This book examines and develops the evolutionary utopian ideas of H.G. Wells. It begins with a detailed consideration of the types of individuals who could create and live in ideal societies, as well as the social, aesthetic and intellectual aspects of utopian life in Wells's books. It then discusses the role of the state and how Wells's utopian thought requires a permanent commitment to expanding freedom. The final chapter covers death and how utopian thought can profoundly reshape the reader's understanding of his or her own position relative to current and future societies.

The first in-depth analysis of the cinematic career of Robert Wise, whose directorial credits include West Side Story, The Sound of Music and The Day The Earth Stood Still. This study provides a new and complex perspective of Wise's films, one which will heighten the reader's appreciation for the range and depth of Wise's overall body of work.