What does ‘the future’ hold for you?

What does ‘the future’ even mean?

Tomorrow?

Next week??

Next year???

Or 2275?

The problem is that the future is very big. I’m not talking about my personal future, that’s linked to my pension and my children’s willingness to change my nappies when the time comes. AS I DID FOR THEM (in case they need reminding). Not even the future for mankind because we may not be here to see it. We came close in the 60s to nuclear armageddon and we’ll doubtless be close again.

Visions of the future, which are all obviously fictional, cos we haven’t been there yet, take their models from the prevailing zeitgeist. So George Orwell’s ‘1984’ was written in 1949 and thus depicted a rather bleak and brutal ‘future’ based on the nazi rise in Germany and the totalitarian regime in Russia. And this ‘absolute model of state control’ carried on to the 70s with movies like Soylent Green in which you eventually realised, as did Edward G Robinson, that the ‘disappearing people’ were being recycled as food. Eeeeuuuww. I mean, I’d taste pretty damned good, but YOU????

Then, during the Cold War, the ‘future’ became accordingly a post-apocalyptic wasteland in which humanity had returned to its feral and savage origins. Deathrace 2000, all the Mad Maxes and loads more. Depressing tales of a world no-one would ever want to live in. Terminator too, same message. Someone pushed ‘the button’ and look what’s happened now. Oh dear. If only…

Stephen King wrote a story called The Running Man. And although just a short story in his ‘Richard Bachman’ pen-name period, it was a game changer. Or a game introducer.

The ‘hero’ is a convicted felon, released from his life/death (whatever) sentence to run away. Whilst chased by the full might of the state army, soldiers, tanks, helicopters, all on live tv for the enjoyment of the inevitably bloodthirsty and sadistic population. If he survives for 5 days he is ‘free’. And ‘no-one has ever done it!!!!!’ Until Schvartzenegger came along in the movie and showed how its done.

And that story was inspirational not in the format, which was fairly old and predictable, one man against a nation, but because it showed that sadistic voyeurism is one of our innate natural hobbies and that game shows are the future. All of the future if Saturday night tv is any guide.

And this week Hunger Games part 2 comes out. Another ‘ultimate’ game of life and death as viewed by a salivating general public on their tvs to keep the reality of the world’s grimness at bay. Its like ‘I’m a celebrity…’ without Ant and Dec.

I fucking hate sequels. I don’t like films with numbers in the title. Though the aforementioned ‘1984’ could be an exception. And Death Wish 9 isn’t.

So even though I’m madly in love with the divine Jennifer Lawrence, I shall miss this sad and sorry tale of how the entire future of humanity will become nothing more than a sodding great game show. Surely the game shows we have already are sufficiently dire that we really don’t need to waste time wondering about future ones.

 

Happy tomorrow. If there is one!!!!

 

A xxxx