How Capitalism Commodifies Revolution and Sorry to Bother You

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  • čas přidán 31. 05. 2024
  • Ko-fi, if you're so inclined: ko-fi.com/infranaut
    Or even Patreon: www.patreon.com/user?u=4762539
    Twitter: / the_infranaut
    Sorry to Bother You is one of the weirdest, most alienating, frustrated, original and best movies to come out in 2018. In this video, I dissect what I think the film has to say about Capitalism, and how it co-opts and commodifies revolutionary figures and symbols.
    Also, is Cash's headbandage meant to look like a hachimaki?!
  • Krátké a kreslené filmy

Komentáře • 441

  • @TheMaestroso
    @TheMaestroso Před 5 lety +650

    Just noticed you referred to Steve Lift's actor as "Jon Hamm" - it's actually Armie Hammer. Nevertheless, good video!

    • @Infranaut
      @Infranaut  Před 5 lety +150

      Holy crap!
      That wasn't even a mistake - I was so certain that was Jon Hamm from moment 1 that I didn't even look it up. I think it was the voice/stubble. Can't believe I made that blunder - thanks!

    • @user-mb9nm7bq5e
      @user-mb9nm7bq5e Před 4 lety +4

      Django Fett noice

    • @GeahkBurchill
      @GeahkBurchill Před 4 lety +17

      DohsOfReality this was the movie that made me realize Armie Hammer has been totally wasted in Hollywood. This performance was F*cking BRILLIANT!

    • @printezstroman
      @printezstroman Před 4 lety +7

      Now that I think about it, Jon Hamm would've really sold that "You will have a horse dick" line.

    • @thatyoutubechannel9953
      @thatyoutubechannel9953 Před 4 lety

      @@GeahkBurchill I've not seen him in much, but each film he's in that I've seen has been fantastic

  • @sams7068
    @sams7068 Před 5 lety +1138

    Sick to see a film “video essay” that actually makes specific, interesting points instead of vague platitudes

    • @Infranaut
      @Infranaut  Před 5 lety +137

      Thank you, I appreciate that. I've actually found I enjoy making these a lot more when I want to say something specific about a piece of media rather than just "talk about it" in general.

    • @GlobusTheGreat
      @GlobusTheGreat Před 4 lety +3

      amen

    • @Darth_Bateman
      @Darth_Bateman Před 4 lety +1

      Renegade cut?

    • @casono
      @casono Před 4 lety

      czcams.com/video/qd6xe5w-6Kw/video.html
      In case you never saw it.

  • @iajoc6741
    @iajoc6741 Před 3 lety +163

    I think one of the lines that resonated with me the most was Danny Glovers characters “apples and the holocaust” line. This really emphasizes how the working class and the elite have absolutely nothing in common even though the elite try to make it seem like they do

    • @Dell-ol6hb
      @Dell-ol6hb Před rokem +1

      True that was a very impactful like imo

  • @Pueininog
    @Pueininog Před 5 lety +484

    Boots Riley really been out here putting forth revolutionary media for two whole decades

    • @stayphrosty
      @stayphrosty Před 4 lety +5

      +

    • @kyleflournoy7730
      @kyleflournoy7730 Před 4 lety +2

      What else has he made

    • @reidy9670
      @reidy9670 Před 4 lety +31

      @@kyleflournoy7730 his musical work as The Coup

    • @joemurray2523
      @joemurray2523 Před 4 lety +5

      @@reidy9670 Man I was so happy when I found out it was the same chap. Love The Coup, and when I loved the movie and found out it was the same guy it blew my mind

    • @madiroof6894
      @madiroof6894 Před 3 lety

      @@joemurray2523 hes making a TV show now

  • @anthony..5737
    @anthony..5737 Před 4 lety +579

    Weirdly, this reminds me of Big Joel’s video on The Lorax, with how capitalism turns the symbols of rebellion into commodities that are “useful” to society.

    • @hopelesslydull7588
      @hopelesslydull7588 Před 4 lety +59

      Come home to the unique flavor of shattering the grand illusion. Come home...to Simple Rick.

    • @sundayschoolflunkie3979
      @sundayschoolflunkie3979 Před 4 lety +5

      It's the same idea. Everything is a commodity to some people, including the means of people to fight against the system that commoditizes everything.

    • @knightshade2654
      @knightshade2654 Před 4 lety +12

      ”During the lifetime of great revolutionaries, the oppressing classes constantly hounded them, received their theories with the most savage malice, the most furious hatred and the most unscrupulous campaigns of lies and slander. After their death, attempts are made to convert them into harmless icons, to canonize them, so to say, and to hallow their names to a certain extent for the “consolation” of the oppressed classes and with the object of duping the latter, while at the same time robbing the revolutionary theory of its substance, blunting its revolutionary edge and vulgarizing it.”
      - Vladimir Lenin, The State and Revolution

  • @stvltiloqvent
    @stvltiloqvent Před 4 lety +179

    I just realised, a little later into the film Squeeze has a line about how people see the system's broken but because they've got no way to fix it they just get used to it, that's a perfect response to Mr. Blank's line, "we don't cry about the shit that should be, we just thrive in what is"
    Characters on either side of the issue are aware of the problem, but they have wildly different takes on how to approach the problem. Right after Squeeze says his line he begins rallying up his friends to organise a more direct action protest (that frees the equisapiens in the process). The revolutionary attitude jumped out in his line, whereas resignation rings loud and clear in Mr. Blank's line.

