Films to Make You a Less Bad Person

I am alarmed by how many people seem to be losing faith in liberal democracy and I’m just as alarmed, though less surprised, by how many other people seem to not be worried about it. If I lived in one of the countries in which some kind of pseudo neo fascism was ascendant, or attempting to be, I’m really not sure what I would do. But living in a country in which things are basically normal, I feel powerless. What can I possibly do to help stop this?

As you know, I’ve seen a lot of movies in my life. I feel strongly about how much a great movie can move people. I arguably feel more strongly about the power of literature but I’m not delusional - nobody reads literature. But people do watch movies.

So here is a list of movies to show to the people in your life who aren’t bothered by what is happening in the United States (or wherever else), or who think oppression of The Other is fine as long as it’s good for their pocketbooks. (It isn’t so far, but anyway…)

These movies are not happy but that’s sort of the point. In order for us to have empathy for others - those who are or who will be oppressed by the state - it’s crucial for us to not look away from what is happening.

La Grande Illusion (1937)

Show this to anyone who believes that war is necessary.

Night and Fog (1956)

Show this to anyone who denies the Holocaust or is just “asking questions” about it.

Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959)

Who am I kidding? Nobody is going to watch this movie.

Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)

Show this to anyone who does not believe that the world should pass judgment on the crimes of governments.

Dr. Strangelove (1964)

Show this to anyone who is not worried about crazy military commanders (or politicians!) who have access to nuclear weapons. Oh and show this to anyone who is not worried about RFK Jr’s beliefs.

“Mandrake, do you realize that in addition to fluoridating water, why, there are studies underway to fluoridate salt, flour, fruit juices, soup, sugar, milk... ice cream. Ice cream, Mandrake, children's ice cream.”

The Pawnbroker (1964)

Show this to anyone who denies the Holocaust or is just “asking questions” about it.

The Shop on Main Street (1965)

I wish every American who isn’t already concerned about this current regime would watch this movie. Show this to anyone who thinks they know authoritarianism when they see it and they haven’t seen it yet.

The Battle of Algiers (1966)

Show this to anyone who thinks that colonialism was good.

Marat/Sade (1969)

Show this to anyone who believes in the “cleansing power” of violence or revolution.

Z (1969)

Show this to anyone who is not bothered by corruption.

The Conformist (1970)

Show this to anyone who thinks that most fascists are strong people.

The Battle of Chile (1975/1976

Show this to anyone who is not worried about coups, or who thinks that left wing governments are more dangerous than coups.

Missing (1982)

Show this to anyone who doubts that the meddling of one country in another’s affairs has consequences.

The Killing Fields (1984)

Show this to anyone who thinks society can be remade by force.

Shoah (1985)

Shoah this - yuk yuk yuk - to anyone you know who denies the Holocaust or just wants to “ask questions” about it.

Grave of Fireflies (1988)

Show this to anyone in favour of aerial bombing.

The Thin Blue Line (1988)

Show this to anyone who believes that everyone accused of a crime is guilty.

Do the Right Thing (1989)

Show this to anyone who thinks there’s obviously a right way to behave and it’s obvious.

Bob Roberts (1992)

Show this to any conservatives you know.

Hoop Dreams (1994)

Show this to anyone who thinks that talent is all that matters.

Paradise Lost (1996)

Show this to anyone who believes that everyone accused of a crime is guilty.

Herod’s Law (1999)

Show this to anyone who doesn’t believe that power corrupts.

The Corner (2000)

I’m cheating as this is a TV show. Show this to anyone who thinks addiction is a choice.

Dark Days (2000)

Show this to anyone who believes that the indigent aren’t people too.

Bloody Sunday (2002)

Show this to anyone who think protestors “deserve” what they get from the police.

The Wire (2002)

I’m cheating again. Show this to anyone who thinks governing is easy. (I say that but I think something like 2/3rds of the people who watch it don’t get it. They just think it’s a cop show with a lot of characters.)

The Fog of War (2003)

Show this to anyone who thinks the solution to all our problems is to put the smart people in charge.

The Death of Mr. Lazarescu (2005)

Show this to anyone who believes that some people are not deserving of care.

Shooting Dogs (2005)

Show this to anyone who thinks peacekeeping as a concept failed because of the idea and not politicians.

Lake of Fire (2006)

Show this to anyone who doesn’t believe women should have the right to choose.

When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts (2006)

I’m cheating yet again. Show this to anyone who believes simple easy media narratives about complex situations and to anyone who thinks that the richest country in the world takes care of its citizens.

4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days (2007)

Show this to anyone who doesn’t believe women should have the right to choose.

Terror’s Advocate (2007)

Show this to anyone who doesn’t believe in due process.

The Visitor (2007)

Show this to anyone who thinks immigrants have it easy.

Hunger (2008)

Show this to anyone who doesn’t believe in the power of non-violent protest.

The White Ribbon (2009)

Show this to anyone who thinks light repression is the best way to run a society.

Incendies (2010)

Show this to anyone who thinks immigrants have it easy.

The Act of Killing (2012)

Show this to anyone who thinks only “bad” people do bad things.

12 Years a Slave (2013)

Show this to anyone who thinks slavery wasn’t that bad, or that “wage slavery” is a thing.

The Look of Silence (2014)

The sequel to The Act of Killing. Show this to anyone who thinks there is no point in bringing up the past. Or show it to anyone who despairs because of genocide or because they just watched The Act of Killing.

Spotlight (2015)

Show this to Catholics. Or, um, show this to anyone who says “think of the children” but doesn’t actually think of the children.

Citizenfour (2017)

Show this to anyone who is worried about “liberal overreach” (or whatever) rather than the security state.

The Death of Stalin (2017)

Show this to anyone who thinks liberal democracy is a bad way of handling power transitions.

The Vietnam War (2017)

Okay, I’m cheating yet again with another TV show but this is at least a mini-series and not a 60-hour TV show. Show this to anyone who thinks imperialism isn’t a bad thing.

For Sama (2019)

Show this to anyone who doesn’t like immigration but who thinks people should “just move” if there are problems where they live.

The US and the Holocaust (2022)

Cheating again with another Ken Burns mini-series. Show this to any American you know.

I could go on but seems like a good place to start. I have mostly omitted films that are more ambiguous because, though I believe ambiguous films are often more edifying than films with moral clarity, I’m not sure a lot of people are handling ambiguity well of late.

I feel like any person who has seen all these films (and the shows I cheated in adding) is unlikely to advocate for any regime that has, as one of its main purposes, or its main purpose, the oppression of people. Many of these films teach empathy and understanding on the part of the viewer, even if that isn’t our initial reaction to so many of them. (As so many of them are horrific.) Others help us understand our current predicament, how easy it is for “normal” people to do bad things.

I hope somebody somewhere watches some of these and finds them worthwhile.