Watch Everything and Still See ONLY What Is Good

Under discussion:

The Da Vinci Code  (2006)

History has a very-"as the majority remembers" nature. I was originally going to write about this in my review of STAR WARS (IV: A NEW HOPE), but it especially holds true for The Da Vinci Code.

In STAR WARS, it was made apparent (after having seen the whole sexology) in a more-"as the elder-dude remembers" way. While watching it for (I'm sure) the infinitieth time today, I thought to myself, 'Maybe that's what Heaven is: the past as you want to remember it." Sure, Obi-Wan could have heavily regretted urging Yoda and Qui-Gon to accept Skywalker into the Jedi Order; but instead he simply metamorphosed the tragic change into a circumstance for which he could not be blamed, because (I'm sure he knew) the Bright Side would always find its way to the top.

But Dan Brown's presentation of the nature of history (obviously seen and magnified by Oklahoma's favorite son [other than me] Ron Howard) is the best 'harsh reality' I've seen since The Neverending Story's Gmork, with his, 'It is easy to control people who are without hope.'

Without hope, people will take whatever history you can feed them with a helping of just enough logic.

But Brown's and Howard's message comes with a caveat: the tuning fork that seems to make history more-believable---the famed name. For instance, I could tell you that 'some guy' was crucified, murdered, buried, re-enlivened and living in the hills, and you'ld be like, "Whoa, another Frankenstein-monster ... anything on cable tonight?" But if that 'some guy' had a name, you'ld be more-inclined to believe that it was an actual person that did all that stuff.

Furthermore, we might actually be living in a Caribbean territory overrun by English pirates: except ... ummm ... Samuel Adams! ... ummm ... Thomas Jefferson! ... ummm ... Benjamin Franklyn! ... ummm ... Abraham Lincoln! and all sorts of other names I could throw at you here.

Under discussion:

Juno  (2007)

Juno is the kind of movie young high-schoolers need to see more of! When I was young in high-school, all the movies and philosophies I had were based on "Adam & Eve" (in which 'the man' arrives fully developed and 'the woman' simply latches onto him like a highly-worth leech)!

Don't paint this as saying, 'Juno should've been dragged out in the street before a rowdy crowd and branded with an "A"!' because she was totally, entirely, utterly right in everything she did. Her situation is totally ideal! but it's not the ideal that I was fed growing-up (due to which I still wait for my red-headed mermaid-made-pedestrian to rise and come to me ... in Oklahoma lol).

This movie had excellent dialogue; simple enough to follow along (even if you miss some), but clever enough to make you feel smarter for having watched it. For example, I learned that "Juno" was the name of the god Odin's one-and-only ... that she was downright dog-like at times, but that there was no other who was goddess-enough for Odin.

... myself, having always been an Odinsman (though I do sometimes enjoy the fun of his friend, the Jokester, Loki), it serves as sort of an omen of the woman destined for me: yes, she will have the beauty that I seek; but she will not always be aching to show that beauty to me ...