Directions: Please select a film from the list of films below. Choose a film that you haven't seen before. Your job is to identify, as you did in the three perfect paragraphs assignment, how the societies presented in these films are dystopias. Please provide three strong examples and post your findings to the blog. Be sure to take notes when watching one of these films.
You DO NOT have to write perfect paragraphs for this assignment. But please write in full sentences.
Be sure to have parental permission before watching these films and you MUST obtain your film through LEGAL means. I will not condone pirating.
Please choose from the following films:
Blade Runner
Gattaca
Metropolis
Idiocracy
THX1138
V for Vendetta
The Matrix
District 9
WALL-E
Planet of the Apes
Have fun!
Janet Choi
ReplyDeleteThe Matrix is a dystopia because...
1. We can see when Morpheus shows Neo the real world, there is no sunlight and no signs of an active civilization. The buildings are deteriorating and the city looks abandoned.
2. The humans are used as a power source by intelligent machines. Like a battery, they fuel the machines because the machines cannot get their energy from the sun anymore after the humans polluted the Earth. However, the humans do not know that they are being used because they are trapped in the Matrix which the humans believe is their real world.
3. There are many Agents to control the people, and like the Thought Police in 1984, they will eliminate the people who are threats to the system to maintain order and control. They are also there to prevent the humans from finding out that they are living in the Matrix which is not the real world. The people who do find out are eliminated once the Agents get hold of them.
District 9 presents a dystopia...
ReplyDelete1. Within the population of Johannesburg there is no equality, an entire portion of the population is subjected. This is done by keeping the “prawns” in a government controlled slum, the slum itself has degenerated to little more than a scrapyard.
2. The government systems put in place to monitor District 9 is run by a corporation without government oversight. the Government allows business goals to drive decision making and it mistreats its population.
3. The Governmental system is only interested in profits and it does not want to help it civilian population. Government allows for the subjugation of an entire race and never takes steps to stop it, until lit meets negative press.
Idiocracy is a dystopia because:
ReplyDelete1. The society is overpopulated with mindless, unintelligent people, to the point that many of the population speaks without sense. Many times in the film, the phrase "I like money" has been spoken at the most random moments.
2. The people no longer have any knowledge of how to produce food, like growing crops.
3. Commercialism is very high in the production of Brawndo, to the point where it is an everyday use. All water systems run Brawndo, including irrigation systems, which contributes to why they cannot grow crops.
Idiocracy takes place in a dystopian world:
ReplyDelete1) Nobody could understand each other, in the movie it was said "I could understand everything they said but nobody could understand whenever I spoke".
2) There are no technological advances, even the computer system they use is dumb, interpreting Yes as No, etc. Also, water systems run a drinkable liquid called Brawndo, the only place actual water is used is in the toilets. In fact, there was this part where he suggests giving the crops water, and the reply is "Water? You mean from um... from the toilet?" Even simple things are hard to grasp.
3) The average IQ is about 50. The main character's IQ is 126, which makes him "the smartest person in the country". This ties in with Point 1, as everybody speaks their own dumbed down version of English, without a true language that they understand. Also, everything is based on a few mindsets, for example, when the main character says "Well... You know what it'll get you? money, billions of dollars of it." the reply is "Ooh, I like money, uh uh..."
Wall-E displayed a dystopian world because :
ReplyDelete1.)The Earth is not a comfortable place to live in. There is trash everywhere, so much trash that all humans need to evacuate Earth and live in space. A dystopian world has dirty and smelly environments, like The Victory Mansions in 1984.
2.)The humans who live on the spaceship are being manipulated and barely have a mind of their own. They are so manipulated that they can't even walk and need a moveable device (chair) to transport them to places. This shows that there will be almost no human advancements in this time period.
3.)The society of humans are populated with people who barely have a mind of their own. They are being told what to do and what not to do by a group of robots.
The world of Gattaca is a dystopia.
ReplyDelete1. The world of Gattaca is a dystopia because of the hopelessness felt by the part of the population known as "Invalids". In a world where your DNA can be used to find everything about you, the people with inferior DNA (invalids) can have no hope for the future other then getting a job as a janitor. This is the most obvious point but there is another, more subtle one.
