tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37973862164654682332024-03-13T11:57:24.817-07:00Hitchcock's WorldI like to write about movies of all sorts: old and new, good and bad, mainstream and obscure, local and foreign.
Warning: some articles in this blog may be offensive to fans of James Bond, Jean-Luc Godard, and Andrei Tarkovsky's Solaris.John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.comBlogger432125truetag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-28115423564460808902020-07-22T09:39:00.000-07:002020-07-22T09:44:31.759-07:00Jaws in the Age of Covid-19<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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In 1975 a director by the name of Steven Spielberg, a man at that point with only two feature films and a few shorts to his name, premiered his latest film- an adaptation of a novel by Peter Benchley. After a notoriously difficult production, audiences were shocked to see a frightening tale of a killer shark. Its title made it clear what to expect: <i>Jaws</i>, obviously in reference to the deadly jaws of the great white shark who serves as its main antagonist. The film was an astounding success, and made a massive impact commercially and critically. The John Williams score alone has developed a long-standing association with any depictions of deep sea threats. Audiences were so shocked by the frightening creature that the film provoked a wave of anti-shark sentiments that even made the author of the original book regret its existence.<br />
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Many film scholars have identified the astounding success of <i>Jaws </i>as marking the end of the so-called "New Hollywood" period that began in the late 1960's with the end of the American Studio System. <i>Jaws </i>is sometimes known as the first real "blockbuster" as it unwittingly inspired major film studios to adopt a business model that is still in use today.<br />
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And we can certainly see the influence of its financial success in various subsequent films- which included three sequels as well as numerous b-films revolving around humans fighting aquatic monsters. The idea of a disaster film revolving around sharks isn't that unusual either. Certainly the popularity of films like <i>Sharknado </i>(2013) owe something to the success of <i>Jaws</i>.<br />
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The idea of humans faced with danger posed by an abnormal underwater predator was hardly new even in 1975. Over a century earlier Herman Melville had written the novel <i>Moby Dick</i>. In the novel, Moby Dick was a sperm whale notorious for his proficiency at killing whalers who tried to hunt him. He is pursued by Captain Ahab, a whaling captain who becomes increasingly obsessed with hunting down the "white whale," ultimately dooming himself and all but one of his crew. In fact the influence of <i>Moby Dick </i>is clearly visible in the second half of <i>Jaws</i>, with the character of Quint (Robert Shaw) acting as a sort of modern day Ahab whose growing obsession with catching the shark ultimately leads to his demise.<br />
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But my main interest in this discussion is less so the film itself, or the impact it has made on film in general, but rather its relation to our current social circumstances, and how a film made 45 years ago is weirdly relevant under new circumstances. Like the citizens of Amity, we have our own shark to deal with- at least figuratively speaking. Our shark is a pandemic. The Carona Virus, also known as Covid-19, is currently posing a major global threat. Social Distancing is a necessary measure, but instead of acting responsibly, the issue has become politicised in the United States. President Donald Trump has displayed an uncanny inability to respond to the virus, putting his political goals first.<br />
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While many people remember the second half of <i>Jaws</i>, which actually sees Brody, Hooper, and Quint pursuing the shark, the first half is particularly disturbing in light of current events. The central conflict concerns Brody and Hooper trying to respond to the presence of an unusually large shark that has been known to target humans in the water, which is complicated by the presence of the town's mayor Larry Vaughn, a politician who uses his media connections and authority to overrule the two men. Within minutes of finding out that a swimmer was killed by a shark bite, Brody is trying to close the beach, only to be immediately blocked by Vaughn, who insists that the beaches need to stay open because the town is an attractive spot for tourists.<br />
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A lot of people remember the roles of Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfus, and Robert Shaw (who doesn't even become a prominent figure until the second half), but Vaughn is just as important. In many ways he behaves as a very Trump-like figure of authority. He may have even taken inspiration from Donald Trump, a man already notorious when <i>Jaws entered production</i>. Vaughn can be most easily described as a charismatic politician who acts like he knows what he is doing but in reality is putting his own interests above those of the people he is meant to be leading.<br />
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The opening scene of <i>Jaws </i>famously shows a young woman swimming out in the dark only to be attacked and killed by the shark whose presence will drive the rest of the film. But while it's presence is constantly felt, the shark isn't even seen during the first half, its presence only signalled by the occasional POV shot and the iconic score by John Williams. It's not until the second half that we actually get to see the shark, and even then we only see it when it is visible to the characters (its presence at other moments being signalled by an increasing number of floating barrels). Much of the plot instead concerns its human characters and how they react to the shark's presence, rather than the shark itself.<br />
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This has the peculiar effect of making the shark a much more enigmatic entity compared to its more obvious human characters. The shark itself actually does not do all that much in the film. The people it kills are mostly background characters- we never really get to know Chrissy or Alex Kitner before their demise, and even less so the unnamed man in the rowboat who is eaten by the shark later on. The only central character to actually be killed by the shark is Quint, and that only happens at the very end. If anything, the key players are never really in danger during the first half as they are never actually in the water.<br />
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Instead, while the shark is legitimate cause for concern, there is a much more dangerous threat in the form of Mayor Vaughn, who proves far more dangerous than the shark itself. Much of the film could have been averted if it were not for his presence. Had the beaches been closed as Brody repeatedly tried to do, the shark would have eventually left on its own due to a lack of food. The Mayor is the key obstacle.<br />
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After receiving the coroner's report that swimmer Chrissy Watkins (Susan Blaklinie) was killed in a shark attack, Brody immediately begins taking action. When he learns that there are not any "beach closed" signs he actually goes to the local hardware story, picks up materials, and has his staff begin making signs. No sooner has he done this than he is approached by Mayor Larry Vaughn, who quickly tries to overrule him. Suddenly the coroner (presumably through bribery, coercion, or a combination thereof) is saying it was a boating accident and not a shark, an alternate story the Mayor eagerly jumps onto to justify keeping the beaches open.<br />
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In fact the Mayor tries to outright discredit Brody, claiming he just made a mistake caused by not being familiar with the town. His reasoning is simply that they are a popular destination for tourists because of their beaches and tourists bring in money. This is disturbingly reminiscent of Donald Trump's resistance to social distancing. Like Vaughn, Trump continually insists on opposing potential safety measures. Why? Because opening businesses is good for the economy, showing no concern for people who might be endangered by doing so.<br />
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As if this wasn't enough, we have even had the problem of politicians making the questionable decision to keep beaches open during Covid-19, in spite of the obvious risks. While the reasons why they should be closed may be different (in real life, it is because crowds that normally form on beaches would produce favorable conditions for the virus to spread, rather than a shark in the water), the issue of politicising a life-threatening situation and putting people's lives at risk for the sake of money seems alarmingly familiar.<br />
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Vaughn manages to keep the beaches open, and sure enough the shark arrives. The first instance he tried to cover up, but the second happens in front of an entire crowd of witnesses, and results in the deaths of both a dog and a child. When a town meeting is called, Brody declares that the beach is going to be closed, only for Vaughn to suddenly add that it will only be closed for twenty-four hours. When Brody points out that he never agreed to that he is ignored, and finds himself ignored further when he tries to state that he has called for an expert. The culminates in the introduction of Quint, a fisherman who offers to kill shark for a price. For all his faults (as noted later) Quint is an experienced fisherman who has dealt with sharks before, and has knowledge and skills that could be put to use. But his offer is ignored by the Mayor simply for being too expensive.<br />
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The parallels only start become clearer when shark researcher Matt Hooper arrives. He examines Chrissy's remains and immediately determines that it was indeed a shark bite that killed her, and reacts in shock when Brody reveals that the town has failed to notify the coast guard or perform any sensible counter measures, which the viewer will know is thanks to the actions of the Mayor. When Vaughn is first introduced to Hooper, he more or less ignores him. They shake hands, but the whole time Vaughn's attention is elsewhere. </div>
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Vaughn spends much of the film completely ignoring Hooper. When a bunch of fisherman claim to have caught the shark, Vaughn latches right onto it, ignoring the fact that Hooper has multiple reasons to doubt that they indeed got the right one. Of particular note is Vaughn outright refusing to let Hooper perform a test that could be used to confirm whether the shark that was caught was indeed the same one that killed Chrissy and Alex. No matter how much Hooper protests the Mayor only gives excuses.</div>
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Certainly this refusal to listen to an expert is reminiscent of Trump's efforts to ignore the CDC. Recently he even went the extra step of trying to bypass the CDC all together by ordering hospitals to report directly to Washington. One of the key voices of reason at the moment, Anthony Fauci, has been a frequent target for Trump, who has routinely tried to discredit him the same way Mayor Vaugn tries to discredit both Brody and Hooper. </div>
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And worse still, two deaths is not enough to pursuade Vaughn to listen to any kind of reason. He keeps insisting on keeping the beaches open, because the Fourth of July is an especially popular holiday for tourists. This is even after Brody and Hooper confirm that the shark is indeed still a threat. He quickly seizes any opportunity he can to doubt their claims, pointing to Hooper dropping a shark's tooth as proof of their unreliability. He even tries to deflect blame by pointing to a sign that has been vandalised (probably by someone fed up of the Mayor's crap) and demanding Brody instead focus on catching the graffiti artist. </div>
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When Hooper makes a last attempt to pursuade Vaughn, pointing out that the proportions of the shark in the vandalised sign are actually pretty accurate, he is met with "you'd like to prove that, wouldn't you?", as though the Mayor sees anything that challenges his political agenda as a conspiracy against him. Not unlike Trump's habit of making assertions and dismissing anything contradicting them as being part of the "radical left wing's" agenda or "fake news." Once again the beaches remain open, despite clear evidence that they should not be, because it's good for the economy. A politician prioritises his public image and money over the lives of the people he is mean to be leading.</div>
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So once again, after being warned about the dangers of keeping the beach open, Mayor Vaughn keeps it open for tourists. But he manages to go one step further. After blocking any effort to close the beach or get rid of the shark, he has Brody and Hooper reduced to conducting patrols on boats in the surrounding waters, a move that is conspicuously insufficient for tracking and catching a large shark that is likely to strike from under the water. </div>
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But at first things go okay. People are able to enjoy themselves on the beach, but knowledge of the shark has made sure they stay out of the water, seemingly an okay compromise. But of course the Mayor decides to intervene and make it worse. He approaches one family on the beach, and actually <i>pressures </i>them to go into the water. Once one family is seen going in, others start to follow, until a large number of tourists are splashing in the water and making themselves very good targets for a hungry shark, all while Vaughn cheerfully brags to the press about how the situation has been resolved. </div>
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Like just about every decision Vaughn makes throughout the movie, his decision to force people into the water turns out to have some serious consequences. It ends up creating a panic that actually diverts attention <i>away </i>from the shark. The ominous presence of a shark fin results in the crowd panicking and running back onto the shore, only for the police to find that it was a prank orchestrated by two children. It's not until after this scuffle is over that the shark is spotted in seemingly isolated area where it manages to eat one man and nearly kills Brody's son. </div>
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Just like Vaughn, Donald Trump has failed to properly address the Covid-19 disaster. We can see him jumping on partial or just plain false information, leading outrageous claims being presented as facts, such as the assertion that drinking bleach will cure the virus. Just as Vaughn tries to <i>encourage </i>people to swim in water occupied by a giant shark, Donald Trump has openly resisted measures that could help contain the virus, and <i>discouraged </i> his supporters from wearing masks that could help reduce the spread of the virus.</div>
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But while he might be the most obvious parallel, Mayor Larry Vaughn is not the only link to our current circumstances. I am far from the first person to notice the resemblance. A simple Google Search will quickly reveal a variety of headlines comparing Vaughn to Trump. There is even a quote from British Prime Minister Boris Johnson (a conservative often compared to Trump) that claimed Vaughn was the "real hero" of Jaws. Yes, someone actually thinks the guy who got three people killed by ignoring a serious danger for the sake of money was a hero. But while there are other parallels of note.</div>
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Trump himself has made a lot of questionable decisions, but he also has a number of supporters who eagerly take in what he says and try to take matters into their own hands, often making the situation worse. As a simple example, the astonishing number of Trump supporters who have protested against masks. The problem with this, obviously, is that the reason for rules about wearing masks during a pandemic is to stop the spread of the virus. But some people, acting on misinformation, fear, and complete disregard to anything experts have to say, end up making the problem worse.</div>
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Just like anti-mask protesters in real life, Mayor Vaughn also inspires people in his town to act irrationally and foolishly. We see this at the Town Meeting, which starts with one of the Mayor's counsel joking about the bounty on the shark that just killed a child, which actually gets a laugh from some members of the crowd, indicating that not everyone is taking the problem seriously. But it gets worse when a woman in the audience (which includes several local business owners) asks if the beaches will be closed. When Brody says they are, he is met with a disapproving groan from the audience, presumably because they are more worried about how it will affect their jobs. Not unlike anti-mask protesters who put their own interests over much bigger problems.</div>
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But things go further when residents of the town come up with some poorly-thought out methods of trying to catch the shark. Two men sneak onto a pier and try to catch the shark using a chain, which almost gets them killed. The next day, several groups launch their own witch hunts against the shark in the hopes of claiming the 3,000 dollar bounty, people who disregard safety protocols and ignore Brody when he tries to point out their mistakes. We then get a parade of boats going out and tossing dynamite into the harbor, before coming back with a random shark that is just assumed to be the correct one. </div>
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We then get a big moment of the shark being put on display by the fishermen who caught it. Their ignorance is exposed when one asks what kind of shark, and Hooper (a shark expert) points out that it is a tiger shark, to which one of the fisherman simply responds with "A what?" A crowd gathers around the shark, with the press eagerly jumping on and a photographer trying to compose a shot, all of which ignores Hooper when he finds reason to question if they actually have the right shark. The fishermen dismiss his measurements of the shark's bite radius and he is yelled at to clear out of the way before his investigation is finished. This easily calls to mind the Trump-supporting Americans who refuse to follow instructions and refuse to listen to experts, endangering themselves and others by refusing to wear masks in public.<br />
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Finally, I'd like to talk about Quint as a similarly problematic figure in the second half. While the Mayor's dismissal of his offer in the earlier town hall scene easily feels like he is ignoring an expert, Quint himself has issues that ultimately prove detrimental to dealing with the shark. Notably, he puts profit above actually helping others. Although he is not entirely unjustified in being reluctant to risk his life pursuing the shark, he demands an increase in pay from the initial $3,000 bounty already being offered. Some of his claims about the shark are also somewhat exaggerated, such as claiming it will "swallow you whole." While he has knowledge of sharks, certainly more than most people in the town, his behaviour leaves one to wonder if he is really the best choice.</div>
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After the initial town hall scene, Quint is more or less forgotten until about halfway through the film. He might have disappeared all together if not for the Mayor's interference. It is only by desperation that Quint is even permitted to take part. Brody resorts to hiring Quint after his own son was nearly attacked by the shark, this being after three people have already been killed by it and the Mayor consistently blocking any reasonable response. Had the beaches just been closed at the start Quint would never have needed to be involved.<br />
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Once Quint is finally brought onboard he frequently runs into conflict with Brody and Hooper. One of the first things we see when the boat leaves is Quint sitting in a chair while the other two men are visibly working hard. He goes on to pull out an oversized fishing rod that he thinks has successfully caught the shark, even after Hooper quickly figures out it is probably something much smaller- we never get to find out exactly what as Quint's stubbornness results in the rod being broken. Later on, he gets everyone drunk leaving them vulnerable when the shark manages to attack the boat.<br />
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When they do finally encounter the shark, Brody speaks the famous line "we're going to need a bigger boat." Sure, on its own it makes a good dramatic line, but it actually comes up a few times. After saying this line, Brody attempts twice to emphasise the point to Quint. He's not just making a remark about the shark's size, he is legitimately realising that a bigger boat will be needed to take on this shark, an observation that is ignored by Quint. He even tries to convince Quint to just use the radio to call for someone to bring a bigger boat, bot his pleas fall on deaf ears.<br />
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Quint is too proud a man to show weakness. As the hunt continues it becomes increasingly clear that he wants to be the one to kill the shark. This also explains his refusal to get a bigger boat, doing so would, at least in his mind, show that he is incapable of catching the shark. That would be a weakness. This aspect of him is foreshadowed back in his introductory scene, where he openly refuses to take on any crew members and insists on going alone because "there are too many captains on this island." He even resists taking along Brody and Hooper at first.<br />
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This also proves to be a series of very poor decisions as, like the Mayor in the first half, Quint ignores the advice of others and, unsuprisingly, it backfires on him. There was a reason Brody wanted to call for a bigger boat- because he quickly figured out that using the one they had was going to put them in unnecessary danger and wouldn't be sufficient for fighting the shark. Sure enough, when the shark is provoked it manages to destroy and sink the boat. Quint even goes a few steps farther during the final confrontation by <i>destroying the radio </i>when Brody tries to call for help, putting them in even greater danger. Quint's insistence on being the one to kill the shark ends up being the very thing that results in him getting eaten, much like Ahab being dragged down by his white whale.<br />
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Now unfortunately, this same problem can be seen in the American government's reaction to Covid-19, perhaps most obviously in Trump but also in his supporters. Like Quint, Trump is afraid to show weakness. He doesn't like to be wrong, but he also wants to be the one to address problems. Trump has claimed to respond to the pandemic while obviously making the situation worse, just as Quint is ostensibly killing the shark but ultimately just makes things more dangerous for him and his crewmates. Trump ignores advice that contradicts his view, and refuses to do things that he think will make him look weaker, just as Quint refuses to get a bigger boat when it is obviously needed. Like Quint destroying the radio that could have saved his life, Trump opposes actions that could help contain the spread of a deadly virus.<br />
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For a film that came out 45 years earlier made by people who could not have known about the outbreak of Covid-19, the parallels are astonishing. <i>Jaws </i>suddenly feels extremely relevant to our current situation in this day and age, maybe even moreso than it did when it first came out. While the filmmakers obviously could not have known about what would happen in 2020, what this shows is that the political climate of today is nothing new. The problem of a life-threatening situation becoming the subject of political controversy is one that may have existed long before, but perhaps only now has been fully exposed.</div>
<br />John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-10035427214331559442020-07-09T20:29:00.000-07:002020-07-09T20:29:00.475-07:00Thursday Movie Picks: Globetrotting Movies<br />
For this week, the theme for Wanderer's <a href="http://wanderingthroughtheshelves.blogspot.com/p/blog-page.html">Thursday Movie Picks</a> is Globetrotting Movies. If you're not familiar with this activity, it's pretty straight forward. Each Week Wanderer over at the blog <i>Wandering Through the Shelves</i> presents a different theme. The idea is for participants to pick out three-five movies that fit that theme, and include a short description of their choices. In theory it's pretty simple, though sometimes finding movies to fit the category can be challenging.<br />
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According to Google, Globetrotting is defined as "the action of traveling widely around the world." Okay, that's pretty straight forward. So a "Globetrotting" film would be one that involves characters travelling around the world. Obviously, these films usually take place on Earth- I don't know of any globetrotting films set on other planets. Of course there are some science fiction films that could be<br />
considered solar system or galaxy-trotting. Most of the <i>Star Wars </i>films see characters travelling to several different worlds. Alternatively we could point to movies like <i>Interstellar </i>that involve exploration of a Solar System.<br />
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So obviously, in a globetrotting film we can probably expect to see a variety of places visited by its characters, preferably locations that are very far apart from each other. A lot of globetrotting films may try to take advantage of their varied settings by using locations with very different environments, giving each visited place a unique appearance. Now admittedly it is a bit difficult to identify how far one must travel to be considered "globetrotting" but I would imagine at least travelling between different countries or continents. For instance, a film that takes place across several different American states <i>probably </i>wouldn't qualify.<br />
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It was tricky to pick out a set of films that easily qualified for the definition of "globetrotting." Figuring out what films constituted sufficient travelling was no easy task. But I found a few good ones, I think.<br />
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20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)</h3>
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Now this might not be the first thing most people think of as "globetrotting" but... well... most of the world <i>is </i>covered in water, so it might be more globetrotting than most. Based on the famous novel by Jules Verne, this sci-fi classic follows four men in the mid-19th century aboard a highly advanced submarine that is centuries ahead of its time. While perhaps not offering as many different locations as its source material, it still takes the viewer on an epic underwater adventure around the world.<br />
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Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)</h3>
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Okay, so <i>technically </i>three of the four <i>Indiana Jones</i> films could be described as globetrotting adventures, the one exception being <i>The Temple of Doom</i> (which, aside from the opening sequence, takes place entirely in India, largely around in and around one palace and a nearby village). But <i>The Last Crusade </i>probably has the most variety in locations visited. Over the course of his adventure, Indy travels to a bunch of different locations with their own unique environments, and the film makes full use of the different places he ends up.<br />
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Tomb Raider (2018)</h3>
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The 2018 reboot of the <i>Tomb Raider </i>films draws on some of the changes that have occurred in the more recent games, particularly the emphasis on survivalist themes and efforts to get to know Lara on a more personal level. But it still offers a big globetrotting adventure across several different locations. What changes compared to the Angelina Jolie films is the fact that we meet a younger Lara before she's fully established herself as the Tomb Raider and still developing her skills while also dealing with some complicated personal issues. But even with the complications in her life Lara still isn't ready to give up pursuing an ancient legend in an effort to find answers and outwit a dangerous secret society that is deeply intertwined with her life.</div>
John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-33915868511353997692020-06-17T19:17:00.000-07:002020-06-17T19:17:25.261-07:00Thursday Movie Picks: Period Dramas<br />
This week, the theme for Wanderer's Thursday Movie Picks is Period Dramas. If you're not familiar with this activity, it's pretty straight forward. Each week, Wanderer over at <a href="http://wanderingthroughtheshelves.blogspot.com/">Wandering Through the Shelves</a> has a theme that gets posted on Thursdays (hence the name). Based on that theme, participants are expected to choose three movies and include roughly a paragraph on why they chose them. Pretty straight forward in theory, although sometimes is can prove more challenging than you expect.<br />
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Of course, "period drama" is a fairly broad term that could encompass a number of different films making this list slightly trickier to assemble. The obvious definition of a "period drama" would be a dramatic narrative set against the backdrop of a specific period of history, but this could encompass a wide range of sub-genres set across different eras. Probably the most obvious one would be the "costume drama"- elaborate melodramas (often romances) that make a huge spectacle of their selected era, (often somewhere in the late 18th or early 19th century, or sometimes adopting a Victorian/Edwardian setting). Typically the big thing you expect to see put on display is the fashion trends of the period (or at least those of the upper class- you don't normally see costume dramas about the poor). Depending on who you ask these are either examples of fine art or overly pretentious. Or somewhere in the middle.<br />
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Another sub-genre would be the "sword and sandal" films- big-budget historical or religious epics, many of them set in Ancient Rome. This type loves to make a spectacle of its setting (expect to see lots of Roman architecture), and may incorporate lots of special effects. We could also point to any number of war films that dramatize historical conflicts, such as the innumerable range of dramas about World War II or the Vietnam War. Certainly any drama set in the Victorian period would qualify.<br />
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Literature is also a common source material for period dramas. The romances of Jane Austen, for example, seem to be a popular choice.<br />
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So for the purposes of this theme, I had to come up with a selection of period dramas. Since it was a broad topic it was hard to narrow it down to just three. I did eventually manage to come up with three after filtering it down from a lot more, and produced the following selection. Plus an unexpected bonus.<br />
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Let's get started!<br />
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Barry Lyndon (1975)</h3>
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Technically, several of Stanley Kubrick's films could be classified as "period dramas." Certainly <i>Paths of Glory </i>and <i>Spartacus</i>, and even <i>Full Metal Jacket</i>, but <i>Barry Lyndon </i>has a way of standing out. In the 1970's Kubrick took on the ambitious project of trying to make a biopic of Napoleon Bonaparte. A lot of what he did accomplish was quite impressive. The amount of research Kubrick had managed to do was alone impressive. He was going to go above and beyond. He had <i>everything </i>figured out. It was an ambitious project for sure, but if anyone could pull it off it was Stanley Kubrick. Then just as he was about to start filming, another Napoleonic film came out <i>bombed</i>. As a result, the investors panicked and pulled Kubrick's funding.<br />
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But while they may have deprived us of seeing what might have been the greatest biopic of all time, Kubrick did manage to take his extensive work on <i>Napoleon </i>and put into his next project- his underrated 1975 period piece <i>Barry Lyndon</i>. Based on a popular romance novel, <i>Barry Lyndon </i>follows an 18th century rogue who gambles his way into the aristocracy and gains just about everything he could possibly want, only to eventually see it all come crashing down (that's not a spoiler by the way, you're literally told from the beginning how it's all going to end). As far as costume dramas go, it's pretty well made.<br />
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Perhaps the most famous story about this film is one of Kubrick's more unusual decisions. For the indoor scenes, Kubrick was very adamant about using actual candlelight. It took a specialized camera normally used by NASA to make that possible, but it was worth it.<br />
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The Elephant Man (1980)</h3>
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David Lynch's second feature film was a Victorian drama inspired by the real-life Joseph Merrick (referred to here as "John" due to a peculiar choice in the source material), the titular "Elephant Man"- a man who gained a great deal of attention from the medical world due to his unusual medical condition that puzzled doctors of the time, and which to this day experts still try to diagnose without success. They even got an actual cast of Merrick's head to use for the makeup job on John Hurt.<br />
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<i>The Elephant Man </i>brings to the forefront two aspects of Victorian society. It provides a thorough look into the British medical scene, offering a glimpse into the life of a doctor at the time, but perhaps more obviously it brings up the less glamorous subject of "freakshows". This is a once-common practice where circuses would gather "freaks"- people with weird physical quirks whose bodies would be put on display to be met with fascination and discomfort by their audience. <i>The Elephant Man</i> has a very cynical view of freak show exhibitions, and their tendency to exploit the misfortunes of others for profit.<br />
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Now some would argue that freak show acts actually <i>helped </i>a lot of people who otherwise wouldn't have been able to make a living (contrast this with a film like <i>The Greatest Showman</i>, which emphasizes how a lot of people with deformities were generally marginalized at the time and how circuses were basically the only career paths available to them). While this angle isn't discussed much in <i>The Elephant Man</i> (if at all), it does show the problematic society that marginalizes people with conditions over which they have no control, and certainly questions the ethics of using a human's deformities for entertainment. In fact, one of the big questions of the film is whether Treves is actually making things better for Merrick or if he's just created a whole new circus.<br />
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The Draughtsman's Contract (1982)</h3>
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As one of my professors once remarked, this probably should have been called <i>The Draughtsman's Contract<b><u>s</u></b> </i>because it's a major theme and there are at least two important contracts he takes (three if you count the "contract" at the very end). Peter Greenway's period drama revolves around an 18th-century sketch artist who is hired to produce drawings of a British estate, while also entering deals that involve sexual affairs with two upper class women. Oh, and there's a murder which may or may not have its solution in said drawings (it's a bit confusing). There's also a naked man who often pretends to be a statue and keeps appearing in various parts of the estate for reasons never made entirely clear. This film can certainly be described as "weird" but it does a pretty impressive job with the period detail.<br />
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Bonus: History of the World, Part I (1981)</h3>
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I thought that while we're on the subject of "period dramas" it would be fun to also include an underrated film that parodies the genre. Mel Brooks' take on the period drama is an anthology that ruthlessly mocks various types of period dramas, both historical and religious.<br />
