Tuesday 16 February 2010

Apocalypto: the Europeans are coming

[pic from the film, movietrailertrash.com]
I recently saw Apocalypto (by Mel Gibson) on tv, though it's been around for years.

It was colourful and brought the ancient Mayan culture to life. In using the Mayan language, it seemed to be respectful of the indigenous people. Mel Gibson even employed university experts to make sure he got it right.

However, I immediately began to see a kind of sub-text to the show.
The written comment at the very start of the movie was begging to be interpreted:
It said essentially that a people are destroyed from the inside before they fall to an outside power.
So, could it mean the Mayans fell to the Spaniards because the Mayans were rotten and corrupt?

According to Wikipedia, the film showed the Mayans are wasteful of natural resources, and of human life in sacrifices.
It also was said to be a parable for modern, wasteful societies.
I don't think that message got out.
These two worlds are too different for the average person to see that. You'd need to make a documentary and spell it out. So, that's not the message.

So, more interpretation: Gibson is a strong personality and not afraid to express his 'radical' version of Catholicism and its interest in suffering and pain (see his other film, The Passion of the Christ, blood and guts on a stick). Apparently, Gibson said his film was about visceral fear and much like the Christ film, he hit the spot. The violence was more realistic and thus scarier.

But, that's not the point. I suppose he actually wants to say that
'Here are some primitive, violent people'
in order to say that, no matter how many thousands of the Mayans (and others) that were enslaved or killed by Europeans, they were savages who would have suffered one way or another because that is the fate of savages.

So, he is trying to excuse the inexcuseable.
The European Invasion and Occupation.
One of the leaders in the worst of European activities is the Catholic Church which enslaved and killed so many, in many parts of the Americas. In fact one of their saints, recently beatified, (I'll get his name) is responsible for (because the f^%&*ker admitted it in his writings) the enslavement and murder of thousands.
He's a motherf*^^&king saint! with blood on his hands
So, I make the Catholic link in this film. Therefore, it's an amazing film on many levels, but it's probably not respectful, in the final analysis.

-Cos67 ~(%^D>
checkitout:
Wikipedia- Apocalypto

Sunday 14 February 2010

The Power of Yes

tricked ya!
this is about a play at the National Theatre in London.
[pic- the guy in brown is playing the director David Hare]
[pics- one of the 'pontificating bankers']
[pic- Economics tutor explaining the acronym SLUMP]
Here are some points about how the play went:

-small quick vignettes. It was necessary, due to the disparate 'actors' of the crisis. Things lacked alot of continuity, but vignettes were used well, causing an audience reaction; often laughter.

-characters. Lots of them. Changing of suits by some actors gave them a new 'persona.'

Shakespearean aspect: bankers don’t listen to critics, nor do theatre directors, as was discovered by the person playing the director (David Hare) in the play. (Talk about your self-importance)

The message here:

Both types of people are headstrong, yet different.

However much a director pulls his own peter,

he cannot do one millionth of the damage of a banker.

-Cos67 ~(%^D>

Sunday 7 February 2010

Body Ventura, Conspiracy detective

[I wanted to show Ventura in a wrestling photo, but WWF is too homoerotic]
On your idiot boxes, NOW!
The crazy who-dunn-it with the wrestling governor, or governing wrestler.
Jesse the Body Ventura.
A WWF wrestler becomes a WTF journalist
Ventura almost trumps Arnold the Governator for that special
WTF factor.
and now he's an investigative journalist (quote-unquote).

Show 1 "Hey, hey, we're the Bildeburghs"
We meet plutocrats, rule countries, alienate people.

I discovered some stuff I didn't know, but the fake tension was complete bullsh*t.
So, there's the maudlin crusader action going on and re-enactments of car chases, and endless flight scenes as Jesse's boys close in on the plutocrats.
As for the quality of the journalism, I recognised one of Ventura's 'journalists' from the UK and
she is not the sharpest knife in the drawer.
As for Ventura, is he just a bad actor? even when he's not supposed to be acting.
Or, is he doing more obfuscating than revealing, because he doesn't know much, and yet he's selling us the Moon. Maybe he thinks we're idiots looking for suspense with our docu-spiracy.
AAAAnyway. Here you go: the really big SHOW:

Top lines:
Ventura: "They're after MEEEE?!" xD

His spy: "it's the bildeburgs. They're chasing us" xD

-Cos67 ~(%^D>
foto from fotosearch.com