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Sci-fi overlap with other genres

I tend to agree with your perspective. I will shortly be co-writing a column on sci-fi films at another site and was not even going to mention the Mad Max stuff. My definition of sci-fi for this purpose is limited to films that are based around advances in science and technology beyond what was available at the time the film was made. Thus, while the Mad Max films take place in the future, they're not fundamentally dependent on technology that was scientifically impossible when they were made. Rather, the bizarre goings-on are just a consequence of a post-apocalyptic event.

One can also frequently run into an overlap with the horror genre when discussing science fiction films. Frankenstein has science fiction elements but was predominantly intended as a horror film. There are many other examples of films in which the sci-fi is not paramount but is instead secondary to the primary purpose of frightening the viewer. I would tend to classify most or all of these as horror films. Alien is suspenseful, scary, and occasionally gruesome, but seeing as though it heavily involves space exploration in the future, I think it can be classified as a sci-fi film if one so chooses. One could also easily describe it as "sci-fi/horror."

I'm not sure I would rank the Flash Gordon serials ahead of Star Wars, but apart from Metropolis, IMO these serials were the best science fiction put to film in the first half of the 20th century. However, they aren't "movies" per se but rather, movie serials, so technically, they should perhaps not be included on this particular list.

Todd


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