Timeline Maps Out Settings Of Sci-Fi Classics

When I was in sixth grade, the teacher told my class that by the time we could get driver's licenses hover cars would be all the rage and we'd be cruising around on air! Of course, it's 2013 now and we still haven't mastered the technology of Back to the Future Part II's hover board, much less mass-marketed hover mobiles. Still, at least society hasn't devolved so far that Manhattan has become a maximum-security prison. And while class struggle is frequent topic of conversation, let's be glad "bonejacking" a la Freejack hasn't come to fruition yet. And these are just a few of the observations we can enjoy thanks to Dan' Meth's sci-fi movie timeline.

As you can see in the infographic above, Meth has charted the production dates and time settings of a wide array of science fiction features, from Blade Runner and Children of Men, to Dune and Alien. While many narratives set on foreign planets are still set hundreds of years away, it seems several sci-fi writers—like Philip K. Dick and RoboCop scribes Edward Neumeier and Michael Miner—thought we'd be a farther along in having cyborg humans embedded into society by now. Tales of dystopia seem to have no particular limit, but we can all be glad that Kevin Costner's prediction for 2013 haven't come true.

For those who don't remember—or considering its pitiful box office returns—haven't seen the 1997 follow-up to Waterworld, The Postman was set in an America decimated by nuclear war. As a result, society devolved into a sort of Wild West scenario. In this bleak stretch of desert and gunslingers, the United States no longer exists to many. Technology has backslid, and a man masquerading as a US postman inspires hope. Check out Costner's vision of this 2013 below and be thankful for showers, cars, and cell phones.

When if your favorite sci-fi film set?

Kristy Puchko

Staff writer at CinemaBlend.