A Sense-of-Wonderful Century. Gary Westfahl
BORGO PRESS BOOKS BY GARY WESTFAHL
Islands in the Sky: The Space Station Theme in Science Fiction Literature, Second Edition
The Other Side of the Sky: An Annotated Bibliography of Space Stations in Science Fiction, 1869-1993
A Sense-of-Wonderful Century: Explorations of Science Fiction and Fantasy Films
COPYRIGHT INFORMATION
Malcolm Hulke Studies in Cinema and Television
ISSN 0884-6944
Number Three
*
Copyright © 2012 by Gary Westfahl
Published by Wildside Press LLC
www.wildsidebooks.com
DEDICATION
To Steven Kong—
a wonderful son-in-law,
longtime fan of Godzilla movies,
and current resident at a hospital
that is far better than St. Elegius
INTRODUCTION
With essays to come that will offer both general thoughts on science fiction and fantasy films and focused analyses of specific films and television programs, I will primarily restrict this introduction to a businesslike discussion of how this book came to be assembled. In a sense, its contents are the result of moonlighting; for although I have enthusiastically watched science fiction and fantasy films all of my life, a decision to obtain a Ph.D. in English and American literature, with a dissertation on science fiction, first seemed to qualify me solely for a career of writing about science fiction and fantasy literature, not films, and that is where I long focused my attention. However, in this day and age, no one can be faulted for wanting to both watch and write about films, since these are, as I argued in a column for Interzone entitled “Big Dumb Opticals,” contemporary society’s equivalent to ancient Egypt’s pyramids—vast, impressive constructs that many people combine to create so that even more people can gather to gaze in admiration at them. And so it was that two early articles on Project Moonbase and Star Trek led to more and more work in this area; and now, with my ever-expanding online reference, the Biographical Encyclopedia of Science Fiction Film, and regular work as a film reviewer for the website Locus Online, I have found myself increasingly regarded primarily as an expert in science fiction film, not science fiction literature, emboldening me to begin publishing books about science fiction and fantasy films to accompany my other books on science fiction and fantasy literature. Hence, this volume gathers together most of my writings on film, with exceptions to be noted, while another new book, The Spacesuit Film: A History, 1918-1969, will present a detailed survey of over 100 films and television programs involving space travel. And to be sure, I am far from the only literary critic whose focus has gradually shifted from literature to films, mirroring our society’s increasing obsession with the form.
(This is not entirely my book, of course, since it includes revised versions of two essays originally credited to my wife, who publishes as Lynne Lundquist, and one essay originally credited to both of us—representing her own form of moonlighting, since she is otherwise employed as a Lecturer in the Theatre and Dance Department of California State University, Fullerton. However, she has requested that she not receive credit as this book’s co-author—though her contributions are still acknowledged in the chapter headings—preferring that I receive all the credit, or blame, for the book’s contents.)
The original intent was to include all of my previous writings on science fiction and fantasy film, except for the entries in the aforementioned Biographical Encyclopedia of Science Fiction Film, my Locus Online film reviews, and a few columns involving films written for Interzone (since all of these columns will soon be collected in another book from Borgo/Wildside Press). But a few other exceptions were made: including essays already incorporated into books I have authored seemed like inappropriate recycling; a few entries on films published in The Encyclopedia of Fantasy (1997) and The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Science Fiction and Fantasy (2005) were not available; and a brief review of a book on French documentary filmmaker Jean Painlevé, and entries on Field of Dreams (1989) and Ronald McDonald written for, but not included in, The Encyclopedia of Fantasy, were deemed too inconsequential to merit inclusion. (These items, however, are all listed in the concluding bibliography of my various writings on film, for anyone who might be interested.)
Most of the essays here were published in officially sanctioned venues—books, journals, websites, and a newspaper—as noted in the bibliography, but three items have more irregular origins: a passage on space films before 1950 written for, but ultimately excluded from, The Spacesuit Film, on the grounds that this lengthy book did not require such an extensive discussion of films that did not feature spacesuits; some extended musings on how one might define an animated movie, generated while engaged in discussions with colleagues about a proposed reference book to be entitled The Encyclopedia of Animated Movies; and some comments on the television series St. Elsewhere, which were spontaneous contributions to a listserv. All were polished up and posted on the World of Westfahl website as interesting curiosities, but they have here been further revised (particularly the piece on St. Elsewhere, now expanded into a short essay). Other essays are significantly different from their original published versions: the piece on the novel and film This Island Earth (1952, 1955) combines an entry written for a forthcoming reference book with a deleted passage from Gary’s book on spacesuit films; “Where No Market Has Gone Before” is a revised and updated version of the original journal article, prepared for a critical anthology that never appeared; the essay on the sequels to 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) is the original longer version, not the severely shortened version that was originally published; and “Three Questions and Answers about Science Fiction Films” brings together my three responses to date for the website SF Signal’s ongoing series of “Mild-Melds,” without the comments of the other contributors. In addition, all essays have been lightly reedited and sporadically revised; scattered errors and omissions have been addressed; all quotations are now properly cited; and a concluding bibliography provides complete data on all of the films, television programs, and printed materials discussed or mentioned in the book.
In terms of the structure of the book, I have tried to arrange the essays to follow the chronological order of when the films and television programs being discussed first appeared, with pieces providing more general overviews clustered near the beginning and end, to provide the overall aura of a historical survey. (However, this book obviously does not pretend to provide a comprehensive history of science fiction and fantasy films.) It will also be noticed that, just as the essays intermingle analyses of films and television programs, they also contains some discussions of related plays, novels, stories, and comic books, particularly in the essays on This Island Earth and 2001: A Space Odyssey and its sequels. For these apparent digressions I make no apologies, having never been respectful toward arbitrary boundaries and fully believing that films are sometimes best illuminated when considered in the context of related works in other media.
I might finally comment briefly on the book’s concluding essay, which was not originally going to be included, inasmuch as it was written primarily as my meditation on my marriage to Lynne; however, reading it over, I saw that it was also functioning as a commentary on the reasons why I enjoy science fiction films, and worth featuring for that reason, even if Lynne still feels the piece does not quite do justice to her. She has, however, declined to add her own comments on her marriage, and her contrasting tastes in films, preferring as always to suffer her husband’s idiosyncrasies in silence.
1. FLIGHTS OF FANCY: SPACE FILMS BEFORE 1950
It must first be acknowledged that the science fiction films of the silent era, and even of the early sound era, remain a significantly unexplored area. Every new investigation along a different research vector may bring to light a few more obscure items to consider; every year, a film previously believed to be lost may be rediscovered, carefully restored, and released for viewing. (Now that a complete version of Himmelskibet [1906] has been located, attention is being devoted