No talking apes yet: Sci-fi movies prove poor predictors of 'the future'

Source: Tulsa World, Okla.mini storageOct. 25--Where are the British hooligans and their ultra-violence? Wasn't Manhattan supposed to be a prison city by now?If what we've seen in science-fiction movies became reality, our world would already be a planet run by apes.As the outer-space wonder of "Gravity" continues to grip movie audiences -- it's been the No. 1 movie for three weeks in a row -- and show what an astronaut might face today, next week's "Ender's Game" sci-fi battle among the stars will show what our future may hold.Past depictions in science-fiction films about futuristic people, politics and devices have proven to be more fiction than fact. A hover board from one of the "Back to the Future" sequels won't be on the market in 2015, we presume.If that track record holds true, maybe we won't be roaming a post-apocalyptic world or eating "Soylent Green" anytime in the next decade.Follow this timeline to see what didn't happen, and what may or may not happen in the future -- according to the movies. Synopses are provided by the Internet Movie Database.'Conquest of the Planet of the Apes'Year of release: 1972Year it was set in: 1991Synopsis: "In a futuristic world that has embraced ape slavery, Caesar, the son of the late simians Cornelius and Zira, surfaces after almost 20 years of hiding out from the authorities, and prepares for a slave revolt against humanity."What happened in the movie: This is the "Planet of the Apes" movie that showed how apes began to band together, speak to one another, and ultimately fire weapons in overtaking humans.What really happened: Apes continue to reside in their cages, free of human speech patterns. Humans, meanwhile, still love the premise of these films, with "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" a 2011 hit, and "Dawn of the Planet of the Apes" arriving in 2014.'A Clockwork Orange'Year of release: 1971Year it was set in: 1995Synopsis: "In future Britain, charismatic delinquent Alex DeLarge is jailed and volunteers for an experimental aversion therapy developed by the government in an effort to solve society's crime problem ... but not all goes to plan."What happened in the movie: Malcolm McDowell's character, Alex, and his three gang pals ("droogs") menace society through violent crimes of perversion, odd clothing ensembles and crude lingo.What really happened: Although 1995 saw no roaming gangs to remind of Alex and his pals as far as style, it can be argued 40 years later that increasingly twisted criminals have come to pass in some facets of society, including school shootings.'Escape from New York'Year of release: 1981Year it was set in: 1997Synopsis: "In 1997, when the U.S. President crashes into Manhattan, now a giant maximum-security prison, a convicted bank robber is sent in for a rescue."What happened in the movie: Snake Plissken (Kurt Russell) must avoid, among other terrors, New York's bridges (filled with land mines) and bodies of water (patrolled by sharpshooters) for a prison break with the president.What really happened: New York went from the dirty-and-dangerous atmosphere of the era when director John Carpenter made his movie to cleaning up its act, with places like Times Square transformed. Today the city even polices soft-drink consumption.'Death Race 2000'Year of release: 1975Year it was set in: 2000Synopsis: "In a dystopian future, a cross-country automobile race requires contestants to run down innocent pedestrians to gain points that are tallied based on each kill's brutality."What happened in the movie: David Carradine, two weeks after quitting TV's "Kung Fu," started filming this cult flick as "a man built by surgeons to drive the fastest race-car ever built." From producer Roger Corman, still going strong with movies like "Piranhaconda."What really happened: Hit-and-run remains a crime, rather than a national sport.'2001: A Space Odyssey'Year of release: 1968Year it was set in: 2001Synopsis: "Humanity finds a mysterious, obviously artificial, object buried beneath the lunar surface and, with the intelligent computer H.A.L. 9000, sets off on a quest."What happened in the movie: Along with all of the sci-fi drama, we see an astronaut reading what would essentially be an online newspaper on what looks very much like an iPad. Another man is seen placing a call for a video chat that looks like he's using Skype.What really happened: Novelist Arthur C. Clarke's ideas and filmmaker Stanley Kubrick's visuals look alarmingly like Apple's tablet (released in 2010) and Skype (founded in 2003). But there's still no colonizing of space or self-aware computers, and space-travel to Jupiter is pure science-fiction: A manned mission to Mars has never even gotten off the ground.'Time Cop'Year of release: 