Sure, folks expected a nod for Avatar, but District 9 has also been nominated for Best Picture in this year’s Academy Awards.

Science fiction is rarely honoured, so that alone is worth noting, but this last year we were granted access to lots of sci-fi cinema for a change.

What about this year’s top 3 sci fi movies’ strengths and weaknesses:

Avatar
The Good: Fantastic cinema. Amazing effects with decent science components.
The Bad: Story is a re-tell, but it’s one worth re-telling, and it’s re-told well.

District 9
The Good: Gritty and close-to-home feel in an entirely compelling story.
The Bad: Some sketchy science and, for some sci-fi fans, an entirely boring setting… Earth.

Star Trek
The Good: Thoroughly enjoyable from beginning to end.
The Bad: Bad science inside — most importantly — a sorely lacking story.

It appears that their strengths and weaknesses are interrelated.

My vote for best sci-fi picture of 2009 ?  They’re in the correct order, above, in case you couldn’t guess.

Build a solid story, and then add some cinema and sci-fi and your movie will be on the right track.  Even better, start with great science and build it into the story.

Great sci-fi movies need to start with a decent story.  If “normal people” can relate to it too, there’s nothing wrong with that.

The original Star Wars film was a re-tell, too.