All-time Favorite Movie - Fight Club (1999)


            “It’s only after we’ve lost everything that we’re free to do anything,” said by Tyler Durden, the antagonist in the film Fight Club. That is one of the remarkable quotes in the film. Although it is a 1999 film, I still happened to watch it and when I did, it became one of my favorites and later became my all-time favorite. The first time I watched it, I was mind blown.  It may sound exaggerated, but I actually am.  I had an overwhelming feeling and was confused, enlightened, and shocked by the movie itself as I watch it. So why do you need to watch this film? Let me share my personal outlook about the film and offer you these three things: It is not any cliché movies that you watch, it has created controversies when it was released and this would make you wonder why, and it depicts a strong message which cannot be easily understood by the usual audience, but you are not supposed to be ‘usual’, you are supposed to be curious. So challenge yourself to find what the movie wants to convey.
            If you’re a cinephile, a film fanatic or movie addict, you would appreciate this movie as it is not cliché. If your genre is drama and something mystery-like, then this movie is for you. Since it doesn’t have an ordinary plot, you could not predict and would not have to make assumptions. Fight Club offers you a different shade of story among the current generations of movies we see today. It is just different and you would want to find out why it is not ordinary yourself. I am a film fanatic and I have watched movies with different genres; I must say, I am really overwhelmed towards the cinematic plot, the portrayal of each character, and the remarkable and meaningful dialogues stated in the movie Fight Club. To prove more what I want to mean, I assure you that this movie will bring you to a different setting and will make you appreciate it. 
            As what I stated previously, Fight Club is different. Another thing why it has become different is that it is contentious. It has created arguments among people who have watched it. When it was released, it was criticized for its story, portrayal of characters, and the message itself. It has made controversies about the representation of man in the story. Some critique said that it is an accurate portrayal of men in the 1990s; I, on the other hand, also believe that the portrayal of men in the movie still applies to what men are today. Why? I would rather leave you clueless for you to have the curiosity. The message of the movie is crucial, as many loved and hated it in equal measures. According to The Times, upon the film's theatrical release, "It touched a nerve in the male psyche that was debated in newspapers across the world.” Does this statement make you more intrigued? I hope it does.
            The movie conveys a strong message, especially in a philosophical and psychological manner. It has displayed a unique concept of a man’s ego and its alter ego. Dialogues such are these: “The things you own end up owning you.” “This is your life and it's ending one minute at a time.” “If I didn't say anything, people always assumed the worst.”  “If you wake up at a different time in a different place, could you wake up as a different person?” “Without pain, without sacrifice, we would have nothing: like the first monkey shot into space.” “We're a generation of men raised by women. I'm wondering if another woman is really the answer we need,” have made me think, question, and reason things about life. Some would be confused, enlightened, and shocked like me if they happen to watch this movie. You should watch Fight Club closely so you wouldn’t miss anything, put attention to details as to fully understand the message that would make your mind blow like what it did to me.

Fight Club is one of the rare movies that would successfully give you an overwhelming and enlightening feeling after having watched it. I usually learn from the movies I watch, but watching this movie, it didn’t only make me learn, it made me realize things as it hit me with the truth about ego, about men, and about life.  I didn’t only like it, I got to love it. Fight club is not a cliché, it is different and has caused arguments and made people be intrigued, it depicts a message that can be misinterpreted if not watched closely that made it more interesting to watch. Even if you’re not a film fanatic, you would still enjoy it with its action scene, its characters’ humor, and its various settings. I highly endorse this movie, since Fight Club is the type of movie you would also recommend to others to share the inexplicably feeling you have felt after watching it!
             
 ---         
 August 10, 2016

Creative Nonfiction Writing: What is your all-time favorite movie and why? Write an essay persuading readers to watch this film.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Breaking the Gold: The Golden Years of Philippine Cinema

Image
Image by PublicDomainPictures from Pixabay Introduction – The Perceived Notion of Golden Times. The age of cinema as a form of art and industry is relatively young as compared to other forms. In the Philippine context, the history of cinema has just only reached its centennial year with the beginnings from 1917 when Malayan Movies, a film company founded by Jose Nepomuceno and his brother Jesus, was established, to 1919 when the first Filipino feature film was produced – Dalagang Bukid (Country Maiden), produced by the same company. In spite of having a comprehensive history of Philippine cinema yet to be written, the industry has proven to develop and mature with regards to filmmaking style, form, and content for it to have the so-called ‘golden age’. Such Golden Age is ostensibly characterized by great progress, or as Cambridge dictionary defines it, “a period of time, sometimes imaginary, when everyone was happy, or when a particular art, business, etc. was very successful
Read more

The Historical Origin and Cultural Implications of Bañamos Festival of Los Baños, Laguna

