Introduction:

The Gattaca movie was published in 1997, produced by Danny DeVit, and written and directed by Andrew Niccol. The characters in the movie are Vincent Freeman, Jerome Morrow, Irene Cassini, detective Hugo, and detective Josef. The movie is about genetic modification. It focuses on its main protagonist, Vincent Freeman. Vincent’s lifelong dream is to go to outer space and join the Gattaca. However, he was not qualified according to the Gattaca system because he was considered genetically inferior or “in-valid”.  But he did not give up and he  was very determined to make his dream come true the only option he is left with is getting the genes of a superior person which is a person that Gattaca will be considered a “valid” participant. Vincent purchased the genes for Jerome Morrow who is ideal for deceiving Gattaca.

Although Vincet was able to join Gattaca assuming to be Jerome, he faced many challenges. First was his brother Anton Freeman. Anton was a detective and he was responsible for the case  that led him close to revealing his brother.

Methods:

The movie was in 1997 and included very advanced scientific technology compared to the science at that time. The Gattaca center was using samples like blood and urine from the participants to find out who the sample belongs to and the machine they were using will show a picture of the person. Vincent was conceived naturally unlike his brother Anton who was created in the not and went through genetic modification. At the time the movie was produced the science did not reach gene modification in humans, it was only applied to somatic cells not inherited cells. Manipulating human beings’ features using the sperm and egg is something that is still going and lots of researchers are interested in this field.

Results:

The movie was not so accurate according to the year it was made, which is 1997. Science and technology were not as advanced as it was. The machine Gattaca used to  identify individuals using a sample from their DNA we still do not have until now. In 1997  gene modification  for plants and bacteria was already applied in 1973. However, gene modification from humans was not done yet.

Discussion:

The movie discussed an important topic in the science field and will reflect on our lives, Gene modification. Vincent was not able to join Gattaca because he was born naturally without modification intervention to his genes. He faced a lot of challenges because he was labeled as “invalid”. The movie Gattaca is used in public debates as a reference because the theme of the movie was how gene modification distinguishes between people and created limitations and boundaries for Vincent and how genetically customized Gene modification has its negative impacts and consequences that can lead to discrimination. Vincent says, “I belonged to a new underclass, no longer determined by social status or the color of your skin. No, we now have discrimination down to a science.”