The World As I See It

In the summer of 1950, a child died. The father wrote that his son's death had shattered "the very structure of [his] existence" and that his life had "become an almost meaningless void." In a desperate attempt to find meaning in the cruel finality of death, he wrote to Albert Einstein and asked him whether the brilliant scientist could say something that might "assuage the pain of an unquenchable longing, an intense craving, an unceasing love for my darling son. The grieving father had just read Einstein's The World As I See It, in which the scientist wrote, "Any individual who should survive his physical death is beyond my comprehension . . . such notions are for the fears or absurd egoism of feeble souls". Coming from the mind of one of the world's greatest thinkers, these words dashed any hope the anguished man had of finding meaning in his son's death. He wrote to Einstein, "Am I to believe that my beautiful darling child has been forever wedded into dust, that there was nothing within him which has defied the grave and transcended the power of death?"

This father's pain is known to all of us. Most people have experienced the terrible finality of the loss of a loved one, and some have faced their own impending deaths.This is what Einstein wrote to the grieving father: "A human being is part of the whole world, called by us 'Universe,' a part of limited time and space." He went on to say that thinking of ourselves as in any way separate from that universe and/or walled off from the other persons and things composing that universe is a "kind of optical delusion" of self-consciousness. He added that "striving to free oneself from this delusion is the one issue of true religion," a message quite the opposite of the religion of the holy self.

Einstein advised the mourning father to try to overcome his view of a separate existence for himself, his son, or any being as "the way to reach the attainable measure of peace of mind." His use of the word "attainable" hints at the idea that our search for meaning and benefit in loss has its limits. It is not so much the answer we find but the search that is important, and Einstein's advice to consider the view of infinite connection and the self as an illusion can be helpful in that search.

Is Everyone Addicted To Something?

I guess, we all are   addicted to something.Addiction may be a part of and parcel of our human nature.  We all are restless, irritable. and discontent- Most of us find it impossible to just sit and do nothing.So we distract ourselves with activity and entertainment: cell phones, texting , video games, iPods, TVs, movies, magazines, non-stop busyness to keep us looking everywhere but not  inside ourselves. We mood-alter with substances (sugar, alcohol, drugs, nicotine, caffeine, etc.) and activities (shopping, gambling, sex, work, viewing porn, etc.) We are unable to simply be awake and present to life - so we medicate our existential anxiety.

....

Addiction is quite common in modern societies. It is roughly estimated that between 8-13% of people living in developed countries experience addiction: whether to food, video games, alcohol, drugs, or even sports. But why do some people get addicted to chemicals and behaviors and others don’t? In other words, what causes addiction?

Scientists say that addiction is a brain disease. Most of us think that we become addicted to anything first by trying it out. But scientists and researchers think that the brain of an addict is different. They have noticed that the initial decision to take drugs, gamble, binge drink, or overeat is voluntary. But what happens then?

To be honest, researchers, scientists and doctors DON’T KNOW. And they put out theories of addiction to try to explain why addicts continue behaviors that are often very self-destructive. In some models, addiction is strictly a medical condition and is an involuntary result of use. In other models, addiction is the result of emotional and psychological problems. And still other models look to the need to self-medicate for psychiatric conditions.

But what is common among the experience of all addicts is changes in the brain as a result of chemicals or behaviors. Whether or not the brain is predisposed to addiction is still being argued. But most scientists agree that when some people experience a sense of euphoria, pleasure or ease as a result of drugs or behaviors …. and that persons continues the behavior…they can start to change the brain over time.

Simply put, the brain of an addict changes over time and makes self control and the ability to resist intense impulses (cravings) very, very difficult.

This type of alteration of the brain is most obvious in drug use, when neurotransmitters (the chemical messengers between brain cells) triggered by drugs either:

1. activate nerve cells to send abnormal messages
2. prevent recycling of brain chemicals or
3. over produce brain chemicals

Why do people become addicted?

Again, we don’t really know what causes addiction. Addiction is a complex disease that affects the physical brain, the psychological mind, and the spiritual self. But scientists look to two major standout reasons for addiction:

1. Biology (nature) – Addiction is in the genes. Genetics make some people more vulnerable to addiction than others.

2. Environment (nurture) – A person’s environment greatly affects whether or not s/he uses or abuses substances or behaviors. A number of different factors influence substance use, including:

• attitudes and beliefs
• family (quality of parenting)
• friends (peer pressure)
• personality traits or characteristics
• physical abuse
• quality of life
• school factors
• sexual abuse
• socioeconomic status
• stress 

Why can’t addicts say NO?

