This was the bigger list for 1991…

I was surprised at 1991’s film experience. When compiling my movies of choice for that year, I said, “this list feels thin.” Then I looked at the number of films I saw that fell into the background. Admittedly, when you have a year with T2: Judgement Day in it… everything else sort of falls flat.

So, I present to you the films that fell under Ah-nold’s shadow and were either a good flick, just okay, or flat out terminated.

The Good, the Bad, and the Indifferent

• Nothing But Trouble (Bad): Dan Ackroyd plays a weirdo (one of his best numbers) and yet he still fails to save this film – even as the director. Digital Underground was called in to try and pull the film out of a tailspin, but it still crashed the film into the ground. If you must watch this one, inebriation will go a long way to surviving the experience.
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: The Secret of the Ooze (Bad): For as good as the first one was… just… no. Even if David Warner is in it, it does not forgive the presence of Vanilla Ice.
• Drop Dead Fred (Indifferent): A girl’s imaginary friend comes back in adulthood to cause trouble. Stuff happens, but it’s not memorable.
• What About Bob? (Indifferent): I like Bill Murray as much as the next guy. But this film wasn’t his best.
• Hudson Hawk (Bad): This is probably at that weird intersection of events that results in a guilty pleasure. Watch with beer and the full understanding that it’s not going to get better.
• City Slickers (Good): “Just one thing.” “Your finger?”
• Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear (Indifferent): OJ was in this as Northberg, so the trial hadn’t happened yet. It was funny, but ordinary.
• Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey (Bad): As much as I love the first film (Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure, 1989) this follow-up is not required viewing. Just falls flat. Bogus is even in the title.
• Hot Shots! (Indifferent): I remember laughing, but none of the jokes.
• Doc Hollywood (Good): Michael J. Fox continues a general winning streak. Staple comedy stuff, worth a view.
• Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man (Indifferent): Wow. Mom and Dad picked a racy film for a twelve year old’s birthday party. A cult classic for some, but T&A failed to cement this as a favorite.
• Highlander II: The Quickening (Bad): There should be only one.
• The People Under the Stairs (Indifferent): Another cult classic which was okay, but didn’t leave a lot of itself behind in my mind.
• Cape Fear (Good): De Niro portraying an unhinged stalker. Par for the course.
• My Girl (Indifferent): A coming of age story as I was starting to come of age, but what I remember the most is the young female lead blubbering about Macaulay Culkin’s glasses.
• Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (Good): I’m not an avid fan of Star Trek. But, Klingon Shakespeare and Pepto Bismol blood in zero-G is cool. That alone beat the hell out of Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989) in which ‘god’ wanted to bum a ride.

Filling In the Blanks

I also found that I missed a LOT of stuff from this year. I mean, a whole shelf of VHS practically fell through my field of view and I didn’t grab enough. Many of my peers will no doubt school me for this list as it includes some of the really iconic movies from the year of 1991. Some I missed because I wasn’t old enough, others wouldn’t have passed my parents’ muster, and others just wouldn’t have registered as important to me at the time.

I can’t blame outside sources for everything though. I’m a grown man and I’ve been able to watch any damn movies I please. Shit, I worked at a Blockbuster Video in college. Free rentals! I had tons of opportunities.

So, with great shame (not for all, but definitely some), I note the following gaps in my film knowledge, and mark them for future consideration.

