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Post by aelthric on Aug 4, 2008 9:26:18 GMT
I now get it, I now understand from experience the type of anger that drove "Richard" toward vengeance though the name "Richard" is poignant to me...
Until someone has suffered the loss of a loved one by "Murder" they can only imagine what it feels like and believe me it is nothing like you imagined...
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Post by jtrodreigez on Aug 4, 2008 16:48:39 GMT
sounds bad man, i'm sorry for whatever loss you have had but i also think the film ultimately shows how pointless and destructive that kind of anger and revenge can be. As Richard says at the end,
"look what you made me do"
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Post by aelthric on Aug 5, 2008 7:50:54 GMT
SPOILERS sounds bad man, i'm sorry for whatever loss you have had but i also think the film ultimately shows how pointless and destructive that kind of anger and revenge can be. As Richard says at the end, "look what you made me do" I totally agree with you and that is also the understanding I got from the movie... The act of vengeance makes us into that which we loathe the most, and is mainly driven by an overpowering sense of "Injustice"... I feel that the issues surrounding "Richards" decision to take revenge are more complicated than most people can understand and they are addressed in this excellent film... 1) The sense of injustice, that "Richards"brothers killers were still at large in the community and had escaped punishment would be the prime factor for the anger... This is pretty straight forward...2) Richards own feelings of guilt (Adequately exemplified by the scenes where he clearly harboured feelings of shame and disgust at his brothers learning difficulties) would also feed the anger that somebody had taken his chance to reconcile these feelings with his brother... It is bad enough trying to reconcile things we said or thought about a loved one during their life after their death, it is much worse when you have the knowledge that someone deliberately ended their life removing that possibility... This also is pretty straight forward...3) The cyclic nature of vengeance (Exemplified when "Richard" comes face to face with the family of one of the murderers and walks away)... Any murder will provoke the same feelings from the family of the victim regardless of whether it is a vengeance murder for the same reasons as explained in point 2... Whilst this is straight forward not many people would link it to point 2...I have to say that Dead Man's Boots actually helped me to come to understand the driving forces behind the rage and anger of losing one of my loved ones to murder because it forced me to face up to my own vengeance demanding demons and it helped me to recognise them... I would also add that the real stroke of genius of this movie in understanding the nature of "Vengeance" was setting "Richard" as a loner, such anger and a need for vengeance takes a huge toll on relationships and only the strongest relationships can survive the emotional run away roller coaster that this inner anger causes... Vengeance is a jealous mistress, any attempt to reason with that vengeful sense is automatically seen as an enemy to the vengeance logic and anybody trying to talk you out of it (Generally friends who care for your well being is irrationally seen as "Protecting the guilty"... Had I not seen this film I would probably have gone down the same road as "Richards" character and although I couldn't reach the murderer I could have reached his family who played a part in the murder and didn't even face arrest and who even actually "PROFITED" from the murder of my loved one... So this film means a lot to me, in showing me "The alternative vengeful path and its consequences", without all the psycho-babble spin, it has helped me to keep in touch with my humanity... |
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Post by jtrodreigez on Aug 5, 2008 8:55:41 GMT
some good points there mate.
I have added a spoiler at the top of your post just in case someone hasn't seen the film yet.
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Post by aelthric on Aug 5, 2008 14:48:20 GMT
some good points there mate. I have added a spoiler at the top of your post just in case someone hasn't seen the film yet. Ooops I should have added that there may be spoilers, sorry... |
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Post by aelthric2017 on Jun 28, 2017 2:32:00 GMT
Nearly 9 years later, a Quardruple Heart Bypass, a hand full of stents, a Defibrilator / Pacemaker, House repossessed, all my possessions stolen by either people I trusted or by the mortgage company who repossessed my house while I was in hospital after yet another heart attack and still I hold to my original posts.
As I said vengeance is one path to follow but it is a self destructive path, but also bottling up your feelings is ultimately self destructive as I found to my cost as I held on to the anger and hatred it worked like a poison and almost killed me and has wrecked my heart.
This would have been the end of me had I not met a special lady who showed me that letting go of the anger and beginning to live again can be a powerful thing...
I was wrong to suggest all is well as long as you choose not to follow the path of vengeance (And believe me it is truly the hardest thing in the world to go against every fiber of your being that is screaming for you to seek vengeance) because that is only half the story, the other half is what you do with the anger and the rage and the hatred that is left festering like an infection leaching away your resolve and even your will to live...
I still consider DMS an excellent exploration of the vengeful mind, it truly did help me at a time when it would have been so easy to travel the few miles and seek retribution, if Shane keeps up with the news from his hometown then he will know all about my loss, at the time I posted the first post here I was in a very dark place emotionally and even through my drunken stupor I could recognise the message of DMS, it and this extraordinary lady both saved my life very literally...
Just thought I would come back and say thank you...
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Post by GR on Jun 28, 2017 21:39:47 GMT
Nearly 9 years later, a Quardruple Heart Bypass, a hand full of stents, a Defibrilator / Pacemaker, House repossessed, all my possessions stolen by either people I trusted or by the mortgage company who repossessed my house while I was in hospital after yet another heart attack and still I hold to my original posts. As I said vengeance is one path to follow but it is a self destructive path, but also bottling up your feelings is ultimately self destructive as I found to my cost as I held on to the anger and hatred it worked like a poison and almost killed me and has wrecked my heart. This would have been the end of me had I not met a special lady who showed me that letting go of the anger and beginning to live again can be a powerful thing... I was wrong to suggest all is well as long as you choose not to follow the path of vengeance (And believe me it is truly the hardest thing in the world to go against every fiber of your being that is screaming for you to seek vengeance) because that is only half the story, the other half is what you do with the anger and the rage and the hatred that is left festering like an infection leaching away your resolve and even your will to live...I still consider DMS an excellent exploration of the vengeful mind, it truly did help me at a time when it would have been so easy to travel the few miles and seek retribution, if Shane keeps up with the news from his hometown then he will know all about my loss, at the time I posted the first post here I was in a very dark place emotionally and even through my drunken stupor I could recognise the message of DMS, it and this extraordinary lady both saved my life very literally... Just thought I would come back and say thank you... Welcome back! I'm sorry to hear about your losses and your heart troubles.  But I'm glad that you found somebody who helped turn your life around, and that you're in a better place now.  Beautiful post, and great point about not bottling up / hanging on to anger. |
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But I'm glad that you found somebody who helped turn your life around, and that you're in a better place now. 
Beautiful post, and great point about not bottling up / hanging on to anger.