To what extent have modern science fiction films changed since the birth of the genre, shown with The War of the Worlds (dir. Byron Haskin, 1953) and The World’s End (dir. Edgar Wright, 2013)?

Elements of Science Fiction
– stories often tell about science and technology of the future
– stories are grounded in science
– characters can include robots, aliens, creatures, etc
– conflicts tend to center around technology or issues with society
– stories often explore potential consequences of scientific innovations
– stories can be set in outer space, other worlds and parallel universes
– there are often features of biology, including enhanced humans
– stories can feature paranormal elements, such as telekinesis
– stories can often be allegorical or have hidden meanings

War of the Worlds
This film is set in 1953 California, when the Earth is suddenly invaded by Martians. They start to destroy cities across the world, and the people are powerless to stop them. The narrative follows the character of Dr Clayton Forrester, who tries to survive the attacks while finding a way to kill the Martians. In the end, the Martians are killed off by bacteria in the Earth’s atmosphere, as they had no resistance to it.

This film follows traditional conventions of science-fiction, as the narrative surrounds an alien invasion of Earth.

The World’s End
The film follows five friends as they attempt a pub crawl in their hometown of Newton Haven. They soon discover that the whole town has been replaced by androids, and they carry on the pub crawl in an attempt to remain undetected. Eventually, the androids find them, and the five try to escape while continuing the pub crawl. The two main characters, Gary and Andy, find the androids’ hiding place and confront them. The androids then leave Earth, but create an electromagnetic pulse that sends the planet back to the Dark Ages.