Oldies That are Making a Comeback 3

Perhaps one of the greatest serials to ever make it to T.V., "The Prisoner", is being reimagined on AMC. This phenomenal work, at least in it's original form, is quite outside my capabilities to fully comment on or describe, but, it suffices to say, It is a metaphysical battle of one man deconstructing the dehumanized society as described in the later revelations of Howard Beale.

"The Prisoner"(1967)

"The Prisoner"(2009)

Oldies That are Making a Comeback 2

The media left constantly compares their counterparts on the right to one of two characters: Howard Beale from "Network" (1976) or "Lonesome" Rhodes of "A Face in the Crowd"(1957). while the analogy is interesting there is some trace of irony in Olberman comparing anyone to Howard Beale. These two films saw America's obsession with realness at the expense of reality long before most, and in their satire actually became a reference for what they were satirizing.

"Network"(1976)

"A Face in the Crowd"(1957)

Oldies That are Making a Comeback 1

The superb and atmospheric "The Devil and Daniel Webster" was recently dusted off for TCM's Essentials, a program that features Alec Baldwin and some old guy telling you about what good cinema is. This movie is still thoroughly fresh and it's apparent moral, that one must sacrifice a part of their soul to their country to rationalize the devilish ravishes of greed, plays extremely well in the modern context.

The First Church of Tiger Disbands

The First Church Of Tiger Woods, an internet site to celebrate the coming of the true messaiah, Tiger Woods, has become The Damnation of Tiger Woods (tigerwoodsisgod.com). The whole media storm around the fall from grace of a golf player offers us cautionary tale as old as Pentheus or Jesus or Lindbergh. It would behoove those who hide in the security of being above reproach to take it seriously. Do not underestimate the public's thirst for the blood of fallen idols. There is alot more to be shed and, far from satiating the hunger, Madoff and Woods have only started the sharks to circle. Who will come out as Tiresias? Only the ones who can embrace the darkness and reflect on their own natures.

Palinsanity

Palin is really striking a chord with a certain segment of the American public and while she will never be president, it must be said, without irony, she is a great politician. She has managed to shift a large portion of the national media's attention away from even the pretense of politics onto the epic trivialities of her own life, and channeled all the petty hatred and resentent of white America into her own malleable cacophony.

Obama Anounces Troop Deployment. Pleases Neither Side

Obama's announced the deployment 30,000 troops to Afghanistan; a withdrawl starting in 2011; and the use of a modified amalgamation of counter-terrorism (drone attacks) and McChrystals COIN (counter-insurgency) strategy. After being hammered out after wipespread and heated debate throughout the upper echelons of the executive branch and its agencies (How Obama Came to Plan for ‘Surge’ in Afghanistan), it has failed to fully satisfy anyone in substantive terms. His cold-blooded approach in laying out his plans last week at West Point, likewise, draws a clear line between the charismatic senator of the 2007 campaign and the dispassionate messiah of present day. The most interesting analysis of the real face of the Obama Administration that is surfacing in one of the most important decision yet in his presidency has come out of David Brooks of the NY Times (The Analytic Mode), and Dana Milbank of the Washington Post (Obama the mortal). In summary Obama is an incrementalist; he values pragmatism and compromise above ideology; and he designs policy to evolve in a complex and changing world through argument and negotiation. Understandably this doesn't give much for any "side" to grasp onto and, in a way, is disruptive to the whole ideological balance of power that has stabilized the masses since the 1950's. In promoting the radical center during his campaign, everyone who wanted to see, saw what they wanted but here, a year or so afterward, we realize we bought a messiah, a sort of technocratic Jesus, and everyone is left clawing at their shadows.

(Jon Stewart did a nice little piece in this vein check it out here.)

Fear in Film Part 4

Our last in installment is "Collapse", an interesting little pre-apocalyptic documentary of an underdog by Chris Smith featuring almost exclusively the very convincing and charismatic Michael C. Ruppert. The director doesn't reveal as much as with "American Movie" and while it is possible to see it as a character study there aren't the touches of irony that give you a hint as to how your supposed to interpret the film. The general philosophy of Ruppert is that peak oil will cause a breakdown in the government's ability to enforce stability, the economy will collapse, and society will revert to pure Darwinism. He supports his theory with a well built and convincing (though faulted) logic peppered with an urgency that draws out all the incoherent fears and directs them with some considerable force.

"Collapse"