svenrufus — 11 years ago(September 25, 2014 02:31 AM)

I always struggle to figure out to what extent I should judge a film that shows attitudes that are not acceptable in the modern day, when such attitudes were accepted (although I would argue, still not right) in the day they were made.
For instance there is a scene in this, about 45 minutes in when the wife says something along the lines of 'Don't choose my friends for me - I'm free, white and 21!'. That really really jars with me. A few moments later there was a slide that talked about women as being foolish - yes I know that's the point of the film, but it was more of a generalisation than saying it of a particular woman/women.
I don't think that showing racism or sexism necessarily makes a movie racist or sexist - it can just be
about
that issue, or include it as a theme, but sometimes I look at something like this and think 'Hmm, you're whole premise is based on ideas I don't accept' and that bothers me when I decide about the merits of a film.
Should I see it differently? Does anyone feel the same way as me?