• Garbagio@lemmy.zip
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    1 day ago

    Yeah bro just a throwaway line at the beginning. And the end. And several times in between. And never provides anything otherwise, let alone related to your “alternative” reading.

    Why the hell can’t it just be a funny, problematic, 2000’s comedy? Why does everyone that jokes that it’s a parody or documentary or whatever need to write academic statements of purpose on how “ackshually, if you read The Basic Laws if Human Stupidity by Carlo M. Cipolla (2 L’s), you will clearly see the hidden intent behind Luke Wilson’s magnum opus 🤓”

    • halvar@lemy.lol
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      21 hours ago

      I have to admit it’s been some time since I saw the movie, but I have three relevant scenes in mind.

      First is the beggining where they lay down that joke.

      The next is in the ending, where the main cast has children and the children of the smart guy are smart and the children of the dumb guy are dumb.

      Judging from these too it seems like in the word of Idiocracy eugenics works, as in smart people really produce smart offspring, which pretty much makes it a problematic 2000s comedy, so you’re welcome.

      Now the next scene is also from the start of the movie. It could be summed up as: “Stupid people kept doing stupid things, while smart people were occupied with inventing medicines for stopping baldness and enlarging penises.”

      And that last one sells it for me. A society doesn’t decay because of genetic drift, it decays because smart people get dragged along tying to respond to the needs of the stupid people. Unlike the first two scenes, the third is no joke. That is something that WILL happen if smart people don’t keep stupid people in check and that WILL lead to the decay of society.

      In conclusion: Idiocracy has tones of eugenics as a joke. Not to be taken seriously. If you take it seriously seek help. It does warn of a present where most people are stupid, dressed up as the future. It does warn of smart people responding to the needs of stupid people, while important things are left unattained for.