American Science Fiction: Terminator 2: Judgment Day - Essay Example

? American Science Fiction: Terminator 2: Judgment Day By: The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines dystopia as: “an imaginary place where people lead dehumanized and often fearful lives”. American science fiction is the epitome of dystopia representing images that are fictitious, dehumanizing and responsible for the causation of fear in its viewers. Terminator2: Judgment Day is a film that creates an unrealistic world filled with impossible acts of human and robotic abilities and violence. In the original Terminator film, the Terminator was sent to kill Sarah Connor but now has been sent back to the past by the future John Conner to protect himself and “do battle with a superior but malevolent terminator” named T1000 (French 2009). There are many elements that construct the dystopian vision of Terminator 2. The first element discussed includes the emphasis of a futuristic society. This film is science fiction and the actions portrayed or impossible to perform in the real world. Secondly, constant states of violence are a continuing act throughout the entirety of the film. These constant states of violence produce fear and support the dystopian environment. Lastly, an authoritarian form of government is represented by the roles the Terminator and T1000 play as leaders and controllers of their created world giving of a distorted utopian view. This paper will further explore the issues of corporate control, mise-en-scene, SF’s addiction to technology, and the subversion of traditional American ideologies in SF. The purpose is to explore American science fiction in its entirety in hope of enlightening my readers to the many aspects of SF film. Futuristic Society In its entirety, Terminator 2 draws on the elements of dystopia by focusing on a futuristic society through the use of technology gone too far. In the beginning of the movie a cyborg appears from a ball of electrical energy. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary (2010) a cyborg is a “bionic human”. It is half human and half robotics. This cyborg sets the foundation for a futuristic type of environment throughout the movie. This cyborg, named the Terminator, has been dispatched through time from the future John Conner (French 2009) and appears on screen in the same way he would appear if he were born from a human wound; naked and alone. The only difference at that instance is, although nude, the awareness that he is not a newborn and so falsehood is created somewhat distorting the appearance of utopia. Regardless, this life-like vision may transform the thinking of its viewers into imagining that other human-like forms are possible and can develop in the future. The ball of energy around the Terminator disappears as he stands tall and walks toward a nearby bar called the Corral Open. The screen turns red as his eyes scan his environment in a radar fashion. His naked muscular physic walks into the bar. Customers stop and stare but do not approach him. It is as if this inhuman man is almost normal under the guise of a utopian society except when he confronts a customer to hand over his clothes. The futuristic imagery continues to take form when the customer refuses the Terminator’s demand by pushing a lightened cigar into his chest. This cigar under normal circumstances would have caused pain and damage to a human body but The Terminator is unbothered by this and no damage is caused to his body. His unrealistic physical tolerability to violence dehumanizes him and further supports the film’s futuristic ideations. Constant State of Violence Like futuristic imagery, the constant state of violence also attributes to the construction of the dystopian vision. In American science fiction these constant states of violence conflict with societies view of a normal environment; one of peace and harmony. The states of violence seem to appear rapidly and stay constant supporting the films vision of a fictitious world and giving the illusion of violence as being utopian. From the film’s beginning to end violence is normalized creating a paradox of trueness to the present. After The Terminator causes havoc in the bar and rides away on a motorcycle, a police officer arrives at the initial scene of where the Terminator appeared within the electrical ball of energy. The officer checks out the scene when behind him T1000 appears. T1000 is similar to the physical makeup of the Terminator but his mission is the opposite; to kill J.C. He appears in the same way as the Terminator did, naked and alone. Instead of demanding clothes from the officer as The Terminator did from the biker customer in the beginning of the film, T1000 silently walks up to the officer and begins the scene immediately with violence by stabbing the officer. He then takes the cops clothes and vehicle. This scene supports the fact that violence is T1000s tool of choice for domination and thus, violence is heightened and the real conflict is created between the Terminator and the T1000. Authoritarian form of Government The aforementioned constant state of violence is carried out