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The two main sections include a mock "sword and sandal" epic that follows the adventures of a "stand-up philosopher" in Ancient Rome, and a mock costume drama about the French Revolution. The film also has a segment depicting the "Dawn of Man" which includes a parody of <i>2001: A Space Odyssey </i>and a chronicling of early human discoveries such as the spear, fire, the first marriage (and first homosexual marriage), music, and art (which also caused the birth of the critic). And of course we can't forget the bizarrely cheerful song-and-dance number about the Spanish Inquisition.<br />
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Mel Brooks himself plays several different people over the course of the film (even having a dual-role in the French Revolution segment), but quite a few other big names also make appearances. Several of Brooks' regulars manage to find their way in- Madeline Kahn, Harvey Korman, Dom DeLuoise, Ron Carey, Chloris Leechman, and Sid Caesar all show up. Other surprising appearances include John Hurt, Bea Aurthur, and dramatic narration by Orson Welles. </div>
John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-28586963982536185872020-06-17T13:00:00.005-07:002020-06-17T13:00:46.973-07:00Why We Need a Break From Batman<br />
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Batman is a character who has become so iconic that his very image is recognizable at a glance. The character has been portrayed by far too many actors to count across every form of media imaginable- comics, television, feature films, video games. You name it, Batman's appeared at some point. And that's to say nothing of the innumerable parodies and homages that have been made by fans. Batman is an extremely popular character that has resonated across generations, but that's part of the problem.<br />
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Like fellow comic book hero Superman, the character of Batman, and his sidekick Robin originated in the 30's. Also like Superman, a lot of the lore that has come to be associated with the character was not yet established. Batman was a caped hero who fought crime alongside a sidekick with some homoerotic undertones. Pretty straight forward really. Batman's first filmed appearance was actually a 1943 serial simply titled <i>Batman</i> that established some aspects of the franchise, such as the presence of a butler named Alfred, and the presence of a "Bat-Cave" that serves as a base of operations. It was also influenced by World War II-era racism against the Japanese, with its white heroes working to outwit a Japanese antagonist and occasionally spouting some unfortunate racial slurs.<br />
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A lot of what we've come to associate with Batman comes from the famous 1960's TV series, also called <i>Batman</i>. This series was designed to be campy and ridiculous. Batman, famously played by Adam West, was often getting into weird situations, often ending up in situations that led to over-the-top cliffhangers parodying those of older serials. Although it drew many of its characters from the 1940's comics, the show helped to solidify their roles as key figures in Batman lore. Several antagonists from the comic are established as Batman's main enemies- most famously the Joker (who by now has more or less become the "primary" nemesis of Batman), but also Two-Face and the Riddler, as well as an early version of Catwoman. We also see Commissioner Gordon established as Batman's friend on the police force.<br />
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Then we get to Tim Burton's 1989 <i>Batman </i>with Michael Keaton in the title role. Tim Burton made an unusual decision for the time by deciding he was going to break from the campiness of the show and present a much more serious interpretation of the character. Since then, Batman has gone through several different incarnations, some of which managed to add new characters that went on to be recognized as key pieces of lore. For instance, in <i>Batman: The Animated Series </i>Joker was often given generic henchmen, but then someone had the idea that it might be interesting to see a hench<i>woman</i> for a change. This resulted in the creation of Harley Quinn, a character often reappeared in future versions of Batman's adventures and herself had a long and complex evolution.<br />
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But of course, the darkness and brooding of Batman remained throughout most subsequent iterations. With the exceptions of obvious parodies (as in <i>The Lego Batman Movie</i>) the idea of Batman being dark seemed to be solidified in the minds of his writers. After Tim Burton, we see it reappear again and again, from <i>Batman the Animated Series </i>to Christopher Nolan's Batman films to the <i>Batman: Arkham</i> series of video games. They keep trying to frame Batman as being dark and brooding. And to be honest, I'm kinda sick of it.<br />
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Every time Batman appears post-West, it's the same story. Bruce Wayne was the son of rich parents who were killed in a mugging-gone-wrong that happened after they left a theater one night, which inspired Bruce to become a vigilante who strikes fear into the hearts of criminals. Blah blah blah, you know the deal. Even <i>The LEGO Batman Movie </i>implies this backstory. Then of course we have all the same bad guys and their gimmicks- The Joker, who has a habit of cheerfully committing murder in a carnival atmosphere; the Riddler, who likes to challenge people to figure out his crimes based on riddles; Two-Face's habit of acting on a coin flip. It's been done.<br />
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And let's face it, maybe it was cool when Tim Burton did it, maybe even when Nolan did, but for all the efforts to treat the series as serious, the Batman franchise as a whole is pretty cartoonish. This is literally about a rich guy who puts on tights to fight crime and feels the need to make absolutely <i>everything </i>in his life bat-themed. Even many of his enemies. Joker, Two-Face, the Riddler, Scarecrow, the Penguin, Mr. Freeze. How are any of these characters realistic? They're all bizarre outlandish characters who rely on silly gimmicks, whose plans mostly hinge on destroying Gotham simply because they're evil. When was the last time Batman actually take on a criminal like you might find in real life?<br />
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Batman as a character has been portrayed in <i>sixteen </i>feature films and appearing in video games since <i>1986</i>. I think we've seen enough of the character at this point, and yet we keep seeing a new <i>Arkham </i>game coming out every few years while other more interesting superheroes remain untouched. <i>Sixteen </i>different Batman films, some of which were released within only a few years of the character's comic debut. Yet it took <i>seventy six years </i>and the release of <i>Batman vs. Superman </i>just to get Wonder Woman (another character who is equally iconic in the comics) onto the big screen.<br />
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You know how many video games Wonder Woman has starred in? Sure, she's <i>appeared </i>in some games, either as a playable character in an ensemble cast or as a supporting NPC, but how many has she actually taken the lead in? Exactly zero. Batman, Superman, and other Superheroes get to appear time and again. Sure we can keep cranking out <i>Arkham </i>games because we haven't had enough Batman, but nobody seems to have considered the possibility of a Wonder Woman game.<br />
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And this is just it, I'm sick of Batman. I'm sick of his stupid costume. I'm sick of his brooding. I'm sick of his cliched backstory being repeated again and again for the sake of edginess. I'm sick of the relentless efforts to turn what is really quite cartoonist into something serious. I'm sick of every single thing Bruce Wayne uses having to be bat-themed. I'm sick of the whole "strike fear into the hearts of crime" thing that never seems to actually fix anything. The point is, Batman as a character has been done to death. He's been done so many times that every single repetition of the exact same thing is just infuriating.<br />
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You know what I'd love to see? I'd love to see a really good <i>Wonder Woman </i>video game- in fact I'd like to see a few. I'd love to see Wonder Woman take central stage more often. She's a way more interesting character than Batman anyway.<br />
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However, as Batman is a deeply ingrained part of our pop culture, and too profitable to go away any time soon, I would like to also propose some ideas for how it may be possible to refresh the character.<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Literally how almost <i>every single </i>Batman story after the Adam West show begins.</span></div>
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One approach that might be a nice change is to abandon the serious brooding approach in favor of a return to Adam West-style campiness. You could still have similar plots but embrace the silliness of it.<br />
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Another possibility might be to try experimenting with alterations to Batman's backstory. For instance, how might it affect the character if only <i>one </i>of his parents were killed in the mugging, rather than both?<br />
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Yet another direction we could go is to perhaps rework the "strike fear into the hearts of criminals" thing, especially given that simply beating up criminals whenever they're found doesn't actually fix anything- in fact, if anything it's more likely to make it worse. Perhaps a suitable alternative could be to take advantage of his dual identity, with Bruce Wayne using his financial resources and connections to do things that actually help reduce crime, while Batman focuses strictly on the people who get in the way, perhaps even using one persona to gather information that can be used by the other. So that Bruce Wayne can use his connections to get information on organized crime then sabotages their efforts as Batman.<br />
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What this does show is a major gender bias in superhero media, one which is slowly changing, but still present. We can see a similar tendency with Superman, a character who originated only a few years before Batman, and went through an even more complicated evolution. The original comics from the 30's were much more simplistic than later iterations. The most prominent part of the lore to really be established was Superman's alter ego as a reporter named Clark Kent. Originally he was just an invincible human with bizarre superpowers who used his unique abilities to fight crime- not Lex Luthor or anything like that, but more realistic criminals like scam artists, extortionists, corrupt politicians, and so forth.<br />
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From there the character evolved and started appearing in serials. One particularly noteworthy appearance was the 1946 radio serial <i>Clan of the Fiery Cross</i>, a story arc in which Superman fought the Klu Klux Klan, aided by activists who had infiltrated the Klan and provided the show's producers with information. This serial was such a huge hit that it even ended up being a huge blow to the Klan in real life. But at this point, Superman was just that- a superman. He was just a guy who had lots of crazy powers that he could use to fight criminals.<br />
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And like Batman, Superman has been through many different incarnations across comics, movies, video games, and television. Over time these various iterations produced the lore that would become associated with the Superman franchise. It became established that Superman's love interest was Lois Lane. Like Batman, we start to see various nemeses associated with Superman- with Lex Luthor as the most prominent. Later on he started to get a backstory stating that he was an alien sent to Earth from a dying planet (offering more justification for his superpowers). Then there's also Superman's ongoing relationship with Batman. When the idea of him being invincible started to get tedious he was given a weakness in the form of a mineral called Kryptonite. Then there was the idea of him having a cousin, Supergirl, who was also sent to Earth.<br />
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But what can we say for someone like Wonder Woman? Sure, she's been through a lot of different iterations in the comics, but what else? She occasionally appears in animations, usually as part of an ensemble, starred in one TV show, and a single feature film (with an upcoming sequel), and zero video games where she has a starring role. Keep in mind that she's one of the most iconic figures in DC comics, often shown alongside Batman and Superman, not to mention she also made her debut around the same time. Yet a lot of what is written about her has not changed all that much.<br />
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So why is it that we get Batman and Superman again and again but so little of Wonder Woman? The simple answer is because Batman and Superman are white men. And that's just it? They don't <i>have </i>to be, that's just how they were originally designed and nobody ever questioned it. It's not like their sex or ethnicity are key defining features of their character, so why not change them? Surely we would not have to change anything if we had, say, a black actor playing Superman. Or even if we changed it up. Why not just have a female Batman or a female Superman? And I don't just mean Batgirl or Supergirl, I mean like actually have the roles of Batman and Superman be played by women.<br />
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And of course these female characters are consistently overshadowed by their male counterparts. Sure, <i>sometimes </i>Batgirl is incorporated into the Batman lore (emphasis on the <i>sometimes</i>) as a sidekick. Sometimes she is ommitted entirely, and sometimes you run into other situations. In the <i>Arkham </i>series, Barbara Gordon's status as Batgirl is restricted entirely to backstory. In the present, she is paraplegic and confined to a wheelchair, mostly talking to Batman over a radio, and offering a convenient excuse for the games to keep her from actually taking an active role in the story. She then gets reduced to a damsel in distress for most of <i>Arkham Knight</i>.<br />
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Now the good news is that there is some hope. The massive success of <i>Black Panther</i> shows that non-white superheroes can still be huge hits, and we have seen a recent trend of female superhero movies <i>finally </i>starting to appear (after several decades of being almost non-existent)- starting with <i>Wonder Woman </i>(2018) and continuing through <i>Captain Marvel </i>(2019), <i>Dark Phoenix</i> (2019), and the upcoming <i>Black Widow </i>and <i>Wonder Woman 1984</i>. This surge suggests a growing awareness of the problem of gender inequality. So at least there is <i>some </i>effort to address the problem.<br />
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But the underlying issue still stands. The thing is Batman and Superman are getting old. They've been done to death. We need a break from them. Their tired backstories have been retold over and over again and they're always the same. We don't need a new Batman film or Superman film, TV show, video game, whatever. Give us something different. Maybe some more Wonder Woman or Captain Marvel. I am sick of Batman and Superman. If you want to go that route how about a <i>good </i>Supergirl movie, or give Batgirl her own film (especially considering her only feature film appearance so far was 1997's <i>Batman and Robin</i>).<br />
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And to their credit, sometimes this has happened. <i>Guardians of the Galaxy </i>and <i>Black Panther </i>both came from lesser-known parts of Marvel Comics and proved to be huge hits. The 2018 <i>Aquaman </i>film did a lot to undermine the character's long-standing and often-ridiculed reputation for being useless. But Batman and Superman are overused and have been in way too much. It's time to put them aside, at least for now. We need a break from them.John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-8636949358425015772020-06-12T10:00:00.002-07:002020-06-12T10:00:31.575-07:00There's Always a Lighthouse, There's Always a Man, but this Time There's No CityLots of free time, not sure what to do with it, trying to write more often, and I'm stuck in quarantine. Might as well use some of that time to watch some movies, right? Fortunately, I have access to Amazon Prime, and with that a fairly large uncatalogued of films I'd barely tapped until now (it was being used more often for watching TV shows). So here I was seeing what their fairly extensive library had to offer, and I stumbled across a curious title called <i>The Lighthouse</i>, an independent film from last year revolving around the growing conflict between a pair of lighthouse keepers. Sounded like an interesting one to check out.<br />
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Somewhere in the 19th Century, two men- Ephraim Winslow (Robert Pattinson) and Thomas Wake (Willem Dafoe) arrive at a lighthouse with a contract to oversee it for four weeks. The lighthouse is located on a remote island, the surrounding waters of which may or may not be inhabited by sirens and a kraken (it's a bit confusing). They go about their usual routines, doing the various tasks that need to be performed to maintain the lighthouse and chores that need to be performed on an everyday basis. But over time the boredom and repetitive work begins to mess with their heads. The fact that Wake seems to be keeping secrets doesn't help. When their replacements fail to arrive at the end of the four weeks, things only seem to get worse. Tensions mount between the two men as both start to lose their sanity.<br />
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Probably the most obvious touch in the film is its decision to shoot in black and white- which was actually a pretty good choice. Obviously the use of black and white gives the film an old-fashioned look, but it doesn't look like something you'd see in classical Hollywood. Instead, a lot of the film looks like something you'd expect to see from late 19th/early 20th century photographs of a lighthouse rather than an old movie. Structurally, <i>The Lighthouse </i>has a much closer resemblance to the European art films of the 1960's than anything you'd see from Hollywood. It seems to have traces of Robert Bresson and Ingmar Bergman, which makes the black and white all the more fitting. I don't think I can imagine this film being in colour.<br />
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Pulling off a minimal setting (the entire film being set in and around the lighthouse) with the cast limited almost entirely to two actors is no easy task, but <i>The Lighthouse </i>makes full use of these limitations. The film does a surprisingly good job of making the day-to-day lives of its protagonists seem compelling, even if some of the details can be harder to follow. Depictions of chores from repairing the roof to hauling coal convey a sense of boredom, frustration, and monotony, yet seem to really draw the viewer in. The tight spaces of the lighthouse itself are often used to create a sense of unease and disorientation that only heightens the Bergman-esque discomfort.<br />
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But while the film may have an interesting aesthetic, it's also just as much about sound. Diegetic sound is used to its full effect in conjunction with a haunting musical score that often includes suspiciously foghorn-like sounds. But when it isn't making use of its soundtrack or the various noises around the island, it's creating unease through silence. In fact a lot of the film's audio is made up of either diegetic noises or complete silence. Dialogue is present, but used sparsely. It actually takes some time before we hear <i>anyone </i>speak.<br />
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The two leading actors also do a very good job with their roles. Robert Pattinson has come a long way since <i>Twilight</i>. In <i>The Lighthouse</i> he fits into the role so well you could almost be forgiven for not recognizing him. Same with Willem Dafoe, who really developed a unique voice for Thomas Wake, though his thick accent may sometimes be hard to understand.<br />
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<i>The Lighthouse </i>is not an easy film to sit through, but it is one that is worth exploring if you are able to find it. I would recommend this to fans of art films from the 1960's, especially the works of Ingmar Bergman. In many ways, <i>The Lighthouse </i>feels like an homage to Bergman and some of his contemporaries (not as much Fellini or Antonioni in this one, though). But if even if, like me, you never really got into art cinema it's still an interesting experience.John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-85513963728569873242020-06-11T05:48:00.000-07:002020-06-11T05:49:30.002-07:00Thursday Movie Picks: Prequels<br />
Wow, it's been a while since I did one of these, but... um... I've been trying to do more writing somewhat more regularly and I suddenly remembered, I have this series and I got to wondering if it was still going on. Turns out it is! Awesome! Now I can see about participating in these events again. Hooray!<br />
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I can't promise I'll reliably have a post every week but I figure this will at least give me something to do in quarantine.<br />
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Also a chance to do some film discussion again. I know a lot of the few things I've posted recently have been more about video games with some incorporation of film theory, but what can I say? I've branched out, and there's a lot of stuff in film discussion that transfers well to other media.<br />
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Since I haven't done one of these in ages I suppose I should explain how it all works for whoever is actually still reading my sporadic ramblings. <a href="http://wanderingthroughtheshelves.blogspot.com/p/blog-page.html">Thursday Movie Picks Meme</a> is a regular activity hosted by a blog called <i>Wandering Through the Shelves</i>. The premise is pretty straight forward- each week there is a theme, and participants are challenged to pick three movies that fit the theme. The official page contains a schedule for all of this year's themes.<br />
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For this one, the theme is prequels- stories that are released after a prior installment but with stories set before the events of their predecessor, as opposed to a sequel, which usually tries to pick up where the previous entry left off.<br />
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Sometimes you can run into weird situations- like having an entry that is supposed to be a prequel but gets labelled as though its a sequel, for instance by having a "2" in the title. Other times you run into stories that are both prequels and sequels at the same time. One installment of the <i>Borderlands </i>series of games is cheekily titled the "pre-sequel" because it takes place in between the original game and <i>Borderlands 2</i>, making it a sequel to the former but a prequel to the lattter.<br />
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As I've often enjoyed doing, I decided to try to come up with some titles most people wouldn't think of. I know there are some obvious ones. I could easily point to the <i>Star Wars </i>prequel trilogy but that's probably going to be done by a few people. Instead, I chose some that you could almost be forgiven for not even realizing they were prequels.<br />
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The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (1966)</h3>
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Okay so <i>technically </i>the canonocity of Leone's "Dollars Trilogy," if one exists, is the subject of hot debate. Some fans can't even agree if Clint Eastwood plays the same character in all three films, letalone establish the a firm continuity. The fact that many of the supporting actors play different characters in each film (i.e. Mario Braga, who appears in all three films as a bad guy with a dramatic death scene) doesn't help. But most people agree that chronologically <i>The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly</i>, the last of the three films (after <i>A Fistful of Dollars </i>and <i>For a Few Dollars More</i>) takes place before the other two. </div>
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<i>The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly </i>is undoubtedly the best of the trilogy, showing the full extent of the skill Leone developed over the course of making its predecessors. In this one, three men try to reach a hidden stash of gold based on partial information. Clint Eastwood, of course, returns as the "Man with no Name" (referred to here as "Blondie") from the previous films. The role of this film as a prequel is arguably most evident towards the end- when we see him finding his famous poncho and putting it on for the first time.</div>
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Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)</h3>
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You wouldn't think of this as a prequel, but <i>The Temple of Doom </i>takes place in 1935. <i>Raiders of the Lost Ark </i>takes place in 1936. Therefore it chronologically takes place before the first film, which makes it a prequel! <i>The Temple of Doom </i>admittedly doesn't have all that much to do with <i>Raiders of the Lost Ark </i>outside of the presence of Indiana Jones himself, mostly being a self-contained story that largely stands out from other films in the series in terms of narrative an aesthetic. Notably it is isn't a globe-trotting adventure like the other films (instead mostly taking place in India around a single area), and involves stopping the ruthless Thuggee cult, which is notably quite a jump from the Nazi and later Soviet armies Indy faces in his other adventures.<br />
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Some parts of the film are also just plain weird, even by <i>Indiana Jones </i>standards. One standout is the infamous dinner scene where our heroes are presented with the "fine dining" of live snakes, scarabs, eyeball soup, and "chilled monkey brains," a sequence that admittedly seems a lot more cartoonish compared to his later adventures. There's also a big sequence where Indy and his friends get chased in mine carts through a series of mine tunnels that look more like a roller coaster. Basically lots of insanity ensues.</div>
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Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)</h3>
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Bet you weren't expecting <i>this </i>one. The more obvious choice for <i>Star Wars </i>would be the prequel trilogy, but in many ways <i>Rogue One </i>is a much better film.<br />
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<i>Rogue One</i> one is a prequel to the original <i>Star Wars </i>movie, following the events that led right up to its predecessor's opening sequence and (although unknown to the characters) allowing Luke's journey through the original trilogy to begin. Specifically, it chronicles the theft of the Death Star plans which, as you may recall, was crucial to the events of <i>A New Hope</i>, but originally happened offscreen. The film even ends more or less leading right into <i>A New Hope</i>'s opening.<br />
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<i>Rogue One </i>is a really well made film, not even just as a prequel- it stands pretty nicely on its own, too. Jyn Erso has easily become one of my favorite<i> Star Wars</i> characters. Like the films made by George Lucas, it draws on a variety of sources. The plot itself is somewhere between a heist film and a war movie, with a lot of WWII influences. It also does a pretty good job of recreating familiar iconography and characters while still finding room for new material.<br />
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Bonus: Bioshock Infinite (2013)</h3>
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I know, I'm cheating slightly by including a video game, but just hear me out!</div>
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<i>Bioshock: Infinite </i>takes on a number of peculiar deviations from its predecessors, most obviously the change in setting from an underwater city to a city in the sky. Basically, imagine a city that consists entirely of the worst parts of American history and culture, in the sky, with a turn-of-the-century aesthetic, and you've got the setting of <i>Bioshock Infinite</i>. In many ways it can be seen as a thematic successor to the original <i>Bioshock</i>, but it is also a prequel... sort of. The game takes place in 1912 (the original <i>Bioshock </i>was set in 1960). While the meddling of space and time by various characters in the game, as well as the protagonists' hopping between universes may complicate <i>some </i>of the timeline, chronologically it does take place before the first game. </div>
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Interestingly, the downloadable storyline <i>Burial at Sea </i>directly ties <i>Infinite </i>to the original <i>Bioshock</i>, revealing how one of its key players set the events of that game into motion. </div>
John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-34784505041711583872020-04-03T15:55:00.000-07:002020-04-03T15:55:00.873-07:00Philosophy in Bioshock<br />
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On the surface, <i>Bioshock </i>seems like a pretty straight forward series of bizarre science fiction games. The series as a whole can be described as a mix of several different genres, combining a retro science fiction aesthetic with a hybrid of first-person shooter, puzzle-solving, and RPG mechanics. <i>Bioshock </i>has proven extremely influential. One can trace influences from earlier games, perhaps most obviously <i>Half-Life 2</i>, but its influence on later games is irrefutable. Later franchises such as <i>Dishonored</i> draw heavily on <i>Bioshock</i>'s blending of genres and its distinct gameplay.<br />
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The series currently consists of three main games, plus two additional storylines released as downloadable content- <i>Minerva's Den</i> for <i>Bioshock 2</i> and <i>Burial at Sea</i> for <i>Bioshock: Infinite</i>, with a fourth game currently in development. Additionally, novels expanding on the game's lore have also been published, and there was even a cancelled movie. The majority of the series concerns Rapture, a failed underwater utopia that exchanges hands through several different people over the course of the series. The third game in the series, <i>Bioshock: Infinite</i>, changes the setting to Columbia, a city in the sky (though Rapture makes a cameo, and its story is further developed in the <i>Burial at Sea </i>campaign).<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span id="goog_544912588"></span><span id="goog_544912589"></span>The City of Rapture, as seen in the original <i>Bioshock</i></span></div>
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For our purposes, this discussion will be focused primarily on the material related to Rapture, namely <i>Bioshock </i>(2007), <i>Bioshock 2 </i>(2010), and <i>Burial at Sea </i>(2013). All together this creates four distinct storylines (<i>Burial at Sea</i> was released in two parts, both with a different focus), with the player controlling a different character in each.<br />
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As is revealed over the course of the series, Rapture was created by a businessman named Andrew Ryan, who was fed up with government regulations infringing on his success. He is generally opposed to things like charity, that he feels interfere with a person's ability to earn through hard work. To him, this is the work of "parasites" who take what is not rightfully theirs. Ryan's concept of Rapture was a world in which everyone earned their own fortune, starting at the same place and climbing the ranks. Unfortunately for him, this did not go entirely to plan.<br />
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One of the big commodities in Rapture is a substance known as "ADAM"- a drug harvested from a rare sea slug that can be used to rewrite DNA. When administered, ADAM can be used to gain superpowers, such as the ability to shoot lightning or fire, to freeze objects or people, even telekinesis. It also can be used to obtain various "tonics" that can give the body various advantages.<br />
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Unfortunately, it is also extremely addicting as it causes instability in a person's genes that can only be resolved by continued doses. Prolonged use of ADAM results in gradual mental and physical deterioration, until the user starts to lose track of everything that makes them an individual, loses their capacity for rational thought, and turns into a mutated mess only capable of pursuing their next fix, known in the games as "splicers."<br />
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Because of its limited availability, ADAM is recycled through mutated children known as "Little Sisters." These are young girls who have been mentally conditioned to collect ADAM from corpses around Rapture. Because this makes them a target for splicers, they also have a bodyguard in the form of a "Big Daddy"- perhaps the most iconic part of the game. Big Daddies are re-purposed construction workers created by mutating humans and permanently sealing them inside a diving suit, while also having their vocal chords surgically altered.<br />
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There are important philosophical themes which are routinely explored in each game. Each of the main games essentially revolves around a different philosophy (objectivism in <i>Bioshock</i>, utillitarianism and collectivism in <i>Bioshock 2</i>, and American exceptionalism in <i>Infinite</i>). Additionally the series also wrestles with other complicated issues including human nature, guilt and redemption, the ethics of genetic manipulation, the existence of free will, the roles of government and business in society, the tendency of revolutions to replace tyrants with even worse tyrants, and ultimately the futility of trying to create a perfect society- a task inherently doomed to failure simply because humans are imperfect. But one particular philosophy has a tendency to re-appear again and again- objectivism, which also happens to be the very foundation on which Rapture was built.<br />
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Objectivism is a philosophical popularized by author and philosopher Ayn Rand (whose writing was a significant influence on <i>Bioshock</i>). In its simplest form, objectivism is a theory about the self- that one should focus first and foremost on maximizing their own well-being (we can contrast this with the theories of utilitarianism and collectivism, which focus on rejecting the self in favor of helping others). Rand's writing famously suggested that if everyone could adopt a lifestyle built on reason, self-interest, and capitalism, the world would be a much better place.<br />
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Objectivism is the foundation of Rapture's society, to the point where its founder is even named <b>Andrew Ryan</b> in reference to Ayn Rand. Fittingly, his primary rival adopts the moniker "Atlas," referencing Ayn Rand's book <i>Atlas Shrugged</i>). His real name, Frank Fontaine, also references another of Rand's works, <i>The Fountainhead</i>.<br />
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This ideology is present from the earliest moments of the original <i>Bioshock</i>. The player character, a man referred to as "Jack", narrowly survives a plane crash into the Atlantic Ocean and stumbles onto a small island containing only a lighthouse. Inside the lighthouse Jack gets his first glimpse of the bizarre and disturbing world which he is about to enter.<br />
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Upon entering the Bathysphere and submerging, a screen appears, and a short video plays in which Ryan introduces Jack (and the player) to his philosophy. He asks the question "is a man not entitled to the sweat of his brow" and cites three examples of societies that say no. Ryan then claims to have "rejected those answers" in favor of constructing his own world, which became the city of Rapture. The slideshow illustrates what Rapture is <i>supposed to be</i>, and on paper it seems to create a very appealing world.<br />
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To hear Andrew Ryan tell it, Rapture is designed as the perfect society to accommodate the American dream. It is a place where everyone starts independently at the same level, and through nothing more than hard work can rise to greatness and receive a hard-earned reward. Ryan describes it as being free from the "parasites" of society (which in his mind, means anyone who would take what is rightfully yours). But already we start to see small hints of the problems with this idea. While in theory a place like Rapture can sound very appealing, in practice it is extremely flawed.<br />
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Ryan's speech includes his statement that the artist is free to construct as they wish, and the scientists can experiment without the hindrance of ethics. What Ryan is unable to understand is that the rules are in place for a reason, and why the complete freedom he is allowing is a recipe for disaster. We see this reflected in three different characters encountered over the course of the game, two of whom are encountered by the player, while a third appears among the game's many audio recordings that help piece together Rapture's backstory.<br />
