Sunday, March 26, 2017

Hyperbole: Exaggeration for Effect

I scare easily, as anyone who has startled me in one of my deep in thought moments knows, and I decided ages ago that I wouldn't see any more scary movies. Still, I found myself watching Get Out, a new film billed as both comedy and horror about a young black man at risk when he visits the family home of his white girlfriend. The initial moments of implicit bias, micro-agressions, are both ridiculous and chilling--a compulsory mention of Obama, an insincere compliment for Jesse Owens, a hand on the arm to admire natural strength, then "How do you feel now that Black is in fashion?"

The hostilities grow in scope, enough to make the movie a bloodbath by its conclusion. Chris is the only sympathetic character in the mix, so my grip on the armrest didn't relax until the credits rolled and I knew his future. Still, the fright I felt during the physical struggles didn't compare to the long term discomfort I feel about Chris's psychological turmoil. There may have been resolution to the former conflict--as for the latter? We all know that's a plot that continues to unfold every day.

...and what, one might ask, is scarier than that?

3 comments:

  1. Interesting!

    Did your boys see it? Treat loved it, and I have read that it is a seminal film for this generation.

    I hate scary movies, though!

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    1. You can handle it! The boys didn't go, but I think the older ones would like it.

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  2. Your description is great - I was gripping the sides of the chair as well! It is all so uncertain and scary these days.

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