back to article Vote now for the best sci-fi film never made

Note: This poll is now closed. Thanks to all of you who voted. You can see the final result below... Poll Results Well, the time has come to vote for the best sci-fi movie never made from the list of 50 heavyweight contenders nominated by you, our beloved readers. Before getting down to it, we'd like to point out that we' …

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  1. David Given
    Thumb Up

    For anyone who voted for Eon...

    ...a few years ago CGSociety did a competition to produce full film trailers for a non-existent movie adaptation of Eon. And they hauled in Greg Bear to do the judging. You can watch them here:

    http://features.cgsociety.org/story_custom.php?story_id=3987&page=2

    They look pretty decent but, of course, are not how I would have done it.

    1. MJI Silver badge
      Thumb Up

      We could get good films

      If we use new up and coming talent, involve the author (if still around), and keep it away from Hollywood.

      Some of those student examples are really good.

  2. Nash
    Dead Vulture

    Indeed

    ...i did missread the title, and for that, i have suffered the consequences, i have brought shame on my family and for that i must be punished. PUNISHED I TELL YOU!!!!!!

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    old fashioned

    Hmm, there are some really old fashioned titles in this list - anything by Jerry Pournelle tends to read like something from the vietnam war era while of course the Lensman series makes the first ever TV series of Star Trek look contemporary in comparison. Some Heinlein and early Asimov also feel dated, but other work by the same guys wears its age much better.

    ( I'm talking about writing style, depiction of characters/society, etc, not any technology/science )

  4. Titus Aduxass
    Unhappy

    Gutted

    I'm gutted there aren't any Robert Silverberg stories in there.

    I'm even more gutted I failed to nominate any...

    1. nyelvmark
      Thumb Up

      Silverberg?

      A good thought - "Up The Line" would make a great comedy. Silverberg is also very long on description, which is good for conversion to movie format. But see my longer comments later.

  5. Sim

    PK Dick -'Man in the high castle' already in production

    Blade Runner director Ridley Scott is returning to the work of the late Philip K. Dick to executive produce a BBC TV adaptation of one of the American sci-fi writer's novels.

    Howard Brenton, the playwright and Spooks writer, is adapting Dick's Hugo award-winning dystopian novel The Man in the High Castle into a four-part BBC1 mini-series.

  6. sisk

    So many good choices

    It's a tough choice...gonna have to think about this one.

    Though I do have to say I think some of my favorites on the list are much better off being left on paper. Some of them, while damn good books, wouldn't transition well to the big screen. There are others that it would break my heart to see cut down to a point that you could actually get them into a movie that people would sit through.

  7. Aldous
    Thumb Up

    WOW!

    i have half of this list and consider them amazing books. looks like i need to go get the other half now. thanks for the recommendations el reg

  8. Gobhicks
    Grenade

    Pavlov's Dogs

    "Sci-Fi related list" and they're like fanbois on a Jobs bigjob.

  9. Jeremy Bresley
    Thumb Down

    Pratchett

    I'm disappointed Reg. Not a single Pratchett title on the list? The entire Discworld series would be my first choice to be made. Give it the LoTR treatment and release the director's cut to the theaters.

    1. Tom 38
      Thumb Up

      @Jeremy Bresley: Discworld is not SF

      It's Fantasy. I went right off SF once I discovered Discworld though. Thumbs up for Discworld.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      FAIL

      not after Sky...

      ...destroyed Going Postal - I still haven't watched the second half of that and I've had the DVD since it first came out (over a year ago ?).

      Also of course its not sci fi, but then I'd say one or two titles on the list aren't really sci fi either.

      1. Tom 38

        I quite liked Sky's Going Postal

        I thought Richard Coyle (Jeff from Coupling :) had Moist down to a tee.

        Although whoever thought Rincewind was a 70 year old David Jason deserves to be hung, drawn and quartered, particularly for the first two books, where he is described as young.

        Truly, truly awful, every single adaptation he has been in.

    3. Anonymous Coward
      FAIL

      not after Sky...

      ...destroyed Going Postal - I still haven't watched the second half of that and I've had the DVD since it first came out (over a year ago ?).

    4. nyelvmark

      Discworld isn't SF

      If you want to read science fiction by Pratchett, he wrote 2 such books. "Strata" and uhhh.. google it. I seriously don't recommend it, though.

    5. Term

      Sci-Fi...

      Not Fantasy, there is a difference. But saying that Strata could be on the list as it was about a Sci-Fi Discworld.

  10. Anonymous Coward
    Alien

    Staberinde

    Yeah, 'Use of Weapons' for me. Is Banks stuff inherently a bit unfilmable though? Just assuming some sort of budgetry contraints here.

    My vote for best sci-fi book least likely to ever be made into a movie: 'Star Maker'.

  11. Stevie

    Bah!

