Death List Part 4

Continuation of the Death List series:

• Part 1 - Self Sacrifice
• Part 2 - Villain Comeuppance
• Part 3 - Bad Guy's 'Oops' Moment
  

"You know, Books; I'm not an especially brave man. But, if I were you and had lived my entire life the way you have, I don't think that the death I just described to you is not the one I would choose." ~ Dr. E.W. Hostetler (The Shootist)

It is a sobering point of fact that everyone dies (and I'm not very crazy about highlighting that actuality, neither) -- I guess you could reference the Lost finale if you want to get any solace out of it. We all have a start date (which most of us are aware of) and an end date (the something we are blissfully ignorant about). Even if we could, many of us wouldn't particularly want to learn anything specific about that latter rendezvous with the Reaper, in any case. But certainly, just about everyone would want it pushed back to the furthermost point in the future, that's for sure. I guess there is something to said about the core beliefs of Buddhism, with all apologies to my Catholic mother and wife.

On the big (or small) screen, we have all seen moments in movies when the protagonist gets to chose that specific end date because the story demands it. As I mentioned in Part 1 of this series, there are times when self sacrifice is the only way to solve a particularly tough problem for the hero. A greater good is to be gained, and other lives to be saved, byway of the principal character's martyrdom. Nonetheless, there are other instances when the situation laid out before the man or woman of the hour where there isn't much to attained, at all. The protagonist is not given a chance for his death to mean more beyond her/his own situation. At those times, it's more personal. The hero is going to die in the piece... and nothing is going to prevent that. Even so, for a small set of films the character does get to impact the circumstances of their own demise and leave their own distinct mark on the final outcome. Here then, in no particular order, is my Going Out on Your Own Terms list.

[Spoiler Alert: keys plot points are revealed below]

Death List Part 3

Continuation of the Death List series:

1. Part 1 - Self Sacrifice
2. Part 2 - Villain Comeuppance
   

I will think on you dead, until my husband makes you so. And then I will think on you no more. ~ Mary MacGregor (Rob Roy)

Everyone makes mistakes. It's likely the one tendency that makes all of us human. Some of these slip ups are more serious than others, too. And since this is another of my death lists, you can probably guess where I'm going with this. I'm sure some folk will point to those who chronicle the mistakes of some that result in their leaving this world, permanently. The Darwin Awards track what many deem as enterprising demises:

Honoring those who improve the species... by accidentally removing themselves from it!

Image via Wikipedia

This post has been updated and moved to my current blog, which can be found here.

Death List Part 2

Continuation of the Death List series:

1. Part 1 - Self Sacrifice

He had it coming! They all have it coming! ~ Strawberry Alice (Unforgiven)

Image by le0pard13 via Flickr

Cinema is simply a wonderful art. It not only fills your eyes with moving, startling images, but it can seize your mind and emotions with the story that only it can tell so uniquely. Be it while you sit in a darkened movie theater, or comfortably at home in front of whatever screen you have, film just captivates. And sure, it's easy as sin to root for the hero. Especially, when the tale involves the audience, and gets them to relate with the hero through her hardships and travails, affectingly.

The cause for this can be innocent but heartbreaking happenstance, bad luck (or weather), and/or the result of a flaw in his personality that brings it down upon him. All true. However, is that the only way? Not on your life! Don't forget the villain (Hollywood sure hasn't). When nature wreaks havoc on our man/woman of the hour (or two), it's good. But, it's not great (IMO). For that, we need someone, another human being, to mete out that pain. That old testament kind of tribulation and suffering has to come by way of another character (preferably, from someone who's pores seemingly reek of evil and wrongdoing). They have to lay it right on to our hero... and then some.

This post has been updated and moved to my current blog, which can be found here.

Death List Part 1

The whole world is a homicide victim, Father. Would a god who is good invent something like death? Plainly speaking, it's a lousy idea; it's not popular, Father. It's not a winner. ~ Lt. William Kinderman talking with his friend Father Dyer (Exorcist III)

Death in the movies. I guess I've been thinking about this subject, subconsciously, since last weekend. Ever since I participated in another of Dennis Cozzalio's semi-regular movie quizzes (fun as they are), in fact. And, I can point to the specific question that triggered it, too:

44) Favorite moment of self- or selfless sacrifice in a movie.

Stephen King via last.fm

It shouldn't surprise that an answer came forthwith. Plus, I marveled at the answers leveled by those who participated in the quiz to that question. I don't recall where I read it, but someone wrote, given the choice, men secretly hope for a demise such as the one nobly characterized in the question above. Sure, I bet everyone would rather have the idyllic, dying in bed of old age. Author Stephen King once described a good death as that (following a great dinner and a prime bottle of wine, that is). However, for most normal folk, it doesn't happen under those ideal circumstances. So, going out by giving up your own (for something greater) has an appeal. It's a Y-chromosome kind of thing, I guess. This kind of selfless, life-ending, act sure sounds better than the bad death King countered to the ideal one: that of being under your car to change the fluids, and the jack collapses; and as you're slowly crushed to death, as lousy as that is, the last insult is the slow drip of oil onto your forehead. Ugh.

This post has been updated and moved to my current blog, which can be found here.