{"id":369,"date":"2008-07-01T18:29:43","date_gmt":"2008-07-01T17:29:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2008\/07\/01\/zizek\/"},"modified":"2008-07-01T18:29:43","modified_gmt":"2008-07-01T17:29:43","slug":"zizek","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2008\/07\/01\/zizek\/","title":{"rendered":"ZIZEK!"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\"Zizek!\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\nFormat:<\/B> DVD

\nDistributor:<\/B> ICA

\nRelease date<\/B> 28 April 2008

\nDirector:<\/B> Astra Taylor

\nUSA\/Canada 2005

\n71 mins\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\nAmong Slavoj í\u2026\u00c2\u00bdií\u2026\u00c2\u00beek’s many occupations, celebrity academic should, as this documentary makes clear, be ranked first. In perfect post-modern fashion, he has been criss-crossing the globe for twenty-odd years, delivering his offbeat but witty thoughts and provocative theories on ideology, global politics and late-capitalist economics to a growing fan club. <\/p>\n

\nAstra Taylor’s debut film í\u2026\u00c2\u00bdií\u2026\u00c2\u00beek!<\/I>, which is now released on DVD, makes a bold attempt to explore the phenomenon that is í\u2026\u00c2\u00bdií\u2026\u00c2\u00beek by trying to document both his public and private life. That the film fails to reveal much about the latter says more about the personality of its protagonist than any of the scenes that show him proudly displaying his son’s toys or shopping for DVDs in New York.<\/p>\n

\nIn Sophie Fiennes’s too rarely seen three-part TV documentary, The Pervert’s Guide to Cinema<\/I>, í\u2026\u00c2\u00bdií\u2026\u00c2\u00beek embarked on a highly energetic Lacanian ride through cinema, which included some wonderfully ruthless low-budget re-enactments of famous scenes played by the bustling philosopher himself. By contrast, Taylor here opts for a rather modest, if straightforward, approach to her interviews with í\u2026\u00c2\u00bdií\u2026\u00c2\u00beek. With her presence limited to a few minor walk-ons, í\u2026\u00c2\u00bdií\u2026\u00c2\u00beek is given the time to chase his racing thoughts wherever they go, which seems to leave the young filmmaker at a loss for what to do with her exuberant subject. Whether lecturing, analysing Lacan’s body language on TV, showing us around his house or philosophising naked in a hotel bed, there is undoubtedly something compulsive and calculating in the way he appears before the discreet camera.<\/p>\n

However, í\u2026\u00c2\u00bdií\u2026\u00c2\u00beek appears mindful of his role at all times, and the strongest idea to emerge from the film is his own sense that the intellectual must stand precisely apart, seeking neither endorsement nor personal peace. His big worry, he admits, ‘is not to be ignored, but accepted’. Although he is always deadly serious about his subject matter, he clearly loves to baffle his audience as much as to challenge them. Nothing is sacred for í\u2026\u00c2\u00bdií\u2026\u00c2\u00beek and absolutely everything is potential fodder for the high-energy stream of thought that runs through his mind, spawning one digression after another until the philosopher seems as unclear as the viewer about the point he was trying to make. <\/p>\n

To her credit, Taylor recognises the irony in trying to capture the true spirit and soul behind the exposed persona. The documentary footage therefore is interspersed with animated anecdotes by Molly Schwartz, thrown in to help the viewer enter the í\u2026\u00c2\u00bdií\u2026\u00c2\u00beekian universe. But with its tight editing and brief running time (71 frantic minutes), the film feels almost too short, and occasionally í\u2026\u00c2\u00bdií\u2026\u00c2\u00beek seems to have been cut off mid-thought. Which is a shame since – despite his blustering demeanour – his typically drawn-out digressions reveal a very sceptical sadness in his criticism of modern society. Nevertheless, Astra Taylor’s spot-on profile shows the extent to which í\u2026\u00c2\u00bdií\u2026\u00c2\u00beek is both intimidated by the responsibility his celebrity brings and irked by the impact it has on his intellectual standing. Watching this fresh, brief and enjoyable documentary on DVD is brilliantly stimulating and prompts one to think further about í\u2026\u00c2\u00bdií\u2026\u00c2\u00beek’s original, politically incorrect and ultimately vital analysis of society. <\/p>\n

