I just wanted to post this while it was fresh in my mind.
In Leonard Maltin's class tonight we watched a documentary called "I Am" directed by Tom Shadyac that sets about asking the questions 1. What is wrong with the world? and 2. How can we fix it? The bulk of the film is concerned with exploring how cooperation, compassion, empathy, and love are integral parts of the human experience and should be employed to build a more sustainable, better world. However, something that really caught my attention and immediately made me think about some of the issues we have been talking about came in the opening third of the film where Shadyac diagnoses what he refers to as "the sickness" of our culture. In this segment, Shadyac hints at the forces of consumerism, neo-liberalism, and cannibalism, among others, that have created a culture that has moved away from caring about people to a culture that is committed to caring about consumers and the satisfaction of the needs of the individual above all other concerns.
I found the film extremely thought provoking in all respects and wanted to urge you all to see it when it opens in L.A. on March 11. Perhaps we would be able to analyze how the film examines some of the topics we've encountered.
End of plug. More academic posts to follow!
Ah! You posted something about this movie before I did!
ReplyDeleteAnd I absolutely agree with what Ryan is saying about the movie. It was moving (I promise that this is my last pun). And, I kept hearing our class discussions playing back in my head. As far as the neo-liberalist connection goes, I thought that the film had a great critique of the US's push for other countries to adopt similar practices.
As a very interesting side note, the director/conceiver of this movie, Tom Shadyac, has effectively stunted his consumerism. He sold his humongous house and his private jet; he hasn't had a cell phone for three years; he bikes to work. Oh, and he's not making money off this movie, he declared that any money it does make is going to charity. He is challenging the world in a head-on way. I for one, am interested to see how long he can fight the system and what the results are.
(Aniko, this might be a good film to add to your syllabus at some point.)
Thank you, both. I will definitely check it out.
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