History of Sci - Fi

History of Sci – Fi

 

Sci – Fi or Science Fiction movies are a form of film that normally follows a futuristic or technologically advanced world or group of people. These often have aspect of space travel, time travel, alternative history or extra-terrestrial life. They often follow the aspects of science and technologies of modern times that are only dreams for people, such as faster than light travel, time machines and super-human people.  

Some of the earliest examples of science fiction are seen in novels and silent films, with many being seen as controversial at the time. These early authors we people such as H.G. Wells and Jules Verne, both with successful novels, and adaptations of these books in to film. The early silent films included:

·         Le Voyage dans la Lune

·         20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

·         Metropolis

In 1930’s, with the development of sound films, science fiction films began to re appear, with classics such as ‘Things to come’ and ‘Frankenstein’. All though these films were relatively successful, the genre of Sci – Fi as a whole would not become well known for another decade or two.

In 1950’s, many of the well-known Sci – Fi themes that are associated with the genre, such as large headed aliens, and flying saucer UFO’s. This is due to the interest in the objects at the time, from alleged ‘sightings’. ‘The day the Earth stood still’ is one of the most famous Sci – Fi films of the time, possibly all time.

In 1960’s, Sci – Fi began to become a much more popular genre of film, with more and more audience viewing them. Classic films such as ‘The planet of the apes’ and ‘2001: A space odyssey’ were made in this decade, beginning the ‘Golden age’ of Sci – Fi films. 

In 1970’s, big films such as ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Alien’ set the precedence for how successful Sci-Fi films were produced, which helped to bring Sci – Fi films to the mainstream audience. The realise of ‘Star Wars’ was seen as one of the first major blockbusters of film history.

In 1980’s, the genre as a whole continued to grow, with big releases such as ‘Back to the Future’, ‘Star Trek: The motion picture’ and ‘E.T.’. These releases are now seen as classics throughout all genre, especially Sci Fi.

In 1990’s – 2000’s and modern day, the development of CGI allowed for much more variety and options for the films which are produced. Popular Sci – Fi films such as ‘The Matrix’, ‘Interstellar’, and ‘Avatar’ were all made possible through the advancement in CGI technology, allowing stunts and scene’s to be shot that are simply not possible. As well as CGI advancements, the modern age has also grown the popularity of the Sci – Fi genre, having more ‘Independent’ titles developed within the blockbuster releases. Some of these are ‘District 9’, ‘Moon’, and ‘Sunshine’, which have all developed a small following. As well as new realises, classic franchises have also been reintroduced, such as ‘Star Trek’ and ‘Star Wars’, adding more to the ongoing story’s, or remaking classic films all together.