Alternate Film Canon: Dystopian Futures
I’ve been thoroughly enjoying Scalzi’s listings from the Rough Guides‘ Movie guides. They make me wonder what the canon lists of movies would be for specific topics. I’ve listed a few that I think should be on the list (sticking to movies that I’ve seen, of which there are far too few). What else belongs there?
Some of my favorite movies are about dystopian futures — think 1984 or Brave New World. Even when they’re powerfully cheesy they are (or at least have the potential to be) thought provoking. Somehow, no matter how unreal the movies are made to look, they always come out seeming very real, very looming. I think the genre — in film and in literature — keeps us honest and thinking as a society.
So above and beyond these films, what belongs on the canon list of films about dystopian futures? I’d love to hear your take on it.
- 12 Monkeys
- Brazil
- Masked and Anonymous
- The Matrix
- THX-1138
More Alternate Film Canons.
November 14th, 2005 at 2:24 pm
Planet of the Apes.
November 14th, 2005 at 4:48 pm
In a sense, Fight Club could be part of the dystopian group. Also, you can include Metropolis too.
November 14th, 2005 at 7:25 pm
Escape from New York Dark City Mad Max
And for the shear joy of watching two men fight for 20 minutes over putting on a pair of sunglasses….
They Live
November 15th, 2005 at 7:40 am
Soylent Green! Terminator
November 15th, 2005 at 10:46 am
“I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass. And I’m all out of bubblegum.”
November 15th, 2005 at 10:47 am
Omega Man is an offbeat one. The world gets taken over by a bunch of sunglass-wearing zombies. Only Charleton Heston can stop them. What is it with sunglasses and dystopian futures anyways?
November 17th, 2005 at 2:48 pm
Blade Runner The Handmaid’s Tale Fahrenheit 451 The Clonus Horror The Island Gattaca West World The City of Lost Children A Clockwork Orange Logan’s Run
I can’t say I’ve seen ‘em all, but the subject should be spot on.
November 17th, 2005 at 2:53 pm
“Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut– one of the short stories in his compilation “Welcome to the Monkey House”– should interest you. I’m not sure if anyone has made a film out of it (they should).
Here’s the first paragraph to whet your whistle:
THE YEAR WAS 2081, and everybody was finally equal. They weren’t only equal before God and the law. They were equal every which way. Nobody was smarter than anybody else. Nobody was better looking than anybody else. Nobody was stronger or quicker than anybody else. All this equality was due to the 211th, 212th, and 213th Amendments to the Constitution, and to the unceasing vigilance of agents of the United States Handicapper General…
November 17th, 2005 at 2:56 pm
Wow. I do believe that my Yahoo-issued Barnes & Nobel gift card and I will be parting ways in the near future. Thanks for the tip!