  • @igorlukyan206
    @igorlukyan206 Před 3 lety +8

    Reminds me of black mirror’s million merits. The protagonist’s powerful speech becomes just another form of entertainment

  • @nolives
    @nolives Před 5 lety +390

    The first rule of revolution is you dont commodify the revolution.

    • @JohnSmith-1066
      @JohnSmith-1066 Před 4 lety +12

      This comment was written by a fat, white kid.

    • @cuckmulligan7602
      @cuckmulligan7602 Před 4 lety +38

      The second rule of revolution: you do NOT. COMMODIFY. THE REVOLUTION.

    • @DrCruel
      @DrCruel Před 4 lety

      The first rule of revolution is not to buy into your own Left fascist bullshit. Socialist ideology is for the peons to believe in.

    • @LieutenantSteel
      @LieutenantSteel Před 4 lety +53

      @@DrCruel Sounds like someone has only a basic understanding of Socialism or the people supporting it; tell me again how Anarchists or even regular Socialists are fascists? Also, do you mistake the Bolsheviks for all Communists, rather than one of many interpretations?

    • @DrCruel
      @DrCruel Před 4 lety

      @@LieutenantSteel
      www.la-articles.org.uk/fascism.htm
      econfaculty.gmu.edu/bcaplan/spain.htm

  • @singingtallit583
    @singingtallit583 Před 4 lety +103

    Work horse in this case is a reference to the elder horse in aninal farm. He is a product who is supporting the status quo of the state until the day he is sold by his masters for glue and dog food. Even though he thought he was a great revolutionary.

    • @purebreedarmy6603
      @purebreedarmy6603 Před 3 lety +2

      Right how one would compare this great films meaning to the balance of Maat intead of its comparison in present time of how minorities are used and paid to sell out

    • @purebreedarmy6603
      @purebreedarmy6603 Před 3 lety

      Instead

    • @arnulfoacevedo8147
      @arnulfoacevedo8147 Před 3 lety

      I knew it was animal farm

  • @OfficialDJSoru
    @OfficialDJSoru Před 4 lety +55

    The start reminded me that for a time ancient Egypt actually USED GRAIN AS A CURRENCY

  • @r68saga31
    @r68saga31 Před 4 lety +134

    How neoliberalism commodifies parasocial relationships.

    • @medusajellyfish1310
      @medusajellyfish1310 Před 4 lety +8

      @@Sephajinami it's a jreg reference

    • @delve_
      @delve_ Před 4 lety +1

      +Kira You can't just fucking say you found it and then leave us hanging like that.

    • @VideoGameStormers
      @VideoGameStormers Před 4 lety +4

      @@delve_ look up "how neoliberalism commodifies parasocial relationships" and the video is by jreg m8

    • @delve_
      @delve_ Před 4 lety +1

      +Hybrid Fuck. I've already seen the video. I just forgot about it. Geez.
      Well, thanks anyway, friend.

  • @readerboi6154
    @readerboi6154 Před 4 lety +82

    damn, ancient Egyptian syndicalists

  • @MissSarcasticSweetie
    @MissSarcasticSweetie Před 4 lety +322

    late to the party but I think you miss a valuable point about "have a cola" girl. First she got internet notoriety and then was revealed to have been working with cola the whole time. It was like the whole pepsi example except in-universe.

    • @Infranaut
      @Infranaut  Před 4 lety +69

      Ah! Thanks - I did miss that. Thankfully that revelation actually supports what I thought the movie was getting at (and mirrors the trajectory Cassius could have taken even more closely)

    • @tawdryhepburn4686
      @tawdryhepburn4686 Před 4 lety +36

      Wait. When was it revealed that she was a viral marketing stunt? I totally missed that part.

    • @whityouyahbam
      @whityouyahbam Před 4 lety +43

      Maybe I'm misremembering but I thought the reveal was that Cola capitalised on the viral video and gave her a brand deal, not that she was working with them the whole time?

    • @MissSarcasticSweetie
      @MissSarcasticSweetie Před 4 lety +3

      @@tawdryhepburn4686 when Cas is watching the TV a waiting room type thing. I might've misheard, I had to watch it without captions so I have a strong chance of misunderstanding it.

    • @MissSarcasticSweetie
      @MissSarcasticSweetie Před 4 lety +2

      @@whityouyahbam Maybe? I have trouble listening so I might've misunderstood, sorry!

  • @TomisaLami
    @TomisaLami Před 4 lety +409

    there are no such thing as woke brands

    • @TomisaLami
      @TomisaLami Před 4 lety +8

      dandagod official Ha ha jokes on you I don’t even know what that word means.

    • @darknessml6145
      @darknessml6145 Před 4 lety +5

      @@TomisaLami "Making human" to put it simply.
      Or in this context; thinking a corporation is a single huge entity instead of a huge machine comprised of human people

    • @user-sf4fy8bq1h
      @user-sf4fy8bq1h Před 4 lety +22

      @dandagod official Danny Ray isn't the one anthropomorphising brands-the brands themselves, along with certain lawmakers, are responsible for that. Danny Ray is reacting the way we all do to the sociological trickery at work. The only difference between you and Danny Ray is that you've followed the idea through to its logical conclusion.
      “Danny Ray” is shorthand for society at large in this comment. The only question I have is whether being conscious of this trickery is better than being ignorant of it; it's not like you can do anything about it, and the idea of somehow changing not only the _minds_ but also the _buying habits_ of society at large seems like a sisyphean task to a sociologist like me.
      Don't study sociology, kids. Knowing how the proverbial sausage is made sucks when all you can eat is sausage and you're too busy trying to “thrive” to make it all yourself. Ugh.

