Videocracy

Much has been sad about this documentary, before it's been shown. Europe outside Italy has its view clear. How is Berlusconi possible? You meet this agent with Mussolini songs in his cell phone. You meet the paparazzi king who with a considerable amount of self irony calls himself a Robin Hood, who takes from the poor and gives to himself. You also meet the 26-year-old worker, still living with his mother, who wants to be famous, combining Ricky Martin songs with karate tricks.

What we are supposed to think is obvious, but who is to blame? Is it the TV viewers who let this happened or someone else? The hen or the egg once again. That's the discussion which really ought to start from this film.

I respect the opinion of viewers that wished for a more detailed explanation of how Berlusconi ascended to power imposing his videocracy on the whole Country. On the other hand, who let him do that and why is still debated in Italy and abroad, subject to political interpretation and therefore a quite tedious and convoluted story to tell. The audience here gets to experience the Italian TV and media dominated reality from a purely naturalistic angle, almost like an ethologist would look at a society of ants. The movie, I believe, is a lot more powerful and compelling that way: the viewers can go through all the the feelings of incredulity, anguish, disgust, pity and anger it generates without anyone saying out loud that they should, making those feelings all the more intense and true.

"Half cooked" should be the kindest expression to describe this attempt at revealing something we all know. There is no real depth or cinematic wit here. An opportunistic denouncement of sorts is all I think this is. The real problem is not Berlusconi's power but the power WE have allowed him. We are the problem, we're not victims of some sinister plot but the willing participants of a shameless spectacle. Berlusconi and his ilk couldn't have grown and progress in a Country with memory and pride instead he's going to go wherever he wants to go because we're making it possible. "Name me another Italian that has accomplished what I have accomplished" Berlusconi tells us and we don't say a word, not a word! The terrifying moments dedicated to the self confessed "Mussolinian" Lele Mora seem a work of fiction. He has a fascist little march illustrated by images of swastikas and Mussolini himself in his cell phone. And Fabrizio Corona? He indulges in a full frontal and on pearls of wisdom such as "Robin Hood took from the rich to gave to the poor, I'm the modern version of Robin Hood, I take from the rich and keep it" yes, this is the Country we live in, the Country that gave us Dante and Michelangelo. Oh God!

what strikes me about the reviews is the shock of people in the US who feel that this monopoly is so different from the so called 2 party system here in the US. first off, things aren't much better in this country with regards to poor taste, exploitation of women, and a cattle like docility of the population. 2ndly, at least ital isn't so involved in slaughtering millions around the globe. while there's shock aplenty when those numbers come up at the end giving Italy's stature in rank among countries in the world for issues such as "freedom" and "sexual equality" I can't imagine that the US is all that far ahead. in fact, "freedom" seems like such a slippery concept... the health care problems here mean far less freedom to have live all that long in this country, our educational system is becoming so exclusive, while belonging in the EU, any citizen of Italy can study at any major university in the entire EU for free, that kind of empowerment can engender freedom of a sort people here can only long for.

The movie did move pretty slowly at times and more information might have been conveyed at the expense of long shots that didn't really use up the screen time all that convincingly.

This documentary sets a lot of demand on the audience. The number one complaint I hear is that the documentary lacks in information about the different subjects encountered throughout the film. This complaint, however, might just be a bit of an empty can rattle since the idea of the film obviously isn't, as opposed to a say Michael Moore-style documentary, to give a clear black/white picture of a scenario. Instead, Gandini tends to leave his videocratic exclamations hanging freely letting a steady stream of question marks trickle by.

Instead of underrating me as the kind of viewer who demands simple answers to everything right there on the screen (e.g. short cartoon style animated clip, complete with sarcastic touches, of Berlusconi gaining power) Gandini sees his opportunity to leave me and the audience hungry for elaborating facts. In my case, and I feel I might not be alone here, I found myself grabbing for my smart phone just minutes into the movie googling up all the people and places and checking facts mentioned in the film. I was so mind boggled I couldn't get of my computer until about 4 am.

Perhaps Gandini has overrated his audience's capability of coming to their own conclusions, but I for one feel a sense of gratitude towards the film maker. I feel grateful for being a free man and not getting controlled by government television.

However, I do have one complaint. Horror-music really doesn't help a serious documentary to get the message through as being objective. The actual events themselves are scary enough on there own without discrediting music, which only makes for a cheaper feel. Shame on you sound producers!