Nasa names worst sci-fi film

Biggins · 02-01-2011 3:16pm #1

Nasa names worst sci-fi film

The blockbuster movie 2012, which predicts the imminent end of the world, has been declared the most absurd science-fiction film of all time

It’s a disaster film in more ways than one, according to scientists at Nasa.

The American space agency has proclaimed 2012, a blockbuster starring John Cusack that predicts a global cataclysm just 12 months away, the most absurd science-fiction film of all time. Nasa has even had to create a website to calm some people’s fears about the imminent end of the world predicted in the film, which was released in 2009 and features the British stars Thandie Newton and Chiwetel Ejiofor.

In the movie, Ejiofor is the first physicist to realise that neutrino particles carried to Earth on solar flares are baking the planet’s core, causing earthquakes, tsunamis and rapid continental drift. Unfortunately, Nasa points out, it is scientifically impossible for neutrinos to have such an effect.

The film is an “exceptional and extraordinary case”, said Donald Yeomans, head of the Near-Earth Asteroid Rendezvous mission at Nasa, which has held a special conference to debunk the “worst” sci-fi movies .

“The film-makers took advantage of public worries about the so-called end of the world as apparently predicted by the Mayans of Central America, whose calendar ends on December 21, 2012,” said Yeomans.

http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/news/uk_news/Arts/article496738.ece

http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/news/uk_news/Arts/article496848.ece

tim_holsters · 02-01-2011 3:19pm

Damn, was rather hoping it would be a Star Wars film.

aidan_walsh · 02-01-2011 3:19pm

What's the story with the giant screen shot of the entire review page?

AnonymousPrime · 02-01-2011 3:24pm

Did nasa also vote john cusack most absurd actor? Coz I had that one covered

krudler · 02-01-2011 3:28pm

tim_holsters wrote: »

Damn, was rather hoping it would be a Star Wars film.

Thats science fantasy, different genre :pac:

Surprised Space Camp wasnt in there :cool: also strange to see Armageddon given NASA's involvement in it, the cast of that movie are the only non-NASA personell to ever wear those space suits

MagicMarker · 02-01-2011 3:28pm

lol, The 6th Day is 6th in the list of bad science movies, and Jurassic Park is 7th in the list of most realistic movies..... Hmmm, I'm sensing a flaw in their logic.

Must give Gattaca a watch, never seen it. Contact is a great movie though! All down to Carl Sagan.

Biggins · 02-01-2011 3:36pm

aidan_walsh wrote: »

What's the story with the giant screen shot of the entire review page?

Sorry about that - currently using Photoshop to scale it down. Will repost it shortly.

Edit: Done - in lower resolution but still readable.

I post the Time article because unless members here have a subscription to the Times, all they get by clicking on most Times links, is to a sigh-up page.

S.M.B. · 02-01-2011 4:48pm

Sure that's illegal, ya can't be doing that.

Basq · 02-01-2011 5:15pm

Did anyone see Dara O Briain's bit on '2012'? Very very funny.. will see if I can find it on YouTube.

EDIT: It has Russian subs, but it'll do..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jUP1k-PKh0

Galvasean · 02-01-2011 5:15pm

Dara O' Briaian has some good material on the pseudo-science in 2012 on his new DVD.

Galvasean · 02-01-2011 5:16pm

basquille wrote: »

Did anyone see Dara O Briain's bit on '2012'? Very very funny.. will see if I can find it on YouTube.

Galvasean wrote: »

Dara O' Briaian has some good material on the pseudo-science in 2012 on his new DVD.

Oh snap!

frantic190 · 02-01-2011 5:16pm

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jUP1k-PKh0

Nolanger · 02-01-2011 6:39pm

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2ZHH-r-Pks

mike65 · 02-01-2011 7:03pm

To be fair when H G Wells wrote the novel the moon could have been made of cheese for all he knew.

/whats that Gromit?

expectationlost · 02-01-2011 7:12pm

what the bleep do we know was marketed as film that explained quantum physic but was just some self help guru scam http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0399877/combined

02-01-2011 7:18pm

Oh that D O'B clip is HILARIOUS, I'm crying laughing!!

mike65 · 02-01-2011 7:27pm

Silent Running would have to be in with a shout as the science is actually quite wayward.
Like why on earth (or not!) would you send three giant greenhouse spaceships into orbit out by Saturn? How on earth did the earth end up with a uniform 75f tempurature?

The original plot outline was rather more interesting. The Bruce Dern character hijacks a bio research ship from near earth orbit and heads out into deeper space.

Carl Sagan · 02-01-2011 7:44pm

I'm glad Jurassic Park is on the good list. There's still hope

Nolanger · 02-01-2011 8:16pm

Forbidden Planet is daft!

Magic Eight Ball · 02-01-2011 9:10pm

Where's 'Moon'??

don ramo · 02-01-2011 10:12pm

Carl Sagan wrote: »

I'm glad Jurassic Park is on the good list. There's still hope

is there something they wanna tell us;)

gattaca is a great film, and i think we could come to the point where we can more or less design humans while there still developing, hopefully not in my time, i aint gonna be a damn janitor,

phill106 · 02-01-2011 10:17pm

Have they not seen skyline? Far worse!

Ridley · 02-01-2011 11:05pm

I kinda wanna know how realistic it'll be that we could be raped in the mouth by facehuggers, mugged by a naked Austrian governor from the future or enslaved by apes etc.

In the meantime, gimme my velociraptor!

missingtime · 02-01-2011 11:50pm

Whoooo! Jurassic Park

Skerries · 03-01-2011 1:23am

basquille wrote: »

Did anyone see Dara O Briain's bit on '2012'? Very very funny.. will see if I can find it on YouTube.

EDIT: It has Russian subs, but it'll do..

so does The hunt for Red October

Goldstein · 03-01-2011 3:32am

Great to see Gattaca up there, one of the greats.

Children of Men is a glaring omission.

Skerries · 03-01-2011 5:13pm

it's not good sci-fi films Nasa are worried about but good science in them

Biggins · 03-01-2011 5:55pm

Skerries wrote: »

it's not good sci-fi films Nasa are worried about but good science in them

Got it in one.

Handsome Bob · 03-01-2011 8:01pm

I'm sure Armageddon would have topped the bill, I hear NASA actually show that to new recruits or whatever and ask them to spot all of the inaccuracies. :pac: