Science Fiction in the Year 2015
This is an important year for science fiction. It is the year Marty McFly and Doc Brown traveled to from 1985 in the DeLorean time machine. There were hoverboards, self-drying clothes, flying cars, giant 3D advertising, instant news, and instant pizza. Most miraculously, the Cubs won the World Series. Unfortunately, few of these things have become reality. The special year makes many of us look back at all the great ideas and worlds of science fiction and pine for the good old days.
Along with the nostalgic journey through the good old days comes the cliché “they don’t make them like they used to.” Sci-fi fans are critical of the decline in quality and originality in modern science fiction. Among the critics is The Atlantic’s Noah Berlatsky. He argues science fiction has given up on imagining new worlds and has instead focused on improving or re-branding old new worlds. We’ve been force-fed a parade of sequels, prequels, and remakes. Science fiction movies have become less about the future and more about reliving fond memories of the previous century.
When it comes to movies, Berlatsky is absolutely right. Hollywood seems disinterested in new ideas, preferring to repackage and extend established franchises. The classic franchise Star Trek was rebooted in 2007, but with nothing new to offer. The new movies reset the series timeline, allowing them to retell the same stories in a slightly different way.
The other blockbusters all have familiar titles. Rather than show us something new, Hollywood decided to do remakes of RoboCop, Godzilla, and Planet of the Apes. Alongside the remakes came a parade of movies based on comic book characters, all created decades ago. These movies aren’t about the future nor do they ask the basic sci-fi question “what if?” They are journeys into sci-fi’s past, using CGI to bring our favorite old movies and characters to life. For a genre that prides itself on originality and innovative thinking, it seems it is now content to refine existing inventions.
What is coming up in 2015? Retreads (Fantastic Four, Terminator: Genisys, Jurassic World, Poltergeist, Mad Max) and sequels (Star Wars, The Avengers). To find something original, you need to dig into the realm of independent or foreign films. Even then, it is difficult to find anything of quality.
There are exceptions of course, but not many. The biggest standout is the dystopian trilogy The Hunger Games. The franchise is worth billions and presents a compelling dystopian vision of the future. Berlatsky wasn’t impressed however, calling the franchise a “stagnant dystopia” that borrows liberally from 1984
Suzanne Collins’ best seller may not be particularly innovative but it is a little harsh to call it stagnant. When Berlatsky says “new worlds” he probably means new themes and technologies, not just new stories. That is hardly a reasonable standard. It’s not easy to come up with a fully-original theme, especially in a genre that is now over a century old.
It isn’t just nostalgia that is driving Hollywood to look back to the previous century for source material, it is also the result of progress. The real world has caught up to 20th century science fiction. Technology has produced some of those innovations, turning sci-fi ideas to reality. Most Americans are fully immersed in technology every day, making it far less extraordinary than it was just a few decades ago. To impress the audience, sci-fi producers and authors will have to reach farther into the future to find new technologies for their “what if” stories.
Since we cannot rely on Hollywood to move past their current business model, it is authors that will have to be the innovators. The best science fiction books of the past few years has been diverse and original. As for its quality, everyone must judge that for themselves. The most successful subgenre is dystopian fiction including The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and Divergent by Veronica Roth. While not as technically innovative, they have captured the imaginations of millions.
Another popular subgenre is zombie fiction. The horror staple crossed over from fantasy to sci-fi as an apocalyptic virus, leaving the survivors to cope with the throngs of undead. Max Brook’s World War Z set the standard, followed by The Walking Dead graphic novels. The horror version played on the cannibalism taboo, fear of the dead, and the inability to discern friend from enemy. The modern zombie imports those fears but also plays on our fears of a catastrophic disease outbreak in the era of globalization, biological warfare, and terrorism.
Older sci-fi tended toward adventures in space with hopeful visions of the world of tomorrow. These are probably what Berlatsky wants to see. These days, Science fiction has largely become about regress, not progress. Movies like Elysium, After Earth, Oblivion, Divergent, The Hunger Games, and Interstellar are giving us futures, they just aren’t pleasant. Instead filmmakers and authors see a world in decline with grave problems ahead.
There might be a slight shift back toward the traditional optimism of sci-fi, thanks to the success of Guardians of the Galaxy. Although the movie was as much fantasy as it was sci-fi, it closely resembled a classic space opera. Still, the superhero, dystopian, and post-apocalyptic movies are bound to continue relying on precedent movies.
As for the literary side, it is impossible to predict the next big thing. All one can do is blindly guess. Here are my blind guesses: As long as there is uncertainty and fear about the future, the dystopian and post-apocalyptic novels will continue to be popular. As much as I love zombies, I think the demand for the flesh-eaters will probably recede. The success of The Martian and the movies Guardians of the Galaxy and Gravity suggest their might be a growing appetite for space operas.
In the new year, I am looking forward to The Martian movie, Jurassic World, and of course, Star Wars Episode VII. Two are sequels of great franchises but look interesting. I am particularly interested in Chappie, a movie about an autonomous robot. Directed by Neill Blomkamp (District 9), starring Hugh Jackman and Sigourney Weaver, it could be the surprise of 2015.
For books, it is Armada by Ernest Cline, The Water Knife by Paolo Bacigalupi, and Darknet by Matthew Mather. All three are unique, outside the box stories that critics like Berlatsky would enjoy. Publishers don’t announce release dates as far in advance as movie production companies do, so their could be many more interesting titles coming out 2015. We will have to see.
The post Science Fiction in the Year 2015 appeared first on Jacob Foxx.