It may seem pretty simple to you. If you want to stop being addicted to something, you stop using it. But the good intention to quit a behavior or a chemical substance like drugs or alcohol take more than just good intentions and willpower. The brain needs a break from the self-rewarding and reinforcing pathway that chemical or behavioral addictions create.

X degeriyle asagilama sanati

Hangimiz hatalar yapmayiz ki zaman zaman… Her hatanin sonunda olmuslari bir kenara birakip, olmuslardan bir ders almak gerekmiyor mu zaten? Ozellikle ikili iliskilerimizde hatalar yaptigimizda (kalp kirginliklarimizda) yaptigimiz hatalari  kalbimizde bir klasore igneleyip,yeri geldiğinde de o ignenin acısıyla hataları tekrarlamamak için zaman zaman o klasöre göz atmamiz gerekiyor.

……….

 = X

Matematigin gunluk hayatin icinde oldugunu yillarca kabul etmisimdir.Ancak insanlari degersizlestirmek ve asagilamak icin kullanilacagina hicbir zaman inanmamistim, sahit olmamistimda! Taki bugun iki kisi arasinda gecen bir dialoga sahit olana kadar!Anlikta olsa gozunuzde canlandirmak istiyorum iki kahramaniz arasinda neler gectigini: konusmamiz iki yakin arkadas arasinda geciyor. Iki kahramanimiz birinin basina bela oldugunu dusundukleri kiz hakkinda konusuyorlar. Bende bu kisiler gibi yapip onlari asagilamak istemedigimden kendilerine “p” ve “q” demek istiyorum.Kizimizada onlarin seslendigi gibi “x” diyip hikayeden kisaca bahsetmek istiyorum.Kizimiz(x) ne zaman sehirden ayrilacagina dahil onceden kahramanimizdan biriyle konusmus(ben konustugu kisiye p demek istiyorum). Saf x degerimiz karsisindaki p ye guvenemecegini kestiremediginden kendisine sehirde kalmak istediginden, gelecekle ilgili planlarindan bahsetmis. Olay nasil olupta iki kisi arasinda geyik konusu olmus diye bana sormayin ayrintilari bende bilmiyorum, bu kismini sizin hayal gucunuze birakiyorum. Zavalli x miz okul icin sehirde kalmaya karar verince, durumdan p degerimiz hic mi hic hosnut olmamis,durumu en yakin arkasiyla paylasmis. Q degerimizde oglum isin var diyip olayi geyige vurmus. 

= p

Ben bu hikayeden yola cikip, hikayemizin gorunmeyen yuzune bakmak istiyorum biraz (Bana hayal gucumun cagristirdigi kismina diyebilirim). Zaman zaman her birimiz kotu gunler gecirebiliyoruz: sevgilimiz bizi aldatabiliyor, aile bireylerimizden biri amansiz bir hastaligin pencesinde olabiliyor ,yada en yakinlarimizi mesela kardesimizi bir kaza sonucu kaybedebiliyoruz, yada iflas edip, bes parasiz kalabiliyoruz.Bu zor anlarda guvenebilecegimiz birilerini yakin cevremizde gormek istiyoruz. Eger boyle birileri etrafimizda yoksa icgudusel olarak guvenebilecegimiz birini bulma arayisina girebiliyoruz. Bu arayislarimiz sonucu bazen yanlis kisilere guvenebiliyoruz. Kahramanimizdaki “x” imizin sonununda bu oldugunu dusunuyorum. Insan oglunun gorunen dis guzelligine aldanmis ne yazikki. Aslinda cokta bayan kahramanimizi suclamak istemiyorum. Insan oglu yanilabilir zaman zaman. Dis guzelligi olan insanoglunun derin ve manali bir ic dunyasi oldugunu beklemek bir hata olmus olabilir kahramanimiz icin. Belki gelismis bir ic dunyasi var ama kahramanimiz p nin arzu ve niyeti iyiye yonelmis degil. Belkide sevgili “p” mizin tek masumca istegi: “bu kizi nasil olurda en kisa yoldan yataga atarim”. Her ne kadar bu dusunce sistemini magara devrinden kalmis bulsamda bu gercegide yadsimak soz konusu degil!

