What is Cyberpunk?

[…] Cyberpunk Movie Review http://cyberpunkreview.com/ Contains a growing list of Cyberpunk movies, with ratings, chronology and more. Movies are argualy the best way of illustrating the genre, which initially emerged as science fiction novels. See also: Cyberpunk Review - What is Cyberpunk? […]

Hey what’s happenin’?

I really enjoy this site and how it encompasses all the themes that cyberpunk is about. I took a look at the “what is cyberpunk?” portion and think you have nailed it on the head. I was wondering if I might be able to send you a couple question via e-mail that I might be able to use in a paper I’m writing. My thesis is the corrolation between technology and sexuality as seen in Japanese cyberpunk. The main film I’ll be analyzing will be Tetsuo: the iron man and will be using referneces from Rubber’s Lover and 964 Pinnochio. Thanks in advance,
lustafterzombies

Hi Lustafterzombies, welcome to cyberpunkreview

Your topic sounds pretty interesting. Tetsuo is definitely the best movie to use for that topic. If you’ve read my review (I’m guessing you have), I do touch on that somewhat. And please feel free to send me some questions at sfam@cyberpunkreview.com.

also very important , most cyberpunk heroines & razor girls are using hair coloring products ^^ with a tendance for flashy colors

[…] I’ve been doing a little thinking about what makes fiction “cyberpunk”, in hopes of coming up with some judging criteria for fiction reviews… since I will hopefully soon be contributing a few to www.cyberpunkreview.com. To that end, we’ve been trying to come up with a formal criteria list, similar to SFAM’s “What is cyberpunk?” Of course, one significant difference between cyberpunk fiction and cyberpunk film is the lack of visuals, which often are much of what makes a film c-punk. Of course a book has a sense of aesthetic too, but the “visuals” provided by words are much more open to interpretation. […]

Hey, it’s Jun.

I thought the explanation of what Cyberpunk is was definitely well thought out. When I think about it, and when I think about the movies i’ve seen in your list of reviews, they do fit in with this explanation.

Sorry if this question ends up being in the wrong place, but if anyone has the answer, or if you do sfam, when did Cyberpunk actually begin?

Hi Jun, welcome! Yes, I do have an explanation about cyberpunk’s origins. Come to think of it, I should probably put this in a post or something. The term first was used by Bruce Bethke (http://www.infinityplus.co.uk/stories/cpunk.htm) as the title of a short story. William Gibson is generally credited as the father of the cyberpunk movement. His influential 1984 novel, Neuromancer really launched it from a literary standpoint. However, Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner (http://www.cyberpunkreview.com/movie/decade/1980-1989/blade-runner/) was released 2 years prior to that in 1982. Combined, these two led to a significant change in the science fiction field.

While the term certainly arose in the early 80s, I still contend though that Fritz Lang’s Metropolis (http://www.cyberpunkreview.com/movie/decade/pre-1980/metropolis/) (1927) was really the first cyberpunk movie. Many authors prior to 1982 could also be named as massive influences, including Alfred Bester and Philip K. Dick.

So although the big, revealing, telling-everyone-that-cyberpunk-exist movies happened in 1982, the first movie was in 1927.

… odd, why the big gap? Or is there more to this? I mean, I can’t see something happening for one moment, dissapear for a good 55 years, and then just all of a sudden, sprout out again.

Maybe a lack of an audience brought the whole idea down back then.

Well, in truth, Fritz Lang’s Metropolis is one of the most influential movies ever invented. If you were giving the history of scifi movies and had to list 10 key ones, Metropolis would be on everyone’s list. So while I and many others consider this a cyberpunk movie, it discussed cyberpunk concepts far before that particular term was invented. Metropolis certainly influenced many other non-cyberpunk movies as well.

Blade Runner was an adaptation of what I thought was a Phillip K. Dick novel ‘Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep’. When did that come out?

Hi Kana, Philip K. Dick’s novel was first published in 1968.

Hi, I use Semiologic but for the life of my I cant figure out how to change the colors of the little links on the bottom of each post that say “email this” “comment” “edit” “permalink” and “print”. If you could tell me how you did that, I would love it! Thanks!

Jack

Hi Jack, it’s all in the CSS files for the theme. Go to the Theme selection in the Admin interface, and select “Theme Editor.” You’ll see a bunch of files with “css” extensions. All the settings to change the colors are in there.

Hi

Im pretty sure you guys have all noticed this and its not just the
“cyberpunk” genre but also alot of the other sci-fi areas. All the movies that are released nowadays are all shit! These films lack alot of everything that makes a true film that expresses current issues, ideas, or messages. What happend to this generations filmakers?? It seems movies are just products now, money is all these assholes care about. Im not saying fuck the money, money is great but thats no excuse to not make a decent film. This may seem way out there, but Im studying at this shitty college in hartford right now but I intendo to go to a decent film school. I will dedicate my life if I have to, I want to bring that those fuking awsome movies we all grew up watching, this era of shitty movies will have to end soon and I intend on stopping it. Thank you and take care, I love this site.

I don’t know, where to dipute about categories and movie submision so I try here.
I just checked “Cyberpunk Movies by Theme” categories.
What you think about new category: “gangs” (this motif repeats in many cyberpunk movies: Robocop opponents, characters from Akira, opponents of Mad Max…). If you agree, I have one submission: The Warriors ( http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080120/ ).

