Highlander , The Source . The Enigma of Immortality, part one .

Highlander : The Source . http://imdb.com/title/tt0299981/




The Enigma of Immortality, Part one .

The latest addition to the Highlander Series ( the Adrian Paul story ark , not the Christopher Lambert - bigger - budget productions ) seems to have disappointed , not to say disgusted admirers and fans , if one goes by the IMDB comments.

Yet , as a somewhat distant observer of this strand of Mytho-Poetic creativity ( I have seen a few of the television episodes through the years, as well as each of the previous four theatrical films) -- I was captivated by this films compact treatment of the multiplicity of difficult problems which the concept of " The Immortal" presents.

Perhaps the ever more demanding audiences of the 21 st century , who are starved for meaning and significance , felt cheated by this films attempt to resolve the somewhat cruel paradox of the Immortal Mythology : How can there be only One ? Why must so many die ? For myself, I was entertained and also stimulated by this film-- in the same way, for example, as a person who though not belonging to a particular religious group might find a interesting a sermon delivered from the pulpit of a country parson. This because there is almost always food for thought in any narrative.

The religious and mystical traditions that uphold this idea of the Chosen One are of course not restricted to the creators of Highlander . Our Judaeo-Christian tradition , here in the west , has firmly implanted the idea in our Collective Psyche . God regularly ( in cosmic terms ) Chooses prophets, guides , saviours, for us to look to for guidance, from Abraham through to Jesus . Other, sometimes competing , sometimes complementary traditions present us with similar great teachers. And they all must , if one reads history from this point of view, sacrifice themselves for the Many.

It is a rather gruesome, un-friendly view of the world that leaves the slightly more alert members of the human race wondering : Huh ??

The need we feel to rationalize the cruelty of nature and the somewhat disturbing pleasure humans take in the suffering of others is not likely to disappear from our intellectual environment. The world is apocalyptic , as much now as it ever was . We have no shortage of Wars and Plagues Famine and Death--The four horsemen of St. Johns Revelation continue to trample the earth ... And although some of us are for the moment quite safe , we all feel and know that this can change in an instant. Whether in a ball of flame as we saw it in the 9 / 11 television footage , or the next time we bend to pick a flower in a garden and perhaps put our back out or twist our ankle walking down the street . The precariousness of existence is omnipresent, Chaos is forever at our gates.

To me , the Film HIGHLANDER : THE SOURCE is much like a medieval mystery play. For though the tools of the theatrical trade have changed in the last 600 years and though we now spend much more time and money than our forefathers would ever have dreamed possible , to put on a show --and this particular show was probably inexpensive compared to others -- this story has all the elements of our oldest belief - motifs : There is a Satanic figure, a Marian incarnation, a mysterious God-Head as well as several prophetic and martyred bystanders --- and there is the foretelling of what may well be a virgin birth --- For though the Immortals cannot beget children it seems that Duncan Macleod , perhaps by passing "The Test" , may be "The One" to father a child whom the "Eternal Mother " figure ( Anna , played by Thelka Reuten -- http://imdb.com/name/nm0720671/ ) so desires to carry -- enough so that she will even sacrifice her temporal happiness to this end.

So all ye unsatisfiable and truth-hungry fans : see this film as a celebration of the ancient mystery of fertility , of " The Quickening " ( an old folk term from Scotland that signifying the moment when a child begins to show activity in a mothers womb). Perhaps this way you will be less frustrated by the films lack of concrete solutions to what is essentially the historical Problem of Evil , or of the problem of historical Evil . For if immortality and eternal life are very much at the center of human mythic and religious constructs , and though we are all given to believe that this goal may be achievable--nonetheless, the true immortality of our species remains in our ability to adapt and reproduce. Individual immortality and the survival of ones personality is a sweet and deceptively alluring dream.

The Guardian :
" You like graveyards? I love 'em -- I mean , who wants to live forever ? "

There is no way to avoid death except, perhaps, through reproduction but herein lies the rub : for if , as the satanic figure of the Guardian puts it

" There can be only Me " then there perhaps cannot also be ONLY ONE .

Individual immortality and the survival of ones personality is a sweet and deceptively alluring dream -- I , especially as I slowly grow older ( I shall be fifty sooner than I wish to acknowledge ) am not immune to this very human and very egoist desire. However, true Oneness and wholeness , unicity , and perhaps the ultimate salvation , of our species and of life on planet earth is the pardisical chimera that many of us see shimmering on the horizon of our group-life. A mirage that can never be reached for it keeps receding as we approach it.
Perhaps conflict is too deeply anchored in our Being , and perhaps our individual and primal need to be dominant will ultimately defeat us. There are certainly no lack of signs pointing towards this seeming inevitability.

