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The Orville (2017)
where the funny?
What happened to this great series? Girl with ravage hate. Robot that bores me to death. Norm blob for nostalgia. Hulu's a humorless virus that killed the fun and funny.
Stranger Things (2016)
back from the dead
Season 1--slow.
Season 2--so so.
Season 3--all shoulda died.
Season 4--dead resurrected.
Lazy writting. Went for the clicks, not the engagement. Sold out and drawn out.
Big Fish (2003)
facts are wack
Whatcher world? Whereju live? The land of facts? Simply spackle in the cracks? But between the breaks, canvas exists, larger than life, colorless. So grab your palette & pray w/ patience: "facts are wack, narrative is generative--let me paint life w/ hope, love, & faithfulness"
Les Maîtres du temps (1982)
Redemption
To begin where it ends, the dying father and the boy, Piel, are 60 years in the past of the "main" story-line. In the main story-line, i.e. 60 years later, the same boy--now an old man named Silbad--gets recruited to save himself.
Of course, as viewers, we don't know this until the end. Retrospectively, we can see Silbad embark on a mission he knows full well will fail (Jafar and company are not Piel's ultimate saviors).
Because Silbad knows Piel will be saved, but not by his crew, his character is Rifikian. You've seen The Lion King. Rafiki is goofy and zen. Silbad's drinking song, suggestion to Piel to drink an intoxicant, war cry, and general zoofiness seems to derive from his foresight in knowing all will be right. This is all very different from Prince Matton.
Prince Matton stole jewels and is on the run from the reform (space police). When we first meet the crew, Jafar is escorting Matton to safety. Just then, Jafar gets message from a friend, Piel's dad, that he's dying and requests Jafar rescues his son, Piel. Piel is given a walkie-talkie (called Mike) that is in direct communication with Jafar and company.
Matton wants safety, but Jafar wants to save the boy. So Matton tries to sabotage the rescue mission by telling Piel (thru Mike) to go to a pond where Matton hopes Piel will drown. Matton nefarity was caught in time. He is punished by jettisoning his treasure. Matton gets mad and takes an escape pod to the nearby planet. Jafar pursues.
Both Jafar and Matton are immediately captured. The planet is like iRobot's central intelligence. It's pure energy turns everyone its eaten into a puppet. Before Jafar and Matton are pushed into the energy, Matton sacrifices himself to save Jafar. The redemptive, self-saving, act is similar to Silbad's, but motivated by different roots.
Redemption, how is it achieved? One way, epitomized by Silbad--the joyful acceptance and participation in the ancient concept of eternal recurrence. The other is Matton's Christian idea of repentance, sacrifice, and higher-causes.
(I don't think it's a coincidence that Silbad looks like Socrates and Matton's last moments were fraught with Christian imagery, viz. angels, crucifixion, and martyrdom.)
Toto le héros (1991)
inspired
Plastic bag in the wind, american beauty. time dysphoria, time traveler's wife(??). a child's fantasy stretched thru time. life is simplest in the first and final legs, the middle is bumpy. "i was always jealous of you, you lived free," something like that alfred says to thomas. he who finds his peace laughs his way as he merges with the universe, very goethe from hesse's steppenwolf. wonderful tempo and story. watch it
Mies vailla menneisyyttä (2002)
smokers beware
You're gonna wana light up cause this dude can smoke. it's about living life like your past doesn't hold you back. second chances. and family. very existential in the sense of self-creation, this man without a name, makes out in his pursuit of self-meaning. not in a monk internal search, rather the process of self actualization comes from the meaningful connections made with the people of day-by-day existence. powerful scenes include the conversation with mr mustachio and oft wordless goodbyes. beautiful ... you want to watch it
Scarecrow (1973)
steinbeckian
Powerful cinema. wonderful characters tryna escape from their realities by dreaming for something better. grass is greener when you make believe. scarecrow is vignettes reminiscent of grapes of wrath (gow). same scathing social commentary rolled into a rigamarole of humorous sub-stories. scarecrow is the dionysian instinct. so two men go around combating the sober against the drunk (granted both men can get crazy, but one is pragmatic about his vices). fabulous movie that ends in an image that stay, like the girl breast feeding the hungry old man in gow. enjoy
Goodfellas (1990)
100% except ...
Wow. what a movie. the action. characters. plot. and all. i loved it. so why the 2/10?
because of the complete and utter cacophony at the end. it was wayyy too drawn out. the tempo was terribly atrocious. unfortunately, that long drawn out finally of raging paranoia ruined what otherwise would have been a solid 10/10.
a tear falls as i post this negative review...
Gregory and Virginia Chaitin: Against Method (2015)
aesthetic criteria for truth
Chaitin, a wise genius; a beautiful combination of expertise and raw talent. a delightful glimpse into a lucky kook. somehow this crazy was gifted with something (drive, insight, curiosity, love, what-have-you) that has rightfully earned him renown. it's reminiscent of amadeus (without the envy and contempt), a beautiful mind (without the romanticism and dramatization), and my dinner with andre (without the countless anecdotes). surprisingly entertaining; unsurprisingly stimulating.