The movie “Fight Club” has its merits. Brad Pitt and Edward Norton deliver exceptional performances that boast bad-ass intensity. Much of the film is shot in a way that is vivid and striking, in particular the scenes that portray acts of violence. The probes into the mindsets of psychologically besieged, deviant men is interesting.
But that's where my praise of “Fight Club” is just about extinguished. It's a clichéd term, but the Moral of the Story really does matter a great deal. At the conclusion of “Fight Club,” the Moral of the Story that author Chuck Palahniuk and director David Fincher leave the audience with is this: Man's purpose in the world is to beat the living shit out of each other and destroy everything. Women, as an afterthought, really have no choice but to acquiesce to the bone-headed destruction perpetrated by man. Bring on the downfall of civilization!
The message offered by “Fight Club” is one of nihilistic rubbish. Meritorious acting and cinematography are not enough to salvage a movie when the message is so poor. Walter Sobchak, best pal of Jeff “The Dude” Lebowski, had it right in his contention that nihilists are even worse than Nazis. At least Nazis have the courage to believe in SOMETHING, however amoral, despicable, and misguided it may be.
And so it is with some reluctance, considering my opinion of “Fight Club,” that I present an incisive quote from Tyler Durden as a sort of catalyst for this essay. Tyler Durden, if you don't know, is the manifestation of the main character's split personality. Evidently he was induced by the effects of insomnia. Fair enough, I guess.
Tyler Durden poses the question, “How much do you know about yourself if you've never been in a fight?”
This essay deals with what I learned in the wake of a heinous fracas outside of a bar. I'm convinced that the Moral of the Story here, cryptic though it may be, is more meaningful than that offered by “Fight Club.”
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The rest of this essay is featured in my book, which is titled "There Will be Blog." It's okay with me if you want to order a copy.
www.xlibris.com/NickOlig.html
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