Marc Scott Zicree: Rod Serling and The Twilight Zone Companion

“You’re traveling through another dimension, a dimension not only of sight and sound but of mind; a journey into a wondrous land whose boundaries are that of imagination. That’s the signpost up ahead – your next stop, the Twilight Zone!”

If you have spent much time at all watching classic television from the late 1950s into the 1960s then you have no doubt seen The Twilight Zone. This program was a formative one in my childhood and teen years in the 1970s, and it remains a source of fascination for me, as well for countless numbers of people.

For Christmas in 2006 one of the gifts I received was Marc Scott Zicree’s The Twilight Zone Companion, 2nd ed. (Los Angeles: Silman-James Press, 1989). After reading through the book and enjoying it immensely I contacted Marc through his website. Marc agreed to participate in an interview, but due to his very busy schedule as a writer and producer we were like two ships passing in the night. Just recently we were finally able to connect for a phone interview with the transcript below:

TheoFantastique: Marc, thank you for making time in a very busy schedule to participate in this interview. As we begin, for those who may not be familiar with your work can you sketch some of your background that you bring to the subject matter?

Marc Scott Zicree: Sure. Basically, I grew up in Los Angeles and spent all of my childhood reading science fiction books, comics books, watching television, and drawing, and although I went to UCLA as an art major taking graphic arts and having gallery shows of my art, by the time I was 19 I knew I wanted to be a writer. So I went to the Clarion Writers Workshop at Michigan State University, which is the top science fiction writing workshop in the country. It’s twenty-five students, and each week a different science fiction writer, a famous science fiction writer, lives in the dormitory with you and you workshop and write like crazy. It involves six writers over a six week course. I sold my first short story via Clarion to Damon Knight who was editing a science fiction anthology at that time. I went back to UCLA and got my degree in painting, sculpture, and graphic arts, but once I got out of college I knew I wanted to be a writer, producer, and to work in television.

At that time there really was no where you could go to learn that, so I thought let’s do some research, why not study up on one of the greatest shows of all time, and see how they made that show in order for me to learn how to do that. And the three shows that really made me want to be a writer and producer as a kid were the original Star Trek, the original Outer Limits, and the original Twilight Zone. So I thought of reading up on Twilight Zone and saw that there was written about it, we’re talking 1977. So this was two years after Rod Serling had died. I thought I would have to write the book that I wanted to read to learn what I needed to learn. The challenge was that I had sold one short story and had never even taken a journalism class, and I’d heard that Rod Serling’s widow, Carol, had already turned down major journalists who had wanted to write about Rod Serling and Twilight Zone. I think if I would have taken a poll of 100 people as to what my chances were about getting this book written they would have said I had no chance. It was up to me to make it happen. What I did was, I met one of the writers of The Twilight Zone, a fellow named George Clayton Johnson, at a science fiction convention when I was 16 and I kept in touch with him. So I interviewed George, and then I asked him who he knew, and he connected me with a couple of people and I interviewed them, and then they connected me up with people. Over a three month period I interviewed thirty people who had worked on The Twilight Zone, and it was only then when I really knew a lot about the subject and felt very confident that I could write this book that I went to Carol Serling. I remember going to her house that was exactly as Rod had left it with all of his Emmys were there, and Peabody Awards, and the three Hugos he won, and even his dog was there, an elderly Irish Setter. I remember standing in that very large living room telling Carol Serling what I had in mind, and I just felt absolutely convinced I could pull it off. And then Carol must have talked to someone I had interviewed and asked what they thought of me, and they must have given me a good report, because the next thing I knew Carol Serling said I had access to everything. And I spent the next several years, literally, crawling through Serling’s attic, going through his notebooks, pulling folders out of his files, and opening up boxes and carrying home his 16mm prints of The Twilight Zone episodes from the screening room, and just immersing myself in that subject. The book came out five years later, and it was rejected by twenty-vie publishers, two years of solid rejections, and that was where having my wife, Elaine, was vital who said, “Just keep going.” I did, and subsequently the book came out and was a huge bestseller, it was nominated for the American Book Award, it has sold over half a million copies, it’s been in print for over twenty-five years.

So there begins the tale. I started writing when I was 22 years old, and by the time I was 23 I was writing for television, and I’ve been doing so ever since. In fact, I just got nominated for the Nebula Award for the Star Trek episode I wrote and directed. This happened just last week.

TheoFantastique: Great. Congratulations on the award, and thanks for hanging in there on the book, it’s just wonderful. You mentioned the various television influences, and obviously Rod Serling. Your book begins with a discussion of his life and talks about his writing. Can you highlight some of the significant aspects of his life, in particular his work with Playhouse 90, perhaps his growing frustrations and how he left some of that to experiment with something new that would eventually become The Twilight Zone?

Marc Scott Zicree: Rod was born in Upstate New York, and he was a very outgoing child, very gregarious, very smart, very funny. He was tremendously popular, and then as soon as he graduated high school World War II had just started and so he volunteered and became a paratrooper, and jumped out of airplanes into jungles with Japanese soldiers who were trying to kill him. As a result, he suffered a severe shrapnel wound in his leg. When he came out of the war he had this tremendous need to write, to get things off his chest. He really needed something to process the horrors that he had endured. He started writing, and his initial submissions were to radio shows, and finally he sold something to a show called Grand Central Station. Then he was off and running. Television was just starting up in the late 1940s, and so he transitioned from radio to television. At that time they were really positioning television as this new medium that would be similar to the Broadway stage but that the entire country could watch and millions of
people simultaneously. It was live television at the time. So you got wonderful, brilliant writers producing works that were deeply personal and deeply realistic. And Rod was one of those writers. So from 1954-56 there were a lot of anthology shows on at that time such as Craft Playhouse, and Rod was writing about things society, and race, and politics, and when he tried to write something that was topical that was potentially controversial that came out of his heart and gut he was censored heavily to the degree that he couldn’t use the worlds “Democrat” or Republican,” he couldn’t talk about lynching, he couldn’t talk about major events of the day. So although he quickly became one of the top writers in television, writing things like “Requiem for a Heavyweight,” and although he was hugely successful and well paid, he was not satisfied as an artist because he was constantly feeling shackled as a writer. At one point he had written a political piece for Playhouse 90 and wasn’t able to comment on anything political so he said to the press, “If I’d have put it in the future and populated the planet with robots I think I would have been able to put in more of what I had to say.” This gave him the idea that if he took what he wanted to say and put it in a science fiction or fantasy context the censors wouldn’t notice that he wrote about his own world, but would have been able to get the word out. Which is exactly what happened. He created The Twilight Zone, and it took several years to actually sell it. He worked on a number of pilots before they actually shot the one that sold the show, and then he was off and running, and he had total creative control. There were 156 episodes and Serling wrote 92 of them himself.

TheoFantastique: It’s amazing as you watch the program that he addressed a number of social issues of the time that still resonate today. Why were issues of racism, the social outcast, oppression, and other social issues so important for him to explore?

