Watch The Antics Roadshow

The Antics Roadshow is a documentary film from 2011 that explores the world of culture jamming and practical jokes. The movie follows several prominent figures in this world, including Kathy Burke, Andy Bichlbaum, and Mike Bonanno. Culture jamming is the art of subverting mainstream media and advertising through creative and humorous pranks. It is a form of activism that seeks to disrupt the status quo and challenge our assumptions about the world around us. The Antics Roadshow showcases some of the most daring and innovative examples of this movement.

The film is structured around a series of interviews with prominent culture jammers and their accomplices. These interviews are interspersed with footage of their most famous stunts. We see Andy Bichlbaum and Mike Bonanno infiltrating a corporate conference as representatives of a fake oil company, causing chaos and confusion with their satirical presentation. We see the Yes Men (the collective to which Bichlbaum and Bonanno belong) setting up a website that looks exactly like the official website of the World Trade Organization, and then issuing a fake press release declaring that the WTO has admitted its mistakes and is disbanding. We see Kathy Burke organizing a fake protest against a popular clothing brand, in which participants wear t-shirts advertising the brand but with satirical messages written on them.

Throughout the film, we are given a sense of the philosophy behind culture jamming. The culture jammers argue that we live in a society where corporate power and consumerism have become the dominant forces. They believe that mainstream media and advertising are powerful tools in maintaining this status quo. By subverting these tools, and using them against themselves, culture jammers hope to spark a broader conversation about the direction of our society.

The Antics Roadshow is also a celebration of humor and creativity. The culture jammers showcased in the film are incredibly inventive and resourceful in their tactics. They use costumes, props, and fake websites to bring attention to their causes. And they do it all with a sense of playfulness and joy that is infectious.

The film also touches on the risks and challenges of culture jamming. The Yes Men, for example, have been sued by the companies they target, and have even been arrested for their stunts. Burke, too, has faced legal threats for her actions. The film does not shy away from these consequences, but it also shows the resilience of the culture jammers in the face of adversity.

Overall, The Antics Roadshow is an entertaining and thought-provoking documentary that shines a light on a fascinating subculture. It is a testament to the power of creative activism and the importance of humor in political discourse. Whether you are a seasoned culture jammer, or simply curious about this world, this film is definitely worth watching.

The Antics Roadshow is a 2011 documentary with a runtime of 47 minutes. It has received mostly positive reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 6.8.