*** CONTAINS SPOILERS ***
What a delightfully evil film! I fell that the film can be experienced on at least two levels: first (really, for males only) at a base level. It is simply fun to see a dashing rogue cavort his way into the bed of a pretty young woman since, and Don Johnson fulfills this role with an easy charm. On this base level, the final scene, although shocking, is satisfying not for the actual act (after all, why can't the rogue keep the chick and the dog?) that takes place but for the slick usurpation of the traditional male role that we suspect he will fall into. We wonder, in the 2nd to last scene: will Vic subordinate himself to caring for this poor young woman who has permanently exiled herself to a harsh world? The negative answer rejects not only the idea that such chivalrous behavior is obligatory, but also any normal sense of morality. And here we must take a somewhat more sophisticated interpretation of the movie. I have two questions: what point might this movie be trying to convey? And what do the events in the movie tell us about the state of the world the movie portrays? Here are some candidates:
Since I live near a large metropolitan area, I am often aware of how emasculating city life can be, which is why, I suppose, I have such a sympathetic reaction to this overtly offensive movie.
What fun it must be to travel as a lone male with dog, unencumbered by superego and oppressive male role obligations! Perhaps "A Boy and His Dog" should be classified as "philosophical pornography."
What a delightfully evil film! I fell that the film can be experienced on at least two levels: first (really, for males only) at a base level. It is simply fun to see a dashing rogue cavort his way into the bed of a pretty young woman since, and Don Johnson fulfills this role with an easy charm. On this base level, the final scene, although shocking, is satisfying not for the actual act (after all, why can't the rogue keep the chick and the dog?) that takes place but for the slick usurpation of the traditional male role that we suspect he will fall into. We wonder, in the 2nd to last scene: will Vic subordinate himself to caring for this poor young woman who has permanently exiled herself to a harsh world? The negative answer rejects not only the idea that such chivalrous behavior is obligatory, but also any normal sense of morality. And here we must take a somewhat more sophisticated interpretation of the movie. I have two questions: what point might this movie be trying to convey? And what do the events in the movie tell us about the state of the world the movie portrays? Here are some candidates:
- the movie is a meditation on friendship and trust (a generous interpretation)
- the movie shows what base behavior people are capable of when social (and, in the case of "down under", political) controls do not exist (lord of the flies-style)
- The movie make an unflinching stab at what will and will not remain of humanity when civilization is destroyed: decency will be lost, the human spirit will not.
Since I live near a large metropolitan area, I am often aware of how emasculating city life can be, which is why, I suppose, I have such a sympathetic reaction to this overtly offensive movie.
What fun it must be to travel as a lone male with dog, unencumbered by superego and oppressive male role obligations! Perhaps "A Boy and His Dog" should be classified as "philosophical pornography."