Widescreen baroque
Science fiction subgenre
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Widescreen baroque, sometimes stylized with a space or dash in "widescreen", is a style of science fiction writing "characterized by larger-than-life characters, violence, intrigue, extravagant settings or actions, and fast-paced plotting".[1] It is closely aligned with, and an outgrowth of, space opera fiction. The term was coined by Brian Aldiss. It is most often applied by literary critics, rather than authors.
Definition
As characterized by Brian Aldiss in The Billion Year Spree, widescreen baroque entails "a kind of free-wheeling interplanetary adventure, full of brilliant scenery, dramatic scenes, and a joyous taking for granted of the unlikely." According to Paul Di Filippo, "these novels are frequently bildungsromans, sending youthful protagonists out to learn just that they and the universe are made of."[2] According to Jeff Prucher, they entail "larger-than-life characters, violence, intrigue, extravagant settings or actions, and fast-paced plotting".[1] According to Jerome Winter, "The grandeur of the wide-screen baroque tradition ... seems to evocatively capture inconceivably immense expanses of time and space juxtaposed cheek and jowl with monumental feats of human ingenuity and exuberant future-driven hopes."[3]
Widescreen baroque is characterized by large-scale stories, which often include an adventurous spirit and high energy. The name alludes to the wide screens of film theaters and the perceived extravagance of blockbuster cinema. According to Aldiss, "They like a wide screen, with space and possibly time travel as props, and at least the whole solar system as their setting." The word "baroque" in the name alludes to the ornate style style of Baroque art, which is reflected in widescreen baroque stories.[4]
While the term is primarily applied to literature, theatrical works and anime have occasionally been labeled as widescreen baroque as well. David Lynch's Dune, Gurren Lagann, and Revue Starlight: The Movie are among such works.[2][5][6]
History
According to the Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction, the term was first used in an introduction Aldiss wrote for Charles L. Harness's 1964 book, The Paradox Men, in which he likened the book and others like it as being "a wide screen, with space and possibly time travel as props, and at least the whole solar system as their setting."[2] He compared the story to those of Alfred Bester or Kurt Vonnegut.[4] The term was brought to greater attention in 1973, when Aldiss references works by E.E. Smith and A.E. van Vogt as wide-screen baroque in his 1973 work The Billion Year Spree.
However, the term remained obscure until the 1990s. Starting then, the term was used in literary criticism by authors such as Paul Di Filippo, Tony Lee, and Iain Banks. It remains most commonly brought up in reference to the critical writings of Aldiss.[3] However, some authors, such as Banks and Mariko Ōhara, have applied the term to their own writing.[4]
In Japan, widescreen baroque gained popularity in the 1980s. In 1981, The Billion Year Spree was translated into Japanese.[7] It was followed the next year by a translation of Chris Boyce's book, Catchworld, which included a foreword by literary critic Hitoshi Yasuda, discussing widescreen baroque in further detail.[8] Several Japanese authors have referred to their own works as widescreen baroque, including Hirofumi Tanaka and Gengen Kusano.[9]
Authors
Authors Aldiss associated with widescreen baroque include:
Authors associated with widescreen baroque by other critics include:
- Stephen Baxter
- Barrington Bayley
- Samuel Delany
- Stanislaw Lem
- Mariko Ohara
- Alastair Reynolds
- Stephen Baxter
- John C. Wright
- Barrington J. Bayley
Authors who have identified with widescreen baroque include:
- Iain Banks
- Mariko Ōhara
- Hirofumi Tanaka
- Gengen Kusano
Works
Works associated with widescreen baroque include:
- The Stars My Destination[2][4]
- The Sirens of Titan[2]
- The Paradox Men[4]
- Lensman series[4]
- The Patterns of Chaos[4]
- The World of Null-A[4]
- The Demolished Man[4]
- Xeelee Sequence[4]
- At the End of the Endless Stream[10]
- Iain Bank's Culture series[2]
- Last and First Idol[9]
- Dune (1984)[2]
- Gurren Lagann[5]
- Kill la Kill[5]
- Revue Starlight: The Movie[6]
Legacy
Use of the term remains niche, but several authors have taken to describing their own work this way. Authors who have referred to their own work as widescreen baroque include Iain Banks, Mariko Ōhara and Gengen Kusano.[4][9]
Widescreen baroque has been referenced in music. This includes Revue Starlight: The Movie, with the song wi(l)d-screen baroque,[11] and an idol unit formed in 2025, called Widescreen Baroque.[12]