David Howard (1) (1947–)

Substance: A hilarious send-up of SF-movie fandom. Plays on all the stereotypes, yet ultimately validates them as an expression of a noble yearning for meaning and adventure.
Style: Despite the utter implausibility of the story, the actors never breach the fourth-wall, which makes it work magnificently.
I saw this on its theatrical release in an almost empty theater. There wasn't much response from the sparse audience (I think it was New Years' eve or the night after), but our party of four show more Star Trek fans loved it.
Dates are for latest re-watch of several. show less

In the great debate about what is the best Star Trek film, more than a few fans would name Galaxy Quest. I know, I know--technically it's not Trek. But c'mon, in spirit? Well, mostly the Original Series, with perhaps a dollop of Next Generation. And it's a send up not just of the show but its fans, but done with great affection. It's funny, it's a great cast, and I just love watching this--again and again. Guaranteed to put a smile on my face.

A fun classic in science fiction, exploring the genre in a fun way, and Alan Rickman is a real treat in this. Also hard to not enjoy the tentacle humor here. Would have been nice if there was a sequel... on the other hand, this movie is pretty awesome as is.

I have read through this book several times now. It is a good, concise guide to the elements of screenplay writing. Apparently the book was adapted from an older text on the craft and elements of stage play writing and was updated by a professor upon his learning that the original was no longer available as a resource for his writing classes.

One thing I really like about this book is the great examples it incorporates from the screenplays of well known movies. The writers go through and show more analyze movies such as Citizen Kane, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Thelma & Louise, Diner, and others. Along with these, the final analysis is from the 1948 Hamlet directed by Laurence Olivier, thus crossing over into the area of the stage as well. It's a nice closing to the book.

While I've been through the book several times, and surely will go through it several more, this time I decided to try something a little different. After reading through the first half of the book, I decided to watch each movie analyzed before reading the analysis. This took a little time, and I did not watch the movies in any particular order (though I did end on Hamlet and plan to follow up by reading the play), but it really helped drive home the points made in the analyses because the movies were very fresh in my mind.

This is one I would highly recommend to anyone interested in screenwriting. show less