Physicists Reveal Favorite Sci-Fi Films, From ‘Interstellar‘ to ‘spider-Man’
Physicists are increasingly turning to science fiction for inspiration and engaging discussion, with films like Interstellar and even Spider-Man sparking lively debate and illuminating complex scientific concepts. A growing trend sees scientists organizing group viewings and analyzing the physics portrayed - both accurate and imagined – on screen.
Barry Luokkala,a physicist and author of Exploring Science through science Fiction at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh,Pennsylvania,highlights the appeal of films like The Prestige (2006). “It’s a brilliant movie,” he says, noting its exploration of illusion, aspiring leaps in teleportation science, and compelling character dynamics between Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale. rithya Kunnawalkam Elayavalli, a researcher at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, adds, “The Prestige lives rent-free in my brain: it’s like a steampunk representation of science that we still don’t know… We know how to teleport facts … but it’s not a representation of science that we know.”
Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar (2014) is especially popular within the physics community. The film, which follows a mission through a wormhole to find a habitable planet, is praised for its grounding in real physical phenomena. Claudia de Rham, a theoretical physicist at Imperial College London, explains, “It’s real science, and it’s based on real physical phenomena pushed to the limit.” Kai Liu,a materials physicist at Georgetown University in washington DC,finds the film’s concepts of space,time,and parallel universes “interesting,” adding,”that you can go back in time and see the Universe with a different light” is a particularly compelling idea.
The film’s release even prompted organized viewings among physics students. Kunnawalkam Elayavalli recalls seeing Interstellar with her peers at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey, “We took up a whole row in the movie theater… We were the most annoying people to watch that movie with.” Manuel Calderón de la Barca Sanchez, studying heavy-ion collisions at Brookhaven National Laboratory in New York, similarly organized a group outing for scientists.
Beyond the heavy hitters, physicists also find value in films often considered outside the realm of “hard” science fiction. The article notes that even superhero films like Spider-Man can be engaging from a scientific viewpoint, though details weren’t provided. This broader appreciation underscores a growing recognition of science fiction’s potential to stimulate scientific thought and foster a deeper understanding of the universe.
