Zabriskie Point

Zabriskie Point is a nicely filmed but boring flick about politics and feelings, whose “climax” is the protracted scene of group sex in one of the most beautiful parts of Death Valley. (03.12.2007)

During the introduction, the director introduces us to a community of excited university students engaged in discussions. The university occupation strike demands active involvement and new ideas. "We will create an impassable barricade with cars," someone suggests. "And we could start with your sports car," is the response, accompanied by hearty laughter. No, university students are too intelligent despite their revolutionary fervor to destroy their own automobiles. After all, there are plenty of foreign cars on the street. It would be unfair to compare today's spoiled leftists from prominent families and an academic environment dominated by political correctness with those who fought against real racism and injustice in the 60s. Antonioni was not a politically oriented filmmaker and Zabriskie Point is an atypical deviation in his work. Engaged directors like Pasolini would certainly attempt a political commentary and most likely would have filmed this material much worse. But still, Antonioni demonstrates too much fascination with the revolutionary sentiments among students, and a small time gap from 1968, which shook the Western establishment, is clearly evident. The director allows his protagonist to pilot an airplane, which is still a hobby reserved for the upper middle-class today; in the 60s, it was exclusively a privilege of the rich. Making love in the desert on a geological foundation that Antonioni attributed to his protagonists would indeed amount to a cruel act. Certainly, it was intended as a symbol of freedom, but couldn't there be a more sensible idea? The final scene of settling scores with capitalism through a series of explosions in luxury mansions can now be seen as an ironic reminder of the reversal of social roles and political preferences. Today, different patterns and alliances apply. The poor vote for conservatives and you can find countless progressive billionaires. Antonioni (and not only he) would be amazed by today's uprising of the poor against left-wing meritocracy. Zabriskie Point is interesting today not for any message or capturing of the mood of the time, but for its excellent camera work, music, and overall cinematic language. Overall impression: 55%. (18.10.2018)

Defiance and rebellion of the youth against society and the system, constrained by outdated conventions and social order symbolizing the shackles of justice and freedom. The two main characters embody the bitterness and strength of the entire movement, which emerged in the West and particularly in the USA in the late 60s. The young man, Mark, idealistic yet energetic, is determined and capable of taking action for change (albeit naïve). The girl, Daria, instinctively feels the same resistance to the state of society but seeks relief in escape (through meditation, music, and fantasies) instead of action. Their paths briefly merge, and both fully enjoy the experience of being a young attractive man and a young beautiful girl in the era of hippies.... But then a turning point must come, just as a turning point had to come in the history of the movement. The one who decided to actively act against the system must inevitably be destroyed by the system, given the overall circumstances. The one who decided to "move forward" embodies all those who, either on their own or under external pressures, have grown out of their (simplistically speaking) "hippie intoxication" or had to give it up. The destruction of the old society and its system remained forever only in their imaginations. (P.S. - In the better case, they later paradoxically became yuppies, young consumer-oriented ambitious members of the upper class who fully identified with the main social characteristics they had fought against in their early youth.) (30.09.2012)

More than forty years ago, the legendary director Michelangelo Antonioni noticed that contemporary society is consumed by consumerism. What would it be like if an individual broke away from consumer society? Not in the sense of becoming a rebel or going somewhere to demonstrate for a better future for the Earth. No, what if they chose a path where they simply did whatever they wanted, but without hurting anyone. Okay, maybe they would steal an airplane, but not to steal, but to fly. The film has three crucial moments - at least in my opinion. The first one is the scene in prison, where Mark wants to bail out his friend, but because he is too eager, he is arrested preventively. A young person at the turn of the 70s, as if he equaled something unnatural that could only harm society. An escape from such treatment seems perfectly understandable. The second moment is the group sex in Zabriskie Point, where young people make love because they simply can. It's a display of their freedom, their lack of restraint. But it's still just an escape. What they want, they can only do in no man's land. The third moment is the finale - an explosion of a house representing the hated consumerism. As if Antonioni were saying that if a person wants to achieve their goal, it can only be done through destruction. Otherwise, change is not possible. Escape remains an escape unless the old order changes. Until that happens, everything will remain the same. But the price of such a decision is high, as in this case. The film brilliantly emphasizes the meticulously selected music. More: http://www.filmovy-denik.cz/2012/08/parmeni-krysy-z-temnot-mi-4-blazniva.html (26.02.2013)