A whole lot goes into this 9/10, first and foremost, though, is the fact that Mike Judge's Idiocracy (2006) exists in stark contrast to Harrison Bergeron (1995). Idiocracy is considered by the passive viewer as a prescient and hilarious film (to the point where some call it a documentary) but those with any kind of political bent clocked it (correctly) as a reactionary work of the most heinous stripe. Casual endorsement of eugenics, tacit support of SWERF, a gross misunderstanding of addiction and just an underlying mean-spirited cynicism in general; all of this is plain to see in Idiocracy if you just take a good hard look. Not hard to find either, it's streaming on Hulu.
Now, consider Harrison Bergeron (1995), a humble cable movie that is, last I checked, unable to be legally streamed anywhere. You can find a 240p upload on YouTube (which is what my friend had to settle for) if you don't want to go down "illegal" channels. I managed to get a 480p VHS tape from a fellow film nerd last year, and I am very grateful.
To begin with, where Idiocracy makes jokes that constantly punch down (while masquerading as incisive satire), Harrison Bergeron quietly sets up its plot without any hard punchlines or tasteless caricatures. Having seen Idiocracy more than once, I must admit, I was waiting for the other shoe to drop; namely, when was Harrison Bergeron going to take a Right Turn (read Chomsky 1986/10/22)? To my pleasant surprise, it never happened! This film is what I always wished Idiocracy to be - subversive.
But there's more to this 9 than just a comparison to a vastly inferior film. Powerful themes on a modest budget, a secret society dressing in all black, a cautionary tale against Neuralink, an affectionate romance endangered by a hostile society, a piercing tragedy, joyful depictions of post-modern fatigue, actually prescient science fiction, the warmth of the VHS, good writing, great pacing and (most importantly) I'm a huge Sean Astin fan.
It also must be said that I was totally unaware of the short story this film was based on, so I am not hampered by usual misgivings about adaptions. It's unsurprising that Vonnegut is behind this fiction.
Review by moonkodiBlockedParent2017-03-18T09:33:11Z
Another one of them movie that tell us just how dumb the majority are. Like all stories in this vein it comes across half good story ideas and half personal rant. These movies (especially in these days of conspiracy) always find an audience of people who feel they are those awakened or smart individuals themselves. It becomes a personal movie and social commentary. These sci-fi movie tend to focus on the subject of personal intelligence (a reflection of the writer's frustration) rather than all aspects of society and a bigger picture. 1984 maybe being an exemption. It gets called a 'thinking person's movie' a lot on imdb. I find this this statement may be a bit of self projection for some viewers who feel like the characters in the movie. Mayne verging on intellectual pretentiousness, yet I do understand people's frustrations.
For me it's a sci-fi movie. I understand the social commentary but I've come to the conclusion in real life that it's not so much governments who are always the bad guys doing the dumbing down but people themselves willing to take the easy route because of human nature itself.
The movie itself is good. It's not too ranting and it's got some humour in it. The message gets a little tiring and the story could have done with some interesting turn of events.