through the use of authoritarianism. In an authoritarian government a leader is typically unelected by the people (Clement 1994). An American society is one of democracy but also exercises an authoritarian form of government concentrating power in a single leader such as the president of the United States. The President of the United States has other constituents around him that balance out his power so that he is not left with 100% control of the nation. The Terminator and T100 do not have this balance. Their authoritarian images are used to their advantage and the only way they can be stopped is by each other. Both utilize their power to control their environment. Although the T1000 could take on many forms through shape shifting he mainly uses that of a police officer. Police officers are not elected but hold leadership positions and can manipulate their political power. An officer in uniform is seen as an authoritarian figure by society. This form was used for the purpose of others to submit to T1000’s authority. The use of violence as a form of control opposes individualism and democracy. When the T1000 was looking for J.C. people around politely and quickly answered him without ever questioning his authority because of the uniform he wore. The Terminator, on the other hand, exhibits a muscular physic that can be seen as a form of power. He displays the leadership role as protector and controlls whomever he has to in order to get his intended results. Although the Terminator is the good guy this second time around he is still using his position for what he feels is good and right. Often people in government use their leadership positions for what they feel is necessary regardless of those who oppose it. Many times goals are met at any cost, as represented by the realities of war in both monetary losses and loss of life. The Terminator and the T1000 are not fazed by violence and death. Their role as an authoritarian figure is greater than anything else. The environment around them bends at their every demand. Corporate Control An authoritarian form of government and corporate control complement each other. With the arrival of World War I in 1917 film began to emerge and Hollywood became its dominator (Ross 1999). In the 1920s “a small handful of studios and distributors controlled the vast majority of the films available to American audiences” (Ross 1999). The political climate of the time seemed to deem what films were produced. The influences of politics and the corporate world are still evident in SF films today. Hollywood has always been known for its active political climate. After the attacks from the radical fundamentalists of 9/11 films began to reflect the political climate at hand. In 2002 The Dark Night took a stand against evil by fighting crime in Gotham City and standing up against the Joker. In Collateral Damage, also in 2002, Gordy Brewer hunts down the Columbian terrorists who killed his family. The film Taken, in 2008, Brian Mills goes after his daughter who has been taken to sell in the sex trade; showing no mercy. The aforementioned films reflect the influences of the political era of their time. It was an era of protect the innocent and get the bad guys. There were many war films that also portrayed this corporate control, reminding us to not forget what terrorism did to our nation. Mise-en-scene It is my opinion that the mise-en-scene of cities in SF films can be understood as utopian commentaries and dystopian propositions. In T2 the city seemed cohesive and normal until abruptly interfered by control through intimidation and the use of violence. The dystopian proposition of the ability to use violence and have violence used against The Terminator and the T1000 without being physically harmed is a mockery of modern urban life. The mise-en-scene is manipulated and controlled to give realistic qualities to fictitious images (Bao 2010). Each scene takes place in the natural settings of Los Angeles which further supports its dystopia of realism. The films gritty tone and heartless characters catches the attention of even the strongest realist. The dress of the actors blends in with their natural environment and is nowhere near costumed. From first glance these actors can be mistaken for normal members of society. The films use of light was not bright or cheery but produced a rather dull-like and depressing quality showing a dark and littered future. The Terminators and the T1000’s computerized brain registers the calculations of body outlines to estimate and analyze their targets whether it be for use to compensate clothing or for acts of destruction. Each music choice added to the intended gritty action of the scenes. When the Terminator walked out of the bar in his leather jacket and tight pants, Bad to the Bone by George Thorogood was played. This music in the background combined with his muscular image conveyed the message of a tough guy not to be reckoned with. Addiction to Technology Mise-en-scene has become dependent on technology to produce realism to unrealistic effects. Digital technology is becoming widely used in SF films “changing many aspects of their