Dystopia, post-apocalypse and cinematic reading

Al-Mamori Yasir Khudeir Obid Postgraduate student, Department of Cultural Studies and Design, Altai State University 656011, Russia, Altaiskii krai, g. Barnaul, ul. Chervonnya, 5 yasiral-mamori@yandex.ru Other publications by this author

Humanity has always dealt with the concept of death, apocalypse and extinction in its mythological or religious beliefs, as well as in eschatological studies. This fear of being destroyed has led people to create mythologies and fantasies about the existence of another world after death: a heavenly utopia that will fulfill all desires and provide all pleasures to people who deserve to be there. Regardless of how the apocalypse will happen, which will destroy people from the face of the Earth, according to the main religions, the outcome is simple: this world will perish along with all people, and after the Day of Judgment all the dead will rise and find their rightful place in the afterlife ^[1]. However, this image of the promised life after death has been distorted by thoughts of an apocalypse that will not destroy all life on Earth, on the contrary, there may be survivors who will live until death on a planet that is no longer hospitable. Based on such a strong dominant socio-cultural/religious background, a new vision of the end is created in literature, and then in cinema in the form of fictional entertainment ^[2]. This concept is based on three key concepts: dystopia, apocalypse and post-apocalypse.

Today, many films are devoted to the days that await humanity far ahead, telling about how life can develop in the near or distant future. These films can be glamorous space operas, joyful plays about the scientific possibilities of the future, narratives of encounters with slimy creatures or wise civilizations from outer space, as well as gloomy predictions of terrifying events and terrible regimes in a distant time that no one wants. The world can be saved, reformed, unchanged, doomed, destroyed, reborn, or whatever.

Cinematic dystopia is hardly a new genre, but recently there has been a curious increase in the number and popularity of such films. Cinema has long been attracted to science fiction and the task of visualizing the unimaginable. Nevertheless, the recent surge of dystopian and post-apocalyptic scenarios seems more relevant and extreme.

In this context, the study of the functions and features of dystopian cinema, the reasons for its popularity and cultural potential is of great scientific and practical importance, which determines the choice of the topic of this article, and also confirms its importance in modern scientific discourse.

Analyzing the scientific heritage available today, it is necessary to pay attention to the fact that the subject of fantastic cinema is extremely fragmentary and not systematically considered by domestic authors, as well as in the literature of the Soviet period.

Among the publications during the USSR period, it is advisable to highlight the general study of Western fantastic cinema "The Reality of the fantastic World" by Yu. Hanyutin, as well as the study of the theme of utopia in the culture of E. Batalov "In the world of Utopia: Five Dialogues about Utopia, Utopian Consciousness and Utopian experiments".

Today, the works of such authors as Odegova K.I., Shesterik O.V., Mayevskaya M.E., Addamms Mututa; Frame, Gregory; Milner, A.; Klonowska, Barbara; Swarnavel Eswaran Pillai are devoted to the study of dystopia as a literary and cinematic genre.

A description of the dystopian imagination can be found in the works of Mariano Paz, Isolina Ballesteros, L?cia Nagib, Daniele Fioretti, Douglas Kellner, Andrew Milner.

The postmodern perspective of dystopia and genre convergence in dystopian cinema are reflected in the works of Ingrid Lewis, Laura Canning, Carla Grosman, Austin, G.; Lyle, L.; Morrey, D.; Anne Wagner; Le Chaneg.

Positively assessing the contribution of these and other scientists to the development of the subject under consideration, it should be noted that in the context of modern structural and paradigm shifts in public life, a number of issues and problematic moments of dystopias in cinema require more detailed analysis and in-depth study.

So, questions concerning how post-apocalyptic films depict the dystopian side and what creates a social dystopian image need to be worked out separately. In addition, such a little-explored layer as criticism of dystopias and moralistic messages deserves special attention.

Thus, taking into account the above, the purpose of the article is to consider the reasons why dystopia and post-apocalypse in cinema have now acquired a new breath, as well as the facts contributing to the fact that dystopia has become an integral characteristic of the image of the world after the end of the world.

First of all, we note that the term "dystopia" has long entered the circle of scientific and everyday circulation, however, despite this, the very concept and phenomenon of dystopia is a phenomenon with a rather complex and debatable definition. The peculiarity of dystopia is its supra-genre, since dystopianism is a form of cognition and perception of the world, as well as a means of self-identification of the epoch ^[3].

Until recently, the concept of dystopia was explained only from the point of view of ideological instructions accepted in society ^[4]. Many scientists perceived dystopia as a genre that inextricably combined a large number of distinctive features: the display of the most pessimistic options for the development of the future, which have their origins in the present, criticism of some utopian images that have discovered their downside in the process of evolution and development ^[5].

Today, dystopia in film and television is a form of fiction in which an imaginary community or society is defined by what dehumanizes and scares it. Dystopia is the antonym of utopia, which is a perfect society ^[6]. The plot problems of dystopia define the following functions: reflexive – comprehension of historical reality and events of the past; cognitive – study of the laws of society and its system of values; prognostic – prediction of the probable future and warning against undesirable social trends.

The apocalypse in its religious origin is interpreted as an exposure, revelation of knowledge or something like a heavenly mystery that can be adapted to worldly realities ^[7]. But in the modern sense, it means a large-scale catastrophic event leading to the destruction and catastrophe of the world ^[8]. Based on this concept, it can be noted that the post-apocalypse is a state that occurs after a cataclysmic event, and marks the beginning of a new era. This creates a paradox in the idea of the apocalypse, which implies complete, absolute and final destruction.

