Tag: 9
9
by morgan on Sep.08, 2009, under Paolo Bacigalupi
I watched the new film “9″ tonight. It’s a fun movie, imaginative and tightly constructed, and I enjoyed the characters and story. The clever construction of mechanical beasts was a highlight for me, and the animation is top notch. I highly recommend this one.
Its apocalyptic wasteland setting is particularly interesting given our current topic. This is no spoiler, since it is clear in the trailer and within the first few moments of the movie, that technology is mankind’s doom.
Scarcity is a looming problem. Could we be equally vulnerable to overabundance? In the case of “9,” you could argue it is overabundance of technology. As science fiction addresses the dangers of “too little,” it would also be compelling to see writers continue to address threats of “too much.” Are they really that different or just the same scarcity issue from different points of view?
9
by morgan on Aug.25, 2009, under Lev Grossman
What about a movie like 9?
This is the type of movie that I very much want to see, and it’s something that I’d love to see become more common in fantasy & sf. It doesn’t fit squarely into either genre. It’s a doomsday and steampunk story with robots and scientists, but it also features warriors and “dragons.” It feels like a fairy tale adventure, but maybe that’s because it is a cartoon.
So, I’m in favor of breaking conventions. I’m preaching to the choir here, since the Magicians nicely subverts expectations. Let’s have wizards and robots mingle and dragons commanding starships. Three cheers to Justina Robson for her cyborg elves.
