Cinema is typically an emotional realm, so using it to present intellectual thesis poses quite the challenge. Firstly, you are at risk of not presenting the thesis carefully enough, which typically requires chapters of careful wording. Secondly, you risk dulling the action with exposition. Thirdly, you risk being preachy. And lastly, all of the above is exacerbated if the audience disagrees with your thesis. "My American Uncle" cannot perfectly avoid all these pitfalls - it comes with the territory - but it is a rare film where both science and poetry appear in harmony, without detracting, and even aiding, the story.
From child to adult we follow the lives of three characters, born with naught to do with each other, becoming entwined in the most dramatic circumstances. Rene, a farmer turned textile executive. Janine, an aspiring actress who turns to textiles. And Jean, a bourgeois politician, who has an affair with Jean. In common they all aspire to greater success, higher status, and more joy in life, at the cost of their family relationships and health.
Intercut and narrated over the plot is a psychological analysis of human behaviour, and how we unconsciously seek to gain control and power by (often unwittingly) dominating others. Our reactions to challenging situations are compared to rats in a cage when subjected to scientific experiments involving electric pulses. This exposition breaks the fourth wall, analysing the action as it plays out, yet manages to creep in and out just so that we are still swept up in the story, and the further it goes, the more emotional resonance it carries.
If I were to offer one critique on the psychology, is that it never allows us to transcend our pain. In other words, it never explores the idea that mental stability or peace can be achieved without dominance, or in fact, for not everyone can be dominant, that it is absolutely necessary to do so. However if that message is not stated explicitly, it may be implied, given the calamitous climax.
From child to adult we follow the lives of three characters, born with naught to do with each other, becoming entwined in the most dramatic circumstances. Rene, a farmer turned textile executive. Janine, an aspiring actress who turns to textiles. And Jean, a bourgeois politician, who has an affair with Jean. In common they all aspire to greater success, higher status, and more joy in life, at the cost of their family relationships and health.
Intercut and narrated over the plot is a psychological analysis of human behaviour, and how we unconsciously seek to gain control and power by (often unwittingly) dominating others. Our reactions to challenging situations are compared to rats in a cage when subjected to scientific experiments involving electric pulses. This exposition breaks the fourth wall, analysing the action as it plays out, yet manages to creep in and out just so that we are still swept up in the story, and the further it goes, the more emotional resonance it carries.
If I were to offer one critique on the psychology, is that it never allows us to transcend our pain. In other words, it never explores the idea that mental stability or peace can be achieved without dominance, or in fact, for not everyone can be dominant, that it is absolutely necessary to do so. However if that message is not stated explicitly, it may be implied, given the calamitous climax.