• The Silence of the Lambs: Apparently my dad and my grandmother (yes, my dad and his mom) watched this together and determined the film was great. And, that it was wholly inappropriate for just about everyone else in our family. Serial killers aren’t a favorite topic for me, but this is critically acclaimed stuff. I have to remedy this gap, and soon.
• The Doors: I didn’t know who the hell Jim Morrison was when this came out, so I didn’t care at the time. Given an updated appreciation of music that preceded my birth at a later stage in life, this seems like a no brainer in hindsight. While not a huge fan, I appreciate what I do know and would love to learn more.
• New Jack City: I’m not sure I was even aware of this film growing up. But, it’s Wesley Snipes and I know a lot of folks who really liked this film.
• Career Opportunities: Jennifer Connelly. I’ll admit this freely. It’s the only compelling reason I have to visit this. I’m comfortable with this.
• Backdraft: I have a friend from college who watched this movie like it was holy scripture. It helped his dad was a fire chief I suppose. Never made it to my VHS player though.
• Jungle Fever: I missed everything Spike Lee produced in my youth. He was ‘controversial,’ and as a result his films never got through my house’s front door or garnered much attention. Mom and dad of course had their own picks come through that could have been considered controversial – I just don’t think they were ready themselves for the raw nerves that Lee hit with his films. A lot of white, suburban parents probably weren’t, which was probably one of Spike Lee’s points in making the films he’s known for. Regardless, the topic of sex as a focal point in any story was enough to keep this film out of my reach as I was still too young to watch this at the time Jungle Fever came out. The good news is my parents have become wiser with age, and as noted above… I can watch anything I like nowadays.
• Boyz n the Hood: Much like the above, except replace sex with gang violence.
• Point Break: Yes, yes.  I know, I know, I’ll get on this. It didn’t seem like a big deal at the time.
• Dutch: This is a big favorite in my aunt’s family, but it never broke the barrier into my immediate family’s collection. We started watching it this Thanksgiving  during dinner. But, as with any holiday event with my family, discussion was the main focus, not the film. Plus I had to leave earlier than expected. So I owe my cousin a viewing.
• Double Impact: Something with two Jean-Claude Van Dammes? Sure. Why not? Probably better than Timecop (1994), which we’ll get to soon!
• Barton Fink: It’s John Turturro and John Goodman. It seems like this is a no brainer. I came to love Turturro recently after watching The Night Of (2016) and O Brother, Where Art Thou (2000). I started streaming this recently on Netflix, but I have the attention span of a weasel on speed. I shall return to it with any luck.
• My Own Private Idaho: I always did like River Phoenix – Explorers (1985) was a regularly viewed growing up, later he was in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), and then again in Sneakers (1992). Seems logical to add this film to the pile.
• Curly Sue: this is one of two remaining films (the other being She’s Having a Baby, 1988) remaining in my list of John Hughes directed films remaining to be watched. So, it has to happen.
• The Last Boy Scout: Bruce Willis action films are hard to turn down given my love of Die Hard (1988). And of course you have Damon Wayans who was on the rise at the time. But, then again: Hudson Hawk. Maybe it just felt bad to fully trust Bruce Willis in 1991.
• JFK: Back, and to the left. Back, and to the left. Back, and to the left. I know that much. So why not see the rest? Oliver Stone was a big part of the nineties, and honestly, I’m not sure I’ve seen any of his work.

So, Where Was I in 1991?

I was in my last two years of middle school. I’d finally started to come out of my shell the tiniest bit, though I was still just the nervous kid who was just good enough at talking his way out of having the shit kicked out of him by the worst bullies. I was discovering that in my school my social caste was low. Music kids at least had a clique to fit into, and I had long ago learned that I didn’t want to be with the in kids who had some byzantine requirements to run with them, one of which was abandoning the friends who’d always been there for me. My social circle had started to solidify and I was starting to feel a place where I belonged. My love affair with tabletop roleplaying games had also taken off, and I was running games of Robotech and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles with my friends. Seeing his son turn into a second generation geek, my dad stepped in to teach my gaming circle how to play Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay. Another older friend would run Dungeons and Dragons and Star Wars while TSR and West End Games were still a thing.

The political scene got weird that year. I remembered that we learned at scout camp, over breakfast prayer, that America had kicked off its involvement in the Gulf War that summer and that we needed to pray for our boys in the war. Later in the fall, I remember watching CNN announcing SCUD strikes out of Iraq and the reports of US Patriot Missiles that knocked (most of) them down. Just after Christmas, a lot of the hubbub about Russia and ‘the bomb’ started dying down as the Soviet Union fell apart. Or at least it felt that way at the time to a young kid who didn’t really grasp the situation. The resulting shitshow it set off would come much later.

