Politics is not a game or an adventure. Leaders must protect their community and choose strategies wisely. Generations tended daily to improve their lives and those of their families and communities. Politicians shouldn't destroy what people helped build.
This week the film is a King Vidor, Our Daily Bread. American pioneers began as communities in which people helped one another. The Great Depression led them to repeat the same experience of the pioneers. Smart solutions to put bread on the table. The government took the initiative of the New Deal to replace the informal organizations fearing to lose control and power. Somewhere along the way american people were taught to hate and fear the same cooperation culture that has allowed their parents to survive and thrive. Was it because politicians put names on social organizations? Suddenly democracy is socialism or worse, communism? Twentieth century is based on communities, connection and cooperation. Our Daily Bread is another example of cultural innovation in cinema.
Inspired by this idea, How is it possible that someone like Donald Trump is getting voters? and Why is trash culture becoming stronger and stronger?, I began a selection of american films each week until November that, in my point of view, represent the best and the worst of american culture. For some reason american presidential campaings have become very important for those who dream of a better world. What we need most is a cultural innovation, someone who reads the signs of changing times, who understands the constitutional values and who respects people in general. Sometimes we see cultural innovation in american cinema, often wrapped in a package to please a heterogenous audience. The first part of The More the Merrier, for instance, is about sharing space (renting rooms) and services (cars). Washington is growing fast along with public administration. This is more about sharing space and services than defending population growth.
The second and third parts of the movie are the same old romantic comedy, the boy and the girl, both beautiful, both sexy, both childish (especially the girl). :) I'm not saying I don't like romantic comedies because I really do, but let's face it, the first part leads us to expect more...
Close Encounters of the Third Kind is a Spielberg movie about extra-terrestrials that reveals much more about terrestrials. It projects on extra-terrestrials the best parts of human nature. This week I found on youtube a video with a scene I wanted to show you today:
Just notice how some of these scenes look like a documentary, that's an art mastered by very few directors: it seems real because it's about real people, it could happen that way. And also notice how strong is human quest for the truth. They want answers. No boundaries can stop them. Their need to understand overcomes fear. Religion, science and politics have tried to fill this human quest. We are submersed by information, manipulation, consumer marketing, the constant noise. This movie also reminds us that we must always question information and try to validate it. No given explanation can replace individual counsciousness, especially when it makes resonance with others'. We need one another, we are communities, so, we must learn how to respect other's space and time.
