Red
- Episode aired Oct 9, 2012
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1.20: Red by Kestryl Cael Lowrey: A bit too obvious in its subject and how it goes about it, even if I support its mockery
The title of this film probably refers to the so-called 'Red states', which are often considered the 'real America' by rightwing commentators, somehow more worthy and true than the cities that cling to the east and west coast (and Austin) with their drugs, their gay pride parades, their art and their liberal ideals. The film makes reference to this in the dialogue with the character at one point saying "if there's one thing I learnt from the news", before then dismissing the nature of her city in a slightly clumsy bit of sarcasm.
This continues through the film, to produce something that is a good attempt but never really gets away from the fact that it is a bit obvious in its content. The character is chasing the 'real America' which she claims ot have, although it is clear that 'her' opinion is a setup in line with the fictional ideal proposed by Fox News for the purpose of then revealing how full of crap it is. So the woman describes her goal of finding America, relating the times she thought she had found it – which usually means things like open country of golden crops against a mountain backdrop, with good clean-living people safely tucked up on their own property. Of course her attempt is a failure and she finds herself moving on in search of something that the viewer is very sure does not exist.
The actress McAndrew does a decent job with it, but the material is just not as clever as it thinks it is, so she can only do so much to deliver the lines – she is never a person really, just a construct used to puncture the theory of an unnamed other. Thing is, I do agree with the film in its mockery of the oft-quoted 'real America' of Fox News and Sarah Palin's imagination, but the film is just a bit too obvious in how it goes after this and how it sets something up just to poke fun at it.
This continues through the film, to produce something that is a good attempt but never really gets away from the fact that it is a bit obvious in its content. The character is chasing the 'real America' which she claims ot have, although it is clear that 'her' opinion is a setup in line with the fictional ideal proposed by Fox News for the purpose of then revealing how full of crap it is. So the woman describes her goal of finding America, relating the times she thought she had found it – which usually means things like open country of golden crops against a mountain backdrop, with good clean-living people safely tucked up on their own property. Of course her attempt is a failure and she finds herself moving on in search of something that the viewer is very sure does not exist.
The actress McAndrew does a decent job with it, but the material is just not as clever as it thinks it is, so she can only do so much to deliver the lines – she is never a person really, just a construct used to puncture the theory of an unnamed other. Thing is, I do agree with the film in its mockery of the oft-quoted 'real America' of Fox News and Sarah Palin's imagination, but the film is just a bit too obvious in how it goes after this and how it sets something up just to poke fun at it.
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- bob the moo
- Oct 4, 2014
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