Gelismis bir ic dunyasi olanlarimiz iyiye yonelmezse ne olur? Boyle durumlarda insanin ic dunyasi ile davranisi arasinda bir celiski meydana gelir. Eger boyle bir hal icindeysek birey olarak bu duruma karsi duyarli olmamiz, olayi iyi analiz etmemiz gerekir. Boyle durumlari anladigimiz zamanlarda, kurdugumuz duzenden ziyade evrenin bize verdigi nimetleri, gelecek yasamamimizi, gelecegimizi tehlike icine attigimizi unutmamamiz gerekir. Insani kirmak oyle kolay ki!Tipki yukarida bahsettigim birkac dakikada gerceklesen hikayemizde oldugu gibi bize deger veren birini sirf kahrolasi egomuzu arkadasimizin onunde tatmin etmek icin yerin dibine sokabiliyoruz.Aslinda ben sahibim diye gordugumuz seyin aslinda bizim olmadigimizi bilmek, sinirlarimizi dogru cizmemiz gerekiyor.

 Yazimin sonuna gelirken son olarak sunlari soylemek istiyorum: İnsanoğlu ne kadar gelişkin bir uygarlık yaratırsa yaratsın, hiçbir zaman yarattığı uygarlığın kibrine kapılıp da acizliğini unutmamalı; zira dünyayla aramızda uygarlığın hassas bir dengede tuttuğu, ancak her an zedelenebilecek kırılgan bir uzlaşma var; altındaysa değişmez kaderimiz, antolojik acizliğiz yatmak da. Onun için önce sabah kalkıp boylu boyunca bir aynaya bakmak gerekiyor ve tabi ki kendi kendimize sormamız gereken en önemli soru ben kimim eğer bu sorunun cevabını gerçekten aynada ki yansımamıza karşın verebiliyorsak; güne merhaba deyip yola devam. Velâkin aynadaki yansımamıza bile yalan söyleyip görüntümüzü kandırmaya çalışıyorsak o zaman yola yine devam ama yolların sonuna vesselam. Daha nasıl açık anlatılır bilemem insan olmanın kavramı öz belliğimizi, egolarımızı, hırslarımızı ve kibrimizi bir kenara bırakıp, giydiğimiz ne olursa olsun, seçtiğimiz kim olursa olsun, önemli olan var olmanın gerektiği etkenleri beynimiz ve kalbimiz arasına sonradanda insanlar arasına köprüler yoluyla bağlamak.

I wish I had a soundtrack to my life....

“Music is what feelings sound like.”

“Those who danced were thought to be quite insane by those who could not hear the music.”

-Angela Monet

“Music speaks what words cannot be expressed, soothes the mind and gives it rest, heals the heart and makes it whole, flows from heaven to the soul.”

“Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and cannot remain silent.”

-Victor Hugo

“When people hear good music, it makes them homesick for something they never had, and never will have.”

-Edgar Watson Howe

“Music is love in search of a word.”

-Sidonie Gabrielle

“Words make you think a thought. Music makes you feel a feeling. A song makes  you feel a thought.”

-E. Y. Harburg

“Music takes us out of the actual and whispers to us dim secrets that startle our wonder as to who we are, and for what, whence, and whereto.”

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Whatever deceptions life may have in store for you, music itself is not going to let you down.”

-Virgil Thomson

“Music is the art of thinking with sounds.”

-Jules Combarieu

“Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and charm and gaiety to life and everything.”

-Plato

“Music produces a kind of pleasure which human nature cannot do without.”

-Confucius

“Music is the universal language of mankind.”

-Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

“Music is the art which is most nigh to tears and memory.”

-Oscar Wilde

“Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.”

-Berthold Auerbach

“Music is the language of the spirit. It opens the secret of life bringing peace, abolishing strife.”

-Kahlil Gibran

“Ah music…a magic far beyond anything here.”

-J.K. Rowling

“Magical music never leaves the memory.”

-Sir Thomas Beecham

“Music is the medicine of the mind.”

-John Logan

“Music can name the unknowable and communicate the unknown.”
-Leonard Bernstein

“If music be the food of love, play on.”

