Recent Sci-Fi/ Thriller Releases

We researched recent Sci-Fi film releases in order to understand the style of films appearing on the market, understand the audience they are marketed at and the main themes being explored at the moment. Beside each title is a small break down of the themes or key points of the film.

Inception (2010) Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi/ technology exists to enter the human mind/ highly skilled thief/last chance for redemption/ inception = plant an idea/ layers of dream worlds/ discussion of reality/ ambiguous ending  

Tron: Legacy (2010)- Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi/ set in a cyber-world – created in the first film due to advances in technology, a sequel to the first Tron (yet their storylines overlap due to the change in protagonist), father and son bond, usurping the role of God leads to a corrupt cyber-society, use of doubles, 3D

Zenith (2010) – Sci-Fi, Thriller/ retro-futuristic steam-punk thriller/ 2 men in different time periods =parallel stories/ search for a conspiracy/ big questions - the meaning of humanity

(Angels and Airwaves) Love (January 2011) – Drama, Sci-Fi/ an astronaut/ stranded in orbit on the International Space Station/ loses contact with Earth/ claustrophobic and lonely existence/ battle to maintain sanity and stay alive/ makes a strange discovery…

Iron Invader (February 2011)- Sci-Fi/ Alien Bacteria infects metal/ giant killing robot/ merging of 2 categories of Sci-fi

I am Number Four (February 2011) Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller/ 9 Alien children hiding on earth/supernatural powers/ defenders of the planet/hunted- being killed off by another race of aliens seeking to destroy them

The Adjustment Bureau (March 2011) Romance, Sci-Fi, Thriller/ mysterious interfering fate/ worldwide link of portals/ a higher power that collaborates to control the lives of people on earth

Battle: Los Angeles (March 2011) Action, Sci-Fi/ Alien attack on an American city/ military action is taken

Mars Needs Moms (March 2011) Animation, Action, Adventure/ Aliens abduct the mothers from earth/ for children/ moral centre for the story

Limitless (March 2011) – Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller/ top secret drug/ struggling author/ it improves brain function/ drugs race/ ambiguous ending


Paul (March 2011) - Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi/ 2 British geeks in American take a road trip/ alien encounter/ choose to help the alien evade authority


The Tree of Life (May 2011) - Drama, Sci-Fi/ 1950’s/ exploration of the typical family unit/ psychological evaluation of the human condition/back drop admiration of the universe/ smallness of our lives

Source Code (April 2011)- Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller/ soldier/ inside the body of a dead man reliving his last minutes/ bomb on a train/ mystery/technological advancement/moral issues raised/ playing with time/value of life

X-Men: First Class (June 2011)- Action, Adventure, Drama/ the evolution of humans/genetic mutation/ prejudice against the new species/ conflict/ questions of good and evil in the possession of power – choosing sides/ prequel/team =protectors of humanity

Super 8 (June 2011) - Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller/ film within a film/ group of children/ alien attacking small American village/ investigations/ military involvement/secrets

2012: Ice Age (June 2011)- Action, Sci-Fi/ story of a family struggle/ environmental travesty/ desolation of the world as we know it – covered with snow/ global warming/ survival of humanity at risk/ apocalypse

Transformers: Dark of the Moon (June 2011) - Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi/ conspiracy on the moon/ giant robots/good versus evil/alien technology/ lost spacecraft/government cover-ups/world domination

Phase 7 (July 2011)- Sci-Fi, Thriller/ spreading pandemic/ quarantined building/ alliances and conflict/ human desire to live/protect his own/ protagonists aim is to protect his pregnant wife/ altruism verses selfishness –the human condition/ social commentary/global crisis

Alien Armageddon (July 2011) - Sci-Fi/ aliens attack earth

Attack the Block (July 2011) - Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi/ south London/ teen gang/ alien invasion/ unlikely forging of bonds/ human nature to stick together/exploration of subtle invasion not full on war

Cowboys & Aliens (July 2011) - Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller/ set in 1873/ combining the forces of cowboys and natives against a bigger threat/ aliens/ classic hero =has the power, technology to defeat the aliens/ amnesia =self discovery/ damsel in distress

Rise of Planet of the Apes (August 2011) – Action, Drama, Sci-Fi/ scientific experiments to find the cure for Alzheimer’s/ genetically enhanced chimp = uses intelligence to bring an uprising of his species/rebellion/ prequel/ father and son story

Apollo 18 (September 2011) – Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller/ old footage style – merging past and present storylines/ 2 American astronauts sent on a secret mission to the Moon (Apollo 18)/ terrifying events

Real Steel (October 2011) - Action, Drama, Sci-Fi/ set in the near future/ robot boxing is a top sport/ an underdog story/ father and son story

Contagion (October 2011) – Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller/ pandemic- deadly disease/ global crisis/ following an international team of scientists = the focus/ reality of the spread of disease and fear

The Thing (October 2011) – Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi/ remake/ Antarctic research site/ discovery of an alien craft/ deaths and chaos ensue

In Time (October 2011) – Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller/ people have predetermined length of life/ they spend their ‘time’, the years of their life, as money for food etc./ the top few are young forever and immortal/ controlled genetics/ protagonist wrongly accused of a crime – on the run/ war against the system/ dystopian future

Melancholia (November 2011) – Drama, Sci-Fi / follows the strained relationships of 2 sisters/ new planet threatening to collide with Earth/ the human condition/ point of life

The Darkest Hour (December 2011) – Action, Horror, Sci-Fi/ set in Russia/ group of young adults struggle to survive/ alien attack

The Divide (2011) - Sci-Fi, Thriller/ survivors of a nuclear attack/ human survival / apocalyptic/ claustrophobic – stuck in a basement together/dwindling supply/ exploration of the power of fear

