It's not as if "I, Robot" had "cinematic" written all over it. First published in 1950, Isaac Asimov's classic science fiction novel is a series of interlocking short stories about the development of robot technology and the nuances of the Three Laws of Robotics, the rules governing robot behavior. It's visionary, to be sure, but also talky and clumsily written.
So when the film version of "I, Robot" opens Friday, don't be surprised if, other than a reliance on the Three Laws as a plot device (the First Law says a robot can't harm a human or, through inaction, allow a human to come to harm), the story bears little resemblance to Asimov's work. The film, which stars Will Smith as a detective investigating a murder that may have been committed by a robot, simply "takes its inspiration from Isaac Asimov's vision of a robotic future," says co-producer John Davis.
In other words, Hollywood loves science fiction movies, but it's seriously conflicted about science fiction books.
Of the 51 novels that have won the Hugo Award, science fiction's highest, only two -- "Dune" and "Starship Troopers" -- have ever been filmed, to mixed results. And even though 15 of the 25 top-grossing films of all time are works of fantasy or science fiction, just seven of them are based on previously published material (five of those are either "Lord of the Rings" or "Harry Potter" titles, the others are "Spider-Man" and "Jurassic Park").
Still out there in limbo, either not optioned or in a development stalemate that has lasted for decades, are classics like Robert Heinlein's "Stranger in a Strange Land," Ursula K. Le Guin's "The Left Hand of Darkness," Orson Scott Card's "Ender's Game," Arthur C. Clarke's "Childhood's End" and William Gibson's "Neuromancer."
"I don't think Hollywood thinks of print science fiction" when it looks for properties, says Patrick Neilsen Hayden, a senior editor at Tor Books, a major publisher of science fiction and fantasy titles. "Hollywood is a machine that reaches out into the culture to determine what's hot and what they can mass market. They don't think of print science fiction at all, because they're not tuned to that level of discrimination."
Well, sometimes they are. Certainly, Ray Bradbury has long been a cinematic favorite. Films have been made of "The Illustrated Man," "Something Wicked This Way Comes" and "Fahrenheit 451," and a remake of the latter is in the works, with Frank Darabont ("The Shawshank Redemption") set to direct.
