In the 1997 film “Gattaca,” Vincent, the narrator and protagonist, tells the audience that he will “never understand what possessed [his] mother to put her faith in God’s hands, rather than her local geneticist.”

“Gattaca” is a film about genetic engineering and the human spirit set in the “not-too-distant future.” Well, as former Washington Redskins coach George Allen used to say: “the future is now.”

In the movie, a process known as pre-implantation genetic diagnosis allows prospective parents to choose those embryos containing the best-possible combination of hereditary traits. But because Vincent’s parents conceived him the “old-fashioned” way, in the back seat of a car, he’s relegated to second-class citizen status.

“Gattaca” is considered to be one of the best science fiction films of the past 25 years, but we seem to be on the verge of turning the world it depicts into science fact.

Read the article