In this documentary bell hooks draws upon many things that are of great importance in the discussion of defining queer cinema. Firstly, a concept that is key throughout academia is to read and think critically. It is therefore important in this instance as well. bell hooks eludes to the significance of critical thinking particularly when she talks about how in film, the importance is not always the emotion that the movie evokes in a viewer but rather the overall meaning. This is important to remember when watching films because although the feelings that come about may be an indication of what is really going on, they may also be misleading in deciphering the message. This is why critical analysis is important, that is, dissecting the parts of the movie and rearranging them, like puzzle pieces, to find out what is not being explicitly said.
Another way in which critical analysis helps to discover the meaning behind popular culture is in a multi-facited way. Our reality is not one dimensional, yet why does our society insist on rationalizing behaviors in such a way? bell hooks says she starting using the term "White Supremacy Capitalist Patriarchy" instead of something more similar "racism" because "racism" does not allow for the messiness within the problem. We do not just have whites beating Blacks or men raping women the issues are complicated through and intersection of race, gender, and socioeconomic status. This should be displayed through our media and when things like the OJ Simpson trial arise we should not pick sides according to identity that best suites us, but we should analyze that situation independent of the politics surrounding it.
bell hooks also discusses analyzing films through the director and the audience. She talks about how this can be key to success of the film. This was the instance of Spike Lee. Hollywood said that Lee is a failure because his movies had not done as well as they were supposed to. But what is not being said is that white viewers and critics were not interested in an authentic portrayal of Black culture. This is because the movies that are tolerated by the general public are stories of minor culture through a white lens since this doesn't require the white person to feel ostracized. bells hooks's "Cultural Criticism and Transformation" provides an involved explanation of critical thinking and one that will translate nicely when working with queer cinema.
I love what you said when you used the OJ Simpson trial as an example in your post. That "we should not pick sides according to identity that best suites us, but we should analyze that situation independent of the politics surround us." It's as if we are too proud of who we are that we would rather choose the side of who we identify with rather than figure out who may be in the right. Just as during Bell Hook's documentary we saw that the people who were shown cheering for OJ's release were all black and primarily female. The one white woman was shown being extremely against his release. This in itself is a misrepresentation because I'm quite sure that there were white women for his release as well as black women that were against it. It reinforces Hook's agenda concerning racism and what they filmmakers want us to see and take from it.
In response to the Spike Lee comment, I think that the film industry, especially hollywood, puts a white male lens on things. I can not recall a single hollywood movie where a butch lesbian is the lead role. What we see in hollywood is what the stereotypical white males wants to see; blood, action, dominance, and female bodies in their "proper role". As a butch lesbian, I feel pressure to objectify the feminine body in such a way that there is pressure for males to. So I think that it is important to think critically of why I am feeling pressure from films of any sort to feel any way relating to anything. Why does a film not go over well enough? people say it is because the plot was not good enough, but transformers was a major hit, three times over because it had a lot of action and "sexy women". But with a closer look at the film using Hook's strategies one could point to things such as the lack of people of color in the movie. What is that saying about what the writers want us to see?