Summary of Future Almost Lost: Dystopian Science-Fiction Film essay

The essay Future Almost Lost: Dystopian Science-Fiction Film discusses the apocalyptic features present in many science-fiction dystopian films. It analyzes the themes, narratives, settings and feelings in those films that warn the audience about certain pathways that could be taken in the future. It analyzes a wide variety of films and topics, including alien invasions, annihilation of the human race, destruction of the environment and a struggle to survive, totalitarian governments, etc.. A number of films are discussed in this essay, several of which we have watched in the class such as THX 1138, The Road, Nineteen Eighty-Four, Minority Report, Gattaca, and Soylent Green. 

The Road

The Man and The Boy must survive through a post-apocalyptic earth on their way to a hopefully warmer southern climate in The Road. Although it is not clearly stated what caused the earth’s decay, the Man’s narrations and flashbacks allude to some sort of nuclear war and environmental destruction. The mass destruction of their environment leads The Boy and his father towards the south, searching for food and warmth while avoiding cannibals, of which there are a lot of with the lack of resources.  

The Man becomes extremely sick, but clings on to his life just to get his son to the ocean. He believes the closer he gets to the ocean, the closer the boy will be to safety. Upon reaching the coastline, The Man dies leaving the boy to remember the things he has taught him, and to continue on southward. A man and his family find The Boy on the beach and take him in as their own soon after The Boy is left on his own, making The Man’s will to survive all the more worth it

.

The earth’s lack of light and the brown filter used in the filming emphasize the decaying planet. In contrast to this, the “fire inside” term the two use a lot display hope and warmth. The lack of colors is depressing and highlights how generally hopeless and devastated the world they are trying to survive in is. Light is so scarce in this world that the bright flashbacks are a stark contrast to the now dying earth. The essay Future Almost Lost: Dystopian Science-Fiction Film agrees with the effect of the filter and lack of color, stating “In The Road, the power and force of the uncanny landscape and the burned-out, abandoned homesteads and homes, and the power and force of the bodies that wander and hope and hunt and cannibalize one another, bring one to an experience of the future as painfully intimate, physically present, and overwhelmingly sensational.”

A strong theme I found in this film was the idea of the dignity of death, and with that, the right do die. The Wife, seen only in flashbacks, tried to kill herself, and eventually does, just to avoid being eaten by cannibals and her awful fate otherwise. The Man tells her “We have to. We will survive this. We are not gonna quit,” to which she responds “I don’t want to just survive. Don’t you get it? I don’t wanna. Why won’t you let me take [The Boy] with me”.  She reasons that "Sooner or later they will catch us and they will kill us," she says. "They will rape me. They'll rape him. They are going to rape us and kill us and eat us and you won't face it. You'd rather wait for it to happen." The Man knows she is right, and when they stop at a car in the road in the beginning of the movie, The Man explains to his son how to kill himself the right way with the gun. Furthermore, The Man is prepared to shoot his own son to protect him from the cannibals. Anything would be better than what the cannibals would do to them, yet The Man still holds out hope. 

The Man knew that if there was any chance of getting eaten, he would have to kill his son and himself, but still had the hope of getting his son to safety up until his very last breath. All he had was his son, and although there was nothing else to live for but him, he had to make sure he was safe. The Man had hope that there was safety somewhere, and had hope that The Boy would live to see a better future. 

Feminism in The Hunger Games

Following a time full of destruction, the continent of North America became the super-country of Panem. Separated into 12 separate districts, it exists under the rule of the totalitarian President Snow. We learn that a thirteenth district had once existed, but was completely destroyed during a brutal national rebellion. This was the beginning of the development of the annual Hunger Games, where one boy and one girl, between ages 12 and 18, are chosen by lottery from each district as tributes to fight to the death. The Games serve as a reminder as to the power of the government. I believe the film was a wonderful display of feminism, though there were many other themes touched upon as well.

The main character and heroine of The Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen played by Jennifer Lawrence, volunteers herself as tribute during the Reaping in place of her younger sister Prim who was originally chosen by the lottery. In doing this within the first 10 minutes of the movie, she defies gender roles by exhibiting “masculine” and “feminine” traits. Her “feminine” traits include that she is family-centered and selfless, seen when she volunteers herself as tribute. Her selflessness, compassion and family-centeredness are seen alongside with her overwhelming courage to volunteer as tribute and composition afterwards show the mixture of both “feminine” and “masculine” traits. 

Another example of her clearly “feminine” and “masculine” traits is her behavior in the household and outside of it, from the beginning of the film. It is evident by how Katniss provides for her mother and sister by hunting and the dynamics between her and her mother. In this case she is both the “bread-winner” or authority in the household more then her own mother, as is she family-centered and caring.

Moreover, at the age of 16, one would expect her to have a keen interest in the opposite sex, yet she does not. In fact, she has two suitors throughout the movie, Gale and Peeta. Yet despite both of their efforts to win her over, she is clearly not interested. Though she must fake being madly in love with Peeta over the duration of The Games, it is just for the sole purpose of getting sponsors. Her rough attitude can be understood as “masculine”, however I believe her behavior comes from her own sense of self. She has the brains, the beauty, and a goal of her own that she must achieve. 

Katniss is not a “man-hating feminist” by any means, yet she displays many characteristics that empower women, and have empowered many young girls who have seen this film. She becomes a strong, yet nurturing woman in the film, while being fiercely independent. Katniss is a very complex character that many young women today can identify with. This was not one of those films where the helpless female character needs saving by a man, but where she can rely on herself. 

