ABSTRACT
This chapter critically examines the representation of disability in cinema to problematise the identification of ableist stereotypes. It outlines the trajectory of disability-film analysis as it moves through several stages from social model stereotypes to a cultural analysis of the problem body using the social-realist film Million Dollar Baby. Cinematic codes assist in making stories easier to understand for audiences. The chapter then introduces the importance of science fiction genres such as cyberpunk and post-cyberpunk as they advance core theories of the social model of disability. Science fiction cinema is a particularly rich field in which to observe changing social and political perspectives. The phenomenon of isolation is reflected in the typical storylines of the films and also to a large extent in the ways filmmakers have visualised the characters interacting with their environments. Comedies draw on faked impairment to elicit an emotional response of superiority while humiliation plays a key part in narrative resolution.
