Apocalypse Now

I'm a big fan of apocalypse movies. They let me explore my adventurous side from the comfort of my couch. That's not to say I want the world to end but for some bizarre reason the idea of fighting for my life in the rough and tumble is all sorts of romantic and exhilirating to me.

I've been pondering which type of movie I like more: alien invasion movies, zombie apocalypse movies or natural disaster movies.

Sure, they're all pretty good but, let's be honest, some are better than other.

Natural disaster movies, whilst exhilirating, are often very unrealistic. That's not to say that alien invasions are realistic but the visual affects associated with natural disasters often just look retarded. To see cliffs splitting in half and winding around (much like that recent car advertisement, I forget for which car but it's about... car control or smooth driving or something and all the cliffs and land is splitting in half. Tack-y) just destroys that element of realism. If I'm watching an apocalypse movie, I want to feel like I'm living it.

Which I guess is why sometimes zombie apocalypse movies can be better. When you're faced with this bloody, scabby, dishevelled, drooling, grabby, human-infectious disease hybrid, you can actually relate pretty well. It's probably because I guess there is some realism in them when you consider the various diseases which can cause disintegration of the human body. And the fact that many people are very grabby and dishevelled.

Which brings me to my most favouritest apocalypse movie in the entire world. Alien invasion movies. Yes, I really really like zombie apocalypse movies because a) I like watching things get hit with shovels, b) I like the sense of urgency as the zombie population grows and grows and c) I like it when the zombies hide and jump out at people. But alien invasion movies, to me, represent the ultimate realism. You might scoff but think about it - we know pretty much zilch about the various galaxies and planets so, by extension, we know very little about alien life. It proposes a sense of mystery to humans who seem to want to know everything. When we make and watch alien invasion movies are we not exploring and fantasizing and trying to make sense about something we know very little about?

My most favouritest alien invasion movies have to be War of the Worlds (my favourite scene is when Tom Cruise hits that creepy guy that he and his daughter are hiding with with a shovel - I'm pretty sure that's the actor who played It as well. Major respect) and Signs!

Holy shit. If you have no watched Signs WATCH IT.

Changed my life.

J