Scenes from Prostitute By. Geoff Bell of the few things worth remem bering from the 1980 film world was the campaign of disruption against 'films depicting violence against women.
Movies such as Dress ed to Kill Monster and La Stranger Calls attracted which received massive publicity. including generally sympathetic centre. spreads a couple of popular daily papers.
At first glance a film alled Prostitute BACAR for same type of treatment especially film contains scenes rather counters which leave little to the imagination But Prostitute no cheap sexploitatior movie. On the contrary it working this also roll only: and revolutionary. which makes it not only worth going to politically but every other way well • had the London Film Festival limited release Lon London and Birmingham shortly v you wave • to traver tu engun or une country to see it, do so.
The film's direttor is Tony Garnett, famous for his partnership with Ker LOACI. they have producer and directed sucl classics as Cathy Come Home, Days and Kes. style similar to these earlier efforts: 'naturalistic' is the film buff's tion/documentary to act but appea real people they are playing. stitute are, by and large. The people •Pro. from Birming Hass who work in what has been romantically termed 'the oldest profession' SUT there no - romance Prostitute the film is about exploita • tion: how the women are degraded and humiliated by those who use them by their the In words, an everyday story of life under capitalism That rathe sort of movie to be enter tained by. Certainly some LUTE 'scenes are • STomaCh and umour in the kin remarkable tender quali. ty.
This is achieved by the contrasts the film offers once, lue fonest orta Ine ordinariness * enter t the the and physical perversion clients the pro stitutes, the sillynes. those trying them What comes through message of class, how corrupt class i system is, but also how those at the botton end of the social scale hay sany within humanity allows them to at least survive.
Socialist Challenge IF YOU have sat in a meeting and had to strain to hear the speaker, then ac cording to the late Marshall McLuhan - one-time guru on the • media and messages you would have been 'participating'.
Thus television is cool'. It is supposedly low in inforHallel and the viewer ha • OV Compen sating for the low definition of the image on the screen.
Such abstract technical assessment meter Mechan anony followers. •to sorts of political son bies.
Television shrunk the world to a global village, said tne. gurk implication: could know our h, but our on • the images on the screen was Ircievall. The forn meda whether manuscript, book, - was all important ir determining that is communicated Ine tect tnat in ine wes the 'globa village resembles Peyton Place Dallas, rathei than Nevsk Prospect or Tbilisi, was by the socialists consider hat form carries messag ut form is itself shaped t , Take the novel, for example. emerged form octa their view of th world. The individual was broken from the bonds of feudal and LIC CENOT and actions of characters in Yet for McLuhan Painted tensioner , scanning the page in a linear wav This :analysis: astor con of media apolitical contributed nothing understandin forces that determine forn For con tent; still less to challenging then • who message to us via a medium 8 January 1981 Page 11
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Marshall McLuhan needs a medium