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Random musings |
Been posting so much 1N2D on this blog that I've almost forgotten that this was orignally a personal blog. From the day I changed my blogskin, I've just been so concentrated on translating, translating and more translating. Tiring, but so totally worth it when I look at the benefits. Well anyway, I'll be moving all the translated articles to my new blog, http://blog.daum.net/sarangaia so that its easier to access all of them at one go. Don't worry, I'll keep posting the translations here too. Just that I want to get back to personal blogging here too.
Watched the Dark Knight on sunday with oppa, the early morning show. I think I should just stick to early morning shows and avoid the crowd in future. The ambience is just so much better in the morning, and by the time you get out of the cinema, its just nice for a hearty lunch (in this case it was Japanese food). How enjoyable life can be sometimes. Wish it could be summer vacation forever, but reality never fails to hammer itself into our lives, does't it?
The Dark Knight was the most enjoyable movie experiences I've had in a long time. Somewhere along the way of lurking in movie theatres, I've somehow gotten used to taking in sappy romantic movies and excessively expensive digitally enhanced action movies that I've forgotten how it feel to have a movie provoke thoughts in me. For once, I didn't spend (ok, it was free tickets anyway, but still) time and money to stare at the bright lights onscreen in an exceedingly big room with the lights off and an overactive sound system only to come out not being able to even reiterate the plot coherently at the end of it. Surprise, surprise! There was actually meaning to the blockbuster, which does not include the age old cliche of the hero will always be the perfect chialrous knight who never fails to have everything miraculously turn out well for him at the last minute. No, its the dark Knight, so its just befitting to have his shining armour, oops, I mean, batsuit tarnished. Even though one would wonder how on earth do you tarnish a black batsuit in the first place. Foreboding? Maybe.
I've had people give me dirty looks when we discuss the Dark Knight. The conversation goes a little like this.
Friend: Have you watched Dark knight?
Me: Yea man. Its good.
Friend: YES!!! *squeals* Joker was great! Batman was handsome! Action scenes were awesome! Music was incredible! Wish the guy didn't die though.
Me: Yea. It was awesome. I've never thought it possible to bring together the entire theme of anarchism so nicely, with all the subtle shadows of the infamous incidents that have happened in the few years of late..
And as I prattle on, the dirty looks and rolled eyes will always seal my mouth shut faster than you can say super glue. There are people who look for meaning in things, and then there are those who just want to see the surface enjoyment and leave things as that. Not that there's anything wrong with it. After all, there are things that you could never understand and distill meaning out of, even if you spent your whole life on it. How do you psycho analyse the Joker who just wants to watch the world 'crash and burn' for no reason at all? The entire routine of antagonising Mr Batman into action, just for the laughs of it, a rethorical cycle that just absurdly continues for the kick of it with no end in sight. Doesn't it ring a bell somewhere? An entire establishment that crashed and burnt at the whims of the guys who couldn't be bothered about who dies in the process, all in name of attaining the greater order. The anarchic Joker mocks authority and establishment, and sneers at any attempt to classify and explain his psychotic, mass murdering ways (pop psychology anyone?) Ironically, by rebelling against the system in his non conformist ways, he actually conforms to the stereotypes the system has established for him, the sad and unchangeable contradiction of anarchism. The comtempt the anarchist feels towards the 'schemers', as our dear joker put so succintly across, his triumph and delight at outsmarting the plotters who scheme their way trying to capture him without a plan only mirrors his failure to realise that he too, behaves in the exact same schemeing and organised way. Come on. All that action executed like clockwork, the prudently planted bombs, the masked hostages, are we honestly going to believe that no planning was going on? Impossible.
But unlike the anarchists of Conrad's books who go in a big circle trumpeting their anti-establishment plans just to end up with nothing to show for their pathetic efforts that go wrong at every possible turn, our joker comes out victorious here. Batman the vigilante may be incorruptable (alright, that remains to be seen), but there are the most saintly and virtous out there who will fall with a light knock in the right places. The purer and higher the hope, the more pieces it will shatter into, the fragmented world that we know will forever remain imperfect. In the face of such a gloomy prospect, we can only build our hopes in the most selfish manner, to push all the responsiblity to the vigilantes in the darkness of the night. Keep mum when he's doing the dirty work, but stone him when he's not needed, in the belief that everything will be accepted without any complaints. But does such a person actually exist for us to pin our hopes on? Or maybe we'll see more leading the life of simple pleasures like the joker who "like(s) fuel, bombs and dynamites" for their simple ability to make everything go cleanly up in flames. Do you remember, the three have a thing in common too. "They're cheap". Well, we've certainly seen many cases of people attaining their aim of getting (un)wanted attention by means of this classic and inexpensive method the joker is so fond of, haven't we? Hopefully they get cleaned up.
Never mind if you think its all smart talking. Watch the dark knight and you'll realise they have more smart talking witty one liners you would have thought possible in 3 hours. Even if you don't, you would still have the bragging rights of having watched the hottest blockbuster this summer.
P.S: RIP Heath Ledger. Its late but better than never. It was a great performance.
posted by sarangaia || 1:06 AM Tuesday, July 29, 2008
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