Here's Why Every Alien Movie Is About Race
Science fiction have always and will continue to dominate the box office as audiences all over the world line up to see movies about aliens and what else could be living in our solar system, galaxy, and universe. Here's the thing: all science fiction films are not just about cool alien wars or terrible face-sucking alien monsters. One hundred percent of the time, films with aliens are about race issues.
The most obvious example is Neill Blomkamp's District 9. It follows a government official who is trying to eliminate the "prawns," aliens whose spaceship landed over Capetown, South Africa and who live in a segregated, slum area in the city known as District 9. A clear metaphor for South Africa's apartheid, the film show what happens when roles are switched and dives into what it means to be separate but very unequal.
That's just one film, you say. Let's think about early science fiction, specifically Rod Serling's five season television smash hit The Twilight Zone. The show that captivated audiences in the 1960s and showed realities that are not too far removed from our own is still incredibly relevant today.
In the episode "To Serve Man," the world is visited by highly intelligent aliens with massive builds and even bigger brains. As the aliens help the civilizations of Earth flourish, they gain their trust because eventually they will eat them. This episode shows how human beings react to "the other" through skepticism and then acceptance. However, the outdated message of the twenty-two minute episode is that we should never trust those who we do not know or recognize. Sounds like the philosophy of Donald Trump, does it not?
No matter what alien-filled motion picture you pick, they are all about race. Planet of the Apes? That one screams racism just from the title. Alien? A large black alien eats the entire crew except for Sigourney Weaver. Signs? A family is terrorized by something they do not come in contact with for the first eighty minutes of the film, building their fear of what the alien could actually do to them. Super 8? Giant black alien who is really not that scary and just wants to go home even though a town wants to kill him. Arrival? Aliens who don't speak English are seen as evil automatically even though they mean no harm.
As human beings, we are fascinated by that which we do not know. Life beyond our small planet is, for some, unfathomable and absolutely terrifying. Life outside of your small town, for some, is unfathomable and absolutely terrifying. Seeing others as threats is easier than seeing them as humans. Everyone and everything is dehumanized until you look it in the eye. Alien films are just a way to express that fear or acceptance living inside us.
