The 1980s was a complex era of transition, which saw the rise of military power, but also the emergence of new technology, as the fight against communist threats intensified. During this decade, the sci-fi genre reached immense popularity, and was closely related to the new blockbuster films which Hollywood exported throughout the world. During this decade, illegal immigration, the memory of the Vietnam War and the transformation of masculinity under the threat of feminism became prominent issues, which were reflected in the popular media of the time. As a genre which is particularly fit to reflect the anxieties and hopes of the society, sci-fi was able to give life to these problems. One of the most important representatives of the sci-fi genre during the 1980s, John McTiernan’s “Predator” reflects many of the issues that affected the society during this time. In “Predator”, the hero defeats the immigrant “other” by using his own human reason, and conventional weapons, against the superior alien technology, which reaffirmed the dominance of American military and more specifically, of the hyper-masculinized American soldier.
Since its early development, the sci-fi genre played an important role in the society. Science fiction generally deals with changes in the society, and reflects people’s fear of scientific and developmental advancements (Cornea, 2007). As Hables Gray (1994) showed, sci-fi encapsulated apocalyptic fears and fantasies and marginalized aspects of the Western culture. The purpose of tackling these topics is to oblige audiences to see how close supernatural entities or realities actually are to life as everyone knows it. As a result, while the reality described in sci-fi does not exist, it is a “possible” reality, and from this point of view, it is separated from the fantastic genre, where audiences and filmmakers alike agree that the events are “impossible”.
The sci-fi genre features a preoccupation with the possible development and uses of technology and describes the possible negative and positive effects of using them. Thus, the advent of the cyborg for example, reflects the ideas of how far the use of technology could reach, so as to create a race of “super-humans”, and in particular, of super-men. Furthermore, the space travel trope reflects the fascination with outer space, but also the fear of what humanity may find once they are able to explore it. Also, the preoccupation with the future, with parallel realities, with genetic alteration also resulted in the development of different sub-genres. For example, the sci-fi action subgenre illustrated the struggle between mankind and the menace of technology, aliens or scientific research. As Cornea (2007) showed, action film, which has been historically associated with masculinity, represented the perfect match for sci-fi, and created a supreme masculine genre, where men’s aggression could reach the highest peaks.
American culture in the 1985 explains to a great extent the evolution of the sci-fi film during this decade. This is particularly true because the Sci-Fi genre was one of the most popular film genres in the 1980s (Thompson, 2007). The rebirth of the science fiction film in the 1970s and the 1980s is linked to a great extent to the “political, economic and technological changes that began to occur during the late 1970s and early 1980s”, Cornea, (2007, p.113) argued. In politics, this period is known for the presidency of Ronald Reagan, who took the office in 1980. Reagan was preoccupied with stopping the development of communism throughout the world. Reagan focused on building the power of the military, and supported the development of technology, particularly overseeing the development of weaponry and military applications.
The development of military technology which replaced the need for human intervention in many aspects of the combat, determined panic in regards to the role of the human being in the society. This was not limited to the military however, because in many fields of activity, humans began being replaced with machines. As Thompson (2007) showed, “these anxieties about the human body and its place in a society increasingly dominated by science and technology spill out in the American culture during the 1980s” (p.26). In sci-fi films, this resulted in productions in which humans fought against technology, as in the “Terminator”, or in which human beings succeeded against the superior technology of alien enemies, as in “Predator”.
The culture of the 1980s was also influenced by different societal issues, such as immigration, the memory of the Vietnam War, and the role of men in the society. During this decade, the problem of immigration was as poignant as ever. Apart from the legal immigration, the inflow of undocumented immigration disturbed the society to a great extent. Thus, in 1978, the number of illegal immigrants in the society reached 6 million (Ramirez Berg, 2012). The illegal immigrants became “cultural Others”, who were often represented in the sci-fi genre as potentially dangerous aliens. Furthermore, the memory of the Vietnam War continued to hunt this decade, and created opposite groups of supporters of U.S. militarization, and increasing military prowess, and critics who decried the human rights crimes which were committed during the war. Finally, the issue of the man’s place in the society was extremely serious, and emerged from the weakening of the patriarchal system, as women began to become more and more independent, active and athletic. In front of the threat perceived, American heroes became more muscular, more aggressive and competent. Actors such as Arnold Schwarzenegger, Silvester Stallone and others, who “hype-masculinized” the popular culture during this period, were an answer to the fear that the society was becoming “womanized” ( Thomspon, 2007).