A World at Risk: Unreliable Media and the Culture of Fear

In essay A World at Risk: Unreliable Media and the Culture of Fear, Monica Martin discusses several dystopian films that warn against global threats, as well as increased political and media  presence. Among these films are V for Vendetta, Children of Men, and  Nineteen Eighty-Four. The films presented in the essay display fear of being exploited by the government, she says, as they refer to “ongoing military conflicts and social debates”, which “position these narratives at the centre of a politically conscious cinema”.  

Gattaca

Imagine a world where you are discriminated against not by your appearance or skin color, but by your genes. If you have bad eyesight, a gene for a predisposition to heart disease, or even for a tendency towards the reckless, you are at a disadvantage. In the world of Gattaca, this is the struggle that many natural born citizens must deal with because their genes were not genetically engineered to be nearly perfect. The film showed a different look at discrimination, where the main character Vincent was limited before he even began his life and found out who he really was. 

Vincent had wanted to work at Gattaca as an astronaut since he was a child, but because his parents wanted to leave some things to chance regarding his genetic makeup, he was born inferior to others who were “pre-ordered” genetically. Vincent was born with a high chance of heart failure by the age of 30 and bad eyesight, yet he quickly learned that by staying healthy and athletic he could avoid heart failure.  In order to get into Gattaca’s program, he must pass all of the genetic tests they throw at him, including but not limited to urine tests, blood samples, or one of his eyelashes. Because of his “In-valid” genetic composition, he has no chance but he does have the drive and determination to go after his dream. Although completely illegal, Vincent “borrows” ex-athlete and now paralyzed Jerome Morrow’s perfect set of genes in order to move ahead and get into the program. 

  Vincent has a few things going against him in his situation, though with his “perfect genes” he was able to fly through the ranks at Gattaca. With a murder investigation taking place and increased security measures, Vincent must avoid being discovered. Towards the end, he does end up being discovered by the Gattaca doctor, Lamar, who says “For future reference, right-handed men don’t hold it with their left. Just one of those things.” Yet Lamar alters the test results to let Vincent proceed regardless. 

The film was very powerful and insightful with genetic engineering already occurring today to avoid certain complications. The degree of discrimination that occurred in this film was on point with discrimination that occurs today, though the basis of it were completely different. Additionally, it shows that despite being given every possible advantage, Jerome was unable to succeed. He took advantage of the gifts he had and did not have any willpower to try harder and win in his athletic career. On the other hand, Vincent had such willpower and spirit to break the law just to achieve his dream and succeed in his journey despite all of the obstacles he faced. 

The terminology of “valid” and “in-valid”  showed how bad the discrimination could be should we take science further in determining the fates of our children. Many of the issues about genetic engineering were addressed in Gattaca, and poses many important questions. Vincent’s pure spirit allowed him to not play the victim, and overcome his genetic disadvantage.

The Truman Show

The Truman Show was one of those rare films that are both disturbing and delighting at the same time. Jim Carrey stars as Truman Burbank, a 30-something year old man who has lived in the town of Seahaven all of his life. 

The big secret is, however, that the town of Seahaven is completely made up for the purposes of a reality TV show. All of the people in Truman’s life, including his closest friend and wife, are hired actors. The film is not blatantly a dystopia, however it warns against media influence throughout the entire movie.  The essay Unmasking the Real? Critique and Utopia in Recent SF Films states that The Truman Show focuses “on the television’s role in the production of an illusory reality”. These messages are relayed through a dark sense of humor that support the message of falseness of reality TV. 

The same essay compares the film to reality TV shows that actually exist such as Survivor and Big Brother, where hidden cameras are aplenty. Although the people in these shows know that they are being filmed, the concept is relatively the same. When Truman starts to become suspicious that he is being watched, actors that he knows as friends or family are sent to try and ease his conscience. Despite their efforts, Truman still escapes from the utopian world he was set up to live in. We see Christof and his crew manipulating Truman’s world throughout the entire movie, where we see how much of a false reality his life really is. When he finally tricks them and gets to the edge of the dome, he simply escapes. We as the film’s audience do not see him having any larger self-realization, just like the essay says. 

What I found to be really compelling about this film was how it displays many of the ideals that occur in reality television today. As I said before, we see Christof manipulating Truman’s world and attempting to adjust and deal with Truman’s own life choices in order to still be in control of the outcome the producer’s want. In order to keep the show running and entertaining, the outcome must be something the audience wants. Then, the audience feels like the show is authentic, while it is completely staged by the producers despite the “characters” free will. 

Additionally, the film shows the power of the media. The Truman Show is televised 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, for the duration of Truman’s life since birth. People are truly addicted to this show, even sleeping with the TV on while Truman sleeps as well. His life inspires audiences, therefore making a huge impact on their lives because they think what happens in the show is real and authentic. Like in the reality TV shows that are broadcasted in our homes, The Truman Show fakes reality and influences audiences based on false premises. Unfortunately, these things work because humans accept so many things without a question. 

When Science Fiction Writers Used Fictional Drugs: Rise and Fall of the Twentieth-Century Drug Dystopia

The essay by John Hickman, called When Science Fiction Writers Used Fictional Drugs: Rise and Fall of the Twentieth-Century Drug Dystopia,  analyzes the use of dictional drugs in several novels that have been published in the past. One of the novels he analyzes that I have previously read is Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley. John Hickman discusses the effects of the fictional drugs in these novels, and how come this subgenre has pretty much died out. These drug dystopias “served as vehicles for their authors to warn about the utility of pharmacology to tyranny either by the reduction of entire populations to docility or by assaults on the integrity of individual minds”, he says. These ideas were clearly seen in the films THX 1138, as well as in Fahrenheit 451.