Bug has been watching Frozen a lot lately. Every time I see it, I am impressed with the movies depth and complexity. Frozen subverts almost all of the princess movie conventions while at its heart retaining the power of the coming of age/heroic journey tale. It also pulls off the delicate trick of portraying deep sadness without becoming a deeply sad movie.
Two obvious conventions that it subverts are the central villain an the need for a Prince Charming. Frozen has a number of characters who can be seen as villains: the Duke of Weasletown, Hans, and even Elsa. None, however, are the central cause of the conflict in the tale. Hans and the Duke are certainly catalysts. Elsa's power is the proximate cause of the central conflict. However, it is deep sadness and fear that is the true cause of the conflict. The solution is not as simple as getting home or getting kissed or falling in love. It requires a recognition that feelings cannot be suppressed and that trust and love can balance fear and sadness.
Two characters present themselves as Prince Charming, but neither fulfill the role. Hans is the obvious choice. He and Anna appear to have true love. He is dutiful and loyal. His actions, in the beginning, never betray anything but Prince Charming. Hans, however, turns out to be a liar and a schemer. Kristoff, on the other hand, starts off as an oafish bit of comic relief. It is not until late in the movie that Kristoff becomes a stand in for Prince Charming. He may turn out to be Anna's true love and he does strive to deliver the true love kiss that will end the conflict. He is not allowed to succeed and doesn't get the kiss until the conflict is resolved.
The journey at the heart of the movie, while superficially Anna's, is truly Elsa's. She must learn to accept her powers, trust herself, trust her sister, and allow herself to feel: joy, fear, and love. The story shows Anna's journey because it has a physical manifestation. Elsa's journey is more subtle. Ultimately, it is Anna's sacrifice that shows Elsa how to take the final step out of the dark, but it is Elsa who must take the step. At each point in the movie the crisis is driven by Elsa's state of mind. By opening the gates, she is, grudgingly, accepting that the world cannot be shut out forever. Hiding in the mountains gives her the space to experience her inner strength, but only when separate from the world. The final resolution is her accepting both her powers and the world.
Frozen is a masterpiece.
Apr 18, 2014
A Crack in Space
Philip K. Dick's work is a mixed bag. A Crack in Space is visionary in its topics, but not great as a story. There are no issues with the structure of the story or the character development. The plot makes sense. The main characters are fully formed. I just found the plot slow, unconvincing, and the ending felt rushed. The lack of enthusiasm is purely a matter of personal taste.
Regardless of my lack of enthusiasm for the story itself, I do think it is a visionary and impressive work. The themes of racism, population growth, economic disparity, and the stupidity of politicians are all as relevant to our times as they were in Dick's times. It is sad to think that decades after Dick wrote the book racism is still such a big issue for our culture. We elected a black president, but still use racial biases to judge and dismiss him and his contemporaries. Immigration is mired in petty prejudices and willful ignorance. Our economy is stratifying at an alarming rate.
If we had the technology to create bibs, I think we would. It seems like the sort of quick fix that our system jumps at without thought. Hide the problem in a warehouse for now and let the future figure it out.
Read the book. It is not that long. Then spend some time thinking about the world described in it. Is this the world we want to leave to our children?
Regardless of my lack of enthusiasm for the story itself, I do think it is a visionary and impressive work. The themes of racism, population growth, economic disparity, and the stupidity of politicians are all as relevant to our times as they were in Dick's times. It is sad to think that decades after Dick wrote the book racism is still such a big issue for our culture. We elected a black president, but still use racial biases to judge and dismiss him and his contemporaries. Immigration is mired in petty prejudices and willful ignorance. Our economy is stratifying at an alarming rate.
If we had the technology to create bibs, I think we would. It seems like the sort of quick fix that our system jumps at without thought. Hide the problem in a warehouse for now and let the future figure it out.
Read the book. It is not that long. Then spend some time thinking about the world described in it. Is this the world we want to leave to our children?
Apr 13, 2014
Zone One
Zone One is what happens when a literary author tries his hand at writing a genre piece. The book tries to be a good post-plague zombie story, but turns into a beautifully written commentary on modern life.
Zone One is not a bad novel; it is a bad zombie novel. I had a hard time buying the post-plague, zombie vibe. Maybe it was just that it was unoriginal in its presentation of the zombies. There were zombies; they were sometimes hungry for human flesh; the world, as humanity, knows it was at an end. It had all the right pieces. For me, however, it just never gelled into a good zombie story.
That does not mean that I thought it was a bad novel. In fact, I enjoyed the social commentary. The author's prose is lush. The characters are well drawn in their damaged and mediocre ways.
The main character is the perfect embodiment of the new human condition. He is an everyman. His only standout trait is that he survives. He believes in the goodness of people while accepting that they are all a mess. He cannot stop surviving even though he sense the game may be up and humanity has lost.
Isn't that just real life. We all trudge through day by day knowing that we have lost. We just keep going because we aren't ready to give up the small bits of joy we find along the way?
Zone One is not a bad novel; it is a bad zombie novel. I had a hard time buying the post-plague, zombie vibe. Maybe it was just that it was unoriginal in its presentation of the zombies. There were zombies; they were sometimes hungry for human flesh; the world, as humanity, knows it was at an end. It had all the right pieces. For me, however, it just never gelled into a good zombie story.
That does not mean that I thought it was a bad novel. In fact, I enjoyed the social commentary. The author's prose is lush. The characters are well drawn in their damaged and mediocre ways.
The main character is the perfect embodiment of the new human condition. He is an everyman. His only standout trait is that he survives. He believes in the goodness of people while accepting that they are all a mess. He cannot stop surviving even though he sense the game may be up and humanity has lost.
Isn't that just real life. We all trudge through day by day knowing that we have lost. We just keep going because we aren't ready to give up the small bits of joy we find along the way?
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