#32: Warrior (2011) by Gavin O’Connor

The New York Times | Fiona Apple Faces Outward

In Ms. Apple’s new songs she is no longer a self-righteous victim. “A lot of my earlier songs are blaming other people and never thinking that I ever did anything wrong, because I was always trying to be completely loyal and honest and pure,” she said. “It’s so nice to come to a place where you can see how you absolutely enabled all these things to happen. It makes you stop being angry at people. It makes you start being more empathetic.”

Ms. Apple has been reading about neural pathways in the brain. “What fires together wires together. If you keep on having these negative thoughts or being angry all the time, then that area of your brain is going to get stronger,” she said.

So she’s trying to “feel everything” from a different angle. “Even when now there have been times that I’ve just felt so, so bad,” she said, “I can take myself out of it for a moment and go: ‘You watch, you’ve felt this way before, you’re going to feel great again. And then you’re going to feel terrible again, and then you’re going to feel great again.’ And when you’re feeling this way, at least know that there’s value in it — just as much value in your suffering as in your pleasure.”

itsearlyidontwannawakeup:

goodbye, blue sky

#031: Shame (2011) by Steve McQueen

“We’re not bad people. We just come from a bad place.”

13 Chilling (Circular-Theme) Minimalist Movie Posters by Jason Heatherly

kevinalmighty:

Rhoda’s story of the Russian cosmonaut

“You know that story of the Russian cosmonaut? So, the cosmonaut, he’s the first man ever to go into space. Right? The Russians beat the Americans. So he goes up in this big spaceship, but the only habitable part of it’s very small. So the cosmonaut’s in there, and he’s got this portal window, and he’s looking out of it, and he sees the curvature of the Earth for the first time. I mean, the first man to ever look at the planet he’s from. And he’s lost in that moment. And all of a sudden this strange ticking… (she starts tapping on the wooden table with a butter knife, over and over again, rhythmically) begins coming out of the dashboard. Rips out the control panel, right? Takes out his tools. Trying to find the sound, trying to stop the sound. But he can’t find it. He can’t stop it. It keeps going. Few hours into this, begins to feel like torture. A few days go by with this sound, and he knows that this … small … sound…will break him. He’ll lose his mind. What’s he gonna do? He’s up in space, alone, in a space closet. He’s got 25 days left to go… with this sound. So the cosmonaut decides… the only way to save his sanity… is to fall in love with this sound. So he closes his eyes… and he goes into his imagination, and then he opens them. [she stops the tapping] He doesn’t hear ticking any more. He hears music. And he spends the remainder of his time…sailing through space in total bliss… and peace.”

In this scene, Rhoda is clearly fabricating it to allow John to face his psychosomatic symptoms brought upon by depression. She compares the sound to a symphony purposefully as a way to individually tailor her parable to John’s needs. Rhoda tells John this story just before they fall for each other. Marling and the director Mike Cahill clearly went to great pains to draw a subtle but vivid contrast between this moment and the rest of the film that comes beforehand. Best scene in the movie!

#030: Another Earth (2011) by Mike Cahill

Maybe it was the budget that forced the second Earth to become a background metaphor rather than the focal point of the story, but if that’s the case, that limitation is what allowed the heart of this film to shine. But then, the second Earth is the whole point, and the personal implications sensed by Rhoda reflect the profound social and metaphysical implications - the scene of the first contact being broadcast live, followed by Rhoda wandering into the street along with the rest of the neighborhood to stare at the Earth that they’re communicating with, the mirror Earth with mirror people, conveyed awe so well that I got chills just watching.
I was impressed by the pacing of the film’s beginning, which didn’t linger at all, showing us four years and a life-changing tragedy. It leaves us with a Rhoda who would, without question, leave this Earth for the other one. She’s someone who’s lost and ruined, you might say, but she’s the perfect protagonist in this case. And while I was more interested in the Earth 2 phenomenon than in the more slow-paced middle of the film, it all linked together impressively in the end. The VERY end I found so satisfying, the kind that makes you curious for more but content with all the possibilities.