Slavoj Zizek, born in 1949 in Ljubljana, psychoanalyst and professor of philosophy, started early on a group of theoreticians who sharpened their thinking of the theses of Jacques Lacan. The Slovenian Lacan School was a spiritual resistance nest in orthodox ex-Yugoslavia, and Slavoj Zizek emerged as a globally operating philosopher-entertainer.
BEAUTIFUL FUNERALS is a hand-painted double-step-printed film composed of 1) dense blackness variously punctuated by brilliantly colored jewel/flower-like shapes AND 2) interruptive white sections which are fuzzily dotted with blurred whites and criss-crossed by black "brushstrokes" and hard-edge straight black and white lines.
Teenager, Clare Steves, is kidnapped by an old boyfriend, Eddie Spencer, who demands $250,000. The ransom is paid and Clare is released, but when the kidnapers are caught, they claim that the whole scheme was Clare's idea as a way to punish her father.
When Hydro-Québec announced its intention to proceed with the enormous James Bay II hydroelectric project, the 15,000 Cree who live in the region decided to stand up to the giant utility.
Set on May 18, 1993—the day on which Denmark voted to join the European Union, just a few months after they'd voted not to do so—the film follows eight or so disparate Danes (an escaped mental patient, a newly-famous singer, a business executive, and their assorted families and cohorts) as they unwittingly alter one another's lives, for better and for worse.
To avenge his murdered best friend, top agent Max Zander slips into the role of the "clown". Hunted by the police, he fights crime under the cover of his mask.
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Have you watched Thou Shalt Love thy Symptom as Thyself yet? What did you think about it?