Image
The month is September and as a child, my grandmother would bring me to the town plaza to watch the Balye sa Kalye , the most awaited event in Bañamos festival of our municipality. This goes every year with my grandma until I grew older to watch other events of the festival by myself or with my friends. The festival was just colors and music, an entertainment, and an annual celebration until I gained the consciousness to wonder its origin and curiosity to ask its implications to the local culture, which set the rationale of this paper. Origin             The festival’s name Bañamos, which is a Spanish term meaning “we bathe”, is ascribed to the name of the municipality, Los Baños meaning “the baths”. This is due to the fact that the founding of Los Baños goes back to the Spanish colonization. In the late 16 th century, a canonical mission in the lakeshore towns of Laguna led the Franciscans to come by the hot springs of barrio Mainit , only a visita then (a chapel under a par
Read more

Pabula: Ang Dalawang Magkaibigang Daga

Image
Sa Kaharian ng Dagatanra ay may dalawang magkaibigan. Umusbong ang pagkakaibigan nila noong maliliit pa sila. Magkaibigan din ang mga magulang nila. Palagi rin silang nagkakasundo sa mga kalokohan ng bawat isa. Isang araw, pumasok sa isip ni Bugoy na pumunta sa kweba ng isang higanteng ahas habang nakikinig sa kwento ng isang matandang daga. Ang higanteng ahas ay ang nakaalitan noon ng kanilang pinuno. Ipinagtanggol ni Haring Mapatangra pati ng mga mandirigmang daga ang kanilang mamamayan dahil nanggugulo ang mga higanteng ahas sa palasyo subalit maraming nasawi sa sagupaan na iyon. Alam ng magkaibigan ang nangyari noon sa palasyo pero hindi nagdalawang isip si Bugoy. “Buboy, pumunta tayo sa kweba ng higanteng ahas?” hiling niya sa kaibigan. “Bakit? anong gagawin natin doon?” patanong na sabi ni Buboy. “Gusto ko kasing makita ang itsura ng ahas.” “Ha? Ano ka ba? Alam natin na mapanganib sa kweba?” “Eh ano naman! Basta, sumama ka nalang kasi! ” malinaw na sinabi niya sa kaibigan. “Si
Read more

Buhay Estudyante

Image
Walang papel, walang ballpen, walang assignment, walang pasok! Ganyan ang buhay estudyante, masarap, mahirap, madali, nakakainis, at nakakapagod . Masarap maging estudyante kasi araw-araw may baon. Mahirap lalo na kapag maraming assignments at proyekto. Madali kapag nabubuhay ka sa hingi. Nakakainis kapag palaging napapagalitan ng guro at nakakapagod gumising ng umaga. Buhay estudyante! Madaming nangyayari sa isang estudyante. Marami kang nararanasan na kung ano-ano. Mapagalitan, mapatayo, mapahiya, bumagsak, mapatawag sa office, magkaroon ng kaibigan, makipag-away , gumala, magsaya, umuwi ng gabi, magsinungaling, gumawa ng kalokohan at lalo na ang umibig . Walang araw na hindi magtatawanan ang barkada. Naranasan mo nang bumagsak at nakalimutang may assignment. Madalas kang kumopya at manggaya. Naranasan mo nang kumain at magtext ng patago habang nagkaklase. Kalimitang walang papel . Meron kang pangload pero wala kang pambili ng papel at ballpen. Minsan papasok na lang
Read more

FILM ANALYSIS: The Founder (2016)

Image
SYNOPSIS “The story of Ray Kroc, a salesman who turned two brothers' innovative fast-food eatery, McDonald's, into the biggest restaurant business in the world, with a combination of ambition, persistence, and ruthlessness” (IMDb). The Founder is a 2016 biopic film directed by John Lee Hancock, written by Robert Siegel, and starred Michael Keaton, Nick Offerman, John Carroll Lynch, and Laura Dern; which is based on a true story of how a man gained supremacy in the food industry. The film highlights business principles, personal integrity, and success through wealth as its themes while being a sight of wonder as a motion picture. CONTENT OF THE FILM TACKLED Starting as a salesman, Ray Kroc travels from state to state to offer and market supposedly useful products by Prince Castle but always gets rejected or ignored. Receiving a call of six orders of his 5-spindle milkshake maker, he thought it was a mistake until he finally called the customer to clear the said order whic
Read more

Tiwala

Image
“Napakahirap makuha pero napakadaling mawala.”  Isang bagay na kailangan mo munang paghirapan bago mo makuha nang buo. Tunay na mahirap, tunay na komplikado, at tunay na mahalaga; ito ang tiwala! Masasabing lahat ng tao pinapahalagan ito. Alam natin ang kahalagahan nito sa anumang relasyon: relasyon sa kapwa, sa kaibigan, sa pamilya, pati na rin sa sarili. Ngunit alam ba talaga natin ang totoong kahalagan nito? Ang tiwala ang nagsisilbing sandigan ng anumang relasyon. Ito ang nagpapanatili ng samahan upang magpatuloy at lalong tumatag. Ito an gating pinanghahawakan kahit gaano pa karami ang ating hinala. Ang tiwala rin ang nagpapalakas ng loob ng isang indibidwal upang gumawa sa buong makakaya. Ito rin ang nagpapanatag ng ating kalooban at kaisipan. Ubod na halaga ang tiwala kaya marapat lamang na pahalagahan ito.  Ang problema sa tao, alam natin ang kahalagan nito subalit hindi natin lubos na alam kung paano ito mapapahalagahan nang tama kapag ibinigay sa atin ito ng atin
Read more

