Liberal movies
Not meaning to keep harping on this, but Jim Emerson has written a follow-up column about the Liberal movies of 2005. Column might be overstating, as it's mostly a link to this column by an LA Weekly author, John Powers. The column is a list of the most obvious liberal movies of 2005 (Powers doesn't describe them as the 'best'). The list mostly attacks the movies for being insufficiently liberal. Ironic, as that's what Emerson dismissed conservatives as doing.
Powers suggests that
Powers suggests that
These days, liberals don’t even understand themselves. They’re not sure what they’re supposed to believe in — besides, of course, the monstrosity of the Bush administration.
He then goes on to suggest that even liberal movies are confused. He offers 'I (Heart) Huckabees' as an example. The FP Gal and I rented that last spring and found it vaguely amusing. It details the efforts of a confused young man to find his way in life by hiring metaphysical detectives. It was amusing in a 'boy those new agey types are screwy' way. Only later did we find out that we were laughing at the wrong parts. The director strongly believes in the metaphysics. If that's an example of a liberal movie, the philosophical left is incredible trouble.
In some ways, I find Emerson hard to turn away from. He's so perfect a caricature of everything he speaks out about. In this post he also says that liberals don't understand people who don't understand them. And then suggests that:
If a neocon thinks you don't understand him, he knows exactly what to think: You're evil and a terrorist sympathizer.
It should be obvious to him that if he'd actually, you know, get to know some of those scary people on the other side he could open up and grow some. For the record, I think plenty of people don't understand 'neocons' or the people from the right in general. I don't think Emerson is evil or a terrorist sympathizer, he's just sadly insulated.
He then goes on to suggest that even liberal movies are confused. He offers 'I (Heart) Huckabees' as an example. The FP Gal and I rented that last spring and found it vaguely amusing. It details the efforts of a confused young man to find his way in life by hiring metaphysical detectives. It was amusing in a 'boy those new agey types are screwy' way. Only later did we find out that we were laughing at the wrong parts. The director strongly believes in the metaphysics. If that's an example of a liberal movie, the philosophical left is incredible trouble.
In some ways, I find Emerson hard to turn away from. He's so perfect a caricature of everything he speaks out about. In this post he also says that liberals don't understand people who don't understand them. And then suggests that:
If a neocon thinks you don't understand him, he knows exactly what to think: You're evil and a terrorist sympathizer.
It should be obvious to him that if he'd actually, you know, get to know some of those scary people on the other side he could open up and grow some. For the record, I think plenty of people don't understand 'neocons' or the people from the right in general. I don't think Emerson is evil or a terrorist sympathizer, he's just sadly insulated.
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