    • @nonaide
      @nonaide Před 4 lety +7

      @@Sephajinami To an extent, yes. But the underlying purpose of the brand and its platform is to commodify and profit, which kneecaps any message that might truly raise consciousness and challenge the status quo in a meaningful way beyond posturing. Corporations are not your friends, and they sure as hell are not your comrades.

    • @themindset4164
      @themindset4164 Před 4 lety +2

      @@TomisaLami I feel that lol

  • @herecomemacOnTT
    @herecomemacOnTT Před 4 lety +71

    When I was watching the movie, there was a deep sense of Cash being turned into an Uncle Tom type from very early on, only to have those hints being proven right from him literally selling slaves over the phone to whatever business would buy.
    Troit having a shitton of art reflecting Africa, the slave trade, and the downtrodden masses while Cash is being turned into this success, as well as the people on TV who ARE slaves doing MTV Cribs-style shows to show off their prison cells had me pausing and talking with my boyfriend about the themes of the movie up to that point. I went in thinking it would be what the packaging and trailers said it would be, expected that, and then suddenly horse monsters and absurd surrealism to get messages across further. I could probably write a script and do a video of my own on my thoughts on this film, but for right now everything feels like a jumble in my head while I even TRY to describe it. Sorry for such a long, rambling comment, but like. This movie really hit me in a way I didn't expect it to.

  • @sharkymcshark3392
    @sharkymcshark3392 Před 4 lety +129

    This is also what the "fifteen million merits" episode of black mirror was about.

    • @anadice9489
      @anadice9489 Před 4 lety +23

      I loved that episode so much and I've always pointed it out for this. It's a perfect example of recuperation, all that frustration and energy getting absorbed and re-routed into a non-threatening form.

    • @sharkymcshark3392
      @sharkymcshark3392 Před 4 lety +27

      @@anadice9489 He abandoned his revolution in exchange for a slightly larger prison cell.

    • @Alecexo
      @Alecexo Před 4 lety +5

      Black mirror is one of the best modern shows out right now

    • @remlapwastaken8857
      @remlapwastaken8857 Před 4 lety +4

      It's my favorite episode of the show. That episode will stick with me for its message more than a pig getting fucked.

    • @warlocksmiling4586
      @warlocksmiling4586 Před 3 lety +4

      Anadice Brown But even in that capacity, the episode itself acts as an inter-passive experience of the ideology of the content of the episode. The ‘revolutionary’ content of the episode is made easily consumable so the viewer does not have to care whatsoever about their material reality

  • @hogwashsentinel
    @hogwashsentinel Před 4 lety +485

    His name is Cassius Green....it's not pronounced Cassy-us. It's Cashus. Cashus Green = Cash is green.

    • @Muzikman127
      @Muzikman127 Před 4 lety +42

      Think this is party an accent thing. Also, in a British accent, cass-yuss green”, “cashus green” and “cash is green” would all sound quite different.

    • @wellesradio
      @wellesradio Před 4 lety +14

      It’s an accent thing. Both pronunciations are correct. I prefer “Cass-ee-us” but I don’t complain when I hear “Cash-us”.

    • @hogwashsentinel
      @hogwashsentinel Před 4 lety +47

      Obviously the joke only works in the west coast american accent depicted in the film. The point is by changing it from the intended pronunciation, the joke is lost

    • @LieutenantSteel
      @LieutenantSteel Před 4 lety +9

      @@hogwashsentinel What a shame the world doesn't speak in a West Coast American accent.

    • @hogwashsentinel
      @hogwashsentinel Před 4 lety +47

      @@LieutenantSteel obviously that's not the point, it's an inside joke relevant to the plot of the film that is only understood if you pronounce the name in the accent the filmmaker intended, and is therefore lost in this review and warrants pointing out. Stop being deliberately obtuse.

  • @mc76
    @mc76 Před 3 lety +25

    I spent the first half of this movie with my mouth open, laughing. I spent the second half with my mouth open, in shock. Great flick.

  • @Dell-ol6hb
    @Dell-ol6hb Před rokem +12

    The commodification of revolutionary figures reminds of this poignant quote from the game Disco Elysium that Joyce Messier says, “Capital has the ability to subsume all critiques into itself. Even those who would *critique* capital end up *reinforcing* it instead…” Even figures and things that go against capitalism or critique it are absorbed by it and commodified, eventually losing much or all of its original meaning.

    • @corbing7786
      @corbing7786 Před 4 měsíci

      Yeah that I believe either is from or super adapted from Capitalist Realism by Mark Fisher

  • @jamalcalypse
    @jamalcalypse Před 5 lety +86

    I noticed Boots Riley took a lot of cues from Mike Judge's satirical movies Idiocracy and Office Space.
    Good analysis, you pointed out a couple things that made me want to re-watch it.

    • @Infranaut
      @Infranaut  Před 5 lety +16

      I would highly recommend a re-watch. On first viewing, the ending can kind of catch you off guard, so even if you're enjoying the flick you're kind of just "going with it". When you know what's coming, the ride is a lot less bumpy and you notice a wonderful consistency and tone in the world of the film.

