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<\/p>\nBuilding a Library of Science Fiction Film Criticism
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Back in the days when VCR tapes were how we watched movies at home, I took my youngest son over to the nearby Blockbuster to cruise for videos. He was a science fiction fan and tuned into both the Star Trek<\/em> and Star Wars<\/em> franchises, equally available at the store. But as he browsed, I was delighted to find a section of 1950s era SF movies. I hadn\u2019t realized until then how many older films were now making it onto VCR, and here I found more than a few old friends.<\/p>\n Films of the black and white era have always been a passion for me, and not just science fiction movies. While the great dramas of the 1930s and 40s outshone 1950s SF films, the latter brought the elements of awe and wonder to the fore in ways that mysteries and domestic dramas could not. The experience was just of an entirely different order, and the excitement always lingered. Here in the store I was finding This Island Earth<\/em>, The Conquest of Space<\/em><\/a>, Earth vs. The Flying Saucers<\/em>, Forbidden Planet<\/em><\/a>, Rocketship X-M<\/em> and The Day the Earth Stood Still<\/em><\/a>. Not to mention Invasion of the Body Snatchers<\/em>.<\/p>\n Note that I\u2019ve linked to some of these but not others. Read on.<\/p>\n Image:<\/strong> Dr. Carrington and his fellow scientists of Polar Expedition 6 studying how the Thing reproduces in the greenhouse of an Arctic research station in 1951\u2019s The Thing from Another World<\/em>.<\/p>\n Naturally, I loaded up on the SF classics even as my son turned his nose up at this ancient material, with its wonky special effects and wooden dialogue. I never did make him a fan of older movies (not even after introducing him to the Quatermass films!), but just after I began publishing Centauri Dreams<\/em>, I ran into an SF movie fan who far eclipsed my own knowledge of the genre. Larry Klaes was about the first person who started sending me regular comments on the articles here. That was just after I turned the comments section on in 2005. In the years since he has become a friend, an editorial confidant and a regular contributor.<\/p>\n Larry has been an author for most of his life, and he has demonstrated that for the past two decades with his extensive work for Centauri Dreams<\/em>. His essays have ranged through astronomy, space science, and the history of humanity\u2019s exploration of the heavens. Equally to our purposes, Larry has also had a life-lomg fascination with science fiction, which helped to spur his interest in space and related subjects from an early age. <\/p>\n You\u2019ll notice that a number of the movies I mentioned above are linked to Larry\u2019s articles on them. The ones without links are obvious targets for future essays. A look through the archives will demonstrate that Larry has tackled everything from 1951\u2019s classic The Thing from Another World<\/em><\/a> to Star Trek: The Motion Picture<\/em><\/a>. He\u2019s written in-depth analyses (and I do mean in-depth) on more recent titles like Interstellar<\/em><\/a> and 2010: The Year We Make Contact<\/em><\/a>. I disagreed with him completely on Interstellar<\/em>, and disagreements are what make film criticism so much fun.<\/p>\n Moreover, Larry is the kind of film enthusiast who isn\u2019t content simply to put forth his opinions. He digs into the research in such a way that he invariably finds things I had never heard of. He finds clips that illustrate his points and original screenplays that clarify directorial intent. He finds connections that most of us miss (see his treatment of 1955\u2019s Conquest of Space<\/em> in relation to the Swedish film Aniara<\/em> and the genre he labels \u2018Angst SF\u2019). His coverage of Avatar<\/em><\/a> was so comprehensive that I began talking to him about turning his essays into a book, a project that I look forward to participating in.<\/p>\n Larry\u2019s latest<\/a> is a deep dive into Aniara<\/em>, little known in the US, with its depiction of off-world migration and a voyage gone terribly wrong. The film possesses a thematic richness that Larry fully explores as the passengers and crew adapt to dire circumstances with the help of immersive virtual reality. When I read this, I decided it was time to give Larry space in a separate section, as the blog format is too constricted for long-form work. Have a look at the top of the home page and you\u2019ll now see the tab Klaes on Film<\/em><\/a>. The Aniara<\/em> piece is there, inset into a redesigned workspace that offers ready navigation through the text.<\/p>\n Image:<\/strong> I loved the film but Larry\u2019s look at Interstellar<\/em> makes incsize points about film-making, public perception and the development of the interstellar idea. <\/p>\n All of Larry\u2019s film essays are now available in the new section, but thus far only the current one on Aniara is embedded in the new format. I\u2019ll be seeing to it that all of the essays are reformatted going forward, so that the disadvantages of the blog format for longer writing are eased. <\/p>\n The goal is to create a space for film criticism that acknowledges the hold the SF genre has acquired over the general public, in many cases inspiring career choices and adjusting how the average person views the interstellar challenge. This is a long-term project, but my web developer Ryan Given at StudioRTP<\/a> is brilliant at customizing the site\u2019s code and he knows where we\u2019re going from here. I couldn\u2019t keep this site going without Ryan\u2019s expert guidance. <\/p>\n As my own passions in film are by today\u2019s standards archaic (I\u2019m still a black and white guy at heart), I\u2019m glad to have someone who can tackle not just the classics of the field but also the latest blockbusters and the quirky outliers. And I wouldn\u2019t mind seeing Larry\u2019s thoughts on the TV version of Asimov\u2019s Foundation<\/em> either. Let\u2019s keep him busy.<\/p>\n<\/p>\nKlaes on Film<\/h2>\n
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