Word: socialism
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Dates: during 1960-1969
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...correctness of Meyer's approach is best illustrated by the few sodden moments when he loses his way and tries to inject some social meaning into the film. Meyer apparently got the idea during the last half of the shooting that Vixen should touch on some Major Issues of the Day, like racial tension, the War, the draft, revolution, etc. He's not too good at dealing with these ideas, and he ended up dumping all his social messages on one character: a black motorcyclist, who left America because of the draft and who nearly hijacks Mr. Vixen's plane...
...Meyer's genius is that he doesn't let any-complicating factors-like "redeeming social value" or "plot line"-get in his way as he steams toward his goal of producing a sexy movie. A brief outline of Vixen's action is an instructive example...
While most films would try to clog these episodes with heavy themes-like marital tension or incest or lesbianism-Meyer light-heartedly plays them for sheer sexy fun. Vixen and her brother don't talk about social taboos or family relations. They don't talk about anything. They just grin a lot and yell as they move into the movie's memorable shower stall-chase scene...
This kind of methodological framework is prone to produce not social critics but social engineers-technicians whose stunted vision of the possible and ethnocentric definition of the good severely limit their usefulness either in pursuing creative research or in helping to overcome the obstacles to humane progress here or in the third world...
...Thorough elaboration of this view of modern social science and its impact on the poor countries should provide a focus of attention for those who oppose the operations of the Center. We would also hope that Vernon and other directors of the Center, should they choose to defend further their function, will concentrate on these fundamental issues rather than dwelling smugly on isolated good deeds...