Lol, a cultural rant...on a film I saw last night...

Well, saw this late last night on Channel 4. I'd wanted to see it for a while, I remember the furor in the tabloid press, Daily Mail in particular, when it was first released, and was expecting to be truly horrifed by a film that apparently should never have been released by the censors. It was shocking, and I must admit I was creeped out by the whole premise of the thing, but I can't see why it should have been banned. I'd also heard about the novel it was based on in the book Leadville by Edward Platt, a really good read about the redevelopment of the Western Avenue in London and the general effects of urbanisation on those who live around it and on the world as a whole.

I could see the whole idea of the relationship between man and technology, the automobile in particular, through the way the film was shot, especially in regards to the relationship between human sexuality and technology. Sex has been used to sell cars for a long time, and the scene where Gabrielle, disfigured and crippled in a car accident, rubs herself up against a sleek Mercedes in a car showroom was reminsicent of many a car commercial. Moreover the film began with the whole sexual idea of the blending of human flesh and metal when Ballard's partner Catherine rubs her naked breast on the metal of an airplane. I guess the idea of flesh and metal blending, through horrific crashes, could be seen in the context of the film as a sex act between man and machine, or the power of metal over flesh? There was definately the sense of the glamour society evokes by sex in, on or near vehicles. And the thought-provoking idea of the sense of glamour when stars and cars quite literally go together. As the film rightly points out, there is a sense of legend about the deaths of celebrities in road accidents, such as James Dean, the decapitation of Jane Mansfield, and the later death of Diana, Princess of Wales. Maybe I'm looking a little too much into this, indeed I'm sure the film was made before her death, but one car park scene begins with a shot of a huge black Mercedes like the one Diana died in. Hmmm, maybe significant, not deliberately of course, but in the context of future events.

Another idea explored was the way in which technology is overtaking the population. There are many eerie scenes in car scrapyards where a lone character is surrounded by acres of cars, as well as the shots of millions of cars slithering across an endless landscape of roads. Ballard and his partner live in a tower block overlooking the motorways. Very Le Courbusier. The characters talk about the ever increasing volume of traffic. The scene where Vaughn, Ballard and Catherine ogle a motorway pile was also well shot in this context, yet again showing the metal jungle and man's battle against machine, as firefighters work to free the injured with metal tools to aid them. As the film goes on, it seems man cannot exist without car. Vaughn fantasises about Catherine having a car accident, and pushes her body into disfiguring positions of a crash victim as he has sex with her. Vaughn sees the automobile as a weapon of power, as he tries, and eventually succeeds in crashing into other vehicles.
Perhaps the film could also be seen as discussing the idea of how technology is alientating and warping society. The characters are loners, not really interacting with greater society, you never see anyone else but them in pretty much the whole film. They live in the world of the car, and worship it's powers in the most carnal sense. The fact that they are aroused by cars and not mere sex both explores the sexual connotations attatched to the automobile but it's ability to alienate. Society makes love to it, and not to each other. The automobile, supposedly a safer, more convienient form of transport, is not only leading to horrifc human and environmental injury but warping society in it's need to seek yet more danger in a world of ever increasing safety. Moreover, it is shown how close one is to total destruction, one swerve, one error when on the road and your life and body can be changed forever.

I'd love to read the novel, and many more by Ballard, I've been reading about him online, and I'm intrigued by his constant exploration of life in a modern urban landscape. Whilst I haven't got the finer nuances of his work, the film, whilst not the best I've ever seen was certainly thought-provoking and well shot. I think I was expecting a very linear storyline and much more horror but it was a more thoughtful film than that I guess.

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There's been some really good films on TV this week actually. The Great Gatsby is on tonight, and The Rainmaker was on last night which I unfortunately missed, as I did Monster's Ball and Legally Blonde on Sunday. I've yet to get a scart lead for my video here at home, whereas my video and box at university are like a piece of military equipment, tuned and programmed to within an inch of their life. I'm a bit of a stinge, if I can wait to see a film on TV then I will, as opposed to paying a fiver for renting something out. Getting into your PJs with a bit of knitting while you watch a late-night film on TV is one of my weirdest pleasures! Asphalt Jungle was on BBC Two on Saturday night which I thoroughly enjoyed! Although, I'm really tempted by LoveFilm.com, where you can rent an unlimited amount of DVDs for £20 a month. Still, I must make more effort to leave my room! It seems that any interests I develop are of the solitary kind, whereas most people simply make an effort to take up a team sport I merely decide to immerse myself in books, films, music and news...