Chronicling The Crazy Results Of Crazy Beliefs On A Crazy Civilization
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Black Judy
I saw this movie, "Black Death," a few nights ago. The trailer, above, gives you the gist of the story.
This trailer shows you the story they wish they'd made. No, "Black Death" isn't particularly exciting, but "it’s strong meat, and it works," because it's basically that rarity of rarities - a true atheist movie. As one reviewer said, "this film bathes in bloody, brutal ambiguity, intelligently casting both Christians and pagans as murderous creeps in a way that looks back objectively at 14th century ignorance while shining an ugly, knowing light on contemporary religious arrogance, too. Message: Everybody sucks. Always."
But still they ask why atheists are so angry (Haven't a clue,…). "Black Death" gets compared with 1968's "Witchfinder General" a lot - the (entire) movie above - just as I get (wrongly) compared to that movie's Vincent Price.
Accuracy shaccuracy. The point is to yell things and don't make sense. Whatever you do - don't make sense.
Human beings are not perfect. And in terms of behavior the full spectrum of the sublime to the most depraved runs through all ages, civilizations, cultures, religions, etc. It always has and frankly always will (at least until some massive evolutionary shift). That is not to say some cultures are superior to others. Western civilization, for all its flaws, is demonstratively better on a macro objective level than other systems. But everyone can improve.
I do think all persons should strive for being better (striving for perfection may end you up with a case of OCD).
The actor that plays the young monk was also good in The Pillars of the Earth. Which I thought (while somewhat predictable) was a more nuanced portrayal of faith, atheism, and hypocrisy in that era. Pillars did not deal with atheism upfront, but it implied it, through builders of the cathedral (who like all good builders act on objective reason and skill, not blind faith).
Human beings are not perfect. And in terms of behavior the full spectrum of the sublime to the most depraved runs through all ages, civilizations, cultures, religions, etc. It always has and frankly always will (at least until some massive evolutionary shift). That is not to say some cultures are superior to others. Western civilization, for all its flaws, is demonstratively better on a macro objective level than other systems. But everyone can improve.
ReplyDeleteI do think all persons should strive for being better (striving for perfection may end you up with a case of OCD).
The actor that plays the young monk was also good in The Pillars of the Earth. Which I thought (while somewhat predictable) was a more nuanced portrayal of faith, atheism, and hypocrisy in that era. Pillars did not deal with atheism upfront, but it implied it, through builders of the cathedral (who like all good builders act on objective reason and skill, not blind faith).
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