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The Reel Stuff (Paperback)

~ Martin H. Greenberg (Editor), Brian Thomsen (Editor)
4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Editor Brian Thomsen admits that film was his entrée into the world of science fiction. After watching classics such as Fantastic Voyage and Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, he discovered that many of the most dramatic presentations were based on written stories. So he sought out the authors, read their works, and became enthralled by the golden word as well as the silver screen. Years later he decided to compile an anthology of stories that were translated to film, and the result is The Reel Stuff. The book contains 12 works by writers such as Philip K. Dick and John Varley; some writers are well known and others are not as readily recognizable. Included in the anthology are Dick's "Second Variety" and "We Can Remember It for You Wholesale," which turned up on screen as Screamers and Total Recall, respectively. Also included, but less well known, is Robert Silverberg's "Amanda and the Alien," which was turned into a made-for-cable movie of the same name. There's even an H.P. Lovecraft story here, "Herbert West: Reanimator," which Hollywood made into Re-Animator, a campy SF horror classic. --Craig E. Engler


Review

"If you're like me, you usually prefer whichever version of a story you first encounter (movie or book/short story); but you'll frequently seek out the other version if you find that you really like the one you know. This anthology makes it much easier to seek out the "other" versions, especially if you're enough of a film buff that you haven't encountered these originals yet." -On-Line Reviews "The stories are all good, usually better than the films, as a matter of fact." -Science Fiction Chronicle --This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.
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Product Details

  • Paperback: 320 pages
  • Publisher: DAW (September 1, 1998)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0886778174
  • ISBN-13: 978-0886778170
  • Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.1 x 1.1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
  • Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,593,309 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

5 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.2 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Worth the Read., July 12, 2001
By Daniel Llinas (Miramar, FL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
First of all, this was a great idea for an anthology. Lots of short speculative fiction are made into every year (take A.I. for example) and those of us who always like the book better have a hard time finding those stories because of various reasons. So I loved this concept, and the stories chosen were for the most part strong pieces.

I discovered two of my favorite stories in this anthology. George R. R. Martin's "Sandkings" is my favorite short story of all time. It won the Nebula and is one of the most tightly written stories out there. The main character, Simon Kress, is a real jerk who treats everything with utter cruelty. He's looking for a new pet, and finds an insect-like lifeform called a Sandking. Sandkings literally worship their owners, but what happens when their owner is a cruel and sadistic god? That's what "Sandkings" explores.

The other story that really stood out for me is "Second Variety" by Philip K. Dick. It's an exciting story about a war in which humans invented robots that would end the war forever. But what happens when the robots improve and reproduce themselves? It's a probing question about where technology is taking us and human nature.

There are other strong stories in here: "Enemy Mine" by Barry Longyear was truly poignant; "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale," by Philip K. Dick was the basis for _Total Recall_; and I would have LOVED "Herbert West--Reanimator" by Lovecraft if it wasn't for the constant recapping of the previous sections of the stories (that was probably due to the piece being published in serial fashion, but it's annoying when read straight through).

Then there were the duds. "Amanda and The Alien," though cute, really does nothing for me. Doesn't have a strong, poignant theme. "The Forbidden," basis for _Candyman_ had a great ending, but took so long getting there it didn't really matter. And I was very dissapointed with "Nightflyer"--doubly disappointed sicne George R. R. Martin is my favorite writer.

All in all, there wer more good stories than bad, which I guess is all you can ask for when reading a collection like this that encompasses a large variety of works. And if you're trying to learn to write speculative fiction, this is a good place to study different story constructions and techniques. Recommended.

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4.0 out of 5 stars Would have given 4.5, March 17, 1999
By A Customer
Great collection of short stories which were the inspiration for sci-fi and horror movies. Included is the source material for Mimic, Total Recall, Screamers, Enemy Mine, Reanimator, Johnny Mnemonic, and others. The quality of the stories varies. Most are well-written, but there are 2 stinkers in my opinion: "Candyman" and "Amanda and the Alien". I'd like to see a follow-up published.
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3.0 out of 5 stars Some excellent stories, but....a mixed bag, August 21, 1998
"The Reel Stuff" is a collection of science fiction and horror tales that were the basis of films in both the 80s and 90s. Despite the cover copy's assertion that these are stories by the "masters of science fiction" at least two of the stories (those by H.P. Lovecraft and Clive Barker) are clearly horror tales, and Donald A. Wollheim's "Mimic" at least skirts that genre. Also, there are a couple of stories included that are relatively minor entries in an authors ouvre, such as Robert Silverberg's "Amanda and the Alien," included because it was made into a cheesy cable film several years ago. Still this is a good collection of tales, particularly if you've been disappointed with the film versions of such classic stories as Barry Longyear's "Enemy Mine" and Philip K. Dick's "Second Variety" (filmed as "Screamers"). Worth a look, but a mixed bag.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Overall, real Good
OK, first I shall say it was a strange pick of stories. where was 'Sentinals' Arthur C Clarke's story that inspired 2001: A Space Odyssy? Read more
Published on December 17, 1999 by Omer Belsky

5.0 out of 5 stars Best book investment in a long time
DAW was on the money when they put this together. It's a great idea for a short-story collection - high praise considering that anthologies seem to be the virus du jour of the... Read more
Published on March 16, 1999 by Babytoxie

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