5 Punk Art Films About Punk Art
3. Peeping Tom
One of the first signs that a film is ahead of its time is a truly toxic reception upon initial release.
Receptions dont come much more toxic than the one that greeted Michael Powells Peeping Tom when it was first released in 1960. The tale of a mad (but weirdly sympathetic) young man who films himself brutally murdering young women was protested, banned, publicly decried to such an extent that previously acclaimed director Powell found his career over. While Peeping Tom is tame by todays standards (Psycho, released a few months later, is much harsher in terms of sex of violence. And a casual re-watch will show that Psycho aint all that harsh) it is still an extraordinarily upsetting film. Why? Because Peeping Tom remains one of the few films to really tackle the voyeuristic nature of horror films (and films in general). It is a film about filmmaking, a film about the release that an audience finds in the simulated deaths of people on screen. Peeping Tom asks the uncomfortable questions about our relationship with filmsand refuses to give any easy answers. The meta-layering of the film extends to Powell himself. He cast himself as killer Mark Lewiss father, depicted in home videos conducting horrific experiments on his own son. It is the father who is responsible for the sons mania, just as it is ultimately Powell the directors fault for the characters actions. By pulling back the curtain on his films relationship with the audience, Powell took away the audiences safety net, daring them to see themselves reflected in the horrific actions of Peeping Toms hero. Audiences rejected the very notion. Powell had the last laugh. He lived long enough to see his film become regarded as a masterpiece. The audience was finally willing to look into the mirror.