    • @MatauReviews
      @MatauReviews Před 4 lety

      czcams.com/video/_2hlss6Y3kg/video.html

  • @blackedmirror5073
    @blackedmirror5073 Před 4 lety +54

    I wonder how this film reads to people with no background in socialist politics.

    • @iansun42
      @iansun42 Před 4 lety +4

      blacked mirror I feels like annoying whining about vaguely bad things with no solution given, causing an immense amount of frustration. Fair warning though I haven’t watched the movie but I watched the video and mr robot which I feel would have the same style

    • @genericyoutubeaccount579
      @genericyoutubeaccount579 Před 4 lety +21

      Downtrodden black man is able to rise to success by hard work and an equal playing field.

    • @anarchogarfieldist1652
      @anarchogarfieldist1652 Před 4 lety +10

      @@iansun42 yet another ideologically charged comment with fuckall content. Props for adding nothing.

    • @iansun42
      @iansun42 Před 4 lety +1

      @@anarchogarfieldist1652 More content then you, brainlet

    • @anarchogarfieldist1652
      @anarchogarfieldist1652 Před 4 lety +3

      @@iansun42 what a witty reply. Never have I been so utterly devastated by the power of a man's tongue. How does it feel to be an average person?

  • @singingtallit583
    @singingtallit583 Před 4 lety +33

    Having "lived a good life" use to mean you survived it until old age.

  • @RoisinMcAuliffe
    @RoisinMcAuliffe Před 4 lety +6

    I stopped the video and watched the entire movie on Hulu, now I’m back. That movie was incredible.

  • @jonathanmenegalli
    @jonathanmenegalli Před 4 lety +61

    Idk if it is cus I live in latin america but most young ppl here know who che was and understand what he means. Also no one uses those ugly tshirts lol

    • @Infranaut
      @Infranaut  Před 4 lety +25

      Oh yeah that's not surprising at all, I was mainly talking about Stateside.

  • @ilovetofu2089
    @ilovetofu2089 Před 4 lety +12

    I recall when watching this movie thinking about Paulo Freire's Pedagogy of the Oppressed

  • @knightshade2654
    @knightshade2654 Před 4 lety +6

    ”During the lifetime of great revolutionaries, the oppressing classes constantly hounded them, received their theories with the most savage malice, the most furious hatred and the most unscrupulous campaigns of lies and slander. After their death, attempts are made to convert them into harmless icons, to canonize them, so to say, and to hallow their names to a certain extent for the “consolation” of the oppressed classes and with the object of duping the latter, while at the same time robbing the revolutionary theory of its substance, blunting its revolutionary edge and vulgarizing it.”
    - Vladimir Lenin, The State and Revolution

  • @voland6846
    @voland6846 Před 4 lety +10

    I came out of the cinema wondering if the film was partly a meta-commentary on trying to make the film itself.
    Interesting analysis anyways, gonna have to go read more about Ma'at, the jubilee and the strike!

  • @silong4310
    @silong4310 Před 4 lety +2

    Such an interesting video, loved the ancient Egypt angle. You just earned a sub.
    Now to binge the rest of your videos!!

  • @phangkuanhoong7967
    @phangkuanhoong7967 Před 4 lety

    just found your channel. i absolutely love Sorry To Bother You, and i think this is the best vid-essay made about it yet

  • @samizdatbroadcasts7654
    @samizdatbroadcasts7654 Před 4 lety +4

    Read a book called Nation of Rebels, or The Rebel Sell by Joseph Heath and Andrew Potter. It really nails this phenomenon.

  • @belacabral27
    @belacabral27 Před 4 lety

    you should consider making more videos like this. I found it very enjoyable and went on to watch a few of your others. great work!

  • @muonantineutrino
    @muonantineutrino Před 4 lety +34

    *Makes a CZcams video about how capitalism commodifies everything, including its own opposition*
    *Doesn't even mention BreadTube*

    • @Infranaut
      @Infranaut  Před 4 lety +21

      If you mean that CZcams is promoting videos that frequently oppose it (and the entire system which allows it to flourish), then yeah, that makes sense. On the other hand I don't think Breadtube is even a drop in the bucket to CZcams - my money would be on 1/12th of the people working for CZcams knowing anything about it

    • @muonantineutrino
      @muonantineutrino Před 4 lety +10

      @@Infranaut Yes, the former. Thought it was a pretty good example of capitalism making money off the resistance, though it seems to be algorithmically driven rather than deliberate. Then again, if you want a quintessential example of an algorithm run amok, whether powered by neurons or circuit boards, it's capitalism :)
      Nice video, you pointed out some new things I'd missed in the movie, thanks!

  • @chantellee6236
    @chantellee6236 Před 4 lety +3

    I’ve been watching every single video I can find on this movie, and this one is my favourite.
    So many great points. You finally addressed so many details I wanted reasoning for! Thank you 😭

  • @serenity6831
    @serenity6831 Před 4 lety +1

    Such beautiful commentary! I love the way you reviewed this film, I feel like people didn't give it the attention it deserved.

  • @aquaartistcat5835
    @aquaartistcat5835 Před 4 lety +6

    Glad to see a video essay that is exploring themes and meaning rather than just talking about why the movie is good or bad.

  • @GeahkBurchill
    @GeahkBurchill Před 4 lety +7

    Ended on ‘We Got the Guillotine’ which shows me you actually listen to The Coup!

