MovieChat Forums > The Love Witch (2017) Discussion > Beautifully Constructed,But Way Too Prea...

Beautifully Constructed,But Way Too Preachy

posted 8 years ago by bimsie_01
15 replies | jump to latest

I loved the execution of the concept:60's/70's Technicolor horror production,complete with stilted acting.And those anochronisms arent a mistake.This is set in the present day,using a color palete and art direction style of that time period.
But,like others have pointed out,this film did need a seperate editor,and the POV was Feminist to the point of preachy.She made several good points,but two in particular didnt ring true with me.One was a speech where the main character says that men fall in love with the ideal,but when a woman turns out to be flawed,they fall out of love,but women fall in love,and the faults become part of the whole that they love about the man.So many women Ive known in my life take the view that yeah,he's flawed,but with time and love I can fix him.
The other was a scene where the witch creates a Witch Bottle,and one of the elements is a used tampon.The witch says that most men have never seen a used tampon.I will admit that I think that freaked more people out than the deaths,but the point she is trying to make about a woman having to hide her natural being just to keep men from being uncomfortable is not demonstrated here in a relatable way.Yeah,Ive never seen a used tampon,but No one has ever seen my poop,either.
I liked the film,but it reminded me of going to church on a holiday.The preacher knows he has a captive audience of new people,so he gives a long,very preachy sermon.

[–] skribb_Mk2 8 years ago

inetersting

__________
.and then the bong hits him on the head and he falls RIGHT over the realitY

[–] BartlebyScrivner 8 years ago

What's more unsettling is reading interviews with the director. She flat-out says that the movie isn't a satire but that it's supposed to preach her belief that men are emotionally weak and that only women are truly capable of love. Sort of deflates the fun of the film.

[–] skribb_Mk2 8 years ago

That sounds interesting because, men in general have more difficulty accessing and understanding their emotions than women.

__________
.and then the bong hits him on the head and he falls RIGHT over the realitY

[–] BartlebyScrivner 8 years ago

That's a pretty broad and sort of sexist statement. It also doesn't take into account socio-cultural perspectives on gender differences in re: emotional responses. For much of the 20th century, western culture has demanded that men be detached and aloof or risk being 'unmanly,' which stands in contrast to Biller's assertion that men are inherently, biologically incapable of love.

[–] skribb_Mk2 8 years ago

Never said that men are incapable of love.

You are correct in that i did not consider any cultural context.

__________
.and then the bong hits him on the head and he falls RIGHT over the realitY

[–] Lokisgodhi 8 years ago

Just what you'd expect to be spewed by a pheminist. No one does sexist better than pheminists.

BartlebyScrivner wrote:

That's a pretty broad and sort of sexist statement.

[–] not_a_virus.exe (1267) 7 years ago

It's not just western culture that teaches men to remain stoic, it's nature. Men were expected not to cry or show weakness for most of the human race because to show weakness risked being ostracized by the hunter gatherer tribes they were part of. You see this in wolf packs too where Omegas are often killed off because they were dead weight to the rest of the group.

And more importantly, it's not just men that forced this behavior on other men, it's also women as well. We don't ever talk about that though. Women were just as complicit as men were in shaming men into stoicism. During WWII, any man that refused to sign up for the draft got ridiculed by their wives for being cowards. Men had to risk death not just for other men, but to remain "men" in the eyes of their wives.

This idea that men were only commanded to hide their emotions by the patriarchy is a load of horseshit.

[–] R_Kane (15828) 3 years ago

Of course our society discourages men from connecting with our emotions and owning them—except during SPORTS!—because we think “strong” men suppress our feelings in favor of “rationalism.” When you teach a boy from birth that “real men don’t feel,” he is going to have a serious problem with identifying and assessing his feelings, no?

[–] Horse_Caulk 8 years ago

"She flat-out says that the movie isn't a satire but that it's supposed to preach her belief that men are emotionally weak and that only women are truly capable of love. Sort of deflates the fun of the film."

I'll say it does. What a stupid, ignorant, and smelly cow.

Filthy tart. I hope she ends up in an abusive relationship with a meth addict, with a really good left hook. In Alabama. In a trailer park.

[–] naughtyneko 8 years ago

I will admit that I think that freaked more people out than the deaths,but the point she is trying to make about a woman having to hide her natural being just to keep men from being uncomfortable is not demonstrated here in a relatable way.Yeah,Ive never seen a used tampon,but No one has ever seen my poop,either.

The fact that a tampon was "freakier" than deaths is telling. I'm going to assume that you are male. In fact, the tampon scene is directly relatable to women, and not even in a symbolic way. We literally spend about a quarter of our adult lives scrambling around, pretending we don't bleed on a monthly cycle, lest it offend someone. I would also argue that people have in fact seen your poop (anyone who ever changed your diaper/wiped you/helped potty train you), but even if they hadn't, everybody poops. There is no mystery there. No one class of people has only a vague idea what human excrement is/looks like. We have a smiley poop emoji now on our phones. Poop is normalized- tampons are not.

[–] FlyingSaucersAreReal 8 years ago

We also go into a bathroom to take care of those bodily functions, like women do when they are taking care of their tampons. And none of the women I've known scramble around pretending they don't have their monthly friend. Women these days will talk about it openly. Cramps, PMS, etc. They don't constantly dwell on it, but they certainly don't pretend it doesn't happen.

There is no mystery there. No one class of people has only a vague idea what human excrement is/looks like.

One class of people also doesn't menstruate, and women don't start experiencing that until they are at an age to take care of it themselves. So its not surprising that men aren't all that familiar with what goes on there. And used toilet paper and used tampons are not considered to be very attractive, and we dispose of them immediately. So it makes sense that we've never seen a used one either. Should men be asking women to show them to us? The reasons for these things is purely biological. Most men have seen an unused tampon, and in fact have bought them for woman in their life. Because like I said, women don't go around pretending they don't have them.

So yeah, utter nonsense.

-I was born in a crossfire hurricane.

[–] naughtyneko 8 years ago

Well thanks for mansplaining what it is like to be a woman to me...a woman. Clearly, you've got a better handle on this menstruation thing than I do.

You are the one who says the tampon "freaks" more people out than the murders. Those are your own words. As a woman, who menstruates, I totally agree with you. That freaks people out. A lot. That's why women DO actually go to great lengths to hide their menstruation. That's what tampons are all about. Sure, a woman may talk about cramps, but when was the last time you actually heard a woman talking about the quality or quantity of blood she is expelling? People talk about the quality and quantity of bowel movements all the time.

All of this aside, my point was as a WOMAN, the scene has direct resonance for me. I never doubted that it didn't for you. I further doubt it was meant to mean anything to people who don't experience menstruation.

[–] T-eschberger 8 years ago

LMFAO, she said "mansplaining" unironically. Christ almighty...

[–] kristina-djurek 8 years ago

Ok, here, I'll explain it like a woman to you being one and seeing you are unable not to be sexist and dismiss people based solely on their gender.
I am a woman, born without an uterus, and I think that periods are disgusting, it's filthy blood. No matter how natural they are, I don't want to see your stinky smelly tampon and I am glad I never have to see mine.
Why? Because it's a nasty bodily function just like pee or poop and I actually find people who talk about their periods the same as people who talk about their poop, without manners, disgusting and rude. Just because you yourself suffer from inferiority complex doesn't mean we all need to approve of farting, burping, talking about bodily functions etc in company and not be freaked out when someone does.
I am sooo glad none of my friends buy into this feminist *beep*

[–] Stratego (30576) a year ago

Hiding a used tampon has nothing to do with men. I'm a woman and don't want to see your used tampon either, you psychotic freak.