Marc Scott Zicree: There are two different kinds of writers: there are writers who write to escape from their lives, to hid from what’s around them, and then there are writers who want to comment on their lives, and comment on the world their living in. I’m sort of the latter kind and so was Rod. When you have a medium in which millions of people are watching your work, and it lasts for decades, possibly for hundreds of years, it’s such an enormously powerful medium, television, that you want to say something fresh, you want to say something relevant, you want to say something truthful, and Rod was one of the great torchbearers of that cause, the cause of truth, and a spokesperson for his age. And in the tradition of Twain and Dickens, he wanted to be someone who could speak to what was wrong with society and as a result possibly change it. At the same time Rod was very aware that he had to be an entertainer and had to be entertaining in his work, and I think The Twilight Zone is very entertaining. I think one of the ironies of the fact that that the way Rod had turn The Twilight Zone to avoid censorship was that it forced him to write more universally. So, for instance, if he had been writings shows directly about things like the Cuban Missile Crisis, it would seem very musty that reflected the 1950s or 1960s, but because he was writing about the fear of the destruction of the world, fear of alien nation, fear of being singled out and alone against terrible, dreadful forces, something like “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet,” where William Shatner sees a gremlin on the wing and has to fight the others to prove that he’s sane, anyone who has ever spoken for a cause or gone against the majority opinion has this sense of being an outsider and has this sense of being that lone voice in the wilderness, and so I think Rod is almost unwittingly speaking for the ages because he was speaking more universally as a result of the censorship.

TheoFantastique: My teenage children recently discovered Twilight Zone for themselves and are now digging into my copies on DVD to watch the program, and obviously its appeal over the decades is due to fantastic story writing. I know that Rod Serling wrote the bulk of the stories for the series, but what other writers left their mark on this television experiment?

Marc Scott Zicree: There was a small core of writers on The Twilight Zone. Rod, of course, was writing the bulk of the episodes, but there was also Richard Matheson who wrote, again, “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet,” he wrote a lot of terrific episodes. There was George Clayton Johnson who wrote “Kick the Can” and “Nothing in the Dark,” there was Charles Beaumont who wrote “”Long Live Walter Jameson,” and “The Howling Man.” There was also a writer named Earl Hamner who tended to write stories for the most part that were about rural characters, farmers and backwoods people. He actually went on to create The Waltons after he wrote eight episodes for The Twilight Zone. And then there were a few writers who just wrote one episode, but they were great episodes. For example, E. Jack Neuman wrote “The Trouble with Templeton,” and Reginald Rose wrote “The Incredible World of Horace Ford.” I think more than anything, although The Twilight Zone, although it had great acting, great directing, great music, great cinematography, more than anything The Twilight Zone was a writer’s show. It was run by a writer, and it was a show that showcased and spotlighted great writing. And I don’t thin without the great writing you would have had the great talent in other departments or the longevity the show has enjoyed.

TheoFantastique: This next question will be a tough one given the number of episodes, and so many good ones, if you had to narrow it down to two or three, what are some of your favorite episodes and why do they stand out for you?

Marc Scott Zicree: My favorite episode is “Walking Distance” which was one of Rod’s favorites too. In it Gig Young places a very tired, worldly executive who journeys back to his hometown and finds himself in his own past in his childhood and is determined to stay there. It’s just a great episode, it’s gorgeously written, gorgeously acted, perfect in every department. “Time Enough at Last” with Burgess Meredith as the last man on earth as a little bookworm, of course, is unforgettable. “Miniature” starring Robert Duvall, which is one of the hour-long episodes, is a terrific script by Charles Beaumont that is wonderfully acted by Robert Duvall. Another one I really like is “In Praise of Pip” with Billy Mumy and Jack Klugman, a great Serling script. There are just so many brilliant episodes. But then also there are episodes that sort of have a reach beyond the episode itself, such as “Mirror Image” which introduces the whole notion of the parallel world where your duplicate might try to take over your place in this world. It’s so creepy and I think it spawned a lot of other ideas in film and television.

TheoFantastique: What kind of continuing influence do you think The Twilight Zone has had on film and television?

Marc Scott Zicree: This had an enormous influence. I think there’s a whole subgenre of movies that you could basically say are Twilight Zone movies in feature length form. Certainly Field of Dreams, E.T., you could say Close Encounters of the Third Kind is very much a Twilight Zone kind of movie. Every year I think you can look to certain films that are very strongly influenced by Twilight Zone. Poltergeist is another one. In terms of television, Eureka is reminiscent of Twilight Zone. And something like Pushing Daisies where someone has this miraculous ability. Matheson talked about his concept for The Twilight Zone which was you write as realistically as possible and you drop in one fancy notion, just one, and you see how it plays out. So what if you were an old woman who was afraid of death and Mr. Death came calling in the form of someone who looks like a handsome police officer. So you have this one [fantasy] notion, but the rest of it is reality based. I think Pushing Daisies is that. Lost is strongly influenced by Twilight Zone. So the ripple effect for Twilight Zone has been major. Gene Roddenberry gave the eulogy at Rod Serling’s funeral and I think Star Trek would not exist if not for Twilight Zone. Twilight Zone basically said you can do adult science fiction on television, you don’t have to dumb it down, it’s not just for teenie fair like Space Patrol or Space Cadet. These are shows that I love but they are clearly not the kind of program The Twilight Zone was. The Twilight Zone still packs a punch.

TheoFantastique: You mentioned at the beginning a number of the projects that you’ve been involved in. What might folks look for in their local bookstore or on television that you’ve been involved in?

Marc Scott Zicree: The most fun they can have in terms of my work is if they log onto http://www.startreknewvoyages.com/index.html they can watch the entire episode of Star Trek I’ve just co-written, directed, and executive produced that stars George Takei that was just nominated for the Nebula. If anybody is going to the World Science Fiction Convention and wants to nominate it for a Hugo they’ve got the next two weeks to do so. I’ve also written the Magic Time trilogy of novels, The Twilight Zone Companion is still in print. They are also just about to release a Twilight Zone unabridged audio that will include my interview with Burgess Meredith. This will be great fun I think. And then I’m creating a new television show called Frontier that won’t be out for a little while but is a big, ambitious space-going show. So there’s plenty of stuff on the horizon.

TheoFantastique: Well, Marc, it sounds like the research you did on Rod Serling and The Twilight Zone worked out very well for you in learning the writer’s craft and entertaining people. Thank you so much for taking the time. I appreciate it. I’m glad we were finally able to touch bases.

Marc Scott Zicree: You’re very welcome. I’m happy to do it. And keep enjoying The Twilight Zone.

HomeHauntNews: E-Zine for the Increasing Number of Home Haunters

The haunted attraction industry is growing with our culture’s increasing interest in Halloween, a phenomenon noted in books like Jack Santino, ed., Halloween and Other Festivals of Death and Life (University of Tennessee Press, 1994), and Nicholas Rogers, Halloween: From Pagan Ritual to Party Night (Oxford University Press, 2002). The popularity of the holiday has resulted in gatherings like HauntCon and the Midwest Haunters Convention, as well as media like Haunted Attraction Magazine, Haunted Media Magazine, as well as another interesting publication in e-zine form, HomeHauntNews. This publication is unique in that it is specifically devoted to home haunters rather than professional haunted attractions. Johnny “Scare Shack” has agreed to talk about his publication and the home haunt industry.

