Category: Movies

Movie Review: A Reflection on Fight Club

Alina H. Hansen Writer & Poet2 Comments

Hello Readers!

I have debated on doing a reflection on Fight Club (1999) for a while now. I know I could analyze and critique hundreds of points in this film but have decided to do a small reflection on Tyler Durden’s Philosophy of Life for today. I found this short snippet labeled with this title (Philosophy of Life) on Youtube and thought it is the perfect slice from the movie to include with this post.

Youtube vid:

 

I want to address a handful of items that have stood out to me from watching Fight Club and reading the novel (published in 1996) by Chuck Palahniuk multiple of times over the years.

First,

Tyler’s Critique on Consumerism in America. In the youtube vid, Tyler comments on the evolution of man and how in modern society they have become consumers,

“We’re consumers. We are by-products of a lifestyle obsession. Murder, crime, poverty, these things don’t concern me. What concerns me are celebrity magazines, television with 500 channels, some guy’s name on my underwear. Rogaine, Viagra, Olestra.” (rottentomaotoes.com)

Tyler also advocates, letting everything go and not fulfilling society’s standards for men. Ultimately he wants revolution,

” I see in fight club the strongest and smartest men who have ever lived an entire generation pumping gas and waiting tables; or they’re slaves with white collars. Advertisements have them chasing cars and clothes, working jobs they hate so they can buy shit they don’t need. We are the middle children of history, with no purpose or place. We have no great war, or great depression. The great war is a spiritual war. The great depression is our lives. We were raised by television to believe that we’d be millionaires and movie gods and rock stars — but we won’t. And we’re learning that fact. And we’re very, very pissed-off.” (rottentomatoes.com)

The social critique found throughout Fight Club is relevant especially now. We are walking advertisements, branding ourselves through our purchases of clothes, cars, and food. And the products that we buy which are made for pennies, costs us $$$$ just to own. For the middle and lower class, often working two or three jobs is necessary to survive but with the bombardment of messages that tell us ‘How to be Happy’ and How to have a ‘meaningful’ and ‘fulfilled’ life, we are left scrambling to keep up with others, buying products so that we can be perceived as ‘complete’ and ‘happy’.

“You’re not your job, you’re not how much money you have in bank, you’re not the car you drive, you’re not the contents of your wallet, you’re not your fucking khakis, you’re all-signing all-dancing crap of the world.” (rottentomatoes.com)

But what Tyler reveals (and what resounds with audiences even now) is that things don’t make people happy, working shit jobs don’t make people happy, doing what we love to do (what we’ve always wanted to do) makes us happy. This is evident in Tyler’s threat to the convenience store clerk (gun to the back to his head) “What did you want to be?!” (Movie: Fight Club 1999)

Tyler pushes men and the audience to reflect on their lives. We are what society makes us and for most of us we accept this regardless of how miserable it makes us.

Now this is only one aspect of Tyler’s seemingly evolving philosophy which eventually leads to acts of Terrorism that (pre-9/11) are intriguing acts on their own. Tyler wants to dismantle the corrupted society of modern man and free the oppressed.

In these messages, the novel and film have become a legend and cultural icons for the working class and men. Tyler Durden as a character has become a mythical figure that inspires revolution and freedom of thought in the oppressed modern society. He asks us to question our lives, what we value and our roles in society. He asks us to FIGHT BACK.

Tyler has become more than a literary presence but an ideology that has spread across the world inspiring men and women to act, and create their own ‘Fight Clubs’ (real or in other forms). This creation, Fight Club, is a remarkable achievement for Chuck Palahniuk and still inspires readers (and watchers) today.

 

There is also the discussion that Fight Club (film and novel) is for specifically male audiences. As a woman, I agree only partially with this discussion since almost everything I love is labeled ‘masculine’ by culture that I love. I can see the critique on the male role in society, I see comments on ‘hyper masculinity’ and what it means to ‘be a man’. I can see ties to the struggle of self under the pressure of society (in regards to men) and I can see that the only female role: Marla Singer represents the ‘hitting bottom’ female counterpart to Tyler (give her credit, she ‘hit-bottom’ way before Tyler and lives in it).