Hi Mike, while I certainly appreciate the concern that far too many crapfests have been coming out of hollywood, I don’t know that I’d blame the film makers. At the same time, there are BUNCHES of great indie films. Regarding scifi and cyberpunk, while I would agree that lost of the big budget productions are crap, I would strongly disagree that there aren’t any good cyberpunk movies made. I’d definitely put 2004 as being in my top 5 years for cyberpunk movies, for instance. We got Natural City, Ghost in the Shell: Innocence, Casshern and Immortel, among others. 2003 had Wonderful Days, The Matrix sequels (which I like), Texhnolyze and Save the Green Planet. I could go through the rest of the years in this decade, but bottom line, there have been some absolutely terrific scifi and cyberpunk films (not to mention the LOTR films for fantasy). Again, most of the truly great ones have not been Hollywood productions. Such is life. I think most film afficionados would say that most great movies being made today are not coming out of Hollywood.

Come to think of it your totally right man, Theres a bunch of truly great indie films I forgot about those..hehe. I had a dream and it was seriously one of the most amazing dreams I’ve had inawhile, I dreamed about that movie “A clockwork orange” but not the old one, it was as if it was remade but with today’s stuff. Thinking about it now, that would be pretty cool id they remade that movie but with an even more sick and sci-fi twist to it. Don’t ya think’?

[…] Everyone, it seems, have their own definition of cyberpunk. It is hard to pinpoint and define, and that’s a good thing. The concept carries a subversive openness. “In some cases, it becomes a virus, introduced into the heart of the message – in a sense it becomes a trojan horse, ready to spring out when least expected to carry an altogether different message.” (SFAM) When talking about cyberpunk it is usually more adequate to talk about themes (and perhaps even style, mode and tone) then rigid definitions. With some minor modifications I agree with SFAM’s list of central themes, but I think we can narrow it down to two main themes: control and mutation. […]

[…] Attributes for rating cyberpunk movies: Negative Impact of technology on humanity Fusion of man and machine Corporate control over society Story focuses on the underground Ubiquitous Access to information Cyberpunk visuals and style […]

[…] Negative Impact of technology on humanity […]

Its me again, ive already commented on tetsuo, well, i agree with the control thing from the comment on sept 17, i think that control is a central theme. he

heya, i think the summary of the cyberpunk themes is to a T, im studying the sub-genre for my coursework, ive found it to be undefineable, u just ‘know’. can i ask how did ya find the info to clarify the themes? my work is ‘research-fussy’

Hi Ames, check your email

[…] Everyone, it seems, have their own definition of cyberpunk. It is hard to pinpoint and define, and that’s a good thing. The concept carries a subversive openness. “In some cases, it becomes a virus, introduced into the heart of the message – in a sense it becomes a trojan horse, ready to spring out when least expected to carry an altogether different message.” (SFAM) When talking about cyberpunk it is usually more adequate to talk about themes (and perhaps even style, mode and tone) then rigid definitions. With some minor modifications I agree with SFAM’s list of central themes, but I think we can narrow it down to two main themes: control and mutation. […]

[…] Some days ago I was thinking about Cyberpunk. What was Cyberpunk? I thought on some things and aspects of it. I really like Cyberpunk style and life. Well, I don’t like crime or drugs, but I love to read or see about it… maybe it’s because is the dark side… I don’t know xD So, today I was surfing the net and found a blog about Cyberpunk… and I found this wonderful definition of Cyberpunk. And what can I say? I agree with all the things he says! I thought on all except 2. So, please, if you want to know what’s Cyberpunk, read this article (cyberpunkreview): […]

hi SFAM, u have emailed me before with a response but unfortunately i deleted the email by mistake, i was wondering if u could tell me again how u came to summarise the conventions of a cyberpunk film, its for my coursework n they are research-fussy if u get my drift..(pain in the butt in other words) lol, would really appreciate it if u could tell me how u found the info, many fanx, great site xxx

I decided to raid my bookshelf, and when that didn’t produce what I was looking for, my secret section of my closet, just behind the mothballs and spiderwebs. Eureka. I found it…

Gurps Cyberpunk
“High Tech Low Life Roelplaying Sourcebook”
yes, I have this in my possession; please do not ask how I got it…

anyway…

let’s see…ah, here we are. On p4’s ‘introduction’

******
“Cyberpunk is vibrant”

“cyberpunk is a style defined by two elements, The first is the interaction of man with technology…the second…is that of struggle. The world is divided into two groups - the haves and the have nots- with a vast chasm between them”

****

Only a slight variation exists between this description and SFAM’s description.

(note: this was a 1990 publication; covers both literture, comics and film; published by Steve Jackson Games for purposes of roleplaying..when THAT was big stuff in the 80s and early 90’s)

Hi Darren, I love it! Yeah, the definitions are very similar.

Although I haven’t read it myself, I beleive Mary Shelley’s book ‘Frankenstein’ (first published 1818) was a much earlier commentary on the possible future horror of the man/machine merger.

Hi Clint, I can certainly see the negative use of technology aspect for Frankenstein, but I’m missing the man-machine interface part. Are you referring to the electricity used to start Frankenstein’s body up?

I think it’s a valid suggestion - remember, the monster was assembled from various parts of different bodies artificially, and outfitted with mechanical parts so it can be brought to life using electricity… we may just have the first rudimentary cyborg right there…

I’ve never ruled out Frankenstein as being a cyberpunk flick, although I haven’t read the book. I really should, I think. I hadn’t realized there were mechanical parts there - but then again, perhaps there is in the movie as well.

