Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Zeitgeist Addendum (2008)

The first 20 minutes of Zeitgeist: Addendum was a fairly interesting exposition of basic facts of contemporary economics: how money is related to debt. The rest of the film was at worst embarrassing and at best a series of obvious political statements ("we have to save this planet..."). The utopia conjured up by xx:s monotonous voice was a mix of technological engineering - that claims the obsoleteness of politics - and shallow mysticism ("we are all part of eveything"). The anti-religious message of the film was so embarrassing I had to bury my eyes in my hands for a moment. The film ends with a few glossy images ripped off The Matrix and bad ads (a businessman drops his suitcase and joins the Movement).

And then I have said nothing about the utopian possibilities inherent in maglev trains; trains propulsed by magnetism (the technological development of which the Movement people are involved) that will take you from Los Angeles to New York during a lunch break. As a documentary, the film is a total failure. Not only is it carelessly dropping a subject only to delve into the next, but it leans heavily on the dear old technique of treating the viewer as a full-blown idiot; when the word "sheep" is uttered in the film, let's show a sheep. Zeitgeist: Addendum provoked me in one single way: this movie is a mess.

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