This document outlines dystopian films from the 1920s to the 2010s, highlighting some key characteristics of dystopian films from each decade. In the 1920s, Metropolis depicted a futuristic city and imagined visions of the future. Modern Times from the 1930s commented on unemployment and industrialization during the Great Depression. More recent films like Wall-E, Terminator, and Divergent portray societies where humans are dominated or controlled by technology, or live in a restrictive, divided world. Many of these films also challenge conventions through their use of unusual protagonists or settings.

1. Dystopian Film Timeline
Jade Holt

2. 1920s
Metropolis (1927) was one of the first dystopian films to be released. It
shows airplanes flying around the city and huge suspension bridges
connecting the buildings to show that this isn’t a real life documentary
in the 1920s, it is showing how they imagined the future to be.
The shot with the many different eyes, is an example of Hyperreality as
it is not a depiction of a real life event, but a creation of Fritz Lang’s
imagination.

3. 1930s
Modern Times (1936) is a postmodern film as it is a comment on the
desperate employment and horrible conditions that many people faced
during the Great Depression period that was currently happening all
over the world at this time. The film is seen to blame the efficiencies of
modern industrialisation.
Chaplin also tells the audience that they are watching a film through
the scene where he is travelling through the machine and around the
cogs as this wouldn’t happen in real life. He is using this technique to
entertain his audience and create humour.

4. 1950s
The original The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951) showed how the future was
imagined in the 50s such as Aliens coming to earth in a UFO to robots landing on
earth. The film was remade in 2008 with the same name. However, the cameras
and techniques used have improved since the original and therefore the UFOs and
the quality of the CGI is better, making the audience aware that they are watching a
film. Even the use of completely grey suits to show who is the alien has been
removed as the audience will be aware who is the “invader” and who are the
humans. It is also shown through the different language used and the tone of the
voice.
The Day The Earth Stood Still uses a male anti-hero from the alien race as the main
character. This is a Postmodern technique as it is challenging narrative conventions
by having an unusual main character.

5. 1960s
The original Planet of the Apes was the first in a 5-part film series about a crew of
astronauts crash-landing on a strange planet in the future, where apes have
developed human intelligence. The films have been remade in 2001 and now in
2011, with new CGI techniques that help tell the audience that they are watching
a film. For example in 2011s Rise of the Planet of the Apes the Apes were
completely CGI rather than humans in costumes as is seen in the original.
This film is Dystopian as it shows an alternate reality where Apes begin to run
things and act like humans. The moral message that runs through these films is
the fact that humans are still no longer acting on their natural instinct and
therefore the apes-who are relying on their basic survival instincts are able to
survive and thrive better than the humans could . This film is showing what will
happen if the humans continue to ignore their instincts- the Apes will take over.

6. 1970s
Star Wars is still one of the most loved film series in the world. The first film was
released in 1977 but it later was renamed Star Wars Episode 4: A New Hope.
It’s a dystopian film as it is set in space, hundreds of years ago. The themes
explored throughout these films is the ongoing battle between the good and the
dark sides. One of the main protagonists, Anakin, swaps to the dark side. This is
part of a moral message that shows how easy it is to swap from either side.
However another part of the moral message would be that it is difficult to
defeating the dark side but everyone has a choice in which side they fight for.
Release order: 4,5,6,1,2,3,7.

7. 1980s
In 1983, Terminator was released; a film about a Cyborg who travels back
from the year 2029 to kill a woman who will eventually have a son who is
part of the group of heroes who try and kill the Terminators.
Terminator is dystopian as it shows an alternate reality with Cyborgs and
humans battling against each other in the future that suggests a fear of
technology rising up and taking control away from the human race, a fear
that is even more plausible nowadays with the continual growth in
technological discoveries.

8. 1990s
In Fight Club (1999) the character of Tyler creates a dystopia to
ensure that his vision of a Utopia comes true. His Utopia is the idea
that civilisation as it is must be changed and must fall apart for his
perfect world to exist.
Fight Club shows the everyday world that we are all used to as the
dystopian world and this therefore is why the film is dystopian as it is
showing an imperfect world for the characters.

9. 2000s
Wall-E (2008) is a Disney-Pixar dystopian film. It is set in a waste-filled Earth that
a small robot must clean up. All humans are living on a ship in space that is
representative of a cruise ship. All humans spend their whole days in hovering
chairs as they have all put on weight that means they struggle to walk. The
humans believe that the ship is a Utopia for them however, near the end of the
film, everyone returns to earth after it is made apparent that the autopilot is
trying to prevent the humans from returning to Earth. This is an example of a fear
in society- that technology is trying to take over and control the human race. It
links back to other dystopian films such as the Terminator in 1983.
The moral of this film is that everyone can make a difference to the world no
matter what size, race or gender they are.

10. 2010s
Divergent (2014) is set in a future Chicago when the world is divided into
Factions. This film is dystopian as it is set in an imperfect world where if you don’t
fit in to one of the 5 factions (Erudite: Intelligent, Dauntless: Brave, Abnegation:
Selfless, Candor: Honest, Amity: Peaceful), you are rejected by the rest of the
population. Divergent uses new technology and tactics throughout the film that
are not used in the present, including the method of the tattoos which is painless
and almost like printing onto the skin.
Divergent is Dystopian as it uses a female protagonist-Tris, and a female lead
antagonist-Jeannie. This is an example of challenging narrative conventions as the
main characters are conventionally male. The male characters are also shown
fighting on both sides, as strong, dominant characters. However the female leads
are in control and this is unconventional in films.

11. Bibliography
http://www.dystopianmovies.org/dystopian-movie-timeline
www.google.co.uk
www.wikipedia.org
http://exploringdystopia.freeforums.org/fight-club-t530.html