Fighting For Forgiveness

“Abandonment doesn't have the sharp but dissipating sting of a slap. It's like a punch to the gut, bruising your skin and driving the precious air from your body.”

Tayari Jones, Silver Sparrow

A free bird leaps on the back

Of the wind and floats downstream
Till the current ends and dips his wing
In the orange sun’s rays
And dares to claim the sky.

But a BIRD that stalks down his narrow cage
Can seldom see through his bars of rage
His wings are clipped and his feet are tied
So he opens his throat to sing.

The caged bird sings with a fearful trill
Of things unknown but longed for still
And his tune is heard on the distant hill for
The caged bird sings of freedom.

I know why the caged bird sings

by Maya Angelou

Throughout the Oscar Pistorius murder trial there has been a lot of talk around the legal adage, ‘Justice delayed, is justice denied’. A sentiment I’m sure everyone agrees with.

Unfortunately, the perpetrators of some of the most harmful and debilitating crimes, like the ones that happen at home, often candidly get to roam this world free without ever being convicted or sentenced for what they’ve done.

               

Occasionally, however, the wheel turns and when it does, boy - hell hath no fury like a child who was frequently scorned. When children who were the victims of abuse finally have an opportunity to ‘hold court’, they often become judge, jury and executioner. Their justice was delayed and now the abusive parent's is denied.

The question is can you really blame them? When you are that young, you simply don’t have the emotional or intellectual resources to maturely deal with your circumstances. Worse, you won’t have the physical strength to hit back and stand up for yourself either.

Whenever the interpersonal relationships of a family go shipwreck due to prolonged fighting, neglect and abuse, the damage caused can be incomprehensible. Should it be as a result of an abusive alcoholic, more often than none – unforgivable. 

In the movie 'Warrior', when Tommy Conlon (Tom Hardy), suddenly rocks up on his father’s doorstep one evening, he has no idea that his son is out for justice and longing to deliver him with a verdict that’s long overdue.  In fact, he can hardly remember when last he saw his son; the two haven’t had any contact for years.

Paddy Conlon (Nick Nolte) was a vicious man while Tommy and his brother Brendan (Joel Edgerton) were growing up as boys. He was drunk most of the time and in his drunken stupor frequently became an administrator of violence rather than being a loving father, who carefully steers his boys towards manhood.

Now, years later, he has finally sobered up. But the seeds of doubt, instability and anarchy that he sowed in his children’s lives while being inebriated have now finally caught up with him; and what you sow, you often reap.

During their first encounter, we see Tommy has also become a heavy drinker, while also popping pills in between mouths full of liquor. The sight of his legacy of being a failure as a father is overwhelming to Paddy and he becomes quite emotional. Tommy is quick to mock him and point out how pathetic he has become; a man who now cries and who doesn’t even drink.

The only silver lining to the ominous dark clouds that are clearly busy brewing between them is the fact that Paddy used to be Tommy’s wrestling coach, and he was a damn good one, too. It is for this reason and this reason alone, that his son has decided to seek him out again – Tommy wants to enter a Mixed Martial Arts competition and he wants Paddy to train him.

To some, having your father as your coach can be the closest thing to getting some attention from him. Just ask Brendan, Tommy’s older brother, because as boys he never got any of it.

Brendan (Joel Edgerton), a High School Science teacher, is a married man and together with his wife Tess (Jennifer Morrison), have two young daughters to support. The family is struggling financially, Tess is already working two jobs and Brendan does bouncer work for extra cash.

Out of desperation, he decides to participate in an amateur MMA fight and ends up victorious. With his winnings, he convinces Tess that he can earn more money and do so better in one night than in a whole month of bouncing.

When Brendan however decides to up the ante and enter the same competition Tommy is training for, he unknowingly sets himself on a collision course with his brother and all the hurt and pain that once tore them as a family apart.

Although both the brothers have made the most of moving on with their lives, trying to escape their past, they are still not free. Emotionally they are still caged birds. Fate it seems is not without a sense of irony, for it is in the cage that both will fight for more than just financial freedom. 

‘Warrior’ centres on some powerful themes. It’s a story of betrayal, neglect and abuse. It’s also a story of love and forgiveness. But above all, it’s a story of redemption; and how a bond between two brothers and a father sometimes run deeper than the differences that once pushed them apart.

