Soylent Green: Difference between revisions

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.
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[[File:soylent-green-poster_401.jpg|frame| [[It Was His Sled|What is the secret of Soylent Green? Do you really have to ask?]] ]]
[[File:soylent-green-poster_401.jpg|frame| [[It Was His Sled|What is the secret of Soylent Green? Do you really have to ask?]] ]]



{{quote|''"SOYLENT GREEN IS {{spoiler|PEOPLE}}!!!"''|'''Detective Thorn''' (Charlton Heston)}}
{{quote|''"SOYLENT GREEN IS {{spoiler|PEOPLE}}!!!"''|'''Detective Thorn''' (Charlton Heston)}}
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=== The film contains the following examples: ===
* [[All There Is to Know About "The Crying Game"]]: That Soylent Green is people is generally known -- and that knowledge brings some folk to the film. The big reveal ain't gonna work for them.
* [[All There Is to Know About "The Crying Game"]]: That Soylent Green is people is generally known -- and that knowledge brings some folk to the film. The big reveal ain't gonna work for them.
* [[Alter Kocker]]: Sol Roth, a grumpy but charming N.Y. Jew who's seen better days.
* [[Alter Kocker]]: Sol Roth, a grumpy but charming N.Y. Jew who's seen better days.

Revision as of 15:24, 21 January 2015

What is the secret of Soylent Green? Do you really have to ask?
"SOYLENT GREEN IS PEOPLE!!!"
Detective Thorn (Charlton Heston)

Soylent Green is a Science Fiction film from 1973 starring Charlton Heston, loosely based on a 1966 Harry Harrison novel called Make Room! Make Room!. Everyone knows the big plot twist.

The year is 2022. Overpopulation has brought environmental and economic collapse. In New York City (pop. 40,000,000), Detective Thorn is investigating the burglary-turned-murder of a wealthy businessman, William Simonson of the food rations manufacturer Soylent Corporation. Based on the fact that there were valuable food and books left for him to steal, and that his bodyguard Fielding and 'furniture' Shirl were conveniently away at the time, Thorn believes it to be an assassination. He gives Simonson's oceanographic survey (which he himself stole) to his roommate, Sol Roth, a book collector, and they have a memorable scene cooking up the food he also stole from the late Mr. Simonson.

In his investigation, he discovers that Fielding has more money than his job would provide, thus placing him under suspicion. Thorn is then called off the investigation and put on riot control duty, where an attempt is made on his life. He manages to get the assassin crushed under a people-scooping bulldozer.

Roth, having uncovered a terrible secret in the oceanographic survey, has lost the will to live and decides to take government-sponsored euthanasia. Thorn finds him at the suicide clinic, only in time to hear his last words. He follows Roth's corpse along to a factory that processes the dead into Soylent Green biscuits. He makes a call to his chief, Hatcher, and is ambushed by Fielding. Mortally wounded, he urges Hatcher to tell people the truth about Soylent Green, thus providing the famous quote.

For the trope previously known as the titular food, see Powered by a Forsaken Child, Human Resources.


Tropes used in Soylent Green include:

The book contains the following examples:

  • Crapsack World: In addition to the everything crapsack-y about the movie, the transportation system has completely broken down. In other words, everyone is trapped in the city; The only vehicles mentioned are old buses taken from a history museum, used by the police, running on extremely low grade fuel.
  • Twenty Minutes Into the Future: The book was written in 1966 and set in 1999.
  • Used Future: The book is somehow more used than the movie.