Born in Flames

An interesting and timely movie for 2019. I found it particularly interesting that the writers of this movie, in 1981, we able to craft dialogue for the "Men's movement" that is exactly what the alt-right men of today are spouting.

A mockumentary about an ultimate timeline where the US became a socialist state that did very little to benefit the disadvantaged, and a couple of organisations that aim to overthrow the system in an attempt to enact real change.

For 1983, this is so radical that it still probably would feel radical to most viewers in 2022. It's pretty bleak, hopeless, and messy, but I think there's a lot of truth here. I think it successfully argues that there'd still be a lot of work to do to make a society healthy beyond making changes within the already established system. If it's a starting point, sure, but Born In Flames says that's not enough.

The film's probably right. The US hasn't even gone as far to even be a socialist-democratic country, and if it ever did, they may well deal with some of the problems this film depicts.

I wish the movie was overall a little more focused- there's some repetition and a few too man characters, and there's one song they play every 15 or so minutes, which drove me a bit nuts. But I do really love what it's going for and how forward-thinking it is (and how well it's aged), and the execution overall is still pretty solid.

Also: that final shot is crazy.

This film has some amazing visuals by virtue of being a time caspule to pre gentrified NYC. The plot is secondary to its actual ideas but still coherent and hits home.

The music is brilliant too and and when you add all this up, it gives you something a 100 million studio film would not be able to replicate. Worth watching.

A film with almost mythic status as a feminist dystopian classic. Obviously the point is the politics but as a film its horrible. A cut-up of fake TV news coverage and documentary performance clearly improvised by a non-professional cast. Like finding yourself accidentally trapped in an argument you have no interest in. Fine if your burning interest is 1980's feminist agit-prop. Otherwise a complete waste of time.

Made over six years between 1977-83, this film reminded me strongly of the films labelled the No Wave. These were underground lo-fi movies made primarily in New York in the late 70's / early 80's. They often had political messages and were uncompromisingly uncommercial. I'm not sure but I would think that Lizzie Borden's feature Born in Flames must surely qualify as one, as this is a wilfully challenging and direct bit of underground cinema which is a rallying cry to women generally. It has a sci-fi premise. In the near future, America is celebrating the tenth anniversary of a socialist revolution but despite this, many issues remain the same, such as racism, homophobia and sexism. A militant group called the Women's Army have been formed, they take direct action to fight for women's rights. Their leader is arrested for a minor offense and mysteriously dies in custody in prison, leading to further revolution.

I'll come out and admit it straight away that I didn't fully enjoy this one. Not on ideological grounds but merely because I did not find the film fully engaging due to its fragmented experimental presentation. Having said that, I do respect what it was doing and it does have an unmistakable energy to it which I found interesting. It's clearly low-budget as underground films always are but it definitely has ambition for sure. It takes the form of a pseudo-documentary and mixes in some real news footage in with staged material. The actors are all amateur but this does ensure the feel remains more radical and less watered down. It focuses on feminist politics primarily and it does have to be said that many of the issues discussed still exist today so it does still have a relevance in terms of what it is saying. I also enjoyed the punk soundtrack which had a sort of proto riot grrrl feel to it. So, while I cannot pretend to have fully engaged with this one, I do respect it and admit it has a certain unique feel.