Dystopia Redux: Science Fiction Cinema and Biopolitics

Abstract

In this chapter, Paz presents an overview of European science fiction (sf) cinema in the twenty-first century. He argues that the production of sf films in Europe has increased significantly over the past two decades, resulting in a body of works that occupies a middle ground between the blockbuster and the art film. Emphasising the links between sf and dystopia, and drawing on the theoretical framework of biopolitics, the chapter shows how sf films convey social concerns and anxieties about problems that dominate cultural and political debates in Europe, such as immigration, social control, and identity. The chapter concludes with a case study of Yorgos Lanthimos’ The Lobster (2015).