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The Science Fiction Horror and Fantasy Film Review

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Theme: Fate and Predestination

Fate and predestination refers to the belief that everything that happens to an individual is preordained, even that an individual’s life pathway and death have been planned in advance. Usually the mechanics behind fate and predestination are left vague or it put down to divine agency. This can often be related to Prophecy – the ability to foresee these events in advance.

In genre cinema, the most common form of fate is that of the hero who elects to step into their destiny as the Chosen One, something that can often have been predicted before their birth. Sometimes fate can offer a choice and it is up to an individual to decide which way their pathway will go. In other cases, this may come in the form of auguries of doom if one follows a particular pathway.


5ive Days to Midnight (2004)

21 November 201816 October 2023

Rating: ★

Briefcase from the Future

Director: Michael Watkins
Actors: Timothy Hutton, Randy Quaid, Kari Matchett, Gage Golightly, …
Category: Science Fiction

The Adjustment Bureau (2011)

17 February 201119 April 2025

Rating: ★★★★

Philip K. Dick Adaptation/Manipulation of Fate

Director: George Nolfi
Actors: Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, John Slattery, Anthony Mackie, …
Category: Science Fiction

Afterwards (2008)

21 January 201323 June 2025

Rating: ★★★

Messenger of Death

Director: Gilles Bourdos
Actors: Romain Duris, John Malkovich, Evangeline Lilly, Pascale Bussieres
Category: Fantasy

Cinderella Moon (2010)

16 February 201319 April 2020

Rating: ★★

Chinese Version of Cinderella

Director: Richard Bowen
Category: Fantasy

Day Watch (2006)

17 August 200710 July 2023

Rating: ★★★

Night Watch Sequel/Supernatural War

Director: Timur Bekmambetov
Actors: Konstantin Khabensky, Mariya Poroshina, Galina Tyunina, Viktor Verzhbitzky, …
Category: Horror

Destiny Turns on the Radio (1995)

15 April 199927 July 2020

Rating: ★★

Luck Incarnate/Lovers on the Run in Vegas

Director: Jack Baran
Actors: Dylan McDermott, Nancy Travis, Quentin Tarantino, James Le Gros, …
Category: Fantasy

Devs (2020)

2 May 20205 June 2024

Rating: ★★★★★

Computer That Can Predict the Future

Director: Alex Garland
Actors: Sonoya Mizuno, Nick Offerman, Jin Ha, Alison Pill, …
Category: Science Fiction

Dreamcatcher (2003)

27 March 200327 December 2024

Rating: ★★

Alien Parasite Invasion/Stephen King Adaptation

Director: Lawrence Kasdan
Actors: Thomas Jane, Morgan Freeman, Jason Lee, Timothy Olyphant, …
Category: Science Fiction

Final Destination (2000)

19 March 200025 June 2025

Rating: ★★

Precognition/Doomed Air Crash Survivors

Director: James Wong
Actors: Devon Sawa, Ali Larter, Seann William Scott, Chad E. Donella, …
Category: Horror

Final Destination 2 (2003)

28 June 200325 June 2025

Rating: ★★

Precognition/Doomed Car Crash Survivors

Director: David R. Ellis
Actors: A.J. Cook, Michael Landes, Ali Larter, Jonathan Cherry, …
Category: Horror

The Final Destination (2009)

10 February 201025 June 2025

Rating: ★

Precognition/Doomed Accident Survivors

Director: David R. Ellis
Actors: Bobby Campo, Shantel vanSanten, Mykelti Williamson, Krista Allen, …
Category: Horror

Final Destination 3 (2006)

21 June 200625 June 2025

Rating: ★★

Precognition/Doomed Rollercoaster Crash Survivors

Director: James Wong
Actors: Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Ryan Merriman, Kris Lemche, Amanda Crew, …
Category: Horror

Final Destination 5 (2011)

12 August 201128 June 2025

Rating: ★★½

Precognition/Doomed Bridge Collapse Survivors

Director: Steven Quale
Actors: Nicholas D'Agosto, Emma Bell, Miles Fisher, Arlen Escarpeta, …
Category: Horror

Final Destination: Bloodlines (2025)

28 June 202528 June 2025

Rating: ★★★

Precognition/Descendants of a Doomed Survivor

Director: Zach Lipovsky, Adam Stein
Actors: Kaitlyn Santa Juana, Richard Harmon, Rya Kihlshedt, Teo Briones, …
Category: Horror

Heaven Only Knows (1947)

2 February 200312 October 2022

Rating: ★★½

Angel Visits Out West

Director: Albert S. Rogell
Actors: Robert Cummings, Brian Donlevy, Marjorie Reynolds, Bill Goodwin, …
Category: Fantasy

Highlander: The Source (2007)

