"The irony is that Judge never really intended to make a grand political statement with Idiocracy."
Hell, I never intended to make the rest of my life a grand political statement, but after Dobbs and a decade of Trump, that is my entire life: resisting this fascist demolition of democracy and women's rights. All day, every day, in every way, folks. Thanks, Meredith, for the parallel. (Another show that probably didn't mean to so closely predict reality is "Designated Survivor" with Keifer Sutherland; it's chilling in that respect.)
I suspect that some of the most effective political statements are unintentional. Aside from "Idiocracy", I can't help but think of the old "Simpsons" episode where President Lisa Simpson has to clean up the mess left by her predecessor -- Donald Trump. They picked Trump because the idea of him as president was ludicrous, not as a cautionary tale. Ditto for "Back to the Future" modelling the evil adult Biff Tannen after Donald Trump.
That said, while the flaws of "Idiocracy" mentioned in the article are real, I think there is merit in the film's satire even outside the current moment. I first discovered the film about 15 years ago, when the idea of a Trump presidency was not on the radar and it worked because it effectively satirized other things that were already going on in our culture -- notably, the rise of brain-deadening reality TV shows and the increased corporate domination of everything. So while it certainly isn't a great movie, I do think it qualifies as a good movie.
I saw it back then too and found the satire cutting. What does the public know? Perhaps it got poor reviews and box office because ... it was too true.
Worth noting that Idiocracy is very (too?) similar to the 1951 novel The Marching Morons by Cyril Kornbluth. It follows the same idea that smart people practiced birth control creating a low IQ world. It received the same criticism as Idiocracy.
I suspect that "The Marching Morons" also served as partial inspiration for the novel "Search the Sky" by Frederik Pohl and Cyril Kornbluth. The portions of that novel set on a far-future earth envisions a society dominated by a really dumb majority who are quietly cared for by those who are intelligent but unambitious.
Can't help but wonder if Mike Judge has read "The Marching Morons" by Cyril Kornbluth. Published in the April 1951 issue of "Galaxy" magazine, it has the Exact Same Premise of ignorant people outbreeding the intelligent ones. It's darker in tone, though.
Sometimes satire is closer to the truth than what the run of the mill media foists off upon us. Sometimes it's just ahead of its time. That's one reason for the free speech of SNL, Kimmel, and the departed Colbert. Often, more real news can be gleaned from them than legacy media.
Another example of the old saying, "Life imitates Art."
Of course, i don't imagine anyone (other than hardcore magats) ever thought the 47th regime would be lead by a dumb "leader" and his even dumber "leadership" circle.
"The irony is that Judge never really intended to make a grand political statement with Idiocracy."
Hell, I never intended to make the rest of my life a grand political statement, but after Dobbs and a decade of Trump, that is my entire life: resisting this fascist demolition of democracy and women's rights. All day, every day, in every way, folks. Thanks, Meredith, for the parallel. (Another show that probably didn't mean to so closely predict reality is "Designated Survivor" with Keifer Sutherland; it's chilling in that respect.)
I suspect that some of the most effective political statements are unintentional. Aside from "Idiocracy", I can't help but think of the old "Simpsons" episode where President Lisa Simpson has to clean up the mess left by her predecessor -- Donald Trump. They picked Trump because the idea of him as president was ludicrous, not as a cautionary tale. Ditto for "Back to the Future" modelling the evil adult Biff Tannen after Donald Trump.
That said, while the flaws of "Idiocracy" mentioned in the article are real, I think there is merit in the film's satire even outside the current moment. I first discovered the film about 15 years ago, when the idea of a Trump presidency was not on the radar and it worked because it effectively satirized other things that were already going on in our culture -- notably, the rise of brain-deadening reality TV shows and the increased corporate domination of everything. So while it certainly isn't a great movie, I do think it qualifies as a good movie.
I saw it back then too and found the satire cutting. What does the public know? Perhaps it got poor reviews and box office because ... it was too true.
Worth noting that Idiocracy is very (too?) similar to the 1951 novel The Marching Morons by Cyril Kornbluth. It follows the same idea that smart people practiced birth control creating a low IQ world. It received the same criticism as Idiocracy.
I suspect that "The Marching Morons" also served as partial inspiration for the novel "Search the Sky" by Frederik Pohl and Cyril Kornbluth. The portions of that novel set on a far-future earth envisions a society dominated by a really dumb majority who are quietly cared for by those who are intelligent but unambitious.
The dark ending of Marching Morons, and what it implies, was ignored in the movie.
Can't help but wonder if Mike Judge has read "The Marching Morons" by Cyril Kornbluth. Published in the April 1951 issue of "Galaxy" magazine, it has the Exact Same Premise of ignorant people outbreeding the intelligent ones. It's darker in tone, though.
Sometimes satire is closer to the truth than what the run of the mill media foists off upon us. Sometimes it's just ahead of its time. That's one reason for the free speech of SNL, Kimmel, and the departed Colbert. Often, more real news can be gleaned from them than legacy media.
Another example of the old saying, "Life imitates Art."
Of course, i don't imagine anyone (other than hardcore magats) ever thought the 47th regime would be lead by a dumb "leader" and his even dumber "leadership" circle.
They aspire to idiocy, deeming experts dolts and heroes, losers.