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The first one encountered by Jack is Dr. Steinman, a once-brilliant plastic surgeon who has developed an obsession with perfecting the human form, to the point where he considers himself an artist on part with Pablo Picasso, and performs operations well beyond treating patients in a desperate attempt to mold them into his standard of beauty. We also see the cruelty of objectivist science demonstrated in Dr. Yi Suchong, a scientist who sells his skills to the highest bidder and finds the concept of empathy to be completely alien.<br />
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Suchong is revealed to have conducted a variety of less-than-ethical experiments on unwilling test subjects. This includes his contribution to making the "Big Daddies" but also his secret role in creating Jack. One audio log found in the game indicates that he was figures in not only making Jack, but also conditioning him to respond to certain phrases. In the audio log, he gives Jack a dog, lets him grow attached, then uses the trigger phrase "would you kindly" to make Jack snap the dog's neck.<br />
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His cruelty and self-serving worldview ultimately prove to be his undoing. As found in the audio logs in <i>Bioshock</i> and his brief appearance in <i>Burial at Sea- Episode 2</i>, Suchong's arrogance, selfishness, and lack of ethics actually <i>impeded </i>his progress. He is depicted as obsessively trying to find a secret formula that would force a bond to develop between the Big Daddies and Little Sisters. To this end he goes as far as to study the bond between Elizabeth and Songbird in another universe, even forcing Elizabeth on a pointless quest to gain a sample of her own hair.<br />
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The ironic detail is the bond is formed not through any chemical formula, but through a simple act of kindness (two little sisters helping an injured Big Daddy), a concept Suchong cannot comprehend. It is then this bond, the very thing Suchong has been determined to create, is what ultimately kills him. Even more ironically, he dies by his own selfish ego and lack of compassion. We first learn of the grisly scene in an audio log in <i>Bioshock</i>, and actually get to see it in <i>Burial at Sea- Episode 2</i>.<br />
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In both cases, the scene begins with Suchong recording an audio log ranting about his constant failures to create a bond between the little sisters and big daddies. His “report” is interrupted when two little sisters enter and try to get his attention. Suchong responds angrily and slaps one of them, which provokes the Big Daddy into attacking him.<br />
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Not only is Suchong killed by his own ego, but he dies completely oblivious to the fact that the very thing he has been trying so hard to achieve was accomplished, despite it literally staring him in the face. The two little sisters were obviously trying to get his attention to introduce him to their new “friend,” and if he’d shown the slightest bit of compassion he would have seen the successful bond. His reaction (“What are you doing? Get back... get back!!!“) indicates that he perceived the attack as being entirely random and unprovoked. As far as he was concerned a big daddy just came out of nowhere and attacked him for no reason.</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Dr. Suchong, an objectivist scientist killed by his own selfishness.</span></div>
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We also encounter Sander Cohen, a snobbish "artist" who looks down on others, tortures his performers when they fail to meet impossible expectations, and has a tendency to produce some very questionable "art" when left to his own devices. The man holds impossible standards. One of the first things he is seen doing is torturing a “disciple,” Kyle Fitzpatrick, by plastering his legs to a piano bench and forcing him to play a musical piece on a piano rugged with dynamite. In Burial at Sea- Episode 1, he is shown electrocuting a pair of dancers for not meeting his standards.<br />
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Cohen’s freedom to create has the detrimental effect of boosting his ego, to the point where he is unable to take criticism and even accuses Jack of being a “doubter.” Audio logs also reveal the story of a singer named Anna Culpepper, whom Sander Cohen wanted dead for criticizing his work. </div>
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His “masterpiece” leaves one to wonder if censorship isn’t such a bad idea. This piece, which Cohen refers to as the “Quadtych,” is the one Jack is forced to help him assemble near the end of <i>Bioshock</i>. It consists of a group of plastered corpses displaying picture frames that end up containing photographs of the corpses of Cohen’s murdered “disciples.” </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Cohen's "masterpiece"</span></div>
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But of course, we cannot discuss objectivism in <i>Bioshock </i>without talking about the man at the center of everything: Andrew Ryan. "Is a man not entitled to the sweat of his brow," Ryan asks in the slideshow which first introduces us to Rapture. But it is less about working for a reward and more about keeping what you own. Ryan's backstory involves him growing up on the wrong side of the Russian Revolution, and watching as his family's property was seized by the revolutionary forces. Presumably being too young to understand the politics of the revolution, all he saw was his family's rightful property being taken by "parasites" creating the basis for his objectivist vision.</div>
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"Parasite" seems to be the term Andrew Ryan uses for <i>anyone </i>who disagrees with his objectivist vision, but he has one particular image in mind. To Ryan, a parasite is anyone who takes something which is not rightfully theirs. "Is a man entitled to the sweat of his brow?" indeed. According to Ryan, the "sweat" (or rather, the results of said man's work) is taken by someone else, rather than allowing the man to keep it. To hear his vision of Rapture, it is a world where everyone keeps what they earn.<br />
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This is likely rooted in the above-mentioned backstory, where Ryan saw what he understood to be his family's rightful property being stolen by others who did not deserve it. This fuels Ryan's behaviour and his social darwinist mindset. He has come possessive. To him, it doesn't matter if something is valuable or not, what is important is <i>ownership</i>. If its his property, then as far as he is concerned nobody else has a right to touch it unless he allows it.<br />
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This belief is so deeply rooted that Ryan is even willing to destroy his own property to keep it from being taken. One audio log has Ryan relate an anecdote about a forest he once purchased. Others asked him to share it, but this is what Ryan considers to be a "parasite" in social terms. It was a simple matter of the fact that <i>he </i>owned it and therefore others had no right to ask him for anything. According to his anecdote, after failing to keep other parties away, Ryan chose to burn the forest to keep it out of anyone else's hands.<br />
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Ryan continues to display the extremes of his philosophy over the course of the game, most notably in the Arcadia level and later during his confrontation with Jack. In both instances, Ryan asserts his ownership of Rapture to the point where he is ready to commit mass murder when it is threatened by his rival Atas.<br />
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In Arcadia, Ryan begins destroying the forests which provide oxygen for the city, effectively planning to suffocate the entire city and all its inhabitants, simply to keep Rapture from being taken. This forces Jack to work with Julie Langford, a botanist with an experimental formula for reviving dead trees. When Jack finally reaches Langford's office, he arrives just in time to witness Ryan demonstrate how much he values ownership.<br />
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Ryan contacts Julie on an intercom, and emphasizes a contract between them which specifically states that Ryan owns the forest and can do whatever he wants. Since Julie was challenging this theory by trying to undo his damage, Ryan floods her lab with a toxic gas. Once again, it was all about the fact that Ryan owned the forest. He was destroying it, and in his mind Julie had no right to stop him. This is very much the same principle as the forest he described purchasing and then destroying in his audio log.<br />
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We see it come up once gain during the confrontation between Jack and Andrew Ryan. Ryan, now realizing he is defeated, opts to end his own life and allow Rapture to self-destruct. He might not have won, but he is ready to do everything he can to deny his rival the satisfaction of victory. In Ryan's mind, nobody else has any right to own Rapture, so if he can't keep it, the next best thing is to ensure nobody else can take it. Just like Arcadia and his previous forest, it's all about being entitled to what he owns.<br />
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Ryan's possessive nature becomes even more clear when one looks at how he rules Rapture. His belief in objectivism is almost fanatical, to the point where he more or less preaches it despite asserting that Rapture should be a secular society. He has messages broadcast throughout Rapture reminding people of its values and watch out for "parasites." The word "parasite" is used to build distrust in others. He goes the extra step of cutting off Rapture from the surface, and very meticulously controls who is permitted in and out (if anyone), censors dissidents and, despite claiming to create freedom for the artist, censors work he disapproves of.<br />
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Does this behavior sound familiar? It should, because these are the methods of a dictator. Ryan even has blatant propaganda designed for the sole purpose of indoctrinating children. The "Ryan Amusements" theme park in <i>Bioshock 2</i> was specifically designed to reflect Rapture's values (much to the frustration of its creator), romanticizing the city's history and offering a "Journey to the Surface" ride designed to convince children that the surface is a horrible place full of parasites and that they should have no reason to want to go there.<br />
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Similarly, in <i>Burial at Sea- Episode 2</i> Elizabeth encounters a daycare center which proudly features the characters of "Ryan the Lion and Peter the Parasite." The concept is a twisted version of the classic Aesop story <i>The Lion and the Mouse</i>, where instead of proving that the most seemingly insignificant details can end up being essential, the small mouse is seen as trying to steal what rightfully belongs to the lion. This image is plastered all over the daycare center, along with propaganda films that valorize "Ryan the Lion" (a child-friendly representation of Andrew Ryan) and condemn "Peter the Parasite" while displaying a simplified version of Ryan's philosophy. They even go as far as to valorize some kids as "makers" and publicly shame others as "takers."<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">From <i>Burial at Sea- Episode 2</i>; "Ryan the Lion" and "Peter the Parasite" are used as contrasting roles to indoctrinate children with objectivist values</span></div>
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Ryan's behaviour resembles a dictator in so many ways, but why should we expect anything else? After all who are some of the best real-world examples of objectivists other than dictators? A dictator acts in their own interest, asserting their authority. An an authoritarian society the dictator owns everything, including the people. But the problem is that a dictator works at the expense of others. A dictator gains while taking from the people. The dictator is a parasite. This is the ultimate flaw in Rapture. Ryan didn't create a utopia free of the parasites he so desperately tried to escape- he created the perfect environment for those same parasites to thrive.<br />
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In fact, if anything Ryan was almost <i>too successful </i>in creating an objectivist society. Most of the city's inhabitants either embrace it, or are themselves victims of Ryan's philosophy, or both. Ryan may have claimed to escape from the parasites of the surface, but in Rapture he becomes one to the working class. He exploits them, kicks them when they're down, and eventually drags the citizens of Rapture into the mass marketing of plasmids, a drug that can rewrite a person's DNA.<br />
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The result is the splicers encountered throughout the series- once normal human beings who, thanks to Ryan's greed, began overdosing on plasmids that slowly destroyed them. After a slow period of mental and physical deterioration, these unfortunate people began to lose all capacity for reason and empathy. Their deteriorating minds combined with the memories contained in the ADAM reduce them to feral instincts, until all they can think about is a combination of their own survival and obtaining more ADAM at any cost. The splicers may be victims of Ryan, but they have also been themselves turned into disgusting caricatures of objectivist thought.<br />
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It is fittingly ironic that an objectivist should be the one to finally take down Ryan. Enter Frank Fontaine, a con artist who works his way into Rapture and begins challenging Ryan's position of power. Fontaine, despite his disliking of Ryan, actually embraces Rapture's values, he just proves to be better at playing by those rules. Like Ryan, Fontaine is an ambitious individual who works his way to the top for his own gain, but in many ways he is even worse. As Fontaine he is a liar and a power hungry cheat ready to do anything to maximize his wealth and power. But even worse is his alter-ego.<br />
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When is finally cornered by Ryan, Fontaine escapes by becoming the worst kind of parasite- the kind that pretends to be your friend. Ryan may have been a crook, and ultimately a parasite himself to the people of Rapture, but at least that was clear. Fontaine's strategy is to fake his own death and assume the identity of "Atlas." This is a persona deliberately crafted to manipulate others, with Jack only the last of potentially thousands of people fooled by this charade.<br />
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Fontaine's goal was to create a character that the underclass of Rapture could relate to, a working class hero from humble beginnings that can inspire the people to revolt. This is an especially cruel form of objectivism, as Atlas disguises himself as a utilitarian when in fact Fontaine is only exploiting others for his own selfish (and very objectivist) ends of wealth and power. He uses this persona to create dedicated followers who are ready to fight and die for him thinking they are part of a noble cause, and when he gets what he wants he has no problem turning on the people who helped him. He bludgeoned Elizabeth to death with a pipe wrench after she found his "ace in the hole", indirectly arranged the murder of Dr. Steinman (who performed cosmetic surgery to make Fontaine's "Atlas" character more convincing), and tried to exploit his control over Jack to make him "get stepped on by a Big Daddy."<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">From <i>Burial at Sea- Episode 2</i>, Fontaine adopts the persona of "Atlas" to manipulate the more vulnerable citizens of Rapture into serving him.</span></div>
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But we cannot forget the most tragic victims of Rapture- the iconic Little Sisters and their Big Daddies. Like splicers, both originated from normal humans who were subjected to mutation experiments against their will. The process results in the suppression of their identities and turns them into slaves for Rapture's economy. Under Ryan's protection, thousands of little girls were abducted from their families and genetically altered to become little sisters, children with no memory of who they used to be. Their function is simply to gather ADAM from corpses so that it can be reused, a process that is used for the sole reason that reusing ADAM is cheaper than obtaining it new.<br />
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The Big Daddies are implied to be subjected to an even more excruciating process. They were once normal people transformed against their will and brainwashed into serving Rapture, originally to perform menial labor before being turned into bodyguards for the Little Sisters. Though the process is never fully explained, it involves heavily mutating the subject, performing surgery on their vocal chords, and then permanently sealing them in a diving suit. The few we do get to know all ended up in their position simply because they got on the bad side of Ryan, or someone close to him. Several "parasites" were involved in this process, including not only Ryan himself but also Suchong, Gilbert Alexander, and Augustus Sinclair.<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">From <i>Bioshock 2</i>, Subject Delta was a deep sea diver who stumbled across Rapture by accident before being captured and turned into a Big Daddy.</span></div>
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This makes it fitting that the Little Sisters should be the basis for the key moral distinction that is made throughout <i>Bioshock </i>and <i>Bioshock 2</i>. In both games, the player needs to get ADAM to gain useful abilities (which are sometimes needed to clear obstacles). The primary way to get ADAM is from the Little Sisters, and there are two ways to do it. The player can "harvest" the Little Sister, killing her but providing a huge load of ADAM. They can also "rescue" the Little Sister, which not only avoids killing her, but also turns her human again and grants the player rewards later on (but at the cost of receiving less ADAM from the process).<br />
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This can obviously be read in terms of good and evil, but there are also other ways to look at it. The decision is something like a much darker version of the marshmallow test- a psychological experiment in the decision between short-term and long-term gain. In this case, the player can choose to immediately satisfy their needs by harvesting the Little Sister, maximizing the amount of ADAM they gain from her and being able to use it to gain more power more quickly. Alternatively, the player can accept a smaller short-term reward in exchange for a later payoff. The rewards come in the form of extra ADAM, supplies, and even unique plasmids, that can often be extremely valuable or even life-saving. A player who harvests the Little Sisters can gain more power right away, but may use up valuable resources that will be needed later.</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">In <i>Bioshock </i>and <i>Bioshock 2</i>, the player is routinely given the choice to rescue or harvest Little Sisters. If the player chooses to harvest the Little Sister, she is killed but the player gets more ADAM. If she is rescued, the player gets less ADAM but makes things better for the Little Sister, and can be rewarded later, </span></div>
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It is not only a choice of good and evil, but a choice of whether to embrace or reject the philosophy of Rapture. Jack can choose to accept Ryan's objectivist thinking by harvesting the Little Sisters and focusing first and foremost on maximizing his own gain, or he can reject it by saving them and putting the needs of others above himself. As Ryan himself says "A man chooses, a slave obeys"- Jack is making that choice throughout the game, even before he realizes he is being controlled. This also reflected in the game's two possible endings that show opposing outcomes. </div>
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Both endings ultimately see things working out for Jack, but in very different ways depending on whether he ultimately embraces or rejects Ryan's philosophy. If Jack chooses to embrace objectivist thinking, he goes on to seize control of the city, betrays the Little Sisters, and even manages to hijack a submarine with nuclear missiles, implying plans for further conquest. If Jack rejects objectivism, he instead abandons Rapture, bringing the Little Sisters to the surface and raising them as his own, putting them above himself. Jack can emerge as something better, or he can become a new parasite for Rapture.<br />
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It is fitting therefore that Jack should be given two allies who represent both sides: Atlas and Tenenbaum. Atlas, the false ally, spends most of the game pretending to be Jack's friend, but ultimately he turns out to be an objectivist out for himself. But even before the big reveal of his true identity, we see hints towards his selfish nature.<br />
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For his supposed friendliness and compassion towards Jack, Atlas displays a very dismissive attitude toward the Little Sisters. When he first shows Jack how to get ADAM, Atlas insists that the Little Sisters aren't even human, and <i>encourages </i>Jack to harvest them (contrast this with Sinclair in <i>Bioshock 2</i>, who outlines the pros and cons of both options but decides its the player's call). It is only through the intervention of Tenenbaum that Jack even learns that there <i>is </i>another option. As a man who only looks after himself, it is hardly any surprise that Frank Fontaine would insist on taking the selfish option.<br />
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Tenenbaum on the other hand, provides a contrast to many of Rapture's citizens, including both Ryan and Fontaine. She is the one person to question the morality of Rapture's scientists, including her part in creating the Little Sisters. By the time of the first <i>Bioshock</i>, she has been focusing on trying to undo the mutations on the Little Sisters with hopes to eventually bring them to the surface. Her introductory scene involves her saving a Little Sister from a splicer, and desperately trying to persuade Jack to take the "rescue" option (while Atlas insists he should harvest her).<br />
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Later on she helps Jack by surgically removing the “would you kindly” trigger from his brain, guides him to the serum needed to remove the rest of Fontaine’s conditioning, and finally helps him stop Fontaine for good. Fittingly, she narrates the ending of the game, her tone shifting depending on the player's choices. She expresses admiration for Jack if he rejects objectivism, but disappointment or anger if he embraces it.<br />
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Tenenbaum briefly reappears in Bioshock 2 and shows up again in its side-story Minerva’s Den. At the beginning of Bioshock 2, Subject Delta is contacted by Tenenbaum and guided to her hideout. She has already returned to Rapture to continue helping the Little Sisters, giving them a sanctuary in a train station where she seems to have done her best to make them comfortable. She also tries to help Delta, only leaving him when her hand is forced by the entrance of Sofia Lamb’s minions (though not without leaving Sinclair to continue helping him). <br />
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During the events of Minerva’s Den, Tenenbaum continues trying to rescue the victims of Rapture by helping Subject Sigma, another Big Daddy she recruits to help find an advanced computer known as “The Thinker.” Her involvement in finding the computer is ultimately to use it for further research in the hopes of eventually curing what she has come to know as the “ADAM sickness”- trying to find a cure for the effects of ADAM. The game's ending implies that after leaving Rapture, Tenembaum works tirelessly to find her cure and eventually manages to turn Subject Sigma human again- a process everyone else in Rapture was sure was impossible.</div>
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There is a counter-philosophy to objectivism, known as utilitarianism. In its simplest form, this is the belief that one should put the needs of others above themselves. Tenenbaum embraces this ideology, showing almost no concern for herself and only on helping the victims of Rapture. This makes her a fitting contrast to Atlas, and what better way to defy Ryan than by embracing the exact opposite of everything he values. It also makes her a contrast to Atlas, who only pretends to be a utilitarian. She ends up being one of the few people in Rapture who is not a parasite. Tenenbaum and Atlas therefore serve as contrasting guides for the player. The player can opt to embrace objectivism, and become a new Fontaine, or they can reject it, and become another Tenembaum. </div>
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But utilitarianism itself is not a perfect system either. While it may have proven the better option in <i>Bioshock</i>, <i>Bioshock 2 </i>reveals that a utilitarian society is no better than an objectivist one, possibly even worse. In the sequel, we return to Rapture almost ten years after the events of the first game, to find that it has been taken over by a brilliant but manipulative psychologist named Sofia Lamb. Like Andrew Ryan, Lamb is fanatically devoted to her ideas- in this case she is a utilitarian.<br />
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Lamb's ultimate vision is exactly the opposite of Ryan's. Where Ryan promoted individualism, Lamb endorses collectivism. She has turned the citizens of Rapture into a cult she refers to as the "Rapture Family" and seeks to ultimately create a "true Utopian." Where Andrew Ryan thought this would be a person who climbs the ranks through simple hard work, Sofia Lamb believes it is a person who works for the greater good of the group. She ultimately believes that in order to achieve a utopia she needs to change people so that they are incapable of thinking for themselves, and only acting for others.<br />
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The problem with this theory, ironically, is that Lamb herself ends up displaying objectivist behaviour. For a person who speaks so much about helping others, she ends up proving to be extremely selfish. The audio logs encountered during the game reveal that Lamb exploited her position as Rapture's psychologist to manipulate others into joining her cause, and even after being sent to prison and wiped from most of the city's records she only took it as an opportunity to further solidify her hold on her cult. She kidnaps children from the surface to be turned into Little Sisters, treats her own daughter as a tool, abandons Gil Alexander as soon as he is no longer useful, and eventually tries to leave the entire Rapture Family to die in order to save herself.<br />
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Her own treatment of others also ties into her twisted view of utillitarianism. Lamb claims to "love" everyone the same, meaning she does not care about any of them at all. She shows a total willingness to sacrifice others if it furthers her goal of creating a "True Utopian." Gilbert Alexander contributed heavily to Lamb's early work, as well as the development of Big Daddies, before being made into a test subject himself, as part of Lamb's project. When the project fails, she outright abandons him, showing no gratitude for any of his previous contributions.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Gilbert Alexander in <i>Bioshock 2</i>, mutated into an unrecognizable form for Sofia's "true utopian" project, then abandoned when it failed.</span></div>
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Even Sofia's own daughter is not safe from her wrath. Eleanor Lamb has clearly rejected her mother's ideology, going as far as to resurrect her "father," Subject Delta, as part of a plan to escape. Sofia's ultimate plan is to turn Eleanor into the "first true utopian," through genetic manipulaiotn, a goal that sounds a lot like what she tried to do with Gil Alexander, only now with more confidence in its success. But even then her treatment of Eleanor is questionable at best. Sofia is keeping her own daughter imprisoned and sedated, then smothers her with a pillow in an effort to kill Subject Delta. This is only what she does to her own, to say nothing of the numerous children who she has had kidnapped to be turned into Little Sisters. It shows that a utillitarian can be every bit as much of a parasite as an objectivist.<br />
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The ultimate irony is that, despite her efforts, Sofia Lamb is unable to realize that people like she envisions already exist. Like Jack in the first game, Subject Delta has a choice of whether to embrace utilitarianism, or return to Rapture's objectivist roots. In the most optimistic ending, Delta chooses to put the needs of others above his own. He rescues the Little Sisters and spares as many people as he can, at he cost of his own life. <i>Bioshock 2</i> has several different ending variations, but more optimistic endings tend to occur with utillitarian actions.<br />
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Unlike Jack, however, Delta's actions become an inspiration for Eleanor Lamb, who looks up to him as a role model. A more brutal player will slowly turn Eleanor into a cold-hearted killer, but a utilitarian player will start to turn Eleanor into a utilitarian herself. Eleanor will take leadership for the Little Sisters, bring them to the surface, become a personal guide, and (in the most optimistic outcomes) is able to be the bigger person by giving Sofia a breathing device after her room on the submarine is flooded.<br />
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In this version of events, Eleanor actually becomes the "true utopian" that her mother envisioned. What Sofia Lamb could not understand was that it was not something that could be forced onto a person. Remember Andrew Ryan's statement: "A man chooses, a slave obeys!" Delta and Eleanor CHOOSE to be utilitarian, and Delta reveals the ACTUAL way to share that view with others- leading by example and inspiring others to do the same.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">In the more optimistic ending of <i>Bioshock 2</i>, Eleanor Lamb is inspired to become a utilitarian</span></div>
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This is even more ironic if we look back at Jack in <i>Bioshock</i>. He is referenced several times in <i>Bioshock 2</i>, and Sofia Lamb cites his mental conditioning as an inspiration for her goals. What she fails to consider is that, while Jack was programmed to follow instructions, he eventually broke free of that conditioning and became his own person. Just like Delta, Jack makes a <i>choice </i>to either embrace or reject Ryan's message. In fact, if Jack chooses to rescue the Little Sisters he actually <i>defies </i>the person giving him the instructions (remember that Atlas encouraged him to harvest them).<br />
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We also cannot forget about Elizabeth in <i>Burial at Sea: Episode 2</i>, who gives up her cosmic powers and immortality to help save the Little Sisters and (indirectly) bringing down Fontaine and Ryan. This is even with the knowledge that her chances of getting out in one piece are almost non-existant, and that Atlas will inevitably betray her as soon as she stops being useful to him. She ends up being quite selfless, her only comfort being an imaginary projection of Booker to whom she can express her feelings. It gets to the point where threats to the self do not even affect her.<br />
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We can see this near the end of the episode, when Elizabeth wakes up to find herself imprisoned by Atlas, who begins demanding he location of his "Ace in the Hole." To do this, he has her held down while describing a process known as a "trans-orbital lobotomy"- an actual procedure once common in psychiatric facilities that involved inserting a pick through the eye socket and tapping it with a hammer to penetrate a thin layer of bone protecting the prefrontal lobe. He proceeds to "demonstrate" by placing the pick under Elizabeth's eye (made more intense by the first-person perspective) and taps the pick multiple times, citing different things that would get removed if he were to reach the prefrontal lobe, and how it would essentially destroy a person's identity.<br />
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It is not hard to see why Atlas considers this an effective means of torture, but what proves Elizabeth's selfless nature is her refusal to give in. While the process is clearly painful, she refrains from offering anything more than a grunt, and taunts Atlas during the process, until he states that he is getting close to penetrating the bone. Elizabeth outright taunts him, even dares him to keep going, pointing out that doing so would actually be preventing her from giving him the information he wants. It is only when Fontaine instead brings out Sally, the Little Sister Elizabeth has been trying to help, and threatens to do the same procedure on her, that Elizabeth changes her tone. She seems to have very little concern for how she herself is affected- she only gives in when doing so can help someone else.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">From <i>Burial at Sea- Episode 2</i>, Atlas tries to get information from Elizabeth by threatening her with a trans-orbital lobotomy</span></div>
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These examples prove the flaw in Sofia Lamb's reasoning. Lamb tries to force a collectivist ideology onto others, but Jack, Dela, and Elizabeth already are the types of people she imagines. What changes is that they are utilitarian by choice, and that is the only way to create the "true utopian" she imagines. It once again calls to mind Andrew Ryan's famous words: "A man chooses, a slave obeys." There are other characters over the course of the series that display similar tendencies. Sinclair in <i>Bioshock 2 </i>ultimately leans in the direction of utilitarianism- even before the game his business (Sinclair Solutions) was founded specifically to help solve other people's problems (albeit in not always ethical or legal ways), and he spends the whole game aiding Subject Delta, even after being transformed into a Big Daddy. Even Booker Dewitte in <i>Bioshock: Infinite</i> ultimately allows himself to die to end the cruelty of his alternate self.<br />
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The ultimate message to be obtained from the <i>Bioshock </i>series, if one exists, is the inability to create a perfect society. Both Ryan's objectivist and Lamb's utilitarian systems ultimately prove to be their undoing. In the end, the effort to create a utopia of any kind is inherently doomed to failure, simply due to human imperfection. </div>
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John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-29321053420590799762019-04-21T07:51:00.001-07:002019-04-21T07:51:13.753-07:00Why Star Wars: Fallen Order is a Step Back for the Franchise<br />
The <i>Star Wars </i>franchise has a long relationship with video games. The sheer number of video games based on the <i>Star Wars </i>universe over the years is too long to list. They have filled any number of genres from shooters to strategy games to RPGs. Heck, quite a few major game developers have at some point or another worked on a <i>Star Wars </i>title at least once. So strong was the interest in <i>Star Wars </i>games that there was even an entire company, fittingly titled <i>LucasArts</i>, that mainly released <i>Star Wars</i> games (though not exclusively, they did have releases also based on <i>Indiana Jones</i> and occasionally licensed original content).<br />
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<i>Star Wars </i>video games have also had a polarizing range of reception. Critical reactions have varied from games turning out to be the worst of the worst to beloved classics that end up being a huge influence on later games and even create their own fandoms. Probably the most famous example of the latter is the <i>Knights of the Old Republic </i>series of role-playing games, elements of which can be seen in many subsequent RPGs, including the later <i>Mass Effect </i>series by the same developers.<br />
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While Disney's purchasing of <i>Star Wars </i>did lead to some positive developments, this is one area in which it unfortunately had a negative impact. LucasArts was more or less completely shut down, and the video game rights to <i>Star Wars </i>went to Electronic Arts (EA). So far the only major releases by EA have been <i>Battlefront </i>I and II (which was a reboot of an older series by LucasArts), and a few mobile games. Hardly the output that <i>LucasArts</i> was once known for.<br />
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Adding to the frustration was EA becoming embroiled in a series of scandals, mostly involving their use of microtransactions. To make a long story short, EA had been using strategies designed to extort money out of players. This had happened in several of their major franchises, but it understandably shook confidence in their role in making <i>Star Wars </i>video games. Not helping were statements from EA saying that they were planning to stick to multiplayer games and ditch single-player storylines, even going as far as to shut down production on another game that was being made.<br />
