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Originally Posted by pinkgothic
I continue to believe the statement "People should not be afraid of their government, but the government should be afraid of their people" (or how it is in the original wording) is hogwash, especially since if the government is afraid of the people, it is more likely IMO to do censorship. Afterall, why censor if you're not afraid people will say something that could cause your downfall?
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I think you're taking that quote a little too literally. The point is that the people should be in control of the government, not the other way around. People 'in power' in the government should be aware that if what they're doing is not in the genuine best interest of the people (for instance, telling them what they're allowed to think/say/express is not in their best interest) they will be replaced. Too often people turn the government into an amorphous "they" who, due to being an amorphous "they," have the power to decide the rules of these peoples lives, which is extremely deperssing when the people are the ones who elected them in the first place as their representitave. If something in the government isn't working, the people shouldn't be afraid to change it - it's their government after all! (and likewise, if someone in power is doing something abusive, they should be afraid that they will get caught and thrown out - can you say that's the case with a particular current president? is he afraid of his people?)
That said, I think the film missed the mark of the original comic a bit. The film seems to be about how being a freedom fighter is where it's at, and how violence is totally necessary, when the comic wasn't about a side so much and was just sort of about how one end of the spectrum creates the other, and the inevitable conclusion.
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Also, as an aside, Primer is indeed a great movie.
