out of work... and order

Unfortunately, no longer going to work due to the terribly inexpedient necessity of returning to college ( though i was briefly tempted to drop out). But this years course, at least in bits and pieces, seems exciting. Ranges from Fo (accidental death...) to Shelley and yeats with everything from eliot to graham greene to chinua achebe thrown in ... also Frankenstein... looking forward to this counterview - seeing as a monster a man you can't help fall for through his poetry... reminds me of this book I read called Mrs. Shakespeare - very brief and playful, but fun enough. Saw a movie from Taiwan called What Time is it There? it was brilliant, vague, and well executed - the idea and the treatment were in perfect harmony for once... the whole blue wash or (almost ruthlessly bold) chiarascuro brought the sense of alienation and loneliness bordering on a mass neurosis out very well. Anyway, I personally have a soft spot for things in the absurdist manner, i like the lazy meandering and yet purposeful way they have of getting the horrible point across, and if the medium and narration mate perfectly it can be undeniably brilliant. Also saw Pather Panchali ( Actually saw four movies at a stretch yesterday and looking forward to repeating the experience today and tomorrow): I always wondered where something as brilliant as Malgudi days could have a precedent in terms of Cinema or T.V. because for once filming complements instead of detracts from the pristine glory of the original - well i just found my answer.

From the close pan of a toothless Squint eyed Thakorema shuffling slowly across a background of patched and tattered linen hung out to dry, to the little line formed by a tempted Durga and Apu (not to mention the dog) behind the sweetmaker as he rings and jiggles down the path, hawking his wares. I think the simplicity or clarity of Black and White (the old kind with its skewed contrast and slightly blurred outlines - the new kind is too stark and confrontational) allowed for a rare kind of pathos and emotion sharing that just isn't possible anymore - it was like a line drawing - a few simple strokes, the simpler the better - bold and yet not fully revealed, inviting the viewer by evincing a simple faith in his ability to form his own conclusions, unhurried in their attempt to make a point, lacking the note of desperation that inevitably mars most propoganda, even of the highest order. Anyways, dying to see the rest of the Apu trilogy. Maybe more on him later.