...Perhaps Not

Previously, I claimed that the Joker was a symbol of opposition, specifically aimed at destabilising the idea of order that is so fervently defended, specifically by the Batman. I also claimed that he doesn't want to completely upset order as it stands because it means that he would lose his function. It would, thus, be sufficient to say that the Joker is scared. He fears losing his meaning to existence. Since he is unwilling to take down the Batman permanently, he inadvertently accepts the moral, social or established order that he supposedly opposes. The Joker needs the order the Batman stands for, otherwise he would no longer need to adopt the persona of 'the Joker'. Further, to emphasise this position, the Joker in The Killing Joke alludes to the fact that he hates memories and the past, and we can see why he would have that hatred as the story progresses, revealing an idea of his past. In a way, he alienates himself from his past, trying his best to forget i...

A question that has been asked by the DC fandom for nigh on a decade: who is the Joker ? Over the many years he's been enjoying destroying Gotham, the Joker's characterisation has changed dramatically through the various representations of him. I'm not focusing on any one particular version of the man. Instead, I'm looking what he has come to symbolise and identify him through this symbolic meaning. For the Joker, it was never about the name. In fact, our hunger for a name is the whole reason for the Joker's existence. He skips around classification, laughs at any attempt to pin him down. Names mean nothing to this creature. After all, he is supposedly highly intelligent, and has affiliated himself with many villains who know who the Batman  really is, so why is his beef with the Batman and not with Bruce Wayne? See, the Joker likes to think of himself as the antithesis to the Batman's thesis: they are polar opposites in the Joker's eyes. If ...

Ignorance is bliss...but why be happy when you could be interesting? Žižek, a contemporary philosopher and psychoanalyst who specialises in studying popular culture, proposes this alternative to the well-known English phrase. Why? It needs to be mentioned that Žižek has an extensive body of work that goes back years. Reading his work, and indeed listening to his lectures, will give you a greater sense of what he means by his often controversial statements. But, in all his works and explanations, he has made it clear that he doesn't enjoy the propagation of knowledge -- his reasoning behind why he never liked becoming a lecturer. As a result, I am using my knowledge of him and his work to expand on, even contradict, what he believes. Moving on. Happiness is something we all hope to achieve. We work hard, we fill our lives with stuff, we do strange and wonderful things, all in the attempt to find this elusive creature. Of course, the obvious implication for achiev...

Once again, I find myself drawn to the realm of Disney movies... It's almost as if they have a monopoly or something. Anyway. The latest installment in the Marvel Universe movies, Thor: Ragnarok , was delightful. With a good sprinkling of humour over the - quite frankly - intricate plot, it was definitely worth the time to watch. As usual, though, Disney has infused their movie with subtle references and themes that glorify and propagate a very specific ideology. For a movie that has nothing to do with modern theology, and yet still manages to completely muck up an ancient civilisation's theology for profit, there are numerous parallels with Christian narratives. WARNING: SPOILER ALERT Everyone knows the binary between God and Satan and how...unhealthy their relationship is. Then it should be no surprise that the first, and obvious, point is the remarkable resemblance between Odin and Hela's relationship with that of God and Satan. The father (Odin/God...

The fifth movie in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise was much like its predecessors: excellent scripting, interesting plot and progressively poor acting from Johnny Depp. Aesthetics aside, there's really one thing I'd like to pay attention to: the obvious piece of imagery at the end of the film. Barbossa is by no stretch an admirable character. He has done deplorable actions, acts selfishly and endangers lives at his own expense throughout the Pirates series. Some would even go so far as to call him cruel, but each to their own. Come the end of the latest film, however, we see a moment of "redemption" for the character. Barbossa is standing on a ship's anchor as the camera moves . By the time the cut happens, all the audience sees is Barbossa standing on top of a crucifix. Have a look for yourself: https://youtu.be/X65jXpOtIT0 At the end, we see the other characters climbing onto the anchor and start clambering up the chain. Salazar, the ant...

It astounds to what lengths Disney will go to exploit successful storylines. The Descendants is an example of such exploitation. Firmly centred on key villains from the most famous Disney films - Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty , Jafar from Aladdin , Cruella de Ville from 101 Dalmations , and the Wicked Witch from Snow White and the Seven Dwarves - we see their collective second attempt at thwarting the most successful of Disney heroes. Within this dichotomy between good and evil lies the subtext of the film: whatever everyone decides you are or what you should be doesn't matter, and you should endeavour to become your own person. Mixed in with a bit of romance and you've got yourself a typical Disney movie. Yet, should you look deeper, you'll find a more insidious message. The story begins with showing the heroes of Disney stories living in something of a utopia filled with luxuries, pleasure and plastic smiles. No one seems to want for anything (besides the...

SPIDERMAN: HOMECOMING The latest installment in the Marvel franchise, Spiderman: Homecoming , was on many people's 'Must Watch' list this year, and quite rightfully so for anyone who's seen the rest of the Marvel anthology. Without a doubt, the most stand-out feature was the Spiderman persona. Tom Holland as Peter Parker did an excellent job of portraying Spiderman as he always should have been: an excitable and quick-witted superhuman in tight-fitting spandex. However, for all it's virtues, there's one sin which cannot be forgiven. Michael Keaton, who plays Vulture, a principle villain from the Spiderman comics, towards the end of the film was given a short monologue which soiled a perfectly decent plotline with an insidious theme. Have a look here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8n1NebUgY4 A seemingly harmless monologue justifying actions that are of questionable morality, right? Not so much. See, we don't only have Keaton's charac...