Analysis: Ang Sayaw ng Dalawang Kaliwang Paa

Image
Profound, complex, and beautiful.   The 2011 drama film of Alvin Yapan is an acclaimed motion picture that uses dance, poetry, and emotion to symbolize a deeper meaning about gender, sexuality, and character. The narrative involves a love triangle between Marlon (Paulo Avelino), Karen (Jean Garcia), and Dennis (Rocco Nacino). Dennis has started to invest emotionally on Marlon upon teaching him to dance to impress their literature teacher/dance instructor whom the latter is infatuated with. The film, however, does not focus solely on the romance of the characters but with the meaning behind every delivered poem, every dance routine, and every subtle projection of emotions through visual portrayal and effective sound. Ang Sayaw ng Dalawang Kaliwang Paa is wisely created as there’s more than the movie plot – there are reflections of gender sensitivity and fluidity, paradoxical representation of sexuality, and philosophical insights about feminism, affection, and devotion.  In the c
Read more

Emerging Filipino Indie Genre in the Philippine National Cinema

Image
What truly sets the Independent Cinema apart from the Mainstream Cinema? The film industry was generally classified financially and thematically into two: the independent and the mainstream. That is why the Philippine cinema has been subject to change, to progress, and even to confuse one with the other. The history of the Philippine Cinema proves this with regard to the Spanish and American influences during their occupation which led to the birth of cinema in the country   (Deocampo) and the political impact of the past which shaped the ‘nation’ and the ‘cinema’ (Campos) . Today, Filipino independent films, also known as “indie films,” have been establishing its identity that distinguishes it from the commercialized mainstream movies or popular cinema through the establishments of various Philippine Independent Film Festivals and the historical feats of independent Filipino filmmakers in both local and international arena. Redefining indie films as its own style or genre in the con
Read more

Pagsulat sa Filipino - Lakbay-Sanaysay

Image
“Summer capital of the Philippines,” ganito binansagan ang lugar na Baguio City. Sa aking mga paglalakbay, isa ang Baguio sa aking mga hindi malilimutan. Tatlong beses na akong nakarating dito: ang unang dalawa (Septyembre 2007 at Mayo 2016) ay kasama ang aking pamilya at ang huli ay field trip sa aming paaralan (Oktubre 2016). “Hindi nakakasawa,” sabi ko sa aking isipan nang makarating muli ako.             Malamig ang klima rito, batid naman ito ng nakakarami; ito na siguro ang pangunahing dahilan ng mga turista sa kanilang pagbisita. Subalit bukod sa malamig na klima, tunay na marami pang maipagmamalaki ang Baguio! Isa na rito ang Burnham Park , ang itinuturing puso ng Baguio. Dahil hindi iyon ang aking unang pagbisita, masasabi ko na may mga nagbago. Lalong dumami ang tao, mas pinaganda ang ilang anyo ng istraktura, at higit na kasiya-siya kumpara sa aking huling pagpunta. (Trivia! Ang tanyag na parke na ito ay ipinangalan sa Amerikanong arkitekto at taga-plano ng lungsod ng
Read more

Pagsulat sa Filipino - Repleksibong Sanaysay

Image
Nasagot ko na noon ang tanong na: Ano ang pinakamahalagang pangyayari sa iyong buhay? Nasagot ko na rin kung ano ang pinakamahirap na naranasan ko. Sa pagdaan ng panahon, sa paglipas ng mga taon, at sa pagdating ng kasalukuyan, hindi pa rin nababago ang aking sagot. Image by Quang Nguyen vinh from Pixabay Ang pagkakaroon ko ng mga kaibigan ang pinakamahalagang nangyari sa aking buhay at ang pag-iwan ko sa kanila ang pinakamahirap. Tila ang kasagutan ko sa dalawang tanong ay iisa – ang pagkakaroon ng kaibigan ang pinakamahalaga at pinakamahirap na pangyayari sa buhay ko. Ang kasaysayan ng aming pagkakaibigan ay hindi inaasahan; magkakaiba ang aming mga hilig, interes, at pananaw sa buhay. Hindi ko kailanman inakala na magiging kaibigan ko sila at hindi rin nila inakala na magiging kaibigan nila ako. Sino ang makapagsasabi? Marami talagang pagkakataon sa buhay ang hindi mo inaasahan.  Ang pagiging bahagi nila sa buhay ko ay naging pinakamahalaga dahil nabago at binago nila
Read more