Sex & The Celts (2005/Documentary/Pathfinder DVD)
Picture:
C Sound: C Extras:
D Film: B
Based
purely on the sensationalistic and frankly cheesy cheesecake cover of the DVD
package I really didn’t expect much out of Sex
and the Celts. I was pleasantly surprised by a fairly well made and
serious documentary about the psychosexual development of a specific European
mindset and the sociological effects of changing mores.
Focusing
primarily on the history of Ireland
the two part film starts in prehistoric times. As with
any research dealing with this era there is a lot of speculation and very
little in the way of concrete documentation. Guesses are made
based on folktales, documents from later eras, and the archeological
record. Most of these are reasonably sound, though I’m sure scholars
could take issue with any one of a number of assertions. Prehistoric Ireland was
probably a goddess-based culture, the primary result of which is more favorable
status for women in general, including their sexuality. The film leans a
little too far into the idea of an idealistic nigh-utopian situation wherein
the sexes were truly equal and everyone was happy and well adjusted with the
uses of their genitalia. Probably not true.
From
there the timeline is traced down to the present. The primary story is that of
the effects of the introduction of Christianity into this pagan culture.
St. Patrick ridding the island of snakes is metaphor for destroying the pagan
religion as well as the more Freudian repression of sexuality. In more
recent times the Potato Famine and the resulting diaspora
of the Irish people to America
is covered in great detail. The documentary ends with scenes of the
exploding sexuality of the current Irish youth culture.
-
Wayne Wise
