For a few weeks now, I have been meaning to watch a movie my sister found on Netflix called What Happened to Monday. Most Netflix movies are crap in my opinion but this one was actually a decent production that you wouldn’t think Netflix produced. This movie scared the Himalayas out of me. It is not a horror movie (thank God because those movies scare me big time) but it is certainly a wake up call we need.

The movie is based on a near futuristic world where overpopulation has resulted in the need for more food and electricity. There is not enough food for everyone, fossil fuels are being used more and more, agriculture is drying up, and environmental crises, such as droughts and the rise in sea level are occurring more frequently. These results become so extreme that governments around the world genetically modify plants so that they grow faster, therefore food is always available and no one stays hungry. However, playing with nature in such a way causes women to have multiple babies during a pregnancy. This forces governments all over the world to adopt a one-child policy. The eldest child is allowed to be raised whilst any other children following it are taken into cryosleep and are to be awaken when the world is in a better place when the population decreases.

Seven sisters. Septuplets. They break the system. The uncover deadly truths that the authoritarian government is keeping hidden. With the same face, they each get one day a week to be Karen Settman; it is as if they are all but one person to the real world. It all starts with the first septuplet; Monday, who goes missing. Her sisters set out to find out what happened to her. I won’t tell you what actually does happen to her because I highly recommend you watch this movie. How the movie ends is mind-blowing. We really should not be naïve In believing the authorities.

The movie really made me imagine our world being in such a state. I do love dystopias and I someday will write a dystopian novel. My dad says I watch too many movies however it is these movies that make so much sense. Do you ever picture what the world will be like in thirty years? We live very comfortable lives today that it bothers us to think that such a “perfect” world might not exist in the future. Personally, I believe that at the rate we are going, will fall into a dystopian state and it will all be our own doing.

How will we become a dystopian world? It all stems from the environment. Our resources on this planet are limited and us human beings are increasing in number. Overpopulation is already showing effects on the environment yet it is only to get worse. What Happened to Monday shows a very clear image of what our world may become in the future. We will end up adopting such a one-child policy. We will end up eating every single type of animal or insect on this planet, as long as we survive. Yes, I mean rats and cockroaches.

There will not be anymore fossil fuels someday. We will have to adopt to renewable energy sources just to maintain our comfortable living. Drinking water will become scarce. The temperature will continue to increase and the sea level will continue to rise. We will continue eating more and more animals and they will not be able to reproduce fast enough for us to have food to eat. Buildings will continue to rise. Our governments will have to take drastic measures. We will fall into authoritarianism. These things will happen someday. Maybe not today, but someday and we need to sustain our children’s futures.

It scares me to think that as a race, we will fall into such crises. It scares me that the world we live in will not be able to inhabit us anymore. The only way to move forward would be to sacrifice. This means reducing our population size in the worst way possible. After watching What Happened to Monday, you will know what I mean by this.

Such movies and TV shows are truly realistic. I do think they give a scary prediction of our future. We can easily fall into such times and we must prevent this. Our governments need to put aside their politics and work together to ensure a good-quality future for us, the citizens. Along with our governments, we need to do our part. We need to act. Our part might seem small yet we are a large population and such change starts from taking care of our environment… before it takes over us.