The Bitch will not STFU

1-23-12

"don't you think it would be part of an artist's vision to paint things in whatever way they felt like? "

No, I don't, actually. Artists have never been that free. There are always inhibitions and cultural context.

Ok, we are seeing something different here. I don't see many shades of grey in ToL. We're offered 2 choices sharply characterized by a husband and wife. I could invent many permutations of these roles and the ideas of Grace and Nature but that isn't what Malick gave us.

1-24-12

The dogma is in Malick's overuse of Types. With full cinematic force, he reiterates the US familial cliches and images like it is Truth. Doe eyed suffering mother, constantly on the edge of tears, without a thought in her little head? Check. Stern father who can't win at love or business? Check. Angry son? Check. So why not just film Death of a Salesman again?

Baby feet, torturing toads, Disney-fied dinosaurs who feel compassion, if Malick wants to throw a concept at us, why use the over-wrought cliches of others? Surely The Master has his own wellspring of images.

The photos from the Hubble telescope were retouched and accompanied with uber-dramatic music. How very Wagner, who was the master of artistic dogma. The flaming eye of god, yeah, that's cinematic dogma.

In the end, we all wade together in a tub of love or life isn't worth it. Dogma.
Gee, do "all roads lead to god?" "In the end, the love we make is equal to the love we take"? "Breathe!" "Life is Good!" "Namaste"

One size fits all! Get the t-shirt. You can proudly display your fuzzy concept and cliches, too, for much less money.