-William Shakespeare

“Dear music, thank you for making me feel happy when no one else could, sincerely loneliness.”

“Great music lives in us. The instant a song plays that you heard many years ago, flashback starts, and for that moment you are there again.”
-Shelly Khalish

“We are children of the noisy age, with access to so much music from across time and space. We soak up the sounds…what comes out can be unpredictable, but it will be uniquely ours.”

-Kalmia Traver

“Music is life, that’s why our hearts have beats.”

  Music makes the world go round… or something close to that..... Music makes life bearable and sweeter. I wish I had a soundtrack to my life playing always.

 

Music has gotten me through the hardest times in life: breakups, trials, stress, sadness, frustration, and brought light to dark times. Music makes the good times better.

 

We all may have different tastes in music but it all comes down to one thing we all have in common: music has touched our lives in one way or another. It’s a universal love. It brings us together. Music makes you dance. Dancing makes you brave. 

 

I believe time and music helps healing and getting over tough times. Music gives me inspiration and improves my creativity. Music evokes feelings hidden deep inside… ones we thought we forgot and ones we might not know we had. It’s a form of time travel. When everything around you can be falling apart, music is a constant that can hold you together. 

 

 I could go on and on and on about music. I decided to write about it in this post because I’m always listening to it and it just hit me that since it’s such a vital need in my life I wanted to express that.  

I don’t listen to music because it’s “popular” or “not popular” or “unique”. I listen to watch sounds good and what reaches out and pulls me in wanting to put it on repeat.

Cliche Lesson: "Love is never ugly"

Beastly

I just finished watching “Beastly” and I adored it.  By watching the Trailer itself, you can predict what’s going to happen/ the end. But I felt there’s something a little more to it- maybe the modern settings of the movie had me feeling the story they were telling. Plus, I liked how he had to do the 'thinking' which sooner or later- bought her heart.

I guess a lot people can relate to the story. There’s a lesson to learn for everyone- cliche but it’s what matters is on the inside.

Love is meant for everyone. Everyone needs it, but not everyone finds it. If you're brave enough to stand up for it even when you know you maybe not be the prettiest person (inside and out) as no one’s' perfect, you can find that special someone that loves you for who you really are(The whole package).

Is not everyone is attracted to looks? Think about it, It’s the first thing that moves you to interact with the person. Most of the time we forgot every individual has their own personality. If you actually gave a chance to a person that may not be wearing the lowest cut dressed in the room or the semi buff athletic body in a very tight shirt, you'll probably find surprises (good ones) when you get to know them.

I admit, it may not be easy to do.

Inner beauty truly is what matters.

Beastly Quotes

“Surface beauty: blond hair, blue eyes—is always easy to recognize. But if someone is braver, stronger, smarter, that’s harder to see.”

“You’d better hope you never get ugly. You are ugly now, on the inside, where it matters most, and if you ever lost your good looks, I bet you wouldn’t be smart or strong enough to get them back. You are beastly.”

“You can’t help what you’re born with.”

“That was the great thing about most people. If they could get what they wanted from you, they’d give you what you wanted back.”

 “Love is never ugly.”

“A beautiful thing is precious, no matter the price. Those who do not know how to see the precious things in life will never be happy.”

“I am not frightened of you, I am frightened for you.”

“A rose can change your life.”

“Sometimes, unexpected things can happen.”

“You shouldn’t miss people who don’t miss you, right?”

“Just because something is beautiful doesn’t mean it’s good.”

“I’m a girl. Every girl pretends she’s a princess at one point, no matter how little her life is like that. And I like the idea of ‘happily ever after’.”

“If two people are meant to be together, they will be, even if something separates them. There’s a magic to it.”

“People make such a big deal about looks, but after a while, when you know someone, you don’t even notice anymore.”

 “Sometimes we surprise ourselves.”

 “That’s what true love should be like—the person should be part of your soul and you should know what they’re feeling all the time.” 

“Maybe we judge people too much by their looks because it’s easier than seeing what’s really important.”

“It was wondrous when life gave you a second chance.”

 “It hurts too much so I don’t want to talk about it.” 

“Somehow, when I’m around you, I don’t feel ugly at all.”

“It’s not about how others look at you. It’s about how you look at yourself.”

Found this song from the movie:

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hl3JF7owr6w

Lime Lime Edilmis Zaman....

