Dystopian Film background information

A dystopian text (be it novel or film or poem) can be described as a dark vision of the future. That is hardly a satisfactory definition, though:  dys-/dus- (Latin/Greek roots: 'bad' or 'abnormal') + -topos (Greek root: 'place') = 'bad place'  dystopia (noun) an imaginary wretched place, the opposite of utopia  utopia (noun) a place or state of ideal perfection, the opposite of dystopia  "An imaginary place where people lead dehumanised and often fearful lives." (Merriam-Webster's On-line) WHAT IS DYSTOPIA??

1. Dystopian societies are undesirable or even horrifying. 2. Dystopian societies are usually futuristic and fictional. 3. Dystopian depictions can be regarded as warnings. 4. Dystopian fiction is both about today and tomorrow. 5. Dystopian fiction comments on our own society. 6. Dystopian and utopian concepts are relative. For example: they are open to interpretation, depending on the viewer’s world view FEATURES OF DYSTOPIA…

1. Have historical precedence in written forms, primarily novels 2. Are often based or adapted from other literary forms. For example: Philip K. Dick’s novels - Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? [aka. Bladerunner], and also Minority Report, A Scanner Darkly, and George Orwell’s Are a critical response to socio-political circumstances; technological, scientific developments; economic and environmental issues… THE FUNCTION OF DYSTOPIAN FILMS

The central idea in dystopian films is of a world gone mad, sometimes through the greed, ignorance or stupidity of man, sometimes though external influences. The dystopian world may be shaped by social, medical, environmental, political or economic forces. Within this environment, there is also usually an individual (character) who realises the flaw and tries to challenge or rectify it. Depending on the film maker and the ‘market’, it will either end happily, with the protagonist victorious; or not. Commonly, the dystopian film is designed to criticise or question contemporary concerns in the society in which it is created. CENTRAL IDEAS…

MetropolisGattaca Soylent GreenThe Matrix Fahrenheit 451Minority Report Planet of the ApesClockwork Orange 1984Inception BladerunnerEquilibrium The IslandV for Vendetta Children Of Men28 Weeks Later 28 Days LaterIn Time The Hunger GamesDemolition Man The Truman ShowI, Robot SOME WELL-KNOWN DYSTOPIAN FILMS…