SALO: Masterpiece or Plain-Old Exploitation?
Sorry to pop your bubble, but I’ve very excited for this. Unfortunately I will have little time to post on it tomorrow. Anyway…
I agree with you Slayton 100%
There might have been a time were a movie like this could have had some value. But know all the movie can exist as a historical curiosity. There is nothing a viewer can derive from the film that doesn’t come from any foreknowledge of the director’s intentions. That is why Passolini placed an appendix in the film.
If the film was attempting to draw metaphorical comparisons between consumerism and fascism it is a complete and utter failure. Getting past the idea that the comparison is absurd to begin with, a metaphor cannot work without any proper context. Salo exists in a hermetically sealed environment where the director only seems interested in expressing his own sadistic impulses. All the while, he uses stylistic tricks to distance the audience from the violence as if to say “your guilty for watching it”.
“it’s a consummate example of Alienation Effect in overdrive to the point where any and all semblance of human life reproduced onscreen loses the empathic charge to connect the audience to the “characters””
Most movies just end up with that effect, take for instance the recent Crank 2. Though what can you say about a movie that actively tries for that effect.
There might have been a time were a movie like this could have had some value. But know all the movie can exist as a historical curiosity. There is nothing a viewer can derive from the film that doesn’t come from any foreknowledge of the director’s intentions. That is why Passolini placed an appendix in the film.
If the film was attempting to draw metaphorical comparisons between consumerism and fascism it is a complete and utter failure. Getting past the idea that the comparison is absurd to begin with, a metaphor cannot work without any proper context. Salo exists in a hermetically sealed environment where the director only seems interested in expressing his own sadistic impulses. All the while, he uses stylistic tricks to distance the audience from the violence as if to say “your guilty for watching it”.
“it’s a consummate example of Alienation Effect in overdrive to the point where any and all semblance of human life reproduced onscreen loses the empathic charge to connect the audience to the “characters””
Most movies just end up with that effect, take for instance the recent Crank 2. Though what can you say about a movie that actively tries for that effect.
Salo is a powerful film which made quite an impression on me when I saw it. It hold it in very high esteem.
“nearly crap”? Um, no, this movie is, quite literally, a circle of shit.
…never try to insert that into your DVD player. Gets all jammed up.
waiting for someone to say " it’s a master——piece of shit!"
I love it. In fact I could would watch it again if someone came over and said " hey I have salo…wanna watch it?" It was completely enthralling while being totally uneasy to sit through but if you can’t handle intense film experiences without the aid of 3D then stick to sandra Bullock vehicles…Seriously, it’s a masterpiece.
I agree, it’s a masterpiece. Something can be revolting and still be a masterpiece. Though I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone I know.
^^ I wouldn’t either. Says a lot about the people we know :D
I don’t see how someone could watch that and conclude ‘pointless’…
It has so many levels of meaning. Besides, I don’t think having a ‘point’ is the be-all-end-all of film.
Most of the comments here dhould be reviewed… this movie is an adaptation of a novel written in 1785 by Le Marquis de Sade, from who we developped the sadism concept – hope I’m not wrong. You guys should document first…
“Masterpiece or plain old exploitation?”
Yes.
—DiB
How about mastersploitation?
Call me old fashioned but I don’t want to watch a film where people are forced to eat shit and fuck each other and what not, it sounds like a exploitation film to me.
As well as a little bit of masturbation.
—DiB
And what of the brilliantly executed torture sequence at the end. A truly masterful piece of exploitation.
“Salo” was designed as an Impossible obkect.
Pasolini’s “trilogy of Life” (“Decameraon,” “Cantibury Tales,” “Arabian Nights”) were major box pffic hits. But Pasolini was very suspicious of their success. They were being seen as mere “sexy comedies.” What Pasolini was trying to say about peasant cultures wasn’t getting through. So in “Salo” he took his revenge on the system. Sade could be in no way abosorbed as “entertai9nemtn” — even though he was only using parts of the book.
Try reading it. Just try
Setting it at the close of Italy’s fascist period contetualized Sade in ways Pasolini knew would upset the avnat-garde intelligensia. And true to form, Roland Bathes disliked it — claimign it betrayed Sade.
But that was beside the point.
The fascist who murdered Paolini knew he was setting it in modern times — and thought he was going to implicate them directly. So they stole into the lab and stole part of the rushes. In their haste theay also stole parts of “Fellini Casanova” — which forced Fellini into reshooting and the elimiation of a sequence he had hope to shoot with Barbara Steele. Pasolini by contrast found it easy to reshoot what he had to.
Then they killed him.
Slayton Bourdon
Inspired by the article from the front page. What do you think of this landmark film? Does it have artistic merits or is it exploitation? I think it is a deeply symbolic masterwork, but different strokes for different folks. I’ll post more of my thoughts later. What do y’all think?