Gattaca

In the not-too-distant future, a less-than-perfect man wants to travel to the stars. Society has categorized Vincent Freeman as less than suitable given his genetic make-up and he has become one of the underclass of humans that are only useful for menial jobs. To move ahead, he assumes the identity of Jerome Morrow, a perfect genetic specimen who is a paraplegic as a result of a car accident. With professional advice, Vincent learns to deceive DNA and urine sample testing. Just when he is finally scheduled for a space mission, his program director is killed and the police begin an investigation, jeopardizing his secret.

toc

Trailer
media type="youtube" key="ZppWok6SX88" width="425" height="350"

Vincent Freeman
The protagonist of the film, Vincent Freeman is a "god-child" -- conceived without the use of genetic engineering. Upon birth he is diagnosed with a heart condition and is only expected to live for 30 years. Despite this, Vincent is determined to achieve his dream of working at Gattaca and going into space, taking on the identity of Jerome Morrow to hide his Invalid self.

Anton Freeman
Vincent's brother, Anton is the second child of Antonio and Marie Freeman. Genetically engineered (the "natural" way), Anton is superior in strength and intelligence -- a son "worthy of his father's name". Anton grows up to be a detective, but finds that his natural abilities do not match up to the determination of his Invalid brother.

Jerome "Eugene" Morrow
A member of the genetic elite, Eugene was destined to be a champion swimmer but has fallen on hard times after failing to meet these expectations. Now crippled and in a wheelchair, Eugene sells his genetic identity to Vincent, preferring to spend his time drinking and socialising.

Irene Cassini
A worker at Gattaca, Irene is keen to earn her spot in the Titan mission. However, despite being a Valid, she has a heart defect and is required to take medication. She is envious of Vincent's supposedly perfect genes, but develops a love interest in him, eventually being exposed to his dark secret.

Dr Lamar
Lamar is Vincent's first contact at Gattaca under the guise of Jerome Morrow. He performs the "interview" -- merely testing a drop of urine -- allowing "Jerome" to work at Gattaca. Lamar frequently tests the workers using blood and urine samples, and often converses with Vincent, telling him about his son -- a big fan of Vincent, but not exactly what he was made out to be.

Director Josef
Head of the Titan mission at Gattaca. He is an authoritative figure who is committed to launching the mission on time. He seems to have his own agenda, working reluctantly with the investigators after the murder of the mission controller. A Valid, the Director insists that there is "not one violent bone in his body".

Detective Hugo
An Invalid, Hugo is subordinate to Anton. As a detective, Hugo does the dirty work -- searching for clues, rounding up suspects and often disagreeing with his superior. Hugo is old-fashioned and distrustful of the younger Anton's experience, but he obeys orders nonetheless.

Caesar
The head janitor at Gattaca and an Invalid. Caesar is Vincent's boss when he first arrives at Gattaca, and is dismissive of Vincent's naive dreams of space exploration. He continues to work at Gattaca while Vincent becomes a navigator, occasionally encountering Vincent/Jerome -- though there is some mystery as to whether he still recognises his old subordinate.

German
The genetic broker, a man who "doesn't exactly advertise in the Yellow Pages". Vincent comes into contact with German after realising that his efforts to train and study were futile without a Valid identity. German measures him up and pairs him with Jerome "Eugene" Morrow, performing Vincent's transformation while taking a cut of his earnings.

Antonio and Marie Freeman
Parents of Vincent and Anton. Though originally keen on having a natural birth, they are disheartened by Vincent's poor life expectancy; Antonio being especially disappointed and refusing to name his first son after himself. Having experienced the harsh standards in society, the Freemans elect to have their second son, Anton, genetically engineered. Though Marie cares for Vincent, Antonio breaks it to him that "the only way he'll see the inside of a spaceship is if he's cleaning one". He dies believing he had outlived his son.

Discrimination

 * What forms of discrimination are there in Gattaca?
 * What is the danger, according to the film on relying solely on DNA in judging the worth of a human being?
 * Contrast the life the Valids lead with that of the In-valids
 * Genoism is illegal- but can it be controlled?
 * Comment on the appearance of the Valids –physically and possibly intellectually
 * What are the advantages and disadvantages of creating a group of people like this?
 * Eugene, despite being Valid, is also a victim of discrimination? How? Why?
 * Are human beings inherently discriminatory?

Future Society

 * Quest for perfection
 * Does Science need to be controlled by ethics?
 * Just because it can be done should it be done?
 * What gets lost along the way?
 * What view of the the future is Gattaca giving us?

Film Noir

 * [|Film Noir compilation]
 * [|How to Make a Film Noir]
 * [|Elements of film noir]

Sci-Fi

 * [|Science Fiction - A video compilation]
 * [|Science Fiction montage (1998)]
 * [|A brief history of science fiction]
 * [|The Sci-Fi film 101]

Themes
[|Themes table]

Characters
[|Character Viewing Notes (Orientation)] =**SAC- Text Response**=

[|Gattaca essay topic focus] [|Gattaca topic types mini lecture essay plans]