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Becky and I watched “The Reader” last night. I enjoyed watching it, and some of the concepts raised by it are interesting, but I didn’t think it was a very good film. It was one of those tepid-but-beautiful designed-for-an-Academy-Award films with very little real heart or soul or mind. There were touches of excellence in there, there were moments that seemed the kernels of much better stories, but the authors weren’t bold enough to seize those moments and tell a truly powerful story. The book, of course, may be quite a lot better than the film, though I wouldn’t read it on the basis of the film alone.

For me “The Reader” shied away from really getting to grips with the issues it raised. And it failed to do what any great story must do — what so many of the stories mentioned in the film do so well — the story itself embodies its ideas. The narrative of “The Reader” was like a clotheshorse for ideas to be draped upon, rather than a living, breathing being of ideas. On another level, the film was stilted and not true to life — and not in a good way. The characters’ speech and behaviour was not believable or natural, nor were they stylised enough to create a universe in which to exist.

“The Reader” was especially disappointing considering how many good films I’ve seen recently, like “Gran Torino” and “Vicky Christina Barcelona” from which I expected little. Even “Dogville”, which had major flaws, was worth ten of “The Reader”.

Still, I liked that the story portrayed the holocaust and especially the post-war retribution that occurred (and is still occurring) in Germany inconclusively. There was an openness in the film’s portrayal of the SS guard, the Jewish victims, German society and the idea of social morality which could have been something special had the filmmakers or authors or whoever only carried the story further and done more with it.

The court scenes in particular were wonderful in the way they portrayed social justice as a sham and argued that the retribution sought by victims and bystanders after the war was not justice, but revenge. And that the sword of revenge, eager to fall, falls where it may, just or no.

The concept of retribution itself must die if we are to progress beyond our violent present, which is, in large part, also our past, and, if I am not too cynical, our future, too.

I called my bank today because our mortgage payment, which Becky made the other day, had not gone out of the account and I wanted to see if something had gone wrong. After explaining the situation to the telephone banker, I was put on hold for a moment, then she returned to explain that I needed to make the payment again as their IT systems had experienced difficulty with the date 09/09/09 and all transactions dated for that day had failed and been deleted from the system!

I really don’t have much to say about this except, how freaking weird… 999 [flip] 666 … that’s the REAL millennium right there.

Where’re my canned goods and ammo?

Hong Kong has seen a run of four acid attacks this year. I remember reading about one a few months ago which resembled an earlier case; in both, the men threw acid from the top of a building and burnt random pedestrians.

Well, this latest attack occurred “during an altercation Sunday in a bustling market district”!

Now, come on! Really? Somebody has played too many video games, read too many comic books, watched too many movies.

Special move: acid attack! Finish him!

Read it fo yo self, main.

Oh, yes, in other news, Venezuela and Iran are joining forces. Iran is going to help Venezuela get nuclear technology (after they get it themselves, I guess) and Venezuela is shipping lots of gasoline to Iran (Iran’s very large oil reserves must be bound for the US and Europe!). Sounds like a match made in heaven and one which will further the aims of extremists everywhere. Way to go, crazies! It’s your world, apparently.

Check it out now.

How I love spam and computer translators. A viagra spam received by this website recently contained the excellent phrase I have used as the title of this post. I suppose they meant to say “here is the unvarnished truth” or simply “I won’t lie to you, I’ve switched from Viagra to Cialis,” whatever that is. But what a beautiful accident is all life and its products, the sea and the sky and the laws of nature themselves. We must not shy from these mysteries.

And speaking of mysteries, solve this one!

How in hell’d a frog get in my Pepsi?

It seems like years ago, but at the start of August, we stayed in Brussels over a long weekend. Here are the photos from that home of the second (third?) great federation of states. Highlights include portraiture of Clement William Dean, lens-based assault on the Grande Place, two Louvains indistinguishable, fantasy bread and the Herge Museum!

Go enjoy looking now!