1994Year it was set in: 2004Synopsis: "An officer for a sec儲存rity agency that regulates time-travel must fend for his life against a shady politician who has a tie to his past."What happened in the movie: Jean-Claude Van Damme kicked everybody's butt. Even time-travel doesn't mess with Van Damme.What really happened: Time-travel is not a reality, and neither are the film's voice-activated cars that navigate themselves, especially when facing a linguistic challenge like Van Damme's phrasing.'The Postman'Year of release: 1997Year it was set in: 2013Synopsis: "A drifter with no name ... dons (a) postman's uniform and bag of mail as he begins a quest to inspire hope to the survivors living in the post-apocalyptic America."What happened in the movie: In a technology-free world, the service of mail delivery brings people together, symbolizing their belief that their country and government can be restored.What really happened: With no apocalypse to destroy electronic communications, the service of mail delivery continues to fade as email increasingly connects people to one another.'Robocop'Year of release: 1987Year it was set in: 2015Synopsis: "In a dystopic and crime-ridden Detroit, a terminally wounded cop returns to the force as a powerful cyborg haunted by submerged memories."What happened in the movie: Robocop cleans up the street scum, but political corruption proves more difficult to stamp out.What may or may not happen: Cyborgs of Robocop's abilities seem a distant reality, but advanced prosthetic technology offers hope to many people. Meanwhile, Detroit in 2015 will still need the help of a hero to clean up crime and more (2014 brings a "Robocop" remake, set in 2028).'The Running Man'Year of release: 1987Year it was set in: 2017Synopsis: "A wrongly convicted man must try to survive a public execution gauntlet staged as a game show."What happened in the movie: Beloved "Family Feud" host Richard Dawson plays dirty on this game show, with Arnold Schwarzenegger punching out one-liners and assassins in a dumb-fun flick based on a novel by Stephen King (under the pen name Richard Bachman).What may or may not happen: King imagined a world infatuated with reality TV programming, satisfying base desires with winners exalted and losers humiliated, and he's close to where society stands today. Part "Survivor" and part "Wipeout," but with deaths. Are televised executions a future reality program?'Blade Runner'Year of release: 1982Year it was set in: 2019Synopsis: "Deckard, a blade runner, has to track down and terminate four replicants who hijacked a ship in space and have returned to Earth seeking their maker."What happened in the movie: Technology has advanced to the point of creating replicants, or clones, who serve humans in the colonies beyond Earth. Harrison Ford plays a cop -- a blade runner -- whose specialty is hunting down renegade replicants in the film's cyberpunk vision of a futuristic Los Angeles.What may or may not happen: The 2019 L.A. is overdeveloped and exists in terminal smog (climate change) and features humanoid creations (genetic engineering) -- all of which sounds overly familiar in 2013. But will we have a hover car in six years? We will not.'Soylent Green'Year of release: 1973Year it was set in: 2022Synopsis: "In an overpopulated futuristic Earth, a New York police detective finds himself marked for murder by government agents when he gets too close to a bizarre state secret involving the origins of a revolutionary and needed new foodstuff."What happened in the movie: Charlton Heston plays the cop who discovers that the new foodstuff, Soylent Green, is, well ... one of the most-ridiculed reveals in motion-picture history. But we won't spoil the food's origin.What may or may not happen: American's food habits continually change, but it would have to be a state secret for people to consume Soylent Green, which does not taste like chicken.'The Terminator'Year of release: 1984Year it was set in: 2029Synopsis: "A robotic assassin from a post-apocalyptic future travels back in time to eliminate a waitress, whose son will grow up and lead humanity in a war against machines."What happened in the movie: Sent into the past by a computer, Arnold Schwarzenegger was perfect as a killer robot early in his career, when he possessed a bodybuilder's physique and a limited range of emotions.What may or may not happen: This would be "2001" run amok, with all computers and machines achieving self-awareness and taking over in "The Terminator." Although it sometimes appears that humans are controlled by their electronic devices, there is no need to worry -- yet.Michael Smith 918-581-8479michael.smith@tulsaworld.comCopyright: ___ (c)2013 Tulsa World (Tulsa, Okla.) Visit Tulsa World (Tulsa, Okla.) at .tulsaworld.com Distributed by MCT Information Services迷你倉