My dad sent me this in the mail:
It's official. Pre-production of the long-awaited film, "Mona's Dream", began in May 2008. Hollywood filmmaker Mel Gibson (The Passion of Christ) and Canadian Baha'i singer/songwriter/producer Jack Lenz have been collaborating for several years to tell the heart-wrenching story of the 16-year-old Baha'i youth Mona Mahmudnizhad, one of 10 Baha'i women who were martyred in Shiraz in 1983. Filming of the long-awaited story is scheduled to begin in October or November 2008 for release in the Spring of 2009. You can listen to the music for the film, read about the process, and follow the progress of the production at http://www.monasdream.com/
One of the goals of the film is to start or support service projects in Mona's name. One such project is the Freedom to Believe Foundation with offices in Canada and the U.S. http://www.freedomtobelievefoundation.com/
I think this is an interesting choice for Mel Gibson. It looks like whatever captures his interest will be the next movie he makes. That is very un-Hollywood and commendable. At the same time, it's a bit peculiar as well. First, a film about Scotland's greatest hero, then Jesus, a man running for his life in the Amazon, and now a Baha'i girl who is tortured for her religious beliefs in the Islamic Republic. Is there a common thread in these stories? Is he reflecting people's fears in America? Man against the odds? Or is it Mel Gibson against the world?
It seems to me that Gibson is trying to say something to the public with each of his films. They seem very reactionary based on how much he likes to try and put a middle finger to Hollywood. In fact, I would say this guy seems like one of those people, that no matter how much they create successes in their lives, will still be jaded and angry at the system which has given them such a wonderful opportunity.
The other possibility is that the subject matter follows the spiritual propaganda that he believes will create a reaction from those with similar religious backgrounds. I have no idea. I just find it so peculiar and refreshing simultaneously. That's usually my reaction to things that intrigue me. If his films weren't so good, it would be easier to just rub the guy off as a freak, but it's difficult to do such a thing, when his films are of such a high quality. Who knows? The guy could be just a genius with spiritual leanings. Maybe, these leanings in a system that is ruled by the bottom dollar creates such a friction in what I expect from Hollywood's reality that I am unable to make heads or tails of his actions. I hope this is the case. That seems like a kinder reality, then the one that paints Gibson as meglomaniacal zealot. Of course, he could be all these things.
How much I enjoy to paint famous people in a better light than the shadows that surround them. I suppose that's natural. My mythical reality of what a star is like is usually what pervades in my day-to-day. I am surrounded by it in everything that I do. If I stopped watching television, it would still hit me over the head. It would be in everyone's speech, in their movements, like a record that spins without a needle.
I guess it doesn't matter that much. I am just thinking about stars a lot lately. I think that's why I like that Tao is putting stars in his latest novels and giving them a dose of his reality. That is a healthy thing. Putting the world on its head is a good thing. It puts my head there too. I think that makes me feel sane. I would like to write a story about Mel Gibson. I think Mel Gibson would sue me. I would give him a dollar.
2 comments:
Gibson has a LOT of PR cleanup to do if he still wants a career as a director. His last known appearance in the news left us with him being stopped on a drunk-driving binge, calling a female cop "sugar tits" and and asking the cops if "the jews" set him up. His father is a religous conspiracy theorist who believes the holocaust never happened.
And he quite obviously has a torture fetish, noting that his heros invariably get tortured in every movie he's done.
Doing a biopic on a Baha'i matryr kills two birds with one stone.
Actually, there is a very simple common theme in all of those films. All of his choices are based on his admiration for people who face injustice and despite that manage to 'overcome'; manage to make a new beginning, manage to hang on to or regain their love in the end, manage to overcome injustice etc.
And as far as comment one is concerned: Get your facts right before you judge. Facts are the fabric reality is made of, when they don't matter truth doesn't really matter. About every sentence you write contains a mistake.
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