Alex Deleon Viewed at Seattle IFF, 2007. The day's opener, an 11 AM screening at the Egyptian was "The Pervert's Guide to Cinema", one I was dying to see but had missed previously because of a scheduling conflict (with another flick I was even more dying to see)."Pervert's Guide" is a Dutch-Austrian production directed by British documentarian Sophie Fiennes'(39)i in which Slovenian Psycho-(ahem -"analytic") film philosopher and culture- theoretical guru, Slavoj Zizek disquisses in grammatically correct but perfectly outrageous English, on a hilarious range of sexual perversions and their possible interpretations in a broad variety of flicks from Hitchcock to David Lynch, via Kubrick and other collective libido obsessives — with cleverly selected excerpts from the "perverted" sequences of the films in question — goes on and on for two and a half excessive hours! (150 minutes). The first hour and a half was interesting, informative, revealing, psychologically insightful, and often highly amusing– in a scatological vein — but eventually I began to fidget when I realized this psychoanalytic orgy was going to last far longer than bargained for, and was beginning to cut into my Ali Baba time.By the third take on Dennis Hopper (one of the most disgusting psychos ever to disfigure a silver screen) in "Blue Velvet", I was beginning to get sick to my stomach — even more so when my illuminated Casio wristwatch revealed that I was missing the beginning of Ali Baba. Somehow I couldn't quite bring myself to stalk out before the end, but I did then scurry immediately over to the SIFF theater under the Opera House in time to catch the second half of Ali Baba — which turned out to be the perfect antidote to the mental illness that had gone before at the Egyptian. Mind-bending at times, sickening at others, but definitely worth The effort it tales to sit through.

Neddy Merrill Slurring, lisping Slovenian-accented psychoanalyst Slavoj Zizek applies a Freudian lens to the films of Alfred Hitchcock, David Lynch and other directors. The title comes from the psychoanalytic belief that all people become twisted by their upbringing and thus are perverted to some degree by the time they hit adulthood. As nonsensical as that notion is, it is still the most intuitive of the hodge-podge of Freudian malarkey Zizek pitches in his classic professorial, self-agreeing delivery. Beyond being hard to follow these reinterpretations are unnecessary when it comes to more comprehensible movies such the Hitchcock films (or ?fill-ims? in Zizek?s accent) that he covers. Yes, ?The Birds? can be interpreted as an Oedipal struggle between the mother and new girlfriend but it can also be enjoyed as a creature-feature. Yes, ?Psycho? can be viewed as the struggle between the superego (apparently the mother?s corpse when it is in the hotel) and the id (apparently the mother?s corpse after Norman moves it down to the fruit cellar) but it can also be enjoyed as a slasher movie. And yes, ?Vertigo? can be understood as James Stewart?s ?mortification? of the lost Madeline through Judy but it can also be enjoyed as a crackling good murder mystery. Zizek?s cartography rises in value when he surveys more alien territory - most especially David Lynch. Put simply, Zizek?s explanation of why Dennis Hopper?s Frank in ?Blue Velvet? is both a violent rapist and just a guy who just needs a hug may not be correct but it beats trying to figure it out for oneself. His explanation of ?Mulholland Drive? is welcome precisely because the film makes so little sense. ?Lost? fans would probably appreciate any help he could provide on its final episode. Ultimately what we learn from Zizek comes from the director Sophie Fiennes? excellent conceit of reshooting famous scenes with the hairy, frumpy, corduroy-clad Zizek replacing Jimmy Stewart, Anthony Hopkins and others. We learn that movie actors a bring glamour and charm necessary for the illusion of cinema and that putting an ordinary-looking person in their place makes them suddenly very ordinary. In summary, ?Pervert..? is the strangest of mixes: it is a must see but isn?t very good, it is educational without making any sense and it informs while it entertains.

Joseph Sylvers Bear in mind, any film (let alone documentary) which asserts any kind of truth, will generate an adverse and proportional amount of cynicism, from those to whom any suggestion of and or search for truths is already meaningless, those of you who are already Masters of psychology, film, and captains of the soul, will no doubt find this movie redundant, after all, you already know everything there is to know. Congrats.For those of us in the minority like myself, I found "The Perverts Guide To Cinmea"....mostly brilliant, and worth watching for those interested in movies, psychology, and modern philosophy.A little like Scott Mclouds' "Understanding Comics", director Sophie Fiennes, inter-grates Slovene philosopher, psychologist, and social critic Slavoj Zizek right into many of the films and specif scenes he discusses. The cover is an image from "The Birds"(Zizek takes a boat out to re-create the shot).Lacanian Psycho-analysis, does not necessarily scream, an evening of great fun...but it is! If you like movies that is.... Having some knowledge of Lacanian psycho-analysis helps (Symbolic, Real, and Imaginary) are terms which get thrown around a little loosely at first, but the scenes which Zizek selects and analyze make remarkably clear what was always for me, a very abstract subject. In fact, it's probably better to have a familiarity with the films he's discussing than with the terminology he uses, which becomes clearer as the film goes on.Why I love, this film isn't because it picks great films to analyze or reveals great truths about Lacan, but shows in a very practical and clever manner, where film and psychology (and by default philosophy) meet.Why is "The Sound Of Music" kinda fascistic, why is "Short Cuts" about more than just class and alienation, why do the birds attack in "The Birds", what is there to learn about the mind from "Alien Resurrection", what does the planet of "Solaris" want, what does "Psycho" and "The Marx Brothers" have to do with each other, and what the hell is David Lynch getting across in movie after movie...well Zizek has some ideas.The role of the voice in both "The Excorcist" and "Star Wars: Revenge Of The Sith", is maybe the movies strongest and most lucid moment, when he gets into feminine sexual subjectivity I begin to wonder...at one point Zizek admits his feeling that flowers are a kind of decorative vagina dentatta, that they are disgusting and should be hidden from children (jokingly, it seems but...).Anyway, it's a fascinating documentary, which anyone who has ever seen a movie, and thought it meant something more than was literally stated, should make an attempt to see.And anyone interested in Slavoj Zizek, this is a must as well, much less dry than "Reality Of The Virtual", and more direct than "Zizek!", two other pseudo-docs, about "the Elvis of contemporary cultural criticism", as he is being dubbed, in the English speaking world."The Perverts Guide To Cinema" is NOT about the role of sex in cinema. Zizek claims cinema is the ultimate pervert art, because it teaches "how to desire, and not what to desire", and that it is the only contemporary art form that can allow for these desires to be articulated. This is not a film about finding the reality in cinema, it's about finding the cinema in reality, and how important and exciting that can be. Hard to find, and a bit long, but well worth the trouble, one of the most "stimulating" movie watching experiences I've ever had.

Mark Greene His choice of films, the basic 'conceit' of the production (which places him in the sets or simulacra of the films he is commenting on ) and his delivery are brilliant! But if you want Freud, be aware that you're getting Zizek's version of Lacan, which should not be confused with Lacan himself. As usual, Zizek delivers complex ideas with gusto and in a convincing manner. The rub is he is also quite mercurial and so there may be more in his gusto than in actual content. Cinematically, it is a gem. Psychologically, this will have people of all persuasions (Freudians, Lacanians and Jungians) scratching their heads but reaching for the popcorn all the same. Zizek is a phenomenon and pop icon unto himself.