The difference between apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic events lies in the chronological line: apocalyptic stories take place during the end of the world; post-apocalyptic stories are mainly about how people survive and live in a changed world.

The popularity of dystopian films increased significantly in the 70-80-ies of the twentieth century. On the one hand, this can be considered the result of a general increase in interest in fantastic cinema during this period and the improvement of the technical base of its production. On the other hand, this does not explain the departure from the depiction of the world of the future in science fiction films containing elements of utopian society, in particular in the American TV series "Star Trek" (1966-1969) or Soviet science fiction films of the 1950s and 1960s, as well as the increase in the total number of released cinematic dystopias, compared with 1920-1960. Therefore, it can be assumed that there were other factors that influenced the actualization of the dystopian genre in cinema.

One of the assumptions put forward by modern authors with appropriate argumentation is that such factors include the ideology of postmodernism, which has actively begun to dominate Western society since the late 1960s ^[9].

There is also an opinion that these films allow people to think about the harsh realities of the present moment, about conditions that are difficult to face face to face. Although the action of the films supposedly takes place in the future, the post-apocalyptic regime can serve as a window into the present and its criticism, as stated by Fredrik Jameson in his study of science and utopian fiction "Archaeology of the Future" ^[10].

According to the author, the social, political and philosophical orientation of the genre of dystopia, its fundamental socio-cultural functions determine its current relevance. Currently, dystopias are getting closer to the works of science fiction and post-apocalyptic, due to rapid technological development and its impact on humanity. According to its artistic characteristics, modern dystopia organically corresponds to the worldview of today's man, who is characterized by deep disappointment in the surrounding reality, the cult of personal freedom, a critical analysis of the achievements of the past and modernity in all areas of human existence.

Thus, the new millennium can undoubtedly be called the golden age of dystopian post-apocalyptic films. The number of dystopian post-apocalyptic films created in the XXI century until November 2018 is almost the same as for the entire XX century ^[11].

Let's focus in more detail on what exactly defines modern post-apocalyptic dystopias in cinema.

In general, dystopias are a reflection of the social problems and fears that prevail at the time of production. Combined with the post-apocalypse of today, they create an image of a terrible end in the future based on these fears. The increased fears of the new millennium include a new world war, viruses, aliens or artificial intelligence, natural disasters and environmental problems leading humanity to almost complete extinction.

Literally until recently, the cinema industry had many limitations in the production of such visual content that would be plausible enough, but the recent, accelerating progress in computer effects has become one of the reasons that there are more such films. However, such a huge jump in the number of films after the turn of the century also indicates a tense social and political situation.

In the new millennium, there was a terrorist attack in the United States, followed by two wars in the Middle East. Microbes (including viruses and bacteria) have become more complex than before because of their genetic mutations and their resistance to drugs. Moreover, it is possible to manipulate microorganisms to create weapons. Most scientists worry about the future of the world and what will happen due to climate change. As a result, the basis of dystopian, post-apocalyptic films are these scenarios, which represent a vision of the world in which at least one of these fears has come true, and humanity has lost almost everything. Here is a concrete example.

So, the consequences of climate change, the current indifference and inaction of humanity in the face of this fact is obviously what worries director Bong Joon Ho in the film "Snow Man" (Snowpiercer). The film is based on Jacques Lob's 1982 novel Le Transperceniege, which is strikingly prescient about climate change, albeit in the direction of the ice Age rather than global warming. In the movie "Bigfoot" frozen apocalypse Zh. Loba is transferred to our time, presenting it as an unintended side effect of human geoengineering. Chemicals released into the atmosphere to cool the warming planet are acting too well, turning the Earth into an uninhabitable snowball. The only survivors are the inhabitants of a fast-moving bullet train, a functionally closed ecosystem that circles the frozen Earth in a continuous loop, not daring to stop for fear of freezing.

"Bigfoot" does not depict the initial disaster directly. Like many films of this genre, he spends creative energy to present a social dystopia following the apocalypse.

Today we can see a "noticeable shift" in modern post-apocalyptic dystopian films from "imagining disaster to imagining survival." In the middle of the twentieth century, cinematographers were concerned about the spectacle of the apocalypse (as in the film "The Day when the End of the World Came"). But by the end of the century, films such as Mad Max 3: Beyond the Dome of Thunder placed a much greater emphasis on the struggle for survival in a post-apocalyptic dystopian society. Such films, according to some scientists, ultimately suggest a conservative return to patriarchal structures, a "return to the earth" and its moral values ^{[12, 13]}.

Thus, today's post-apocalyptic film functions as an apotropee, a totem that drives away misfortune, restraining the catastrophe that it embodies. The hidden logic of the audience's attitude is this: if I have the freedom and technological resources to enjoy such a film, then I cannot live in the dystopia depicted in it.

Summing up the results of the study, the following conclusions can be drawn. Such an artistic form as cinema, thanks to its dynamic audiovisual nature, allows dystopia and post-apocalypse to reveal its potential as an exciting, entertaining genre, provoking at the same time an individual to critical reflections and actions. Despite the fact that cinematic dystopia is not a new genre, it continues to be relevant to this day. To start a dialogue, discussion, provoke critical reflection are the main tasks of films of this orientation today.

According to the author, the strongest feature of dystopian and post-apocalyptic narratives in cinema is manifested in the possibility of bringing society out of a state of apathy and indifference due to a powerful impulse of existential fear and the urge to see the world and oneself with new eyes, to feel real threats to existence and at the same time responsibility for the common future. This genre is ambiguous and contraversionary, but it is very necessary for modern society.