I Slept On This Movie About Asshole Rich People In Space
The 2013 sci-fi movie ‘Elysium’ is a dark fable about the haves vs. the have nothings
The politics of Elysium were too over-the-top during the go-go Obama years. This special effects-heavy science-fiction fairy tale starring Matt Damon as a former thief-turned-cyborg freedom fighter was about two worlds, a desolate Earth populated by the hopeless poor and a glittering space station in orbit named Elysium where wealthy white people live, in peace and harmony. At the time, I thought the concept was too simplistic for 2013.
Everything was going so well back then. We had a president who was cool. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of same-sex marriage. A few years prior, the Affordable Care Act was passed to much fanfare and criticism and what we didn’t know then was the sick would still be begging for help with their hospital bills less than a decade later.
The president was cool, though.
What else? Argo, Ben Affleck’s drama about the Iran hostage crisis, won the Oscar for best picture. The Baltimore Ravens defeated the San Francisco 49ers at the Super Bowl. Donald Trump brought the Miss Universe pageant to Moscow.
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