Tuesday, January 13, 2009

MoViE?!?!?

What do y'all think so far of the movie?
I've heard mixed reviews.

22 comments:

Anonymous said...

I am rather confused by the actions of the actors, its hard to see who is acting and who is just moving out of thier illness. the sex fiend makes it rather interesting when he constantly attacks the girl, and makes me wonder what the character would be if played by a sane person who wasnt controlled by sexual urges.... now only if one of those existed

tmichals said...

Okay, I agree with Dean... I am so confused by the movie! I have never seen anything of this sort and do not know whether to think it's strange and innovative or just plain weird. I still don't really even understand the whole purpose or point of the movie to begin with

puddlewonderful said...

I don't want to try to explain the movie for fear of betraying my poor understanding. But I will say this: I loved the cinematography. It was stimulating, interesting, and artistic. I think it served the play well and furthered its meaning. I enjoyed the film (and the cinematography) a lot.

Aaron Nussdorf said...

I love the movie because the cinimatography is amazing and stunningly artistic.
The frightening thing is that the history is accurate. So, a dialogue could be generated about the actions of the insane and derranged, sane mob.

Caroline said...

I think the movie is very strange and sometimes I have trouble understanding what they're saying. Maybe if I could hear them better, I would be able to appreciate it.

Anonymous said...

so, the movie reminded me a greek play because of the chorus. their make up also reminded me of the greek masks. i find it difficult to imagine all of the asylum people memorizing all of those lines since they are supposedly missing some of their mental faculties.

Anonymous said...

i agree with jane, the 4 people did make up a chorus that wasn't governed by the laws of the play, they were outside of the action and i think it was amazing how well they served their purpose.

Aaron Nussdorf said...

I shall pose a bizzare question: How is insane?: Marat for his overzealous beliefs, Sade for his twisted belief in the relationship between destruction, sex and dominance; the French people for losing their individuality by the mob causing the French Revolution, or the viewers of the play for the imprisonmet of people and structure of society which is bias and not completely fair?

puddlewonderful said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
puddlewonderful said...

I think-- and perhaps I am really not fit to make such assumptions, but-- that the play probably has at least a few postmodernism characteristics to it. The characters exist on two planes, and we are called to accept their dual roles, either with the willing suspension of disbelief, or simply with appreciation for the breach of tradition (and its purpose) rather than distaste. First, they are inmates performing a play-- they are crazy and say their lines funny. But, in other ways, they show clarity of mind, foresight; they memorize their lines, ad-lib profound and well-versed phrases. By filling both these roles (as madmen and philosophers, inane and profound characters with complete lack of awareness and then great acuity) they seem to add commentary to the action, to give more meaning to what they do with their awareness of it. They blur the lines between insanity and sanity, and, as Nussdorf mentioned, call us to question how we really should define those terms-- or if there is any difference between our world and a madhouse.

Marat/Sade is confusing, stimulating, and fantastic. I like this movie more than I should.

Anonymous said...

i think the two roles of the characters, as inmates and as actors, are a clever way of showcasing the ideas that the movie brings forth and the other ideas it challenges. since the characters are mentally ill, we're never really sure if they believe in what the play suggests or if they are even conscious of what they are doing.

El Paco said...

What's the point of a revolution without general copulation?

That song has been stuck in my head all day. Thanks Michelle

Caroline said...

I didn't really understand the ending... I mean it kind of looked like they just all freaked out. Anyone care to explain?

Ehren said...

I thought the acting was good, considering the fact that the actors had to pretend to be crazy inmates acting in a play. I thought they were convincing as loonies who were trying to put on a production while at the same time trying to control their impulses.

Anonymous said...

I agree with ehren, the sex offender and the narcoleptic were very interesting to watch. the actors were amazing, and they really had a feel of being insane, even if their illness wasnt told.

Caroline said...

I agree that the actors did a really good job at being convincing I just didnt know if there was something symbolic about the ending that I didn't pick up on.

puddlewonderful said...

I think the movie functions on one level as a social commentary; as Jane and I have said, the inmates' oscillating levels of sanity make us question the sanity of regular society. If we see their ludicrous actions as commentaries on the ridiculousness, the insanity, of society & government &c., then the end, to me, is extremely powerful. After all these attempts at government, after all this organization, and dreaming of a perfectly governed perfect society, everything just decays into madness, into chaos-- and isn't that just what everything is? Even if we pretend that peace has come to the nation and that society has reached its pinnacle, we are wrong-- just as Marat told us, we cannot be lulled into complacency. We are simply ignoring the insanity before us-- the insanity so frighteningly presented at the movie's end.

El Paco said...

I like movies

Anonymous said...

I did enjoy the fact that the sanity of society is questioned because that is not a common theme in most literature. Typically like in the classical period we define society as rational and sane but certainly some of our actions could be described as insane in extreme situations.

Mr. Plainview said...

Now that some deal of time has passed since I viewed the film, I realize just how much I was struck by the choreography of the musical pieces. Though the cast was made up of unique individuals, the musical pieces maintained a steady rhythm. They almost seemed professional in their execution.

Aaron Nussdorf said...

In response to Ehren: I found the ending disturbing; however, it had its place. Sade suggests that mankind must take pleasure, usually sexual, in the act of destruction. So the chaos and disregard for "human sanctity" demonstrate that people destroy out of inherent behaviors.

Anonymous said...

this movie interested me very much, however, similar to Dean it was hard to tell if the actors were acting crazy all the time or just actually being crazy! Yet, i believe it was a little bit of both. this movie was very exciting to me and it kept me entertained.