review by Heather Silvey
Compliance 2012
Reviewed Sep 15, 2012
Heather Silvey’s review:
This movie is exactly what you think it is. The disturbing element is that it has happened and could easily happen. As you're watching this, you may find yourself thinking, "How can these people be that stupid?" But it's entirely possible, because the average person is easily manipulated. The gal up at the register said it all, "I ain't messin' with no cops."
Towards the end, the guy conducting the interview asks Sandra if she thinks she was a victim. She was definitely a victim, and even though she refuses to fess up to her own guilt in the situation, you can tell that it's going to be something that's going to eat at her for the rest of her life. Despite the animosity I feel towards her for allowing things to go on as it did, I sincerely think she's a bigger victim than Becky. Eventually, she's going to have to admit to herself the role she played. You can see it settling in at the end there as she's watching the tape.
It also goes to show how much we are ALL brainwashed. If, in that situation, would you do things differently? Really? Be honest with yourself. We've all been raised to be afraid and intimidated by authority. Sure, it'd be nice to say that we wouldn't let things go that far, but look at our day-to-day lives now. Look at our banking and monetary system. Are we not obedient consumers? Even our modes of transportation are outdated and could easily be replaced with technology that is both safer for our planet and much more cost-efficient (aka FREE). But few confront this issue and fewer do something about it. And that's not even the tip of the iceberg. Movies like these are actually good for us, because it dares us to question - Are we all just blindly complying?
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