Zizek!

Astra Taylor / USA, 2005
English, 71 min

The director accompanied the philosopher Slavoj Zizek on a lecture tour, and in addition to visiting lecture halls in New York and Buenos Aires, we are also taken to Zizek’s flat in Ljubljana. This prominent Slovenian thinker combines psychoanalysis, Marxism, and criticism of popular culture to articulate succinct thoughts in lavish statements. However, he does not shy away from turning the criticism on himself. The filmmaker tries to keep pace with the dynamically talking head and its rapid thought processes. Zizek is capable of pursuing thoughts on German philosophy, the British economy, and the French revolution, while comparing the toilet bowls of these three nations. The philosopher takes his relentless flow of speech into restaurants, video rentals, and even into bed or into his bathroom filled with shampoo bottles from hotels around the world. The bearded philosopher-bear, who is often referred to as the Elvis of cultural theory, has published over fifty books. The film is a philosophy lesson and a portrait of a cosmopolitan loner.

The partner of the screening is International Documentary Film Festival Jihlava