Supergirl Is a Bafflingly Grim, Violent, and Depressing Take on the Superhero Movie
A drunk, depressed young woman fights personal demons and an interstellar sex trafficking gang. Isn’t this supposed to be fun?
Science Fiction
Project Hail Mary Is Another 'You Can Just Do Things' Story From Sci-Fi Novelist Andy Weir
A dazzling, ridiculously charming sci-fi adventure from the author of The Martian
Tony Gilroy on Andor, the Force, and Authoritarianism
"The concept of the show was to talk about what happens when authoritarianism and fascism comes kicking down your door," the creator of the Disney+ series tells Reason.
Review: The Libertarianism of Stranger Things
The final season of the Netflix show delivers a message about moral responsibility.
Review: Resisting the Hive Mind Virus in PLUR1BUS
The protagonist in the Apple TV series does not want her consciousness absorbed into a collective human mind.
Would Star Trek's Transporter Destroy Cities or Save Them?
What a speculative technology can tell us about the demands for urban density and sprawl
Andor Creator Tony Gilroy on Bureaucracy and the Surveillance State
Tony Gilroy examines how Andor portrays authoritarian power as a bureaucratic system, the moral compromises of life under surveillance, and the role ordinary people play in enforcing oppressive systems.
Avatar: Fire and Ash Is Part Spectacle, Part Retread
An eco-action film that covers too much familiar ground.
Review: Tron: Ares Reminds Us That Artificial Intelligence Is Not the Enemy
It's the humans who develop and use AI for malicious ends, not the tech itself, who should worry us.
Review: Quasi-Government Megacompanies Collide in Alien: Earth
The FX series is a direct prequel to the 1979 movie.
Declassified Documents Detail the FBI's Surveillance of a Libertarian Sci-Fi Author
Vernor Vinge, who mocked the surveillance state in his writing, was investigated for alleged connections to socialist Sandinistas in Nicaragua.
The Running Man Is a Shallow, Socialist Action Fantasy
A dystopian action cartoon for the Bernie bro set.
In Predator: Badlands, the Predator Takes On Toxic Masculinity
Who knew that a Predator movie could be so cute?
In Yorgos Lanthimos' Bugonia, Elites Are Alien Creatures
A bleak, absurdist take on the gap between the world of HR corporate speak and ordinary Americans
Tron: Ares Is a Bad Movie, but a Great Nine Inch Nails Music Video
A pulsing electronic score turns a mediocre movie into a sick vibe.
Lindy-Hopping Nazis and Golems With Guns: The Return of Thomas Pynchon
In Shadow Ticket, characters are forever finding refuge in the folds of the map.
Faerie Smut Is About More Than Bathtubs and Archery
Don't judge A Court of Thorns and Roses by its covers.
The Long Walk Is a Harrowing Take on State Power
It’s about an authoritarian government, not the demands of capitalism.
Review: Murderbot Is Part Frankenstein's Monster and Part C-3PO
The title character in this Apple TV+ series is both a menace and a friend.
FBI Spied on Libertarian Sci-Fi Author Vernor Vinge In 'Espionage' Case
The late friend of Reason, who coined the term "technological singularity," landed on the feds' radar for his association with a foreign policy dissident.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps Positions Superheroes as Benevolent Techno-Authoritarians
A good enough take on Marvel's First Family that ignores its most interesting ideas.
Andor Is a Star Wars Show About the Brutality of Bureaucracy
Tony Gilroy's series reminds us that an empire doesn't need dark magic to be evil.
Review: A Doomsday Murder Mystery Set in an Underground Bunker
Even in a fictitious postapocalyptic world, the government can't be trusted to tell the truth.
Review: Authoritarianism Backfires in the Latest Dune Installment
In Max's Dune: Prophecy, even the power to predict others' actions can't tame the chaos of free will.
Mickey 17 Is a Misbegotten Sci-Fi Trump Satire
Robert Pattinson stars as spacefaring multiples in director Bong Joon-ho's disappointing follow-up to Parasite.
Review: A Sci-Fi Exploration of a Shadowy Government
The deeply weird Southern Reach Series reminds us that human institutions can turn people into something unrecognizable.
Review: UFO 50 Pays Homage to '80s Video Games
Playing this digital collection of new retro-style games is like rediscovering a box of old cartridges.
Review: Sunny Is a Techno-Satire About Violent Robots
Technology is neither inherently good or bad. Our friendbots—and our murderbots—are what we make of them.
Neal Stephenson's Polostan Is a Compact Epic About Communism, Science, and the Dawn of the Atomic Age
A short-yet-sprawling historical tour of the atomic age.
Review: A Murder Mystery After the Apocalypse
The Last Murder at the End of the World explores the dangers of absolute power.
Review: A Fun, Chaotic Moon Landing Conspiracy
Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum star in a movie about government incompetence.
Alien: Romulus Is a Slick, Empty Franchise Pastiche
The taut, grisly new entry plays like a greatest-hits reel.
Review: Charles Fort's Underrated Influence
The eccentric writer cast a long shadow, leaving a mark not only on the world of Bigfoot hunters and UFO buffs but in literature and radical politics.
Review: An Anime Murder Mystery With an AI Twist
In Netflix's Pluto, a serial killer targets the world’s most advanced robots.
Review: The Terminator: The Original Killer AI
Arnold Schwarzenegger's classic role colored our perception of AI, for better or for worse.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Is Just a Lot of Monkeying Around
The latest movie in the Apes franchise gestures at interesting ideas about politics and civilizational conflict, but it doesn't develop them.
Is AI Like the Internet, or Something Stranger?
David Brin, Robin Hanson, Mike Godwin, and others describe the future of artificial intelligence.
Review: The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress Underscores How Technology Supports Freedom
According to Grok, Robert Heinlein's novel reminds us that even a supercomputer can have a heart—or at least a well-programmed sense of humor.
Civil War Is a Brutal, Intense No-Sidesing of American Political Divisions
Alex Garland's latest post-apocalyptic thought experiment is a war movie without a take.
The 3 Body Problem's Chilling Social Media Parallel
From struggle sessions to cancel culture, the story depicts the terrors of surveillance authoritarianism.
The Economics and Politics of Star Trek
Akiva Malamet has interesting posts on these topics at the Econlib site.