  • @_o99
    @_o99 Před rokem +3

    Not only was this movie amazing in it's social commentary but the fact that the main actor (LaKeith Stanfield) went on to play a similar role in the movie Judas and the Black Messiah really hits home how the elite will pit the working class against each other to stifle any revolutionary action taking place.
    I love this movie to pieces and think the casting was brilliant all around.

  • @jays2551
    @jays2551 Před 4 lety

    great video, and great music choice at the end. love the coup

  • @thewhat531
    @thewhat531 Před 4 lety +6

    I haven't watched 'Sorry To Bother You' yet, but I own vinyl copies of every album by 'The Coup'.

  • @bedirhancelikoz265
    @bedirhancelikoz265 Před 4 lety

    Duude very good choice of music I like it. Also keep up the good work dude take care

  • @KayAndSkittles
    @KayAndSkittles Před 4 lety +2

    This video is fantastic, dude! Just found your channel, I see you didn't put too much out in the year since this came out but you're good at this and I hope you're able (if you want) to dedicate more time to it in 2020!

  • @TheSugarRay
    @TheSugarRay Před 4 lety +2

    I'm excited to see your blazing saddles video. Good luck!

    • @Infranaut
      @Infranaut  Před 4 lety +2

      Thank you! I am currently in Copyright Claim hell, and will get it uploaded as soon as I can

  • @samuelkastin5643
    @samuelkastin5643 Před 3 lety +1

    just occurs to me that the eye power caller boss's eyepatch is over the left eye, the eye that's become a symbol of the revolt..

  • @YasmynTVx
    @YasmynTVx Před 3 lety +1

    AGH Thank you so much this has helped me so much with my essay 😭 Will check back in with the grade I got ha

  • @ZzzZ-sb9ju
    @ZzzZ-sb9ju Před 2 lety +1

    Also the fact that before he got to the powerhouse level, he used to sit hunched over and was really timid. And after powerhouse he stood up straight and was carefree.

  • @HBTSChannel
    @HBTSChannel Před 4 lety

    thank you for the music recommendation and also tight video ❤❤❤

  • @anthonystromeyer1399
    @anthonystromeyer1399 Před 4 lety +2

    Yeah, we in the Death Squad Camp call this tactic toward the end "controlled opposition".

  • @trappedontheinternet
    @trappedontheinternet Před 4 lety +122

    I like this analysis, but I think it is a weakness of this video that it only talks about the capitalist symbolism of "the white person voice" while avoiding any of the obvious racial analysis that the film also warrants. I guess that means your video and thesis remain focused, but it does seem like a drastic oversight since capitalism and racism are comorbid.

    • @streamsofdreams6705
      @streamsofdreams6705 Před 4 lety +38

      trappedontheinternet yes I was going to say the theme that resonated for me was being dangled the illusion of success as a person of color who can never assimilate into the white American dream but as marginalized people we turn on each other to get a piece of the unequal capitalist pie

    • @djnaenae102490
      @djnaenae102490 Před 4 lety +1

      He said it correctly, "cheap idea of success " (White man voice)

    • @djnaenae102490
      @djnaenae102490 Před 4 lety

      Cheap empty promise of success- that's what you become when you are willing to enslave people.

    • @Cillranchello
      @Cillranchello Před 4 lety +12

      Making assumptions here, but Infranaut probably doesn't live in the U.S.A. and probably isn't a PoC, so I would contend that any focus on the movie's comments about Racism would not be his story to tell. As you said, staying in his lane gives his video a tighter focus.
      Also, the thesis of the piece is using "Sorry to bother you" as a jumping off point, rather than being focused on the movie itself. The movie is featured prominently, but its illustrative of his argument rather than the basis of it.
      I'd also contend that, and I'll probably catch some shit for this, there are plenty of videos that focus on the movie's commentary on Racism, having one that doesn't adds to the conversation in general. The movie is fantastic commentary on a wide range of subjects, and personally I enjoy that he went deep on one aspect, rather than skipping across a wide but shallow pond.

    • @trappedontheinternet
      @trappedontheinternet Před 4 lety

      @@Cillranchello Cillranchello That's fair. My view isn't "I think this was an inherently flawed analysis," nor do I even think "infranaut should change this video and his argument", but merely that "This analysis could have gone further." What I encourage is simply further analysis either by other media critics or from video viewers who want to leave their opinions on this aspect of the movie here in the comments. You're right that if there are other videos that analyze the movie with focus on the interactions of racism and capitalism that this would fill in some of the gaps not addressed within this particular analysis, and I believe this is a good thing that helps add to the growing conversation.

  • @lukeothedukeo
    @lukeothedukeo Před 4 lety +50

    Your video pointed out several specifics I missed in my viewing, and I really enjoyed hearing your thoughts! That said, I really wanted to enjoy this movie. Lakeith Stanfield is always excellent and I can generally vibe with weird absurdist stuff when it's done well. I just couldn't love it though. There was both too much going on and too little. It walked out the most tired criticisms of capitalism and institutional racism under a thin veil of obvious metaphors and absurdisms. I agree with the primary messages of the film, but it didn't reshape, recontextualize, or otherwise expand my thoughts on the subject matter. Ironically, there's a sort of "revolutionary theater" to this kind of media in the same vein as the cola ads in the film. Sorry to Bother You fundamentally tells us oppression is bad, whether it takes the form of slavery, racism, or war. This is not a new message, and that's not always a bad thing, but only if you have something to add to that message. Without that, you're just capitalising on someone else's revolution.
    The flip side of this coin is a show like Atlanta. Very similar messages about the struggles of race and poverty and class-conlfict. But in Atlanta, there are layers added to those concepts. We are quickly introduced to the notion that marginalized individuals often fail to support other people within their own oppressed group, let alone people persecuted for other reasons. Sorry to Bother You shows us the human cost of financial success, but Atlanta shows us that following passion and forgoing wealth can just as easily harm those you love.
    Maybe I just wanted Lakeith to be Darius too much. Maybe the commoditization of resistance was this movies' added layer. I can't say for sure, but either way I appreciate your video for giving me an excuse to think/write about this film again. You've earned my sub :)

