The Arockalypse

I forgot, last night I saw Apocalypse Now! It was showing in some auditorium in the basement of the Biology building. The Bio building reminds me of a mental institution, even more than the dorm affectionately named the Asylum Block, so I suppose it was appropriate for the movie. We have been studying Heart of Darkness in class (again) for Empire and the Novel, so I thought I ought to see the approximate movie version. Switching the story from the Belgian Congo to Vietnam worked pretty well because they just kept the vital malevolent plot themes ("Exterminate the brutes!") while adding in some more action and jettisoning the racism. It was three and a half hours long, which I think is even longer than Titanic, and it probably would've been more tense if it speeded up a bit (just like Titanic, come to think of it).

I have to say, the famous vital scene where Willard first meets Marlon Brando as creepy bloated Colonel Kurtz just reminded me of that scene in Buffy (Restless, anyone?) Everything these days either reminds me of an episode of Buffy, The Simpsons, or Friends. I expect it's the same for everyone else. I have a theory that this phenomenon is our generation's version of the literary reference to the classical canon, e.g. where some well-read modernist might have referenced Dante's Inferno or Promethean struggle, we would be reminded of the Simpson's Halloween Special where Homer accidentally sells his soul to the Devil for a doughnut. (Seriously, this is my pet theory, I will go on about it at length.) Well, I recommend Apocalypse Now. The soundtrack is great apart from anything else.

So, I don't know why I wanted to tell you all about that, but I did.

P.s. Who noticed the reference in the post title? Go Finland for Eurovision!