I’ve been trying to keep this blog “on topic” as it were, but I don’t think a few diversions into other areas of life will be a problem, considering “life experience is writing experience,” as Jerry Cleaver says. Additionally, film is just another form of story. I’ve often felt over-shadowed by film, or as though it can do things I can’t do in writing, which can be true, but at the same things there’s things one can do in writing to much greater effect.
But on to The Book of Eli. I would mainly like to discuss the viewers relationship to the character. The film, in some ways, is unbelievable--such as certain details relating to Eli’s skill and the timeframe of the apocalypse--but in such a way that is accepted movie-unbelievable. So a strong main character is essential. For most of the movie, I believe Eli to be such a character. However, near the end, I felt a sudden disconnect from him.
It’s interesting to talk about Eli as a character. He doesn’t talk much, and we don’t hear his thoughts like in a first person narrative in writing. I sympathize, because I have been writing stories in third person and find it difficult to use strong showing elements without telling creeping in now and then. I found him immensely likeable, though at a certain point I believe I got confused as to his intentions (“don’t interfere”). He wasn’t who he said he was, and that bothered me, but maybe that’s not a valid reason :P
Maybe I don’t know where I’m going with this blog. I admit--it’s been a long day. It’s going to be a long month. Right now I’m at the first of three dog-sitting jobs, all of which are about a week long, two of which are stacked on top of each other. These dogs are boxers. When I got here, they barked at me as though I were the most evil person in the entire world. The good news is, they changed their minds :P
See you on the weekend with a more complete blog. I let this idea go too long and forgot what I was all going to do. And, I got barked at, so you know, I was too scared to remember ;)
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
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2 comments:
I got barked at last night when, on hearing our neighbors Dennis and Crissy's son fall at the curb and wail really miserably, I darted outside to the rescue.... Only to be confronted with a turning then charging German Shepherd --Yikes! (Fortunately, the owner called him off...and then laughed). So much for rescue lady--hah.
The Book of Eli was surreal--what's the history of the characters and the wasteland? and Eli seems as heartless as any of the other characters, out of necessity / for survival--his literacy has not fully become a literacy of the Christian life--maybe that requires other human examples to acquire (not just a book)...the ending relies too much on a gimic--he is blind (or should we assume just because he can read braile that he's blind?)
You and I discussed the unanswered questions as well--it was a bit of an add film.
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