The video essay can be seen as a way of challenging the hegemony of the written word in the analysis, criticism and study of film and other audiovisual media. As the mission statement of this website argues, there are clear advantages to engaging with audiovisual art without having to rely on written language. Gregory Brophy and Shawn Malley, however, combine both modes in Adaptive Forms: Videographic Criticism and Contemporary Science Fiction Film, their “videographic book”. This hybrid work pairs scholarly essays on contemporary science fiction films with videographic essays on those same works. Each chapter has its own focus, introduced by a lemma that serves as a teasing prelude to the accompanying video. The concept of adaptation runs throughout this wide-ranging study, exploring how science fiction films respond to changing times, technologies, media environments and cultural concerns.

The videographic book contains several fascinating works that combine sharp analysis with deft editing and compelling storytelling. Brophy and Malley, both professors at Bishop’s University in Sherbrooke, Quebec, experiment with a wide range of forms. They move from the conventional voice-over-driven essay to supercuts and even something resembling a music video. That formal diversity not only adds to the project’s appeal, but also demonstrates how different analytical ambitions call for different audiovisual strategies.

One of the highlights is Chapter 4: Splice: Our/Own/Devices. This video draws on the tradition of fan vids while also functioning as a mash-up of several iconic science fiction films. As the backbone of their montage, Brophy and Malley use a racy exchange between Theodore and the artificial intelligence Samantha in Spike Jonze’s her (2013). Through inventive editing (and near-perfect lip-sync) they seamlessly combine the voices of Joaquin Phoenix and Scarlett Johansson with footage from 2001: A Space Odyssey and Alien. As the characters in her approach the climax of their virtual sex romp, the artificial intelligences in the other films move towards (self-) destruction. Eros and Thanatos, with sentient computers playing both parts. Brophy and Malley also weave in footage from other dystopian science fiction films, including WarGames, to support the montage’s accelerating crescendo.

The resulting video essay is cheeky and playful, yet still delivers a valuable insight. By juxtaposing optimistic and bleak science fiction scenes, this mash-up reveals just how closely technofetishism and techno-pessimism are intertwined. A century of dystopian science fiction, filled with stark warnings about the dangers of technological progress, has done remarkably little to dampen our appetite for the very technologies it imagines.