Pamela Jahn<\/B><\/I><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Astra Taylor’s spot-on profile shows the extent to which í\u2026\u00c2\u00bdií\u2026\u00c2\u00beek is both intimidated by the responsibility his celebrity brings and irked by the impact it has on his intellectual standing.
\nReview by Pamela Jahn<\/B><\/I><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-369","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-dvds-and-blu-rays"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","wps_subtitle":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/surUP-zizek","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1009,"url":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2010\/04\/02\/valley-of-the-bees\/","url_meta":{"origin":369,"position":0},"title":"Valley of the Bees","author":"VirginieSelavy","date":"April 2, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"It is at once a simply told tragedy and a stinging critique of ideology, oppression and the loss of free will, ostensibly during the Crusades. Review by Sarah Cronin","rel":"","context":"In "Check it out"","block_context":{"text":"Check it out","link":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/check-it-out\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/04\/review_valleyofthebees-594x445.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/04\/review_valleyofthebees-594x445.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/04\/review_valleyofthebees-594x445.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":6639,"url":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2016\/10\/01\/the-glass-key\/","url_meta":{"origin":369,"position":1},"title":"The Glass Key","author":"Pam Jahn","date":"October 1, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Masculinity is the true focus of Stuart Heisler\u2019s noir tale of crime, power and lust. Review by Sarah Cronin","rel":"","context":"In "Check it out"","block_context":{"text":"Check it out","link":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/check-it-out\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"the-glass-key_","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/The-Glass-Key_-594x417.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/The-Glass-Key_-594x417.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/The-Glass-Key_-594x417.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3177,"url":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2013\/07\/08\/spider-baby\/","url_meta":{"origin":369,"position":2},"title":"Spider Baby","author":"Pam Jahn","date":"July 8, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Jack Hill\u2019s uncategorisable cult nasty is part Old Dark House\/Addams Family black comedy, part Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and Eraserhead. Review by David Cairns","rel":"","context":"In "Check it out"","block_context":{"text":"Check it out","link":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/check-it-out\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Spider Baby","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/Spider-Baby-594x442.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/Spider-Baby-594x442.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/Spider-Baby-594x442.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2493,"url":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2012\/11\/02\/antiviral\/","url_meta":{"origin":369,"position":3},"title":"Antiviral","author":"VirginieSelavy","date":"November 2, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Brandon Cronenberg hasn't exactly gone out of his way to distance himself from his father's work. Review by Mark Stafford","rel":"","context":"In "Check it out"","block_context":{"text":"Check it out","link":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/check-it-out\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/11\/antiviral_03-594x394.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/11\/antiviral_03-594x394.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/11\/antiviral_03-594x394.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":330,"url":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2008\/05\/01\/romeo-juliet-and-darkness\/","url_meta":{"origin":369,"position":4},"title":"ROMEO, JULIET AND DARKNESS","author":"VirginieSelavy","date":"May 1, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"While echoes of Anne Frank are present within the story, Romeo, Juliet and Darkness is not a wartime thriller but a love story set in the midst of the fear and violence of occupation. Review by CB","rel":"","context":"In "Home entertainment"","block_context":{"text":"Home entertainment","link":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/dvds-and-blu-rays\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2135,"url":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2012\/01\/05\/im-still-here\/","url_meta":{"origin":369,"position":5},"title":"I’m Still Here","author":"VirginieSelavy","date":"January 5, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Few mockumentaries have received as much media attention as I'm Still Here, although this is largely due to the manner in which the press was coerced into participating in the project. Review by John Berra","rel":"","context":"In "Check it out"","block_context":{"text":"Check it out","link":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/check-it-out\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/01\/ImStillHere-594x415.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/01\/ImStillHere-594x415.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/01\/ImStillHere-594x415.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/369","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=369"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/369\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=369"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=369"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=369"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}