I got my first example in huge flaming letters that year about racism, and that race in America was not a settled issue. If that sounds naive, it’s because I was. I grew up with kids of all colors and creeds in my classes, and I had parents who taught me that everyone had something to bring to the table regardless of sex or race, and that we all bled the same color. Everyone was the same inside and there was no good reason to discriminate. Sure, I’d seen a small number of racist kids, parents, and assorted asshats by then, but surely they were on the decline. All my teachers who taught the civil rights movement to us (mostly in February) said so. Sadly, especially when little kids are involved, teachers tend to gloss over or even lie about things. When Rodney King took a beating for the ages at the hands of the Los Angeles Police Department that year, everything changed. Someone had managed to film the whole thing with their camcorder, and that showed that the number of said racist asshats in our country was not exactly in decline. Far from it. It was all anyone could talk about for months. “Can’t we all just get along?” became a mantra heard on TV, on the radio, and on the lips of parties both sincere and mocking. This was also the year that some of my faith in cops as ‘good guys’ started to crumble as I learned about something most white kids didn’t experience: police brutality. It was an important lesson in corruption, racism, and authoritarianism, though I don’t think I could have vocalized it that well at the time.

But, like most twelve year olds… I mostly cared about Sonic the Hedgehog and my new Genesis game system I got for Christmas.

Oh, and a couple of great movies.

The Schlock

There weren’t a lot of good-bad movies to inspire me in this year for whatever reason, though there was a lot of schlock watched. Then again, there was a lot of it from the previous year, so this category gets a buy this round.

Somewhere In the Middle

Hook

When I watched it: 1991
It taught me: Wonder
Stars: ★★★

A lot of my friends go all-in on this movie and it’s a favorite of my girlfriend’s. I like it, though it’s not necessarily a personal blockbuster for me. There was a lot to like though.

The story centers around a successful lawyer, Peter. He has two kids, married a woman he loves, and by all means, things should be looking up. But, he’s starting to feel his age. He’s a burned out workaholic who’s barely able to see his kids; kids who are starting to resent him for it. When he goes to London to visit his wife’s ailing grandmother Wendy, his children mysteriously disappear and the story goes on to to transform into a story we all know: Peter Pan. This is because Peter is him, Peter Pan all grown up. The children have been stolen by none other than Captain Hook who as absconded with them to the Pirate Cove. He returns to Neverland to rescue his children with the help of his long forgotten gang of  Lost Boys.

A big part of Hook’s success for me was that it opened up wonder in a way only big-budget special effects could. They were something amazing for their time – the special effects progressed rapidly in the nineties, and this was a showcase example. I remember how vividly the story was brought to life, how magical it all felt. It was everything you hoped Neverland could bring you.

Apart from that, it struck needed balances. A parent could watch it with their child, and each viewer got what they needed from the film. It was a rare instance of something with as much appeal for grown ups as it had for their kids.

The cast was also exceptional, with Robin Williams as peter, Dustin Hoffman as Captain Hook, Bob Hoskins as Smee, and Julia Roberts as Tinkerbell.

Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves

When I watched it: 1991
It taught me: The Devil Is In the Details
Stars: ★★★★

This is almost schlock.

The only things that got it out of that particular bucket, were its insane production value and top-notch actors. You have Morgan Freeman, Kevin Costner, Alan Rickman, Brian Blessed, Christian Slater, Michael Wincott, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, and a cameo from Sean Connery (the most Scottish king of England you’ll ever find).

The story is familiar, just with none of the singing animals that my generation had come to expect from the story. Ultimately, the movie did have a fatal flaw: Kevin Costner. I’ve heard what everyone else heard: Costner was terrible at English accents… so he gave up and played it as straight as he could, rolling with his American accent instead. Regardless of that statement’s truth, no one else seemed to be phoning anything else in for their performances and honestly, Freeman and Rickman steal the show anyway. All it took was that one detail, Costner’s lack of Englishness, to get this film panned.

For a guy who’d later in his career be willing to take extravagantly expensive reshoots for his film Waterworld (1995) when he realized viewers could tell his hair was receding… you’d think Costner would have tried just a little harder. It could have made this into a film that could have really sold the classic tale. Even with Alan Rickman completely eating his lunch.

The Rocketeer

When I watched it: 1991
It taught me: Pulp; Art Deco; That I Still Love Jennifer Connelly
Stars: ★★★★

I remember my dad taking me out to see this. I don’t think we knew what we were gloing to get, though dad had a better idea than I did. This was as much a new hero movie for me as it was a harkening back to the two-fisted adventure tales of his very early youth. In we went with our tickets, and out we came with broad smiles.

