The brilliant son is home for spring break and we are having a grand time (filling out forms for summer research, getting the necessary immunizations for same, etc.) But we’re also kicking back and hitting a few movies on our list. Last night was Olympus Has Fallen (starring Gerard Butler). So it’s pretty obvious why I wanted to see it… military action, big heroic fight scenes, umm, yeah, did I mention Gerard?
Anyway, seeing that movie made two things very to me. First, my little analysts have only grown into bigger analysts and as writers themselves (and Army kids) my children are nothing like the general movie-going population. And second (though likely more important) monuments matter.
My son got in the car and said “From act two on, it’s a great movie!”
He’s right. We heard other viewers talking about it and they loved it from the first moment. We however, loved the prologue, picked apart the tactical stuff in act one, and loved it from the moment Gerard’s (he and I are on a first name basis, right?) character takes on the apparently insurmountable task.
Yes, we’re aware it’s fiction, and it’s supposed to be over-the-top for a reason. And I highly recommend the movie in general. But the biggest praise I could give act one (after our thorough analysis) was my personal discovery of the value of monuments.
Don’t get me wrong – I know monuments matter. I’m the girl who cries whenever the National Anthem is played. I love seeing my husband in uniform and knowing his service protects and improves lives. I’ve been to D.C. and walked along the Mall and felt the infusion of energy and honor there.
But there was something poetic about the cinemetography of this movie that hit me on a visceral level. National history and the sacrifices that made our nation great, isn’t something I think purposely about all the time, but… Wow. The director, fx team, and film editors nailed it.
Watching those beautiful structures packed with so much history, symbolism, and meaning become fictional rubble was more than disconcerting – as I’m sure it was meant to be. It’s a feeling I intend to carry with me, to tap into as I move forward with my next writing projects.
Monuments matter and symbolize more than the sum of their parts. They become a kind of nurturing descant we often take for granted. Fiction is a wonderful, useful tool, no matter the medium. It can soothe or incite action. It can be an escape or the telling of a bigger truth – as in Olympus Has Fallen.
Live the adventure!
coffee art today courtesy of journeyscoffee
Isn’t amazing how our children turn into adults so quickly? But yet are still kids in other moments.
Glad to hear you two are having a good spring break.
And thanks to all of you for your husband’s service.
Sanat you are so right about the kids with adult moments. Or is it adult kids with childish moments? LOL Regardless we are having a good time. 🙂