The Cyborg in Cinema: From Méliès to Battlestar Galactica

This article from art press 2 traces the evolution of the cyborg in Hollywood cinema, starting with Georges Méliès' lost 1897 short film 'Gugusse et l'automate', which features the first robot on screen. The cyborg is defined broadly as any artificial being with human appearance, descending from the Golem, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (first filmed in 1931 with Boris Karloff), and the robot Maria in Fritz Lang's 'Metropolis' (1927). Key films discussed include Michael Crichton's 'Westworld' (1973), Ridley Scott's 'Blade Runner' (1982), James Cameron's 'The Terminator' (1984), and the TV series 'Battlestar Galactica' (2004-2009) by Ronald D. Moore. The article argues that cyborgs have evolved from mechanical to biological, with hyperrealism culminating in the Cylons of 'Battlestar Galactica', who are indistinguishable from humans. It notes that recent sci-fi films focus on the unconscious and dreams, suggesting that the final frontier for cyborgs is not the body but the soul.