# I guess it's hard to find a good sci-fi story on the screen
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796
**Category:** Cafe Society
**Created:** [July 30, 2018, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796 "2018-07-30T07:02:01Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@PlaceboTarget](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlaceboTarget)
#### Post date: [July 30, 2018, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/1 "2018-07-30T07:02:01Z")
I guess it’s really hard to find a good story on the screen in general.
A good sci-fi movie is Edge of Tomorrow. I’ve watched it several times (the second time was a must) and I think I would enjoy watching it again. It is the result of the great hard work and tremendous talent of the people involved in this production.
Although I love sci-fi, I kind of dislike fantasy and superhero (or superhero-like) stories. There are a few exceptions such as Hellboy, which had me on the edge of my seat, or Guardians of the Galaxy, which my family absolutely loved.
My family also enjoyed watching Men In Black, which I mostly found cartoonish. Another movie they’ve liked is Valerian and the City of Thousand Planets, whose visuals are fantastic but whose story has left me disillusioned.
I’ve watched Blade Runner 2049 by myself. Initially the spectators are fascinated by the mood and visuals, which promise a profound movie, but eventually people wind up disappointed by a simplistic story teeming with clichés.
I was kind of intrigued by the series Counterpart, which struck me as a well-made show, but I was dissatisfied with its unsubstantial sci-fi content.
Even though I felt Westworld was going to abound in clichés I still watched four of five episodes, where so much artistic effort was invested to exalt shallowness and futile violence.
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### Author:  [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)
#### Post date: [July 30, 2018, 9:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/2 "2018-07-30T09:27:20Z")
There are lots of good Sci Fi stories - we’re in a bit of a golden age of it, IMO - off the top of my head, in the recent past I’ve enjoyed _Arrival_, _Moon_, _Ex Machina_, _Altered Carbon_ and many others.
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### Author:  [@PlaceboTarget](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlaceboTarget)
#### Post date: [July 30, 2018, 9:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/3 "2018-07-30T09:46:52Z")
> [@MrDibble](#):
>
> There are lots of good Sci Fi stories - we’re in a bit of a golden age of it, IMO
I agree, and that’s because technologically speaking directors have become virtually omnipotent. But the stories… Arrival is relatively interesting, but kind of didactic like Robert Zemeckis’s Contact.
I saw others as well which I could have mentioned but I don’t recall the titles and I didn’t even watch them till the end in most cases because I became bored and/or frustrated.
I haven’t watched Altered Carbon though.
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### Author:  [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)
#### Post date: [July 30, 2018, 9:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/4 "2018-07-30T09:52:51Z")
Define “good science fiction story”. Do you mean a fiction story with good science, a story with good science fiction, or a good story in the science fiction genre?
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### Author:  [@eburacum45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eburacum45)
#### Post date: [July 30, 2018, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/5 "2018-07-30T12:08:35Z")
_The Expanse_.
_Black Mirror_.
And yes, even _Guardians of the Galaxy_.
**MrDibble** is right; we are in a new SF Golden Age.
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### Author:  [@Crane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crane)
#### Post date: [July 30, 2018, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/6 "2018-07-30T13:59:27Z")
Moon
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### Author:  [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)
#### Post date: [July 30, 2018, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/7 "2018-07-30T14:22:01Z")
> [@PlaceboTarget](#):
>
> I agree, and that’s because technologically speaking directors have become virtually omnipotent. But the stories… Arrival is relatively interesting, but kind of didactic like Robert Zemeckis’s Contact.
The didacticism was there in the literary source, before Zemeckis.
And I quite like didactic SF, as long as it’s not hardcore libertarian or paternalistic preaching like your Heinleins and co…
Ooh, I forgot _The Martian_ in my earlier list. And someone else mentioned\* The Expanse\*, that’s very good.
> [@](#):
>
> I haven’t watched Altered Carbon though.
Whether you like it may hinge on how you feel about violence, and having deeply flawed people as protagonists. But I found it quite a fascinating look at the implications of functioning technological immortality - but in _full_ form for only a small segment of society.
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### Author:  [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)
#### Post date: [July 30, 2018, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/8 "2018-07-30T14:38:16Z")
With computer generated special effects that are nothing less than phenomenal, we are in the golden age of science fiction movies as far as I’m concerned. There isn’t anything that the best science fiction authors can dream up that we can’t make look completely real on the screen.
