CF and Ideology

• CF - How useful is an ideological critical approach for understanding the way the spectators are positioned in your chosen films

  Point 1: CONTEXT - Spectators of the Sundance film festival are more likely to align to the films left wing political stance. Sundance spectators are more likely to side with the challenge to the dominant hegemonic values. However, they are less likely to be parents
• CF - How useful is an ideological critical approach for understanding the way the spectators are positioned in your chosen films

  Point 2: Parental viewpoint. A parents viewpoint and morality is questioned throughout. Ambiguity, do we side with Jack or Ben? Simplistic binary opposition. Ben's parenting - Kids are smart, are happy, are fit, but mission "free the food", Noam Chomsky day, Vespyr falling off the roof, Relian breaking his wrist
• CF - How useful is an ideological critical approach for understanding the way the spectators are positioned in your chosen films

  Christian viewpoint - hate the whole movie. Examples of why - teaching kids to steal, Pol Pot allowed?, Christmas described as = "fictitious fat elf", Noam Chomsky Day, pretending to be religious to escape the police, "we don't be mean to anyone" "except Christians", Funeral scene and cremation scene and the binary opposition of Christianity vs Buddhism
• How useful is an ideological critical approach been in studying narrative?

  Political ideological approach - binary opposition of Extreme right wing vs Extreme left wing - emphasis on the fact that compromise is necessary in society
• How useful is an ideological critical approach been in studying narrative?

  Marxist ideological approach - Binary opposition of capitalism vs extreme left wing political stances like communism - presented by the contrasting colour palettes and the mise-en-scene of the Big Co-operations. Also dialogue - "What's coke? Poison water"
• Feminist ideological approach 


  Captain Fantastic, if approached from an ideological critical standpoint will evoke a clear opposition between active and passive spectators. A feminist ideological critical approach is more likely to read this as weakness in the roof scene. An active feminist spectator begins to realise that women are absent and are shown as weak. The narrative is based on male characters. A feminist approach would say the film instead perpetuates stereotypical representations of women as weak and unimportant and inferior to their male counterparts.
• Feminist ideological approach 


  For example, in the scene when Vespyr falls of the roof, a passive spectator could potentially view this as women are represented as brave and hardworking, completing any tasks that come their way. However, a feminist ideological critical approach is more likely to read this as vulnerability and weakness. Leslie is presented as vulnerable through her mental heath issues, as she does take her own life, representing her as weak.
• Feminist ideological approach


  The heavily edited scenes of Leslie appearing angel, only through Ben’s imagination represents her ineffectiveness as a mother and character in her own right. Also, the performance of Abigail at the funeral suggests she is ineffective and follows Jack’s orders. Even Harper, with hysterical dialogue “we get the point” and agitated performance of tears and shouting also represents women as out of control. Her children’s performance when they give the middle finger to Zaja implies poor parenting, as she can’t control her ignorant, game-obsessed rude children
• Political ideological approach 


  The political context in Captain Fantastic is useful for an ideological political critical approach due to the fact Ross didn’t want the film to be bias towards a traditional consumerist life-style versus the Cash family. Ross wanted the film to be politically neutral. However, the spectator’s own ideological values will determine very different responses to the text and may not be so neutral
• Political ideological approach


  A left-wing view would naturally side with Ben and laugh at the representation of the police officer in the bus scene, which shows his weakness through a high angle as if the cash family are frowning upon him. In addition, their imitation of being far-right Christians to scare him off would also appeal to a left-wing audience. A right-wing spectator, however, watching the movie once released into the mainstream, would be appalled by this behaviour and their attitude towards organised religion.
• Political ideological approach


  Ben’s militant influence on his children’s upbringing could imply to a more conformist spectator that Ben has poor parenting skills. For example, during the rock-climbing scene we see that Rellian is in pain through performance, Zaja’s den has Pol Pot pictures, which Ben allows. The worshiping of a dictator is a questionable parenting decision. A left-wing spectator can appreciate the dialogue “why are they all so fat? Are they all ill?” and be more sympathetic to values. The binary opposition lies between Jack and Ben, epitomising two extreme ideological views