2. In the world of Gattaca, people are only hired for important jobs if their DNA is Superior to others. This is because people with superior DNA are destined to do better in life. However, this is disproved by the fact that an invalid (Vincent) was able to go through training and make in into space. So, if the administration of Gattaca is passing over people (invalids) who could potentially do the job better than anyone else, then they are loosing many valuable workers who may be necessary for the advancement of the space program. And, if a disaster loomed, they may not have the smart people they need to find a solution. Your DNA can only tell so much!
Also, I noticed that the letters G-A-T-T-A-C-A are all nitrogenous bases found in DNA. Therefore, GATTACA is a small strand of DNA. (Just a side note.)
The movie Wall-E shows a dystopian world.
ReplyDelete1)The Earth is filthy, rundown, and have garbage piles as tall as buildings. It is much like the Victory Mansions Orwell displayed in "1984". The Earth is so dirty that humans live in a spaceship in outer space.
2)The humans depend on computers and robots to survive. They have become so dependent on robots that they don't even walk to places, they get carried around by these mobile chairs. When they fall off, they can't get back on by themselves.
3)Another reason why this is a dystopia, is that there have been no human progress. All they do is sit around, and eat. They have become so fat that they can barely walk. The robots do everything for the humans.
Wall-E is a dystopia because it incorporates several characteristics that are evident in all dystopias: the use/advancement in technology, use of slogans/propaganda/mass appeal, and a final message that serves to warn people of the near future. Throughout the entire movie, the audience is introduced to the new technological advancements, primarily robots. While our society do have “robots”, the movie presents a far more advanced one, where each robot completes a task without much assistance from the humans and is capable of thought processing and feelings. Wall-E, for instance, is the last kind of its “species” and continues his routine: compacting trash and stacking them up into neat and orderly piles. When there are storms, he is capable of hiding way danger in his safe haven without commands to do so…he also “falls in love” with Eva, who is sent from Axiom to search for any indications of life. Moreover, the movie presents the audience to the world of Axiom, where people are surrounded with holograms that advertise their products using propaganda, slogans, etc. The advertisements incorporate the use of visually appealing colors (bright colors) and visually appealing people which contrasts the physical appearance that of the humans (obese); in reference to George Orwell’s 1984, the Party uses slogans such as “War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, and Ignorance is Strength” and posters with Big Brother’s face plastered over it. Likewise in THX1138, the use of propaganda and slogans is evident: “You are a true believer, blessings of the State, blessings of the masses. Work hard, increase production, prevent accidents and be happy”. In a way, these advertisements and propaganda manipulate and disillusion the humans that they do not realize that “they had a pool” and thus, such mass appeal distracts them from reflecting upon the life back on Earth, which never seemed to be a main concern until the end of the movie. Similar to the novel 1984 which presents a final warning, Wall-E also cautions the harm that humans inflict upon earth and its effects as it depicts earth as “startling” portrayal of the environment: desolate, dusty, uninhabitable, and piles of trash scattered everywhere.
ReplyDeleteThe movie V for Vendetta is a dystopia.
ReplyDelete1. The government of this world also uses media as a means of "brainwahing" their people into thinking what the government wants them to think. For example, the government uses the media to cover up the initial explosion of "Old Bailey", a statue that V destroys in order to make a political statement, saying that "The crew responsible for the demolition of Old Bailey wanted to give the old girl a grand, albeit improvised, send off." By saying this, the reporters not only diffuse rumors of anarchy, but also put it in a good light, by calling the explosion a "grand, albeit improvised send off." This essentially provides for the same kind of euphemisms that can be seen in 1984's Newspeak.
2. This movie is a dystopia because the government manipulates information to control its people. This can be seen as the news is being broadcasted, when asked, "Do you think people will buy this?" a man in charge of the news production replies "Why not? This is the BTN. Our job is to report the news not, fabricate it. That's the government's job", he knows that the government is manipulating information but still portrays it as fact. This is what happens in 1984's Department of Truth, and the manipulation of information is what allows for both dystopias to stay in power even though the people live in an environment where they are constantly being monitored, and eliminated if need be.
