Susan Sontag then goes on to write about the destruction that is placed with in science fiction films. She says, “Science fiction films are not about science they are about disaster, which is one of the oldest subjects of art. Science fiction is concerned with the aesthetics of destruction, with the peculiar beauties to be found in wreaking havoc, making a mess.” Destruction is seen in both of the science fiction films, Invaders from Mars and E.T. The destruction in Invaders From Mars comes from the military when they begin bombing the whole that the aliens are in. The destruction is the climax of the film, leading into the aliens hiding spot to defeat them. Although destruction is a word meaning disaster in this case the audience can view it as the humans trying to overcome the powers of the aliens. There is a calming sense within the destruction. In the film, E.T., the destruction comes from the children trying to help get E.T. back to his family. They escape from the scientist and the police, destroying their neighborhood and the scientists closed in protector they set up around Elliot’s house. The destruction is what led E.T. back to his home, just like the destruction in Invaders to Mars it had a calming sense for the humans to win. …show more content…
Sontag believes that this plays a very specific role in science fiction. “A greater range of ethical values is embodied in the décor of these films than in the people. Things, rather than the helpless humans, are the locus of values because we experience them, rather than people, as the sources of power.” This is proven in the film E.T. The ability to lift the bikes of the ground relates to the childlike audience. Every child at one point wishes they can fly. His glowing heart and finger connect with the audience’s softer side, being able to understand
Neill, Alex. “Empathy and (Film) Fiction.” Philosophy of film and motion pictures : an anthology. Ed. Noel Carrol and Jinhee Choi. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing, 2006. 247-259. Print.
The symbolism in these films shows how humans see other humans as monstrous. They have no other way to represent that, so they show it through huge threats, bugs or monsters. In movies like Godzilla, the destruction of what once was peaceful, death, and evil. These films use symbolism of destruction to also show their fear and belief in the danger of using science to make things such as atomic bombs, nuclear weapons, and even on some occasion to show destruction of a particular political ideal such as communism.
The purpose of any text is to convey the criticisms of society, with V for Vendetta and Animal Farm being chief examples of this statement. Through their use of allusion, symbolism and representation, they portray many of society's flaws and imperfections. Such an imperfection includes the illustration of how totalitarian governments abuse the power they have acquired for their own gain, harming the people they are sworn to serve and protect. Through this abusive self-gaining government, we all are liable to become victims of consumer culture caused by the blind obedience to advertising and propaganda, being unable to form or voice an opinion of our own. But this lack of opinion can be at fault because of our own apathy, the ignorance and slothfulness that is contributed to the role we play in our society and the importance of that role's ability to motivate and inspire change.
Why do we fear the unknown? In the process of answering this question, science-fiction genre films successfully capture the history of American society at distinct points in time. The genre is so closely linked to social and historical contexts that its development relies solely on this connection. Sci-fi myths and conventions have remained static for decades, and the only measurable change in the genre lies in the films’ themes (Gehring 229-230). For example, Robert Wise’s The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) argues that fear of the unknown is a flaw in human nature and criticizes the social paranoia of post-war, 1940s America. Conversely, Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) views the human existence through more positive outlook, wherein society can overcome such fear; this optimism reflects the escapist beliefs of the 70s. When juxtaposed, the films’ themes demonstrate the evolution of the sci-fi genre by expressing different social attitudes towards conventions such as foreign beings, unfamiliar technology, and unusual scientists. The films also represent the genre during two major aesthetic periods in cinema—the post-classical and the late modernist eras, respectively—but nonetheless serve a greater purpose in measuring America’s social progress.
