The movie Gattaca concerns itself in the main with the modern day issue of genetic makeup and the impact that this has on all of our lives. It poses the question “what if….?” implying that absolutes are not always as they seem, and that every problem has a solution if one is willing to search hard and long enough to find it. The characters are engaging in as much as we can identify with them – ranging from Vincent who wants to go into space more than anything else before he dies, to his parents who try to make the best of what they deem to be a bad situation, to Vincent’s brother Anton the much wanted and much loved son, and finally the Director of the space mission who only wants to see his life work a come to successful fruition.

The underlying question of what perfection is and whether or not a perfect DNA print is all that one needs to lead a successful and therefore happy life pervades the film as Vincent discovers that most people have agendas, be they for the common good or for selfish personal satisfaction. This is quite a frightening thought given that since the late 20th century there are many cases where people are openly planning to have designer babies or are having children to make up for deficient “spare parts” in other children they already have. Stem cell research is currently being hotly debated in political circles with some governments allowing limited research in this area in order to “correct” defects and illnesses that we already have.

The film brings up the issue of taking all of this one step further by posing the situation where there are several classes of human being – those who have the least number of genetic defects being the favoured ones, whilst others are denied their basic human rights and opportunities. This is indeed an alarming situation.

At the end of the film, however, we see that the two brothers do understand that human feelings are more important than a perfect body – we also see that love between two people, both romantic and filial, overrides scientific considerations and even the flight to outer space can go ahead with at least one imperfect specimen aboard.

The summary notes for Gattaca cover the following key aspects from the text in detail:

• Genre
• Structure
• Historical Issues
• Style
• Background Notes
• Summary
• Character Profiles
• Themes and Issues
• Sample Examination Questions
• Final Examination Tips

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