Zaman.....

 

Bir gunun daha bitmesine dakikalar kaldi takvim zamanina gore.





Takvim degilmidir zamani lime lime edip, bizi zamanlarimiza yekpare sahip olmamiza engel olan.

Zaman diyince Ahmet Hamdi Tanpinar i dusunmeden edemiyor insan. O degil midir ki zamanin yekpareligini bize anlatmaya calisan, zamanin takvim denen bir icatla bolunmesinden sikayet eden! Saatleri Ayarlama Enstitusu nde nice misralar dokmustur bunu anlatmak icin..

Su misralari bilmeyeniniz yoktur sanirim:

“..Ne içindeyim zamanın

Ne de büsbütün dışında;

Yekpare geniş biranın

Parçalanmaz akışında.

Zamanın takvim yolula parçalanması…”

Ne zaman bu misralar aklima gelse, kendimi “zaman” kavramini sorgularken bulurum.Bazen “biten bir gunu” ve “yeni bir gunu” dusunurken, bazen de “yilinsonu” ve “yilinbasi” aklima gelir. Zamani belli olan bir huzun ruzgari eser etrafimda…0 "yekpare genis an"ın neresindeyim, (neresindeyiz) sorusu dolanip durur icimde. "Acaba zamanı görebilir miyim, yakalayabilir miyim?" diye de sorarım bu vesileyle. 

Tanpinar in tasvirinde oldugu gibi bende turlu turlu hallerini gormusumdur zamanin…

 Bazen kotu bir eskale burunup benle yuzyuze gelmistir mesela:

“..Ben zamanı gördüm,

İçimde ve dışımda sessiz çalışıyordu,

Bir mezar böyle kazılırdı ancak,

Yıldırımsız ve baltasız,

Bir orman böyle devrildi!

Ben zamanı gördüm,

Kaç bakışta bozdu hayalimi,

Ve kaç düşüncede!

Ben zamanı gördüm,

Şimşek gibi bir ânın uçurumunda….”

Bazen de iyi bir surete burunup karsimda dimdik durmaktadir:

“..Ben zamanı gördüm,

Devrilmiş sütunları arasından

Çok eski bir sarayın

Alnında mor salkımlar vardı

Ve ilâhlar kadar güzeldi.

Uçmak için kanatlanmayı bekleyen

Yavru kuş gibi doğduğu kayada

Ben zamanı gördüm

Çırpınırken avuçlarımda…”

……

Iki yuzlu zaman bana hayatin diyalektigini hatirlatir:bir tarafta canlari, umutlari oguten acimasiz bir degirmen, diger tarafindada yeni umutlarin yeserdigi filizler diyari… Bu iki nokta arasindaki sayisiz rengi, durumu, ve duyguyu da unutmamak gerek elbet. Eger acimasiz degirmenin icinde bulduysak kendimizi sarkaci diger tarafa ittirmek icin var gucumuzle hayata, umutlarimiza sarilip, duslerimiz ugruna ter dokmeliyiz.

Yoksa bugunun cok bilmis yeni nesil cocuklari sorarlar bize Tanpinar in misralarindaki sozlerini neden dikkatle ozumsemedigimizi:

“..Niçin sen yaratmadın bu dünyayı?

Ellerinin mesut işaretlerinden

Daha güzel doğardı eşya!

Daha zengin olurdu aydınlık

Kendi karanlığından çağırsaydı sesin,

Sular başka türlü akardı

Sert kayalardan göklere doğru

Büyük, mavi, aydınlık sular!..”

Kimbilir belki de zamani parcalamak, takvim denen icadi kullanmak koca bir aptallik. Ama kendi zamanimiza sahip olabilmek icin bu yalani cocuklugumuzdaki naif ruh halimize donup tatli bir oyun haline donusturelim. Iyi seyler dileyip, guzelliklere davet cikaralim.

Aptal Olmak Lazim...

Carlo M. Cipolla'ya göre dört çeşit insan var:

Zeki,aptal,saf ve haydut insanlar !

