The Pervert's Guide to Cinema

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The Pervert's Guide to Cinema

2006

2h 30m

Documentary

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

87%

Tomatometer

23 Reviews

86%

Popcornmeter

2,500+ Ratings

Slavoj Zizek guides the viewer through some of the greatest movies ever made, discussing the hidden language in film and telling what movies can show people about themselves. He lights up the screen with his passion, intellect and great sense of humor, delving into the work of David Lynch and prompting re-valuation of opinions about Alfred Hitchcock's films.

Critics Consensus

Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Zizek forgoes the textbook stuff for a fun, probing look at cinema and the human emotional response to it.

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V.A. Musetto

New York Post

It is a fun romp through the annals of cinema by pop Slovenian philosopher and prolific writer Slavoj Zizek, who finds deep psychological meaning in a slew of movies.

Rated: 3/4

Jan 16, 2009

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Stephen Holden

New York Times

The teachers we remember most fondly are often the ones who entertained as they enlightened, through hyperbole seasoned with grains of salt. Mr. Zizek belongs in that company.

Rated: 4/5

Jan 16, 2009

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Vadim Rizov

Village Voice

[Zizek] steers clear of his usual dense Hegel-centric language and goes straight for the fun bits.

Jan 14, 2009

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Derek Smith

Tiny Mix Tapes

A good film to show to budding cinephiles? Yes, but in the end, The Pervert's Guide to Cinema falls slightly short of the monumental thesis on cinema spectatorship for which it strives.

Rated: 3/5

Aug 1, 2015

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Rob Nelson

City Pages, Minneapolis/St. Paul

Maybe the art house isn't a place for perverts anymore. Indeed, the privacy of one's own laptop seems a somewhat safer setting for Zizek's kinky act of criticism.

Aug 24, 2009

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Matthew Sorrento

Film Threat

Cinematically speaking, you my find your meeting with psychoanalyst/film theorist Slavoj Zizek to be a near-religious experience.

Rated: 4/5

Aug 4, 2009

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don k

The content/subject matter of the film (pronounced philem in this flick) is intellectually sound, well formed and convincingly thought through. It holds the viewer's attention. The problem is with the delivery of that content—specifically the affected speech, made worse by an intentionally (it is perceived) thickened accent, of the film's narrator and writer, Slavoj Zizek. The direction—sets, cuts, takes, etc.—however, is first rate. The director was Sophie Fiennes.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Audience Member

The typical commie guy who talks about Batman.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/23/23

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Audience Member

Enjoyable rather than insightful.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

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Audience Member

amazing, a MUST see!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/15/23

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Audience Member

funny narrator! and very interesting in classic cinema mainly. Entertaining.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/27/23

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Audience Member

"If you are looking for what is, in reality, more real than the reality itself, look into the cinematic fiction."

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/02/23

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Sophie Fiennes

Director

Slavoj Zizek

Actor

Slavoj Zizek

Writer

Sophie Fiennes

Producer

Kees Kasander

Co-Producer

Georg Misch

Executive Producer

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Synopsis

Slavoj Zizek guides the viewer through some of the greatest movies ever made, discussing the hidden language in film and telling what movies can show people about themselves. He lights up the screen with his passion, intellect and great sense of humor, delving into the work of David Lynch and prompting re-valuation of opinions about Alfred Hitchcock's films.

Director: Sophie Fiennes
Producer: Sophie Fiennes, Georg Misch, Martin Rosenbaum
Screenwriter: Slavoj Zizek
Production Co: Lone Star
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Runtime: 2h 30m