La dialectique peut-elle casser des briques? (1973)

Directors:

Kuang-chi Tu, René Viénet

Writer:

Kuang Ni

Stars:

Chan Hung Liu, Ingrid Wu, Jason Pai Piao

Cast

Credited cast:
Chan Hung Liu	...	(archive footage)
Ingrid Wu	...	(archive footage)
Jason Pai Piao	...	(archive footage)
Raoul Curet	...	(voice) (as Raoul Cure)
Jacques Thébault	...	(voice)
Michèle Grellier	...	(voice)
Dominique Morin	...	(voice)
Daniel Galle	...	(voice)
Patrick Dewaere	...	(voice)
Jean-Pierre Leroux	...	(voice)
Yves-Marie Morin	...	(voice)
Michel Bardelet	...	(voice)
Michel Elias	...	(voice)
Dominique Page	...	(voice)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Li Chai Chung	...	(archive footage)

Storyline

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Plot Keywords:

question in title | situationism | question mark in title

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Genres:

Comedy

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Details

Country:

France

Language:

French

Also Known As:

Can Dialectics Break Bricks?

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Quotes

Villain: Ideology reinforces itself as it becomes more atomized. Revolutionary theory transforms itself. It seems their latest discovery is to detourn the mass media. These detournements disturb me.

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Connections

Edited into Sonic Outlaws (1995)

User Reviews

An experience

Whether or not you like this movie will basically boil down to how you enjoy movies -- specifically, whether you're able to stomach cheesy movies in order to share a knowing chuckle with your friends. Oh yeah... also whether you're knowledgeable about sectionalism and Marxist theory.

You don't need a ton of knowledge; a passing familiarity with Marx and a vague awareness of world events (which is all I have) will do. It also helps to have seen at least one movie from this genre (classic over-the-top martial arts). But nevermind you. let's talk about the movie.

Can Dialectics Break Bricks? is a hokey Japanese karate movie dubbed over with a sly smile by a group of French sectionalists (I believe that's what they called themselves) and transmogrified into an epic tale of the struggle of the proletariat against the evil bureaucratic bourgeoisie. This is every bit as quirky and strange as it sounds. The randomness and slight surrealism of the B-movie are exaggerated by the bizarre and totally inappropriate narrative about dialectical materialism and references to Castro. It's, simply put, outrageous.

The movie was only dubbed, so during stretches without dialogue you will become (read: I got) very bored very quickly. I also felt it went on a little long. These objections aside, the movie has a dashing hero, a spirited heroine, and an inspiring crusade against evil. If you're willing to put on your silly hats and go with the joke, this movie can be a lot of fun.