Every Single Sci-Fi Film Ever*

As with all episodes of this podcast there are spoilers ahead!

Earlier this year I approached a brilliant theoretical physicist about whether she would like to come on the podcast to speak about her favourite science fiction film but instead she wanted to speak to me about the science of the film Interstellar (2014).

I apologise in advance for my own level of understanding of physics which is a mix of decades old lessons in school, a tiny handful of pop science books and a number of science fiction films.

Interstellar was released ten years ago in November 2014.

Theoretical physicist Kip Thorne was the main consultant to director Christopher Nolan on the science of the film which is packed with scientifically accurate scenarios (and a few scientifically fantastical ones too).

The Guest
Claudia de Rham is a theoretical physicist at Imperial College, London. Her expertise lies at the interface between Quantum Field Theory, Gravity, Gravitational Waves, Cosmology, Particle Physics, Numerical Simulations and Theoretical Mathematical Physics.

She is also the author of the book The Beauty of Falling: A Life in Pursuit of Gravity.

Chapters
00:00 Introduction to the show and guest
01:20 Claudia’s first viewing: Science, emotion and the world you leave behind.
03:25 A quick overview of the premise
04:37 Wormholes: folding paper and spacetime
17:17 Kip Thorne and gravitational anomalies
11:14 Time dilation and black holes
15:14 Time is relative, gravity is multi-dimensional and the transition to science fiction
16:49 Going beyond Einstein’s theory of general relativity to the holy grail of science
19:34 Differences in singularities and being pulled apart by black holes
21:47 The tesseract and extra dimensions
24:50 Gravity as communicator
29:38 Gravity vs light
33:20 Direct detection of gravitational waves, interferometers and LISA* in space
35:06 Observation of the shadows of black holes
36:50 Claudia’s love of gravity

Next Episode:
The next film we will be looking at is Creature from the Black Lagoon from 1954!

You can check JustWatch for where you can find the film in your region. It is available to rent or buy in various places including Apple TV. Sequels Revenge of the Creature and The Creature Walks Among Us are trickier to track down though there are some online streaming services. The Shape of Water (2017) which is heavily inspired by the original film is available to rent or buy in various places and is also available for those who have a Disney+ subscription. 

* The Laser Interferometer Space Antenna

As always there are spoilers ahead!

If you want to read the full show notes you can click the episode on this page and
scroll down.

Description
Are we sick of alien invasion films? I certainly hope not! Although this one is a little different as the aliens just want to leave. It Came from Outer Space (1953) was directed by Jack Arnold who would make a name for himself in the 1950s as a director of many sci-fi films. Although the script was written by Harry Essex the treatment for the film was by none other than the famous Ray Bradbury. The film is a mix of schlocky sci-fi and poetic soliloquies set in small town USA. To help us dig a little deeper into this film I have two fantastic guests.

The Experts
Scott Higgins is a Professor of Film at Wesleyan University as well as being the Curator of the Wesleyan Cinema Archives. 

Phil Nichols is a visiting lecturer at the University of Wolverhampton and a researcher with a special interest in Ray Bradbury. He is Senior Consultant to the Ray Bradbury Centre at Indiana University and editor of The New Ray Bradbury Review. He is also the man behind the Bradbury 100 podcast and the Science Fiction 101 podcast.

Chapters
00:00 Introduction to the show and guests
01:40 The beginnings of a sci-fi film director Jack Arnold
04:30 Ray Bradbury’s influence on the film
09:40 The schlocky and elusive Aliens
15:54 Bradbury’s politics in the 1950s
18:22 Bradbury’s treatment vs Harry Essex’s screenplay
21:38 Small town USA: provincial views, scandal and something simmering beneath the surface
28:11 Teenage culture: post war boom, TV and rock n roll
33:26 Body snatching
36:00 3D cinema!
42:57 Ray Bradbury’s treatment
45:22 The legacy of the film
50:56 Recommendations

NEXT EPISODE!
Next episode we will be taking one of my pesky detours! I speak to brainiac theoretical physicist Claudia de Rham about the science of Interstellar which is ten years old on November 6th 2024. Interstellar (2014) is available to rent or buy at an array of outlets. You can check JustWatch to check which platforms it is available in your region.

