The Future that will Never be
The Appeal of Retro Sci-Fi

Recently I saw the music video to Nero's Must Be The Feeling a video and was particularly struck by its deliberate creation of a retro sci-fi setting and the "Classic" Sci-fi influences strewn throughout. The video features many references to popular sci-fi: neon advertisements and skyscrapers reminiscent of Blade Runner, parallel realities, mysterious faceless governmental enforcers, and a totalitarian regime most notable due to the 1984 referencing poster  "The Authority is watching you," ("Big Brother is watching you.") Interestingly the video selectively uses ideas concurrent to Classic and influential sci-fis to evoke imagery of an instantly recognizable sci-fi setting whilst also introducing it in a way that creates a distinctly retro vibe to very intriguing affect, begging the question, what is the appeal of retro sci-fi?

I think that the passage of time has increases the interest in classic sci-fi. Many of the ideas appear outlandish and ridiculous to us now such as the city crushing Godzilla, whilst in other cases new technologies predicted in film and literature have in cases become entwined with our daily lives. The added element of retrospect brings new light to old ideas. As I'm sure you'll know many sci-fi narratives in literature and film present ideas about the future. The fantastical worlds, characters and technology are usually just dismissed as works of fiction by the casual audience but when considered more critically can actually tell us far more about the current generations hopes and fears for the future. As such it is incredibly interesting to see how well predictions of the future now match up. Take The Terminator for example, originally released in 1984, the film addresses the evolution of computers and technology to a point where their power eclipse that of our own, leading to a world dominated by machines. Now this has obviously not happened to us yet but look at the vast growth and expansion of technology since 1984,and really the idea does bear a shade of truth. We have now entered the digital age and are surrounded by a wealth of electronic appliances, people are becoming increasingly reliant on computers, smartphones and  other gadgets, which begs the question have the machines taken over?

Another aspect of retro sci-fi is that it brings with it a sense of nostalgia. Must be the Feeling though apparently set in a futuristic setting features a De Tomaso Pantera, a classic italian sports car first produced in 1971. The sports car remains central to the video throughout and its existence in our day and age creates realism of presentation in the video, drawing parallels between our own world and Nero's fiction. The inclusion of the Pantera as a speedy get-away car along with the 80's tinged song evokes imagery of a bygone decade. Many other sci-fi's appear to have been stamped with the indelible mark of their era and as such contain objects, themes and stereotypes typical of their time, for example the distinctive Nokia 8110 used in The Matrix or the Cold War paranoia of Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Nostalgia is often appealing to people not just exclusively in sci-fi as it reminds them of times, place and memories.


As you can see Nero have used genre conventions, homage, nostalgia and retrospect to effectively replicate a dated retro sci-fi narrative to great affect. The whole premise reminded me of how our own thoughts of the future differ from those of people before us and how differently we perceive things. Many years ago people dreamed of robots that could effectively carry out our needs and act as servants, we don't have this yet but perhaps we no longer need it as there is already so much efficient machinery that is replacing human labor, just look at any industry leading factory production line, or somewhere closer to home such as the supermarket where automated self checkouts are beginning to eliminate the need for till workers. Whilst some sci-fi ideas can be seen to develop and appear in our own world many others fall by the wayside as our own development and scientific advancement prove them either unfeasible or irrelevant; leaving classic sci-fis as only a reminder of yesterday's world of tomorrow.