By: MattInRC
On my way to the press screening for Star Trek: Into Darkness, my friend and I grabbed some dinner and conversation. I usually try to find something outrageous to tell him, mostly because I want him to like me. Anyways, I was explaining to him why The Original Trek (Kirk, Spock, Bones) was the perfect mix of action and story - and why The Next Generation and its offspring were so boring - when I dropped my latest bomb: there is a difference between Science Fiction and Sci-Fi. On the surface, it seemed like yet another ridiculous opinion, but in reality the opinion was not even my own. I explained that I was introduced many years ago to the differences in an article from the film and book magazine Starlog. Before the Internet, Starlog served as nothing less than the central portal for all things fantasy and Science Fiction; it was here that my love and appreciation for Science Fiction and its vast layers of storytelling were revealed to me.
You may not even know the differences yourself, but what you've been watching since 1968's brilliant 2001: A Space Odyssey is two competing lines of programming, both set in the vast reaches of space, and quite possibly existing one atop the other in your mind. And while no standard definition for either term has existed in the past, there are big differences between them.
So let's settle it: Science Fiction is human drama and action set in space, while Sci-Fi is mostly action set in space. The terms have their genesis (pardon the Star Trek II reference) as far back as 1954, when UCLA professor Forrest J. Ackerman boldly went further than anyone at the time had gone. Early on, he and others denounced Sci-Fi as Science Fiction gone horribly wrong, created by hack writers and favoring action and poor character development over quality stories about people living their lives in the future. The genre hosted some of the greatest writers of the time, from Arthur C. Clarke, Harlan Ellison, and DC Fontana. Since then, a number of subgenres have also appeared to add color to the gray, but the differences are not as subtle as you might think.
With several recent movies of the future experiencing terrific popularity, examples abound like tribbles on the bridge of the Enterprise, including:
Oblivion: Science Fiction (great STORY about distopian future with several very good action set pieces and a twist at film's end)
Prometheus: Science Fiction (wished this had been a tad more action-packed and was better conceived)
Looper: Science Fiction (a terrific 2012 entry that's a must-see)
Total Recall: Sci-Fi (another distopian tale, but highly enjoyable ACTION film)
Star Trek 2009: Sci-Fi (I thought the reboot had plot holes big enough to drive a starship through)
Star Trek: Into Darkness: Science Fiction (a return to classic TOS, with a bold re-telling of Star Trek II)
But there's also past examples to consider:
The Fifth Element: Sci-Fi (great ACTION FILM about a distopian future)
Blade Runner: Science Fiction (an amazing film set in...you guessed it...a distopian Los Angeles and the search for robots who want to be human)
Star Trek: The Original Series: Science Fiction (Kirk. Spock. Bones. What else do I need to say?)
Babylon 5: Science Fiction (The next great Science Fiction program after TOS - introduced the story arc to television)
Dune: Science Fiction (great book series...and music from Toto and Brian Eno. That's all the good I can say about it.)
Independence Day: Sci-Fi (enjoyable ACTION FILM about alien invasion, but horribly cast with Bill Pullman)
Serenity: Science Fiction (another distopian tale but solid character development from Joss Whedon with a few action pieces thrown in)
Metropolis: Science Fiction (perhaps the greatest unknown film by the current decade - a must see)
2001: A Space Odyssey: Science Fiction (enthralling, powerful, and the film that started it all)
Mission to Mars: Science Fiction (In a word: awful)
Armageddon: Sci-Fi (well, at least you got Liv Tyler)
Alien 4: Sci-Fi (Before Joss Whedon was good, he wrote Alien 4.)
Starship Troopers: Sci-Fi (if it wasn't for the boobs, boots, and guns, I would have left the theater before its end.)
Any program airing on the SyFy Channel: Sci-Fi (Hara, give me strength to pulls its plug)
Right away, one can see the differences: Sci-Fi are action-heavy programs set in the future that sacrifice story to sell tickets. Sci-Fi has an oft-disappearing plot that serves merely as a vehicle for the action pieces. Eventually, it becomes either a series of sexual eye candy or action sequences filled with very little character development. And while some of the best Science Fiction offers scantily-clad women or those dolled up in tight-fitting, futuristic-looking latex, the genre has a story to tell. It seeks a higher ground, turning the action into a way to further the story. Star Wars is the story of Darth Vader; Starship Troopers is a story about boobs and killing large insects. Not all Sci-Fi is bad: Aliens is nothing short of a classic action film set in the future, and The Fifth Element is wonderfully-entertaining fare that finds its way onto my television every year. Similarly, not all Science Fiction is good: tell me that Dune or Mission to Mars succeeded, or that Voyager or Deep Space Nine fill your DVD shelves. Yikes.
But in a larger sense, both genres share many similarities. Both are set in complex futures, with many of them off-world. Where they go from there divides the road, and yet returns us to the original point. As the genre in general continues to gain popularity amongst the average moviegoer, let's hope Hollywood takes the high ground, and encourages more Science Fiction over Sci-Fi. Current budgets and technology can craft any world we want onto a movie screen, but it's the human adventure of danger and discovery that's so appealing. While Science Fiction can deliver powerful stories about human in a far-flung future, they also need to balance the drama with enough action and tension to keep audiences dialed in. And while a futuristic story about war does appeal to the man in me, don't think for one minute that Sci-Fi can tell that tale any better than Science Fiction. There IS a difference. Got an opinion on this?
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