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So admittedly many of us were surprised by the reveal of a new game- <i>Star Wars: Fallen Order</i>, which promised a single-player campaign which EA proudly boasted would be free of micro-transactions. Unfortunately, even if they are sincere about this part, their efforts to improve somehow only took them backwards in a <i>different </i>direction. According to the information that has been released, the game takes place between the prequel and original trilogies, following a former padawan trying to survive in the aftermath of the Jedi Purge in <i>Revenge of the Sith</i>. Could be some interesting opportunities here, not that the trailer said much beyond introducing our new hero.<br />
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Unfortunately, it is upon seeing the new hero (who is about the only thing the trailer bothered to tell us anything about), it quickly becomes clear that we have a new problem in effect. One of the more positive aspects of Disney buying <i>Star Wars </i>is a much greater effort at diversity than the original films. We saw this on multiple occasions. In <i>The Force Awakens </i>the two main characters are a woman and a black man (who also show no romantic interest in each other).<br />
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We also got the female protagonist Jyn Erso for <i>Rogue One: A Star Wars </i>story. Jyn was a complex anti-hero who eventually became a committed rebel who indirectly set Luke's entire journey into motion. We also can't forget that in the same film she was accompanied by a diverse group of partners from various backgrounds. This is obviously a huge step up from the six films overseen by George Lucas, in which the majority of focus was on white men (Leia and Padme being exceptions).<br />
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We can also see this going further in some of the material outside the films. <i>Star Wars Rebels</i> made a firm point of introducing a diverse group of characters for its main cast. Its supporting cast also included a variety of both male and female characters of different ethnicity on both sides of the force. Ezra may have been the entry point to the series, but as it went on it turned more into an ensemble cast that often shifted the focus between different characters. As as a result, it's female characters of Hera and Sabine had their share of moments in the spotlight. If anything, those two were probably the best part of the show.<br />
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So imagine our disappointment when the trailer for <i>Star Wars: Fallen Order</i> was revealed and we learn that our protagonist is... yet another white man. Seriously, of all the choices they could have made, they went with this. They could have taken the opportunity to introduce a strong female lead, or a non-white protagonist, maybe a non-caucasian female, or at the very least make use of the numerous aliens that populate the <i>Star Wars </i>galaxy. Alternatively, they could have added in a character customization system, allowing the player to create their own character (i.e. a character they feel comfortable playing as)<br />
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But no, we get stuck with generic white man Cal Kestis, whose face is put onto every shot the game has to offer. The game barely shows us anything other than this generic mug that we've no doubt seen on a thousand other protagonists. The trailers don't even give us a sense of any other characters besides him, so it's hard to even be completely sure if they at least have a diverse supporting cast. This is absurd.<br />
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About ten years ago, it might have been possible to get away with this type of practice, as some games from that era show. But this is not that time. The days of masculine heroes made by developers who assumed they were marketing to guys are over. In this day and age we need a more diverse array of heroes. We've seen it work with other franchises that have traditionally been male-dominated, why not here?<br />
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The <i>Call of Duty </i>franchise, for instance, has had a long history of stories centered on male bonding. The first few games took place during World War II, and generally revolved on male soldiers (with the exception of Tanya Pavelovna in <i>Finest Hour</i>), and there were next to no female characters across the <i>Modern Warfare </i>games. <i>Black Ops</i> didn't have much either, and <i>Black Ops II </i>only had a female civilian who has to be protected by men. <i>Advanced Warfare </i>actually had a female soldier as one of the players' allies. <i>Black Ops III </i>on the other hand allowed the player to choose their character's sex (though there was a somewhat confusing plot about how they actually died at the beginning of the game but had their consciousness uploaded into another guy's brain), as well as multiple female supporting characters. This pattern has generally continued through subsequent games.<br />
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<i>Far Cry </i>is another great example. One of the many ways <i>Far Cry 2 </i>has aged poorly (aside from its weak attempt at a twist ending) is the fact that the player is given nine different playable characters to choose from, all of whom can be encountered in the game as so-called "buddies," and all of whom are male. The thing is, in addition to those characters, there are three female "buddies" that function more or less the same as the males, and yet they are excluded from the players' selection.<br />
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This is especially frustrating when one realizes that it could easily have been done. The entire game is experienced in the first person, and whichever character the player chooses remains silent throughout. This literally means that the only animation that would have to change would be the two arms in front of the camera. They might have to have to record some alternate lines of dialogue where gender-specific pronouns are used, but it would have been entirely feasible.<br />
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Why did they not choose to make the female characters playable? I don't know if there's a specific reason, but my guess is such a possibility didn't cross the minds of the developers. They were working in a different time when they were probably more accustomed to seeing male heroes and assumed that the majority of players of their game would be men who would want to play as a man.<br />
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The good news for the <i>Far Cry </i>series is that the developers actually learned from their mistakes and began working to improve. Contrast the absurdly masculine tone of <i>Far Cry 2 </i>with the more open-minded structure of <i>Far Cry 5</i>, released ten years later. This time around, the developers had started to realize that they needed to better represent a diverse fanbase. Not only did they include a diverse group of supporting characters, they also added full customization so the player could create the character they felt comfortable with, including options to be female and/or non-caucasian.<br />
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<i>Dishonored </i>managed it in record time. The first game took place in a patriarchal society inspired by the Industrial Revolution, but once the developers heard requests for more diversity they quickly got on top of it. In the two downloadable campaigns featuring Daud, the developers made a firm investment in trying to add a mix of both male and female characters of different ethnicities (including Billie Lurke, who was later revealed to be bisexual). <i>Dishonored 2 </i>did one better, letting the player choose between two different characters, either once again playing as Corvo (the male protagonist of the first game) and his daughter Emily Kaldwin.<br />
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While <i>Assassin's Creed </i>has had an extremely diverse cast of NPCs one can't help but notice that the player characters are largely male. It took <i>five </i>games before we got our first female protagonist (and even then, only in the spin-off game <i>Liberation</i>). This is obviously something that had fans annoyed for a while, but the developers listened. After some backlash towards a few remarks about the lack of female assassins in the multiplayer missions for <i>Assassin's Creed: Unity</i>, Ubisoft began working on finding more diversity for players.<br />
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In <i>Assassin's Creed: Syndicate</i> the player rotates between the twins Jacob and Evie Frye, and can pretty much choose whichever they want while exploring its world (though specific missions require the player to be one or the other). The bulk of <i>Assassin's Creed: Origins </i>sees the player controlling a black man, the medjay Bayek, with sections in which his wife Aya becomes playable. <i>Odyssey </i>actually lets the player choose between a male and female version of the player character to allow players to choose whichever sex they feel more comfortable playing.<br />
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So if these games are any indication, we are living in a changing world in which we need to work on increasing representation of different people. The fact that these franchises began as predominantly masculine is not okay, which is exactly <i>why </i>the developers behind them have been hard at work trying to make them better. It's the same with genres, too. Notice for instance the diversity of a multiplayer shooter like <i>Rainbow Six: Siege </i>and <i>Overwatch</i>, unlike older models such as the <i>Counter Strike </i>series and <i>Team Fortress 2</i> (both of which lack female playable characters).<br />
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And from there we once again find ourselves with this disgusting brown-haired pretty boy Cal Kestis. After all the effort we've seen from the rest of the <i>Star Wars </i>franchise, and from other gaming franchises, we're once again stuck with a generic white male (and probably straight) hero. All this seems to indicate is that EA has learned nothing from other franchises, including its own. One would think they would be willing to consider adding diversity after the popularity of the <i>Fifa </i>series (which actually added women's teams) and Battlefield V (which was promised to make a point of showing the contributions of women in World War II, even placing a woman on the cover). Evidently, that is not the case.<br />
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And all we really know about him is that he's just a generic white male who's going to go on some epic journey and do something. We literally know nothing about the character beyond his face. He is bland, dull, and completely unappealing as a hero. Why couldn't we have a strong female lead or, better yet, the option to create our own protagonist for this journey? As it stands, if <i>Star Wars: Fallen Order </i>hopes to prove us all wrong, EA had better get their act together.<br />
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John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-40469567523709779372019-04-16T13:47:00.003-07:002019-04-16T13:47:39.799-07:00The Not-So-Missing Link<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Sir Robert Frost (Hugh Jackman) is an aspiring adventurer with a fascination for paranormal creatures. Unfortunately, he finds he is not taken seriously by his Victorian peers and his efforts to change their mind prove futile. He is particularly despised by the head of the Explorers' Club, Lord Piggot-Dunceby (Stephen Fry), a man who insists he is leading the "civilized" society of "great men" while his arrogance and closed-mindedness constantly betray his true savage nature. Dunceby is rooted in the past, refusing to except new ideas like the concept of evolution and women's suffrage. Frost is constantly seeking out adventures in the hopes of joining their ranks to no avail.<br />
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After an unsuccessful attempt to prove the existence of the Loch Ness monster (he finds it, but fails to obtain solid evidence of its existence) and the resignation of his valet, Frost finds a new opportunity when he receives a lead on the legendary creature known as Sasquatch- a possible missing link in the evolution of humanity-Vowing to prove himself to the Explorers' Club, Frost places a bet with Dunceby that he can prove its existence.<br />
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Amazingly, not only does Frost find the sasquatch (Zach Galifianakis<span style="color: #222222; font-family: sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px;">)</span></span>, but discovers it is an intelligent creature who can speak, read, and write in English. Said sasquatch actually turns out to be quite friendly, and actively seeking out Frost. He's lonely, and looking for his place in the world. The only lead to where there might be other sasquatches is in legends of yetis in the Himilayas.<br />
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The two of them strike a deal- Frost brings the sasquatch to the Himilayas in exchange for all the evidence he needs of his discovery. Also thrown into the mix is Frost's former girlfriend Adelina Fortnight (Zoe Saldana), who gets brought along for the ride. But Dunceby is determined to preserve his "civilized" society and hires a big-game hunter to kill them and make sure Frost has no chance of winning the bet.<br />
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The result is a fast-paced action adventure rendered in impressive stop-motion. The animation in this film is <i>amazingly </i>smooth. Without proper context one could easily be forgiven for not even realizing this <i>is </i>stop motion, that's how impressive it is. The amount of detail that goes into the animation is incredible- from the intricate movements of its characters to the beautiful scenery that makes up the various environments encountered by its characters (and which many of the action scenes love taking advantage of). The quality of the stop-motion alone is enough to make this a worthwhile experience.<br />
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And yet it would hardly to justice to simply call <i>Missing Link </i>a mere spectacle of animation. There are far more complex layers to this story than one might expect. Between its various brands of humor (which includes slapstick, absurdist, intellectual jokes, and dark comedy) and over-the-top action scenes there are some really well-written and very emotional character interactions, and they even managed to fit in a bit of social commentary. This is part of what makes Dunceby such an effective antagonist, that for his goofy design and silly name his attitude feels remarkably genuine for his setting. (this is fitting with the irony of his role- a "civilized" man who constantly displays behavior that would be considered "savage")<br />
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The three heroes prove an effective team. The relationship between Frost and the sasquatch (who adopts the name "Susan") is surprisingly complex and turns out to have a lot of detail, even while in the middle of slapstick gags involving Susan's size and strength or his efforts to blend in with humans by wearing a suit. But we also can't ignore the role of Zoe Saldana. Adalina proves to be a very strong character from the moment she is introduced, and she spends much of the film proving her worth as an adventurer every bit as capable as Frost, sometimes even more so. She never feels like she's just there to be used by the men or to be looked at by the audience.<br />
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Finally, the story is extremely compelling. The narrative itself is pretty straight forward but includes a variety of twists and turns (special mention to when they actually reach the Himilayas- though I can't say why without giving away spoilers). It ultimately asks a lot of questions about where our heroes belong. What does it mean to be a "great man" (or woman, or Bigfoot) and what does it really mean to be "civilized?" And what does it mean to find one's place in the world, which is often not where you expect?<br />
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<i>Missing Link </i>is a must-see for fans of stop-motion. It is an incredibly well-crafted film that will appeal to all ages. Kids will enjoy the animation, the humor, and the fast-paced action while adults get all that plus a few deeper layers. John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-91088982727570415482019-01-26T14:23:00.001-08:002019-01-26T14:24:12.236-08:00To Be a Free Man: Understanding the Futility of Freedom in Half-Life<br />
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The full <i>Half-Life </i>series currently comprises two main games, a series of expansions to the first installment, and two episodes continuing the story of the second game. The gameplay is fairly simple, focusing on a mix of first-person shooter action and problem-solving that usually require the player character to get from once place to another while avoiding obstacles and enemies.<br />
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In the first game, the player assumes the role of Gordon Freeman, a scientist newly hired at the Black Mesa laboratory. Shortly after his arrival, an experiment goes wrong causing a resonance cascade that results in the laboratory being infested by aliens from another dimension. Gordon then finds himself battling through both aliens and marines sent to cover up the disaster eventually travelling to the dimension of Xen where he defeats the nihilanth (the apparent "boss alien"). <i>Half-Life 2 </i>picks up twenty years later, where the world has been taken over by a ruthless alien race known as the Combine, and Gordon Freeman becomes the leader of a revolution.<br />
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But this is where the situation gets more complicated. The themes of freedom and liberation are hardly subtle. It's even reflected in the protagonist's name: Gordon <b>FREE</b>man. Yet the irony is that Gordon Freeman, the so-called "One Free Man" is never truly free. He is constantly subordinated to someone or something in what seems to be a never-ending chain of command. Throughout the series, Gordon Freeman is constantly under the thumb of a mysterious figure of authority. The true identity of this unnamed man remains a mystery still debated among fans of the games. Numerous fan theories exist to explain his apparently metaphysical presence, and the uncertainty of whether he's even human.<br />
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However, the identity of this character, known in the community as "G-Man" (derived from his filename) is ultimately not as important as what he represents to the world of <i>Half-Life</i>. Whoever this guy is is ultimately irrelevant. What matters is that he is the puppet master behind Gordon Freeman. Whatever his endgoals are, and for better or worse, he displays a firm investment in Freeman's activities and appears to be working toward specific outcomes (even if to what end remains unclear). Throughout both <i>Half-Life </i>and <i>Half-Life 2 </i>G-Man makes routine cameos where he appears to be observing Gordon, or otherwise taking an interest in the setting. Both games also see G-Man congratulating Gordon for his efforts, implying that the player did indeed produce G-Man's desired outcome.<br />
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At the end of <i>Half-Life</i>, G-Man appears to offer Gordon a "job opportunity," yet the game implies that this is not a choice on Gordon's part. G-Man appears to consider Gordon a valuable asset for reasons unclear and wants to make use of him again, and subsequently puts him into stasis until the events of <i>Half-Life 2</i>. In that game, G-Man once again awakens Gordon, only to once again suspend him in stasis as the film's conclusion after, once again, Gordon has produced the desired outcome. G-Man has essentially enslaved Gordon and is treating him like one might a tool, literally the same way one might treat a hammer or a screwdriver. Gordon is taken out when he is needed, but when he is no longer useful he is placed back into stasis, a sort of "toolbox" where he is stored until such a time as he is needed again.<br />
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This adds a peculiar irony to the events of <i>Half-Life 2</i>, where Gordon is drawn into the resistance against the oppressive Combine. He becomes a beacon of freedom towards everyone. The vortigaunts, once enslaved by the antagonists of the first game, now happily aid Freeman. By the end of the game resistance members eagerly follow him and place their trust in his leadership. But is this really freedom? Or are we only seeing a transition from one handler to another?<br />
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As the player already knows, Gordon is trapped under the thumb of G-Man, with no clear means of escape (this is accomplished in <i>Half-Life 2: Episode 1</i>, but G-Man's reaction suggests this is little more than a temporary setback). And yet the vortigaunts are calling him the "One Free Man," a moniker the player knows to be false. In short, Gordon Freeman, the leader of the freedom fighters is himself under the control of someone else, only he is given strings that can be seen by nobody else.<br />
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The futility of Gordon's efforts at freedom is further reinforced by the decision of Valve to treat him as a silent protagonist. Throughout the series Gordon never speaks a single word, not even so much as a grunt. The series is also experienced in the first-person- Gordon's face is only ever seen on the game boxes and posters. This deprives Gordon the chance to express himself in any meaningful way. By keeping him from speaking, Gordon is unable to share his thoughts or opinions on any issue. The first-person perspective prevents him from emoting. This is also fitting as there is another dimension to his character.<br />
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G-Man is not the only one manipulating Gordon. He is also being controlled more directly by someone else- the player. Every action Gordon performs is up to the player. Gordon's movements are based on the actions of a figure who, within the diegesis, shouldn't even exist. As a silent protagonist whose story is seen in the first person, he never gets a chance to properly share any independent thought, personality, or emotions. They are whatever the player decides them to be. So even when Gordon is released from G-Man's grip by the vortigaunts, he is never released from the player's.<br />
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Furthermore, in addition to the players, Gordon's path and actions are dictated by the game's writers and developers. His movements are controlled by an entity he doesn't know exists, and his story is scripted. Freeman is therefore perhaps the least free of all the cast of <i>Half-Life</i>, without so much as a means to share or even indicate any real independent thought. Gordon is a puppet on three different fronts, and he can only recognize the strings of one of his puppet masters. He is about as far from a "free man" as can be imagined.<br />
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And yet, the contradiction of the so-called "Free Man" and his constant imprisonment is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the themes of control. While Gordon Freeman is indeed being manipulated by forces he can't control, he also has puppets of his own in the form of his apparent allies. Part way through <i>Half-Life 2</i> one of the Vortigaunts provides Gordon a means of controlling the antlions (a hive-minded race of insectoid aliens) by harvesting Pheropods. As a result, the antlions become Gordon's personal army.<br />
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Now the puppet has become a puppeteer. The antlions under Gordon's control blindly follow his orders, taking on enemies and being ready to get themselves killed on mass just to protect Gordon. Just as Gordon cannot see that he is being controlled by the player, now the antlions become his unwitting servants, fighting and dying for him all while being unable to see or even comprehend the strings that are manipulating them.<br />
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Once Gordon reaches the levels <i>Anticitizen One </i>and <i>Follow Freeman</i>, the antlions are replaced by human resistance members. "Hey everybody," the rebels yell as they join him, "Follow Freeman!" These are freedom fighters, driven by a desire to end the oppression of the Combine and liberate humanity, but in fact they are now Gordon's servants. He can instruct them on where to go, when to hold position, when to follow, and they obey his orders.<br />
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These people are devoting themselves to following Freeman, meaning they are in fact becoming his puppets. Just as Freeman is being manipulated by G-Man, now he manipulates the resistance. The only difference is that the resistance can't see that they're being controlled, and that they are not truly free.<br />
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And yet this is only what is seen through the perspective of Freeman himself. Let us shift our perspective for a moment and consider the character of the so-called "G-Man." We never do find out exactly who he is or what his intentions are, beyond that he seems to have an investment in Gordon's success and the implication that he may not be entirely human. He is even shown to be able to freeze time itself. It is obvious that G-Man is a powerful figure, perhaps moreso than even Gordon could begin to understand. When he is not directly obverving Freeman, he is seen interacting with other characters in ambiguous conversations. The expansion <i>Opposing Force </i>even implies that G-Man was the one who sent the marines into Black Mesa. This would seem to suggest he is a boss figure of some sort, the man in control of everything...<br />
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Except that is not in fact what he is. He may appear this way as far as any human is concerned, but one important detail is G-Man's references to his "employers." Who G-Man works for is an even bigger mystery than the man himself, but it is clear that he is working for <i>someone</i>. This is not some all-powerful being manipulating everything for his own personal gain, but an agent or employee acting on behalf of an even <i>bigger </i>party, someone so high up that we have no idea who they even are. This means that G-Man may in fact have no more control over anything that goes on than Gordon himself, and his actions are mainly conducted to suit the needs of his unknown employers.<br />
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This does leave an interesting question to think about. If G-Man is himself being controlled by someone else, whoever they are, is that party also being controlled by someone else? Is this simply a never-ending chain of command, servants controlling servants who control servants? This appears to be the case when one examines Gordon's enemies. In the first game, Freeman is battling a mix of aliens and U.S. Marines. In the second, he is mainly fighting his way through the Combine forces, with a particular emphasis on their human propaganda master Wallace Breen.<br />
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Breen is an interesting case study given his status as the "face" of the dystopian world established in <i>Half-Life 2</i>. In keeping with its not-so-subtle Orwellian influence, Breen takes on the role of a "big-brother"-like figure who regularly appears on screens to deliver messages encouraging City 17's residents to be compliant and submit to the Combine authority. Among the city's residents he is a figure of resentment and a symbol of the Combine's oppression. The man basically sold out humanity when the combine first arrived (though this proved the only way to ensure humanity's survival). As a result he has practically enslaved the entire human race, enjoying the privileges of his role as administrator while trying to comfort everyone else with exaggerated claims about the supposed long-term benefits of Combine rule (even referring to them on-camera as "Our Benefactors").<br />
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But Breen is himself little more than a puppet for the Combine. His job is simply to go along with whatever they desire and find some way to present it to the human population as a positive move. Under Breen's direction, it is implied that humans are stripped of everything that makes them individuals to turn them into the ruthless metro police and and the soldiers who routinely work to stop Gordon Freeman, but they are ultimately serving the Combine, not Breen. Breen is only a tool used by the Combine to subjugate humanity. He is ultimately using his position of authority to work toward their interests. Once again we a puppet, albeit a puppet who also has puppets of his own.</div>
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Curiously, in <i>Half-Life 2: Episode 1</i> we see the screens once again being used, this time by Dr. Isaac Kleiner. This comes after the revolution started in the previous game, after Breen has been deposed from his position as administrator for humanity. Kleiner instead takes up a suspiciously similar role, even if he is now speaking on behalf of the resistance. We hear him instructing humanity on what to do, and how they should feel about the Combine recognizing them as "malefactors" (echoing Breen's referring to them as "Our Benefactors" throughout <i>Half-Life 2</i>). He even begins providing instructions for any humans who aren't in immediate danger to begin reproducing to re-establish the human race. It leaves us to wonder: is anything really changed? Has the resistance made things better or are we only replacing one authoritarian regime with another?</div>
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Likewise, in <i>Half-Life</i> both groups of antagonists are acting on behalf of other authorities. The marines who arrive to cover up the Black Mesa incident are themselves implied to be manipulated by G-Man. They are only acting under orders, not even fully understanding why they have been deployed or to what end they are working. They are only acting under orders, not out of any malevolence to Black Mesa, on a mission that appears to have been meticulously planned by someone well above their level of command.</div>
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The aliens that invade Black Mesa have been enslaved by a creature called the Nihilanth, a peculiar telepathic entity that rules the dimension of Xen. The Nihilinth serves as the primary antagonist and ultimately the final boss. But it ultimately turns out that the whole reason the aliens were in Xen to begin with was because they had themselves been enslaved by the Combine (the primary antagonists of the second game). The enslaved had now become the slaver.</div>
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Furthermore, the Vortigaunts find themselves in a peculiar position. They were previously enslaved by the Nihilinth until it was defeated by Gordon. This leads to the Vortigaunts developing a particular respect for Freeman, to the point where he takes on an almost messianic quality in their view. They become extremely loyal and willing to do almost anything for the person they have come to know as "The Free Man" (who, as we have established, is not in fact free in any sense). Throughout <i>Half-Life 2</i> and its episodes the Vortigaunts provide Freeman with various services. This suggests that Gordon did not in fact liberate the Vortigaunts, but that he merely replaced the Nihilanth as their master while they unknowingly continue to be controlled by their own blind loyalty.</div>
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Given these patterns, one is left to wonder about the Combine, who at first seemed to be brutal imperialists interested only in domination. We never do find out just who or what runs the full empire, something only alluded to by the transmission sent in <i>Half-Life 2: Episode 1</i>, but what we have seen of the other characters suggests some interesting questions about what might be found if the series had continue or were to be revived. Is it not possible that, given what we've seen, the oppression and brutality exerted by the Combine forces is in fact because they themselves are being controlled by something else?<br />
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At the end of the day, we are left with a simple question: what is freedom? What does it mean to be free? Can one ever be truly free or do they just change controllers? These are the questions which the series constantly wrestles. Their answer? Freedom is an abstract concept constructed in our minds, one for which we constantly feel we must strive towards and yet can never truly attain. True freedom is impossible. The closest one can get is the illusion of freedom brought on by strings they cannot see. Everyone is locked in a series of endless chains of command- servants controlling servants controlling servants, in an inter-tangled web of manipulation and control.<br />
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<br />John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-31170159806524099502018-03-21T13:41:00.001-07:002018-03-21T13:41:08.300-07:00Thursday Movie Picks: Childhood Favorites<br />
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This week, the theme for Wanderer's <a href="http://wanderingthroughtheshelves.blogspot.ca/p/blog-page.html">Thursday Movie Picks Meme</a> is childhood favorites. This one is a tricky one to select as it's difficult to remember everything I loved as a child. Also a lot of what I was watching was on VHS tapes so there wasn't much of a distinction at the time between "movie" and "VHS compilations of a TV show" back then so it's hard to sort through what definitively counts.<br />
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I also remember have some more embarrassing entertainment moments. Here's a fun story: when I was first read the climax of <i>Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone</i> (the part where Harry confronts Quirrel and he turns out to have Voldemort on the back of his head) I was so scared I was probably the only person who didn't want to watch the movie. When my parents took me to see it anyway, I got so panicked at that moment I had to be<i> taken out of the theater</i> until the scene was over. I remember it also took a few years and some gradual adjustments before I was finally able to watch the full movie without having to leave the room as soon as that scene came up.<br />
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Still, I've tried to come up with a good list of a few classics.<br />
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Journey to the Center of the Earth (1958)</h3>
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I watched this one so many times when I was younger. I was a big Jules Verne fan and found myself captivated by this version (incidentally, this one is in every possible way superior to that insulting 2008 3D version everyone was talking about for a while). It easily became a personal favorite and one I watched over and over again. The other one I loved was <i>20,000 Leagues Under the Sea</i> but it wasn't until much later I got a chance to really examine that one in depth.</div>
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The Wrong Trousers (1993)</h3>
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As a kid, I was a huge fan of <i>Wallace and Gromit</i> and owned all three of the original short films on VHS; but <i>The Wrong Trousers</i> was probably my favorite of the three. This one is plain bizarre and hilarious in so many ways. After all, this is the film that literally revolves around the acquisition of electronic pants (come on, tell me you didn't want your own pair of techno trousers as a kid). It then goes on to involve Wallace renting Gromit's room to a penguin who is really a criminal mastermind planning to steal a valuable diamond, and ultimately culminates in an epic train chase worthy of Buster Keaton...on a model train! (see picture) </div>
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What's not to love about this? Just the bizarre gadgets Wallace has on hand are amusing enough (he has an unusually convoluted morning routine, which ends up getting sabotaged), but also the fun uses it finds for model trains (come on, tell me you wouldn't want a train setup like this one). It's also remarkable how complex Gromit can be without making a round (Wallace is the only speaking role).</div>
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Real Wheels/There Goes A... (1993-2003)</h3>
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I guess this technically counts, though I'm not sure if anyone else here will actually remember these old videos. I used to watch them all the time. Basically, it was a series of short documentaries (usually around 45 minutes) hosted by Dave Hood (several them also featured his co-star Becky) which would talk about different types of vehicles. The films combine documentary film-making with slapstick and screwball comedy to educate kids about how different types of vehicles work and different ways they are used.</div>
