DOSSIER # 14: THE FALLACY OF THE LIBERAL ARTIST
One of the purposes of The War Room is to not just talk about political views but to try to demonstrate the link between art, culture and politics. How ideology and subtext in pop-art, more than just its text, can and does influence our popular culture which then goes on to influence mainstream culture and then politics.In the modern era, no other ‘art’ form influences more than film and television. Not books, not music, not magazines, not literature. Camille Paglia has wonderful writings on this subject. So too does the great Catholic Canadian philosopher Marshall McLuahan. His writings on the medium of television are revolutionary and unparalleled. In filmic form, David Cronenberg made a picture about this subject matter entitled Videodrome starring James Woods.
James Woods, aside from being a brilliant actor, is also a member of Mensa. He is also part of another very rare breed, a Republican in Hollywood. In the days immediately following 9/11 he helped the American government with information he had regarding suspicious types he had encountered. He also is one of the few people in Hollywood who will tell it like it is.
While recently promoting his new film Pretty Persuasion, Woods let loose in a room full of reporters about the nature of contemporary Hollywood films and why he appears in fewer studio projects. Here is the link to the article in Zap2it.com.
A taste:
"In this politically correct era, the middle-aged heterosexual white guy gets to play one part, he gets to play the asshole in the suit," Woods grouses. "That's the only part they make anymore. That's the only part there is for a white heterosexual guy. Sorry, but it's the truth. Even when he's the hero now: Like Tom Cruise in 'War of the Worlds,' he's the hero, right? Steven Spielberg, Tom Cruise, H.G. Wells, how do you top that? They do a remarkable job of how the make the movie and so on, but he has to be a father who's a lousy parent, a terrible ex-husband, blah blah blah."
After the desire for oxygen temporarily kicks in: "You can't be a heterosexual white guy and be a hero anymore. You've gotta be really flawed and really bad and a piece of crap. Otherwise, the marketing department says, 'You can't have white guys be decent people. They're the enemy. They only put a man on the Moon and wrote 'Hamlet.' Why should we let them have any cred?'"
After the wild success of Mel Gibson’s brilliant The Passion of the Christ, many suspected that Hollywood would take heed and we would start to see a change in the type of films that permeate our culture. Of course, this has not happened and will not. Hollywood knows full well that the power of film and television in our culture is the best way to normalize people’s attitudes towards beliefs or behaviors that they would otherwise intellectually disagree with, especially amongst the young.
Film and television traffic in emotion, not logic and thus make an easy route to convincing people of a specific worldview.
Try telling a young person who has just watched Rutger Hauer as a Catholic Bishop eating human flesh in Sin City that not all Catholics are evil or pedophilic.
Try telling a young student who has just watched the romantic vision of Che Guevara in The Motorcycle Diaries that communism has oppressed more than capitalism.
Try telling someone you are opposed to same-sex marriage after they have just watched the lavish series Angels in America.
Try making an argument that not all military soldiers are simplistic idiots and not all poor people are rednecks to someone who has just watched Fahrenheit 9/11 or Bowling for Columbine.
Now these are just individual examples but as a whole, the entertainment industry has been in a virulently left-wing paradigm for almost three generations. These stories help shape our culture more than any other medium and are the prism through how our culture will be viewed to future generations.
Christians and conservatives must understand this…and more than a handful of them must go into the arts and pick up a camera or a brush or a pen.
The notion that all artists must be leftists or gay or addicted to drugs or atheists or involved in Kabbalah is a fallacy. Several of my good friends are a testament to that. Conservatives/Christians must also begin to fund art that reflects their worldview ideologically.
I am not talking about propaganda or poorly developed stories.
I am not talking about Kirk Cameron’s Left Behind series. I am talking about picking up the ball that genuine artists such as Mel Gibson and James Stewart before him have passed you. Understand that art is about telling human stories from the whole range of the human spectrum and that your stories are worth telling…artistically and passionately.
Do not wait for Hollywood to tell the story of the 100 million slaughtered in the name of communism in the past 150 years.
Do not wait for Hollywood to tell the story of Jane Roe who is now pro-life.
Do not wait for Hollywood to tell a story sympathetic to America in 9/11.
Do not wait for Hollywood to tell the story of how Evangelical Christians and Catholics are responsible for the majority of the missionary work being done in AIDS or famine ridden Africa.
It will never happen. Period.
Here is a brief list of some of the major 'wannabe' Oscar contenders this year and a synopsis:
The Family Stone: a sympathetic view of gay adoption; with Clair Danes and Dermot Mulroney
V for Vendetta: a fascist government takes over Britain and the hero is a terrorist who bombs the London underground; from the Wachowski brother (and sister ?) team
Jarhead: A view of Gulf War 1 which shows the soldiers as misled, confused and brainwashed; with Jake Gyllenhaal.
Syriana: Another view of Gulf War 1 which is intended to show how America itself laid the ground work for 9/11 and is ultimately to blame; apparently has a sympathetic portrayal of a suicide bomber; with George Clooney and Matt Damon
Transamerica: The odyssey of a transsexual in America; with Felicity Huffman
Brokeback Mountain: A gay cowboy love story that its star Heath Ledger has called the defining love story for our generation; with Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal
The New World: depicting how the first Christian settlers who landed in America were nothing but violent explorers who destroyed the native way of life. It will not deal with the persecution that other early pilgrims experienced before they came to the new world; with Colin Farrell
Good Night. And, Good Luck.: how Hollywood and others were persecuted by McCarthy during the communist ‘witch hunts’ of the 1950’s: directed by George Clooney.
Now ask yourself…do you see yourself in any of these stories? Are these the only stories you desire to speak for our culture long after we are gone from this planet? Do you have a story to tell? What are you doing to see it get told?