TheoFantastique: Johnny, can you tell us a little about yourself?

Johnny: Most call me Johnny, but I am also known as “The Scare Shack” on various Halloween/Haunt Related forums. I have been home haunting for many years and have a true passion for haunting, anything haunting or haunted. I am the type that once a goal is set I will accomplish it! My family of six has learned this already as well as some non-haunt friends. They have finally come to the conclusion, that if its not related to haunting….it wont spark my brain. I love everyone around me, don’t get me wrong, my family is my life! Now add anything haunt related ….well…

TheoFantastique: How did you decide to create HomeHauntNews?

Johnny: This can be a long winded answer so I will give you the short of it. I have been home haunting for many years. In that time I have learned a great amount from other home haunters in regards to prop building, lighting, make-up and also have made a lot of great friends. I love the whole haunt community from home haunters all the way up to the professional haunted attractions and the people involved. There are many different magazines and e-zines out there related to the haunt community and Halloween. I didn’t see any thing out there that was devoted to just the home haunter. That’s me, these are my people, my friends! So basically I figured I would offer something back to all the home haunters out there as a true thank you to them for being who we all are. This is where the idea of Home Haunters News and Reviews came from. Basically, something I can give back to my fellow haunters for there enjoyment and to aid in the continuous growth of Halloween. I could ramble on, but said “I will give you the short of it”.

TheoFantastique: What types of features do you have in the e-zine?

Johnny: HomeHaunters News and Reviews has many different types of features and content. From offing articles on “Featured Home Haunters”, “Party Ideas”, “Tips N tricks”, “Prop How-to’s”, “Make-Up and Costuming”, “Up-Coming Events”, “Readers Photo Gallery”,“Latest News”, “Vendor Spotlight” and much more. We are adding many different new features in regards to content and as well with diffent options for viewing/downloading the e-zine. The e-zine is being offered bi-montly as of now with many, many, new things coming. I urge all to join the mailing list to keep abreast of the changes as well as the new website coming soon.

TheoFantastique: I know the e-zine has been promoted in a few places lately. In fact, I heard about it through Rue Morgue Magazine. What has the response been to HomeHauntNews?

Johnny: Honestly, so far the response in my opinion has been great. After throwing the idea back and forth with a few others, I decided to do it. I didn’t really think it was going to take off as fast as it did. Especially for not even being 100% finished before I put it out there.I do have to say from e-mails flooding in, and pm’s being sent in, I will admit I’m overwhelmed on the response thus far.

TheoFantastique: How can interested readers get in touch with you to enjoy this publication, and perhaps even to participate by submitting content?

Johnny: That’s very simple. Reader’s can simply join our mailing list by sending an email to Homehauntnews@yahoo.com to receive the latest updated info and issue release date’s. As well as anyone wanting to send in info can contact me directly at Scareshack@yahoo.com.

TheoFantastique: Johnny, thanks again for this interview, and for your helpful and fun resource for home haunters.

Johnny: It was my pleasure. Thank you for having me and always a true pleasure helping to give back to the haunt community.

Ben Chapman’s Passing: The Loss of the Man Behind an Iconic Cinema Creature

I received an email announcement from Rue Morgue Radio announcing that Ben Chapman, the actor who played the Creature from the Black Lagoon in the land-based scenes from the film, passed away this morning. As I have mentioned previously, this film was the first horror film I saw as a young boy that both frightened me and filled me with a sense of awe as it touched my imagination. The Creature, in part through Chapman’s work, helped shape my lifelong passion for the fantastic and the horrific. I attempted to contact Chapman last year through his website for a possible interview and I received a response from his agent notifying me that Chapman was leaving the hospital in his home in Hawaii only to relocate to the mainland for recovery. Unfortunately, I will not have an opportunity to chat with Chapman, but his legacy lives on in this classic film and in the imaginations of countless people impacted by this iconic Creature through the decades.

Whitt and Perlich on Myth and Science Fiction

I recently mentioned a new book that looked very interesting to me, Sith, Slayers, Stargates and Cyborgs: Modern Mythology and the New Millennium (Peter Lang Publishers, 2007), edited by David Whitt and John Perlich. Dr. David Whitt is Associate Professor of Communication at Nebraska Wesleyan University, and Dr. John Perlich is Associate Professor of Communication at Hastings College in Nebraska. I contacted David and John and they were were all too willing to discuss this fascinating book. After reviewing some of the chapters we had an opportunity to discuss aspects of the book.

TheoFantastique: David and John, thanks for editing such a great book, and making some time to discuss it here. To begin with, how did the idea of dealing with myth, archetype and contemporary science fiction as a collaborative volume first come about?

David Whitt: John will say it was my idea because I wrote my doctoral dissertation examining cyborgs through texts such as The Matrix, Star Trek (specifically, The Borg) and Japanese anime. Then in 2004 we were both on a panel at the National Communication Association Conference in Chicago titled The Matrix, Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter: Modern Mythology in the New Millennium. Much to our surprise the panel was incredibly well attended and the feedback from the audience during and after the session was remarkable. This overwhelmingly positive response then gave John the idea that we should do a book. So, don’t listen to John. It really was HIS idea!

John Perlich: To be honest the idea was Dave’s! I am a huge science fiction fan so when Dave told me about his dissertation I asked him to send me a copy. After reading his dissertation I was stunned by the significance of Frankenstein myth in contemporary culture and told him that his work should be published. Dave asked me to collaborate with him on a conference submission that was presented in 2004—the reception was so positive that we decided to develop an anthology…and here we are.

TheoFantastique: As you lay the groundwork for the volume you discuss myth. You draw upon the work of Joseph Campbell and others, and as you do this, how are you defining myth and how do you see this connected to science fiction and fantasy?

John Perlich: I’m a devoted fan of Campbell’s work and believe that myth is something we live, not just something we read about. From the time we are born, all of us imagine a story for our lives. That story includes details (possibly including marriage, career aspirations, success, perseverance) and could be characterized as a myth. However, our stories are not unique—we borrow from other stories to create a grand yet personal myth. Science fiction and fantasy fit because they are either reshaping the classic time-honored myths or retelling those myths. The result of these “tellings” is an opportunity to develop our own personal myth. Feminist scholars, for example, will note that classic mythology does not always give positive exemplars for women. But fantasy and science fiction texts provide opportunity for new stories, new myths, new ideas (and ideologies). You’ll notice by my examples that whether highly personal or classic, myths have structure, order, and coherence.

TheoFantastique: You reference science fiction and fantasy as a “New Mythology” for our times. What do you mean by this, and how is it that we have this paradoxical situation where many people explore science fiction in mythic ways as the “music of the spheres,” and yet as you note “some authors also demonstrate the folly of those who are seemingly deaf to the ‘song of the universe'”?

