Hel/Maria, Metropolis (1927)According to Vivian Sobchack, why doesn't the science fiction film genre lend itself to the same iconographic readings supported by the gangster or western genres?
Referring to the screening of Fritz Lang's Metropolis and this week's reading, describe how the robot Hel/Maria can be read within the context of the fantastic text, or within a narrative that occupies a position between the marvelous and the uncanny.
The iconographic readings in ‘ganger’ or ‘western’ style films tend to have the same basic settings. For example, western films tend to be associated with objects that include cowboys, horses, and railroads. If the historical context in these films were taken away, the film would not make sense and the people watching the film may feel there was something missing. In (SF) films the objects in the film may not mean the same thing. For example, the spaceship could have various different meanings. The space ship could be neutral which means it could just be a form of transportation from point A to point B. The space ship could have a negative side in the sense that it is out to destroy the world like in the movie “Independence Day” where spaceships set out to destroy the world by taking all our resources. The spaceship could also have a good side like in the movie “Flight of the Navigator” where a boy is transported through time without aging.
ReplyDeleteA rich man that runs Metropolis feels threatened after finding maps next to workers after factory accidents. After finding out these maps led to a place below the city he realized there may be a small uprising occurring against him. The leader of this group ‘Maria’ was uniting the city workers. Feeling threatened the rich man looked to the mad scientist to create a robot that would prevent this uprising from occurring. The robot Hel was constructed of metal and it had the exact same features of Maria. There was the hope Hel would basically destroy Maria’s reputation and ultimately would prevent the uprising. This robot is a symbol of rich man’s power over the people.
The science fiction genre does not fit, frankly because it is not basic enough. Gangster films and western films focus on “recurrent objects and figures” such as the railroad, in westerns, and tommy guns in gangster films. Where as their sci-fi counterpart doesn’t stick to the same 1 dimensional basic ideas, aliens, space travel, time travel, cyberspace, there are so many different ideas and concepts that go into sci-fi, how can it be one-dimensional? These settings are not essential to make an effective sci-fi story, whereas the railroad, or western landscape might be essential to make an effective western movie. Sci-fi also does not have “historical awareness” (2) that westerns and gangsters do, because “unfixed in its dependence on actual time and or place”(2) this would make sense seeing is how almost all science fiction story lines take place or relate to the future in some way, shape or form.
ReplyDeleteThe Robot Maria is a perfect example of technology at its peak. We have yet to see if the robot will succeed in it’s evil endeavors. The robot is designed to look and act exactly like Maria, and the only sign that something is wrong is when the main character see’s Maria with his father, if this didn’t occur then he probably would not be able to tell that something is wrong. We have yet to see the robots personality in action, but if it’s anything like the appearance, then it will surely succeed in its plot.
Joe Brady
ReplyDelete301
Western and gangster movies tend to use consistently recognizable elements that capture a historical significance and retain their meanings and functions. Science fiction does not lend itself to these same iconographic conventions. Though there are definitely characteristics in science fiction iconography that tend to be repetitive, there is no original historical context in which they are based. Science fiction does not include a generic backdrop for storytelling; therefore, it allows a story to take place in an imagined time or place that does not have to be based in reality. The same goes for the creatures, robots, and technology of science fiction, whose meanings are open to interpretation.
I would say that the robot Hel/Maria exists between the marvelous and uncanny. I argue this because the idea of artificial intelligence is not completely outside the realm of possibility. Technology has reached a point in which artificial intelligence is being explored and used to interact with humans, the same idea used in Metropolis for the deception of the humans by the superior machine
Science Fiction film, in it's purest state, can't be “iconographic” in the way Westerns and Gangster films are, simply because it doesn't have a set group of ideas and set pieces to conform to. At its base, science fiction is meant to present new ideas and explore difficult questions. There are reoccurring themes in science fiction, like first contacts and time travel, but these themes are either used to explore some of the same questions from different angles, or simply as backdrops for other genres. The film “Alien” could be seen as a horror film with science fiction elements, but while the film “Doom” has a science fiction backdrop, it would be hard to argue that it's actually a science fiction film.
