RIFLE RANGE BOY

Harold and Maude (1971) Some look at life as full of doom and gloom, as a purposeless one. Whichever path one takes, we know what the final destination is, and the path leading to it can be paved with shrapnel and pain. Nietzschean and many existentialist philosophers perpetuate this idea. On the other end of the spectrum, others whose sole purpose of life is to savour the joy of being born as a human being push it to the tilt. They view the boon of birth as a gift on a platter to enjoy with no boundaries. The truth must be lying somewhere in between - between nihilism and hedonism. There must be a purpose in our existence, perhaps to somehow leave a tiny mark of legacy, no matter how small, in a small way to propel our loved ones, family or community forward. A community, hence a country, is, after all, is made of subunits of families. So, improvements in families will sequentially propel the human race forward.  We should probably  get our cues about life from the words of t...

Waiting for Godot (play, book) Writer: Samuel Beckett Thanks to MEV for the suggestion; for helping me in my journey to crack open my hard shell of ignorance.  Albert Camus and Samuel Beckett fall into the same category of philosophers-writers who lived through World War 2-ravaged France to build a very nihilistic view of life's purpose. Samuel Beckett, an Irishman, who spent a good portion of his life in France, can be credited to have started the 'theatre of absurdism' and received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1969 for his books and drama. The life that is laid in front of us is apparently meaningless. In this tragi-comic play, we are shown as headless chickens running, not knowing what to do and not knowing what is expected of us. We are so fickle, always losing track of our purpose and get swooned over easily by events around us. We eagerly await instructions from people in authority without an iota of a clue about the right thing to do. But we wait and follow like...

Falling Down (1993) Thanks, Danny, for showing the existence of this film. We are constantly bombarded with the notion that we should follow the weather-beaten path, and everything will be alright. Do as I say, not as I do. Follow the dotted lines, and you will be taken care of. We are expected to act in a particular manner as it is how a civil society behaves. Keeping your emotions under check denotes maturity, and everybody will play their part. We do our share of our bargain diligently but then, we realise that we had been taken for a ride. The promise turned out to be an empty one—a dream not, but a nightmare. And we flip. The system to whom we had been loyal all these while turns around and say that we are the evil one. The significant others whom we saw as the scourge is now the protected one. Foster must have found himself in the same kind of predicament. Working diligently as a faithful servant in a defence facility, he realised one day that he had neither a job nor her family ...

Star Trek: Picard (2020) Miniseries, Season 1, E1-10. I did not grow up appreciating the original Star Trek TV series. Hence, I do not qualify to identify myself as a Trekkie. I, however, managed to catch up Star Trek: The Next Generation when it made its way to the terrestrial TV channels. I remember the series not as much of an action-packed series but more of a cerebral one discussing life issues. I never did follow the ensuing Trek series or the silver screen productions. So, to me, Picard is only Starfleet Captain that I know. More than a decade after his last mission and his unceremonious departure from USS Enterprise, Admiral Picard has to go to back to space. He does this clandestinely against the orders of the authorities, with a ragtag assembly of crew and space ship. In his previous mission, Data had caused the destruction of Mars. Because of that, androids, or synthetics as they were known in 2399, were banned. Picard had resigned in protest. Enjoying his retirement...

Yi Yi - A One and A Two (Taiwan, 2000) Written, Directed: Edward Yang. Perhaps deep inside, we are all voyeurs. We like to observe people, seeing what they do behind the privacy of their doors. In the new pigeon holes that city dwellers run their hectic lives on the outside, they seem to be boxed in exclusivity. Conversely, with their clear glass exterior seemingly guarding their private spaces, to an inquisitive eye, all their dealing are bare open. Perusing through the landscape, we realise that everyone carries their own stories. What we see, as an outsider, maybe half-truths, skewed perspective, jaundiced or judgemental. We do not know the real predicament or turmoil that he is going through, but surely to a thinking person, it could be educational as we pave our own paths in the journey of life. This Made-in-Taiwan movie tells the story of an extended family who lives in an exclusive high-rise apartment in Taipei. A 40-something couple with their two schoo...

After Life (2019) Created, Directed, Acted: Ricky Gervais You think you had it bad. You think nobody gives two hoots. You, only you had the realisation to come out of the rut to shine. Then everything clamps down on you. You realise nobody owes you a living, but you also say that no one gives a damn. God is dead. He was never there to start with, and humanity is gone too. There is no such thing as altruism, and everyone is in it for self-gain. Money is the be it all! You drag your feet in this journey called life wearing a perpetual frown and exuding a tone so melancholic that a bean would fail to sprout. You see that there is no purpose in anything. Ending everything is easy. Then you realise it is not so easy after all. The mind is saying 'go', but the body is saying 'to hell with it all'. You chicken out. For the first time, you look around. In the eyes of those around you see the weary worries of concern. You sense real compassion even in the most inanimate ...

Groundhog Day (1993) This is supposed to be a comedy but ended up becoming immortalised as a movie with highly philosophical content. It is a story of an arrogant TV weatherman (Bill Murray as Phil Connors) who thinks he is God's gift to mankind who ridicules and belittles everything and everyone around him. He is sent to cover the all American celebration of Groundhog Day. Just for information, Groundhog Day is age old tradition which is celebrated on February 2nd to gauge whether following 6 weeks into spring is going to snow. Traditionally, the Groundhog is said to burrow out of his burrow after hibernation to look for his shadow. If he see his shadow, he would retreat to sleep indicating it would be a long winter. Conversely, if his shadow is not seen, it would mean cloudy skies and early spring! After finishing his stint, he and his team (producer, Andie MacDowell, his love interest and cameraman) had to stay overnight due to blizzard. The following day and the following ...