I was refering to the cyborg aspect, at the philosophical level if not technological, Frankenstein’s monster was created by man and brought to life by electricity (did it have a ghost?). But it’s probably not cyberpunk. The concept of technologically augmented humans in fiction far preceeds the dystopic techno-futures that were imagined after industrialisation began.

Hmm…did Frankenstein have a Ghost? Good question! Regarding whether Frankenstein was a cyborg, I suppose we could just as convincingly argue that Frankenstein was a zombie. But the electricity does have an interesting man-machine component. I wonder if Mary Shelley addresses this. I have a copy of the movie as well so I’ll give it another viewing soon.

I think Frankenstein is cyberpunk, it’s just biopunk cyberpunk is all!

One thing to remember though is that Frankenstein entered into ‘popular culture’ which means there are all kinds of mutations and manifestations. Most people know the story of Frankenstein but have never read the novel, just like most people know the story of Adam and Eve without everhaving read Genesis. So most people don’t know that there is no ‘apple’ in genesis, just the word ‘fruit.’ In some paintings it is depicted as a fig. Just as some people don’t realize the monster didn’t have a name, Frankenstein was the name of the scientist.

I don’t think there is a ‘man-machine’ element to the monster but he is clearly transhuman, which after-all is what the ‘upgrades’ in cyberpunk are about. I could probably go into great detail if you like.

Frankenstein seems to take the Gene Generation tagline, “Death is just an upgrade!”

You Don’t going to understand what I will tell you but…I don’t care!!

Soy de Venezuela y me encantó este sitio! me parece muy original y genial que este tipo de cosas se den y que la gente se interece por eso!ya había oído sobre el punk (en realidad más de la cuenta!) y todos los tipos de este pero JAMÁS había escuchado a cerca del cyberpunk y al leer esto, por lo que entendi tienen toda la razon hay que luchar lo que creemos verdadero y adorar a Aeon Flux! Bueno me despido, fue un placer hablarles bye bye.

From Venezuela…I Say Good Bye!! Thank 4 the information!!

I luv this site!!! I have to do a report on the cyberpunk genre, and this site is soooo helpful (I’m serious, no sarcaticness or whatever) But have you ever heard of biopunk? I was looking cyberpunk up on Wikipedia (But I can’t use it for school) and saw an article about biopunk. If you have ever read the “Uglies” triology - sry, I have no idea on who it’s by - then you will know what I’m talking about. Biopunk is like cyberpunk, but instead of cybernetics and that, it is to biologically transform someone by litterally changing their DNA and chromosom count!!

Hi Meghan, I’m glad this site is helpful. And yes, I have definitely heard of biopunk. Many of the movies here would qualify.

It’s a great site indeed; somehow is helping me a lot to know some new ciberpunk anime…. well ciberpunk it’s not quite dead…. on everyday’s life we can see how reality seems to be shocked by technology and progress evolution itself…. pretty ciberpunk to me….

an excelent website ¡¡¡¡ greetings ¡¡¡

Hi Cleanshot, I appreciate the complements. And Cyberpunk certainly isn’t dead as a genre - there are bunches of great movies, animes and books still being made. Most of the movies though don’t come from Hollywood. This, I think, is a good thing.

A paradox of the information age I find interesting is that the net has given rise to the proliferation of copious amounts of non-information, too.

(imagines subcutaneous spam filters in his neural net implants… shudders..)

[…] excellent short explanation/definition of cyberpunk can be found here. The first characteristic is titled “Negative Impact of technology on […]

Resident Evil: Apocalypse is cyberpunk.

There’s Corporate Control Over Society - i’m referring to the Umbrella Corporation.

There’s Ubiquitous Access to Information - computer hacking plays a key role. (especially the character of Dr. Ashford)

It features a lot of the Negative Impacts that Technogy had on Society - a viral outbreak, unwilling victims subject to experimentation, and the results were lethal..

to cyberpunkreview.com STAFF,
Can you tell me, please, how I can get permission to use photos on your website? I am producing an illustrated academic lecture for my non-profit organization. I will not charge for the lectures or materials, nor make any profit from them. My charitable organization has no funds for photos. I would have a printed credit line with the photo with name of copyright holder. A couple photos–apparently from movie advertisements– are: www.cyberpunkreview.com…i-robot,i-robot02.jpg, & www.cyberpunkreview.com…i-robot,i-robot07.jpg.
Thank you for considering this. I appreciate it!
-Paul Champoux

thanks for this page
i don´t kown a spanish space about these themes
i love your colaborations and i´ll visit you frecuently to see films information, etc
people write always the same about sci fi by the general characters, is different here
congratulations
from spain

[…] There are many definitions of cyberpunk and varied opinions. However, I am incline to agree with the above highlighted themes complied by the Cyberpunk Review. […]

Cyberpunk is more live then many people realise! Of course the people exploring the idea through media arnt comming from holiwood, or mainstream america. And the reason why.. is that like many people know, through many aspects of Cyber-punk/ation is a great tool to control the masses. Many aspect have negitive effect on humans and “soceity” as it currently is but, maybe this could be a good thing. Once people see all this going on, maybe then we can evole to a “better” soceity… As for cyberpunk genera [and some aspects] it will never fade, because now technology is so imbedded into human life, i think we will depend on it to evole.

Meh, i’m just rambeling now. and spelling = bad.

