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Generally favorable reviews - based on 20 Critics What's this?

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  • Starring: Lili Taylor
  • Summary: In 1968, mad, radical-feminist genius Valerie Solanas shot pop-art icon Andy Warhol, seriously wounding him. This film traces her bizarre life leading to that moment, including the writing of her "SCUM Manifesto," which decrees males biologically obsolete. (MGM)
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 15 out of 20
  2. Negative: 1 out of 20
  1. Typically, films about '60s subculture recycle the same set of media cliches and teach us nothing. Harron approaches the milieu with curiosity, compassion and an anthropologist's eye.
  2. The film's greatest directorial success is in finding a thoroughly entertaining way of inviting the audience to share Valerie's point of view.
  3. Reviewed by: Staff (Not credited)
    60
    The film does nothing to demythologize the '60s; rather, it uses prevailing myths as a substitute for critical thinking.
  4. 30
    Obstreperous, male-bashing pain in the patoot.

See all 20 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 1
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 1
  3. Negative: 0 out of 1
  1. On the surface the film feels compressed and seems to mirror the tone of Warhol culture. On a deeper level Harron is implicitly examining the role of violence as a part of the human experience. Solanas is used as a narrative frame and the audience see the world from her perspective. The film is not about Andy Warhol or the 1960s, it is an examination of the internal and external workings of the human mind. In this sense it is extremely complex, Solanas is exposed as a person who is organised and articulate yet weak and exploited. She doesn't see people as individuals, she sees them as personalities and defines herself the same way therefore leaving her vulnerable to violence. She is criticized as comfortable within a violent world and desperate to belong. You can learn about violence by watching how her world changes when she leaves confined settings and merges into the streets. Mary Harron is admirable in her attempt to criticize human desire and there is a great deal to talk about, though the film is not perfect. Is Solanas a hero or is she a loser? Nobody knows though she will sure argue her case. Expand

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