This Sunday you’re invited to join us for Film Night. We will be discussing Shame (2011). To join us, please watch the movie in advance, and secure your spot for the roundtable call here.
Once you’ve gone through the film, have a look through the following questions. You might sit somewhere with a drink, a notepad, and spend an hour journalling your answers. Or contemplate as you gaze at women on the subway! Note that I never expect anyone to answer all of the questions, just three or four that grab you the most.
For those of you that are Amorati members, we’ll set up a discussion post on the platform.
* * *
Core Questions:
— How was your overall experience of watching Shame? What was your concluding thought, and your overall aesthetic/emotional impact?
— Which scene moved or provoked you most, and why?
— What can you learn from this movie about skill, polarity, and efficiency in seduction? Do you have any questions about how Brandon does what he does?
— Why do you think women responded to Brandon, even though his inner life was… complex?
— What does Brandon want, as the protagonist in this story (in his life)?
— How do you understand the motivation that led Brandon to becoming the seducer type we see at the start of the film?
— Brandon has a lot of sex during the film. Can you remember the inner quality of that sex—the way Brandon felt—as he was having it?
— Is it possible to become ‘confident with women’ (in the early-film Brandon sense) without passing through the disconnected times, the sheer level of ‘practice’, that our protagonist goes through in Shame?
— To what extent is Brandon confident with women, anyway?
— Many Amorati say they suffer from sexual shame and wish they didn’t. Did you imagine sexual shame could look like this? What parts of Brandon’s experience, as portrayed in this movie, did you connect with? How does shame and its patterns work differently within you?
— About halfway through the film, Brandon shares a meal in an upscale restaurant with Marianne, a colleague from work. She likes him, and their interaction follows some interesting stages, which I can’t wait to explore further with you. At one point, Marianne asks Brandon about his longest relationship, and he says it was ‘four months’ long. How do you answer questions about your love-life, particularly when there’s been difficulty or inexperience?
— There were a number of turning points during Brandon’s story that set him on an intensified sort of inner journey. Which events seem most crucial in Brandon’s unraveling?
— The movie starts and ends with an intense encounter on the subway. Strong eye-contact develops between Brandon and an unknown woman, and energy clearly builds within her body both times. What did you think the ending of the film meant?
— Where would Brandon be if it weren’t for these turning points? Where do you sense Brandon’s addiction would have taken him if he was left alone for another five, ten years?
— How did you feel towards the Sissy character throughout the film?
— Finally, what is shame anyway? Does it have any positive features?
* * *
Further Themes to Ponder:
Here’s where I get really curious:
— Brandon seems to be a man in his mid-to-late thirties. You’ve probably read a lot of advice that says if you want to keep your sex drive high at that age, you should really retain your semen. After screwing the blonde he picks up from the nightclub, Brandon goes home and masturbates. I’m left thinking, how does he still have the energy to do this! And how does he still retain the vigour to go out into the city and initiate sex? What do you think?
— Imagine there’s a follow-up to this movie. Let’s call it Shame 2. Or Healed. The protagonist has broken open to his wounds and to his vulnerability, he’s reconnected with his dysfunctional family in positive ways, and has finally found some love for himself. And yet, he retains decades’ experience of connecting with women in highly erotic ways.
How does Brandon show up in the land of women now? Can you form a picture in your mind?
* * *
We meet on Sunday, Nov 17th, at 6pm Bucharest, 11am Eastern.
To join us for the live call on Sunday, simply secure your spot here.
And if you’re a member of any of our community platforms, I’d love to read your responses to these questions there. I believe that if you understand the deeper layers of this movie, you’ve got the most crucial piece of the whole ‘seduction’ jigsaw. Can’t wait to share this little journey with you.
~ Jordan
* * *
T-19 days: We launch the Mastery Course, Season #2. The film and reflection process we’re sharing here is a taste of what’s inside.
–
