My husband and I saw the movie “Gravity” recently because it
received such great reviews (top critics rated it 100 percent fresh on
RottenTomatoes.com). My husband is an
aerospace engineer with a background in orbital mechanics (how things move in
space). After the movie, I asked him if there
were any blatant errors in science and he said, “Pretty much everything.”
Still, that didn’t completely ruin his movie-going experience because it was an
interesting story.
We tend to give authors/storytellers some flexibility with
fiction because it’s fiction! I think the problem is when inaccuracies pop a
reader/viewer out of the story, asking “Can that really happen?”
I can suspend belief and logic far more easily when reading a
book like The Hunger Games. The book is set in a dystopian future so we’re
allowed to believe that technology has advanced to include force fields,
hovercraft and fiery costumes that don't harm the wearers. We can imagine a future where 12 kids must fight to
the death!
My writer friend, Micki, is a former police captain who
writes crime fiction. She knows what details need to be factual to maintain credibility.
And that's because readers/viewers are knowledgeable and savvy. I’m writing a book set in an infamous and horrific prison in the 1950s. I’m constantly
researching what could happen and what’s too far-fetched, even if the story is
compelling.
Do you have any examples of stories/movies that you found completely unbelievable? Did that lessen your enjoyment?