The film is about a pilot who happens into a stolen jetpack designed by none other than Howard Hughes. He uses the pack to save lives and eventually draws the attention of Hughes (played by Terry O’Quinn!), the FBI, the thieves, and because it’s set in the thirties… the Nazis (punches incoming!). Adventure ensues.

I just remember getting so caught up in this film in terms of story and design. It taught me a fair amount about how adventure stories from the old pulp magazines worked. It also had just enough of the period’s flavor, such as Deco (used to great effect in the movie poster). If I had to go back and put my thumb on where my love of Deco came from… it may have fully bloomed from somewhere else, but there’s a good chance the seed was planted here.

Also Jennifer Connelley. ‘Nuff said.

The Addams Family

When I watched it: 1991
It taught me: Gallows Humor
Stars: ★★★

This is one of the earliest examples I can personally remember of the reboot boom of this decade. It was before I had learned to utter things like ‘Can’t they just leave [a cherished and loved childhood property] alone? They always wreck it!’ Because this film was friggin’ awesome.

I had initial doubts about it. But they all proved unfounded and it further developed my repertoire of morbid humor. The weird, the strange, the odd, and the ghastly mixed with spontaneous and razor sharp presentation and timing to make something you could laugh at again and again.

Looking back, I ought not be surprised. This had a fantastic cast. Raul Julia, Christopher Lloyd, Angelica Houston and Christina Ricci all came together for a film that simply could not be contained.

The Fisher King

When I watched it: Circa 1995
It taught me: Madness, Consequence
Stars: ★★★★

This is occasionally referred to as a comedy. Because hey, Robin Williams and Jeff Bridges! They’re funny! Especially Williams!

While there are funny bits in this… this is not a comedy. This is a drama. And a heart wrenching one at that.

It follows the lives of two men. One is a former shock jock radio personality whose career has imploded after his online antics bring about a tragic downfall. The other is a mentally ill man roving the streets of New York, believing himself to be a knight on a quest for the Holy Grail. They find each other after the ‘knight’ saves the disgraced radio star from a beating and progresses into a journey of self-redemption (and grail seeking), but it turns out their lives are tragically intertwined already without either one really knowing it.

Primarily, this was a great personal example of the thing most of our parents have the hardest time grinding into us as we grow up: actions have consequences. Sometimes the actions and consequences are simple, and sometimes they run deep and out of control. No one is exempt, and once the train leaves the station, it’s gone and out of your reach to control it.

Additionally, this is one of the first films I remember to effectively convey the condition of mental illness. It’s easy to just look at someone and say “diagnosis: crazy!” Crazy is a term so liberally applied that it’s almost lost meaning. But the way they approach Williams’ character displays the full depth of those deep in the grips of mental illness. Those stricken with madness can be charming, endearing, and forceful; but more often they are haunted or shattered. And to make it worse, you never really know what you’re going to get or how aprson so afflicted is going to act. The film put this right out where you could see it and get a good look. I try to keep what this film taught in mind when I portray a character who has something deeply broken inside.

The scene that sticks with me is the one in which Robin Williams is chasing after a woman played by Amanda Plummer whom Williams is smitten with. Following in her wake, he goes into Grand Central Station and has a delusion in which everyone in the station save for he and his muse are waltzing to music only he can hear. It is a fully fleshed out delusion with the magic that only well choreographed film can provide.

As we watched, my dad’s jaw kind of dropped and he stammered, “If that’s a delusion… I wanna have one.”

Personal Blockbusters

Terminator 2: Judgement Day

When I watched it: 1991, 1992 (Twice)
It taught me: Continuity; Post-Apocalypse
Stars: ★★★★★

I remember this very, very clearly.  My parents debated taking me to this film – not just because of the violence and the graphic nature of the subject matter, but also because I’d not seen the first yet. Precisely because of the violence and graphic nature of the original.

Eventually, they decided it was okay, and just before I went to what passes for Space Camp in my home state, we went out to see it.

And my mind was blown. This is where I got my first big dose of the concept that is the post-apocalypse.

Burned out husks of buildings and cars. Skeletal remains scattered everywhere. Laser shots exchanged between bedraggled and desperate humans and gruesome cybernetic killing machines bent on the eradication of mankind. This was a film that planted a seed in me that will not yield. It sprouted roots in my spinal cord, extended tendrils through my arms, and made my hands type out stories of shattered worlds and desperate survival.