[…] Home|What is Cyberpunk?|Movies by Decade|Movie Ratings|Forums|Cyberpunk Wiki […]

Hi, my first contact with cyberpunk was with the novel ‘Neuromancer” from William Gibson in 1984. I am a prolific sf reader, and the first three Gibson romans have made a lasting impression on me. The main problem is that SF, let alone cyberpunk is a genre that falls outside the taste of the average movie-goer, wich keeps big studios from investing in it. Another problem is that the themes in high quality SF and Cyberpunk demand some general technical (or philosophial) knowledge in order to appreciate the medium. Most mainstream productions dump indepth and interesting themes in favour of action and readily accessible drama to attract mainstreams audiences, as mostly allways with mixed results.

However, thanx for an extensive database to more or less relive many movies I have seen, or am interrested in seeing.

Keep up the good work!

Onno.

you might be interested in:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YVgmJ16zhY
Regards, Luigi

Fat people with dreams of Utopia. Hahaha.

[…] WordPress.org What Is Cyberpunk? February 24, 2008, 10:13 pm Filed under: Uncategorized http://www.cyberpunkreview.com/what-is-cyberpunk/ No Comments so far Leave a comment RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI […]

I AGREE WITH EVVVVVERY THING YOU SAY SIMPLY BECAUSE ITS TRUE!!!!

Have you ever watched Serial Experiments Lain? If not I think you should. It’s pretty good and from what you say, is purely a cyberpunk anime. Actually what you say is pretty accurate and I agree.

[…] What is Cyberpunk? […]

Great site! However, I’m really interested, as an outsider (who is a HUGE fan of these movies by the way) asking someone who knows - about the cyberpunk fashion side of things - do you, and people who consider themselves cyberpunk believe that the fashion is also an important aspect of this culture? I noticed that there is no link to cyberpunk fashion - do you wear cyberpunk clothing and do you believe it is valid as a form of the Cyberpunk culture? I ask because I am interested in the movement and am writing a paper on the subject.
Cheers!

hello… i´m also a big cyberpunk fan… mh.. clothes.. i personally don´t wear special cyberpunk clothes like the ones which are offered in fashion shops in internet.. they look like raver clothes.. lol… i wear chucks, dark or grey clothes.. thats enough to look cyberpunkish in my opinion… although i may seem to look like an emo ^ ^

i like cyberpunk

it depends. you get clothing and clothing, my one, for example, is pretty cyberpunk, isn’t it?
http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=2YVgmJ16zhY

[…] - Cyberpunk Review […]

yeah, i have all dvd´s of lain… it´s good…. but… there a better animes like that… better animated and so on… ghost in the shell is good or akira … and so forth…. greetz… wkm

Cyberpunk means maintaining humanity in robotized world.

mh… maybe… but i think cyberpunk is everything that takes place in a dystopic and dirty future (the punk aspect…), in opposite to the clean utopian phantasies as for e.g. in star trek and so on… and with computers and high tech of course, but used to endanger humanity.. yes, as you said, maintaining humanity is one aspect of cyberpunk.. but also the dirty setting… cause there a also some startrek episodes which deal with humanity.. but it isn´t cyberpunk… so far my theories… any improvement suggestions are welcome!

I was trying to find more suiting word then “humanity” but didn’t. It’s cool you mention Star Trek so i can give you an example of the point. You know how Kirk and McCoy enjoy women, food and drugs (mostly alcohol). Cyberpunk is closer to those early series in that it returns to body and “sinful” pleasures as constitutive for “a human” opposed to puritanism of “clean utopias” as you put it. Cyberpunk inserts a dose of anarchy where people have forgotten of their “bloody nature” due to oppression or hypocrisy (It’s always an unfinished bussines fighting centers of power).

[…] Get the Low-Down on Cyberpunk: http://www.cyberpunkreview.com/what-is-cyberpunk/ […]

Bio-Technosis

I’ve never heard about a new word Cyberpunk until 1991. I read the WIRED magazine about a new word “Cyberpunk” and tenth anniversary of “Blade Runner” in 1992. It made me obsessed with cyberpunk.I wished I enter into the dark future. Now, I’m still a cyberpunk fan, and I’m interested to explore the cyberpunk culture.

I was interested to see “Blade Runner” and “The Terminator”. They later became the cyberpunk films. I collected them as VHS videotapes and later DVDs. “Blade Runner” is my all-time movie. My DVD collections are “Blade Runner”, “Terminator (movie series)”, “Ghost in the Shell (anime movie/TV series)”, “Total Recall”, “Tron”, “Matrix (movie series)”, and others. Of course, I collected the cyberpunk books, William Gibson novels, special Heavy Metal magazine, and graphic novels/comic books.

I’ve created my own science fiction/cyberpunk graphic novel. I’m a great artist-creator, but I’m not a professional writer or novelist. I will study the English lessons at my college. I will study the cyberpunk slang myself.

Cyberpunk never dies… Cyberpunk revolution rocks!

I wanted to see “Blade Runner” and “The Terminator”, but my mother didn’t let me do. I later watched them.

I’m a good writer, but I’m not a professional writer. I’ve made my own sci-fi/cyberpunk graphic novel.

Cyberpunk never dies… Cyberpunk revolution rocks!

One should say: Cyberpunk is not dead.

yes, cyberpunk is not dead………..

