High School (1969)

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

High School (1969) -- F. Wiseman

Without narration, titles, or any other explicit way to direct the viewer's thinking, Frederick Wiseman edits footage from a Philadelphia high school filmed in 1968 to create a withering portrait of heavy-handed socialization to a certain set of conservative values. Students are shown in their low-powered positions, confronting (or simply submitting to) teachers and administrators who preach to them right from wrong. The camera zooms in on important details (an authoritarian's big ring, nervous fingers of parents or students) that the subjects surely didn't know were under observation and which reveal much (of Wiseman's point of view). As a 21st century viewer (who went to high school in the 80s), I found myself a) thinking that this high school's techniques had only somewhat softened by my time; and b) wondering what sorts of power and control techniques are used in schools today. Perhaps the more things change, the more they stay the same?