Okay, okay, one of those two examples is untrue.1
Jokes aside, I love a good sci-fi story. Trans-galactic war? Why not! Extra-terrestrial sightings? Go for it! Star Wars parodies? Yes, please! Alien invasions? Well, maybe not in the way you're thinking of.
The problem with alien invasions is that most of the time, they aren't really... innovative.
"What're you talking about, Internet blogger with no credentials? We made them purple instead of grey and they're six feet tall!"
Well, yes. They are. Physically they may be different, but that's about it. Many an alien invasion looks incredibly similar. The human race gets a few warnings, a political figurehead says "no, we will not surrender!", the aliens get angry and start blowing up famous monuments, humans fight back, aliens seem to get the upper hand, humans shoot giant gun, aliens explode, humans rejoice, and rinse and repeat until we all get bored.Whatever happened to a smart alien? Canadian poet Shane Koyczan once said that "[...] if aliens are so smart, why don't they start making their spaceships look like airplanes?" 2Why not? Why are these aliens so caught up in being obvious? In being caught? In being vanquished?
Yes, yes, the humans need to win so that this plot line sells. I understand that logic, truly, I do! What's wrong with a bit more struggle, though? A harder time winning? We should earn our victories. Humans have, time and time again, proven themselves to be resourceful and cunning and downright brilliant. Let's live up to that legacy! Instead of just finding the biggest laser possible and blowing them out of the sky, why don't we tell stories about aliens who've slipped through the cracks; about invasions that fell through our peripheral and managed to land smack-dab in the middle of power? Or leagues of extraterrestrial beings who are capable of finding our weak-spot and jabbing a needle into them? What about scientists who could make themselves great and find the chemical agent required to save the human race? The lone hero capable of standing up to this great army? The general who devises a plan so cunning and dastardly it actually works?
If you're going to write about an alien invasion, make sure it's a new breed. Make sure it's alien to us3 - something we've never seen before. If I wanted to read about the Gray Aliens and Area 51, I'd pick up another book. If I cared to watch yet another wave of bug-eyed monster come down from their frisbee-shaped spaceship, I'd find another movie. Be creative! These are aliens! Let your imagination roam free for once and create something truly spectacular. We will applaud you for it.
1 You'll never know which one.↩
2 This is from his spoken word poem "Atlantis". ↩
3 Aren't I clever?↩
As hilarious and sometimes sarcastic that your blog post is, it is insanely accurate. Once you've seen one movie about alien invasions, you've seen them all. I feel like those types of movies focus more on the production, cinematography and special effects, rather than on making a good plot line that won’t disappoint the audience in the end. Above all, I think if the story is new and exciting, and the actors selected for the movie are entertaining, than the image doesn't have as much importance. However, it is when movies consist merely of one battle after the other, with strange looking creatures, it won’t be very successful. I love what you said, “Make sure it’s alien to us.”
ReplyDeleteI find that you blog is really funny so far! Its halarious! Even though I can tell you are being sarcastic in some cases and do have a lot to say on this topic, I agree with you! Once one kind of movie comes out such as a movie al about an alien invasion, it is like people don't have as much creativity anymore to invent and create a new kind of story. I agree with what Amanda said to about how these kind of movies really just focus more on the cinematography and special effects withing the movie. Like you blog! Keep it up!!!
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