Essay Sample about Sci-fi Films

In this course thus far, we took a ride to the final frontier, delving deep into the intricacies of the science fiction genre. Initially, it is thought that science fiction is an opportune way to let imaginations of the future run free, constructing worlds beyond our own. However, as we have discovered, science fiction has layers that once analyzed critically, we find the past reflected in these fabricated societies. The intentionality is questionable, nonetheless, science fiction mirrors cases of societal class and the trope of colonization. It begs two questions: Why are common tropes in YA sci-fi so interesting if they are regurgitated over again? How are the colonization tropes described by Greg Grewall’s article, Colonizing the Universe: Science Fictions Then, Now, and in the (Imagined) Future, connected with popular YA sci-fi, such as Ready Player One and The Hunger Games franchise?

Within the last two decades, young adult science fiction took the box office by storm. Viewers found the storylines intricate, enticing, and of course thrilling with the ideas of dystopian worlds. One example is The Hunger Games franchise by Suzanne Collins. The Hunger Games franchise garnered a staggering 694.4 million USD in the states alone. This story follows two of Joan Slonczewski’s five themes found in science fiction: mutation and genetic engineering. Slonczewski quotes, “Mutation is the basis of all biological change, including nature's drama of evolution. Genetic manipulation alters the physiology or behavior of individuals, populations...” (Slonczewski, 2003) Katniss Everdeen lives in a dystopian world called Panem where an annual reaping collects two tributes to fight in the Hunger Games. Within the series, we see a plethora of genetically engineered animals called Mutts within the confines of the arenas that are prevalent to the story’s world. For example, Tracker Jackers are mutated golden wasps whose vicious stings can cause both hallucinations and death. Their venom was used once in the first film to kill a tribute, and again to extract information and manipulate Peeta in the final films. Or the Mocking Jay used in District 11 to communicate across fields or to turture tributes through audio hallucinations. 

The second film that has boosted the YA sci-fi scene is Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. This story takes place in 2045, where Wade Watts finds escape in the virtual world OASIS created by James Halliday. When the creator dies, the protagonist and his crew of techno gamer nerds scour OASIS in search of easter eggs Halliday left behind. Then we have the trope of a rich and evil corporation CEO who comes in and attempts to take over OASIS through unethical means. The overall theme of the film is to find time to create and fortify connections between those you love and to take time to disconnect from the online world. Halliday’s easter egg hunt in the end of the film revealed his true feelings about the virtual world he created: regret. He quotes, “as terrifying and painful as reality can be, it's also... the only place that... you can get a decent meal. Because, reality... is real.” 

Grewell says, “Despite its profit-motive and proclivity to entertain, film is a medium intended to edify and instruct, and if its master-plots are familiar then the truly fantastic science fiction film remains its visuals, the ‘science’ behind the science.” (Grewell, 2001)