My comments refer to the "Special Edition Director's Cut" which runs about 70 minutes, and appears to be absent from the "alternate versions" page.
This is a fun introductory look at the topic of stupidity. As the film itself notes, stupidity isn't a subject that has been looked at seriously by very many researchers. Books on the subject can't even fill a shelf, and this is the first and only film with this title (as far as IMDb knows).
The film opens with a look at the definitions of stupidity, as well as former psychological terms that have become insults: idiot, imbecile, and moron.
It the moves into the subject of dumbed-down media (apparently the original idea of this film, and something from which it suffers although it doesn't admit it).
Other topics include fallacies of smart people (or at least successful people) who over-estimate their abilities, "super-stupidity" -- the promotion of stupid behaviour and ignorance, and widespread human stupidity (climate change, religion, war).
Former president Bush is shown as a prime example of stupidity, and using the appearance of stupidity to accomplish goals.
It ends with the idea that being stupid in today's world is actually quite hard work for most people, and that stupidity may be a desirable state, at least at the individual level.
I'm not sure what all the differences are, but this version apparently includes a Fox News interview, and a David Suzuki interview, not in the original version.
If there had been more films on the subject of stupidity, I'd have rated this lower. But this is all there is. It could have taken a more serious tone. It should have included things like the "tragedy of the commons", the Monty Hall problem, and invention versus quality concepts.
This is a fun introductory look at the topic of stupidity. As the film itself notes, stupidity isn't a subject that has been looked at seriously by very many researchers. Books on the subject can't even fill a shelf, and this is the first and only film with this title (as far as IMDb knows).
The film opens with a look at the definitions of stupidity, as well as former psychological terms that have become insults: idiot, imbecile, and moron.
It the moves into the subject of dumbed-down media (apparently the original idea of this film, and something from which it suffers although it doesn't admit it).
Other topics include fallacies of smart people (or at least successful people) who over-estimate their abilities, "super-stupidity" -- the promotion of stupid behaviour and ignorance, and widespread human stupidity (climate change, religion, war).
Former president Bush is shown as a prime example of stupidity, and using the appearance of stupidity to accomplish goals.
It ends with the idea that being stupid in today's world is actually quite hard work for most people, and that stupidity may be a desirable state, at least at the individual level.
I'm not sure what all the differences are, but this version apparently includes a Fox News interview, and a David Suzuki interview, not in the original version.
If there had been more films on the subject of stupidity, I'd have rated this lower. But this is all there is. It could have taken a more serious tone. It should have included things like the "tragedy of the commons", the Monty Hall problem, and invention versus quality concepts.