Şöyle ki:

Eylemleri ile:

a) Kendilerine zarar verdikleri halde başkalarına fayda sağlayanlar saf insanlar,

b) Kendilerine fayda sağlayan ama bu arada başkalarına zarar verenler haydut insanlar,

c) Hem kendilerine, hem de başkalarına fayda sağlayanlar zeki insanlar,

d) Kendisine hiçbir yarar sağlamadan hatta bazen zarara uğrayarak başkalarına illa ki zarar verenler aptal insanlar oluyorlar.

* * *

 Galiba aptal olmak daha lazim. Neden mi? Cunku:

     Akıllı kadın durumundan, size laf yetistiremeyen erkekler kacmaz

     Her haltı fark edip sinirlerinizi bozmazsiniz

     Geceleri yataginizda rahatca uyursunuz, uykunuz kacmaz.

     Yapilan aptalliklar size cileden cikarmaz.

     Cogunluga dahil olur, mutlu mesut yasarsiniz hicbir seyde derin mana aramadan

     Caniniz degisiklik cekmez, farklilik yaratmak istemezsiniz. Daha iyisini yapma gibi bir derdiniz ise hic olmaz. Uretkenlik kaygi listenizde olmaz.

     Yalnizlik cekmezsiniz. Herkes gibisinizdir.

     Kimse kendini tehdit altinda hissetmez, sizde ortama tutunup pasalar gibi yasarsiniz.

Children of Men

Produced by Marc Abraham, Eric Newman, Hilary Shor, Iain Smith, and Tony Smith; written by Alfonso Cuarón, Timothy J. Sexton, David Arata, Mark Fergus, and Hawk Ostby; directed by Alfonso Cuarón; based on the P.D. James novel Children of Men; cinematography by Emmanuel Lubezki; edited by Alfonso Cuarón and Alex Rodriguez; production design by Jim Clay and Geoffrey Kirkland; costume design by Jany Tenine; original music by John Tavener; starring Clive Owen, Julianne Moore, Claire-Hope Ashitey, and Michael Caine. Color, 109 mins. A Universal Pictures release.

It is above all the look of "Children of Men" that stirs apprehension in the heart. Is this what we are all headed for? The film is set in 2027, when assorted natural disasters, wars and terrorist acts have rendered most of the world ungovernable, uninhabitable or anarchic. Britain stands as an island of relative order, held in line by a fearsome police state. It has been 18 years since Earth has seen the birth of a human child.

There is much to be said about the story of "Children of Men," directed by Alfonso Cuaron and based on a lesser-known novel by P.D. James. Guerrilla fighters occupy abandoned warehouses. The homeless live in hovels. Immigrants are rounded up and penned in cages. The utilities cannot be depended upon. There are, most disturbing of all, no children. Only dogs and cats remain to be cared for and cherished. 

As the film opens, the TV news reports that the world's youngest person has been stabbed to death in Buenos Aires, because he declined to give an autograph. Theo Faron (Clive Owen), the film's hero, watches the news in a cafe and then leaves with his paper cup in his hand. Seconds later, a bomb destroys the cafe. This is essential: Faron is terrified. He crouches and fear freezes his face. This will not be like action pictures where the hero never seems to fear death.

Britain, as the last functioning nation, has closed its borders, and is engaged in a war between the establishment and a band of rebels who support immigrant rights. Faron is kidnapped by this group, headed by Julian Taylor (Julianne Moore), who was once his lover; they lost a child.

Her associate, Luke (Chiwetel Ejiofor, in another unexpected character), backs her up with muscle and wisdom. Interestingly, there seems to be no racial prejudice in this Britain; they don't care what color you are, as long as you were on board before they pulled up the rope. Julian's group wants Faron's influence to get travel papers for Kee (Clare-Hope Ashitey), so the young woman can be smuggled out of the country and to refuge in a rumored safe haven. Kee is a key to the future; the movie's advertising tells you why, but I will not.

The center of the film involves the journey toward the coast, which Faron and Kee undertake with Julian, Luke and Miriam (Pam Ferris), who is both watchdog and nurse. Along the way, they are pursued by Homeland Security troops, and there is a chase scene with one of the most sudden and violent moments I have ever seen in a film. Not all of the chases in all of the Bournes equal this one, shot in a single take by one camera, for impact.

Here again, the action scenes seem rooted in sweat and desperation. Small details: Even in the midst of a firefight, dogs scamper in the streets. Faron's hand reaches out to touch and reassure the nearest animal, and I was reminded of Jack London's belief that dogs (not cats so much) see us as their gods. Apparently sterility affects only humans on Earth; when we are gone, will the dogs still tirelessly search for us?