Indeed, Cyberpunk is not dead…

Cyberpunk is just evolving, into a more mature cultural revolution…

cyberpunk is amazing…Battle Angel is amazing…The idea and style is amazing…

Its quite amazing

yes, battle angel alita…. i´ve just read some mangas… 2 or 3 volumes… i liked it very much.. its aprox. 6 years ago… fascinating atmosphere…. the floating city, zalem, was very…. fascinating…. the duality of the world… beneath the yunkyard and above the floating and wealthy city….. …. but i haven´t seen the movie yet…. maybe one day……

cyberpunk has two sides, like a coin has. On the one hand it’s a literary/science fiction genre, on the other hand it’s a living subculture and a social movement originally based on the cyberpunk science fiction.

yes, but where is the so called cyberpunk subculture in reality? i´ve never seen a cyberpunk on the street… especially myself…. lol….. maybe there are a lot of cyberpunk, but one common subculture and fashion or something like that is missing in my eyes….. the rockers have their subculture fashion and so on, or hip hopper, emos, punks, techno people and so on… but no cyberpunk culture….

has anyone an answer?

thx

werner you mean like that?
http://static.blogo.it/artsblog/verso-la-conferenza/tn_FnF_11O079.jpg

It is a survival kit and religion replacement (replacement in positive sense) for a person in preapocaliptic now. Regarding the manifestation signs of subculture i think it’s a part of Cyberpunk idea that it isn’t widely and obviously expressed. So Werner search harder and under surface or better live it.

Pre-Apcalyptic? how interesting a turn a phrase, how much life is there in the sea? how many species are extinct? why are you so sure an apocalypse is a single event? not a series of fits, starts, gasps and little expirations… eventually leading to tundra, deserts maybe with life still clinging on. we started to kick holes into the planet around the time of metropolis, perhaps a few decades earlier, and now we have power assistance, we just kick harder.

In fact i agree with you. We might be living in post-apocalyptic time already. After watching the best of nuclear tests videos i am not waiting in fear for nuclear war to happen: IT ALREADY DID. More then 2000 tests (1945 - 1996) spread radioactive elements all around the globe. Everyone has cancer these days. I am thinking those ethics barriers EU is introducing to gene manipulation experiments aren’t exactly good thing. Such knowledge might be our only saviour (combined with nanotechnology). Does Cyberpunk presents an answer? Maybe as a stance individual should uptake to confront all this. A rebellious one perhaps.

Well, I see. USA and USSR (now Russia) have been tested the ground-based and underground nuke explosions between 1945 and 1996. They both agreed to reduce the nuke arms beyond 1995. Iran, North Korea, Pakistan, India, and others are the nuclear-power-hungry nations. Pakistan and India were close to start Nuclear War, but USA made them calm down. North Korea tested the long-range dummy nuke missile, but it failed to reach beyond 8000 miles (12880 km). If North Korea launches the nuke weapon, it will hit Washington, DC or New York City.

Who will start Nuclear War and/or create Dark Apocalypse? No one knows. I’ve written my own science fiction/action story about Dark Apocalypse created by the Nuclear War in the near future.

Cyberpunk never dies… Cyberpunk revolution rocks!

مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت مــــالــــت
مــــالــــت

Does cyberpunk is in this time? Maybe this will be in the near future?

I love cyberpunk. And I’m sure this is obvious to many but cyberpunk themes are highly intelligent, as they makes us visualize some very profound truths about reality. Like how the use and development of specific technologies can end up completely displacing humans in one or another.

Cyberpunker’s goal isn’t to live in the matrix but to see the matrix.

i disagree… me personally i would like to live in a matrix….. or whatever….

I am a Cyber-Punk.

www.grailcode.net

@BoomzillA: I was in a rebellious state of thinking: one must recognize the means of oppression and illusion controlling our minds and undisguise them (V for Vendetta
) rather then embrace them. To see the shit around us rather then having our (self)consciousness drugged - matrix being one of the opiats. But don’t get me wrong i love matrix too. And i don’t want to die (forever). I see matrix also as i mean to reach a kind of eternity. Phase one - mind reconstruction/digitalization/upload. Phaze two - finding body (artificial or organic) again and inhabit it (keeping digitalized mind for backup of course :). I do think one would always crave for feelings of flash in case of loosing “meat” body. Data (Star Trek) is very believable character :). On the other hand “Electric Dreams” is telling us of electronic love being possible and strog equally. Anyway i always get confuzed when forgetting we are just an organic robots :)!

mh…. but getting addicted to drugs is an essential cyberpunktheme ^ ^

no, seriously… i don´t want to see (todays) reality as it is… cyberpunk world is like a drug to me,.. it helps me to pass the shitty reality.. i believe strongly in cyberpunk…

i crave for a world as it is shown for example in blade runner… sounds paradox, cause this worlds are constructed as being horrible.. (dark, polluted) but i see the beauty in there.. yes, i believe physically in a cyberpunk world.. full of technic, possibilities and i like even the pollution and the dirt.. you might call me insane… i would do anything for being the world look like in near future…..

and immortality through mind transplantation… yes, i would appreciate it much of course…. put my mind into a replicant ^ ^

i wanna live forever or at least for a long time (300 - 800 years or so)… just to see what will happen in future…

[img]http://fc71.deviantart.com/fs39/f/2008/341/3/c/An_Evil_Eye_by_JureDolzan.jpg[/img]

werner kajal m., I don’t think cyberpunks are people that wander the streets dressed up in teched-up clothing, they are you and I who instead of meeting on a street corner or a playground, meet via internet. There are not enough people out there yet (if ever) to create a population of what I refer to as technologic-future-thinkers. There is merely a collective of people who have stumbled among a common understanding and vision who assemble on sites like this to discuss it. Some go as far to write fiction and movies about it. But that is as far as we go…for now.