12 September 20096 August 2024

Rating: 0­

Immortal Quest

Director: Brett Leonard
Actors: Adrian Paul, Peter Wingfield, Cristian Solimeno, Thom Fell, …
Category: Fantasy

Jason and the Argonauts (2000)

23 September 200717 December 2024

Rating: ★★

Greek Myth Adventure

Director: Nick Willing
Actors: Jason London, Dennis Hopper, Jolene Blalock, Brian Thompson, …
Category: Fantasy

Lady in the Water (2006)

10 November 200620 December 2024

Rating: ★★★

Water Nymph, Predestination and Myth

Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Actors: Paul Giamatti, Bryce Dallas Howard, Bob Balaban, M. Night Shyamalan, …
Category: Fantasy

Lesbian Vampire Killers (2009)

5 June 200919 October 2019

Rating: ★★

Vampire Comedy

Director: Phil Claydon
Actors: James Corden, Mathew Horne, Paul McGann, MyAnna Buring, …
Category: Horror

Life is Whistling (1998)

10 October 199930 April 2023

Rating: ★★★½

Cuban Magical Realism

Director: Fernando Perez
Category: Fantasy

The Matrix (1999)

11 May 19996 January 2025

Rating: ★★★★★

Virtual Reality

Director: The Wachowskis, Lilly/Andy Wachowski, Lana/Larry Wachowski
Actors: Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, …
Category: Science Fiction

The Matrix Reloaded (2003)

23 May 200329 December 2021

Rating: ★★★

Virtual Reality

Director: The Wachowskis, Lilly/Andy Wachowski, Lana/Larry Wachowski
Actors: Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Harold Perrineau Jr, …
Category: Science Fiction

The Matrix Revolutions (2003)

11 November 200329 December 2021

Rating: ★★★

Virtual Reality

Director: The Wachowskis, Lana/Larry Wachowski, Lilly/Andy Wachowski
Actors: Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Ann Moss, Laurence Fishburne, Hugo Weaving, …
Category: Science Fiction

Mighty Aphrodite (1995)

15 July 20028 January 2025

Rating: ★★★★

Comedy/Greek Tragedy Spoof

Director: Woody Allen
Actors: Woody Allen, Mira Sorvino, Helena Bonham Carter, Michael Rapaport, …
Category: Fantasy

The Mistress of Spices (2005)

24 July 20068 January 2025

Rating: ★★

Indian Magical Realism/Magical Spices

Director: Paul Mayeda Berges
Actors: Aishwarya Rai, Dylan McDermott, Anupam Kher, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, …
Category: Fantasy

Next (2007)

9 September 200718 January 2025

Rating: ★

Precognition/Action Film

Director: Lee Tamahori
Actors: Nicolas Cage, Julianne Moore, Jessica Biel, Thomas Kretschmann, …
Category: Science Fiction

The Night Chronicles 1: Devil (2010)

20 September 201030 September 2021

Rating: ★★★½

Trapped in an Elevator with The Devil

Director: John Erick Dowdle
Actors: Chris Messina, Logan Marshall-Green, Jenny O'Hara, Bojana Novakovic, …
Category: Horror

Nightmare Alley (1947)

5 February 200314 June 2024

Rating: ★★★★

Fake Clairvoyant/Predestination

Director: Edmund Goulding
Actors: Tyrone Power, Joan Blondell, Coleen Gray, Helen Walker, …
Category: Fantasy

Nightmare Alley (2021)

12 February 202215 December 2022

Rating: ★★★★

Fake Clairvoyant/Predestination

Director: Guillermo Del Toro
Actors: Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, Willem Dafoe, …
Category: Fantasy

The Portable Door (2023)

1 July 20231 July 2023

Rating: ★★

Apprentice in a Magical Company

Director: Jeffrey Walker
Actors: Patrick Gibson, Sophie Wilde, Christoph Waltz, Sam Neill, …
Category: Fantasy

Reign of Chaos (2021)

27 October 202227 October 2022

Rating: ★

Deities War in the Aftermath of Civilisation

Director: Rebecca J. Matthews
Actors: Rebecca Finch, Peter Cosgrove, Rita Di Tuccio, Georgia Wood, …
Category: Fantasy

Serendipity (2001)

19 April 200923 January 2023

Rating: ★★½

Fate Romance

Director: Peter Chelsom
Actors: John Cusack, Kate Beckinsale, Jeremy Piven, Molly Shannon, …
Category: Fantasy

Signs (2002)

17 August 200230 September 2021

Rating: ★★

Crop Circles/Alien Invasion

Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Actors: Mel Gibson, Joaquin Phoenix, Rory Culkin, Abigail Breslin, …
Category: Science Fiction

Something in the Dirt (2022)

