Loonatic's Favorite Raypunk Films: The Classics

Starbat has already gone over this ground (yeah basically had this same formula) but let me put this a different way. Raypunk may have a lot of inspiration from 1950s scifi, but if I had to only pick one film per decade to see how raypunk arose, these are the films that represent the genre/aesthetic for me and why.

Forbidden Planet (1956)

Sent to a distant planet to discover the fate of scientific expedition sent twenty years before, Captain J.J. Adams and his crew find that nothing on Altair IV is quite as it seems. The only survivors of the expedition are Dr. Morbius and his daughter, who make the claim that the others were killed by a strange planetary force. Though living in the shadow of such a massacre, the two have lived in the utopia of this isolated place, creating a comfortable existence with their robot butler Robby and studying the secrets of the extinct alien species that once lived there. The knowledge of the ancient Krell could bring about an age of advancement and enlightenment, but in the grip of these awesome forces perhaps some knowledge is best left forgotten...

Raypunk was definitely an aesthetic before this movie, but I think Forbidden Planet is iconic because it distills raypunk imagery and grandeur into a greatest hits reel. Awesome alien artifacts? Rayguns? Altaira's spacey/naturalistic costumes? Robby the Robot? It's 1950s futuristic style at its peak. Although I tend to think of raypunk as having a lot of overlap with galaxy-spanning empires and space opera, Forbidden Planet draws greatly on themes of the horror genre instead (science vs. morals, monsters, etc.). Beautiful matte paintings, stellar miniatures, and great set and costume design are excellent for its time, and the designs, characters, and set have gone on to inspire countless other works of science fiction. Gene Roddenberry's original Star Trek series draws upon the designs for spacecraft and naval uniforms, the relationship between the captain and the ship's doctor, and even some of the Shakespeare-lite plotlines. A bit hokey compared to modern scifi? Maybe, but even today there's a lot to be seen and admired in Forbidden Planet.

Barbarella (1968)
In the very distant future, human civilization has leapt forth and eliminated hunger, poverty, and strife throughout most of the galaxy. But war may be on the verge of return. Called on to stop a rogue scientist and his dastardly positronic ray, astrogatrix Barbarella strives to overcome the challenges of a barbaric populace on the ice planet Lythion. Faced with magnetic hurricanes, murderous dolls, and a palace of sumptuous evils, Barbarella triumphs over dark forces by virtue of innocence and a seeming supernatural ability to rip her already scanty clothing. Why is there the one angel here? Who decided to let Marcel Marceau out of his invisible box and into a scifi movie? And what the heck is going on? Doesn't matter, it's Barbarella!

As Starbat says, the plot (if you can call it that) boils down to "sexy good vs sexy evil". While Forbidden Planet plays with some themes of innocence and sexuality, Barbarella dials it up to eleven. Makes sense, considering it was made in the swinging sixties and ready to push some of the boundaries of scifi. Weaponize those boobs, this genre's not just for thinkers and nerds! But put aside the meandering storyline and raging sex object issues and there's a lot of fantastic sets, visual effects, and costumes. Put that together with Jane Fonda and somehow it catapulted itself into cult status. In the context of raypunk, Barbarella shows that you can go for the style and still hit the moon, that we don't have to take all this stuff too seriously.

Star Wars: New Hope (1977)
When Princess Leia's ship is waylaid by the evil Lord Vader, the hopes of the rebellion rest with two escaping droids. Their arrival on the planet Tatooine brings a fabled Jedi knight out of exile and propels young Luke Skywalker on a path of adventure. With the help of scoundrel Han Solo and his first mate Chewbacca, together they take on the legions of stormtroopers, TIE fighters, and a doomsday weapon in order to disrupt an unjust Empire.

Well what do you know, another excuse to talk about Star Wars! This may fall more on the side of space opera than raypunk, but with blasters and lightsabers there are some common threads with some raypunk aesthetics. Its space opera in full force, pitting the ragtag rebels against the monolithic Empire and Jedi knights versus Sith lord in order to save a galaxy far far away. A solid plot surrounded by groundbreaking visual effects, charismatic characters, phenomenal score, and so many other talents behind the scenes elevates this film from fun pulp into legendary status. Ever since it's been a touchstone for scifi and especially space opera.

Flash Gordon (1980)
When the Earth is subjected to lunar anomalies, earthquakes, tornados, and hot hail there’s only one entity to blame: Emperor Ming the Merciless. Fortunately, three of Earth’s most random humans are hurtling into space on a homemade rocket ready to do battle with the Emperor of Mongo. Flash Gordon is the corn-fed All-American quarterback, Dr. Hans Zarkov a brilliant scientist, and Dale Arden is a travel agent with more than just a pretty face. To save the Earth they must navigate these strange moon-worlds and team up with shifting factions to overthrow their dictator. But can these mere humans stand a chance against Ming's sinister machinations, or will they fall prey to the temptations and treacheries of the court of Mongo?

I hard a hard time choosing between this and Dune, but in the end I think Flash Gordon is more raypunk and Dune more space opera. Make no mistake, this is pure cheese. The script, acting, costumes, and everything else is absolutely over the top (for the Emperor’s sake the guy’s name is written on his shirt). But its style is entirely in keeping with Flash Gordon’s zany and colorful comic strip roots. Everything hinges on this, and although it makes for a crazy film it also makes it an immensely entertaining film. If nothing else, watch this movie for the epic soundtrack. The band Queen, creators of classics like “We Will Rock You” and “Bohemian Rhapsody”, wrote and performed the score and made it appropriately fantastic. Also very excited to hear Taika Waititi is directing an animated adaptation, should be a heckuva ride.