Isiah Medina's 'Gangsterism' Review: A Dense Cine-Manifesto on Auteurism
Canadian experimental filmmaker Isiah Medina's latest feature, Gangsterism, presents a dense and high-minded cine-manifesto that delves deeply into the notion of auteurism. The film, which is set to show at the ICA in London from 20 February, flits between radical innovation and grandiloquent theory, demanding both close reading and exasperated sighs from its audience.
A Vision for the Digital Auteur
Medina articulates a compelling vision: "If cinema was a 19th-century dream actualised in the 20th century through chemistry, then the auteur was a 20th-century dream that needs to be actualised in the 21st through digital." This statement drives the film's narrative, as Medina is hellbent on actualising this dream through a troupe of po-faced cineastes who declaim theory-freighted slogans. They bemoan the obstacles facing genuine auteurs today, including western-centric power hierarchies, industry racism, economic exclusion of serious artistic work, and the tyranny of language.
Characters and Structural Struggles
The film centres on Clem, played by Mark Bacolcol, a director struggling to finance his next feature amidst systemic challenges. His boyfriend Ez, portrayed by Kalil Haddad, serves as an unblinking ideologue, offering pep talks such as, "Be proud: regardless of race, most people don't like your work." Collaborators Nico, played by Jonalyn Aguilar, and March, portrayed by Charlotte Zhang, face similar structural hurdles. A hipster collage in Clem's office juxtaposes Mao's Cultural Revolution with the title of Armond White's 2020 book Make Spielberg Great Again, highlighting the film's ironic and critical stance towards conventional hopes in cinema.
Self-Referential and Aesthetic Innovations
Gangsterism includes flare-ups of self-awareness, with Clem questioning, "Now I've found out that the way my characters talk isn't human. Why is it we're afraid of appearing inhuman?" This pre-emptiveness adds layers to Medina's auto-portrait, though it remains unclear how tongue-in-cheek the portrayal is. The film does not qualify as satire or psychological candour but rather as a burst of self-referential chaff designed to subvert conventional narrative expectations.
On an aesthetic level, Medina cuts deepest through innovative techniques. Conversations blink between different viewpoints in a cubist-style manner, shifting in and out of adjacent scenes or reveries, as Clem notes, "Thinking is being." This approach often feels strikingly radical, offering a fresh vocabulary of dis-establishing shots to counteract dominant points of view. However, it occasionally veers into pretentiousness, reminiscent of slam poetry scenes in mainstream films like 22 Jump Street.
Chaos and Critical Engagement
Clem is beset by a character leaking his films, possibly a supercilious writer played by Erik Berg, a chaotic gesture that Medina seems to appreciate. Near the start, Clem reflects, "I've always felt that if you've never felt the desire to destroy your books, then you've never really read them." This sentiment encapsulates the film's wilfully alienating yet ingratiating nature, making Gangsterism a cine-manifesto that deserves both close reading and exasperated sighs in equal measure.
Overall, Isiah Medina's Gangsterism is a challenging and thought-provoking exploration of auteurism in the digital age, blending experimental aesthetics with dense theoretical discourse. It is a must-see for those interested in avant-garde cinema and the future of filmmaking.