ReplyDeleteHel, or Mecha-Maria as I call her, and the story she's a part of stand somewhere between marvelous and uncanny. Her concept isn't completely fantastic; theoretically, the viewer should believe that her creation could come about as a result of scientific advancement (and abuse.) Her marvelous nature allows us to take an idea, (in this case the idea of dehumanization through industrialization,) to a possible extreme.
Just as a side note, does anyone else find it funny that one of film's first robots was made to look both elegantly human and mechanically elaborate, yet most of the robots after her would just be people wearing boxes and tin foil?
The science ficiton genre seperates itself from other genres (such as western or gangster) in the fact that people grew up seeing all these films and they take on certain "looks" that become the genre. You see a cowboy and know it's a western film, you see Al Capone and know it's a gangter film. Sci-fi films are not as easily "pigeon-holed." You may be able to know the film is in space but the plot and characters can be drastically different, and therefore it may not actually be a science fiction film. The props used such as costumes and weapons also lend to this idea.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to how Hel is regarded in the fantastic context ( between the marvelous and uncanny.) This context is defined as falling outside of the rational or relastic, and this makes sense as making a evil robot "clone" of a woman for the specific purposes of manipulating your son certainly is not realistic by today's technological standards. The book states that "marvelous" deals with the supernatural and "uncanny" deals more with the unconscious mind, so neither of these deginitions would encapsalate the character of Hel/Maria. The fantastic seems to play on ideas that are based somewhat in reality (such as cyborgs and artificial intelligence, things that are in their infancy today.)
The reason that science fiction film does not lend itself to the same iconographic readings
ReplyDeletesupported by the gangster or western film is because the settings and stereotypical ideologies are not the same. In science fiction we identify the unimaginable as appropriate, for example in star wars the jedi fought with light sabers in outer space. This distinct weaponry fit the environment of an outer space adventure, where as in western or gangster film we would expect guns, knives, etc. as appropriate means of weaponry. These two categories lend themselves to separate expectations causing them to not have the same iconography.
Within Fritz Lang's 1927 science fiction film, “Metropolis” it is evident that the robotic role of Hel/Maria portrays a both a marvelous and uncanny character. Before the attractive Maria is transformed into a robot, she fulfilled a powerful position in her community of Metropolis through encouraging the overworked and exhausted workers to remain patient and that their situation may not be hopeless as long as they have faith. The supernatural Hel/Maria is created by Rotwang, a talented scientist in order to convince the workers of underground Metropolis that their lifestyle is simply normal and to attend to their duties as before.
Although the film served as a science fiction film in the 1920's, it is outstanding and impressive how Lang had the ability to create such a film that depicted future events. The underground of Metropolis signified the working class who seem to experience extremely stressful jobs, while remaining in the same unfortunate economical situation while those who lived above ground appeared less stressed by work while very wealthy. Hel/Maria was imagined by John Frederson, who assumed the role as the leader of Metropolis, to maintain Frederson’s lifestyle while keeping the poor, poor and making the rich, richer. The robot of Hel/Maria is supernatural and a fantasy role due to the fact that there were not robots that could be mistaken as normal human beings either in the 1920 or in present time.
Science fiction is a genre not easily digested by the public majority because the themes and settings are not easily identifiable. "Western" and "gangster" films focus on recognizable locations, similar characters, and common plots. Though the viewer may not be a gangster or a cowboy, it is much easier psychologically to identify with a pseudo-real life film set on the streets of New York or the Wild West rather than the surface of the moon. Science-fiction films are often original and "out there" which requires attention from the viewer to understand the film, which is why it is a selective genre, not easily digested by the entire public.
