tomorrowland, the sci-fi fantasy from Disney starring George Clooney. Another Marvel movie, Ant-Man, comes out in July, with Paul Rudd playing the tiny superhero. And November looks pretty awesome, with releases including Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight, Disney/Pixar’s The Good Dinosaur, and the adaptation of Andy Weir’s acclaimed novel The Martian, starring Matt Damon.

Naturally, this is just scratching the surface of all the amazing films coming our way this year. As always, look to Midwest Tape for these films as they come available on DVD and Blu-ray, and let us know what you’re looking forward to seeing.

Hot This Week: February 9

Looks like everyone was in the mood for something new this weekend, as four new titles hit the movie listing, led by Keanu Reeves's turn as a hitman out for vengeance. In music, Ms. Swift retakes the top spot and is joined on the chart for the first time by Ne-Yo and the compilation of nominees for last night's Grammy Awards. In fiction, the latest James Patterson title jumps onto the list, while new titles by Nicholas Irving and Jill Leovy make the grade in non-fiction.

DVD

1. John Wick
2. Fury
3. The Maze Runner
4. A Walk Among the Tombstones
5. Get on Up 
6. The Equalizer
7. The Judge
8. This Is Where I Leave You 
9. Annabelle
10. No Good Deed

CD

1. Taylor Swift, 1989
2. Ed Sheeran, X
3. Meghan Trainor, Title
4. Sam Smith, In the Lonely Hour
5. Ne-Yo, Non-Fiction
6. Fall Out Boy, American Beauty/American Psycho
7. Mark Ronson, Uptown Special
8. Nicki Minaj, The Pinkprint
9. Maroon 5, V
10. 2015 Grammy Nominees

Fiction

1. The Girl on the Train, Paula Hawkins
2. All the Light We Cannot See, Anthony Doerr
3. Private Vegas, James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
4. Gray Mountain, John Grisham
5. Saint Odd, Dean Koontz
6. The Boston Girl, Anita Diamant
7. First Frost, Sarah Addison Allen
8. The Escape, David Baldacci
9. Big Little Lies, Liane Moriarty
10. Station Eleven, Emily St. John Mandel 

Non-Fiction

1. Being Mortal, Atul Gawande
2. Yes Please, Amy Poehler
3. God, Guns, Grits and Gravy, Mike Huckabee
4. Killing Patton, Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard
5. The Reaper, Nicholas Irving and Gary Brozek
6. What If?, Randall Munroe
7. Ghettoside, Jill Leovy
8. Not That Kind of Girl, Lena Dunham
9. Deep Down Dark, Hector Tobar
10. 41, George W. Bush

Hot This Week: February 2

The action flick detailing the exploits of a WWII tank team, starring Brad Pitt, takes this week's top movie spot. It was a good week for rock, as Fall Out Boy's #1 debut is joined by new releases from the Decemberists and Marilyn Manson. In fiction, The Girl on the Train is getting a ton of positive buzz right now, and it has made its way to #1, while in non-fiction, new titles from Mike Huckabee and Eric Foner crack the list for the first time.

DVD

1. Fury
2. The Maze Runner
3. A Walk Among the Tombstones
4. The Equalizer
5. This Is Where I Leave You
6. No Good Deed 
7. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
8. Boyhood
9. The Remaining
10. Guardians of the Galaxy

CD

1. Fall Out Boy, American Beauty/American Psycho
2. Taylor Swift, 1989
3. Meghan Trainor, Title
4. Ed Sheeran, X
5. Joey Bada$$, B4.DA.$$
6. Nicki Minaj, The Pinkprint
7. The Decemberists, What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World
8. Marilyn Manson, The Pale Emperor
9. Sam Smith, In the Lonely Hour
10. Mark Ronson, Uptown Special

Fiction

1. The Girl on the Train, Paula Hawkins
2. All the Light We Cannot See, Anthony Doerr
3. Saint Odd, Dean Koontz
4. First Frost, Sarah Addison Allen
5. Burned, Karen Marie Moning
6. Gray Mountain, John Grisham
7. The Boston Girl, Anita Diamant
8. Hope to Die, James Patterson
9. The Escape, David Baldacci
10. Big Little Lies, Liane Moriarty

Non-Fiction

1. Being Mortal, Atul Gawande
2. Yes Please, Amy Poehler
3. God, Guns, Grits and Gravy, Mike Huckabee
4. Killing Patton, Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard
5. What If?, Randall Munroe
6. Not That Kind of Girl, Lena Dunham
7. Deep Down Dark, Hector Tobar
8. 41, George W. Bush
9. Gateway to Freedom, Eric Foner
10. I Am Malala, Malala Yousafzai and Christina Lamb