The Rise of the Sci-Fi Genre!
Wednesday, 13 June 2012
Have you noticed that there has been a massive fluctuation in the amount of science fiction movies that are being released at the moment? If you put down those online bingo daubers or cast aside those online scratchcards for a second to have a look at some trailers online or even head out to the cinema, you are likely to notice that whilst the usual romantic comedies and cult indies are still being offered, there is a huge increase – especially in 2012 alone – of science fiction movies being introduced to mainstream cinema.
I’m sure the one that jumps to the forefront of your mind at the moment is the huge new sci-fi movie Prometheus that appears to have already overshot the usual popularity of your average sci-fi movie, raking in a respectable $50 million in US box offices in the opening weekend alone. This may seem like nothing compared to the likes of Twilight with raked in over $80 million in the US box office opening weekend or the Harry Potter films, each and every one of which scooped in at LEAST $100 million in the US box office alone in the opening weekend. However, $50 million in its first few days of release is still outstanding when you compare this with other sci-fi movies which are lucky to even make it in to mainstream cinema’s, instead being sent to independent movie theatres with a view that the science fiction market is niche.
Prometheus may have smashed the box office harder than expected but this fantastical and extremely creepy movie from the creator of the Alien Trilogy, Ridley Scott, but this is not the first surprising success that Scott has tasted. He seems to be the pioneer for bringing sci-fi movies to the mainstream, after his movie Aliens – starring Sigourney Weaver - achieved incredible commercial recognition in 1979, an era filled with The Muppets Movie, Rocky, The Jerk and Meatballs. Of course we have had no shortage of science fiction movies that have broken the boundaries of modern cinema – Star Wars being the prime example, of course – but it is 2011 and 2012 that has seen an influx in science fiction movies that have done far better than expected in the mainstream box office. Prime examples would of course be the likes of X-Men and Transformers that come under the sci-fi umbrella. Both of these movies released their most recent instalment – X-Men First Class and Transformers Dark of the Moon – early in 2011 to phenomenal success, with JJ Abram’s Super 8, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, I am Number 4 and the re-make of the 1982 hit The Thing being remade to surprising success, too. All of these films fall under the sci-fi category whether movie-goers know it or not, and each and every one has enjoyed success far beyond the usual lavished upon this genre.
Most notably of all has to be The Avengers Assemble, which is smashed records in the box office after hitting over $200 million in the US alone during its opening weekend, becoming the most popular sci-fi movie ever. 2012 has also seen the release of Prometheus, The Hunger Games, the immensely popular third instalment of Men in Black and there are far more to come. Total Recall has been remade as has Dredd and later this year will see the release of Extraterrestrial, The Black Hole, Dead Space and tonnes more. Will these upcoming sci-fi treats hit the same spot that Prometheus, Men in Black 3 and Hunger Games have hit so far this year?
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