David Whitt: The cover of our book, which was John’s idea, expresses this idea well. It’s an image of earth against a solar eclipse. The cyclical nature of the image suggests that while the centuries may change, the mythic stories we tell are timeless. In terms of the phrase “New Mythology” I must give credit to another source. When writing my dissertation and having to defend the legitimacy of studying science fiction I found THE perfect quote from Voytilla (1999) who stated that “science fiction and fantasy are our New Mythology and provide an important canvas to explore society’s issues.” Historically this certainly has been true as this genre has provided commentary on science, technology, politics, religion, and culture. Everyone from Jules Verne to J.K. Rowling owes a great debt to mythology.

John Perlich: The classic structures known as myth are not fixed but fluid and evolving. As I said before, myths are lived. Therefore, it is crucial that we not simply retell classic mythologies, but actually spend time reinventing mythology. I believe my ideological example above makes the point fairly well; reinventing myth often involves finding room for new voices, not simply providing a platform for those who have been at the podium for quite some time.

TheoFantastique: In addition to editing the volume each of you contributed chapters from your own areas of interest. John, you wrote on the Star Wars films and addressed how George Lucas may have lost his way in the development of his mythos as he moved from his first trilogy to his second trilogy of films. I share this sentiment, but it is all the more striking when we consider Lucas’s dialogue with Campbell along the way as he produced his mythic tale. Can you briefly describe your thesis, and perhaps touch on your theories as to why Lucas may have strayed, even with close proximity to Campbell in the early stages of his mythic development?

John Perlich: This would be a good opportunity for me to tell your readers that they should buy the book for the answer, but you deserve more. LOL. As noted in the book I approached my deconstruction of the Star Wars mythos not as a skeptic but as a life-long fan. That is why it was somewhat painful for me to indict the master of this mythology. To put my thesis as simply as possible, sometimes “less is more,” and in the case of The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, and Revenge of the Sith, it seemed like an odd choice when the decision was made to quantify the mystical energy known as “the Force.” When followed to a logical conclusion this decision has tremendous implications regarding myths that speak to us about transcendence and redemption.

TheoFantastique: David, do you have any thoughts or comments on this?

David Whitt: To say that I was disappointed with the prequels in an understatement. John’s chapter articulates quite well how Lucas abandoned the mythic foundation so strong in the original trilogy. In fact, by the time I was done reading his chapter I was more upset with Lucas than I was before!

TheoFantastique: John, I was intrigued near the conclusion of your chapter with your passing reference to “other new mythologies” where you mention Guillermo del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth. Some time ago I posted some auteur exploration of this film on this blog and as I track what brings readers here the mythic and archetypal dimensions of this film are of ongoing interest to many. Would either of you like to say a few things about del Toro and his mythmaking, particularly in Pan’s Labyrinth?

John Perlich: Yes! What a fabulous work. When I make reference to “myths that speak to us about transcendence and redemption,” I speak of this work (and many notable others). The sacrifice of the protagonist in this film is profound (especially as it relates with transcendence and redemption). It’s hard to speak of the accomplishment that del Toro achieved with El Laberinto del Fauno without ruining the plotline, so I’ll just recommend it for everyone (except perhaps small children).

David Whitt: What I loved about Pan’s Labyrinth is how it takes you on an emotional journey that weaves the personal against the backdrop of the political. PL left a powerful impression upon me when I saw it in the theater. I like to think of PL as a bedtime story for adults rather than children.

TheoFantastique: David, your chapter in the volume picks up the Frankenstein myth and applies it to the issues of technology and cybernetics, particularly with application to the Teen Titans comic and television cartoon. Can you sketch your thesis for us, and then touch on how the Frankenstein myth continues to work itself out in a variety of pop culture phenomenon such as Teen Titans?

David Whitt: For years I have been interested in cyborg film and television and how these texts comment on our human development. One area of study I thought was lacking was how our human/machine merger impacts children and their attitudes toward this technology. I became intrigued with the character Cyborg from Teen Titans and his struggle to maintain his humanity and individuality within a cybernetic body. The parallels to Frankenstein seemed obvious so I wanted to explore this more critically.

TheoFantastique: How do you see such contemporary interactions with the myth shaping the attitudes of youth to a technologically-driven society and the question of our human identity in relation to such technology?

David Whitt: I argue that Cyborg initially connects with teens on a mythic level because of their popular culture knowledge of Frankenstein (Halloween, Frankenberry, The Munsters). Additionally, children can relate to this character because he talks and acts like they do, and more importantly, embraces technology. Certainly today’s youth are more technologically savvy than their parents and through a character like Cyborg they see themselves. Cyborg’s struggle with identity teaches important lessons to children about what it means to be human as we continue our inevitable cyborg development.

TheoFantastique: I also appreciated the chapter that looked at how Joss Whedon modified and perhaps even subverted the heroes quest story by not only modifying its traditional gender expressions, but also moving from the one to the many. Can you sketch a little of the discussion for us in the book?

David Whitt: Cochran and Edwards examine the archetypes of myth and how Whedon basically plays with these archetypes in relation to the “Scoobies” in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. This chapter is one of my favorites.

John Perlich: As I noted before, mythology is fluid and lived. Therefore, making room for new voices becomes an interesting point of discussion for comparative mythologists (like Campbell). Slayer fans will enjoy Cochran and Edward’s treatment of the Buffy series very much.

TheoFantastique: In your view, can we anticipate a long and healthy future for science fiction and fantasy in providing a medium for the engagement of myth and the creation of new mythologies in the new millennium?

John Perlich: I have no reservations on this subject matter—most definitely. Science fiction and fantasy genres offer liberating forums and avenues that were popularized with the original Star Trek. We continue to see these avenues and opportunities unfolding in ways that both affirm and critique ideology and modernity.

David Whitt: Absolutely! In fact, with Hollywood finally discovering, or should I say re-discovering, the mythic power of children’s stories and comic book superheroes the immediate future of sci-fi fantasy looks very promising.

TheoFantastique: John and David, thanks again for your willingness to discuss this book. I hope you continue such exploration in future projects.

David and John: Our pleasure! We should mention that we recently posted a call for papers regarding our next project There and Back Again: Mythology in the New Millennium. This volume will be a natural extension of the work in Sith, Slayers, Stargates and Cyborgs. However, instead of focusing primarily on science fiction this collection will focus on fantasy texts. If anyone is interested in submitting a proposal please refer to the call posted on h-net for more details or feel free to contact either John at jperlich@hastings.edu or David at dfw@NebrWesleyan.edu.

TheoFantastique: This next project sounds great. Please keep TheoFantastique in mind for discussing and promoting this volume when it is completed. I hope this interview helps promote your current volume, and perhaps sends contributors your way for the next one. Thanks again.

“And the Oscar goes to…”: Overlooked Fantastic Films Deserve Oscar Nod

In 1954 Marlon Brando uttered a line of dialogue that would become one of the classics of the silver screen. In one of the more riveting scenes from On the Waterfront, Brando struggles with what might have been in his boxing career and delivers the line: “I could have been a contender, I could have been somebody…” As the 80th Annual Academy Awards draws near on February 28th, some of us wonder what films and what actors might have been contenders if only their genres and subject matter had been more “mainstream.” Cinefantastique Online asked me to be a part of a handful of select websites and blogs that would discuss this topic in anticipation of next week’s Oscar night.

