If. . . is a film that came recommended by my sister Linda, and I first saw it as a teenager in the late 1970s. I loved Lindsay Anderson's work then and enjoyed it even more so recently after watching If. . . for a third time as a full-fledged adult.
If. . . showcases a blistering take down of the British ruling classes in two phases: I) scrutiny of the hoary status quo -- symbolized as a public (private boarding) school -- by Mick Travis and his crew and II) an armed uprising.
Literalists would take this film as a blank check for going off the deep end, forming lunatic groups like the Weatherman, Baader-Meinhof and Symbionese Liberation Army. Broader, deeper thinkers might eventually form a loose coalition group like WikiLeaks. More cautious (and perhaps saner) people might take from this film a valid, universally true portrait of how things work in modern society and go from there.
Such a rebellious thematic approach, sometimes focusing only on phase I scrutiny and sometmes turning phase II into a more symbolic rebellion, can be traced directly from Jean Vigo's Zéro de conduite (1933) through François Truffaut's Les Quatre Cents Coups / The 400 Blows (1959), Anderson's If. . ., The Kinks Present Schoolboys in Disgrace (1976), The Sex Pistols (1975-1978), Pink Floyd's The Wall (1979), Alan Parker's Pink Floyd The Wall (1982) and David Fincher's Fight Club (1999, based on the 1996 Chuck Palahniuk novel). And there are others, but not much yet in the 21st century.
The whole cast of If..., led by Malcolm McDowell in his first role (as Mick Travis), is stellar. The mostly realistic school culture scenes alternate with surrealistic ones; some scenes are in black and white, others are in color. This was a point of much conversation by my sister Linda's "Neighborhood" bunch. I can see why.
Along the way through the film, there is some discussion of the First World War (yes!) and many telling visual details can be observed, like posters of Che Guevara (the iconic Alberto Korda shot), Chairman Mao and Charlotte Rampling. The eerily effective soundtrack (featuring Les Troubadours du Roi Baudouin and some other flourishes) is the same kind in spirit Werner Herzog would utilize throughout the 1970s. Everything works together seamlessly.
Today's Rune: Wholeness.
5 comments:
I tried to fall into the saner approach and found that sanity and it's inevitable conclusion is ignoring that which oppresses.
I've seen some of the films you mentioned but not the main one. I liked FIght Club quite a lot. Liked the book a lot. The Wall was intersting and effective, but somewhat flawed.
Thanks, dudes! Mark, this reminds of the Woody Guthrie line, "Some will rob you with a six-gun, and some with a fountain pen." Charles, agreed on both counts.
Erik, Ummm, interesting--I think! P.S. your word verification is 'hot tip'. So, here's one for YOU, add Kaluha to your hot choclate!!
Sounds like my kind of movie. Neat.
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