Spider Star
The human colony on the planet Argo has long explored and exploited the technology left behind by an extinct alien race. But then an archaeology team accidentally activates a terrible weapon...
Read More.Praise for Star Dragon
"Seldom does a storytelling talent come along as potent and fully mature as Mike Brotherton. His complex characters take you on a voyage that is both fiercely credible and astonishingly imaginative. This is Science Fiction."
-- David Brin"Star Dragon is terrific fare, offering readers a fusion of hard science and grand adventure."
-- Locus Magazine"Star Dragon is steeped in cosmology, the physics of interstellar travel, exobiology, artificial intelligence, bioscience. Brotherton, author of many scientific articles in refereed journals, has written a dramatic, provocative, utterly convincing hard science sf novel that includes an ironic twist that fans will love."
-- Booklist starred review"Readers hungry for the thought-provoking extrapolation and rigorous technical detail of old-fashioned hard SF are sure to enjoy astronomer Brotherton's first novel."
-- Publishers Weekly"Mike Brotherton, himself a trained astrophysicist, combines the technical acuity and ingenuity of Robert Forward with the ironic, postmodern stance and style of M. John Harrison. In this, his debut novel, those twin talents unite to produce a work that is involving on any number of levels. It's just about all you could ask for in a hardcore SF adventure."
-- Paul di Fillippo, SCI-FI.COM
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Transformative Science Fiction Movies
November 20th, 2013
A friend and I were talking over beers the other night, and discussing the handful of movies that had transformed the experience of going to the cinema. They contain unique elements not seen before, and influence everything that comes after. Some of the transformation is simply in the realm of special effects, but some of the differences are more profound. Let me explain by providing a list with some words of explanation for each. In reverse order…
Gravity (2013). I have never seen a movie like this before (a refrain that will hold for other entries, too). Watching the movie in 3-D IMAX felt like the closest I could imagine coming to a space experience. This will be the standard for films set in space for years to come, and many of the techniques used to shoot this will become standard (a refrain that will hold for other entries, too).
Avatar (2009). This was the first movie I saw in the modern 3-D, and the most amazing realization of science fictional world-building I’ve ever seen. The work that went into this film was amazing.
The Matrix (1999). The “bullet time” special effect alone raised the bar for all other movies to follow.
Jurassic Park (1993). This was the first movie I saw in which I thought dinosaurs looked authentic and believable. The integration between the CGI and the human actors defined state of the art. Go watch any other movie from the late 1980s/early 1990s and compare.
Blade Runner (1982). This is the realization of the dark, gritty cyberpunk dystopia hitting the big screen in a big way for perhaps the first time. This marks a turning point in many respects for broadening the spectrum of visions of the future.
Alien (1979). While alien monster movies were not new in 1979, this film forged new ground. Ripley is not an obvious hero, just a working stiff on a dirty space barge, and notable for being female but not a damsel in distress or a Barbarella style sex kitten. The “John Hurt moment” redefined how shocking a movie could be.
Star Wars (1977). The special effects were amazing for its day, and the impact of the franchise was perhaps unique in the history of movies.
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). The science and special effects were fantastic, and the way its slow pace and big shots reflects the size and isolation of space is unmatched. The amount of respect for the intelligence of the audience would be unheard of today, even if many original viewers were stoned while watching it.
King Kong (1933). A big step back in time, surely skipping a lot of worth entries, but King Kong surely was a milestone in the special effects business, and defined how many big monster movies would be done for decades to come.
Honorable mentions: Blair Witch Project/Cloverfield (2008), for pioneering the found footage format.
This list is far from comprehensive, especially going back to before I was born when it is harder for me to recognize the transformational films. What have I missed?
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You forgot Forbidden Planet. The first big budget sci fi movie.
I’d suggest:
Metropolis
Bride of Frankenstein
Flash Gordon
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
Invasion of the Body Snatchers
Forbidden Planet
The Incredible Shrinking Man
Planet of the Vampires
La Jettee
Alphaville
Quatermass and the Pit
Barbarella
Solaris
Planet of the Apes
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
E.T.
Good choices, though Avatar did little for me. I’d add Solaris (1972) as a deep psychological thriller with a truly alien intelligence – a worthy Soviet response to 2001, and The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951) as an allegorical warning that we risked destroying ourselves.
If I could broaden the score to include TV, I’d give honourable mentions to the original Star Trek and the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica.
Of course I meant ‘scope’ not ‘score’.
And while I’m talking TV, how could I forget Doctor Who, 50 years old this week? Then again, I find it hard to think of many films or TV series influenced by it.
Some nice suggestions!
Saw Gravity on the IMAX in Porto Alegre. It was really mind blowing. The story was ok… a bit dumb with all space stations and stuff lying so close to each other, and the comms satellites at LEO… but it was a visual experience like I never had before.