As always there are spoilers ahead!

If you want to read the full show notes you can click the episode on this page and scroll down.

Description:
After the classic film The Day the Earth Stood Still we move forward to 1953 and yet another Alien invasion. This time the aliens are definitely not looking to be friends. The War of the Worlds was written by HG Wells and published in 1897 in Pearson’s magazine. There have been many adaptations of the text including the famous radio play from Orson Welles in 1938 and the film adaptation by Steven Spielberg in 2005. I mention the drawings of the Martian tripod machines early in the episode. You can take a look at these wonderful images on this Instagram post.

To help us with their brilliant insights I have two wonderful guests.

The Experts
Keith Williams is a Reader in English Literature at the University of Dundee where he runs the science fiction programme. He is the author of the book H.G. Wells, Modernity and the Movies. 
Ian Scott is a Professor of American Film and History at The University of Manchester. He has written extensively about politics and film in Hollywood.

Chapters
00:00 Introduction to the show and guests 
02:26 HG Wells original text and his place in science fiction history
09:00 The 1938 Orson Welles CBS radio play 
12:46 1953 USA: paranoia and morality 
15:04 The differences from the novel: jingoism, religion and diversity
21:32 California: Manifest Destiny and small town attitudes
24:52 Race and racial segregation 
28:55 Science, religion and salvation
36:04 The spectacle of the film
38:31 The 2005 Spielberg rendition
43:35 The legacy of the film 
47:22 Related recommendations

NEXT EPISODE!
Next episode we will be taking a closer look at It Came from Outer Space (1953). You can check Just Watch to see where it can be found in your region and the film is available to buy or rent at many outlets including Apple TV. 

As usual there are spoilers ahead!

If you want to read the full show notes you can click the episode on this page and scroll down.

The Day the earth Stood Still was released in 1951 just like The Thing from Another World. And just like that film The Day the Earth Stood Still is based on a story from Astounding Science Fiction magazine. 

The flying saucer craze of 1947 has obviously made its impression on Hollywood and The Day the Earth Stood Still delivered a seamless sleek futuristic saucer along with an imposing shiny robot and a polite humanoid alien who comes in peace to deliver an ultimatum to a world wrangling with the atomic age. 

The Experts: 

Glyn Morgan is Curatorial Lead at the Science Museum in London and is a science fiction scholar. 

Peter Gottschalk is a Professor of Religion at Wesleyan University with a special interest in the South Asian region, empire and science. He also teaches a class called “Awesome Cinema”. 

Chapters 
00:00 Introduction to the show and guests 
02:22 Astounding magazine, The Manhattan project and the Peace Offensive 
5:55 From pulps to peace: Sci-fi amid the red scare 
11:28 The Flying Saucer 
14:00 A benevolent invader and the United Nations 
19:39 Gort the robot - Klaatu, Barada Nikto! 
25:55 The sane scientist 
29:06 Christian themes 
34:36 Media frenzy 
38:24 The 2008 remake 
42:44 Bernard Hermann’s seminal score 
44:06 Legacy and recommendations

NEXT EPISODE!
Next episode we will be taking a closer look at The War of the Worlds (1953). You can check Just Watch to find out where it can be found in your region. It is available to buy or rent at many outlets including Apple TV.

If you wanted to listen to the famous 1938 radio play from Orson Welles you can hear it here on YouTube.

And if you want to hear Richard Burton’s hypnotic reverberating voice in Jeff Wayne’s Musical version of War of the Worlds you can hear that here on YouTube.

As always there are spoilers ahead!
For the full show notes with no character limits you can click the episode on the website watch page here.

Description:
We are finally in the 1950s! The Golden Era of science fiction cinema.

Although the 1950s are known for may B Movies The Thing from Another World was produced (and possibly directed) but the very famous Howard Hawks and came from RKO which was a big name studio at this time.

This film capitalised on the growing appetite for science fiction in the USA which was up until this recently largely in print but also a little on television although studios were still wary of the science fiction label. Based on the John W Campbell novella Who Goes There? from 1938 there were a few significant changes made to the story.

