MovieChat Forums > Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia (2015) Discussion > I Must Be Totally out of touch with real...

I Must Be Totally out of touch with reality ... I guess

posted 9 years ago by bruce-129
3 replies | jump to latest

When I see a great movie, like this one, I come to discuss it and see what others have
said, and there is nothing here.

It is not that I like or agree with Gore Vidal very much or very often, but he did say and
stand for some good things, and brought out a lot of things for consideration.

In the end Vidal is asked about his legacy, and he said, "I couldn't care less." I think
that is true, Vidal was always separate from the world, and he was never a member of
that rich class he claimed so often to despise, and yet one wonders if he could have
joined it, could have become a Congressmen or a Senator ... what would his life have
been like?

Vidal was like the court jester who can say the most amazing things, be very cutting
and entertaining, and yet is never taken seriously ... and that is what he was.

It is like he played his part rather brilliantly, because it was his role in life, it was the way
he made a good living, but one has to think, he wanted more, and in gaining more he
would have gotten corrupted too.

He, like most of the Left, always talk a great talk, but there is nothing behind it except
pandering to people he really has no respect for.

When I say Vidal's face it is like he was full of pain, wincing constantly.

Whatever he was and whether I agree or disagree, this documentary was brilliant, and
Vidal was a grand court jester who raised eyebrows, but was just as black a heart as
everyone else he condemned.

Movies seldom show anything real, which is why I give his documentary a 10/10, because
Gore Vidal is the perfect subject to peel back just enough of reality to get a glimpse of
truth. That is an amazing power, even if he had nothing to do with that personally.

Amazing ... wonderful documentary, brilliant ... 10/10

1) UnWatchable 2)Watchable,ButBad 3)Decent,SeeOnce 4)Good,Repeat&Recommend 5)Great,Classic

[–] fanaticita 9 years ago

Last night I watched this film and absolutely loved it. After reading both of vidal's memoirs/autobiographies, Palinpsest, and also Point To Point Navigation I was looking forward to seeing the current film on Buckley and Vidal, but missed it at my local theater. Instead I found this film at my local library and couldn't wait to see it. Vidal was an amazing man, brilliant, and with a wild sense of humor. He certainly led an interesting life, and had quite a following of people throughout the spectrum of politics, culture, etc. He will be missed. I can't think of anyone who can follow.

[–] bruce-129 9 years ago

I saw this movie recently in a local theater, it was fun and I liked it. I grew up hearing and listening too both of these two, and being very interested and also very critical of both of them.

I would say however that it is a defect in the media to pick two wildly uncharacteristic people for the country ... what it did was to detach the political process with the media and was one of the early and major shifts to entertainment, faux-intellectual as this was.

It is significant as you say - who will follow. It means that when you create a mindset in people, implanted through the media and based on a person, a personna, as a leader, that leader becomes a focus to corruption and a limiting viewport, not really necessarily a service to the public good, which the FCC used to have some control over.

Always breaking down the things that work in our society is based on these false arguments of freedom, wink, winked at by the lawmakers as they know already how to use these new "liberties", and liberties is a good word, it is as in taking liberties, ie doing something you really shouldn't by the rules.

I think we have to start to understand the affects of the early TV era and how it has been used to manipulate the public, to usurp the discussion of the public reality in favor of what are basically special effects, engineered reality.

Do you have any thoughts where you noticed this was supposed to be about the political conventions, yet there were very few, if any references to it at all in this movie. Actually none that I can recall, though there probably was something.

[–] fanaticita 9 years ago

Regarding your fifth paragraph. . .. I think the same thing is happening today with the media, especially social media, tv and online news etc. . . .. . .definitely engineered reality, and with a suspicious purpose.

I don't believe this was a film having Vidal profess his politics. If he did, it was minimal and didn't really get into the specifics. Overall, it was a film based on his personality, writings, friendships, personal relationships, etc. Actually I'm relieved politics was not the main topic.