1982. What a summer at the movies. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, E.T the Extraterrestrial, The Thing, The Road Warrior, Tron, Poltergeist, Blade Runner and Conan the Barbarian. Eight movies, all opening within weeks of each other, some on the same day, and a summer that brought geek culture into the mainstream in a big way.

Chris Nashwaty takes us back to when The Future Was Now, and guides us through the turbulent years, and careers of those involved in these iconic films. If you’ve read Future Noir, you know all about the making of Blade Runner. Despite that, there are some anecdotes and moments throughout this fantastic read.

It’s a fast and delightful read, putting moments and the times in context. I know about all of these films, but reading about them in the context of the way they were all debuting in one summer, how the rush was born from Star Wars, and the studios were eager to transport viewers with their own sci-fi and genre films.

Nashwaty makes his book fun, and for those of us who were there, it’s incredibly nostalgic. He takes us through thee lead up to the making of the films, the making of, the post and release, the reviews, and their enduring appeal.

Looking back, it’s hard for those who weren’t there to believe that The Thing and Blade Runner were initially panned. They are iconic examples of the genres now, but then, not everyone felt that way.

It brushes over the Poltergeist controversy, did Spielberg or Hooper direct it? It shows the rise of Carpenter, and the way The Thing crippled his career. And showed that Universal, which backed Spielberg when Columbia Pictures wouldn’t, made the best bet of the summer.

It’s a fantastic book, and honestly, I would have gone with a box twice, even three times the size. I love reliving that year, learning more about the films that defined my youth, and my love of cinema.

The creativity that helped make these films, shook up the box office, and led to all the films that came after. They blazed trails, made or broke careers, and made sure that summers were the best time to count on blockbusters.

This is a great fun read, and consequently I may hunt down the book he penned on Caddyshack. Nashwaty has a fun, easy style, while still delivering the facts, and has no problem setting the way back machine to 1982.

Loved this book.