It’s an inspiring film with a well-written script that is excellently directed. The performances from both Edgerton and Hardy are brilliant, raw and authentic. Together, they create the right amount of drama; setting a tone to each scene that is emotionally every bit as challenging as the actual fights themselves.

 

No, Nowhere, Noah

Cause: a principle, aim, or movement to which one is committed and prepared to defend or advocate.

The justice of our cause must be reflected in the manner in which we rectify the crimes of our past.

Unknown

Committed: pledged or bound to a certain course or policy; dedicated.

Fate is nothing else but the deeds committed in a prior state of existence.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

My pal Jeff knows how to get stuff done. Me, I often doodle. A bit of work here, some over there, seldom will I sit down, do only one thing at a time and finish it. Don’t get me wrong, I do get stuff done, but I’m all over the show. Not Jeff. When he takes on something new, no matter what it is, it’s as if this spell comes over him. He has the focus of twenty bulls all gunning for the same red flag. Nothing unsettles him until his goal or the desired results are achieved.

I admire that. But, there have also been times that Jeff is so focussed on the task at hand, that he has little or no room for anybody else’s input. It makes working with him, especially under pressure, often very awkward.

Too much of a good thing - isn’t a good thing.

After some thought and analysis, perhaps this is the only substantial point one is forced to deduce from the latest ‘Noah’ movie. In it, Director Darren Aronofsky tells the tale of a man who will stop at nothing to fulfil the task set before him, come hell or high water. (Mmmmh) 

Noah was the man God commissioned to build an ark before He was going to wipe out mankind with a huge flood because of all their wickedness. In choosing Noah, He had the perfect ally to see the job through, a man He could trust to stay committed to His cause. But when you observe Aronofsky’s interpretation of Noah and the times leading up before the great flood, you have to gasp at the realities he tries to sketch to his audience.

His Noah (Russell Crowe) comes across like a man possessed, blinded by some twisted idea of what it means to show your spiritual loyalty and devotion. In fact, his reasons for doing what God told him to do seems very much his own and hardly divine.

There are many inconsistencies in Aronofsky’s version of events. Inconsistencies that he tries to cover up with CGI stunts and tricks, he even offers a 3D experience of this absurd historical account of his. But I put it to you; no amount of colourful tailoring to any version can influence a bad story enough to make it seem true. 

Noah starts having these visions or back flashes, as if he is on some psychedelic trip – which mind you, according to Aronofsky, is quite likely how Noah got some of his answers. During a visit, his great grandfather Methuselah (Anthony Hopkins) promptly serves him up a natural mind-bending substance, and off Noah flies, zonked out of his skull. (Got to wonder about this family)

God spoke to Noah. He never had visions, especially not on some ancient form of dope anyway. All of them, both Noah and his sons, already had wives, too. Not according to this movie. It therefore doesn’t come as much of a surprise that God is silent in this film, a silence which at times is deafening.

For those unfamiliar with the story of Noah, it’s easy to simply go read all about it in Genesis 6-9. Basically, the Earth and all its inhabitants were so evil and corrupt that God was sorrowful for creating man, ‘And the Lord was sorry that He made man on the earth and He was grieved in His heart.’ (NKJV)

God had enough and decided to destroy everything and everyone He had made, but Noah found favour. When you watch ‘Noah’, you can’t help but wonder why? For instance: Upon learning of his son’s girlfriend’s pregnancy, (that’s all she is in the movie), he bluntly says that if it’s a boy, the baby can live, if a girl – she has to die.

Besides making history for being the first person ever to suffer from major cabin fever, Noah is also a drug taking fanatic and the ultimate chauvinist to whom female life has little or no value; hardly befitting of a man who was chosen to rectify the crimes of our past.

The simple truth obviously just isn’t entertaining enough, perhaps why the creators of this story try to take it to a completely new level. In between, Aronofsky tries to portray Noah as a man deeply tormented by what he has to do and tries to convince us that his character’s actions stem from human error and fallibility, almost as if he trying to set the tone for his own directional and storytelling imperfections, while trying to find forgiveness and redemption from us.

Ordinarily, creative license inspires, it offers something fresh. In this instance, it hopelessly fails.

‘Noah’ is a soulless journey, by soulless people in a soulless world who by virtue of inference suffer under a soulless God. With so much soullessness in this movie, you can’t help but wonder about the director – you surely don’t have to wonder about the message or the film.