Until more conservatives and Christians take heed and commit to financing, encouraging and creating more valid art that takes a sympathetic portrayal of their worldview, they will continue to be viewed as the villains of history.
posted by Nicol DuMoulin @ 8:34 AM
13 Comments:
As usual excellent points. Might I add that there was a movie created called farenhype 9/11 that debunks the Micheal Moore propaganda flick.
Yes...I watched it and it was very well done. Also well produced with Ron Silver and Dick Morris' involvement. Alas...it did not get theatrical distribution and people need to hunt it out on video.
I also think more Christians or conservatives need to actively search out and patronize films that would appeal to them like Cinderella Man or The Island.
Both were good films that did not connect with the tween audience and were marketed poorly.
Andy Garcia has a film coming out in the fall apparently about the Communist Revolution in Cuba that will not be simply a love letter to Che/Castro. It also stars Bill Murray and Dustin Hoffman.
I hope people search it out and see it.
Nicol. What you are suggesting is that the Christian Church become engaged and passionate. That's kind of radical, don't you think?
I'm pretty sure that kind of commission finished with the early disciples. Aren't we now called by God to keep our heads comfortably up our cozy rectums?
Sure! We can react when absolutely necessary but only 10-20 years too late.
To become proactive?? and passionate??... living an abundant life in Christ??
Thanks anyway. I'd rather be told how to feel and safely enjoy the show on Sunday mornings.
Nicol. What you are suggesting is that the Christian Church become engaged and passionate. That's kind of radical, don't you think?
I'm pretty sure that kind of commission finished with the early disciples. Aren't we now called by God to keep our heads comfortably up our cozy rectums?
Sure! We can react when absolutely necessary but only 10-20 years too late.
To become proactive?? and passionate??... living an abundant life in Christ??
Thanks anyway. I'd rather be told how to feel and safely enjoy the show on Sunday mornings.
Straphanger...
I tried keeping my head up my rectum for too long...then I realized it wasn't that cozy a place after all.
Somehow, I suspect you are the kind of person who is passionate and proactive.
We need to keep convincing others to be the same.
Very well said, Nicol.
You're always a voice of reason.
Excellent. I couldn't agree more. The Arts in this country are totally funded by the Libranos. You wouldn't even get funding in this country for a decent film. Did you know that the entire budget for the Cultural Industries (in the last two years) exceeds that of all the other industries in Canada combined with the exception of technology. It is actually getting worse in this country for any decent film depicting anything of value to most Canadians. The Libranos count very much on this
ploy to get their fuzzy, multi culti, homosexual messsage out. People don't know the half of what is being funded. Case in point, take a look at the new Whistleblower legislation. The Canadian public will never know now.
Generally agree. However, I would be careful in not getting too carried away by Mel Gibson as a "genuine artist". I tend to think his oeuvre does not support such a label.
It's important that we not make the same error as the left in thinking that because we tend to agree with something, it's well done. A right wing hack and a left wing hack are about of the same quality and use, as far as I'm concerned.
Canadianna,
Thank for your kind comments.
Anonymous,
You sound like someone who knows a bit about the industry. I know quite a bit also and will write an article solely about the Canadian industry at a later date.
My wife did some work at the Politburo...errr...CBC earlier this year. Afterwards she went out with some workers and mentioned that her fiancee was thinking of applying for some funding...she said the first thing one of the workers did was smile and say 'Unless he's gay...good luck'. And they were Liberal supporters who acknowledged how skewed our film industry is.
One of my best friends is a filmmaker who is a die-hard Liberal...the one thing we can agree on without debate is the extent to which the gay community and to a lesser extent the feminist community has a grasp on the art's agencies in Canada.
People will think we are exaggerating for effect here..banging an old drum.
Not so.
Hollywood is positively Reagan Republican compared to Canada's arts community. People really have no idea.
It is not even multi-cultural. Once you get into it there are very few minorities. It is very white, very gay. Period. No exaggeration for effect here. Grants are given for message, not quality...and the guidelines at agencies like Telefilm are constantly being retweaked to weed out newcomers.
More younger people are realizing this. Again, I have quite a few stories about this I will tell at a later date.
Darren,
Thanks for your comment. I am glad we agree on the broadstrokes.
I don't know what your film background is but I certainly will defend Gibson. I think with 'Man Without a Face', 'Braveheart', 'The Passion of the Christ' and his Zeffereli directed production of Hamlet which he formed Icon to produce, he has proven his mettle.
He is certainly a better director than Redford and more ground breaking than young turks such as Wes Anderson or PT Anderson, the latter which merely cribs Scorsese and calls it his own.
Gibson has developed his own aesthetic. It is a blunt style that is often brutal but it is deliberate and done to specific effect. I have no problem defending him.
I also believe that The Passion of the Christ will be one of the few films from our era that will be discussed in film schools in 50 years. It will not be forgotten.
Nevetheless, thank you for the comment.
Why are the arts being funding in the first place? If it's a good product, it wouldn't need funding because there would be consumers. The situation in the states seems to be worse. Remember the NEA funding that crucifix in the tub of urine? At the time, the Republicans wanted to get rid of the NEA and now they won't even go near it. I prefer to not even know what our tax dollars are being squandered on, I think it would upset me too much.
Fabian,
Thanks for your comment.
Unfortunately...the situation in the States is not worse. At least they have a system where an outsider can break in and the NEA is only for stuff that is fringe or extreme.
Virtually all of our stuff falls into that category and virtually no one invests. Even Alliance Atlantis gets government handouts.
An excellent article which clearly states the truth, and leaves a commission to the rest of us. Keep up the good work!
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