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Some years ago I read an obituary of Dennis Hopper that discussed Easy Rider. The movie is often thought of as a celebration of freedom at its libertine extreme, but the author made a case that it was a conservative morality tale of what not to do. Likewise, High Noon was often considered an allegory of the Hollywood Blacklist, with Gary Cooper's Marshal Will Kane as a persecuted actor or screenwriter and the gunslingers out to kill him as member of the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC). To me, it is just a movie about the difficulty in resisting evil with so many cowardly or complacent people around.
Are there any other examples of movies that you can interpret in more than one way?
There are hundreds, if not thousands of allegories and hidden agendas in movies. An oft cited one is that "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" was an allegory of how communism might take over, while at the same time it shows how people who cling to rigid ideas and social structures are unable to see anything they don't want to until it is too late.
Some allegories are intentionally deeply hidden to get past censors and studio executives, others are right there on the surface. "Star Wars, New Hope" was formed by Marcia Lucas and Joe Campbell as a quintessential quest myth.
I once read somewhere that the original "Planet of the Apes" was a "what if" scenario if African Americans took over society. Don't ask me where I read this it was probably 30 years ago but it stuck with me.
How about "Avatar"? Tell me that is not a movie about the evils of the industrialized America trampling on the indigenous people and destroying their planet. It is a movie to warn of environmental destruction like many Sci Fi movies do.
I think the best movies can be interpreted in many different ways just like a classic novel.
I JUST watched (and rewatched, to try to tell what the $&$^$% was going on) today, and I have never been so angry or frustrated after watching a movie ever before.
I JUST watched (and rewatched, to try to tell what the $&$^$% was going on) today, and I have never been so angry or frustrated after watching a movie ever before.
Did you catch
Spoiler
the last scene, the crowd at the stairs, and who shows up and speaks / knows each other?
^ I didn't at first showing. Then I listened to Michael Haneke talking about that scene and that many people miss it.
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