The Power of Love

Warning: spoilers for Stardust.

There are good fantasy movies, mediocre fantasy movies, and bad fantasy movies. Then there is a special brand of bad fantasy movie, which is truly the bottom of the barrel, the dregs of the cup, the worst of the worst.

I'm referring to those where Evil is defeated at the end through the POWER OF LOVE. During the final confrontation with the bad guy, the protagonist, who has a big warm heart full of loving-kindness towards his parents, his lady friend, or his pet hamster, somehow externalizes those feelings as colored death-rays which affect only evil people, thus killing the bad guy. That's what quality fantasy consists in, the scriptwriters seem to believe: representing human feelings as colored death-rays.

The first Harry Potter movie belonged to that wretched company. Now you can add Stardust the movie to the list (did the original Neil Gaiman story have such a crappy ending?).

Edit: Here is tedg's review of the movie.

Parfit and The Prestige

I was going to make a post about how a scene in Christopher Nolan's The Prestige perfectly illustrates a philosophical point about identity made by Derek Parfit in his work Reasons and Persons, but after a brief search I discovered that a similar post already exists elsewhere. So read it, and this follow-up too.

Undead commentary

We have now discovered a motive which can explain the idea that the souls of those who have just died are transformed into demons and the necessity felt by survivors to protect themselves against their hostility.

(Sigmund Freud: Totem and Taboo)

- They were chasing me... screaming... I was scared.

- Who were chasing you?

- My mom... my dad... They were trying to kill me. There were others, too.

(a bit of dialogue from 28 Weeks Later)

Roger: You'll take care of me when I go, won't you, Peter?

Peter: Just rest, man. Save your strength.

Roger: I don't want to be walkin' around... like THAT!... Peter... PETER?

Peter: I'm here, man!

Roger: Don't do it until you are sure I *am* coming back! I'm gonna try... not to... I'm gonna try... not to... come back. I'm gonna try... not to...

(a bit of dialogue from Dawn of the Dead [1978])

Having a loved one turn into an inhuman (but still recognizable) monster who seeks to harm you is a primal fear. The modern remake of Dawn of the Dead knows this and exploits it to the maximum. From sleeping happily in her husband's arms, in a matter of seconds the protagonist finds herself being chased by that same husband, now suitably zombified. Meanwhile, the Apocalypse rages around her.

This review of the movie in Cinematical states that the film (especially the terrifying beginning set to Johnny Cash's "The man comes around") manages to evoke the feeling of horror and disorientation of 9/11, at least for the reviewer.

I would also say that the underrated 28 Weeks Later is a perfect metaphor for some aspects of the situation in Iraq, and for our current climate of fear in general. The first three minutes of the movie are here. Zombie films: great sources for sociopolitical commentary.