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### Author:  [@ZonexandScout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZonexandScout)
#### Post date: [July 30, 2018, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/9 "2018-07-30T14:43:24Z")
> [@eburacum45](#):
>
> _The Expanse_.
> _Black Mirror_.
> And yes, even _Guardians of the Galaxy_.
> **MrDibble** is right; we are in a new SF Golden Age.
You beat me to _ **The Expanse** _. I’m not a huge fan of the story, but it is very well-executed.
_ **Dark Mirror** _ is, by its nature and intent, all over the board as far as being “good SF.” The better episodes are great.
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### Author:  [@Dropo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dropo)
#### Post date: [July 30, 2018, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/10 "2018-07-30T18:55:27Z")
_The Magnetic Monster_ (1953)
> **[The Magnetic Monster (1953) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0046026/?ref_=nv_sr_1)**
>
> The Magnetic Monster: Directed by Curt Siodmak, Herbert L. Strock. With Richard Carlson, King Donovan, Jean Byron, Harry Ellerbe. The Office of Scientific Investigation sends A-Men agents to investigate reports of unusual magnetic activity in various...
Well-paced thrills of a man-made super-magnetic substance wrecking havoc. The impressive climax was lifted from the German film _Gold_ (1934).
_Creation of the Humanoids_ (1962)
> **[The Creation of the Humanoids (1962) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055872/?ref_=nv_sr_8)**
>
> The Creation of the Humanoids: Directed by Wesley Barry. With Don Megowan, Erica Elliott, Frances McCann, Don Doolittle. In a post holocaust society, robots take it on their own to help the dying human race by giving them android bodies.
Super-cheap and seemingly cheesy beyond redemption, this is a surprisingly intelligent sci-fi film dealing with many of the same issues as _Blade Runner_.
_The Final Programme_ (1973)
> **[The Final Programme (1973) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070289/?ref_=nv_sr_1)**
>
> The Final Programme: Directed by Robert Fuest. With Jon Finch, Jenny Runacre, Sterling Hayden, Harry Andrews. A trio of scientists plan to create a self-replicating, immortal, hermaphrodite using the Final Programme developed by a dead, Nobel...
Generally considered a flop, this adaptation of Moorcock’s Jerry Cornelius stories may still be ahead of its time.
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### Author:  [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)
#### Post date: [July 30, 2018, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/11 "2018-07-30T19:24:59Z")
> [@Jasmine](#):
>
> With computer generated special effects that are nothing less than phenomenal, we are in the golden age of science fiction movies as far as I’m concerned. There isn’t anything that the best science fiction authors can dream up that we can’t make look completely real on the screen.
Alas, special effects are no substitute for plot and character. The ability to do CGI for things blowing up means that the script writers put in lots of things blowing up, which I’m damned tired of.
_Arrival_ had relatively little in the way of CGI, and while I have my problems with it, it was still intelligent.
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### Author:  [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2018, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/12 "2018-07-31T02:12:59Z")
> [@Jasmine](#):
>
> With computer generated special effects that are nothing less than phenomenal, we are in the golden age of science fiction movies as far as I’m concerned. There isn’t anything that the best science fiction authors can dream up that we can’t make look completely real on the screen.
In my opinion, special effects are what’s killed good science fiction. I like my science fiction to have interesting ideas not big explosions.
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### Author:  [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2018, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/13 "2018-07-31T02:49:35Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#):
>
> In my opinion, special effects are what’s killed good science fiction. I like my science fiction to have interesting ideas not big explosions.
Seconded. And CG still doesn’t quite match up to the best practical effects.
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### Author:  [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2018, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/14 "2018-07-31T02:58:15Z")
> [@Dropo](#):
>
> _Creation of the Humanoids_ (1962)
> [The Creation of the Humanoids (1962) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055872/?ref_=nv_sr_8)
>
> Super-cheap and seemingly cheesy beyond redemption, this is a surprisingly intelligent sci-fi film dealing with many of the same issues as _Blade Runner_.
