Catching the screening of Salo, or the 120 Days of Sodom was certainly not the chore I projected. Since being hipped about this film in grad school, it's been on my must-see list. While it is extreme on many levels, I found it brilliantly executed. I'm considering reading the actual Marquis de Sade text to determine who should receive credit for framing the film as a horrific political satire. As filthy and debauched as he was, de Sade is not celebrated for being a gifted satirist.
The settings of the two works are different: Sade wrote of libertines during the court of Louis XIV and Pasolini places his film with Italian Fascists with libertine ways during WWII. Regardless of the period, this story masterfully captures the degree to which absolute power can be corrupted, depraved and indifferent. As we near the final year of the Bush administration (Abu Grahib, anyone? Do I hear Guantanomo?), I felt this extreme satire was far ahead of its time.
The wit is biting and purposely over-the-top. While awkward jokes that aren't funny are inserted into the story, ones that are just mean-spirited do force occasional chuckles. As violent and disturbing as the film becomes, using the term "black comedy" seems ill-placed. Nonetheless, the undertone humor was constructed in characters not necessarily the lines. A Dietrich-like "narrator," Signora Castelli, offers debauched episodes, including her molestation as a child. It's not the what, but the how that gives a mixed tickle -- part of the brilliance of the work. Additionally, having the libertines indiscriminately molest their captors serves as an amazing parallel to the exploitation of poor and indigent peoples throughout the world who are pawns and/or slaves within conflicts or as in this work, for the amusement and comfort of others.
Without question, a memorable film that will lead to my brushing the teeth tonight. Ick!
