Week Twelve: Diverse Position Science Fiction

I wanted to talk a little more about the in-class movie Attack the Block. I had never seen this movie before, so I was intrigued by the idea of it when we watched it in class. I thought it was a very fun twist on the Alien attack-type movie.

These days, alien invasion movies have been done to death. Ever since War of the Worlds invented this type of story, it has been very popular in the media. While some monster invasion stories, there would be a slight bit of color representation in the supporting cast, but never the protagonist and their daily life. It's so refreshing to see some ACTUAL representation and not some of the whitewashed garbage that floats around Hollywood. Representation that actually explores the lives of colored people and some of the problems they may face in reality. 

I wish these kinds of movies would come out more often, because it's so amazing how such a little twist makes this movie a truly enjoyable experience. Just by changing the character setting, it breaks the cliche. Since new ideas are hard to come by these days, these kinds of twists are memorable and iconic. It builds upon the decades of fiction that came before it and adds its own legacy.

I think that another thing that makes this movie great it the pop culture references. In today's internet culture, pop culture references are incredibly important.  They are like a new language, a sense of humor, and a way that brings our culture together. With the globalization of culture and integration of foreign culture, it becomes really hard to define exactly what exactly our culture is and how it's different from others. These references have become a part of how we identify ourselves. And of course, it's great to get a chuckle out of a Starwars reference now and then.

Overall, this movie was a very pleasant surprise for me. I really enjoy learning about films like these that do a whole new take on an existing cliche premise. Also, the British accents are just delightful.