As I reflected on Cinfantastique‘s request and looked back at 2007 and what it produced in terms of cinema in the genres of horror, science fiction and fantasy, like any other genres of film, these genres produce a lot of mediocre material, as well as a lot of bad films and performances as well. But such things are surely not limited to the genres of the fantastic. If we look closely we can find a few gems worthy of careful consideration, and I would argue, even a few that should be considered on Oscar night.

For those of you who have read this blog before, especially over the last six months or so, it should come as no surprise which films I would nominate. The first film that stands out in my thinking is I Am Legend, and readers might take a look at my previous discussion of this film from last December here. This film surprised me in a number of positive ways, not least of which was Will Smith’s strong performance. Most of my exposure to Smith’s acting over the years has been from his early television work, and then his films, particularly his action and comedy movies. I have not seen his more critically acclaimed roles in films such as Ali (2001) or The Pursuit of Happyness (2006), thus I was surprised by the credibility he was able to bring to his character in Legend. Beyond this, Smith’s prior work in science fiction, such as Independence Day (1996), Men in Black I (1997) and II (2002), and even less so but to a certain extent in I, Robot (2004), while representing good acting, in my view Smith’s performance still emphasized his background in comedy rather than drama, and certainly did not rise to the level of serious drama as showcased in Legend. Smith’s performance in this film is especially striking when we consider that for the most part the film is a one-man show, and the story’s initial and ongoing credibility is either sustained or lost through Smith’s acting ability. I believe it would be difficult for any viewer not to suspend disbelief and to enter into Legend‘s story as Smith’s character slowly unravels emotionally as he deals with the ongoing challenges of being (in his mind) the only survivor of a human-made apocalypse that has impacted the globe. For these reasons I would argue that Smith should have been considered for the Best Actor category.

In my mind another film stands out from last year, one which represents a blending of genres, in the form of comedy and horror (a difficult blend to accomplish well), the 2006 film Fido (but which did not see U.S. release until 2007). Readers might recall my previous discussion of this film, a hilarious domestic take on the growing zombie mythology, similar in many ways in style and substance to Shaun of the Dead (2004). Fido may even be slightly better than Shaun in its ability to engage various social, cultural, gender, and religious issues. Unfortunately, this film seems to have received very limited release in the U.S. and thus even many horror fans have not been exposed to this gem. Fido receives my nomination for a new category, that of Best Comedy.

My fellow commentators associated with Cinefantastique will make a case for other films that they feel were worthy of Oscar nominations that will add to my own contribution. But if these films really do represent quality examples of cinema why were they overlooked? We might also ask, why do science fiction, fantasy, and horror films tend to get overlooked by the Academy year after year? I think the answer is because their genres are not taken seriously as legitimate venues for acting and cinematic production. As I mentioned briefly in a previous post:

“the horror genre, along with science fiction and fantasy, are not, in general, taken as seriously as other genres of film. Even though these genres have produced some of the highest grossing films in history (as Jaws, E.T. Star Wars [and Harry Potter] indicate), they still tend to represent marginalized genres…”

While these types of films have always served an important social function in providing a context for the culture to either process issues of contemporary angst, to engage the imagination, or to consider utopian or dystopian possibilties, for whatever reasons, while large segments of the culture draw upon such sources for individual and collective engagement, nevertheless they hover on the fringes of mainstream respectability. I don’t think this situation will change anytime soon, but if anyone from the Acadmy is listenting, how about considering the genres in the future for awards that move beyond makeup, film score, and special effects?

What other fine cinematic treats might have been ignored by the Academy Awards? You can read about Cinefantastiqueonline’s selections and those of the other bloggers and websites here.

Pop Culture Explores the Apocalypse

The January 28, 2008 issue of TIME magazine includes an interesting article in its Arts section title “Apocalypse New” by Lev Grossman. The article can also be found online here. The article is worthy of reflection in that it notes the continued exploration of the end of human life and dominance on this planet through various aspects of popular culture, including video games (Half-Life 2), comics (Y: The Last Man), television shows (Jericho, Battlestar Galactica), films (I Am Legend, Cloverfield, and Disney and Pixar’s forthcoming Wall*E), and even music (Nine Inch Nails’ album Year Zero).

As the article sketches the influence on the West in its development of apocalyptic thought it notes the influence of the biblical books of Daniel and Revelation, and then suggests that writers like Mary Shelley and T. S. Eliot helped give the concept shape in secular literary fashion.

The article spends a good amount of space looking at the recent apocalyptic film that is doing very well at the box office, Cloverfield, despite the initial protest of film critics who decried the visual connections to the 9/11 attacks and the negative memories this might invoke in viewers. This protest seemed curious to me since one of the functions of horror films has always been the provision of a safe forum for the expression of social and cultural fears. The producer of Cloverfield is quoted in the article in this regard where he states, “We wanted to let people live through their wildest fears but be in a safe place, where the enemy is the size of a skyscraper instead of some stateless, unseen cowardly terrorist.”

The article closes on an interesting and curious note as it discusses the strange paradox of the apocalyptic which includes elements of both fear and yet also seduction as we contemplate the possibility of our personal and corporate end. It seems as if our ongoing explorations of apocalyptic visions also include elements of our growing dissatisfaction with humanity in general, but in particular certain cultures, no less that of America, as well as our impact on the environment. As a journalism professor states in the article, “There is on some level a secret longing that people have, saying ‘Let’s just give it up. What a mess we’ve made just by being alive.’ We all have this footprint now. We’ve redefined original sin.”

Move over Evangelical Christians. Your explorations of one religious expression of apocalypticism through the Left Behind phenomenon must continue to rub shoulders with secular explorations in the “doom boom.”

Sith, Slayers, Stargates and Cyborgs: Modern Mythology in the New Millennium

The Popular Culture Association continues to be a great source for addressing fascinating aspects at the intersection between the fantastic and culture. Yesterday I received an announcement concerning a call for papers dealing with the topic of mythology and the new millennium for a volume that is viewed as a logical extension of a new book. This new book is edited by David Whitt and John R. Perlich, and it is titled Slayers, Stargates, and Cyborgs: Modern Mythology in the New Millennium (Peter Lang Publishers, 2007). The book is not yet available from American publishing outlets but can be ordered directly from the publisher or from Amazon.com.

Book Description
The beginning of the twenty-first century has already seen its fair share of modern myths with heroes such as Spider-Man, Superman, and Harry Potter. The authors in this volume deconstruct, discuss, engage, and interrogate the mythologies of the new millennium in science fiction fantasy texts. Using literary and rhetorical criticism—paired with philosophy, cultural studies, media arts, psychology, and communication studies—they illustrate the function, value, and role of new mythologies, and show that the universal appeal of these texts is their mythic power, drawing upon archetypes of the past which resonate with individuals and throughout culture. In this way they demonstrate how mythology is timeless and eternal.

From the Back Cover
“This volume represents fan-scholarship at its most energetic, invigorating, and inspiring. The contributors couple a fan’s close reading and enthusiasm with the confidently-informed theoretical scope of academia—and show that not only do the two approaches mesh perfectly, but that they’re really not that far apart.

