- Sci-fi movies set in the past or near future tend to age poorly as real-world technology catches up.
- Some sci-fi movies with dated technologies are considered iconic examples of inadvertent retrofuturism.
- Outdated tech in sci-fi films can contribute to their aesthetic charm, but it can also make the futuristic setting seem less believable.
As the real world catches up to the fictional futuristic technologies depicted in cinema, there is an increasing number of sci-fi movies that have aged poorly thanks to actual tech developments being much different. This problem is closely related to the sci-fi subgenre of retrofuturism, which fuses the aesthetic of past eras with fantastical sci-fi mechanics. However, while there are retrofuturistic films where dated technologies shine, there are also sci-fi movies where the supposedly futuristic tech has been rendered obsolete by the passage of time and the invention of real products and concepts.
The problem with sci-fi movies set in futures that have passed is that many tend to age poorly, as real-world technological advances have rapidly caught up to sci-fi in recent years. On the other hand, dated technologies showing up in supposedly advanced future timelines is part of the charm of many old sci-fi films. Movies that have aged poorly thanks to real tech aren’t necessarily bad, and some have even been recognized as iconic examples of inadvertent retrofuturism.
I gotta agree with you.
For me, the one thing that really dates a production, and is something mostly seen with TV shows, is cellphones. The Wire could be set in modern times until you see them pull out a flip phone and start talking about the little Nokia burner phones. Same for The X-Files which I’ve been rewatching through lately.