27 January 202326 September 2023

Rating: ★★★½

Mysterious Unexplained Phenomena

Director: Justin Benson, Aaron Moorhead
Actors: Justin Benson, Aaron Moorhead, Sarah Adina Smith, Issa Lopez, …
Category: Fantasy, Horror

The Stand (1994)

1 July 20193 March 2021

Rating: ★

Showdown Between the Forces of Good and Evil After the Collapse of Civilisation/Stephen King Adaptation

Director: Mick Garris
Actors: Gary Sinise, Jamey Sheridan, Adam Storke, Rob Lowe, …
Category: Fantasy, Horror, Science Fiction

The Stand (2020-2021)

5 March 202128 March 2022

Rating: ★

Showdown Between the Forces of Good and Evil After the Collapse of Civilisation/Stephen King Adaptation

Director: Josh Boone, Tucker Gates, Bridget Savage Cole, Danielle Krudy, …
Actors: James Marsden, Alexander Skarsgård, Amber Heard, Whoopi Goldberg, …
Category: Fantasy, Horror, Science Fiction

Tarot (2024)

14 June 202414 June 2025

Rating: ★

Cursed Tarot Cards

Director: Spenser Cohen, Anna Halberg
Actors: Harriet Slater, Adain Bradley, Jacob Batalon, Avantika, …
Category: Horror

Unbreakable (2000)

26 November 200022 October 2020

Rating: ★★½

Ordinary Superhero

Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Actors: Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson, Spencer Treat Clark, Robin Wright, …
Category: Fantasy, Science Fiction

Versus (2000)

16 January 200510 September 2019

Rating: ★★½

Yakuza Zombies/Splatter

Director: Ryuhei Kitamura
Actors: Tak Sakaguchi, Hideo Sakaki, Chieko Misaka, Kenji Matsuda, …
Category: Horror

Wanted (2008)

9 October 200827 December 2024

Rating: ★★★

Super-Assassins/Action

Director: Timur Bekmambetov
Actors: James McAvoy, Angelina Jolie, Morgan Freeman, Marc Warren, …
Category: Fantasy

White Noise: The Light (2007)

21 April 200825 October 2019

Rating: ★

Premonitions of Death

Director: Patrick Lussier
Actors: Nathan Fillion, Katee Sackhoff, Craig Fairbrass, Adrian Holmes, …
Category: Horror

Winter’s Tale (2014)

15 February 201410 June 2025

Rating: ★★

Urban Fantasy/Romance/Fate and Miracles

Director: Akiva Goldsman
Actors: Colin Farrell, Russell Crowe, Jessica Brown-Findlay, William Hurt, …
Category: Fantasy

Recent Posts

  • Planetquake (2024)
  • Earthtastrophe (2016)
  • It Lives Inside (2023)
  • Subservience (2024)
  • Final Destination: Bloodlines (2025)
  • The Assessment (2024)
  • The Mighty Gorga (1969)
  • Empire of the Apes (2013)
  • The Holy Virgin Versus the Evil Dead (1991)
  • Swarmed (2005)
  • Tarantulas: The Deadly Cargo (1977)
  • Incantation (2022)
  • Dick Dynamite: 1944 (2023)
  • The Shrouds (2024)
  • Clown in a Cornfield (2025)
  • Incoming (2018)
  • Box: Metaphor (2023)
  • The House That Vanished (1973)
  • Skinwalker Ranch (2013)
  • A Werewolf in England (2020)
  • Made in England: The Films of Powell and Pressburger (2024)
  • Predator: Killer of Killers (2025)
  • Until Dawn (2025)
  • Alpha Girls (2013)
  • Tentacles (1977)

Contact Moria

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Theme Essays

  • Films About Atlantis
  • Werewolf Films
  • Virtual Reality
  • Imprisonment Thrillers
  • Films Depicting NASA and the Space Program
  • Human Bloodsports and Death Games
  • Animals Attack Films
  • Films About Plague and Pandemic
  • Disaster Movies
  • Steampunk Films
  • Documentaries
  • Films About Halloween
  • Films About Prophecy
  • Magicians and Sorcerers
  • Secret Societies
  • Real-Life People in Fiction
  • Techno-Thrillers
  • Twins in Fantastic Cinema
  • Asylums
  • Possession Films
  • Films About Imaginary and Magical Lands
  • Religion in Fantastic Cinema
  • Romantic Comedies
  • Film Noir
  • Spy Films
  • Jekyll and Hyde Films
  • Films That Make Dubious Claims to Being True Stories
  • Coming of Age Stories in Fantastic Cinema
  • Films About Cryogenics and Suspended Animation
  • Alternate History Films
  • Disturbed Psychology as Portrayed on Film
  • Law Enforcement in Fantastic Cinema
  • Weird Westerns
∧

Copyright Richard Scheib 1999-2025

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