The Highlander films, and this last one in particular , in it's gruesome somewhat pastiche hypereality, do try to offer a message of hope -- one which Anna delivers in a beautiful and simple epilogue . This I leave to you, reader,to discover for yourself , as I encourage you to watch the film .

To Be Continued. (Next instalment : The Immortal . The Enigma of Immortality, Part Two. )

Highlander : The Source can be rented at Movieland . 1972 Rue Ste Catherine Ouest , Montreal ;or purchased through Metrovideo , Montreal , in Les Cours Mont Royal, below the Scotiabank Cinema.

Shattered and Already Dead.

Shattered and Already Dead.

Anger, Vengeance and the Dark Siide of Justice : Feeling Good about Being Bad.














I am a sucker for films that are not mainstream and yet have the distinction of being supported by the names of the some finest actors in the profession … The first of these, Already Dead has Christopher Plummer in it’s roster, The Second has Pierce Brosnan . These actors have had long and fruitful careers and continue to involve themselves in projects that are not of necessity Academy award material…and thank the Film God for that…
Both the above films are cinematic treatments of some of the darkest most powerful emotions of human life. Revenge, Anger, Jealousy , Envy …. And the need for Justice even as coloured by these.
In SHATTERED ( the title under which you will find this film in North American Video shops ) an angry, VERY angry man devises an artfully cruel and unusual plan to teach a life-lesson to a man whose perfect life hides some dark secrets . . Our angry Anti-Hero feels the executive who is the somehat unwilling target of his attentions must be punished for the excesses which his success has made possible. His ingenious plot to humiliate his rival ( which I will not reveal more of as I think you should watch the film ) is as insane as it is clever… and will leave the viewer wondering what is right and what is wrong. Ultimately , the finer virtues of self-restraint which are applauded by our better thinkers are called into question. The suspenseful thriller succeeds in keeping the viewers attention, even in this age of Suspense overdose. This is partly due to the quality of the acting , and also—to my eye, at least—because of the clean and sparing cinematography.
In ALREADY DEAD we find a similarly VERY angry man . Angry for slightly different reasons , he nonetheless pursues ,as does the Anti Hero of SHATTERED a path of "Justice on his own terms" . However , In this film, the denouement does not reveal entirely the machinations at work behind the events that throw our hero and an equally unusual anti-hero together in a fight for survival against a common enemy. In SHATTERED questions are answered that make the equations simpler to grapple with. In ALREADY DEAD there are some unanswered questions which make the film more plausible and realistic but less easy to rationalize.

The shady gray’s of Evil and Retribution are given a detailed examination in these films . The somewhat difficult problem of how the need for justice can easily be transformed into an intimate release of passion ; the equally thorny problem of the apparently erotic nature violence — [that is, of the pleasure which violence seems to give our protagonists who are so very much like all of us ]-- and the also unresolved problem of what the limits of individual freedom are or should be ; all these questions are developed in these two films.

Is Feeling Good the same as Being Good ? There is no easy answer.

In both films the issue is exposed in cinematic realism, without being entirely resolved.
The existential torment of life on earth as we know it , the Sartrean theme expressed in the philosopher Sartre’s words : " Hell is Other People" and the theme of how our illusions about freedom can create our ultimate aloneness … these issues are the underpinning of the two films, which at another level are simple Thrillers, cathartic and entertaining .

These are good yarns if you don’t want to think, but they are also good yarns if you DO want to think.

Both films are available for rent at : Movieland , 1972 Rue Ste. Catherine O.
The Book Fool can be reached at : fictionalworld@hotmail.com

Cult

From: fictionalworld@hotmail.com
To: fictionalworld@hotmail.com
Subject: Review of " Cult"
Date: Wed, 13 Feb 2008 20:45:36 -0500

American World Picture &
Autumn Entertainment ;
Present, in association with :
Madman Apparel,
The Syndicate,
Bear Path Venture
Max Ink Café


CULT ( 2006)

Directed by Joe knee

If you base your choices of films to watch on IMDB comments ( see above) then you will certainly not be watching this film…Definitely a time-waster for most of the viewing public. But, if as I, you will waste your time on any film that even tries to approach issues of the spirit, no matter how badly written and edited, then perhaps, some late cold night, if you have nothing, really nothing, to do …

Because our society is pervaded with issues of Religion as seen through the Judaeo-Christian- Islamic traditions it is good to see an attempt--no matter how faulty and faltering-- to present something of the Taoist current of thought.