I wanted to use Hitchcock's term "MacGuffin”....The lack of children and the possibility of children are the MacGuffins in "Children of Men," inspiring all the action, but the movie significantly never tells us why children stopped being born, or how they might become possible again. The children-as-MacGuffin is simply a dramatic device to avoid actual politics while showing how the world is slipping away from civility and co-existence. The film is not really about children; it is about men and women, and civilization, and the way that fear can be used to justify a police state.

I admire that plot decision. I would have felt let down if the movie had a more decisive outcome; it is about the struggle, not the victor, and the climax in my opinion is open-ended. The performances are crucial, because all of these characters have so completely internalized their world that they make it palpable, and themselves utterly convincing.

Cuaron fulfills the promise of futuristic fiction; characters do not wear strange costumes or visit the moon, and the cities are not plastic hallucinations, but look just like today, except tired and shabby. Here is certainly a world ending not with a bang but a whimper, and the film serves as a cautionary warning. The only thing we will have to fear in the future, we learn, is the past itself. 

PS: This film is also very self-aware; i.e. it knows its roots. For example, a brilliant scene featuring the brilliant and underrated Danny Huston as a "Noah of the arts", living alone with his deranged 20something son in a revamped Tate Modern, manages to throw in a Pink Floyd cover. And there are the obvious allusions to 1984 or Brave New World, what with the government-approved suicide rations and overbearing bureaucracy.

Kardan Adam...

 

 

Disarda inceden inceye, usul usul yagan kar tanecikleri… Sanki cocuksu sevincler ve acilar bulusmus kar ustunde. Kar topu oynayan dusler:kimi oylesine mutlu, kimi oylesine uzgun….Hep tanidik sorulari soruyorlar birbirlerine…

…. Ama bu sefer ben erken davranip soruyorum: kislari sever misin?

-“Evet!” diyorlar. “Kislari, kuslari, icimizdeki baharlari, hatta tropical yalnizliklari bile seviyoruz.” “Peki, ya yaz?” diye soruyorum. Iclerinden biri yuzume bakip haykiriyor “Hayir!” diye. “ Neden?” diye sormaktan kendimi alamiyorum. 

“Karsiliksiz ask diyor.” once. Yuzumde buyuk bir anlamsiz ifade, bana soylediklerini dinlemeye devam ediyorum. “Nedir karsiliksiz ask?” diye soruyor. Susuyorum…

“Kendi ellerinle yarattigin kardan adama asik olmak” diyor kisik bir sesle. Eriyip gidecegini bile bile sevmek…Sen onu yoktan yaratirsin.Sen yarattigin icin seninmis gibi hissedersin. Ne zaman cami aralasan,acsan seni orda bekledigini sanirsin. Cocuksu bir heves ve buyuk bir heyecanla birlestirmissindir her bir parcasini. Masumca… Yaptigini garipseyen digerlerine inat…Emek vermissindir, hemde cok! Ama zaman zaman karsisina gecip gerceklede yuzlesirsin:onunla sen cok farklisindir. Seni sevse bile kardan bir adam oldugunu hatirlarsin.Kış bitmeden eriyip gidicegini, baharin gelecegini,sonrada yaza karsi koruyamayacagini bilirsin.

The Dance of Love and Hate

"The TANGO is a direct expression of something that poets have often tried to state in words: the belief that a fight may be a celebration."


"I picture a ferocious tiger; a predator with its silent but definite stride roaming the jungle in hunt for a prey when dancing the Tango. Other times its two gauchos circling each other in a desperate fight for the woman they love. That's drama in dancing the Tango! If you're thinking Tempestuous Tango, here's the spill for partner dancing."


The Tango is  the dance of love and romance... It shows love, passion, hate and romance in only one dance. The story is about a man and a woman who came together and learn to trust and love each other by the power of one dance, The Tango...

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There's no bouncing around in the Tango; the steps are long, smooth, and sleek. With the feet kept close to the floor. Each dance phrase is punctuated by a pregnant, poised pause, and begins with a quick head jerk that adds to the dramatic style. You can't carry off the Tango with stooped posture, so straighten up, lift your head high, point your nose into the future, and think sleek.

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