Monday, September 12, 2016
Birth of Science Fiction?
Some commentators have dubbed Méliès's film A Trip to the Moon the first science fiction movie. Not all critics, however, agree. Tom Gunning, the author of our essay on that film, argues for the contrary view. He states, " 'Science' fiction implies a certain sobriety and serious concern with scientific and technological possibilities. . . . But Méliès cannot take his scientists seriously at all, introducing them first as wizards with pointy hats, figures out of fairy pantomime . . . (70). What do you think? While you may not be able to judge whether this is the first of its kind, you can make a judgment about whether or not it qualifies as science fiction. Compare this film with other science fiction movies you have seen. How is it the same? How is it different? Can we call it a science fiction film, a precursor of such films, or something entirely different?
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Science fiction has become increasingly accurate throughout the years, especially with recent films such as The Martian or Interstellar. However, such accuracy was only possible because of recent scientific discoveries. Space is a central theme in many science fiction movies, and it is dubbed as, quoted from Star Trek, “the final frontier”. It’s such a mystery to us that there’s often a huge gray area as to what is actually science, and what was is fiction. Méliès film, A Trip to the Moon, is definitely a precursor to science fiction films if not an actual science fiction film. The portrayal of the “scientists” as a caricature of wizards is certainly a fantasy, but there is plausible science in his movie. A Trip to the Moon was filmed in 1902 by Méliès which comes way after Newtonian physics was established (Rutsky 41). Méliès has scientific principles, such as the rocket being launched to the moon, in his film. Everything else is what we call fiction, because we have an idea of what is on our moon and how we launch rockets. The rocket launches from a weird contraption with properties not unlike a gun. When the scientists arrive on the moon, they are greeted by strange creatures who attack them and they must escape. The reason we find this so absurd now is because we know that the moon is barren, we know that a rocket does not launch in the way the film showed, and nothing lives on the moon. In Méliès time, however, they might not have known all that. In every science fiction film, there is always some futuristic technology or unexplained phenomenon that scientists cannot explain today. It is because of this aspect that some ideas proposed by science fiction films seem preposterous. But we must also keep in mind that film is supposed to spark our adventurous side, and show us what could be possible. In Interstellar, there is a wormhole the protagonists must travel through. At the end of the film they also get sucked into a black hole and survive. These two ideas seem so far-fetched because of what we know right now about science. But what if it were possible for these things to happen? Then it would destroy our understanding of physics right now. Méliès film made some wild assumptions, but they were close enough to what was considered modern science in his time period, which shows that A Trip to the Moon should be considered a science fiction film.
ReplyDeleteAlthough A Trip to the Moon is very different than science fiction movies today, it still paved the way for science fiction movies as a whole. I do believe that it does qualify as science fiction, because the concept was so forward-thinking for the time period. Although scientists are portrayed as wizards in hats, and the stars are dancers, they are still scientists, and stars just the same. The portrayal of certain aspects is different than the sci-fi movies today, but similar to Star Wars, Guardians of the Galaxy, and others, these movies still have a fantasy aspect. Even, WALL-E, a Disney movie has some aspects that do not correlate directly to science. I think that these movies do share the same elements though. Each has a mission, a conflict during the mission, and a happy ending that benefits the main characters. This pattern was first introduced through Méliès’ A Trip to the Moon, so the film had a much bigger impact than just establishing a certain genre. One thing that I do not think the movie is, however, is, according Tom Gunning, fairy pantomime. Sure the movie has magical elements, yes. But is it a fairy tale completely, no. Going to the moon and discovering life is such a new complex, plot of the time period that it would be unjust to just rule out the film completely. It was actually very inventive and modern.
ReplyDeleteThe film also was influenced by the time period. Since it was the Twenties, flappers, dancers, and costume was all the rage. Much like today, when movies use modern slang, and have iPhones. The elements that could be ruled out as “unscientific” may just be a part of time. The Roaring Twenties, when everything was about partying. This probably made the film a lot more entertaining for the audience. Overall, the film really paved the way for science fiction films today.
What Samantha mentions is true, "A Trip to the Moon" differs substantially from current day science fiction films. With factors such as scientist dressed in pointy wizard-like hats, I could see how one would imply the classic film isn't science fiction. "A Trip to the Moon" seems to resemble a current day fairy-tale rather than a science fiction film. However, "A Trip to the Moon" does pave the way for future science fiction films and can still be classified a science fiction film itself. What qualities do the film has that overall make it a science fiction film? To start it contains features such as the moon, space, aliens, and even portrays advanced technology that lets the characters travel to the moon. With the features utilized in the film and the time period the film was created, there is an impression that technology is advanced and there is life outside of Earth. All these features resemble science fiction movies that exist today, just on a less advanced scale. The movie “Avatar” being a prime example, similar features are utilized in the film, with the idea that life exist outside of Earth and there is technology that enables characters to visit those places. Though the films “Avatar” and “A Trip to the Moon” have different plots, they utilize the same features that help classify both films as science fiction. It could even be said that, “A Trip to the Moon” paves the way for future science fiction films because we see similar features being used in current day films, but with more advanced technology, different plots, and different types of characters.
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