What's your favorite Traveller Movie?

[N.I.C.E. Labs]

Forgive me if this question has been raised before but I'm new here...I personally have a few films that get my Traveller-blood flowing and I was wondering if others felt the same way about these flicks and/or what other films do people watch to put them in a Traveller frame of mind.

1) OUTLAND The quinticential Traveller flick I think

It just has the look. Thanks to that film my players know exactly what I'm talking about when I say they're at a backwater installation or mining colony.

2) SUPERNOVA A very cool ship, ancient artifacts and imminent danger...who could ask for more

3) PITCH BLACK When my friends told me about this movie all they would tell me is 'It's a Traveller adventure'

Right they were. Of course I noticed how a real Traveller group would have solved their problem right off and make te movie about 10 minutes long <G> Still, it has the suspense and discovery of a good CT game to be sure.

4) The THING (Carpenter version) While it doesn't immediately come to mind as a Traveller movie, there was something about Kurt Russel's character. For the longest time in our campaign a scout pilot would be defined by cold-weather clothing, sunglass, a shotgun, and a sombrero

Any thoughts on these or other films?

 

[DaveShayne]

Originally posted by N.I.C.E. Labs:
Forgive me if this question has been raised before but I'm new here...I personally have a few films that get my Traveller-blood flowing and I was wondering if others felt the same way about these flicks and/or what other films do people watch to put them in a Traveller frame of mind.

....

Any thoughts on these or other films?

Dark Star.

Answers the age old question, "What happens on a survey mission that lasts far too long?" This movie has it all, a psychotic crewmember, a mostly dead Captain, a malevolent beach ball alien, H-bombs with artificial intelligence, and perhaps the most creative re-entry vehicle ever.

 

[NDS]

Alien and Aliens

 

[Nurd_boy]

moon trap
has ancient installation, low-berthed heroine (fron that time), explorers, alein menace (AI's progarm to conquer using ANYTHING at hand as raw materials)...the movie itself was 'B" at best (sorry, but so was supernova..) but GREAT adventure idea's....

recently, i saw 'space truckers'...freelance cargo hauler gets caught up in earth terror attack by political/industrial megalomaniac....very 'B' but interesting adventure idea...had warren beatty in it as the space trucker.

 

[Antony]

The odd thing about the movie Pitch Black is the moment my players got a look at the ship they all wanted to know how one of my designs had ended up in a movie.

It was not one of mine, mores the pity, but the comment showed how my players pictured the ships in MTU.

 

[Blue Ghost]

Raiders of the Lost Ark; just pretend there's a Starport there somewhere.

 

[N.I.C.E. Labs]

I've seen all the movies mentioned so far except for Space Truckers, but it is one I've been meaning to rent. I personally am a big fan of 'b' movies...but I suppose someone has to be

I haven't seen Pitch Black for a while so I don't remember the look of the ship itself just right now, but I do recall it being slick

 

[N.I.C.E. Labs]

Interesting though Ghost...doesn't even need to be a starport...Traveller is the full of wonderous variety when it comes to tech level. Stone age, current era, to floating cities all within a jump of each other

 

[N.I.C.E. Labs]

Interesting thought even

 

[Uncle Bob]

The Wreck of the Mary Deare, just replace water with vaccuum.

For mercenary ops I like Vera Cruz (Two Gary Cooper movies?), or better the TL5 remake You Can't Win 'Em All. The latter has more of a PC party feel, and their Thompsons give the mercs a TL advantage. Yeah they don't have ray-guns, but the feel is right.

Two more, both early Richard Widmark films. Destination Gobi about a US Navy weather station in Mongolia escaping through an alien population during a civil war. (Better, its real. My Uncle's group were caught & killed.)

And Hell or High Water, again replace the water with vaccuum. A group of scientists salvage a U-boat and send off a mixed crew of ex-submariners from most of the navies in WWII to interfere with a Red Chinese A-bomb.

 

[bozzutoman]

Alien & Aliens
Blade Runner
2001 & 2010
Outland
Planet of the Apes
Akira
Forbidden Planet
Solaris
Gattica
Event Horizon
Android
and the trailer for Minority Report

Old TV has had a big influence as well:
Space 1999
UFO
Johnny Quest
Thunderbirds

 

[DrSkull]

One problem for me is that in the movies no one ever really worries about money, but in Traveller, everybody worries about money.

 

[William]

Originally posted by N.I.C.E. Labs:[/QB]

One film sums up every Traveller I've ever known - "Kelly's Heros"

Just try to tell me they aren't PC's...

William

 

[N.I.C.E. Labs]

Originally posted by William:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by N.I.C.E. Labs:

One film sums up every Traveller I've ever known - "Kelly's Heros"

Just try to tell me they aren't PC's...

William[/QB]</font>[/QUOTE]Hehe...Indeed. I've used Kelly's Heroes in games before, but not Traveller. I'm going to have to think about that I also was wondering what to watch tonite...now I know

 

[N.I.C.E. Labs]

Originally posted by DrSkull:
One problem for me is that in the movies no one ever really worries about money, but in Traveller, everybody worries about money.

True...but as most good Traveller adventures, money is just the hook. Many a time money has nothing to do with what they're doing. Which reminds me of another favorite flick of mine that works well...DEEP RISING. The heroes (aka the players) are hired for a simple job...next thing they know they're fighting for thier lives against an unknown, forced to throw in with people they don't trust

Fun time for all!

 

[Fulacin Highport]

Predator
The Dogs Of War
The Sting
The Secret Life of Ian Fleming
Where Eagles Dare
Mad Max (the second film) (replace Max with your PC's, and limit their tech -- it's amazing what will happen next!)
Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone

 

[Nurd_boy]

Originally posted by N.I.C.E. Labs:
I've seen all the movies mentioned so far except for Space Truckers, but it is one I've been meaning to rent. I personally am a big fan of 'b' movies...but I suppose someone has to be

I haven't seen Pitch Black for a while so I don't remember the look of the ship itself just right now, but I do recall it being slick

my mistake..it was NED BEATTY, not WARREN...

 

[Nurd_boy]

ok..lets try

ICE PIRATES
battle beyond the stars
battlestar galctica
red dwarf
blake's 7
i come in peace
critters 1-4
spaced invaders
....

 

[Blue Ghost]

Originally posted by N.I.C.E. Labs:
Interesting though Ghost...doesn't even need to be a starport...Traveller is the full of wonderous variety when it comes to tech level. Stone age, current era, to floating cities all within a jump of each other

Thanks. Another good Traveller flick is Aliens. Our group was playing "Aliens" type of Traveller long before Aliens was even conceived.

 

[hunter]

Fortress would make a good Traveller adventure. The PCs either have to break someone out, or have been imprisoned themselves and must escape.

Hunter