2186 – The Woman King (2022)

spacetime coordinates: 1820’s the West African kingdom of Dahomey

The Woman King is a 2022 American historical epic film about the Agojie, the all-female warrior unit that protected the West African kingdom of Dahomey during the 17th to 19th centuries. The film stars Viola Davis as a general who trains the next generation of warriors to fight their enemies. It is directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood and written by Dana Stevens, based on a story she wrote with Maria Bello. The film also stars Thuso Mbedu, Lashana Lynch, Sheila Atim, and John Boyega.

(historical accuracy) John Boyega plays King Ghezo, a real-life figure who ruled Dahomey from 1818 to 1858 and engaged in the Atlantic slave trade through the end of his reign. Hero Fiennes Tiffin plays the white Portuguese-speaking slave trader Santo Ferreira who is fictional and portrayed as an enemy to Ghezo. History vs. Hollywood said the character was “possibly loosely inspired” by Francisco Félix de Sousa, a Brazilian slave trader who in actuality helped Ghezo gain power.

Historically, Dahomey was a kingdom that conquered other African states and enslaved their citizens to sell in the Atlantic slave trade, and most of the kingdom’s wealth was derived from slavery. The Agojie had a history of participating in slave raiding, and slavery in Dahomey persisted after the British Empire stopped Dahomey from continuing in the Atlantic slave trade.

In the film’s setting of the 1820s, Nanisca confronts Ghezo about the immorality of selling Dahomey slaves to the Portuguese and suggests trading in palm oil production instead. Nanisca being fictional, the confrontation did not take place. Smithsonian wrote, “Though Ghezo did at one point explore palm oil production as an alternative source of revenue, it proved far less lucrative, and the king soon resumed Dahomey’s participation in the slave trade.” wiki

The film does not mention or depict the Kingdom of Dahomey’s practice of human sacrifice. (read more: A look at Dahomey’s gory history of human sacrifices on a large scale)

The all-woman Dora Milaje regiment featured in Black Panther is based on the Dahomey warriors.

imdb   /   rottentomatoes

2159 – Castle Rock (TV Series 2018–2019)

spacetime coordinates: 2010’s / 1990’s / 1610’s  Castle Rock, Maine

Castle Rock is an American psychological horror streaming television series, featuring and inspired by characters, settings, and themes from the stories created by Stephen King and his fictional town of Castle Rock, Maine. The series premiered on July 25, 2018, on Hulu. It was created by Sam Shaw and Dustin Thomason, and stars André Holland, Melanie Lynskey, Bill Skarsgård, Jane Levy, and Sissy Spacek in its first season. On August 14, 2018, it was announced that the series had been renewed for a second season starring Lizzy Caplan, Paul Sparks, Barkhad Abdi, Yusra Warsama, Elsie Fisher, Matthew Alan and Tim Robbins, which premiered on October 23, 2019.

In November 2020, Hulu canceled the series after two seasons. (wiki)

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2156 – Under the Shadow (2016)

spacetime coordinates: 1980s Tehran, during the War of the Cities.

Under the Shadow (Persian: زیر سایه‎, romanized: Zeer-e sāye) is a 2016 Persian-language psychological horror film written and directed by Iranian-born Babak Anvari as his directorial debut. A mother and daughter are haunted by a mysterious evil in 1980s Tehran, during the War of the Cities. The film stars Narges Rashidi, Avin Manshadi, Bobby Naderi, Ray Haratian, and Arash Marandi.

Produced by British film company Wigwam Films, the film is an international co-production between Qatar, Jordan, and the United Kingdom. (wiki)

imdb   //   rottentomatoes

2146 – Resurrection (2022)

timespace coordinates: 2021 Albany, New York

Resurrection is a 2022 American psychological thriller film written and directed by Andrew Semans. It stars Rebecca Hall, Grace Kaufman, Michael Esper, and Tim Roth. The plot follows Margaret (Hall) as she tries to maintain control of her life when an abusive ex-boyfriend (Roth) re-appears in her vicinity. (wiki)

imdb / rotentomatoes

2073 – Event Horizon (1997)

timespace coordinates:  2047, the Event Horizon spaceship in a decaying orbit around Neptune

[first lines]

Title Card: 2015 First permanent colony established on moon.

Title Card: 2032 Commercial mining begins on Mars.

Title Card: 2040 Deep space research vessel ‘Event Horizon’ launched to explore boundaries of Solar System. She disappears without trace beyond the eighth planet, Neptune. It is the worst space disaster on record.

Title Card: 2047 Now…

Event Horizon is a 1997 science fiction horror film directed by Paul W. S. Anderson and written by Philip Eisner. It stars Laurence Fishburne, Sam Neill, Kathleen Quinlan and Joely Richardson. Although the film met with mostly negative reviews and a disappointing box office result at the time of its release, it amassed a considerable cult following over the years.

The Event Horizon was modeled on Notre Dame cathedral. Its long corridor resembles a church nave, and its interior is filled with cruciform shapes, columns and vaults. Also, its engines resemble rotated church towers.

The Event Horizon was named after the theoretical boundary surrounding a black hole, within which gravitational attraction is so great that nothing, not even radiation, can escape because the escape velocity is greater than the speed of light. Technically, it is where the physical universe ends and physical laws no longer apply. So the ship’s name is symbolic for its journey beyond the borders of the known universe.

The script originally described the Gateway machine as a smooth and featureless black orb, 10 meters (nearly 33 feet) in diameter, suspended in midair between large, rotating mechanical arms. It also was said to contain a stable black hole within it at all times (which the ship used as a power source), as opposed to briefly creating a temporary one. Paul W.S. Anderson decided to redesign it to involve interlocking circles as a homage to the puzzle box in Hellraiser (1987), which served as an inspiration.

Lost footage

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Some space suits have flags showing hypothetical future political changes on Earth. Characters portrayed by British actors wear a European Union flag with 22 stars, replacing the Union flag. Sam Neill‘s character wears a modified Australian flag, with the Union flag removed from the top left-hand corner and the Aboriginal flag in its place.

imdb   /   TV series

2056 – Sunshine (2007)

timespace coordinates: year 2057, mission to reignite the dying Sun.

Sunshine is a 2007 science fiction psychological thriller film directed by Danny Boyle and written by Alex Garland. The ensemble cast features Cillian Murphy, Chris Evans, Rose Byrne, Michelle Yeoh, Cliff Curtis, Troy Garity, Hiroyuki Sanada, Benedict Wong, and Chipo Chung. The director cast a group of international actors for the film, and had the actors live together and learn about topics related to their roles, as a form of method acting. (wiki)

imdb   /   rt   /   Writing and scientific inaccuracy   /   Design and visual effects

2016 – The Electrical Life of Louis Wain (2021)

spacetime coordinates: 1880’s > 1900’s London / New York in 1907

The Electrical Life of Louis Wain is a 2021 biographical comedy-drama film directed by Will Sharpe, The film stars Benedict Cumberbatch (as Louis Wain), Claire Foy, Andrea Riseborough and Toby Jones. (wiki)

Wain, Louis 1860–1939. “Kaleidoskop-Katzen: Katzenmuster auf Grün”. Gouache auf Papier, 22,4 × 17,5 cm. London, Bethlem Art and History Coll.

L0026931 A cat in “gothic” style. Gouache by Louis Wain, 1925/1939. Credit: Wellcome Library, London. Wellcome Images images@wellcome.ac.uk http://wellcomeimages.org A cat in “gothic” style. Gouache by Louis Wain, 1925/1939. Gouache 1925/1939 By: Louis William WainPublished: – Copyrighted work available under Creative Commons Attribution only licence CC BY 4.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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