ReplyDeleteMy feelings on Hel/Maria being read in the context of the "fantastic text" are mixed. In the context of the film and the time of it's release artificial-intelligence was hardly a reality. Metropolis approaches A.I. from the context of "what if?" Could technology reach such a level of perfect superiority and used with purely negative intent? The technological limitations of the time present Hel/Maria in the context of the supernatural, such as the scene in which Rotwang brings her to life in an almost "Frankenstein" sense. Because of which, the viewer is led to believe such an endeavor is inherently negative both in the marvelous and uncanny sense. In the context of today, however, our views of such A.I. are far less supernatural. We view such intelligence as beneficial and approach Metropolis from the sense of positive reality as opposed to a negative "what if?"
When watching a western film of tv show, there are certain visual characteristics that will define the media as such. For instance a six shooter, Cowboys and Indians, spurs and horses, and the "old west" town are all definitive of a western. When you see these things on the tv you can usually say for certain that you are watchin a western. IT has a distinct time and space. Where as a Sci-Fi feature can take place in anytime at anyplace. There are certain things that are more common place to SCi-fi but the wide range of possibilities that are inherent in the Sci-fi universe make it a genre of film that is hard to distinguish just by it's Misenscene.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to Hel in the film "Metropolis", I am leaning towards more of a fantastic role. At the time "Metropolis" came out, Outside the world of the film, clones, robots and cyborgs where not really that common place. The whole world is somewhat fantastical, partially based on things in reality but more advanced. Like the Highways and planes flying high in the city. THen there is Maria being hooked up to the machine and having her image imposed onto the machine or cloned, at the time cloning was not something that was possible. So based on the time this film was made It would be more fantastical, but as science progresses and some of these ideas become a reality I think it could switch to being more marvelous and uncanny.
Michael Adams
319
Western and Gangster films are pretty concrete and black and white in their identities and iconic imagery. Westerns have the cowboys, the guns, horses, railroads, the dry and barren landscape. Gangster films have the tommy guns, the suits, the fast cars, the blood. Science Fiction has the ability to be very ambiguous in its iconography. The science fiction film lends itself to a vast array of possibilites. You can visualize any kind of fantastic world with its strange machinery and "otherworldly" occupants and let the mind wander and imagine. There are also endless ways that the film or story can go, as opposed to the gangster or western films, which are pretty set in their ways.
ReplyDeleteI think that Hel/Maria has elements of both the marvelous and the uncanny. She is a robot with artificial intelligence, however, and that is something that humans are perhaps on the verge of creating, so I think that the "fantastic" question is one that will fade with time. But from where we stand now, the creation of a robot that seems to be (haven't seen the rest of the movie yet)on par in intelligence and potential with an actual human being is something that one could consider both uncanny and marvelous.
Science Fiction does not lend itself to the same iconographic readings because while the Western and the Gangster films are set in a certain period of time that has already past, so we can easily assume what is going to be contained in them. You will never see a ray gun in a western, a robot in a gangster movie. The Sci-FI genre can cover any span of time, and can include anything created, or as of yet unimagined. Whereas Gangster and Westerns are more an outline, Sci-Fi is a blank slate upon which anything can be drawn.
ReplyDeleteThe Character of Hel/Maria falls into not only the Fantastic, but the uncanny as well. She is fantastic because while she is simply an automaton, which is not out of grasp. she takes on the look and demeanor of Her intended target perfectly, thus becoming more a clone than a robot. Neither of these ideas are unattainable, but still would astound the world if created. She is uncanny because she is created to look like the love of the master, while she ultimately ends up taking form of the sons object of affection. She is constantly put upon, and given human characteristics. Unconsciously, this is what we all do to non living things. We try to make everything seem more human for our benefit, whether we realize it or not. Essentially, we all do in our everyday lives what the doctor does to Hel.