3. The movie, V for Vendetta is a dystopia because it uses fear to control its people. "the end result, the true genius of the plan, was the fear. Fear became the ultimate tool of this government. Through it, our politician was ultimately appointed to the newly created position of high chancellor." The fear is "the ultimate tool of this government", it is used to move people up through the government "our politician was ultimately appointed to the newly created position of high chancellor". This government application of fear is taken to an extreme with the "Saint Mary's virus", an incident that was made by the government to make the people afraid, and ultimately, easier to control. The government starts a project relating to disease and viruses. They eventually find one, "but if your ultimate goal is power, how best to use such a weapon?", the government uses this virus to instil fear in their own society by releasing it in their own society, and "Fueled by the media, fear and panic spread quickly, fracturing and dividing the country until, at last, the true goal comes into view", the people, so afraid were like sheep, and moved as their government wished, the people in charge of the project used it to push themselves high up in the government. The fear of an enemy that is used in this government is the same kind of fear that is used in 1984 with their "wars" on the other countries of the world. They are constantly "at war" with the other countries, constantly eating away at their supplies, when in actuality, the government uses it as a tool.
The movie The Matrix is one good example of a dystopian society. There are many characteristics in the movie that are also seen in other dystopian societies such as in 1984. In the movie there is “the matrix” which is an illusion placed over humans to blind them from the truth. In this society, humans are born into bondage under computers that have taken control. Humans are used as energy sources for the computers but the humans don’t realize it. They live a dream their entire life that is in the matrix. The computers grow humans in huge fields. The Matrix also has some characteristics in common with 1984. They both have an oppressed society that is withheld from the truth. The actual world has eroded and the world the humans dream in is a good society; but in fact the computers control them. The computers are in a sense “The Party” in 1984 and the resistance which Neo is a part of is like the alleged “brotherhood” in 1984; an underground group that is trying to resist the controlling power. In all three of these media pieces of dystopian societies, you can see a totalitarian government controlling its people by withholding information from them. In addition, the people live in less than an adequate environment because of this dictatorial control.
ReplyDeleteWall-E:
ReplyDelete1)The humans in the spaceship are being manipulated to take everything as plain, hard fact. An example of this is when the announcement says that "Blue is the new red!!", everyone immediately changes the color of their suit to blue, without even realizing that blue isn't red.
2)A part of the movie that is similar to "1984" by George Orwell is how the language in both the movie and the book are being completely dumbed down. The viewer watches the whole part where the captain is looking up the simplest words in our vocabulary now. There was also a part near the end, where the captain proclaims with an almost childlike innocence, that there are things such as "pizza plants".
3)Another reason that leaves more evidence that the world in the movie is a dystopia is how blind and inactive the humans are. The robots in the spaceship do everything, from creating the food, to cleaning, to keeping order. The woman who has her screen shut off by Wall-E finally realizes that there was a pool about ten feet away from her the whole time. The humans don't even move from their mobile chair - not even to talk. Instead they use a screen to talk with video chat, when the person they are talking to is right next to them. Slowly, the humans are losing their intelligence and turning into big hunks of meat instead.
4)The first generation of humans that left on the spaceship polluted the Earth so much, that the audience can see heaps of garbage taller than skyscrapers. Instead of staying there to fix their own problem, the humans escape on a spaceship and leave robots there to clean up the mess for them instead.
Wall-E is a dystopia because:
ReplyDelete1. Humans have made the Earth unsuitable for life. Because of excessive consumption, build-up of waste, and the careless treatment of this waste by humans, the Earth has become bleak and dismal. The movie Wall-E is trying to show us that if we continue to mistreat the environment, the Earth will soon become ruined.
2. Everyone is obese and incapable of movement without help. Because of a lack of exercise, and excessive consumption of soft drinks/fatty foods, people have become unable to move without assistance from robotic chairs. They also have all their work done by robotic drink carriers and robotic ship pilots etc. Humans have become lazy animals who do nothing for themselves.
