THE STRAWBERRY STATEMENT

US, 1970, 101 minutes, Colour.
Bruce Davison, Kim Darby, Bud Cort.
Directed by Stuart Hageman.

The Strawberry Statement is one of a batch of films from the U.S. in 1969-70 on campus revolution (Getting Straight, Up In The Cellar, R.P.M.) that were generally scoffed at by the critics as being merely commercial exploitations of serious social situations. Their heroes and heroines are considered plastic people with no ideas and artificially controlled feelings. A case could be made against The Strawberry Statement along these lines, the casting of sweet Kim Darby, the quick change to revolution of hero, Simon; the use of popular music and the slick T.V. commercial style of the whole film. It has been considered pretentious. This may be in the United States. The film was well received at Cannes in 1970,and for observers from outside countries it seems to show enough to bring home some of the realities of the situations and the frightening violence.

Whatever one may think of it as a film, it does raise a number of questions about youth that should be explored.

1. This film was severely attacked by critics. It was considered as a gross exploitation of its issue of campus revolution. It was accused of playing to the youth audience and of presenting merely superficial feelings. Do you agree with these charges?

2. Were the hero and heroine real people? Are young University students like this? Did you feel that they were really committed to their cause, to principles?

3. Why did Simon change from an ordinary college student, rower and music lover to someone committed to change? was this convincing?

4. Did the film catch the mood of the twenty year old undergraduates, their interests, attitudes, musical tastes, immaturity, style? (The director is accused of using too many clever T.V. styles; could it be that he was trying to give the impression that this contemporary style is part of the 'revolutionary' background?)

5. How typical is this kind of campus unrest throughout the world? Is it just confined to America, to California?

6. How were the demonstrations filmed? Did they give a real and frightening picture of such campus battles?

7. How sympathetically were the police presented?

8. Whose side was the film on?

9. What impression did the last fifteen minutes make on you? How serious were they and how did they leave you as you finished watching the film?

10. What was the purpose of making a film like this? How would it impress campus radicals, parents and teachers?