A group of students explore an obscure Cult Massacre that took place in a Taoist temple in California. The story reveals there is an ancient amulet with occult powers linked to a Chinese maiden, Kwain Jen, murdered by her own Father, many centuries ago. The enraged father killed his daughter when he found out that she sullied his family name by giving in to a moment of passion with a man from a lower level of society—though it is key in this narrative though not clearly explained, that the issue is not the passion, (a fully understandable human weakness at least in in some Chinese traditions) but the ensuing pregnancy, that is the root cause of the Fathers Rage.

The film attempts to explore the recurrent and unavoidable problems of "Purity" of the soul and the "Dirtiness of the body" –especially of the female body.
These themes pervade all of religion and human experience. The film also addresses the issue of marginal religions. As the teacher of our student-anthropologists informs us: “One mans Cult can be another mans Religion.” This is of course at the root of much of human conflict--- or at least this is the pre-text which is used to cover up the sub-text of much human conflict, much as the Ideology of Freedom often covers up unbridled Greed.

The heroine of the film (Mindy, played by Rachel Miner), though this is only alluded to, is afflicted with a form of second sight (reminiscent of Eliza Dusk’s character Tru Davies in the show Tru Calling), a gift or curse which unfortunately does not allow her to save her friends from death, as dark forces manipulate her to a final showdown with the Evil that haunts her.
Ultimately, it is unclear whether it is her Father, or a force that has possessed her Father which attempts to kill her---and which she manages to overcome by sacrificing herself. If I understood correctly, the sacrifice brings not only Purity of soul, but grants the heroine salvation of her body—or in prosaic western terms: immortality without immorality.

Perhaps the obscurantism of this film was intentional, or simply the result of lack of time and funds… I must admit that even a low budget film should at least have a coherent story line to reach a large audience. But if the director was not concerned with being easily understood, perhaps the film achieved its purpose. Whatever that may have been.
The Cynicism of young characters and the somewhat hopeless determination with which they face doom does not bode well for the never ending cycle of birth and death that we all face.
As one lyric from a song in the sound track puts it:
“You feel when you win, you still lose”
Family bloodlines are taken very seriously in some parts of the world, and were more so, of course, centuries ago when fertility and reproduction were not so well understood. Though I have not studied Taoism, I know that Ancestry is important in this form of spirituality-- perhaps this story has within it the theme of the eternal struggle between Patriarchy and the Feminine.. of Yin and Yang …The writers of this script , had they had the schooling necessary for this, could perhaps have done a much better job of telling this Taoist Tale .As it stands, I am sure the film will remain obscure and disliked. Too Bad .
The young actors make a valiant attempt to work with a poor script…and the music was , in my opinion good. Noteworthy were the songs listed in the credits : 21 AND LOADED ; SIT DOWN STARE OUT; CHANGE YOUR MIND all by The Ruse, and 7 BUCKS by Angela Carter. There were also some nice melodies as well, (un-credited). When I pressed the subtitle option, I was offered English as an option, but the subtitles are actually Spanish . The names under the Production umbrella also caught my eye, which is why I listed them at the beginning of this review.

Available for rent at Movieland , 1972 Rue Ste. Catherine Street.O. Mtl. .

The Book-Fool

( fictionalworld@hotmail.com )

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Bad Blood

Review of : BAD BLOOD [2006]

Directed by : Tiago Guedes
Frederico Serra

Portuguese with English Subtitles .

(Also : Footnote about In a Dark Place - Directed by Donato Rotuno )

