Director's opinions

[Chuck McMahon]

"I guess the main question here is whether a director should point a
judgement on the subject he's directing.  In my eyes, when the subject is
linked to society or politics, one can  not  filmed without getting
involved with the story. For example (I know it doesn't have any
connection with the movies we're discussing here, but you'll see my
point) : is it possible to direct a movie on Nazi or Japanese
concentration camps without getting involved ?"

Reminds me of an Emerson quote:  "Tell me what church a preacher walks
out of and I'll tell you what the sermon was about."

One of the large problems in issue-oriented commercial cinema today is
real lack of exploration.  Why doesn't a film like "Philadelphia" explore
personal responsibility in relation to the contracting of AIDS?  I would
posit that the problem with getting involved in the morality of a subject
like prostitution, or even concentration camps, is that it then limits
the possibilities of exploration.  In fact,  the main reason I finally
came to think well of "Okoge" was that rather than impose the slick
message of "gay is okay," the film reached toward revering other
relationships which endured beyond stereotypes.  I resisted the movie
throughout as it seemed to have the "church" feel to it and then it
surprised me.

Not too long ago, someone mentioned the ambiguity of Mizoguchi's
attitudes toward women.  I find this one of his strengths -- it enters
the complex world of human relations, and not the flat dynamic of
political platform.  In a film like "A Geisha," the women are allowed to
delight in the delicate fabric of their world and at the same time are
exposed to external forces which impose suffering as a  norm.  One senses
a morality in this world as well, but not a slick one that is imposed, as
for example the morality in "The Piano" (is there a single image in that
movie not taken from the metaphors of feminist theory?) or even
"Schindler's List" (was there a single idea in that film which explored
anything new or even in a way that was new? -- if so, point it out to me,
please).

I apologize for not limiting my remarks to Japanese cinema, however, I
tend to write with what references come to mind.  

PS -- was Keats just spewing at the brain with his ideas of "objective
correlative" or do we just assume in an age of relativity that such
things are not possible?


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