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Most of them tend to focus on Dave, sometimes accompanied by his co-star Becky, as hosts who are allowed to "pretend for the day" that they are in a specific job so they can learn about the vehicle in question. This often leads to a number of sketches where they consult experts and try to perform aspects of their pretend job only to botch it up in humorous ways. That is also intercut with straightforward documentary portions that allow experts to talk about the vehicles or their history in some cases.</div>
John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-62698929592940181242018-03-08T11:16:00.000-08:002018-03-08T14:26:36.046-08:00Thursday Movie Picks: Just One Day<br />
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This week, the theme for Wanderer's <a href="http://wanderingthroughtheshelves.blogspot.ca/p/blog-page.html">Thursday Movie Picks</a> is Just One Day, as in films that take place over the course of a single day. I had one or two good choices for this one but unfortunately I've been preoccupied with a lot so a lot of this I've had to throw together at the last minute (almost literally). I had a good first one then never got around to writing much for the others so hopefully I still have some good choices. Keeping up with my blog has been a bit difficult lately but I'm doing what I can.<br />
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I do hope to try and keep up with Thursday Movie Picks at least, though I have struggled with some writer's block that's made it hard to come up with good choices for everything.<br />
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Do the Right Thing (1989)</h3>
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This is definitely one of those films you have to watch multiple times to fully appreciate, and admittedly I've only seen it twice. I know at least one blogger who is in many ways far more qualified to discuss Spike Lee's <i>Do the Right Thing</i> than I am, but I'll try my best.<br />
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<i>Do the Right Thing</i> is what you might call a very unconventional approach to addressing the issue of racial tensions in a predominantly-black neighborhood. This tension is symbolically shown by the motif of heat- the story takes place on the hottest day of the year. While racial tensions are undoubtedly present, the film encourages its audience to find the right way of overcoming them. The film presents us with people who are right for the wrong reasons (mainly through the excruciatingly annoying character of "Buggin' Out"), and eventually culminates in a big riot that fails to accomplish anything.<br />
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Before Sunrise (1995)</h3>
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The first installment of Richard Linklater's <i>Before</i> trilogy, and also arguably proof that he is the most patient man in the world (how many other directors can stay committed to a series where each installment has a ten-year gap between them, <i>while</i> also filming a boy's aging in real time). This is a fun romance that follows the unlikely bond between two young people who happen to meet by chance on a train in Vienna, trying to make the most of their one night together not being sure if they will ever see each other again. Such as simple but engaging little piece.<br />
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Life in a Day (2011)</h3>
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This was a bizarre experiment by Ridley Scott which took a documentary approach to "Just one Day" in the most broadest possible sense. He literally had people record moments of their life on a single day and submit it. The full movie is a compilation of all those occurrences, events happening around the world which are connected by the fact that they all occur on exactly the same day.</div>
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John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-68820640736318659162018-02-14T17:04:00.002-08:002018-02-14T17:04:31.614-08:00Thursday Movie Picks: Break into Song Scenes (Non-Musical)<br />
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This week, the theme for Wanderer's <a href="http://wanderingthroughtheshelves.blogspot.ca/p/blog-page.html">Thursday Movie Picks Meme</a> is non-musical films that have a scene where characters break into song. This is certainly an unusual choice for a category. It's hard to think of films that have a musical number without accidentally going back to musicals.<br />
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For this list, I have made sure to include images of the musical numbers from each film so that it is clear what I'm referring to.<br />
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Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)</h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ1CqYCsvlUe915FvRIVAD18pUJoYFx0KuVgKw9x3j28bUi1Se1OR5pSWdvToxmX7tGs8gGgyXAQAKRvIKW9KotZn4_zwSLqltyLdTbTClOn1x-4r1_8tUoQV8HUCoaXvQf9bKe4dm7iw/s1600/Camelot-monty-python-and-the-holy-grail-591550_800_441.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="441" data-original-width="800" height="176" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ1CqYCsvlUe915FvRIVAD18pUJoYFx0KuVgKw9x3j28bUi1Se1OR5pSWdvToxmX7tGs8gGgyXAQAKRvIKW9KotZn4_zwSLqltyLdTbTClOn1x-4r1_8tUoQV8HUCoaXvQf9bKe4dm7iw/s320/Camelot-monty-python-and-the-holy-grail-591550_800_441.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Monty Python has occasionally delighted in enhancing its already bizarre comedy with surreal musical numbers. <i style="font-weight: normal;">Monty Python and the Holy Grail</i> does this memorably early on. King Arthur has assembled his knights, and introduces them to Camelot. Cue a bizarre musical number about being Knights of the Round Table. It's not even clear exactly how this classic sequence fits into the diegesis of the world (whatever it is, it's apparently enough to convince Arthur that Camelot is "a silly place" and that his knights should avoid it). This is the only real musical number (other songs featured, such as "Brave Sir Robin," don't have the same flare). The number primarily features singing and dancing knights around different parts of the castle's great hall. They dance around and knock over silverware. At one point a peasant plays a percussion solo by striking several knights with a ladle (and hits a peasant by accident). They even have a prisoner in the dungeon who claps along to the merriment!</div>
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The film also makes a joke about musical numbers during its "Tale of Sir Lancelot" segment. This section follows Prince Herbert, who is trapped in an arranged marriage with a princess. Throughout the segment, Herbert keeps trying to break into song only for the music to be abruptly stopped by his father (who is very adamant against him doing a song). This also results in an interesting touch when Herbert manages to start a musical number at the end of the section (to his father's irritation), and we <i>still </i>never hear him actually sing anything</div>
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History of the World: Part I</h3>
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Mel Brooks' bizarre mock-historical drama provides a variety of peculiar sequences depicting outlandish interpretations of famous events, but special mention goes to a very bizarre sequence where we are introduced to the Spanish Inquisition. This infamous organization known for its ruthlessness and cruelty is represented by... an upbeat and extremely cheerful musical performance where Brooks himself plays their musical number. Lots of weird choreography ensues as the Inquisition very cheerfully tries to force its prisoners to convert.</div>
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Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002)</h3>
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The third and final installment of the <i>Austin Powers</i> series of James Bond spoofs features a very weird musical number that marks an especially weird moment in what is already a very surreal and nonsensical plot. Professional bad guy Dr. Evil (Mike Myers) has been thrown into prison by the hero (also played by Mike Myers) and tries to devise an escape plan. His plan amounts to getting every other prisoner to start a riot so the guards don't notice when he and his sidekick Mini Me walk out the front gate. To get them motivated, he performs a bizarre hybrid of lip-syncing "It's a Hard Knock Life" and rap verses.<br />
<br />John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-42067950385168317282018-02-12T09:34:00.003-08:002018-02-12T09:34:52.291-08:00Narration in the First Person<br />
The concepts of first, second, and third person are often associated with a variety of different media. They are perhaps most commonly associated with literary criticism, in which case the terms are used in relation to how the story is narrated. When a piece of literature is narrated in the first person, this means it is presented as though the story is directly related to the reader by at least one of its characters. More extreme variations might have multiple narrators taking turns, but the point remains that it is a character in the story directly relating its events to the reader.<br />
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Third-person meanwhile, implies a story which is presented by an external narrator. The narrator is not a character within the story, nor are they given any real identity. Now there are variations on how third-person can be used which present a number of different sub-types but the same basic concept remains. An easy way to distinguish is to look at what pronouns are used by the prose. First-person narration will make heavy use of the words "I" or "we" while third-person will not use those words outside of quoting dialogue.<br />
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We also see these same terms being used in video games, with modified but similar definitions to those in the literary tradition. Typically, a first-person game is designed so that the player experiences most of the action through the eyes of a character. The player character is thus unseen except for parts (usually the arms) directly in front of them. A third-person game on the other hand makes its protagonist clearly visible. The player character is often placed front and center, within view of the player.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6DiUN8fYNKVvPzCjYof8dNOMz5mJopTIVnotkCUY66TLjgGO3DiNY3TSHPvgNoOrcR9eFIf6lZ8lGES0Wpvy-0dHfTFwqV7_okTXp-WpUFJLCyUwualF9ILkGJGh1wxFxuo1d7_2YFus/s1600/First+vs.+Third+Person.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="505" data-original-width="450" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6DiUN8fYNKVvPzCjYof8dNOMz5mJopTIVnotkCUY66TLjgGO3DiNY3TSHPvgNoOrcR9eFIf6lZ8lGES0Wpvy-0dHfTFwqV7_okTXp-WpUFJLCyUwualF9ILkGJGh1wxFxuo1d7_2YFus/s320/First+vs.+Third+Person.png" width="285" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">A simple contrast of first and third-person perspectives</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Images taken from <i>Far Cry: Primal</i> (first-person) and <i>Rise of the Tomb Raider</i> (third-person)</span></div>
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The reason I bring this up is not to valorize or discredit one such mode as better or worse. Both are legitimate methods of presenting their story and first and third-person have both been used to create some excellent games. These two methods are also far from mutually exclusive. Some games opt to allow the player to choose between first and third person with the push of a button (as in the case of <i>Skyrim</i>). Alternatively, some games will use both as in the case of <i>Assassin's Creed: Black Flag</i>, where Edward Kenway's story is played in the third person but the modern-day sections are seen in the first.<br />
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My main interest with this article is to discuss the format of first-person narration specifically, and its changing role over time. For the purposes of this article, we will take as our definition of first person that we are seeing the action through the eyes of a character in the story. But I am also interested in where it works and where it has not. One might note for instance that first-person movies are hard to come by, yet its become such a popular format for video games that entire genres have been created around it.<br />
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Experiments in first-person, or "subjective" narration as it was known a the time, have been seen on a number of occasions in film. One of the most recent attempts was the action blockbuster <i>Hardcore Henry</i>, but the style goes back farther. One early example of this same idea being attempted is the 1947 film noir <i>Lady of the Lake</i>. This particular film was the culmination of a period of experiments on subjectivity within Hollywood films, and was presented as though the audience is seeing through the eyes of its protagonist, Phillip Marlowe. The film was advertised with the idea that the audience is the detective, and that they are the ones solving the mystery.<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>Lady of the Lake</i> (1947|) is shown entirely through the eyes of its protagonist, Phillip Marlowe. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">He is only visible whenever he sees a reflection of himself</span></div>
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Orson Welles also attempted to do this an adaptation of Joseph Conrad's <i>Heart of Darkness</i>, which would have been seen entirely through the eyes of its protagonist Charles Marlow (said protagonist would have only been seen in silhouette shots that framed the story). This film ended up going significantly over budget before production could begin and was never made. <i>Lady of the Lake </i>wasn't a huge success on release, mainly because it had nothing going for it beyond a single gimmick that wore thin quickly. Likewise, <i>Hardcore Henry </i>also received a very mixed reception for its first-person aspects.<br />
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As far as Hollywood is concerned, a point-of-view film is nothing more than a cheap gimmick. It's not worth it. Viewing the world literally through the eyes of a character ends up doing nothing more than keeping you from viewing the character in question. There doesn't seem to be much to be gained from it. If anything it is more likely to make the audience feel alienated and confused. After all, in <i>Lady of the Lake</i> the viewer is not actually solving the mystery, they are simply stuck watching someone else solve a mystery through his eyes.<br />
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Yet this format does not seem to be wholly invalidated as a means of storytelling.While the first-person feature film does not seem to work, it has found its way into other formats. Video games have become very fond of the first-person format to the point where an entire genre has been created around it. It is not that unusual for video games to take on the approach of being seen through the eyes of a character either pre-designed or customized by the player (or whose identity is even kept entirely ambiguous and open to interpretation).<br />
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One of the most iconic video game genres is the first-person shooter, which itself has spawned a variety of sub-genres. Games like <i>Call of Duty</i>, <i>Rainbow Six</i>, and <i>Far Cry</i> all take on this format of placing the player into a difficult situation and challenging them to complete tasks without getting killed in the process. Usually this entails perceiving the world through the eyes of a character, only seeing their hands and weapon in front of them during gameplay.<br />
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Some even go to the extreme of carrying this format over to cutscenes. <i>Rainbow Six: Vegas 2</i> forgoes cutscenes entirely to keep the perspective in the first person. The <i>Call of Duty</i> series follows a similar pattern of the game's action being experienced in the first person (though characters do sometimes appear in cutscenes, depending on the game). In <i>Modern Warfare </i>this comes up on several notable occasions.<br />
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One early scene has the player taking on the role of Al-Fulani, a politician displaced in a recent coup, as he is kidnapped and executed. Throughout this section, the player is unable to do much with the character beyond turning his head. But through the character's eyes they are able to witness the chaos resulting from the incident. Later in the campaign similar situation occurs when the player witnesses a nuclear explosion through the eyes of Sergeant Paul Jackson, followed by the level "Aftermath" which serves the sole function of allowing the player to experience his last moments.<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Early in <i>Call of Duty: Modern Warfare</i>, the player assumes the role of Al-Fulani, </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">as he is kidnapped and executed by the game's main antagonists. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj79wpdoTw5EwVxU3r1hphKMcqQDqzEdxxSPKju2OyDRYLz9Y61ZySfzzCaSgMnNHAfZy6D-96XbMlgfTw9IO173T_KhDJ3pEcdvmGDAegBrS5bBz_q3E-1ZB8LfHHYPg4rOWi48SWVfoo/s1600/maxresdefault+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj79wpdoTw5EwVxU3r1hphKMcqQDqzEdxxSPKju2OyDRYLz9Y61ZySfzzCaSgMnNHAfZy6D-96XbMlgfTw9IO173T_KhDJ3pEcdvmGDAegBrS5bBz_q3E-1ZB8LfHHYPg4rOWi48SWVfoo/s320/maxresdefault+%25283%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">In <i>Call of Duty: Modern Warfare</i>, </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">during the level "Aftermath" the player controls Jackson </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">while he is dying of radiation poisoning.</span></div>
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In the <i>Call of Duty </i>games, the player is usually thrown into the middle of a war zone and given a gun. They assume the role of a soldier in a squad, and are given instructions required for the purposes of a mission. The player then has to figure out how to carry out their orders without getting themselves killed (which is often easier said than done). Tasks can range form securing or clearing important locations to just trying to survive within a particular time limit. The campaign story lines are often built around themes of camaraderie, with the player working alongside a familiar group of soldiers for much of the story and being treated as part of the team.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU_7UZoWl_7qT7ZA6omRgCZ5RCtJcA7DRolOrYSkbsaatdn0QvvM9enHCGvycVaGjWiHiVplfYwmVDQtPQ5CJ5y9bryN2ae8B1VeVUFFnyGjtFJOk_DVWgZiGYpENHlWkmDPGph7DGOIE/s1600/it_photo_12918.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="484" data-original-width="860" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU_7UZoWl_7qT7ZA6omRgCZ5RCtJcA7DRolOrYSkbsaatdn0QvvM9enHCGvycVaGjWiHiVplfYwmVDQtPQ5CJ5y9bryN2ae8B1VeVUFFnyGjtFJOk_DVWgZiGYpENHlWkmDPGph7DGOIE/s320/it_photo_12918.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">In <i>Call of Duty: Modern Warfare</i>, the player is contributing to a team </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">and performing tasks that get their teammates closer to completing their mission</span></div>
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It should be noted that while it might be the most obvious example of video games using the first-person format, it is hardly restricted to the first-person shooter (incidentally, it is easy to forget that there actually <i>are</i> such things as third-person shooters). A good example of this is the <i>Dishonored </i>series of video games. In each game (there have been three so far) the player assumes the role of a character in a steampunk fantasy world. In these games, nearly the entire story is experienced in the first-person, through the eyes of its player character. In these games, the structure is based on a combination of stealth, puzzle-solving, and sword fighting (gunplay is optional).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmpf3sOAagckKTeU1iak0CmwomPKfwZUj40JqXSDNiy1IhvlaEnpgJxcLnYJQNC675z0EiRmscAdzAu1Axrhqdd7nA7IBAgoZn5wrbR91chPrq8P9QNyZ0G0wpUdd2vtr1eJy_oT4O1NI/s1600/Dishonored-2-a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmpf3sOAagckKTeU1iak0CmwomPKfwZUj40JqXSDNiy1IhvlaEnpgJxcLnYJQNC675z0EiRmscAdzAu1Axrhqdd7nA7IBAgoZn5wrbR91chPrq8P9QNyZ0G0wpUdd2vtr1eJy_oT4O1NI/s320/Dishonored-2-a.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">The <i>Dishonored </i>series has players assume the roles of different characters. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Often they can make choices which affect how the story plays out.</span></div>
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Evidently, there is a key variable that affects how the first-person format can be used across different media. Why is it that this style does not work so well in film, yet it has become an integral part of video game culture? What does <i>Dishonored </i>or <i>Call of Duty</i> have that <i>Lady of the Lake </i>and <i>Hardcore Henry</i> do not? It is a fair question. The answer lies in the audience's relationship to the medium in question. In a literary format, first-person narration works because it is presented as a character in the story relating it to the reader. This does not translate as effectively to filmmaking.<br />
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<i>Lady of the Lake </i>was advertised with the gimmick that the viewer <i>is </i>the detective. That they will be the one solving the mystery, as opposed to simply watching a detective piece together the clues. This description sounds a lot like some contemporary video games, such as <i>L.A. Noire</i> or the <i>Adventures of the Sherlock Holmes Series</i> (both of which have the player controlling a detective and investigating crime scenes). Unfortunately, this gimmick was not possible with the technology of 1947. Contrary to its advertising, the audience watching <i>Lady of the Lake</i> was not in fact solving a mystery, only looking through someone else's eyes as they pieced together the clues.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6EvOIHyoWHywUna4lNe1uGNNOXz0kL22ee6ZcdELk6fkpN8OJhjkGxLdUGygra8u4DvExe7Ax55NEWb-awY8vH_9I56Suvk5pMmz7OoEf5NtxOmfAMd_qV3RYpOdTZZHqKFmD6xaD4rw/s1600/Lady-in-the-Lake-1947-Philip-Marlowe-film-noir-Robert-Montgomery-Audrey-Totter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="285" data-original-width="475" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6EvOIHyoWHywUna4lNe1uGNNOXz0kL22ee6ZcdELk6fkpN8OJhjkGxLdUGygra8u4DvExe7Ax55NEWb-awY8vH_9I56Suvk5pMmz7OoEf5NtxOmfAMd_qV3RYpOdTZZHqKFmD6xaD4rw/s320/Lady-in-the-Lake-1947-Philip-Marlowe-film-noir-Robert-Montgomery-Audrey-Totter.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This is the key difference between film and video games. When watching <i>Lady of the Lake</i>, the viewer is not detective Phillip Marlowe. They are not controlling him or figuring out the mystery for themselves, they merely watch him make observations and interact with the world around him. The viewers are passive observers. In a game like <i>Call of Duty</i>, the player themselves is incorporated as a character in the story. It is the ability to control the character and to directly interact with the world around the player that makes the first-person mode so appealing.<br />
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Even when the protagonist is pre-designed and given an extensive backstory as in the case of the four playable characters across the <i>Dishonored </i>series, the point still stands. The first-person format allows the player to immerse themselves in the character. They can become Corvo, Daud, Emily, or Bille. They are not a passive observer but an active participant. In <i>Dishonored</i> this means making difficult decisions that ultimately determine how the story plays out and whether it ends on a light or dark note. In <i>Call of Duty</i> this is completing tasks to ensure your squad can complete their mission.<br />
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John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-8194257544988682022018-02-01T11:50:00.000-08:002018-02-01T11:50:35.724-08:00Thursday Movie Picks Meme: Story Within a Story<br />
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I haven't done one of these in a while, but I'm thinking it might be a good idea to start working on this again.<br />
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This week, the theme for Wanderer's <a href="http://wanderingthroughtheshelves.blogspot.ca/p/blog-page.html">Thursday Movie Picks</a> is story within a story. Now this isn't always an easy topic to define. The simplest example I can give of a Story Within a Story is a framing narrative through which another story is related through flashback. In that sense, there are two stories. You have one narrative that sets up the film (though usually a secondary story) and another narrative that is relayed through the framing story.<br />
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Usually, this ties into the idea of plot and story, which are actually two separate if closely connected ideas. Of course, academics love to over-complicate everything and prefer to use the more confusing terms "fabula" and "syuzhet"(which originate from a Russian folklorist who was trying to study fairy tales), but they still have the same basic meaning. I love to use <i>Citizen Kane </i>as my example here.<br />
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The <b><i>story </i></b>is simply a linear timeline of events. This includes <i>everything</i>, right down to moments that we can infer happen (i.e. characters using the bathroom). The <i><b>plot</b> </i>is how that story is presented to the viewer. To continue the <i>Citizen Kane </i>example, the <i style="font-weight: bold;">story </i>begins when Kane is taken away from his childhood home and ends when his sled is burned. The <i style="font-weight: bold;">plot</i> opens with Kane's death (an event that happens very late in the story) and uses a journalist's investigation to reveal the story of Kane's life through flashback.<br />
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To tie this back into the theme of Thursday Movie Picks, the story-within-a-story format is usually based on a plot which relies on one story to tell another. For instance, using the story of a journalist trying to understand Kane's last words to tell the story of Kane himself. The most straight forward way to do this is to have the modern plot relate past events through flashback.<br />
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Because of the theme of this week, I have chosen three films that feature stories-within-stories, and for convenience have made sure to include images of the secondary story for each one.<br />
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Citizen Kane (1942)</h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjondZJ7OMkBoF3cmjh8VrUf95iunZo6w3ayj41XSQ94Kfp2KfYC_Ts7Cyewi33Anp6IUhHq5wfvYtHNAMBImRbzL4p6PlgknJaKfbbMCFh1D1_ri_XaH29tGJLVrUJow8_o9UEIXNtmyk/s1600/citizenkane.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="400" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjondZJ7OMkBoF3cmjh8VrUf95iunZo6w3ayj41XSQ94Kfp2KfYC_Ts7Cyewi33Anp6IUhHq5wfvYtHNAMBImRbzL4p6PlgknJaKfbbMCFh1D1_ri_XaH29tGJLVrUJow8_o9UEIXNtmyk/s320/citizenkane.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Orson Welles' famous pseudo-biopic inspired by the life of William Randolph Hearst follows two parallel narratives at different points in time. The primary storyline is the rise and fall of newspaper-owner Charles Foster Kane, but the film actually opens with his death. Kane's dying words are "Rosebud" which leaves many people confused about what it could have meant. It then follows a journalist named Thompson who interviews people that knew Kane in the hopes of finding a clue as to what "Rosebud" is, and hoping that finding the answer will unlock some intriguing secret about Kane. This quest is ultimately unsuccessful, and in fact the secondary plot ends up leaves the viewer to speculate about its main story.<br />
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The Princess Bride 1987</h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIfZ0vefPvydCQjKasOBSyrSFXbWfcb6Gef93ApZJN0Hr672duWy-n0DuUSMDRWLqiWWj2t7U5P-SnP55FTgJAiF8tKChpzjSYFQcuVwS96ECE1RsIBpqjclrEk9hEQn8NuPePmoRRnOM/s1600/the-princess-bride-2-as-we-wish-where-each-character-could-be-in-a-sequel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="327" data-original-width="600" height="174" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIfZ0vefPvydCQjKasOBSyrSFXbWfcb6Gef93ApZJN0Hr672duWy-n0DuUSMDRWLqiWWj2t7U5P-SnP55FTgJAiF8tKChpzjSYFQcuVwS96ECE1RsIBpqjclrEk9hEQn8NuPePmoRRnOM/s320/the-princess-bride-2-as-we-wish-where-each-character-could-be-in-a-sequel.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This one is arguably a somewhat more literal variation of <i>story within a story</i> in that its actually presented as a man reading a book. Yes, the main story (the one most people usually watch it for) concerns the love story between Wesley and Buttercup and their various misadventures that introduce a variety of eccentric characters. But it both begins and ends with a very different story. We are introduced to an unnamed kid who is stuck in bed because of a cold. Peter Falk shows up as his grandfather and decides to read him a book that has a history of being read to members of the family when they were sick. That book is of course <i>The Princess Bride</i>. The storyline regularly gets interrupted by one or the other, resulting in commentary on the narrative as it progresses.</div>
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The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)</h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjDL0AuoUrcPVS8Z9-L7Kt7Rcs5ZlOQBWE88oa2_QgHcvPGks9LPTYWmDxhDqcLsUHuyvwVGEZ5rJNzLJnigUazcLA9rlhrwmaV2ju2EdxYL-nL0qi10ioXSaXMqYyytnQ-8brYQAccUg/s1600/grand-budapest-hotel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="478" data-original-width="725" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjDL0AuoUrcPVS8Z9-L7Kt7Rcs5ZlOQBWE88oa2_QgHcvPGks9LPTYWmDxhDqcLsUHuyvwVGEZ5rJNzLJnigUazcLA9rlhrwmaV2ju2EdxYL-nL0qi10ioXSaXMqYyytnQ-8brYQAccUg/s320/grand-budapest-hotel.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This one takes the concept of "Story within a Story" to multiple levels, as it is arguably a story within a story within a story. The main story concerns the unlikely relationship between Ralph Fiennes' Monsieur Gustave, a Basil Faulty-eque hotel manager; and Zero Moustafa, his lobby boy. The two become unlikely friends and share a series of convoluted misadventures surrounding a conspiracy linking back to a recently deceased patient just before the start of World War II. However, that is also framed within a story surrounding the writer played by Jude Law, who visits the hotel several decades later and describes his relationship with an older Zero. And then <i>that</i> is also framed as a girl reading said author's book in the present day.<br />
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John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-51152846245035833082018-01-25T07:15:00.001-08:002018-01-25T07:15:29.673-08:00Star Wars Female Characters Ranked<h4 style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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So I've been over this before, the <i>Star Wars </i>franchise has had a long and complicated history when it comes to the subject of diversity. It's a difficult subject to discuss and has a few different lenses one can examine it through.<br />
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The cast of <i>A New Hope</i> is made up almost exclusively of white men (the exceptions include a single woman whose role is overshadowed by said men, two robots also played by white men, and a walking carpet who was also played by a white man). It wasn't until very late into the next film <i>The Empire Strikes Back</i> that we get even a single non-Caucasian joining the main cast. Then in <i>Return of the Jedi</i> the roles of female Rebel pilots were actively censored by George Lucas himself. Not a great reputation. One could technically say that the old <i>Ewoks</i> and <i>Droids</i> cartoons had more diversity than the original films.<br />
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This is also not exclusive to the original trilogy. The prequels added three new films and only one significant female character- Padme. <i>The Clone Wars</i> also had a lot of the same problems. Even though it boasted a large cast and tried to develop characters not given much focus in the films, it was weirdly averse to showing female Jedi. We'd constantly get plotlines concerning Mace Windu, Obi-Wan, or Kit Fisto, yet female Jedi like Aayla Secura and Shaak Tii would get one story to themselves then spend the rest of the show reduced to background non-speaking roles.<br />
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On the other hand, as many are quick to refute, Princess Leia was a huge deal when the trilogy came out. She was a woman with authority and both physical and mental strength (even if it's not as visible in <i>A New Hope</i>). The expanded universe in both timelines has also added its share of strong female characters, though this often occurred in projects where George Lucas wasn't directly involved.<br />
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One notable detail that seems to have come from George Lucas leaving <i>Star Wars </i>is a greater effort at diversifying the cast. Among the things that started to win me back into <i>Star Wars </i>fandom was the efforts to rectify those problems. The most recent films have depicted mixed race and mixed-gendered groups of heroes (and mixed-species in some cases). <i>The Force Awakens</i> and <i>The Last Jedi</i> also depict their antagonistic faction, the First Order, as mixed-gender (though members given primary focus have been male).<br />
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We've even had some writers go back and retroactively depict the Empire (depicted as exclusively male in the original trilogy) as having female officers and Stormtroopers. This one actually turned out to be pretty easy, because how would one tell the difference between a male and female Stormtrooper? The only indicator seems to be slight differences in voice, but they barely speak in the original trilogy as it is, so doing the math it is entirely possible for female Stormtroopers.<br />
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Also, special mention goes to one very recent project, <i>Forces of Destiny</i>, an animated web series and toyline which focuses specifically on highlighting strong women of the <i>Star Wars</i> universe. The cartoons so far have generally focused on the adventures of several different women from across different eras of <i>Star Wars </i>canon in between moments from the films. Many of them include big action scenes where said girls get to save the day.<br />
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Anyway, enough of my tangent. I got to thinking it would be interesting to try and rank the various strong female characters we have seen across the <i>Star Wars </i>Saga.<br />
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I've had to set a few perimeters for this list. First off, I have chosen to stick strictly to the new canon. The legends timeline had some excellent female characters in its own right, but I list all of them I'm going to be here all day. For one thing to break down every great female character in <i>Knights of the Old Republic</i> (and for the record, Revan is and always will be female!) would take up a lot of space, to say nothing of the countless novels, video games, and other material I would need to cover. I am also covering ones who were given a particularly prominent or significant role, as opposed to ones who were just part of the background before someone else gave them a backstory.</div>
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I am also sticking to official canon for this. I have written some very good fanfiction stories of my own: <a href="https://johnhitchcock.deviantart.com/art/Star-Wars-The-Merchant-of-Jakku-684855931">The Merchant of Jakku</a>, <a href="https://johnhitchcock.deviantart.com/art/Rogue-One-Scarif-676050623">Rogue One: Scarif</a>, and <a href="https://johnhitchcock.deviantart.com/art/Shadows-of-the-Past-699381673">Shadows of the Past</a>, all of which try to feature strong female characters. Unfortunately, these are not presently considered official canon so I will not be including any of my original characters on the list. The same is also true for non-canon projects such as <i>The Freemaker Adventures</i>.<br />
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That said, I have tried to keep the list as varied as possible. One trap I have fallen into before when discussing female characters in <i>Star Wars</i> is to focus only on the light-side characters, when the series does have some strong female antagonists as well. Admittedly, the various antagonistic groups have a tendency to be predominantly male (though this has started to change) but I've still tried to recognize strong women where I can.</div>
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I'm also not touching <i>The Clone Wars </i>right now because that show wasn't great and <i>Rebels </i>is a thousand times better. It also didn't have as much in the way of strong female characters, frustratingly.</div>
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15. Vice Admiral Amilyn Holdo</h4>
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Okay, I need to ask, <i>why </i>the purple hair? It makes sense on some characters but there is never really anything about her personality that clearly warrants such a wardrobe choice. It looks really weird. What were you thinking?<br />