Sol (2011) - Sci-Fi/ distant future/ hostile alien planet/ Sol Invictus competition – Earth’s academics sent to distant planet and must pinpoint out the planet’s main sun ‘Sol’/ marooned on wrong island/ band together/ human survival – Lord of the Flies-esque

Recreator (2011)- Sci-Fi, Thriller/ robots/ trio trigger a deadly experiment of the ‘Recreator’ =a scientist with a gift for cloning/ must run from clones of themselves/ avoid being replaced

The Day (2011) – Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller/ 5 survivors/ lost and on the run/Open war against humanity rages/ global/ survival and family story/ future collapsed society

The Hunger Games (March 2012) – Action, Drama, Sci-Fi/ Post-apocalyptic society/ corrupt powers/national games to the death held in the Capitol/ a boy and a girl selected from each district/ shown on TV - part of a larger method of control/ survival/ rebellion –refusal to conform

Looper (September 2012) – Action, Sci-Fi/A killer who workd for the mob of the future recognises one of his targets as his future self/ potentially like 'Minority Report' 


Gravity (2012) –Sci-Fi, Thriller/lone survivor/ space mission to repair the Hubble telescope/ attempting to return to Earth/ mother-daughter relationship 


Upside Down (2012) – Drama, Romance/ a man searches an alternate universe for a long-lost love from his youth 


World War Z (2012) – Action, Drama, Horror/ great zombie war/ interviews survivors

Prometheus (2012) - Action, Drama, Horror/ team of explorers/ origins of mankind/ travel to the corners of the universe/ battle for humankind/ prequel

Patterns:

More eclectic selection of storylines because Sci-Fi allows for more imagination – less restricted than other genres by convention/ sci-fi often operates outside of convention constantly surprising the audience

One of the main patterns we found in the releases was Space travel or the use of different or second planets – the Sci-Fi market is predominantly linked to the idea of space and space travel. This is represented through the numerous examples of films recently released that explore either the unknown depths of space, for example setting the narrative on an alien planet, or exploring human instinct and psychology through the claustrophobic and frightening atmosphere of space. Space is the perfect location for mysteries and thrillers as these genres rely heavily on the unknown and the unseen, which is provided in abundance. ‘Apollo 18’ is a horror set on the moon which taps into the human fear of the unknown and … In a way some of these films also exhibit elements of a dystopia. Looking at ‘Sol’ for example, set a little way in the future some humans occupy a hostile alien planet. The implication is that they have left Earth for some reason and yet have found themselves in a socially corrupt civilisation. The idea of some of Earth’s population being relocated is explored in ‘Blade Runner’ whose universe includes Earth’s off-world colonies. It projects the issues related to over population, lack of resources and advanced technology into the future.

War on a global or personal scale is something explored in a few of the most recent Sci-Fi’s. We can draw the conclusion that the fascination with the psychological and social effects of war is due to the continued struggles of many countries in the Middle East including Britain. These storylines revolve heavily upon the testing of the human spirit. This convention can be found in most Sci-Fi narratives because its universal appeal and scope to allow character development, for example in 'The Day'.

Another theme is Alien Invasion films where aliens attempt worldwide domination of earth but the storyline follows a small group of individuals. These films are classic alien narratives in use for decades, however in recent year’s comedy has been merged with this genre to create a new image for these films, for example ‘Attack the Block’ and ‘Paul’. ‘Paul’ is exceptionally different from the general storyline as he is the titular role and one of the sympathetic protagonists. The war genre is often found within the traditional narrative which creates tension and pace for the race for survival. Also uncommon is the 2011 film ‘Cowboys & Aliens’ which aims to subvert audience expectation by merging two almost conflicting genres.

Disease epidemics have within recent years been in the headlines. Filmmakers have therefore produced films such as ‘Contagion’ and ‘Phase 7’ to recreate the fear and crisis point that the media reported on during the outbreak of both bird and swine flu. Interestingly ‘Contagion’ follows the group of scientists trying to develop a vaccine as well as the human interest family story. ‘Phase 7’ is about the group of people trapped in quarantine and how desperation and fear can change people.

Technological and Robotic futures were made massively commercial by the return of ‘Transformers’ to the big screen. Films such as ‘Real Steel’ and 'Recreator' play on the idea of dramatically advanced technology and both the positive and negative implications of humaniod robotics. This is very similar in theme to 'Blade Runner' particularly the narrative of 'Recreator'. Advanced technology also feed heavily into dystopian futures.

Apocalyptic and Dystopian Futures or narratives present the highly charged conflict between self preservation and altruism. Apocalyptic narratives involve global catastrophes and the reactions of the characters to them, mostly these films are Action orientated initially. Environmental, War or Zombie are just a few examples of apocalypses that might occur within a narrative. The concept is that the breakdown of a civilised society creates friction and therefore a catalyst for anarchy and humans place within the landscape of a new world order.

Dystopian plots are about societies where life is not lived in the perfect situation presented and rebellion against the system, the way things have come to be, tends to be more low-key. A communist and violent future wracked with poverty is depicted in ‘The Hunger Games’ where the people are suppressed by a game in which a group of children must fight to the death each year. In ‘In Time’ time is no longer an intangible concept it is your value and currency. Each person must live by their time and pay their way with it but it is the poor who suffer and die so that the rich may live forever. Dystopian futures take modern concerns such as genetics, technology and government corruption to create an extreme future which suspends the audience’s disbelief and creates fear.

We have followed this trend, and our narrative will be set in a dystopian future and will explore a protagonists realisation and then rebellion against the corrupt system.