Boomzilla, I feel exactly the same way you do about cyberpunk. The eagerness to explore the futuristic culture depicted in such films as Blade Runner, Battle Angel, Armitage III, etc. And perhaps that is a BLIND LEAP into the cyberpunk genre, but it is one that would be soooo thrilling

yes, Katalystm ..but on the other side: we can’t confuse the finger and the moon!

finger and moon? whats that? nevermind…. yes katalyst… i see cyberpunk as a kind of frontier which makes curios for more…. cyberpunk is almost the only thing, or THE only thing which keeps me alive….

btw. : armitage III was good…. here in germany it was shown on tv years ago at night… very moody……..

Wow, that really sums it all up for me, thank you.

I truly do understand where you are coming from on this point. I think that the problem starts with the special effects. Now don’t get me wrong, this is an important asset to any movie, but the problem arises when the film makers focus too much on this and not enough on the story. When you get hung up on the flashy stuff, how much core storyline can you fit into 90 to 120 minutes? I’d rather see a movie that conveys emotion and makes me think instead of just watching tantalizing brain candy.

mh…. in case of doubt i would rather vote for the “tantalizing brain candy” stuff…. ^ ^

Ferret,

A good example of this is The Gene Generation. Money was spent in the wrong places

Can’t wait for this all to come true www.synthoids.com for more robot girls.

just thought i would say,i am very shocked that on any cyberpunk website there is nothing on dope stars inc,they are the purest form of cyperpunk,everybody listen to them.
spread & infect!

Hi Viper-punk. After checking out thier website I agree!

Awesome stuff!
Com

Cyber punk does not necessarily mean brightly coloured hair - in Gibson novels it tends to be the case, but in Williams novels cyberpunk relates to a way of living, not necessarily a way of appearing. Overlapping cyberpunk is steampunk, which is a cool 2ndary genre, no?

I know what you mean Katalyst. I saw the Gene Generation and felt like 90 minutes of my life were stolen from me.

Maybe I’m way off, but I think Demolition Man is a movie that fits all of your definitions of cyberpunk.

Demolition Man lacks the cyberpunk mood but otherwise holds some nice cyberpunk ideas.

Hi, I recently decided to do a study of Cyberpunk. I wasn’t able to specialise in this one area of post-modern fiction while at university because there was too much else to do. (btw I’m a grey head not a young ‘un.)
Do you think that Anthony Burgess (Clockwork Orange) JG Ballard (Crash) and Philip K. Dick (Bladerunner) are, in a sense, the founding fathers of cyberpunk?
At the moment I’m data gathering, so any and all information would be gratefully accepted. I can be reached at plbirkin@googlemail.com.

Thanks a lot for this site! I’ve been doing some research on the Cyberpunk sub-theme for months just to get my facts straight and everything I needed is right here! Thanks
クレイマン·クレイマン

Other characteristics of cyber punk genre:
- presence of an anti-hero (and tragic hero) who is empowered thru use of technology, usually in subversive ways.

[…] From What is Cyberpunk? […]

Civilization changes slowly but at a time rapid then suddenly(seems so). Human being changed shape size brains. whats the meaning of Nona’s Arc where selected peoples were take? Doesn’t the destructon of Sodom & Gomorrah mean the same? Old models destroyed as they were unfit. this humans we too will have to change.

Has any body thought about a video game made from one of the original “bad future” movies, ( originally a book , ” Make Room, Make Room, by Harry Harrison) Soylent Green… I think it would make a great game

I enjoyed your reviews! Very informative topics on everything cyberpunk….I am a cyberpunk cult follower myself and I was so glad I stumbled on your site….You have presented cyberpunk not from a fanboy’s point of view, but from a critics point of view who also enjoys the genre….cheers!

some manufacturers have made a Roman game called Cyberpunk. said they would launch the game in January 2011.

to cyberpunkreview.com staff,

Can you tell me, please, how I can get permission to use photos on your website? I am producing an illustrated academic lecture for my non-profit organization. I will not charge for the lectures or materials, nor make any profit from them. My charitable organization has no funds for photos. I would have a printed credit line with the photo with name of copyright holder.

A couple photos–apparently from movie advertisements– are: www.cyberpunkreview.com…i-robot,i-robot02.jpg, & www.cyberpunkreview.com…i-robot,i-robot07.jpg.

Thank you for considering this. I appreciate it! -Paul Champoux, champouxp@comcast.net

Hi there,

I have roaming through this site for a quite a while (2007) and as a avid fan of the cyberpunk genre and its influences I commend everyone here for making such a great tool for fans. With this being my first question / response to a post I figured sticking with the idea of phiosliphy would be a good start.

