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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...
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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
Intelligent Science Fiction Films (Mind-Meld)
August 26th, 2009
Over at SF Signal.com there’s a new Mind-Meld:
Much of the general populace believes that SciFi films are nothing more than dumb fun, but genre fans know better. Science fiction offers filmmakers a unique opportunity to be thought-provoking and meaningful, or at least something more cerebral than, say, Santa Claus Conquers the Martians.
We asked this week’s panelists the following:
Here’s my response, among the others:
Intelligent science fiction film? There’s not a lot of it, but it is out there. Here’s my list:
- Contact
- 2001: A Space Odyssey
- Primer
- Gattaca
- Blade Runner
- Minority Report
- A Clockwork Orange
- The Abyss
- Aliens
- Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn
I could spend a lot of words justifying the strengths and downplaying the weaknesses of each of these, but there’s plenty of meat in them to think about after the credits roll (and before!). None are prerfect, but they’re all intelligent.
Think about these, and enjoy them.
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August 26th, 2009 at 3:20 am
Mike, I’m happy to see Primer on your list. It’s probably one of the most mind-blowing time travel stories I’ve ever seen. I’ve seen it three times and still can’t completely wrap my head around it.
Do you really prefer Aliens to the first Alien or is it a mistake ?
August 26th, 2009 at 5:38 am
never heard of Prime…
August 26th, 2009 at 10:27 am
I haven’t seen Primer, Gattaca or Star Trek II from that list. I’d like to see the first two and possibly Star Trek II mostly for the infamous Kahn yell that Shatner does.
I would probably add Moon and District 9 to any list of intelligent science fiction. District 9 esepecially. If one has not seen that movie, go and do it now!
August 26th, 2009 at 10:46 am
I have not seen Moon or District 9, and would like to.
I do believe that Aliens is a more intelligent movie than Alien. Alien is a horror story with a double agent. Aliens is more complex on several levels and brings in more to think about, from the same kind of issues as in Alien (the Company and its disregard for people in the face of profit), dangers of colonization, the fact that there are space marines and their duty, the humanity of androids and whether they’re people, the full alien life cycle and what motherhood might have in common across all life, etc.
Star Trek II confronts some real issues about genetic engineering, if two different kinds of humans can get along, if exile is a reasonable solution, what responsibilities we have when we play judge, whether or not the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few (self-sacrifice, the usual logic vs. emotion, and the importance of three-dimensional thinking when engaging in space battles.
August 26th, 2009 at 11:34 am
Rogerio, Primer was a small, independent film. It was probably never released in Brazil.
August 26th, 2009 at 12:00 pm
Great list! And it’s so very true that if you didn’t think about what the movie was about, then you probably slept through it; your loss!
August 26th, 2009 at 7:16 pm
Hum… You might be right about Aliens. I know I’m partial to the original Alien, because I saw it at a young age and it totally blew my mind. I was used to shiny science fiction where everything is clean and neat and well polished, where people wear impeccable uniforms and always have a nice haircut, where spaceships glide like birds with a “wooosh” sound. Alien was a revelation because life in a spaceship was believable : it was gritty, dirty, people were not heroes in shiny uniforms but just people, not different from our actual sailors or oil rig workers. They were sleepy, didn’t shave, discussed bonuses and salaries. The descent towards the planetoid was pictured as risky and complicated (I’m always amazed at how long that scene is - in other movies, entering atmosphere and landing would just be done in one shot). It all felt so real - not unlike Battlestar Galactica, where the writer of the series explained he wanted to design a spaceship that would feel like real people were actually using it and living in it.
When the second Aliens came, the sense of novelty was gone and I thought there was too much “rule of cool” and action scenes. But in a way you’re right, more issues are handled in it than in the first one.
Sorry for the long post. I’m being nostalgic !
Mike, have you seen “Time crimes” ? It’s a recent spanish movie, not as complicated as Primer, it’s dealing with time travel in a more sarcastic and sometimes humorous way, but it’s still interesting as far as time paradoxes are concerned.
August 26th, 2009 at 10:10 pm
Haven’t seen Time Crimes, but I’ll look out for it.
I love Alien, too. Different strengths and weaknesses compared to Aliens. For sheer horror, Alien is hard to beat. As a kid, the Alan Dean Foster novelization kept me sleepless — I was sure a face-hugger was lurking in my closet.
December 5th, 2009 at 7:13 am
Hey there nike,
I dont think Ill be hearing from you(am a bit late on the blog I guess) but Ill post my opinion anyway.
I love Sci-fi and Yes,I find it sad that the general audience relate Sci-fi with popcorn blockbuster fodder but I guess Hollywood deserves the blame.I like your list and yes I would add duncan Jones’s moon as well.
Also how on earth did you forget Starship troopers?
Look beneath the shine and you’ll find a gem of a movie in it