Greg Borkman section 319
ReplyDeleteIconography of the western and gangster genres are similar in the way society, the protagonist, and the antagonist react to each other and the world around them. The protagonist is an outsider from elsewhere, the society is helpless and has no vision or solutions to problems, and the antagonist was an ex-member of the society. The difference between Science Fiction and these two is predictability, where in the western or gangster genre there are more often a cookie cutter format; in Science Fiction the possibilities are endless. (I would also like to disagree with Sobchack by saying if science fiction is a genre it has to follow some kind of format to be considered a genre)
The main reason Hel/Maria is fantastic is simple. In a world where so many things seem possible, created a robot with human like features still seems impossible to the mayor of metropolis. In the eyes of the mayor and all other beholders she is fantastic, however to her creator she is just a creation. More fantastic is how human like was sacrificed for the creation of an artificial robot that only seems to be human like from appearance but inside she is nothing more than artificial.
Vivian Sobchack explains that the iconography of Science Fiction film is in a constant flux compared to that of westerns and gangster movie iconography. The prevalent theme of the space ship in science fiction is among one the examples she uses, saying that the way it is shot, thought of, and what it represents changes considerably between films. A Ship like the Millennium Falcon in Star Wars is seen as the heroic vessel of Han and Chewbacca, while the ship in Event Horizon of the same name is not a vessel but rather a living infection, or some could argue that it is damned.
ReplyDeleteThe robot Maria in Metropolis lays within the fantastic text, or in-between the marvelous and the uncanny in how she represents a desire from our own inner being, and being beyond reason in the way in which she was built. She comes from the inner desires of Rotwang and Joh, but mostly Rotwang in how we later see him in more conroll of robot Maria. It can also be noted that robot Maria represents a chaos that resides within us. She is of the uncanny in how there is no technology to how she was made, especially when she took on the physical characteristics or the live Maria.
Nicholas Lawrence 319
The reason why the science fiction genre cannot be read iconographically like “gangster” or “western” genres is because it is not a clear cut genre. Science fiction can have many different styles, set pieces, types of characters, types of narratives, moods, etc. So it becomes very hard to find similar icons that occur throughout the entirety of what we would consider to be the genre of science fiction. The western genre most always is set in the western territories of America, there are cowboys, horses, Indians, etc., thus it is always easy to recognize and interpret a western genre film. But science fiction takes it’s pieces (or icons) from all over the place. Sometimes sci-fi is on Earth, sometimes in space. Sometimes there are aliens and robots, sometimes there are only humans. So science fiction barrows it’s set pieces from many different places, sometimes from other genres, and this is why it is difficult to talk about all of science fiction as a whole.
ReplyDeleteThe robot Hel/Maria is definitely an object that is both marvelous and uncanny. It is “marvelous” because it is so technologically pure, a symbol of the future of a technology that is perfect. They even have it sitting on a throne! But it is also “uncanny” because of the way that it can be turned so effortlessly to do evil as well as corrupt our image of the pure human form when it is turned into the likeness of the real Maria. Hel also is a perfect representation of Telotte’s “Double Focus” from the reading. It shows us both sides of the same icon.
Toby Staffanson - 319
Science fiction is a genre unlike any other. The complexity of it makes it incomparable to "western" or "gangster" films. The genre has many different ideas or objects included within it's films. Viewers can name several objects that would be seen in a science fiction film. Science fiction has several different themes from aliens to human men that rule the city. It is such a diverse genre that one may have an issue putting a film into the category.
ReplyDeleteWhile science fiction films have an array of settings, "western" or "gangster" films seem limited. In a "western", there is typically a cowboy, a saloon, a sheriff, horses, and guns. "Gangster" films include bad guys, some form of law enforcement, guns, and crime. Both of these genres can be easily described because the settings, themes, and objects are repetitive. I wouldn't say that it is bad for repetitiveness because that is the theme itself.
Audience response is something that I believe to be a focus in the movie making business. Science fiction, in my opinion, has an advantage because it is such a diverse genre that it has a very wide audience. No matter what science fiction movie is put out, the audience will have a response. "Western" or "gangster" films target a small group of individuals because the theme or setting options are so narrow.
Regardless of science fiction films having iconographic readings supported by readings of "gangster" or "western" films, it is still a great genre that is open to any kind of idea, theme, or setting.
