A glimpse into the world of cinematic horror and sci-fi.
Sociopolitical
"Social" generally refers to matters affecting human lives within the larger society: "of or relating to human society, the interaction of the individual and the group, or the welfare of human beings as members of society". "Political" on the other hand refers to the activities of a government (city, county, state, country, etc.), and, more generally, to everything related to the administration of public services. Here are some of the themes these films most commonly address:
- individual and societal rights: health care, education, freedom of expression and association, etc.;
- diversity, prejudice, and discrimination: xenophobia, racism, sexism, homophobia, etc.;
- macroeconomic issues: inequitable distribution of wealth, fiscal policies, work/unemployment, etc.;
- governmental overreach/abuse: themes related to the monitoring and control of private citizens, repression of dissent, institutionalized violence, propaganda and the power of mass media.
Although protesting or taking on the "System" became a popular theme rather early on in the world of literary fiction - particularly sci-fi - films didn't really hit their critical stride until the late 1960s, when numerous diatribes were launched against less edifying aspects of contemporary Western capitalistic society, from consumerism to hedonism, from conformity to the decline of values.
Examples
- Cinema/Television: "Dawn of the Dead" (George A. Romero, 1978), "They Live" (John Carpenter, 1988), "Elysium" (Neill Blomkamp, 2013).
The table below includes only the films we’ve already reviewed, filtered by the current Tag. We know many important titles are still missing: they’ll come in time. Some features are reserved for our Patreon supporters.
| Title | Directors | Year | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Michael Anderson | 1956 | 5 |
| A Bay of Blood | Mario Bava | 1971 | 7.5 |
| Alphaville | Jean-Luc Godard | 1965 | 7 |
| Capricorn One | Peter Hyams | 1977 | 6.5 |
| Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV | Lloyd Kaufman | 2001 | 6.5 |
| Death Line | Gary Sherman | 1972 | 6.5 |
| Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb | Stanley Kubrick | 1964 | 8 |
| Endangered Species | Alan Rudolph | 1982 | 5.5 |
| Fahrenheit 451 | François Truffaut | 1966 | 6.5 |
| House of Mortal Sin | Pete Walker | 1976 | 8 |
| House of Whipcord | Pete Walker | 1974 | 5 |
| In the Dust of the Stars | Gottfried Kolditz | 1976 | 4.5 |
| Land of the Dead | George A. Romero | 2005 | 7 |
| Let Sleeping Corpses Lie | Jorge Grau | 1974 | 6 |
| Matango: Attack of the Mushroom People | Ishirō Honda | 1963 | 6 |
| Poor Pretty Eddie | David Worth, Richard Robinson | 1975 | 5.5 |
| Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead | Lloyd Kaufman | 2006 | 6.5 |
| Seconds | John Frankenheimer | 1966 | 9 |
| Soylent Green | Richard Fleischer | 1973 | 8 |
| Street Trash | J. Michael Muro | 1987 | 6 |
| Terror Firmer | Lloyd Kaufman | 1999 | 6.5 |
| The 27th Day | William Asher | 1957 | 4.5 |
| The Comeback | Pete Walker | 1978 | 4 |
| The Crazies | George A. Romero | 1973 | 8 |
| The Damned | Joseph Losey | 1962 | 7 |
| The Fog | John Carpenter | 1980 | 7 |
| The Manchurian Candidate | John Frankenheimer | 1962 | 8 |
| The Omega Man | Boris Sagal | 1971 | 5 |
| The Plague of the Zombies | John Gilling | 1966 | 6.5 |
| The Resurrection of Zachary Wheeler | Bob Wynn | 1971 | 6 |
| The Satan Bug | John Sturges | 1965 | 6 |
| The Satanic Rites of Dracula | Alan Gibson | 1973 | 4 |
| The Serpent and the Rainbow | Wes Craven | 1988 | 8 |
| They Live | John Carpenter | 1988 | 7.5 |
| Videodrome | David Cronenberg | 1983 | 10 |