The economic growth throughout the Western world, the emergence of cable TV and home video, and the beginnings of globalization all had great impact on the American culture of the 1980s (Cornea 2007). The advancements in technology during this decade were extremely rapid, and led to an explosion of new devices, and particularly, to the popularization of the computer. As Thompson (2007) showed, this technological frenzy was reflected in film, since, “the treatment of technology in film of the 1980s is unquestioning in its devotion and simply eases the transition from industrial to high-tech capitalism” (Thompson, 2007, p. 99).Therefore, the sci-fi genre during this period was impacted by the transition towards high-tech, and reflected people’s hopes and fears regarding it.
John McTiernan’s “Predator”, illustrates perfectly the degree to which the most salient aspects of the American culture of the 1980s, is reflected in the sci-fi genre. The most important characteristic of the genre at this point was the focus on military action and the dominance of the war discourse. This reflects the Vietnam War experiences and fears regarding the loss of the war by the United States. As Hables Gray (1994) explained, since the Vietnam war, one theme which became predominant in Sci-Fi film is that “war is a necessary aspect of human nature and/or manhood, that it is natural and inevitable, and that humans will need to fight nasty aliens someday besides” (pp. 315-316). Some of the military tropes which are most often associated with Sci-Fi are that new technology is paramount in war, and that the American military culture has had a close relation with technological fantasy (Hables Gray, 1994). In Predator, an all-male team of black-ops is sent in a mission in the deep jungle. Although the location has a fictional name, it easily reminds viewers of the Vietnam conflict, but also of the then-contemporary communist threats in Latin America.
However, the alien they encounter is a threatening “other”, which not only threatens to destroy them, but also, is beyond the understanding for American soldiers. As shown above, films provide a ‘cinematic arena’ for discussing the immigrant issues. Ramirez Berg explained in this respect that, “Predator” is a good example of the traditional depiction of the Alien “Other” in American science fiction films as a Destructive Monster whose sole purpose, it seems, is the eradication of human civilization” (Ramirez Berg, 2012). The alien is an “Other” who entered Earth secretly and its purpose is to eliminate the soldiers, as a symbol of its power. However, Dutch, the epitome of American military prowess and the perfect model of American soldier, defeats the enemy using conventional weapons, against superior technology, which included invisibility and plasma weaponry. In the film, the only female, Anna learns that in order to be safe, she needed to be passive and unarmed, which opposed the feminine ideal of the ‘damsel in distress’ to the masculine ideal, as represented by Schwarzenegger,.
“Predator” is deeply concerned with aspects of masculinity and politics, the latter being solely an expression patriarchal masculinity. As many sci-fi films, “Predator is “closely tied up with these complex issues around stardom, masculinity, and claims of right-wing ‘Reaganite’ entertainment that link films to their hybrid status as science fiction-action cinema” (Johnston, 2011, p.98). Predator respects the conventions of science-fiction films, which include invisibility, remote locations and the figure of the “Other” (Johnston, 2011), but it also includes tropes from action cinema, by including an emphasis on masculinity, physical effects. As Johnson (2011) shows, the militaristic tone of science-fiction films from this decade, are a unique development in the history of cinema. From this point of view, “Predator” can be read as a film about the militaristic power of the United States, which was growing in the 1980s (Johnson, 2011). In the film, the reality of the Vietnam War is transformed, with “Dutch” winning this part of the world on behalf of America, against a more powerful enemy.
In “Predator”, many of the cultural issues of the 1980s are reflected and reinforced. The alien in the film functions as a warning for the society against the threatening “Other”, while its use of advanced technology reflects the fear of technology, which was rapidly advancing during the 1980s. The focus of the Reagan administration on increasing the military power, and on developing the technology with potential military applications is also reflected in the topic of the film, and the specific weaponry presented for each side of the conflict. Furthermore, the issue of masculinity in American society is solved in this film by having a hyper-masculinized hero, whose abilities to fight against the “Other” confirms the qualities of American soldiers. The film therefore, by using the specific features of the sci-fi genre, confirms the efficiency of the American soldier and reassures the public that the military is ready to act, even against the most dangerous enemies.
References
Cornea, C. (2007). Science-fiction cinema: between fantasy and reality. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
Hables Gray, C. (1994). There will be war!: future war fantasies and militaristic science fiction in the 1980s. Science Fiction Studies 21 (3): 315-337.
Johnson, K. (2011). Science fiction film: a critical introduction. New York: Berg.
Ramirez Berg, C., (2012). Immigrants, aliens, and extraterrestrials: science fiction’s alien “other” as (among other things) new Latino imagery. In B. K. Grant (ed). Film Genre Reader IV. Austin, TX: University of Texas Press.
Thompson, G. (2007). American culture in the 1980s. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
