The science fiction film underestimated from the 80s of George RR Martin is almost impossible to watch today

The traditional reputation of George RR Martin could be linked to a certain fantastic epic neo-medieval series, but the prolific author has also tried other literary genres. For example, Martin wrote a new novel of intriguing science fiction in 1980, which was then adapted to an eponymous film from 1987 and to an adaptation of the Syfy series published in 2018. This news, “Nightflyers”, is a cultivated point by Martin de Martin for the prestigious Hugo prize). This passion would later branch into horror and speculative fiction, with novels (vampires) like “fevre dream” illustrating Martin’s appetite for the bizarre and macabre, which he then sent in his fantastic novels through a distinct objective.

The story of Martin’s “Nightflyers” takes place in the distant future, where the discovery of a certain Stardrive has propelled humanity to a technologically advanced society torn apart by blood effusions. The enemy in question is an extraterrestrial species called Hrangan, which has managed to push human civilization on the verge of collapse. To fight against these disastrous circumstances, humanity must acquire advanced interstellar technology which can potentially help them to retaliate and overcome the Hrangan. This leads to a revealing human spatial expedition, and the rest is a convincing pit of dark fantasy and spatial horror, conveyed as a page turner suspense in a way that only Martin can accomplish.

Although “Nightflyers” is not extraordinary according to gender standards, it is an interesting story whose call lies in the tense atmosphere that keeps readers hanging to the great revelation. “Nightflyers” of 1987 does a bad job to translate these aspects on the screen, but assess the merits of the film (if applicable) becomes difficult when it is SO Difficult to find.

The producer / screenwriter Robert Jaffe co-written “Nightflyers” from 1987 alongside Martin himself, but the author was somewhat dissatisfied with the final product because the adaptation was based on a shorter version of history (as opposed to an extended version that Martin had written in 1981). In addition, Robert Collector, who used the pseudonym “TC Blake” while directing the project, abruptly left before post-production for unknown reasons. The limited budget of the film certainly did not help things, because the intrigue at high concept could not be visually expanded convincingly without being wrapped in smoked and misty aesthetics (which adds to an involuntary feeling of surreality).

Although the film did not succeed well at the box office, Martin recognized that his modest presence had perhaps saved his career at the time (via his personal blog):

“‘Nightflyers’ … The film … was not a huge success. But it is a film that I have very warm feelings. ‘Nightflyers’ may not have saved my life, but in a very real sense, that saved my career, and all that I have written since it has been largely because of this 1987 film.”

Given what Martin thinks of the film, it is a shame that “Nightflyers” has never been resurrected in the era of postmodern DVD after obtaining a limited home video release in 1987. No, the film is not available to broadcast on a platform for the moment, and you cannot in any case buy it digitally – but you could Trubles on its existence in an internet corner.

Each work of art deserves to be preserved, whatever its creative quality, and “Nightflyers” has a lot to offer as a piece of science from the 80s which accomplishes a lot with very little. I hope it will be easily accessible one day.