2.1. Utopia and dystopia through the lens of cinema

2.1. Utopia and dystopia - through the lens of cinema

Figure 4. Scene from the movie blade runner (1982) by Ridley Scott

Designers have always attempted to render for us the nearly perfect imagery of our

surroundings. The cinematic universe has gained some artistic advantage over the

actual architectural designs of the architects, because of the deliberate attempt made

by designers to give the backdrop an identity and make it part of the narrative. Be it

the flying automobiles or smart and handy devices, the filmmakers have strived to

predict the most accurate versions of our future. It is exerted in a much-exaggerated

manner but we do find a striking resemblance in the present day.

Figure 5. Scene from the movie ‘Metropolis’, 1927, by Fritz Lang alongside Opening scene from the movie ‘divergent’, 2014, by director Neil Burger based on novel by author Veronica Roth.

Divergent (figure 5) is an American science fiction and action film an adaptation by the

novel of the same name. It begins with showing a skyline of Chicago frozen in time

surrounded by dessert, the source of energy now being replaced from fuels to turbines

that generate energy they require to sustain. The skyscrapers are left stranded but a more

evolved society is grown around to become more sustainable. What expresses another

form of a utopian society is the categorization of individuals based on the qualities they

inherit; through genetic decriminalization the higher body seeks to exploit the qualities of

the human race.

Metropolis (figure 5) a 1927 film managed to show the highly advanced city image with

sky-scarpers grown at every space possible in the skyline of the city adorned with a

complicated transit system an exaggerated depiction of the how the western cities were

starting to shape in to at the peak of industrialization.

"It is undeniable that the cinema has a marked influence on modern architecture; in turn,

modern architecture brings its artistic side to the cinema.... Modern architecture not only

serves the cinematographic set [decor], but imprints its stamp on the staging [mise-en-

scene], it breaks out of its frame; architecture 'acts.’” - Robert Mallet-Stevens

Dystopia – a science fiction premise

Be it a post-apocalyptic scenario or a natural disaster or an extra-terrestrial life a dystopian

backdrop is one of the trendiest now as used by most of the science fiction films or novels.

It is based on the concept of speculative fiction, that predicts possibility with regards to

the current conditions, to critique on the current socio-political and technological state.

They have become a fascinating topic because of it being the conventional narrative from

our present conditions, be it the global warming or our natural resources depleting, they

criticize and expose the shortcomings of existing reality.

Figure 6. Opening scene from the movie ‘ALITA: BATTEL ANGEL’ by director Robert Rodriguez

Figure 7. Scene from the movie ‘ALITA: BATTEL ANGEL’ by director Robert Rodriguez showing the floating city of Zalem as viewed from the iron city below.

Alita: battle angel is a 2019 cyberpunk4 action movie, which is based in the year 2563 on earth, revolving around the protagonist who is a cyborg5 unleashing the secrets from her

past in this post war city called the iron city. The iron city has grown around a massive

scrap heap that rains down from Zalem- a giant metal floating city, where only the elite

can reside.

The striking difference between extremely flourishing city of Zalem and that of the living

on the scrapes -the iron city is yet another factor of the dystopian scenario, the vast gap

between economic status where rich becomes richer and poor, poorer.

We do not have a literature of the future for use in courses, but we do have literature

about the future, consisting not only of the great utopias but also of contemporary science

fiction. Science fiction is held in low regard as a branch of literature, and perhaps it

deserves this critical contempt. But if we view it as a kind of sociology of the future, rather

than as literature, science fiction has immense value as a mind-stretching force for the

creation of the habit of anticipation. Various games have been designed to educate young

people and adults about future possibilities and probabilities.

4 A genre of science fiction set in a lawless subculture of an oppressive society dominated by computer technology. 5 A cyborg, a contraction of "cybernetic organism", is a being with both organic and biomechatronic body parts.