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Anyway, questionable wardrobe aside, Amilyn's role was somewhat inconsistent and I'm not sure exactly what we were intended to think of her. She is abruptly introduced in <i>The Last Jedi</i> as the new commander of the Resistance (might have been a good idea to establish her role earlier, perhaps even in the previous film) and is depicted for the most part as an ineffective and bureaucratic commander more likely to get her subordinates killed than anything else.<br />
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It is even treated as a positive outcome when our heroes openly perform a mutiny, yet she also ends up staying behind and sacrificing herself to save the Resistance. I'm not really sure what we were intended to think of her. She's set up as a leader but generally seems to be treated in a negative light only to have that view reversed near the end. Who is this character anyway and why is she so abruptly introduced out of nowhere when the Resistance already had authority figures who could have filled the role instead?<br />
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14. Rose Tico</h4>
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Ultimately, I never found much to get invested in with Rose. She didn't have that much going for her beyond a (far more interesting) sister who dies at the very beginning. She accompanies Finn through much of the plot, but what exactly does she really add to it? One could probably cut her out entirely without changing much, if anything. Plus, she also ruined the long-anticipated Finn/Poe romance that was supposed to happen, before abruptly kissing Finn at the film's end. <i>Star Wars </i>was so close to introducing its first LGBT couple (come on, <i>Star Trek's </i>beaten you to this one now as well- get your act together).</div>
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13. Padme Amidala</h4>
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Padme is a somewhat difficult character to judge. How well she was developed seems to vary depending on which source you turn to. One of the better parts of <i>The Clone Wars</i> was the decision to actually focus her episodes on her political career, and to emphasize Padme's wit and self-reliance when placed in a tight situation. In the prequel trilogy, on the other hand, her character deteriorates. She goes from a tough Queen in <i>The Phantom Menace</i> who leads a full-scale assault on her own castle just to free her subjects, to sitting around brushing her hair in <i>Revenge of the Sith</i>. </div>
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Over the course of the trilogy, her entire role becomes increasingly about her relationship (and secret marriage) with Anakin. By <i>Revenge of the Sith</i>, it's more or less the only real character trait that gets any focus. Then there's that whole "Lost the Will to Live" thing. After being betrayed by her husband, I could understand her having every right to be upset, even traumatized (he did nearly strangle her to death) but losing the will to live seems a tad extreme. How about dying for the early Rebellion, or something more interesting?<br />
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12. Bo-Katan Kryze</h4>
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Bo-Katan first appeared in <i>The Clone Wars</i> initially as a supporting antagonist but later changed sides after a bizarre and convoluted story arc involving Darth Maul performing a coup on Mandalore (yeah, that happened). She later returned for <i>Rebels</i> where she got a chance at redemption that proved valuable. Here, she was given the chance to step up as a new leader of the Mandalorians, and lead them through the fight against the Empire.</div>
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11. Captain Phasma</h4>
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Phasma was an interesting addition to the cast, but unfortunately she's not a character that leaves much room for investment, mainly because we know nothing about her. To an extent, that works in her favor, as it makes her feel more like a typical Stormtrooper, but as far as depth of characterization we don't have a lot to discuss. Phasma is a commander who seems to be devoted to the First Order and firmly upholds their regulations.<br />
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That said, this is not entirely a bad thing. In fact in some ways Phasma can easily be argued to be a fairly progressive character. She just doesn't have as much to make her as memorable as some of the other characters on this list.</div>
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10. Seventh Sister</h4>
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Of all the inquisitors that appeared on the show, Seventh Sister was probably the most intimidating and the most effective. Her partner (referred to as "Fifth Brother") was generally based on brute strength, but Seventh Sister had the brains. She proved almost more devastatingly effective than her season 1 predecessor. Every time she showed up, it was clear that our heroes were in serious trouble.<br />
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In fact, none of them were ever really able to defeat her (she ended up being killed instead by Maul, an even more powerful ex-Sith who could be described as morally gray at best). One never got the sense that any of the Rebels would have a chance at defeating her and often it was an immense victory just to be able to escape from one of her traps in one piece. She was therefore arguably the most worthy opponent of the Rebels compared to her (less memorable) male colleagues.</div>
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9. Governor Arihnda Pryce</h4>
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<i>Rebels </i>managed to introduce a few female Imperials during its run, but Governor Pryce stands out as one of the most devastatingly effective, though one kinda has to be when they're second in command to one of the galaxy's smartest tacticians. Grand Admiral Thrawn is bad enough, but Pryce is often the one carrying out his orders.<br />
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8. Iden Versio</h4>
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At first, seemingly an effort to retroactively suggest the Empire wasn't as misogynistic as the original trilogy claims, Iden Versio has a fairly complex story over the course of <i>Battlefront II</i>'s campaign. She begins as a member of Imperial Special Forces and is depicted as a devoted member of the Imperial Military. This is someone who genuinely believes in the Empire's might and it's potential benefits, yet isn't afraid to speak her mind at the same time. </div>
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In fact, while she does end up defecting to the Rebellion, it's not exactly a simple case of moral issues. If anything her partner Del Meeko begins questioning the Empire long before she does, and they only end up with the Rebellion out of necessity. This is a character who grew up thinking she was doing the right thing only to be betrayed by the very people on whom her existence depends. </div>
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7. Ursa Wren</h4>
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Season 3 of <i>Rebels </i>gave us Ursa Wren, the mother of one of the show's regular characters, and she turns out to be quite the character. When we first meet her, Ursa turns out to be a powerful woman. She runs the Mandalorian Clan Wren more or less single-handedly and shows an impressive skill for combat. She can be ruthless, but at the same time we do get a kind of noble side to her as well. Underneath her harsh exterior are strong maternal instincts and once she realizes the danger posed by the Empire she doesn't give up in fighting them.</div>
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6. Ahsoka Tano</h4>
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Okay, I freely admit that I preferred Ahsoka in her <i>Rebels </i>incarnation than <i>Clone Wars</i>, but Ahsoka has some interesting qualities. Somewhat ironically an extremely flawed and problematic story of <i>The Clone Wars</i> involving her being betrayed by her best friend out of nowhere led to an interesting plot thread concerning her as a gray Jedi that brings out her more interesting quirks in <i>Rebels</i>. She is a former member of the Jedi Order who trained under Anakin, but over the course of the Clone Wars she begins to question the wisdom of the Jedi Knights and eventually chooses to leave them all together.</div>
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But this isn't a simple case of her turning to the dark side. Ahsoka instead ends up using her newfound freedom to assist in building up the early Rebel Alliance and develops her skills in finding new ways to protect the galaxy. Her story notably came to an abrupt (and still unresolved) conclusion when she entered a fight with Darth Vader, her former teacher. This resulted in an epic duel (come on, not many people can say they were able to hold their own in a fight against Darth Vader). Although it still has not been confirmed one way or the other if she survived, Ahsoka was able to pummel the living daylights out of one of the most powerful Sith Lords the canon has to offer. Even Luke couldn't do the level of damage Ahsoka did.</div>
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5. Rey</h4>
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Rey seemed like such an amazing character when <i>The Force Awakens</i> came out, though with hindsight I would be tempted to place several more above her. She was also arguably more interesting in <i>The Force Awakens</i> than <i>The Last Jedi</i>. She had an aura of mystique, insofar as we didn't really know who she was or where she came from (questions rather anti-climatically answered in <i>The Last Jedi</i>), but she was also a competent and independent young woman. </div>
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An expert pilot and scavenger who also knew how to protect herself, Rey has a lot of good strong points. It was also definitely a smart move to avoid any unnecessary romantic entanglements (I like that she and Finn are just friends and nothing more). She can work with others but isn't dependent on them. Special mention goes to when she gets captured by the Empire and it set up to be a perfect example of the damsel in distress- then proceeds to outwit her enemies. By the time Finn arrives to "rescue" her, she's already traversed half the base undetected and she has to assist him.</div>
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4. Princess Leia Organa</h4>
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Of course I couldn't omit the most iconic woman of the <i>Star Wars </i>saga. Leia was the lone female character in the original trilogy, and a tricky one to discuss as there are several approaches to take with her. On the one hand, her role in <i>A New Hope </i>basically amounts to being a Maid Marian-esque damsel in distress to be rescued by the (exclusively male) group of heroes. On the other she does spend those moments standing up to the Empire and resisting Imperial Interrogations (it's implied that she was tortured for information and never gave in).</div>
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Leia also gets a more prominent role in the later films. <i>The Empire Strikes Back </i>and <i>Return of the Jedi</i> give her more time to show off her skills. She oversees the Rebel Evacuation of Hoth and participates in the escape from Cloud City. She did have the infamous gold bikini, but I should point out that she also wore that thing while <i>strangling the giant slug who forced it on her</i>. That was then followed by her taking an active role in the Battle of Endor, not to mention securing an alliance with the local Ewoks that ended up being crucial to the Rebels' victory.</div>
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Both timelines also established Leia's role in the aftermath of the Empire's defeat, including her involvement in building the New Republic, but Carrie Fisher later reprised the role for <i>The Force Awakens</i>. By this time, Leia has become a general for the Resistance, and takes a more active role in planning and co-ordination (she also managed to rescue herself from the vacuum of space, not an easy feat). </div>
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3. Sabine Wren</h4>
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I couldn't do a list like this without including the <i>second </i>greatest female character from <i>Rebels</i> (you'll see who the first is soon enough). Sabine Wren is friggin' awesome. She's got both brawn and brains, and she's really good at blowing stuff up. She's also got a skill for machinery and works as an artist in her spare time. What's not to love? Yet they also balance this out with a fairly compassionate side: Sabine constantly struggles to reconcile her Mandalorian upbringing with her Rebel allegiance (and ends up key to bringing both factions together).<br />
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2. Jyn Erso</h4>
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Jyn is the second female protagonist to be featured in one of the main films, and probably one of the best in the series. She's a far more complex character than some of our previous heroes-not as overtly idealistic as Luke yet also not as whiny as Anakin ("whiny" is not a very good description of Jyn Erso). Also a notable departure from the previous films by being a non-Jedi protagonist, instead leading a story essentially about the background characters who would normally be extras in the original trilogy.</div>
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Jyn comes from a complex background compared to previous heroes (though she does seem to continue the theme of absent parents that persisted with Luke, Anakin, and Rey). She actually starts off as a criminal who works for the Rebellion more as a temporary means to an end than out of any real interest in their cause. Her entire character arc is based on learning to be part of something greater than herself, unlike Luke (who more or less immediately joins the Rebellion as soon as he has the chance). </div>
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1. Hera Syndulla</h4>
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When doing a top anything list it is often hard to choose the #1 spot because there are so many great contenders. This time, there was no question. I knew going in who my top choice would be, so counting down was easy. On a list of the best female characters offered in <i>Star Wars </i>canon, how could I add anyone but one of the best female characters <i>Star Wars </i>has to offer? Hera Syndulla is not only one of the best characters in <i>Rebels</i>, but just plain one of the best characters period.<br />
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<i>Rebels</i> depicts many of the events leading up to <i>A New Hope</i>, with a particular emphasis on the early years of the Rebel Alliance. Hera Syndulla is one of the key players in organizing that rebellion. She is an expert pilot and mechanic, skills which routinely prove useful (she is already referred to as "Captain" when the show starts, and will become a general by the time <i>Rogue One</i> takes place). In addition to that, she also knows how to hold her own in a fight and improvise when a mission goes wrong.<br />
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Yet they also balance this with a more compassionate side. Hera's leadership allows her to become a maternal figure towards her crew (and as one Imperial Intelligence crew learned the hard way, she gets <i>really </i>nasty if you hurt her droid). She is a dedicated Rebel but also emphasizes that <i>how </i>one fights is just as important as <i>why</i> they fight. <br />
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I kinda wish they'd bring Hera back for the new trilogy. I could totally buy her being with the Resistance but what happened with her in that 30-year gap?John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-78371111062434643902018-01-07T09:03:00.000-08:002018-01-07T09:03:33.366-08:00Assassin's Creed Protagonists Ranked<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">From left to right: Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, Ezio Auditore De Firenze, Bayek, Arno Dorian, Shay Cormac, Evie Frye, Jacob Frye, Arbaaz Mir, Edward Kenway, Ratonhnhaké:ton</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #545454; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">, </span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Aveline de Grandpré,</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #545454; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"> </span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Nikolai Orelov, Shao Jun</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Credit for the image goes to <a href="https://santap555.deviantart.com/art/Assassin-s-Creed-HD-wallpaper-5-by-teaD-556689209">santap555 on Devian</a>tart</span></div>
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I've been looking for stuff to do on this blog, and I seem to be a bit burned out with detailed film analysis. Plus I think that recently it's been causing me to overthink stuff. I need some fun stuff to do.<br />
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So I got to thinking that I could try making lists. Lists are fun. Everybody likes a good list, and they're a bit more straight forward to make.<br />
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I might have mentioned that I'm kind of a big fan of the <i>Assassin's Creed</i> series of video games, and I've been playing <i>a lot</i> of it recently. The full franchise is extensive, and has given us a wide variety of different characters and settings.<br />
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If you're not familiar with the lore of <i>Assassin's Creed</i>, it's basically a series of games that combines historical facts with science fiction and conspiracy theories. The concept is that it revolves around an ongoing conflict between two secret societies. One is the Templar Order, which believes that world peace can be only be accomplished through total control of humanity. The other is the Assassin Brotherhood, which believes peace can still be achieved while preserving free will.<br />
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Most of the time you play as an Assassin but exceptions do exist (<i>III</i>, <i>Rogue</i>, and <i>Unity </i>all have playable Templars). the games are set across a variety of different historical eras including (in order of appearance) the Crusades, the Italian Renaissance, the American Revolution, The Golden Age of Piracy, the Seven Years War, the French Revolution, the reign of Queen Victoria, and the Ptolemaic dynasty of Ancient Egypt, and that's just from the main series!<br />
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Unsurprisingly, they also feature a variety of different characters (though not without small continuity-based rewards for long-time players). With the exceptions of the "Ezio Trilogy" each game has a unique protagonist (starting with <i>Black Flag</i>, they humorously started including a feature where the player can dress the current protagonist in outfits from previous games). These characters come from a variety of different backgrounds and all have their own personalities. Having played a bunch of the <i>Assassin's Creed</i> series, I thought it would be interesting to try and rank their various protagonists.<br />
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It should be noted that this list is based only on games in the series I've actually played, and only focuses on playable characters. Installments that I have not played I am not as fit to comment on. For instance, I have not included Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad on the grounds that I have never actually played the original <i>Assassin's Creed</i> (I know), making it hard to judge how good he was as a character. The same is also true for <i>Chronicles</i>.<br />
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Additionally, I will not be including individuals from the present-day sections in the games. This is mainly due to the complications that would occur (between <i>Black Flag </i>and <i>Syndicate</i>, the player themselves is made a character within the game during the modern sections). I am also sticking to characters who are playable in the main storyline which is why I have, for instance, omitted Lydia Frye.<br />
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So here is my countdown, from worst to best, of all the protagonists in every <i>Assassin's Creed </i>game I've played so far. Which of the games' numerous protagonists will take the #1 spot? Read on to find out!<br />
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11. Shay Cormac (<i>Assassin's Creed: Rogue</i>)</h4>
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Honestly, I never could get into <i>Rogue</i>. A lot of people like Shay but I found him to be more frustrating that engaging. This is the one game in the series that tries to flip the usual perspective by focusing on the Templars and making the Assassins the bad guys. Shay is supposed to be an Assassin who grows disillusioned with the Brotherhood and joins the Templars, but it seemed to me the result of being too impulsive and hotheaded rather than a moral choice. </div>
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Shay goes on one mission that goes wrong, then <i>immediately </i>jumps to the conclusion that the Assassins knew it would result in a massive Earthquake but sent him anyway (no evidence in the game supports that conclusion). He then proceeds to yell at his mentor, doesn't listen to any attempts at reason, and steals from them before trying to commit suicide. Even before this he has a tendency to argue with his fellow assassins, ignore advice, and generally be more of a frustration for them than a useful ally.</div>
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10. Ratonhnhaké:ton/Connor (<i>Assassin's Creed III</i>)</h4>
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A lot of people like Connor, but to be totally honest I found him rather flat compared to some of the other characters who have appeared. Although I do applaud the new perspective his character brings (which is able to better look at the moral uncertainties of the American Revolution and how it affected Native Americans), he had very little depth or personality. Also I feel like they could have found a much better voice actor to play him. He sounds very monotonous.</div>
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9. Jacob Frye (<i>Assassin's Creed: Syndicate</i>)</h4>
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Of the two Frye Twins, I would say that Jacob was the weaker character. He was very much depicted as a man who values brawn over brains, while Evie had considerably more depth. While enjoyable, his character was largely quite arrogant and foolish (several plot points involve Jacob rushing into an Assassination only to later reveal negative long-term consequences that Evie has to clean up). He is not exactly great at being an Assassin as a result, which makes Evie fit the gameplay much better.</div>
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8. Haytham Kenway (<i>Assassin's Creed III</i>)</h4>
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To be honest, for the small portion of <i>Assassin's Creed III</i> in which he is playable, Haytham Kenway was actually a far more engaging character than Connor. He also marks the first playable Templar in the series, though this is not revealed until the end of the first act (followed by his modern-day descendant ranting about the sudden plot twist). Yet Haytham did what no Templar before him had done: he added a layer of moral ambiguity to the series. Although he is technically the main antagonist of the game, Haytham is a remkably deep character and a man who easily earns respect.<br />
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Admittedly, this is not without a more extreme side (i.e. his habit of ending interrogations with the occasional spot of murder) but we see that there is actually a cold logic to his actions. Haytham actually has genuine concern for maintaining order (even if he believes the ends justify the means) and fully believes in the cause, a huge departure from the antagonists of previous games such as the Borgias (who believed the Templar Order was about power at any cost). He even makes a point of trying to respect the people under his command.<br />
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7. Aveline de Grandpré (<i>Assassin's Creed: Liberation</i>)</h4>
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The first female protagonist in the series, and possibly also one of the first LGBT characters to be introduced (come on, don't tell me you never saw it between her and Elise), Aveline certainly makes an impact for the short duration of her appearances. She is tough but also noble, and manages to keep a clear head even when everything falls apart around her (given she is both betrayed by her former mentor and discovers a few shocking family secrets along the way, that's no easy feat). The fact that she never loses sight of her goal to find the elusive "Company Man" overseeing the Templar Operations is admirable.<br />
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6. Arno Dorian (<i>Assassins' Creed: Unity</i>)</h4>
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Arno is an interesting figure for his somewhat unusual storyline. Unlike many of the other characters on this list, Arno doesn't firmly gravitate to one side or the other. If anything, much of the story revolves around shattering the Assassin/Templar binary that usually drives the games. This comes most notably in the <i>Romeo and Juliet</i>-esque romance on which the story hinges- namely that he is an assassin who happens to be in love with the Templar Elise, though it is a little more complicated than that.<br />
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What makes Arno interesting is that he ends up exposing flaws on both sides. He and Elise both end up being cast out of their respective factions and have to navigate a web of deceit, lies, and betrayal by both Assassins and Templars (all set against the backdrop of the French Revolution). Amidst all this, he is actually more interested in a parley between both sides (which he spends much of the game doing) and somewhat ironically avenging his Templar step-father. The fact that he is still able to maintain a strong connection with Elise even after it comes out that they are on opposite sides is impressive.<br />
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5. Aya (<i>Assassin's Creed: Origins</i>)</h4>
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Talk about a good marriage! Though she is not playable as often as her husband, Aya has an important role to play in the origins of the Assassin Brotherhood, and she knows how to balance her priorities. This is a lady who can go from showering her husband with affection one moment to captaining a ship against Ptolemy's navy the next. One can hardly doubt the love she has for Bayek, but it is not her only driving force. It used to be a common assumption that marriage for a women meant giving up her career and turning to domestic chores: this is not Aya. She is a woman who has managed to find and balance both sides and remains content with doing so.<br />
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4. Ezio Auditore De Firenze (<i>Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood</i>)</h4>
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I might be slightly biased here as Ezio does have a certain personal significance to me: it was through him I was first introduced to the <i>Assassin's Creed </i>series. Ezio was a fun character to play as, with his constant optimism and wit. He can be tough when he needs to be but also has a clear compassionate side. He had his faults, but he also managed to overcome them (case in point: likes to promote himself as a ladies' man, but has no trouble working with female assassins).<br />
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Also interesting is the choice to thoroughly subvert the usual image of Renaissance-era nobles as corrupt and greedy. Ezio is a man of wealth who works for the people, and never gives up this view even when the odds are hopelessly against him. This was after all the guy who started a one-man revolution against the Borgias (arguably one of the most powerful families of the Renaissance) and <i>won</i>. To start with practically nothing and end up overthrowing a tyrannical regime is a pretty amazing accomplishment.<br />
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3. Bayek (<i>Assassin's Creed: Origins</i>)</h4>
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<i>Assassin's Creed: Origins</i> tells the story of how this whole mess between the Assassins and the Templars got started, so it's not surprising they needed an interesting character to introduce as the founder of the Assassin Brotherhood, and they certainly delivered. Bayek is a somewhat enigmatic but very compelling character. He is a man trying to do the right thing in a world rife with corruption and greed. </div>
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As a medjay (the Ancient Egyptian equivalent of a cop) Bayek seeks justice in an unjust world, but his motives go beyond a mere sense of honor. Beneath his skill with a blade he is still a human being, and a man who struggles to find his way. As we also learn, he must balance his desire for justice with a burning anger towards the mysterious Order of the Ancients responsible for the murder of his son, while trying to save a divided Egypt along the way.</div>
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2. Edward Kenway (<span style="font-weight: normal;"><i>Assassin's Creed: Black Flag</i></span>)</h4>
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Edward Kenway stands out as a notable departure from the more idealistic Assassins of previous games. In fact, he doesn't even become an Assassin until late in the story (though he has many of their unique skills from the get-go). Instead, Edward is an anti-hero who starts off as a simple fortune seeker looking to get rich only to find himself in over his head when he ends up killing and impersonating an Assassin who (of course) just <i>happened </i>to be defecting to the Templar Order. Kenway's character arc is largely one of self-discovery and redemption. </div>
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He first appears to be a fairly cold anti-hero more interested in fortune than anything else, which becomes problematic early on when he unwittingly sells out the entire Assassin Brotherhood to the Templar Oder, and then has to spend the rest of the game trying to undo his mistake. But beneath this facade is a far more complex individual who eventually discovers his real interest to be liberating humanity from tyranny. The close friendships he develops with Stede Bonnet, Edward "Blackbeard" Thatch, and <strike>Mary Reed</strike> James Kidd also reinforce this notion. </div>
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1. Evie Frye (<i>Assassin's Creed: Syndicate</i>)</h4>
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Of the two playable heroes of <i>Assassin's Creed: Syndicate</i>, Evie was definitely the more interesting character, and generally the one I preferred playing as. Her brother Jacob was okay but I felt like Evie had a much more complex personality. She also provided a more interesting gameplay experience due to her range of skills. Playing Jacob is based mainly on combat, getting into big brawls, while Evie has more room for stealth and ingenuity (more fitting to the tone of <i>Assassin's Creed</i>).<br />
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She is also a very strong character in her own right. She can hold her own in a fight but she's also witty and intelligent, and knows how to balance this with compassion. Even the romantic plot that occurs between her and Henry Green is handled carefully to ensure it doesn't overshadow her skills as an Assassin and her role in freeing London from the Templars. Evie might just be one of the best characters in the series.</div>
John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-2992607189118288942017-12-20T15:06:00.004-08:002017-12-20T15:06:46.992-08:00How Far Would You Go?: Understanding Military Ethics in Rogue One<br />
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How far would you go to fight for what you believe? Would you be willing to die for it? Would you be willing to put aside your own values and goals if you thought it would allow a positive long-term outcome? Would you be willing to lose yourself in the process if it meant a better future for others? These are difficult questions and not ones easily answered. The fact of the matter is that fighting for anything is a difficult line of work, one that requires sacrifices, wit, and the ability to make difficult choices under pressure, choices which don't always have a clear moral path.<br />
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These are the issues at play in Gareth Edwards' <i>Rogue One: A Star Wars Story</i>. The backdrop is a simple conflict-a tyrannical regime and an idealistic Rebellion that seeks to overthrow it, but underneath that seemingly simple conflict the world is not so easily black and white. Both sides are strife with inner conflicts, challenges, and tests of their commitment to their cause. Both factions ultimately clash and play a dangerous game, but ultimately it is a test primarily for the Rebellion. How far can they go? Where does one draw the line?<br />
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The question of where a freedom fighter ends and a terrorist begins is not unique to <i>Rogue One</i> even for the <i>Star Wars</i> universe (the discussion had previously appeared in <i>The Clone Wars</i> and has since come up in <i>Rebels</i>), but the moral difficulties of war are brought to the forefront here. From the beginning, characters are forced to make difficult choices based on what they think is right.<br />
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In the opening moments, we are introduced to Galen Erso, a man who has put himself and his own family in danger to prevent the Empire from weaponizing Kyber Crystals. This man has risked his own life and continues to rebel even after he is recaptured. Meanwhile his wife Lyra Erso also chooses death over being recaptured. Jyn ends up in the hands of Saw Guerrera, who recruits her into the Rebellion, yet even this is a difficult situation. As we later learn, Saw ended up abandoning Jyn to prevent her family background (the daughter of an Imperial Science Officer) from being exploited and used as leverage by other Rebels.<br />
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Both the leading roles of Jyn Erso and Cassion Andor are depicted as being somewhat anti-heroic in their own way. Jyn has apparently led a busy life of crime under different aliases, and initially has no real interest in aiding the Rebellion. She only gets involved with them after they rescue her from an Imperial prison transport (and even then, she tries to ditch them as soon as her restraints are removed). When Jyn is brought before the Rebellion, her only reason for accepting their mission is on the grounds that they will make it easier for her to disappear. She also tries to leave as soon as her job is finished, even claiming to be okay with submitting to the Empire's authority. Only with a message from her father is she willing to reconsider.<br />
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Cassion, by contrast, is a lifelong member of the Alliance yet he also proves himself to be an anti-hero. His introductory scene sees him confronting an informant, not even from the Empire but from Saw's Renegade Rebels, about recent developments (Cassion is stated to work in "intelligence," a job that likely requires a level of deception and trickery). Although he is working for the good guys, Cassion is shown to be hard on the informant, refusing to accommodate his needs and trying to intimidate him into talking. This scene also climaxes with Cassion murdering said informant when he is unable to escape from the approaching Imperial forces.<br />
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Although we are introduced to several different Rebels, it is largely Jyn and Cassion who clash for much of the narrative. Yet we also see division among the Rebellion brought about by conflicting values in other ways. This starts to emerge when we are introduced to Saw Guererra, who is described as an extremist by Senator Mon Mothma. His methods are shown to be so unethical that he was cast out of the Rebellion and leads his own separate faction. When he meets with the defecting Imperial pilot Bodhi Rook, his first instinct is to resort to mental torture even though his prisoner was willing to co-operate.<br />
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Guererra is a man who has lost himself in war, both literally (as he himself states, "there's not much of me left") and figuratively. The man has been through several different resistance groups and fought in several different wars. His lifelong experience is reflected in his appearance. His body has largely degraded. Both legs are replaced by prosthetic and he appears to sometimes have trouble breathing. By this point in his life, he knows nothing else but fighting. He continues to fight because that is what he knows, but he has long forgotten the reasons why he fights.<br />
