THE ART OF SELF-DEFENSE – a movie review by Gary Smolker, movie and values critic

A NOT ENTERTAINING POLITICALLY CORRECT MOVIE

“The Art of Self-Defense” is being hailed as an offbeat sinister dark comedy classic.

Many of the scenes in this movie are gruesome.

As I watched this movie, on the big screen in a movie theater, I became more and more repulsed and kept asking myself: “What is this movie about?”

This movie is a criticism of the power structure in our society.

WHAT IS THIS MOVIE ABOUT?

“The Art of Self-Defense” is a feminist movie.

This movie is a criticism of masculinity.

The story told in “The Art of Self-Defense” is a very strong a criticism of our male dominated hierarchical society, of our society in which symbols – such as what you wear – denote who and what your are.

“The Art of Self-Defense” is a cry of protest in the fictionalized world of male hereditary privilege and power shown on the screen, a dramatically cruel and unfair world where a woman can not earn a black belt in Karate because she is a woman.

REALITY CHECK

“The Art of Self-Defense” takes toxic male masculinity to absurd extremes with no discussion of the rising power of women in contemporary society; makes no reference to the political battles women have won that give them preferential treatment under the law, lower standards for hiring, and control of what men may legally say.

THERE ARE WOMEN WHO HOLD A BLACK BELT IN KARATE

I know a woman who has a black belt in Karate.

WAKE UP CALL

This movie is a wake-up call for men who are not aware that women are winning the battle of the sexes for privileges and power because they are fighting hard and men act as if they don’t know there is a public relations battle for political power going on.

THE STORY

The movie begins with a scene of the main character being mugged at night by a motorcycle gang while on his way home from shopping for dog food for his pet, a small cute Dachshund.

The main character (played by Jesse Eisenberg) is a timid bookkeeper whose name is Casey.

To protect himself, after being mugged, Casey attempts to purchase a pistol.

He goes to a store that sells guns.

When he attempts to purchase a pistol, Casey is told that he has to apply for permission to purchase a gun, fill out forms, and wait for his application to be approved.

Frustrated by his inability to purchase a pistol, Casey joins a neighborhood karate studio to learn how to protect himself.

As the story progresses, we learn that the head karate instructor Sensei is a sick sadistic person.

Sensei ran the motorcycle gang that attacked Casey.

We also learn that one of Casey’s fellow karate students – a woman – brown belt Anna (played by Imogen Poots) saved Casey’s life.

Anna was on the scene as a member of the motorcycle gang that mugged Case.

Anna saved Casey’s life by pretending to hear police sirens.

She told the other gang members to stop beating up Casey and to flee because the police were coming, she heard police sirens.

After Casey joins the karate studio, movie focuses on the tortuous activities of the head karate instructor Sensei who on the side leads a motorcycle gang that mugs people who are walking alone at night.

A hierarchical fraternity – lead by Sensei – consisting of karate students both practices karate, take karate lessons in the karate studio, and at night as a member of a motorcycle gang attacks people walking alone.

The movie is about the interactions between members of that fraternity.

In those interactions toxic masculinity is taken to absurd extremes.

 

Copyright © 2019 by Gary Smolker, All Rights Reserved