The Experts
Jay Telotte is Professor Emeritus of film and media studies at Georgia Tech. He has written/edited numerous books and articles about science fiction film including the 2023 Selling Science Fiction Cinema.

Marc Longenecker is an Associate Professor of the Practice of Film Studies at Wesleyan University.

Chapters
00:00 Introduction to the show and guests
02:40 The 1950s sci-fi explosion
06:34 The studio aversion to science fiction and the paramount decree
09:55 Howard Hawks, Howard Hughes and who really directed this film?
16:20 If it walks like a Hawk: Hallmarks and the Hawksian woman
21:52 The Cold War, flying saucers and “the group”
34:05 Jay’s comparison to The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
36:26 The influence on John Carpenter and The Thing (1982)
44:21 The legacy of the film
48:56 Recommendations for listeners

NEXT EPISODE!
Next episode we will be taking a closer look at The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951). You can check Just Watch to find out where it can be found in your region and is available to buy or rent at many outlets including Apple TV. 

Unlike most episodes there are no film spoilers ahead!

For full detailed show notes please click the episode on this page and scroll down.

This episode we take a huge jump back to the end of the 19th century and a side step to science fiction literature rather than film.

Robert Duncan Milne is a lost pioneer of science fiction literature. Milne’s work had largely vanished despite a book drawing attention to him in 1980. Born in Scotland in 1844 he died in San Francisco at the dawn of the 20th century. During his time in San Francisco he worked as a journalist as well as writing science fiction short stories.

In the many stories Milne wrote he included themes of time travel, alien life, teleportation, cryogenic preservation, remote surveillance and much much more.

My fantastic guests today have spent many years researching and compiling Milne’s work and trying to discover as much as possible about his life and work.

The Experts
Keith Williams is a Reader in English Literature at the University of Dundee where he runs the science fiction programme. He has a special interest in the pre 1945 period. 
Ari Brin completed her Masters at the University of Dundee where she began her PhD research which focuses on the life and work of Robert Duncan Milne.

The book that Ari and Keith have been working on will be released in January 2025. It is available for pre-order for the ungodly price of £117 in the UK or $175 in the USA. We all hope a cheaper, consumer friendly version will be released in the future. 

Shownotes:
00:00 Introduction
01:59 Why was this pioneer’s work lost?
03:21 Milne’s contemporaries and the topics he wrote about
06:57 The promising young man who vanishes from Scottish society
12:32 San Francisco: an exciting literary hub in the late 19th century
14:18 Milne’s excessive drinking and the Keeley cure
19:27 Milne’s journalism and how it fed into his fiction
22:20 The Great Moon Hoax of 1835
25:51 Milne, Wells and visions of the future
33:17 The death of Milne and his work
36:32 Keith and Ari’s book and the crazy price

NEXT EPISODE!

WE ARE IN THE 1950s!!!!! It is an exciting but overwhelming time so please bear with me.

The next film we will be speaking about The Thing From Another World (1951). You can find out where you can watch it on Just Watch: https://www.justwatch.com/ 

It is available to rent or buy on Apple TV, Amazon, Google Play and other outlets. If you are in the USA I believe you can watch it for free (with ads) on Tubi.

As with all episodes of this podcast there are spoilers ahead!

For full detailed show notes (without character limits) you can choose the episode on the watch page here: https://www.everyscififilm.com/watch

This is a special crossover episode with The Lorehounds podcast. To learn more about The Lorehounds and their extensive coverage of multiple TV series you can visit their website here.

Description
It has been 45 years since the first Alien (1979) film released in the cinema receiving lukewarm reviews. Perhaps the impact of a different kind of science fiction film was completely lost on film critics having to deal with the many clasher films of the 70s and a slew of Star Wars rip offs? But since then, Alien has cemented its reputation as a sci-fi film classic. Although there were many sci-fi horrors in the 1950s B-movies this film was different. There is no dashing hero, no damsel in distress waiting to be rescued, no bug eyed monster that takes away from the gritty realism of the film. This film set science fiction cinema on a different course.

