Movie Night - 12/20/06

Not the biggest movie night group, but a good one. Everyone quietly watched The Conformist, a movie that I'm pretty sure ranks among the best I've seen. It's about politics, a topic thats beginning to fascinate and depress me (I know I'm a little late coming to this discovery). The director, Bertolucci, obviously feels a little bitter about politics too. But it's not all bitter, you see; if it were, I'm not sure it would mean as much to me. There is a spirit in the people surrounding the conformist, the character, that seems capable of rising above the oppressive political atmosphere. Sometimes I feel hopeless and powerless. The Conformist has a weird way of confirming that I'm not alone in that feeling. I can't think of any other movie I've seen that better shows the potential danger, and potential joy, of devoting yourself to a community, or movement, or whatever. Everyone should see The Conformist. It's on dvd for the first time. Queue it up, or borrow it from Gavin. Warning: Your girlfriend may not like it. Unless she's bisexual. (That's an inappropriate joke that's really a jab at my girlfriend, who thought the movie was boring. Your girlfriends sexuality has nothing to do with it.)