Saturday 24 September 2011

I Need a Hug, Goddamit!

Yesterday I watched 2 films (I did other things as well - my life is very full). The films were: The Killer Inside Me and The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. Both films contain strong sexual violence. Just watching one of these films would be pretty disturbing, so perhaps watching one after the other wasn't the smartest move.

In both films the sexual violence is perpetrated against women. It all felt a little misogynistic to me. I don't jump to accusations of misogyny or sexism based on the inclusion of violence (especially sexual violence) against women in a film or a novel. If the narrative allows a context for such violence then it should be included - eg showing how rape is used as a tool of war. But I had issues with the portrayals of violence in these two films.

In The Killer Inside Me, the main (male) character is a violently sadistic psychopath, so certainly his violence is not out of place. What bothered and annoyed me was the portrayal of the women he abuses. There was very little development of their characters - which is annoying in of itself (so often female characters are poorly drawn) - but more information about the women could have given some insight into their disturbing (in my opinion) reactions to the violence perpetrated against them. Without a context for their apparent acceptance of the violence, it's difficult not to see the (quite graphic) scenes in which they are beaten as an expression of hatred (against women).

In The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, the main female character (Lisbeth Salander) is violently raped. I don't believe this needed to happen. The events which lead to her violation are very contrived. It almost seemed as though the writer (the film is based on a novel, as is The Killer Inside Me) wanted to include a graphic rape - it felt exploitative. In my opinion, Lisbeth, who is fiercely intelligent and wildly brave, would've found a way around her circumstances to prevent herself being raped. Interestingly, the English translation of the novel's Swedish title is: Men Who Hate Women.


Thankfully, tonight I'll be watching Dr Who.

Sunday 18 September 2011

Steel Wrapped in More Steel

As I creep further and further into the iniquitous den of middle-age, I have begun to realize that the only thing which can shelter me from this interminable, collagen-sapping horror, is an extreme makeover. After much consideration, I have chosen my new look:


(note the metallic grin and glowing eyes - clearly this is a happy terminator)

Friday 16 September 2011

Horizontal Advantage

[related to previous post]
[not rude]

Ruminatory, and often necessary, thinking can be effectively achieved when a body and its brain are in a horizontal position. The increased flow of blood to the brain will likely enhance lateral and abstract mind distortions.

There is always the threat of the ruminating brain/body organism being overtaken by sleep. This threat isn't always a negative, though, since sleep is an 'activity' most human organisms tend to under do. If the foggy head of sleep rears its somnolence whilst a human is engaged in horizontal rumination, submission may be for the best. However, sleep rarely makes an appearance during late night or early morning ruminations, and usually appears in the hour prior to the designated 'time to get up'.

Which takes us, inexorably, to insomnia.

I suspect that the need for lateral and abstract mind distortion is why insomnia is so rabid amongst humans: Not enough time is spent lying down. Hence, lateral and abstract mind distortion isn't adequately met, and rumination is forced to occur whenever it finds an opportunistic horizontal moment, often when a person is trying to sleep.


PS: This blog post was brought to you by half-baked theories and I seem to be doing a lot of lying down these days.

Thursday 8 September 2011

Thoughts From My Pillow

[Some of my most profound ruminations occur whenst I'm in a non-vertical, pyjama-clad posture - one from which I have great difficulty extricating myself - ie I can't get out of bed!]
  • my bed is way too comfy
  • sanctuary
  • the world will just have to go on without me
  • sorry, Willow, I shouldn't move my leg, thus disturbing your infinite slumber
  • can I delay my participation in this day indefinitely
  • I've read about (fictional) people taking to their beds for long periods of time - presumably to escape the evil world
  • there are tasks to which I could be attending, if only I could shift my ass! (and the rest of me)
  • hunger will eventually smoke me out, such that I'll have to get up and eat something...
  • ...unless I eat Willow...
  • ...mwahahahaha...
  • ...Ow! *smacked by angry claw*

Sunday 4 September 2011

Alchemy Fail

It would appear that when I touch (or just stand within close proximity to) gold, it transforms into lead. I have the anti-Midas touch. I am the King of Lead.

On the positive side, though, lead will come in handy when there's a radiation leak. Or when I need bullets.


PS: This blog post was brought to you by Sparkles and Sunshine.