The Experts
Roger Luckhurst is a Professor at Birkbeck, University of London. He specialises in literature, film, and cultural history from the 19th century to the present. He has written/edited a crazy number of articles and books including the BFI Film Classics book on Alien.
Jason Eberl is a Professor for Health Care Ethics at St Louis University with a special interest in biotechnology, human enhancement and the philosophy of human nature. He has also written extensively including a range of books that examine the philosophy of various mainstream media such as Star Wars, Star Trek and Battlestar Galactica.

Co-Host
David is one third of The Lorehounds and is joining as co-host for this special crossover episode.

Chapters
00:00 Intro to the show and Alien’s bad reviews
02:55 The Origins of Alien
06:22 Why was Alien such a success?
08:06 Alien’s departure from the slick sci-fi aesthetic
09:15 Truckers in Spaaaace! Grittiness and the late 1970s political landscape
17:13 The protagonist: breaking away from gender stereotypes
24:00 Giger’s art and the Xenomorph's life cycle
26:50 A lack of eyes, Charles Darwin and Francis Bacon
30:31 The ship and the alien
33:43 The other monsters: Ash the android and the company
39:39 The history of heads speaking the truth
41:12 The Company: The factory line, Joseph Conrad & Belgians in the Congo
46:17 Jones the cat
51:22 The Philosophy of Alien
53:38 Recommendations
58:02 Outro

NEXT EPISODE!
Next episode we have a discussion about a long-lost pioneer of science fiction literature from the late 19th Century. Robert Duncan Milne’s work had largely vanished despite a book drawing attention to him in 1980. Milne was born in Scotland and died in San Francisco just before the dawn of the 20th century. Much of his legacy and work is thought to be lost due to the huge earthquake in San Francisco in 1906. My two wonderful guests are working hard to have him and his work recognised. 

Be warned: There are some potential spoilers ahead. Neither of us have watched Alien: Romulus yet but there is a lot of talk of the franchise and what we are expecting of the new film including a very clever theory from David which could be a spoiler.

This is a bonus episode which is part of my first ever crossover podcast!

Every Single Sci-Fi Film Ever* is joining The Lorehounds podcast as both are a little too excited about a certain franchise.

Alien (1979) is 45 years old this year and Alien: Romulus is being released on the 16th of August. To celebrate we have this bonus episode is myself and David from The Lorehounds having a short chat about the trailer for the new film. The next full episode will be on Alien (1979) released on Sunday the 18th of August. The Lorehounds and myself will be having a fan discussion about Alien (1979) on their podcast and finally you can catch a discussion about the Alien: Romulus film over at The Lorehounds after its release.

For more details about The Lorehounds you can visit their website here.

As always, I would love to hear your thoughts on the Alien franchise. You can leave me a voice message here or catch up with what I’m working on or researching on my Instagram page. 

Chapters 
00:00 Intro to the show and the crossover project 
04:06 Alien: Romulus synopsis and production details 
05:57 Kids in Spaaaace! 
08:02 Sound design 
12:36 Infused with the original 
13:05 Practical effects 
16:10 Cultivating the next generation of fans 
19:00 Expectations: Ayesha 
20:36 Expectations: David 
23:51 David’s brilliant theory (and potential spoiler!) 
25:40 The Blade Runner and Alien universe 
28:51 Outro

NEXT EPISODE!
As mentioned above the next episode will be a discussion with David from The Lorehounds and myself speaking to two wonderful guests about Alien (1979). All the Alien films are available on the Disney Plus channel but are also available to buy or rent in many places including Apple TV. 

As with all episodes of this podcast there are spoilers ahead!

For full detailed show notes (without character limits), including the titles of the films mentioned or shown, you can choose the episode on the watch page here: https://www.everyscififilm.com/watch

Description:
The idea of the ‘mad scientist’ has been with us for a very long time. In the early 1930s science fiction (and horror) films proliferated with the trope. Metropolis (1927) had already had the remarkable Rotwang who was a prototype that would go on to be referenced in Stanley Kubrick’s character Dr Strangelove (1964) with his black-gloved hand.

