The Missing Link

February 07, 2006

Movies and Liberalism

Apropos this post a commenter writes:

In considering a film’s viewpoint, one has to regard what was occurring during that particular era of which it was a product. Were gender roles changing? Was homosexuality becoming more tolerated? Changes in issues such as these contribute to a film’s ability to be more controversial.

The film industry is constantly changing. Traditional values are questioned and in regards to the issue of censorship, what was typically considered forbidden to show in theaters is now being deemed acceptable. Gender roles are shifting as women in film are becoming more outspoken.

I think this is partly right: societal changes are reflected in films, and society has become more liberal in many ways since, say, the 1950s.

But liberal ideas aren't the only ones that challenge the status quo. Consider The Incredibles, a film in which trial lawyers and societal prejudice against excellence forces superheroes into retirement. "Everyone is special," the superhero mother tells her superhero son, who must hide his talents to spare the feelings of other kids. "That's just another way of saying no one is," he replied. (I'm quoting from memory, but that's about right.)

A cult of equality and self-esteem are elements of liberalism that have been established as societal norms. The Incredibles was a thoughtful challenge to those pieties.

I submit that it stands as the exception to the rule, too. Generally speaking Hollywood movies aggressively challenge the status quo when it advances liberal notions, but hardly ever challenges the status quo if it means challenging liberal orthodoxies.

Posted by Conor at February 7, 2006 05:26 PM