    • @surrealducks
      @surrealducks Před 4 lety +3

      I had very similar feelings, thanks for articulating them so well.

    • @tawdryhepburn4686
      @tawdryhepburn4686 Před 4 lety +16

      Luke O'Connell I gotta disagree. I think the narrative’s representation of how capitalism absorbs counterculture and spits it back out in a form that both defangs the original message and commodifies the aesthetic will be entirely new to 90+% of mainstream audiences. This film and the Journey of its protagonist has replaced the aesthetics of early punk rock - clothing held together by safety pins, steel-toed work boots, close-cropped at-home haircuts - as my go-to example of the phenomenon.
      You seem pretty well read on the subject, so StBY might feel like old hat. But consider the layman. At least in my anecdotal experience, the idea that capitalism devours revolutionary ideology and repackages it as a cheap consumable is something almost no one is aware of. I’ve never encountered a non-politically-minded peer who could articulate the concept, even as most of them generally feel it happening. This film armed a ton of viewers with a new vocabulary. It has been as influential as Office Space, Fight Club and The Matrix to a certain sector of American youth. And it’s far more radical and effectively confrontational than at least two of those films. Harder to misunderstand than all three.
      And even without all of that, the repackaging of slavery as an Uber-style gig economy ‘solution’ backed by venture capital is one of the most terrifyingly hilarious bits of satire I ever ever seen. As prescient, believable and unforgettable as the best moments of NETWORK.

    • @selalewis9189
      @selalewis9189 Před 4 lety +5

      Thank you for such a nuanced and thoughtful opinion of the movie. I, too, felt quite uninspired by _Sorry To Bother You_ My biggest issue was with the how the labor uprisings and protests were mishandled toward the end. We never saw anyone at the bargaining table secure better wages and conditions for all workers. Instead it ended with the human/horse hybrids once again storming the proverbial castle. The film over romanticized violent protests as the primary tool for rebellion, while shunting the other crucial tools to full liberation in an oppressive economy: collective bargaining, demands for safe working conditions, weekends, child labor laws, hourly shifts, to name a few.

    • @tawdryhepburn4686
      @tawdryhepburn4686 Před 4 lety +6

      Sela Lewis didn’t the entire first third focus on a character who attempts to rally the workers and unionize the phone bank? And then the hero gets a promotion at the exact moment the walkout is supposed to begin? I feel like the subject of working within the system is given more time and consideration in this film than it is in movies literally *about* unions (such as HOFFA.) sure, this is not as poignant as *IRON JAWED ANGELS* but it considers the topic from a great many angles and comes to the conclusion that working within a capitalist/corporatist system is impossible because of Capitalism’s propensity to recuperate radical imagery and ideology.

  • @detimeditom
    @detimeditom Před 5 lety +10

    Is this the same thing as Recuperation, or is that something different? Great video btw!

    • @dacdaddy
      @dacdaddy Před 4 lety +7

      Pretty much, yeah. I think recuperation refers more specifically to revolutionary propaganda that's reappropriated. Same concept really.

  • @JosephGubbels
    @JosephGubbels Před 5 lety

    Anyone know what the song at the beginning of this video is? Heard it in the movie too, but can't find it anywhere in the soundtrack listings for Sorry to Bother You.

    • @Infranaut
      @Infranaut  Před 5 lety

      Hi there. As far as I'm aware it isn't a full song and is just a little musical sting used in the film.

  • @tamphopho4219
    @tamphopho4219 Před 5 lety

    Excellent analysis, spot on interpretation. Subscribed :)

  • @WoohooliganComedy
    @WoohooliganComedy Před 4 lety +9

    Thanks, Infra! I really enjoyed the film, but I didn't catch a lot of the symbolic points you outlined here. I totally missed the significance of the football gang, and the one time his manager drops the white voice I was having a real hard time making out what the point of the conversation was. I subbed. Let me know if I can help with any of your projects. Easiest way to reach me is DM on my twitter @ datafaucet.

    • @Infranaut
      @Infranaut  Před 4 lety +2

      Thanks! Any shares/mentions on social media go a long way

    • @WoohooliganComedy
      @WoohooliganComedy Před 4 lety

      @@Infranaut Thank you! 💖 I thought I had shared it but apparently I let it slip. D'oh! Anyway I shared it now.

  • @robertbeckerbecker1354

    Excellent video! Canxt wait to see this!

  • @another131
    @another131 Před 4 lety

    Glad to find a video essay channel with something to say without coming you with meaningless nit picks or ignorant of their own bias. Also, this makes me want to listen to Jurassic 5 again, nice song selection.

