An interest in the apocalypse seems to be intensifying, with huge pop culture successes such as the Left Behind Series, The Matrix, and even an entire week dedicated to the Armageddon on the History Channel. Amateurs and professionals alike add fuel to the fire. The theories of the the Mayan calender and the Earth’s shifting magnetic poles are all the rage right now and astrophysicist Neil Degrasse Tyson informs us that a giant asteroid impact will most likely bring civilization’s end. We may not be the first generation aware of the ever approaching end of times but we sure know how to make the most of it. Mass anxiety over impending doom is seemingly timeless, but an obsessive fixation on the end can also be used as an inspiration for art, products, and films that force us to question the sustainability of our modern societies. The popularity of the dystopian aesthetic sheds light on our morbid fascination with the fall of civilization. Dystopia is characterized by its bleak and often post-cataclysmic conditions. The tradition of the dystopian aesthetic is rich with both innovation and appropriation, and has made its place within our culture as the foreboding prophet of the consequences of our actions and our ignorances.

For the first in a series of posts exploring the dystopian aesthetic in various mediums, The Rathaus presents Scott Starrett’s Dystopian Installment .01 : FILM.

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The Rathaus’ 5 dystopian films made in the last 25 years that you should see

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Brazil 1985 Terry Gilliam

Brazil, written and directed by Terry Gilliam, is arguably one of the most revered films in the dystopian genre. With its elaborate sets, full of industrial equipment excessively adorned by wires, tubes, cogs, and gears Brazil revised the tone of dystopian fantasy. Fascination with the aesthetic of Brazil has influenced numerous films since and played a major role in sparking the steampunk industrial design movement.

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The City of Lost Children 1995 Marc Caro and Jean-Pierre Jeunet

In The City of Lost Children, Marc Caro and Jean-Pierre Jeunet (director of the critically acclaimed Amélie) blend pre-industrial age gadgetry, medieval Europe, and futuristic sciences to create a nightmarish fairy tale and a dystopian masterpiece. In the tradition of appropriation and homage within the dystopian genre, The City of Lost Children imitates as well as modifies Brazil’s excessive use of gadgetry and machinery. Although similar, Caro and Jeunet’s mechanisms also include wood paneling and brass hardware, a method later adopted by the steampunk movement. The City of Lost Children is a timeless fantasy that raises philosophical questions about the schism between human purity and technological advancement.

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Twelve Monkeys 1995 Terry Gilliam

Ten years after the release of Brazil, Gilliam revisits the dystopian genre with Twelve Monkeys. Original, epic, and deservedly mentioned among our dystopian films, Twelve Monkeys has a fascinating story to accompany it as well. With Twelve Monkeys Gilliam may have taken the tradition of dystopian appropriation and homage a bit too far. When visionary and architectural polemicist Lebbeus Woods watched Gilliam’s film, he was surprised to see that the chair used to levitate Bruce Willis was in fact an exact replica of his drawing “Neomechanical Tower (Upper) Chamber.” Woods sued the producers of the film and was awarded a six-figure compensation for illegal use of his work. Woods did, however, allow the film’s distribution, as well as the dystopian tradition of appropriation, to continue.

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Dark City (suggested: director’s cut) 1998 Alex Proyas

Although Dark City combines a heady mix of psychological thriller and science fiction, neither aspect overwhelms the other. The film is an intricate mesh of interwoven time periods and constantly shifting aesthetic elements. The visual complexity of the film is relative to the plot, and the result is captivating and challenging. Mention has been made considering the similarities between the philosophical quandaries in Dark City and the 1999 Wachowski Brother’s film, The Matrix. Although little to no discussion of The City of Lost Children’s influence on The Matrix could be found by The Rathaus, the parallels are uncanny.

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Children of Men 2006 Alfonso Cuarón

Children of Men is a distinct distopian film due to its convincing plausibility and not entirely futuristic aesthetic. While most films in the genre show a world deep in the clutches of ruin, Children of Men takes place on the brink of a disaster, showing a modern world where humans are witness to a sudden and disparaging phenomenon that precursors the dystopian society. The inability of humans to reproduce has brought civilization to its knees in this bleak but eerily believable, cautionary tale.

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These films can be found on Snarkarati’s Top 50 Dystopian Films. The site utilizes IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes user ratings to rank each film.

by: Scott Starrett

Tags: art, cinema, culture, design, dystopia, film

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