The People vs Larry Flynt
Directed by Milos Forman
Screenplay by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski
National release from February 20
Review by Jonathon Strauss
A movie of a man crucified, figuratively, in the US, or an excuse for an orgy of soft porn? These are the two possibilities suggested by the advertising poster for The People vs Larry Flynt — a cruciform Flynt (Woody Harrelson), clothed only in a stars and stripes loincloth (perhaps as protection, but then the US publicists for the movie used a picture in which the US flag was a gag), in front of the groin of a giant, extraordinarily thin, bikini-clad, waist-to-thigh female figure.
Flynt is a film biography of Larry Flynt, the former strip bar owner who, as publisher of Hustler magazine, became the head of a porn publishing empire, fighting various anti-censorship battles along the way. Given this context, the film's use of pornographic imagery is not gratuitous, but serves to establish the tacky and sleazy atmosphere necessary for a depiction of Flynt's life.
In fact, Flynt is not about pornography at all (as director Milos Forman noted in an interview in the Sydney Morning Herald). This means there is no attempt to glorify it, but also that the issue of whether pornography is exploitative or not is glossed over. Although, in one of the more memorable scenes, Flynt, speaking before a rally of the lobby group he funds, effectively points to the double standard applied by many when they condemn the sexually provocative representation of human bodies — "lewd and shameful", as one prosecuting lawyer puts it — while lauding scenes of violent death.
Instead, Flynt follows its main character through his courtroom battles and publicity stunts. It explores the consequences of the destructive aspects of his character, which lead him, for example, into a bout of born-again Christianity and a spell in a psychiatric prison.
The film suggests that Flynt was far from being a conscious fighter for freedom of speech to begin with and only at the end was willing to take account of the consequences of his own actions in order to further this fight. In the meantime his behaviour contributed to the downfall of his libertarian wife and astute business associate, former stripper Althea Leasure (Courtney Love), and nearly destroyed his friendship with his lawyer Alan Isaacman (a composite character, played by Edward Norton).
The main themes of Isaacman's defence in each court case — from early attempts to stop the production and distribution of Hustler to the climax in a Supreme Court appeal against a finding that Christian fundamentalist Jerry Falwell had suffered "emotional distress" because of a satire directed against him — were that the lack of taste of a publication is not grounds for its banning and that censorship can serve to suppress views that are unpopular.
But these important arguments in defence of free speech avoid the issue of whether tastes can and should be changed (and not just hidden away), changes that are not possible without fundamentally questioning the society from which these tastes have sprung. Flynt doesn't do this — instead engaging in "cornball patriotism" — and is rather happy that his wealth allows him the privilege to act on our behalf.
Although Flynt does not manage an in-depth examination of the issues it raises, it is still a good movie. Not only is it thought-provoking, but its narrative largely holds together and the lead actors' performances are strong. Harrelson gives his best yet anti-hero performance, Love projects the strengths and weaknesses of Althea Leasure very convincingly, and Norton carries the climax. It's a pity that Hollywood hype must still give us a hint of a cesspit.