As reported by Variety and other outlets, a new film version of The Three-Body Problem is set to be directed by Zhang Yimou, the director renowned for his films like Raise the Red Lantern and Hero. This announcement came out of the Shanghai International Film Festival, directly from Wang Changtian, the CEO of Enlight Media. In essence, this Chinese-language feature film has absolutely nothing to do with Netflix’s 3 Body Problem, and will likely stick closer to the characters from the first and second novels. As many readers noticed, the Netflix version took the character of nanotech expert Wang Miao, and essentially split his story into three different people: Jack Rooney (John Bradley), Jin Cheng (Jess Hong), and Auggie Salazar (Eiza González).

“We hope that director Zhang Yimou can grasp the essence of The Three-Body Problem novel and make some breakthroughs and innovations,” Wang said, adding that he hoped the movie would “gain something in the international market.” This seems to mean that on some level, this version of the story could directly rival the Netflix show. If Zhang Yimou’s take on the story goes on to garner global acclaim (which has happened with his movies before) then, suddenly, in a few years, audiences around the world may be seeing two contradictory versions of this story.

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The post Another Three-Body Problem Adaptation is on Its Way first appeared on Sevenelles.

Stephen King provides a positive review of the original Chinese version of Netflix’s 3 Body Problem. The sci-fi show is based on the novel series by Chinese author Liu Cixin, and was adapted by Netflix this year. Prior to the Netflix adaptation, a series titled Three-Body was created, which also adapted the popular book series. The Netflix show features a leading cast including Benedict Wong, Liam Cunningham, Jovan Adepo, Eiza González, Jess Hong, Marlo Kelly, Alex Sharp, Jonathan Pryce, and Sea Shimooka.

Now, King gives his review of Three-Body. The famed author was generous in his review, saying that “both are good,” referring to both Three-Body and 3 Body Problem. Of the Chinese version, he noted a particular strength of the final episodes, going so far as to refer to them as “Lovecraftian.”

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The post “Lovecraftian”: Stephen King Praises Original Chinese Version Of 3 Body Problem first appeared on Sevenelles.

From the popular Chinese science fiction novel The Three-Body Problem, the Earth-side space battleship “Natural Selection” commanded by Zhang Beihai is now available as a plastic model kit. [Thanks, HobbyWave!]

This model is approximately 230mm in length and features movable parts, including an opening hatch and rotating components. The kit uses five runner molding colors and includes some pre-painted parts, allowing assembly without the need for painting.

The model is equipped with a specially designed LED light-emitting unit. It starts emitting light when the included magnetic switch is brought close and can display multiple light patterns, representing different states like the starting sequence and cruising conditions. The kit includes a dedicated stand, a die-cast nameplate, and a water transfer decal.

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The post Three-Body Problem Natural Selection Spaceship Model Announced first appeared on Sevenelles.

What is mankind without science? The thought-provoking question is one of the themes in “3 Body Problem,” an eight-episode Netflix series from “Game of Thrones” creators D.B. Weiss and David Benioff and “True Blood” scribe Alexander Woo. Adapted from author Cixin Liu’s “Remembrance of Earth’s Past” trilogy, the material follows a group of scientists who attempt to save humanity from a technologically advanced alien race known as the San-Ti. What it meant for the creative team was developing a distinct visual aesthetic capable of reaching the far ends of the galaxy, yet one delicate enough to support the emotional dilemmas each character faced.

“I remember when the guys first wrote to me about this series, and they promised, I quote, ‘A journey from China during the darkest hours of the cultural revolution all the way to the farthest fringes of the universe, both in time and space.’ And I thought, ‘OK wow, we are not in Westeros anymore,’” production designer Deborah Riley told IndieWire, who previously worked on “GoT.”

The challenge for filmmakers was navigating an expansive storyline that moves through different decades and drifts across continents. Shot on location and in the studio, it was paramount to create a sense of realism, building practical sets whenever possible, and sonically avoid cluttering a dialogue track rife with philosophical and scientific discussion. “Visually, it was very reality-based,” visual effects supervisor Stefen Fangmeier told IndieWire. “There was quite a wide range of effects we did and various other things that made it interesting.” The hurdles each department head faced included creating dream-like virtual reality environments, explaining mind-boggling alien technology, launching a rocket off Cape Canaveral, and splitting a tanker-like loaf of bread — all while navigating the vulnerabilities of the characters. 

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The post How ‘3 Body Problem’ Created a Sci-Fi World for Its Epic Story first appeared on Sevenelles.

