Star Wars on Trial
Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Debate the Most Popular Science Fiction Films of All Time
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Star Wars: the most significant, powerful myth of the twenty-first century or morally bankrupt military fantasy?
Six films. Countless books. $20 billion in revenue. No one can question the financial value or cultural impact of the Star Wars film franchise. But has the impact been for the good?
In Star Wars on Trial's courtroom—Droid Judge presiding—Star Wars stands accused of elitist politics and sexism, religious and ethical lapses, the destruction of literary science fiction and science fiction film, and numerous plot holes and logical gaps.
Supported by a witness list of bestselling science fiction authors, David Brin (for the prosecution) and Matthew Woodring Stover (for the defense) debate these charges and more before delivering their closing statements.
The verdict? That's up to you.
Covering the films from A New Hope to Revenge of the Sith, Brin and Stover provide new forewords that explore the newest generation of Star Wars films and what JJ Abrams must do to live up to—or redeem—the franchise.
David Brin
David Brin is an astrophysicist whose international-bestselling novels include Earth, Existence, Startide Rising, and The Postman, which was adapted into a film in 1998. Brin serves on several advisory boards, including NASA’s Innovative Advanced Concepts program, or NIAC, and speaks or consults on topics ranging from AI, SETI, privacy, and invention to national security. His nonfiction book about the information age, The Transparent Society, won the Freedom of Speech Award of the American Library Association. Brin’s latest nonfiction work is Polemical Judo. Visit him at www.davidbrin.com.
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