Program Note
Whether they are male prostitutes on the streets of LA, zombies, or unidentifiable visitors, they all resist with their whole being the dominant order and values of modern society that Bruce LaBruce hates so much and wants to completely destroy. The same goes for refugees in LaBruce's new work, The Visitor, inspired by Pier Paolo Pasolini’s Teorema (1968). Following a stranger who becomes a servant to an aristocratic family in London, the film begins to annihilate the patriarchal order, capitalism, colonialism, and racism that still dominate us. Images of extreme sexual behavior and the abject test the limits of the ‘ordinary’ audience (an expression that LaBruce is sure to get a kick out of). Political slogans such as “Give Peace of Ass a Chance” and “Colonize the Colonizer,” which are presented like flashes that stimulate the retina, do not allow for the slightest hint of subtlety or ambiguity. Whether you support this film or absolutely hate it, The Visitor seeks an answer from the audience to a question: What will LaBruce’s unapologetic queer politics bring to our society now? (Jin PARK)