A rocket launch. Our nearest stellar neighbor. A Netflix show. All of these things have something in common: They must contend with the “three-body problem.” But exactly what is this thorny physics conundrum?

The three-body problem describes a system containing three bodies that exert gravitational forces on one another. While it may sound simple, it’s a notoriously tricky problem and “the first real worry of Newton,” Billy Quarles, a planetary dynamicist at Valdosta State University in Georgia, told Live Science.

In a system of only two bodies, like a planet and a star, calculating how they’ll move around each other is fairly straightforward: Most of the time, those two objects will orbit roughly in a circle around their center of mass, and they’ll come back to where they started each time. But add a third body, like another star, and things get a lot more complicated. The third body attracts the two orbiting each other, pulling them out of their predictable paths.

The motion of the three bodies depends on their starting state — their positions, velocities and masses. If even one of those variables changes, the resulting motion could be completely different.

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The post What is the 3-Body Problem, and is It Really Unsolvable? first appeared on Sevenelles.

From the Article:

In Cixin Liu’s epic science fiction novel trilogy — which begins with The Three-Body Problem — it takes 400 years for the invading Trisolorian fleet to come to Earth. It won’t take that long for the next season of 3 Body Problem to hit Netflix, but it still might feel longer than expected. While it’s very encouraging that showrunners David Benioff, D.B Weiss, and Alexander Woo have gotten the green light to finish adapting the rest of the story, it does sound like we may all need to get used to waiting. Like the long game in the novel, a devotion to the Netflix version of 3 Body Problem will require a lot of patience.

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The post 3BP Season 2: How Long Will We Wait? first appeared on Sevenelles.

The most notable exception may be Liu Cixin’s novel The Three-Body Problem, the sci-fi phenomenon whose 2014 English translation earned the Hugo Award and an endorsement from President Barack Obama. Now, following a 30-episode adaptation for Chinese television, Liu’s series has received the Netflix treatment from Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss. And the new version, which retains some of the plot’s Chinese scaffolding but transposes most of the action westward, has provoked a telling combination of praise and censure in both countries.

The opening scene has attracted particular attention. Set in 1966 Beijing during the Cultural Revolution, it harrowingly depicts a young Chinese student watching her father’s denunciation and murder at a mass struggle session. As a result, the young woman’s ensuing trauma kicks off a chain reaction that eventually leads to her welcoming an alien invasion. (It’s a long story.)

The post How ‘3 Body Problem’ Gets Lost in Translation first appeared on Sevenelles.

But then I’m also struck, reading the commentary surrounding the show and the books, by how the different projects of translation — from Chinese-language phenomenon to English-language best seller, then from book to TV show — have created an instability of interpretation, a difficulty settling on a narrative about what Liu’s story really means. Even a three-interpretation problem, you might say (sorry!), with different gazes and different translations yielding very different readings and reactions. (Some spoilers follow.)

The post Three Interpretations of ‘The Three-Body Problem’ first appeared on Sevenelles.

The Season 1 finale sees Project Staircase put into action, as a series of 300 atomic bombs scattered through space are deployed to propel a probe toward the thousand San-Ti ships en route to Earth. There’s one passenger on board, or, shall we say, a piece of one passenger: the frozen brain of a physics teacher, Will (Alex Sharp).

While Jin (Jess Hong) agonizes over the fate of the project — and, more importantly, of her good friend Will — Saul (Jovan Adepo) faces a new challenge when he’s recruited to join a mysterious project of his own.

Let’s recap 3 Body Problem’s season finale, “Wallfacer.”

Read the Episode Recap from Netflix

Read the Episode Review from Vulture TV

The post Netflix 3 Body Problem: Episode 8 Recap & Reviews first appeared on Sevenelles.

Will (Alex Sharp) and Saul (Jovan Adepo) lie low at the beach house, waiting out Will’s last days. Will points out the star (number DX3906) in the sky, which he bought for Jin (Jess Hong). Will makes Saul promise he won’t tell Jin that he was the one who purchased the (£19.5 million!) star. Then Will collapses. His health is rapidly deteriorating. At the hospital, Saul calls Jin and tells her to come when she can, implying she should get there ASAP.

Later, a package arrives for Jin: It’s the star. Her boyfriend, Raj (Saamer Usmani), is suspicious of its origin, but Jin shrugs it off as someone “taking the piss.”

Read the Episode Recap from Netflix

Read the Episode Review from Vulture TV

The post Netflix 3 Body Problem: Episode 7 Recap & Reviews first appeared on Sevenelles.