For my graduating thesis project (fine arts) I’m using the cyberpunk aesthetic for a installation piece involving restraint / control, unbiased information projected whole and edited controlled being directly fed to the brave viewer.
uncensoring
With advents such as wikilinks, and upc newsgroups feeding the information machine that the higher ups hate why do you think that the population is so reluctant to actually view let alone accept the first attempt at the information that controls our lives daily?

i know its not reaally the place to leave this comment but as for cyber punk anime, you seemed to have left out iria: zerrim the animation. it has strong cyberpunk themes (yesteryears technology, focus on bounty work, etc.) just looking to represent…

actually, there might be a good reason to set another term called ‘cyborg’, rather than ‘cyberpunk’. If I remember correctly, cyborg is a more incluvise term than cyberpunk, meaning “any kind of living organisms that have strengthened, empowered, or utilized oneself by remodeling oneself by the use of cybernetics(e.g. using advanced electrical mechanics, computers, etc.)”. And the word ‘cyberpunk’ gives me the notion that is more linked to some sort of ‘punk’(as in punk rock). therefore, I think ‘cyberpunk’ closely refers to more extreme and intensive version of cyborg, that is, having either 3 of the following conditions:

1. replacing or sacrificing one’s own human body parts or abilities to be cybernettized more intensively
2. act like more like a complicated living machine rather than a human simply robotized into ’simple’ robot.
3. usually an antagonistic being towards “analog” traditional, and peaceful human nature and society
4. full of pro-cybernetic minds in his/her OWN WILL, and acting as if he/she is the “conquerer of the whole cyberspace” or the “cybernetic unstoppable being”

In this sense,
the robocop is definitely not a cyberpunk, because he only satisfies condition 1. He doesn’t satisfy 2 in that he is remodeled as relatively ’simple’ robot.
the sexy kusanagi is a cyberpunk, despite she is not actually a ‘punk’, since she satisfies condition
Neo in The Matrix is not a cyberpunk because although he satisfies 1 and 2, he dissatisfies 3 in that he wants to save the human race from intense cybernetism conquering humans, and he is remodeled to be compatible with Matrix System, but AGAINST his will.
Michelle in The Gene Generation is, altough easily confused by the visual outlooks, is not cyberpunk(although she IS a sexy punk-style warrior), because she dissatisfies 2 and 3.

Mystic Dragon,

that’s true, except for the aesthetic consequences the cyberpunk culture did generate and that have very little to do with those generated from the cyborgs culture… in my opinion.

Ciao! Luigi

This is a relevant article discussing the meaning of cyberpunk.

http://www.cyberpunked.org/cyberpunk/

Hey, I’m not quite sure if I’ll get answered, but I stumbled onto this site doing research for a comic. The world itself is very cyberpunk… But there are two things that seem to deviate it from other examples. First off, with a few exceptions, my characters are not anti-heroes at first glance, and are instead technical pacifists who’d rather run away and start a new life then settle things with guns. Second, technology isn’t depicted in a negative way. Instead technology is a neutral force that is used by the heroes for the greater good and the villains to control the people. Anyways would this still be considered cyberpunk?

Oh, I forgot to leave my name. If someone responds please do it to this comment.

I think, this could be considered (post) Cyberpunk.

Thanks. That actually fits very well.

Also, in a very obvious way, the stereotypical 70’s / 80’s “punk” fashion is often on display, especially in the “lower levels” (like sewers, or “street level” unwashed masses, residing beneath (literally) the wealthy and powerful “upper level” types in high-rise buildings) of dystopian sets in CyberPunk media. Mohawks, piercings and tattered clothes w/ anarchistic messages are often the order of the day in a “Cyberpunk” story.

I appreciate your site and your essay here is worthwhile, but trying to pin the _meaning_ of any word is hard enough - impossible if you take the descriptivist stance on language, which more and more seems to be a self-evident truth - let alone something as amorphous and fluid as a literary genre, or to be more accurate a marketing buzzword thought up to label a literary genre.

What you *can* do is consider the origins and/or etymology of the term (just for laughs), and discuss both the early and eventual exemplars of the genre.

Bruce Bethke coined the term and Gardner Dozois later applied the term to William Gibson’s writing, and it spread from there. (There’s a lot of water under the bridge about that disconnect, but I don’t want to rehash that here.)

Looking at the very early, undisputably cyberpunk works - Gibson’s Burning Chrome anthology and the Sprawl Trilogy, Sterling’s stuff, etc and you’ll see a several commonalities - recurring themes, tropes and motifs. Most of these, probably all of them, had been used previously, which is why trying to nail down the genre is a sucker bet.

One major uniting element was the emphasis on narrative style, which wasn’t unique to that crowd; a lot of folks say the original 60s New Wave did it better, but you might make a case (and people did) that the cyberpunk crowd were the literary second generation of the New Wave from the 60s and 70s,… so the distinguishing feature isn’t the style but the content.

Another uniting element, and probably the one that I’ll always consider the defining element of cyberpunk is the sense of alienation and dislocation caused by rapid advances in technology. This is reflected both at the macro level in the dystopian societies found in cyberpunk novels and at the personal level, in the main characters of the classic cyberpunk stories.

I first realized this in the eigthies. I was writing a paper about the genre and I I dug through my books and assembled a stack of about ten of the main books in the genre (Gibson’s and Sterling’s stuff, the Mirrorshades anthology, a few others) and read through them all a couple of times. Sadly, it took a while for it to sink in and hence didn’t make it into the paper, but I labelled it “technoshock”, a narrower version of Alvin Toffler’s “futureshock”.

The clincher for me was when I noticed that almost every discussion of cyberpunk on the net at the time (yes virginia, the net existed in the eighties included a reference to Brunner’s _The Shockwave Rider_, but not as cyberpunk but rather a precursor. The Shockwave Rider was explicitly written as an exploration of the theme of futureshock.

