Hollywood filmed Starship Troopers and Robert Heinlein’s Puppet Masters, and, of course, Heinlein’s own early effort with George Pal directing, Destination: Moon, showed in 1950 what a moonflight would be really like. Some of Heinlein’s other science fiction novels would make great films.
So, if filmmakers are going to dip into the 1950’s for science fiction, albeit topflight 1950’s science fiction, then they should come up scripts from Heinlein’s other work. Naturally, it’d be best to bring in some of the background and style that made Heinlein’s novels stand out, but that’s always been a weakness of film. You can, however, bring in some of the social changes which was a major element to Heinlein’s tales. Some such elements, at least, found their way into Starship Troopers.
I’m sure Heinlein’s books were all optioned long ago, but why not dust off the treatments, check with a few studios, and line up some funding.
THE MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS. Lunar colonists oppressed by Earth authorities revolt, aided by a self-aware computer named Mike who regards the whole thing as an amusing game. Considered helpless and defenseless they threaten to throw rocks at Earth cities. Heinlein’s polygamous clan marriage in this story will drive some moviegoers nuts and alone makes it worth filming.
TUNNEL IN THE SKY. The ultimate survival trip. Skip the Discovery Channel wilderness survival documentaries from Bear Grylls and Survivorman. Here, a high school student finds himself and other students stranded on a distant planet as part of a survival course that goes wrong and they must survive against unusual creatures and each other. You could make the high school students college students to appeal to an older audience, of course.
HAVE SPACESUIT WILL TRAVEL. Kip wins a spacesuit in a sweepstakes, fixes it up, and while taking a walk and trying out his radio is kidnapped by aliens secretly setting their sights on conquering Earth. That’s only half the problem. He finds he must defend Earth from his rescuers, an alien federation ready to write off the planet and it’s inhabitants. Kip and Peewee’s lunar escape with the Mother Thing would be interesting as would the attempt to signal the good guys from Pluto. Rick Baker would go crazy on the head bad guy and the alien federation members.
CITIZEN OF THE GALAXY. Surprising this hasn’t been filmed before. Visually, it would be very similar to stuff that has been done before. Young Thorby is a slave, rescued and raised by a beggar in a busy alien port. But Baslim the beggar turns out to be a spy trying to help end the slave trade. When Baslim is killed, Thorby needs to get his adopted father’s off-planet friends. He then finds out he’s an heir. Age the kid to the young-20’s and this could be pretty exciting stuff, mixing alien worlds in the first half with a conflict between the aristocratic merchants in their world later.
THE ROLLING STONES. Great story of a family who were in on the settling of the moon who decide to take a jaunt to Mars and the asteroid belt. Favorite characters are the twins, Castor and Pollux, aided and abetted by their mother, Hazel Stone. If you can keep in all the hustling shenanigans and resulting trouble that Cas and Pol get themselves involved in, you can have a great story.
FRIDAY. In the balkanized United States, Friday is a courier who undergoes numerous adventures trying to get through with her information, then has to take off when her boss gets killed. Action packed story.
STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND. A classic that movie-makers have taken a couple stabs at. Michael Valentine Smith is found on Mars where he was raised by the locals resulting in a completely different point of view that leads him to start his own religion based on Martian beliefs. Use as much or little special effects as you want, the setting is Earth. Not my own favorite, but it has a huge following so I include it.
DOUBLE STAR. Unknown actor Lorenzo Smith is hired to impersonate a major political figure at a critical time in interstellar relationships following an assassin’s attack. It requires, among other things, dealing with royalty and Martians. Think Dave (Kevin Kline) with aliens.
TIME FOR THE STARS. Tom and other members of the Long Range Foundation have one important quality for star travel…they are in instant telepathic contact with their twin. A dozen torchships are sent out in all directions to find planets that can be colonized. Tom and his uncle, Steve, take part in several adventurous and deadly landfalls while Tom’s twin back on Earth ages at a normal rate. (Tom can’t, he’s traveling at relativistic speeds.) Got great possibilities what with all the landfalls.
STAR BEAST. Lummox is a big alien beast smuggled home as a baby by John Thomas. John Thomas’s pet has grown big now and likes to polish off the occasional Buick. People object. They make a run for the hills. Back on Lummox’s home planet, the inhabitants are ready to declare war on Earth because they’ve just figured out where their ruler’s heir has disappeared to. I’ve always had a soft spot for Lummox who’s story has got great potential, even though the story seems to be somewhat more juvenile than most of Heinlein’s juvenile science fiction.
