From: gyoungblood (email suppressed)
Date: Fri Feb 09 2007 - 17:10:36 PST
Thanks for putting so much effort into this, Freya. Of course people can be
very individual and still work together for change. In fact, there is no
other possibility. Lockstep conformism never produces fundamental change.
And also, individuality and individualism are very different things. My
premise (hardly unique) is that a population so deeply ingrained in
individualism as we are is bound to be as tragically depoliticized as we
are. That's a truism, and I would not waste my time dwelling on it. It's
just the starting point for a certain argument I want to make, which, as I
said, I don't have time to go into now. Thanks again for your input.
-- gene
----- Original Message -----
From: "Freya" <email suppressed>
To: <email suppressed>
Sent: Friday, February 09, 2007 4:58 PM
Subject: Re: [FRAMEWORKS] individualism in films
> Eraserhead is a great example I suspect! Yes! I love
> Eraserhead of course but there we are.
>
> I think Jacks suggestion of Children of Men sounds
> completely spot on for what you are looking for! I've
> not seen the film, but it sounds like the two of them
> face up against the ills of the world and try to
> rescue the world from itself.
>
> I'm thinking A.I. might work with your thesis?
>
> If wonder if fireworks by Kenneth Anger might not fit
> the bill from the world of experiemntal film. Kenneth
> the lone figure gets beaten up by a bunch of sailors
> who are the representatives of state control enforcing
> the values of the state on him. Yet in a way Kenneth
> emerges the winner from the affair, because, well you
> know...
>
> and "At Land" by Maya Deren features Maya breaking up
> the chess game by running off laughing with one of the
> pieces, and doesn't she disturb a dinner party too as
> I remember? Very much a story of the individual
> fighting to be themselves against the constraints of
> society.
>
> Far from Heaven by Todd Haynes, All that Heaven
> Allows? Gattaca? Thelma and Louise? Alien/Aliens etc?
>
> Metropolis, but that's erm a little too old I think!
>
> I have to say that I also don't agree with the idea
> behined the thesis, but then my favourite film of all
> that I have discovered so far is Freaks by Todd
> Browning. A Universal monster movie in which the
> monsters aren't the people you would expect (as is
> often the case in real life). I believe that people
> can still be very individual and can work collectively
> for change.
>
> ...but maybe you should watch it after you have
> written your thesis and received great grades! I
> certainly don't want to throw you off your work! :)
>
> Hmmm, well if Jack can have Happy Feet (I will try and
> check it out sometime), then I want to go for Lilo and
> Stitch. In my opinion the greatest Disney film in a
> very long time. I was very happy when it came out in
> fact as I was decrying the state of modern Disney
> films.
>
> Snow white is pure atmosphere, Jungle book has great
> songs and Lilo and stitch has one of the best stories
> in Disney land ever.
>
> It is about a mad scientist (he prefers the term evil
> genius) who creates a weapon of mass destruction
> called "experiment 626". The galactic council find out
> and he is on trial for his despicable crimes. They
> decide to dump experiment 626 off on an uninhabited
> asteroid where he can run amok as much as he likes and
> destroy anything.
>
> The well meaning plan of the galactic council goes
> awry however and 626 escapes. 626 lands on what seems
> to be a fairly insignificant planet and everyone is
> relieved until they realise it is actually an
> important nature reserve for the endangered creature
> "the mosquito", which is terribly important. 626 leaps
> out of the spaceship, runs out and promptly gets hit
> by a truck.
>
> Meanwhile lilo, a little girl who is too weird to have
> any friends, is living with her older sister who takes
> care of her. Social services are quite concerned and
> want to take lilo into care. Lilo wants a dog and her
> sister takes her to the dog pound. Of course lilo
> picks the wierdist dog there, experiment 626, who she
> decides to call "stitch". Everyone tries to convince
> lilo to have "a normal dog" instead of the ugly and
> horrible thing, but lilo has very much made her mind
> up and insists she wants Stitch.
>
> The rest of the film plays out with the struggle of
> the characters to survive against the galactic
> council, social services, and the "evil genius".
>
> The film only came into being because the creators
> were felt to have done a great job on Mulan (another
> film that might be worth looking at) and so were
> allowed to make their weird film in a corner as long
> as they didn't spend too much money, while the rest of
> Disney made treasure planet which would be a great
> success and make Disney, loads and loads of money!
> Only of course it wasn't and it didn't.
>
> Treasure Planet is the only film I have ever walked
> out on! I paid 20p to see it. I wish I had bought
> chocolate instead but hindsight is easy. ;)
>
> love
>
> Freya
>
> --- Cari Machet <email suppressed> wrote:
>
>> erasurhead
>>
>> speaking of
>> saw a little interview w/ him recently
>> he said he was now only shooting in digital
>> called film a dinasour
>> said he would never go back to shooting in film
>>
>> donnie darko
>> requiem for a dream
>> last days
>> demonlover
>> gummo
>> dogville
>>
>> these films are about the afterfx of social control
>> - need for control of
>> others
>> the pit(falls) of xing out a person/people - xing
>> out urself
>>
>> needless to say i geuss - that i think ur thesis is
>> more than not logical
>>
>> c
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ____________________________________________________________________________________
> We won't tell. Get more on shows you hate to love
> (and love to hate): Yahoo! TV's Guilty Pleasures list.
> http://tv.yahoo.com/collections/265
>
>
> __________________________________________________________________
> For info on FrameWorks, contact Pip Chodorov at <email suppressed>.
>
__________________________________________________________________
For info on FrameWorks, contact Pip Chodorov at <email suppressed>.