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Politics and Science Fiction Films

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 May 2020

Michael A. Genovese
Michael A. Genovese*
Affiliation:
Loyola Marymount College
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Extract

The movie theatre may seem like an odd place for politics, but almost all movies could be considered “political.” Even stranger is the notion that those spacemen, monsters and aliens we are so accustomed to seeing in science fiction films may be more than just entertaining us, they may be conveying a political message. In fact, most science fiction films make deeply political statements about the society from which they emerge.

Science fiction films provide a unique opportunity for movie makers to comment on the implications of both human and “non-human” behavior. Through science fiction, one can look ahead to the way the world “might” look if the right wing, left wing, scientific rationalists, corporations, etc., take over and create their own “Brave New World.” It is an opportunity to play out the implications of various political philosophies for all to see and evaluate.

Type
Research Article
Information
News for Teachers of Political Science , Volume 46 , Summer 1985 , pp. 7 - 8
Copyright
Copyright © American Political Science Association 1985

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References

Notes

1 Kracauer, Siegfried, From Caligari to Hitler (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1945) p. 65.Google Scholar

2 Baxter, John, Science Fiction in the Cinema, (New York: A.S. Barnes, 1969) p. 25.Google Scholar

3 Samuels, Stuart, “The Age of Conspiracy and Conformity: Invasion of the Body Snatchers,” in, E, John. O'Connor, and A, Martin. Jackson, , eds., American History/American Film (New York: Ungar, 1979) p.212.Google Scholar

4 Baxter, op. cit., p. 141.

5 Harley, Neil P., Toward a Film Humanism (New York: Delta, 1970) p. 161.Google Scholar

6 See: Wood, Michael, “The True Story of ‘Star Wars': The Myths Strike Back,” Los Angeles Times, August 17, 1980, Part V, p. 3.Google Scholar

7 Clarens, Carlos, An Illustrated History of the Horror Film(New York: Capricorn, 1968) p. 134.Google Scholar