In today's blog, we plan to do something interesting. Rank space movies based on the science and absurdity they depicted. Science can be fun, so can stupidity. But if too much absurdity is miserably explained by science, it gets a little annoying.
Disclaimer- This list only has movies that I have seen and remember.
I know many of you will hate me for putting it as No. 1 instead of No. 2 but hear me out. It's just that the chances of it happening are much higher than my next choice. Almost all science checks out and it gives us a happy ending! Also, I think I'm partial because I work on Mars. Aannddd... the novel is good too. Give it a go if you have some spare time.
The next one HAS to be INTERSTELLAR of course!
No doubt it is one of the best and scientifically accurate movies and it is everybody's favourite. It has all the elements - it makes you happy, sad, scared and angry, all at the same time. And not to forget that the soundtrack is just out of this world (pun intended).
This also has a novel to explain all the science that happened theoretically.
It was a lonely and depressing movie for me but that's exactly how space is if you get stranded. We really should be happy just to be alive and living perfectly well on Earth. That itself is a miracle. Any other scenario and our planet would have ended up like one of its near or far neighbours. After many failed attempts at life in countless other planets, this one just finally managed to get the equations right :D
Let's admit it, we all want to see aliens. At least I do! There's no way we are alone in this huge huugeee universe. Just that I think if we are the higher beings in terms of intelligence and scientific advancement, we need to find life elsewhere. And if the aliens are the higher beings, they probably saw us and don't want to get in contact???
#sadlife #alienshateus #waitingforET
So, let's put No. 5 as GEOSTORM
Oh my god, the movie was a storm. In a really bad way. Normally, I like watching disaster movies (Special mention - Twister! I think that movie cemented my decision of studying science to become a scientist) or the-world-is-going-to-end movies, but definitely not this one. It was just a lot of things that don't make sense.
Other Disclaimer- I have seen many other good (and bad) movies in many different languages but I just don't have the space to write about them. Maybe we need a continuation of this blog? Comment movies you think should have been here!
Shivangi Sharan is a third year PhD student at the Laboratory of Planetology and Geosciences in France. Her research focusses on the study of the magnetic field of planets and to infer their internal structure from it. She is an active member of the IAGA Blog Team and can be contacted via e-mail here.
This is a great topic. Of your four "good" movies, my favorite is Contact, but I should watch the others again to re-compare. Contact does involve some speculation, but successfully melds the physical sciences with linguistics, and also the vicissitudes of life and the human heart.
ReplyDeleteI've always wondered why so many movies that are "science-based" could so easily have done the science much better, or at least not be blatantly absurd. And these "bad" science movies sometimes acknowledge scientific consultants in the credits. Presumably, their advice was ignored in the interest of a supposedly better story.
One schlocky film I could not resist because of its geomagnetic theme was The Core (2003). "The film focuses on a team whose mission is to drill to the center of the Earth and set off a series of nuclear explosions in order to restart the rotation of the Earth's core" (Wikipedia). I did take my geophysics class to see the film in the theater back in the day, after which we discussed its better and worse aspects. I even bought on eBay a group of promotional posters and the script of the movie. Hmm, I'll have to show and discuss those in my own blog about the International Geophysical Year (https://internationalgeophysicalyear.blogspot.com/) at some point.
The Core is currently available to view at no charge on the Roku channel.
I feel this is cool as these sci-fi are all interesting. I feel the "space between us" looks interesting also. How about getting their official trailer and posting so people can have a look?
ReplyDeleteMyself, I will like to watch all..😀