According to Sobchack, the American science fiction film doesn’t tend to have the same iconographic readings that westerns or gangster flicks have. She makes the argument that westerns and gangster films have a historical significance to them and therefore are confined to the limitations of a convention of setting and time. This is not the case with science fiction, as it could be set in a virtually limitless number of locations, whether based on actual or fictional locations. This could also be said the same about time. In movies such as The Time Machine, a world is created to represent a period of time either in a very distant past or future. The science fiction genre doesn’t have constraints that accompany other genres. Physical objects in science fiction movies can have a rather ambiguous meaning when compared to the iconographic objects, such as the gun and the horse, that are woven into the fabric of the western genre. Sobchack points out that the spaceship, which is often thought of as iconic to the sci-fi genre, can have very different meanings from film to film and making comparisons of films such as 2001: A Space Odyssey and When World Collide, prove that point.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to Maria/Hel, I believe this can be read in the context of fantasy. Cornea writes that science fiction is demonstrably located between reality and fantasy. The world represented in Metropolis itself seems to fall in between fantasy and reality. The hierarchy demonstrated in Metropolis with its suppressed workers of the city and the bureaucratic elites of the upper city is hardly a stretched notion of a realistic society. However, the transformation of Maria, the suppressed workers’ savior of sorts, into the robot Hel falls more to the side of fantasy. The technology and artificial intelligence, along with the appearance of the women wasn’t and isn’t feasible at the time. However, the motivations and context in which Hel is created could be compared to many contemporary issues of societal hierarchy.
-Alex Sokovich
The science fiction genre sets its self apart from western and gangster genres because it doesn't have the typical iconographic figures. Western films are full of the basic's cowboys, train robberies, and shootouts. The same is true for gangster movies besides they have their tommy guns, crimes, and drugs. With science fiction themes have a wide range from time travel, aliens, space, to robots, etc. The opportunities are endless for the different themes and features in the story lines of science fiction. Since there is really no basic setting like the typical train robbery or drive by gang shooting, Science fiction is a very diverse genre that has many different iconographic features that challenge it to stray away from the basic themed genres.
ReplyDeleteI thought Hel did not fill the uncanny expectation that most people view as robotic when she was recreated from Maria. She was just as human looking as her former self because most films don’t portray robots as human like. Even though this isn’t the typical robot style it helps separate the science fiction genre away from the typical iconographic films. Science fiction is a genre that can be appreciated by a diverse group of people.
Films that are considered in the genre of science fiction are unlike any other. They vary seldom have the same themes or settings. Science fiction includes a diverse array of iconographic figures. In the film Metropolis there are several iconographic characters that you would rarely see in other science fiction films. Unlike the more popular ones, there's not any aliens or supernatural characters. Western films on the other hand usually have all the same kind of iconographic figures such as guns, horses, cowboys, and the west. They also have the same time period. Similar to western are gangster films which iconographic figures include guns, mobs, and crime.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to science science films there is a huge variety of different iconographic figures and can have many different plots, settings, character, and themes. We still continue today to see new figures of these. Due to successes in the film industry, science fiction has also became very popular today in video games.
Science Fiction film does not have the same iconographic style as gangster and western film because gangster and western film is somewhat based on historical fact. There are films like the John Wayne in “Stagecoach” from 1939. In “Stagecoach” they are presenting they way that life was in the early days of settling in the western United States. The Gangster genre of film is also based on historical events. Films like “The Godfather” from 1972 shows us as the viewers the different levels of rank in the Corleone family and the different jobs that family has bee working on. Science Fiction however is a genre based on the idea that there is life in other places besides the earth. It was not until humans went into space that the realization of a more technological advanced society was possible.
ReplyDeleteThe robot Hel in Fritz Lang’s film “Metropolis” is being used by Joh Fredersen to create unrest in the city of the workers. Little does Fredersen know that the creator of Hel has plans of his own. The creator Rotwang tells Hel that he wants it to destroy Fredersen and his son so that the balance could be restored and that the power is distributed equally through Babel.
