tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8457067560968597598.post3141621403028056111..comments2024-03-18T09:18:57.616+00:00Comments on Howard Cooper's Blog: Puzzling over 'The Tree of Life'Howard Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07499147712266456601noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8457067560968597598.post-2263156143528974652011-07-16T16:19:53.954+01:002011-07-16T16:19:53.954+01:00I recently came across - then wrote on - Ernst Blo...I recently came across - then wrote on - Ernst Bloch's magnificent comment on the mismatch between the 'creator' God who answers Job, and the 'covenantal' God, to whom Job appeals in relation to justice. It illuminated for me why the book of Job is so wonderfully unsatisfying in its glorious end. <br /><br />The quote from Bloch is towards the end of the article 'Shoah or Churban' which I wrote for Tony Bayfield's Festschrift. It's on my blog http://jeffreynewman.wordpress.com/ note xvAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8457067560968597598.post-47015565180178138722011-07-15T20:32:59.726+01:002011-07-15T20:32:59.726+01:00Tree of Life is a film, which attempts to address ...Tree of Life is a film, which attempts to address the human condition and as such I applaud it. It explores both the physical and numinous worlds. A rare thing in cinema.<br />However, in any exploration of a spiritual world it is sensible to have not too high expectations.<br /><br />The scenes depicting the creation of the world moved even this Dawkinsonian aetheist. For a few minutes I was transported to a contemplation of the mysteries of the cosmos<br /><br />One theme that your review does not discuss is the exploration of the father/son relationship. Malick shows the necessity of the son to overthrow or disobey the father, whether this be the biological or the heavenly father. This may be necessary but there is a price to pay. That price is alienation. Allied to this theme we see the brutality of evolution compared with the brutality of the father who in turn moves towards his God for support.<br /><br />The film asks us to question the role of God in the Big Bang and evolution. However, I am reminded of Darwin’s thoughts when he came across the wasp which paralyses its victim, a caterpillar, with a venom. Then it injects its egg into the caterpillar’s body. As the larva develops it devours the living caterpillar from the inside. Darwin questioned the existence of a God that could allow such evolutionary horror.<br /><br />A Jewish auteur, Stanley Kubrick, has made a film which resonates with Tree of Life and that is 2001, A Space Odyssey. And by the way, not all Jewish men are useless at DIY.<br /><br />TheophrastusAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8457067560968597598.post-34783806348228084282011-07-12T22:11:03.751+01:002011-07-12T22:11:03.751+01:00Yes, 'Three Colours: Blue' is my Desert Is...Yes, 'Three Colours: Blue' is my Desert Island film - the first time we saw it we left the cinema and went straight to a pub for a brandy, as we were suffering from shock. Perhaps if we go to see 'The Tree of Life' we should have the brandy before we go into the cinema!Robert Stonenoreply@blogger.com