As a woman appreciating the film and text of Fight Club, I take away the social critique and acknowledgement of male roles in society, the grittiness (and violence, love that too!) and deep resonance with the aching modern soul that is so perfectly articulated in this legendary story. I would never advocate to change Fight Club for female viewers but I would argue against people that say Fight Club is ONLY for men.

This is only a small reflection, and I labeled it appropriately ‘PART #1’ for a reason. I want to expand more on Fight Club and plan to add more to my discussion sometime this weekend.

 

other sources: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/fight_club/quotes/

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0137523/?ref_=nv_sr_2

 

If you are reading this, Thank You for taking time out of your day to read my writing and I hope you return in the future!

-Alina

 

PLEASE LEAVE ANY RESPONSES OR SUGGESTIONS BELOW IN THE COMMENTS!

Movie Review: T2 (Trainspotting 2)

Alina H. Hansen Writer & Poet

WARNING: SPOILERS ALERT

T2 Trainspotting Poster

(source: imdb.com)

The shots, cuts and camera angles used in T2 reflect the style and tone of Trainspotting (1996). Paired with a gritty soundtrack that ranges from classics-remixed or toned down- from Trainspotting and contemporary music, the film exudes in its technique the theme of T2; nostalgia and coming to terms with your past.

Returning to Edinburgh, Renton decides to make amends and pay back his friends whom he betrayed twenty years ago (except Begbie, who he avoids at all costs). What he finds is Sick Boy and Spud doing exactly what they were doing when he left, and Begbie still in prison (soon to break free).

T2 follows Renton and the crew ‘getting together’ one last time in an epic junkie battle of revenge and heart wrenching flashbacks of adolescent beginnings. Emphasizing on nostalgia for a past that has died and gone to junkie heaven, T2 artistically echoes key moments that made Trainspotting  unforgettable; ‘Choose Life’ speeches, Renton colliding with vehicles, Begbie and his love for violence, Spud as the loved and innocent junkie of the crew and Sick Boy (Simon) still working as a con artist and thief. Although it echoes similar actions in Trainspotting, it does not feel like T2 is copying these actions in an attempt to ride the waves of what made it popular in the first place. The repeated or similar actions feel like they stand on their own, echoing maybe the message that sometimes you are always doomed to repeat yourself.

What is added to the mix is the role of Veronica, a young twenty something whose expertise in sex and her partnership (girlfriend?) with Sick Boy puts her at the center of an old man dog fight over events that probably happened when she was just a toddler. Veronica in the book Porno (by Irvine Welsh, and sequel to Trainspotting) has more parts and prevalence as a sex worker who later works for Sick Boy in his venture of creating Pornographic films above his bar. These parts are changed and toned down in the movie T2 and Veronica is portrayed as a possibly more ‘clean’ woman to audiences but in the end she does exactly what she does in Porno; taking the torch from the generation before her of “First there is opportunity, then there is Betrayal.”(imdb.com). I think by toning down Veronica in T2 Danny Boyle may have taken into consideration just how much grit and slime audiences can take (creating an R-Rated film versus a neon flashing NC-17).

Although I was curious from the instant I heard about T2 and after reading the book Porno just how much of book would be in T2, I am satisfied with this cookie cutter version which is easier to swallow for most, although I definitely craved more of the book in the end.

Overall, T2 holds true to Trainspotting as an art device used for social critique and exposure of the disgusting but often real underbelly of modern life (a predominant trait of Irvine Welsh’s works). With added references and use of today’s technology and comments on how ‘conning’ can’t be done like how it used to be, T2 shows the evolution of  addiction, lies, and thievery in our present day in a heart-wrenching story of opportunity and betrayal among best friends.

 

I could write more on T2 and go into depth on certain key scenes/aspects that stood out to me but I will have to think about this. I do plan on seeing T2 again and in the theatre so I can enjoy the big screen experience and if after watching it for a second time I do decide to do another reflection I will post one, probably longer (long long read) and in a couple of weeks.