  • @jasonblalock4429
    @jasonblalock4429 Před 4 lety +2

    Speaking of the commodification of resistance - if you do happen to see this, I'd love to see you do a video about "Network" - the most unfortunately prophetic film in history. It also has strong ties to both the recent "Nightcrawler," as well as the unfortunately-forgotten Billy Wilder dark satire "Ace In The Hole."

    • @Infranaut
      @Infranaut  Před 4 lety

      Network and Nightcrawler do make a good pair, you're right! I'll have to check out Ace in the Hole

    • @jasonblalock4429
      @jasonblalock4429 Před 4 lety

      @@Infranaut Awesome! Ace In The Hole is a great movie, but very few people seem to know about it. It's basically Nightcrawler for the 50s, and was pretty controversial when it came out. How dare anyone question the integrity of the US newspaper industry? ;-)

  • @Manhattanite1
    @Manhattanite1 Před 4 lety

    Brilliant! Saw it when it came out & loved it but this analysis was enriching,

  • @skirth3929
    @skirth3929 Před 10 měsíci +1

    his name is supposed to be "Cash Is Green" as like another ode to capitalism

  • @thebushman1321
    @thebushman1321 Před 3 lety

    What is the song he uses in the first few seconds of the video? I know its from the movie but I cannot find it in the soundtrack

    • @Infranaut
      @Infranaut  Před 3 lety

      It's not a song, it's literally ust a musical sting they use in the movie.

  • @erickrodriguez7801
    @erickrodriguez7801 Před 3 lety

    anyone know the instrumental song that starts at @8:50 ?

  • @klam77
    @klam77 Před měsícem

    Dude, I need an aspirin after your vid! (actually excellent video)

  • @bobbest1611
    @bobbest1611 Před 4 lety

    that was a really good video. well done.

  • @matthewmelange
    @matthewmelange Před 4 lety

    10:54 He says a word that isn't written in the closed captions. Miyet? Millet? My yet is what it literally sounds like but I'm unfamiliar with the word.
    Does anyone know what word he's speaking?

  • @OtherM112594
    @OtherM112594 Před 4 lety

    Fantastic video! I love this film and this analysis.

  • @benbehrman550
    @benbehrman550 Před 4 lety +2

    Love your channel; got yourself a new sub. For the alg

  • @peezerwood8508
    @peezerwood8508 Před 4 lety

    I'm glad I saw this video because I never would have heard of this movie without it

  • @jamie_vids551
    @jamie_vids551 Před 5 lety +1

    Amazing video, I have subscribed

  • @tayinrivera886
    @tayinrivera886 Před 4 lety +6

    The concept of anti-resistance revolutionary leadership is very common too. It allows people to be the face of a movement of failure. Bernie Sanders not being murdered is a perfect example of that. He’s allowed to run but only as a figurehead to give people hope that the system can change for the better but it won’t.

  • @badluckcity
    @badluckcity Před 3 lety

    not sure if it's in the movie or you just used it in this video because you liked it, but wanna give props for using "What's Golden" by Jurassic 5... that's my fuckin' jam, such a dope track!

  • @futhorck771
    @futhorck771 Před 4 lety +6

    You might be thriving, but are you vibing?

  • @paulo25740
    @paulo25740 Před 4 lety

    What's the music I in the intro?

  • @tramamacabra2645
    @tramamacabra2645 Před 5 lety +11

    thanks for making me watch this movie, really liked it

    • @Infranaut
      @Infranaut  Před 5 lety +5

      The pleasure is all mine! Honestly, knowing I can convince someone to watch a film is most of the reason I do this.

    • @juditkovacs1205
      @juditkovacs1205 Před 5 lety

      Same here. As someone who has worked most of her professional life in customer support, I really appreciated it. The wacky surrealist parts were also cool with me. I like weird stuff too.

  • @iordanchis2437
    @iordanchis2437 Před 4 lety +1

    I just watched it when you said to. Worth it!

  • @James-rv3yh
    @James-rv3yh Před 5 lety +1

    Brilliant video!

  • @casono
    @casono Před 4 lety

    2:03
    I remember the Redman instrumental but I cant remember name of the song

    • @williamprocope9648
      @williamprocope9648 Před rokem

      The name is song is oooh. It is actually a DE La Soul song ft Redman

  • @ffgayleoo
    @ffgayleoo Před 3 lety +1

    The way you ended this video is astronomical.

  • @Kai-ez1gf
    @Kai-ez1gf Před 4 lety

    I love the use of whats golden

  • @ThreeeDboyin3D
    @ThreeeDboyin3D Před 4 lety +1

    Where can I find Sorry To Bother You

  • @Santiago-xw7dk
    @Santiago-xw7dk Před 4 lety

    What is that song at the beginning bruh

  • @samuellee9599
    @samuellee9599 Před 5 lety +2

    Great Stuff!

  • @Drownedinblood
    @Drownedinblood Před 4 lety +6

    Isn't a film like this exactly what it portrays though? Unless it was purely independently funded, isn't it also kinda creating a rebellion narrative for the masses to follow, but never actually instruct people to do anything about it? Just oh, yea I see how it is, well that's how it is, I'll go back to work tomorrow.

