BALLAD OF NARAYAMA

Life was pretty rough in remote regions of Japan, especially for women and children, as well as everyone not the head-of-household, and communities often struggled to maintain a balance that threatened to collapse with poor harvests or difficult times. The plight of poor Japanese is well represented in Imamura’s The Ballad of Narayama (1983), an award-winning movie of heartrending insight and beautiful cinematography. Too many mouths to feed can result in infanticide (or a child being sold away, which I understand is still a common practice in places such as Thailand and Cambodia), and the aged (anyone making it to 70) are expected to take a pilgrimage to the sacred mountain where they are exposed to the elements and left to die (sometimes unwillingly). The social structure that privileged heads of household, left the young and female vulnerable, and relegated most everyone to inferior status. Younger brothers could only hope for hard work, deference, and occasional opportunities for happiness (for example, sex). Ballad is primarily about a grandmother, embarrassed by her good fortune in health, who is approaching her own trip to the mountainside (willingly) and is tying up loose ends and preparing a new daughter-in-law for her role as a matriarch. The movie pulls few punches and openly shows the realities of infanticide, patricide, violence, deviant sexuality, hardship, and misogyny. Yet, it also shows the high level of responsibility, sacrifice, cooperation, humor, and order that kept total destruction at bay.
For a foreign viewer or individual not well versed in Japanese culture (such as myself), this movie can be a troubling experience. The punishment of an entire family (being buried alive) for stealing is partially understandable in a society whose existence is so close to the edge, but it was extreme and cruel, especially to the innocent victims (as it seems the actions of one family member is applied to the entire clan). Women have little say in how they are sexually treated. Children, especially girls, are treated little better than calves (an opportunity to make money). The scene where the salt merchant is marching away a small group of children is emotionally heartrending. A widow forced to have sex with the lesser males in the community to atone for the sin of her husband is appalling. The film does show what the domestic life was like, unvarnished.
I am amazed that no one got frostbite in this film. I also thought it interesting that there seemed to be no official (ie, police or local government) presence portrayed. The photography is often beautifully done, though the interspersed nature scenes were roughly cut in, and there seemed to be a special interest in snakes (all seemingly trying to relate that what was going on in the village was just part of the natural order of things). The acting was excellent, especially Sumiko Sakamoto as grandmother Orin.

BROWNBACK SUCKS

What’s up with Sam Brownback?
(another religious political hack!)
worried about a young girl’s tweet,
because she didn’t find him sweet,
he’s against gays, women, and freedom,
any threat to his misogynist kingdom,
I’m sure that he’s got a lot of fans,
all those damn Kansan Talibans!

ELSIE

Herewith a picture of the little kitty, which I named Elsie, that we captured near the Greek church. She was so hungry. I think one of the people here is going to take her to his ranch.

CATFISH

Watched a really amazing documentary called CATFISH, about how a young photographer in New York gets sucked into the elaborate Facebook fantasy of a middle-aged mother who passes herself off as several people, beginning with claiming to be a child prodigy in painting and eventually including a fake world populated by creative, beautiful, young people (one of which becomes the love interest of the photographer). Eventually his brother and a friend start producing a film about their relationship, but things really get interesting once they realize the ruse and start unraveling the real story, which is sad and fascinating in its own right. This woman (clearly slighted warped) gave up her dreams in her youth, and takes care of a large family in rural Michigan, which includes two physically and mentally-retarded boys (that she seems to do well with), as well as her daughter, but she loved her fantasy life and her fantasy romance with the young guy (which allowed her to dabble in the arts and feel special). Amazingly, she allowed the truth and story to be told through the documentary. It is a cautionary tale as well, about taking things online at face value.

MJB smile!

Near the end of Will Ferguson's Happiness, a group of men tracking down an author visit the local library, where one of them asks the librarian if she has read a certain book, whereupon: "I don't read," she said firmly. "Book-reading is for idle minds." Matthew Bruccoli, may he rest in peace, would have smiled widely at that statement, seeing as he often considered many librarians "book-dopes."

THE TROLLER

I can’t reveal what I really feel
as I troll through Goodreads and Book.
Here’s a nice face, in this social space,
but smart is much better than look.
Not ready for any, and there are so many,
and I enjoy speculating and dream,
that an older bookworm, with a heart warm
will think I’m as nice as I seem.
Seldom reach out, so filled with deep doubt,
To any potential cute reader,
though once in a while, a comment I’ll style,
but I’ll run before I ever meet her.

LYREALISM

There’s not much music in poetry now,
the poets have taken an austerity vow,
thread-bare lines, no rhythm or rhyme,
con-man words, artistic pantomime?
Lyricists shunned, unless rocking a mike,
It’s not what the Professors like!
Too confused by much now written,
Like abstract art, the critics smitten
by works that display very little skill,
I'd rather view Andrew Wyeth’s hill.