Dr. Strangelove? -- Chris Hansen
Was anyone else thoroughly bored by this movie? Skimming the last couple of posts, there seems to be something going on within this movie that I simply did not catch on to. The movie had its moments, but ultimately, comedies are ineffective (in my opinion of course) when it comes to critiquing something as subjective as governmental policies. As a class, we viewed this movie already knowing it was a dark comedy attempting to satirize and poke fun (and ultimately critique) the government. Therefore, why bother with the comedy part? Anyone who views this movie strictly for enjoyment purposes will not think twice about the underlying meanings, and anyone who views it to study its critique doesn't need it to be a comedy, because we aren't necessarily interested in the humor. It reminds me of the book "Animal Farm," which I am sure many of you are familiar with. I first read this book when I was very young, and did not understand its deeper intention as a critique of Soviet Russia. I simply found it a good and enjoyable book. Once I was told it was a parallel to the old Soviet government, I had to go back and read the book again because it required an entirely different frame of mind to analyze it as a satire. George Orwell was able to succeed in writing a book that was both enjoyable and meaningful (consider it an anomaly), while Dr. Strangelove falls short on both counts, as it is neither extremely funny nor extremely influential in its message. Films and shows involving bumbling idiots is a common genre (The Three Stooges, Family Guy, Hot Shots!), and just because these bumbling idiots are cast as leaders of the two most powerful nations in the world does not suddenly make this film a political satire. I feel Stanley Kubrick may have tried to draw more significance out of this movie than there actually is, and while there are certainly some good points to be made about government policies, this movie makes none.
-Chris Hansen