tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7610074516299275060.post5329204754549175376..comments2020-06-30T11:22:45.684-04:00Comments on Lost in the Movies: Force of EvilJoel Bockohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11238338958380683893noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7610074516299275060.post-29673005361587428982008-09-25T09:29:00.000-04:002008-09-25T09:29:00.000-04:00Do you mean "get off the fence" in terms of recogn...Do you mean "get off the fence" in terms of recognizing the film's ideology, or in terms of endorsing it? If the former, I would say I'm confident that the movie endorses a Leftist stance but also that this is the (barely submerged) subtext and hence I don't want to overstate the film's political credentials - though its slightly buried ideology is what fascinated me most about the movie.<BR/><BR/>If you mean the former, than political engagement with the film becomes problematic. If you dig just beneath the surface you get a stringent anti-corporate, individualist ethos which certainly does resonate today (and I do mean TODAY, not just "today"). But keep digging and you get to Polonsky's Communist ideology, which I certainly do not endorse. And go further and you butt up against Stalinism which, as I acknowledged, does not at all come into play within the world of the film, but certainly was a part of Polonsky's political background and hence informed his ideological vision.<BR/><BR/>At any rate, I am generally more interested in exploring a film's ideology than endorsing/rejecting it, except in terms of how it is expressed within the film and plays into the other elements.Joel Bockohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11238338958380683893noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7610074516299275060.post-48767838852681380992008-09-22T19:31:00.000-04:002008-09-22T19:31:00.000-04:00An original anaylsis, but limited by your reluctan...An original anaylsis, but limited by your reluctance to get off the fence. Force Of Evil and Body and Soul, where Polonsky wrote the screenplay and Garfield also stars, are not only savage leftist critiques of capitalism, but are rooted in individual responsibility for one's role in the system. In both movies, the Garfield character breaks the chains of 'false consciousness' and seeks the path of redemption.<BR/><BR/>Both films resonate deeply today, where corporate greed and the failure to take responsibility are destroying lives all over the globe.Tony D'Ambrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00359495250856189815noreply@blogger.com