Okay let’s get this straight. God has lost faith in mankind so He decides to create a somewhat apocalypse. I say somewhat because it seemed to me that the world itself wouldn’t end, just the human race. Also in the preview itself it was compared to Noah and the flood, which if you believe it literally occurred, obviously was also not an apocalypse. Anyways, this time he decides to send angels but one of the angels, Archangel Michael (I’m not sure which one he is), decides to go against God and save the humans, or rather one unborn baby. So a bunch of random strangers led by Michael hole up in an old middle of the desert diner wait for the angels to attack, oh yeah and angel possessed people, in order to protect unborn baby savior and baby mama, with only a trunk full of guns. So expect a lot of shooting.
Why guns? What the heck are guns going to do against angels? Since when do angels die? And even if angels do die, with guns? I mean really. A human invention designed for the human anatomy. There’s nothing divine in that. The only thing I can think of is the evil behind guns and maybe that evil is what destroys the good of the angels and when angels lose their good they kind of die because they’re not angels anymore… Yeah. I tried. I really did. Also, Why this baby? Michael even says the birth of the baby isn’t enough. They have to teach it to be good. Well, isn’t that every baby? At first I thought it was just written, you know, like the end of Slumdog Millionaire. But then there’s all this talk about changing what’s written and God changes His mind and based on that context, it really shouldn’t matter which baby is needed to save the world.
Now for the flipside. I have to say there were a couple of times that I jumped, though it doesn’t take a lot to make me jump and more than anything, I loved watching the crazy old lady and the ice cream man because it was just so unlike anything I’d seen before. Am I supposed to be scared or laughing? The sound of Gabriel’s horn was intense. The character work actually reminded me a little of Brothers. The acting was good for the most part and it’s a shame the actors had to put their talent into this story and this script. I cared about Dennis Quaid, baby mama, one or two of the diners. But then the other actors were absolutely horrible. You remember the main guy in Tokyo Drift? Yeah, he’s only better in this movie because he doesn’t try to speak any Japanese.
I know some people are saying this is blasphemous. I can’t go that far. If you believe in any of the Abrahamic religions then you know that angels play a big part in any apocalypse and God has done mildly apocalyptic things in the past. The flood and the plagues on Egypt and I don’t know but the eviction of mankind from paradise seem pretty severe. And angels only do what God wants of them. Azrael brings death to humans but he is an angel and the devil was an angel at one point, perhaps there will always be something angelic about him. And I’m not totally sure (and I’m not sure if all three religions believe in them) but what are the four horsemen of the apocalypse?
Anyways, interesting idea. Bad story. It’ll give you a cheap thrill if you don’t mind wasting the other hour of your life.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Monday, January 25, 2010
temp-agency blues
I got turned down by a temp-agency today. It seems I don’t have enough experience in clerical work or factory work though I have worked at a distribution center and as a pseudo janitor before. It made me realize something. Graduating from a prestigious four year university where I specialized in three very different fields of study plus years of volunteer work and community involvement have somehow left me with zero marketable skills.
I’ll tell you what I’m good at now that I’m done with college. I am absolutely awesome at having to pull two all-nighters in a row. I’ve learned to fall asleep absolutely anywhere and am no longer queasy about cleaning public toilets. I’m pretty good at basic logic (I know this sounds like a good thing but we’re talking philosophy logic that uses a computer program and Ps and Qs and is a lot more like doing math in a foreign language). And I now realize that multiple choice tests are much harder than essays you can BS your way through.
They don’t teach you how to be successful in life. They teach you how to be an intellectual. What’s the point in reading when you can’t afford to feed yourself? Sometimes I think about what would’ve happened if I just didn’t go. I’d be much richer that’s for sure (yeah I know some of that money was financial aid). But I think more than that, I might’ve actually been happy with myself. For doing what I wanted to do and not what other people expected of me. For not throwing away years of my life. For not being in the position I'm in now. I could’ve learned something real. Something about life.