“It’s a tribute to the authors that however well you know these shows and movies, you’ll find something here to surprise you; a way of seeing the familiar from a fresh perspective. You’ll want to watch old DVDs again, and check out the ones you haven’t seen. You’ll want to meet the contributors and talk through a few of their ideas— and you get the feeling they’d like that too.”

Will Brooker, Principal Lecturer and Head of Film and Television at Kingston University in London and author Batman Unmasked, Using the Force, and The Blade Runner Experience.

The Monster Show: Horror, Ritual and Pilgrimage

One of the books I have been reading in my spare time is one that I received as a Christmas gift, David J. Skal, The Monster Show: A Cultural History of Horror, rev. ed (New York: Faber and Faber, 2001). This book does a nice job of bringing together various elements of approach to the horror as an object of not only fan appreciation, but also analysis from historical, cultural, and social perspectives.

As I was reading last night a chapter on horror in the 1960s was of special interest to me as this was the decade in which I was born, and thus it was formative in my encounter with horror in the very early 1970s. At one point Skal references “Monster Culture, a phenomenon of horror-movie hoopla that began in the late fifties and continued into the mid-sixties.” An interesting aspect of Skal’s discussion of Monster Culture is his reference to various “participatory rituals” for fans within this culture that take on an almost religious or spiritual aura. At one point Skal discusses one element of horror fan culture in the 1960s, the Aurora Plastics model kits of the Universal Pictures classic monsters, and he notes that as Stephen King referenced this in his novel Salem’s Lot, that it is done with “religio-mythic overtones.” Skal goes on to note that “[m]onsters have traditionally been part of adolescent initiation rituals,” and he then quotes a 1975 essay by Walter Evans that connects such rituals with religion and spirituality. The essay is titled “Monster Movies and Rites of Initiation,” and as quoted by Skal, Evans wrote:

“Most of the definitive elments of premodern societies’ initiation rites also function as definitive elements in the monster movie formula. Fascination with the distant past; the prominence of superstition or archaic religion; the focus on myth; beings who perform an initiatory function; the complementary focus on innocent and untested young people who are transformed by contact with these beings; the symbolic deaths and rebirths; the use of thunder, darkness, and other motifs in elaborate scenarios designed to create terror; the emphasis on ritual passing on of archaic lore by learned elders; these are only some of the most important of numerous formulaic elements which point to the monster movies’ crucial function in the vital process of initiation which modern American adolescents require and demand no less than their brothers and sisters of premodern societies.”

Beyond the general ritual and religious function of horror in society among adolescents, and particularly among those who inhabit Monster Culture, Skal makes a comment that connects horror and religion even more strongly:

“Monsters – as this writer will personally attest – provided an element of reassurance. They were transcendent resurrection figures, beings who couldn’t die. The traditional monsters were perversely Christlike. (Dracula’s most characteristic pose, with outstretched cape, is a blatant cruciform), offering an image of survival, however distorted or grotesque.”

I find Skal’s recognition of the ritual and religious function of horror in culture to be of great interest, and I hope to pursue these research areas in more depth with my continued reading. One book in my “to be read” stack that I have mentioned before on this blog is Roger C. Aden, Popular Stories and Promised Lands: Fan Cultures and Symbolic Pilgrimages (Tuscaloosa and London: The University of Alabama Press, 1999). My studies in anthropology got me interested in pilgrimage, and the idea that this has relevance to popular culture is intriguing. I first saw this book referenced in connection with anime in Mechademia, an academic journal on the topic and I recognized that it has promising application elsewhere. It appears to address Victor Turner’s thesis on liminality, ritual, and communitas, and then connects this to pilgrimage (symbolic and literal) as it relates to various aspects of pop culture fandom. As the dust cover for the book states,

“this book makes a compelling case for understanding the alleged vast wasteland of popular culture as a fertile site of individually and communally created ‘sacred places.’ Through popular stories, fans can imaginatively experience symbolic pilgrimages to new promised lands that offer a sense of centeredness, spirituality, and creativity.”

It seems that Skal’s observations on the impact and significance of horror to American culture and the social order have merit and are worthy of further reflection.

Grimm Pictures: Walter Rankin on Fairy Tale Archetypes, Horror and Suspense Films

In my research for materials that address issues related to this blog’s focus I recently came across an intriguing book by Walter Rankin titled Grimm Pictures: Fairy Tale Archetypes in Eight Horror and Suspense Films (McFarland, 2007). As the title indicates Rankin makes a connection between archetypal images, themes, and symbols and contemporary horror and suspense films.

Dr. Rankin is Deputy Associate Dean and an affiliate associate professor of English and German at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. He made some time recently to talk about issues related to the thesis of his fascinating book.

TheoFantastique: Dr. Rankin, when I came across your intriguing book the title and thesis caught my eye. As the description in the masthead of this blog indicates, an exploration of archetypes in popular culture such as horror and suspense films is in keeping with the areas of interest for this forum. Before we discuss your book, can you tell me how you came to be involved with such interests? How does your work as a professor of English and German intersect with an exploration of archetype in horror?

Walter Rankin: The Grimm Fairy Tales have been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. My mother used to read the original tales to me as good-night stories, and she had no problems with the violence and horror in them. There’s a nice simplicity to most of the tales that everyone can relate to, especially children: Good people go through a tough trial against a worthy foe and emerge victorious. And despite their fantastic elements, the tales have real-life themes. For example, Hansel and Gretel are starving children in a poor home, while both Snow White and Cinderella have to face the loss of their beloved mothers and then deal with their scheming stepmothers. As a professor, I’ve found that works of horror and suspense – and certainly popular culture – do not always get the respect that they are due. The truth is, it’s hard to construct a good, scary story with compelling characters with whom your audience can identify. The Grimm Fairy Tales do this is a way that has allowed them to remain popular and to serve as archetypes for other works of horror and suspense.

TheoFantastique: I think most adults would not associate Grimm’s Fairy Tales and its archetypes with horror and suspense. How did you make this connection?

Walter Rankin: Whenever I teach the Grimm Fairy Tales, my students are always surprised at the level of horror and suspense maintained in the tales. The canonical tales (like Cinderella, Snow White, Rapunzel, Hansel and Gretel, Red Riding Hood, and Rumpelstilskin) have been sanitized and watered down quite a bit in modern retellings and children’s books. In Disney’s Cinderella, for example, we see the heroine communing with nature and singing to little birds. In the Grimm version, Cinderella still talks to birds, but this time she has them peck out the eyes of her stepsisters. Similarly, Rapunzel doesn’t just wake up to a handsome prince in the Grimm tale; rather, while she sleeps for a hundred years, we learn that many other princes have endured agonizing deaths in the thorny brier surrounding her castle. My favorite is dear Snow White who invites her stepmother to her wedding so that she can have red-hot iron boots strapped to her legs. The wicked queen is then forced to dance to death in them.

TheoFantastique: So in some senses then would you consider the various archetypes that surface in horror as functioning as a form of fairy tales for adults?

