fear conquest

solitary uprising. C. Leaf. 2011.

i saw a movie for the first time today in about 2-3 years.  i have a weird fear of theaters; mostly classified as claustrophobic/people-phobic.  the last time i went to a theater, i made it a big deal to go to see an actor i really liked, but ended up having an anxiety attack half way along the movie and had to leave.  this time i stayed for the entire movie plus the Q&A wit the director.  miracle?

the movie was 'i saw the devil' or '악마를 보았다.' the thing is, the english translation doesn't capture the nuance of the actual korean but i don't think there is a better translation for it.  anyway...

gory movie.. very gory.. but for some reason, the cannibalism scene looked.. not repulsive.  in fact, made me hungry.

don't get me wrong, i never thought of eating human flesh, but the way that the killing/hurting is done throughout the entire movie, i feel like you almost feel refreshed once someone starts eating the flesh that keep being butchered the entire time.

met the director.  the director cracked a joke during Q&A, i answered it.

Choi Min Shik.  amazing actor.  alcoholic.  so what?

blood.  what about it...

see the movie.  premiers on march 4th.  BAM.

art and academia

                                           C.Leaf, The Way Out, 2007. Steel.

Though not all, many academic institutions are bullshit.  You pretend that you have something to teach me and give me an assessment based on my "performance," which is pretty much how much you like my interpretation of your supposed teachings?

Especially Art Criticism and Fine Art.

Criticism:   Institutions claim their superior ability to think, interpret, analyze pieces of art, and that it is even teachable.  What is art?  How do you talk about art?  How can you claim that there are even answers to those questions?
And wth do the GRE's have anything to do with that??

Fine Art:   Likewise, institutions claim that there is something to teach in the way one must perceive, feel, and execute things/feelings/ideas that do not exist in the realm of verbal language and logic/rationality.  So you studied some art history.  You think what you consider the definition of art stems from a legitimate background of studying the patterns in history, but does that necessarily equal what art means now?

NOW.  THIS generation, the internet generation, defines the now.  You can observe, but don't intrude unless you are willing to be a respectful participant.  Don't impose your pretentious academia on something that cannot be taught.