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It is fitting therefore that Guererra should choose to die on Jedha, even when an escape his possible. Galen Erso's message is a reminder of what the Rebellion stood for, but Guererra is so far gone that he no longer has a place in it. His only possible futures are death or endless meaningless fighting. He finally decides he is finished running, and allows himself to die. This is also why he tells Jyn to "save the rebellion, save the dream" hoping she will not lose her way like he did.<br />
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On the flip side of the conflict, we see similar division happening within the ranks of the Empire. The character of Bodhi Rook provides a small reminder of the fact that the Rebels are still fighting people. Rook is depicted as a fairly average and well-intentioned man who just happened to be on the wrong side of the conflict. He is not one of the high-level officers we are used to seeing, he is a low-level cargo pilot who just wants to do the right thing.<br />
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The theme of humanity in the Empire also comes up once again on Eadu, when Krennic threatens Galen Erso's engineering time. Although we don't know them personally, we are given the sense that they are people just doing a job. We see their expressions as they hear Krennic announce the presence of a traitor, and their worries as they try to figure out who it might be. Although the men were working on a devastating super-weapon capable of destroying entire worlds it is hard not to respect Galen's attempt to save them by confessing, or to feel sympathy when the Engineering team is executed anyway.<br />
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Yet in a very weird twisted sort of way one does sympathize with Krennic himself when he is faced with an even worse opponent: Grand Moff Tarkin. For all of Krennic's talk of peace and order, much of the Imperial sections of <i>Rogue One </i>revolve around the squabbling of these two officers. Tarkin ends up not only usurping Krennic's position running the Death Star but also steals credit for overseeing its construction. We start to realize that while Krennic is a dangerous threat who needs to be stopped, Tarkin is something far worse.<br />
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For all their talk of peace and order, the Empire in <i>Rogue One </i>functions in many ways as the architect of its own destruction. Its system is a prime example of the inherent flaw in authoritarian rule: submission is only ever a temporary solution. Sooner or later the people will break and fight back. No matter how many times the fight is suppressed the government will never earn their respect, and eventually will face its own downfall. Meanwhile a leader who earns their followers' respect (note how much more committed the Rebels are) is more likely to succeed.<br />
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Tarkin believes in control through force, as does Krennic, but far from a successful system of government the Empire is made up of different people struggling for power. Tarkin immediately uses his political influence to take over command of the Death Star and shows complete disregard towards Krennic. He even goes on to indirectly murder Krennic (along with probably thousands of other Imperial personnel) by firing the Death Star's laser at the Imperial base on Scarif. Tarkin's ambitions even overshadow his own loyalty to Darth Vader (who is more interested in completing the station than dealing with the infighting of his subordinates).<br />
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Ironically, this action will have dire consequences- had he not fired so quickly Krennic might have had time to report the Death Star's sabotage. Krennic also destroyed the archives containing the Death Star plans leaving the Alliance as the only ones with access. This move keeps the Empire from learning right away of Galen Erso's sabotage and indirectly allows the Rebels to find and exploit the weakness, leading to the Death Star's destruction and Tarkin's own death.<br />
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The Rebel Alliance is also struggling with the same issues, and the question arises of how far they will go. The primary voice of reason in this conflict comes from the Senator Mon Mothma, a politician who constantly struggles to reconcile the values of the Rebel Alliance with doing what needs to be done. Underneath her, we also have a general who issues Cassion orders behind Mothma's back- trying to turn an extraction mission into an assassination. This choice proves problematic as it ends up not only endangering his own people but also deprives the Rebellion of valuable intelligence.<br />
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The division that complicates the Rebellion is further reinforced with the introduction of the council. All its members voice different views on the issue of how to respond to the Death Star causing a heated debate. Jyn's account is doubted by several members, and a decision on whether to act becomes a concern. Though some of the issues brought up by politicians are not entirely invalid (i.e. questioning whether the Alliance has the military means to stand up to the Death Star) many of the politicians insist that they can avoid conflict if they don't engage. On the other hand, Admiral Raddus is immediately determined to charge into the fight not knowing entirely what he is dealing with. Mon Mothma has to balance both sides, even though her conscience tells her war is inevitable.<br />
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This brings up a question of loyalty that emerges throughout the film. The Empire is built on the expectations of blind loyalty, but the Rebellion's structure sometimes leaves room for moral conflict. Cassion in particular is frequently left to choose between his own values and his loyalty to the Rebellion first with Galen Erso (especially after receiving conflicting orders) and later in his decision to approach Scarif after being specifically told not to.<br />
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In these instances, the Rebellion's flaws are exposed. The pacifism of the council makes the majority of them (aside from Mothma and Senator Organa) blind to the threat posed by an Empire who presumably will not negotiate. Mothma herself is unable to do much more than prepare the few resources she has available to her. The only problem is that fulfilling the council's wishes would have had devastating consequences. Krennic was already inspecting the Death Star plans to check for sabotage. If Jyn hadn't disobeyed when she did he might have actually had time to find the structural weakness Galen had slipped into it, in which case the sabotage could have been fixed destroying the Rebels' chances.<br />
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<br />John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-48902758536826733452017-12-15T16:28:00.001-08:002017-12-15T16:28:53.222-08:00Twelve Wars to Christmas: Gettysburg (American Civil War)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Mel Gibson's <i>Braveheart</i> presented the story of William Wallace, but provided an account that was largely fictionalized and at best a distortion of what really happened (for one thing, I found out that Queen Isabella would have been 2 years old at the time the film takes place; that romance never happened). <i>Gettysburg</i>, released in 1993 and directed by Ronald F. Maxwell, is exactly the opposite. From its opening moments, the film stresses its thorough research and intricate attention to detail. We see this first emphasized in the opening credits (and later returns during the epilogue), during which photographs of real historical figures are compared with photos of the actors portraying them. The resemblance is not always identical (one might note for instance that some actors have shorter beards than the actual people), but it shows an attention to detail not always seen in historical dramas, and certainly one not present in <i>Braveheart</i>.<br />
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<i>Gettysburg</i> chronicles the events leading up to and over the course of the famous battle which turned the tide of the American Civil War. It is easy to forget that in its early years, the Confederate Army was actually <i>winning</i>. They were claiming town after town and pushing their way towards Washington. For many it seemed only a matter of time before Washington surrendered and independence was granted to the South. That all changed as soon as both sides converged on the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Three days of intense fighting a mountain of casualties on both sides ended up turning the tide for the Union. From there, they pushed the Confederates back until they had no choice but to surrender. Put mildly, there is a reason this remains one of the most famous events of the war.<br />
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Gettysburg chronicles the events of the battle on both sides, with a huge cast to fill the roles of its participants. At just over four hours long, it is a fairly comprehensive account of the battle and one of the most authentic depictions of the Civil War you can get. But it is more than just a mere dramatization of the battle. It is also a complex look at the intricacies and unpredictability of military leadership. Among the huge cast, most of the focus is on the roles of officers, particularly Generals.<br />
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The generals' games is a dangerous one. Vast armies, unfavourable conditions, and trying to give yourself the upper hand. It takes a certain amount of skill to be a general, to be able to take risks and out-smart an opponent of equal intellect. This makes up much of the film's first act. We move back and forth between the two sides. On the one side we see the frequent tension between General Robert E. Lee (Martin Sheen) and Lieutenant General James Longstreet (Tom Berenger). On the other, we have the Union generals. Both work against one another.<br />
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More interesting is the decision for the Union portions to focus primarily on Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, a respectable commander trying to carry out his orders in a difficult situation. Chamberlain is made into a respectable figure from the beginning. His introductory scene shows him struggling to get out of bed, giving us a sense that he is not a particularly unusual figure. He then addresses a group of deserters by giving them the situation but promising not to mistreat them (even inspiring many of them to rejoin). We also see Chamberlain spending much of the film trying to balance out two interests: the well-being of his men and fulfilling his obligations as a soldier.<br />
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This is not to say that the Union is wholly glorified, nor the Confederacy wholly condemned. Throughout the film we get momentary interactions between Union and Confederate soldiers (usually POWs) that remind us both sides are human: the soldier who talks about his life in Tennessee, the captured officer at Little Round Top who simply asks for water, General Armistead (Richard Jordan) requesting to see an old friend who happened to end up on the Union side. In fact, on both sides the subject comes up repeatedly that the war has been going on and on, both sides hoping it will soon end. They also frequently bring up the divided American society, specifically the idea that soldiers on both sides have people they know, often very old friends, among the enemy.<br />
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John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-74949761740108125442017-12-14T16:42:00.006-08:002017-12-14T16:42:53.832-08:00Twelve Wars to Christmas: Braveheart (Medieval Warfare)<br />
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<i>Braveheart </i>remains a fairly iconic rendition of medieval warfare despite its inaccuracies and the questionable choice to cast Australian Mel Gibson as a Scotsman. This film is in many ways a product of its time, and watching it I can definitely see many ways it would have been done differently if it were made today. I also suspected influence from <i>Spartacus</i>, from which <i>Braveheart </i>draws several parallels, right down to the theme of the hero choosing to die a free man than live as a servant.<br />
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As we are told in <i>Braveheart</i>, the story begins with the death of the Scottish King and the usurping of the English Throne by Edward Longhanks, who despite his silly name is determined to own Scotland. The Scots aren't so happy about being told what to do, and as with many dictatorships the people are pushed to their breaking point and finally rebel. Wallace sets this rebellion into motion and eventually dies, but the Scots earn their freedom by remembering his name.<br />
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<i>Braveheart </i>really isn't that great a film, and from what I can dig up it's hardly an accurate rendition of what happened. Unfortunately I struggled to find much good material for this one to discuss.<br />
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John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-36014489394791300922017-12-13T16:29:00.001-08:002017-12-13T16:29:32.152-08:00Twelve Wars to Christmas: Spartacus (Ancient Warfare)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Stanley Kubrick's 1960 epic <i>Spartacus </i>remains one of the most iconic retellings of the classic story about a gladiator who breaks free and tries to end slavery in the Roman Empire. This intense epic chronicles the life of Spartacus from his early days as a slave to his defeat at the hands of the Roman Empire, and it has proven extremely influential. The film made a huge splash in its day for making the controversial decision to openly challenge the blacklist by giving a credit to screenwriter Dalton Trumbo (who for the past few years had only been able to work anonymously).<br />
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Additionally its famous scene of the slaves refusing to surrender has been parodied and homaged so many times ("I'm Brian and so is my wife!") and its story would be the inspiration for a later Roman epic: Ridley Scott's <i>Gladiator</i>. Spartacus himself would be a major inspiration for Russel Crowe's portrayal of soldier-turned-slave Maximus (alongside a few other historical and legendary figures). But what of the film itself and its themes?<br />
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<i>Spartacus </i>focuses its three-hour running time on the practice of slavery in the Roman Empire. It is hardly subtle about this emphasis, as is made evident in the opening lines of the film. The film opens with narration that compares the role of slavery in the Roman Empire to an epidemic, a line of thinking that is later reinforced when Julius Ceasar (John Gavin) refers to the uprising as an "infection." We are told that Spartacus "dreamed of the death of slavery 2000 years before it finally would die" (presumably the narrator is referring to Abraham Lincoln).<br />
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These initial scenes place Spartacus and his fellow slaves in a series of mines, and Kubrick takes great care to show the senselessness of their operations. Note that although they are supposedly mining, one never gets the sense that anything is accomplished by the workers. They are shown futilely bashing the ground with pickaxes that seem to uncover nothing, carrying large baskets of rocks, and otherwise performing unnecessarily grueling chores with no real purpose. One of Spartacus's first actions is to try and aid a fellow slave only to be whipped by the Roman soldiers guarding him, who then sentence him to execution.<br />
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It is this bleak opening that sets the stage for everything to come. <i>Spartacus </i>works hard to undermine the supposed glory of the Roman Empire. It is exposed not as an invincible force of military might but a flawed dictatorship run by corrupt politicians more concerned with gaining power over each other than actually guiding the people they claim to lead. For all their talk of glory, triumph, and "order" the Roman Empire is chaotic and divided, and shamelessly engages in the practice of buying and selling human beings as property.<br />
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In this opening scene alone, we are given a glimpse of these contrasting lifestyles when we are introduced to the slave trader Lentulus Batiatus, and he isn't even very high in the Roman social hierarchy (certainly not compared to the Roman senators who try to manipulate him). While Spartacus is almost naked and shown doing hard manual labor in what appears to be a very hot environment, Batiatus enters on horseback with his own personal servant to hold an umbrella over him.<br />
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After walking past several exhausted slaves, he then dismounts and complains about the heat, never once considering how much worse it must be for the slaves he has come to purchase. Instead, he simply begins inspecting them and eventually chooses to purchase Spartacus because his fitness makes him good material for a gladiator. Along the way he dismisses some of the slaves offered to him and claims to not like Galls. He even performs a quality inspection, treating the slaves like products.<br />
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The first act largely follows the experience of Spartacus in gladiator school, where we are quickly given a clear view of the miserable conditions that slaves live in. While Batiatus is entitled to a busy social life, the gladiators are kept in dark underground rooms. They also face both external and internal pressure that prevents them from even finding comfort in each other. On the outside, the guards routinely tell them not to speak with each other while on the inside none of them wants to know their colleagues personally in case they have to fight each other to the death.<br />
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Additionally, a gender dynamic starts to emerge in the distinction between male and female slaves. The men are commodities to be advertised and sold. The women are, at most, tools to develop those commodities. Female slaves are given the menial chores- cooking, cleaning, and occasionally visiting the men. Ostensibly their visits are for companionship and a reward for hard work, but in reality it is for the perverse entertainment of the slavemasters (who watch through windows in the roof). Spartacus notably yells out the phrase "I am not an animal" while leaping at the cage-like bars of his window.<br />
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The attraction between Spartacus and Varinia (Jean Simmons) is also one that is mocked by the guards, yet their love becomes a twisted form of freedom and escape. The two are constantly kept apart by the guards, with one of the masters even going as far as to brag that Varinia will be given to someone else, then throwing her into a neighboring room probably knowing that Spartacus can hear her. Love then provides a twisted moment of freedom whenever they manage to find some small way to rebel: a momentary touch, a brief glance.<br />
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The first act climaxes with the arrival of the Roman noble Crassus and his family, who think that two gladiatorial fights to the death are the perfect activity for a wedding. Already we start to see some of the flaws in the Roman social system, particularly in the way that it seems to be the two women who have much of the power. They are the ones who request the fights and pick out the gladiators they think are the most handsome to take part. This marks the first real fight to the death for Spartacus, and it is handled carefully.<br />
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One detail of note is that during this scene we are initially restricted to Spartacus's own point of view, at least until his match begins. We remain in the small waiting room while the first duel takes place, and only perceive what Spartacus is able to, either through off-screen diegetic sound or through glimpses between the wooden panels. During this moment, he exchanges glances with his opponent, creating an awkward silence as the two anticipate their match. They both know that either they will die, or they will kill the man sitting across from them.<br />
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When Spartacus is released, we see the spectators acting fairly casually to the fight. Crassus and his friend Glabrus (John Dall) even get distracted from the two men trying to kill each other for their supposed entertainment when they discuss politics. The scene is treated more like they are watching a picture on a screen, rather than two men in a real battle to the death. When the political discussion is shushed by one of the women, it is only because she does not want to get distracted from the action. They only directly interact with the contestants when Spartacus is overpowered but spared, and his opponent attempts to plea with the nobles only to be killed himself.<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">The shot composition here makes the nobles look like they are in a theater, watching the action on a screen</span></div>
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This in turn sets up the big moment when Spartacus and his friends make their escape. By this point, he has been pushed as far as he can possibly get. It is a frequent problem with authoritarian control- intimidating people in submission may work for a time, but sooner or later they are inspired to rebel. Meanwhile, as the school is trashed by a mob of people who are justifiably angry about being treated as slaves, Batiatus reveals himself to be a coward. He immediately takes the first excuse he can find to leave the building for his own safety while abandoning his own staff to face the gladiators' mercy.<br />
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It is here that we start to get introduced to the politics of Ancient Rome. Although several scenes take place in the senate, the two main figures are Lentulus Batiatus Crassus and Gracchus (Charles Laughton). These two men are shown to have been locked in, to provide a very appropriate metaphor for a Kubrick film, a deadly Chess game. Both men are interested in power and profit, and are willing to do whatever is necessary to achieve it. This includes trying to profit from the crisis caused by Spartacus, which provides both parties an opportunity to steal control of the military.<br />
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Crassus claims to be "restoring order" while Gracchus opposes the "dictatorship" his rival is enforcing, thought he audience is left to wonder how his authority is any different. Of the two men, Gracchus's agenda is more beneficial to Spartacus, but this only makes him the lesser of two evils. Gracchus has no interest in freeing the slaves, only how the outcome of Spartacus's actions can benefit him politically. He is more than happy to purchase human beings (especially women) and only frees Varinia because he knows it will hurt Crassus. Meanwhile, Crassus talks at length about how he needs to crush the rebellion and claims that suppressing the slaves will make for a better Rome. Ultimately, it is Crassus who wins this feud and defeats Spartacus, ironically reducing Graccus to essentially becoming his own personal slave (albeit one with a somewhat cushier lifestyle). It is fitting then that, like Spartacus, he chooses suicide over this fate.<br />
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Throughout the film, the Romans show complete disregard for the well-being of their slaves. Spartacus's deeds are exaggerated to the senate to describe him committing war crimes that didn't happen. Spartacus remains consistent in his goal, going to extremes many wouldn't think of such as releasing the slaves who bring in the Cicillian Ambassador and refusing an offer to be taken away before the Romans can capture him. His followers show an unwavering loyalty that is contrasted with the senate.<br />
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Of particular note is the appearance Julius Caesar, who is a close friend of Gracchus only to betray him near the film's end. He is a politician in his own right (although one with less screen time than the two main ones) and develops his own ambitions. He claims that Gracchus's methods (bribing Cicillian pirates) are dishonorable, only to then betray him to a man who does the exact same thing in the opposite direction. This betrayal is also politically beneficial to Caesar, who will go on to become the first Emperor of Rome. His betrayal also becomes ironic when one considers that Julius Caesar's downfall came when he himself was betrayed by a trusted ally: Marcus Brutus.<br />
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<br />John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-33201245704071653562017-12-11T11:17:00.000-08:002017-12-13T08:12:23.748-08:00Twelve Wars to Christmas<br />
Wow, it's been a while since I last posted here. I'm sorry for my absence. I've just been preoccupied with a lot recently and haven't had as much to say on my blog. It would be nice to find some stuff to say again.<br />
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I've been thinking about doing an activity for the Christmas Break this year. It gives me something to do and provides me with some semblance of structure. So here is what I've come up with.<br />
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The format for this is pretty straight forward, and I've organized it as a kind of Advent Calendar marking the Twelve Days until Christmas, with the final day being on December 24. At the start, I provide a list of categories for each day, each unique but joined together by a common theme. In this case, I've used the theme of war as my driving force.<br />
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Each day, I watch a selected film based on the current theme. The challenge is to watch the film and then I have to write something about it. What I write can be anything, but I must post something by the end of the day.<br />
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Now you're probably wondering why I use war films for this activity. While it can work in other areas (I previously did this same activity with crime films, for instance), war films lend themselves to a timeline. I have organized them so I am moving forward in time through different eras of warfare, beginning with ancient civilizations and moving into the present day before reaching into the future. This works with the countdown aspect of the event as it allows a clear sense of linear progression.<br />
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I am including below the list of the categories I have chosen.<br />
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Ancient Warfare</div>
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Medieval Warfare<br />
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American Civil War<br />
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British Imperialism<br />
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World War I</div>
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World War II- Western Front<br />
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World War II- Pacific Theater</div>
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World War II- Eastern Front</div>
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Cold War</div>
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Vietnam</div>
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Modern Warfare</div>
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Future Warfare</div>
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John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-7252385137817119572017-03-01T10:12:00.002-08:002017-03-01T10:12:35.904-08:00Taking Down Wong Kar-Wai: A Polished Turd is Still a Turd<br />
There are three categories of auteur filmmakers. There are the great artists like Stanley Kubrick and Alfred Hitchcock. Then there are others, like Federico Fellini, who know what they are doing but whose styles don't agree with everyone. Then there is the final category: the pseudo-auteur like Jean-Luc Godard. This is the director who has deluded themselves into thinking they are a super-genius but produce garbage. This is not the same thing as just being a bad director like Michael Bay or Irwin Allen. Bay and Allen are at least honest about the quality of the films they make. A man like Godard, on the other hand, has the balls to consistently produce crap, pretend its art, and then delude his audience into thinking that his lazy hack films are something deeper.<br />
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Yes, as many of my readers can testify, I still maintain that Jean-Luc Godard produces nothing but garbage. And I'm not alone in that regard. Two extremely well-regarded filmmakers: Orson Welles and Ingmar Bergman, also despised his lazy films and his incompetence as an artist. But I'm not here to rant about Godard. I'm here to take down another one of these pseudo-auteurs thanks to my class. This man is none other than the critically-acclaimed Wong Kar-Wai, a director who has received an international reputation, known for films such as <i>As Tears Go By</i>, <i>Days of Being Wild</i>, <i>Ashes of Time</i>, and <i>In the Mood For Love</i>.<br />
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A lot of people seem to think this guy is some sort of genius. My prof seems to think so. So does Wimal Dissanayake, from wrote an entire book on <i>Ashes of Time</i>. So far, I've seen nothing to convince me. It seems like every film of his I get forced to watch only makes me hate this man even more. This is a man with no direction or any idea what he is doing. He doesn't even bother to write scripts; he literally just shoots a bunch of random footage, basically making it up as he goes along, and then hopes it will all come together in post-production. His films are incoherent and impossible to follow. His characters are one-dimensional at best.<br />
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Wong Kar Wai's biggest issue, aside from not being very good at telling coherent narratives, is his inability to recognize the blatant misogyny that carries through his work. Many of his films, including <i>Days of Being Wild</i>, <i>Ashes of Time</i>, and to a lesser extent <i>Chungking Express</i> and <i>In the Mood for Love</i>, reduce women to passive supporting roles. His men are always active figures, and the women are generally dependent on a man, rarely being entitled a role in the main action. His men routinely fail to treat women with respect, and in many cases it would seem they have never heard of consent as they often display repeated attempts to have sex after the girl has refused.<br />
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We see this with the protagonist in <i>Days of Being Wild</i>, Yuddy (Leslie Cheung), a man who routinely mistreats women, apparently seeing them as nothing more than sex objects. The character of Li-Zhen (Maggie Cheung) repeatedly refuses his advances, but these are ignored. Instead, Yuddy only continues to have sex with her while she laughs even after failing to consent. This includes a scene where, for absolutely no reason and no obvious causal motivation, Yuddy tries to reach under her skirt and touch her vagina. This is a man who obviously fails to realize how consent is supposed to work, and yet we are supposed to relate to him?<br />
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In the film, Yuddy seduces and abandons two women. The first of these is Li-zhen, a woman who is first seen working at a snack bar. After coercing her into dating him, Yuddy proceeds to take her to his apartment (apparently while also having another girlfriend over at the same time) and essentially proceeds to rape her. Li-zhen repeatedly refuses Yuddy's advances and yet he continues to force himself onto her. This continues throughout their section of the film. Keep in mind that Yuddy, who is sexually harassing a young woman (in one scene even trying to touch her vagina for absolutely no reason), is supposed to be <i>the hero</i>. This is the person Wong Kar-Wai expects us to relate to, which leaves open a lot of questions about what he was thinking when making this film.<br />
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Eventually, after multiple sequences glorifying Yuddy's unnecessary abuse of Li-zhen, she opts to leave. This would seem like a smart move, if not for the direction Wong chooses to take. After finally leaving Yuddy, Li-zhen instead becomes dependent on support from a male police officer (Although cops appear in several of his films, Wong Kar-Wai seems to have a peculiar aversion to showing women in law enforcement). The film also makes a bizarre narrative choice by leaving Yuddy, making Li-zhen and the unnamed police officer the center of attention for a large portion of the film, only to then ditch them both and return to Yuddy's perverse antics.<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">In <i>Days of Being Wild</i>, Li-zhen finally ditches the abusive protagonist, only to immdiately become dependent on another man.</span></div>
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Somewhat bizarrely, there actually seems to be a major contradiction in Wong Kar-Wai scholarship in that nobody can agree on what his third film was. Some say it was <i>Ashes of Time</i>. Others say it was <i>Chungking Express</i>. The main reason for this contradiction is because Wong quickly made <i>Chungking Express </i>during a break in the production of <i>Ashes of Time</i> but the former was released after the latter. Either way, both films present questionable depictions of women and continue to show the misogyny that has persisted through this man's filmography.<br />
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<i>Ashes of Time </i>only features two notable female characters, both of whom are needlessly dependent on men. The first of these is Brigitte Lin, who plays a mentally ill women that becomes dependent on protagonist Ouyang Feng (Leslie Cheung again). This illness manifests itself as a split personality, with her acting as the Murong twins Yin and Yang who are at odds with one another. Eventually she ends up living with Ouyang, and disappears. Frustratingly the film presents an opportunity to turn her into a strong character with the implication that she becomes a warrior... only to immediately forget about her. In other words, the films keeps her as long as she remains feminine, and abandons her as soon as she has a chance to do something worthwhile.<br />
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Even worse is the other major female character, who doesn't even get a name. She is literally credited as "girl with mule" and displays total unneeded dependence on men. Her first appearance consists of her explaining that her brother was killed by a gang of bandits, and she offers Ouyang a basket of eggs and mule to avenge him. Ouyang refuses, prompting the girl to do the logical thing... go to the edge of the village in the middle of the desert and just wait for a man to come and accept her offer. She becomes weirdly determined as well.<br />
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But why does she have to do this? Her entire story revolves around waiting for a man to come and do the job for her, which eventually occurs in the form of Hong Qi (Jacky Cheung). Once again, she is depicted as a passive victim at best, and depends on men to come to her rescue. Why can she not get her own revenge against the bandits who killed her brother. She literally sits around in the middle of a desert for days waiting for Hong Qi to accept her offer. Would it not have been a more interesting plotline for the peasant girl (Wong doesn't even allow her the dignity of getting a name) to take up the sword and then confront the bandits herself?<br />
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Now I know what you're thinking, and I've heard it before. Yes, I have had people try to refute my statement by pointing to Wong Kar-Wai's most recent film <i>The Grandmaster</i>. It is true that this pseudo-biopic of Bruce Lee's mentor actually has women taking part in fight sequences. That said, this is at best <i>one </i>exception. Keep in mind that Wong has made <i>nine </i>feature films so far and this is the only one to break the pattern. If an artist spends most of his career producing bigoted work, then turns around and makes one comparatively progressive piece, does that excuse the bigotry that is otherwise consistent? I would say no, it doesn't. <i>The Grandmaster</i> is one exception produced by a man who has otherwise consistently produced works glorifying misogyny.<br />
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<br />John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-55713144439782102242017-01-27T08:52:00.000-08:002017-01-27T08:52:17.163-08:00Strength of Character in Leia<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Science fiction has always been a male-dominated genre, but that hasn't stopped a few notable women from taking the lead on several occasions. We've seen this more recently with characters like Ryan Stone in <i>Gravity</i>. Ellen Ripley of the <i>Alien </i>films has become something of a role model for strong female characters, and with good reason; being one of the greatest examples of a strong female lead one can get. Yet Ripley was not alone in her influence. It is true that Ellen Ripley was a strong character. She was intelligent, resourceful, and knew how to handle her emotions in the face of danger.<br />
