Beasts of the Southern Wild
“ movies do not just mirror the culture of any given time; they also create it”-bell hooks
I think film is an artform and a means of expression as such does it need to be held to a higher standard? And if so then do books… does music… and to whose standard? I am of the opinion that it doesn’t, while art might shape and influence culture they are not responsible for it nor do they create it. Anything we encounter in life is filtered through our experiences and identities, art often confronts us with our views of the world, the biases and prejudices hidden sometimes even to ourselves, but does that have to be a requirement or even the purpose of art?
bell hooks disliked the movie for its wildness, but that was one of the things I loved about it. As a child I was like Hushpuppy in many ways, tomboyish, disliked wearing pants, followed my dad around, and nature was both my playground and my playmate. I think the vibrancy of this film comes not from a “crude pornography of violence” but from a raw celebration of life in all its aspects and taking on the perspective of a 6 year old who is in a perpetual state of awe. I don’t think the movie would be as vibrant if it didn’t contain violence, the scene where Hushpuppy is told to “beast it” has in many ways made me rethink my views of violence. Is violence which seems to be a natural part of nature so wrong, why? As society grows civilized it also grows further from nature and community, and it grows less happy. The bathtub is a village, where neighbors are family and you “gotta take care of mine”
