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Rob Edelman: Beauty... And Dogs

Whenever I see a newly-released film or whenever I view one that is decades-old, I ask myself and my students: What is this film telling us about the time in which it was made and the culture that produced it? For example, when I teach a course on the history of the American crime film, I ask: What do films like LITTLE CAESAR, THE PUBLIC ENEMY, or I AM A FUGITIVE FROM A CHAIN GANG tell us about the America of the early 1930’s? What does a film like WALL STREET, which is as much a crime film as a cops-and-robbers thriller, tell us about corporate America in the 1980’s? When I teach a course titled New American Cinema, my question is: What do films like FIVE EASY PIECES, THE GRADUATE, TAXI DRIVER, SHAFT, EASY RIDER, and KRAMER VS. KRAMER, among many others, tell us about the changes that then were rapidly occurring in the United States beginning in the late-1960’s? What do these films have to say about the Vietnam War, the civil rights movement, women’s rights, the sexual revolution, and the general feeling of alienation among the young? 

Let me now go back to what occurred almost eight decades ago. The year in question is 1939, and it was not a happy one within the realm of history. On September 1st, Hitler invaded Poland, and this launched the Second World War. But that year remains the greatest in American film history. A wide range of classic titles were released, and they only begin with THE WIZARD OF OZ, GONE WITH THE WIND, STAGECOACH, MR. SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON, WUTHERING HEIGHTS, LOVE AFFAIR, NINOTCHKA, GUNGA DIN, OF MICE AND MEN, THE WOMEN, DESTRY RIDES AGAIN and, lastly, any film that a teacher would love. That would be GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS. The world may have been in a sorry state in 1939 but, collectively, these films offer rays of hope, of happy endings, of riding off into the sunset both figuratively and literally.

Now let’s move forward to 2016 and 2017. Occasionally, you will find a film with a high spirit, one that will leave you smiling. Two examples are LA LA LAND and THE SHAPE OF WATER. But the vast majority of films that, quality-wise, range from Oscar nominee to trash-bin throwaway offer dim, pessimistic world-views. One example is BEAUTY AND THE DOGS, a generally fine Tunisian film that has just been released theatrically in the U.S. Technically, BEAUTY AND THE DOGS is an eye-opener. Its story is told in nine separate parts, each of which has no editing; each part consists of one unedited shot. However, plot-wise, BEAUTY AND THE DOGS reflects on an unrelenting cynicism that is increasingly ruling our world.

Its story line involves a young woman, a college student who is in her very early twenties. At the outset, she and her friends are in a nightclub. They are innocently gabbing about cloths and boys, as any young woman might, but we then learn that she has been raped. Plus, with the exception of one guy she has just met, no one in the outside world offers her sympathy. No one comes to her aid-- and these people, these villains, only begin with police officers and hospital personnel, professionals who one might assume would help her! Now on one level, BEAUTY AND THE DOGS might be offering a take-no-prisoners portrait of an uncaring bureaucracy in one particular country. But while watching it, I only could ask: What is this film telling us about our world? Would this young victim be treated so callously in any country, anywhere in the world?

Rob Edelman has authored or edited several dozen books on film, television, and baseball. He has taught film history courses at several universities and his writing has appeared in many newspapers, magazines, and journals. His frequent collaborator is his wife, fellow WAMC film commentator Audrey Kupferberg.

The views expressed by commentators are solely those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect the views of this station or its management.

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