In the late 1960s and early 1970s, charlton heston paid to act in a drama post apocalyptic fictions In addition to giving the actress the opportunity to appear bare-chested on-screen, the shared deep pessimism about the fate of the human race. From Heston’s particular obsession with the end of the world as we know it came titles such as ‘Planet of the Apes’ (Franklin J. Shaffner, 1968), ‘The Last Man… Alive’ (Boris Sagal, 1971). ‘When fate catches up with us’ (Richard Fleischer, 1973)Three films that predict the future of untold disasters caused by human greed and stupidity.
The ‘Planet of the Apes’ placed this ominous future in the still distant year 3978. A very liberal adaptation of Richard Matheson’s popular story ‘I am a legend’, ‘the last man… alive’ took place in 1977 after a terrible bacteriological war between the Soviet Union and China destroyed much of the world. population (something not from the news we have). ‘When fate catches up with us’ I dreamed of what life would be like in 2022. And here we are.
Always directed by the solver Richard Fleischer, ‘When fate catches up with us’ (Soylent Greenfrom the original title) Harry Harrison’s ‘Make Space! Make room!’ Adapted from the novel.Published in 1966, describing the dangers from the following in a fictional key uncontrolled population growth on a planet with limited resources. Harrison’s narration set the event in New York City in August 1999, but Fleischer and screenwriter Stanley R. Greenberg decided to jump forward 23 years to make the futuristic speculation elements of the story more believable.
vegetable luxury
New York in 2022, portrayed by the movie a city plagued by pollution and extreme heat an overcrowded place with 40 million people, most of whom live on the streets. Political and economic control is in the hands of a very small elite who can afford luxuries such as hot water, meat, fruit or vegetables, while the majority of the population is forced to live. Consuming processed foods made by the Soylent company. The endemic scarcity of crops causes revolts that are at times suppressed. fast riot squads those who do not hesitate to attack the crowd with bulldozers.
In this context of social bankruptcy and climate disaster, Charlton Heston plays an unscrupulous cop who shares a house with an elderly ex-teacher. Edward G Robinson He still has memories of a time when the world was a more livable place and food was like food. The detective gets involved in a murder investigation and by chance (never showing signs of being a particularly bright man) discovers what a terrible secret hides behind the company’s latest flagship product, Green Soylent. supposedly made of ocean plankton. Supposedly. In fact, as Heston himself loudly proclaims in the film’s memorable final scene, Green Soylent is made of humans.
a correct metaphor
Nearly half a century after its release, ‘When Fate Catches Us’ is all too easy to mock in some aspects, particularly its presentation. Some alleged technological advances that are already completely outdated after a few years (a common evil, for example, for nearly all sci-fi productions of the time, which could not predict the revolution that would take place in the telephone and communications space). But indisputably, meanwhile metaphorical representation of the cannibal society to comeFleischer’s film can boast some very notable successes.
The most important pointing a devastating climate crisis. It was not uncommon to hear concepts such as the “greenhouse effect”, global warming, or the escalating death of the oceans, which were mentioned in the 1973 film and are now the subject of the highest international summits. We are sadly familiar with images of police brutality (with or without a bulldozer) as we suppress protests, challenging us condemnation of the use of women as sexual objects (said as a “furniture piece” in the movie) and the generosity of the authorities move us. promoting active euthanasia of senior citizensIt’s a practice not far from what’s happening in some places during the toughest phases of the coronavirus pandemic.
A final note: In 2013, software engineer Rob Rhinehart designed a food replacer designed to meet human nutritional needs and marketed it as Soylent, in bar and powder form. No, it wasn’t made up of people, but as a ‘branding’ strategy it was audacious to say the least.
‘When fate catches up with us’ is available at: movie star + and for rent Amazon Prime Video.