Well... it has certainly been an eventful 24 hours,
I finally finished watching 'The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe', sat through 'King Kong' and talked to my brother (whom I've not spoken to for 6 years).
TL,W,&W turned out to be a lot more enjoyable than I had first thought. It started slowly and seemed to be going nowhere, but then turned a corner halfway through the film, picked up the pace and conluded in a manner that left me looking forward to the next installment of the franchise (and I do think there will be another installment).
Of the xtian motif that supposedly runs through the book, I was only aware of it because my attention had been drawn to it by the media. Had I not been made aware of the subtext I would have interpreted Aslan's death and ressurection in a more primitive light, considering it to be more reflexive of the dead and dying king mythos, or the day's journey of Ra through the 12 hours of night. I certainly didn't think it overbearing and in-one's-face, and cannot see little kids getting the hint at all.
King Kong was something else, a film of bloackbuster proportions that will make Peter Jackson a wealthier man. It had the feel, at times, that it was very much like 'Titanic', but instead of a giant film who's star was a giant ship, this is a giant film with a giant ape as it's star. I found it to be superior to the DeLaurentis film, and, in many places, it paid homage to the original, both in camera angle and the 'feel' of the special effects.
Indeed, in some places it was as if several varying styles of special effect were all rolled into the same frame, competing, as it were, for the attention of the audience. It could've been lame and looked cheap, but, like a cheese and chutney sandwich, the rather unexpected combination worked for me, and I rather enjoyed the contrast between full-blown CGI and rotoscope animation.
The only thing I didn't particularily care for, was Jack Black bottling the best line in the film. Seriously, he could've delivered the final line 'no, twas beauty that killed the beast' with a bit more style and panache.
But, the one thing that may have serious implications for me in the long run, was the phone call with my brother. Perhaps I should avoid the phone after having a few pints after work, but I didn't, and was rather surprised to hear his voive coming down the phone. It took a moment for him to realize who it was, and I know he's going to have a lot of thinking to do about it. But I felt it was time for at least one of us to re-open the lines of communication. 6 years is far too longfor brothers to not talk to each other. Hopefully, things will begin to warm up between us again. Not that I expect things will ever get back to what used to pass for normal, hell, I certainly hope not as it wasn't great back then at all.
A few things I did glean from the conversation were of interest though. It seems that I may well have been lied to for a long time by someone I thought I could trust. I am going to have to do some investigation, but it sounds like my kids may no longer be living on SaltSpring, and, instead, are living in Quebec with their mother's family. Perhaps they are only there for christmas, perhaps it has been a lot longer, I don't know. But, if I discover that this is, indeed, the case, I know one person who is off the christmas card list.
But, it seems, that my kids are in contact with my nephews, and tell them about life back east. Couple that with my brother telling me that they spend a week on saltspring every year and have yet to see the kids there, and my curiosity is piqued. Sure, they may not have run across the boys for many reasons, the main one being how mad their mother is regarding me and members of my side of the family, but I have to ask myself this, why would my brother lie to me regarding this? It gains him nothing at all. As to why the person who may have been perhaps not lying to me, perhaps not fully disclosing the truth would be closer to the reality, well, I know what this gains her. And if this is the case, I am incredibly upset about it. However, further investigation is in order to determine the veracity of the statement recounted last night.
anyway.... back to the bitmines and the overwhelming feeling of shock and awe
-=A=-
