I'm trying to find an essay, research, or any deeper analysis about why some people, most often conservatives, don't understand film. One of my FB friends posted this meme and it got me thinking about this phenomena.

Some people watch a film* and take the characters and the story completely at face value. They don't see any deeper message from the director. They don't understand that Goodfellas for example, is not a film about a couple of cool guys. Scorsese is not endorsing their behavior or their values.

Any help diving deeper into this topic is appreciated.

*By the way, you could say the same for literature, but since most people don't read past high school. I wanted to focus my question on film.

ETA: Thanks everyone for engaging with me. I've been a lurker and commenter since the early Reddit days, this was my first post.

  • LibsEatPoop [any]
    ·
    4 years ago

    it's possible but we have to be careful we don't fall into the lib elitist mindset here. critically thinking about a film, book etc. is a skill that needs to be developed just like any other. people could just not have the time or the energy to do so. idk, i know plenty of libs/sucdems who don't think critically about media either.

        • Tofu_Lewis [he/him]
          ·
          4 years ago

          I think Baudrillard would say that it's not a reflection, because the reflection and the image still resemble each other. The hyperreal has become detached - it is the reflection without the image.