As does most of the human population I do find Evil interesting… not to say fascinating. Yet so much has been written, thought, filmed about the subject that it is trite , almost , to even bring up the subject in urbane parlors and conversations. Not because it is taboo, but because it no longer is taboo. Perhaps There is nothing sacred ( or scared) about evil, anymore.
For this reason , this film wins my unending admiration…The writer and the directors, the actors… all leave me breathless. This is a truly refreshing treatment of a time-worn and timeless subject.
My first recommendation is that any one who watches the film must watch the " Making of" special feature. From watching this , I gleaned some wonderful insights into the creative process and into the Genius of the team who made this film.
These are all comments I quote and paraphrase from the creators and actors:
" A horror film without being one there is hardly any blood in it --- a film about the Portuguese inner universe --- a film about how living in the countryside can influence and alter relationships…a film that is about Evil and yet avoids the sensationalism of scatology that is so popular amongst the youthful generation" …
To me this Film is definitely about exorcising demons. It is about Exorcism as a function , about Exorcism as a tool of survival… If I understood the comments in the interviews , this film, in a way , is a response to the ever present cultural Icon THE EXORCIST which has branded the minds of the last 3o years of film viewers. In that film there is an old Priest and a young priest. But there the parallel ends.
So much is touched upon, alluded to , made manifest without shocking the viewer. In some ways this is a quiet meditation from a unique , nearly medieval farmer’s point of view. Or perhaps it is , rather, about a modern slightly dysfunctional family , of a scientist Father and urbane Mother with typically nonchalant children and their clash with the remnants of a long medieval tradition of Catholicism still alive in the Portuguese countryside.
This film awakens many questions , without directly answering them. Amongst these : Will the mytho-religious ways of apprehending the world ever be completely supplant by reductive science? Or will mysteries such as the ever so Banal one of Evil ( to misquote the great Jewish Philosopher Hannah Arendt) , always defy science and force us, as humans, to seek understanding using alternative approaches. Indeed, even in the Hyper-scientific world of Star Wars, for example , we need Jedi mysticism to help explain the unexplainable…. So in the rustic environment of a Portuguese village the young, wet about the ears, priest must resort to the laying on of hands and Latin incantations ( a wizardry much less spectacular than Jedi telepathic mind-control ) to free the eldest son of our ill fated family from the Demon that afflicts him.
There is much more to the film than a simple tale of haunting. The complex weave of this tapestry shows—if you pardon my pursuing the contrast to the Jedi-world – how deviously indirect the suggestive influences of the Dark Side are. There are references to the perennial ‘ social issues ' of incest and masturbation, there is birth and death. Sorrow and anger… The somewhat bewildered family members blindly enter a world in which the sins of the Fathers revisit them--- the never ending domino effect of Blood for Blood which provides the Devil (or to use his post-modern name , the Whatever ) with his never ending feast.
At one point in the film the well worn truism that the Devils best trick is that he convinces us he does not exist, is cited by young the priest… as The actor who plays the Academic Pater-Familias says of his own country’s folklore :" In Portugal the Devil has hundreds of names , many faces. To use his correct appellation “ The Devil” brings bad luck." So indirect naming is considered wise and cautious. 'Bad Blood' is one of these names.
To conclude, the film treats of the Organic nature of Evil, ( as the title emphasizes ) and it is also about how the many forces which mold us and against which we build fortresses of thought and myth are forever elusive, no matter how we apply our Ratio ( the logical side of our being) .

As a finale I would like, if my readers ( if any ) permit me the excess , to quote the following passage from the script:

YOUNG PRIEST :
I mean - an exorcism ! I never paid much attention to these stories . Besides I always thought permission was necessary for it.
OLD PRIEST : Permission I have from God which dispenses with Church Bureaucracy . As for the stories , you have only been here a few months ...you are a lad from the seminary. See how these people live- and learn that you are the salvation ...otherwise you came here to do nothing.
YOUNG PRIEST : I am only asking you if you can guarantee that the girl was possessed by strange forces..
OLD PRIEST : And it is a very good question too ! But these people will always ask you something different ; if you can guarantee that she was NOT possessed.

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Footnote :

I also watched ,in the same night I watched the above, this film : IN A DARK PLACE ( 2006) Directed by Donatu Rotuno.
The comments on the IMDB page trash this interpretation of Henry James's novella TURN OF THE SCREW... but , perhaps because I had just watched BAD BLOOD, I was captivated by the parallels: Both films treat of Evil , and of Evil in the isolation of a country-side context , both allude to the sexual substrate of the human predicament , and of how misdirected erotic forces ruin life and lives. IN A DARK PLACE may be a cinematic faux-pas , in many ways, but I was not bored by this film. Perhaps only fit to be viewed by the Genre-Obsessed, it is noteworthy , none the less.

In my humble opinion.

Both films are available for rent at: Movieland, 1972 rue Ste Catherine O. Mtl.

The Book Fool can be reached at fictionalworld@hotmail.com

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The Killing Floor

THE KILLING FLOOR .