William Gibson once said (well, wrote) that he writes about garbage; specifically he writes about the garbage that a society produces, and that one major form of garbage that society produces is information - we all leave a trail of infotrash around us as we go through our daily lives. These days we’re all much more aware of this thanks to the internet and the rising

Hm, looks like it got truncated:

William Gibson once said (well, wrote) that he writes about garbage; specifically he writes about the garbage that a society produces, and that one major form of garbage that society produces is information - we all leave a trail of infotrash around us as we go through our daily lives. These days we’re all much more aware of this thanks to the internet and the rising profile of online fraud and “identity theft” (what a scam that phrase is - no no no, *we* didn’t get defrauded by somebody exploiting our weak security, *you* let your identity get stolen…), but back then most of those (increasingly computerized) databases weren’t networked. So Gibson made the info trash concrete by portraying it through Cyberspace.

Gibson described it as “holding up a funhouse mirror to society”, showing us something we already know, but slightly distorted so it makes us look at it with new eyes. I’m not sure if it was that same essay, or Sterling’s foreword to Mirrorshades that compared it to a court jester - the mad fool with the societal permission to say the unsayable because we can all pretend to laugh it off and dismiss the source.

And now people will create their own imaginary borders. Borders that don’t even exist!!!! >

I suppose at the end of the day we are all being controlled to some degree, and the fantastic side to cyberspace is that we can literally be as free as we are, and can be as free as we want to be. It can only escalate to new levels of personal freedom as time goes by and technology grows. But also this is only the mental aspect, I suppsoe there is a physical side in that we behave emotionally and our bodies physically react to what we experience in cyberspace and akins the experiences to things we would experience in the real world, so what we really need is a free real world, where extrovertedness and speaking mindfully isn’t looked on as mental instability but as the norm, and as the cyber-pleasures grow, I fear this may not happen. I know alot of people are already as free as to call it like it is and express themselves as they see fit, as you should, but other people that I’ve come across genuinely take offence to extrovertedness and expression, probably through an upbringing based on gentrified civillisation and capitalist dreams embedded into their psyche, and this needs to be eradicated, somehow. Until then we are all comfortable to sit at our computers in an elated mindset, where we can take on any challenge that we come across, because all we need is a mouse and a keyboard, but the borders are still there, because too much computer use can sap your brain of reality. It’s only a matter of time till we all dissasociate ourselves completely as soon as the opportunity takes its form as the new cyber-pleasure to end all pleasures and the barriers it will create will be catastrophic. The only borders we need is to know when enough is enough

Yeah…. Punk is not dead…. Cyberpunk is not dead….

I am a cyberpunk!!!!

Fuck yeah!!! we gotta watch the patterns closely though and always make sure we’re one step ahead

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C05SnEx-fbs

I just filmed this and someone said they liked the ‘cyberpunk’ feel to it. I had never heard of it before that. Let me know what you think. Its just a small short film.

After not having commented anything in here since years (2006 maybe the last time) this feels like visiting an old friend (btw, what happened to SFAM?). Anyway, I’ve put my personal listings of cyberpunkish movies, literature, comics, and computer games online, accompanied by a new text trying to grasp cyberpunk, which fits in here, I guess. Illusivemind’s one sentence definition can never be beaten, though.
http://xirdalium.net/2011/12/02/cyberpunkish-artefacts-lists/

Exciting material, many thanks for sharing them in Cyberpunk Review » What is Cyberpunk?.

The contents of this site is really good!
Could you talk a little about the music too. I find it interesting because it is the part that I am expert. Bands and projects of the ’80s to the present day, use a lot of cyberpunk theme, especially genres EBM, Industrial, Synthpop, Futurepop and IDM.
But keep it up!
It’s great!

Cyberskull ,
the reviewer forum is still open. If you have anything to write about cyberpunk music, post it there. There’s a chance it can end up on the main page.

PLEASE READ

Does anybody realize that we are in the opeinig stages of living in a actual cyberpunk world? Look at the way the nation is going. The very top have all of the money and the bottom 96% are in debt and are losing jobs left and right! American cities (Detriot cough, cough) are becoming crime ridden run down hopeless havens. The rich are living in gated communities and hiring private mercenaries to fend us off.

Machines are taking jobs. Look for a documentary called Zietgiest Moving foward and it talks about mechanization. Look at the car builders, welders, UAV’s, computerized mechanics of tanks and military aircraft.

Censorship of the web? SOPA and PIPA! CCTV cameras are everywhere watching us 24/7. The law has changed. The Patriot act. The need to “protect” us from other “threats”. The erosion of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

Robots in Japan and Korea are getting smarter. Look at the Asimo models and some of the singing andriods. Look at the robots that can mimic music and “feel” touch. They can even serve food and recongize individuals by artificial “sight”.

RFID chips, pacemackers and robotic limbs for amputees!

Hackers have attacked the Pentagon, NSA and other large industrilizations.

We are not ruly there yet. But at the phase that we are at we are most certainly moving to the dystopian cyberpunk future each and every day. It is kind of exiciting that this so called science fiction will become science reality. Then again cyberpunk settings are kinda scary!

What do you all think?

Frankenstein Unbound of all the Franken-movies is closest to what it means to be cyberpunk…but still a shade away.

Wonderful post, I will bookmark Cyberpunk Review » What is Cyberpunk?.

Gotta love cyberpunks. I wish I was that competent at computers.

All of this sounds legit to me.