In the recent Netflix movie Don’t look up, a pair of scientists attempt to warn the apathetic public that a comet is about to crash into Earth. Science Fiction Editor John Joseph Adams says the film is a hilarious example of satirical science fiction.
“I was really surprised at how much enjoyment there was in that aspect of it,” Adams said in Episode 497 of Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy audio file. “I think maybe sci-fi or comedy content would do well, but not both.”
The film is seen as a metaphor for climate change, but Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy organization David Barr Kirtley says the film’s portrayal of a culture poisoned by mediocrity and narcissism appeals to many readers. “The climate change metaphor is pretty clear when scientists try to warn the media about the danger and are ignored,” he said. “But I feel like there’s a lot of satire aimed at the media so that’s what sticks in my mind more.”
Don’t look up It is currently the second most watched series on Netflix, but has received mixed reviews from critics. Humorous writer Tom Gerencer said that the film may have been a little too close to home for some critics. “I think a lot of critics have gone into this mindset, ‘I know what this is. It will point fingers at people I don’t like,” he said. “And then it points the finger at everyone, including them, and they say, ‘That’s really uncomfortable. I do not like it. ‘”
imaginary author Erin Lindsey like so much Don’t look up but wish it showed a bit more depth and ambition. “I want to see more movies that try to do what this movie was trying to do,” she said. “I’m just begging the writers to please don’t make it American-centric, because it’s ironic to me that you’d create such an allegory about global climate change as to look at it. staring at the United States obsessively.”
Listen to the full interview with John Joseph Adams, Tom Gerencer, and Erin Lindsey in Episode 497 of Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy (above). And check out some highlights from the discussion below.
Erin Lindsey on politics:
I worked for the UN for a very long time, including sitting in Security Council meetings — closed-door meetings, not the ones you see on TV… I’m funny because one of scenes where my sister went like It’s ridiculous that it was the first scene in the White House where they briefed the president and she wasn’t too alarmed by the news. And actually I think that scene is, perhaps depressingly enough, relatively realistic. I’ve seen how world leaders can really tour, to a certain extent. There’s a point there Meryl Streep’this character’s character says something about the effect of, “Do you know how many ‘doomsday’ encounters I’ve had?” And that’s really just a slight exaggeration. So a lot of the way down the line — the opening scenes — is actually pretty realistic.
Tom Gerencer on religion:
At the end, there’s this scene where Jennifer Lawrence’s boyfriend starts to pray. And I said, “OK, here we go. They will start pulling religion through the mud. ” And I said, “Whatever. They’re dragging everyone else through the mud. Who cares?” But they really didn’t. They told him to start praying, and he said, “Don’t you think that’s stupid?” And she said, “No, I think it’s very sweet.” That develops later in the movie and becomes a theme, that he has a real religion or connection to God, whatever you want to call it, which they don’t joke about at all. They treated it with reverence, and I was touched by that. This is where they had a chance to spread the word about religion, but they didn’t.
John Joseph Adams on Hopkins Manuscript:
When they wanted to mine comets for rare minerals, it reminded me of this satirical apocalypse novel called Hopkins Manuscript … In the book, the moon is leaving its orbit, and it’s going to crash into the Earth, and people are doing the same things when they’re arguing – even though they don’t believe it’s happening. This was right after World War I, and the world had just had this great conflict, and then peace. But then the moon crashed into the Atlantic, and it pounded flat like a pancake, creating a new land between North America and Europe that was full of minerals, and so people were at war again for resources. this new resource. [Don’t Look Up] reminded me a lot of that, just because there are so many different things in common.
David Barr Kirtley on the environment:
There is something about [the last scene] that was memorable and horrifying. I feel like 20 years from now, when I think about this movie, that’s what comes to mind… I guess I have the slightest doubt about this movie that I often hear people say things like this. really silly stuff like, “Oh, if the environment on Earth gets so bad, we’ll go to another planet,” and this kind of fits that. I’m sure most people understand that that’s not going to happen, that we can’t even get close enough to be able to send people to another planet. But I feel like too many people don’t understand that somehow I just want to do whatever I can to get the message out. As environmentalists say, “There is no Planet B.” We’re not going to another planet. You can get that out of your head right now.
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