Supelice Dreadfully Boring

Konterr Brilliant and touching

Ezmae Chang This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Scotty Burke It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

paul2001sw-1 Sophie Fiennes' film, 'The Pervert's Guide To Ideology', is essentially just an illustrated lecture, given by Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Zizek. The illustrations come from the movies, but in the main, Zizek isn't interested in the ideologies of the film makers - rather, he uses selections from the films' content as illustrative of the processes of real life, and the ideology he is interested in is not Nazism, or communism, but rather the way we all frame our own lives, and the universal themes linking our need for and use of such frames. Some of this universalist framework comes from psychoanalysis, although Zizek's Freudian perspective only really manifests itself in occasional unproven assertions that the it is the analytic process that has revealed the truth. Finnes shoots this well, and Zivek is intermittently interesting, but overall, the message is both highbrow and yet strangely unrevalatory; I found it hard to understand what I was meant to take away from this film, or in other words, what the film's own ideological case actually was. It's almost better enjoyed as a simple piece of discursive criticism than a coherent (or, for want of a better word, we might say "ideological") discussion of ideology.

temrok9 I wasn't expecting much, I must say;I watched this movie because it was a gift of a magazine I bought and thought of giving it a chance.But at the first frame, I jumped up with enthusiasm;John Carpenter's They live is acknowledged as a masterpiece. Zizek is a very clever man and his remarks are brilliant.Furthermore, as the film unfolds, it becomes obvious that through the different topics there's a theory that is elaborated here, and it is so perfectly illustrated that it is better watched than read.I must say that I have read Zizek in the past, and I used to read a lot of Lacan, so I am acquainted with the ideas expressed, but I found them here expressed with such clarity, that impressed me and even influenced me, all the more since they fit with my way of thinking and the way I stand against Ideology.I even understood better why I am a devoted fan of John Carpenter and why I dislike Titanic and Nolan's Batman.Overall, a superb movie that makes you really think and consider things(Zizek is a brilliant thinker, lending his pair of glasses to look through), that does not cease to bring joy.An even resurrecting experience also, for which I am grateful.

rlcigars2 As a philosopher Slavoj Zizek has impressive credentials and ideas worth studying. In this movie however, he seems to present a skeptics point of view on his opinion and subject which can be dangerous. Many the counter facts presented are just plain incorrect. The arguments are presented as a "Don't believe them, believe this" structure which is unusually, I'd expect a offering of information rather being told what to believe. The movie is worth watching if you're willing to follow up with your own research to get better information and answers than presented in this movie. If not, then viewing this movie alone is dangerous and it stands as irresponsible product.

Timos Almpanis The pervert's guide to ideology is a thought provoking documentary, but at the same time enjoyable and full of wit. Ideology is so ingrained in society that it has affected our dreams. If we want to change our reality we need to change our dreams first. That seems to be the main theme of the film. Applying psychoanalytic theory to film interpretation, Slavoj Zizek attempts to uncover the hidden meaning of many Hollywood films.The first film commented by Zizek is 'They Live' which is about a man who finds a special pair of sunglasses that allows him to see the real, scary and subliminal message behind posters and adverts in magazines, but also the real monstrous face of some of those living around him. This sets the tone for the film. For the next two hours Zizek attempts to uncover the hidden, subliminal and controlling messages of a number of films produced over the last 50 years. His argument is that Hollywood dictates our fantasies, dreams and desires through ideology. Taking this further, Zizek comments that the ultimate engineered fantasy is not 'to take what we want but to want to be desired'.Desire, is not just a desire for something, but also a 'desire for desire itself'. This is the main way that capitalism works. There is an urge to consume: 'people nowadays are made to feel guilty because they don't enjoy themselves enough', he claims. For Zizek, there is no 'big other', no guaranteed, inherent meaning. We are alone and we have to live with that. All ideology is constructed for manipulation and control. The Titanic for instance, demonstrates that 'it is OK for the high classes when they are in low vitality to mix temporarily and sexually exploit the lower classes'. Vampires and the undead are also a demonstration of the class struggle, with the blood sucking vampires representing the high classes. Similarly, the shark in Jaws represents all fears of American people; Americans may fear natural disasters, aliens, immigrants or other, and the shark unifies all those fears. This ideology was adopted by the Nazis who unified the enemy in the face of the Jews, according to Zizek.Are Zizek's psychoanalytic explanations to films 'real'? This is up to you to decide; however, they sound plausible and are worthwhile for consideration. Regardless of whether you agree with him or not, Zizek will change the way you watch films and Hollywood will never be the same again.