    Zelazny's "Jack of Shadows" would be more filmable than half those listed, and more watchable than all the Neal Stephenson ones, which arguably would be better reserved for mini-series a-la "Game of Thrones".

    I love that some nitwit thinks four multihundred page books will film in about 2 hours. Yes, by all means let us have a "Neal Stephenson's Baroque Cycle" in the definitive Director's Cut. I'm sure they won't leave much of it out.

    And all those books that hinge on politics. Those should film with as much success as "Dune" did (both times). Can't wait.

  12. N_Wanzer
    Alert

    Oh come on!

    How am I supposed to vote when I want to see 50% of them. I have to pick just ONE!? You are cruel. Very Cruel! I can't put into words just how painful this is.

  13. chromoplastic
    Unhappy

    Gordon R. Dickson's Time Storm

    Damn! I missed this post the first time so it's late to submit it, but Gordon R. Dickson's Time Storm is one of my favorite scy-fi books and i think it would be a fantastic movie. Well, i think there's no movie based on it, correct me if i'm wrong.

  14. Andrew Baines Silver badge
    Coat

    Can we unmake I, Robot

    If I, Robot could be unmade, could we then add it to the list to make again, but properly this time (ie by someone who has read the books)

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Coat

      why?

      Converse All-Stars are cool.

    2. Gavin McMenemy
      Stop

      I' Robot

      To all of you that are complaining about I Robot.

      It wasn't originally intended to be have Asimov's name attached. It was originally going to be called Hardwired but the producers secured the license to use the name late in the production cycle. You CANNOT, repeat for the hard of thinking - CANNOT, make a single film out I Robot because it has no narrative. It's a collection of short stories for god's sake. Please pay attention at the back.

      Just think that I Robot is film of the same name about rebellious robots and leave it at that.

      1. Stevie

        Bah!

        Actually, I rather like the script Harlan Ellison wrote for doing just what you say cannot be done.

        It's been around for decades.

  15. Trevor 3

    Why so negative against the Skylark series?

    Oh yeah, maybe its the blatant sexism!

    And the fact that every exciting bit is written in a completely off hand and boring way.

    Oh I've invented a perfect sphere of force. Oh no! We're being attacked by the Fenachone, we can't sit here forever. Umm choppy up time with the shield.

    It never actually had a good ending either as DuQuesne got away and everyone lived happily ever after.

    I did like the idea of levels of force though. And the computer the size of a planet...that was awesome.

  16. Rentaguru
    Thumb Down

    it looks a bit foolish

    with so many being from just two authors - Niven and Banks.

    Niven writes nothing but kids stuff and the Banks nominations are basically Culture 1 to (the two latest rubbish ones that spoil the whole series ..... bit like stars wars really!).

    Could we have a poll for the Sci-fi film that completely ruined the book ..... although to be honest that would just be one huge tie of every sci-fi book made into a film.

    That rises the question of why anyone would want to ruin a good book by making it into a film (rival author spring to mind but that's all*).

    *oh and people whose lips move when they read.

    1. OrsonX

      Matter was Iain's Ringworld

      "and then they all got bored and went home."

      THE END

      I haven't read any reviews of Surface Detail.... are you saying it's a pile of Phantome Menace? Hope not! I was hoping for a return to form after the brilliant Transitions.

      Surface Detail, any good?

      1. sT0rNG b4R3 duRiD

        On the shelf...

        Sceduled for a re-reading, after the following (re-reads):

        Wilson, RC - The Chronoliths (Damn, I should have nominated this, it would have tranlated well)

        Modesitt, jr - The Eternity Artifact

        You know you'll have to read Surface Detail, just go ahead and do it :)

        1. OrsonX
          Thumb Up

          Surface Detail

          Yup, you're right!

          I'm getting lazy in my old age... so I've just downloaded the audiobook... can't wait to get started!

          I've now listened to a few Culture audiobooks, as read by Peter Kenny, highly recommended, his narration is superb!

  17. Brian Miller 1
    FAIL

    DAMN, voted too soon

    I handily suggested both stranger in a strange land and snow crash on the original call to arms.

    I missed that Snow crash was in there at first and now I think it probably would make a better movie.

    EVERYONE VOTE SNOW CRASH, or at the very least read it.

  18. Simon Harris

    In true Reg style....

    Once the results are in, will the winning film be an animation using PlayMobil figures?

  19. Trevor 3

    You missed a brilliant one

    Plague from Space by Harry Harrison.

    Has spaceships, mysterious plague, nutty ambulance driver, guns, a love interest, military vehicles, an alien and lots of people rioting over pigeons and dogs.

    What more could you need?

  20. Brian Miller 1
    Welcome

    perhaps we should use

    The alternative voting system where we rank our top five and they get counted like the new voting system.