Walter Rankin: Absolutely – I think these archetypes become a part of our shared, subliminal consciousness that informs how we – as adults – then view horror and suspense films. The Grimm Fairy Tales include strong messages for adults as well as for children, and these translate easily to modern horror. A lot of the tales are about really bad parents, for example. In “Hansel and Gretel,” the father takes his children into the forest twice and leaves them for dead so that he and his wife will have enough food; in “Rapunzel,” the parents essentially sell their daughter to the neighboring sorceress in exchange for a good salad; in “Cinderella,” the stepmother has her own daughters cut off their toes and heels so that they can fit their bloody feet into the famed slipper. We can identify with these tales, because these parents really exist in our own world – babies get left in dumpsters, mothers drown their own children, and child abuse exists in all levels of society.

TheoFantastique: What types of archetypal images, themes and symbols have you identified from Grimm that you see surfacing in contemporary films?

Walter Rankin: Films like Halloween, Friday the 13th, and, more recently, Scream, all give us the archetypical Grimm version of Sleeping Beauty. The heroine feels safe and secure in her home environment only to discover that a male “suitor” is determined to get her. Like the suitors in the Grimm tale, they are relentless stalkers who will stop at nothing to get their prize. Films like Single White Female and The Talented Mr. Ripley hit upon the Snow White themes of same-sex jealousy and obsession, as the popular characters find themselves losing their lives to their rivals. The central theme in these works is that there really is only one fairest in the land. Perhaps the most enduring archetype is that of the disguised wolf. In the Grimms’ “Little Red Cap,” our heroine is tricked by a smooth-talking wolf who then impersonates her grandmother and eats her. The best example of the disguised wolf comes from The Silence of the Lambs (both the novel and, my primary focus, the Oscar-winning film starring Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins).

TheoFantastique: One of the films you look at is the 1968 film Rosemary’s Baby directed by Roman Polanski. Can you discuss the fairy tale aspects you see in this film and how this is portrayed for a contemporary audience?

Walter Rankin: I tie this film directly to “Rumpelstiltskin,” in which a young woman sells her first-born child to the strange little man so that he will spin straw into gold. By doing this, she gets to marry the king. Then the only way that she gets to keep her baby is by guessing his name (which she does by having servants spy on him). We know nothing about Rumpelstilskin really, other than he wants a living child. He’s considered devilish, but he is not specifically labeled a devil in the tale. In Rosemary’s Baby, we get another young woman (Mia Farrow) whose baby is sold by her husband to a group of devil-worshippers. As in the fairy tale, her husband benefits greatly by this bargain. Like the fairy tale queen, Rosemary can only figure out what has happened by deciphering a name (in this case, her neighbor, Roman Castevet). Both the film and the tale also have amazingly ambiguous endings that leave their audience guessing. Most fairy tales end happily ever after. In “Rumpelstilskin,” however, the queen has kept all of her dealings with the little man a secret from the king. If he ever asks her to spin gold again, her lies would be discovered, and she would be killed. As Rosemary’s Baby concludes, the initially horrified mother comes to accept her baby and love it. The camera pans out over the city as a lullaby plays, and we’re left wondering what will happen to her, the baby, and the world itself.

TheoFantastique: The cover of your book includes images from a fairy tale illustration and one of my favorite contemporary horror films The Ring. What connections do you make between these two?

Walter Rankin: This film hits a number of archetypes found in the story of “Rapunzel.” Let’s start with the main image in both – flowing tendrils of hair define Samara in the film and Rapunzel herself. Both characters are isolated from the outside world in remarkably similar settings. Rapunzel is hidden away in a tower with only a small opening at the top; likewise, Samara is kept hidden first in a barn attic with a tiny ladder leading up to a loft and then, most strikingly, in a well that has just the one entrance. Both of these tales focus on extreme isolation and lonliness as well as parental betrayal. In “Rapunzel,” the parents have sold their daughter to the neighboring sorceress, while Samara’s own (adopted) mother is the one who plunges her into the well.

TheoFantastique: You also discuss parallels between the fairy tale story of “Little Red Cap” and the 1991 film The Silence of the Lambs. Can you touch on some of this?

Walter Rankin: The Silence of the Lambs has so many incredible images and themes that tie it to “Little Red Cap,” in my opinion. Right from the beginning of the film, the audience sees a lone, red-haired woman (Clarice Starling) running down a forest path. Thus, we are plunged immediately into an archetypal fairy tale realm. Once here, we learn of two wolves: Hannibal Lecter and Buffalo Bill. Hannibal acts like the charming wolf on the path who sweet-talks the young girl so that he can get information. He also seems to feed off of Clarice, particularly her painful childhood memories. Buffalo Bill gives us an even more direct link, since he’s making a dress out of real women. In the famous tale, of course, the wolf eats the grandmother and puts on her clothes and nightcap. The Grimm tale has a hunter come along to cut Little Red and her grandmother out of the belly of the wolf; however, the little girl doesn’t just run home. She gathers stones and sews them back into the dozing wolf’s stomach. When he wakes up, he topples over and dies from the weight. She’s also learned a valuable lesson, and the next time she visits her grandmother she avoids another wolf and manages to bring about his downfall as well. The moral is clear: Dangerous wolves can be disguised anywhere and are ready to pounce, so be on your guard. Starling, too, must learn this lesson, which is beautfully realized at the end of the film. She encounters Buffalo Bill in his home alone, and he retreats to the basement. Here, he turns out the lights and puts on his own night-vision goggles. This is, metaphorically, the dark belly of the wolf. Despite his physical advantages, Starling is shown to be smart and thorough. When she almost instinctively turns and kills him, a bullet breaks through the darkened basement window and light streams in. Thus, she is like Little Red emerging from the fairy tale wolf’s stomach into the clear daylight. She graduates from the FBI academy and Dr. Lecter calls her, letting her know that even with one wolf gone, another one is always nearby.

TheoFantastique: In my view some of our most popular stories like Harry Potter also draw upon archetype and myth and function as fairy tales for young and old alike. Would you agree with this sentiment?

Walter Rankin: I definitely agree – what’s fun about Harry Potter and similar tales is how they take familiar archetypes and images (witches and wizards, wands and spells) and update them in unique ways while keeping the heart of a good story. Harry Potter is similar to any number of fairy tale heroes – his parents are dead, his caregivers, such as they are, are cruel – who have to go through great trials to become fully developed adults. While many readers were sorry to see Rowling bring the story to a close, I think she made the best artistic decision, giving the story the kind of closure found in most fairy tales.

TheoFantastique: Dr. Rankin, thanks again for these thoughts. I hope this interview helps generate interest in your book among its readers.

I Am Legend: Latest Cinematic Treatment of Matheson Story Offers Apocalyptic and Theistic Angst – Revised

Normally my family opens Christmas presents on Christmas morning, but after weeks of pressuring and begging by our two teenage children, my wife agreed to a gift opening on Christmas Eve. This left us free to sleep in a little on Christmas morning, and after breakfast we went to the movies to see I Am Legend starring Will Smith.

