Review: 'In Search Of Tomorrow' a Fascinating Look at '80s Sci-Fi

David Weiner, the man who brought us the '80s horror movie documentaries "In Search of Darkness" (Volumes I and II) is back with a fascinating and comprehensive look at '80s sci-fi films with "In Search of Tomorrow."

At almost five hours in length, this entertaining and endlessly informative look at the science movies that changed the landscape of sci-fi films. "Tomorrow" features a myriad of interviews with the directors, actors, and pop culture icons of the day.

From the late director Ivan Reitman ("Ghostbusters") and horror legend John Carpenter ("The Thing"), to actors Sean Young ("Dune," "Blade Runner") and Wil Wheaton ("Star Trek: The Next Generation") to writer/comedian Julie Brown ("Earth Girls are Easy"), there is no shortage of behind-the-scenes anecdotes and trivia.

While not every movie is covered (will there be a part II as there was with "Darkness?"), the doc takes its time covering a handful of movies from each year of the decade. What Weiner does spectacularly is not just poke over the usual suspects like "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Back to the Future," he also dives into some of the more cultish movies like "Saturn 3" with Farrah Fawcett, "Megaforce" with Barry Bostwick, and "The Adventures of Buckaroo Bonzai in the 8th Dimension" which, at this point, has an all-star cast.

Weiner gets background tidbits from some of the movies' key players, including Carrie Henn who played little Newt in "Aliens" and tells how comfortable and protected she was on set. Jenette Goldstein discusses her role as the take-no-prisoners Vasquez from "Aliens." Melody Anderson and Sam J. Jones also pipe in to talk about the cult classic "Flash Gordon," giving it the weight it deserves in the sci-fi pop-culture lexicon.

But aside from diving into the decade movie by movie, Weiner also looks at different facets of the films and their impact. From the way women were portrayed as tough, independent, and self-reliant characters, to the innovative special effects that sparked the CGI generations that followed, "In Search of Tomorrow" doesn't just give a cool-movie countdown, it explores the impact all these films had on filmmaking – something that shouldn't be taken for granted, considering the way Marvel and D.C. have overtaken cineplexes.

With Lucasfilm's Industrial Light and Magic, special effects skyrocketed to the forefront of cinema, and, with this genre in particular, filmmakers took more and more risks with storytelling. The '80s sci-fi library proved that what was once just a geek's sandbox had become the stuff that captured the imagination of a generation, and has continued to carry that awe and wonder into the movies we know and love today.

Without E.T. bonding with a young boy, without Marty McFly leaping through time, and without Ripley being the badass that she is and was, movies – especially the sci-fi fantasy films that are so very popular today – wouldn't be the same.

"In Search of Tomorrow" can be pre-ordered on Blu-ray/DVD through www.80sscifidoc.com through March 27th.