Science-Fiction Films and "Love": Toward a Critique of Regressive Social Relations

Abstract:In the narrative structure of many science fiction films, "love" is an element whose importance frequently goes unrecognized, especially as far as the intended "message" of particular films as a form of social commentary is concerned. Typically, such messages pertain to troublesome trends in modern societies that have been shaping constellations of business, labor, and government, and which have resulted in the formation of peculiar systems of social relations. While the stability of any society depends on the existence of a specific system of social relations, in modern societies, such systems often are in conflict with the norms and values according to which individuals are expected to live their lives, and are thus, inherently regressive. Christopher Nolan's Interstellar (2014) and Denis Villeneuve's Arrival (2016) provide excellent foils for highlighting the workings of regressive social relations, and for the kind of price humans and humankind pay in the process.