This film represents the latest cinematic treatment of Richard Matheson’s book I Am Legend published in 1954. In a story that has entertained readers and viewers for over fifty years, it is no surprise that it has resulted in three films formally based upon it, has influenced other films such as 28 Days Later, another film produced as straight-to-video, and has also resulted in a graphic novel.

I enjoyed the previous film versions of this story, especially The Last Man on Earth from 1964 starring Vincent Price, but was less pleased with 1971’s The Omega Man starring Charleton Heston. Like any cultural artifact, each film should be understood as a reflection of its times, including not only its choice in stars, but also its treatment and adaptation of the story’s subject matter. Each of the story’s incarnations demonstrate similarities and difference as the main character deals with an apocalyptic scenario that leaves him (to the best of his knowledge) as the world’s lone survivor after a viral or biological phenomenon kills the vast majority of humanity, and turns the rest into a collection of vampire-zombie-like mutants intent on killing the living.

Having recently watched both the 1964 film as well as the latest version, I was struck by the contrasts. In both films the main character seeks to use his immunity to the plague or virus to cure humanity, but in the current film there is a much stronger emphasis on this desire. This is connected to an important story element where Will Smith’s character, Robert Neville, is a high ranking Army medical officer who contributed to medical work on a genetically altered form of a measles virus used to treat cancer which eventually mutates bringing humanity to the brink of extinction. Smith’s character thus has a stake in setting things right, and there are a number of times where he states that he wants to stay in New York at this apocalypse’s “Ground Zero” in order to “fix this.” Another difference is the main character’s daytime efforts at stalking and killing the vampire-like creatures in the 1964 film, whereas Smith’s character largely avoids the creatures in an attempt to survive, even while capturing the creatures from time to time in order to conduct human trials on various vaccines he is experimenting with.

I Am Legend taps into several contemporary fears of late modern Westerners, such as apocalypticism at our own hands, genetic engineering gone awry, widespread death by disease, fears of loneliness, societal breakdown and the resulting massive chaos, and questions about meaning and purpose in response to an apparently nihilistic and godless universe.

The most significant issues for me in this film were the notions of loneliness and the need for human social interaction, order versus chaos, and the question of the meaning of life and God’s (non)existence. As the film develops the viewer comes to understand how Neville continues to deal with the challenge of being the lone human survivor. Two elements are most striking here. In the first Neville sets up manikins in a video store he frequents, going so far as to interact with them verbally each time he goes to the store to borrow a video. The second element that exemplifies Neville’s struggles with loneliness is his touching relationship with his dog Samantha (Sam). I don’t want to spoil any plot lines for those who have not seen the movie yet, but as the film develops it is a breakdown in Neville’s ability to deal with his loneliness as illustrated with these examples that becomes an almost fatal weakness.

Another striking element of the film is the issue of order versus chaos. As we watch Neville go through his daily routine it becomes apparent that he is a very orderly person. He arises each day to an alarm at the same time, accomplishes various tasks at home and in his explorations of New York, only to return to his home and laboratory by alarm each evening. The order and routine of Neville’s life is a stark contrast and response to the chaos and disorder which now characterizes his post-apocalyptic world. His orderly life provides a means for him to survive and to retain his sanity in the face of the chaos that threatens to engulf him.

The way the film treats the issue of religion in the face of apocalypse and chaos is also interesting. This issue is addressed in both a general fashion and in Neville’s personal faith. In general, the issue of religion is touched on visually very briefly in the film when we first encounter Neville hunting deer in the vacant streets of New York. The camera pans across the empty city and we see a billboard plastered with a sign posted during the initial stages of the viral outbreak that reads “God still loves us.” The viewer has to pay close attention to various details in the city to catch this visual cue, but it seems to picture the efforts of some to retain the notion of divine love in the face of this growing tragedy, an item that takes on an even greater sense of urgency in Neville’s post-apocalyptic scenario.

The issue of religion is dealt with personally in the development of Neville’s life in response to the breakdown of society and his intense isolation and daily threat to life. Early on in the film, as the government and the military respond to the spreading virus, we see Neville praying in a traditional Christian type of prayer with his family. A little later when another character places blame for God on the virus and its spread Neville corrects them very pointedly with the words, “God didn’t do this. We did.” But toward the end of the film, in one of the more emotionally charged scenes, Neville has a dialogue with another survivor who finds him due to his daily radio broadcasts, and in this dialogue he states explicitly that for him God cannot exist in the face of such widespread death and suffering. There is the possibility that Neville recovers some form of faith at the end of the film in response to the prodding of his fellow survivor who encourages him to listen more carefully for the divine as she has done in finding Neville, but as Neville listens as he fights his nihilism it is the voice of his deceased daughter he hears guiding him. Is the viewer to understand that Neville has regained faith in the divine as he hears the voice of God speak through his daughter, or has Neville experienced only a partial ability to overcome his nihilism that places faith in love for family but nothing beyond this?

One other element of the film struck me after reflecting on a reader’s comment to this post, and that is the dynamics related to social groupings and the tendency to dehumanize “the other.” After an encounter with the mutants Neville makes the statement in his scientific notes that they have lost all connection with normal human social behavior. While this opinion might be understandable given his situation, it is inaccurate, and his misjudgment proves fatal to him by the film’s end. The mutants do indeed utilize a form of socialization, albeit a very different form than that which Neville enjoyed with pre-infected humanity. They care for each other in some sense and demonstrate anger and resentment at Neville’s continual capturing of various mutants for his clinical trials experiments. They also demonstrate intelligence, and use Neville’s attempts at maintaining sanity against him as he battles loneliness in the absence of his normal means of socialization through human to human contact. This interesting example of dehumanizing and demonizing of the social other in this film works in two directions as Neville assumes the mutants are now completely animal-like and unsocial, while the mutants assume Neville means them harm rather than good in his capturing of mutants for experimentation.

If I were to state a criticism of the film it would be in the treatment the film gives of the mutant humans infected by the virus. The critique here is twofold. First, the mutants suffer from our contemporary tendency to want things bigger and somewhat over the top. In this film the mutants are not only faster runners than average human beings, but they also possess incredible strength that goes beyond anything would normally associate with a human being, even those with a rabies-like infection that might tend to amplify rage and an adreline rush. The mutants were, in my view, too strong and too fast, thus dehumanizing them in some way, which makes it more diffuclt for the audience to empathize with them. Second, the computer generated effects were lacking. They appear mixed in effectiveness to this viewer, looking realistic with the recreations of deer, but looking far less so with their recreations of lions and the human mutants. I admit my bias here for physical effects, but I would have liked to have seen the filmmakers emphasizing physical effects for the mutants whenever possible and using CGI when necessary as a compliment to the physical. However, handling the speical effects for the mutants in this way would have been difficult given the incredible strength and speed required of them as discussed previously. But even with this criticism most viewers will likely be pleased with the special effects this film provides as a compliment to the psychological terror the scenario of the film presents.

While I Am Legend should largely be understood as holiday escapist entertainment (which should not be construed as diminishing its importance as a serious story or film), nevertheless it draws upon quality source material that taps into some of the deepest fears and anxieties of people living in the first decade of the twenty-first century. It provides another testament to the enduring ability of horror and science fiction to help us articulate and address these fears.