Science Fiction Film - Research Paper Example

Science fiction is the source of entertainment as well as effective way of conveying message to the society. According to Sobchack "science fiction cinema is an important source to understand the history of spatial and temporal transformation of the city as it has been experienced by the spectators in USA, from the 1950’s to the present, from modernism to postmodernism." (Vivian Sobchack 1999) Animal Ethics: Man is supposed to be the most powerful animal in the world. Of course his power lies in his intellectuality and most advanced brain.

Being most powerful animal of the planet, he started assuming that he has a right to exploit flora and fauna of the earth. He has forgotten the ethics of behaving with animals and plants, which are the inseparable elements of our eco system and our planet. Animals and other living things on the earth are being used by man for his selfish deeds. While using them, he even does not think about their emotions. The animals are being used in film productions, circuses, for food testing, for experiments etc.

They are harassed by the man. Prior to technological advancement, the hobby of the medieval people was hunting. In India innumerable wild animals were hunted just for the hobbies of princes, kings, and people from rich and royal families which culminated into the extinction of animals like Chitah. After scientific revolution the entertainment habits changed but animal harassment still continued. Movies became the major and influential source of entertainment. The animals are frequently used in films.

The film producer tries to be close to authenticity. Hence in many films the animals are used. To represent the animal character on screen, the animals are exploited. During the shot, the director cannot tell the animals to act in a certain way. The animals on the other hand are provoked so that they would behave in a certain way. Sometimes they are terrified. At that time it is not their acting but the real terror they feel during the shot. If there is a shot of falling of animals, it is not manipulated fall but real fall in which they are injured and their pains are real.

These animals are treated like slaves. Sometimes if it is a demand of the script, they are too often killed on screen for effective cinematography. Number of films has killed animals for the sake of the authentic cinematography. The animals such as horses, apes, pigs, cows, birds and many more animals are killed. Some films who used the animals are Godard’s Weekend, Coppola’s Apocalypse Now, Inarritu’s Babel, Haneke’s Cache etc. When the use of animals is on rampant the film Planet of Apes really shows a very sensible approach of not using animals even in the roles of animals.

Almost all the non human roles are played by the human beings. Our research paper discusses the protocols related to the treatment given to the animals by human beings. These protocols are discussed by comparing two films which are based on animal world. First movie is “The Planet of Apes” (Franklin J. Schaffner 1968) and 12 Monkeys (Terry Gilliam 1995). The Planet of Apes is reviewed by some