Yeah, it’s a big budget action movie that should have been nothing but schlock – the first one was schlock certainly, using (at the time) second-tier character actors (let’s be honest, at the time of The Terminator (1984), Schwarzenegger wasn’t called on for his acting chops). But this is James Cameron we’re talking about. And even in his early years, James Cameron did (and does) not fuck around.

The care and the detail that went into the film was something that really inspired something in me later as well – the concept of continuity carried out beyond the cursory. The mythos of the Terminator had been particularly well thought out concept in the original film, and they incorporated and advanced many details into the second that remained true almost seamlessly in its follow-up. There are things that in repeat viewing that have caused problems (why the T-1000 requires touch to replicate something when a full body scan is probably better; how a T-1000 with no biological components comes through a time travel machine that requires a living energy field for transit). But it still holds up remarkably well.

This film may indeed be the signature film of the decade – it broke the mold of what we thought we could do in terms of story, of special effects, of production value, and upped the ante on how to make not just profitable but great sequels.

So. Many. Movies…

Obviously, as stated in earlier posts, the lists I’m generating aren’t meant to be comprehensive in any other context but my own preference. I didn’t have the time, budget, or desire to see every film that was ever released in my childhood. Also, indie and international films didn’t always hit the radar back in the nineties. It’s all hard to collate, so, I’ll let you in on my insight of how I’m generating this stuff.

I’m pulling my lists of films from the ever popular site Wikipedia.org, specifically this main article on years in film (with a primary focus on America). It’s not exhaustive, but it breaks down into individual years and it’s a pretty good indication of the films I was going to be able to see as a young American. I get a lot of my confirmations on their data on film releases by double checking at IMDB given that film is what they do, all day, every day (I’d use it as the primary source, but their breakdowns are so comprehensive as to produce more noise than signal for a free account user at the least).

Given that, I’m going to miss some stuff (mostly international or indie) while also being able to see other films that I either didn’t know about or to use to build a backlog of stuff I’d love to see later. This is giving me a couple of other buckets to divide film into, hence this coda. I’ll be adding a coda to each year under the heading of The Cutting Room Floor that will evolve as the project does. In these codas I intend to address films I saw but wasn’t particularly moved by, a to-do list of unviewed film, and also tackle some things I noted about film in general that the era might have brought about (We’ll get to that in 1995 with Mortal Kombat)

The good and the bad, and the indifferent.

It’s obvious, but worth saying: not all movies move me or leave a huge impression. Some leave me with a bad taste in my mouth. The year of 1990 was no exception. So, I figured I should at least mention the films I saw that were either just a good way to pass the time, but not deep or personally moving; the films that were just terrible or poorly executed; or the films that simply left me flat.