construction and the fundamental experiences they provide” (Rutz 2009). These dystopian effects of SF reject the body and physicality in favor of an addiction to technology. Throughout the film body desmorphia maintains its presence. In one scene the Terminator blocks the gun shots from the T1000 with his back. The T1000 is then shot by the Terminator several times with a shot gun. The gunshot wounds appear as big liquid metal holes in his chest. After a minute or so the liquid metal holes come together and the shots are no longer noticeable. The T1000’s body turns back into its normal form. These effects could not have been produced without the use of technology. Film gives us “a way of apprehending our perceptions in a world where only our perceptions decide what or who we are” (Rutz 2009). The youth are our future and their way of life is addictive to technological advances. Everyday technology is used to advance our functioning as human beings. In our world we always want to be faster and better. We use computers to produce efficiency in our jobs and at school in bigger quantities. SF film portrays this but at a greater level. T2 shows our desires to often perform the impossible. Traditional American Ideologies The more advanced technology becomes the more addictive it will be as traditional American ideologies becomes a thing of the past. Traditional American ideologies are tweaked and transposed into new meaning in SF films which, can be seen as “indicative of American culture's speculative capacity to reimagine itself” (Fradle 2009). To reimagine something takes the subversive action of moving away from what is true. Therefore, US SF subverts traditional American ideologies. But who is to say what is traditional? In America there are many traditions stemming from various cultures and subcultures. In general, American society idealizes itself as a utopian country of good and wholesome values. In America, family is held as the most important aspect of people’s lives. Traditional American males are expected to gain an education, get married, own a home, and work as a productive member of society while maintaining a conservative status. Traditional American women are expected to get married, bare children, and maintain the house. In one scene the role of a caring mother was mocked by the T1000 impersonating J.C.’s mom in utopian commentaries. J.C. stated that his mom was not sounding like herself because she was never that caring; thus, starting to unveil the dystopian propositions. This visual of mother was quickly torn apart by a piercing sword-like arm projecting from the body and poking fun at the imagery of fatherhood as the T1000 stabbed J.C.’s father through the skull. The visual theme showed a world that seemed so safe but easily destroyable. SF belongs to a dystopian genre that attempts to reify utopian ideals by reorganizing the picture of a society with negative images of the future (Beauchamp 2009). As our world evolves, traditional America is becoming the dystopia of SF. Therefore, US SF is starting to uphold what is being considered as present day American traditional ideologies. SF film holds its interest by giving the assumption that these images might conceivably come true (Beauchamp 2009). SF creates a paradox of trueness in the present and is not concerned with what is considered traditional. There are some traditional roles playing in T2 when mother and father are in the home raising their son but it is not so traditional when they are foster parents as in J.C.’s case. This film portrays a variety of what are considered dysfunctional environments. Traditional American’s normally would not want to be seen in such negative light. Conclusion In concluding, T2 is not just a film. There are many elements that construct the film’s dystopian vision. Aspects of mise-en-scene produce visual style that is controlled and manipulated with the use of technology. This use of technology makes the impossible actions of the Terminator and T1000 seem so real that trying to watch a film without it would seem mediocre. The production of SF is an effort to display a life that will never be achievable and to cause fear in those who might have the smallest inkling that it could. T2’s constant state of violence supports this dystopia producing a utopian view of probabilities. SF films embrace political era’s and plays the role of authoritarian to our ways of thinking that no longer become our own. Likewise, the last scene of T2 leaves its viewers with some hope. In the final scene J.C. asks “Is it dead?” The Terminator replies with “Terminated”. Although the film portrayed a disheartening look at the future it shows that all things can be destroyed and, therefore; leaves its viewers with a sense of hope. The purpose of this paper was to explore American science fiction in its entirety in hopes of enlightening my readers to the many aspects of SF film. By informing my readers of the elements that construct the dystopian vision and by exploring the various uses of different aspects of mise-en-scene, I believe I have achieved my purpose. 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