@The Reason We Learn Thank you so much Deb! I actually forgot about the baby dolls being smashed! I’m so glad this piece stirred something in you. It’s totally up your alley— thinking as individuals, a practice that a world saturated with politics makes it hard to do.
No condemnation; if I would not have been reading Lolita in Tehran, I may have avoided the film altogether or gone in with preconceived biases about it being woke, and let that have determined my experience.
This was SO good and completely changed my mind about the movie (which I saw and hated, but I see it now so differently). The opening with the smashing of babies' heads upset me so much, I couldn't get past it. There were little girls in the audience and even my own daughter gasped and said "That's a bit extreme!"
But you're right--I projected my fears about what culture is doing to us, men and women, into the story and missed the story behind my projections. Great analysis!
You seem to be examining life, ideas, people, politics, religion, etc., at greater and greater depth.
Well . . . in recently reading about Wittgenstein in found this gem . . .
At his final days, he focused on the fundamental question -
Why does existence exist?
Not just assuming we are here (without explanation), not just ignoring the problem of how existence began (or is eternal).
But, recognizing that the answer to this question, our response to this problem, shapes our individual identity and the cultural outcome.
Western civilization has changed from answer taken from genesis (God eternal and made everything) to the explanation from Aristotle (existence eternal).
Civilization has lost foundation. Greek world disintegrated.
I ended up watching that movie three times. The first, was because it came out on my day off work - I decided to get the 'Barbenheimer' experience. I then watched both films a second time the week after, as I wanted to capture everything that made me feel disgruntled about the initial experience. I then watched the Barbie movie a third time, for a charity movie night that work colleagues had invited me to. It was in that third screening, watching with friends where I finally enjoyed the movie. In all that chaos, the movie was fun and that was something critics couldn't deny... Do I think that the film was good? No, but I do think coming to it with a critics attitude made me enjoy the movie a lot less.
This reminded me of the book I just read, 'Out' by Natsuo Kirino. I think it was a fantastic read and have it 4.75 stars (I just didn't understand the ending, hence the slight docking of a quarter star).
Anyways, the reason I bring this up is because when I stumbled across 'Out', I was looking for a book that I would enjoy that was written by a woman, ultimately without the political baggage that comes in fiction novels nowadays. I wanted to read a female author also because I noticed that I predominately read books by make authors and think I need to be able to read things from a different perspective. But, when I read the back page of the book that gave a synopsis of it, the word "feminist" was literally one of the descriptive words for the book. I thought, "oh brother..."
But just like your analysis of Barbie, my view of 'Out' was much the same. Male or female, this story was ultimately about the human experience and one in which we're often thrown, or we put ourselves, into situations that give us plenty of decisions to make.
So, ultimately, you make a great point regarding literature and film. We all see things in different ways in what we watch and read, though I find that in reading, we are constantly asking questions, whereas watching a film, I find it kind of mindless unless you are already aware and have your defences (this is why my wife and I hardly watch tv or movies together anymore, I just can't!)
Thank you for your insight. I was trying to pinpoint what it was that was so appealing to be about 'Out' and you hit the nail on the head for me.
I highly recommend the read and it's been great to follow your work!
I think you make an excellent and needed point about literature and story. Humanities departments everywhere have been destroying themselves for lack of this understanding. I haven’t seen Barbie so am not qualified to comment on it or your analysis, but I do feel some scepticism that the character can even be just a story in the ‘human’ sense given all of the baggage, history as a consumer product and rampant politicization by everyone, prior to making the film. Unlike Fitzgerald with Gatsby, an original creation, Gerwig’s challenge was to transcend the weight of an already embedded cultural symbolism that every audience member would bring to the story in their own way. To that extent, no matter what the director says, it cannot just be ‘about Barbie’.
Ugh, all those pastels and preachy dialogue were beyond nauseating. In my youth whoever read Siddhartha was way ahead of the game. The book you mentioned however, peaked my interest. Thanks.
I don't believe the director. Propagandists often lie about their intentions. For me the the movie was 2 hours of insufferable misandrist preaching that I will not get back. You could also read it cynically as one long corporate re-branding exercise for the new line of woke Barbies.
If you want to watch a complex edgy movie directed by a woman check out Saltburn. It's the one movie in the last few years that got under my skin and that I want to rewatch and ponder. Be forewarned however, it's not for the squeamish. There are a couple of scenes where I thought about turning it off but I stuck it out till the end and was glad I did.
