Modern Sci-Fi Films FAQ: All That's Left to Know About Time-Travel, Alien, Robot, and Out-of-This-World Movies Since 1970

by Tom DeMichael

Many science fiction movies from the last 40 years have blazed new vistas for viewers. They've reached further into the future, traveled longer into the past, soared deeper into the vastness of the cosmos, and probed more intently inside man's consciousness than any other period of film before. And audiences ate them up, taking four of the top ten spots in all-time ticket sales in America while earning more than $2 billion at the box office.

Modern Sci-Fi Films FAQ takes a look at the genre's movies from the last 40 years, where the dreams of yesterday and today may become tomorrow's realities. This FAQ travels to a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away... visits a theme park where DNA-created dinosaurs roam... watches as aliens come to Earth, hunting humans for sport... and much, much more. Filled with biographies, synopses, production stories, and images and illustrations – many seldom seen in print – the book focuses on films that give audiences two hours where they can forget about their troubles, sit back, crunch some popcorn, and visit worlds never before seen... worlds of robots, time travel, aliens, space exploration, and other far-out ideas.

402 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2014

Reviews

[Mouse · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oof...it’s dense! Took me like a month to get through it! There’s a lot packed in it from 1970 up to about 2014. Sometimes it’s quite dry and seems more like a film study book, but it’s also got some fun stuff in it. Best chapter is 10 ‘But Where Do You Keep the Spare’ which breaks down Sci Fi spaceships! It’s got some good stuff from the Nostromo (Alien) to the Protector (Galaxy Quest) to the Enterprise and more. It’s a bit short though as I could’ve read more about the various ships. Good for a living room table or bathroom book.

[Eric Gilliland · Rating 1 out of 5]

Mostly summaries of sci-fi movies. That's the book.

[Tabby Shiflett · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of encyclopedic entries about some of the best post-1970s Sci-Fi films (and just a few of the worst). There's a section at the beginning of book of Sci-Fi authors/writers that have greatly impacted the film genre and a few segments at the end that include some of the best writers, directors, special effects masters, and make-up artists as well. The movies are divided by theme (such as time travel or robots) and each entry includes a detailed synopsis of the film and a blurb about its influence in general. I found some older Sci-Fi stories that I want to read and films that I may have originally overlooked. Recommended for Sci-Fi fans and movie buffs.

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