Art House (Every Other) Tuesday #169

The Pervert's Guide to Ideology (2012)

Hey all,

I hope some of you got to enjoy The Pervert's Guide to Ideology. This is far from the usual fare we dive into here. The Pervert's Guide to Ideology is not a narrative film; it's not even a traditional documentary. Instead, it's a walk through the hidden ideologies found in popular films. I personally love this kind of heady exercise. But, director Sophie Fiennes didn't just make the film for weirdos like me. What could be a boring lecture, she elevates with her commitment to cinematic re-creation. Our resident cultural theorist for this journey, Slavoj Zizek, doesn't stand at a podium and spout his theories. He speaks to us from within the films themselves, the very source where the ideologies express themselves. From the latrines in Full Metal Jacket to Travis Bickle's apartment in Taxi Driver, he occupies immaculately re-creation. Cutting from Robert De Niro talking into the mirror to Zizek on the other side of the same room imbues his commentary with power. By talking from inside the films, he joins us in the imagined space where we first encountered the ideas, like dream analysis from inside the dream.

Watching a movie, even in a crowded public theater, is a private experience. Whether engaged in for simple decompression or for communing with something outside yourself, it is always a space removed from the concerns of the real world. The most radical act the film commits is the breakdown of this barrier. Heightened by its focus on popular Hollywood films, Slavoj Zizek relentlessly draws beloved films into the light of real world politics and history by analyzing their deeper meaning. He shows films as both reflections of beliefs within a society and tools for reinforcing those ideas. This interplay beckons us to watch more critically and more responsibly, to better digest the media we consume. Will we ever be clever enough to draw connections between Nazis and Jaws? No, but we are all capable of taking one step past the surface level offering. We can think beyond the enjoyment of our favorite summer blockbusters and towards the worldview they silently impress upon us. So if you're into being talked at for two hours this one's for you.

                     "Ideology is our spontaneous relationship to our social world."

                                                                Short Ends

                                                Normcore Double Feature
                                         Is the Man Who Is Tall Happy? (2013)

                                                           Further Research
                                                             Room 237 (2012)

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This week we're jumping back into the joys of subjective cinema. This week we're watching Lynne Ramsay's '99 offering: Ratcatcher

You can see the film streaming on Criterion or Max

At first glance, this is the kind of film that usually has me bracing for emotional impact. The kind of social realist film that presents an unvarnished look at the lives of the have-nots of society. Like Ken Loach's Kes, this one focuses on the innocent youth of the underclass. How do young kids deal with impossible circumstances? How do they relate to the unfair position they find themselves in society? Maybe everything will be fine! Join me and find out.

As always, if you want to join me to chat Tuesday after watching the film you can't, no one has the time for that. But you can join the Discord conversation here at your own convenience here:

                                                  https://discord.gg/nf2qxDdv9t

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Sincerely,
Jesse Sperling
jessesperling.com
@sperlingsilver

***We do not encourage any illegal pirating of media or any illegal activity of any kind. Probably should have always had this disclaimer...