LANGUAGE IN SF MOVIES

What makes a film interesting, linguistically speaking?

(Is there any other way to speak?)

if it has a well-developed alien language;

if aliens use senses other than ours to communicate;

if the film shows the difficulties humans have in communicating with aliens, or deciphering alien writings;

if the film shows the language-learning process (a human learning an alien language, or vice versa);

if a non-human species here on earth learns to use human language;

if a time traveler to the past or future has to cope with the effects of historical linguistic change;

if a futuristic setting shows what human language will be like in the future;

if an alternate universe shows alternate linguistic evolution;

if language is used as a tool or weapon (i.e. for mind-control);

ETC.?

LINGUISTICALLY-INTERESTING SF MOVIES

I posted a query on rec.arts.sf.movies a few months back, asking people to recommend sf movies that were interesting from a linguistic point of view (using the above criteria). Here are the suggestions I received (and some of the editorial comments, as well):

• any TREK movie: Marc Okrand's Klingon, other TREK languages
• A CLOCKWORK ORANGE: Anthony Burgess' futuristic Russian-influenced English, Nadsat.
• ALIEN NATION: Van Ling's Newcomer language (Tenctonese)

• BACK TO THE FUTURE (all parts): Marty McFly speaks anachronistic 1980's slang while in past and future time periods, resulting in varying degrees of confusion.
• BARBARELLA: Jane Fonda has a translator thingee on her arm that is malfunctioning. Her lack of communicative ability results in some misadventures.
• BBC's LORD OF THE RINGS: Tolkien's Elvish, etc.
• BLADE RUNNER: "Cityspeak" used by Gaff when first accosting Deckard, who pretends not to understand the lingo. In voice-over, Deckard describes it as a pidgin language made up of several different Earth languages.
• CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND: aliens use musical tones & light to communicate.
• DAY OF THE DOLPHIN: The main (human) characters are doing research on communicating with dolphins and training them to perform sophisticated tasks.
• DUNE: Real-time translating devices are used in a couple of scenes; they use the 'weirding' module to convert words and vocalizations into energy to be used in weapons.

• EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS: The aliens initially attempt to communicate by using an audio signal whose frequency is too high for humans to understand. Dr. Russell Marvin discovers this by accident, when his tape recorder's batteries run down.
• ENEMY MINE: Human and Drak marooned on alien planet, must learn each other's languages, learn to cooperate. Fairly well developed Drak language; the language-learning process shown in some detail.
• E.T., THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL: E.T. learns to speak English from an electronic Speak-N-Spell(?) educational toy, and from watching TV, IIRC. (Cf. GREMLINS)
• FORBIDDEN PLANET: Robby the robot, the Krell language.
• IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE: big disembodied aliens crash on earth and take over a couple of humans to help them repair their ship. They can only communicate to other humans via a human host.
  
  

• MAN FROM PLANET X: an alien is completely misunderstood, and drama ensues from that.
• MARS ATTACKS!: imperfect translating machine, cute "Rack-Rack" Martian sounds. Answers that pesky question, "How can you tell if aliens are lying to you, or if you're just miscommunicating?"
• ONE MILLION YEARS B.C.: prehistoric Raquel Welch, made-up Proto-Language.
• QUEST FOR FIRE: Anthony Burgess' Proto-Human language
• SHORT CIRCUIT: Number Five acquires the majority of his language skills from books and television.
• STARGATE: ancient Egyptian (with only slight linguistic changes) used on alien planet.

• STAR WARS movies: Several alien languages which, though perhaps not well-developed, are well-faked. :) C3PO's function as a protocol droid who speaks six million languages is important at least twice.
• SOLARIS: communication seemingly occurs with things the Ocean below (which is sentient) sends up to the space station. By interacting with the 'visitors', they communicate with the Ocean.
• THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL: only three words of the alien language are ever heard, but this is an important plot device since the humans have no other way of communicating with Gort.

Other suggestions? Send them to mshapiro@truman.edu

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