This apparently started life as a script for one of the intelligent 50s television drama series. It’s one of the best discussions of what aintelligent robots would mean for humanity in movies. And halfway through there’s an amazing twist. I’ll spoiler it, though it’s not a real giveaway.
it makes you start rooting for an analogue of the Klan, which should be impossible and yet works in context. (Not in any real life situation, of course.)
Small, script-heavy, cheap-to-make films are the best science fiction, because they’re all about ideas. Greg Pak’s _Robot Stories_ and _Robot and Frank_ are good recent examples. _Ex Machina_ is even more intelligent than _Humanoids_.\* And they were done for budgets that wouldn’t suffice for a backstage buffet on _Pacific Rim_.
\*The only special effect is the robot, which is uncannily good, pun intended.
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### Author:  [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2018, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/15 "2018-07-31T05:28:48Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#):
>
> In my opinion, special effects are what’s killed good science fiction. I like my science fiction to have interesting ideas not big explosions.
Speak for yourself. When I think of my favorite classic SF writers - Vance, Zelazny, Herbert, Silverberg et al - little of what they wrote can, in theory, be faithfully translated to the screen without modern special effects. Science fiction may be the literature of ideas, but it’s also the literature of _awe_. Its job is to transport the reader/viewer to an amazing new world, to show them things they haven’t seen before. It’s hard to do that with sock puppets.
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### Author:  [@Locrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Locrian)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2018, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/16 "2018-07-31T05:32:41Z")
I like all above mentioned. But for low budget films…
PRIMER
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### Author:  [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2018, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/17 "2018-07-31T05:51:22Z")
> [@Alessan](#):
>
> Speak for yourself. When I think of my favorite classic SF writers - Vance, Zelazny, Herbert, Silverberg et al - little of what they wrote can, in theory, be faithfully translated to the screen without modern special effects.
Same here - of my all-time favourites - Banks, Cherryh, Brin, Herbert, to name a few - only Ursula LeGuin is really amenable to a no-CGI approach.
There’s no good way to do Orbitals & GSVs & Idirans & the Affront; Hani, Kiff & Mahendosat; The Galactics and the Six Races; or _Shai Hulud_ & Navigators justice \*without \*FX. Not any more, that genie’s out of the bottle.
Puppets would _not_ do. Yes, I’ve seen Lynch’s _Dune_. I stand by my statement.
And no-one can tell me those I just named are \*not \*the literature of ideas.
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### Author:  [@Yodalicious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yodalicious)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2018, 10:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/18 "2018-07-31T10:43:47Z")
Wall-E. It’s so much more than a cute robot love story.
Sent from my HTC U11 using Tapatalk
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### Author:  [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2018, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/19 "2018-07-31T12:15:48Z")
> [@Dropo](#):
>
> Super-cheap and seemingly cheesy beyond redemption…
Talking about movies like this, who can forget **Dark Star (1974)** - John Carpenter’s first feature film?
It has wonderful deadpan black humor, and some hilarious scenes, but by the end it becomes a little thought-provoking and moving as well. It may be too slow for those who like lots of action, but a really fun movie!
> **[Dark Star (1974) - Feature - video Dailymotion](https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x39408j)**
>
> Dark Star (1974) G | 83 min | Comedy, Sci-Fi | 9 February 1979 (West Germany) In the far reaches of space, a small crew, 20 years into their solitary mission, find things beginning to go hilariously wrong. Director: John Carpenter ...
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### Author:  [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2018, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-guess-its-hard-to-find-a-good-sci-fi-story-on-the-screen/818796/20 "2018-07-31T13:16:08Z")
> [@Alessan](#):
>
> Speak for yourself. When I think of my favorite classic SF writers - Vance, Zelazny, Herbert, Silverberg et al - little of what they wrote can, in theory, be faithfully translated to the screen without modern special effects. Science fiction may be the literature of ideas, but it’s also the literature of _awe_. Its job is to transport the reader/viewer to an amazing new world, to show them things they haven’t seen before. It’s hard to do that with sock puppets.
This demands a definition of “science fiction.” What is science fiction, what is space opera, what is fantasy? Is dreaming up a bizarre world populated by bizarre beings science fiction? One of the great science fiction stories ever was “All Summer in a Day” by Ray Bradbury. If it were to be produced in movie form, it would require nothing strange, no awe, no amazing new world, no special effects whatsoever. But it is a very powerful story.
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