Theresa Ennis
Film 319
Julianne Arnstein 319
ReplyDeleteAccording to Sobchack westerns and gangster films have recurring themes: cowboys and fedora hats, respectively. Science fiction can be a wide range of things: aliens on earth or Law and Order in 3009. However, I disagree. Westerns and gangster films can evolve with time and we can see other recurring themes; a recent Western was Domino. Domino has no cowboys, horses, Indians, or saloons; but it takes place in the West, the main hero character has a moral code, and there is an unresolved love story. Then there are various gangster films: the definition of a gangster has changed from white, Italian in a pin-striped suit to a black drug-dealer with gang colors. Then there are also the various "cops vs. criminals" films that stretch to various themes across the board. This shows that Westerns and gangster films are just as widespread as the science fiction genre, and I would argue that gangster films have too many themes to come across, not science fiction films.
Although I have not yet seen the rest of Hel's part, I have a feeling that femininity will come up. A soft, real Maria brings the love of God; she is honest and selfless. A hard, metal Hel brings Hell, deception, and lack of emotion to the table. I think it's obvious that a woman should be honest and selfless; you know a woman is bad news when she has a mischievous smile.
According to Sobchack, there is simply too much ground for sci fi to cover to be considered truly iconographic. For instance, she makes an example of the railroad as a symbol of the classic western, both symbolic of progression and placing a limitation on the surrounding natural space. Then consider a sci fic symbol such as the space ship. The spaceship cannot contain the simple dichotomy of good and evil, it also depends on who is in the craft and where the craft may be. As she puts it, ‘the spaceship’s meanings and functions change from film to film and from decade to decade.’ (pg 4 CR) Similarly with robots, there is too much of a diverse connotation present in this symbolism for it to be so simply iconographic.
ReplyDeleteIt is obvious that Metropolis is a fantastical place with marvelous and uncanny elements present. On the surface Metropolis is marvelous as Todorov explains it because it is a fictitious place operating outside the norm. Maria the human is the savior of the uncanny representation of this place insofar as, ‘the depths’ are a metaphorical representation of the people above’s inner conscious. Then as she dies and becomes Maria the robot, she herself becomes a marvelous representation of herself. She looks like Maria, but she is Maria as a defined by a lack of human qualities and embodying that which is unnatural and therefore supernatural.
Eric Wescott
ReplyDeleteSobchack argues that the audience finds specific meaning in the film genres of western and gangster movies, siting examples such as the gun or the train. She then gives several examples of how we generalize these objects to have specific meanings for pretty much any film in their respective genre. Science fiction is a much wider genre than the western or gangster movie and thus there are no universals. However, if you group together science fiction films into smaller categories you will find very similar common themes in objects and characters. Trying to find universal themes in the science fiction genre itself is almost as futile as trying to find common themes in all of film.
Watching how Hel was created (from metal to more realistic human form) seems more like magic than an actual scientific process. You could argue that technology that exceeds one's own understanding is often confused for magic. However, knowing what I know about biology, computers, and modern robots the process of creation feels more fantasy than science fiction. Knowing what I do know and ignoring the "magic" of the process I do accept (and believe) the fact that such artificial being could be very real in the near future.
In Sobchack’s words, “It is the very plasticity of objects and settings in SF films which help define them as science fiction, and not their consistency.” (7) The author explained how objects and iconography of gangster films and westerns have, to some degree, a historical basis or are at least recognizable to the audience within the setting and/or time period. Science fiction isn’t necessarily rooted in familiar settings or time periods, thus there is no one thing - like deserts or saloons in a western, or cityscapes and night clubs in a gangster film- that, in a way, defines the SF genre. While spaceships are almost always associated with SF, they don’t define SF or are, at least, not necessary for a work of SF.
ReplyDeleteThe character of Hel can fit with Todorov’s studies of “the fantastic” firstly in the way a robot “stands outside the known world.” (Cornea, 3) To us in the present, but probably more so in 1927, a robot with the sophistication and (eventual) human appearance as Hel is technologically out of our reach, leaning towards the supernatural. Secondly, on the flipside, with the consciousness of Maria transferred to Hel, the robot has become fused with the human mind. She uses that knowledge to manipulate the workers and turn them against each other. Hel is almost unable to handle the complexity of emotions, becoming hysterical and deranged in the execution of her directive.
