Cinema and science fiction were made for each other. The science fiction genre has produced some of the most extraordinary films ever made, yet science fiction cinema is about more than just special effects. It has also provided a vehicle for filmmakers and writers to comment on their own societies and cultures. This new exploration of the genre examines landmark science fiction films from the 1930s to the present. They include genre classics such...

"M. Keith Booker has selected fifteen of the most successful and innovative science fiction films of all time, and examined each of them at length - from cultural, technical and cinematic perspectives - to see where they came from and what they meant for the future of cinema and for America at large." "All of these films expressed our fears and dreams, our abilities and our deficiencies. In this deep-seeking investigation, ideal for general readers...

"Science fiction films, from the original Frankenstein and The Fly to Blade Runner and The Terminator, traditionally have been filled with aliens, spaceships, androids, cyborgs, and all sorts of robotic creatures along with their various creators. The popular appeal of these characters is undeniable, but what is the meaning of this generation of creatures? What is the relationship of mad scientist to subject, of human to android, of creature to creator?...

What principle of mechanics is illustrated in the science fiction thriller Terminator 2: Judgment Day? How is nuclear fission important to the plot of Aliens? Is the time travel portrayed in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home a real possibility? Discover the surprising answers to these and a host of other intriguing questions in Fantastic Voyages. This book provides basic physics and biology instruction using scenes from popular science fiction films as...

To be dystopian, a work needs to foreground the oppressive society in which it is set, using that setting as an opportunity to comment in a critical way on some other society, typically that of the author and/or the audience. In other worlds, the bleak dystopian world should encourage the reader or viewer to think critically about it, then to transfer this critical thinking to his or her own world. This volume in the Critical Insights series presents...

After being bitten by a radioactive spider on a school field trip, Peter Parker finds himself gaining spider-like qualities. Adopting the name Spider-Man, Peter first uses his new skills to make money, but when the Green Goblin, another altered super-human, kills Peter's uncle, he swears to use his "spider-skills" to fight evil. Along the way he has to juggle a new job as a local reporter, and a budding romance with a beautiful former-classmate, MJ....

The day-in, day world is the real world is merely perception. In reality it is a hoax perpetrated by an all-powerful artificial intelligence that control us. A small group of humans has found a way out of the construct, and is now fighting for the future of the human race.

An assassination attempt is made on the life of the president by a teleporting mutant. This act upsets the entire world and entices the president to begin the mutant-human war as predicted by Eric Lensherr (Magneto) earlier. In an effort to get to the bottom of the attack and prevent world-wide war, Professor Charles Xavier sends out Storm and Dr. Jean Grey to search for the teleporting mutant and discover the truth behind the assassination attempt....

Relive the adventure and magic in one of the most beloved motion pictures of all-time, from Academy Award-winning director Steven Spielberg. Captivating audiences of all ages, this timeless story follows the unforgettable journey of a lost alien and the ten-year-old boy he befriends.

The ultimate X-Men ensemble fights a war for the survival of the species across two time periods. The characters from the original X-Men film trilogy join forces with their younger selves from X-Men: First Class in an epic battle that must change the past; to save our future.