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Yet only three years before the introduction of Ripley, another woman made a huge impact. In 1977, George Lucas released <i>Star Wars</i> (later re-titled <i>Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope</i>), which introduced another icon of the science fiction genre: Princess Leia Organa. Leia was a huge deal in her time, and to an extent still today. Across the original films made by George Lucas, Leia was the lone female lead in a cast otherwise made up almost entirely of white men (and one black man who appeared very late into <i>The Empire Strikes Back</i>). But it is true that some aspects of her character have not aged well.<br />
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Let's face it: when she first appears in <i>A New Hope</i>, Leia's primary role is that of a damsel. It is also obvious that George Lucas originally conceived of her as a love interest for Luke (even if he later changed his mind and decided they were twins, resulting in lots of jokes about incest). The very first scene of the movie has her overpowered and captured by Stormtroopers. She then spends most of the film as a prisoner until she is finally rescued by a party consisting of three white men and a walking carpet. She then becomes a fairly passive character, observing from behind while Luke gets to blow up the death star.<br />
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Leia was slightly more active in <i>The Empire Strikes Back </i>and <i>Return of the Jedi</i>, but even this was limited. In the former, Leia spends the first act on Hoth by herself mostly comforting Luke. We do get to see her taking part in organizing the evacuation, but she still mainly serves to provide instructions while it is men who do the actual fighting. She then spends much of the movie being dragged alongside Han Solo in a broken Millennium Falcon before reluctantly following him to cloud city. There she mostly ends up being pressed into watching Han get frozen.<br />
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In <i>Return of the Jedi</i>, Leia takes part in Han's rescue but also (notoriously) gets captured by Jabba the Hutt resulting in her infamous bikini. This iconic moment has been interpreted many different ways. On the one hand, the fact that it is the lone female character who gets forced into this situation could be taken to have some negative connotations, as it could be seen as unnecessary sexualization. On the other, the film doesn't exactly glamorize her outfit. The bikini is treated as humiliating and also functions as a symbol of Leia's imprisonment (note that this is literally the <i>only </i>time in any of the films she wears such an outfit, and that in every subsequent scene she wears less revealing clothes).<br />
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Another important detail to note is that while Leia gets captured, she does is not dependent on the men to save her. During the battle which climaxes <i>Return of the Jedi</i>'s first act, most of the fighting is done by men. That is with one major exception. While Han, Luke, Lando, and Chewie spend most of the battle outside moving between skiffs and taking out thugs, Jabba himself is saved for Leia. She is the one who takes the initiative and opportunity to kill him, and does so with extreme prejudice. It is Leia who frees herself. Of the two male characters who play into her escape, one of them (R2-D2) functions as a tool (cutting her restraints) while the other (Luke) only provides her with an exit strategy <i>after </i>Leia's already released herself.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">In </span><i style="font-size: small;">Return of the Jedi</i><span style="font-size: x-small;">, Leia kills Jabba, but only after being captured and forced to wear a bikini.</span></div>
<i>Return of the Jedi </i>also tries to show Leia taking a more obvious leadership role in the battle of Endor, but she does spend much of the early stages of the battle hanging out with the Ewoks while everyone else is in the thick of the action. The film also alludes to Leia being force-sensitive, but refrains from having it occur through anything more than observation. One could counter these arguments by noting that <i>both </i>developments end up saving her (male) partners. Her force-sensitivity, while not given much focus, becomes important when it allows her rescue Luke under Cloud City. Later on, Leia's friendship with the Ewoks is what eventually allows them to be recruited as allies during the final battle.<br />
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Leia's roles across the original three films is obviously complicated, and there are a variety of different positions one can take. From a modern perspective, the damsel aspects of Leia's character have not aged well, as has her role being largely overshadowed by male protagonists. One could also note that this is true of George Lucas's prequel films as well, in which the primary focus is once again on relationships between men. Although we see several female Jedi among the extras, the ones who are actually given a role in the story are all men.<br />
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This could easily be seen as a shortcoming on the part of Lucas himself. After all, the entire prequel trilogy was made with huge casts and yet across three films there is a grand total of <i>one </i>female character who even gets so much as an identity that appears in the films themselves (nearly every other female character who appeared only got named by reference material and the expanded universe; basically material not written by George Lucas). Even though George Lucas could have taken the opportunity to give us an awesome female Jedi or at least work to diversify the main cast, the only woman who actually plays a notable role in the films is Padme Amidala.<br />
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In the prequels, Padme, played by Natalie Portman, is supposed to be Leia's mother; and she could have been a great character. There does seem to be an effort to make her a strong figure but Lucas has an unfortunate tendency to be extremely inconsistent and skew his priorities. In <i>The Phantom Menace</i>, Padme is established to be the elected Queen of Naboo (don't ask, I don't get it either) and ends up taking charge when her efforts to get support from the Republic are unsuccessful. Yet instead of actually taking the time to play up Padme's strengths, George Lucas instead opts to make her the subject of the viewer's gaze by repeatedly placing her into passive situations and overly convoluted costumes.<br />
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Padme gets a few moments of her own, but across the trilogy these are greatly overshadowed by men. <i>The Phantom Menace </i>arguably comes closest to making her a strong character. Starting with <i>Attack of the Clones</i>, Padme gets pushed to the side and instead is used as a motivation for the (male) protagonists who often go on adventures while leaving her behind. One of the very first developments is an attempted assassination that leads Obi-Wan and Anakin on a big chase through Coruscant while Padme remains in her apartment.<br />
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Later on, while Obi-Wan is uncovering a conspiracy Padme is running around in fields with Anakin with only the occasional political remarks occasionally shoved into love scenes in a desperate attempt to make her seem intelligent. The only strengths she gets to display as a character are near the end, when she takes part in the Battle of Geonosis, but even this is limited. She is the only one of the protagonists to get injured, and eventually gets knocked out of a republic gunship, a move which keeps her from playing any role in the film's climax.<br />
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<i>Revenge of the Sith </i>takes Padme to a new low. She doesn't even get the one or two action scenes she did in the previous films. Instead, she is cast entirely as a motivation for Anakin. The entire narrative is driven by his fear of losing her. Nearly all of Padme's scenes relate to her relationship and secret marriage with Anakin, with almost nothing to follow her political career. This also leads to the infamous resolution of her story. Because Leia mentioned in <i>Return of the Jedi </i>that her mother was dead, George Lucas contrived the whole situation that she "loses the will to live?"</div>
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Really? That's the best explanation you could come up with? First off, this doesn't even line up with Leia's statement because the latter claims to remember her mother, and her description sounds more like Padme died when she was a child, old enough to have vague memories; not remembering the five seconds she glimpsed her mother as a baby. Second, losing the will to live seems a tad extreme for the situation. It is true that she was just betrayed and nearly killed by her secret husband, and in that regard she would have every right to be upset, even traumatised by the experience. But even if a person could die just by losing the will to live, it seems extreme.</div>
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Personally, if I were writing this, I think I'd take a different approach. Instead of contriving a silly death scene, I think the logical thing to do would be to have her death occur between Episodes III and IV. While she would easily be emotionally affected by Anakin's betrayal and could experience psychological trauma (especially after nearly being strangled by him), I would think she would still be concerned about her children and protecting her values. Instead of having her die there, what would probably make more sense is to have Padme, alongside Bail Organa and Mon Mothma, go on to set the groundwork for the Rebel Alliance. This would also have the effect of making Leia's "princess" title even more meaningful. Additionally, I would want to imagine Padme's death as something heroic, perhaps dying to protect the alliance.</div>
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Interestingly, as soon as Lucas himself is taken out of the equation, we start to see more diversity. The original expanded universe offered a variety of female characters, including female members of seemingly all-male organisations from the films. <i>The Clone Wars</i> made Padme into a far more active character than she was in the films, focusing primarily on her political career over her relationship with Anakin. <i>Rebels </i>makes a strong point of including a variety of regular and recurring female characters on both sides. Most recently, both <i>The Force Awakens </i>and <i>Rogue One </i>have emphasized female protagonists and avoided romantic plot threads. This information would suggest that gender issues in the original films and the prequels are mainly linked to ignorance on the part of George Lucas more than anything else.<br />
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Part of Leia's reputation could be linked to revisions that have come from other appearances elsewhere in <i>Star Wars </i>lore. The original expanded universe timeline had Leia going on to become both a significant figure of the New Republic and a Jedi Knight. In the new timeline, Leia has also been an important figure. She made a guest appearance on <i>Rebels</i> (set before <i>A New Hope</i>) where she used her position as a major political figure to discreetly provide the alliance with ships. The same episode also went into her psychology (she delivers a speech about how she often wonders if it is worth fighting but manages to keep going anyway) When Carrie Fisher returned to the role in <i>The Force Awakens</i>, Leia had become the most prominent leader of the resistance with the new title of "general" (though one could argue that this position is technically a downgrade from princess).<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Leia's guest appearance in <i>Rebels</i></span></div>
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Even so, the fact remains that Leia was a hit as early as 1977's <i>Star Wars</i>. So what was it that made her so popular a character. One could argue that Ripley was a much stronger character and she only came out three years later. Lucas's films are riddled with problems of gender representation that have, thankfully, been addressed with more recent entries to the franchise. One can easily notice, for example, Lucas's aversion to depicting female soldiers in the rebellion (going as far as to re-dub an actress with a man's voice for the climax of <i>Return of the Jedi</i>) or female Imperial officers. In the prequels most of the female characters amount to background roles, and even <i>The Clone Wars </i>tends to favor showing the adventures of male Jedi when there are plenty of female characters who could be used.<br />
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Yet Leia still made an impact, which leaves an interesting question open: what exactly was it that made her so popular? Why is she still not just one of the most iconic sci-fi heroines, but female characters in general? It can't be only because of how other people have treated the character. There is something less obvious going on here. Leia has become one of the most iconic female characters ever. Even her double-bunned hairstyle has become instantly recognizable. That alone is odd seeing as Leia appears in five of the eight movies (six if you count her as a baby in <i>Revenge of the Sith</i>) and only displays her buns in two: <i>A New Hope</i> and her cameo in <i>Rogue One</i> (which leads directly into <i>A New Hope</i>). A lot of the improvements that affected Leia have been in more recent installments, many of which came after George Lucas stopped working directly on <i>Star Wars</i>. In order to understand why Lucas treated her the way he did, it may be useful to understand his thought processes.<br />
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While it was a huge hit, <i>Star Wars</i> wasn't exactly original when it came out. Lucas borrowed from a wide variety of different sources in order to bring his vision to life. To list them all would be futile, but there are a few big names. <i>Star Wars </i>was heavily inspired by 1930's serial films, especially science fiction adventures like <i>Flash Gordon </i>and <i>Buck Rogers</i>. There was also a lot of influence from <i>Star Trek</i> (making the imagined rivalry between fans of the two extremely ironic).<br />
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Lucas also borrowed a lot from World War II propaganda films, especially those dealing with the air force, most notably in his depiction of space combat. The various battles depicted across the saga often tend to play out more like World War II aerial dogfights or naval warfare than actual space combat. This was another detail that was changed in <i>The Clone Wars</i>, with <i>The Force Awakens</i> placing the action on a planet with an atmosphere to more realistically allow conventional dogfights.<br />
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It's also no secret that the Empire was inspired by Nazi Germany. Palpatine's rise to power in the prequel trilogy was intentionally made to parallel that of Adolf Hitler. Even the word "Stormtrooper" is not Lucas's own. When used today, it is often associated with the white-armored henchmen who frequently tried to thwart our heroes. In fact, its use goes back as early as World War I. But more famously, the name was used in a particular branch of the Nazi military. Specifically, "storm troopers" were soldiers serving in a kind of Nazi Secret Service known as Sturmabteilung ("Storm Division" in English). It is no accident that George Lucas adopted this name for the soldiers representing his fictional dictatorship.<br />
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So where am I going with all this? Well, it is very likely that a lot of the gender-based issues are connected to the material which inspired George Lucas. This is likely one of the main reasons he only shows groups of men taking part in the dogfights- the same was true for the World War II air force films he was drawing on. Luke Skywalker was borrowing a lot from the (usually male) heroes of sci-fi serials from the 30's like Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers. Lucas was borrowing heavily from these old films which likely shaped how he made a lot of his story, including Leia's characterization.<br />
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On the surface, Leia as she appears in <i>A New Hope</i> seems very much a classic archetype: the princess who needs to be rescued and eventually falls in love with the male protagonist. She is the Maid Marian to Luke's Robin Hood. Comparing <i>Star Wars</i> to the various stories of Robin Hood is nothing new. It is also not unreasonable to assume that Lucas got ideas from the various films Hollywood has made about the classic hero. In particular, George Lucas probably borrowed a lot from 1937's <i>The Adventures of Robin Hood</i>, which has arguably become the most iconic treatment of Robin Hood.<br />
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Comparisons to Robin Hood are nothing new, but Leia's role in <i>A New Hope </i>does bear some resemblance to Lady Marian in <i>The Adventures of Robin Hood</i>. In the 1937 film, Marian serves mainly as Errol Flynn's love interest. Most of her character is based around her love for Robin, and she generally takes on a fairly passive role which includes getting captured in the film's climax while it is the men who take part in the main action. She also ends up getting captured by the bad guys and has to be saved by Robin Hood. But she does get a few small moments, which include providing information to the Merry Men and organizing a plan to save Robin Hood from execution (though it is actually carried out by men).<br />
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These are small but notable traces of Marian's character in <i>The Adventures of Robin Hood</i>. Some of this passes on to Leia. Unlike Marian, Leia spends most of the film getting captured, but the moments she does get are more prominent than those used by Marian. It is established early on that she is an important figure of authority in the Rebel Alliance, even if these aspects of her character didn't get much focus prior to <i>The Force Awakens</i>. She is also not totally defenseless. She does get captured at the start of <i>A New Hope </i>but only after fighting a group of stormtroopers.<br />
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She also manages to perform one important act prior to being taken: getting the Death Star plans off the <i>Tantive IV</i>. It was already a hopeless situation. We already saw that the Rebel soldiers who had so far tried to hold the ship had been largely wiped out. Leia was probably going to be found regardless of what happened, but the one thing she does manage to do ends up being crucial. That is to leave the Death Star plans with R2-D2. It is this one action that allows the plans to end up reaching Ben Kenobi and ultimately the Rebel Alliance.<br />
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Interestingly, one perspective that could be taken comes when considering the sequence of events that come from Leia's brief interaction with R2. It is entrusting him with the plans that results in them ending up on Tatooine and (accidentally) in the possession of her brother. This in turn results in Luke bringing the message to Ben Kenobi and joining him on a mission to Alderaan. This same expedition results in Luke, Han, and Ben being brought aboard the Death Star, allowing them to rescue Leia. In short, Leia could be seen as rescuing herself, if unknowingly and in an extremely roundabout way, as her one act of entrusting the Death Star plans indirectly results in her escape later on in the film.<span id="goog_1197171286"></span><br />
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There is still the matter of Leia being trapped on the Death Star for the majority of <i>A New Hope</i>. Yet here Leia seems to be more complex than a typical damsel in distress. During her scenes, she is repeatedly seen as a valuable source of information by the (all-male) Imperial forces. Grand Moff Tarkin goes to great lengths to get her to reveal the location of the Rebel Base. Leia is also the only known person aboard the <i>Tantive IV </i>alive (we do see some rebels being captured, but what happened to them is never stated), and Vader seemed to consider it important for Leia to be taken alive. These facts to work to create the impression that she is a high-value target.<br />
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More important is the various tactics Tarkin attempts to use against Leia prove unsuccessful. It is suggested that Leia is tortured and resists. Tarkin later attempts to blackmail her, threatening to use Alderaan as a test for the Death Star's weapons if Leia fails to give him the information he wants. This is perhaps the biggest psychological test Leia faces in <i>A New Hope</i>, where she is forced to make a difficult choice with no obvious right answer. She is also the only major character to face such a situation. Although there are high stakes involved, most of the men seem to have an obvious moral choice for dealing with every problem. We never see Luke or Han being faced with a difficult or morally ambiguous choice.<br />
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Now it is true that on a narrative level this infamous scene functions to reinforce the audience's disliking towards the Empire, which is especially evident with its resolution: the realization that Tarkin was going to destroy Alderaan regardless of Leia's response (as if his earlier speech about maintaining power through bully tactics wasn't enough). What does stand out is Leia's reaction to this incident. It is obvious that Tarkin is able to strike her on a psychological level, and this is the closest he comes to persuading her (though the emotional ramifications of her home planet's destruction are not explored beyond this one scene, likely another oversight on the part of George Lucas).<br />
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Leia is genuinely torn and faced with a difficult moral decision. This is the only instance in the entire original trilogy of a situation where there is no clear moral answer. Leia's two options, at least as far as she is aware are to either give up the rebel base, saving her homeworld but turning on everything she believes in; or withholding the information, protecting the alliance and her values but losing her home and presumably her family in the process. There is no solution that would prevent Tarkin from firing the laser at <i>something</i>. The most <i>optimistic </i>outcome Leia can find is to minimize casualties by trying to get Tarkin to fire at a more remote world, a move that would likely <i>still </i>get people killed.<br />
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Tarkin refuses to keep his promises, and infamously destroys Alderaan anyway. But Leia's reaction is an interesting one for her position. She still takes a huge risk by trying to provide false information (as we later learn, she only gave them the location of an abandoned base, not the one currently being used). This alone is a daring move, and a huge gamble. Tarking is momentarily convinced, but there was no guarantee that it would work. But he also blows up Alderaan anyway. Although Leia is clearly upset, she does display the interesting strength that even the destruction of her home planet fails to break her. By the time the information she gave turns out to be incorrect, she has proved so resistant that the Empire basically gives up even trying to extract information from her.<br />
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Leia's role as a sci-fi heroine is one of several in a transition, and a huge deal for 1977. In order to better contextualize Leia's significance, it would make sense to make reference to another science fiction film from the same year by a close friend of Lucas': Steven Spielberg. The same year <i>Star Wars</i> was released, Spielberg made his own science fiction adventure: <i>Close Encounters of the Third Kind</i>. Spielberg's film was very different, attempting to depict the changes faced by an everyman protagonist as the result of an extraordinary experience. More specifically, Spielberg focused less on action and instead opted to focus on the enigmatic nature of an alien visitor.<br />
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The important detail to note is Spielberg's women. There are two major female characters: Jillian Guiler (Melinda Dillon) and Veronica "Ronnie" Neary (Terri Garr). But the story is first and foremost about Roy (Richard Dreyfus). Of the two women, Jillian is the more prominent figure. Ronnie spends much of the film trying to run a dysfunctional family, and eventually leaves the narrative entirely when she abandons Roy. It's true that her maternal instincts could be seen as a strength, and she is arguably performing a smart move by leaving her seemingly abusive husband; but these aspects of her character are given little focus or depth.<br />
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Jillian is given much more focus compared to Roy, but even her role is overshadowed. While she gets her own close encounter, her role in the film is that of a companion who assists Roy in his adventure, rather than being an adventurer in her own right. Note for instance that it is Roy who figures out the location for the Alien Rendezvous. Roy is also the person who has the most detailed map of the mountain and how to reach the landing zone (information which Jillian explicitly lacks). This becomes especially notable in the film's ending. First there is a romance suddenly thrown in, when Jillian and Roy kiss even though there is otherwise no romantic chemistry between them. Second is the positioning of the characters.<br />
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At the very end of <i>Close Encounters of the Third Kind</i>, Spielberg finally allows the aliens to make an appearance, but he makes one notable choice in writing the script: only allowing one of his protagonists to meet them up close. Roy is brought to the center of the action, being able to witness the aliens up close and eventually being taken with them on some interstellar adventure. And while this is going on, where is Jillian? Watching from a distance on a cliff. Although she has worked hard to get to this moment, Spielberg still denies her what he is offering to Roy. Instead, Jillian's entire motive is based on maternal instincts. She loses her femininity by losing her son and regains it upon his return, remaining in a domestic role while the man gets a more interesting experience.<br />
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Jillian is placed in an extremely passive role for <i>Close Encounters</i>, one where she is able to observe but never to act, and her story revolves exclusively around Roy. Meanwhile, in <i>Star Wars</i>, Princess Leia is entitled to her own plotline. Although she is greatly overshadowed by the male protagonists, the film does allow the viewer to get to know Leia as a character. In fact, it is not until towards the end of the film that she and Luke directly interact. The small amount of screentime she gets does manage to show her taking some initiative: smuggling the Death Star plans off the <i>Tantive IV</i>, buying the droids time to escape, resisting interrogation, and aiding Han and Luke's escape. Even if these are not perfect by modern standards, they may seem a step up when compared to Spielberg.<br />
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Now it is also true that Leia will seem like a weaker character when compared to a later role. Only three years after Leia, we got Ellen Ripley who could easily be argued to be a much stronger character. Ripley is a tough and independent woman who manages to prove herself a very capable survivor. She very famously outlasts every male character with her resourcefulness and intelligence, but it's also worth noting that in the film's earlier stages no emphasis is placed on her gender. Ripley is just one of many different people on the ship, and only comes to stand out because she is the last one standing at the film's conclusion.<br />
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But if we are going to go into a history of science fiction heroines, it's a complex situation and one that has evolved significantly over the years. A likely precursor to Leia, and one easily could have influenced Spielberg and Lucas is the infamous sexploitation film <i>Barbarella</i>. This bizarre 1968 adventure was produced largely by men for male audiences, and its attempts at sexual appeal are barely subtle (this film literally has an orgasm death machine). On the other hand, if one is willing to look past the various sexual themes and Jane Fonda's minimal outfits, there are some interesting things to note about the character herself.<br />
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As blatantly sexualized as she is, Barbarella is established almost immediately to be an independent woman, and the film rejects the inclusion of a specific love interest in favor of allowing the character to explore her sexuality with different people. One thing to note is that after the opening sequence of Barbarella removing her spacesuit in microgravity, the first thing that happens is she is given an important mission. More specifically, she is given a task to, without any backup, find and apprehend Dr. Durand Durand on a high-risk mission and even gets entrusted with a variety of weapons. Though a lot of these go unused, this opening would seemingly suggest that the character is strong enough that she can be trusted on such a dangerous mission by herself. She does frequently take initiative as well, although her action scenes are minimal.<br />
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This likely wasn't intentional, but Barbarella was about as strong a sci-fi heroine as one could expect from 1968. Nine years later, Leia developed a few major upgrades. First, she lost the revealing outfits (not to mention being forced to wear a bikini is treated as a negative development). The few action sequences she does get are also more than can be said for Barbarella. Sexuality and relationships are also moved to the background of her storyline. Although she is obviously intended to be Luke's love interest in <i>A New Hope</i>, their romance is only alluded to and never given much focus.<br />
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This also would have been happening only a few years after the original <i>Star Trek</i>. Unlike George Lucas, Gene Roddenberry made a much clearer effort at diversity but there was also only so far he could go. In the 1960's the idea of a future without discrimination by race and gender was a radical concept (ironically, it was heavily influenced by the very conservative film <i>Forbidden Planet</i>). There were vast censorship networks that made his vision very had to put onto television. Yet the fact that he was able to do as much as he did ended up being crucial to social progress.<br />
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The character of Uhura was a background telephone operator but became an icon for Civil Rights just for being a black woman working as something other than a maid. The vast television censorship made it very difficult for Roddenberry to introduce racial and gender diversity, and there are plenty of stories about the difficulties he and the cast faced to make this vision happen. Roddenberry tried to have a strong female lead in the original pilot only to have everyone crack down on her. There was also the iconic moment when William Shatner and Nichelle Nichols took a huge risk in performing the first interracial kiss on American television.<br />
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If Barbarella is to be seen on the foundation for strong sci-fi heroines and Ripley is to be seen as the end result, than Leia is the framework that brings them together.It is Leia who laid the groundwork for women like Ripley to step into the forefront, and she herself was already building on what had been set up by Barbarella. Today, Leia's role in the original films may not seem to have aged well. She certainly may not seem like a strong character in <i>A New Hope</i> compared to her appearance in <i>Rebels</i> or <i>The Force Awakens</i>, yet it was this role that proved so crucial to shaping the sci-fi genre.<br />
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<br />John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3797386216465468233.post-82024347946189652252017-01-11T07:15:00.000-08:002017-01-11T07:15:41.322-08:00Thursday Movie Picks: Movies Starring Actors Who Died in 2016<br />
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This week, the theme for Wanderer's Thursday Movie Picks Meme is movies starring people who died in 2016. 2016 was, unfortunately, a hard year for the business of film making. We lost so many iconic names it's hard to keep track. Some of them were people we didn't even realize were sick, or in some cases I didn't realize were even still alive. There has been a lot of commentary on just how many people we lost last year. In fact as New Years approached I heard a lot of talk about how there was going to be at least one more death before the year ended.<br />
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If it's any consolation there was <i>one </i>positive death that happened in 2016. We lost a lot of amazing people and that's unfortunate. But at least amidst all the performers we lost last year, there was one person that we're <i>glad </i>is finally dead: Ramsay Snow. So far he has been quite possibly the most evil character on the show, bad enough that he made <i>Joffrey </i>look okay (that's no easy feat). Say what you will about Joffrey, at least he was too selfish to have much of an impact anywhere outside of King's Landing. Ramsay Snow was like Joffrey but with intelligence to go along with it. And it just so happens that in 2016 he finally met his end at the hands of Sansa Stark. I don't think very many people will be missing him.<br />
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Anyway, I have been tasked with listing films that featured actors we lost in 2016. Now I could just pull out any random film that happens to feature someone we lost during the year, but I've decided to do something more meaningful. Here is what I've come up with...<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
The Producers (1968)</h3>
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This weird satire of Hollywood's business practices marks a first on two fronts. It was the directorial debut of Mel Brooks, but it also started the career of one of his regular partners: Gene Wilder. The two would go on to work together in a number of films, with Wilder also getting recognition for playing the role of Willy Wonka. In <i>The Producers</i>, Wilder played a bumbling accountant who accidentally figures out a scheme by which theater producer Zero Mostel can make more money from a flop than a hit. Hilarity ensues as the two set off to produce the worst possible play (<i>Springtime for Hitler</i>), only to do such a good job they accidentally turn it into a huge hit. Sadly, Wilder died last year, and he was one of the last remaining members of Brooks' crowd (the director himself seems to be the only survivor now).</div>
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Star Wars (1977)</h3>
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An interesting career path for Carrie Fisher, who both began and ended her acting career with the <i>Star Wars </i>franchise. Her big break came from playing the role of Princess Leia in the film that launched an entire franchise in 1977, and her final acting role will be in December when she returns as Leia for <i>Star Wars: Episode VIII</i>. The role of Leia is somewhat dated today. Her main function in <i>Star Wars</i> is clearly the damsel who gets kidnapped at the beginning and is eventually rescued by a group of white men. </div>
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For the time, on the other hand, Leia was a big deal. She was able to take action, could hold her own in a fight, and managed to resist repeated Imperial Interrogations to protect the Rebel Alliance. She was also established to be a figure of authority (although this could have been shown more often). She also got a few moments to herself in <i>Return of the Jedi</i>, most notably the fact that she single-handedly murders <i>the most powerful crime lord in the galaxy</i>. Naturally, it was great to see her return for <i>The Force Awakens</i>, where she becomes a general for the resistance and a mentor figure of sorts. Incidentally, before she died Carrie Fisher <i>did </i>approve of Leia's brief cameo at the end of <i>Rogue One</i>.</div>
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Eye in the Sky (2016)</h3>
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This was Alan Rickman's last movie, and as far as I'm aware he didn't even live to see its release. In this film, Alan Rickman plays an army officer who becomes one of several people overseeing the surveillance of a terrorist meeting and a possible missile strike. This was an interesting film for showing an aspect of modern warfare that is often overlooked: the use of drones and the ethics that come with it. More specifically, Rickman is one of several people who struggle to deal with the bureaucracy that comes with the moral dilemma involved: weighing the risk of civilian casualties with the possibility of eliminating a group of dangerous terrorists. A variety of different perspectives are offered ranging from ethical to propagandist agendas as everyone tries to figure out the correct course of action in a situation where there doesn't seem to be a right answer.</div>
John Hitchcockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13373653979400552490noreply@blogger.com1