• Ski Patrol (Indifferent): As noted earlier with Men At Work, movies hadn’t gotten all the way out of the eighties yet, and as much as I love wacky hijinks movies from the 80’s, this was just more of the same.
• Tremors (Good): This film was an example of the kind of weird monster films that came out of the eighties pushing their way into a new decade as well. It was good, but giant worms had already been introduced in Dune (1984) and… I got to this one way after it’s release when I was in college. It’s fun, but didn’t push me forward in any way emotionally or creatively.
• The Hunt For Red October (Good): This had a great cast and was kind of a political primer for me given I was pretty young when I saw it. I didn’t really understand the concept of defection when I first watched it in the nineties. It got better with age since I was a kid and makes much more sense as an adult.
• Joe Versus the Volcano (Bad): It’s a damning thing when you realize you remember almost nothing of a movie other than that you weren’t impressed. Maybe I’m giving it a bad rap, but the only joke I remember is Tom Hanks playing with rubber testicles, and even that was a kind ‘laugh once’ moment.
• Spaced Invaders (Indifferent): I remember watching it on cable to pass the time. The Donut of Destruction was funny, but it’s the only thing I remember.
• Bird on a Wire (Indifferent): I watched it on VHS with my parents I think, but I draw a blank when trying to recall it’s plot or how we could have been fooled into thinking Mel Gibson was a good person. It had birds and wires maybe?
• Gremlins 2: The New Batch (Bad): I was so psyched to see a Gremlins (1984) sequel. But it was by no means the sequel I wanted or felt I deserved. I can’t help but think of something my roommate said to me about Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011) that pertained to this: “It was entertaining… dumb as fuck, but entertaining.”
• Robocop 2 (Bad): Don’t. Just don’t.
• Die Hard 2 (Indifferent): I don’t think the team behind this movie tried real hard when it came to this follow-up. The original was better in every conceivable way (in my honest opinion, Die Hard (1988) is the film from which all nineties action movies are cut). Most impressive moment was death by icicle.
• Problem Child (Indifferent): I remember a kid in a devil suit, but not much else. Even this might even be a memory of its lackluster sequel? It left that much of an impression. I didn’t even remember Jack Ritter was in this until I looked it up on IMDB.
• Young Guns II (Good): I am not certain I’ve ever seen this film all at once in a single sitting, but what I saw I remember liking. Oddly enough, I’d never even seen the first Young Guns when I saw this… and I’m not certain I have now either. The eighties are fuzzy memory territory in some ways.
• Duck Tales the Movie: The Treasure of the Lost Lamp (Indifferent): The movie was Disney so it was good animation, but I only remember it being an extended episode of the usual Duck Tales fare: Flintheart Glomgold and Scrooge McDuck fight a libertarian battle for treasure.
• Goodfellas (Good): This is no doubt going to come up as a sticking point knowing a lot of the people I grew up with and whom I met later in my life. This movie was critically acclaimed, dramatic, and had a great cast. Maybe I caught it late, but it wasn’t a life changer for me. Of course, The Class of 1999 made it in the main list, so clearly my taste is poor on it’s best day, but I’ve never claimed otherwise.
• Home Alone (Indifferent): I cannot help but think of how many times that Kevin killed those robbers under the rules of conventional reality and how he’d have ended up in juvie or tried as an adult on the count of his adorable and vicious sadism. Sure, they were trying to rob and kill him in as a comedic manner was as was appropriate, but… Jesus Christ Kevin. You are a monster.
• Misery (Good): I’d read the book earlier that year (my second King book – I have no idea what my parents were thinking). If anything blew my mind between the two, it was the book. Good casting for both main roles (James Caan and Kathy Bates).
• Look Who’s Talking Too (Indifferent): More talking babies. Meh.
• Almost an Angel (Indifferent): Crocodile Dundee is an angel. Needed more crocodiles. I remember it being fun but just okay.
• Kindergarten Cop (Good): This was one of the first films where they tried out comedy with Arnold Schwarzenegger. Maybe not his best, but still fun. Ferrets never bite.
• Dick Tracy (Indifferent): I didn’t really have an expectation going in, and I didn’t really have an opinion coming out. It wasn’t a bad way to pass the time and the makeup work was superb. It just… wasn’t a memorable film for me.

Filling in the blanks

Even twenty-seven years later (as of this writing), there are still films I’ve not seen from the nineties that I would like to get around to. I’m certain that many of them have already had their expiration dates well exceeded, but there are always films that will stand the test of time regardless of the eras they came out of. So here’s a list of films I still need to get around to.

• Nightbreed: This was on my shelf for years on VHS, a freely given cassette from a colleague of my father’s. She’d given it to me in my first year at college after finding out that I was growing into an appreciation for horror films (once I got out of my parents’ house, the horror titles started rolling in). I am still recommended it today. In fact, I think it’s streaming now, so perhaps this gets visited as soon as today.
• House Party: This never really looked great as a kid, but it might have had something to offer.
• Pretty Woman: Totally missed this one, which was understandable. A movie that admitted that prostitution was a thing and actually focused on it probably wasn’t something my parents were in a rush to put in front of me. I’m not really a Julia Roberts fan either. But, it is arguably one of the iconic films of the decade, so I should at least give it a go.
• Cadillac Man: It’s Robin Williams. I like Robin Williams.
• Days of Thunder: NASCAR racing is boring to me, but a lot of people seemed to like this film.
• Pump Up the Volume: This film had no appeal to me as a youngster, but pirate radio is kind now of interest to me (radio as a science is something I’m now fascinated with in general). Prime Christian Slater territory as well.
• Hardware: I caught snippets of this post-apocalyptic title when I was a kid. I remember I started watching it on streaming recently but got sidetracked. I never got back to it, but it looks like nerd catnip for me.