David Lamont : ( Hubristic Hero of The Killing Floor ) :

" Story's my business.... Just what I do"

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This film stars two young actors who both captured my heart when I first saw them in their T.V. roles. Shiri Appleby , of Roswell; and Marc Blucas , of Buffy the Vampire Slayer both play the leading roles in this relatively small budget ( one guesses, though I don’t know the numbers ) yet expertly filmed and directed horror film. The concept , especially, is delightfully entertaining: A film about a Horror Story editor who begins to” live the story” , so to speak.

This is a Man whose constant tirade to the writers he represents is :

Make. Me. Care. !!

His life turns into a nightmare. As the denouement of the story approaches we hear him tell his latest heart-throb whom he has violated:

"I just don't give a F**k !!"

( This object of his attention is played by Reiko Ayelsworth , also an awesome TV actress --she played Michelle Dessler in 62 episodes of "24" ).

He has been "Made to Care", to the point of no return.

Throughout the film random and planned events intertwine, as slowly but surely , the Hero begins to sink into madness. Only at the very end are we , the viewers, permitted to see what of this series of events is incidental and what is planned by the diabolical mind whose agenda it is to destroy the Ego maniac who spurns and destroys writers as much by his attention as by his inattention. The Motif of revenge and the Motive of spurned attentions are old hat , of course. But our flawed , hubristic hero nonetheless tugs at our heartstrings . At the end of it all we feel for him.

Without revealing too much of the plot and thus spoiling the experience for the very few people who will bother to watch the film ( Shame on all you who are afraid to watch yourselves die, for the hero is actually a mere reflection of what we all aspire to : success, wealth, sexual prowess ) , I can say that much of the pettiness at the root of our corrupt society is touched upon in this film--including , in passing , the plight of actors. Of course, there is no real resolution to the conflict, for this is merely cinematic expose, a Photo-narrative so to speak -- of how we are essentially mere puppets of the desires and whims of others. Something as trivial a thoughtless oversight, a spilled coffee , an overheard word or a glimpsed apparent meeting of two people whom we do not know to be acquaintances, can set off a chain reaction of fearsome fantasies and tip the balance of the most stable mind into un-reason.

Even if one can afford a beautiful chunk of Unreal Estate in the Heart of New York upper levels ( Floors 15,16,17 in this case ) , one is not immune from the vagaries of the surrounding environment and from the affectations of those others whom chance ( or fate ) chooses for us to share our fences with ….

I quote:

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Detective Martin Soll : (John Bedford Lloyd ) :

“New York is a corrupt cluster fuck , just like any other City . “

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Irony of Ironies---as I was watching this film, in what is usually a quiet time in my downtown Montreal equivalent of a luxury condo for the poor worker , a one and a half in what was once a sumptuous townhouse , now crudely subdivided to meet the cash flow needs of landlords , I had to endure the traumatizing sounds of some form of Boom-Boom music as it shook my floor. A recurrent problem which I usually deal with by leaving the premises---Something as trivial as a neighbour's bad taste in music or tendency to like IT loud, are enough to drive the sanest of us mad… This time, I was committed to watching a film for the purpose of writing this review. Luckily I could not locate my Axe in the disorder of my home . This interjection merely to point out that Horror is never far away...no matter how unsuspecting any of us ,( in this case my downstairs neighbours ) - are.

Noteworthy: The melodious song accompanying the the credits “Faraway”, by Dara Shindler and Classic’s, is transcribed in the subtitles, allowing the hearing challenged to appreciate the well chosen lyrics.
The Organization naming itself Chutzpah films, supporters of this project, deserve a nod and a wink.

The two writers, Ryan Swanson and Gideon Raff also relative new comers to the larger production highway, created a spare and careful script, and although this sort of writing does not usually win the hearts of critics of literature - (the Genres of Horror and Murder remain the bad boys and girls of the craft), there is much to be said for simple dialogue and well placed words. This, Swanson and Raff seem to have a knack for.

As our tragic hero states in the opening 20 minutes of the narrative:

Story's my business.... Just what I do

The Book Fool. ( fictionalworld@hotmail.com )

The Killing Floor can be rented at Movieland , 1972 Rue Ste Catherine O. Mtl.

Doctor Strange , the Sorcerer Supreme

Doctor Strange , the Sorcerer Supreme

This animated film was , for me, a wonderful introduction to a genre which I have avoided for many years. Both the comic book and animated film media belong , one might think , to the world of Saturday morning television. , the world of young impressionable minds , not of cynical and sour middle aged Fools.

