when eyes are an enigma
i think the best thing about the dec break is how i regained my presence of mind to watch some serious films ever since i joined teaching. one of the embarrassing things i had to endure last year was sitting beside my chong boon ex-students while watching The Honey Bunny. could feel my professional status being dragged down a few notches there. haha. not that The Honey Bunny (and Mamma Mia!, Tropic Thunder, Burn After Reading etc) wasn't enjoyable. I am not so atas as to reject the laugh-out-loud-every-minute of frivolous movies but after a while, you kinda need some yang to balance the yin, you get what i'm saying.
Paradise Now explores the motivations of two Palestinians Said and Khaled to become suicide bombers as a form of protest against the occupation by Israel. stripped bare, it reveals how desperate one can get if he feels oppressed and impotent and wants to do something-anything-to redeem himself and make a statement. i liked how a change of heart is sensitively and plausibly protrayed after their separation from their handlers. Khaled (the man in the car), who was more determined initially, began to have second thoughts and questioned the worth of their act. He didn't follow through his suicide bombing act.
On the other hand, the initially more hesitant Said became more resolute. The movie ends with him sitting in a bus full with Israeli soldiers and the viewer is held in suspense as all sorts of questions gush over his mind. will he detonate himself? could he change his mind? will i see the explosion? what is he thinking? and while you are willing that you won't be seeing anything awful, the camera slowly moves up closer so that Said's eyes become the focus of the screen.
k, this is the closest photo that i can find.
brilliant ending.
click here to read more about Paradise Now.
on a random but somewhat related note, here is a photo I took of Johnny Depp's eyes recently at an exhibition in the National Museum. I'm quite fascinated with soulful eyes; maybe i shall do a photo series this year. haha.
i think the best thing about the dec break is how i regained my presence of mind to watch some serious films ever since i joined teaching. one of the embarrassing things i had to endure last year was sitting beside my chong boon ex-students while watching The Honey Bunny. could feel my professional status being dragged down a few notches there. haha. not that The Honey Bunny (and Mamma Mia!, Tropic Thunder, Burn After Reading etc) wasn't enjoyable. I am not so atas as to reject the laugh-out-loud-every-minute of frivolous movies but after a while, you kinda need some yang to balance the yin, you get what i'm saying.
Paradise Now explores the motivations of two Palestinians Said and Khaled to become suicide bombers as a form of protest against the occupation by Israel. stripped bare, it reveals how desperate one can get if he feels oppressed and impotent and wants to do something-anything-to redeem himself and make a statement. i liked how a change of heart is sensitively and plausibly protrayed after their separation from their handlers. Khaled (the man in the car), who was more determined initially, began to have second thoughts and questioned the worth of their act. He didn't follow through his suicide bombing act.
On the other hand, the initially more hesitant Said became more resolute. The movie ends with him sitting in a bus full with Israeli soldiers and the viewer is held in suspense as all sorts of questions gush over his mind. will he detonate himself? could he change his mind? will i see the explosion? what is he thinking? and while you are willing that you won't be seeing anything awful, the camera slowly moves up closer so that Said's eyes become the focus of the screen.
k, this is the closest photo that i can find.
brilliant ending.
click here to read more about Paradise Now.
on a random but somewhat related note, here is a photo I took of Johnny Depp's eyes recently at an exhibition in the National Museum. I'm quite fascinated with soulful eyes; maybe i shall do a photo series this year. haha.
posted by heng at 9:56 AM
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