The Andromeda Strain (1971) ranks as one of my top five
favorite ‘hard’ science fiction movies, (as opposed to fantasy sci-fi).
I was about
14 years old when a junior high school teacher, (whose husband happened to be a
personal friend of Michael Crichton’s) made the bold decision to take a room
full of giggling 8th graders to see a movie that, technically
speaking, was somewhat ‘beyond’ the intellectual and emotional capacity of most
of those (often rowdy) students.
Her approach
was simple: Mrs. Parks read us the first chapter of the book aloud, and then
asked which of us wanted to hear the rest of the story – in the form of a movie
that afternoon as a field trip.
She must
have known all hands would enthusiastically shoot up, if only because it meant
a trip away from school. (She also could not have failed to notice that almost eerie
silence that had settled over the class as she read that first nail-biting
chapter.)
We went to
see the movie. I, for one, was literally nailed motionless to my seat for the
movie’s entire 131 minutes. (This was a minor miracle in itself, considering my
constant hyperactive state, then as now.)
When we
returned to school, I meekly asked Mrs. Parks if I could borrow the copy of the
book from which she had read to us, with a promise to return it that following
Monday. If she doubted I could finish its almost 300 pages of truly hard
science and data in that timeframe, she did not voice it. (Michael Crichton, a
scientist and doctor himself, filled the book with page after page of real and faux scientific data and hypotheses,
making it a challenging read for even a well-educated adult.)
She lent it
to me, and, as promised, I read the entire book between getting out of school
that Friday afternoon, and returning to her class the following Monday
afternoon.
Both the
book and the movie electrified my brain, introducing me, in one ‘fell swoop’ to
computers, scientists and real science, research and the tackling of unsolvable
mysteries. It also demonstrated that, despite their differences (which were several)
a diverse group of equally brilliant, dedicated scientists from vastly different
fields could come together to solve a puzzle while the fate of an entire planet
teetered in the balance, and succeed.
The story
was science fiction, not far-fetched or unrealistic, but based rather in real,
hard science and actual scientific research methods. The scientists (or the
actors cast to portray them) were real people, not those typically cast in
movies today (super-young folk with perfect skin and perfectly coiffured hair.)
The Andromeda Strain would be indirectly responsible for
my introduction to the worlds of ‘adult’ science, cutting edge technology, the
love of research for both research’s sake, AND for the practical use of and to the benefit of all humanity.
I think I
will be watching it again this weekend.