@The Reason We Learn Thank you so much Deb! I actually forgot about the baby dolls being smashed! I’m so glad this piece stirred something in you. It’s totally up your alley— thinking as individuals, a practice that a world saturated with politics makes it hard to do.
No condemnation; if I would not have been reading Lolita in Tehran, I may have avoided the film altogether or gone in with preconceived biases about it being woke, and let that have determined my experience.
This was SO good and completely changed my mind about the movie (which I saw and hated, but I see it now so differently). The opening with the smashing of babies' heads upset me so much, I couldn't get past it. There were little girls in the audience and even my own daughter gasped and said "That's a bit extreme!"
But you're right--I projected my fears about what culture is doing to us, men and women, into the story and missed the story behind my projections. Great analysis!
Kate
Always find your posts interesting.
You seem to be examining life, ideas, people, politics, religion, etc., at greater and greater depth.
Well . . . in recently reading about Wittgenstein in found this gem . . .
At his final days, he focused on the fundamental question -
Why does existence exist?
Not just assuming we are here (without explanation), not just ignoring the problem of how existence began (or is eternal).
But, recognizing that the answer to this question, our response to this problem, shapes our individual identity and the cultural outcome.
Western civilization has changed from answer taken from genesis (God eternal and made everything) to the explanation from Aristotle (existence eternal).
Civilization has lost foundation. Greek world disintegrated.
We’re returning to what failed.
Rejecting what replaced that failure.
Why?
Thanks
Clay
Note to self: l need to relax and read a bit of fiction.
I ended up watching that movie three times. The first, was because it came out on my day off work - I decided to get the 'Barbenheimer' experience. I then watched both films a second time the week after, as I wanted to capture everything that made me feel disgruntled about the initial experience. I then watched the Barbie movie a third time, for a charity movie night that work colleagues had invited me to. It was in that third screening, watching with friends where I finally enjoyed the movie. In all that chaos, the movie was fun and that was something critics couldn't deny... Do I think that the film was good? No, but I do think coming to it with a critics attitude made me enjoy the movie a lot less.
This reminded me of the book I just read, 'Out' by Natsuo Kirino. I think it was a fantastic read and have it 4.75 stars (I just didn't understand the ending, hence the slight docking of a quarter star).
Anyways, the reason I bring this up is because when I stumbled across 'Out', I was looking for a book that I would enjoy that was written by a woman, ultimately without the political baggage that comes in fiction novels nowadays. I wanted to read a female author also because I noticed that I predominately read books by make authors and think I need to be able to read things from a different perspective. But, when I read the back page of the book that gave a synopsis of it, the word "feminist" was literally one of the descriptive words for the book. I thought, "oh brother..."
But just like your analysis of Barbie, my view of 'Out' was much the same. Male or female, this story was ultimately about the human experience and one in which we're often thrown, or we put ourselves, into situations that give us plenty of decisions to make.
So, ultimately, you make a great point regarding literature and film. We all see things in different ways in what we watch and read, though I find that in reading, we are constantly asking questions, whereas watching a film, I find it kind of mindless unless you are already aware and have your defences (this is why my wife and I hardly watch tv or movies together anymore, I just can't!)
Thank you for your insight. I was trying to pinpoint what it was that was so appealing to be about 'Out' and you hit the nail on the head for me.
I highly recommend the read and it's been great to follow your work!
I think you make an excellent and needed point about literature and story. Humanities departments everywhere have been destroying themselves for lack of this understanding. I haven’t seen Barbie so am not qualified to comment on it or your analysis, but I do feel some scepticism that the character can even be just a story in the ‘human’ sense given all of the baggage, history as a consumer product and rampant politicization by everyone, prior to making the film. Unlike Fitzgerald with Gatsby, an original creation, Gerwig’s challenge was to transcend the weight of an already embedded cultural symbolism that every audience member would bring to the story in their own way. To that extent, no matter what the director says, it cannot just be ‘about Barbie’.
Ugh, all those pastels and preachy dialogue were beyond nauseating. In my youth whoever read Siddhartha was way ahead of the game. The book you mentioned however, peaked my interest. Thanks.
I don't believe the director. Propagandists often lie about their intentions. For me the the movie was 2 hours of insufferable misandrist preaching that I will not get back. You could also read it cynically as one long corporate re-branding exercise for the new line of woke Barbies.
If you want to watch a complex edgy movie directed by a woman check out Saltburn. It's the one movie in the last few years that got under my skin and that I want to rewatch and ponder. Be forewarned however, it's not for the squeamish. There are a couple of scenes where I thought about turning it off but I stuck it out till the end and was glad I did.