Historical films about Hitler and Nazi Germany are perennially popular both within and beyond the academy. However, even in films not set in, or in any way involving, Nazi Berlin but rather only filmed on location in the city, material memories of the city’s fascist spaces can be shown to exert their influence. In comparing the eerily similar geo-aesthetic styles of two relatively obscure, relatively recent science fiction action films—Kurt Wimmer’s Equilibrium (2002) and Karen Kusama’s Aeon Flux (2005)—this contribution seeks to understand how the historically inflected spatial dimension of its urban imaginary has translated into a discernibly dark and spectacularly gendered film style.
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