Scanialara You won't be disappointed!

WasAnnon Slow pace in the most part of the movie.

Aedonerre I gave this film a 9 out of 10, because it was exactly what I expected it to be.

Gurlyndrobb While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

TheDocHierarchy Towards the end of Astra Taylor's 'Zizek!', the Slovenian philosopher is convinced by his son to put the Lion King on TV. As the child squeals with excitement, Zizek throws his head back, turns to the camera and laments 'oh now he's going to act all narcissistically amused'. Without delving into the inner-workings of Zizek's scholarship, for such a pursuit is so far beyond the means of this writer it would be a joke to even attempt it, the off-hand remark goes some way to encapsulating the enigma and eccentricity of the renowned Lacanian/Marxist author.The film itself probably struggles between providing a platform for Zizek to opine on modern society, and in doing so alienating the 99% who won't truly understand what he has to say (*puts hand up*), and delving into the psyche of a truly remarkable mind. One does not have to be a philosophy major to marvel at the language Zizek uses and the speed at which he constructs arguments and rattles off examples that ground his work in our quotidian existence. At just 71 minutes, there is no harm in the being restricted to the latter, but there is a certain frustration in being taken to the verge of understanding an argument and then abruptly swept off to a different corner of Zizek's scholarship.The filmmaker's synopsis describes Zizek! as: 'Never ceasing to observe the paradoxes that underpin our perception of reality, little goes untheorized over the course of the film, particularly Zizek's recurring themes -- ideology, belief, revolution, and love.' Beware the creative license taken there, for much goes untheorized, but expect to be provoked to think. Be switched on if you want to watch it.

markobroadhead To the reviewers of this film who think that Zizek is a Stalinist because we see a poster of Stalin outside his office...please look up "irony" in a dictionary. Also read this interview: http://www.believermag.com/issues/200407/? read=interview_zizek It begins with this statement from the interviewer: "you have said that Stalinism is worse than Nazism, despite the grand spectacle of the Holocaust." Not a bad documentary, but not amazing either. Zizek is a strange man. He is seemingly a narcissist and misanthrope at the same time. Ultimately I suppose this is the result of reading so much Lacan and Freud that he constantly over analyses himself.

MisterWhiplash I got introduced to Slavoj Zizek through his under-seen Lacan-style analysis of cinema called the Pervert's Guide to Cinema, and was immediately taken in by his very sharp mind, oddball sense of humor, and dead-on analysis of the nature of cinema and the Freudian psychology. This little documentary by first-time director Astra Taylor basically follows Zizek around, usually without much control visually (her main tactic is to get her in close-up, which isn't smart since he's always animated, if still controlled), but always obtaining what Zizek is all about. He gets a person's mind moving about so many subjects: the super-ego and it's ties to capitalism, the need to associate oneself with ideology and the dangers with that, how to use philosophical ideas meaningfully, and what belief plays a role in politics and psychological interpretations. Not limited to these topics are all on Zizek's mind, and all of his points reveal him as a man with unlimited intelligence, even as his mind goes so fast it becomes something of a task to keep up with him.Little moments Taylor captures add idiosyncrasies one might not expect from someone as such a Marxist and Lacan-follower (however NOT a Dogmatic Lacan-follower as he says), including showing off his son's toys, and shopping for movies at Kim's Video in New York City, or how he tries to look for a restaurant. But for the most part, Zizek! at it's best- and it's best to look at for its substance, not its style- brings to mind the nature of philosophy for the individual, how politics ends up feeding into the public's consciousness by way of wanting more "enjoyment", or what enjoyment really means. It's almost TOO short, and one who becomes fascinated by Zizek's theories and very straightforward interpretations of subjects that should be more complicated by how he describes them sees that sometimes he gets cut off from what is such a long and amazing description or drawn-out thought. But if one is interested already in the man, it should provide some fun and food-for-thought seeing the man in down-to-earth form for the cameras, and newcomers may or may not take to the man's theories. Like Pervert's Guide, some things will fly over your head, but what sticks makes for some of the most insightful commentary in recent years.

Chris Canham Yeah, I know it seems like a pretty high rating, but I really enjoy movies that make you think, and if you're like me, you'll want to see this one 3 or more times to try to get the most of it. Slavoj is an interesting character on his own...he seems to not quite "appreciate" a fan base. But the theories and observations mentioned are definitely thought-provoking. They range from talk of advertising, to politics, to Love, to the super ego. His political peak (up to now) is also mentioned and talked about a little.Anyway, I saw about 20 movies at the 2005 Toronto Film festival, and in my opinion, this was the best of them.