October 07, 2006
Married Life
Overall, married life has been pretty good so far. It is nice to know you will always have someone there to be supportive when you really need it. We've been at it long enough now, apparently, to have some ups and downs, though. The worst down, for me so far, has been not knowing how to get the other person out of a bad mood - especially if I was a contributing factor to it. I like to think I am usually a pretty nice person, but it can be easy to get caught up in work and day to day routines and forget to make that extra effort to let the other person know they are special. So I am posting this to try to remind myself - everyday niceness is good, but you need to keep it meaningful and sincere.
Book Review: Kafka on the Shore (Murakami)
Murakami's books never provide the resolution I would like to see, but they always leave me with a deep emotional aftertaste, usually a reflection of loneliness and sadness. It has the effect more of a song, where the story is not as important as the mood, and that mood is what carries the power of the work. Here, the book uses a mysterious occurance in World War 2 and a 15-year-old runaway to create suspense and draw you in to the story deep enough to be able to handle the fantastical elements that occur later. Part of me wishes the story would stay more grounded in reality, since the rules of the magical elements are not, can not, be explained, but Murakami is able to keep it just enough in check to try to convey meanings that are difficult to convey through words, as some of the characters directly comment on. He always provides a convincing sense of real world places, even if I have never been anywhere similar, and people, who listen to music and have to take dumps and don't always know what they are doing. I think this book's examination of the desire to try to hold on to a single perfect moment (and the cost of this as well) is interesting, but did not quite grab me at a deep level. Perhaps it is not something I try to do? Or perhaps I am unaware of doing it? Perhaps I am too quick to try to move on sometimes.
Movie Review: Shintaro Katsu's Zatoichi
The final Zatoichi movie starring Shintaro Katsu, which was also co-written and directed by Katsu, didn't provide any of the resolution or deeper meaning that I had hoped for. Katsu did his usual wonderful job portraying the blind swordsman, but the only real difference between this movie and the earlier ones is the increased amount of violence and a somewhat surprising sex scene in the middle. I had hoped that the movie would make some final statement, and I guess in some way it did, but there was no revelation, no final reckoning, no resolution of any kind - Zatoichi merely continued to do what he did, trying to use his skills to help the underprivileged, try not to draw innocent people into his inescapably violent life. And, in the end, he continues to be alone, moving along to the next inevitable adventure. Perhaps we are supposed to take away the idea that there is no escape from such a violent life, even as Zatoichi is becoming elderly? Perhaps we are supposed to understand that Zatoichi's life did not end in heroic sacrifice, with a story worthy of the others about him, but in simple obscurity, his wishes finally fulfilled? But the movie does not really suggest these things - it merely seems to collect some of the enjoyable moments of earlier movies, with no deeper understanding of them other than seeing a more aged face on Zatoichi. I had grown to enjoy the rhythm of the earlier Zatoichi movies, but I had hoped for something a little more unique with this one, but the only real difference was what I brought with me - knowing that this was the last performance of Katsu in this role he was perfect for. And that was bound to lead to some sense of disappointment.