Soylent Green – Friday 28th February 2025

Unfortunately, I knew what Soylent Green was, before watching this classic sci-fi from the 1970s. I imagine the filmmakers were hoping to recreate the same kind of shock ending as Charlton Heston’s other classic sci-fi, Planet of the Apes. I have no idea if they were successful in that regard.

What they were successful in creating, however, is a vivid picture of where humanity is (still) heading, with environmental collapse, global warming, and corporations running everything. The contrast between the lives of the wealthy elite and the suffering of the masses, is shown to great effect.

The scene where the protagonist is overjoyed at the sight of running tap water is particularly effective. For him, the greatest luxuries are eating real food, and being able to enjoy a shower! The things we take for granted, even now.

Although they got their dates wrong (the film is set in 2022, which in our reality, saw the planet emerging from a different crisis!), the film is still very prescient, and can be seen as a direct response to Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring, which details the environmental damage caused by pesticides.

Whichever way you look at it, this film is proof that we’ve been aware of the catastrophic future we’re headed towards, for over fifty years! Yet governments still do nothing, except aid corporations and hasten our demise.

Like all great science fiction, it holds a mirror to society, and isn’t about the explosions and escapist fantasies that plague modern sci-fi. 1970s Hollywood really was a different beast.

Good film.