Like this postbeen wanting to catch up on my movies, so this weekend was all about dedicating myself to partaking of the best of cinematic offerings and killing time until the superbowl
yesterday’s doublefeature was supposed to “american splendor” followed by “lost in translation”, however due to a cockup in the newspaper, “american splendor” was not being shown at its advertised time. so instead went to see “lost in translation” and “big fish”.
“lost in transation” was… well, close to home. 72 hours in the lives of two disenchanted americans trapped in tokyo, drawn to each other by isolation and the commonality of being two strangers in a strange land, they find solace and escapism in running away from the mundane mediocrity of their lives and the alienation of being alone in the middle of a frenetic city, and when they have to part and return with a bump to the humdrum everyday of disintegrating marriages and terrifyingly unformed futures, it is all the more wrenching for its unexpected depth of emotion.
watching it, i couldn’t help identifying. for all my desire to go places and do things, it often feels like running. escapism in the hope that something better lies ahead, but terrified that i’m leaving the best behind. needing to move because i’m afraid of standing still. leaving before i get left.
no matter how much i may like living here, being an american is britain is both alien and alienating at times. there are surface similarities, but they don’t keep you afloat. in the end, i have few friends here, and no family or partner to be my touchstones, my familiars in a sea of unfamiliarity. being alone over here, i’m really *alone*, and it’s when things become scary or overwhelming that that feeling is most acute. when i was getting kicked out, interrogated by immigration, facing the prospect of never coming back, i’ve never felt more entirely alone in my life. luckily, most of it is not like that. but it’s hard to explain the experience.
today was all about “lord of the rings”, which was simply incredible. mythos of biblical proportions played out in the grandest fashion on screen. for me, the most powerful theme running through it is not “good prevailing in the face of insurmountable evil” (obvious) or even “enduring friendship overcoming all obstacles” (trite), but rather that of “greatness thrust upon the shoulders of the everyman”. because when it comes right down to it, and it feels as though you are beset with turmoil and strife and hardship on all sides, and there is no way to win the fight but you must face it head on with nothing but the courage of your convictions, doesn’t everybody hope that it’s all for the end of some greater purpose, some higher good, like saving the world from destruction?
and now, ladies and gentlemen, it is finally superbowl time. no beer or crisps in the house, so i shall have to make do with vodka and the last of my luckycharms cereal whilst i watch my favorite team wreak havoc and bloodshed upon the pansy asses of the carolina panthers.
as ever, go pats!
