Even if you hate this movie, it deserves to be in the Canon. It feels like a foundational work that held up a mirror to a culture we didn't really think could exist in 1995. But, 20 years later, here we are with Donald Trump running for president and each new step forward met with banal, violent and sadistic advocacy for "taking back" the culture and "making it right" -like I imagine was the mindset John Doe started with before branching out to his Final Solution. There is no room for "soft" voting on this film. Personally, I don't really like this movie. It makes me confront ugliness in not only others but even myself. Which is precisely why it's required viewing. John Doe's tactics worked on me the first time I watched and still affect me now. Which is NOT to praise him as a hero or something to aspire to. This is simply a moral quandary inducing movie. It requires you to think though logic and process feelings.
Which makes it essential.