But why has the mad scientist become a staple of cinema? And why were the 1930s and 40s a time when Dr Frankenstein, Dr Jekyll and the many other crazed scientists (including several played by Boris Karloff) became so commonplace? Luckily we have two wonderful brains ripe for picking!*

The Experts
Thomas Doherty is a professor of American Studies at Brandeis University; he is a cultural historian with a special interest in Hollywood cinema on which he has written extensively.
Xavier Aldana Reyes is a Reader in English Literature and Film at Manchester Metropolitan University with a special interest in the Gothic. His books include the fiction anthology Promethean Horrors: Classic Tales of Mad Science.

*Disclaimer: No human brain transplants were carried out on unwilling participants during the making of this podcast. 

Chapters 
00:00 Introduction 
03:05 The Great Depression and the Hays Code 
06:24 How World War I changed perceptions of science 
07:38 Frankenstein, Faust and forbidden knowledge 
11:33 The male mad scientists and the lack of female ones
16:13 Religion, magic and science
20:20 Eugenics, miscegenation and The Code
25:26 Anti-authoritarianism, psychoanalysis, Leopold and Loeb
33:34 Einstein, real science and the beneficial scientists
43:00 The legacy of the mad scientist
48:12 Recommendations for the listeners and outro

NEXT EPISODE!
I have a lot of detours planned ahead (which you can learn about in the outro). One of the films I will definitely be covering very soon will be Ridley Scott’s Alien (1979) for a crossover episode with The Lorehounds podcast. Alien can be found to buy or rent on many channels as well as hard copies.

To keep up to date with what’s coming next you can join me on Instagram. 

As with all episodes of this podcast there are spoilers ahead!

For full detailed shownotes (without character limits) you can choose the episode on the watch page here.

If you would like to watch the Flash Gordon or Buck Rogers film serials they are available on YouTube. (Warning: the serials are repetitive and there are three Flash Gordon serials and one Buck Rogers!) The 1980 Mike Hodges Flash Gordon film is available to rent or buy at an array of outlets including Apple TV. 

Although it was Buck Rogers that triggered an array of copies after the comic strip was published in 1929, it is Flash Gordon  (one of those copies) that went on to have a film serial made with a lavish budget by Universal Pictures in 1936. Buck Rogers has had a significant impact in popular culture but the trajectory of Flash Gordon has eclipsed it in many ways.

This week’s experts bring you all their knowledge about how this came to be.

The Experts
Jay Telotte is Professor Emeritus of film and media studies at Georgia Tech. He has written/edited numerous books and articles about science fiction film.

Mark Bould is a professor of Film and Literature at the University of West England, Bristol. He has also written/edited many books on science fiction cinema.

Chapters
00:00 Introduction to show and guests
01:39 Why a Flash Gordon film serial?
09:58 The full bill cinema experience in 1936
11:55 The origins of the misaligned Space Opera
14:29 Star Wars, George Lucas and his 1930s influences
16:08 Post Star Wars Space Opera
19:55 Pushing beyond a space adventure to social commentary 
21:48 Flash Gordon: The damsel, the hero and the good scientist
27:34 Ming the Merciless: Asian stereotypes, representation and racism
32:42 Aliens, post code reshoots and the sexual current
37:25 The 1980 Flash Gordon: Mark gushes while Jay waits
42:45 Jay’s reaction
45:06 The legacy
49:45 Recommendations

NEXT EPISODE!
The next episode will be covering an array of films about ‘Mad Scientists’ from the 1930s and early 40s. 

I will share some of the titles here but it will be a topical discussion. Boris Karloff who came to fame for playing the monster in Frankenstein (1931) plays the role of the mad scientist in multiple films during this period, many that stray away from the science fiction genre or have a strong crossover with horror film. Some of these are: The Man Who Changed his Mind (1936), The Invisible Ray (1936), Black Friday (1940) and The Man with Nine Lives (1940).

Aside from those we also have the film Frankenstein (1931), The Invisible Man (1933), The Island of Lost Souls(1932) and both Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde films (1931 and 1941). Metropolis (1927) has the scientist Rotwang who is an excellent earlier example of this trope.

You can check JustWatch to find where these films are available to buy, rent or stream in your region. I have found many on Apple TV and some are available on YouTube.