  21. Brian Miller 1
    Thumb Up

    @ Trevor3

    Damn,

    Bill the galactic hero is another fantastic HH book. Could be HILARIOUS

  22. NoneSuch Silver badge
    Terminator

    Take your fave novel...

    -=sarcasm on=-

    ...add a deceased authors heirs who cannot agree on anything save they want the majority of the gross...

    ...add a Hollywood committee who tries to make it universally appealing by adding romance, children in danger and new 'exciting and modern' characters...

    ...add one Director who has his own take on what needs to be done to the story and characters to "make this work" (You know it will not be Spielberg, Jackson or Cameron at the helm)

    ...add a producer who "keeps the budget in check" by using a lowest bidder special effects company in Uzbekistan

    ...add a few "big name stars" who interpret their characters with the "Ben Affleck" acting method and

    ...above all, keep your expectations low.

    If all of those hurdles are successfully navigated, then you might have a decent chance of a making a timeless film like:

    Chronicles of Riddick

    Time Cop

    Starship Troopers

    Event Horizon

    The Librarian

    My one wish is that they leave the Jar-Jar angle unexplored.

    -=sarcasm off=-

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      you forgot

      lead actor(s) who casually mention that they've never read the book, or indeed anything else by the author, and go on to prove it with their performance

    2. Svantevid

      @NoneSuch

      "If all of those hurdles are successfully navigated, then you might have a decent chance of a making a timeless film like:

      Starship Troopers"

      ---

      Oi, while Starship Troopers isn't faithful to the book it is still a great film on several levels... works as a satire, works as an action film. This is one of two film adaptations ("Shining" being the second one) where I prefer director's version. Even without mecha-suits.

  23. Efros
    Happy

    Stranger in a strange land

    Purely for the apoplexy that it would cause amongst the scientologists.

    1. Vladimir Plouzhnikov

      In that case

      Add "Heads" by Greg Bear to the list...

  24. Alan Watson
    Happy

    Best Mini-Series Never Made

    Some of these could work well as films (Altered Carbon for example), but many really need a bit more space to breath and not be compressed into an incoherent rush.

    So if anyone from HBO is reading this, how about a 6-10 episode version of Consider Phlebas?

  25. chr0m4t1c
    Happy

    Where's "I, Robot"?

    Yes, I know there's a film with that title on it, but neither the story or the characters have very much in common with what's inside the book.

    Asimov said himself on several occasions that he wrote his robot stories deliberately to get away from all the ones he had read by other authors that were basically just the Frankenstein story. So naturally, the idiots in Hollywood decided to bring his work to the big screen by making another Frankenstein movie. Ba*ds.

    </RANT>

    I'm off for a little lie down now.

  26. Cazzo Enorme

    Fail

    Where's Zamyatin's "We"?

  27. Andrew the Invertebrate

    Difficult choice

    Obviously anyone who doesn't vote for "The Stars My Destination" is wrong and needs therapy, but on the other hand I just know that Hollywood would complete clusterfuck of it by the time it ended up on the screen.

  28. Phil 54

    Baroque Cycle

    I really really loved it, but I really, really can't see it being a good movie

    1. David Evans

      @Phil 54

      Neither can I, but HBO are doing a bang up job with Game Of Thrones...

  29. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    *sigh* full of errors

    'if Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan appear, they should merely maintain a decorative silence and blow me in an airlock at the earliest opportunity.'

    There, fixed it for ya..

  30. Shane Orahilly
    Unhappy

    Mawhrin-Skel will not be amused.

    My name is Shane, and I am a Banksoholic, M. or no M.

    I foresee knife missiles being delivered to many voters for their misguided ignorance of The Player of Games for the top spot.

    Yes, I'd rather the whole of the Culture repertoire was seen in film form.I was ecstatic when the BBC adapted The Crow Road for television, and prayed they would visit Banks' scifi offerings, or The Wasp Factory, damn their eyes for seemingly bottling it when it comes to real extremes of human/AI behaviour they dare not show on screen for fear of breaking people's tiny fragile minds.

    However, in a "Don't make me chooooooooose" scenario, I'd be most pleased to see how the games played in TPoG were represented visually, moreso if the concepts could actually be implemented as functional, wholly-playable games in some way or form. Also, you just know that Jernau's role as primary focus of the story would be foiled by the antics of Mawhrin-Skel, no doubt with ( written in for mass appeal) hilarious consequences.

    Just don't fucking Jar-Jar the little murderous bastard, or I swear I'll do time.

    1. AdamWill

      Not great for a movie

      I don't think PoG would film very well; if you look at it, until the end, not a lot _happens_ exactly. It'd be very static and tricky to make interesting. It and Excession (where, again, a lot of the 'action' is just people...or, rather, Ships...talking) strike me as the hardest to film for that reason. PoG might work great on the radio, though.

      1. Rentaguru

        They'd all be better on radio

        as they say the pictures are better that way as proved by Hitchhikers' Guide proved this.

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