So As Promised, I Watched One Battle After Another ...

 

As I mentioned 2 posts below, I didn't want to - NOT because I don't love Paul Thomas Anderson movies, because I do - but because of my active disdain for Leonardo DiCaprio 😂

So ... as much as it behooves me to admit  - it IS a great movie -  equally brilliant to Sinners - especially last 30 minutes.

Even if I wanted to stick to my Sinners bias until the end -  at the literal end, they played dirty - they played Tom Petty - doh! 😂

So it will be a tough call - Sinners or One Battle After Another?

Though usually Best Picture also wins Best Director, Paul Thomas Anderson is long overdue, and Ryan Coogler is just getting started, is it possible we may end up with the rare dyssynchrony that one gets Best Picture and the other gets Best Director and/or Best Screenplay?

We shall see tomorrow night!

Now - did I buy Leo as a lost, tragically flawed, somewhat wuss of Dad (but still surprisingly likeable), who drinks and smokes too much weed?

Yes, actually I do lol. 

Like I said earlier, I will never buy him as a stereotypical father or family man, he generally doesn't do relationship depth well  - and he obviously has no idea how to hold a baby still lol - but I did by him as a Dad in this particular role.

Do I think he deserves an Oscar for this performance?

Meh.

It was good, yes - but not the best, even this year.

I was more impressed with Sean Penn and Benicio Del Toro's acting chops in this movie - well deserved supporting actor noms.

And can I be honest?

Teyana Taylor was only in the film for about 15 minutes, and though an interesting character, she didn't show us any range - so I don't get her nomination - sorry?

Regina Hall as Deandra did a better job, IMO. 

(In fact, why didn't Jim/Bob go for her instead?)

And Chase Infinity as Willa, now there's a little star in the making (but they rarely give you a nom right out of the gate).

Was it just me, or did anyone else perhaps see Anderson's wife -  a young Maya Rudolph - in Chase/Willa at certain angles along the way?

What about the subject matter of this film, I would hope things don't get to this extreme politically, but ya never know, right?

Scary!

Thus, this film sparked a discussion about what we would do if we were certain characters lol.

Often, what we hope they would do is not what they did - and I'm normally pretty good at predicting what characters will do, from the former aspiring screenwriter perspective.

In fact, if I can guess what characters will do or whodunnit in the first 10 minutes, I lose interest, it's not a good film to me.

(Conversely, it can also be that there are so many twists and turns I stop caring, too lol.)

I admit, this one, I couldn't predict - which kept me interested.

Having said that, what we think we would do in a situation and what we would actually do might be two different things. 😂

My husband and I would definitely and proudly be in the resistance, if it ever came to that.

Would we do terrorist stuff?

Of course not!

Would we rat out other people in the resistance just to keep ourselves from going to fascist jail?

Of course not!

If you're not willing to do that, even die over it, if necessary, then don't do it!

Would we defend our values and militarily resist against this growing white supremacist, fascist nonsense if we had to, rather than roll over and comply in self-preservation?

You bet your sweet backside, we would.

Because humanitarian issues are bigger than ourselves -  worth going to fascist jail for, worth even dying for - we're not just rolling over.

But then I'm the sort that would've hidden slaves for the Underground Railroad or hidden Jewish people in my home during Nazi invasions - because my need for doing what's right for a cause greater than myself is greater than my need for self-preservation.

Then, it being later at night - we got a little deep/heavy, so skip it if not your thing lol.

So now the question was, would we rat out the rest of the group if they threatened someone we cared about, the so-called "mafia threat" like the U.S. military did in the movie?

They realize you're prepared to die over it, but they also know you'll reconsider if they threaten death to someone you love, right?

So before our answers, first you need to know this - and it may sound strange -  but I don't fear death anymore and neither does Mark.

I think it's because if you've been at the end of a pointed gun at point-blank range - the fear of death leaves you -  which both Mark and I have, more than once.

Mark while in the military with the enemy - me with family/loved ones that were supposed to protect me from threat, not BE the threat.

As much as we rightfully now take seriously male PTSD and threat of death from war/enemy fire, shouldn't the threat of death at the hands of someone you love, that's supposed to love and protect you, be treated at least equally to the PTSD of soldiers, if not more so?

Regardless, I think neural pathways get created to accept death without fear because you've already faced that possibility within seconds -  you've accepted the inevitability of death and how it's beyond your control.

Thus, I actually fear chronic pain or disability - or being a burden to others with a chronic condition -  more than I fear death itself.

Thus, my husband and I are like-minded on our answers to that question. 

We both agreed that if someone ever threatened us with death of the other one if we didn't give information in a resistance-group situation, our wishes would be that the other would still refuse, even if it meant our own certain death -  the only excusable reason for ratting being physical tortured or waterboarded, something difficult to withstand.

(Of course, there is no resistance group we're involved in or even aware of, just speaking hypothetically - but if one was ever created/needed against this right-wing extremism, we'd definitely sign up!)

But then after making that choice, we would both add this caveat:

"But then you better take me out, too - because not only do I not want to live, after being forced to make this choice - but because myself, and the rest of the group that I didn't rat out? We'd come for ya lol." 

Now, don't get me wrong - I'm not a vengeful person and don't hate anyone or want them to die, even Trump.

Allowing yourself to hate that much would make you more like them.

I've walked away and let go of more situations I will never see justice for more times in my life than most people have to face even once - if for nothing else, just to avoid my own bitterness and to not become just like the people who wronged me, not catch that disease!

But just in that particular situation, I might make an exception, let's put it that way lol.

Otherwise, there are only 2 other beings still in this world that would give me pause that I would rat over, because they wouldn't have that choice - - Ziggy and my daughter.

God forbid we'd ever be in that situation - but I've learned in this life to never say never lol.

I've had the kind of life where my worst nightmares have come true - stuff you actually say "Oh, that's ridiculous, so-and-so will never take things that far" - damn if they didn't! lol.

In fact, I was given that threat once in my life  - not over information, but after making several threats towards me that failed, an ex finally said this:

"If you don't come back to Florida with me, right now, I'm gonna call some Eastern Kentucky boys to go after your daughter and your dog."

What did I do?

I acted like I was going along with it -  then at the first stop, I ran like hell, calling DV the moment I arrived home lol.

And as you can see, everything turned out all right. 

I don't know what happened to that ex because I got away safe and never looked back - and I've found that a watched pot never boils - plus it doesn't matter what happens to them later, what matters is what happens to you later.

But back to the choice in the movie, the only way this particular situation would ever happen is if there was an organized resistance to the growing fascism in this country that had gotten out of control.

Let us hope that sanity returns so that it never will, selah, amen lol.