Philosophical Film Salon #15: George A. Romero

Philosophical Film Salon #15 focuses on George A. Romero's groundbreaking 1968 zombie film - a bleak and raw portrayal that uses the monster as a lens to examine the inner workings of modern consumer society.

The film unfolds over a single day as a group of strangers barricade themselves in an abandoned house to keep a horde of the living dead at bay. It quickly becomes clear that conflicts among the living can be just as deadly as the undead's attacks. Romero himself described the film as an allegory of mass society, where mindless consumption exposes the fragility of the structures we rely on - family, law enforcement, and class hierarchy. The film's depiction of raw violence also raises a question: why are we drawn to the morbid and horrifying in the first place?

Following the screening, intellectual historian Freja Værnskjold Dzougov will give a brief talk drawing on Julia Kristeva's reflections on horror and her concept of the abject. The talk will lead into a shared discussion about humanity's fascination with the uncanny and grotesque, as well as the monstrous logics hidden within society's structures.

Freja Værnskjold Dzougov (M.A. in intellectual history) is writing her Ph.D. on the angel's return in 20th-century philosophy, with particular interest in medieval philosophy's relevance to modern thought - including themes of love, beauty, and forgiveness.

Venue: Lille sal