Movies distort reality by creating an ideal conflictual ambience, from which all the subtle human emotions and the characters arise. Humans might appear as consensus beings, seeking conformation and avoiding alienation by “society”. However, referring back to Aristotle’s saying, “human beings are by nature political animals” (1999), humans continually strive for power and control inasmuch as they strive for pure oxygen to breathe. Movies unleash these “socially unacceptable” political animals, exposing the hidden moral corruption embedded within most humans. Movies accomplish such a task by distorting reality, by reshaping the truth into a collection of video shots, taken from different angles, creating different meanings to content; the true meaning. The three genres of literature – narratives, poetry and drama – establish the key to revealing the distortion, thus providing humans with the ultimate method of deciphering our reality through the eyes of a glass lens. In the movie Do the Right Thing, these genres come together to paint a “picture” of us.
Film could be considered to be the most significant cultural text of the decade. Each of these three films directed by Peter Weir have significance and importance, as they almost force society to look itself in the mirror and get a shock. I encourage readers to watch these films, and think about the importance of their messages.
...focus of attention by showing his watch to his friends so that everyone could be around him. The child showed the ability to differentiate between reality and pretend by interacting with objects and communicating with the other children.
According to Giroux (1996), animated movies are a part of children’s culture. Children’s culture consists of entertainment, artifacts, myths, etc. that are based around the notion of what it means to be a child. Animated movies, particularly Disney films, encourages the child’s imagination and fantasy to be enhanced, creates a drive within them to go on adventures and helps them develop an aura of innocence. Animated films are “teaching machines” (Giroux, 1996, p. 66). Disney films teach children about specific roles, values and ideals and also take them through the world of enchantment. It helps them to understand who they are and what it means to be a part of the society and an adult environment (Giroux, 1996). Disney characters are a reflection
Now, back to Monty Python, in this sketch the scientists are highly flawed research, and produce ridicules amounts of errors yet the result is the takeover of the penguins. In the animal film industry films are produced to make money, these films rely on enticing the most people. To do that they create their own themes, forms, and images to do this, these have at this time become so engrained in the way that people perceive film which does not have these elements would seem wrong. At the end of the day the primary motive of filmmakers are to make money, yet through their themes they reinforce and recreate the values of society, to me it seems as flawed and ridiculous a system to show society's values as much as the science that lead to penguin domination was highly flawed.
Studies have proved that the world of film has a various capacity in persuading and changing the perspectives of a viewer. A film functions as an interaction.... ... middle of paper ... ... The massive influence of Walt Disney films tends to mold the minds of female children.
Susan Sontag’s “The Imagination of Disaster” claims that sci-fi fiction films can give pleasure to the audience. Then, she gives the detail the type of pleasure that comes from sci-fi films can be the complicity with the abhorrence. It seems like the flow of an idea stressed on the ugly things that formed in the society that we can relate to or confront with. Therefore, the second claim is the aesthetic of the destruction; she also says that the disaster presented in the sci-fi film is one of the oldest subject of Art.
Film and literature are two media forms that are so closely related, that we often forget there is a distinction between them. We often just view the movie as an extension of the book because most movies are based on novels or short stories. Because we are accustomed to this sequence of production, first the novel, then the motion picture, we often find ourselves making value judgments about a movie, based upon our feelings on the novel. It is this overlapping of the creative processes that prevents us from seeing movies as distinct and separate art forms from the novels they are based on.
It not only destroyed the homes of the people who lived there but it also messed with their head. It caused then to think differently and jump to conclusions. Though they eventually recovered the emotional and mental damage stuck with them.
The theme of The destructors are very meaningful, While adult are trying to rebuild the city after the war. Little kids who grownups from war and destruction, are taught by the war which is to destroy. Everything is easy to rebuild after the war, but one's mind that is set and shaped is hard to change. Human are like the youth gangs, they are not lack at intelligence or creative imaginations. But in moral and ethical aspects, people are still in the infant stage of ignorance and are very blind to distinguish between right and wrong.
of influence in both the characters and gender roles of people in our society. The films have brought about the shaping of morals, behaviors and characters of not only children, but also adults in todays society, through engaging them in a constant series of unthinking consumption. In addition, most of the films in Disney bring out many different gender roles and people who grew up watching them have been influenced greatly by the content in the films (Blum 13). This paper will involve the various roles played by the characters in the films and how their roles have influenced the society at large.