3. The ship is run by robots. All the work is done by robots, the humans do absolutely nothing all day. If the robots suddenly stopped working, the humans would be powerless and they would die. However, at the end of the movie, humans finally break free of the robots control by leaving their mobile chairs, which symbolizes leaving the robots control over the humans.
Wall-E is criticizing our current society. It is criticizing the huge amounts of waste we throw away, how lazy we have become, and how dependent we have become on technologies like the Internet and cars. In the last scene, when the ship lands on Earth and the humans put the plant in the ground, the movie is calling for a return to a simpler life, when humans used to work all day, without help from machines. It calls for a return to agriculture, when people would grow their own food, rather than create it from flavoring and water. Wall-E shows us the problems in our society, and how we can fix them.
The world of Wall-E is an example of a dystopian society.
ReplyDelete1. The futuristic Earth is overrun with mountains of trash and garbage, and is almost uninhabitable by humans, except by Wall-E. It has become such a problem that the spaceship has to search for vegetation on Earth. It has disgusting living conditions and would not be the best place to inhabit.
2. The spaceships piloting system, the glowing red eye named "AUTO", is in control of everyone on the ship, and when the captain of the ship wants to go back to earth and change their lifestyle, AUTO tries to fight back and prevent this. This is similar to 1984, where the government tried to prevent any revolution or change from citizens.
3. The last factor is that everyone on the ship is obese, and their movement and actions are limited. For example, if a citizen wanted to go do something, they would have to control their chair, and if AUTO didn't want them to do something, it could take over. This is oppression because the government is preventing citizens from doing certain things.
Kyle Moon V for Vendetta
ReplyDelete“A Dystopia is a society in which conditions of life are miserable and characterized by poverty, oppression, war violence, disease, pollution, and/or the abridgement of human rights, resulting in widespread unhappiness, suffering and other kinds of pain” –Dictionary.com
V for Vendetta is a dystopian film because…
The citizens in the film live in constant oppression and in the abridgement of human rights. The psychotic parochial fascist does everything he can to keep himself in power and in order: this includes black bagging anybody that does now follow his biased ideas. Several people are arrested and killed for such nonsense. In the beginning of the film, it is quite obvious that they hate homosexuals and since Ruth was one, she had gotten arrested and killed just for being attracted to her own gender. Gordon, another honest man had gotten murdered by the government just for having the Koran in his home. Another instance as Evey was about to get raped and killed just for being out after a certain curfew set by the government.
The Government also openly kills people for their own benefit for a political advantage. Sutler drags people out of the streets and into a secret hospital facility for use of creating a deadly virus in which he had to cure. Then he kills hundreds of people including children just to win an election. This totalitarian act sets the dial to dystopia.
The world in The Matrix is a dystopia.
ReplyDelete1.The Matrix is a world created by artificial intelligence where the human mind is altered so that the humans believe they are living in what we would call a normal life. In reality, the world is bleak and humans are used as an energy source for the AI, grown in pods that span huge fields. The AI is suppressing the humans and taking away their freedom since they are unaware of how they are being used.
2.When Neo is introduced to the real world, he sees how barren and grim it really is. All of the human life that he was familiar with is deteriorating, the sun is covered up, and the few humans remaining are forced to live deep underground near the warmth of the core.
3.The agents in the matrix prevent people from getting out, and also seek to destroy those in the outside world who have formed a resistance against the AI. The agents don't allow the humans to be at their full potential by strictly monitoring the humans and preventing their escape from the grasp of the AI.
Wall-E is a dystopia:
ReplyDelete1) Humans lack humanity with each other. They rely so much on technology and robots that they do not seem to think for themselves. If the robots disappeared, how would they survive?
2) The humans suffer from boredom constantly. With the addition of robots, they do not have many things to do. Activities make life fun and enjoyable. However, the people in the movie do not have anything to do to occupy themselves for long periods of time.
3) In the movie, humans suffer from obesity. This is a direct result from the reliance on robots to do everything. Without anything to do, they sit on mobile chairs and eat.