 

(sources: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2763304/?ref_=nv_sr_1, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0117951/?ref_=nv_sr_2 )

 

If you are reading this Thank You for taking time out of your day to read my writing. I hope you return in the future!

-Alina

Announcement: Working on Movie Review for T2

Alina H. Hansen Writer & Poet

In response to my first post Returning to Trainspotting: The Release of T2 I am working on a reflection of T2 which I did go and see a couple days ago. All I can say right now is, heart-wrenching. 

I hope to have the reflection polished, done and posted within the next few days. It will appear on my homepage and under the tab ‘Film, Music, Art’.

Thank you!

-Alina

P.S. On a side note, I am also working on another reflection in response to a suggestion given by a follower, “...phenomenology and its effect on how we treat the body in poetry“. THANK YOU FOR THE SUGGESTION tmbenjamin10 !!!

Discussion: Returning to Trainspotting with the Release of T2

Alina H. Hansen Writer & Poet

Trainspotting Poster

(photo source: imdb.com)

Trainspotting directed by Danny Boyle came out in 1996. I was just a toddler when it was released but first saw it in my teens. It was accompanied with a slew of movies that were deemed ‘classic’ by my friends and family which included  A Clockwork Orange (1971), SLC Punk (1998) and Fight Club (1999) among others.

I remember watching Trainspotting, being disgusted and slightly horrified but intrigued by its appearance and dialogue. It would later become one of my favorite movies and I would watch it over and over again, collect Irvine Welsh books (writer of the original story)  and hang a poster up on my wall. I found myself coming back to Trainspotting periodically, attracted by its message, its grittiness and the magnetic pull it had on me.

Recently I’ve become aware that I admire things from past generations (big surprise, so does everyone else) but specifically movies and music from twenty years ago (just like everyone else my age). For me my love of this era came from my parents and relatives, they did good in letting me listen to the hundreds of CD’s they had collected and watching their favorite movies with them. I grew to admire these things not from forced exposure but from my sponge like ability to absorb and process everything I came across.

So can I relate to Trainspotting ?

Since I am twenty years younger than the generation that it was intended for, I am left out and find myself admiring from a ‘time’ related distance. But I feel like our generations are two stages of the same evolution. Youth adapting to technological advances, to drugs, crime and money (or lack thereof) due to city life and the decay that can be seen within society and the world.

The basic instincts of youth are still there. “I want to be somebody, I want money, I want satisfaction.” Mix in the addictive life associated with my generation (instant satisfaction and a life broadcasted on social media) there is a bridge between time and a connection is found.

I cannot speak for my entire generation and I am not attempting to either.

But it is my own perception (and others) that we are an addicted generation (obsessed with superficiality and technology) that we differ in degrees of extremes (we may want to fix the world and make change or make money and become famous). Maybe it has always been like this? (Yes) But it feels like because of the technology available to younger and younger generations our lives are being drastically changed at supersonic speeds. We are overloaded with information, addicted and obsessed, we are connected to millions of people through technology and exposed to them at the same time.

Blah, blah, blah. This may not make any sense. I may be rambling off into the distance and I know that if I were to back up my claim that Trainspotting is relatable for my generation because we are dealing with the same pain and decay as the characters were twenty years ago, I would need some actual evidence and research.

But this section on my blog is specifically for reflection and simple analysis. (Or I guess my horrendous ramblings!)

To put it short,

Trainspotting is an important influence on my life (creatively and personally) as a writer and artist I’ve found it and similar works to be priceless. Trainspotting helps to inspire, to expand the mind and delve deep into the darkest parts of the heart and soul.

So I plan on seeing T2 soon.

I am thrilled, hopeful and scared to see it. I cannot wait to find out just how much it’ll add up, if not, hopefully contribute to Trainspotting.

I may post a response to T2 and this post after I see it. If I decide to, it will be posted in about two weeks.

Comments are welcomed below. If you have thoughts, experiences or more to add on my brief reflection please do so.

If you are reading this, Thank you for taking time out of your day to read my writing. I hope you return in the future!

Thank you!

-Alina