But what a treat this story was . It contained all the elements of a classic timeless story , without boring me to death…The fight between good and evil, mysticism, magic , Demonic creatures , tragedy and hubris as well as the conflict between the Eastern and Western World Views– Remorse, pain, toil and also the hope ( if ever so faint) of redemption ; or at least of resolution , are all mixed into this fast moving 76 minute film .

Our tragic hero, Dr. Strange has reached the sumum of fame and the greatest possible level of scientific as well as material achievement possible in the world he knows, but through a bizarre series of fateful events and mental episodes he finds himself severly handicapped. He loses everything.

Thus begins a journey, which is everymans journey, one that every single living person on this earth who has the most minimal concioussness can identify with — while also being specific to him as well— for though he is a Faustian figure he is also Messianic , a Chosen One— chosen by forces unknown to play a role he fundamentally does not desire.

Since this is basically the first animated film I have ever watched, except for the 1978 production of The Lord of the Rings, which I vaguely recall seeing many years ago at the now defunct Cinema Five ,( which once was the equivalent of Cinema du Parc, here in Montreal, for people of my generation) I cannot give a fair critique of the art work … Some of the action scenes may seem a bit choppy … but over all the wonderful powers which the Champions of the The Sorcerer Supreme exhibit , and the fierce imagery of the Evil instruments of the Dark Dimension and it’s ruler Dormammu , do not fail to impress .

The enigmatic Ancient One , attempts ( and succeeds) to instill the secrets of Wizardry into Dr. Strange, with the use of very zen-like koans and apparently self- contadictory logic. “ Accepting the Unacceptable ” to free oneself, “using the strength of ones opponent” against him, absorbing your enemy’s force to turn it aginst him… these are all part of the teachings which help the hero gain access to the Power Within .

We learn , along with him , that much of life’s pain and misery is linked to perception : “ Love , Loss, Pain, they are stones in the wall that blocks your path” . We learn that the ultimate magic is all about energy and it’s transformation—Once our hero ceases to imagine the wall it disappears .. at one point in the film I saw a shadowy shape which ressembled the black mask of Darth Vader.. oops. That was just a trick of my mind right ? { If only life were so simple } .

Even the theme of defeating the brother , In this case Mordo - this universal motif found in many legends and stories around the world - in a fight to the death, is present. To Jungian psychologists, Mordo may represent the hero’s personal Shadow, the part of him that splits off to make a pact the Satanic Dormammu … Mordo’s feeling of being abandoned by his master the Sorcerer drives him to the arms of the enemy ( at one point in the film I saw a shadowy shape which ressembled the black mask of Darth Vader.. oops. That was just a Magical trick of my mind , a perception thing ,
right ? ) …Mordo embodies all the spite , anger and frustration that Dr. Strange is battling within himself. By overcoming Mordo and killing that part of himself, Doctor Strange takes his first steps towards enlightenment .

In the final apocalyptic battle, all the valiant soldiers of the Sorcerer Supreme give their lives to protect the Sanctum Sanctorum the quiet place where all dimensions intersect… Dr. Strange finally understands his role in this final fight to the death : He must awaken the children who have fallen under the spell of the Evil Dread-Dormammu so that their pure minds cannot be utilized by this Evil Being as a portal into this world. Underlying this, of course, is yet another archetypal theme : The corruption and abuse of innocence to impure ends.

If the above review has not spoiled the fun , then I encourage everyone of all ages to watch this film. It is entertaining while being exciting and replete with nuggets of puzzling wisdom. It provokes thought while at the same time providing some escape ( albeit fleeting ) from this world of woe.

As an additional treat there are some special features including one in which the artists and writers are interviewed and the origin of Doctor Strange are discussed in detail .

Available for rent at Movieland , 1972 St. Catherine street West. 514 937 1231.

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The Book Fool

The Book fool is another Naked Lunch contributor not heard on air. Not a co host but the voice behind the films no one seems to notice. Here are his reviews.

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IN Elizabethan times, ‘natural’ and ‘wise’ fools were kept in great houses, the former providing involuntary entertainment through their mental incapacity, the latter more sophisticated entertainment in which the appearance of folly was part of the act.
The Book Fool is a particular type of Fool, one besotted by the apparent wealth which books represent , but who, in fact knows little of their contents.

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You can reach the Book Fool at:
fictionalworld@hotmail. com

Reviews

” The Ratty Book-Fool ” combines aspects of the more charming if somewhat un - directed side of the Fool and of the Dark Shadowy side of his nature… the part representd by the Rat .