Pan and Babel

Well this week marks a sort of triumph - I went to the movies twice, as an adult, without a child for whom I needed to edit the choice of said movies. Hip, Hip, Hurray for me!!!

Both movies (though I did not plan it, nor even had an awareness of it until just now) revolved aroung the lives of children. Irony, eh? They were both international films and worthy of seeing. The first was Pan's Labyrinth. An incredibly beautiful and moving story of a little girl whose Life is privileged and harsh; set against the backdrop of post-WWII Spain. It is a movies which is rich in detail, nuance and depth. In the interest of your going to see it, I won't describe it much further. Suffice it to say that this movie will tug at you, play with you and, ultimately, ask you to face reality. How much fantasy you are willing to bring with you is the question you must answer in the end. Absolutely beautiful.

The second film I saw was Babel. Set in Morocco, Japan and Mexico this movie was, well, a very good try. I found I could not connect to the American characters as deeply as was called for, in order to consider this a great film. The American characters were too self-absorbed and shallow which, I get is the point the director is attempting to make about Americans, but it was far too obvious and lacking in texture.

The entire time I watched the story in Japan unfold, I admit I was caught up in being a Mom, terrified for the daughter and the chances she was taking in Life because of her pain. The Mexican story was beautiful to watch and, in the end, sad and horrifying to endure. And, truthfully, it was in some ways predictable.

However, this is a film worth seeing for the way it captures the joy and the brutality of Life and for the acting which is better than good (at least a B+).

I think my ambiguous feeling arise from the fact that there is simply no redemption for anyone, only the brutality of consequence or the benefits of privilege are displayed in the film. But the director does a good job of building the film and the actors good jobs of presenting. Of course, this film has much more money behind it (I suspect) than Pan, so it will likely take more awards. Still, you should go see it.

Lastly, I do have some thoughts on this mind focus work I've been doing, but they'll have to wait a bit before I share. It's late and time for sleep.

Whatever your frailties, faults or failures, may you find redemption and freedom on your path.