    • @tawdryhepburn4686
      @tawdryhepburn4686 Před 4 lety +8

      Cafelogis perhaps for the producers and distributors. But the film calls into question the complicity of its protagonist and refuses to left him off the hook. This self-reflective element encourages the viewer to question all authority including the person saying to question authority. It also doesn’t present a neat and tidy ending where corruption is rooted out so that society can return to a “proper and decent” equilibrium without deep, institutional change.
      Most films about government corruption or social decay end with a message that the system is ultimately good and worth saving. The corruption is an aberration that can be cut out and, what’s more, the system is self-correcting because someone from inside the system fixed it. Even if the hero had to momentarily step outside of the accepted process to achieve victory, s/he returns to his/her place within the world thereafter.
      Another film that *actually* promotes the need for deep, systemic change is - believe it or not - THOR RAGNAROK. That film ends with the message that a world built upon inequity and exploitation cannot save itself and the only way forward is to literally burn it to the ground and start anew.

    • @salamilid4125
      @salamilid4125 Před 4 lety +1

      @@tawdryhepburn4686 I like that

    • @tawdryhepburn4686
      @tawdryhepburn4686 Před 4 lety +3

      aiemii yo thanks for reading! It’s a very common trope. Most allegedly ‘radical texts’ still present a pro-system message where the corruption is the result of a few bad apples. Very rarely does a piece of media released by a major corporation ask the reader to examine the tree, much less the root. It’s clear as day once you know to look for it.

  • @raresmircea
    @raresmircea Před 4 lety

    Top notch content🤘

  • @ryanbenson4610
    @ryanbenson4610 Před 2 lety

    Great analysis. I love this movie and wish it was more popular.

  • @tannerstarr2711
    @tannerstarr2711 Před 4 lety

    Here before 10k subscribers. Never been with a popular channel before it was big. I think this one has a chance

  • @Mpumi0van0KOF
    @Mpumi0van0KOF Před 4 lety

    Dope vid

  • @sampsonraysimon
    @sampsonraysimon Před 4 lety

    Well done.

  • @singingtallit583
    @singingtallit583 Před 4 lety +8

    "Thrive" is the ability to breed and rear young who are capable of supporting you in your old age. When bacteria thrive they are capable of self reproducing and staying alive within that population explosion.

    • @xmlthegreat
      @xmlthegreat Před 4 lety +6

      The film uses thrive as a stand-in for self-actualization. Which is a few steps above reproduction on the Maslow's Hierarchy of needs.

    • @acceleration4443
      @acceleration4443 Před 4 lety +2

      So the rich billionaire with 100s hoes and 100 houses but was born sterile isn’t thriving?
      Thriving is whatever a person wants it to be.
      To some it’s raising children to others it’s the recognition that comes with succeeding.

  • @sbraypaynt
    @sbraypaynt Před 3 lety

    7:34
    Daniel Bregoli
    Daniel Bregoli
    Daniel Bregoli

  • @enoughforeveryone2528
    @enoughforeveryone2528 Před 4 lety +1

    Goddamn that ending tho.

  • @4dityaB
    @4dityaB Před 4 lety +1

    Would you say Sorry To Bother You is co-opts and commodifies revolution?

    • @Infranaut
      @Infranaut  Před 4 lety +5

      Nah, I think saying a movie that makes money in any form can't be genuinely revolutionary is a bit of a "you say you dislike how society is run, and yet you live in society, CURIOUS" argument. The movie isn't selling merchandise, overpriced action figures or diluting its message with product placement. It's a genuine attempt to express an idea and message in the best medium available to the creators, and it takes some cash to make that happen.

    • @4dityaB
      @4dityaB Před 4 lety +1

      @@Infranaut true very true. I've always seen it as a black and white situation, knowing there are grey areas. I guess ignorance can never truly be bliss

  • @swsmith4490
    @swsmith4490 Před 4 lety

    "One of 2018's most interesting, if not best film" Thank you!

  • @carolincas
    @carolincas Před 4 lety

    stopped this video 2 min in to go watch the movie. im here because my head is still spinning.

  • @Dumbsterfyre
    @Dumbsterfyre Před 4 lety

    Trying to read more on "My-Yet", anyone have the proper spelling? Edit: Found it, (Ma'at)

  • @RhianKristen
    @RhianKristen Před 4 lety

    Damn good video.

  • @bluchocolate123
    @bluchocolate123 Před 4 lety +1

    I'll have to watch this film.

  • @aisansilva6228
    @aisansilva6228 Před 4 lety

    Subscribed

  • @hotto5150
    @hotto5150 Před 4 lety +2

    you need to raise your voice's volume higher than the background music. it's annoying especially with your pacing but other than that good content. that's the only thing that irritated me.

  • @anpdm1
    @anpdm1 Před 4 lety

    Working without pay isn't against the laws of Ma'at, but not paying what's owed to workers is against the laws of Ma'at.

  • @drawntosweet
    @drawntosweet Před 4 lety +1

    I must watch this

  • @OLDMANWAFFLES
    @OLDMANWAFFLES Před 4 lety +1

    Why would someone dislike this video when there is genuine factual evidence? Or are there bots that go around disliking videos? I've been on youtube since like 2006 and i've never understood disliking factual videos.

    • @ultrademigod
      @ultrademigod Před 4 lety

      Peoples feelings don't care about facts.

    • @OLDMANWAFFLES
      @OLDMANWAFFLES Před 4 lety

      Funk Cult
      And Facts don’t care about feelings.

    • @ultrademigod
      @ultrademigod Před 4 lety

      @@OLDMANWAFFLES That is true, but when some people hear things that contradict their own ideas/feelings, they get upset and assume their being misled in some way or other, and they react emotionally.