Sunday, June 26, 2011

Source Code (movie review)

Comparisons with Groundhog Day are inevitable. The movie is about a brave hero who takes impressive action over and over. He develops a complete mastery over his scenario. 12 Monkeys also comes to mind.

There seem to be a lot of loose ends, but the movie isn't about solving mysteries so much as evoking them. Humans respond to their situations. The camera gives us an up close study.

The quasi omniscience of the ghostly camera gets played with in this film. The point of view goes back through a grate. When we look in the big reflecting ball, there's no evidence of an onlooker. As an audience, we're the uber-voyeurs.

That's how films usually work, but this one is somewhat playfully and self consciously about the viewpoint. We hop among minds and realities.

Philosophers should use these expensive special-effects-laden works to anchor some of their discussions. One gets more out of a story like this than from some "brain in a vat" story with no plot.

Why be so snobby? Discussion is enhanced by having these shared reference points.

Wittgenstein loved films, found them a cleansing shower after too much of his day job.