This is Justin, with Style is Substance.
In this episode,
I will talk about a special film,
a film that is as powerful as it is controversial,
a film that has struck chords with me,
a film that challenges me,
a film that I believe... is beautiful:
SALO, OR THE 120 DAYS OF SODOM.
As controversial as he was, Pasolini was a smart man,
one who could faithfully adapt a revered classical text
while simultaneously deconstruct it.
As politically solidified as he was,
he explored opposing viewpoints,
and gave them their day in court.
He had a love for people,
a love for humanity,
and in his love for humanity, he made SALO.
Perhaps that seems like an odd thing to say,
about a film often cited as the most disturbing film in history,
but it is true.
At least, that is how I see it.
On the surface, almost everything here is portrayed in such a cold and detached manner
that the atmosphere of the film alone is more than enough to alienate.
It is very strange to me how this is often dismissed
and lumped together with schlocky film litmus tests...
for how much gross and disturbing content one can take.
This mindset is missing the point,
as the manner SALO executes its shocking and provocative content
is more disturbing on an intellectual level
than an average film full of shock value would be.
I think edge-lords seeking a gory fix will wind up bored or disappointed,
because I can't imagine what someone would really gain with such a superficial approach.
The content itself serves as political metaphors and allusions to the human condition in the rawest form.
There is commentary here about consumerism,
fascism,
abuse of of authority,
Stockholm Syndrome,
group think,
gender dynamics,
and sexual deviancy.
These all contribute to strengthening the film's core themes
but it is the backwards approach to humanism that rings truest.
The film is bleak and psychologically unsettling.
Sure, it could be worse in theory
and could go even further,
but I think Pasolini ultimately settled on the correct balance between ugliness and beauty.
I do truly believe this is a beautiful film,
and not just for its visual aesthetic and powerful musical score.
No, those are great, but what really sticks out and makes SALO beautiful...
is its humanity.
In one of the most beautiful acts of humanity in the latter part of the film,
the fascists find one of their guards breaking their rules.
In response to being caught at gunpoint,
the guard raises his arm high up in the air,
displaying his self-respect and humanity.
The fascists lower their guns, briefly in awe.
but ultimately revert back to shooting him.
I had always found this to be a powerful scene,
but what I didn't realize before was just how telling this is of the fascists too,
the scene shows that humanity can be found even within the most repugnant of people.
Sure, their humanity is buried, but it is still there.
There are several moments similar to this throughout,
some more explicit than others,
in which a character gives in to their repressed humanity,
only for it to be stripped away from them,
leaving only its lingering impact in the minds of the characters, and in our own.
Another key example is a scene with the blonde girl with the white shoes
expressing her love for her late mother,
only to be forced into an act of humiliation.
There are stranger scenes,
such as the one with a fascists and guards break into singing
["Sul ponte di Perati"] while eating.
I liked this part a lot when I first saw it,
and it only got better on subsequent viewings.
It filled me with inexplicable ambivalence,
both sadness and contempt,
and I mean in the best possible way.
There are also moments toward the end,
like the pianist's sudden suicide
that display a sense of doom as a last resort,
out of respect to oneself and to others.
However, it is the final scene that really sticks out to me in many ways.
So much carnage occurs outside
and the camera pans over to two young male guards alone in a room.
They give up on their duties,
change the music on the radio,
and decide to dance.
One guard asks the other the name of his [boyfriend],
to which she replies [their] name.
Guard 1 (in Italian): "What is your boyfriend's name?"
Guard 2: "Margherita."
So much evil happens right outside our windows.
We can choose to ignore it;
perhaps we have to,
in order to find ourselves for the people we are.
SALO brings people to a breaking point,
showing the evil of society and political authority.
It degrades them,
strips away what makes a person a person.
Yet still, even in the darkest of possible situations,
an aura of hope and goodness prevails.
Perhaps it is false hope, but still hope nevertheless.
The thing is, I'm not sure the fascists even won here,
despite the film climaxing in a scene of the most realistically simulated acts of vile torture and murder.
Sure, they ultimately assume such positions of power,
and still claim to their sinful, dehumanizing ways,
but their end goal of removing humanity from their victims ultimately failed,
and the two young men dance.
