(CU Independent illustration/Adam Milner)
Spaceships, aliens and worlds far from our own are showing up more and more in popular culture. Science fiction has made a comeback, but is it OK to be a science fiction geek?
It used to be un-cool to be labeled a “geek,” but that stigma is disappearing, said senior political science major Matt Krebs.
“If you said ‘Star Trek’ you used to automatically say geek,” said 23-year-old Krebs. “It’s definitely going away. Science fiction is going more mainstream.”
Watching science fiction doesn’t make the viewer a geek anymore says senior Sean Forrest, a film studies major.
“It’s becoming irrelevant,” Forrest said. “Obviously a lot more people like it now other than just basement geeks.”
And it has gone mainstream for the most part. “Avatar,” the blockbuster film directed by James Cameron (who also directed “Titanic”), is the highest grossing film of all time and is still in the top five movies this week. Also, he revamped “Star Trek” franchise has been nominated for four Oscars, showing the genre’s popularity.
But what’s making these science fiction pieces so popular? Eric Chung, a 22-year-old recent graduate, said he believes the genre has a different focus.
“They’re [science fiction movies] more action driven now,” Chung said. “It appeals to a bigger audience.”
Chung also said he thinks some of the credit should go to the close relative of science fiction: the fantasy genre.
“I think it was the huge success of Harry Potter,” Chung said. “It just opened it [science fiction] up.”
Audiences might be getting a little more with their theater ticket than a trip to another world. Films might contain a tagalong message, but that could be a part of the genre.
“I think science fiction has a message inherently attached to it,” Forrest said. “It’s always about the dangers of what could happen in the future. Sci-fi is safe because there’s an idea that’s veiled behind a bombastic story.”
“Bombastic” storylines and intriguing other worlds are sometimes what it takes to get away from problems faced in everyday life, students say. Worries about the economy, school and other problems disappear with that first flicker of the projector.
Sam Wilmot, a 23-year-old who graduated in December, said it’s the ability for one to immerse themselves in another world that’s so appealing to the audience.
“Fantasy movies are so popular because people can escape from everything,” Wilmot said.
Escaping into science fiction might be OK, but is there a line indicating the assimilation into geekdom?
“If you start to learn the names of the most obscure characters or recite made-up languages, then it’s too much,” Forrest said. “It’s just sort of a fun ride that takes you along.”
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Ana Faria at Ana.faria@colorado.edu.