Joseph Michals --- Film 319
The science fiction genre does not lend itself to iconography, because science fiction is not confined to a specific location or time in history. Sobchack writes: “The linkage of situation and character, objects, settings and costumes to a specific past creates visual boundaries to what can be photographed and in what context.” This is why westerns all take place in the 19th and early 20th century American west, and gangster films always include cities, nightclubs, and guns. Science fiction is not bound to a time in history or a location – it can take place in the past, present, or future, anywhere from earth, to different galaxies, and everywhere in between. Without a fixed place or location, no objects or settings must be constant and treated with the same feeling, so there is no consistent iconography in the science fiction genre.
ReplyDeleteThe robot Hel/Maria can be considered quite fantastic. There is no modern explanation for how a metal robot could be infused with Maria’s identity. Further, since this robot seems to be created magically, it fits into Todorov’s definition of the “marvelous,” or the supernatural. The robot fits into the world of “Metropolis” as a “marvelous” element to a setting distinctly “uncanny.” (One can imagine the city as a possible outcome of unchecked industrialization and class distinction.)
Sandra Figueira – Film 301
Science Fiction can not produce a certain iconographic image because it covers something we can only imagine. We don't have a solid example from history that could represent science fiction because it is made up and imagined with prompting fantasy books and astrology. Western and Gangster is a more pinned down image because it represents a period we have lived through and have visual evidence to support the icons. Science Fiction is so wide spread in its imaginative ideas that it could never be pinned to one look.
ReplyDeleteThe thought of creating a clone/robot that has human qualities, features, and looks is beyond fantastic. It fits so perfectly into the genre that we someone could create this thing.
Nate Theis Film 319
The reason being that in western and gangster pictures the iconography deals with the standard settings and objects. Such as with the western that has cowboys, indians, horses and the wild frontier. For gangster pictures, the basic structure deals with the obstruction of law and the essence of rebellion. For science fiction, the iconography does not deal with the same iconography pertaining to other genres that are standard for their respective pieces. These parts are part of our gathered knowledge of what these genres are and what we expect to see in each, but with science fiction, this is the opposite. The villain may be human, alien, machine or practically anything that can be thought of. The use of transportation can also be used for either defense, aggression or be used as a symbol. The structure is not pinned down, thus adding a realm of the unknown for the audience's expectations.
ReplyDeleteThe characters of Hel falls into the science fiction genre, by examining the way in which our imagination runs. A robot like Hel in 1927 was uncanny as well as magical, but to that time period. Now, the technology is almost possible, yet, "Metropolis", fits the marvelous aspect by still being out of reach. Considering the fact that the way Hel can transform from human to machine so quickly which seems more a subject of the mind, rather than reason.
Jon Elliott
ReplyDeleteFilm 319
Science fiction films at the time (post WWII) that dealt with body invasion, and human replication were causing an anxiety amongst the public that saw these films. Cause for concern after seeing the radioactive effects in Japan. “While the paranoia of this time period has frequently been linked to anti-communist sentiment roused most dramatically by Joseph McCarthy, it is perhaps the atomic bomb that served most immediately to create paranoiac systems in the postwar American consciousness” (Hendershot 26) Most of the public at the time was aware of the effects of radiation, but they focused on the effects on ones reproductive ability. “Tough soldiers were forced to risk high doses of radiation to prove their manhood” (29 Hendershot) This tells us something about our male dominated society at the time, that even though radiation threatened to undermine the solider manliness, they would subject themselves to something that would make them less of men, in their eyes.
I believe the function of these films is to have us look at what society at the time was becoming and to show would could be, if we had continued on the destructive path that we were on. For the example, the films tended to make the characters paranoid, this is a reflection on the paranoid America that was at the time towards communism.