"Examined Life" director Astra Taylor

To say that the films of 29-year-old documentarian Astra Taylor are thought-provoking is not such a lofty compliment; it's literally the goal she has in marrying cinema with philosophy. 2005's "Žižek!" trailed Slovenian psychoanalyst, philosopher and cultural critic Slavoj Žižek around the world as he expounded on ideology and made eccentric observations on love, revolution and his own self-critique. Taylor's latest feature, "Examined Life," is no less absorbing, an intelligent yet accessible anthology of ideas that sees eight highly influential thinkers of our time (including Avital Ronell, Peter Singer, Michael Hardt -- and yes, the wild and wooly Žižek) pontificating while taking walks through modern culture. Kwame Anthony Appiah talks cosmopolitanism from inside an airport, Žižek dissects ecology while digging through a garbage facility and Cornel West compares philosophy to jazz and blues while being driven around the streets of Manhattan by the director herself. When Taylor and I met up over coffee in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, we discussed the possibility of chatting in the car in which West was filmed, but it was unfortunately being used to sing in by her husband, Jeff Mangum (reclusive frontman of the influential '90s indie-pop band Neutral Milk Hotel), who also contributed some sounds to the film's score.

I'm fascinated by your restraint in the film, since you occasionally appear onscreen, but with a far more passive voice than your subjects.

Every time you put yourself in a film you risk things [being] pointlessly narcissistic. Why make something autobiographical that doesn't need to be? In this project, I perceive myself as an inquisitive voice that's not necessarily so much identified with Astra as an individual, but taking on the perspective I want the audience to have: questioning but not attacking, and not arguing for its own sake. A lot of philosophy is based on argumentation, so I wanted to break philosophy out of that habit for a bit, give some space to listen, and try to get to the heart of people's perspectives. It's something I'm so ambivalent towards -- my presence in the film. I haven't reconciled to it.

Is it seeing yourself on camera that you're uncomfortable with, as plenty of people are themselves?

No, it's just when people insert themselves, it's often gratuitous. At the same time, I made a pact with some of the philosophers in the film that if they were going to appear, I would appear -- namely Avital Ronell, Judith Butler and my sister Sunaura. So I already had a certain responsibility to be a presence because their participation was contingent on that. Perhaps it's more honest because it's not an objective portrait of philosophy today as you might discover in philosophy departments. It's absolutely not that. This is a film that focuses on ethics, human vulnerability and interdependence. These are things I'm interested in, so they're highly personal, I suppose.

So let's get personal. What's your philosophy on philosophy? Why is it so important to you?

This project is sort of appropriate to my personality. Even as a kid, I was always wrestling with the world. I had this magazine [as a child], "Kids and Animal Rights and the Environment." I was already reading Peter Singer's "Animal Liberation" and different books, especially on animal rights, which brings you into ethics and moral issues. My question at that time was: What are the mechanisms through which adults brainwash children into eating other animals? [laughs] How is this reinforced in culture, and the bullshit children's books you get about the happy farm? I was investigating ideology, so that's the motivation. I have some sort of vision of a more just world in my mind. I'm wondering why other people don't agree with me, and why my values seem so out of step. This is the thing about being raised in a strange bohemian family; you're out of step with everyone else, and you wonder, "Why are we so odd?"

It's just something I've always done and gotten enjoyment out of. Questioning things, thinking about how we ought to live, how we could arrange society in a more equitable way. I also have a strong educational philosophy that's rooted in my experience of being "unschooled," being home-schooled but with no curriculum, no schedule. Your parents don't play the role of teachers but maybe facilitators. When you're unschooled, the world is your classroom, and it's all about experiential learning: by doing, at your own pace, and on your own time.

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Michael Kelly

Dear Ms. Taylor,
I saw your film "Examined Life" today in NYC. To get about 50 people in a room for a film about philosophy (3:15 show) is not easy, and I'm glad you made this film if only for that reason.
But I'm more glad because I am a philosopher/theorist at heart, and avocation, and found your selection--as Mr. Scott in the Times mentioned--perfect for my taste, so very selective. I spent a good amount of time after the film thinking about the people, what really worked idea-wise and as narrative. I have not read Ms. Butler's work in its native form, but an excerpt in Johnathan Culler's little book on literary theory, and it knocked me out. So it was so interesting to see her.
I went without reading any reviews once I found out that you had done "Zizek!", about which so much could be said. It was nice to see him again, although I did see his film on film at MOMA as well because of becoming so fond of him via your film.
I've now done some research and see that a number of critics have found that the sequence with Butler and your sister (!) was one of the best. And Cornell West! Nothing I could say....

All for now,
Thanks again,
Michael

Gray Kane

I love what Taylor, Fiennes, West, Zizek, and a host of others are doing to overcome the social divide between the lived world & theoretical analysis. Both the classroom & the traditional academic documentary produce, as Taylor says, static engagements that facilitate compartmentalization, as if critical thinking were confined to a mostly socially divorced time & space that neutralize its effect on material circumstances. Just as a desk physically confines the student, such compartmentalizations teach us not to stand up for what we believe in, but rather to sit down & immobilize ourselves to the point that we don't know how to apply complex thought to action. I can't wait to complete the five-hour drive to Nashville to see "Examined Life," even if none of my friends are coming. And I don't travel for movies.