Abstract

The German filmmaker Alexander Kluge has long promoted cinema's relationship with the goals of human emancipation. Jean-Luc Godard and Filipino director Kidlat Tahimik also believe in cinema's ability to bring about what Theodor W. Adorno once called a "redeemed world." Situating the films of Godard, Tahimik, and Kluge within debates over social revolution, utopian ideals, and the unrealized potential of utopian thought and action, Christopher Pavsek showcases the strengths, weaknesses, and undeniable impact of their utopian visions on film's political evolution. He discusses Godard's _Alphaville_ (1965) against _Germany Year 90 Nine-Zero_ (1991) and _JLG/JLG: Self-portrait in December _(1994), and he conducts the first scholarly reading of _Film Socialisme_ (2010). He considers Tahimik's virtually unknown masterpiece, _I Am Furious Yellow_ (1981--1991), along with _Perfumed Nightmare_ (1977) and _Turumba_ (1983); and he constructs a dialogue between Kluge's _Brutality in Stone_ (1961) and _Yesterday Girl_ (1965) and his later _The Assault of the Present on the Rest of Time_ (1985) and _Fruits of Trust_ (2009).