I’ll tell you what I’m good at now that I’m done with college. I am absolutely awesome at having to pull two all-nighters in a row. I’ve learned to fall asleep absolutely anywhere and am no longer queasy about cleaning public toilets. I’m pretty good at basic logic (I know this sounds like a good thing but we’re talking philosophy logic that uses a computer program and Ps and Qs and is a lot more like doing math in a foreign language). And I now realize that multiple choice tests are much harder than essays you can BS your way through.
They don’t teach you how to be successful in life. They teach you how to be an intellectual. What’s the point in reading when you can’t afford to feed yourself? Sometimes I think about what would’ve happened if I just didn’t go. I’d be much richer that’s for sure (yeah I know some of that money was financial aid). But I think more than that, I might’ve actually been happy with myself. For doing what I wanted to do and not what other people expected of me. For not throwing away years of my life. For not being in the position I'm in now. I could’ve learned something real. Something about life.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Review: American Born Chinese
I just finished reading Gene Luen Yang’s graphic novel American Born Chinese. I have to say I was surprised almost by my reactions. I assumed something more of an autobiographical memoir, you know, the kind that usually gets the awards. Persepolis, Epileptic, Maus. But this is not that kind of story. Rather than simply being the story of Yang’s childhood, it takes the emotions of that time and turns it into something bigger. With all three of the novels I mentioned above you never get that feeling. You never once forget who the main characters are. You’re reading because you want to know about plot points. In Yang’s book, the main focus is not the plot, but the experience. Though I am not ABC, I am first generation (meaning first generation to be born here) ABCD, I couldn’t help but feel he was writing my story.
I feel like I can say this about plot vs. emotion because I wasn’t too happy about the ending, though the very last page with the youtube screen was great. Let me give you some of the experiences I was talking about. Jin’s new teacher tells the class his family just came from China though they moved from San Francisco. The class rumors that he and the only other Asian in the class were arranged to be married at thirteen causing him to avoid the only person that he might be able to relate to. Danny hates his cousin the stereotyped FOB Chin-kee because Chin-kee’s presence taints Danny’s perception of who he himself is. Suzy compares her life to being an unwanted wallflower at a perpetual party. Read this book for these kinds of moments.
While I think I’ve given it quite a bit of praise, I will say that to me this is only telling half the story, the half where you don’t fit in as an American. He makes no mention to the half where you don’t fit in as Chinese or Desi or what have you. Growing up I think you’re both. There’s the culture you have at home and the culture you have at school. Then you hit a certain point and realize you’re neither, that you will never fit in anywhere. This is when you find a bunch of other American Born something or others and make your own culture, your own identity.
I guess what you can do then is take Yang’s story and read it once as him not being able to fit in white America, then turn all the white people into his Chinese born parents and their generation of immigrated Americans and read it again.
I feel like I can say this about plot vs. emotion because I wasn’t too happy about the ending, though the very last page with the youtube screen was great. Let me give you some of the experiences I was talking about. Jin’s new teacher tells the class his family just came from China though they moved from San Francisco. The class rumors that he and the only other Asian in the class were arranged to be married at thirteen causing him to avoid the only person that he might be able to relate to. Danny hates his cousin the stereotyped FOB Chin-kee because Chin-kee’s presence taints Danny’s perception of who he himself is. Suzy compares her life to being an unwanted wallflower at a perpetual party. Read this book for these kinds of moments.
While I think I’ve given it quite a bit of praise, I will say that to me this is only telling half the story, the half where you don’t fit in as an American. He makes no mention to the half where you don’t fit in as Chinese or Desi or what have you. Growing up I think you’re both. There’s the culture you have at home and the culture you have at school. Then you hit a certain point and realize you’re neither, that you will never fit in anywhere. This is when you find a bunch of other American Born something or others and make your own culture, your own identity.
I guess what you can do then is take Yang’s story and read it once as him not being able to fit in white America, then turn all the white people into his Chinese born parents and their generation of immigrated Americans and read it again.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
