DOGTOOTH (1)

     

Dogtooth presents a world in which all the information was provided by the father, where the kids (one man, two sisters) were being kept away from rest of the world, and receiving filtered information from their parents.  Start from the use of language, different definition of words were being taught, they believe that the outer world is hostile and dangerous. The only way to go out is by their dad driving cars.  

This article is not about Yorgos' shooting style or how ground breaking the film is, although it is one of the films that I appreciates the most during these years. 

With the whole control of any sort of media, the father create a parallel universe from the outer world.  They have their own dynamic, ethic, relationship within the family.  They believed in whatever their father says because he was the only resource to new knowledge and the outside world. 

Media filter

when information is overloaded, people grow lazy and tiredness to select information, or through our search engine (ex: Google, Yahoo, MSN), all the information was being calculated, those who paid for ads or being paid much attention to will appears on the first line on search engine. Our information was carefully being manipulated under the circumstance that I thought we choose to know/ we search for the information by the fact that it is out of our free will to research it, and type in the information by our hand. 

In the film, there are different new words being brought up by the stranger/ sex need provider, Christina.  She as an intruder of the world somehow create an poignent for the environ.  Children enquire truth through asking their information resource - Father/ mother. But without the possibility of questioning the fact and accept it instantly.  The duplication effect by internet is tremendous, people who read about it might produced a certain knowledge through it, being presented in discussion, by talking and information spreading, blogging, Facebook status share, and then being recognised by mass media/ 3rd objective holder.  

Different opinions are more marginalise by the amount of information which constructed by search engine and internet sharing culture (By clicking sharing botton on social media, copy and paste motion). And people were being educated into a certain kind of group, as collecting stickers (Dogtooth)  pursing an eternal goal. 

Entertainment is all related to the need to be positive and creative thinking is in the contemporary art world. Only to entertain yourself when victories happen, mission completed, or being submissive. 

Punishment 

Being different and active is prohibited.  When authority facing challenge (ex: Questioning, React, Self-reflective, doubt), they tend to perform physical harm action, to make the subject fear, hurt, unsettle, thus to stop their action and become submissive.  Punishment can be seen not only physical abuse but also mentally torture. unacceptable, frustration, exclude become another way of punish, society form itself a wall of secure, of normality.  Oddity or Queerness being condemned by media, community safety become a shield that under the shield, all the actions could be tolerated, accepted, legitimised. By different packaging strategies we can see how Marylyn Manson being portraits as a dominent reason in Columbine massacre but Gun culture still being celebrated and well accepted in the US (not necessarily adapted all Michael Moore's point of view though).

The boy believe that cat is a predator comes from outer world. ©Dogtooth

When authority's voice empowered in such way, the absolute and non self reflexive reaction will be create. Such as cats in the film become a predator, vilified by the authority and incest become acceptable. The power of topdown educational system is enormous in this sense. And the spread, shared culture is actually not only effective our community but also powerful enough to put the mass into a single pipe so we all being directed to a communal direction which causing the blind faith and through this process, pervasive value being create.

Here an epistemological question appears : "How do we know what we know?"

Prize

Popular = prize.  the value of being accepted by majority was taught within our massive shared culture.
With tags such as "Most viewed" "Most emailed" "Most comment",  Ranking on IMDB, sale number which displayed in the shop...  We can also see in emerging numbers of talk show inviting kids whose video gots most viewing numbers to be on TV and were given prizes. (Such as Connie from Britain gots talent, Kassie on Ellen Degeneres, and recently Jake Booth on Jimmy Kimmel)

Why popularity become so important on media? is that how they shaping our value by enacting with them how they want?



Question
Is sharing culture = folk lore = story telling?