 

But If I Have Not Love, I Am Nothing

On September 27, 1947, Marvin Aday was born in the town of Dallas, Texas. He was an only child. His father was a police officer and his mother a schoolteacher. While growing up, Marvin and his mom often had to go out and search for his dad.

Orvis Aday, Marvin’s father, was an alcoholic who frequently went on drinking binges for days on end. As a result of the disruption and trauma of having to drive the streets of Dallas to every pub to find his father, young Marvin ended up spending a lot of time staying with his grandmother. 

During his high school career, he received recognition as a talented actor, featuring in various school plays, but it was in the music industry that he would eventually make a real name for himself.

Shortly after his mother died and he received his inheritance, Marvin left for California. When he arrived in Los Angeles, he started a band and during their very first recording he hit a note so high that he blew one of the fuses of the recording monitor.

With powerful vocals that stretched over a three-octave range, he was instantly offered three recording contracts, but he turned all of them down.

In 1992, he collaborated with songwriter Jim Steinman and set about making an album. Together they produced a song that would capture the hearts and the imagination of people on such a tremendous scale that it would reach ‘Certified Platinum Single Status’ in the United States and be the number one hit in 28 other countries. In the UK it went on to become the best selling album of 1993.

Of course, Michael is better known by the moniker, ‘Meat Loaf’ and the acclaimed song was, ‘I’d Do Anything for Love’ (But I Won’t Do That).

The concept of finding love and loving someone in return seems to be imprinted on our DNA, at times. People write poetry about it, books, articles and of course, also movies.

In The Paperboy, Zac Efron plays the role of Jack Jansen, a teenager who recently was expelled from college for acts of vandalism. Jack is the younger of two brothers. His older brother, Ward Jansen (Matthew McConaughey) works as an investigative journalist for the Miami Times. Back in their hometown, Jack’s father is the publisher of the town’s paper and with his new girlfriend also distributes the Miami Times. Jack is the paperboy.

When Ward uncovers a story that might exonerate a man who is currently awaiting execution on death row, he spots an opportunity to make a name for himself; and along with one of his colleagues, an Englishman, Yardley Acheman (David Oyelowo), they decide to head back to Ward’s hometown of Lately, Florida.

Going back home is somewhat of a sensitive issue to Ward, knowing he has to face his dad, a man from whom he is completely alienated. Ward’s father also has a new woman in his life – Ellen, someone both the Jensen brothers dislike very much and refuse to accept. Their mother has been dead for a number of years.

However, the information that he has been supplied with concerning this story is too compelling for him to ignore. Cue Charlotte Bless (Nicole Kidman). Charlotte is a southern gal and a complete tramp who has fallen in love with Hillary Wetter (John Cusack) the man Ward and his associate is trying to get off death row. Since Charlotte and Hillary are also now engaged, they’ve been writing each other non-stop, giving Charlotte a unique opportunity to gather information concerning the injustice her man has been subjected to. 

The person Charlotte has the most profound effect on is the young Jack. He is a young man who is coming of age and he has to do so in the overwhelming Florida heat, something that seems to make his hormones rage within him more vehemently than a swarm of angry bees. Charlotte’s casual attitude to when it comes to her sexuality doesn’t make things easier for him and Jack falls madly in love with her.

As an audience, pretty soon you realise that Hillary is going to manipulate Charlotte’s love for him the moment he gets out of prison. Unfortunately, she’s the only one who doesn’t seem to think so. 

Although the story really centers around Jack and his feelings for Charlotte, a young man who for the first time in his life is truly captivated by a woman, the movie also explores the inner workings of the other characters and the motivation behind their actions.

The Paperboy was met with mixed emotions. At Cannes, it received the longest standing ovation at 16 minutes, while Rotten Tomatoes regards it as a complete flop. It has to be said that all the actors were simply superb in their interpretations of their characters and Director Lee Daniels really pushes the envelope in exposing all of their flaws. 

There is without a doubt a very raw element in the delivery of all the performances, a realness that is quite haunting at times. All of the cast involved can pride themselves for some very brave decisions.

Through it all, Daniels manages to sketch a vivid picture of the lengths people will go to for the sake of love; something most people would readily agree that, ‘I’d do anything for love’ often ending up heartbroken and bitter because they failed to understand, ‘But I won’t do that’.